This is What CRAZY Looks Like

Smurf or Airhead?

2009-06-02T20:49:00.002-06:00

Did he eat a Smurf?????
I left Ashton, Lizzie, and Mason in the car for a few minutes while I ran into CocoaBean Cupcake. Apparently Ashton started to cry so Mason, being the ever so concerned brother, gives him an Airhead. Not a little piece, NO!!! The whole thing. Now I was rushing home and didn't know that the baby was chowing down on this delightful treat until I opened the van door and saw this. Ashton was happy as a clam! And wearing a new outfit to boot. But I was in Rexburg and I have to get a cupcake when Im up there. Its just UnAmerican for me not to. Look at them and tell me that a Blue baby wouldn't be worth it.

New Moon!!!

2009-05-30T19:07:00.001-06:00

My obsessions is starting all over again. I had to share this GREAT pix of the "wolves". They are Hot!!!! See ya at the Premier.

Tag Your It

2009-05-03T21:18:00.004-06:00

Share ODD Things about you! If you opened this, FILL IT OUT!
Learn 37 things about your friends, and let them learn 37 things about you!
Send back to me and to several more friends!!
1. Do you like bleu cheese? Love it
2. Do you sleep with socks on? Absolutly NOT! Not even if it is 700 below.>
3. Do you own a gun? Chris does, I like to shoot pistols but we have no guns at our house.
4. What flavor Kool Aid was your favorite? Purple-Saurus-Rex, they don't make it anymore, but I have to say I do love the clear kinds.
5. Toilet paper: Folded or wadded? A little of both
6. What do you think of hot dogs? raw, late night Maverick or campfire
7. Favorite Christmas movie? The Santa Clause
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? ProFlex Protein shake
9. Can you do a cartwheel? Yep
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? my wedding ring, this is my second one so it is my second favorite. Lizzie lost my first one and I still get sick to my stomach when I think about it. I LOVED it so much.
11. What are your favorite hobbies? Sewing, quilting, reading, baking, photography, scrapbooking, movies, and cooking
12. Do you have A. D. D.? Maybe a little.
13. Do you wear glasses/contacts? I wear them both but prefer contacts. I really really really really want Lasiks
14. Middle name? Kay
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment: Are the kids asleep, did I get enough laundry done, and am I going to loose enough inches and weight this week?
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Water, Diet Dr Pepper, and Diet Dr Pepper
17. Current worry? 6th grade and money
18. Current hate right now? Excuses
19. Favorite place to be? With my kids watching a movie, lounging on the couch
20. How did you ring in the new year? I honestly can't remember and that is even my birthday, must not have been too great
21. Where would you like to go? I want to take the kids to Disneyland but when Ashton is a little older, for now I would love to see the Washington and Oregon coasts again.
22. Name three people who will complete this: Heather, Nichole, and Michelle
23. Do you own slippers? Nope just flip flops
24. What color shirt are you wearing? teal
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Are you on crack?
27. Where are you now? in bed
28. Would you be a pirate? No cuz they don't shower
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? Taylor Swift
30. Favorite Girl's Name? Elizabeth, Hazel, Grace
31. Favorite boy's name? Thornton, Riley, Mason, Ashton, should I go on?
32. What is in your pocket right now? No pockets, I'm in bed
33. Last thing that made you laugh? Ashton giving kisses
34. What vehicle do you drive? 98 Olds Silhouette
35. Worst injury you've ever had? C-Section, worst experience of my life to date. Only good thing that came out if it was Ashton
36. Do you love where you live? No, we don't love our neighbors and the City of Rigby has gone to HELL
37. How many TVs do you have in your house? 3

Dying eggs

2009-04-12T13:22:00.003-06:00

Saturday I told the kids we could dye eggs after I had a nap and Riley got home from a friends house at five. Well he got home early and so my nap ended early.
All I heard was "Is is time to dye eggs," "Riley's home mom, lets dye the eggs," "When are we dying eggs?" "Are you going to get up so we can dye eggs?" "Mom get up so we can dye eggs," "I got the eggs outs, let dye them now" "Can't we dye the eggs?" "What time are we going to dye the eggs?"
And this was just the tip of the iceberg. Well need less to say, I said, "No egg dying."
And ,no I was not worried about the 4 dozen eggs that had been cooked and a lot already eaten or that fact that my children may remember this Easter as the worst Easter ever cuz they didn't get to dye eggs. I didn't care!!!! I just wanted to throw the box, which they had opened to "See what it looked like" inside the box, of PAAS Egg kit away. Nope, I just wanted to have a nice hour or so nap and wake up gracefully and peacefully. But no, I woke up to a battle field of inquiries for egg dying. Never mind that these adventurous children I love and adore have a father, who is watching something "Wonderful" on the Discovery Channel. Of course there must be some sort of label on the stupid PAAS box that mentions that only mothers can dye eggs with their children.
I was not giving in and I held out till about 7pm. And yes I'm the meanest mom in the whole world and I'm good with that. Then the husband, (who has some how managed to get a super power in which I do not possess. Selective hearing), gives in and tells the kids they can dye the damn eggs. I do not want any part in, until I watch him try to mix the dye up. Apparently it's a "Woman's Job" Or I just have some control issues. Whichever, they got to have yet another year of fond Easter memories.

They had a great time and Chris got to finish watching whatever he was watching while they created colors I didn't know existed.

It's moments like these that make it all worth it. Ashton is getting so grown up and loved being included in all the action.

Easter Saturday!!

2009-04-12T13:03:00.002-06:00

Lizzie gearing up for the Egg Hunt in Shelley. The best in the valley, Thanks City of Shelley, Your worth the drive.
Mister Bucket Head

All the kids getting ready for the egg hunt at their Gammy's house. They loved it. Mason loves getting little things in eggs. It always makes him smile.

Thanks to Uncle Patrick, TJ got to see what it is really like on a teeter-toter.

It's All Gone! And I got my money's worth.

2009-03-24T22:22:00.004-06:00

A long time ago, when Riley was about 6, a good friend of mine told me how much she loves Riley's shaggy hair style. It hadn't been something I had done on purpose, I was just too cheep to go get it cut until I was really getting my money's worth. Anyway, I took a good look at him and notice that she was right he was a "hotty" with shaggy hair, and shaggy hair is "way" in. So ever since I try to convince him to grow it out and remind him how much the ladies love long hair on boys. At Christmas time I finally broke down and took them all in to get hair cuts. Some other time I'll share how on that day I took 7 , yes I said 7, children to get hair cuts all at the same time. Another story for another day. Anyway, the gal cutting it and I told him how much girls like long hair and that he should just get a trim, and that her boyfriend has shaggy hair and how much she likes it and so on. He was really hard to convince. So I made a deal with him that if he would leave it long until after Christmas he could cut it anyway he wanted. He bit. Well it is now March. I finally got sick of seeing him wipe it out of his eyes so I took him in to get it cut. He was loving it that long and didn't even want a trim but I told him trims are good. If he would always listen to me this well he would be perfect. Wouldn't Stepford children be just great. But once he sat in the chair he totally changed his mind.

