I Love Bad Food

Why is it that zucchini and mushrooms don't taste like sugar and fat loaded treats? I've never wanted seconds on zucchini and mushrooms, but I love bad-for-me foods. I've also noticed that bad-for-me foods don't come as a single serving. Last night I made peanut butter chocolate chip cookies... did the recipe make one serving? Nope, I got 42 cookies out of it and they are yummy! Today I was leafing through my recipe file and came across a recipe that I haven't made in years. Nevermind that I only had 2 of the ingredients in the house... I had to run errands anyway. So I stopped by the grocery store and picked up the rest of what I needed to make Million Dollar Dessert. Anyway, I've got a 9 x 13 pan of it in the refrigerator. I don't think that is intended to be a single serving either.

Flag Football

Nolan is trying out a new sport this fall. He's playing flag football and loving it. He begged me to sign him up to play, and then after I did so, he panicked and wasn't sure he wanted to play. His first game was a little rough... he got tripped up and flattened and landed on a hard cone. He was frustrated that he didn't get the ball very often. He really wanted to be a part of the active offense rather than on the "O-line". The second game was much more satisfying for him. Nolan played halfback and ran for a touchdown. He did a nice victory celebration as he crossed the goal line. Yesterday was the "Pass, Punt, and Kick" competition. The boys compete by grade level and the top 3 performers in each category won a trophy. Nolan was stressed out about the contest. I told his to relax and that he wasn't going to win a trophy so just go have fun. Well, Mom is stupid. Nolan took 3rd in the "Punt" portion of the competition and won a trophy. He would have placed in the "Kick" competition as well, but the rule is only one trophy per player. Nolan was flying high. He had a great game after the contest and nearly scored another touchdown, but he stepped out just inches before the goal line. Go Eagles!

Moving is a Pain

Dan and I are in the process of moving downstairs. Our upstairs room is too small to contain all our junk and Skelly. The plan was to have the boys move downstairs and share the big room. Skelly would get Jonathan's room and Nolan's room would become the guest room. Yesterday was the beginning of moving day. Dan had a stroke of genius and decided that we'd better check to make sure that Nolan's room had a cable-jack before we moved anything. We checked all his walls, no jack. We checked to see if Jonathan's room had a cable jack... no jack. The cable-jack is essential to our lives not because we have cable TV (because we don't), but because our phone and internet service are provided by the cable company. No cable-jack = no phone or internet. In the end we decided that the boys would have to keep their upstairs rooms and Dan and I would move downstairs and the "den" would become Skelly's room in a few months.

So the move began. I hate jobs that require you to make a big mess to get organized. We moved 2 bookcases to the toy room. The treadmill went to the den (for a few months anyway). The futon went to the toy room. The guest room dresser went to Nolan's room. Nolan's dresser went to Skelly. 2 more bookcases from the guest room went to our old room. All our bedroom furniture and 2 bookcases are now in the old guest room. Now we are shuffling our bedroom furniture to a configuration that we like (funny, the downstairs room is bigger than the master bedroom, but we are having a hard time getting our stuff to fit thanks to the fact that the computer is staying in the downstairs room, and we have 2 windows and 2 closets to work around). Anyway, the house is in utter chaos because while the "big" stuff has been moved, all the "other" stuff is awaiting transport. Last night we slept upstairs, but had to get dressed downstairs since our clothes were moved last night. Hopefully, within the next couple of days, we'll have everything organized and my house will be recognizable again!

Sleep? What's That?

Oh why can't I sleep at night? For the first 4 months of this pregnancy, I had "Pregnancy Induced Insomnia". It, thankfully, went away and I was able to resume semi-normal sleeping habits. Unfortunately for the past month, my sleeping abilities have been greatly reduced. I make several bathroom trips each night; I wake up to roll over; I have sciatic nerve issues; and now I don't seem to be able to sleep past 4 a.m. Urgh! This is driving me nuts. I get up and get the boys off to school; the whole time my head is in a foggy haze. I get home and go back to bed for a few hours and then I can function for the rest of the day. But, come 9:30 p.m., I am so ready for bed! I fall asleep immediately after the local news weather report, but within 2 hours, my restless nights begin. Aly so kindly reminded me that my sleeping schedule is going to get worse for a long time before it gets any better (never look for sleep sympathy from a mother with a 2-year-old and a near-9-month-old...). At least once Skelly arrives, there will be a real reason for sleepless nights!

Totally Overwhelmed!

Last night was Skelly's baby shower. I was really hesitant about having a baby shower because Skelly is my 3rd boy, we still have many of Jonathan and Nolan's baby items, and financially, I didn't want to be a burden on anyone. Despite my hesitation, the baby shower was held. I am overwhelmed at the support I received at the shower and everyone's generosity. There were over 40 people at the shower. There was a group gift option and I got a jogging stroller, a crib mattress, and a baby backpack. Evidently I didn't ask for enough group gift items, because in the card was the additional money that didn't get spent... over $100 (which I was told to use to buy additional items I need for Skelly). Those who didn't go in on the group gift were overly-generous as well. Not one book, but 4; not 1 outfit, but 2, handmade crocheted blankets, multiple handmade burp cloths with additional gifts; a blanket, onesies, and an outfit; a playmat, motrin, onesies, socks, and nailclippers; and the list could go on and on. I just hope that in my thank you notes I can adequately express my appreciation.

