I love it!

I love it when my sisters and I hang out. We're all so busy, and with 2 of them living clear across the country, it's a rare thing nowadays. I'm the eldest (not oldest, Mom!) daughter in the family. Michelle (daughter #2) had her first baby in December, and she and her baby got to come visit us this week. She's going back to work next week so we're excited to spend this time with her. Amy (daughter #3) and I are the only ones who don't work full-time. When she lived here we could trade babysitting whenever we needed to. She and Michelle decided that they needed to live on the East coast. We're hoping to get them back someday. Christine (daughter #4) just sold her salon in Maricopa, but she's still working there. I went there for the first time yesterday (Saturday) to get my hair done. I took Natalie with me and while my hair was processing Christine curled Natalie's hair with a flat iron. She LOVED it, and wants me to do it every day. (Add one small flat iron to the shopping list...) Katie (daughter #5/child #6) works full time and is attending ASU. We get to hang out with Katie and her daughter Melia a few times a month. (Melia might actually be taller than Natalie when she's older.)

So yesterday after Michelle and baby Varick arrived, we all got together at my mom's house to hang out together. (All the siblings were there except Amy because she couldn't come out this time.) Allan, our only brother (child #5), was there for a while until he left for a hot date. (We love to talk girl talk in front of him and see him squirm. It's so fun! I don't really think we usually get to him because if you're the only boy with 5 sisters you'd get used to it eventually, right? We think we're just preparing him for his future wife.)

For dinner we ate a really yummy gourmet mac and cheese meal that Katie made. Then our little girls played with each other and we got to talk. Christine is about to have her 2nd baby/1st boy so we got to watch him perform acrobatics in her tummy. Natalie was pretty intrigued by that because she doesn't remember seeing that when I was pregnant with Drew.

Tonight we had everyone over for dinner and dessert. I made a roast, barbecue chicken, mashed potatoes and the desserts. Michelle made a really good salad, and Kent bought some French bread. I made my Perfect Chocolate Cake and a New York style cheesecake with sliced strawberries. Then Katie and Allan took turns playing Guitar Hero, and then Trevor and Justin decided to get Cody (Christine's husband) to sing while they played Rock Band. When I saw them Katie was on drums, Cody was on vocals and Allan and Justin were on guitar. It was pretty funny. Evelyn, Christine's daughter, is so cute, and she cracks me up. She follows her dad everywhere.

My crazy week

Here's what's gone on in our house this week.
Monday was our family fun day (see previous post).
Tuesday I cooked 15 pounds of ground beef, added several ingredients and put it into my 2 large crock pots, then went to the church to set up for our "Route 66 Diner" with a 50's theme for our Blue and Gold Banquet, and then home to get the "mom stuff" done, including a science project that has been the bane of my existence for the last 3 weeks. Seriously. Then the B&G banquet that lasted 2 1/2 hours... very, very L-O-N-G program this year. Trevor got his Wolf and several belt loops. Then home from that to work on the science project with Justin. Decorations from our diner...Me (Maryann) and TrevorTrevor with his red face paint. Not so easy to remove...

Then Wednesday I drove Natalie, Justin and Justin's science project to school, and then called Shanna Johnson. We talked for over 2 hours. I went through so much Kleenex during that call. Drew was watching t.v. while I was talking to her, and every so often he'd look at me like, What in the world is wrong with you? because I was talking on the phone, crying, then laughing, then crying some more, and making a huge pile of used tissues. After she and I talked Drew, Natalie and I went to lunch with Kristen Seare so we could put the finishing touches on our Friendship Dinner planning. Stopped at Wal-Mart, then rushed home to make dinner and dessert for our family and Shanna's family. I delivered dinner with Justin's help, visited for a while, then home again to tackle the laundry pile that has grown exponentially during the week.
Then Thursday morning Drew and I ran errands. We came home to get Natalie from Caroline's house (thanks again, Caroline!), and stopped to get lunch to bring to the park for a play date with Jenn and Mason DeTemple. Mason got to come home to play with Drew, and that made me quite the hero with Drew Dog. They laughed and played, and had a ton of fun. Then Grandma Julie (Kent's mom) came over to play. Kent came home and took Justin to the science fair, and while they were gone Kent's brother Curtis stopped by. Next I went to a midweek activity where I learned to crochet. We had so much fun trying to figure it out. And I can admit that I'm in the remedial group. This is easier than the knitting, though. I'm having a lot of fun with it... even got some more yarn so I could make a ton of pot holders.

Mason DeTemple- just hanging out!Drew hiding out in the tube drinking his slush. I was panicked because I couldn't find him.Miss Natalie looking pretty.Justin showing off his science project.

Today, Friday, I went to the gym, then got a call from Cydnie saying that she was having the preschool boys over for a play date (brave!), and then to get Natalie and Caleb from school, to lunch to do my VT, a couple of errands with Natalie, home to get Drew from Cyd's (where we visited for a while), then to the school to pick up Justin and his friend Josh... home again... then date night with Kent. Whew!
This weekend my sister Michelle and her new baby boy, Varick, are coming to AZ for a visit. We don't have any set plans yet, but I am so excited to see them. They live clear across the country so we don't get to see each other often, and this will be the first time we get to meet her new baby. I can hardly wait!
Kent's been super busy this week so we haven't seen much of him at all. I'm so grateful he has a job because I know so many people aren't so lucky. But sometimes I have to remind myself of that so I don't resent all the extra work that has fallen into his lap recently... and all the Cisco training classes he has to take in the coming weeks and months. (But at least we get to go to Les Miserables together this coming week. I can hardly wait! It will be so much fun!)
I'm going to bed now... haven't slept much lately because the injection 2 weeks ago didn't work so the pain is still almost unbearable at night... which keeps me awake... It's hard doing everything on 4 - 5 hours of sleep a night. It's giving me a headache. But at least I have my family, friends and faith to help keep me sane and happy!