He decided he wanted it all gone. I thought the girl cutting it was going to cry. She kept asking him if he was sure and if I was sure. But I made a promise and even though I had bent it a little and not entirely played by the rules, I was going to keep it.

Believe it or not, Riley actually had a head of hair just like Ashton until he was about 2. My boy's shouldn't ever have to worry about hair loss, cuz they have a crap load.

There is no turning back at this point.

Totally the Skater Doo from the 90's.

Amazing it is actually the same kid. I'm curious what the girls say about it . I haven't heard yet. But I definitely got my $5 worth this time.

Sisters and Cupcakes

2009-03-19T21:40:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I took my little sister, Michelle to this "SO COOL" little place called the Cocoa Bean Cupcake Cafe. It is down town Rexburg and has "to die for cupcakes and cocoa." Michelle was here for about a week to visit us from California. It was so fun to have her hear. I really miss her and so do my kids. Lizzie got to go with us, too. I usually don't let her have her own decadent treats, I just share, but today it was fun to watch her pick her own flavor.

What kind will it be? Carmel Apple Pie. I was shocked it wasn't chocolate. She can't be my daughter? Look how yummy this looks. It was as good as it looked.

I had the Ultimate Brownie and Michelle had the Cherry Chocolate Cheesecake. We also treated our selves to the wonderful cocoa drinks they have. Michelle went with hot and Liz and I cold. Either way you win.

So cute digging in. Lizzie is named out after Michelle and so they are special buddies. Lizzie loves spending time with her when she is home for visits. Michelle loves seeing the kids too. Ashton loves her and loved the chocolate and whipping cream she gave him too. We will have to make a trip there again the next time she comes home. Until then, we will miss her. ALOT!!!

Trying the New

2009-03-19T21:13:00.002-06:00

Ever since I have become a mom, I have tried to incorporate good food into my children's diet. Because that is what good mom's do. Well I like to try new things every now and again because just because my mom didn't like it or cook it doesn't mean it is bad. So I decided it was time to try the "Brussels Sprout." It was only a couple of years ago that I even knew what they looked like. Chris had said he loved them and they looked pretty at the grocery store so why not?

I didn't know how to cook them so I had to look it up online. Here I'm discovering that they are really like little cabbages.

They are so pretty and springy. Just like little cabbages.

According to the recipes, butter is a must, but I didn't want too much. Well apparently I didn't have enough butter cuz those cute little cabbage look-a-likes were not so good. Maybe a new recipe will help but I will be okay if for the rest of my like I never have another one.

Ashton's Blessing

2009-03-15T18:22:00.002-06:00

Finally got my photos uploaded and wanted to share some with you. It has been a rough start with Ashton, but we finally go him blessed March 1st. He is such a sweet heart.

UP-Chuck-a-Rama!!!!!

2009-03-14T08:12:00.003-06:00

We decided to take the kids out to dinner and since they love Chuck-a-rama, there we went. Before we even got out of the driveway, Riley had bit Mason, (apparently he is a rabid dog cuz now Mason has a bruise from hell) Mason was hitting Riley and Lizzie, and TJ was whining and crying like a 2 yr old. Chris and I were hungry and after prolonging the trip with timeouts, we headed to town.
Dinner went great. The kids ate and ate, for the most part they were well behaved and had a good time. After they had all Ice cream, Riley decide to have some more fish, which was fine, but TJ is a little Autistic. Well TJ had eaten a TON of food, it is Chuck-a-rama after all, he had been behaving as "Normal" as TJ is does in public, and then he started to hide under his shirt. We told him to stop but he didn't. After a couple of minutes he said, "I need my space! I need my space!" waving his hands and talking louder than usual. I told him to stop and that he was fine. Then it happened! The unthinkable! The thing parents dread! He PUKED!!! Not a lot but still it was vomit!!! Regurgitated food, however you want to say it, it was PUKE!!! He has done this a lot but it has been two years since we dealt with this quirk in a restaurant.
Chris was mortified, completely embarrassed. I was trying to get him away from the table so more wouldn't come. He tells me that he smelled the fish and it made him sick, he told me he tried to tell me he was sick but I didn't listen. I sent him to the bathroom and we gathered everyone up to leave.
TJ has made a ton of progress!! Despite the embarrassing moment, I was so excited! He verbalized and came up with a solution. I just didn't listen. He warned us he needed his space and I just blew it off as TJ being TJ. Lesson learned: If he tells me he needs his space, I will give it.
Hooray!!!! All the HARD work is paying off. Maybe next time I will read the cues.

On crazy Friday.

2009-03-03T11:42:00.002-07:00

The other day, before I left for work, I asked all the boys where they were supposed to go after school. Believe it or not they all had it correct. Well the day went on and I went to work in the afternoon and came home. Lizzie and Mason came home. I hadn't gotten any phone calls about missing children or anything. Mason tells me, "Mom, TJ didn't go to Options." I'm like, "Yes he did. No one called me and he isn't home. You are just trying to get him trouble." Mason does that sometimes, a lot actually. So, them Mason said, "No he didn't, he rode Shay's bus home with me." I still was a little sceptical, but up the drive way TJ comes. His cheeks were red and it looked like he had been walking but I always give my kids the benifit of the doubt. Yeah Right. I had a conversation with him and this is sort of how it went:

Me: So how was your day?
TJ: Good.
Me: How did you get home?
TJ: Oh, Home Again brought me.
Me: Oh, who was the driver?
TJ: I don't know it was a new one.,
Me: Did they tell you their name?
TJ: Yeah but I forgot it.
Me: Did you go to Options today?
TJ: Yeah I did.

By this time I was dialing Options to check his story, Tiffany answered and I asked her if he had been there. She told me No he hadn't. So I precided t0 explain to her that he had rode the bus home and skipped out of going to Options. He can come up with this little (HUGE) skeeming story. I realized after I asked for the second time if he could come on Monday that no one was on the other line. My sweet and innoccont, ciniving, maliputive son had unplugged the phone during my rambling. I was really mad now. No I was freaking Pissed!!!

I sent him screaming to his room and called her back and made the arrangements I needed. Then the work began.

I told him was grounded to his room for Friday night and all day Saturday. That meant No friends, No phone, No TV, No brothers and sister, No coming out except for going to the bathroom and that was only if he asked, begged and pleaded. I went and got ice cream for every one else and we watched "Igor" a movie he has been wanting to see.

