Now it looks like Christmas is coming!

So it snowed for the most part of the day, which means that everything is covered in a blanket of white. For awhile it was coming down pretty hard, but now it's stopped. The wind is still blowing, though, so I'm going to stay under my warm blanket, thank you.

Ryan had another basketball game, and even though I took some painkillers, I ended up not going. But, I did have Scott take the video camera and record most of the game, so I could see my baby in action. He's improving, but I'm sure with all the practice he's been putting in, he'll get to where he wants to be.

He also had two birthday parties to attend today. The first was right after his basketball game, and he's at the second one right now. Boy is popular, lol.

The rest of the munchkins have alternated between destroying the family room and going outside to play in the snow. These kids are so their daddy's kiddos: the could stay outside in the snow if I let them. In fact, when I finally got them to come in, their faces were red and their noses frozen.

So hopefully more snow will head this way, because if this snowfall melts, then we won't have any for Christmas. Which is what I want. And, I'm pretty sure the kids do, too.

Movers & Shakers

Ryan had his first Jr. Jazz game today and his team won...or so I'm told. I didn't get much sleep last night and I'm still sore, so I didn't go. I'm hoping I'll be feeling better for next week's game, though. Ryan was really excited, as he's a total sports fanatic at this point. His coach is his good friend's dad, who also happens to be a sports fanatic, lol. So far, with practice and this game, Ryan is really is enthusiastic about this.

Jeff is adapting well to having a cast, although I suspect his leg itches like crazy, which causes him to be grumpy. He also doesn't sleep well at night, but for the most part, he seems to be doing okay. The cast stops right below his knee, so he can move more than when he had the temp splint (which went up to his thigh). He still won't walk on it (which is expected, I think), but has mastered crawling with it. He's really fast, lol.

Vanessa is getting over a cold. She was really disappointed on Thursday when we told her she was too sick to go to preschool, but since all she has now is a stuffy nose, she's excited to go back on Thursday. She's learning alot and having fun, so I''m glad.

As for Ethan, he's just anticipating Christmas. I love seeing his eyes light up with excitement when he looks at the advent calendar to see how many more days are left. He's also waiting to put the star tree topper on the tree, but as we don't have a tall enough ladder, it'll have to wait. Poor guy asks everyday, "Can I put the star on now, Mom?" I'll have to get on that, lol.

Christmas is coming!

Ouch!

I know it’s been awhile since my last post, and I’ve been meaning to update, but this isn’t exactly the kind of update I had in mind, lol!

On Monday afternoon, I fell down the stairs while carrying Jeff. I don’t know what exactly happened or why, but my foot slipped on the stair, and as a result, I dislocated my right shoulder, badly bruised my tailbone, and Jeff has a hairline fracture in his lower left leg (I was carrying him on my hip, so when I slipped, I landed on his foot! Bad mommy!). The cast for his leg goes on today, so that should be fun. Not.

Scott managed to get his boss’ approval to stay home for the rest of the week, while I heal. I’m hoping that with the painkillers, icing and heating my injuries, and bedrest, I’ll be able to take care of the kids next week and Scott can return to work. Hoping, anyway.

I'll post some pictures of Jeff and his cast later.

What did you say?

Some new "gems" from my kids:

Vanessa, after breaking one of Tutu's ceramic cow figurines when she threw a ball that she wasn't supposed to: "I am so sorry!" Said with dramatic flair, lol!

Ethan, after asking for a cookie, but not saying "please", and being prompted to use it: "I'm tired of the magic word!"

Jeff, after trying to bite Daddy's leg, and being asked if he thinks it's funny: "Yeah!" Said with a huge grin and a laugh.

My kids are weird, in case you didn't know, lol.

Halloween Pictures

Ryan dressed as Captain Rex (blue) and Ethan was Commander Cody (yellow) from Star Wars Clone Wars. Here they are going over their "loot."

Vanessa as Belle with her absolute favorite cousin Sydney.
Oh, and Jeff there was a very cute Yoda.

He actually left the ears on for the entire time!

Figuring the trick-or-treating thing.

Pumpkin Patch pictures

Here's some pics of our visit to the pumpkin patch and decorating the pumpkins afterwards.

Really, it's okay

I'm trying really hard to convince the kids that I'm not abandoning them, lol. I just found out today that I got a part-time job at JoAnn Crafts, working the late afternoon to closing shift. We planned it that way so Scott will be home when I go to work, just so we won't have to worry about baby-sitters and child care. So by the time I get home from work, the kids SHOULD be sleeping. Notice the emphasis on "should", lol.

The kids are somewhat freaking out because I've basically always been there 24/7. It'll be an adjustment for everyone, but hopefully it won't last too long. I'm sure once they get used to it, they'll love the "alone time" with Daddy.

I have orientation on Sunday, from 4pm-7pm. I'm guessing we'll be learning what we need to know, plus our hours, salary, etc. Kind of exciting. They have a dress code, so I went out and bought some clothes. We'll see how long this excitement lasts after I start, and have to drive during the winter.

Also, tonight we went to the pumpkin patch to get our pumpkins for Halloween. It was kind of dark by the time we got there, but I did manage to get some good pictures of the kids choosing their pumpkins. Jeff had this look on his face like, "What are we doing exactly?" It was hilarious.

We came home and decorated them with these stick on faces (no messy carving or sharp knives yet), then arramged them out on our front porch. I'll post the picture later.

My kids don't know how to stop talking, lol!

On Friday night, the kids went over to have their usual sleepover at my parents' house. Jeff stayed over, too, since my dad was taking him along to get his hair cut. So Scott and I decided to go out and eat (Tsunami, yum!). While we're there, my dad calls, saying that Vanessa wants to come home. So we finish dinner and go over to pick her up. When asked why she didn't want to stay over, she replied, "Because I miss you, mama. And, I'm your sweetie!" We chuckled, then took her home.

The next morning, Scott asked her again why she didn't want to sleep over, and she answered, quite dramatically, "If I stayed there, I would die!" LOL, don't know where she got that from, but it cracked us up.

Also that day, before we left, I had to run home to get some diapers and milk for Jeff since he was sleeping over. So, I'm heading out the door, but turn back and say, "See you later, suckas!" Which cracked Ryan up. It's our little joke that Ryan came up with all by himself.

And, if you think Ethan never says anything funny, then you're wrong, lol. He says funny stuff all the time, but the list is too long.

