9 Christmas Parties, 8 days of sewing, 7 days of shopping, 6 homemade aprons, 5 diet cokes, 4 trips to Ikea, 3 chipmunks, 2 days of 4 wheeling,

and an Upcoming trip to Hawaii....

Christmas is always crazy at our house. Josh built Bunk beds for the kids, I made them pirate quilts, and I also made a bunch of cute aprons for people. I loved sewing...I was my happy place. I'd put the kids down for naps, turn on October Conference and sew my heart out. I didn't cook dinner very often, but I always keep a lot of eggs in the fridge. We had a family party every day starting Wednesday, and we also had them the weekends before and after Christmas. It is so good to see everybody and catch up. I see most of my family at least a few times a year...but there is always more laughing going on during the holidays. We had an ugly sweater date night with my cousins, and a national lampoons party with my college friends. I didn't get pics of the sweaters, but they were good.

We took the kids to Alvin and the chipmunks on Christmas eve. And the day before we went shopping and out do dinner at the Spaghetti Factory.

Christmas morning was fun...we stayed up all night making over their bedroom, and after the presents were all opened, Milo was looking for "something else" we sent him down to his room to put something away and when he got there he said "holy crap!"

Josh surprised me with the dress I wanted and he got some clothes and the Karate Kid series on DVD. My mom and dad gave us our tickets to Hawaii for next month...and I am giddy about getting ready to go.

Christmas afternoon we went 4 wheeling at 5 mile pass, and the had a great time, so we decided to go back the next day and maybe every weekend after.

My life is over as I know it....

Makay climbed out of his crib today when I put him down for his nap. No more afternoon break. It won't be long before I am playing cards with Wanda Barzee in a group home with padded walls. I am so sad, don't bother me for a few days while I mourn my happy place. Then I am going to regroup and come up with a battle plan...for I will not surrender with out a fight.

Santa is coming in 7-10 Business Days

Can I say that Shopping in stores is for the birds. For a small fee of 2.99-7.99 I can have almost any toy available in the world delivered to my door. No driving from store to store to find toys that aren't on the shelves. This of course I do for presents I get for my kids and my nieces and nephews, I can't wait to see what the real Santa has up his sleeve. We kind of had to do it that way because we have already (when I say we, I mean Makay and myself) worn out our welcome in too many stores redecorating our Christmas Tree. Josh actually went out and bought us a new tree because the lights were all out on our old one. It feels so good to know that it is clean and not have to bend up the branches to hide the fact that they are broken.

Final Answer

Ummmm. let me think...Best Movie Ever. I loved it. I take back all the nasty things that I said about Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson. They were amazing and with the help of Taylor Lautner this movie was 2 hours of pure bliss. I however don't take back all the things I said about Catherine Hardwick...I like her visual style, but she needed to do a better job coaching the actors. Chris Weitz is a genius...he said in an interview about the movie "I feel really good about the final product," he said. "I feel it was as close to the final product as I could make it, which was an honest version of the book and something that a fan would appreciate. So it's not made for any particular demographic, except for the reader of the book who really wants to see it visualized." I have to agree....

Human Race

I am running the Utah Human Race 5k again this year. It is great fun and an awesome way to start your holiday. All proceeds go to the food bank. If you are interested register at http://www.utahhumanrace.com/

Dark and Early....

One of my cardinal rules is to never wake up earlier than necessary, the sixes are pushing it and the fives are totally off limits, (unless catching a plane for a vacation) Well, I have been having this strong desire to be "that person" that wakes up early, gets a great work out at the gym and sleeps like a baby after a hard long day. Well I decided that I am finally going to be that person, and it requires me getting up in the "fives" to be to the gym by 6:00 AM. What is this world coming to ???I know....I don't know what happened either, but I have been craving a good solid guilt free workout session and this is the only time to fit it in. And the video at home thing totally doesn't work for me. So i meet my faithful sister each morning for a butt busting(and hopefully gut busting) sweat session. I am loving it...even though I am a zombie by lunch time. Gotta lose that belly....whatever it takes.....even breaking my cardinal rule of sleep.

Tucked in....

