What a weekend

OK so it's already been one of those weekends and it's only Saturday afternoon. Seriously I feel like I have been hit by a freight truck. It all started yesterday when I went to take the clothes out of our ten year old washing machine. can you guess.........yup you guessed it! Even though the cycle was finished the clothes were drenched and water sat at the bottom of the machine. I called Quinn, because that is what a dutiful wife would do right? Bother her husband at work to complain that the modern appliance employed to make her domestic life easier is not working and what is he going to do about it. Well....Quinn is great at taking things apart but um not so great at putting them back together so his answer is, "just go out and buy a new one". Great answer hah? Only two things wrong with that.
1. I can't just go buy a new one. First I will have to spend hours and hours researching and comparing models to ensure that I purchase the BEST one. This will prove to be a daunting task as my annoying perfectionistic tendencies will seep out. Once I have determined the best machine I will have to spend yet more time finding the cheapest place to purchase it. Quinn doesn't understand this.
2. I don't want to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on a new machine- not yet. We still have our fence to build, our landscaping to finish and some additional food storage to buy. I don't want to put money towards a stupid washing machine.
So I try to think outside my box. I call my friends for advice. Look on craigs list they say, try yardsales on Saturday (yeah right, not with 3 kids- NO THANKS) and call so&so, he's a handyman. I ended up calling Selina's husband and asking him to come take a look at it (he was able to fix a similar problem in their machine). Maybe between him and Quinn they could figure it out. Long story short- after many hours of searching on the internet, much pulling, banging, some swearing, this is what we ended up with.





A mess that we had no idea how to fix. Some might say, why not call a repair man? I just can't. For some reason, unless I know them personally, I don't trust repair people. I don't know why it's just a feeling I've always harbored. I realize this machine is not getting fixed. It's Friday, early evening, and I search craigs list, find one interesting ad, check it out (pack 3 kids into the car and drive 20 minutes there and 20 minutes back) and no good- the machine was too small.
Saturday arrives and I feel confident that I have exhausted my available options. Now I'll enlist the help of Heavenly Father. He knows I need a washing machine. He also knows the other places my limited funds must travel. After my Saturday morning prayer I check craigs list again. SEAR'S WAREHOUSE SALE. TODAY 8:00 a.m-8:00 p.m. Ok it's 10 o'clock and I just know I have missed all the great deals. Nevertheless, the kids and I jump in the car and head to Sears' warehouse. After much debating (afterall I didn't have all my consumer guide information with me and I wasn't even sure I had compared this particular brand and model) I purchased a front loading, energy efficient machine. I got a great deal and after three loads of laundry it seems to be meeting our needs. Yes that's right- I enlisted help to bring the old washer out and the new washer in. All in an afternoon's work. I hope Quinn is pleased when he get's home.


During this ordeal my neighbors brought me some peonies. I love these flowers. I couldn't capture their beauty or their smell. This will have to do.

And then there is Trey. He must think the computer is so interesting- he sees me on it all the time. I leave for one second and come back to find that he had climbed up onto the desk and was randomly hitting buttons.

A day in the Park

Today Selina and I took the kids to the park to feed the ducks. The ducks were hilarious. They would come right up to our feet and hiss at us. C'mon ducks, we're here to feed you. Back up and let us throw some bread your way.....

Reece earned his knife badge in scouts and wanted to bring his pocket knife to the park to whittle sticks. Selina was concerned because she thought other people might feel their safety was being challenged if they saw a boy with a pocket knife. He sat in the shade under a tree away from everyone and noone was bothered by it. The incident did get me thinking. I felt sad that we live in such a violent world that an 8 year old boy can't whittle sticks at the park w/o othere's feeling threatened. I totally agreed with Selina and knew I would be bothered if I saw an 8 year old boy with a pocket knife at the park. So sorry Reece no more whittling at the park- we'll have to save that for home.

We ended the afternoon with snow cones and smiles. All in all it was a great time.

Happy Memorial Day

What is Memorial Day? For Reece memorial day is a day off school, for Quinn memorial day is a day off work, for me memorial day is a day of deparment store sales, a break from the mail (bills), an opportunity to spend time with my family and a day to remember and express gratitude for the service men and women who lost their lives for their (my)country. Tonight for family home evening we plan on discussing why memorial day is celebrated and what it means to our family. I am grateful to all the men and women who serve so bravely in various branches of military. I am so thankful they, and their families are willing to make the necessary sacrifices to protect my (our) precious freedoms. I love this great land and am proud to be an AMERICAN!

