Fun Family Times

So this is not so much a fun family moment but I think Tanner might finally be potty trained.  He has been completely capable of using the toilet for some time but he has chosen not to.  In fact, he had used the toilet more times than any of the other kids before actually regularly using the toilet.  There were several times he purposely peed and pooped in the the tub or shower because he didn't want to use the toilet.  He enjoyed the convenience of diapers.  Some days he would want to be a big boy and then the next day when I tried to get him to use the toilet he would tell me "no, I just want to be a little boy."  There was one day when he would run screaming from me because he didn't want to use the toilet.  So as you can see this is a big, exciting moment.  I had nightmares that he would be in kindergarten still wearing diapers.  I don't fully trust him yet so he is my only child that will use pull-ups regularly.

In other fun moments, last night we took the kids out for ice cream for reaching a goal.  The goal was to pay attention and not be wild during scripture study for 5 nights out of 6.  We went to Cold Stone and Kelsey had white chocolate chips as a mix-in.  She began pulling some out because she said there were too many.  Brian scooped up one chocolate chip on his spoon asking her if she was going to eat them.  Her response was that she wasn't so Brian popped it into his mouth.  As soon as he swallowed it she starts laughing and says "you know those were in my mouth, don't you."  He is a little grossed out and asked why she didn't say anything before.  "Because I wanted to see you eat one."  Kelsey!  She is quite the tease.  She is quick-witted and likes to get a laugh.  There are times when she tries our patience and we try not to laugh as she does it.  Other times she tries our patience and we have a hard time controlling the anger that simmers from her comments. Sigh.

 At Cold Stone

In other good news, I beat Macy and Brian in monopoly tonight.  Macy didn't listen to her dad's strong advice because she had her own plan and then they were in a negotiations stand-off.  This allowed me to slip in for the win.  It was a sweet feeling since Macy beat me the other night when I played her and Brian has a tendency to win most of the games we play.  Sequence and Rummicube are the only ones I can consistently win at.  I think I might have finally gotten the upper hand at Ticket to Ride but it has been awhile.

December was a Great Month

Some of the highlights are:

• After Brian was released from the bishopric he thought he might have a little break and breath a little, especially because he is starting to get a grip on work, but the very afternoon he was released the new bishop came by and asked him to be young mens president.  For the time being and as long as it works for our family, I will stay in as young womens secretary.  So far Brian says young mens president is more work than being in the bishopric.
• This year my siblings decided not to give gifts to one another this year.  Instead we went to the nickelcade with the kids and then after left them with Macy and Kelsey to babysit while we went to the new Star Wars movie.

Basketball started for Kelsey and Braden.  She has great coaches and a fun team.

 The kids and I went to see the candy windows at the South Jordan City Center.  They were pretty cool.  Macy went too but wouldn't be in the picture

 Above is Braden's Christmas List.  It says:
To Santa from Braden this is what I want
$160 (he wants to buy his own mini ipad because we won't get him one but said he could save up and buy it himself)
wii U
Minecraft
hatchimal
a big photo booth
a soccer field
a medium size tramp (a friend has a smaller tramp in their basement)
I want more legos
I want the movie BFG it stands for big friendly giant
and I want beanie boos
and I want football gear
and I want a football game on the xbox it is a football game
and I want a hamster
and I want a remote control helicopter
and I want a nerf zombie strike gun
and I want spray for a football field (he explained to me that he wanted to spray his own field on the side of our house)

 Tanner rearranged my nativity one day.  I call it "Oh come let us adore Him"

 I made gingerbread houses from scratch and the kids decorated them.  Tanner was a maniac and had to most of it buy himself.

 Macy's

 Kelsey's

 Tanner's

 Braden's

 Tanner went to the Dicken's Festival with grandma, grandpa and Stefanie while I went shopping

 Tanner was given bath fizzes that colored the water.  He had to use all 4 colors at once even thought I told him it would make it brown.  He said he wanted it brown.

