Crow What?

The Hunt Family just got a little more Shmansy Pantsy.

Our Sunday afternoons now consist of Crokett otherwise known as Croquet.

Don't worry we still have the old beater truck, white trash trailer, attempted garden and horses all in the backyard to set the mood, but it's a step up.

We Think.

And Big Sister brought some true Sophistication to the table with her tissue paper princess cape and proper lessons from Uncle Matt.Right before she got kicked out of the game for her temper flaring while holding a very heavy ball and wooden mallet.

Olympic Plaza Fountains

We went with the Bremser's to the Gateway to let the kids play in The Olympic Plaza Fountains.
I wasn't sure how Sara would do with all the kids and spraying water.
Turns out she couldn't get enough!

Anna, Sara and Jenaka
You can see Ry just right and above Jena in the black shorts.
The one with the super white back and farmer tan arms, yep, that's him.
You can thank the swim shirt for that look. :)
Don't you love Anna and Jena's matching swim suits?
They were part of their dance costumes.
I love costumes you can use later, you actually get your moneys worth.

Oh, That's Cold!
Sara loved how the water 'danced' with the music and she would conduct with her arms.
A pointless video that shows her cute suit and toddler walk and piggy tails and little round belly and well it's not really pointless because she's in it.

Good Morning

Sara's morning routine consists of unrolling toilet paper and emptying tampon boxes.
To her credit, she has learned how to put them all back in the box and put them away.

I didn't notice until I downloaded this picture, but it required lots quite a bit of cropping the daddy out,
who was in the shower, so that we could keep this blog 'G' rated. :)

Car Seat + Ice Cream

Stick shifts and safety belts, bucket seats have all got to go.
When we're driving in the car it makes my baby seam so far.
I need you hear with me, not way over in a bucket seat.

Sorry about that but I just had to put that on my blog some day!

Car Seats and Ice Cream Cones don't go so well together.
They do however make for a very happy baby!

Thankful Thursday

I've decided I don't show enough Gratitude or Thanks for all that I have.
A few months back I bought a Simplicity Journal and it has been so good for me!

So I thought I would take it a step further and start Thankful Thursday's on my blog.
Every Thursday (hopefully) I will share with you all something I am thankful for.

Now don't go expecting mountain moving revelations from me or anything. I have been known to be quite thankful for that which might be called trivial. But then again I could go and shock y'all too. You never do know!

So if you feel so inclined feel free to leave me a comment about what your thankful for or post it on your own blog but leave me a comment so I can come read yours.

THANKFUL THURSDAY

Today I am Thankful for...

The Washer and Dryer.

Since our life seems to be consumed with Ryan's Alarm,
I can't imagine what I would do with out a washer and dryer right now.
I believe you all know how I feel about laundry day.
Well now every day is laundry day!
I wash approximately 4 waterproof mattress pads, 1-2 blankets, 1-2 fitted sheets, 1-2 pillow cases, 4-5 underwear, 1-2 pajama bottoms(because at some point in the night you just stop putting them on him) and 4-5 T-shirts.

What Are You Thankful For?

Artsy Fartsy

We went to the Salt Lake Arts Festival in Library Square today.

I failed to really think this decision through however.

Taking 3 children by your self, 1 of whom is glued to your hip at all times, to a festival with unlimited free arts and crafts to make and take is not such a great idea. Well, technically I was not alone, Mindy Thomas& her 4 children and Allison Dearden & her 3 children were with me too. But obviously they were in the same predicament.

Still it was a good time. The kids enjoyed themselves, no one killed over from heat stroke and Jena made it home alive. I have started considering it a good day if Jena is still alive at the end of it. Enough Said.

Ry playing some type of guitar and wearing his Euro Cup Shirt
straight from Germany that Aunt Teri brought home for him.

Sara trying to push Ryan off of her.
The girls likes her personal space!

Jena, Dear Sweet Jenaka in her 'Mad Hatter' Hat that she made.
She is mad at me for not buying her some ice cream.
Isn't she a darling?

Happy June 26th!

Today is my Dad's Birthday.
My dad is an Amazing Man.

I could go on and on about what a great man, dad, husband, son, grandpa,
hard worker, example, leader and person he is.
But in honor of my Dad I will not, because if you know him you understand that he is a man of few words but the silence in him says everything you need to know.

I Love You Dad!

Today is also Karen's birthday, who I talk about more here.
Happy Birthday Karen!

We Love You!

The Grown Up Chair

See this Little Red Chair?

