6 Habits/Facts

I got tagged!! Thanks, Timber.

A: Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves
B: At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names; then goes to their blogs, leaves them a comment letting them know that they have been tagged and invites them to read your blog. (I’m not actually going to tag anyone. You’ll just have to consider yourself tagged, okay??)

Here we go:

1. I follow a certain routine for myself every single morning, and it all centers around my shower. First, I eat breakfast, then I take a shower. In the shower, I shampoo my hair, rinse it out, put in the conditioner, and leave that in while I lather and scrub my body. Then I scrub my face so I can rinse my face just before my hair. If I have to shave, that goes before I scrub my body. I finish my rinsing my hair a few times, letting cooler and cooler water rinse it. I can’t brush my teeth until after I’ve had my shower. Just one of those wierd things. I don’t know why. After I’ve done all that, I’m free to go about my day. Since becoming a mother, it’s very iffy on when I actually get to take my shower, but I still follow that routine. It’s just in me and if I change it, I feel wrong inside. (Yes, yes I do have OCD. Don’t get me started. Oh wait, this tag did!!)

2. I bite my nails. I can’t stand to have my nails ver long, but I don’t like them super short, either, so I’m not one of those that bites their nails down until the bleed. They are just rather short. When I was 12 I wanted to start wearing nail polish, and my parents said I had to grow out my nails… no biting for at least 2 weeks… then I’d be allowed nail polish. I did as they asked, got to wear the nail polish, and went back to biting my nails. Nope, wearing nail polish did not stop me of this habit.

3. I sucked my thumb most of my life. I don’t anymore, and I’m not telling anyone when I actually quit doing it (it’s embarrassing!!), but it was such a comforting thing for me. I still get an urge to suck my thumb some nights when I can’t sleep when I’m super sad and depressed. I don’t do it, but that urge is still there.

4. I have to be even. Meaning I need symmatry. When I have an itch on one arm, I scratch it, then I have to scratch the eaxt spot on my other arm. When I pull my hair up, I have to feel completely even pressure on both sides of my head and face. I tend to like my furniture to be perfect in line with things and totally symmetrical. Kind of hard to do, but I try. When I’m excersizing, I can tell if we haven’t done as many of whatever on on side than we did on another. And while I love to get massages from my husband, if he isn’t perfectly symmetrical in it, I feel uncomfortable and like I going absolutely nuts for the rest of the day.

5. I read “cyber-soaps” online. They are soooooooooo dumb, but I can’t help it. I have to know what’s going on with these characters.

6. I am an interrupter. I don’t mean to be! Seriously! I just start to comment as soon as I think of it without waiting for a break or for my turn to talk. Not a good thing, and I AM working on it, but I still forget a lot. I’m sorry! Really I am! So, if we’re having a conversation and I constantly interrupt, maybe you could call me on it. I just get excited to throw in my point of view or share my experience, and it spills out before I even realize whether or not it was my turn to talk.

Okay… thos are 6 habits about me. What about you? Who’s gonna do the tag?

The Coolest Cake In The World… Ever. Seriously.

I have said to Ches in the past that if doesn’t think the band teacher thing is going to work out for him, that we should open our very own cake shop.  At first he said I watch too much Ace of Cakes.  So?  Duff is awesome.  Then he said that baking means really early hours, and I am not a morning person.  I then reminded him that we are not going to open a bakery.  Just a cake shop.  So we can have whatever hours we feel like.  We don’t have to be up long before dawn making pasteries and such.  He conceeded I was right about that.

Dallin has been on a huge Monsters, Inc. phase of late.  We have been watching it many times a day.  Many, many times.  He can quote every line and sound.  Parker can, too.  It’s really funny to watch the two boys sing and dance along with Mike:  “Put that thing back where it came from or so help meeeee, so help me!“  Dallin is constantly running around, looking for Boo’s door, and he keeps trying to steal my debit card from my wallet so he can slide it in our pantry door (our pantry is actually a wadrobe from Ikea… it has double doors) and open up doors.  He says, “Let’s play Monsters, Inc!!”  It’s cute.