Sarcastic 8 yr old

Just found out about this little gem from my sister:

Ryan went with my brother to pick up my sister from work. On the way home, Ryan announces that there's 27 more days until Halloween. My sister, thinking it's still September, tells him that there's more days than that. Seconds later, she realizes Ryan is correct. And what does Ryan say to that?

"Learn how to use math!"

It cracked my brother and sister up. Where does he learn this stuff?

A funny thing Vanessa did yesterday

We were over at my parents' house, watching General Conference, when she came out of the bathroom, went right up to Ethan and said, "I'm clean, Ethan! Smell me!" And raised her arm and offered her armpit for her brother to smell. We all just about died laughing!

Act your age!

My sister jokingly said this to Jeff one day when he was crying. Her actual words were, "Hey! You're a year old now, not a baby! Act your age!" Strictly joking, of course. But, for the last few days, I've felt like telling him that, lol. I don't know if he's teething or experiencing separation anxiety, but it's exhausting! Jeff no longer sleeps peacefully thru the night; he'll wake up crying in the middle of the night and sometimes it'll take awhile for him to settle down and go back to sleep.

During the day he'll freak over the smallest things and cry at the drop of a hat. I've felt his gums, given him extra cuddle time, but nothing's changed. It's driving me crazy!

I thought I was supposed to start getting more sleeping after he turned one? LOL

And, we're off!

The boys are off-track starting today and it's not been too bad. This morning consisted mainly of, "What are we doing today, Mom?" Or "Can we go shopping?" Or "What are we going to do now?" All before 9am, thank you. I finally got them content by watching some SpongeBob Squarepants down in the family room, where all the toys are. So now the family room has been ransacked, but I don't mind.

The Steelers are playing against the Ravens tonight, so since we cancelled our satellite dish service, we're over at my parents' house waiting for the game to start. Ryan has become such a football fanatic, it's quite amusing. He needs something to occupy himself, since his flag football season is now over. He's now waiting for Jr. Jazz basketball to start up.

Jeffrey is rather a grump today. Last night he had a fever and didn't sleep well, and neither did I. The fever broke this morning, but he's still rather clingy and whiny. Constant crying and freaking out, and I've had to carry him around for most of the day. Very exhausting for both of us. He's doing a bit better now that he's with his Papa and Tutu, so some relief there.

The weather is still nice. Not too hot, not too cold. I'm just hopig it doesn't drastically cool down next week.

Done and done!

We had Jeff's birthday luau today...so exhausting! The prep that went into it, not the actual luau itself. The turnout was pretty good, although there were several people whom I wanted to see that didn't show. Saturdays are busy days, so I can't complain. We still had fun.

So now, Jeff is a one-year old. Where did the time go? I can't believe it. Well, if you go by how exhausted I feel, then yeah, I can, lol. Jeff didn't know what was going on, but it didn't faze him. As long as he had food in his mouth and room to run around, he was quite the happy little boy.

I'll write more later, but right now, I just want to go to sleep!

Is the weekend here yet?

'Cause I'm ready to drop dead. Scott had to go out of town this week for business, so I've been home with the kids by myself. Well, not really by myself as my dad has slept over at our house a few times and last night we slept over at their house, but, well you know. I'm exhausted and ready for my husband to come home so I can run away. I mean, get some rest. Yeah.

Ryan has been busy with flag football and Cub Scouts, plus his friends. He's been doing really well in flag football and seems to enjoy it. He really likes his coach and is hoping to be on his team again in the spring. Cub Scouts has taken a backseat to everything for the time being, but we still make an effort to try and accomplish some things. And school...well, he's doing well for the most part, but this month's book report fell to the wayside, so he's sort of scrambling to get it done before tomorrow. I'm sure he'll do better with the next book report. Hopefully.

Ethan is...well, Ethan. He's still having some struggles with schoolwork, but for the most part, he's doing good. He has some really good resource and speech teachers, as well as his regular teacher, so they all have high hopes for improvement. He can't wait for Halloween and is counting down the days until he can wear his new Clone Trooper costume. Yes, I've already got the kids' Halloween costumes; I had the money at the time, so why not get a jump start?

Vanessa is enjoying preschool. I'll find her singing songs that she's learned or she'll tell me what sound a certain letter of the alphabet makes. So I know she's at least learning a little, lol. She's been sliding back on her potty success, though, which really only frustrates me, rather than worries me. Mainly because it seems like I've been spending the entire day changing diapers and soiled underwear. Hopefully, this too shall pass.

And, Jeff? Well, he continues to grow. He seems to be getting heavier and taller everyday, which is bad news for my arms and back. He's taken to running now and is pretty good at it. Well, most of the time. He still runs into the walls or trips over things, but he's getting better. And, h's saying alot more words now, which means Vanessa has to talk over him to be heard, lol. His birthday luau is next week, but he doesn't know that. As long as he's running away from Mommy and has a snack in his fist, he's happy.

It's so quiet!

It's really kind of...unsettling the way there's no noise in the house at the moment. Yes, I know I should be grateful that Jeff's taking a nap and that Vanessa is at preschool, and I am. Really. But, I'm just so used to having noises echoing in the house, so this is...weird.

The weather is really cooling down now, which is good, I guess. The kids, however, are refusing to believe that summer is coming to an end, and ask if we can go swimming at the pool. Everyday afterschool. Um, how about no? Granted the pool is heated, but when you get out, and the wind is blowing? Uh, no thank you. Of course, cold doesn't bother my kids. But, I don't want my neighbors thinking I'm a mom to a bunch of, cold and shivering Smurfs, lol.

The kids go off track from school in just a few weeks, which I think they're looking forward to. I think. I really don't know, considering they flip flop on their opinions of school on a daily basis. At least most of their neighborhood friends are on the same track, so they can drive everyone insane at the same time.

Ryan started his flag football season on Saturday with their first game. They won, but to hear Ryan and his best friend tell it, it was an intense Superbowl-like game, lol. They are just that darn good, lol. Ryan did really well. He scored two touchdowns and he's a pro at grabbing the opposing team's flags. Other than those two aspects, don't ask me anything else about the sport because I'm clueless. I may have been a cheerleader in high school, but it doesn't mean I knew what was going on, lol!

Preschool? It started already?!

