Working the System

Two years ago our yard underwent a complete renovation – tons of hard work and quite a bit of money, but we’ve loved the results. However, there’s one variety of plants that started to spread and little shoots would pop out in nearby areas. Check this out:

(We couldn't save that poor purple plant in the middle)

I called the warranty lady at the landscaping company (kindly explaining that we made it clear we wanted a low-maintenance yard) and after several weeks she agreed to send someone out to help pull out the shoots and prune them back. The plants are only under warranty for the first twelve months and they would only replace dead plants, not plants we don’t end up liking. So they could have easily told me “Too bad, your loss.” Anyhow, when a gal came out she tried to fix the problem, but soon realized it wasn’t an easy task (she didn’t want to do it herself). We talked it over and decided it would be an on-going problem (they will continue to spread, even if we pull out this years shoots). I told her I’d like them completely removed then. She said she would send one of their employees out do it another day. She took several pictures to show the warranty lady and we bonded as we talked about how horrible the situation was. I was friendly as I expressed my disappointment about having to be liable to replace all the plants (we planted 17) and asked her to relay all we discussed to the powers that be. Within a few hours I received a phone call and was told not only will they pull them all out, but they will replace them all and bring in new dirt and bark to make it look as great as it should. Wow, I hoped for this result, but didn’t really expect it. I was hesitant to call and look stupid thinking they owed us anything, but just shows that it pays to ask.

Here’s a picture of a few of the plants after they were dug up. The plants filled up the entire back of their work truck. It took the guy over five hours to fix everything.

Over the years I’ve gotten some killer deals on things. I think you have to expect great things, but not demand them. Here’s one of my favorite and proudest:

June 2005: Our freezer wasn’t working great. It was no longer under warranty but I decided to pay for them to come out and look at it. They ordered a part to get it fixed. In the meantime they gave us a credit so we could purchase a freezer until they could get ours working. It was a big enough credit to purchase a large upright freezer which we put in our garage. I even purchased one that wasn’t their brand and they still paid for it. THEN, they couldn’t get the part in to fix the freezer in the house, so they ended up replacing the entire 4+ year old fridge and freezer for FREE and we got to keep the freezer they bought in our garage. Best deal we’ve ever gotten and I didn’t even have to pay the small fee to have them come out in the first place.

I like to think that I am an awesome deal getter, but maybe, just maybe, this is one of the blessings we’ve received from always paying a full tithing... Maybe it’s a little of both.

Sunshine

Saturday was a beautiful day. It seems like I always go into a weekend hoping we will get lots of things done around the house, but we hardly scratch the surface. Disappointing for me, but I think the girls would say it was a perfect day for them. Justin and the girls went on a long bike ride and ate lunch at the park. They both LOVE riding along with their Dad and want to go any chance they can. I wouldn’t be surprised if Carly is riding on two-wheels this summer.

Like me, Carly needs her shades on anytime the sun is out. The sunshine is so foreign to us lately that we didn’t think to put sunscreen on the kids. The both have sunkissed cheeks and bright red farmer tans.

The girls also played outside with a few of the neighborhood kids (always a great time). That evening we enjoyed our first outdoor BBQ of the year. Love that Famous Dave's BBQ sauce!

Jason has finally mastered drinking from a cup – yippee!! What a big boy… he’s nine months old today!

They're Here

For the last year it’s seems like our house has been all about losing teeth. As fun as that is, I’ve been waiting for Jason to get some teeth. He wants to eat everything we are eating and I’d feel much more comfortable giving him food if he actually had some teeth to chew with. Jason will be nine months old on Sunday so it’s about time. Abigail got her first tooth at six months and Carly was five months.

Okay, so I know the whole snot situation is a little disgusting but it’s the best I could do. Between cutting his first tooth and dealing with a cold, we’ve had some rough moments this past week.

All sorts of crazy...

Abigail has allergies: she’s allergic to nuts, eggs, fish, trees, dogs, cats, etc… She used to be allergic to milk, peas, and beans, but she’s thankfully outgrown these. Almost a year ago we took Abigail off of Singular, an asthma medication she had been taking for three years. Things seemed to be okay. Her asthma would really only bother her when she was sick or traveling. The past week though she’s been coughing a lot. It’s so hard to tell if it’s asthma or a cold. She’ll seem fine otherwise until the end of the afternoon and then she’s so wiped out she’ll just lay around for hours. I kept her home from church on Sunday, but she’s been fine at school all week. Then this morning she’s wiped out and not sure she can go to school… What’s up? One minute she’s running around the next she’s out. I rarely take my kids to the doctor, but a few more days of this and I may have to.