Friday was Dallin’s third birthday, and I had the best idea.  To make a Mike Wizowsky cake.  I went online to my favorite cake site, Coolest Birthday Cakes, to see if anyone else had made any.  My idea originally was to do just Mike, but then I saw pictures others had done, so I copied them.  It’s Mike sitting on what looks like Sulley’s fur.  I bought some ready to use fondant, borrowed a friends Pampered Chef Batter Bowl (my friend with the ball shaped cake pan went out of town, so I couldn’t borrow it.  That’s why Mike’s head is flat on top instead of being round), and went to work.  I made Ches stay up and help me out.  He helped with the fur.  That was a lot of fun to make because it didn’t have to be perfect.  It was just regular frosting and a 6 pointed star tip, pulled up.  You can kind of do it haphazardly and pointing in different directions and have different lengths.  Made it look even more like Sully’s fur.  For Mike, I covered him in fondant, then shaped his arms, legs, hands, and feet from the same green fondant (used Wilton’s Kelly Green for dying the frosting).  Ches cut out the eye, mouth, and teeth, and shaped the horns.  I stuck everything on there.  The next day I made a little sign that said “Happy 3rd Birthday Dallin” and stuck it in there behind the three candles.  The cake turned out pretty well, I think.

Dallin didn’t actually get his cake on his birthday. We took him to Chuck E. Cheese for his birthday dinner and stayed much longer than I had anticipated. Dallin had a blast (all three boys did, really!), and he cried like it was the end of the world when we left. He crashed within 10 minutes of getting home, so cake and ice cream and presents would have to wait. Poor Aiden. He was already to sing! He wanted our little family party to continue!

Saturday morning I was awakened by some boys who wanted birthday cake for breakfast. As a special treat, Ches and I allowed it. And hey, if you listen to Bill Cosby, you’ll know why cake is a healthy breakfast. And ice cream is dairy. So it’s all good. Anyway, Dallin had not yet seen the cake (Ches and I wanted to both see his first reaction), and he was pretty happy with it. Just the biggest grin. He couldn’t quite blow out the candles, so Ches helped him. I really loved his reaction once the candles were out.

Once the boys had their fill of cake, it was present time. Dallin received some cool presents from Grandma B in Ohio (Spiderman tin of mints, a Spiderman coloring book, Ramone from “Cars”… um, I forget what else). From our little family, Dallin got a little igloo tent, a barrel of monkeys, wood building blocks, a Duplo version of Lightening McQueen, and a police officer’s outfit and gear for Mr. Potato Head. He was pretty happy. Once the tent was up, he was in it, throwing his new block in so he could build. He has played in the tent every day, and shared very nicely with his brothers. Aiden is actually sleeping in it right now.

Oh, and for our anniversery… we went to Chuck E. Cheese and got one of those photos where they “sketch” you. We’re kissing. It’s really dumb, but oh so funny. We exchanged gifts later, and we’ll have a real celebration at some point. Ten years is a great milestone, but having a third birthday on the same day is a lot of fun for the whole family.

 

Schedule of Events 5/2/08

ALL DAY:  Ches and my 10th anniversary.  Wo-hooooo!

ALL DAY:  Dallin’s 3rd birthday!  Yaaaaayyyyy!!!!

8:15 am:  Take Aiden to school, where he gets his first Field Day, followed by a class pizza party.  (Good luck, Miss B.  These kids are gonna be crazy go nuts all day!!)

8:30 am:  Clean the kitchen.  It’s a mess and a half.  You’ll see why once I post pictures tomorrow.

1:10 pm:  Pick Aiden up from school.  (Early release on Fridays.)

2:00 pm:  Take Dallin to the pediatrician for his 3 year old checkup.  (Hope there’s no shots for him on his birthday!)

5:30 pm:  DInner and fun at Chuck E. Cheese.  Also, birthday cake (wait until I show you The Most Awesome Cake Ever!!), ice cream, and presents.

7:30 pm: Dallin’s bedtime.  We’ll see if anyone gets to bed at a decent hour tonight.