The morning started off quiet enough: the kids woke up, ate breakfast, then Ryan and Ethan got ready for school. When they left for the bus stop, I took Vanessa and Jeff downstairs to the family room so they could destroy it like they usually do. We were just getting into a second episode of SpongeBob Squarepants when the phone rang.

Guess who.

It was Vanessa's preschool teacher, asking if she was attending today. In my mind, I'm going, "Wha-?" but on the phone I apologize to the teacher, telling her that I hadn't realized preschool had started (first day was Tuesday) and that we'd be right over.

Now, in my defense, I've been waiting for the teacher to send out info or even a phone call to tell me when school started. She's in my parents' ward at church, so I thought if she didn't get ahold of me, she'd tell them. Nope. So, no info, still waiting. Until today.

Not a big deal. Vanessa was more than excited to be able to go today. She'll be done at 11:30 am and then we'll head over to Papa and Tutu's restaurant so she can regale them with the exciting day she's had, lol.

For his part, Jeff looked really confused when he realized it was just me and him in the house. Then, I guess it tired him out thinking about it, so he went down for a nap, lol.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are going be great, I think. ;-)

I lost track!

Of the last time I updated this blog, that is. At least it's only five days with this one; over at my LJ it's been about two weeks, lol. I'm such a slacker!

Sunday was Ethan's birthday; he turned 7 yrs. old. So cute to see how excited he was. He got some great presents from the family (mainly Lego Star Wars sets), and even got some money to spend. I had to take the money for safekeeping as Ryan had just about convinced Ethan to buy something that he (Ryan) wanted, lol. Big brothers are funny.

Weather-wise, summer is winding down here. The weather has been turning cooler, but that hasn't stopped the kids from wanting to play outside until dark.

Other than that, our days are just filled mostly with school stuff. Exciting, huh?

Things Vanessa has said and/or done this week...

Vanessa is becoming increasingly weirder everyday. Not that I mind or think it's bad. It's actually very hilarious and brings lots of laughter into our house (or wherever we may be). So here's the list for the past week:

1. Put a small basket over her head and ran around the house yelling, "I'm a ghost! I'm a ghost!"

2. Woke up later than usual one morning, discovered Scott and the boys had already left for the day and exclaimed, "Why is everybody leaving me?!"

3. Tried to sing-along to the Care Bears theme song while watching the DVD, but made up her own words when she couldn't get the words right. Something about a dog, a tutu and burnt popcorn, lol!

4. Reminding me of the time we got caught at McDonalds during a hail storm, by asking, "Remember the ice cubes at McDonalds, Mommy?"

5. When told to get ready for the day, she took off her pajamas and promptly put on a clean pair because "They're really nice! And, I'm a princess!"

6. Tried to share her ice cream sundae with Jeff and proceeded to get it all over him, including in his hair, down his shirt and up his nose. Later, I also found some in his ear!

7. Stopping whatever she was doing to strike a pose, then exclaim, "Take a picture, Mommy!" She did this throughout the course of one day, never mind that the camera is broken, and I've told her numerous times, lol!

8. Everytime we would go somewhere and open the garage door, she would tell me, "Remember, Mommy. I'm not supposed to hold onto the garage door, alright?"

9. Showing me her underwear so I would know she was a Big Girl who went to the potty and not a baby. Luckily, we were home during all the times she decided to do this, lol!

10. Rolled Jeff up partway in the rug and claimed, "He told me to do it!" Meanwhile, Jeff is giggling his head off and smiling at her.

Well, that's just the top ten. There were many other things, but I don't want you to get the idea that my daughter's mental, lol!

It was pouring here!

Well, not literally. I'm just being dramatic. Monday was not a good day. First off, the water line for our refridgerator broke or came loose. How do I know? By the cascading waterfall that came pouring out of the water dispenser and down the shelves when I opened the freezer door. Panicked, so I called Scott at work, who told me to turn the water line off. This, however, means I have to pull the big, black appliance away from the wall, crawl into the space between the wall and said appliance, and turn the dusty knob.

Once that was accomplished, I cringed at the dusty, dirty mess now in plain sight. Not good, considering Jeff wanted to play in it and the water puddle on the floor. So I called up my sister, begged her to watch Vanessa and Jeff for an hour or to while I cleaned up the mess. For now, we're without a water dispenser and ice maker until we can either get it repaired or save up for a new refridgerator.

Second, Scott and I discovered the spring for the garage door was broken, right before we went to bed. I was in the bedroom, listening to the garage door being opened and closed. Curious, I went out to the garage and found Scott staring exasperatedly at the garage door. Upon closer inspection, we found the spring really messed up, as well as some of the wheels in the track were ready to pop off. We think it's because the kids like to hang onto the door as it opens, lifting them up into the air. Something we've told them countless times not to do. But, we're just parents, so what do we know, right?

Anyway, we got the garage door repaired yesterday, which was a big sigh of relief. We had to leave the garage door open during the night, which made me nervous. I fully expected the kids' bikes and the lawnmower to be gone the next morning. But, they weren't. Everything was still there; I guess parking our cars to block off the opening really worked.

So, that's what's been happening so far. And today is only Wednesday.

I plead temporary insanity!

Yesterday I was out of my mind and managed to drag Scott along with me, lol. We took Ryan & Ethan and 5 of Ryan's friends to see Star Wars: The Clone Wars. The ride to the theater was only five minutes, but these boys did not stop talking the entire time! They were excitedly anticipating this new movie, lemme tell ya.

We got there a bit early, got our tickets, then stood in line for some snacks. When it was our turn to order, we confused the poor guy behind the counter ("I think we're missing a lemonade." "We need another lemonade, please." "Oh, wait. Never mind. We have enough drinks."), but he didn't lose his cool. But, he did look very glad when we finally walked away from the counter, lol.

I do have to say that the boys were well-behaved. They quietly talked among themselves while the previews played and they shared the popcorn with no problems. And, there was no obnoxious laughing or talk during the movie, which was good. Apparently, the way to keep a group of 8 and 9 yr. olds quiet is to give them some popcorn and drinks to occupy their mouths, lol.

After everything was said and done, it was a good day. The boys were happy, and I was able to take a nap afterwards, lol.

My kids are insane!

Or trying to make me crazy, take your pick! The only problem is that I'm already crazy (I have the therapist to prove it!), so they're only succeeding in making me even more loony! Nice kids, lol.