SDC!

Beijing is a SDC- a stupid dumb cat! I don't remember which of my siblings came up with that acronym, but it sure applies to 99% of the world's cat population. Beijing has discovered the kitchen sink and is obsessed with it. Anytime she hears the kitchen faucet on, she comes tearing into the kitchen and up onto the counter and over to the sink for "playtime"! She loves the running water. She likes to drink from the tap, swat at the water, and stick her head under the running water. She is getting braver about the bathtub faucet as well. Right now she is content to sit on the edge of the bathtub and watch the water run into the tub. I think the water pressure from that tap is a little intimidating for her right now, but give her some time and I bet she'll be drinking from that tap too!

Finshed!

For the past 3+ months I have been working on Skelly's blanket. For each of my boys I have cross-stitched a baby blanket for them that they really aren't allowed to use. They get to use their blanket on their homecoming day, blessing day, and other "special" occasions. I spend far too much time on the blankets for them to get puked on and ruined from being washed so often. Jonathan has a Beatrix Potter Alphabet blanket. Nolan has a baby chicks blanket, and Skelly has an "animal safari" blanket.

I started Skelly's blanket in May and worked on it each day while Nolan was at swim team practice. I said I had to work on it at least an hour a day. Well, July rolled around and I was only on the 4th square. I knew I had to pick up the pace or it would never be done. That is when I let all the housework go and became better acquainted with "The Price is Right", the Judges Judy, Alex, Joe Brown, and Cristina, and Oprah. When the Olympics were on I watched them obsessively and cross-stitched my way through the swimming, gymnastics, track & field, diving, basketball, rowing, volleyball, etc events. I put the last stitch in the blanket at 10:45 p.m. on Saturday night and did the fringe/knot tying yesterday! It's done... hallelujah! Skelly has my permission to be born now! The only problem is that Beijing has claimed the blanket for herself!

I <3 ZenniOptical.com

Zenni Optical sells prescription glasses for cheap! I think we are single-handedly keeping them in business. This wonderful "store" is in Hong Kong and sells glasses starting at $8 a pair (but the $8 ones are ugly) plus $5 shipping. So far this year, we have bought 4 pairs of glasses from them... a back-up pair for Nolan, a back-up, back-up pair (with clip-on sunshades; he really hates these glasses) for Nolan, a pair for Dan, and, yep, pair #3 for Nolan.

The Saturday of Labor Day weekend, Dan took the boys and climbed Mt. Timpanogos. Dan was wearing his prescription sunglasses and brought his regular glasses along in case the sun set before getting off the mountain. Sometime during the day, while shuffling through his daypack, Dan lost his regular glasses. Our insurance won't pay for him to get another pair for another 5 months. I introduced him to Zenni Optical and today, less than a week after placing his order, Dan's new glasses arrived (and he's retired his dorky round back-up pair to the bottom drawer).

Yesterday I had the privilege of purchasing Nolan his third pair of glasses from Zenni. He and Tanner were walking home from school. They stopped at the canal to practice spitting on a pipe. Nolan was leaning over spitting. Tanner was swinging his hoodie around and it hit Nolan in the face. Nolan's glasses went flying off his face and landed in the canal. Bye-bye glasses! Well, Nolan isn't eligible for another pair of insurance-paid-for-glasses until January either, so I faithfully returned to Zennioptical.com and bought him another pair of glasses. Luckily the "canal glasses" were his original back-up glasses (because he lost a screw out of his nice & fancy insurance-paid-for-glasses). Anyway, $29 later, including shipping, we are waiting for Zenni to deliver Nolan his back-up, back-up, back-up pair of glasses.