It cracks me up.

It sits at the end of Ryan's bed.

I keep finding this stack of magazines under the chair. I would put them away only to find them magically appear again.

Frustrated I asked the kids what was up with the magazines.

Ryan explained to me that he wanted it to be like the 'Grown Up's' chair in the family room. "You guys always have magazines next to your chair so I wanted some next to mine."

I smiled and asked him if he reads them.

He gave me a confused look and said, "No, they're just full of boring stuff."

I Love that little Man.

Is it tomorrow yet?

Do you ever decide you need something only to discover that no one on planet earth sells that something?

I spent most of the day yesterday in search of a specific type of mattress pad cover for Ryan's bed. It is the type that lays over his fitted sheet and is waterproof so when he has an accident we aren't changing sheets-all night long.

I know they exist. You can get them online in about a 100 stores.

I just don't have the patience for online ordering. By the time I decide I want something, I want it now. But with all the money I've spent on gas and driving around I could have had them shipped overnight!

I filled up my car yesterday for the first time in 4 weeks and I about had a Coronary when the total stopped in the $90 range!

You'll be happy to know that I did finally find them. At Rite Aid, a store I never think to go in. In fact, in the 2 times I've been there, I've been the only one there. Who shops there anyway?

By the time we arrived at Rite Aid my children were boarding on Clinical Psychosis and I was considering checking myself in at the State Mental Hospital.

See we haven't been getting much sleep around here since we started the Bed Wetting Alarm System. Therefore the virtue of patience is running a little low lately.

Ryan generally has about 4-5 accidents a night. I can not figure out how the boy produces so much urine! And each accident takes about 15 minutes between waking him up, changing him and his sheets. The alarm also wakes up everyone in the house but Jena.

Note to self- Never count on Jena waking up in a fire, earthquake or any other disaster situation.

So here is the culprit of all of our sleeplessness-
The little blue box is about 2"x2" and you attach it to his shoulder with a safety pin (which has a locking cover so it won't poke him), then the cord runs down the inside of his shirt and the little sensor clips to the outside of his underwear. I worried that it would drive him nuts but he really hasn't complained.

I'm really proud of him. He's been a real trooper. He desperately wants to stop wetting the bed but the whole process is so emotionally draining and embarrassing and exhausting! I should know, I've been through it.

We just keep telling ourselves and him that is will be worth it to start the first grade with totally dry nights!

Hope y'all are getting more sleep then our family!

A Day in the Life of the Hansen Children

Our new favorite park is Freedom Hills Park.
I love that it is right up on the mountain. It has such a great view, a nice walking path, a great playground with that awesome new spongy sports court type ground cover, clean places to sit, drinking fountains that work and bathrooms that are not only open but clean too!

This is a photo journal of why it is close to impossible
to get a picture of Ryan these days.
You have to have super human powers to keep up with him.

He wanted me to take this one of him in the air so bad.
We had to try several jumps before getting the perfect shot.
Don't you love the holy jeans?
It drives my parents crazy that I let him where these jeans.
Actually he has about 3 pair like this.
I think my mom is crazy if she thinks I'm buying him new jeans
just so he can put holes in them before the summer's over!

Did you know that going down the slide...
and then back up the slide never gets old?
100+ times and it's still not old!
Life as a kid is so simple.

This is my kiddos with Melissa's oldest 2, Preston and Anna.
Ry and Preston are 1 day apart and Anna and Jena are about 3 weeks apart and we did not plan that but it makes it fun.
We did try to have Cloe and Sara together but Sara took her sweet time getting here so they are 8 months apart.
Cloe was here too but she was not really interested in my taking her picture
and Sara was home with Granny napping.