It's all a chain reaction: Ryan will pick on Ethan, who will turn around and beat up on Vanessa, who will push Jeff down in retaliation. It all adds up to four grumpy/screaming/crying kids in the morning. Fun, let me tell you. At least Ryan & Ethan have school, which lessens the noise a bit during the day.

The noise level rises, however, once the boys come home from school. As soon as they walk in the door, I can guarantee someone will start crying. Usually, it's Ethan because Ryan knows how to push his buttons, but sometimes Vanessa will fight back and make Ethan cry for taking it out on her. She's a bit scary the way she really doesn't take crap from her brothers.

And, if I succeed to get one to calm down, another will start. It's never ending! Grr!

And, do I have to mention how many episodes of SpongeBob Squarepants or Dora the Explorer that I've watched today? Ugh.

The kids have too much clothes!

It's true! I just spent the entire day doing laundry; the entire day! Usually, I try to do at least one load a day, but I've been slacking a bit, so the laundry piled up. It was literally a HUGE mountain of clothes to be folded in the office; quite daunting if you looked at it. But, it's all washed and dried, and all I have to do is fold and put them away. Er, can I take a nap first?

Who has the most clothes? Well, it's a tie between Vanessa and Jeff. Understandably, Jeff's is more onesies and stuff, but there are alot of those in his closet! I think it's a mix between Ryan & Ethan's old baby clothes, plus the ones I bought for Jeff. He has alot of jeans, too. Don't know why.

Vanessa, on the other hand, has TONS of clothes: dresses, skirts, jeans, shorts, tees, blouses, you name it. I think i took the joy of having a girl so I can buy little girl clothes a bit too far. Her closet and drawers are stuffed; and this is AFTER I sorted thru all the ones she no longer fit. Aack! And her shoe collection? I have to admit, this girl is a clotheshorse...but only because I made her that way, i think.

Ryan & Ethan are okay, for the time being. However, Ethan is catching up to his big brother, so it's only a matter of time before he needs a new wardrobe. *sigh* And I JUST bought them some jeans for school, too!

Is it bad that I'm jealous of my kids' closets?

Let the week begin!

Yesterday's birthday party for Vanessa was great. We only had cake, ice cream and juice, but Vanessa was happy all the same. Lisa & Paul, Breanna, Brandon, and Kim & Shawn were missing, which disappointed Ness, but she still enjoyed being the center of attention, lol.

We have lots of cake and ice cream left over, which is dangerous for me, considering I like to eat. Plus, the kids wanted to eat cake for breakfast. Yeah, right.

And now, Ryan & Ethan are at school, and Vanessa is impatiently waiting to go shopping with her Tutu and Tata. Jeff is...well, he's just being himself, lol. So, it's relatively quiet. Notice I said relatively. The only time it's quiet is when the kids are out of the house, lol.

She's turning FOUR?!

Today was spent preparing for Vanessa's birthday. We cleaned, as the house was in sore need of it, but I doubt it will stay that way once the kids are up tomorrow morning. For the most part of the day, the kids were "banished" to the family room in the basement, so the main floor didn't get too bad. The kitchen, of course, needed another cleaning after dinner, but that's a given. I think.

Anyway, we also bought Vanessa a purse so she could have something to hold her birthday money when she goes shopping on Monday. My mom and sister are taking her to the mall so she can spend the money that they're going to give her. Nothing like starting them young, lol.

It's been raining today, which made the kids a bit stir-crazy, first at Papa & Tutu's, then when they came home. The basement is proof of that. And, right now, it's started to rain again. Ugh. Scott got lucky; I wanted him to mow the lawn today, but he decided to wait until it got cooler this evening. Well, it started to rain this afternoon, so no mowing for him. I think he planned it, lol. Well, at least we have no doubt that our lawn is well fed; the tall grass and wild weeds prove it.

Now, all I have to do is wait for the cupcakes (they're for Vanessa's Sunbeams class) to cool so I can go to bed.

If it isn't one, it's the other!

So, today Ethan stayed home from school with a sore throat and a slight fever. I'm assuming he caught whatever Ryan had. Another day with another sick kid. Fun. Sort of.

Jeff is still grumpy; I really don't know what the problem is. He cries alot and never seems to want his bottle for feedings. I really want to blame his teething, but I don't know if it's really that. Maybe I should just put his formula in a sippy cup; he seems to like drinking his juice from a cup.

Sunday is Vanessa's birthday; she'll be 4 yrs. old! Yikes! When did she grow up so fast? We'll be having the family over for cake and ice cream that evening. Which reminds me: I have to order Vanessa's cake! It looks like another Dora the Explorer cake this year. Oh, well. At least her interests have grown to include Littlest Pet Shop, Disney Princesses, and My Little Pony.

What a way to start the week!

Okay, so it's not as dramatic as the title suggests, but Ryan stayed home from school today. Yesterday he was running a fever, and I'd hoped that with a good night's rest, it would break. Obviously didn't happen. He still felt warm this morning and was very sluggish, so I dumped him in my bed where he stayed for the rest of the day, fighting with Vanessa over what to watch. He did take a couple of naps, so now he's looking and feeling a bit better.

Vanessa, on the other hand, was a bit miffed that she had one more person to contend with for my attention. Usually it'll be Mommy & Me time when Jeff goes down for a nap, but today, no go. She did finally accept having to watch SpongeBob Squarepants with Ryan...eventually.

We also had to make a quick t-shirt run to the school this afternoon because Ethan had a nosebleed and wiped it on his shirt. I think he freaked his teacher out because it was a fair amount of blood, but Ethan was unfazed. Poor kid sometimes gets nosebleeds when it's too hot; I don't know why, he just does. The doctor isn't too concerned, so I'm not either. Much, lol.

Jeff was a bit crabby today; I think his "fangs" are breaking thru. Such good times. Not! At least this time he doesn't have an ear infection while teething; that was so not fun! He was also "stuck to my butt" meaning I couldn't be out of his sight or he'd let out his "I'm being murdered!" scream. Oh, what the neighbors must think.

And now, dinner is done, and the kitchen looks like the cabinets threw up. Does anyboy else's house look this way?

It's the...3rd day of school!

Yeah, so I'm a bit behind, but I really can't help it. Or maybe I can, and I just don't want to. Either way, the sun has now set on the boys' third day of school. And, it didn't kill them. Not that I wanted it to "kill" them, it was just so exciting that I really did think they would explode from it all. But, they didn't.

