A Whole New Concept

Yesterday was a mighty windy day here. I reeled Chase in a little earlier than usual, dressed us warm jammies, popped some corn, snuggled under a quilt, and watched a kid's flick .

When the popcorn bowl hit half empty, Chase took his hand out of the bowl and announced he was done. Feeling a little full myself, I said that yeah, sure, I was done, too.

As we continued watching and enjoying the movie, my hand instinctively found it's way back into the popcorn bowl, which then found it's way to my mouth. My hand continued doing this, until the bowl was gone. Chase's hand never flinched. His eyes, however, kept doing double takes as I shoveled the popcorn into my face.

I have to say, I was literally in awe of him. Seriously.

He said he was done. He meant it. He was done. He was full. He was satisfied. He said, no more, and he meant, no more. He didn't want or need another kernel of buttery, salty, oh, so fabulous popcorn. So, he didn't eat one more kernel of buttery, salty, oh, so fabulous popcorn.

W.H.A.T?

That concept is totally wasted on me.

What do you mean? Stop eating when you are done? Uh, you don't keep eating just 'cuz it tastes good? You don't go for broke 'cuz you just can't get enough of whatever you have chosen as you next victim?

So, what you are saying, then, is that when you are full, you should stop eating whatever it is that you are eating? Full means done? Done. As in...no more dipping back into the bowl? No more bites. No more tastes?

Huh.



Now, why didn't I think of that?

Well, all I can say it that my little six year old has it figured out. Maybe...there is some hope for me, too?

Earth Shattering

When your kindergarten son celebrates Earth Day at school, it becomes more than likely that you will want to end up celebrating Earth Day at home. Right?

So, insert Clever and Creativly Talented Mom here _________


Right.


I started with the BEST of INTENTIONS. But things just didn't quite come out the way they were supposed to come out. What started out as a good idea as seen on one of my crafty blog links (seriously, I gotta start writing them down! I can't ever remember where the ideas come from!!), ended up testing my ability to TRULY be creative. The tutorial said,

"Cake mix, divide, add colors, round pan, mix and match, voila...Earth Day Cake.

Sounded sooooo simple. But noooooooooo. This is what we got instead:


First attempt:





Second attempt






Second attempt, with hard crust removed







Consolation prize?



A few globe-like-ish replica cupcakes.



So, for Earth Day this year, my kindergartner enjoyed two cake mixes worth of blue and green baked goods...AND the NEW chore of taking out ALL of the recycling. Whoot Whoo!


Okay. I'm waiting. For my Mother of the Year Award.

Just let me know when you're ready to present.

Da Bears

There is not a lot of difference between my little cub, and the adorable little bear cubs at Baby Animal Days at the AWHC a few weeks ago.



In the midst of lots and lots of interesting things to see, they would both rather just play in the dirt.







While both sets of cubs are prone to having dirt and other groceries stuck in their fur, there is at least explanation for the cubs above. For the cub below, I...well...where...if you...how? Who knows.






They both start out so small and cuddly. Then, they GROW LIKE WEEDS. At the rate my cub is growing, his "potential" will not be far off from Papa Bear's potential.

There are, thankfully, a few differences that stand out, as well.

My cub doesn't bite me every time I reach out to touch him. And, my cub can be admired without needing to be restrained by a cage. Well, most of the time, at least.

I jest. We don't even own a cage.

"A", I'm Adorable, "B", I'm So Beautiful...

Chase took great care in getting ready for church on Sunday. He paid careful attention to every little detail.

When he came out for the unveiling, he got quite reception from his ma and pa. After listening to his mother's gushing on and on about how amazing he looked, Chase felt compelled to concur. In all seriousness, he exclaimed,

" I know! I am ADORABLE!"

Oh, how I love my boy's self-confidence.

I asked this ADORABLE boy to come and snuggle with me the other day. These are the feet that he so casually plunked on my lap:

Boy: (noun) a noise with dirt

Homemade Pig

With the departing of pup Pepper, we now have an empty dog run. A small run, but a dog run, nonetheless. Jeff thought it would be fun to throw around the idea of raising a pig, in said empty dog run. I told him that would be a big negative, unless we could name the pig "Dinner".

Chase slobbered at the idea. His eyes grew wide. His drooling tongue fell out of his mouth. When he could finally get ahold of himself, he said,

"Yeah, let's get a pig! Then we can have homemade ribs!"

Yup, I knew it.

Homemade is always better.

Happy Easter!

Well, I am getting caught up, finally!

How fabulous was it to have Easter and Conference at the same time?! We really enjoyed our weekend. Chase has been listening to all four sessions with me since he was born. We do such special things for Conference, which aid GREATLY to his excitement and ability to endure 8 hours of sitting still and listening.

For the last couple of years, we have been doing the activity packs that start to circulate around conference time. They are wonderful. They are engaging, age appropriate, and help them understand what Conference is all about.