Brian really enjoyed playing with the kids new remote control helicopters after they were in bed.  He also spent some time playing one of their new video games after they were asleep.

A Glimpse into Kelsey's Mind or this could be Titled Gold Digger

A month ago on a Sunday Braden was teasing Kelsey that he saw her underpants and knew what color they were.  Kelsey replied by saying everyone knows what color her underwear is because it was Sunday.  The reason we all would know because on Sundays she wears white underpants because white is pure.  Just in case you were wondering a couple of Sundays after that statement more underwear talk was going on.  The elastic waistband was above her pant line which was what was causing the talk between her and Braden.  I pointed out that she wasn't wearing white underwear and it was Sunday.  I guess she forgot about the purity thing.

Tonight was the best.  Kelsey asked Brian what happens when you eat boogers.  He responded with something about why do you ask that?  Have you picked your nose recently?  Knowing Kelsey I chimed in saying "recently as in sometime this last month".  Kelsey giggles.  Brian asked her if this was true and if she has eaten her boogers recently.  I comment again about "recently as in sometime this past month."  She giggles more and while laughing says "I didn't want to get up and get a tissue."  Brian is totally disgusted and tells her as much which only makes her laugh more.  In her giggly voice she says "What?  It's fun.  It's kind of like a game, when you stick your finger up there and try to reach for them and they move all around..." More laughing and giggling.

That was not the start of the evenings silliness.  Before the boogers conversation I was playing on the ipad with Kelsey sitting next to me.  I turned to ask Brian a question because he had sat down on the opposite couch.  I look up and there he is wearing Kelsey's junior jazz jersey that has been out since Saturday.  He had removed his own shirt to help it fit better.  He put it on to tease her about not wanting it or caring about it.  I died laughing.  Kelsey began screaming.  She said that was gross and there was probably hair in it now.  Brian replied with a yes there probably is and pulled it down a bit to show some chest hair.  She screamed some more and said there is probably boogers on the jersey too because he has been sick.  She claimed it was going to have to be washed a thousand times.  Macy then walks in and exclaims "oh my gosh!  You look like a ..."  Kelsey finishes her sentence with "a weirdo".  The scene was epic.  Of course it was followed with the booger conversation.  At least Brian had put back on his own shirt otherwise I might have wet myself.

Parenting: Brian's Style

I love Brian and he is the greatest dad.  The kids love him and they know he loves them.  He takes time to play tickle monster, tag, basketball, Super Mario Brothers and even Just Dance.  He has helped Macy on reports. He has helped all of them write talks for church.  But reading books to the kids is not his thing nor is listening to them read.

He has been known to skip pages and lines when the girls were little.  He wasn't thrilled when they had a book memorized or when they learned to read and they could catch him pulling this stunt.  I have also heard him tell the girls to go pick out another story because the one they chose was too long.

Each night I listen to Kelsey read for 20 minutes.  The other night this was not done before I had to leave to Young Womens so Brian was given the assignment.  Braden wanted to play Super Mario Brothers with his dad that night too.  So Brian multi-tasked.  He told me he listened to Kelsey read while he played Super Mario Brothers with Braden.  I can only imagine how well Kelsey was able to read, she gets easily locked on to the TV and video games, and how much of the story Brian heard, he too has a hard time focusing.  In the end the task was completed and Braden knows his dad loves him.

Definitely Living the Good Life

I got lost again.  Actually I was sucked into 2 books (The Phantom Tollbooth and the Hobbit), helping in school classes, shopping for maternity clothes (mostly a yuck, although I found a cute dress and some large shirts for $6 at Old Navy that should hopefully get me through until warmer weather), preparing taxes, doctor appointments and just enjoying the wonderful life I live most of the time.  I complain a lot about how hard it is to be home all day with kids doing dishes and laundry over and over and over and over.  I even get way too grouchy about dumb things (something I am working at).  But several times over the last month I have paused and really thought about how good I have it.  I owe a lot of this to Brian and am so grateful for him. It is not just financially that I  am thankful, but I am extremely thankful for his supportive and loving nature. I complain when things are not the way I want (like having him home for dinner every night) but he does everything is his power to help this family run efficiently, to allow me to have time to pursue my interests and to become a better father and husband.  Now to learn to enjoy it all the time and to constantly show my appreciation to that wonderful man.