Then there's our little man Jason. It’s nearly noon and he still hasn’t woke up!! Justin put him to bed last night around 7 pm. He did wake up last night around 1 am and struggled to get himself back to sleep, but come on… isn’t this a bit extreme?

So not to leave out our crazy little Carly, I’ll share part of her prayer she said at lunch last week. “...please bless Daddy that he won't get taken from the policeman and that he'll be grateful to be at work." I’d love to look into her thoughts and see where she was going with this… so funny!

Little Mother

Have I mentioned how much I love this girl?!?

Last night Jason woke up a few times so this morning I was even more tired than usual. I could hear him in his room this morning babbling. As usual Abigail was already up and quietly reading downstairs. She came up to my room and asked me if she could go talk to Jason… the girls are always excited to be the first to greet him each morning. So for the next half hour she played with him in his room. I finally got up and got him out of his crib and laid him on the floor. Abigail again spent the next 15-20 minutes entertaining him while I rested. (I sound horribly lazy, don’t I?) Eventually I dragged myself out of bed, again, and dressed Jason in the clothes Abigail had already picked out. We came downstairs (Abigail carried down a pile of diapers to the garage) and I put him in his chair with some cheerios to keep him happy while I went into the office to check my email. When I returned several minutes later Abigail had put a bib on him and was feeding him his leftover applesauce from the fridge. It was then that I recognized how amazing my six year-old daughter is. She essentially took care of Jason most of the morning without being asked. She is such a huge help to me everyday. While I finished feeding him she got out her leftover pancakes from last nights dinner and heated them up in the microwave for breakfast. I love this girl!

The Instincts of a Mother

I’m sure I’m not the only mother who has worried about her baby falling out of bed on those nights they’ve slept next to you. There have been times I’ve even dreamt of my baby rolling out of bed. I wake up as I desperately try to save them, only to find that they are sound asleep in their own room. Last night I had some crazy dreams.

I could sense my baby rolling near the edge of the bed. I lurched toward him to catch him from falling. He hollered out in pain. It wasn’t my baby. It was Justin. And I didn’t save him from falling, but I did stop him from rolling over.

This morning as Justin was getting ready he noticed that I left a two inch scratch across his chest.

Thank heavens it wasn’t my baby!

What's for dinner?

My friend Chrystie tagged me. I’m supposed to post what we eat for dinner during an average week. Chrystie thought she was bad, but I’m about to make her look really good.

I never know what time Justin will be getting home. It depends on IF he can get out of the office in time to catch his bus into Seattle AND whether that bus gets to Seattle in time to catch the train home. If he drives to work that usually means he’s either coming home just in the nick of time for me to leave or he has to work late – either way we don’t eat together very often. To try and have a meal ready when he gets home from work doesn’t work for us. Besides that we’re pretty frugal when it comes to groceries. Neither one of us can just go to the store and buy whatever we need for a meal. If it’s not on sale, chances are we won’t buy it. Now that I’d expressed my excuses… lets get on with it. I thought it would be easiest to just go over what we ate this past week.

Sunday: Justin is a good cook so he usually cooks on Sunday since that’s the day he actually has the time. This past week he cooked chicken enchiladas. They turn out different every time, but always yummy. We heated up a can of black beans and a box of Mexican Rice-a-Roni. (He makes really good Mexican rice from scratch too, but he wanted to take the easy route this time). Justin also makes paella at least once a month.
Monday: I can’t remember. Typical meals include: spaghetti, funeral potatoes w/country fried steak (frozen), and stir-fry. I have a few other favorite meals, but since they require more time we don’t have them as often.
Tuesday: I was at the dentist till nearly 7 pm so Justin was on duty. He said they just had leftovers.
Wednesday: The Papa Murphy’s special on Wednesdays is a 3-topping family size so we end up picking up a pizza at least once a month. Justin also takes a quick survey so we get free breadsticks too… delicious!
Thursday: Out to dinner at the local BBQ restaurant with Justin’s Dad.
Friday: Justin worked late so the girls and I ate leftovers.
Saturday: Justin went to the general priesthood meeting so the girls and I shared a Pasta-Roni boxed meal. But to my credit we made Panini sandwiches for lunch… they were fantastic! We’d typically either eat out on Friday or Saturday night.

