All Day Shopping Experience

Yesterday the kids and I packed up for some shopping that turned into an all day event. We left the house at 11:30 AM and returned home at 5:45 PM. They were very good little shoppers, but I was still worn out from saying "Come back here" a bazillion times.

We were on the hunt for new bedding for the girls new beds. I needed comforters, sheets and of course mattress protectors for those night time accidents. It took forever because I realized that I forgot my wallet at home when I finished at our first and farthest destination. Of course I had items to purchase there. Then we hit Costco twice, two different locations. Once because it was the closest gas station to my destinations (I was seconds away from being stranded all because I forgot my wallet and never filled up when I actually thought about it last week) and I promised the girls a hot dog for lunch. The second was the last stop. I had to pick up my new glasses and purchase a few grocery items. I also had to swing by two different Kohl's because I found a quilt I liked, but the first store only had one twin. Of course today I returned them because I found a better quilt some where else.

The kids had a great time. They had a pillow fight with their new pillows at the discount linens store. They were giggling and running through the aisles knocking each other with their over sized pillows. Of course when I realized what was going on I put a stop to it, but I am sure the employees were thinking awful things about me while the other customers were laughing. At Bed Bath and Beyond they set-up 4 rows of 2 folding chairs (that is 8 total for the math challenged) in the aisle. These were however little kid folding chairs. They also finished their Costco hot dogs sitting on the ground without shoes "watching TV". It was some infomercial but they found it fascinating. It is hard work to keep an eye on children when reading labels on mattress covers to make sure you get a waterproof one. They also had a hard time staying together when we were walking. Macy would be 20 feet in front of me and short-legs Kelsey would be 20 feet behind me (someday she will grow taller and be as fast as Macy). When they were together they would sometimes fight over who's turn it was to be in the stroller.

The funniest part of the day was when Macy finally fell asleep. We were at our last stop, Costco. I pulled her from her car seat asleep. She remained asleep in my arms. Kelsey wasn't going to have that and Macy was heavy so I placed her in the cart. She wouldn't wake up. I place my purse on the handle to be her pillow. She slept the whole 45 minutes we were there. People were laughing each time they saw us. When we got to the car she finally roused. On the way home she looked at the groceries next to her and asked where we got them. She had no clue we even went to Costco.

It sounds like Macy and Kelsey weren't that great, but remember we were gone a long time. The majority of the day they were okay.

Poppy Alan and Grandma Carol's visit

Macy was so excited to have her grandparents come and visit this past weekend. Of course Kelsey was too, partially because Macy was excited but mostly because she loves her grandparents.

Macy wore Grandma Carol out with hide-and-go-seek the first day. She would not let grandma stop and of course Macy would hide in the same spot each time. Macy even got grandpa to play a couple of times. If they didn't hide where she told them to, she just wouldn't find them.
Both girls quickly realized that grandpa usually had gum around. Kelsey figured out the gum chewing (she used to swallow it and so was banned for a period). She loved to show and tell anyone that she had gum in her mouth. I am pretty sure that between the 2 of them they went through a package.

We a few things besides visit to fill their time. We hit 3 local restaurants: Joe's BBQ, Paradise Bakery, and In and Out Burger (I hamburger was not enough for Alan. He had to buy 2 more. I don't think he will live that down). We went and saw two of the model complex's Brian had built. Carol and I went shopping for birthday and Christmas clothes for the kids. We took Macy Christmas dress shopping. This was a treat. She didn't like any of the dresses or skirts and when we finally talked her into one she was hooked. Of course after the fight, they didn't have her size. We let the kids play at the mall playground where a little boy pinched Kelsey's nose and she lost all control. We took a drive up to Payson and saw Tonto Natural Bridge (the largest natural travertine bridge). We also took Snow White and Cinderella to our church Halloween Party. And of course we played Hearts and I lost each time.

Macy wanted a coat instead of a dress, so Kelsey had to wear one too: a couple of sizes too big.

I think Calee has been teaching Macy how to be photographed.


Are we still in Arizona?

This was a very enjoyable and refreshing visit. Grandma Carol and Poppy Alan are welcome back any time.

Polly, our Parrot

The kids are really sleeping in this morning so I thought I would catch up on the blog. Yesterday Brian's parents came in to town to visit, so the kids were up late. Hence, they are sleeping in. It was a pretty low key afternoon. We just visited and took them to a wonderful BBQ restaurant. If anyone comes our way and needs a good place to eat, definitely stop by Joe's.