On to less sentimental thoughts, this year the kids and I out did ourselves with the Valentine boxes.  They turned out great and were so easy and cheap to make.  I was able to help at Kelsey's class party.  She informed me that I need to help 2 more times in her class to catch up to the number of times I have been to Macy's class this year.  I get kind of tired of the competition/fair idea that my kids have.

President's Day weekend was probably one of the best ones we have spent as a family.  I don't know what was different for me but maybe I really took the time to be with the kids.  We went to the dollar movies on Saturday with the intent to see Wreck It Ralph but it was sold out so we hit Hotel Transylvania.  Then we went and had dinner with Emily and Jake and played games.  The kids had fun playing with their cousin and hanging out with grandma and grandpa. Sunday came and we ate dinner at home with only the 5 of us.  We enjoyed everyone's company and conversation. I am sure there was some fighting but I only remember the enjoyment. After we played Just Dance and I forced the girls to dance to songs I like. Then Braden had to have a turn to play wii Resort (he is a little addicted to Super Mario Brothers so it was a success to play something else with him).  Monday we went swimming at the rec center and it happened to be free that day because of the health fair.  After it was the first pleasant trip to the mall.  That hasn't happened in a long time, except for when I have been by myself.  I have hope that we can have another enjoyable weekend like that in the future.

Halelulah

The day I have been waiting for for at least 10 years has come. Brian finally experienced a pair of pants becoming too tight in the waist. It was a pair of slacks that he hasn't worn for at least a year. He tried them on tonight and now knows how I feel when my pants magically shrink.

Things I love...

• Climbing into bed with fresh, clean sheets. The first night after changing sheets is heavenly to me. The down side changing and washing those sheets.
• Slipping into bed with silky, smooth legs because I actually shaved them that day. It is worth shaving for this benefit alone.
• Having the sun shine and going outside to enjoy it. I really miss seeing the sun everyday like I did in Phoenix. Even if it is a warm day, if the sun ain't shinin' it ain't that great. Sunday we walked to church. It was so lovely because the sun was out the whole time. It was the best way to prepare for church. I had a tear in my eye as I recalled how often we could walk to church in Phoenix. I think the last year we were there we walked 9 months out of the year. By the way, this walk was no small feat. Our house is the furthest I have ever lived from a church building. We have to cross a busy road to get there too. Don't worry we did the "do as we say, not as we do" with our kids. We taught them to jay-walk and then said don't ever do this. It is against the law.
• that Brian has not won the last four games of Settlers. I don't think he will play the game again. It is back to Ticket to Ride and Carcassone for him.
• when Braden teases Kelsey by grabbing her blanket and running. Or when he is the monster and chases his sisters around the house. I hate that he dumps every cup or water bottle on the ground.
• that Braden stuck is lawn mower and wagon in time out yesterday. He pushed each one into a corner and yelled "in the corner" and "go to time out". I hate to hear what I sound like when my kids are playing me.
• that Macy wants two gift cards and money for her birthday. Her reason "so she doesn't have to spend her own money to buy things". What am I supposed to do for her birthday? Obviously the royal wedding is not an option.

It's a Good Thing I am not a Betting Woman

All things Brian did today that I thought I would eventually have to do:
took down the Christmas Tree
cleaned my cars air filter
vacuumed the entire house

I am one lucky woman and am glad I don't place bets. I would have lost big. Good thing I have learned to not bet against Brian. 99% of the time if I say I bet I am right, I turn out wrong. Thanks honey. You are the best.