Making it a good day

More tidbits from my self hinder book.
Miserable people assume that moping will solve the problem. "Miserable people figure that if they lie around, and stew, and think, and nap, and remove themselves from the world, eventually their doing nothing will solve the problem. Happy people know that misery exits when you enter the life of someone else and make a difference". That's my goal for this week- SERVICE (outside the home). I do much service in my own home which is great but I can do more. I want to do more. Marion D. Hanks said this, " At the moment of depression, if you will follow a simple program, you will get out of it. Get on your knees and get the help of God, then get up and go find somebody who needs something that you can help them with. Then it will be a good day. I plan on having 7 good days next week- I'll let you know how it goes.

Hooked on Elmo

I went to the library the other day and rented an Elmo DVD. Trey became a junkie after one viewing. Just once- I guess it only takes once. We have had the video for 4 days and each morning he runs to the television, points and mumbles nothing that resembles Elmo, but I know what he wants. He has thrown his first tantrums because I tell him NO MORE ELMO! I can't believe this kid. I conducted a highly scientific experiement with him to see how long he would actually sit staring at the tv. He sat mesmorized for that show 2 times through- I turned it off after the second time through. After all, any "GOOD" mother would not let her 19 month old sit in front of the television for that long, right? Thank goodness this video is due back tomorrow otherwise I might find myself buckling to the toddler pressure and letting him watch it all day long-I think I'll head to Wally world (walmart) and try to find some elmo books.

Self Hinder Book????

As I mentioned before in a previous post, I am a proclaimed self help junkie. I love learning what makes people tick and how I can improve. For my birthday my friend, Susan, gave me one of the most delightful books. It's titled, " How to be Totally Miserable; a self-hinder book" by John Bytheway. Isn't that funny? It's full of insightful ways to be miserable and enjoy happiness. Of course the purpose of the book is to point how ridiculous we can be and how easy it is to be happy vs. miserable. I'll be sharing tidbits now and again on my blog and hopefully in the process I'll figure out how to be less miserable.
John says on page 43 of his book, " people who are trying to be miserable try to find friends who weigh them down with gloom and doubt. Misery loves this kind of company. Bad company will try to take you places you shouldn't be and tempt you to do things you shouldn't do. Then, after you've followed their plan of misery, you feel empty inside, and you wonder why you're miserable. Well, perhaps bad feelings accompany bad company. Happy people build, lift, encourage, and motivate, and being in their company always makes you want to be better too".

What kind of friend are you? Susan- thank you for the book. You are a happy friend because whenever I am in your company I do want to do better. Thanks for your example

Here's to being 34!