AFTER THE KIDS ARE ASLEEP:  Ches and I will open our anniversary gifts.  We’ll go out another night, just the two of us, and celebrate.  Today is Dallin’s birthday, and we want it to be his day.

What a day today is going to be!!  We are all soooooo excited!

Inner Demons

I hate the person I have become when I don’t take my medications.  I am mean and angry.  The slightest thing sets me off.  I yell and yell at my kids until my throat hurts and my voice is raspy.  I throw things that are in my way.  I swear.  I slam doors.  I run to my room, crying.  I hate that person.

I hate that the only way I can be “normal” is to be on some pills.  I know in my heart that it’s just a chemical imbalance and all that.  I know it’s not my fault.  But I still hate that I can’t be a normal, easy-going Mom with a clean house and happy kids unless I faithfully take my medication.  It just plain sucks.

My Boy Jack

(Note:  This post contains spoilers)

Last night I watched “My Boy Jack” on PBS.  It is a movie about Rudyard Kipling and his son, Jack, during World War I.  David Haig played Kipling, Daniel Radcliff played Jack, and Kim Cattrell played Carrie Kipling, Rudyard’s American wife.  I admit that I only wanted to watch this because of Daniel Radcliff.  I wanted to see him as someone other than Harry Potter.  I wanted to see if he could do it.  I believe he succeeded quite well.

Jack and Harry are not at all the same type of character, so there was actual acting involved here.  If anything, Jack is more like Daniel Radcliff, what with the desire to prove himself as more than what other’s see him as.  In Jack’s case, it is to be his own man, not just “Rudyard Kipling’s son”, and in Daniel’s case it’s to be more than just Harry Potter and be considered a serious actor in his profession.

The story is a beautiful piece of work as it shows quite well the Kipling family at a time period and part of the world that was expected to act a certain way.  It is at the beginning of the war, and Jack, who is just 17, wants to join the navy.  However, he is very nearsighted and cannot see without his glasses.  He is rejected by the navy.  Jack then goes to the army, where is he also rejected… twice.  His father uses his own influence to get Jack in, and off he goes.  Jack becomes an officer and helps prepare his platoon to go to France to fight the Germans.

(Aside:  My favorite line from the movie is when Jack first meets his platoon.  He asks each of the men why they are in the army.  He then says, “You all volunteered to be here.  I want you to remember that in a week when you want to shoot my head off.”  I think Ches needs to use that in marching band!  heh.)

Jack and his platoon indeed to go to France and stay in the trenches, getting ready to do their part.  The day after he turns 18, Jack led his platoon into battle.  His family received a telegram informing them that Jack is missing and presumed injured.  Because he was missing, that gave the Kipling family enough hope to search for Jack.  They spent a year and a half interviewing people and going through records and pictures before they finally found a member of Jack’s platoon who could tell what happened.  Ultimately, Jack was 18 and 1 day old when he was killed in a war.

The emotional toll this takes on the family is almost overwhelming.  Jack’s parents and sister are each consumed with grief, and must heal.  I’m sure it took a long time, and while you can never fully get over the death of a loved one, it seems each member of the family found peace.  The end of the movie has Rudyard visiting his friend, the King, who has just lost his own son to illness.  Rudyard then quotes his own poem, which I found so beautiful.

“Have you news of my boy Jack?”

Not this tide.
“When d’you think that he’ll come back?”
Not with this wind blowing, and this tide.
“Has any one else had word of him?”
Not this tide.
For what is sunk will hardly swim,
Not with this wind blowing, and this tide.
“Oh, dear, what comfort can I find?”
None this tide,
Nor any tide,
Except he did not shame his kind—
Not even with that wind blowing, and that tide.

Then hold your head up all the more,
This tide,
And every tide;
Because he was the son you bore,
And gave to that wind blowing and that tide!

I enjoyed the film, and I think you will too.  If you get a chance to watch it, to it.  Just be warned… I think you’ll cry.  I certainly did.

