Lo hicimos, we did it!

My committee and I got our first activity of 2010 under our belts. This isn't one I was really stressed about. I think after the last 2 activities this was just what we needed. We had our huge talent show in September. My laptop died the day of the program, and it was a mad dash to get everything completed and set up. (In case you're wondering, I'm not repeating the talent show any time in the near future!) Then after that we had the Christmas program, and Natalie had been in the hospital the week of that, so it was a nice thing to have a smaller activity.
This activity was the Sweetheart Dance. I've been in wards before where they traded with another ward, and served a full meal, followed by dancing. We didn't feel that it was something we wanted to undertake so we just had dancing and desserts on a Friday night for one hour. Drew and I set up 6 round tables and started on the chairs. He wanted to take all of them down because he could flip them over before opening them. It was pretty funny because he was totally showing off. He wanted me to see how strong he was. Shanna came to join us after we started on the chairs. We finished getting those set up, then set up our dessert table and did the decorating.
For decorations we decided our theme would be pink, red and white. We put baby pink and white tablecloths on the tables. For centerpieces I got these cute red tin buckets with heart cutouts. We filled those with glass marbles and red silk roses. Then I got Valentine's Day candy and we threw that around. Since the wrappers were all metallic colors they resembled confetti. We used our 4 tiered serving platters for the desserts, and Shanna's glass urn for the water. We put the round tables in a half moon shape and left the floor in the front of the gym and the floor between the tables open for dancing. Joe and Gaye Zezulka were our dance instructors, and Shanna's husband, Joseph, was our DJ.
Several couples came, and we had a fun time. After visiting awhile, we started out easy with the Casper Slide and the Electric Slide. (I can actually do those 2.) Then we learned to do the fox trot. I did really well when they were teaching us. When we had to dance together I didn't do quite as well. Fortunately the water urn started leaking water all over so I had to go mop it up. (Thank you, Kent, for noticing and/or causing that to happen! I can really do without embarrassing myself in public!)

Sweetheart Dance

We are having our first activity of the year... a sweetheart dance. I'm a bit apprehensive about it. I don't dance, and if my committee hadn't really pushed for this activity I would not have done it. I am excited about the decorations, but I'm getting nervous about the actual activity. The last time they tried doing an activity like this it wasn't well attended because of when they had scheduled it. This year I don't know how many people will actually attend.

Asthma- the downsides and the upsides

Asthma has been ruling my life for the last week and a half. I went for a walk one night. It was a cool night, and lots of people were sitting in their driveways with friends and their fire pits going. It gave a nice ambiance to the night. I realized about 30 minutes after I got home that it had triggered my allergies and asthma. Ugh! I didn't think it would get too bad because I take my controller medications faithfully every morning and every night. Because of the other recent asthma flare-ups my doctor switched one of my controller medications twice, trying to find one that will work for me now. Apparently we still haven't come up with a good alternative because it's flaring up frequently. Last week I was pretty miserable. For anyone who doesn't have asthma or an asthmatic in the family, it's hard to imagine that it takes such a toll on your body. You wake up feeling like you've spent the night running a marathon. And then you get up and start moving, and then you really feel tired!
If I only concentrated on the bad things from my asthma things would seem pretty bleak right now. I have had this stupid cough going for 11 days. I have my nebulizer and medications. It's keeping things controlled to an extent, but it hasn't stopped them yet. I have been forced to stay home unless it's absolutely necessary to go out. This means I get to spend more time with my family. It also means that I am getting a fabulous ab workout every single day. My abs are so sore, so I know I've been working them hard. Since Drew hasn't been able to go out with me running errands as usual he's been playing the Wii more often. He's been singing his own version of Black Eyed Pea's "Boom Boom Pow" as he plays his games. It's hilarious. I really need to record him. (I've put the camera next to my chair so I can catch him in the act next time.)
I've also done a TON of reading. I finished Dragonfly in Amber, Voyager, Gone, Brava Valentine, and The Maze Runner. I'm starting Drums of Autumn and The Blind Side:The Evolution of a Game. So- lots of reading. I still have a ton of books to read so if this lasts much longer I will finally be totally caught up with all my reading. I'm trying to get my hands on a copy of The Help. It sounds really interesting. I've got my name on 2 waiting lists at the libraries. I'm #383 in the Maricopa County Library system, and #76 for Chandler Public Libraries. I think it'll take a while. I put The Blind Side on hold a week before Thanksgiving and just got it last Thursday.
I read 2 books last month about Maria Von Trapp (her story inspired the movie The Sound of Music.) She was a spiritual and adventurous person. She had a really strong testimony of the Lord. It was a bit difficult to read the book she wrote about her family, but it did go in depth. Apparently she wrote several other books. If you ever think your life is busy you need to read one of her books. I don't know when she found time to sleep! She and her husband had several children together, but because of kidney problems she lost several children.
Well, I think my cough has settled down enough for me to sleep so I'll say ciao for tonight. More soon, I hope!

