"Hold me!"

This little boy, that I love so very much, is making me crazy! He wants to be touching me 24-7. He wants me to hold him or at least sit beside him at all hours of the day and night. He cries for me in the middle of the night and I have started letting him sleep in my bed just so I can get a few hours of rest. He has always been a touchy-feely kid but it is getting worse.

This morning as he was begging me to hold him while we ate breakfast I informed him that the umbilical cord had been cut and he was no longer attached to me. He snapped right back, “No it NOT cut! Hold me!”

He is getting some lovely new molars in and I am hoping that is the cause of this intense behavior. Soon it will be over, right? I keep reminding myself that in a few years he will be horrified to even give me a hug so I should just treasure these moments.

Treasure, treasure, treasure. . .

{Merry Christmas}

The school Christmas parties are done. . .

The tree has been decorated. . .

The stockings have been hung. . .

And the ground is covered in snow.

The cards have been mailed, Christmas music is playing, and I have been wrapping presents and making goodies so Christmas must be coming soon.

I am usually too particular about the decorations and such that I just do everything. This year I set out the box of decorations and told the kids to decorate the tree. Brittany was in shock and thought I was ill or something because I have only let them “help” in the past – which means I told them exactly where to hang each ornament that I handed them. I am not saying that I didn’t go back and move some things around but for the most part I let them do it this year. And it actually looks pretty good.

Hope you all have a very Merry Christmas!

{Happy Day}

Sunday as we drove to church I announced to my family how grateful I was that we have been so healthy this winter season. Then Monday morning we woke up with a VIRUS but not of the human kind. My computer was too sick to even turn on. After going into shock and sobbing uncontrollably for 10 minutes I started making phone calls. (Sorry Lloyd for calling so early.)

I then loaded up my computer and took it to the “doctor” in Pocatello with a prayer that all my data would not be lost and hoping I would not have to actually replace the hard drive. I begged the girl behind the counter to do everything possible to save my files. When she assured me they would do their best to save my data I wondered if she was just saying that because she could see the tears in my eyes and didn’t want me to cry in their store.

To make a long story short . . . the tech was able to save my data and delete all of the viruses from my computer. I had my computer back in two days instead of the week that I thought it would be. I was so happy when I picked up my computer yesterday I wanted to hug the man.

And just when I thought my day couldn’t get any better there was a knock at the door. When the man announced he was here to hook up my new internet service I was so excited and then horrified because I had left my house in such a mess and was not expecting him until next week. But he was able to work around the mess and now we have high-speed internet!

I thought my computer was protected but obviously not. If anyone is looking for a great anti-virus program the repair tech suggests AVG Anti-virus Free. It can be downloaded for free and is one of the best out there.

I am glad this is over so I can get back to Christmas preparations! I promise my next post will be more festive.

Christmas is Coming!

I was looking back through my pictures and realized I never posted these adorable pictures with Santa. I took the kids to the Festival of Trees this year. Morgan was fascinated by all of the Christmas trees and wondered if Santa would be leaving presents under them all.

After a delicious bowl of soup we waited in line to see Santa. Zane didn’t really know what was going on. In front of us was a large group so it took quiet a while for them to all have a turn. As they got to the last few children Zane suddenly realized that Santa was sitting in the chair. Surprised he shouts to me “That’s Santa!” As soon as the child hopped off Santa’s lap Zane pushed past everyone and jumped up there. He snuggled up to Santa like he was his long lost friend.

Morgan was pretty excited to sit on Santa’s lap also. She had to tell him she wants a 4-wheeler for Christmas. (Thanks Dad!)

So much to do and the weeks keep flying by. Hopefully through all the rushing around we can remember the true meaning of Christmas.

Update - "I lost a tooth!"

We spent Thanksgiving day with our friends and neighbors, the Adamsons and the Ostlers. We had so much delicious food and we all ate until we were ready to explode. Then the kids ran around while the adults played an intense game of Shanghais Rummy.

Tiffani’s house has carpeted stairs that go to the basement – more fun than a sledding slope. I warned Morgan to be careful but in the middle of the fun she forgot about her mouth. You guessed it, she bumped her front teeth AGAIN. This time she loosened the other front tooth and with her gums swollen and bleeding I had to call the dentist. He calmed my fears and asked me to bring her in on Monday. Once the bleeding stopped and the swelling went down she looked much better. (Her lip isn't even that swollen any more.)

Then on Friday we went across the street to the Hunt’s house for sweet potato fries and games. Morgan decided she wanted some bubble gum. That lasted about 5 seconds before she said it hurt her tooth and she spit out the gum. That is when I noticed her loosest tooth was hanging crooked in her mouth. I reached in and it literally fell into my hand. She cried. She laughed. And then she exclaimed “I’m gonna have a Tooth Fairy under my pillow!”