Baby Boom

Doesn’t it feel like every person you know is either pregnant or just had a baby?  Seems like it here.  Every night, in our family prayers, we ask for blessings for each of our pregnant friends and family members that the pregnancies will go well and both the mother and baby are healthy.  For a while, we were naming the people we were praying for, but then the list got too long.  We can’t remember everyone!!  We have Emily, Rachel, Tanya, Jean, Laural, April, Anna (although she just had hers), Kris, Tenille… I think that’s it.  Seriously!  I can’t remember!  It’s just too many!

In our immediate families, we have two babies (girls) coming on Ches’ side and one (boy) on my side.  Which means I get to shop for some really cute pink stuff (if you don’t like it, tough.  I have all boys and I want to shop for pink, frilly things!!  I don’t get to do that!!!), and possibly hand down a couple of really cute boy things.

Which reminds me… Alyson, do you want a winter coat and snow boots for Tweedle 3?  For next year, that is?  My kids have now outgrown that stuff, and we obviously don’t use it a whole lot here in Arizona!

I love new babies.  They are just so precious with their little, wrinkled hands and that old man look to their face.  They are so soft, so quiet, and so cuddly.  I love that they sleep so much because it’s a great excuse to just sit and hold them.

Uhhh, I’m not saying I want another baby right now.  Nope.  No baby hunger here.  I’m not even kidding.  I don’t think I could survive having another child right now.  Give me at least another year before I think about it.

Until I have another one… I will enjoy everyone else’s babies.  Mostly because it’s not my baby, so I don’t have to do the nighttime feedins and the diaper changes and deal with the pukies and all that.  I just get the cuddly stuff.  Perfection!

Random Friday (I Know It’s Been A While)

Tonight we get to go to a fundraiser at church for the Young Women and Young Men.  They are raising money for Girl’s Camp and for Scout Camp.  There will be a burrito bar for dinner, followed by a dessert auction.  I signed up to make a dessert because I really don’t think we can afford to bid on one, so I can contribute this way.  I hear the people in our ward are very generous in their bids.  They’ll pay upwards of $80 for a cake!!  I even heard of one guy (who recently passed away) who enjoyed this fundraiser so much every year and he wouldn’t hesitate to drop a couple hundred dollars.  Wow!!

What dessert am I making, you ask?  Well, that’s the tricky part.  At first I was going to make Nanaimo Bars, because who around here (besides our Stake President, who is from Calgary) has actually ever heard of them, much less tried them??  But I don’t have the time to make those.  I’m trying to keep my house clean, after all!  My second idea was to make Lemonade Ice Cream, which is really Ches’ specialty.  It’s basically a graham cracker crust with pink lemonade mixed with vanilla ice cream, topped with some scattered graham cracker crumbs.  It’s really, really good.  I think I have the time to make that… I just need to get some ice cream and let it soften a bit.  Not a problem in our weather!

My third idea was just make a cake and decorate it kinda cool.  So I made two round cakes, and I have to go to the store to get some  milk so I can have pudding instead of frosting in the middle.  For decorating… I was thinking of putting little bees all over and President Hinckley’s “Be’s”.  I was debating whether to just frost it or try this yummy marshamallow fondant that I found a recipe for.  I think I’m still going to go for frosting because it’s easier.  Maybe I’ll make the cake (since it’s already baked) AND the lemonade ice cream.  Mmmmmm.

*****

The first people to view the house came yesterday.  Their realtor told me the house shows well and I did well staging it and stuff.  Yay!  I just got a call today and another realtor is bringing over some people this afternoon.  Yay!  I really, really want my friends to be able to sell their house easily and quickly.  As long as we still get to stay until school is out (which, apparantly, is going to be part of the contract.  Our friends told us we can stay until June 1st).  It’s so nice having a clean house and being proud to show it off!!

*****

I’ve been reading some opinions on the matter and have pondered the issue a lot recently and I have decided that on the issue of abortion, I am Pro-Choice.  I know.  Shocked, aren’t ya?  Let me explain.