President's Day

Today we took the kids out for a Family Fun Day. I came up with this title several months ago, and it's stuck. I never have to be specific when I say that we're having one, only that we're having one. And it's a great motivator for the kids to get their jobs and homework done. This time we told the kids we'd take them to see a movie, and maybe get lunch afterwards.
The requirements were: Justin had to finish his science project before the movie. Trevor had to finish his jobs. Natalie and Drew had to help me clean their rooms and the game room. Everyone but Justin finished, so Justin had to stay home. Don't feel too bad for him because he's had an entire month to work on this project. And he keeps listening to his iPod, playing games, getting up and doing stuff with the kids, etc. so he's not focusing on getting his job done. He also got offered a babysitting job, but since he wasn't done he also had to skip that. Oh well. (I did take him to the gym with me this morning, and that's one of his all-time favorite activities so don't feel too bad for him.)
The rest of the kids, Kent and I went to see Hotel for Dogs. It was pretty cute. Natalie was the one who selected the movie. Drew wanted to see Coraline in 3-D (sold out). Trevor wanted to see the Pink Panther 2 (sold out). Natalie wanted to see this movie, and since it wasn't sold out that's the one we saw.
After the movie we went to Grimaldi's for pizza. They're a brand new restaurant. Kent and I thought it was really good, but the kids weren't so impressed. (No ranch dressing...) Then we stopped at Dairy Queen for dessert. We never do that so it was quite the treat. We took pizza home for Justin, and got him a treat from DQ.
We went home after that, and then the popcorn from the movie hit. I really shouldn't ever eat it because it kills my gut... only from Harkins, though. They use the healthy oil, and I'm one of the people that has a hard time digesting it. I know this, but I still eat it. And then I get sick from it. You'd think I'd learn...
I think I'm happy that everyone has school tomorrow. As much as I enjoy spending time with them, they really need to have the intellectual and social stimulation. IDK what we'll do during the summer. The library for sure, maybe the reading days at Barnes and Noble, movie days, something else for the other 2 week days. We already go to the library at least once a week, so that won't change.
Oh, and I forgot to post earlier that one of my sisters is coming from CT to visit this week. She's bringing her new baby born in December. I can hardly wait. I'm glad that I didn't host the birthday dessert night at my house yet. Because now Michelle and Varick can come! Yay! I'm thinking I'll make cheesecake, chocolate cake and maybe a pie. We'll see. My kids have a yen for my yummy cheesecake, and my siblings have a yearning for my chocolate cake with chocolate frosting. I kind of crave pie right now, but it could just be the timing of it. I'll take pictures and post them on Sunday when everyone comes. If the recipes turn out well I'll even post pictures with the recipes on my craft blog.

This weekend

This weekend, Kent and I decided to go out on Friday for Valentine's Day so we can avoid some of the busyness of the holiday. We were going to try a new pizza place, but after waiting our estimated wait time of 40 minutes, and then another 20+ minutes, we gave up and went to Paradise Bakery. We still want to try the pizza place so hopefully we'll get back there soon. After we ate dinner we went to the movie theater and saw Paul Blart: Mall Cop. It was funny.
Saturday Kent took Justin and Trevor riding. They went to Box Canyon and had a blast. Justin has a dirt bike, and Trevor and Kent have ATVs. Justin gets really frustrated with Trevor because he doesn't have the "need for speed" like Justin does. I think it drives Justin crazy.
While they were gone Natalie, Drew and I cleaned the game room and their bedrooms. After that we went to the library, then to lunch at Subway (eat fresh!) and shopping. When we came home I started making dinner. I made a ham, fresh green beans, rolls and apple pie. While it was cooking Natalie and I got pedicures. It was the first time I've gone and had other moms there with their little girls. There was a woman with her daughter, who was also named Natalie, and another girl named Mariah there with her mom. She had Down's Syndrome, but she was one of the funniest and most friendly people I've met. Her mom was really friendly too. My Natalie was acting pretty shy for a majority of the time, but finally opened up when Mariah kept talking to her.
Then today we had church. I played the piano for "Our Savior's Love" while Mindy Sanders and Hayley Breon played on the violin. I think it sounded pretty. We only practiced once during the week so I was glad that it sounded good. After that, Drew said the opening prayer in primary. He told me that he didn't want me to help, but when he got up there, he looked at me and beckoned me forward. I whispered what to say in his ear, and he started whispering the prayer into the microphone. It struck me as funny, and I had to work really hard to not start laughing. I had to remind him to speak. Then I subbed for my friend as the nursery music person. Her daughter forgot to bring the bag with props so I asked the 3 nursery leaders if they wanted me to come in still. (I know that my kids would have been really upset if the nursery music lady came in without the props.) Two of the three teachers elected to just do it on their own, and the other teacher wanted me to come in anyway. The kids had a lot of fun so I'm glad it turned out okay.
On a sad note, my good friend Shanna Johnson lost her baby on Friday. She was due to give birth next month, but now she's waiting to deliver the baby. I feel so terrible for her. She was so eager for the birth of her new daughter. This was to be her 5th daughter, and they had already chosen to name her Cosette Emmaline. I am so grateful for the peace that the Gospel brings... we know that we will be reunited with our families in the eternities... families aer forever. I get to take dinner to Shanna's family on Tuesday, and there are several other women who signed up to bring them dinner during the next several days. I am so grateful for the Relief Society because it allows us the opportunity to serve those around us, in good times and bad.