There is no tooth visible in the hole so she will most likely be toothless for quite a while. There are two more VERY loose teeth that will probably be coming out soon as well. I guess she was so excited for the Tooth Fairy that she decided to knock her teeth out instead of waiting.

(Zane and Scott couldn't miss out on making faces for the camera also – silly boys.)

{Crazy Day}

What a crazy day! It seams that we coast along with some pretty mellow days, a few busy afternoons, and then all of sudden everything has to be done in the same day.

Yesterday I picked Morgan up from school and ran a few errands. (She was really mad because we dropped of the library books without checking out new ones.) Then I dropped her off at Speech Therapy while Zane and I picked up Brittany’s dental x-rays and went to the store to find boots for Scott. We zipped back to pick Morgan up and then headed home for lunch.

After lunch, I dropped Morgan off to play with her friends then Zane and I went to get Brittany out of school. We rushed her to the Oral Surgery Center in Pocatello for a consultation with the doctor. She will have her wisdom teeth removed on December 29th. She insisted on waiting until after Christmas so as not to ruin her Christmas dinner. (I told her I would run it through the blender for her but she declined my offer.)

Then we stopped at the store for a few things. Two days before Thanksgiving a quick trip to the store is never quick. After searching every isle for the Frenches French Fried Onions, we safely set off for home.

We stopped at Kyndra’s house to get Morgan and, of course, had to visit for a minute. The kids were running and being crazy then suddenly Morgan slamed into the back of the couch and came up with a mouth full of blood and eyes full of tears. After pushing her front tooth back into place I got her to hold ice on her mouth while I put her shoes and coat on her.

Dinner was late and we were all exhausted by the end of the day. Scott thought we needed to take Morgan in to the emergency room but I convinced him that there was nothing more they could do. I got the bleeding to stop and the tooth is staying in place but she was one FAT lip.

What a day!

(The picture is an older one. I couldn’t take one of Morgan’s mouth. It is just too gross.)

High Mountain Adventures

(WARNING: This post is long and a little sappy.)

It’s kind of crazy that I had to travel miles from home and climb almost 9,000 feet to fall in love with my husband again. Friday we loaded the camper, borrowed a 4-wheeler, and left the kids behind for a weekend adventure with our friends Jonathon and Tiffani. We crossed the border into Alpine, Wyoming then headed into the Caribou National Forest. There was snow on the ground and a chill in the air but we had so much fun!

Jonathon and Tiffani slept in a wall tent with a toasty, warm stove.

Scott and I slept in our camper with full-body polar fleece jumpsuits and lots of blankets.


We rode the 4-wheelers some but spent most of the time hiking up and down the mountain. Scott can blaze a trail through thick trees and dense underbrush on a steep mountain side while looking for elk and keeping track of which direction to go. I spent most of the time watching his feet and my feet, hoping we weren’t lost. Scott was kind enough to wait for me and let me rest often. I thought I was in shape but oh boy. . .



The hunters were anxious to find the elk. We saw 2 bull moose, a buck, and a doe. We saw lots of signs of elk but none were to be found. The mighty hunters were a little disappointed to come home empty handed. (They weren’t smiling this big when we headed home.)

When we weren’t hiking we were sitting around the fire eating and talking. It was so much fun to get to know Jonathon and Tiffani better. And it was really nice to have time to talk to my husband without the interruption of the kids. We missed our kids and thought of them often but it was nice to have a few days of peace and quiet.

I would even go again!

{Happy Birthday Brittany}

Seventeen years ago I was holding this little girl in my arms, wondering if I really knew how to be a mother. I promised her then that our life together may not always be easy but I would forever be there for her.

7 weeks

We have been through a lot together and she has always been my angel.

9 1/2 years

Now she is making plans for college and living on her own and I wonder if I have taught her sufficiently. Have I prepared her well enough?

1 year

I cherish every moment we have together.

Christmas 2006


Brittany didn’t want a big birthday party this year. She went to the football game with her friends in the afternoon and then Scott and I took her to dinner in Pocatello. We came back and had cake with our friends and kept the celebration low key. (I did get her a coat for her birthday so she won’t freeze running to catch the bus in the morning. )


Happy Birthday Brittany! We love you!

Spray Paint & Pumpkins

With the short growing season most of our pumpkins were still green. Last year I painted all of the green ones black but I decided to try a different color this year and painted a few almond as well. It takes a lot of almond paint to cover a dark green pumpkin.

Morgan really wanted to carve all the pumpkins. She kept asking if we could take all their “guts” out. I was okay with just one carved, which was tossed the day after Halloween because it was rotten.

I am seriously craving pumpkin pie!

{Trick-or-Treat}

Morgan decided early that she wanted to be a pirate for Halloween this year. When I went to her school party I noticed that all the girls in her class were princesses except for a butterfly and a Wonder Woman. But she wanted to be a tough pirate. As they marched through the school, in their Halloween parade, Morgan said “Arrgh!” to everyone she passed.