I spend a considerable amount of time and effort when I am out in public checking my reflection and adjusting my clothes to make sure that my muffin top isn't hanging over my pants. So just as I get out of the car today and get all adjusted, I put the kids in a cart and look up and there are not 1 but 2 girls walking in front of me with theirs "not tucked in". It made me think. Is it unnecessary for me to always be worrying about this? Am I the only that thinks it is gross? Not only does it look gross to me, it feels gross. I must be vain, because I just don't think I could comfortably walk around knowing everything isn't tucked in. I wish I had the waste of Kristin, or Brynn, or Tiffany...but I don't. Until I expose my vanity even further with a tummy tuck surgery, I'll continue doing my best to make sure I am all tucked in.

"The not so fast" fastet 5k

Today we walked down to the park at 1:00 with the intention of staying for a few minutes. It was so nice outside and we ended up getting "lost" there for almost 2 hours. I love nice weather.
Saturday I ran a 5k in 26.58 minutes. And it was hard. I had to take a nap to sleep off the exhaustion. Sadly, I think that is my best time ever it is a 8.42 minute/mile. That sounds so slow to me. There are people that run 4 minute miles...I have never even ran a 6 minute mile. I need to work on my speed. I have had grand intentions on doing so for a few months now, and I keep putting it off...I think mostly because I know it will hurt....But I have never been scared of a little pain, I just need to get 'er done. I did go to curves with my mom last week and did butt kicks and high knees the whole time. That is supposed to help right? What I really want is a running coach. I wish I had taken track in high school, I thought you had to be a good runner to be in track. What I wish I had known back then, is that somebody's gotta lose and it may as well be me since I would be getting free work outs in exchange for my pride.
PS I didn't learn that lesson till college when I didn't have rent money for SUU and I signed up to be an RA in the scary dorms in exchange for free rent and my pride. It was so worth it.

St. George..2009

Sorry about the movie madness...we don't have a video camera and I am having fun with my little casio exilim video feature. Plus I really regret not taking more video of my kids...how else am I supposed to remember the good times?

Milos first movie

My First Movie....

FALL

I love the fall and I especially love pictures of trails in the fall. I wish I was running, hiking, or biking this trail instead of just taking a picture...but my time will come.....my time will come. One day I will be bringing the boys up to this trail with their mountain bikes instead of just running around and picking up sticks, but for now it is all about getting them familiar with their future.

Thank you Tax Payers

For buying me a new road. 5 lanes + a bike lane is a dream come true, for a city girl who's gone country.

Das ist life, und life ist die sheisse

Quote of the Year. by Alona Schreiber, my funny German Grandma. That is what she had to say about the current ailments plaguing her health. She also told me that "I sure look better with out that big behind" in reference to her weight loss. Don't we all look better without that extra behind? One of the best things about Oma, is that she speaks half English half German, note the English nouns in her sentance. This is a frequent occurance when you talk to her, and it takes a while to master listening. I still can't quite understand her on the phone, but in person, it is easy. She usually has a picture reference or newspaper clipping to illistrate what she is talking about. She loves newspaper clippings. Her house has been added onto several times in several places, making it unique to them, with each little nook and cranny decorated with souveniers and keepsakes brought straight over from Germany. It is always clean and has this great crawlspace in the basement that is perfect for any game of hide and seek, if you dare go in there. The food storage closet in the basement has this certain basement'y smell and I remember hiding in there with my cousin Jackie when we were kids, and we ate a whole jar of vienna sausages in the dark. I love Oma, she is tough and I am glad (most of the time) that I inherited her toughness. You can never go over there with out being treated like a special visitor. They feed you and send you off with gifts, and if Opa is there, he always says "Now, you can't say that I never gave you anything" ( he speaks much better English)

The end of the summer, as we know it...

Milo started preschool last week, so hopefully things should be slowing down. This summer I went to Lake Powell, Camping at Goblin Valley, camping in the uintas, Bear Lake, Bryce Canyon, Youth Conference, Girls Camp, Lagoon, Ran two 1/2 marathons, and I am glad to say it is finally over. Josh told me that he wants to go up to Bear Lake in a few weeks, I don't think I can handle packing bags and doing laundry again for a few months. We are going to St George in October so Josh can ride his bike down there, and that is plenty of travel in one summer for me. Don't get me wrong, I love getting out, but my yard/house/closets/hair are totally suffering. I need some TLC. Although I am getting the itch to train for something again. The next race I want to do is the same day as family pics, maybe they could photoshop me in:)

My coool designer husband...

Josh's website http://www.coverduck.com/ was featured on http://www.foxycart.com/ as a good looking and highly functioning website. FYI foxycart is the site that processes our online cover orders. You can see it on the right side of their home page under "featured sites" If you click on it, there is an explanation as to why it was featured and a comment from Josh. He is feeling pretty famous today....and I feel famous because I am his wife.