Drew's Silly Sayings

Drew has been saying all sorts of cute things lately. I can't remember them all, but I'll update it as often as I can because it's pretty dang funny to hear him.
"Mom, you're beautiful." (Pronounced boo-full.)
When he needs something, "Mama Bear, I need..."
In his prayers, "Please help Heavenly Father and Jesus to have a good day."
"Mom, my brain is giving my heart a kiss." (I have NO idea what that means, but he loves to say it, and he's always got a smile on his face when he says it.)
"Mom/Dad, you're my favorite Mom/Dad in the whole world." (Usually said in response to, "Drew, you're my favorite baby boy in the whole wide world.")

Random musings for today

Nothing much is going on here out of the usual. The kids had a half day at school today, and will have another one tomorrow. I'm glad that I got the parent/teacher conferences done today. It always seems harder to go on the second day for some reason.
And the wind is hanging on for dear life here, which is allowing my asthma to stick around too. It's been a week since it started flaring up, and shows no sign of leaving. Ugh! I hope it goes away soon. Seriously!
I made a couple of Valentine's crafts. They're on my craft blog if you want to take a peek. I have a friend coming over tomorrow to make one of the wreaths. If anyone else wants to join us let me know. The more the merrier! I'm going to make sugar cookies tonight so the kids can decorate them after they make their little crafts.
That's it... nothing else. Since my injection last week I've been in bed recovering from that for a day, then in bed with bronchitis for 3 days, and the rest of the time just being Mom and doing the things a mom does! I guess it's good to have a break! Hopefully I'll have something fun to post about later this week. Maybe I'll even post pictures of our cruise... maybe.

I really hate getting injections...

If you've read my Facebook page you already know that I had an injection into my SI joint yesterday. Usually the worst part of surgery for me is getting the IV. The same cannot be said for me when I get injections. You're awake for the procedure, and it's hard to be brave when you're getting multiple shots in a sensitive area. The worst set of injections was when I had to get a discogram. Even if the disc is good those injections hurt like hell. And the bad discs are almost unbearable. You have to lie perfectly still on the table for 45-60 minutes while you're getting multiple injections of lidocaine before they inject the HUGE needles that inject the dye. I think it would be an effective form of torture.
I've also had 3 set of epidural injections and 1 set of facet joint injections. The first epidural injection was the worst because the doctor hit the nerve. The pain was excruciating for an entire month. The others were very painful for 2 weeks, but nothing was quite as bad as that first one. They did not help relieve the pain I was having so that's why I had to have surgery.
Anyway I had back surgery 15 months ago, but started having nerve pain in my hip and down the sciatic nerve in September. I went to my neurosurgeon with new MRI films, and as far as he could tell it was a flare-up of the SI joint. He said that people with back surgery sometimes have this problem, but usually it starts within a few weeks of surgery. I went to the pain specialist he recommended, and he concurred with my dr's diagnosis. I felt good about proceeding... well, as good as I could feel about needing more injections.
I would be lying if I said I was looking forward to yesterday. I hoped that the procedure would go smoothly and that there would be pain relief. I was really nervous once I got to the room. Too many memories from previous injections, I guess. My heart rate was over 100 BPM so they gave me fentanyl and versed... good combination. I tried to talk them into doubling that dose so I would be asleep, but they didn't. Oh well. It was worth a try! They were only going to give me one of them so I'm grateful that they gave me both. I got several small injections of lidocaine, but before lido works it stings like the devil. And it only numbs the skin, really, because it felt like the doctor was drilling a nail into me a mm or 2 at a time. The tech kept maneuvering the x-ray machine so that my dr could get a good view of the joint so he could place the needle correctly. The procedure was over within 15-20 minutes, but it seemed a lot longer than that.
It's been 29 hours since I finished, but I still haven't noticed a change in the pain. It says that it can take up to 48 hours to start working so I haven't lost hope yet. I hope that this shot took care of the problem, and that by this time tomorrow I'll feel awesome. I can't wait!

Why am I always so busy?!

I have found myself asking this question so often lately. It started in late 2007 just before I had back surgery. Before the surgery I had to get all sorts of things done so that the family would be taken care of in a way that I would approve of. (Or at least in a way that I wouldn't feel quite so guilty for not being able to take care of things the way I normally do.) Then because I was recovering from surgery for several weeks I couldn't do much. When I tried to get back into the swing of things my swing was a little slower, so I fell further behind.
Now I feel like I'm on the go every day. Mondays and Fridays are for Natalie's dance. Tuesdays are Justin's scouts/Young Men activities. Wednesdays are Trevor's scout days- and now mine. Thursdays we don't have anything scheduled, but there is always a test or 2 (or more) to study for. Although I graduated from grade school many years ago I still have to study (so that I can help my children study) every time. (BTW, when did the terms for math change so dramatically? They were totally different when I was in school.) I've been told that I'm a better helper than Dad so they always want me to help them. I also get to help them with their projects. Even if Dad starts I seem to wind up doing a bunch of work too. I don't remember my mom or dad having the time to help me as much as I help my kids. Should I put my foot down or keep doing it? I'll probably just keep doing it.
On top of those things I am on the activities committee for church. We try to plan 1 activity each quarter. Doesn't seem like a lot until you realize how much work goes into planning and executing each one. And now I'm a den leader for the Wolf Den in our ward. That started just last week, but it's a bunch of work too. And I just got a new calling on Sunday and when that becomes official I can say what it is. This one shouldn't be time consuming at least.
I'll probably be slowed down a bit again for a day or two. I'm getting an injection into my SI joint on Thursday. If this is what's causing my pain now it will be a diagnosis and a treatment. And I should feel good by the weekend. Hopefully I don't have any bruising or extra pain. I'm very optimistic, so I'm sure it will all go well.
I am glad that I have the opportunity to do so many things with my kids and husband. It's good for them to see me help them, work with them, serve in my church callings and do all the other things that I do. I hope that I'm showing them a good example, and that they'll take the good and learn from it. I hope that they'll overlook the bad (because I'm just not perfect!) and see that even when I do mess up they will see how I try to fix things.