Now some of you may think this is very harsh but really I have to get really creative with TJ to make a point. I keep thinking one day it will "Click"

Theater and "My" Children

2009-03-02T13:03:00.002-07:00

Tonight we took the kids to the Jefferson Montessori's production of "Once On This Island." Some friends of ours had three of their six kids in it so we decided to brave the storm and support them. I'm always a little nervous when taking my kids into a public environment, so before we get out of the car always ask them, "How do you behave?" I usually always get the response of "Be Good." and we have to elaborate on what that mean. I explained to the kiddos that this was different than the movies and they could only get out of their seats during intermission. I explained that they would need to use the bathroom before the show started and then they could not go again until intermission. Lizzie gave a very concerned reply "But I will pee my pants." I don't think she realized she wouldn't have to wait for hours until she could go.

They were great!! No one gave me looks of dis test or hushed us cuz they coughed. Maybe my monsters are growing up. It was a wonderful show and it was fun to see so many of the kids we knew in it.

Kudos to Jessie, Victoria, Caleb, Jaymon, and Jet. You all did great.

This wonderful little production reminded me how important it is to support school and community theater and music. It is also a great place to teach kids the appropriate behaviors while attending a concert or production in a theater. Give it a try, spring musicals and concerts are coming up. Check with your local high school they would love the added support.

Share you experiences with me, I'd love to hear them.

Freebee!?!

2009-02-28T08:05:00.002-07:00

Got your attention with that picture, didn't I? :)

The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something made by me!
My choice, for you.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make!
2- What I create will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year.
4- You have no clue what it's going to be.

Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and offer to do the same for the first 5 people who respond to the post.
Sounds like fun, right?
So let's play!

Children and Sports.

2009-02-21T11:39:00.004-07:00

Basketball is finally over. I was a stupid idiot and volunteered to coach TJ's team this year. It was the first time for him to play basketball and since most of the kids had had at least a year or two, some even 3, behind them, I decided it wouldn't be fair to ask "some guy" to teach my crazy kid how to play. Hence I was the coach. Now I didn't play school basketball but both of my sisters did so I know the game. I would say I know enough to be dangerous, in the stand. So basically in a recap of this season, I was lucky enough to have dad willing to do all the hard work. Wade coached the boys and taught them all they needed to know to be successful and I organized them by scheduling practices and so on. He is an amazing guy!! I don't know of any coach in the history of my playing that was so positive. I NEVER heard him say a negative thing to the boys. Even when he had to redirect TJ, ALOT, I never heard him grumble under his breath or make rude faces. He was amazing. Now TJ may never be able to play in the NBA but thanks to Wade he and the other team mates have a good understanding of the game.
Now most of you know that Riley is a athletic superstar in most all he does. And it is so fun to watch him cuz he has such good heart and is really good. I have always tried to be objective when it comes to my kids but frankly I'm tired of it. He is really good. He was able to practice and play with TJ's fifth grade team. He kept up with all those boys. So Saturday morning he played with the fifth graders and they play full court on a 10 ft basket and then later in the afternoon he played with his own 3rd grade team. It just amazes me how much development happens between 3rd and 5th grade. Third graders are all about themselves, how many baskets "they" can make, they very rarely pass to each other and then you have the refs, and that is a whole different story. These boys were totally wrestling on the floor for the ball. Sort of like football. Nichole was the coach and she too was great with the boys. They had 11 kids on their team and that makes teaching them really hard. But her and Kirk did great. So the season is over and next we have Baseball. Riley and Mason are the only ones that play so it makes for an exciting June. Riley will play in a more competitive league this year and it will be fun to see if the drive is there for him to succeed. Mason will be in T-Ball again in and is excited as long as Brooklyn will play with him.

It just makes Scents!!!!!

2009-02-01T22:10:00.005-07:00

I'm so excited to announce that I'm starting to sell a great new product line from Urban Botanics. I'm having my Business Launch Party Saturday February 7th from 1-3pm. You are all invited to attend and bring a friend or two with you. It will be at my house. My wonderful cousin Natasha, introduced me to Urban Botanics a year or two ago and just a couple of months ago she started to sell it and showed me how great the company really is. It is so great!! I have always loved yummy smelly things and have always wanted to make my own perfume but since I wasn't famous or rich I couldn't. Well now I can. With Urban Botanics I am able to mix scents together to create my own signature smells for lotions, shower gel, bubble bath, perfume, and more. The great thing is so can you. All the products are cost efficient which was the selling point for me especially now. Check out the website for yourself, http://www.urbanbotanic.com/ Take the quiz and see which scents fit your personality best. Bring the results to the party and receive an extra gift. See you all there.

I sold my soul!!!

2009-02-01T09:24:00.003-07:00

When my mom called me on Friday and asked if Lizzie would want to go to a cheer camp at Ririe, my first reaction was absolutely NOT. But when she expressed she would be gone for the whole day I said "YEAH". Even though it went against everything I stand for, I couldn't resist a whole day without 15 million questions. I love and adore my girl, but sometimes a break from the talking, there is just so much talking, is healthy. She had a blast and has not stopped talking about the whole experience, again with the talking. I'm so glad she went. Chris and I took all the kids to the game to watch her dance during Half-Time. I would tell you how brutal that was but I'm trying to be positive. It truly was exciting to see her dance. She is so cute. You can also see Brooklyn in the background. She is a natural. Enjoy.

The Big 8

2009-01-28T20:18:00.002-07:00

My first time being tagged. AhAh Here are the Rules:1) Post rules on your blog2) Answer the six '8' items3) Let each person know by leaving them a comment...PS these are not in order.

8 FAVORITE TV SHOWS

1. Grey's Anatomy

2. Private Practice

3. Secret Life of an American Teenager

4. Lost

5. Desperate Housewives

6. Unwrapped

7. Heros
8. Men in Trees

8 THINGS I DID YESTERDAY

1. Took Ashton to the Doctor

2. Cleaned my house

3. Laundry

4. Dishes

5. Worked on my taxes

6.Took a freakin' nap

7. Took a Snow Day
8. Took care of my sick guy, all day.

8 THINGS I LOOK FORWARD TO

1. Chris being home

2. Ashton getting off the oxygen

3. Selling Urban Botanics

4. My new kitchen

5. Lizzie in kindergarten

6. Twilight on DVD

7. A Break

8. Cheesecake

8 FAVORITE RESTAURANTS

1. Stockman's

2. The Sandpiper

3. Papa Kelsey's

4. North Hy-way Cafe

5. Taco Time

6. Cold Stone

7. Gandolfo's

8. Cocoa Bean Cupcake Cafe

8 THINGS ON MY WISH-LIST

1. An organized house

2. A new kitchen

3. cheesecake

4. Twilight on DVD

5. Peace and quiet

6. My living room finished

7. Time to quilt

8. New jeans

8 PEOPLE I TAG

1. Heather

2. Jodi

3. Kimber

4. Natasha

5. Brittany

6. Amy G.

7. Amy H.

8. Colleen

I'm Back

2009-01-26T19:09:00.002-07:00

It's back!!! Finally after what seemed like a life time, my computer is fixed. I can't wait to catch up on everything.
Just so you know Ashton is really sick. He got RSV and has been on breathing treatments for 10 days and oxygen for a week. Today after having a chest x-ray, we determined he has pneumonia and is really dehydrated so they put him on IV fluids for 24 hrs. Hopefully all this will help him get back to normal. Please keep him in your prayers. It has been really hard to see him so sick. Chris had to go back on the road Friday and with luck will be home Thursday. I'm so glad he will be giving up truck driving and going to work for Norco Medical. It is really hard to balance 5 kids alone. Thank heavens for my mom and dad, they have been life savers. I also couldn't do it without Chris's mom. She brought dinner tonight for my starving army. Its starting to get to me, having a sick baby and having to leave him to go to work or deal with the others. Hopefully we will be out of the woods soon.