If I could I would...

Re-do the scene that was made at the lake yesterday. We were at the Daybreak lake (highly recommended) and it was time to go. I told Milo to go rinse off the sand so we could get dried off and it was time to go. All the other kids were all dried off, changed and walking themselves up to the car. Well, he went as deep into the lake as he could and he stayed there. So I walked out there and said "Milo, it's time to go" He just looked at me. So I said it again, "Milo come on, we're leaving, everybody is already in the car." "I can't hear you", he says with a smirk. YA RIGHT. So I started to count to 3 with my fingers in the air so there was no mistake as to what was going on. He smiled and crept deeper into the water. Part of me was worried that he would go too far and I wouldn't be able to find him if he drowned since it was so windy, and the other part of me was just ticked that he wasn't listening. So I shouted, "if you don't come, your grounded when we get home" Still nothing. So I said my voice getting angrier at this time "if you don't get over here now, you're grounded all day tomorrow too!" Still nothing. That's it....I hiked up my skirt and started marching out into the lake with all the fury of a mad mom. Grabbed him by the arm and drug him back to the shore put the towel on him, spanked him and sent him to the car. Well the problem with this whole scene is that I saw a mom practically do the same thing the day before and I was feeling so bad that she was losing it in front of all the other mom's. So I spent the rest of the night justifying to myself, that even my perfect/patient sister in laws probably lose it on occasion, and I hope they still let their kids play at my house after witnessing my public "freak out" caused by my 4 year old. Really.. how do you hold it together at a time like that? Count to 10? a mommy time out? No he should just listen and get out of the lake like all the other kids. Good thing he does that every time we leave somewhere, so I can have a re-do.

My style...or lack thereof

So I have always been on the more casual side of style, if you can call what I have "style" I have my daily uniform on jeans/capris/shorts and a cap sleeve t shirt. Every once in a while I'll wear something that had to be ironed. I like comfy shoes, if they hurt, I won't wear them. My footwear is the area that is most lacking in style. I like flip flops, sneakers, and I have some clogs with a heel, they are comfy but since they don't have a rubber bottom...I don't usually choose them. Anyway I have always liked expensive shoes, but I pay for comfort, not necessarily style. I used to always have birkenstocks. They were out of style for years and I for sure thought that they would never be back in style again. I had a barely used pair in my basement for years and I kept them around hoping that one day I would be able to wear them and not look like I was from 1992. Well a few months ago, I sent them to the D.I. I figured they weren't coming back soon and I have had them forever, so according to my D.I. qualifications...they had to go. I am so freaking mad! $120 shoes that are all over the sunday ads and in stores again, I threw out like the weekly trash. For a second I was hoping that they were still down there, but I checked the box and the only thing left are my old Fry Cowgirl boots, josh's rope sandals from HS and some other cowboy boots that I don't know where they came from. BUMMER! For all those of you hanging on to stone washed colored jeans, they are back in style but I still don't think it is appropriate to be sporting those things.

Lake Powell 2009

With out kids. Thanks Grandma Mendenhall. This was a much needed trip. I got to float on a raft all I wanted, ride in the sun on the front of the boat, ski when ever the water was smooth...it was a great trip! We went from Wednesday to Sunday. I am going to have a hard time bringing little ones again. We did miss them at times, but it was great to spend uninterrupted time with Josh. The Swensons came which is always fun, we have been Powelling with them for years.