This is Anna.
I just thought it was such a great picture of her.
Plus the girls got style in that hat!
Now, I already know I'm in trouble for this one! :)
Do you see that finger shaking going on at me?
I was given explicit instructions not to post this on my blog!
I didn't listen.
By the way, this is one of my closest friends, Melissa.
Doesn't she look so great!
I have pictures with her head included but I thought that might send her over the edge and the finger is just so funny!
Seriously, I love pregnant women. Every time I see one I want to be pregnant.
I love being pregnant. Ya there is the big fat and miserable thing, but having that little baby inside of you is just so amazing! Plus I have pretty easy pregnancies so I can't really complain.
I do however.
Complain that is.
Melissa is due next week and you know how that goes,
next week can't get here soon enough!
She tried to get me to have another one with her too but
I wasn't so on board with that plan this time around.
Later this same day...
We have Jena in outfit number 5 for the day (at least!) and a new hairdo!
I'll bet you weren't aware that hours of fun can come from Grandpa's cowboy hat.
I have a theory that if we never bought our children toys then they would find there own and have just as much fun, maybe
even more and they would surely be more creative.
I don't follow the theory, it's peer pressure or non-stop whining while in Target or something like that.
She is such a little diva.
More and more like Tori every day!
I will be so happy if she turns out like you Tori!
(No mother could be happier than having their daughter turn out like Tori. Trust me, she is top of the line.)
But honestly, the thought of Jena's teenage years totally freaks me out!
These are the toes of one Jenaka Mae.
It is a rare event indeed to see them covered with footwear.
If she is forced to wear shoes of some kind, she will remove them in the car, remove them in the shopping cart, in the restaurant, at church, at school, across a burning hot blacktop parking lot, in dance class, at the park and
well I'm sure you get the picture.
I can not scrub, file or exfoliate them enough to get the
black off the bottom of her feet!
And don't let her fool you into thinking she has no shoes.
She may not be able to find any of her shoes because she has left them anywhere and everywhere but the girl has more than plenty of shoes.
Her mother has a bit of a shoe buying problem.

This picture is just so Jena.
The Jena I love.
Not the ornery, sassy, cranky Jena that has frequented our house lately.
She is just so funny!
She is constantly making someone laugh and her laugh is so hilarious!
Do you see the bow on top of her head?
How can you miss it, right?
She does this on purpose.
After I have done her hair she will get some crazy bow that does not match and put it in the craziest location she can.
She knows it drives me crazy.
She comes and shows me just to see me squirm.
And then she cracks up and runs off.
I usually find it attached to Sara's head a little while later.
Also notice her flared nostrils.
This is a special talent of hers.
She started doing it to people at about 18 months.
You would be talking to her and you would suddenly realize she is staring right at you and flaring her nostrils out and in nonstop.
When you finally noticed she would crack up
like she had just pulled the funniest joke.
This blue eyed, red lipped, chubby cheeked girl has everyone in the house wrapped around her finger.
Not that you can blame us, how can you resist that adorable little face.
I love how this pictures shows her skinny little neck.
All of my kids have the skinniest necks but you never see them because there round little heads and cheeks usually cover them up.
It's such a random thing to love about my kids but if you ask them they will tell you I kiss their necks all the time.
Drives 'em nuts!
I also love that I can put Sara's hair in little pony tails now.
Not that it looks all that great after a nap however.

This look is So Sara! She can get those eyebrows so low.
I find it both adorable and funny.
Sara does not like that I find it funny.
That is when her eyebrows get lower.
She gives this look to her brother and sister. A LOT. Enough Said.

Sara has also learned how to kiss recently.
This is her pucker face.
Unfortunately it does not stay this way when she gets to your face.
That is when she opens her mouth wide and gives you the tongue.
And she thinks that is very, very funny.

I Feel So Loved!

*Warning* This is super long!

So I've been slackin' on the ole' blog and I have received several emails, comments and texts from you all about why and what am I doing. So I'm feeling so loved. Glad to know somebody misses me!

But here's the thing, I haven't really been doing anything all that interesting!

My friend Melanie asked me what's up with Barry's job and are we moving and have I had another fake heart attack. So here is a little update to the status of our lives.

Barry has decided to stay at the Davis County Jail for now. Weber County seems to be on a hiring freeze due to budgets and we are just so tired of waiting and being in limbo. Plus after this long, I figure the Man Upstairs might be trying to tell us something. Just a hunch.

He is also still in school and plans to apply to the nursing program this fall and hopefully get into the program Fall '09. The fact that he's a guy seems to be largely in his favor for getting in on the first try and my sister did it on first try so we are hopeful and prayerful!

Barry and I both are currently taking a CNA class together. Barry because it's a pre-req to nursing and me because I hope to get a job at Primary Children's Medical Center. When I was 18 I went to SLCC and finished almost all my pre-req's for the Surgical Tech program and I'm thinking I may want to finish that up. I really love being in surgery. And now days the nurse is just in the background during surgery whereas the Surg Tech is hands on with the Doc, and that is what I want to do.

In the mean time I need to work a few days a week so we can move out of the parents house! My sister works as a CNA, or Tech they call them, at Primary Children's on the Surgical Floor and loves it. According to her boss he will be hiring in July when I'm done with the class and I'm crossing my fingers to get that job. One I want to work with kids and two they pay CNA's way better than anywhere else I've found.