The orange bag is full of gold coins. Morgan thought she needed to "throw" them at the kids when they marched in the parade. I explained that it was her pirate treasure and she had to keep it safe. Then she wouldn't let anyone touch it or see the coins.

I dressed Zane up as a cowboy this year. Was it a cop out? Yes. But he looks so adorable in his hat! He loved it too. The only issue we had was trying to convince him that he was not going to be riding a real horse like Dad. On the way home from the Trunk-or Treat he had a small melt-down because we were not going to the feedlot so he could be a cowboy like Dad.

Zane was thrilled to have MANY suckers in his sack of candy but his favorite treat was the sticky, purple spider. Scott threw the spider up and it stuck to the ceiling. Then slowly its legs let go, one by one, until it suddenly dropped to the floor. Zane and Morgan thought it was the funniest thing they ever saw. It kept them entertained for almost an hour.

{Fall Fun}

The above picture is a collection of items from our busy and fun weekend.

Friday night was Sarah’s 4th annual road race. Our team was the Purple Predators. Knowing it would be cold, we all wore purple fleece scarves. Our driver was a little crazy and out of control – he tried to drive off as his wife was getting in the truck and run people off the road. We did things like climbing trees, hitting golf balls, and scaling the long stairs down to the bottom of the dam all in the dark of night. I was even the first one to get a ringer in the horseshoe challenge. We also learned that Grapette soda from Wal-Mart is the strongest 2-liter bottle of pop. It was so much fun and our team was in a three way tie to win. Unfortunately the Orange Crush’em team was better at picking a number between 1 and 100. That’s two years in a row that we have been in the tie breaker round at the end. Next year is ours, I can feel it!

Saturday, while Scott was hunting, I made the kids help me clean the house. Then I plunged into the box of apples that we picked the weekend before and began the process of making apple pie filling. I have never canned apple pie filling but I think it turned out really good. And it looks so pretty in the jars. I still have lots of apples so I will be freezing and canning every spare moment this week.

Last night our friends and neighbors, John and Kyndra, came over for dinner. Kyndra and I cooked dinner in a pumpkin and it was so yummy. (Thank you Brigitte for bringing Gwen’s recipe to the Recipe Exchange last year.) Zane and Kaylee, the youngest children in the bunch, probably ate the most. After dinner we took apple crisp and apple coffee cake across the street and had dessert with more friends.

We also had our annual Primary Program at church yesterday. (Sorry, I couldn't find anything to put in the picture for this.) Morgan practiced her part all week and was so excited to talk into the big microphone. Then Sunday morning she suddenly announced she did not want to go to church. Stage fright had set in. After a lot of persuading I convinced her it would be okay. She sat up in the big chairs with her class and smiled at me as all the kids sang the songs. She said her part with a little help and did very well. Then as she turned to walk back to her seat she tripped over the step and fell. (That’s my girl.) She jumped up and still had a smile on her face. I learned from her that a smile can help us get through anything.

{Festive Pumpkins}

I did promise to post pictures of the completed pumpkins that I made so, here they are. I finally found ribbon at Wal-Mart but also made some of my own. They are kinda boring but I like to keep things simple. They do make my bookshelf look festive though.

I am off to the store for a can of spray paint. Stay tuned for pictures of the next pumpkin project. ;o)

Silicone Baking?!

Has anyone tried the new silicone baking pans? I have been intrigued by them since they first came out. I started with some silicone utensils but my curiosity finally got me. When we were in LaGrande at the beginning of the month, I found a set on sale at Wal-Mart for half price and decided to give it a try. Besides, I needed round cake pans.

This stuff is awesome! I lightly greased the bottom of the pan just because I have been taught to always grease and flour the pan when baking a cake. I probably didn’t need to but I couldn’t ignore that voice in my head. The cakes popped right out of the pan with no flour residue.

So, here is our Harvest cake that I make each fall.

It is chocolate cake with pumpkin-cream cheese filling and chocolate frosting. Yum!

I have learned my lesson!

Thursday is Morgan’s day for Show’n Tell each week. It’s hard to come up with something for her to share each time that isn’t toys (that’s what she wants to take). Last week I forgot about it until I sent her out the door to catch the bus. I didn’t think it was a big deal but she apparently did not want to be left out. When her time came to share she stood in front of the class and announced that her mom was having a baby and she would soon have a little sister.

When I picked her up from school I had forgotten about Show’n Tell but as I buckled her into her seat she tells me that she told her teacher I was having a baby. I was shocked and told her she needed to talk to her teacher first thing in the morning to explain that is a wish and not true. Then she said, “What about my class? I shared it for Show’n Tell so my whole class knows.” All I could do was laugh.

This week we found something she could share with her class and have been practicing EXACTLY what to say.