Bryce Canyon 1/2

Marcus came with me at the last minute...and to be honest I really had no idea what i was getting myself into. He has the tendency to get the grumpies...and I was worried that I would have to drag him along the whole time. To my pleasant suprise, he didn't complain once and he even had to wait for me a few times. I loved it and had a total blast. One of my favorite things about it all, is that after it is all over, I get flashbacks of the race in my mind, and I can see it all over again with out the pain in my legs this time. The downhill was much more than I had bargained for. During the race I was fine, but I haven't been able to walk for 2 days. I love running, it is my happy place, even when it hurts. Now I am going to focus on losing 10+ more lbs so it is a little easier on my legs and joints, and cut out the long runs until I get rid of all that extra booty.
5:00 AM Alarm goes off. 5:30 AM I wen't outside to see if we could find a ride so we didn't have to wake up the kids. 6:00 AM Starting Gun fires
Mile 1: 9.03/mile Flat taking it easy
Mile 2 7.10/mile 8% grade downhill....I could have run faster, but I didn't want to over do it
Mile 3 8.44/mile Not as steep, still plugging along. Only 10 more miles. People passing us left and right, there are some serious runners out here.
Mile 4 8.16/mile It is becoming a blur, I am just enjoying the scenery. The sun was rising over the Bryce Canyon cliffs and you could see the silouettes of the trees along the ridge of the mountain.
Mile 5 7.44/mile Finding our pace. Too bad we can't keep this up for long.
Mile 6 7.46/mile I really don't remember too much about this point...loving it!
Mile 7 8.54/mile This is more like it. I keep stopping at the water stations too long. I need to stretch my hip
Mile 8 8.35/mile. Mile 8 is my favorite mile. You have a good chunk of the race done, and you can start looking forward to the finish line. It's kind of like being 30 weeks pregnant.
Mile 9 9.13/mile This must have been when we started going uphill and Marcus had to take a potty break
Mile 10 8.37/mile Only 3 more miles left
Mile 11 9.07/mile Hi Julianne...again! How fun to find friends on the trail. Just past the rock castle on the right, we can see the end
Mile 12 9.20/mile I am dying...
Mile 13 7.39/mile Marcus tried to stop and walk...yea right, I told him he can't walk and he sprinted off and beat me by about 30 secs.
I only had stomach cramps for about 30 minutes instead of all day. We went back to the hotel, swam, and drove home.

39 Days later....

I really wanted my last New Moon post to get some good mileage. And I have had more exciting things going on than posting on my blog. Ignoring it kind of defeats the purpose of the blog, but I needed a break.
Anyway....I am off to Bryce Canyon today for my next 1/2 marathon. Marcus is supposed to be coming with me, but having trained for the likes of a 5k rather than a 1/2 marathon, we'll see how it goes with him. I have trained, but definately not as dilligent as my first 1/2. I am hoping to ride on the tails of my previous training, by mainting more than getting trianed. Too bad I don't have Annie to draft behind. I'll have to find a big cowboy to follow, and Marcus can draft off of me. (not that annie is a big cowboy, just that she kicked my butt in the sl 1/2) Anyway, I'll let you know. I am more focused on enjoying the destination run with the beautiful scenery than my time, but since Marcus wants to run in under 2 hours, I need to get my butt in gear. Lots of love...till next time.

New Moon Trailer.....I am so excited! I just cant hide it.

THE TWILIGHT SAGA: NEW MOON trailer in HD

Kids taking over my house....

Milo's friends never come in our house. Part of the reason is that we don't really have a kids area to accomodate playtime and I don't let them trash my house. I think the other reason is because of me in general. Who wants their old mom hanging over them when they are trying to play trucks with their buds. Finally they came inside for a little bit and I went out in the living room to say hi, and they both jumped like.."what are you doing here?" So I am going to go in my room and fold laundry while they have their boy time. I thought you weren't supposed to wish your mom was gone until you were a teenager. At least he still snuggles me in the morning:)

A new race

I am training for the Bryce Canyon 1/2 that is in July...It is going to be tricky because our Saturdays are full from now until then.....But it will be good. I love running it makes me feel alive...and it's good time to give myself a pep talk that eating cookies doesn't make me feel alive....well not in the same way at least:) I decided that it is hard to eat good in the summer. I used to think the opposite, but with constant family parties and ice cream treats being offered to me....what's a girl to do? I cant resist. Which is another reason that I have to get my runs in. I think I might run the Boston marathon one year...that would be a good excuse to go there....I really want to see Boston. Sometimes I wish I was irresponsible and could spend all my time running and traveling...but I'll just have to work hard enough to do it later, when it fits in the schedule and budget.

Things that make me smile...

1. Watching my little seedlings sprout out of the ground
2. Makay's cheeser smile
3. When dogs stick their head out the window of a moving car
4. Freshly cut grass
5. Smell of barbecue
6. Water skiing on a smooth lake. Preferably a warm lake
7. Teenagers that steal my TP then get my own yard with it
8. Cupcakes
9. Money in the bank
10. A good memory

Spring Love

The Mendenhall Tulip festival is officially over. I am glad I got some pics so I can enjoy later this year. Stay tuned for next year! I loved having fresh cut flowers every week in my kitchen. I hope the daisy's turn out for the summer batch.