I am against abortion and I would never encourage anyone to ever have one.  I believe there are way too many other options out there for an unwanted pregnancy.  HOWEVER I do not think it is a good idea for the federal government to come in and make laws on something that is much more of a moral issue than a social issue.  A woman has to have the right to make choices for herself.  She must accept the consequences (good or bad) of that choice.  I believe that there should be restrictions of different sorts (such as not allowing third trimester abortions, etc.) placed on abortion, and that it should be a state’s decision, not a federal decision.

Again, I am not “for” abortion.  I am still Pro-Life in that I believe that it is not just a fetus inside a woman’s body, but a human being that can feel pain and should be given every chance at life, but I really don’t like the idea of the federal government stepping in and making that decision for everyone.

By outlawing abortion and saying it is only legal in certain circumstances just means there will always be loopholes and fraudulent cases brought about.  I believe that kids should be taught about birth control AND abstinance in school.  Not just one or the other.  Kids need to understand that having sex means there is a very real possiblity of getting pregnant.  Oh, and that birth control and whatever forms of protection you use doesn’t mean you won’t get pregnant, either.  The only 100% sure-fire way of not getting pregnant is to NOT have sex.  That needs to be seriously pushed.  And yes, I understand that kids will still have sex, and for that I whole-heartedly want them taught to use protection.  They need to be taught both.

Well, I have more opinions on this matter, but I’m not very good at making my points clear.  I just wanted to throw some of that out there.

*****

We have some new favorite websites in our family.  Aiden is really enjoying Rebel Friends because it’s all Star Wars stuff for kids.  He has taken the Jedi training test and is an official Padawan.  He really tries to use The Force here at home, too.  It’s really funny.

I am enjoying Hulu.  You can watch full episodes of TV shows and can watch full movies.  Now, they don’t have everything, but they do have classics, so you can watch the most recent episode of The Simpsons or How I Met Your Mother, then watch something from The Cosby Show.  Good stuff!  Check that out.

Dallin and Parker enjoy Kneebouncers.  If you have really young kids that want to play on the computer, check this out.  It’s got different activities with cool sounds and visuals.  The kids press the keys and stuff happens.  At the age of a kid like Parker, isn’t that what they want?  To see a reaction?  So anyway, it’s fun for them.

*****

Ches had an orchestra concert last night.  First the middle school orchestras played, then Ches’ high school group.  It’s really fun to watch this little kids and know that in a few years they will be Ches’ students.  They’re so cute.

The instructor for the beginning groups had the kids stand up by rows so that parents could take their pictures.  She said in one group, “Okay, back row, stand up.  Smile nice.  Your parents want to see you looking happy!”  One kid was so short he looked like he was still sitting down, so he stuck his bow straight up in the air so his mom could see him.  It was so cute!  I was laughing.

Another kid, as his group was getting on stage, walked confidently across the front of the stage with that cool strut that teenagers often use.  Oh, and he used his bow as a cane.  That cracked me up.  Probably not the best thing to do with a bow, but still.  It was like he was saying, “I’m in orchestra and I am cooooool.  I make this look good.”  (Think of that in a very Will Smith sort of confidence.)

Ches said after the concert one little girl came up to him and, in the sweetest little voice, said, “You’re a really good conductor!”  She was like worshipping him.  He loved that!

*****

I heard Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on the radio last night.  That song makes me all warm inside.  Reminds me of being in high school.  Am I wierd?  About that, I mean.

*****

If you could only have ONE book to read for the rest of your life, what would it be?

House Tour

Hey!  Wanna see the official tour of our house?  Click here.  You’ll also see in the sidebar the link to the flyer.  So… if you know anyone who is looking for a house in Tempe… feel free to refer them!

I Watch A Lot Of HGTV

As most (all?) of you know, our friends that own the house we are living in have decided to put it on the market.  He wants to get his doctorate, and the house will pay for school.  I have appreciated how kind our friends have been to us, and I have loved living in this house.  We had planned on moving anyway, so it’s not like we’re getting kicked out or anything.  We want to be closer to where Ches teaches.  With the hours he pulls, a 30 minute commute is just too much.  That and the price of gas is outrageous!