Drew's 4th birthday party

I can't believe my baby is already 4! He's such a good boy, and we love him. We had his birthday party today, and he had a great time. We went shopping for his party supplies, but had a hard time deciding which theme to do until we found the Disney Cars party kit. He thought that would be fun so we got it. We sent out Cars invitations to his friends at preschool, and a few boys from the neighborhood. We had everyone bring their bike/Big Wheel/trike/scooter so they would be able to have "car" races. Everyone that Drew invited was able to come... so we had 10 friends here! My next door neighbor, Voni, stayed here to help. It was such a huge help!

When everyone arrived they colored a Cars picture. I found several different pictures on the Internet, and printed them up. I expected that there might be some fights over who got which picture, but it seemed that everyone did just fine.

When they were done coloring we had some "car" races. Kent put two lanes of blue painters tape on the driveway before everyone arrived. We started at the end of the driveway, and 2 boys raced at a time.

After that everyone came back in to make license plates. They used box flaps that I cut from various boxes, then used foam stickers to decorate. My original idea was to have them use the alphabet stickers to put their name in the front, and then decorate with the other foam stickers. However, that idea was quickly scrapped and they just decorated however they wanted to. After they were done I took a picture of each boy with his license plate for their "driver's licence." (To the moms of the boys who came I will get them printed and delivered to you soon.)

We ate pizza after that and then went out to the front yard to drop beanbags into a wheel while they boys had their eyes closed.

When we were done with that it was pretty warm outside so we went inside to open the birthday gifts. Drew was very excited, and so were his little friends. A couple of the boys tried to open the gifts for him. (Understandable considering that 4 of his friends at the party have birthdays within 2 weeks of his.)

Then we went back outside for Cars cupcakes. (This was probably the most stressful part for me. I had made a chocolate birthday cake with chocolate frosting, but for some reason the cake was crumbling apart, and I couldn't frost it without getting pieces of the cake mixed into the frosting. I have no idea what I did differently because I've made this cake so many times before without problems. So about an hour before the party I ran to Albertson's to try to find a birthday cake. I finally found a platter of cupcakes that had little Cars rings on them. Whew! What a relief!) They were perfect!

While the boys were finishing up their cupcakes their moms came to get them. I had to leave immediately after the party to go to the doctor's office because we're leaving for a cruise of the Mexican Riviera tomorrow, and I'm still having issues with my voice and sinuses. I really don't want to be sick while I'm on vacation!

When I got back home we spent quite a while opening up the gifts and playing with the cool new toys Drew got. He's letting everyone play with them, and is having dinosaur wars with his new toys.

If you want to see the decorations I made for the party go to my craft blog!

My doctor's appointment

Some of you may know that I've been having some problems with my back/sacral nerves again. I started having a tremendous amount of pain in my lower back and left hip starting in early September. I started getting deep tissue massages to help out, changed my workout up and hoped that it would get better. Things didn't improve so I finally called my neurosurgeon to schedule an appointment. I was concerned that I would have to have another surgery.
I had my appointment this morning. I took my MRI films from December, and was prepared for just about anything. He looked at them, compared them to my old films from July 2007, and then did a physical exam. He did several range of motion tests, had me walk (my gimpy limp is back), then on my tip toes, and then on my heels. He then pushed on my right buttock, and while it wasn't comfortable, it wasn't horrible. Then he pushed on my left buttock and I immediately rose up on my tip toes and had to stifle a yelp. (It's been almost 1 1/2 hours and it still hurts from that little push... seriously, that's messed up!) He was very concerned about my reaction. Because I have already had back surgery, have seriously degenerated discs in my lumbar spine, bulging and protruding discs in my lumbar spine/sacrum AND a mild form of lupus he thinks that I have a condition called sacroiliitis. (Mom, Julie- click on the word for a link to the diagnosis, symptoms and treatment.)
The treatment for this is a cortisone injection into the joint in the buttock. Fun. I was just saying how much I missed having those horrible epidural injections with the 10" needle, so now I get to have another shot. This won't be into the spine, though, so Dr. Thomas says that this will be a much easier procedure and recovery. He's sending me to a pain specialist for treatment. If it works I should know within hours (or up to 2 days) because the pain will subside quickly. If it works the injection will treat the pain and the problem. (Yay! I love two-fers!) I really hope that it works! I'll find out soon when I can get this taken care of. As far as I'm concerned it cannot happen soon enough. The pain is terrible, but if a simple injection can take care of it I will be thrilled. If it doesn't work then I'll go back to Dr. Thomas, have some more tests and come up with a new treatment plan. It's pretty straightforward so I like that!