Inspiration

I just had a new idea....I am going to redecorate my kitchen with a theme inspired by the artichoke....You have no idea how happy this makes me.

Our latest and greatest.... www.coverduck.com

So...if you know Josh and I, you know that we always have something up our sleeve to try to make a buck. The Snowie is long gone ( I am a little sad, mostly about having access to all you can eat snowies) and now we are selling Hot Tub Covers. The website is www.coverduck.com . If you know anybody, ie. neighbors, friends, in laws, other family members, please have them check out our website. There is an ad on KSL and we have sold a few covers so far and I would consider us a reputable company. You might recognize some of our hot tub models...and don't worry, we won't be asking for any more favors of our relatives to pose in their swimsuits and post them on the world wide web. Not for now at least:)

Knock on wood...

I think I have found the magic solution for my acne.......DO NOTHING, SPEND NO MONEY. I have spent years and tons of money trying to find something to help my bad skin. It's sensitive so I keep trying to find something for sensitive skin and this week I tried water only. Most of my small cosmetic pimples are gone and I have only had 1 red bump show up all week. I have also had some sun that could be playing a part in this, but seriously?...if all I needed to use was water all these years? I'll let you know the results next week if it is still under control. Usually when I think I have a breakthrough, it backfires and I am left where I started.

13.1 in 2 hours 5 minutes...with a potty break

Poor Blistered Feet! I had a blister early on in training...I thought those days were gone. I shouldve gotten new socks like I wanted to.
Hey...That guy is talking to us. I really wanted to throw up at this point


Using the rest of the energy I had to pick up a little speed to cross the finish line
Happy it's over!

Jump Picture take 2


Jump Picture Take 3

Saturday April 18

4:40 AM: Wake UP
5:00 Eat Egg Sandwich

5:10 Off to pick up Annie

6:15 Board Train to the U of U

7:00 AM Race Begins to sound of some gospel choir on the Legacy Bridge

Mile 1. 9.24 minute/mile Couldn't really get going it was too crowded. We jogged at a steady pace, and watched and listened to the foot steps all around you

Mile 2.We were passing up all sorts of people running including a reggae band on the sidewalk then.....Potty Break 3 hour minute/mile

Mile 3. 7.24 minute/mile We were booking!!!!! It felt so good.

Mile 4. 8.27 minute/mile saw Julianne Smith...a dear old friend:)

Mile 5. 9.30 minute/mile first uphill...not too bad
Mile 6. 8.50 minute/mile...gotta love the Gatorade at the aid stations and some guy was cooking bacon in his front yard for the runners...no thanks!

Mile 7. 8.42 Minute/mile Hi to Jill and Lonny Jacobs at Movies 10 in Sugarhouse. We loved sugarhouse. It was so beautiful.

Mile 8. 8.29 minute/mile Early onset of the dreaded toe blisters. Legs getting sore. Power bar in my pocket doesn't give much aid to my lack of energy. Every time I looked at Annie she looks like she is going for a stroll around the block...she was awesome!

Mile 9 9.15 minute/mile Stopped and stretched at Liberty Park, the blisters are in full burning effect so my feet have been running crooked resulting major pain in hips and knees

Mile 10 9.15 minute/mile Using muscles that I didn't know I had, the sun was beating down on our backs. Annie still enjoying her jog and the scenery

Mile 11 9.37 minute/mile. Blisters...what blisters....

Mile 12 10.30 minute/mile "This hill SUCKS!" up 200 East to South Temple

Mile13.1 9.22 minute/mile. Pretty good for wanting to throw up and having no juice left in my legs.

I love Annie and I am so glad she came to do this with me, even though she did make me have a 5 minute potty break, it wouldn't be the same with out her! Memories for a lifetime Part II.