This year, I added a Conference Survival Kit. Chase woke up Saturday morning to a box filled with healthy snacks, treats, water bottles, crayons, scissors, etc. He was armed with everything that he would need to sit quietly for each session. Needless to say, he LOVED it.

We had our own egg hunt in our own home for this Easter. Chase was given clues to find the eggs, which he had to read by himself. He has turned into quite the reader!

Yes, I know. Those are some big eggs.

In the spirit of slowly converting to loving all things homemade, I decided to try the vinegar and food coloring method for dying Easter eggs. Wow...uh, it works! I am especially loving Chase's egg with the reinforcement tab eyes.

I am really loving being able to celebrate these moments and occasions with Chasers. He gets so excited about traditions, holidays, and seasons. He takes such pride in learning and asking questions. He was able to express his feelings about Easter and the Savior to me this year. His sweet understanding of the Savior's importance to him is such a payday for me.

There was just one thing I guess I wasn't completely understanding. I was just wondering why he felt the need to have half of a plastic egg on his head for the entire first session of Conference on Easter Sunday. Oh, well. It didn't seem to affect his hearing.

Hope you all had a fabulous Easter this year!

Mom Jeans

The first time I saw this Saturday Night Live skit on rerun, I laughed. Of course I laughed. It was funny! Who wouldn't laugh? It wasn't until I was giving this parody some serious thought a little while later, that I came to a startling realization. I thought...



...aw, shoot. These are MY jeans. Dadgum.





You see, for the past few years, I have taken a little "vacation" from my skinnier, healthier self. While in this "state", I had not meant to wear "Mom Jeans". I didn't even know what those were. I was just wearing a jean that fit. And, that covered my, uh...stuff. But, apparently, while I was taking a break from my ability to wear a size 2 pant, somebody played an awful joke on me.


Somebody rewrote the fashion on jeans.


Somewhere along the line, the waistline on a good pair of jeans, has gotten A LOT lower.


As a reward for dropping a few pounds and several sizes, I am forced to buy these objects that are foreign to my body. They don't seem to want to cover my...stuff. As a reward for several months abstinence from sugar, and exercising my tushy off, I find that I have just exchanged my "Mom Jeans", for the...


"Mom Jig".

You know the one.

The one where you latch on with a death grip to your belt loops, then yank and shimmy your...stuff, back into your pants. You know the one, when after bending over, you are forced to do some reconnaissance of the unmentionables, then perform the "Jig" to put everything else back into place.


I am learning now, why the former, comfortable, appropriately fitting jeans, were attached to the special classification of Moms. Moms do not have the time, desire, nor number of arms required to be constantly yanking, shimmy-ing, and sashay-ing our...stuff, back into our clothing.


So, while I am happy to be somewhat smaller in my size...smaller...jeans, I am still adjusting to the constant need to be adjusting. It's a work in progress.


I do have to mention, however, that I appreciate the company I have in my misery. I am a big fan of the knowing, understanding glance, smile, and wink from other Moms, who have just been caught doing the "jig".


And so it begins. The race I didn't even know I was in. I had no idea I was in a race with fashion to see who could get "skinnier" faster. Apparently, I am losing. There is something already out there called "skinny jeans". So, I am not likely to catch up to an ever-shrinking fashion, that seems determined to make it more and more challenging to continue to fit ALL of one's junk, into their ever-shrinking trunks.


Sigh.


May the good guy win.

Fully-clothed.

My Little Billy Bob

Oh, the blessed, gangely tooth phase. So cute. Yet, not so cute. We experience everything from the thrill, the gross out, the dramatic exit, the reward, the gap. Then, enters, the "TOOTH". Too big for the poor baby face it grows in. These exiting and entering dentures sure leave their mark as they walk across our babies' faces.










My little Billy Bob has lost 4 teeth. He is working on #5 as we speak. Those dentures are in a hurry to exit. The Tooth Fairy has a Welcome Mat at our home.

He was accidentally punched in the mouth while loosing both of his top pearly whites. While these acts sped up the process, they also created quite a distraction. Teeth were hanging crooked, turning funny colors, and flapping during conversation. Believe me, it has been really hard to focus on his eyes while this Handsome Harry is talking to me. My eyes can't help but be drawn to the mayhem happening inside his oral cavity.

The other day, he completed a task that left him quite proud of himself. Upon completion, he patted himself on his back, while proclaiming, "I sure am a strong fella!"

A little while later, this strong fella was found trying to pull out tooth #4. He squeezed so much effort into yanking on this tooth, that an enormously loud "moose call" trumpeted from that other "cavity".

One for the record books.

As soon as I could scrape my hysterical soul off of the floor, and wipe the tears from my eyes, I instantly began to lament the fact that I had not turned my video on this event.