It's gonna be a great year! My friend Marne posted this on her blog. It was so good I had to pass it along..."Geneen Roth, an international teacher, speaker, and writer of bestselling books on emotional eating, is the author of this article. Sounds like I need to look her up more.According to Geneen, slowing down is the most direct route to self-acceptance---and to giving yourself what truly nourishes you. She goes over what a typical day in your life might be....rushing in the morning to get up, eat, get the kids out the door on time, make it to appointments, run those errands, get the shopping done, take the kids to lessons, etc. Do you feel as if your life (not to mention your feelings of self-worth) depends on crossing things off a lengthy to-do list?Um, yes.So then Geneen says to ask yourself if you feel anything when you are rushing around except a sense of urgency. She calls this bingeing....instead of bingeing on food, you are bingeing on rushing around, to get in everything you possibly can. She then poses the question: How do you feel about yourself afterwards?Not feeling like you have done enough or feeling like you didn't get much done evokes feelings of disappointment in yourself, guilt, failure, and anxiety. She says that rushing and bingeing are driven by the belief that you are not allowed to take the time to live the life you really want. When you binge, no single taste lingers deliciously on your tongue. When you are hurrying, you experience only the mad dash from one thing to the next. Neither one is about enjoyment....of your life or your food. Geneen says: Think about it for just a minute. Is it possible to truly care for yourself, to treat yourself as though you are valuable and deserve every good thing in life---and then rush through that very life without giving yourself any time to enjoy it? Can you really stand at the refrigerator plowing through last night's cheesecake with a true sense of self-worth and calm?Geneen points out that: When you rush and when you binge, you miss every ounce of available pleasure you could be having. You substitute cheap rushes of adrenaline and chasers of guilt for the real pleasure of living life on your terms. So at the end of the article she gives an assignment:Move at "soul speed." Human bodies need more calm and peace. It's only at that pace that we can truly begin to listen to ourselves and to get to know ourselves in a way that leads to acceptance, kindness, and a desire to give ourselves what really nourishes us. Try leaving one errand of your to-do list every day. Try eating--for just one day a week--exactly what your body wants to eat. Don't rush through eating--and don't rush through your days. Savor the many tastes of your life".So what do you think? I think this is great advice to live by and that's exactly what I plan to do this 34th year of my life. Just this morning I was wallowing in self pity, feeling like my life has been overrun by domestic responsiblities, children, finances, etc. NOT THIS YEAR! 34 is going to be different. A year will pass whether I move at "soul speed" or continue to rush and binge. My whole life I have rushed and binged. Don't get me wrong - I have accomplished many great things along the way but I think I am ready to move at soul speed. I am excited to embark on this adventure. If I don't get the results I am striving for I can always go back to rushing and bingeing for year 35.
draft

I struck gold

I tried a new snack and Trey loves them. Why shouldn't he? what toddler wouldn't love spinach and kale puffs? He's already downed the whole bag in just a few days so I'll be stocking up- don't want to take the chance that they might sell out due to high demand.

Too much time before church

We go to church from 1-4. The only thing worse would be from 3-6. I hope we NEVER have to go during that time. Since we don't have church until 1:00 we- or should I say the kids- have a lot of down time. We don't watch TV(except on special occassions, like when family comes to visit or it's a church related program) and the kids get to play exclusively with each other on this special day, making my life ever so enjoyable. I am always scrambling getting everyone fed both breakfast and lunch, trying to ward off world war III. Then comes the best part- Grooming and dressing. I have threatened Quincy several times with short hair if she continued to whine about having her hair brushed- Today was the last straw. She whined and I cut! (3-3 1/2 inches)It actually looks pretty cute. I'll have to have my hair dresser fix it next week but for now it will do. Reece sees no difference but that's a boy for you.

No mom, I'm not tired

Reece was trying to wait up so he could help Quinn on a project. I kept telling him to go to bed- I knew he was exhausted. He was out in the sun all day and it was HOT. I decided to leave him alone and when Quinn came in from the garage to get Reece this is what he found.......

I think I will leave him there. He's too heavy to carry to bed.

Who is this masked boy?

The gym I work out at had a carnival tonight to raise funds for a basketball program. My friend took Reece along with her two boys. This is what they looked like when they came back.

All in a day's work

Today is Friday. I haven't worked out, at the gym, all week . I feel completely off schedule and anxious. I hate NOT exercising. I am one of those people who seriously need to exercise inorder to release endorphins or I get kind of onery. Anyway....Selina called at 9:00 this morning because Bella had a comb stuck, (well not just stuck but wrapped, wedged, tangled, etc) in her hair. Since our hairdresser goes to the same gym as I do, she was hoping I would relay the hair crisis to her and she could squeeze Bella in for an appointment. I reminded my good, very good friend, who must suffer from short term memory loss, that I was still injured and passing on gym attendance today, as I had done all week. BUT I offered to come over and see if I could help.

I have no idea how Bella manage to tanlge her hair up in such a mess BUT I was able to free her hair from the comb's grasp. I was the hero for the second.