Giraffe's are not allowed in the theatre

We finally got to see the long awaited Wicked last night. Now I can definitely tell the obsession that people have with this production. The Music was phenomenal, the costumes were from another time, each one had so much detail, the stage was lifelike (I had to remind myself it was fake when it was raining) Elpheba was all I expected and more. I loved Galinda/Glinda...there are parallels to my other favorite production Aida, Glinda/Amneris are cute, vain and funny. The lead male has the same beautiful tenor part and they both fall in love unexpectedly. WOW!!! I cried when she flew, mostly because I was so happy/grateful that we could be there to be part of such a cool thing. These are the days that make life wonderful! The only bad part is that we sat behind a giraffe and the usher fell asleep and was snoring behind us... I don't know how that happened. We sat in this directors box at the back of the theatre because all of the seats were sold out after we stood in line for 5 hours. Our choices were the directors box, Sunday, or single seats scattered about the theatre. We went to Olive Garden before it started and I got to pick up my race packet at the Salt Palace...what a fun downtown experience! I wish we could do that more often! I am so sad that it is all over. Abram came and it was fun to see him watch the show. He didn't budge an inch. And sometimes I would lean over and poke him and he'd smile but not take his eyes off the stage. Abram loves the Wizard of Oz and witches and has for as long as I can remember. Now I am also a lover of witches....I'll ride around on a broom anytime with you Avi. Dorothy made a small appearance and I am sure he's the one in the theatre that appreciated it the most.

I got a camera, I got a camera, I got a camera, hey...hey..hey.hey

Josh bought me my early Mothers Day present yesterday...a new little camera! I am so excited I have been "camera-less" for almost a year now. I borrow them a lot and have made use of my handy motorolla razor phone, but having my own purse digital is so nice.........Just in time for the big 1/2 marathon on Saturday. Hopefully I'll get some fabulous pics of Annie and I crossing the finish line with big smiles on our faces. She ran a 1/2 last weekend too in NV. What a tough girl. These are pics of us playing camera during breakfast.

Through blistering heat, scorching wind up the highest bloody mountain to the highest bloody tower...

Ok...so the part about the heat and towers is fake but I am almost ready for the SL 1/2 Marathon. I have been toying around with the idea of a 1/2 marathon for a long time now. My first spark of desire to run was actually from a family friend Wade. He was telling us that he went running clear up to Brighton High school...I was totally shocked! I didn't realize that people could run more than around the block or around a soccer field. So I started running in college and I got up to 5 miles a day and I felt great and looked great! Then I broke my arm and my arm would swell in the cast when I ran so I bagged it. I got married and worked full time and running just wasn't on my priority list. Then to get in post baby shape after Milo, Julie and I would run about 2-3 miles. I have run a few 5k's in the past few years and I totally love them. Josh did a Triathlon a few years back and I was so fueled by the racing atmosphere and I couldn't wait to have Milo so I could get into a race myself. I am not a very good road biker, so I decided that running would probably best suit my abilities. Since the town that i live in isn't very runner friendly and I hate doing loops around the subdivision, I haven't gotten into it until this year. I was out on a casual Saturday Morning run and I had this new ipod nike (tracks my miles and speed) I decided to get out of the neighborhood and try something new to challenge myself. That was the best thing i have ever done. I found a new route that isn't on a main road and isn't all uphill around circles and when I got back, I had run 4.5 miles!!! I was so proud of myself, and with a little online support from one of my BFF's in Nevada and Josh and the kids cheering me along I am almost to my first 1/2 marathon. I am exhausted from training but it will be worth it. I don't like talking about it much, it makes me uncomfortable...I actually have running posts that aren't published so I can just have them for future reference. 12 miles is a little much for me, I prefer to keep it between 4-6, but it feels great to accomplish something that i never thought I would dream of. Julie used to tell me to run a 10k and I could never see myself running over 5 miles again. I am glad I proved myself wrong.

What the H*#%?

Last night my 18 month old Makay, that is prized for his excellent sleeping abilities had major insomnia. This was my night last night. Bedtime at 6:30 (1/2 hour early, I do it all the time and it never affects him) 8:00 PM awake and a drink of water does the trick. 10:30 awake screaming this new high pitched scream that makes my bones quiver, Josh gets him up and tries to watch tv with him that only make him scream louder. I give him a bottle and let him lay with me in my bed ( he never does that...it only makes things worse ) He is relaxing and insists on laying on me (which is kind of cute since he is not a snuggler) I put him back in bed...with a bottle, it only lasts for a couple of minutes. 11:30 PM...I lay in Milo's bed with him and he is still screaming (Milo is on his make-shift bed on our floor, which gets used more than his bed. At least he is not in our queen sized bed anymore) After a minute or two of struggling to free himself he gets off Milo's bed and starts playing with toys...so I let him play till midnight then I put him in his bed with a pile of books and a night light. That lasts till 1:30 when the screaming(not really crying..just screaming) starts again. I go in there to find most of the books having been looked at and decide to try a movie. So there we are at 2:00 AM Makay is sitting on the couch watching Baby Einstein with a bowl of Animal Crackers munching away while I try to cover my face with a blanket on the couch for some relief. After a while, he started bugging me so I tried his bed again and this time it worked and he slept till his usual 7:30 AM. He is a little sleepy now (at lunch time) but I am making him wait for his nap till Milo goes to Preschool. The sad thing is, just yesterday I was thinking to myself that I am excited Jimmy Falon is on late night so there is something good to watch when you have a new baby at home (this is not a pregnancy announcement).....I guess I should watch what I wish for next time.

