not so great with the follow-through.

so I realized, I said I was going to catch up on the picture-posting, and well, I haven’t.

I could toss out any number of excuses, the effects of a head cold, the effects of little people when they are sick, holidays, houses, global warming..

but really?  like any of those have stopped me?

(okay, maybe a couple have aided me in my failure..)

so I am going to attempt to rectify this situation.  and I will do you one better than that, I will even get a thankful thing out too!

what better way to start than to start off with my best friend.  mostly because she is my best friend, but secondly because she is amazing, and so is her family.  and then, well, because she is my best friend.

I am so thankful (if you can’t tell already) that she is part of my life.  I am so thankful to have her right next door pretty much any time I need her, or anytime I just want to be near her.  she was my sanity while merrill was gone for two weeks (far, far too long a period of time for that man to be absent), and she has been the sidekick to many of my creative projects (many of which were undertaken while merrill was gone).  she is there to listen to me, talk me off of a cliff, ledge, or any other bad spot in life.  we laugh a lot and she never makes me feel guilty about my choice in food groups (sugar anyone?).  my family loves her.  partly because she notifies me when our favorites have gone on sale at a local store, but mostly because she helps me maintain my sanity.

I am thankful for her family too.  I love her kids!  we enjoy double dating when we can, and love getting our families together (although it has been a while..).

I am thankful that she asked me to snap some new family pics this fall.  it is always a good time with them.  it is quite an honor to capture a family, especially when it is one I love so much!

love ya ju!!

   

the night i got sick of marshmallows but quickly recovered.

one may evening, our fantastic neighbors invited us over for s’mores.  they also invited us to play in their bounce house, but some of us are too big, i guess.
(sigh)
it was a fun evening..

and then them s’mores were started..

now these weren’t just your ordinary, normal campfire, run of the mill marshmallows.  uh-uh.  my dear friend knows me.  she bought the gi-hugant guys.

and i think it’s safe to say that everyone enjoyed them.
 
a picture cannot lie, it got a bit messy.  but it was the kind of messy that was delicious.

peyton loved it.  she calls it camping, and she asks when we are going to go “camping” again.

i will not (but really cannot) tell you how many of these i ate, or how many of those giant marshmallows i ate.  roasted or not.

see, this is my best friend that i love so dearly..  and not just because she bought giant marshmallows and invited us over to eat them..

i busted out some of the leftover easter stash.  that’s right, we roasted peeps.  they were hot.  delicious and hot.  the sugar on the outside becomes this caramelized sugar coating, that is hot (have i already said that these were hot?) and the insides are all mooshy.
their eyes strangely disappeared…
(or maybe it wasn’t strange being as they were chocolate!)

it was officially the best kick-off to summer ever!
(and the girls thoroughly enjoyed their bubble bath in our tub.)
(we had to wash off that campfire smell.)
(i was not going to wash the sheets again that week.)
and that is how i developed a temporary aversion to all things marshmallow.  i was back to eating my marshmallow creme by the spoonful within the next 24 hours.
all is well.

A “duh” moment, from yours truly.

I have had this wonderful friend since second grade.
I begged her to take me to Hawaii, in her suitcase, at the end of that year.  Her family was going, and heck, I wanted to be there too.
(She did bring me home some fun souvenirs and tasty macadamias..  they mostly made up for not taking me.)
I have so many great memories of those days!  We had a lot of fun.
We still keep in contact, and I love the creative soul she is.
Today, after reading up on everyone on Facebook (good old Facebook…) I realized, she has a blog promoting her Etsy store!!!
DUH!
(I have these moments all too often.  I will blame it on the three placentas that have been attached to my uterus and have subsequently sucked out most of the functioning brain cells that used to help me along.)
She has wonderful tutorials, such cute ideas, and then there’s the goodies she sells.
They make me want to bake!
(Or have another baby…)
My favorite pot holders:

Go check out her blog here.
And her store here.

A lesson taken to heart.