Oh and he turned up the thermostat to 73 degrees for a bit.

If I were a Betting Woman

The philosophical questions I pose today are "When do you think Brian will take this Christmas tree downstairs?" and "What are the odds I put it away?" As I have pondered such deepness I think the odds are about the same as the outcomes of "who will wheel the garbage cans out to the street for garbage day" and "who will shovel the driveway after a snow storm".  It is probably fair enough to say the odds are fairly similar to the outcome of my laundry abilities. Many times I am asked "I got this ... on my shirt.  Do you think it will come out in the wash or do I need to take it somewhere?"  It all depends on what type of risk taker you are.  As to the tree, I think my money is on me and the length of time will depend on how long I try to wait him out.  No tree man is coming on a set day to take it away like the garbage man comes to take my trash.

As if we need more change

Well we are in for some more change. Brian happened to come across a new job mid-December. It is what he really wants to do and the pay isn't bad so he took it. He starts next Tuesday with Woodside Homes. It is in North Salt Lake so now we have to re-think about where to live. He was sad to say goodbye to Molina because they have been so good to him. But the job he was doing was not really for him.

Bring on the ever present change. I hope I can handle more.

Busy Beavers

So I finally finished my other post from last week when I realized another week has gone by. Much has been accomplished.

1. I finished all my "needs" shopping for the baby.
2. My house is clean.
3. My sugar snap peas grown from seeds sprouted. I have never been successful with seeds but thought I should try since the transplants provided were not sugar snap. (This was a Relief Society project.)
4. I played most of the day yesterday. First it was to the gym and then off to lunch with friends. Then a small amount of prep for a party at my house. And finally a get together with some of our friends from Brian's MBA class, without kids. We were actually able to talk and hear one another.
5. Today I cleaned up the pool from the massive wind storm on Thursday (I think). I took a nap and painted Macy and Kelsey's fingernails and toenails. I did a little more cleaning before my mom gets here. I helped Macy write and practice her talk for Primary tomorrow. She seems confident and like she wants to do it. We will see what tomorrow brings. She has not given a talk yet. I have given two.
6. Thursday the doctor thought I would have the baby this weekend and got my hopes up. I told him not to cancel the induction date because it never works that way for me. I don't go into labor on my own.

Brian also has been a busy beaver.

1. He has spent time looking at for boats and cars. He has done a 180 since he was able to keep a job, but there are no promises that anything will come about. See the next line.
2. He has also considered buying a rental property. Home prices have fallen so bad here that he figures we should have some cash flow from it.
3. He helped some friends pack their moving truck.
4. He played tennis this morning. It has been a few weeks.
5. He finished painting our old bar stools black.
6. He trimmed our palm trees.
7. He did our taxes. It looks like we are getting a little bit back. We may owe Arizona a couple of bucks.
8. He hung my new wall hanging we won at his companies employee auction. It was an item from a model home. I think he wanted to curse for buying this because it was a pain to hang and get it level. It took longer than he thought.
9. Numbers 3 through 8 were done today. Number 3 was also done on Thursday night.

Here are my auction purchases. The top picture was Brian's project tonight.

PS: I claim no photography skills. My new decor are cages with fake plants in them.

I need to make a note here for remembrance sake. A few weeks back I was released from my calling as Laurel advisor. I was sad to give this up, but feel at peace with what the Lord wants. I thought I would have a break from service because of the baby, but that is not how the Lord works. A week later I was called to the Enrichment committee. Not a big deal. I like to be involved, but this is something new for me. I am not even sure of everything the Enrichment committee does. I have spent most of my married life in YWs. My two other callings (the only ones I can recall) were cub scout leader and ward literacy specialist. These totaled maybe a year.