As far as the moving thing, does Hmmmm or Ummmm...explain it well enough for you? Didn't thinks so. It doesn't for us either but that's where we're at...still. We had completely expected to being moving to the North Ogden area but it seems that's not where we are suppose to be. So we started looking around here for a rental house and that is just not feeling right either! We can't afford to buy down here right now unless it's a small townhome and we don't want to do that either.

Then my sister says to me a few weeks ago, Kel why are you moving anyway? And I'm confused now, I say because we have been at Mom and Dads for 15 months and we told them we'd only be here for 1 year. She then says, well if I were you guys I'd just stay here till Barry is done with school.

???WHAT???

And she was serious too! I don't think my parents will like us very much if we stay much longer, we kind of run the house. Well at least the kids do. But hey, I cleaned her carpets today so that counts for something, right?

So here we sit. Me, I'm feeling a bit lost frankly. I feel like I spend more time on my knees pleading with the Lord to point us in the right direction and I'm sure he's attempting to tell me, but I'm apparently just not getting it! I keep thinking that perhaps when I'm done with my CNA class and have a job something will change and we will feel good about it.

Then there is my little heart attack episode. (insert long pause and big sigh here) All test are normal, it hasn't happened since. I do have really low blood pressure which makes me feel like I'm going to pass out all the time but that's not unusual for me. So looking back I've decided it must have been a panick attack. Weird that it was in my sleep and I've never really done that before but looking at all the big decisions we are struggling with lately I suppose it may make sense.

For treatment I have put myself on manditory do nothing therapy. No dance class, no soccer, no t-ball, no swim lessons, nothing. In fact I generally fill up the van with gas every 10 days or so and I have not filled it since school was out 3 1/2 weeks ago. That tells you how much we even leave the house! We have friends over and slip and slide and go to the park and eat home lunches and stay in our PJ's and wash the cars and it is so nice. We are usually the get in the car and go somewhere everyday kind of family. Whether it's just to Target to wander and buy things we don't really need or out to lunch we are always on the go. So now, we go no more.

Jena is such a little stinker right now. Ryan acted the same way right before he started Kindergarten so I'm not surprised but she is sure not my favorite child right now. She challenges everything, disobey's everything, talks back, hit's her brother and sister all while yelling the most mean things she can think of, screams no at me, throws herself on her bed and cries for literally hours and then gets up and starts it all over again. I can't wait to hand her over to the kindergarten teacher to whip her into shape! :)

Actually I'm starting a Good Deeds/Kindness Jar for her. If she does what she is asked or is nice to someone, she gets a bead to put in. If she does her usual she has to take a bead out. When it gets to a certain fill level she will get a reward of some kind. We'll see if it works. I'm sort of skeptical.

Ryan is a house rat! I can not get him to go do anything! He won't call friends or go outside and it's driving me nuts. I'm about to punish him by sending him to a friends house! We have also started using one of those Bed Wetting Alarm Systems with him. It's only been 2 nights, 2 very long nights, and they say it takes about 12 weeks to seek success. So our summer nights will be long and slow but hopefully by 1st grade he will be through with the bed wetting. I had the same problem as a kid so I know what it's like. Only I was dry until Kindergarten and then wet the bed till I was 9, but it was the Alarm that worked for me. My mother is convinced something horribly traumatic happened to me in Kindergarten to cause it, but I don't remember a thing. Ry has never been dry at night but it doesn't make much of a difference in treating the problem. He would also die if he knew I told you all about the alarm so if you see him don't mention it unless he does.

Sara is either tons of fun or a flat out stinker! She is such a typical 15 month old but with a Hansen temper thrown in just for kicks. I have this video of her throwing this big fit because she didn't want me to take a picture of her. I guessing she's been watching big sister a little to close lately. She is finally easier to feed since she has decided to eat. She is quite picky and if it's not grapes she doesn't want it. I think her favorite time of day is eating breakfast with grandpa. If he has left for work by the time we get out there she whines for 'Bompa' all morning and wants to go look for him in his room. It's pretty cute.

Here's Sara right before her fit.
Sorry you get a picture of me and my hormonal face.
My skin is freaking out again.
I think I might have cancer on my nose because I've never had acne like this before.
And let me tell you how much that adds to the happiness in my life!

Here is the video, it's sort of long but you get the idea in the first 15 seconds.
I'm too lazy to make it shorter.