So far they're enjoying their new school and their classes. Ryan has two of his friends in his class, so they pretty much hang together all the time, but he's making an effort to make some new friends. In any case, he's made one and he's so very proud of himself.

Ethan, on the other hand, claims he hasn't made any new friends (he only knows one person in his class, and she's a GIRL!), but that he's fine with playing by himself at recess. Which is fine by me, if he's fine with it. I'm sure he interacts with the other kids in his class, and as long as they treat each other kindly, then everything is alright.

Vanessa is trying to adjust to having her brothers in school. Since school started, she's been asking, "What are we doing today?" Like the house isn't full of so many toys, games, books, etc. I've been trying to do some short preschool lessons with her, and they seem to be sinking in a bit. And, that's okay, since I have another year before she goes to kindergarten. We were going to put her in a preschool in my parents' neighborhood, but there wasn't enough interest so the teacher decided not to do it. So now I get to bug Nessa with "What letter is this? What sound does it make? Count to five! Now!" Okay, the last part, kidding. Besides, Ness would probably just roll her eyes at me anyway, lol.

And, Jeff? Well, he did have an ear infection along with a fever, which just made him the grumpiest little booger. Sleep and eating were a no-go for about two days, but because we "doped" him up with some Tylenol, the fever finally broke and he's not tugging at his ear anymore. And, oh how happy he's been since! You would never have known that just a day or two ago, this kid was sweating, feverish and screaming. Funny. isn't it?

I can't believe July is almost gone! Wasn't I just complaining that summer wasn't here yet? Oh, well. At least the kids are back in school.

They're so excited!

Tomorrow is Ryan & Ethan's first day of school, and they are so excited! They didn't even put up a fight when I told them it was time to go to bed; they brushed their teeth and marched right on up to the room. Amazing!

We drove by the school just to make sure the boys knew where to go, and took them past the bus stop in the neighborhood. This year, since we're a bit farther from the new school (change of school boundaries), the kids in our entire neighborhood (as opposed to last year, where only one or two streets were eligible) will take the bus. Ethan really likes that idea.

I better get to sleep, too. It won't be good if I'm grumpy on the 1st day of school!

Happy Pioneer Day, Part II

Today started off a bit early; Ryan & Ethan came home from Papa & Tutu's (they sleep over on Friday nights; Vanessa will, too, but last night she wanted to come home) to decorate their bikes for the neighborhood's Pioneer Day Parade. They pretty much went all out with the red, white and blue decorations, which included flags, ribbons and gold medals. It was neat to see them get so creative.

At about 8:30 am we walked down to the neighborhood park, where the parade would begin. Before that, however, they had a pancake breakfast where the kids could get hyped up on sugar. They also had chocolate milk, orange juice, bananas and some yogurt, but the kids were all about the pancakes. And, syrup. Well, mostly the syrup, but the pancakes were devoured, too.

The parade started at 9am. The kids lined up and were supposed to follow one of the older kids around the block, but, yeah...that didn't happen. Soon, all the kids were ahead and the parents who had been walking with their kids (me, included; Ethan begged me to walk with him, then promptly left me in the dust!) were at the end. I made it back just in time to see Ryan get an award for Best Decorated Bike. Wohoo!

We hung around for a bit afterwards, then headed home, where Ryan proceeded to shoot his foam rocket launcher at me. Yeah, good times.

Happy Pioneer Day!

Today is Pioneer Day, a local celebration here in Utah. There's been tons of parades and celebrations, but, being the lazy butt that I am, we didn't really attend any. It's too dang hot. Well, for me, anyway. The kids? Doesn't phase them much.

So we took them to Mulligan's to play a round of miniature golf, where Vanessa likes to cheat. Okay, not intentionally. But, she knows he purpose of the game is to get the golf ball into the hole, so she puts her ball as close as she can to the hole and putts it in, lol. Scott and I were playing against each other, and wouldn't you know, we ended up in a tie.

We went to McDonalds for lunch afterwards, where the kids were let loose in the PlayPlace. This particular PlayPlace was a bit annoying, however, as there was some kind of game that made an annoying sound everytime someone scored. Which was often. Or the thing was broken. In any case, the annoying melody echoed in he cavernous area that is the play area. Luckily, I had some ice cream and apple pie to distract me from the noise, lol.

And now, here we are, back at home, being cooled off in the air-conditioned basement. The kids are begging to go swimming, but Jeff's taking a nap, so they have to wait. Oh, well. More time to relax and zone out in front of the tv.

What's the difference between an engine and a ladder firetruck?

Yeah, I didn't know there was a difference until today. Ryan, Ethan and I went to the local fire station today (with some other Cubs and their families) for a tour to complete one of Ryan's Cub Scouts requirements. We got to see where the firefighters slept, ate (their kitchen has 3 refridgerators; wohoo!) and basically spent the 24 hours they were on shift.

Our friendly tour guide Zack (who's one of the firemen and an EMT) showed us the firetrucks, which the kids oohed and ahhed over. So the difference between an engine and a ladder firetruck? A ladder firetruck has a - wait for it - ladder! Yeah, duh me! So if you're ever out and about and see a firetruck with no ladder, you can assume the words Engine (insert number here) is painted on it.

The kids were able to ask questions, which the firemen happily answered. And they actually got to climb into the trucks and see where they sat, and what they did with all the buttons and levers. Very high tech, and very different from when I was little and visited a fire station. Wait, did I just date myself?

We also went over to the school to see what classes the boys are in. And, for the third year in a row, Ryan is in the same class as his friend Ryan J. My Ryan is a bit disappointed that his friend Isaac isn't in his class, too, but he likes that they're at least on the same track this year. School starts on Monday, so the boys are now even more excited since learning who their teachers are and where their classrooms are.

And, me? LOL, I'm just happy that school is starting up again. Does that make me bad?

We love the pool man!

So the kiddie pool in our community FINALLY got fixed. Originally, it was supposed to have been fixed in June, but it was pushed back to just this last week. Apparently, when they built the kiddie pool, they didn't dig the pipes deep enough, so during the winter, they froze and broke. This isn't the first time it's happened. No, it's been happening since the pool first opened. Which would make you think that somebody would get a clue and fix the problem ASAP. But, no. It took the pipes breaking this last time to finally get someone to say, "Oh, yeah. Maybe we should take care of that."