Running

I have been training for a 1/2 marathon, and I don't want to publish this post because it makes me uncomfortable to talk about it. I don't know why, but I just don't like it. Maybe because I want to keep it for myself to enjoy and I don't want anybody crushing my spirits or I don't want to be the person that talks something up and never does it. But anyway for my future sake...I am up to 10 miles. I ran 8 last week and I felt great. I had a friend and that made a huge difference. I ran 10 on Saturday and it was a killer. I wasn't ready, I had no water, and my head was not in the game. I am hoping for 12 this weekend, and I am going to have to phyche myself up all wee for it. ( just finished the race...it's ok to post this now...since I am officially a runner)

My New Goal...

I have set a new goal tonight. When I am talking to people, especially girl-friends/sisters/sisters-in-law, I always turn their stories into a "Me story" How annoying! For example, friend says: "The coolest thing happened to me today" I reply "Oh, really? That happens to me all the time...and you know what i do about it? yada yada yada yada" I always feel horrible afterwards like I have just ruined a would-be good conversation. I don't know if I do it out of competition, or that I am just excited that I can relate to them on something. I think it is a little of both. So I am so sorry to all of you that needed a listening ear and not only did I not provide that, I totally distract conversations to another realm. And I wonder why Milo can't focus.....

The Note....

I cleaned out my basement a while ago and I found a box of notes and a journal that Kim and I shared in High School...amongst those things one of the notes was from Kim and we had just had a fight ( I think) and she was writing the things that she liked about me the most. It is funny how a teenage girl can have such impeccable insight on another teenage girl, but one of the things that she wrote was "You know who you are, even though where you are going is usually decided at the last minute" That statement pretty much sums me up to a tee. That is what most of my marital arguments are about. Josh doesn't like how I " fly by the seat of my pants." Maybe I should have let Kim give him some lessons before we got engaged so he would know what he was getting into. She also told me that she likes that I am "different, but not nerd different" LOL! Thanks Kimmy for the insight! Good luck with the new baby and I am excited to meet her!

To all my ER peeps out there...

Wow...Carter is back? Cool...but they better have not brought him back to kill him too. I really don't like all the good doctors dying prematurely. My prediction...he contracted some terrible illness in Africa and only Banfield can save him. Who knows? My last prediction that Jillian was going to win the Bachelor was shot down the hole when she got sent home last week.

Soccer...

Josh is coaching a 4 yr old soccer team if any of you are interested let us know. It is going to be fun!

6th picture tag...

You know the drill so here it is. Us at the lights on ceremony at the Gateway when Milo was a about 18 months. We went with our friends the VanCott's who we love and miss and Julie was almost due with her second baby. And she came out and braved the frigid temps like a trooper.

My political agenda.

...I think stay at home moms should be rewarded some sort of compensation through these stimulus packages. Not to discourage women from working...but as a way to build american's up from the roots. Not that you can put a dollar amount on a child's future...but hey...while they are at it.... I just thought I throw that out there.

God Bless You!

We just did a food drive to YW's tonight and we filled up a Ford Expedition to the top with food to donate to the food bank. How wonderful it is to see so many people so generous!!! Giving in a time when you might be the next one to be using your food storage. It was truely touching! I was also saddened about the amount of people that are requiring assistance in this crappy time, we can only pray, and support each other through it all. Way to go 1st ward!

Happy Birthday to Josh...

Today is Josh's 28 birthday. I made this fabulous cake, which is a tradition that I am going to continue. Slaving in the Kitchen for 3-4 hours baking, cutting, frosting...it is really quite exhilarating. We are going to my mom's tonight and she is making him Rouladen which is described by Josh as Pickles wrapped with a roast. It is a favorite German dish of ours. He got a bag of clothes that he already opened on Friday so the cake is going to be the highlight of the party for sure. He keeps trying to cut into it...I feel like Marie Baron keeping him away from it. I must say...my mouth waters thinking about how good it is going to be. It has a chocolate creamy filling with chocolate shavings on the top, served with raspberry sauce and ice cream. Happy Birthday Babe!!!