My Hero

On Tuesday night our faucet broke. I noticed it was wiggly while I was doing the dinner dishes. To make sure it needed tightening I wiggled it a little more and the handle came off. A screw had broken in half. Brian ran to Lowe's but they didn't carry the part so it was off to a co-workers house (for another errand and now to ask for help). The guy thought work had that particular part somewhere, so the sink could not be fixed that night and I could not finish the dishes nor wipe up. I couldn't let this be the next day so I had to keep a bucket by the sink that I could re-fill from the bathroom to wet my rags, rinse utensils (we used paper for dinner and had a lunch picnic at the park to reduce the number of washable dishes), and wash fruits and vegetables. I am now very grateful for my kitchen sink.

Brian did research the next day. The part was not at work so he called around and no one had the screw he needed and to get it from Moen would cost $50 and take 10 days to receive. Not my ideal situation. Well my handy man came through for me. After work he went to Home Depot found the part and a screw then went to a friend's home to get use the friend's tools to remove the half of the screw that was stuck in a needed part. Needless to say all his hard work paid off and I had a sink again today which has helped to keep my kitchen cleaner and meals easier to prepare. The only problem is somehow we (I helped put the pieces back together)managed to get the hot and cold water mixed up. I don't know how we could have done that but it has been a little frustrating because I turn the handle the wrong way. Figuring out this problem has to wait until the weekend when he has a little more time. For now Brian will remain my hero and savior for keeping convenience in my life.

New Adventure

Well the our little family has entered a new journey in this little lifetime of ours. It isn't a route that we would have chosen because it will be difficult and we prefer to take the paths of least resistance if possible.

On Friday the Grimm Reaper was back at Centex and Brian was on his list. They were kind enough to keep him working until the end of March, which works out well since this baby is due at the beginning of April. They are also giving us some money towards COBRA which will really help.

We have survived 12 rounds of lay-offs so we had already done some thinking, planning and preparing. We lean heavily towards moving back near family (This would be the plus side of things). It is not set in stone but that is the course we are walking for the time being. So we are thinking about renting our home instead of selling. That way maybe we can sell it at a better time. So if you know anyone that is looking to rent, our home may be available.

Also, if you hear of any jobs in Utah (or in Arizona) we might be interested.

Don't worry about us. Everyone has trials of some sort and this is just ours and will pass. We are not extremely concerned because Heavenly Father will look after us. As long as we do our part and listen to the whisperings of the Spirit we will make it and will gain something from it.

By the way...

Next Tuesday is Brian's birthday so be sure to wish him Happy Birthday when you see him around.

My Man

I don't write much about Brian so today I am dedicating this post to the wonderful man that he is. I don't know if he will read this, but at least the world will know how magnificent he is and why he is the man for me.

The man is so good to me. While I was gone last week a friend of mine was using my house for a party. I tried really hard to get everything cleaned before I left, but when it came time to leave I still had vacuuming left to do. So guess who took care of that for me. While on my trip I gave him a honey do list over the phone. I didn't think anything of it until my sister's boyfriend made fun of me and told me to give the guy a break. But guess what. He did everything on the list. The day I came home he went above and beyond. He made sure the house was spotless, he trimmed the trunk of the palm trees, mowed the lawn, weeded the front yard, raked up some grass that I had killed the day before I left, washed my car inside and out (we had traded cars for the week), and had dinner ready for me when I came. To do all this stuff he had to give up something he really wanted to do, look at a boat that is for sale. He also did this in the hot weather. Last night I went to Relief Society for an hour and came home and he had completely cleaned up the kitchen. What a guy!

This man is also my motivator to get out of bed in the morning to workout with him. He lifts me when I need it and always thinks I am beautiful. He always beats me at Ticket to Ride, but I must be challenging enough because he will still play with me. He makes me laugh and hugs me when I cry. He is strong physically, spiritually and mentally. I know he can help me do anything.

All this and more makes him the man of my dreams. I love you Brian! Oh and his good looks make the dream even better.