Happy birthday, Mom!

Hi Mom,
I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. I love you, and I appreciate all that you do for me and my family. Thank you for the love you give me. Thank you for teaching me how to be a mother, how to cook for a large family, do massive amounts of laundry and how to use CHORE CHARTS! (BTW, my boys do not like that part! I had to show them mine from when I was Natalie's age before they believed that you could be that mean. I told them I learned from the best... They'll thank me later.) I hope you have a wonderful day.
Love, Maryann

I still love this expression. It's one of my favorites. Tee hee!

More reading and other ramblings...

I finished Amazing Grace last night. I thought that I was going to read some sort of romance novel, but it wasn't... although there was a bit of love found and love lost in the book. But that's not what the core of the story was about. It was a really good book. It was about the trials we face, and how we can face and overcome them with grace. (Didn't mean to rhyme there...) I guess I might read some more books by Danielle Steele now. It was a pretty quick and easy read.

Now I'm starting on a new book. It's called Pride and Prescience (Or A Truth Universally Acknowledged) A Mr. & Mrs. Darcy Mystery by Carrie Bebris. It starts right after Pride and Prejudice ends. I've only just begun it, but I LOVE Jane Austen books so much that I am already predisposed to enjoying this book. So far there are 4 books in the series and this is the first book. I'll give you my review when I'm done.
I didn't finish the bookcase yesterday as planned. I was overcome by sleepiness and had to take a nap. I was down for the count for 2 hours. When I woke up it was several minutes after my alarm went off, with Natalie asking me if she could play with her friend here or at her friend's house. I was really confused for a while, but I must have said to play here because when I gathered my wits a few minutes later and made it downstairs Natalie, Drew and her friend had Moon Sand all over my table, the chairs and the surrounding floor. Who let Santa bring that anyway? I think Moon Sand is going the way of Play Doh in my house--- and that's out. I HATE Play Doh because, as fun as my children find it, I find it equally irksome because it is so messy! And I'm the one that ends up picking it out of the carpet, off the tile and grout, scraping it off the table, chairs and usually clothes. Contrary to popular belief by my children, I do not wish to spend any more time cleaning than I currently do.
On another note Trevor has had Kent update his iPod recently. One of the songs he wanted on his playlist was Bleeding Love by Leona Lewis. So as Justin was trying to study last night Trevor was singing it. Over and over. And over. And over. It went on for a while so I finally asked him to stop. Today I know for sure that he sang it a lot because as Drew is sitting next to me while I type he starts singing, "Keep leaving, keep leaving wub (love)." So I pull up playlist.com, pull up the song and play it. I played it once, and when it was over Drew *briefly* glanced at me to say, "Mom, I hope you keep bleeding love." I'm not sure what he meant by that comment, but it had me laughing out loud.
I just hope that Trevor doesn't start singing one of the other songs he asked Kent add to his playlist. It's White and Nerdy by Weird Al. I have to thank Allan for that. And I also have him to thank for introducing the CD with fart songs. Who wouldn't want that in their house? Especially when said person has sons (and friends) who find farting funny... and when said person also has to deal with those sons emulating the music... farts and their smells... yummy! Just wait 'til you have kids, Allan. You know what they say about payback... (And I'll have several children that can participate in said payback!)

My voice is back! Yay!

My voice is back, and I'm so grateful. It came back in the middle of the morning on Monday. It isn't totally back all the time, but it's so much better than it was! I think I've been talking too much, though because my throat is sore again. Drew is especially happy that it's back because he and I have been home together a lot lately, and it was driving him a little crazy not being able to hear me. I'm always happy to make a child happy.
On another note I have been able to get a lot of reading done. I've been reading a historical book about Queen Elizabeth I. It's the second one I've read recently. I also have a historical book about Mary Tudor that I'll read after I finish a few other library books. I tried to read one about Marie Antoinette, but all the French names drove me crazy. I took a year of French in addition to my 5 years of Spanish, but not enough to be able to muddle through it. I finally gave up on that one. This book I'm reading about Elizabeth, though, is pretty interesting. I have to admire her strength and ability to hold her tongue as her council talked about women being the weaker sex. I couldn't have done that. It would have driven me crazy!
I'm also reading a book called Amazing Grace. It's by Danielle Steele. I've never read anything by her before, but there were several recommendations in different magazines and websites. It's pretty interesting, and totally different than I expected a book written by her to be.
I have to put some furniture together today, do some more organizing, and then I'll be able to get back to my reading.

My sweet Drew

I mentioned in a previous post (about 30 minutes ago) that Drew was wide awake and not interested in going to sleep. It's still true. He's still up. W-I-D-E A-W-A-K-E. Well, I'll try to not hold it against him. He is a cute boy.

Did I mention that he's starting Sunbeams tomorrow? He's so excited. This morning, well, technically yesterday morning, he, Natalie and Trevor went to the Primary Pajama Pancake Party. They go to the church in their PJ's and slippers, sit with their new classes and teachers, and then eat pancakes. It's a lot of fun for the kids. We (meaning the primary presidency that I was in last year) did this activity, and it turned out well so they did it again this year.

Drew is really excited for his new class and teacher. His teacher is Sis. Fuller. She and her husband just moved down the street from us. Her daughter just had a baby and she went to help out for a few weeks last month so I haven't gotten to know her really well yet, but she seems so fun. Anyway, Drew is in her class, and is so excited to start primary tomorrow.