Defeated

I Surrender! I don't care if I eat a cookie or 4 at a super bowl party. I don't care if I sleep in till 9:00 and wish it was 11:00 AM, I don't care if I skip a workout or 7. This winter is really getting to me. The sunshine outside is helping a little, but I can't wait till summer so I can get out of this Winter rut and get a move on with something worth while. I do have to give myself some credit, I read the Scarlet Letter last week and thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing...But I wish it had a happy ending. I didn't know it was in the "tragedy" category.

I'm taking orders...

While I'm at it, I was wondering if anybody else needs: a drink of ice water, help on the computer, a bottle, some cereal, to be held, a diaper changed, bum wiped, a bath, a fruit roll-up, some hot chocolate, a pb sandwich with their hot chocolate, their teeth brushed, a mess cleaned up, some fruit cocktail, marshmallows out of the marshmallow matey bag, a bandaid, their nose wiped, hair combed, a race track set up, cars found, trucks tied together with string, a Binky, to be put in time out, or anything else you could think of that a person could be asked to do in a matter of 2.5 hours.

Weekend....

Josh went on a four wheeling trip with his brothers this weekend...I am glad that they are having fun, but I hate that I do worry somebody will return home with a major injury or we will have some extensive 4-wheeler repairs to make. It's always Josh that gets peer pressured to do stupid things too. But he desereves some credit...he's never broken a bone and he has never wrecked an atv...and I can't say that for Aaron and Caleb. Maybe the fact that he borrowed my dad's 4-wheeler and my mom vowed him to be safe will help. Who wants to face their in laws with a broken 4 wheeler.

Happy Anniversary to us

We got married January 14, 2003 not even a year after Josh got off of his mission. We never dated before, but I had a secret crush on him all growing up...and I always tease him that he had a secret crush on Becky and he neither confirms nor deny's that to this day. Anyway, after his mission we had been hanging out as friends with a strange chemistry in the air and we decided to give the "more than friends" thing a try. And six years with no major marital strife later, here we are celebrating another fabulous year! To us...."Here, Here" I bought some fancy cupcakes to celebrate and Milo wanted one for him and Makay to share, so they'll celebrate with Marcus tonight and we're going out on the town. I can't wait to exchange gifts...I have been planning Josh's forever, and he went shopping last night and told me that I didn't get a present but present's'.

Annie..You'll appreciate this one

So I just made a batch of choco chip cookies (against my better judgement, the little devil/angel were on my shoulders both hard at work) and luckily they didn't turn out very good. I tried egg whites instead of whole eggs, and it totally botched them up. They got all melty and gooey. However, they did have the classic butter/sugar/chocolate taste I was going for. Well Milo wouldn't have anything to do with them because they didn't "look" very good. So they are in the trash. For all you non-Willowbrook readers, I did that once in college and Annie my lovely roomie, took them out of the trash and put them in a bag with her name on them...you gotta love the tree hugger in that sweet darling Annie:) This is a picture of us last weekend. We still love getting together and luckily our husbands do too.

Wanted: Bare Pavement Policy

I drive through other neighborhoods in other cities and I see many people enjoying the cold winter outdoors.
Other cities must have a bare pavement policy for the citizens to safely enjoy running, walking, and biking outdoors. I am insanely jealous each time I see skinny people out running. My street is so bad that small cars are stuck in the banks of snow, on the road, on a daily basis. The guys in the neighboor have an unofficial program to help dig out the helpless 2-wheel-drive car owners out of the banks and safely back onto the 3 inch sheet of ice that covers our road. Needless to say my workout schedule has suffered major damage this winter and I really need exercise to keep me out of a bad mood, especially during the long dreary winter. This is one more reason that I want to get out of this quaint little town. It drives me crazy. It's a good thing that I have such awesome neighbors and friends here, that it is going to take a little more than a bad snow plow policy to get us out. For all you interested, I have added the snow plow policy that was on the City Website.

1st priority will be collector streets which make up a basic network for the higher volume traffic. In addition, streets serving schools, municipal buildings, and selected streets on steep grades are included.
2nd priorities are the main secondary routes through the subdivisions connecting to the collector streets.
3rd priority will be remaining city streets and unpaved roadways.
Given the other many duties of the Public Works Department, it is not the position of the City to maintain a bare pavement policy on every street after every snowstorm.