So, there you have it. All you ladies can give yourselves a huge pat on the back and all you husbands can be grateful you married the women you did. In an effort to hide the shame I feel having revealed my poor cooking habits, I dare say no other mother of three spends less on groceries than I do (Justin can be proud of that).

I’ll tag Tami B. because I hear she’s looking for uncontroversial topics to blog about. ;)

Anyone game for a lock-down?

Since Jason was born I’ve had this constant feeling of being behind. On any given day I have several different things that NEED to get done. Hundreds of things that I WANT to get done. And thousands of things I SHOULD do. I usually accomplish all the NEED’s, but beyond that I barely scratch the surface.

Today as I run around the house straightening up, doing laundry, and taking care of the needs of my three children I found myself wishing for a mandatory lock-down. A week where we can’t leave our houses. No kids to get off to school. No husband spending all day (and sometimes all evening) at work. No errands to run. No extra-curricular activities to chauffeur the kids to. No pressure to squeeze in time at the gym. No phone to answer or emails to respond to. A complete cutoff from the world. Nothing but getting things done around the house. I wouldn’t just clean. I’d like to read a book without feeling guilty. Hang up the pictures I purchased several months ago. Watch a movie together as a family. Help Justin organize the garage (cause the likelihood of it happening without my help is slim, but I love him for trying.) I would start Jason’s scrapbook. Play games with my kids. Plant my garden and weed the yard. All important things, but things that constantly get neglected because of life.

Sitting at the Big Table

Last spring I sold our high chair at the garage sale for $15. It had been through three children (my two girls and one of my sister’s triplets). I decided I didn’t want anything that large taking up precious space in my kitchen. I don’t miss it at all. Our neighbors gave us their old booster seat that simply straps on to one of our existing chairs and wha-la.

Jason likes sitting at the table with us too.

It’s Spring???

For all you Utahns this is not unusual, but for us it is… especially in March.

The girls couldn’t resist any longer. They got bundled up and headed outside. When Justin got home from work he went out to join them (along with all the neighborhood kids).

It’s now 8:00 pm, dark outside, still snowing, and they are still out having fun.

Our Visit to Utah

As many of you know, Thursday, March 13th my Mom's husband, Jack passed away. Jason and I took the first flight to Utah on Friday morning to be with her and Justin and the girls drove down and arrived on Sunday afternoon. The funeral was held that Monday morning. All of my Mom's seven sisters were in town for my uncle's funeral and were able to attend Jack's as well. It was great to visit with my extended family, but wish it would have been under different circumstances.

Justin was able to take the entire week off of work so we could stay through Easter. While we were there we were able to celebrate my niece, Brynn’s eighth birthday.

My sister signed us up for the Easter Dive at the local swimming pool. There actually wasn’t any “diving” involved since the younger kids gathered eggs around the play area in the shallow end. It was fun to watch and the girls had a blast. Carly lost track of which basket was hers so there was a lucky little boy with a basket full of eggs. Thankfully, some other kids must have gotten confused as well because Carly still ended up with some eggs to trade in for prizes after all. After the egg hunt the kids were able to stay and swim too. Lots of fun (except for the lifeguard jumping into the pool to save Carly’s life)… Justin swears she was fine – better safe than sorry.

(Abigail's wearing the blue swimsuit in the middle)

Easter dinner was held at my brother’s house. With two funerals during the past week, we’d all had our fill of ham and funeral potatoes so they made yummy kabobs instead. While the Easter eggs were being hidden in the back yard, the younger kids did an egg toss in the front yard. It didn’t take long for the seagulls to catch the scent and come clean up… it was like a scene from the old black and white movie “The Birds” (minus the bloodshed, of course).

Here’s the cousins after the family Easter egg hunt (minus three who weren’t able to be in town).

The kids enjoyed spending the rest of the evening sorting their candy and playing store (I think my girls got taken advantage of by their older and obviously more bargaining experienced cousins)… they didn’t come home with hardly any chocolate… lots of jelly beans though. :)

Jason got lots of attention from everyone and was willing to let anyone hold him. Yeah! Too bad I couldn’t pass him off to someone else at night. Jason quickly caught on that if he made any peep at night I would be at his side in a split second, willing to do whatever necessary to keep him quiet. This made for some long nights. Thankfully, our first night home he was back to his “normal” self.