After I saved Bella's hair I headed off to my chiropractor's appointment. On the counter he had displayed salt water taffy- YUMMY! I could eat a whole bag of salt water taffy. After my adjustment I had a piece, or two or three and then gave Quincy and Trey each a piece. Trey has severe food allergies and I am beyond diligent about what goes into his mouth. Salt water taffy- innocent right? just loads and loads of sugar, right? Well Trey had one tiny little piece and on the way home (approx 3 minutes after he ate his taffy)I noticed he was itching like crazy. I couldn't imagine what was in the taffy that would cause a reaction. I thought maybe the taffy contained some butter and he was reacting to that (he's allergic to peanuts, eggs, cats, dogs, dairy and wheat). As soon as we got home I gave him some benedryl and laid him down. 1/2 later, when I went to check on him, I found him still awake, covered in hives from head to toe but breathing fine (thank goodness). I called the chiropractor and got the ingredients of the taffy-only to find out that one of the ingredients was EGG WHITES! Oh my gosh. He's severly allergic to eggs and nuts! I can't believe I didn't ask for the ingredients before I gave him a piece. I gave him more benedryl and debated whether or not to take him to the ER. Since he was breathing fine I didn't think there was anything they could do for him that I hadn't already done. His pediatrician's office was closed for lunch so I called my pharmacist brother and asked his opinion. He advised me wait and give the benedryl a chance to kick in, as long as Trey was breathing fine. The benedryl finally kicked in and now he's asleep in his crib.

I took a pic of his leg- the hives look like that from head to toe. Poor little guy. Lesson learned. I will NEVER give him ANYTHING without verifying the ingredients

Does this purse match my outfit?

Toddler Independence

Isn't "toddler independence" an oxymoron? Just kidding. I really love seeing my children grow and exert their independence. I have been blessed with very, very independent, strong willed children. However sometimes our blessings come in disguise, right?

Well, Trey has decided HE needs to use the spoon to feed himself. UGH!!! I usually steer clear of all foods that can't be eaten using fingers, in hopes of reducing the mess factor. For breakfast he feasts on gluten free, wheat free, dairy free, nut free and egg free waffles- there not so bad when you pour lots of syrup over them. For lunch he dines on hotdogs or chicken and a vegetable or fruit that can be cut up and eaten with fingers. Dinner is the same-You catch my drift. Recently I discovered that he loves instant oatmeal. For a while he let me feed it to him which equalled NO MESS. He decided to exert his independence and demands to feed himself. I tried to help but he would have nothing to do with that. He told me, in toddler language, only a mother could decipher, that he would feed himself. He has even imposed distance requirments. If I stand to close he'll start pointing his finger at me and grunting until I retreat far enough. The cleaning is never done anyway so why stop with oatmeal......

Blog design

Sorry Andi that it has taken me a while to post your information.

Attention all readers, all 3 of you! The creative genius behind my blog design is Andi. I found her off of someone else's blog page. Contact her @ http://scrappinblogdesigns.blogspot.com/
At the time she was offering blog desings for free. I don't know if she is still doing that but it's worth looking into.

it's all in the cocoa

This afternoon Quinn attempted to make no-bake cookies. Bless his heart- he did this while I was sleeping so when he couldn't find the cocoa he thought he would improvise. Instead of using real cocoa he used hot chocolate mix. I have to hand it to him- that is creative. Needless to say the cookies were disgusting and Quinn saved us from consuming too many calories.

How sweet it is to be loved by you

Reece is 4 1/2 years older than Quincy. I really enjoyed that space between the two of them. Reece was in school full time so during the day I wasn't juggling two kids. When Quincy took a nap, I could take a nap. I could focus on Quincy while Reece was at school and really focus on Reece when he returned home. I didn't suffer from the guilt of not giving one or the other too much or too little of my time. Plus at 4 1/2 Reece was really independent and a big help(when he wanted to be) with the baby. It was really nice. When I found out I was pregnant with Trey I was a little nervous because Quincy would only be 2 1/2 when he born. I knew it would be a completely different experience and wasn't quite sure what to expect. The kids and I have had our ups and downs. However, thus far we have managed to survive. Reece is an awesome big brother to Trey and Quincy (most of the time) but what I have noticed about Quincy and Trey that Reece didn't really have with Quincy is the friendship. Quincy and Trey are really good friends. They can play together for hours. People told me that happens when kids are closer to each other in age. Who knew????

Yesterday I walked into Trey's room and found this.....

They both had their blankets and were squished into the laundry basket. Instead of freaking out that they were sitting on dirty clothes I grabbed my camera and told them to smile.