Trevor has the Cottles for his teachers. Their family is very musically talented, and I think Trevor is very excited because of that. I think they'll be able to appreciate his special personality.

Natalie has Milea Hall again, but she said that Bro. Hall isn't teaching with her this time... it's someone else. IDK if that's true or not, but she had them for the last few months of 2008, and LOVED being in their class so she's excited about it again.

And Justin... the kid's making me feel older than my 21 (again) years. He's going to Young Men's. Kent's his teacher. I don't remember what my brother Allan was like at Justin's age (it was about the same time I was pregnant with and having Justin, and I don't remember much when I'm sleep deprived), but Justin and Kent seem to butt heads a lot lately. They'll be getting along just fine, and then Kent will say or do something that seems like nothing to the rest of us, and Justin gets so mad. I think (hope) it's only hormones, and he'll grow out of it. I am the oldest daughter from a family with 5 girls and 1 boy (who was #5) so I don't have a lot of experience with these preteen boy hormones. Will I survive?!

Back to my sweet Drew... trying to get him sleepy a while ago we played some games on the Wii. He didn't want me to beat him, so he would turn to me and say, "Mom, if you stop moving your guy right now I will give you a big kiss." And, "Mom, you're so bootful (beautiful) and wondful (wonderful) and I wub (love) you." And, "Mom, you're so funny. I wub (love) you." He kept giving me kisses on the cheek and telling me how much he loved me. What a sweetie. I really hope that sweetie will go to sleep soon. I am so tired I can hardly keep my eyes open. Oh, now he's hungry... starving, in fact. Oh, Heaven help me if this baby boy won't go to sleep soon! This is not going to help me feel better or get my voice back.

Sisters' (and Mom's) Birthday Lunch

For the last several years my mom, sisters and I get together for lunch to celebrate our birthdays. Amy's birthday is December 29, mine is December 31, Mom's (Susan) is January 13, and Christine's is January 20. Michelle's birthday is on Halloween, and Katie's is Tax Day (my parents had a thing about their kids having birthdays on holidays so it would seem). Michelle and Katie are always invited to come along on these lunches because we go with them to celebrate theirs when they're here.
Sidenote- It was at one such lunch 13 years ago that I told my mother that I was pregnant with my first baby. She was very unhappy with that news as I was supposed to wait until I was done with school and had a few years of work experience under my belt before I even thought about becoming pregnant. (Tried as best I could, but he came despite our efforts to prevent him from coming so soon!) I won't post any more about that particular day, one in which I find a great deal of humor, but of which day my mother isn't so fond of. (BTW, Mom, I am ROFLMBO thinking about it right now. Amy might be doing the same thing.)
Back to the posting- We are going to Olive Garden this year. Christine, who is pregnant with baby number two, chose it. I believe that the pregnant person's preferences should be priority... unless, of course, they want to eat at a seafood restaurant. I won't go there (or any other fishy place) for anyone. Some things are just wrong, and you should never make concessions for. Seafood restaurants are one such thing for me. Anyway, we have gone for pedicures and manicures in the past, but because I just got one on Tuesday I am not going to participate this time. I have purchased the gifts for Christine and Mom. I can't wait to see my mother's face when she sees what it is. And reads it out loud. Thanks, Jenn, for the great idea.
I am curious to see how this all turns out as I still have NO VOICE whatsoever. An occasional squeak still manages to come out, but to be heard at all it must be silent, and I must "yell" to get even close to the decibel that a whisper would equal. I think I'm going to take either a notebook to "talk" or a wipe board. This is so embarrassing! Forced silence, I suppose. And isn't it funny that when a person loses their voice that everyone else feels the need to whisper to them? It happened last night at the urgent care, Target pharmacy, the Target check-out line, and Starbucks (where I stopped after I got my Rx filled- love their peppermint hot cocoa). My kids are whispering to me, and so are people that I run into. I think I do this too... I guess we're taught to match voice levels with the people with whom we converse.
I'll post pictures of our lunch after I come home, and probably even post pictures from New Year's Eve then. What a special treat, no?

Katie and I. There was something behind her head... she did not suddenly sprout horns!

UPDATE- Okay so here's what happened. I got to the restaurant last. It always seems that something comes up as soon as I need to leave. Today it was that Kent had fallen asleep, and as I had no voice I couldn't get him to wake up. So I left all of the kids here while he slept soundly. I did come prepared with my notebook to write notes so I could participate in the conversation. I must be a really big loudmouth because this lunch was one of the quietest ones we've ever had. It's just not the same when you add your two cents after everyone else has had their say- and you've just finished writing. And, Amy, we certainly missed you there. Hopefully you can be at our next one! You too, Michelle!

The gift I gave my mom that I wanted to see her reaction on was Sexy Motherpucker lip gloss. Her reaction did not disappoint.

This is when she first opened it up and read the name. I tried to get her to say the name 3X in a row out loud, but she wouldn't do it. I think she was afraid she'd slip. Naughty!

Katie reading the package about making your lips 10X their normal size. Don't believe everything you read...

Mom (trying to) read the description on the back. She forgot her spectacles. Did I mention she likes to say, "Oh, Sissy!" when I do or say something that shocks her? I think she said that a few times today.

Christine enjoyed Mom's reaction.

Melia and Katie. Melia would not look at the camera for me. She also thinks that Ursula the Sea Witch from the Little Mermaid stole my voice.

After lunch we ordered a chocolate cake that had hot chocolate in the center of it. There was a cream on the plate and sliced strawberries. I took the very first bite (with a clean spoon) and the very last bite so I wouldn't get anyone sick. It was pretty yummy.