(Jason met his Uncle Ray for the first time)

I'm grateful to have been able to go to Utah to be with my family at such a difficult time. Jack was a great husband and my Mom was his world.

J's Photo Session

I have a lot to blog about with our recent visit to Utah, but I need to attack the mounds of email, laundry, and mail that’s accumulated before I look through all the pictures I took. (We just got home last night) While out of town, I received a cd with pictures of Jason I had taken a month ago. He wouldn’t smile for the camera and kept sucking in his lips, but I think we still got some cute ones.

Hoppy Easter!

McTeacher Night

Last night was McTeacher Night at our neighborhood McDonalds. A portion of all sales went to our elementary school. The fun part is that the teachers and principal are working. Abigail’s teacher was on clean-up duty and her principal was manning the fry station. It was so fun for the kids to see the teachers outside of the classroom.

Abigail and her teacher

One More Do

Jason’s hair naturally just lays flat against his head. I don’t even comb it. Since we’re all about the hair lately, we spiced things up a little today.

I'm the Winner!

Haven’t we all had a conversation that went something like:

Woman #1: Oh, my house is such a mess!

Woman #2: There’s no way it could be nearly as messy as mine.

Woman #1: I’ve been in your house a thousand times and it’s never been a mess. You don’t know how messy a house can really be.

Woman #2: I’m sure it can’t be THAT bad.

I had a similar conversation this morning and the competition was on. I promised a friend I wouldn’t pick up a single thing and when she came by she could really see my house in all its disastrous glory. When she arrived I took her on the brief tour. We walked past the Balloon Graveyard, through Polly Pocket Lake, and into Ground Zero.

It was an easy win for me. Of course she tried to argue, but we both knew she never stood a chance!

Instead of feeling embarrassment for my serious lack of household organization, I feel a twisted sense of pride. My friend can now return to her home with the comfort that it really isn’t THAT bad.

If anyone else needs a boost… me and my home are here for you.

Trading Do's

I guess it’s just human nature to want what we don’t have. Carly wants short, curly hair like her big sister and Abigail wants long, straight hair like Carly. Since Carly got to have her hair styled special yesterday for her birthday, Abigail wanted her hair done special today.

Is it just me or do they look so much different just by trading hair-dos.

Happy Birthday Carly!

Carly celebrated her 4th birthday today and what better way to celebrate than to have a party. Having a princess party was perfect for Carly’s first birthday celebration with friends. Justin was able to leave work early and thankfully his Mom was able to come and help as well.

Carly often asks to have her hair curled, but I rarely have the time. For months I’ve been telling her that we’ll curl her hair for her party. I think I’ll curl it more often. She was so cute!

The first guests…

Eagerly waiting for the rest of the guests…


Decorating princess crowns…

Everyone was more than willing to help open presents…

Carly was truly spoiled and loved every single thing she received.

(She’s so excited to play her new computer game – thanks Mom!)

It was a fabulous group of girls and they all looked adorable in their fancy clothes.

Shortly after the princess party we had a family get together. More presents, more fun, and more yummy cake.

Thank you everyone for making Carly’s birthday wonderful!

Our Bookworm

In honor of Read Across America Day, I’d like to dedicate this post to our family bookworm. Abigail has always loved books. Even before she could read she was reciting books word-for-word (her favorite was “Are you my mother?”) – this girl has an amazing memory.

I LOVE this picture of Abigail quietly reading a book when she was two.

Abigail was reading quite well shortly after her third birthday and there’s been no stopping her since. Abigail’s love of reading is on the brink of being an addiction. It’s not unusual for her to get so involved in a book that she can’t put it down until she’s read the entire thing.

Completely oblivious that I’m even taking a picture:

Abigail is thrilled that today at school she gets to spend most of the day reading books. We love our little bookworm and hope she always has a strong desire to read and learn.

Two Thumbs Down

Justin and I haven’t been on very many kid-free dates since Jason was born. Last night Justin arranged for his Mom to babysit and we decided to go to a movie. There’s a new “dollar” theatre nearby so of course we had to check it out. The only movie playing that sounded entertaining was “I Am Legend”. I checked out the showtimes on fandango and read their brief description:

Robert Neville (Will Smith) is a brilliant scientist, but even he could not contain the terrible virus that was unstoppable, incurable and manmade. Somehow immune, Neville is now the last human survivor in what is left of New York City, and maybe the world.