Hind sight is 20/20.




pun totally intended

Rolling Out The Red Carpet

The week before Easter, we had the fabulous surprise of my parents (along with sis Kimberly and niece Baylee, and brother Clark) getting to come and spend a night with us. Because of my Dad's illness, we have not been able to see much of them. It was FABULOUS to get to have them in our home with us...even if it was for such a short time. We will take what we can get, right?!


Sorry about the pictures. Again. Camera, waiting until last second to take pictures, running late for church, sun in the face, son who insists he totally and completely does not know how to smile for a camera...


You get the idea.








At any rate it was wonderful to see them. They look amazing. They ARE amazing. My dad had a skip in his step again. Love it.


Here's to retirement and better health! ;)




and, PS

Thanks for all of your compliments on the crafts! You are all too kind!

Give That Girl A Saw...

...and she goes NUTS!


In the middle of March, my sister, Heather, my sis-in-law Birgitta, my other sis-in-law Angie, and her mom, locked ourselves in my house, and crafted our pants off. Angie and I have a lot of fun doing some seasonal decor crafts a couple of times a year. This was that...times 52! It took two weeks and 9 inches of saw dust in my garage to cut and prep everything for our craft blitz.

A lot of work? Yup. A lot of fun? You Bet! Worth it? Heck Yeh!!

As you peruse the pictures of our wares, please accept my humblest of apologies for the following details:

Quality of pictures. I own the world's crappiest camera, and it died. I am using my other camera, which is unbelievably worse than the first. Unbelievable. You cannot get the true colors off of these pictures.

Quantity of pictures. A tutorial on making a slide show, anyone? Anyone?

Proper Credit for pictures. Out there in Blogland, reside some extremely talented people who share their craft ideas on blogs. Thank you. I have added all of these sites to my blog. Be careful when beginning to browse. You will disappear. For a very. long. time.


So, we have home decor...

Spring...

Are those birds about the most adorable thing ever? EVER?

birthday...

Valentines...

Autumn...

Summer...

and countdown calendars.

That was just round one.

When I get the saw dust cleaned out of my nose, I will get to planning round two.

Maybe by then, there will be an intervention in place, on my behalf.

Help!

It All Started With A Wish

All I wanted was a little more organization. I just wanted to know where everything was, and where everything should go. I just wanted my "secretary" cabinet to work a little better for me.

So, I started with a little of this,

and ended up with this.

Pulled stuff out, hammered stuff here and there, added drawers and slots, ripped off doors, added tins for magnets, threw stuff away...(sorry! not enough foresight to get a before picture!)

Put it all back,

and ended up with this...

...my new "secretary". Ahh, love.

I am now organized.

And thus, it begins.

The craft itch that CANNOT be scratched.

And a love affair with my new label maker.

Mid-Life Crisis?

Over the past 8 months, I have,

Lost over 60 pounds.

Gained a new wardrobe.

Bought a puppy.

Sold a puppy.

Lost a preschooler.

Gained some wrinkles.

Changed out an entire room in my house.

Made plans on how to change every other room in my house.

Made over 30 crafts (uh, that's just in the last month).

Made of 1oo changes to my blog background.



I am seriously considering,


Participating in a triathalon

Cutting AND adding color to my hair

Dropping another 50 pounds

Getting a tatoo

Just checking to see if you are paying attention.

Hehehe



So, mid-life crisis? I don't know. I am turning the big "F" word this year. That pretty much constitutes a crisis right there. Regardless if it's a meltdown, or the quickly approaching "F" word, I seem to be on a mission to transform myself from head to toe, and my house from stem to stern. Just be careful when you come to visit. You may not know who you are when you leave.

Happy Valentines!

Seriously. I feel that far behind with my posts.


In reality, I am not THAT far behind. But with my non-procrastinating, stay-on-top-of-things, like-to-be-the-first-one-out-of-the-gate personality, the date of my last post might as well contain the year 2009.

So, here I go. I am going to start throwing my posts at you with lightening speed. I am going in order. Even if that means backing up to February.



I gave Chase a Valentine assignment a few days before V-day. I gave him my camera (my dumb, dumb camera) and sent him on a heart safari around the house. He was admonished to be as clever as he could. Here are just a few of the results:



He found some obvious ones,




formed one with a pipe cleaner (what a clever Joe),





ate one into his breakfast,





made one with his lunch.



But, from the near 20, out-of-focus hearts that this sweet boy captured on film that day,


this one,




is by far, my favorite.


I heart you, Chasers!

Post-Stuck

Reasons I get post-stuck:

Can't say anything funny to save my life
Can't get/didn't get the pictures of event I want to post
Don't know how to post what it is I want to post
Can't move forward until a certain post that should go first can be posted
Don't have time
Don't have anything to post
Seems like too much time has passed since the last post that it seems too hard to take the plunge and jump back in

There. Go that out of the way.

All of the reasons for not being able to make a post were hanging over my head like a rain cloud.

Now, I can move forward, and begin posting again. Or not. I may have things to post...or not.

But it's nice to have the option.

I know. Seriously. I know.

I am a dork.