Now to our exciting news. We have the cutest parrot living with us. She can repeat pretty much anything you say especially Macy. Not only does she talk, but she mimics everything Macy does and does not like to leave Macy's side. We have nicknamed this Kelsey parrot, Polly. This interaction between the 2 girls is hilarious. Kelsey is always looking towards Macy. She sits how Macy sits, she jumps when she jumps and yells when Macy screams. The other day Macy had to go to the bathroom so Kelsey did to. Macy went into one bathroom. Luckily, she was out of toilet paper. I went into the other bathroom and there was Kelsey. Her pants were off and the diaper was just about off. She was going to sit on the toilet herself. She just looked at me and said "potty". I think this is how Kelsey convinced the gym daycare that she was potty-trained when in reality she still has no clue. (The daycare had to come and get me because Kelsey had a messy diaper and it was everywhere in the bathroom.) Briefly I considered making Kelsey go as a parrot for Halloween and Macy a pirate captain.

Kelsey could also be consider Macy's puppy. Macy has her fetch items for her all the time. Macy tells her to jump and she jumps; roll-over and she will. The funny thing is Kelsey is so proud of herself when she does this. Next time I will have to scratch her behind the ears after a good job.

This behavior does worry us a bit. We hope Macy doesn't realize the full power she has over Kelsey. That could lead to some serious problems. We have to keep talking to Macy about examples. We have to remind her that she needs to be a good example because Kelsey is always watching. Sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't. We just hope there is no bridge and cliff around that Macy decides to jump off of because the lemming will go right along with her.

We might be crazy

The weekend has come and gone. Friday we had a new tree planted to replace the ficus tree we lost to the terrible frost last winter. Like most of our purchases we went with the motto larger is better. We didn't want to wait for the tree to catch up to the rest of the landscape.

Saturday was yard day. Brian and I planted our winter grass. Officials here try to discourage this practice because you use a lot of water to keep grass growing. Besides saving water, you can save time because you don't have to mow and fertilize dormant grass. Call us crazy, but we spent 5 hours on the process called over-seeding just so we can pay more and increase yard maintenance in the winter months. First we scalp the lawn so it becomes a dirt yard with patches of dead looking grass. This equaled about 15 bags of grass for the garbage man. Then we spread 20 pounds of seed between the front and back yard. Once the seed is down we sprinkled mulch across the top to help retain moisture and to help hide the seed from the birds. We had to sprinkle 17 bags of the stuff (we are talking the large Lowe's bags out in the garden center). It was after this that I realized I might be getting old and weak. My legs and back did not want to pick up another bag. I was afraid I would not be able to walk today. Don't worry all is well. I am still young enough to recover quickly and had no side effects today. We did this back breaking labor because we feel that it is worth it. The nicest weather here is in the winter. We want to use our yard then. No one wants to sit on their beautiful green lawn when it is 115 and when our temperatures are moderate the bermuda grass turns brown and scratchy. That is why we plant it. Last year our grass was the softest grass I have ever laid upon. Macy would always tell us that we needed to feel the grass.

Our reward for our hard labor was a murder mystery party that night. Brian and I got a babysitter, found some costumes and had a wonderful time. The theme was pirates. I was Antonia Napier, the wealthy governor's daughter. Brian was Sealegs Sam, a poor merchant sailor that I was in love with. When we all arrived (there were 6 couples) we were given given money and information about our character and tidbits about others. We then mingled and set up the plot. Then a murder took place and the goal was to find the murderer anyway we could and/or get the most money by using bribery, blackmail or good old fashioned questioning. We had such a good time. The costumes people had and the way people got into character was so funny. My sister, Breathless Betty, was a hoot. She would talk in this french accent and was just out there. Her husband told me at church today that it took her awhile to get out of character. The most shocking thing that happened last night was my Sam (Brian) turned out to be the murderer. I am proud to say that I did guess him to be the murderer. Like I said before, this was a fun party and many other guests enjoyed it too. Some of us would love to do it again. Maybe next Halloween.

Today has been a quiet, relaxing Sunday. After church the whole house took a nap. I woke up before everyone and it was a little odd to have the house silent. At the same time it was very peaceful and rejuvenating. The kids had a sugar cookie for dessert and Kelsey was so entertaining to watch. Of course she only ate the frosting, but the manner in which she did was hilarious. First she picked off all the sprinkles then she would bite/lick the frosting off. However, as she would do this she would inhale through her nose. She would pull the cookie away and gobs of frosting would be hanging from her nostrils. I tried to wipe it off, but she would sniff forcefully and it was quickly gone. I think half the frosting made it into her mouth and the other half in her nose. The next disgusting thing was Macy finished off Kelsey's cookie. Once most of the frosting was gone she was done and that was when Macy moved in for the kill.