So after a quick stop thru the Panda Express drive-thru we were headed to the movies. Twenty minutes into the movie I was ready to leave. I like suspenseful movies. What I don’t like is scary movies. Movies that leave you sleepless. Movies that make you want to leave the bathroom light on all night. Movies with horrific images you can’t get out of your head. Had I clicked on “read more” on the fandango description I would have continued reading:

But he is not alone. He is surrounded by ''the Infected'' — victims of the plague who have mutated into carnivorous beings who can only exist in the dark and who will devour or infect anyone or anything in their path. For three years, Neville has spent his days scavenging for food and sending out radio messages to find any other survivors. All the while, the Infected lurk in the shadows, watching Neville’s every move, waiting for him to make a fatal mistake. Perhaps mankind’s last, best hope, Neville is driven by only one remaining mission: to find a way to reverse the effects of the virus using his own immune blood. But his blood is also what The Infected hunt, and Neville knows he is outnumbered and quickly running out of time.

Knowing that Justin was enjoying the show, and being the selfless wife that I am, I sat through the remaining 80 minutes of torture. Eyes closed. Ears plugged. Crushing Justin’s hand. He owes me BIG time for this one. We’re watching “27 Dresses” next time.

A Taste of Spring

This past week was mid-winter break, not to be confused with Spring Break which will take place in just six weeks. It may sound strange, but I love having days off of school. The girls haven’t reached the stage yet where I have to find things to keep them busy with by planning little field trips and outings. We were able to spend most of the week taking it easy at home. I’m a home-body anyhow so I loved it. It was a great week and although it wasn’t our “spring break” it sure felt like it. The weather has been wonderful. Once again the girls are playing outside – eating otter-pops and writing with sidewalk chalk. There’s been bike rides, long walks, and playing with friends. Justin and I joke around that there aren’t too many places in the world that you don’t see your neighbors for 8 months out of the year. We certainly feel that way here. During the summer we visit with our neighbors nearly every day. Yesterday they were shocked to see how much Jason has grown since they last saw him (as a newborn). I’m sure we’ll see plenty more rainy days before spring really does come, but we’re certainly enjoying our little taste of spring while it lasts.

Poor Jason isn’t quite old enough to play outside with the big kids, but he definitely enjoyed watching them.

My Style?

During a conversation with some friends yesterday we were discussing paint colors and one friend expressed that she’s a cool colored person. She pointed out a few of the rooms in her house that clearly fit her “style”. I knew immediately I don’t know what my style is. Our first few paint jobs didn’t exactly turn out like we’d hoped. When Abigail was an infant we tried painting her room a soft pale yellow (perfect for any baby’s room)… the result was a bright summer sunshine yellow. Sadly, the yellow room is still there today. Since then we’ve tried to play it safer, in fact my house is painted the exact same color that the majority of my friend’s house is painted and I like it, it’s safe.

Last spring I began searching for new bedding. We bought our current duvet cover on clearance when we got married. I didn’t love it then and certainly don’t love it now. It’s been pointed out countless number of times, I don’t make decisions very easily, especially decisions based on style, a style I certainly don’t have figured out.

Here’s what we know. We don’t like our light “natural” colored maple cabinets and wood floors. We prefer dark wood. I love, love, love our new bed… it’s a deep, dark, beautiful wood that will never go out of style (I hope).

Anything we own needs to be washable and durable. Although beautiful and elegant, a light colored silk duvet cover isn’t going to cut it.

Justin says he wants color, but I doubt he’d be happy with this. After a few days, I don’t think I would be either.

This on the other hand is bright, but not as overwhelming. It looks like a nice piece of patterned paper I would buy. But do you want a huge 108” x 92” piece of patterned paper dominating your bedroom? I don’t know... you tell me. Too juvenile?

Maybe I need to go with a smaller design… a little more classic. Am I classic?

Is it possible that after 9 months of looking that a duvet cover in my “style” has yet to be created? Would something ever really jump out at me as the “one?” I have my doubts. Any thoughts and opinions would be appreciated. Just look at the color of my walls… I’m easily influenced (thanks Tara).