{SPOOKY}

Morgan picked out a tall, skinny pumpkin to carve for Family Home Evening. She and Zane were the only ones who could get their hands inside so they got to do most of the cleaning. I love to hear the squeals and giggles as they plunge their hands into the cold, slimy pumpkin stuff.

Morgan was so pleased with her design for the face. As Scott was carving it out she was right there telling him what to do. (Scott was in his pajamas and deleted all pictures that included him.)

Then we had the chore of finding a candle that would fit inside. Fortunately our friend Sarah included a bone shaped candle with our party invitation. It fit perfectly and gave the pumpkin the eerie glow that Morgan hoped for.

How do you entertain 5 children on a cold day?

The answer of course is Turbo Jam. This upbeat workout video is great for helping young children burn off some restless energy when it is too cold to play outside.

Friday I had 5 children ages 2 to 5. I told them I would turn on some music so we could dance and they all began shouting “Turbo Jam!” I was thinking the toddler tunes CD but it’s hard to argue with them. Morgan had to be the leader, of course, and tell everyone what moves to do.

After about 10 minutes they were all starving and thirsty so it must have been a good workout.

This Again?

We woke up this morning to SNOW. Morgan and Zane could hardly wait to go outside and play. After a frantic search for boots and hats and gloves (we are not prepared for winter) I had them bundled and out the door.

When their noses were sufficiently red, and against their wills, I made them come back inside for a bowl of hot soup. The snow continues to fall and Morgan is hoping for enough to build a snowman, we shall see.

The soup apparently warmed Zane right up because after lunch he went and found his swim trunks. This is him saying, “Can we go swimming, please?!” He was sure that we needed to walk to Kyndra’s house and go swimming. I showed him the blizzard outside but that did not change his mind. I have to agree with him though; I am not ready for summer to end either.

Random Memories of my Grandpa

My earliest memory of Grandpa is whisker hugs. When ever we saw him he would give us big hugs and rub our cheeks with his whiskers. He was a practical jokester who loved to tease.

Grandpa was so friendly and outgoing. He loved to go to town and visit people. The amazing thing was he always found someone that he had a connection to. Either he was related to them or had worked with them or knew someone they were related to or they were related to someone he had worked with. Somehow he always found a connection and then carried on a lengthy conversation.

Grandpa was a hard worker. Most of my memories are of him after he retired from the sawmill but he was always busy. He grew a big garden every summer with the biggest vegetables and the hottest radishes. He kept his lawn nice and spent many summers getting wood for the wood stove to keep grandma warm all winter. He always found time to take Grandma Huckleberry picking or build something from wood. He always had a project to work on.

Grandpa drove a hot rod. I don’t know what kind of car it was but there were not very many of them around. It was a cool shade of olive green and it sounded like a race car. He was pleased that he was able to do most of the maintenance on it himself and kept it running good for many years.

Grandpa was always willing to help. What ever we needed – rides here and there or furniture for my first apartment. He would make trips to the store for Grandma to find the exact shade of yarn she needed to finish one of her projects. He would bring her to my home to baby sit and return later to pick her up. Grandpa was always willing to share.

Although we didn’t visit very often it was fun to go see Grandpa. He would show us cards and pictures received from other relatives and always had a story to share. My fondest memory will always be our last visit. I didn’t know that would be the last time I saw him on this earth so I am thankful for the opportunity to tell him that I loved him.

I want {MILK}!

“Watchya doin’?” I heard as I tiptoed passed Zane’s bed, thinking he had gone back to sleep. When I told him I was going to take a shower he quickly told me he didn’t want me to. I assured him I would get his milk first and went to get his favorite red sippy cup. I snuggled him into my bed with his blanket and his cup. Now he didn’t mind if I took a shower. He even went back to sleep when the milk was gone.

“Zane, what do you want for lunch?”
“Ummm, MILK.”
“No. Do you want a sandwich or chicken nuggets?”
“Ummm, MILK.”
“What do you want with your milk? You can’t have just milk.”
“Yes I do!”

How do you break a milk addiction? It usually starts around 5:30am with a shout out from his bed, “I need my milk!” Some days that is all he wants and as he sobs in the middle of the kitchen floor because I am forcing him to eat food I feel bad for him. Hopefully he will grow out of it soon.

Potato Field Trip

Yesterday Zane and I went with the kindergarten kids to visit a potato field. The kids watched the digger load the truck and then dug some potatoes of their own. We have 50 pounds of potatoes so I really didn’t encourage my kids too much but they had fun digging in the sand to find “treasures” as Zane called them.

Morgan found a potato that looked like a rabbit head.

The boy next to us pulled out a giant potato and then Morgan found this one. We decided we liked the baby ones best.

Then we came home and made POTATO SOUP for lunch.

Morgan got a little sand in her eye but other than that it was a fun day!