Vanessa is very excited, as she had a blast last summer in the kiddie pool. After all, it's just the right depth for her AND it's also heated. No more blue lips and shivering, yahoo! And, Jeff's still getting used to the whole playing-in-the-water-without-it-being-a-bath thing, so this should be fun!

Unfortunately, we didn't go to the pool today, but you can be sure we'll be going tomorrow, and Monday, and Tuesday...well, you get the idea. We'll probably go swimming every single day until school starts. And then, everyday after school until the pool closes, lol. So yeah, we love the pool man.

What's been going on?

Summer makes me lazy. And, busy. Mostly lazy. Who wants to be inside posting to a blog when there's too much fun to be had outside? I guess the answer is me. Then again, if I don't update, then I won't remember about any of the fun I just had, lol.

At the moment, Ryan is outside decorating our sidewalk with his artistic renderings. I haven't seen them yet, but my guess is that it's mostly about sports. He's been out there for quite awhile, so I'm guessing he's depicting the last few seconds of the NBA Finals. Maybe.

Vanessa and Ethan are at the neighbors house across the street. They're either 1) terrorizing the poor pet turtle that they have, 2) playing in said neighbor's gorgeous and fun-filled backyard, or 3) talking the neighbors' ears off with their non-stop chattering. Which the neighbors have said they don't mind, but that doesn't stop me from dragging their butts off back home to give the people a break, lol.

Jeff just woke up from a nap and is now happily playing with some toy. Ah, he chose the freaky pull-along bug that makes alot of noise. The makers of those kinds of toys are evil, I tell you! Genius, but evil!

Oh, and Jeff is also walking. He started cruising along the furniture las month and has now graduated to full-blown walking. It's starting to get easier for him, but sometimes he gets too excited and ends up falling on either his butt or his face. Poor kid.

And, his top teeth have finally broken thru, so he is ALOT happier now. And, so am I. This will last until, what...the next set decide to surface. Which, kowing our "luck" will be in the next couple of weeks, lol.

Other than that, nothing has been really happening. It's summer, after all. In fact, the kids are still in their pajamas. Yes, Vanessa and Ethan went to the neighbors', riding their bikes while in their pajamas. At least the neighbors get a kick out of them, lol.

Vacation pictures!

Here's just a few pictures of our vacation at Bear Lake.

We're baaaaaack!

4 days of laundry are cluttering up the floor and the hallway of the laundry room, and I've already washed one load. So, just a few million more loads to go, right? Okay, maybe not. But that's what it feels like!

We got back from Bear Lake this afternoon, and I'm tired. Which is a given, I think. 3 hours in the car with 3 boys and a princess isn't doable unless you have a DVD player and lots & lots of DVDs to watch! Jeff is another story/ As long as he has someone to talk to you, he's great. His Po the Panda plush (from Kung Fu Panda) really got an earful, lemme tell ya.

This time we stayed in one of the cabins that the KOA campsite offers. It was small, but had enough room for all of us and our crap. It doesn't have its own private bathroom, which we didn't mind, because we were there to camp, after all. It had a nice, covered porch and a porch swinf, plus a fire pit and a picnic table. Sort of roughing it, but sort of not, y'know? There were nearby bathrooms with showers, and our own water spouts, plus a grocery store near the campsite for any "oops, i forgot that!" items. It also had lots of ice cream, which is a great plus.

We loved that the only thing we had to worry about was what activities we were going to do for the day. We split our time between swimming in the lake, swimming in the campsite's pool, playing miniature golf, tennis, basketball, jumping on the campsite's jumping pillow, riding bikes or....the list went on and on. And, wouldn't you know the kids wanted to do EVERYTHING? And we did. Ryan has the slight sunburn on his back to prove it, lol.

But, it's good to be home.

4th of July

So, like the slacker that I am, we didn't really plan anything for the 4th until the day before. hat do you mean things like this need to be planned out in advance? Ha, I'm such a slacker.

The kids and I went out and bought about $60 worth of fireworks; I think I've got a bunch of pyromaniacs living in my house, lol! We also bought some chips, ice cream and toppings for sundaes, as Papa and Tutu were in charge of the food. Mainly hot dogs and hamburgers (of course!) plus some salad, cakes, etc. Good spread!

We also ended up inviting a family from my parents' ward because the husband of said family works the night shift and the family really didn't have anything planned. So they came over, which was really exciting for the kids, as this family has a total of 8 kids! Our house was buzzing with activity even before we popped the fireworks!

Oh, the fireworks! Lots of variety, lots of noise, lots of smoke. The kids were loving it! For one, it was dark and they were outside playing. Two, well, see reason number 1, lol. They were having a ball! They didn't get to be until well after 11 pm, but that's what summer vacation is all about, right?

Is it time for school yet?

I knew this was going to happen! It's only the second official day of summer vacation and the kids are BORED! Are you kidding me?! As if the sun shining outside, clear skies and green grass aren't invitation enough to spend all day outside, playing? And, friends! What about those friends that they've been talking non-stop about all school year? You know, the ones who come to our already messy house and help to destroy it even further? You know, those friends?

We did go to the pool around lunchtime, which was nice because it eventually ended up being just us there. The boys were on the rampage, jumping into the pool, trying to get Vanessa, Jeffrey and I splashed (which they managed to do every single time!), pretending to drown and all that fun stuff. Vanessa was very brave and actually held onto the side of the pool while wearing her life jacket, and Jeff wanted me to let him go and swim by himself (yeah, like that's gonna happen!). We stayed for almost an hour and would've stayed longer, but little tummies started to rumble and crave sustenance.

So off we went, trudging in our wet swimsuits along the sidewalks, and back to our house. We ordered some pizza and impatiently waited for the delivery guy, whom Jeff became very attached to when he arrived. Apparently, "Stranget Danger" hasn't hit him yet.

After lunch, we just lazed around, enjoying the air conditioning. Ryan tried to go over to his friends' houses, but they weren't home. Probably because its the Fourth of July weekend and lots of his friends' families go camping. Oh, well.

So tomorrow is the 4th. Don't know what we're doing for food, but I do know there's about $60 worth of fireworks sitting in my kitchen, just begging to be blown up.

It's almost done!