Like Father......Like Son

I was putting Trey's clothes away and peeked out the window to see what he was doing outside. Look what I saw....... Now normally I wouldn't have taken a picture of this because the mess is so embarrassing BUT I am growing in my old years and trying not to miss out on life just because it might be messy. Trey really loves to help his Dad. I love that Quinn is willing to let Trey help him. I know he could get the work/mess taken care of a lot quicker if Trey wasn't helping. Thanks Quinn!

Happy Mother's Day

I have no clever words of wisdom regarding celebrating mother's only one day a year. Having school aged children does help to extend the celebration for a few more days. Today, Quincy's preschool celebrated mom's with a mother's tea (lunch). It was really cute. The little girls all had on matching aprons and the boys were drapped in a man's shirt and tie. The children sang songs and served the mom's lunch.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder

Anna Cluff, one of Quincy's best buds came over to play today. For journaling purposes I will note that they play together almost daily and for the most part they adore each other. Just like all friends though they can get on each other's nerves. Since they have only been socialized for four years they just say what's on their minds.

Anna, "Quincy's being mean, I don't like her anymore". - as she sticks out her tongue.

Quincy, " I hate Anna"!- as she tries to hit her, sometimes successfully making contact.

Anyway to the point.....The mommies were watching American Idol and the girls were in the bedroom being awfully quiet. This usually means trouble. Anna was the first one to come running out, giving us a glimpse of what the girls were up to. Quincy was next. AHHHH.... MAKEUP, a girl's best friend. The application still needs perfecting but aren't they beautiful? According to Anna and Quincy they are!

Going Green

Quinn has always been into recycling. It runs in his family. His brother actually owns a salvage yard in Blackfoot, Idaho. I have never been into recycling. I hate junk ("stuff")! It seems I can't get "stuff" out of the house fast enough. I admit I haven't ever paid attention to where it goes or how it might effect my environment. My main concern is ONLY that it is out of my house. My favorite day of the week is garbage day. Recently I have been trying to do my part in the "going green" campaign. I keep the lights turned off, keep the thermostat down or up, depending on the weather, reuse my water bottles, use glass wear vs. paper products for eating.....and the list goes on and on and on. Oh but I will never stop using disposable diapers- NEVER! So Quinn's latest recycling project is copper and oh something else, i can't remember. He advertises to people that he will take their old computers, then he strips them down and recycles everything he can from them. Last week he made over $500- not too shabby. He is all excited because the price of copper is really high. He has been trying to figure out a way to grow his little recycling habbit into a small business- Mean while I sit back and bite my tongue. Seeing all the "stuff" causes me to have mini panic attacks. My kids are learning to love recycling from their dad. I am totally outnumbered here- but at least I can say we are doing our part. Don't panic when you see the picture of our garage. I have cried many many tears to no avail. Someday I will have a garage that I can actually park my car in. Reece is refusing to help in the recycling fun- he is reading his new book, "Diary of a wimpy kid", at least i think that's the title.

Why Bother?????

What is it about the combination of Sunday, church and young children that seem to throw my world off its axis? Take any one of the variables out of the equation and the chaos is reduced drastically. My young children love going to church on any other day Mon- Sat.- we go there for playgroup, scouts, basketball and other activities but come Sunday and you know what, breaks loose. Take church out of the equation and my young children would behave or misbehave, as they do any other day. But try to go to church on Sunday and, you know what, breaks loose. Take young children out of the equation and well....... that's a no brainer, I would have a peaceful Sunday at church! I know those days are coming and I before I know it my kids will be grown and out of the house, yadda, yadda, yadda!
We lasted about 10 minutes this afternoon at church. It's always more challenging when I'm flying solo because Quinn is working. Today, Trey missed his afternoon nap and was so tired the only thing he could manage to do was cry. Quincy, bless her ever little, competing for my attention, heart, had to act up to ensure she received as much attention as Trey and Reece was trying to bargain his reverence for money. PLEASE!
I packed Trey and Quincy up and told Reece he could stay for primary and walk home. To my surprise he enthusiastically agreed.
As I was pondering the afternoon events I felt impressed to blog, for my posterity, the reason why I choose to endure the combination of Sunday, Church and young children. It's very simple- I have a testimony of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints. I know that Jesus is the Christ and that he suffered for my sins in the garden of gethsemane. I love the Savior and for that reason I will continue to survive the combination of Sunday, church and young children. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.