We also went to Lagoon last week. Aunt Michelle took the kids for the day and they had a great time on all the rides. Barry and I went after work and that was plenty of time for me. I always love to go on rides but I get so irratated in crowds of people like that. We had never been on the new ride Wicked and we waiting line for over an hour but I have to say that it was worth it even if it was only 30 seconds long. Overall good time but Disneyland it is not.

Left to Right-Sydney, Jenaka, Ryan, Chris and Michelle.

Barry and I when we first got there.
He always runs into former 'inmates' everywhere we go and
it is so bizzare how they come talk to him and act like they are old buddies.

Just about the only picture anyone was able to get of Ry.
He was finally tall enough to go on the Old White Roller Coaster and he loved it.
Unlike Chris who cried through the whole thing! Poor kid!
Jena and Sydney wanted nothing to do with the 'Big' rides.
They were perfectly happy in Kiddy Land all day.
They also LOVED the performances with the singing and dancing and high school kids.
They could have sat and watched that all day long.
Everywhere they go people always think they are sisters.

Meme's

I really love meme's.

They are so random but you get to learn things you'd never have known about people.

I actually combine 2 so here it goes.

What is the worst meal you ever had? I think this is a tie. Either the time my mom tried the mayonaise chicken recipe from some magazine or when I was about 8 and my Aunt Meme (Merilee but we call her Meme) made me eat canned peas. I will remember that stench all my life! Gag! I think it's the peas.

Name one place you could vacation every year? Disneyland for sure.

5 things that drive you crazy?
-Ok, I've seen several people with this answer and I SO agree. Both my father and husband take out the trash and never put in a new garbage bag. It drives me insain!
-When my children are trying to get my attention and they repeatedly poke me and say Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom, Mom until I can no longer stand it.
-That my husband and son apparently lack the ability to flush the toilet. So gross, I know.
- No matter how far away my mother is from you, if you ask her how long she'll be she will always say 20 minutes. She's knows full well that she is 1 hour away in prime time traffic and she will still say 20 minutes.
- When you are backing out of a parking space and don't see someone and they give you the dirtiest look as if you were trying to hit them on purpose. This happened to me today and the woman was yelling something at me that I couldn't really hear and then flipped me off in front of not only my kids but her 5 year old son too. Nice!

-I'm adding one, just because he is doing it as I typed. My husband stands behind me and corrects my grammer and spelling whenever I blog. It makes me so parinoid I can't hold a thought.

Name 3 people from your past that make you stop and think, “Hey, I wonder what ever happened to…”
- My friend Roy White from Jr High and High School. He got married and we never spoke again.
- This kid from Elementary school Nick Lewis, who was really smart but a little socially awkward and used to hide under his desk most of the day
- Brennen Baldwin from Conneticut that I met at EFY when I was 15 and we wrote to each other for years and then just stopped when we graduated.

Kids TV show you might actually enjoy more than your kids do? Wow, I leave the room when they watch TV. Is that bad parenting?

Worst movie you’ve ever seen? I hardly remember the movies I love. Anything Horror, I don't do scary.

Most under-rated TV show you watch regularly? The Unit

Most popular TV show you never watch? Lost and don't want to.

Celebrity whose looks you’d like to have? I never think about this kind of stuff, umm, I do love Reese Witherspoon.

Celeb you can’t stand? Tom Cruise. Freak. (I copied this because it's just so true.)

What did you do today? Showered, Laundry, got the kids ready, Sara's Dr. Appt., went to Target, more laundry, made some burpies for a baby shower, played with Sara, watched the kids puppet shows, now I'm blogging.

In your entire life, have you ever...

gone on a blind date? Yes

skipped school? Oh Yes

watched someone die? Yes, but I had to leave, I just couldn't do it.

been to Canada? no

been to Mexico? no

been to Florida? No

been on a plane? Yes

been lost? Yes, but rarely

been on the opposite side of the country? Yes

gone to Washington, DC? No, would love to go there

swam in the ocean? Yes, but I totally hate it, the depth freaks me out.

had your booze taken away by the cops? no

lettered in a high school sport? Yeah, right

cried yourself to sleep? Yes

played cops and robbers? Yep

played dolls? Yes, but no Barbies!

recently colored with crayons? Daily

sang Karaoke? does the shower count?

paid for a meal with coins only? Meal No, Pepsi Yes.

done something you told yourself you wouldn't? All the time, including Marrying my hubby.

cheated on an exam? Not that I recall.

made prank phone calls? Oh, Ya, that dates me huh.