Macy wanted to show what was in her mouth.

The positive side of AZ

Brian thought I was a little negative in my last post (and I have to admit it did come across that way), so I am going to list the best part of living here.

1. In the past year and a half we have used our patio furniture more times than in the four years we lived in Utah.
2. If we had a boat, our ski/board season would be 4 or 5 months instead of 3 months.
3. I participate in a babysitting swap.
4. I have palm trees in my yard and flowers that bloom all year long.
5. Our garage can be an extra room of the house. Brian and I have not bought into this idea quite yet. However, many of our neighbors have TVs mounted in their garage and at night they sit outside in the garage and watch sports and drink (I believe it is often the Diamondbacks or Monday night football). My garage seems a bit dirty for me to have a desire to do this.
6. My kids can wear flip-flops or no shoes all year long. I think Kelsey's name might have to be changed to "Shoeless Joe Kelsey". The kid refuses to wear anything but Macy's green flip-flops. She takes them off as soon as I start the car or walks into the house. Last night at Costco she took them off and was walking around the optical department for sometime before we noticed. On the chance that I can get her into her sandals the same thing happens, however, when we get home she plops herself down in the middle of the entry way and tries to take them off and usually starts screaming because she can't. Of course I am of no help because my arms are usually full and she has caused a traffic jam so I can't even get through the door. All this happens within five seconds of entering the house.
7. We get to pick our own oranges come December. Lemons are in abundance. People can't give away grapefruit and salsa is a staple.
8. We can escape the summer and visit family and they can escape the winter and visit us.
9. Disneyland, San Diego, and the beach are only about 5 hours away.
10. And the number 10 reason (drum roll please)... Brian can use his Spanish daily. I couldn't help throwing that in.

Creepy Crawly

There are just a few drawbacks about where I live.


1. My family is not nearby.

2. The exceedingly hot summers.

3. The bugs. Most people laugh when I make this comment because from my understanding this is not a usual complaint among inhabitants of this city. I have no idea why these people could care less about the infestations. There are so many pest control services down here and most people I know use them. Scorpions tend to be a problem, but not very many people complain. To them it must be a normal part of life. I for one can't stand for it.



I bring up bugs because in the last 24 hours I have had two horrible experiences. Last night I went out back to take care of some pool maintenance. I was looking around because the crickets are out of control. I happened to look up and there was the largest spider I have ever seen in the wild. I almost screamed but I didn't want my kids to come running out of their rooms and teach them to freak out over bugs (that and I just put them to bed). Instead I grabbed my knight in shining armor and my camera. The plan was to whack it with a magazine. Brian had to grab a stool to reach it. I warned him that if he missed and it fell or jumped on him he was out of luck because I wasn't going to save him. Lucky for me (and him), Brian has a good aim.



My second horrifying episode was with a bug that was living in my swimming pool. Yes, I repeat living in my swimming pool. I couple of days ago I noticed a brown leaf on the bottom of the pool. I didn't think anything of it because my pool vacuum was having some issues. Well yesterday the issues were fixed. When I took the kids out swimming today there was that brown leaf on the bottom of the pool. I thought this strange that after 6 hours of vacuuming Nemo somehow missed this debris. I was smart enough not to try to pick this leaf up with my toes (who wants to touch something slimy with their barefoot and I also had the thought that it might be a dead bug). Anyways, a few minutes later the leaf was on the top step. When I examined it more closely I realized one of my worst nightmares is true. It was a large bug. I went to get a cup to scoop it up and that is when I found that it was alive. The little beast was fast. I thought I had lost the creature and was going to make the kids get out. Then I found it and captured it. I could hardly believe that a bug could actually live in the pool. I put chemicals in last night and it didn't kill it off. I took pictures and have insect frying in a bucket outside so I can show Brian that this is a true story. I see a scorpion next and I will be moving out of state.

My cooking secret

I admit it. I love to lick bowls clean (now that I am grown I finger swipe or scrape with a spatula). I do wash the bowls and utensils thoroughly before using them again.

Today I made 2 Texas Sheet cakes for the youth etiquette dinner tonight. That equalled 3 bowls, 6 beaters, and 3 spatulas dripping with leftover batter and frosting. (I made a double batch of frosting so I had less mess in the kitchen because I hate to clean up my kitchen messes. Just ask my dad or Brian, they both can confirm this.) I timed this project so perfectly that I did not have to share the cleaning process with either of my children. All of it was mine and it was delicious.