Today was the last full day of school for the boys; tomorrow is only a half day, but the boys have no clue what their teachers have planned for them. All they were told was no backpacks are required and that lunch will not be provided. Great, so they'll come home hyped up on treats (what teacher doesn't allow last day of school treats?) and starving. Lucky me.

Family Home Evening was easy and simple. As usual. We took the kids to Target to buy thank you cards and chocolate for their teachers. We also bought some ice cream to enjoy while they wrote out their thank you cards (M&M ice cream cookie sandwiches, yum!). Afterwards, we pretty much split off to do our own activities until bedtime.

Ugh, and I'm getting impatient for Jeff's top teeth to break thru. He's not really cranky, but teething really throws him off. His naps get shorter and he gets grumpy faster. Note to teeth: hurry up!

Of course, once those teeth come in, it means the rest will probably follow suit. Fun. I hope it's not a repeat of when Vanessa was teething: poor girl had FOUR teeth coming in at the same time. And, as if she wasn't already emotional!

Tomorrow should be interesting. Scott's car is still at the mechanic's, and he probably won't get it back until later tomorrow afternoon. He can take the kids to school in the Armada, but if does that and then takes the car to work, then he'll have to leave early to pick hem up, drop them off at home, then go back to work. Kind of tricky, but I guess I could ask my brother or my parents to pick them up. I'll have to call them tomorrow.

What do you mean your tummy hurts?!

Warning: The following might be a bit TMI.

Both Vanessa and Jeffrey have diarrhea. How do i know? The first thing Vanessa said to me when she woke up was, "Mommy, I'm poopy!" I won't gross you out by graphically describing the "surprise" I got to clean up, but it wasn't pleasant at all, to say the least.

About an hour later, it was Jeffrey's turn. He wears a diaper, so it wasn't too bad. Well, except for the fact that he doesn't like to stay still during diaper changes, so it was a bit of a wrestling match. I still don't know how I managed to clean Jeff's butt while he tried to wiggle around on the carpet.

Ethan is alot better today. He was dry heaving yesterday and just wasn't feeling well in general. So maybe he passed on whatever he had to Jeff and Vanessa? Isn't that how it always works?

Ryan and Ethan have Monday and half of Tuesday left of school, then it's summer vacation! And, next week we leave for our camping trip to Bear Lake. We're all very excited. Well, maybe except for Jeff, who really doesn't know what the heck is going on, lol!

Soaring Eagle Award

Vanessa and I went to the school today for an awards assembly. Both Ryan and Ethan were awarded a Soaring Eagle Award for accomplishing certain goals both at school and home. Ethan got a bronze one and Ryan got a silver. I didn't get any good pictures of the boys actually getting the awards, but after the assembly was done, I did manage to find them and take at least one good picture each.

The assembly was very loud, but, surprisingly, it wasn't the kids. It was the parents. Most of the parents used the assembly as a time to visit with each other, and they didn't do it quietly either. Several times the principal had to ask everyone to be quiet so they could continue with the awards, but that lasted for maybe...oh, five seconds, and then the parents started yapping again. I almost missed Ryan's name being called because the ladies in front of us decided it was much more important to talk about their neighbor's annoying dog. *rolls eyes*

I'm very proud of the boys. They brought home the goals they needed to accomplish to get the award and some were hard. So I'm glad they worked so hard.

Jeffrey and the Paint Adventure

I'm trying really hard not laugh aloud as I write this because Jeffrey is sleeping right beside me. But, it's proving to be a bit of a challenge considering there are still some telltale evidence of Jeff's rumble with a small bottle of paint. Let's recap the adventure, shall we?

Scott was sitting in the living room, working on his laptop, I'm in the bedroom gulping down huge amounts of ginger ale to try and get my stomachache to go away, and Jeff has followed Ethan into the kitchen. On the kitchen table is a small bottle of paint the boys used to paint some wooden cars, but, alas! The cap on the silver paint is not on tight.

Can you see where this is going?

So Jeff pulls himself up, using one of the chairs, and immediately goes for the paint. Which just so happens to be near the edge of the table. Said paint falls off the table and onto the tile floor, but before anyone can register what is happening, Jeff plops down in the middle of the puddle and sticks his hands into the mess.

To his credit, Ethan quickly picks up the paint bottle, then tells Scott what happened. The next thing I know, Scott is rushing into the room with Jeffrey, whose legs, arms and bottom half of his face is colored silver. The warm water in the bath tub takes care of most of the paint, but I end up taking a sponge to the poor kids skin to get the rest of it off. Which means screaming and attempted biting. Jeff biting me, that is, lol.

Afterwards, I have the lovely pleasure of scrubbing the paint from the bath tub. With a stomachache. See how dedicated I am? Yeah, I'm rolling my eyes, too.

Quiet today...and hot!

It's actually been quiet today, which I attribute to the heat. The boys are home from school and Jeff & Vanessa are up from their naps, yet there are no bloodcurdling screams shattering the air. Hmm, a bit "abnormal" for this time of day, but I'm sure I just jinxed myself and will be greeted by howls and cries at any moment now.

Ryan went on a field trip today to the aquarium. We've been there before and it's really small, but it does teach the kids. Someday I'll take the kids to the Monterey Bay Aquarium; now that's a great place! The class also went to a fire station and then ate lunch at a park. Ryan was insistent that he take a Lunchables pack; y'know, cause he doesn't want to be embarrassed by the food that I attemp to cook, lol.

Ethan had a good day, or so he says. According to his resource & speech teachers, he's been having some "meltdowns" in class lately, so we've been working on figuring out the problem. I suspect it's because he goes to bed late, so for the past few days he's been going to bed really early. And, I guess it's helped because I haven't gotten anymore phone calls from his teachers.

Vanessa, on the other hand, constantly babbles about how she's going to school soon (we're putting her in preschool in September). We promised her that if she would learn to go to the potty like a big girl, that we would let her go to "school." And, she's been doing really well for the last several weeks, so it looks like she'll be going. She's already got it all planned out: who'll pick her up, what she'll take, etc. So funny.

As of right now, Scott is trying to scrub Jeff clean because he got into some paint. Oh, joy. I think I better go help. :-)

Lazy days

Last night we kept Family Home Evening really simple: we went swimming at the neighborhood pool. Well, first we had some pizza over at my parents' house, then we went home and went to the pool. Summer FHE activities are meant to be simple, y'know?