laughed until some kind of beverage came out of your nose? Yes and that hurts.

caught a snowflake on your tongue? A million

danced in the rain? Not danced but my sister and I used to sit wrapped in our blankets under the tree when it would rain.

written a letter to Santa Claus? I'm not really sure but I think so.

been kissed under the mistletoe? yes, but no great kisses.

watched the sunrise with someone you care about? Yes

been arrested? Never

blown bubbles? More than I would like to.

gone ice-skating? Yes, but I don't enjoy it.

been skinny dipping outdoors? Only once.

had a nickname? Missi, Missiklee, Klee, Salli

been to Africa? No

eaten cookies for dinner? Yes, but it was probably cookie dough.

been on TV? No but does the Newspaper count? Front Page, 4th row at the Jazz playoffs in like 1993.

stolen any traffic signs? Lots actually, Thanks Lindsey!

been in a car accident? Yes, but nothing serious

What is your...

mother's name? Sandi

favorite drink? Pepsi

birthplace? Utah

favorite vacation spot? Disneyland

favorite salad dressing? ranch

favorite pie? Lemon Cream Cheese

favorite number? 6

favorite movie? Sabrina

favorite holiday? Halloween

favorite food? Spinich and super spicy chicken wings

favorite day of the week? Friday

favorite brand of body wash? Caress-Tahitian Renewal. You gotta try it!

favorite toothpaste? Crest Sensitive

favorite smell? Scentsy's Home Sweet Home or Bath and Body Works Fresh Linen

Do you have any...

tattoos? Heck no, totally don't understand tattoo's.

body piercings? Twice in the ears but I never wear them and I used to have the belly button pierced but pregnancy ruined that.

Do you drive a 2-door or 4-door vehicle? 4 door mini-van

What do you do to relax? Blog, read, play softball, play the wii

How do you see yourself in 10 years? Wow, lets see the oldest will be a high school Senior! Hopefully feeling a lot more settled with life than I do right now. And hopefully Barry will be done with school!

Oh that smell

Don't you just love the smell of babies.

Not the Johnson and Johnson lotion smell, even though that's good too.

The real smell.

The kiss their cheeks and you never want to let go kind of smell.

I think it's what causes some mothers to say, ooh I could just eat you up, even though I think that is a very weird thing to say.

Sara is so sick of me this morning.

I can't stop kissing her and inhaling how great she smells.

That's what she gets for being so darn cute.

Help Wanted

If someone could just come over to my house and shoot me I would really appreciate it. I think I would rather die than be this sick! Now I feel even more bad for Sara even though she's over it now.

Big Fat Liar

Ok, so I lied.

But, I have exciting news.

You know when your trying to loose weight (ok, I know that's all the time, but pretend it's not) and you reach that plateau and you just can't get over it?

Well I just stepped on the scales and I am one happy girl! I'm down to a number that I haven't been since Jena was born 5 years ago!

Plus I'm fully clothed and it's night time.

You all know you weigh less in the morning.

Un-Clothed.

Tomorrow morning should be good, oh so good.

I'm stopping, I swear!

I'm on sort of a posting marathon.

This is the last one, I promise.

But would you take a look at my profile...

Go ahead, I'll wait.

Are you done?

Ok, so did you see it?

I changed Barry's age to 28! I know, he's been 28 since March, I just forgot to change it.

So now we are only 1 year apart.

That is until October.

Then I have to put the big 30 next to my name.

Hmmm.

I might just have to forget to do that.

Lindsey and Seth

One of my oldest friends Lindsey and her husband Seth are trying to adopt.
My heart aches for them. I can't imagine what it's like being unable to have your own child.
I know the Lord knows their struggles and blesses them each day. They are such wonderful people.

Lindsey is simply the best kind of person. I could go on and on about how wonderful she is but that is the most simple way I know how to say it. We grew up together and she is a jewel. You know how girls are and at one time or another you hear something bad about pretty much everyone you know. Honestly, I've never heard one bad thing said about Lindsey in all my life. All the way back to Kindergarten! It's simply the opposite. Everyone loves this girl.

So they say the best way to be chosen as parents is to tell everyone. So I'm sharing them with all of you. You can read their profile here.

Lindsey and Seth

I Love you guys!

Dear Steve Jobs

Dearest Steve,

Let it be said, you are brilliant. Really, you are.
Even still, I still have a bit of a problem.
See I purchased your oh so lovely iphone a few months back.
I tried to have patience and wait till the price was reasonable.
But alas my old phone could go on no longer and it's days where over.
So you see, I was forced into a pre-mature purchase.
I knew better, I really did.
Whats a girl to do?