When I came home Kent, Justin, Trevor, Katie and John (Katie's boyfriend) went riding out at Box Canyon. Kent and Trevor have quads, and I think the other 3 have dirt bikes. Drew and Natalie usually get quite upset when the boys go riding without them so I usually take them to do something fun. Today I was too pooped after the lunch so I changed to comfy clothes, got my pillow and blanket and fell asleep on my recliner for about 2 1/2 hours while Natalie and Drew played the Wii. Then Drew hit his head on the coffee table, got mad, then went upstairs and took a 5 1/2 hour nap. When I got up I made salsa chicken, Spanish rice, refried beans and chocolate chip cookies for dessert. I didn't feel so guilty for taking that nap after doing all that.

It's now 1:09 a.m. and he's still WIDE awake. I'm not sure how much longer I'll be able to stay awake. At least he's not mad at me anymore for not having a voice.

My poor Broncos

My poor Broncos played so poorly this season. Things looked good initially, but then with all the players on the IRL it made it pretty difficult. But then some of the plays were just not good, the defense was almost non-existent, and I started to lose faith in their ability to have a decent season. We played the Chargers on Sunday (whose QB, BTW, is a complete dolt- sorry, nicest word I could think of without cussing), and we were BLOWN out. It was embarrassing to say the least. 52-21 loss... Coach Mike Shanahan was fired 2 days after. He's been a good coach, but it wasn't enough to save his job. I hope whoever replaces him can rebuild our defense and get the team back to where it needs to be. Heaven forbid we end up like the Raiders!

Happy New Year 2009!

New Year's Eve is one of my favorite days of the year. I think I'd love it even if it wasn't my birthday. I don't feel the need to celebrate my getting older (because, as I've told my kids, I'm 21 again until Justin is 21), but I do want to do something fun that night.

This year my mom came over around noon with a German Chocolate Cake and a gift. When she handed it to me she said she bet I couldn't guess what it was. I took it out of the bag, and it was wrapped in tissue paper. I felt it, and said, "I know what it is." Natalie was sitting next to me, totally excited that I was opening my present and about to guess at its contents. I said, "It's a box! Oh, it's just what I wanted!" Natalie looked at me, rolled her eyes and sighed. (Yes, she already does this, and well, at age 5. I just wish Kent had snapped a picture of that moment. It was hilarious!) She didn't appreciate my humor, apparently. So I finished opening it, and it was a lighted mirror with 2 mirrors, one of them 8X magnification. It's great for plucking my eyebrows, but it's a little too much honesty when you're not looking your best.

After my mom gave me my gift, the kids were chomping at the bit for Kent to give me my gift from him. He gave me Guitar Hero- Aerosmith. Yay! He thinks it's the dumbest thing ever, but he doesn't have to play it. He can go on upstairs and play Rock Band. After I opened that gift, Trevor ran to his room and came out with a book he'd written a couple of years ago and his light-up fan thing... best description I can come up with right now. It's kind of like a lava lamp with a bunch of "bristles" sticking out of it. Then Drew joined us, saw me open Trevor's gift, and he ran upstairs. He got a travel game that he'd just got at a fast food restaurant and a golf ball, wrapped them in a blanket and brought me my gift. To make it extra special he put the golf ball in his mouth just before giving it to me. What a thoughtful young man he is.That night we hosted our annual New Year's Eve party. I did a terrible job getting invitations out this year. I started passing them out on Sunday. I meant to give them out at least a week earlier, but got busy and forgot about it until it was too late. Whoops! Anyway... We started at Arriba's Mexican Grill, and after we were done there we came back to the house to play board games and have dessert. I served my famous homemade Perfect Chocolate Cake. I also made salsa, but we were all stuffed from dinner so didn't end up eating any of that. We played Apples to Apples and Imaginif. Here are the people that came to the house... Marie and Kevin Willis had to head home after dinner, but it was fun to visit with them at dinner. Kent and ILori and Kris BreonJenn and Derek DeTemple Joseph and Shanna Johnson

After everyone left I got out my new game from Kent and played that for a while. Then I played Rayman Raving Rabbids TV game. Before I knew it it was almost 3 a.m.! Wow! Time flies...

I slept in the next morning for obvious reasons. Then I started cleaning and reorganizing my office. I made a trip to Target and got some storage boxes so that I could get that all done. Things were going well until about dinnertime last night. That's when my voice decided to take a vacation from me. Natalie kept telling me to clear my throat so that I could talk. When it didn't work she got pretty upset at me. I kept taking my Mucinex and saline nasal spray to see if that would help, and we even slept with a humidifier. However, this morning my voice was still gone, and now my lungs were starting to hurt... not a good sign for an asthmatic.

Nevertheless I took Justin to his doctor's appointment (follow up with his podiatrist for his Sever's disease and plantar fasciitis), then to Target to get some more storage boxes, and birthday gifts for one of my sisters, my mom and a niece. On the way back home we stopped at Arby's for a roast beef sandwich, and I decided I'd better stop at urgent care so I could get a hold on this as my lungs were really starting to hurt. I'd brought a book with me (good thing because the wait was over an hour and a half), Justin walked over to the gym, and when he was done Kent came to get him. When I was finally able to see the doctor he diagnosed me with acute laryngitis (no big surprise) and bronchitis, which given the sore lungs, wasn't a surprise either. I'm supposed to not talk for 2-3 days, rest and drink lots of fluids. I guess he missed the part about me having 4 kids. The older 2 can read, but the younger 2 can't. He gave me a couple of prescriptions, which meant I had to make another trip to Target. Hopefully I'll start to get my voice back soon. I literally make no sound. There is an occasional squeak, so I know my voice will eventually come back. But it's frustrating to "yell" at the kids and have almost no sound come out.