Ill and undergoing treatment.

2008-12-27T14:52:00.004-07:00

I have some very sad new to report.
My computer has been diagnosed terminally ill and has been sent to the computer hospital. It will be in surgery for 10-20 days according to the Geek Squad. I will try to post some Christmas soon.

Lochlynn Takota Harned

2008-12-21T10:12:00.005-07:00

Lochlynn Takota arrived Dec 20th around 5 am. She is 9 lbs 8 oz and 21in. Tiffany and George, my brother, are very proud parents to this beautiful baby girl. She has a bunch of light brown hair and lots and lots of fun fat rolls. She is really cute and we are excited to have a new baby in the family.

We had to see how the two babies compared since Ashton is still little, and she is going to beat him soon in the size department. It will be so fun to watch as they grow and develope since they are so close in age. Lauren has not met Lochlynn yet but as soon as all three babies are together I'm going to get some great photos.
Congratulations George and Tiffany. Good luck getting some sleep. But enjoy her every minute.

Australia

2008-12-13T21:00:00.002-07:00

Can I just say... Huge Jackman is yummy. Went to see Australia with my mom today and loved it. This movie had the best looking Thoroughbred horse in it I have seen in a long time. It almost made me want to ride again. But that didn't last long. The story was very compelling and now I want to find out more about the stolen generation. I love movies that make me want to learn. And a 3 1/2 hr break is good too.

It's a Party

2008-12-04T09:09:00.002-07:00

I really miss getting together with friends. Sooooo..... I decided to have a Dessert Tasting party. Bring one or two of your favorite holiday desserts and share with friends. Chat and catch up on what has been going on. Since my house is still not finished and frankly a little crazy, I am taking over my sister's house. No really, Nichole lives just down the road from me and is excited to hang out with friends too. Everyone is welcome , unless you are a creepy stalker, and even you can come if you bring really good chocolate. Call or email me for directions. I can't wait to see all of you.

Thanks Giving Photo Shoot

2008-11-28T15:14:00.004-07:00

EGGS?!?!?!

2008-11-26T11:48:00.004-07:00

Okay, I thought I was a fairly good mom. I try to be consistent and follow through. I am told often by some that I am maybe too harsh, so you would think I would have some what behaved or respectful children. NOT!!! I got a phone call Monday after work, from Riley, telling me that TJ and Mason had egged the neighbors house. I automatically knew it was the "MEAN" neighbors since why on earth would you not torment people who hate you and would eat you if they could. Well I was mortified. The reactions from the boys went sort of like this:

TJ " I didn't do it"

Mom "Where is the egg that was on the counter?"

TJ "I don't know, Mason told me to do it"

Mason " I did not"

TJ "Yes you did"

Riley "I knew they did it but I just sat and watched TV"

TJ "It was only one. And Mason told me too."

Mason "No I didn't"

I decided that they would all have to go over and tell the Bates (neighbors that eat small children) what they did and clean it off their house. I was so embarrassed that MY kids had done something like this. I know they do crazy things all the time but this! Eggs! UGH!!! I was so mad!! I call one of the city officers to see if he would come and scare them to death but he can't unless it is reported. So I told Chris to call the officer on duty, I was not okay with them (TJ) vandalizing someone else's house. But he didn't understand me so he didn't actually call. Oh well.

I marched them out the door and we were not even down the stairs when Mr. Neighbor started to yell at me. He said that if my kids egg his house again he will call the cops. I told him I had already done that and I was bringing them over to clean it up. He already had it done but I did make them pick up the egg shells.

Well come to find out, this was not the first time TJ had thrown eggs at there house. He also had thrown tomatoes and rocks. NICE huh. I was absolutely furious. They had not told me because they didn't want to cause problems. Now if you haven't already gathered there is quite a history with these people. They are very particular and rake their rocks and wash their asphalt. Enough said. We are not their dream neighbors. But if my kids are doing stuff that harm people, animals or property. TELL ME!!! I can't beat them or fix it if I don't know about it. Maybe they thought I didn't care what the boys did or that I wouldn't give them any sort of a punishment but they were wrong. After a good cry with Heather about how my kids are As#$%, I gave TJ his stiff punishment. And no one got to watch TV.

$4 Meals

2008-11-17T18:26:00.005-07:00

Ever since I watched Oprah and she had a family that was really thrifty and spent an average of $4.00 per meal, I have been racking my brain trying to figure out dinner for my family for $4.00. I have found one so far, and felt I needed to share. One of my favorite blogs I follow is Pioneer Woman so I'm going to steal her format but just so you all know, I'm not nearly as precise as her. So here goes nothin'.

Your Doggie Floats my Cheezy Potatoe Boat.

Ingrediants you will need:

1 Box of Instant Potatoes $0.50
1 Package Hot dogs $0.89

8 oz Cheddar Cheese $2.50

I buy my cheese in 1-2 lb packages and so you just need a 1/2 pound which works out to about $2.50. Also I didn't figure in the milk or butter. Most of us have those things on hand. Please don't pay attention to the Kool-Aid stains on the cupboard. I'm out of bleach.

Don't forget to clip the Box Tops. Most schools collect them for money. It is a great program and my kids love taking them to school. They get stuff for bringing them.

Make your potatoes by following the instructions on the box.

It says to make sure not to let it bubble over. So a word to the wise, from the unwise,

Don't Multi-Task!

Let them sit and cool for awhile so they thicken up.

Slice hot dogs lengthwise. Making sure you don't cut them clear through. They should sort of fold out to make a boat. Spoon potatoes onto sliced hot dogs.

Slice cheese and place a piece on each boat. Bake at 350* for about 20-30 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Add some steamed broccoli and a cute plate and you have a great dinner kids will love for about $4.00. I'm looking for some more dinner ideas for the $4.00 mark so if you have any, send them on over. Also if any of you find some great sales pass it on. We all need some of those.

CSI????

