Sweet Love

Yes, I have officially been re-nominated for Mother of the Year. All it took was a little sugar and a lot of love. Just kidding, but I am feeling pretty good about actually doing an activity like this with my kids. Especially since I was the worst sick mom during Christmas time when everyone was making cute Christmas cookies. So now I have redeemed myself. Whew! Don't have to do this again until December.
Oh, June wanted a frosting face picture so here it is...which is really funny to me because she gets more stuff on her face eating a graham cracker, so how she managed to look so clean after eating a cookie with frosting is beyond me.



And here is my cutie Robyn. If you notice a lack of Ivory, it may be because I did this during her nap time. I thought it would be cleaner. Of course, now that I have admitted this, my award will probably be taken away, but it was mine for 10 seconds.

Mormon Lingo

Mormons do have a bit of their own lingo that you have to get used to if you are a convert. Growing up in the LDS faith, most of it came naturally for me, but I have heard many stories from others. My mom always talks about how she thought my Dad was taking her out to eat the first time they went to the stake center (that one is a common misconception). But Tyler had a story of his own which made me laugh, because he grew up Mormon as well.
Tyler (until he was about 15) was always wondering why people would get up and bless the speakers in the opening prayer (In this instance, Tyler thought they were referring to the microphone speakers and not the people who were asked to give a talk). People blessed them so often that he really started to ponder what could go wrong with the speakers. If they stopped working, someone might have to talk louder, but maybe the speakers could fall out of the ceiling altogether. He said he would spend a whole meeting looking at the speakers in the ceiling wondering what could go wrong with them and why everyone insisted on blessing them.
This made me laugh so hard. Changing the meaning of one word can make a world of difference. It really amuses me. Perhaps that is why I love books like Anguished English by Richard Lederer. If you have never read that one, I would highly recommend it for a good laugh. If you know of any good stories, please share.

I Need a Magic Wand

I was watching Sword and the Stone with Robyn the other day. It is one of my all-time favorite Disney movies. The wizard duel is the coolest. And then I was thinking about the way Merlin packed his whole house in one bag and enchanted the dishes to wash themselves...I could really use something like that. I feel that I am pretty easy-going in many ways, but when it comes to clutter and uncleanliness, it gets on my nerves so badly. Perhaps because I know it is all waiting there for ME to clean up. True, I have help from time to time, but with kids you have to shepherd them through the cleaning process and that is sometimes more frustrating than doing it myself. I need to let go of the fact that the house will not always be spotless and focus on one thing at a time.
Tonight was not a pleasant evening. I tried to get kids to clean, but it wasn't going the way I wanted and all children ended up in bed before 6:45. I think they were tired since Robyn was actually asleep before Ivory was in bed, but I didn't feel good about the whole experience. In my mind I was just enforcing rules (like 'Don't throw books at your sister') but I am always the bad guy in the end. I can tell the kids are not pleased when prayers go something like, "Mom is not beautiful anymore." June was a bit kinder with, "Thank you for a mom and dad even if they are mean sometimes."
I'm sure I could have turned cleaning into a big game and sang some songs and we could have all snuggled on the couch for a story before bed, but sometimes that is not how it goes. And when it comes down to it, what is more important--that the house is clean or that they go to sleep feeling they live in a safe loving home. So, I was just thinking that a wand could really help. Then I could focus more on my kids and not being a cranky mom when the house is messy. Has anyone seen one for sale...perhaps on Ebay?

User Error

So my hair dryer stopped working the other morning. This did not come as a big surprise. I bought the dryer at DI and it has worked for several years. Not bad for a $3.00 blow dryer. The price sticker is still on it. However, without a dryer, I can't really do much with my hair. It either goes up in a pony tail, or a braid. I was ready for change all around. So, I chopped my hair off (sorry no pictures of that). Usually I have to ask Tyler several times to get a hair cut, but this time I only said something once and he endorsed a hair cut. I was in shock, but I decided to take advantage of it. So off I went to get a cut, and I bought a new hair dryer on the way home. Oddly enough, the new hair dryer didn't work either, and it sunk in much too quickly that I had never tested the outlet. We don't plug in many things in the bathroom (pretty much just the hair dryer) and I guess I have been expecting the DI dryer to fail at some point. So I didn't think to test the outlet. But sure enough, after I found the master switch and pushed it, all power was restored to BOTH dryers. Oops. So I took the new dryer back and the lady asked if there was anything wrong with it. Nope, just user error. So, the DI special will last a while longer. I am getting my three dollars worth for sure.