I am not going to lie, last week was CRAZY!!  It seemed like we were hopping from one thing to another, add to that how emotional I was (over just about everything and anything, the smallest stuff would have me in tears), and the fact that we started the last month of the year (seriously, where did this year go?!), and it was nutso…

I finished off my month of gratitude with the intentions not to let that go, but at the end of the day, just about every day, I thought, “I will post that tomorrow.”  But when the tomorrows came, the craziness resumed.  Where was the time?

I do have to say what I am thankful for from the craziness of the last week.

-I am thankful for such a loving, supportive husband, who knows what I need better than I do most of the time.  He took care of the girls every night from Wednesday to Friday.  A lot of people would say, “Well, he is their dad, so…” but really, for me to have been gone or busy doing something (like having a meeting at our house), and to have him have fun with them, it was a huge relief to me.  I just wished I could have been having fun with them!  He took the day off Thursday and went to school with Ash, and from what I hear, they had a blast in class.  I was feeling bad for not spending much time with him, feeling like he was feeling neglected, add to that the “emotional” factor I was dealing with, and I was ready to call off a lunch/shopping date with a friend.  He told me, “No.  You better go.  I am taking the girls to McDonalds.  We are going to have fun, you better too.”  What a great guy!  I am glad that I went, I really needed it.  (LOVE YOU MER!)

-I was so thankful to be able to look back and reflect on each day at the end of it, and see all that had been accomplished.  Most days I had wished that I had had more time, but in the end, I was satisfied and able to sleep comfortably.  There’s nothing like the satisfaction of a full day.

-I am so thankful for our family traditions and activities this time of the year.  I am so happy that the girls remember and look forward to each and every one.  We went to the Festival of the Trees last week, and had so much fun!  I am thankful for these events that are fun, but remind us of the giving part of the season. 

-I recently made a goal to read the Book of Mormon (even though I was pretty far in it anyway) before the end of the month.  That is 18 pages a day!  It has been such a blessing to sit each day and read, mark, really study those 18 pages (sometimes more, I can’t stop sometimes!).  It helped me put life into perspective, and everyday, there were things in there that I needed to read.

-I am thankful for the kind phone calls, and messages from friends and family who know I have  been going through my own little “down”.  To know that they care, to hear their expressions of love and support are such a blessing!  I am thankful to know that I am surrounded by such great people.

I know that my week could have been even better (and maybe a little less emotional) had I kept up on my gratitudes, actually listing them at the end of every day.  I love how it helps me to readjust my focus at the end of the day, start the next one off even better.

Day 28.

Today was yet another awesome Sunday spent in primary (the best place on earth!).  Merrill and I taught the oldest class in primary, and love those kids.  A couple of them are very well loved babysitters. 
Primary is always an uplifting experience and I am thankful for the great people that are there with my children every week, teaching them and loving them.  You can’t be in there and not feel the spirit.  It is incredible. 
Lynn also had her baptism interview with the bishop..  it’s a mixed bag of emotions there.  She is looking forward to all the fun to come.  I think she’s most excited for the new dress, I am excited to take pics, and design her invite.
It was also another snowy day here, something that we LOVE!  I am thankful to neighbors who help us out.  We pay this one pretty nice (and good looking) guy to take care of our driveway, cover his gas and all, ;) and another neighbor came by and took care of the sidewalks.  It was a nice blessing that made it possible for us to stay in and enjoy the day as a family. 
Merrill gets perks for putting the shoveling off, and I don’t win the argument that we should really look into a snow-blower.

Day 10.

Okay..  so it technically isn’t day 10 anymore, but I haven’t fallen asleep yet, so it is still day 10 to me!

I have had a very full, busy, yet fulfilling day.  I have many things for which to be grateful.

- Ashley participated in her class today!!!

- Mom came and not only watched Peyton so I could go to school with Ash, she also folded the rather large pile of laundry on my bed, dumped there while frantically searching for clean socks for Ash to wear this morning.  Laundry that has been there since Monday.

(The room re-dos have taken over our household and my time.)

- I was able to accomplish a lot in the way of the room redos.  Thanks goes to my friends who came over, helped me assemble furniture, and even move a few things.  Thanks girls!! <3

- It was also parent teacher conferences.  I am thankful for the wonderful teachers we have been blessed with this year.  I am thankful for the love they show to my girls when they are away from home.  I am thankful for all that they teach them.  I am thankful to have a school so close to our home, for the neighborhood in which we live.