2008-11-13T18:25:00.002-07:00

Blood all over the house to make it look like a crime scene. It was in the kitchen, my bathroom, the car seat, walls in the hallway, and the boys bathroom. We didn't need the paramedics cuz TJ had it all taken care of with a roll of paper towels and a rubber band. I did have 3 witnesses that told the same story so we found the guilty suspect. This is what happens when I'm gone for 30 minutes. Mason gets mad at TJ and throws scissors. They were only together for 15 minutes.

Grandpa Dale took him to the doctor and he had to get 3 stitches. I think this is the longest stretch we have went with out a major accident. 10 months. Its a record.

Missing a Moment in History

2008-11-11T20:50:00.004-07:00

I guess this is me whining and being a brat so please don't hold it against me.

I don't get to go to the Midnight showing of Twilight. I have been waiting months and months and months to go with my friends to the midnight showing all dressed up like obsessed crazy people. This event will be a moment in Twilight history and I don't get to be part of it. It's like when I ask my mom is she remembers the Kennedy assassination, she can tell me where she was and what she was doing. Or when I think about 3rd grade, I think of watching the Challenger explosion in the Harwood Elementary gym. And when people who were around in 1969 are asked about Woodstock, they either say "I was there and it was the most incredible experience of my life" or "No, I missed that one, but I heard it was great." And in the future when my children ask me, "Did you go to the midnight showing of Twilight?" I will have to say

NO.

Why you ask, will I be missing this incredible experience. Well for starter, I'm old and that is really late and I have to drive 60 kids to school the next morning. (I could take the morning off so that is just a little problem.) The big, huge, monstrous, enormous, problem is that I can't leave my 4 kids home alone while I go to the movie and it is not likely I can find a babysitter to sleep over.

My life is over!!! I want to go soooo Bad!!!! It is not fair!!!! Why me!!! It's not fair!!! Everyone Hates Me!!!! IT IS NOT FAIR!!!!!

Now that my fit has been thrown, I love my children and would never leave them home alone while I went to a movie. I also think they are way more important than a movie. But seriously, it's Twilight.

It 8 o'clock. Do you know where your kids are?

2008-11-07T20:15:00.002-07:00

Notice the lovely blockage in the hallway. Now this is the logic of my children. Block the hall so the cat can't get away. I guess the closed door to the bedroom isn't enough to keep Jasper, the cat, from running away. (And yes, I'm a MAJOR Twilight fan)

Apparently this new game they came up with to play (torture) the cat is:

Lock the cat in Mason's bedroom.

Turn the lights out.

With flashlights, search for Jasper.

Think of how terrified this cat must be. So Sad!!!

Now all of the kids were in the bedroom with the exception to my couch potatoe.

Halloween Night

2008-11-02T08:14:00.004-07:00

Super-Riley!
It has been a very long time since there was not snow for Halloween and this year we were lucky. The kids were able to go out by themselves and without coats. It was awesome. Heather brought Jake and her nieces, Hanna and McKayla to join us for Trick-or-Treating. It was so nice to be able to send the kids on there way and not worry about them, too much anyway.

Cute little pumpkin, happy as a clam

Pretty as a Barbie Princess

Grrrrr! TJ as an Alligator

Mason, Are you a Pirate or Clone Trooper?

Who Did It?

2008-10-31T10:03:00.002-06:00

I just want to let those of you who are wondering "Who" did the collage of Ashton, I did. I took the pictures yesterday and uploaded them all to Snapfish. There, I edited the photos and created the collage. So easy I'm impressed with myself.

Baby Skin

2008-10-30T22:23:00.000-06:00

Food for thought - - - - - - - - -

2008-10-30T17:07:00.002-06:00

My wonderful aunt shared this with me and it really struck a cord with me. I had to share.

Through the Window A young couple moves into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbor hanging the wash outside.'That laundry is not very clean', she said. 'She doesn't know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap!'Her husband looked on, but remained silent.Everytime her neighbor would hang her wash to dry, the young woman would make the same comments. About one month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband: 'Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this?'The husband said, 'I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows.'And so it is with life. What we see when watching others, depends on the purity of the window through which we look.

Why didn't someone tell me the truth about the laundry?

2008-10-20T11:18:00.003-06:00

I never know what I will find when I upload pictures. Apparently Riley is putting on a puppet show for who ever is taking the pictures.

I wonder if Riley the "Puppet Cop" is the "Good Cop" or the "Bad Cop."

I wanted to share will all of you my accomplishments this weekend.

Laundry!!!!!

I really don't know how many loads I had done over the week but I had not folded anything until Sunday. I was too embarrassed to take a picture of that pile but I was proud of the folding. I really HATE laundry. Loathe it actually. I hate all the steps in laundry doing to. I especially hate folding it and putting it away. It is always interesting to see who's pile is bigger because that is the child that never has anything to wear and brings folded, "dirty" clothes to the laundry room. You know the pile of jeans that didn't make it in the drawers but got walked all over and covered with toys and crap so they can't find them when they need them.

I also want to let you know that this laundry does not include Chris, Ashton, or towels. I had started putting some away.

Now notice the floor. That is the piles of clothes that are going to DI or to someone else. They either don't fit, are stained or I don't want to wash again. I just have to say that I am so glad I finally have a laundry room that is not the hallway. Now I can use my bedroom.

Ashton

2008-10-16T16:23:00.001-06:00

Our Cute Little Pumpkin We love the big blue eyes.

How sweet is that

Big brothers are great beds.

What would you do?

2008-10-14T12:30:00.003-06:00

Yesterday as I was getting my bus ready to pick up kids, I was watching the junior high kids go to class. As a bunch of them came out the door and down the steps, a boy fell. He was laying on the ground and the other kids just stared. Some stepped on him, others just walked by looking at him. No one offered a hand up. He was obviously hurt a little too. I noticed another boy running across the court. It was apparent he was a friend coming to help. Still no one had helped at all yet. They all just stood by and watched. Finally a teacher comes and helps him up just as the friend gets there. I just watched all this progress and wondered why no one helped. What would you have done? Would it be different now since your grown up, or would it be the same as junior high?

Baby Story Nightmare #3

2008-10-12T15:54:00.009-06:00

So while I was getting the first pint of blood, all the kids came to see me and we were visiting Ashton in the NICU. My hand with the IV was really hurting and I could see it starting to bruise. Well it wasn't just bruising, the blood was backing up into my hand and filling it up. It looked really gross. The nurses had to put in a new IV but my veins did not want to cooperate. They stuck me 3 times and then gave up and went to get someone else. He stuck me in the puffy bruised arm once and painfully. My arms looked like purple pin cushions. The rest of the night was fairly event less. I hung out with my mom and dad while they finished giving me the blood and I got to go feed Ashton whenever he woke up.

The next 2 days were very much the same. Sleep and feed the baby. Saturday they moved Ashton to the next floor with the other NICU babies that are doing lots better. He was totally off his oxygen and nursing really good. I was just waiting impatiently for the doctors to let him go to the regular nursery so I could have him in my room. My incision was draining alot and my doctor wanted me to stay an extra day. It worked out that Ashton's doctor kept him an extra day too. We headed home Monday.