What a slacker I am!

Wow! I looked at my blog for the first time in 2 months. December was insanely busy, and I thought that with the new year I would get a reprieve. I was wrong! We spent most of the month being sick... Natalie got a cold, then the stomach flu, was fine, then got the stomach flu again. Drew got a cold, an ear infection, had an eardrum rupture and then a stomach bug. Then the two older boys got the flu. Then I got another sinus infection, lost my voice and just felt blah! No wonder, taking care of all those sick kids! Nonetheless, I can't believe I didn't post anything for 2 months. Yikes!
During December I had my birthday. In January, my baby Drew turned 5. He tells me he's not a baby anymore, but he can always be my baby. That's all I'm asking for! Our moms had their birthdays in January also, so I took them to dinner one night. It was a lot of fun to go out with them. I think we should do it more often!
December also brought Kent back to Qwest. He felt that his job was not going anywhere with NEC so when Qwest started wooing him in September, he started looking into it. I wasn't sure that I wanted him to go back there because of the economy being what it is, but he felt good about it. So far it's been pretty good. He does have a business trip this month, so I'm not thrilled about that, but as long as he likes what he's doing and it's a good job I guess I shouldn't be too upset about that.
My life has been a lot less stressful now that Christmas is over. We don't have any huge activities coming up. We're having a sweetheart dance at the end of the month, and it will be a nice quiet affair compared to the Christmas program. I'm still in scouts, and our den is getting huge. We have the Blue & Gold Banquet coming up in a couple of weeks, and that will be a big affair too.
Justin is busy being a teenager. My mom told me that boys are easier than girls, and I am not finding that to be the case at all! I sometimes see glimpses of my sweet little boy, but more often than that I see the teenage attitude. He's still a pretty good kid, but he's giving me a run for the money some days. He wants to spend time at home, but doesn't want anyone to talk to him unless it's on his term. He wants help, but gets mad when it's offered. It's enough to make me scream some days! He's getting tall, and will probably be my height (5'9") within a year.
Trevor is still popular with Justin's friends. They like to hook up on X-Box Live and always want Trevor to join them so they can win. When Justin's friends come here Trevor will play against all of them and still win. It doesn't go over well with the older boys. (Don't tell Justin, but I think it's hilarious...) He's been participating in Battle of the Books at school. His team is in fourth place out of 16 teams. He's pretty happy about that. He's almost earned his Webelos badge, and will move up on his birthday next month.
Now that Natalie's feeling better she's been all about the girls. She wants to hang out with girls all the time. She has had a few sleepovers here and at other friends' houses. She thinks it's the best thing ever. She's progressing quite well on her reading. She's proud of the fact that she's now able to read chapter books.
Drew is also doing well on his reading. He loves to count to 100 for me, and also likes to take notes for me. He's been busy playing with his friends and jumping on the trampoline. He's been trying to challenge his older brothers to wrestling matches. It's kind of funny to watch them because he's so intense when he's competing with them. They'd better watch out!