Christmas 2008

Christmas was as busy as usual. I had so many things to do at the last minute that I didn't get started on the brunch until about 11:30 p.m. on Christmas Eve. I hosted Christmas at our house again this year, and I think everyone had a fun time. I made 2 pans of Creme Brulee French Toast, 2 pans of Hash Brown Casserole, and one pan of "cheese wad". That last one sounds kind of nasty to me, but it really isn't. You get a package of refrigerated crescent rolls and spread it on the bottom of a 9" x 13" pan. Then you get some softened cream cheese, sugar and vanilla and mix those together then spread on the crescent rolls. Then you get another package of crescent rolls and put that on top of everything. Pour some melted butter on top of that, then sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. I was glad that I was able to make everything the night before then put it in the oven in the morning! (If you want the recipe just LMK and I'll post it here.)

We didn't let the kids come down until everyone was dressed and ready. Because I'd been up so late the night before we slept in until almost 8:30, got everyone up, dressed and ready. Then I let them all come downstairs after snapping a few pictures of them. (Kent came down at 8:30 to put the food in the oven since it would need at least 1 1/2 hours to cook... perfect since everyone was coming at 10.)

The kids got to open the gifts from Santa, Mom and Dad and Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa Jacobson. Santa brought them Rock Band 2 so they were pretty excited about that. We got them new clothes, all of which they really liked. The family got a carpet cleaner. That's been on my list for the last 4 years so I was pretty excited to get that. We've used it already and it works well. I love that amazon.com has so many user reviews to help you know which items to buy! It was going to be my Santa gift, but Santa forgot to mark it as a gift when he ordered it so it was delivered on a Saturday and Trevor asked if he could open the new vacuum cleaner. Santa will need to be more careful next time! LOL!

Kent's mom and step-dad, my mom, my dad and step-mom, Christine, Cody and Evelyn Birch, Katie and Melia Jacobson, John and Sydney Flores, my little brother Allan, and Curtis, Ruth, Heaven, Austin, Ethan, Nick and Vince Noorda all came. Kent's dad was sick, and my other 2 sisters are in CT, and Kent's sister is in CA so they didn't come. We wish they could have come, though! We opened gifts from each other and had a yummy breakfast. In addition to all the food I made, Kent's SIL, Ruth, got juice for us, Katie brought yummy almonds, Julie made a really good fruit ambrosia salad, my mom made cinnamon rolls, fudge and chocolate cookies all from scratch, and my dad and his wife brought a pumpkin pie. I think everyone was completely stuffed.

After we were done opening gifts many of the people had to go to their other relatives' homes so the rest of us went to see a movie. That family tradition started when we moved here from Utah and didn't have family to visit on Thanksgiving or Christmas. It continues to this day. My mom and brother went to see Valkyrie, and we took the kids to see Bedtime Stories with the DeTemples. It was a lot of fun. After we were done I was so pooped from being up late, and getting up early that I couldn't imagine cooking anything. There weren't any leftovers so that wasn't an option. We finally found that Sonic was open so we got that and brought it home. Kent hooked up Rock Band, and the kids played that for a while.

Crafting with Maryann and Katie

Katie and Melia came over tonight so we could finish up some Christmas presents. We didn't quite finish them, but they are well on their way. Actually she's the only one doing a project, but since I'm the "crafting queen" with all the supplies she came over so I could help her. I was so excited! I haven't had the time to do any of my own projects lately, including the Christmas cards (I still feel guilty about this!), so this was a great excuse for me to get my crafting fix. *I can't post pictures of the projects because these are Christmas presents. I'll post the finished products after the gifts have been given.*

Here's Katie busy at work on part of the project.
I am happy to get my crafting fix. And I promise to post the pictures.

Sunday Christmas Outfits

Today we had our Christmas program in church. I played "Baby, What You Goin' to Be" and got to sing "Joy to the World" with the rest of the choir. I got this shirt earlier in the week. I asked Kent what he thought about it, and he said, "Eh." I asked him why he didn't like it and he said, "It's sparkly." As if that answered my question. The kids loved it, I loved it, so he was overruled. It's Christmastime, I'm a girl, and if I want to sparkle I can sparkle! Kent wore his Santa tie to show his Christmas spirit.

Maryann and Kent. I could not open my eyes more than this. It was so bright, and even though we were not facing the sun it was so bright! Really, my eyes are not that squinty!

This is one of the only pictures I could get the kids to all look at me. Trevor thought it was funny to close his eyes for the pictures, and I think this one actually had his eyes open. Stinker! Justin in his favorite pose. He's so handsome, and he doesn't believe me. Here's Trevor. He took his tie off and decided he didn't need to wear it for the pictures. What am I going to do with that kid?!
Natalie told me she wanted to be a model, and show some attitude. So these are her "attitude poses." (I didn't name them that. She did when I was pulling the pictures from my camera she asked to see her attitude poses.)
Little Drew Dog. So silly. He decided to give me lots to choose from. He's a total camera hog, and when the camera comes out so does his personality. He cracks me up. His shirt was supposed to be tucked in, but he refused to leave it that way so it's out. I pick my battles, and that wasn't one I thought I needed to worry about.