Wednesday my wonderful sister took me and Ashton to our doctor's. Since he had had a hard time, his doctor wanted to touch base with us to see how things were at home. He gave him an "A-O-K". That was a relief.

When we got to my doctor, the plan was to see the doctor that did my surgeries and have her remove my staples. Some how they didn't get my appointment into the computer and I didn't have one. We waited awhile and they kept moving me from room to room. Finally I got to see the PA that assisted in surgery but the wound was so yucky she wanted me to wait and see one of the doctors. I was so tired and felt miserable. When they weighed me I was 15lbs heavier than I was the day before delivering Ashton. I couldn't fight the tears back. I had had so much fluid in the hospital that I was retaining water really bad. I had kankles. When Dr Robinson came in and removed the staples he saw how bad the incision really was. I still had a open hole in my stomach. He immediately sent me to Wound Care.

I felt like death as I walked into the hospital. Nichole was such a trooper. Loren was tired and ready to go home and Nichole never once complained. She just keep helping me. The physical therapist cleaned and bandaged me up and sent me on my way. I had to return the next morning, and keep coming everyday for the rest of the week. I couldn't drive since I was taking pain meds. The tears came again as I began to worry about how I would get there and not be a total pain in the ass for everyone else. Luckily I have a great sister who sincerely was worried about me and volunteered to drive me when I needed.

Over the next few days the Physical Therapists decided a Wound Vac would be the best option for healing me quickly. They ended up putting it in/on that Saturday. Over the next 2 weeks I continued to go to wound care 3 days a week. Nichole graciously took me every day. After the first couple days with the vac, my culture test came back showing that I had MRSA Staph infection and another bacteria. The doctor broke the news to me that the medicine I had to take was harmful to children and kept me from nursing while on in. I was okay with that since I wanted to get better but I cried every time I had to pump and everytime I had to give Ashton a bottle. I cried everytime he threw up too, since it was because of the formula. I just kept telling myself it was only 11 days. I didn't think this crap was ever going to end. I was still all poofy and retaining water. My legs were the same diameter all the way down to my feet.

I really started feeling better once on the antibiotics but the 11 days drug on forever. My wound was healing fast too. That was untill the smell. I kept smelling poop. I knew someone had poopy pants. I made Chris check Lizzie, nothing. I thought for sure then it was him. NOPE it was me. My wound dressing was nasty. Come to find out I had yeast growing in the wound and around it. It was so gross. I guess it is common when air can't get in. And the vac dressing was water and air tight. Not only did I have a vacuum hooked to my stomach but I smelled like a poopy diaper!!!! It was awful.

Well they got the yeast under control and the vac was doing it's job I was actually starting to feel better. Last Friday, the 4th, I went to wound care and told them to take the vac off. I was so sick of it. When I would open the oven it would fall in, when I got up I would forget it and get caught. The wound had healed so much it was only superficial and the vac was ready to come off. Now I have just been going to have the dressing changed 2-3 days a week and on Monday they told me I may be done Thursday.

YEAH!!!!!YEAH!!!!!!!YEAH!!!!!!!

I am finally getting back to normal.

Princess Tea Party

2008-10-05T17:40:00.003-06:00

Lizzie's Princess Tea Party was a blast. She is turing the big "4" .

Lizzie's cake was this adorable tower of "pink" cupcakes. They were so fun to make and taste as good as they look. She loved them and loved the sprinkles.

Since she is the only girl, I had to endulge her (and me) with a Princess Tea Party. The girls loved all the little finger foods.

Blowing out the candles was the high light of the party. There is nothing like being the center of attention. Especially since it was someone else besides her brothers.

Beautiful Girl

2008-09-27T22:27:00.002-06:00

Just wanted to share with you how beautiful my girl Lizzie is.

Next in Ashton's Story

2008-09-27T21:39:00.004-06:00

While in the recovery room, Chris and my mom went to see Ashton. I hadn't been told anything and was getting really concerned. Anyway since he had not taken a big breath when Dr. Merrill pulled him out he had alot of fluid in his lungs and he had a heart murmur. He also had these funny little cuts on the back of his head. The pediatricians were overly concerned and ran a ton of tests. Come to find out the breathing and heart thing all had to do with the delivery and the cuts were just "one of those things". We called them Vampire bites. Since Ashton scared every one with all these problems, he got to stay in the NICU. They were having a hard time getting his oxygen level to stabilize, every time he was given a bottle it would drop. Well as soon as I was in my room and able to stand I was wheeled down to Ashton. It was the first time I got to see him. He looked so much like Mason did. His big blue eyes and little round head. They had him in a warmer and was hooked up to bunch of cords. It was sad to see him like that and I had to ask to get to hold my own baby.

After awhile, back in my room, I was ready to go see him again. The nurse and Chris were helping me stand up again and I started bleeding. At first we thought it was normal and then Chris realized it was coming from my incision. I had some how started to hemorrhage and had ripped open the cut. With in an hour or so I back in surgery to get put back together again. When I came out of surgery and was back into my room, the nurse informed me I would not be able to go to the NICU for at least 12 hrs, to give my incision time to heal a little. I was so upset. I felt so detached since I hadn't been able to bond with Ashton like I had with the others. I just cried.

The next afternoon I finally got to go see him. The pediatricians had told me they were really concerned about how his oxygen level dropped when they fed him. I hadn't been able to nurse yet but I really felt that if I was able to, he would be fine. So as soon as I got there I started to nurse and sure enough his oxygen was fine. My goal was to go to him when ever he needed to eat to get him out of the NICU.

As for me, the doctor had said they were watching me to see if I would need a blood transfusion. When I almost passed out while with the baby , they decided I need 2 pints of blood.

To be Continued.......

Welcome Baby Ashton Wayne

2008-09-23T17:38:00.008-06:00

Okay, so it has been soooo long since I wrote anything. I can give you the excuse that I have been waiting for my camera but I have decided that is a stupid reason not to blog. So I have a story to tell you about bringing our new addition into this crazy world. I will have to give it to you in a few installments. Yeah that crazy.

After a great fall on Sunday, Aug. 31st, Ashton decided head down was over rated and flipped himself Breech. We found out when we went to the doctor on Wed. Sept 3rd and when she checked me, she felt feet. Now on Sun. I had been checked and was dilated to a 4 and fully effaced with head down. And by Wed. I was a 2 and not even soft at all. How I had gone backwards was shocking to me, until the ultrasound. He had wedged his head up under my ribs.

I was given 2 options. Schedule a C-Section for the next day or try to turn him and schedule a c-section for back up if he didn't turn. Chris was voting for the c-section so I could get my tubes tied and he could escape the dreaded vasectomy. (I'm not a speller)

Thursday morning, Chris and I headed to EIRMC. After sitting for awhile and getting this crazy medicine that felt like speed, Dr Merrill came in and started to turn him. I don't know if any of you have ever experienced an Inversion, but it was so painful. His feet were way down in the birth canal, and she had to dig to get them. It was awful.