And then you did it. I knew you would.
You always have to make it bigger and better and cheaper.
But really, HALF the price!
Was that really neccessary?
I just screams to all your loyal customers 'Sucker!'
Oh sure, everyone else loves you.
I don't.
I want my $200 bucks back.
Or a new iphone would do.

We could be friends again you know.
It wouldn't take much.
You know how to reach me.

With regret,

Buyers Remorse
(Formerly known as Kelli)

Load of Wash Number 20 and Counting

Little Sara has been so sick. It's really a first for her, she has been my healthiest baby.

It is so unusual to hear her crying at 9pm and then you walk in to find her covered in, um, her dinner. Poor girl! Needless to say, we had a pretty sleepless night and I don't think my washer and dryer have stopped running since 9pm last night. I'm out of sheets, towels, blankets and carpet cleaner. You all know how much I love to do laundry, all night long.

Thankfully she seems to be feeling better and I'm looking forward to some sleep tonight.

I just can't believe how sweet she has been through the whole thing. She whimpers, tosses her cookies, looks at you with these confused, tired little eyes and then just lays on your shoulder or sits there while you clean her off.

But as you can see, the girl must look good even while sick.
She insisted on having this necklace on right after her bath this morning.

You can also see by her knees, that she has discovered pavement.
She's not a big fan.

Over the last 24 hours I also learned something. After you've been barfed on so many times that you loose count (my last count was 8) you stop gagging while cleaning it up and washing the sheets and combing it out of your hair. Just a bit of insider info for you.

And apparently over the last 29 years I haven't learned something. Using sunscreen. I slather my kids in it. Every hour almost, so much that they whine, Not Again! But do I ever put it on myself? No. My back is a nice toasty red right now.

This is Sara's 'What are you lookin at' look. It's the one she wears all through the grocery store and those eyebrows get even deeper when strangers try to talk to her.
She refuses to get in the 6" deep kiddy pool but thinks it's hilarious when the kids spray her down with the ice cold hose. Go Figure.
Don't you just love chubby babies in swim suits?

This was the end of our Family Night festivities.
Barry gave a lesson on Temples and Families being together forever.
I'm not sure how much they heard of anything with all the rolling on the floor and Sara distractions.
I'm sure Jena remembers the memory card game because it's her favorite.
But I'm also sure that they will remember how at the end Barry took each child and told them how special they were and how happy he was that they were in our family. It was really sweet and they loved the individual attention.
He is such a great dad.
Then it turned into a big 'dad dog pile.'
And what could be better than that?

Welcome

I just felt the need to welcome my sister Teri to the blogging world. Not sure that we will hear much from her for a bit because she just left for Europe with my BFF (I just had to use that because I never do and I think it's funny when others do) Tori and they won't be back for a few weeks. But she started off like usual, being all inspirational.

Teri has always seemed to 'get it' spiritually. She gets the 'Big Picture.' Me, I'm still workin' on it. She is such a wise sole. She is also so thoughtful and kind to everyone. She is one of those people who takes the time to let you know you are loved.

I also have a sister-in-law Karen who is very much like Teri. I wasn't sure I was going to like her at first. Not that you can blame me, she was smart, kind, gracious and Skinny. Hated her! Kidding Karen, you know I love your guts! I actually wouldn't really call Karen a sister-in-law, she is a sister to me. She just makes me look bad cause she's so darn perfect!

Anyway, Teri and Karen are both so good at showing gratitude. They are the kind of people who send cards and letters and Thank You notes to everyone for every little thing. They make you feel thought of and loved and appreciated and worth while. I wish I was better at this.

Girls, You Rock!

The Big Picture

Do any of you start dreading Sunday by Saturday afternoon? I do. Not such a great attitude for what should be a spiritual filled day of faith and learning and renewal, I know. But I think if you have kids you probably know what I'm talking about.

Also, this is one the big reasons I don't want any more girls! Two little heads of hair is enough for me, the Lord knows I can't just let them go to church looking all shaggy, it's just against my laws of public appearance and I certainly can't take doing any more hair.

Any way, (Wow, I almost just typed 'any-who'! I hate, hate, hate when people say that!) Sunday's for me start out with the fact that I often stayed up too late on Saturday night. And generally everyone needs a shower because I forgot to do that last night too. Then it's a fight with Jena over what she will where to church that day. Generally it's all about the shoes. She has like 10 pairs and she puts on every pair except the ones that match. I swears she knows and just does it to see me unravel.