Anyway, our friends hired a realtor, and he called one day and asked if he could come look at the house.  I said, “Sure, if you don’t mind that it’s messy.”  Now, it seems to me that we all have different ideas of what “messy” really means.  I’ve been to too many houses where the host will say, “Excuse the mess” and all I see is a couple of small toys and maybe a baby’s sock on the floor.  Seriously.  I’m not a good housekeeper, so I knew that this was going to be hard for me.

I had to get the house ready to show.  I knew I would have to keep it clean and clutter-free (which is really hard when you’re a packrat, like me.  And Ches.  He is too, just not as much as I) and stage the rooms to show them off.  The market is not a seller’s market right now, and I really want to help my friends sell their house, so I have to do this right.  So the realtor came over, and the first thing I said to him was, “Now, it’s really, really messy in here, but I watch a lot of HGTV, so I know what I need to do.”  He laughed and basically said that all the information I would need comes from that channel.

After he looked through the house, he said there are the “Three C’s” that sellers need to worry about: Clean, Clutter, Color.  The house must be clean, clutter-free (not too many pictures on the walls, not so many bookshelves scattered in any spare space we have…), and have good colors painted on the walls.  Well, we don’t have any say for the colors, but they are pretty neutral and look really good where it’s not neutral.

The outside of the house has been painted.  The front yard is totally relandscaped.  I spent all of Saturday, Sunday, Monday, and this morning cleaning the house and packing away things (since we’re are moving anyway).

I.  Am.  Exhausted.

But dang it all, my house looks goooooood. :)  Last night I said to Ches, “Aren’t you so proud of me?”  He was so happy.  He then said, “See, you can get the house clean!” and I replied with, “GET it clean, yes.  KEEP it clean, well, that’s a whole different story.”  Pray for me, people.  I need serious help!!

New Shoes

One of the many changes that occured with my body since having Parker is that my feet grew.  I know it’s a fairly common “side affect” of pregnancy, but it didn’t happen to me in the first two pregnancies, so why would I think it would happen in the third?  Well, it did, and my shoe size went from a lovely 7 1/2 to an 8 1/2.  It’s not a large size, I guess, but I really liked my 7 1/2 size feet.  ~Sigh~  I now have a closet full of shoes that I cannot possibly wear, no matter how hard I try.  Lucky for my sister Erica, as she is the right size.  A box of about 10 pairs of shoes is headed to Boston right now.  I’m still trying to find a buyer for my rollerblades.  Anybody want some?  They are in excellent condition!  Only been used a few times, and it was on a really well-paved road specifically for bikers and bladers.  I’m throwing in my wrist guards and knee pads for good measure, too!!

Anyway… A few days ago I finally got myself some new Sunday shoes.  I really need more than one pair, but I just can’t spend all that money.  So I got myself some sensible black shoes.  I wanted something different than I had before (which were basically black, fancy flip-flops), and this is what I chose:

I think they are pretty cute, especially with the little bow (which is, of course, the part Ches doesn’t really like. Hmpf). They actually looked cute with my jeans on in the store, too. I haven’t had heels in a while, but there are sooooo many beautiful shoes out there, so I wanted some. I’m just not fond of wedges. I tried on some more sandal-like shoes, and some peep-toe shoes, but these were the ones I liked best. Oh, and they were on sale! Yay!

I wore them to church Sunday. I thought I was pretty darn cute (and I liked being taller!), but after a short time I came to two conclusions:
1. I cannot walk in heels. I was thinking that if I were a contestant on America’s Next Top Model, Miss J would have a fit watching me try to walk. I need to practice walking around the house or something.
2. Heels really make your feet hurt. My feet didn’t have that “new shoe” pain. No, it was all the pressure on the front of my feet. I am so glad I didn’t choose the shoes with an even higher heel. Aaack!

As soon as I got in the van at the end of church, my new shoes came off. I walked barefoot in the house and carefully put my shoes back in the closet. I love my new shoes, but I think we need some time apart before I have to face them again.