Since he wouldn't budge a c-section was in my near future. Now once in the operating room, which was a total Ice Box, I got my spinal and they started the process. It all went really fast, Chris was taking pictures and talking to me. The doctor showed me the baby and within a few seconds, I heard a CRASH.

Chris had passed out. All the nurses were all panicking since he fell in my blood and he had hit his head. They didn't know if he was bleeding or not. It took some time to get him to come to and he was not breathing. So they rushed him to the Emergency room. I was left alone without a husband and without a baby. Apparently they take the baby right to the nursery and I didn't know that. They don't do that on the Baby Story. Who knew. So I had one of the nurses call my mom to come cuz I was way out out of the loop. She got there really quick and shortly after, Chris returned from the ER. He had a nice shiner on his eye and forehead. The doctor told him since he hadn't eaten or slept, that is probably why he passed out. Chris also said it is alot different seeing your wife's blood than seeing some strangers. Bless his heart, he took all the teasing like a man. Our kids couldn't believe that their "Super Dad" had passed out.

To Be Continued.......

Art Work from HELL

2008-07-16T13:09:00.002-06:00

I just wanted to share this beautiful mural that my kids put on their bedroom wall. Since I'm in full fledge "Nesting" mode I am going paint crazy. So I'm painting Liz and Mason's room and this what I had to cover up. Also besides the mural there was about 700 holes I had to fill. With the help of Jared and Tesla, I was able to get the whole room done. Sunday I got a break from the kids and painted the living room. Friday I finished the hall way. I love the new colors and it makes my house feel clean. Imagine that, my house "Clean."

Assassin Cats

2008-07-08T22:10:00.000-06:00

Last night I couldn't sleep. I was too hot and can't stop thinking about all the things I have to do before this baby comes. So after washing walls and cleaning the living room, I crashed on the couch at about 1 am. Why the couch, you ask? Well Lizzie was in my bed and I was so hot. The windows were open in the living room and the wind blew just right, onto the couch. After being asleep for some time I was awoke by a creepy, tortured, chirpy sound coming from the window. (Or so I thought.) Now if you know me at all you know that BIRDS FREAK ME OUT!!!!!! I realize it is a ridiculous fear but its mine and I hate them. Every bird could be wiped off the planet and I would be just fine.

Anyway, the sound kept getting closer and closer and I knew I had to get Chris cuz at this point. I thought it was stuck in between the screen door and the front door. But in my mind I was just worried that it was in the house, so it took all I could do to get up and run down the hall. Now remember it is really late or early however you look at it. Chris has been asleep for hours. I went into our room and had to wake him up. When you wake up Chris you don't get too close cuz he always wakes up swinging, so I stood by the door and hollered, being careful not to wake up Lizzie. He thought I was a little crazy but did get up. After he went down the hall it was evident that the bird was in the house and the cats were responsible. Jasper and Alice were running around stalking this bird. To make it really hard to see the bird, we do not have a light in the living room. Our house was built in 1978 and apparently people didn't use lights back then. So in the dark, Chris is in his skivvies, looking for the assassin cats target. He finally found it and tossed it, ALIVE, outside. I was hiding in the doorway of my room the whole time, cuz what if the freaking, little eye pecker came down the hall. We went back to bed, me in bed not on the couch.

Not to much later, I was asleep, but not enough to not wake suddenly. I heard Chris say
"Damn Cats" as he lept out of bed. And sure enough Jasper and Alice had caught the creepy bird AGAIN and brought it back in the house ALIVE. So after Chris got the bird and the cats out again, he block the cat door so they couldn't get in. I thought maybe they would have given up being shot down twice, but NO!!! This morning as Jared (my brother that is building our addition), and I are shoveling old insulation into trash bags, what do I find? But sure enough a dead bird. I don't know who put the hit on this nasty little bird but the job is done. In my new bedroom. GROSS!!!! But if you ever are looking for an Assassin, Jasper and Alice are your guys, or cats, for hire.

Bitter Sweet Goodbyes!

2008-07-06T23:06:00.000-06:00

Over the last week I have been going through what seems like thousands of totes of baby clothes. I realized about 2 weeks ago this baby is coming and we are far from ready. Yes I'm ready to have my body back and not die from the heat, but if he came home today I would have not one thing ready for him. We haven't even got a car seat yet, or even pick a name. I do have his quilt top finished and I'm taking it in tomorrow to Amy for her to quilt. But I think she is a month or so out on her schedule so hopefully I can get it done before I have the baby. But I didn't want to tell you all about my lack of organization and preparedness. I am so excited to be going through all the baby clothes from the last 11 years and 4 previous children. It will be nice to have just the one or two totes left that he will grow into. But as I sort through each outfit I reminisce seeing each child in that particular outfit. I'm not getting rid of a lot of the boy stuff so that is not as hard as tossing aside all the baby girl clothes Lizzie once wore. With the boys I aways knew another child of mine would wear it, but with her it is the end. I won't have another girl. No more cute pink onesies or sleepers, or white corduroy bell bottoms. Boys just don't look that great in those. It is an end of an era for me and even though it is nice to know that my family is complete, I will miss all the pink baby stuff. Not to say that blue baby stuff isn't good, it is just not as fun the 4th time around.

Today we spent the day at my mom and dad's with my baby sister. She came to Idaho for the 4th to spend it with her boyfriend and they came up today to visit us. My kid's were so excited to see her. I don't think we have seen her since Christmas. It was nice to visit for a little while and watch the kid's hang all over her. We actually had a nice time over all. No huge family fights, no name calling, no unwanted confrontations, it was amazing!!! We were only missing on brother, George and he is in Texas. Maybe we are going up and learning to keep our freaking mouth's shut. I guess we will see at Thanks Giving.

I just have to say that this business of not having a working camera is really starting to piss me off!! Hopefully by next week I will have a new one or my old one fixed. Sorry for that pictureless posts.

Weekend Review

2008-06-29T22:27:00.000-06:00

Well another week has past and that puts me closer to a new baby and the kids back to school. YEAH!!!! I totally am into all year school, but the kids would have something to say about that. Friday was sort of crazy and my body was having issues. I started having contractions. WAY too early for that. They would come and go and by about 4pm they were more regular, so the doctors wanted me to come in. And of course when I got to the hospital they had stopped. I knew I wasn't going to be having a baby that day but the contractions were different than I had had before and I felt I really needed to see why. You would think after 5 babies you would have things figured out. WRONG!! So everything was fine, the doctor just told me to stay down and take it easy for the weekend. I totally laughed out loud. The only thing that was going to save me was Chris was coming home that night. And maybe that would aleveiate some of the stress on me. (It was supposed to.) So late on Friday night the kids and I went to pick him up, they were so excited to see him. I was too, so I can have a freakin' break finally, after 2 weeks. I did pretty go taking it easy on Saturday, but by that night I was ready to leave the house. I went with Heather and my mom to see the new Angelina Jolie movie, "Wanted." It had the best graphics I have seen in along time. The story line even made some great twists. I really liked it and it was worth the ticket. You all should totally see it. But beware it is pretty bloody. I would love to know what you think.