Next is the fact that Ryan can dress himself perfectly on his own every other day of the week but Sunday. He needs help buttoning his pants, his shirt, his clip on tie, he can't put on his socks or his shoes. Essentially he becomes a 1 year old on Sunday mornings.

Sara of course is the same old, same old but lately her little hand has become attached to my leg and by darned if I can get anything done in a timely manner with a 3rd appendage on my lower half. Add in the fact that she feels the need to scream at everyone lately and I feel like my head is going to spin off my body.

The screaming thing has me thinking too. When Ry and Jena were little I was a bit of a yeller. Looking back now I'm sure I had some Post-Pardom Depression issues, but working full time with 2 kids under 20 months I was just coping. Anyway, I always thought Ry and Jena became yellers because they of course learned it from me. Now with a bit of counseling under my belt I was able to recognize that after Sara was born I was quickly loosing control by the day and I was not about to become the screaming lunatic I was a few years back. Thankfully the Anti-depressant my OB/GYN put me on has been so great with pretty much no bad side effects. The point being, I'm not a yeller anymore. Don't get me wrong I have my moments and my days, but sometimes I'm so darn calm I surprise myself. That said, where did Sara get this yelling/screaming thing from? So maybe they all just came with it? All 3 kids, that's their personality? All of them have such a temper! This is so off the subject of which I intended, sorry.

So, Sunday's right. You might be asking, Where is the significant other during all of this morning rush for 9am church? Well, generally he's in bed or in the shower. See he doesn't really function before he showers and he showers for seriously like 20 minutes. It's sort of ridiculous. But after 8 years, I know that there is no changing it. So in the unlikely event that he is up and showered before me on Sunday morning, I'm pretty much on my own.

Add to Sunday the fact that Sara takes her screaming to church with her and I'm to the point where I wonder why I even go. We spend most of Sacrament meeting in the foyer so she isn't hyping up the other 2 kiddos. And the next 2 hours of Sunday School I spend trying to keep her out of other ladies purses and out from under everyones chairs or I'm chasing her to the front of the room while she giggles hysterically. And so we spend most of the next 2 hours in the hall. Barry teaches the 5-6 year olds so he's no help there. But I have to say, I'm glad I'm not teaching the 5-6 year olds!

So here is my sad but true confession. Sara and I come home after the 1st hour. I put Sara down for her nap and I play Mario Galaxy on the Wii. Yup, the Nintendo is providing my weekly spiritual enlightenment. I know I should be reading my scriptures or something, anything else, but my frustration from not being able to stay at church brings out a bit of a stubborn streak in me and so I play the Wii. And drink lots of Pepsi. Then I go take a nap with Sara. By the time I wake up I'm in a better mood but it's got to change people.

Unfortunately, I'm a person who easily looses sight of the big picture. I find myself just going from day to day just trying to get through. I'm focused on the kids, Barry's school, the fact that I've got to go back to work soon, the laundry, dinner, whatever. But not enough about the Gospel. I've let family prayers slack, scripture study is not happening as often as it should, Family Home Evening is not even a thought in the week.

So here is to re-evaluating, re-focusing, and re-commitmenting to keep myself and my family on track and focused on the big picture and what really matters in life!

Wish me luck!

let summer begin

this little one loves ice cream.

if you try to take her cone she will crush it before she lets go.
hands off!
she will share a little if you want a kiss though
i bought a slip and slide.
sorry dad, there goes the lawn.
the kiddos are in heaven.
except that it won't stop raining now.
she didn't want to get her hair wet.

but the she changed her mind.
couldn't let the boys show her up.

he had a little directional control issues.
couldn't seem to stay on the slide.
This is random, but it's for my sister-in-law Karen.
this my brother Bart, he's...full of it.
Is it any wonder where Allie gets it from?
Look at her and Bart. Too Funny!
Plus, look at you and Spencer.
Then...look at Matt...I think he's drawn to the dark side!

you know what happens when your husband takes over your ipod and fills it with star wars music? you steal your sons shuffle to go walking in the morning only to discover that it is full of cartoon kid music and more star wars.
The next thing you know you are saying stuff like 'the dark side' and getting excited with your husband about a new star wars wii game that will be like real light saber fighting.
I gotta get out more!

and your saying, wait you have an iphone, why don't you use that?
can't find the adapter for the headphones.
sadly Apples 1 flaw to the iphone.