The South Summit Triathlon

3 posts in one day! This is killing me! Today was the South Summit Triathlon in Kamas. This is the third year we have participated in this triathlon (and the 3rd year that it has been held). The boys, all 3 of them, look forward to this tri. My only complaint about this triathlon is that it is always so incredibly cold in Kamas in September (it was about 45 degrees when the adult triathlon began). Dan's race was first and as always he did amazing. He ran 1.5 miles, biked 6 miles, and swam 200 yards. Dan won his age group and took 4th overall. He beat his last year's time by 1:30. The boys, thanks to the help of their Nintendo DS systems, waited patiently for their turn. Shalyn also was in this triathlon this year. The kids' race was a .75 mile run, 3 mile bike, and 75 yard swim. Jonathan and Nolan decided to race shirtless to save time during the transitions. The race started with the run. Jonathan, strategically, dropped immediately to last place. He's learned that it is better to start slow and build rather than go all out and die. Nolan finished the run a few seconds before Jonathan and headed out for the bike leg of the race. Jonathan was right behind. Dan wandered down the course a little way to get a better view. We saw the police escort vehicle enter the school area and Jonathan was leading the pack behind the police truck. He quickly transitioned and ran to the pool where minutes later he emerged as the overall boys (and youth) triathlon winner. Nolan struggled on the hills on the bike course and with asthma, but he trudged on. He ran to the pool and quickly swam his 75 yards and came flying across the finish line in 3rd place for his age division. Shalyn found that she may have started the run a bit too fast, but she raced on and finished 3rd in her division as well. Way to go to all. Dan, Nolan, and Shalyn all received medals for their finishes. Jonathan won a plaque and a $50 gift certificate to a sporting goods store. They all did great! Hey- I think just finishing is great (since I've never done a triathlon), but to have all 4 place was spectacular!

Furniture

Monday was Labor Day. Labor Day means sales. We decided to go to the RC Willey outlet in Provo and see what they had. We invited the boys to come and, surprisingly, they agreed (maybe it had something to do with the promise of doughnuts and free hotdogs and soda). Anyway, Dan and I were in search of some type of table that could be used as a changing table for Skelly. We found a piece of an executive desk that was on clearance for $50 plus 25% off that would work. It needs to be raised, and a drawer needs to be made for it, but Dan said he could handle that. So we paid for the desk piece and while we were waiting for them to pick up the desk from the floor and shrinkwrap it, Nolan fell in love with an ottoman. It's a big oversized green rectangle that he just had to have. He began the negotiation process with Dan. The ottoman was $60 plus 25 % off. Dan told Nolan that he (Dan) was not paying for the ottoman. Nolan really really wanted this piece of furniture so he agreed to pay 50% of the cost. Dan agreed and we left the store not only with a "changing table", but the first piece of furniture that Nolan, in part, paid for. How many 9 year-olds do you know that choose to spend their hard-earned money on an ottoman?

First Day of School

I am so slow at uploading pictures and bad at recording events. Here are the boys on the first day of school. They have now completed 3 weeks of school (they started August 18th). Jonathan is in 8th grade this year at Oak Canyon Jr. High and Nolan is in 4th grade at Valley View Elementary. So far they are both enjoying their school year. Jonathan starts school at 6:30 a.m. every other day for Jazz band. Nolan is enjoying walking to school with Logan and being in the "Walking" Club which meets twice a week before school.

Junior High Dances

I don't get it. Jonathan says he is shy. Having to make phone calls stresses him out. He'd rather eat lunch alone than ask if he could sit with a bunch of kids he knows. Today he blew me away. I went to pick Jonathan up from school today. He came out and reminded me that there was a school dance after school and asked my to pick him up when it was over or if it was lame, he would call me and I'd come get him then. He never called. I went to pick him up when the dance was over. He came bouncing out to the car. He'd had a great time. He asked a girl to slow dance (twice). He was telling me about how much fun he had dancing. He even got into the middle of a dance circle and did the "worm" and somersaults repeatedly. He said kids were taking pictures of his dancing (I assume that was a good thing?). He came out a confident stud. What happened to my shy and introverted teenager?

Thanks Aly

I hate these things, but didn't want to let Aly down. Here is me... from A to Z

A. Attached or Single? Attached.
B. Best Friend? Depends who you think you are, but I say Dan
C. Cake or Pie? Pie filling, no crust, but never pumpkin pie!
D. Day of Choice? Monday... kids are back at school, Dan's at work, life returns to normal
E. Essential Item? Car Keys
F. Favorite Color? Red
G. Gummy bears or worms? Neither... Gummy Frogs are better
H. Hometown? Livermore, CA
I. Indulgence? Peanut Butter Ice Cream
J. January or July? May. January is too cold, July is too hot, especially this year!
K. Kids? 2+, Jonathan, "Nolan, and "Skellington" who is closing in on -5 weeks old
L. Life isn't complete without? My camera
M. Marriage Date? August 9, 1991
N. Number of brothers or sisters? 1 brother, Scott; 3 sisters, Aly, Amy, and Leslie
O. Oranges or Apples? Neither. Don't really like apples, and hate that you can't tell if an orange is good without peeling it
P. Phobias? Snakes
Q. Quotes? Got to think on that one for a while...
R. Reasons to smile? August 18! School started. September 8th- Dan goes to 4 day work weeks!
S. Season of choice? Spring
T. Tag some peeps: No! I'll end the madness here!
U. Unknown fact about me? I have a wart on my left foot
V. Vegetable? Red Peppers and Green Beans
W. Worst habit? Picking my hangnails
X. X-Ray or Ultrasound? Ultrasound. I've had 7 so far this pregnancy
Y. Your favorite food? Anything spicy... India, Thai, and HOT Mexican are awesome
Z. Zodiac Sign? Scorpio