Today has been harder to stay down. I have been nesting, all day. I thought today would be a perfect day to get baby clothes totes out and sort them. Chris did not think it was such a great idea. He keeps telling me we have plenty of time. I only have 10 weeks. And I have 4 kids, 3 nights of soccer, Lizzie, a major remodel, and did I mention 4 kids. But I have loads of time. NOT!! So I dug out 2 totes with the help of the kids and finally Chris. I have so many totes to go through too. Hopefully by Sept. I will have 1 or 2 totes not 10 or 15. I saved everything from the boys and I have a lot to go through. Im getting rid of anything that is not nearly new or bigger than 2T. There are probably totes out there that were loaded up after Riley grew out of it and was not found when Mason could have worn it. So it will be a fun surprise for sure.

2008-06-24T21:57:00.000-06:00

Okay so I often ask myself why me? All I wanted was a normal set of kids and a normal life and what I got was THIS.

It started out a great day. Everything seemed normal, I'm actually getting used to things going somewhat smoothly for our house, and I seem to always count my chickens before they hatch.
TJ had been gone most of the day and came home about 5. My back was hurting so I was laying down while Lizzie and her friend watched High School Musical. (Thank heavens for Troy and Gabriela) After I got up and checked on the girls, Liz gave me a hug and she smelled like a campfire. If you have ever been to my house you will know I do not have fireplace or a fire pit anywhere. When I asked them why they smelled, TJ spoke up and said they had asked him to light matches. Now he is 10 and they are 3 & 4. They may have a super power I'm not aware of but I would think he could tell them no. I sent him to his room because what I wanted to do to him is not legal. Then a few minutes later I went into the bathroom to find him, burnt toilet paper, an empty bottle of saline solution, and my candle that had been tipped into the sink. He burnt the paper and then squirted the saline into the melted wax and then proceeded to dump the water and wax down the sink. But he didn't do it.

I honestly think the we must have a monster, ghost, gremlin, or some sort of parent hating creature lurking around every corner of our house because NO ONE EVER DOES ANYTHING!!! Even if I catch them red handed they didn't do it. TJ is the worst too. I'm so sick of being lied to and getting the faces, you know the faces that we used to give our parents and they would smack us across the face. Ya those ones. I can't take it anymore!!!! I have decided that I may have "normal" kids but they sure as hell do not do "normal" things. How many times does he have to add water to the candle to see what it does. It does the same thing each time.

Well I'm tired and ready for bed and can't wait until Chris is home to take over. 3 days and counting.

2008-06-16T07:33:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I took Chris to the airport at 5 am. He was heading to Arkanas for Haz Mat training for the next two weeks with the National Guard. It is alway a bittersweet goodbye, I'm sad to have him gone for 2 weeks but I'm sorta ready for some time to myself. Oh yeah, Sorry I was in fantasy land for a second, I have 4 kids by myself. So there is NO time to myself.

To make the time go a little faster, my mom had this "Great" idea to take the kids to Boise with her while she is in some training. Free hotel, no cleaning my house, kids in the pool, sounds fun huh. Well I should have really thought about it before I jumped on this band wagon. The car ride was a migrain!

"He's touching me!"

"I can't see the TV!"

"I don't want to sit down, let me stand on my chair."

"Don't touch my gameboy, its mine!"

Talk about crazy, and I had to stop at every rest stop between Pocatello and Boise because this baby just keeps tap dancing on my bladder. So everytime we stopped, every kid needed to get out and run around and maybe go to the bathroom.

Oh and as a side note: TJ was in one rest stop and I had Liz in the ladies bathroom and he and his brother in the mens. When I came out there was this HORRIBLE sound or singing as some may call it coming from the men's room. It couldn't possibly be any of my children they are too old to be singing on the pot. Nope, I was wrong it was TJ singing at the top of his lungs while sitting on the pot. As I sat outside waiting in HORROR a guy came out with a huge smile and said to me, " He's really loud huh." If he only knew.

So after we got to the hotel, which they have not stayed in a hotel since Mason was 5 months, they all just keep saying: "This is the nicest hotel in America!"

"Wow! this is so nice."

"Are we moving in here?"

"We have our own bathroom?"

The comments go on for about.....well they are still saying them. Apparently I have done my children a disservice by staying with my Aunt Marianne everytime we have traveled in the past.

As the days went on, even though I got really tired, we had a great time. Monday I took them to the Discovery Center, Tuesday to the Zoo and Wed. we all went to the Old State Penn. We came home on Wed. and Thursday I slept.

I took tons of pictures but my camera will not turn on. Im going to have to take it to get fixed and have the photos put on a disk, then I will share the photos with you.

Over all we had a great time but I was glad to come home. I have been very tired and the kids have been good to let me nap. Oh and believe it or not I was even told how well my kids behaved while we were gone. It makes being the meanest mom in the whole world worth it.

2008-06-09T20:27:00.000-06:00

Now that the day is coming to an end, finally, it is time to reflect. Riley at summer school, TJ with PSR, Mason at partial care, and then two little girls running me ragged. I have had a friends little girl for a couple of days. Then at 12:30 I head to Rexburg to take Riley to Summer Adventure camp where he will meet up with TJ. Drop him off and head back to Idaho Falls to take Mason to counseling. While he is there I take two girls to Winco. Now this is a grocery store that HATES parents. You may, just may, save a few cents but is it really worth it. While the girls are begging for everything and running away, climbing on the cart and pushing the belt movey thing, I am trying to bag groceries and pay. All this is supposed to happen with a smile, because everyone else around you is smiling even though their kids are doing the same or worse than mine. I just had 2 kids with me today, I will NEVER take all of them.

Later we had Riley's baseball game. He is such a stud, he hits so hard. The rest of the game is boring but watching him bat is so awesome.

Oh, and did I mention we are babysitting 7 kittens and a mommy cat while my friend is gone. They are just starting to get their eyes open and are soooooooo cute. They all need homes so if you know anyone who is looking for a new addition to their family, they will be ready to move out the end of July. The mom is also looking for a new home.

And so I begin.......

2008-06-09T08:43:00.000-06:00

I have joined the ranks of the bloggers. Basically I have decided that I have to have somewhere to sound off about the unbeliveable things that happen at our house. I plan to post daily to fill you all in about our day. You can laugh, cry, yell, or anything else your emotions dictate to you. Believe me, I will be doing the same.