Sleeping Together

I was just thinking last night that most of us spend a good twenty years or more of our life sleeping by ourselves. And then suddenly, you get married and it is expected that from now on, you will share your bed with someone else. There is nothing written telling you what to do if your sleeping habits are different than the one next to you. No, it is merely trial and error. Good luck if she sleeps with the fan on in the winter and, oh well if he steals the covers and you can't budge him an inch. These are just things one needs to deal with once you gain a sleeping partner. And what if your co-sleeper is sick...
Tyler was shivering as I went to bed last night and I could tell that he had a raging fever. It perhaps wasn't the first time that I wished we had a guest room. I mean, most people get offended when someone coughs on them, so who is going to willingly crawl into bed next to a sickie and have him/her breathe on them all night. I debated between sleeping on the couch or sleeping on one side all night (facing away from said sickie). I finally opted for the comfort of my own bed; at what cost, I don't know.
I don't really miss sleeping alone. I enjoy the comfort of having someone close by, and I have gotten used to most of Tyler's sleeping quirks. But every once in a while, I could stand sleeping solo.

A Mouthful

Sunday evening. We had just returned from the finance class that Tyler is teaching for the ward (along with many wonderful guest speakers). I came home a little early to get kids in bed, so Tyler ran home through the snow because he didn't have a ride. We decided to watch a little Stardust together and I settled in with my usual evening snack--cold cereal. Tyler was standing in the kitchen wheezing a bit from his run in the cold. He mentioned to me, "I really shouldn't run in the snow, I think I have some asthma." To which I replied around a mouthful of froot loops, "You're not in shape."
He just stared at me, with his jaw slightly agape and disbelief in his eyes. Great, I thought, I have seriously offended him. So I tried to backpeddle a little. "You're not fat...you're just not in shape." This time he laughed out loud, and I couldn't decide if I was hurting his feelings or if he had gone crazy.
Apparently, I am not the most articulate while eating and with froot loops in my mouth, the first comment he heard from me was, "You look like sh**." No wonder he was looking at me in shock. It is really not the kind of language I would use, and it would be rather rude to say. Now it was my turn to laugh as I thought of him trying to decide why I would say such a thing.
This certainly isn't the first time we have had miscommunication over a mouthful of cereal (the crunching can really interfere with hearing as well) but I believe the old adage from my mother would save me a lot of trouble--'Don't talk with your mouth full'

I Blame the Snow

So I have noticed some of you are as sick of the snow as I am. Yes I know it is good for the environment, but too much of a good thing...drives you crazy.
I have made peace with my children and although we miss playing outside we get along just fine indoors. You all know I am a lame mom in the winter because I don't like snow, but now I must admit that I am sometimes a lame mom in the summer because I am allergic to grass--so my kids are used to being inside. I do still let them play outside (I promise I am not a terrible mom, just lame.)
What I really don't like about this whole winter thing, is being cold. Sometimes I spend an entire day with the heat on and never warm up. My last resort is a hot bath and that will usually do the trick, but I have to wait until kids are in bed to get one of those. (No that is not my tub, although it's pretty huh?)



And then I have this embarrassing problem that my body can't stand hot water. Yes, I know I am an idiot. Even as I write this I feel like a fool. I take a hot bath to warm up and then I get HIVES from the hot water. I kid you not. I can't go in hot tubs because I get heat rash, and I if my bath water is too warm, I get it from that too.
So, I am all toasty warm as I write this, and my legs are itching like crazy from the hives on the back of my knees and around my ankles. Personally, I blame the snow!