Yesterday we also had the carpet cleaning guy (what exactly are they called?) come over to clean the carpets in the living room, master bedroom and the are under the stairs in the basement. I "locked" myself in the office with Vanessa and Jeffrey, which wasn't really a great idea, but it worked for the moment. Everytime the worker would pass by the door (which had the baby gate locked across it), she'd ask, "Hi! What are you doing?" Didn't matter if she had just asked him that a minute ago or that it was the gazillionth time she'd ask; she did it anyway. The guy, for his part, cheerfully answered, "I'm working!" Each and every time, lol.

So after we'd been cooped up in the office watching endless episodes of Dora the Explorer and Ni-Hao, Kai-Lan, we went over to my parents' house to hang out. And, eat their food. And, watch tv. So basically, to mooch. But, really, they don't mind. At least, I think they don't mind.
Oh, jeez. I hope they don't mind!

Smile!

Ryan has become the sports fanatic. Instead of playing soccer, this year it was another round of flag football. He's also waiting to sign-up for basketball this fall.

Ethan just finished with his soccer season. He's playing alot better and not as scared of the ball as he used to be.

This is what happens when the Princess finds a pair of scissors and tries to style her own hair! Very short, but cute!

Here's Jeffrey, nearly 9 months old and ready to walk. He's already mastered crawling really fast to get away from mommy, and he can now stand by himself for about 10 seconds or more. He's tried to take a couple of steps, but chickened out at the last second.

I feel so smart...not!

The kids had a good laugh today, but totally at my expense (so what else is new?). After church was done, we came home to find the electricity had gone out in our neighborhood. Which meant the garage door wouldn't open. No problem right? I mean, there's always the front door.

Wrong!

Just a bit of background: when Vanessa was about 2 yrs. old, she figured out how to open the front door and go exploring. In fact, one day I hadn't realized she'd gotten out until the neighbor rang the doorbell and brought the little escape artist home. So not only did we install a security system with a chime feature to let us know when any of the doors were open, but we also got a security latch (kind of like the ones in hotels) to put at the top of the door. And, that took care of that.

Anyway, out of habit, I closed the latch when I locked the front door before leaving for church. Which meant when we got home to find the power out, I couldn't open the front door because of said latch. And everything else (windows, sliding door, etc.) was locked, too. No way to get into the house (without breaking a window), so we drove the kids over to my parents' house and spent the rest of the afternoon there.

I was able to call one of our neighbors to ask if the power had come back on, and we headed home soon after he told me yes. So I guess it all worked out in the end. But you can bet the kids aren't going to let me live this down in the meantime. :-)

Why did it do that?

The post "Finally!" is actually for today, Saturday, June 21. I have no idea why it posted it for yesterday.

Finally!

Am I the only one to think that the weekend took its sweet time getting here? Probably. Another day down, just 10 more days of school...and then summer can really begin at my house. The kids have grand plans for their 3-week summer (we're switching from D Track to A next school year), so they're ready to get cracking. It's also getting a bit hotter now, which means sunscreen for the kids, which of course, they hate to put on. It's much easier now that it comes in easy spray form and it's quick and (relatively) painless to cover the kids.

In fact, Vanessa and I just got back from the pool. It's nice to have a community pool in our neighborhood, especially since today is supposed to get up to 96 degrees. We actually went walking around the neighborhood first, looking at the yard sales going on, and we managed to find some great deals (clothes for Jeffrey, Pokemon stuff for the boys, and a Pokemon doll for Vanessa). Lots of different things out there to be sold.

Vanessa is now convinced that she can swim because of her Dora the Explorer life jacket that we bought last summer (but she refused to use it). The little kiddie pool is being fixed, so I had to take her in the big pool with me. She doesn't realize that most of the time she was being held up by her life jacket and not me, but I think I won't tell her until she gets a bit more confident in the water.

Ryan is over at his friend Zac's house for a "Celebrate Summer" pool party. Supposedly, Zac was supposed to sleep over at our house last night, but the two never bothered to mention the fact to me or Zac's mom, lol. They'd been planning the sleepover for the last week or so, so I guess they got so caught up in the planning that they forgot to tell us.

Anyway, Ryan really likes hanging out with Zac, and from what I've seen, they have alot of fun. They're in the same class at school and in Cub Scouts, so they spend quite alot of time together. It's nice that it's summer; they can spend hours outside!

Ethan, at the moment, is still over at my parents' house. Yes, i know I'm a spoiled brat because my parents take the kids every Friday for a sleepover. Wouldn't anyone with kids jump at this offer? Ryan slept over, too, but my brother brought him back to our house this morning, just in time for the pool party. So, I think Ethan is probably out shopping or running errands (or both) with Tutu and Papa.

Jeffrey just got up from a nap, which means he's happy and just ready to go. Where, I don't know, but at the speed he's crawling, he seems to have it under control. I think he's teething again; the drool from his mouth is like a burst pipe or something.

It's a bright and sunny day, the air conditioning is running, and the kids are quietly playing (for now)...life is good. And, quiet. did I mention quiet? ;-)

Do you really wanna know?

So I'm sitting here, reading an email from my sister-in-law Mindy, asking for pictures and maybe a visit because she was brave (or crazy, lol) enough to move to West Virginia. And, it got me thinking about my kids (which you'll see will be a recurring theme in this blog, lol).

I'm fortunate enough to live just five (perhaps less) minutes away from my parents, so my kids are able to see them alot. And, I mean alot. Just ask the odometer on my Armada. Anyway, that thought led to guilt, as I don't make enough of an effort to get the kids over to see Scott's parents...you know, their other set of grandparents? I don't think it's a good thing when the baby kind of just stares at Grandpa and Ama with a "And, you are?" look on his face, you know?

Which is why I created this blog. It's my lazy butt of a compromise, if you will. With technology the way it is, I don't think there's any excuse not to be more "in touch" with family, especially members we don't get to see so often. Plus, it's a way of satisfying Mindy's request for pictures AND to get my mother-in-law better acquainted with a computer and the internet. This means you, Mom! :-)


So if you really wanna know what's going on over here, you've come to the right place. I think my kids are quite hilarious, which usually leads to the escapades of our daily lives, and their memorable quotes and sayings. Of course, it's not always sunshine and rainbows, but the "grumpies" teach us (both parents and kids) all about life...plus it provides some very embarrasing info that can later be used during the kids' teenage years.;-)