- I am thankful for my sweet, smart, courageous, and perfectionist daughters!  (They got something from me!)

- I am thankful that I got to talk to Merrill tonight.  I didn’t know if my emotion at parent teacher conferences was entirely pride and happiness over what the girls’ teachers were saying, or if it was a bit of homesick for Merrill-ness.  I miss him.  I am thankful that I got to hear his voice.

Again, another day goes by, and I have been blessed even more!

Only a Dozen or so..

This week, I was fortunate enough to have a house-full.

Between friends, there was a little get-away one husband coordinated for a wedding anniversary, and I happened to be the first to say yes to the needed childcare.  There was also another slight family emergency with another friend, and I had 3 more added upon our little temporary brood.

It was heaven.

(Merrill might disagree.)

I had three little boys playing cars/airplanes together which made my heart yearn for three little boys of the like to play cars/airplanes on my wood floors every day.

I had five doing homework simultaneously at the countertop.

Afterschool snacks were in abundance, and I felt like a good mom with my Clementine's, apples, and sugar cookies piled high with frosting to offer them.

It wasn’t until dinnertime, when the doorbell rang, and only two who were my actual offspring joined me in their excitement at the door.  The pizza lady brought us a bounty of warm, cheesy goodness.

“Wow!  I hope that you can handle all of this food.   Will you each eat one?”  She asked #2 and #3.

“We have plenty here to eat all of this.”

“How many do you have here?”

“Oh, a dozen or so.”

“They aren’t all yours..  are they?  You are too young to have 12 kids.”  She was alarmed and didn’t hide it.

“No.  But I love them all like they were.”

It was a fun night, I loved the back yard all a bustle with many children, but I was thankful for my recovery night last night with only three.

Ogden Christmas Village '09..

Catchin' up..

So, everyone is better, me included ;), and we have been doing summer all week!
Let me tell you a little of what we've done..

Went to the parade..

Went swimming..

And more swimming...

The only person who still needs the aid of a float or life jacket is Peyton.. Ashley and Lynn are both all over that pool floaty and life jacket free!! YAY!!
Keeping an eye on the garden..

I now know why "ear wigs" are called "ear wigs"..

Harvesting some yummy things from our garden..

And eating our yummy harvest..

Yesterday, we went school shopping.. found all needed supplies for both Lynnie and Ash and also found Peyton these cute flip-flops at Target.. I felt so bad putting her sandals on her, it had been a while, but she is no longer a 4..

And today, we went to the splash pad with some new friends..

And Peyton showed all her belly button. ;)

The girls enjoyed getting wet, then sitting on the cement and made "butt-prints"! They would look at the wet mark, and decide what it looked like.. some were hearts, some were bunny heads, complete with ears, and some looked like, well, butts.. it was a fun day! Thanks Kaycee...

Still have projects going on around here.. can't wait till it is all done!
I also got a new toy, but won't post until I get better acquainted with it. ;)

Whatcha doin'?

Just a bit of what we've been up to..
Keeping busy around here!

South Ogden Days Parade... Lynn marched the whole way!

Had lunch at McDonald's..

Played and probably caught Swine Flu..

Peyton fed me french fries.. this is what it looks like when she feeds us bites:

Worked on Peyton's room some more.. I love IKEA!

She LOVES her room!

Resurrected the "Rose Petal Cottage"..

Which every little girl residing in this house is more than happy about. :)

Peyton is diggin' it.. the baby also ends-up in the oven. :0

ONE birthday cake..

An afternoon of swimming...

These two are so tight now..

These two are such posers...

ANOTHER birthday cake..

For Mom's birthday this time..


We love her!!
Watched some trains..

Went for a drive..

In celebration of the lady's birthday, we lit some sparklers, popped some pop-its..
This was Peyton's face when the pop-its started going off:

And enjoyed another dip..

With some other friends.

Now why on earth did I need a nap so bad today?
A doctor's appointment is in there somewhere, along with fireworks, a trip to DI (finally!!!), and just the daily funnies..
More stories to come in greater detail..
Until then..