Best. Mailman. Ever.

Saturday while Matthew was outside throwing around his basketball the mail came. I'm not sure how to conversation went but it wasn't long before the mailman turned off his truck and was shooting hoops with Matthew. I got a few a pictures of them playing and a video (from my phone) of the mailman showing Matthew how to throw to the ball so he (the mailman) could get a good action shot. (see 3rd picture down) They never really grow up, do they? 

He was only here for 5-10 minutes but it totally made Matthew's day. That alone makes him the Best Mailman. Ever.

Matthew

I'm not even going to try to explain what in the world this kid is doing. I will say 1 thing though.

I LOVE HIM!

When I grow up I want to be a stay at home mom.

Here are some things I have encountered lately as I carry out my life's ambition to stay at home.

Huge wads of toilet paper (thankfully clean) have been randomly showing up in the kids bathroom and the hallway. This started approximately November 18, 2010. We aren't sure of the culprit yet. :) I did suggest to one of my children that it's a good idea to stop playing with the TP. We'll see how it goes.

I helped Matthew clean his room today. I found a casket a key, an ID tag for a dead person (which Matthew made for himself last time he went to work with Ken, including his day of death - which thankfully has already passed,) and the top half of a sock. Apparently there was a big whole in the sock so he cut the bottom off and said the top part fit perfectly on his arm. There were several other 'gems' but those I thought deserved mentioning.

I am not a psychic. I don't have eyes in the back of my head. BUT, I know when you are sneaking out of your bedroom to play in the water in the bathroom. How do I know? I can HEAR you!

Nicole can almost play 'I Lived in Heaven' perfectly. She's been practicing it a lot. I'm so excited for her!

Matthew brought me a polaroid of him at age 1 at the Mexican Restaurant in a sombrero. He asked me if he was a Mexican. I told him yes. He started counting in Spanish but couldn't remember 10. (Diez) I told him he was a dumb Mexican. He called me a racist.

Being a stay at home as a child meant I got to stay home from school and watch TV all day, even though my mom did A LOT more than that during her life as a stay at home mom. The laundry was always done! folded and put away too.

Being a stay at home mom as a stay at home as the mom means cleaning up the same messes over and over again, day after day. Always having 2 more loads of laundry to do and wanting to take a nap way more often than you actually get to. It means hugging your child goodbye in the morning, missing him all day when he's gone and being so excited when he gets back home at the end of the school day while working on 7th grade at home and learning everything you can about fractions, number lines, graphs and grammar during my school day. Recently I've re-added teaching the alphabet, musical alphabet, counting and coloring in the lines to my list of requirements.

I'm so tired I can't keep my eyes open. It's 100 times more work than I did when I worked full time in the classroom. It pays A LOT less.

I'm pretty happy with my position.

While we were gone:

*Ken turned 35 on the 15th.
*My mom would have turned 63 on the 16th.
*My kids missed a week of school. (and they are still hoping for a snow day tomorrow.)
*I ran 2 minutes straight on a treadmill barefoot. I'll start my 'running' again tomorrow as long as the roads are clear.
*My testimony of personal revelation was strengthened 100 fold.

Two quotes from Anna:

I need to take a bath because my toes are dirty.
I have a big tongue.

One quote from Matthew:
Now you can't call Nicole your best girl because you have two girls. But I'm still the best boy.

One quote from Nicole:
Having a little sister is even better than I thought!

That being said, it's a little after 9 and it feels like it's midnight. I'm going to bed! My goal for this week is to find my rechargeable batteries. I don't have any for my camera and it's dead.

Adventures with boys...part deux

Last night Matthew spent the night at his friends house so that means they move the party over to our house for the next night. (Have I mentioned that I love 4 day weekends?!!) Here are only a few of the things I have seen in the last six hours since Matthew and Jacob got here.

The barricaded Matthew's door and the hallway, except for little peep holes, so they could shoot nerf (nerd) guns at each other.

*take notice of all the lincoln logs in the lincoln log bin. We try to be organized!

 Matthew built me a table to hold scriptures.

 He's still working out some kinks.

 They built a fortress in the front room using twenty-four storage bins.

 Then they covered it with blankets and called it a fort.

They have since expanded their fort by lowering the walls. They've padded the ground with blankets and old couch cushions and they're 'exersicing.'

On another note, that is kind of related...the boys were calling each other 'dude' a lot. Ken interjected and asked them if they knew what a dude is?  Do YOU know what a dude is? Ken told them a dude is a mole on a camel's rear end. According the http://www.dictionary.com/, Ken is a liar. 

Dude
–noun


1. a man excessively concerned with his clothes, grooming, and manners.

2. Slang . fellow; chap.

3. a person reared in a large city.

4. Western U.S. an urban Easterner who vacations on a ranch.
 
*I just told the boys Ken was wrong and then explained it's a guy worried about his clothes and appearance. Jacob replied, 'That's even worse!'
 
Today I have to be thankful for little boys. Especially little boys who think they are big! They are hilarious and inventive and a little smelly.

Holy Pictures Batman--at the park

Today I am thankful for beautiful weather and no school. We were able to go to a park close to our home with some good friends. Here are 18 pictures for your viewing pleasure. My most favorite favorite picture is the very last one. I my opinion, it's totally worth the wait!

Matthew and Jake on pogo sticks. They were getting about 18 inches in the air. It was pretty awesome.

 Matthew jumping.

 Nicole scooting.

 Nicole riding a bike.

 Nicole and Jessy just sitting around.

 Tyler on a bike.

 Next we 'played' tennis. I use the term played very loosely. We actually swung the rackets and chased the balls. A. Lot. Be sure you notice how often the ball was not where it was supposed to be when the rackets were swinging.

 This is Nicole honest to truth 'pose' while she waits for the ball to make it to her side.

 Next the boys got tired of running for tennis balls so they decided to climb the fence.

 And now, for my MOST FAVORITE picture of the day....I LOVE IT!

I'm also thankful for children who like to have their pictures taken. It was a super fun day!

November 3, 2010

Right now one of my children is sitting in their room crying. I interrupted their story to tell them to put pants on. They're too old to be walking around the house in their underwear. Can my one thing I'm thankful for today be doors and pillows to cry in? GOOD GRIEF!

Today Matthew only had a half day of school because of parent teacher conferences. He also has tomorrow and Friday off because of said conferences. I went to his conference today. He's doing really well but they said he gets easily distracted and he talks too much. I'm pretty sure he got that from Ken. (or me)

The thing I'm thankful for today is $20 coupons off of purchases that are even under $20. Because of said coupons I was able to buy a Christmas present for one of my children and 3 pairs of crazy knee high socks today for nothing. That's right.  It was free. I didn't have to add stuff to meet a limit so my purchase of $19.51 cost me nothing...except for all the shoes I bought at famous footwear to earn said coupon. So worth it though!

In other news...Nicole continues to be doing really well learning at home. She's found her niche and I'm just trying to provide her with enough information because she can't seem to get enough of it! (except for history. We seem to fall asleep during movies.)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my Sister in Law, RHONDA!!

I couldn't find a picture of her but she likes pickles so this is for her. :)

and now for the TMI section...
I need to buy new deodorant. I think mine is betraying me.  If I'm around you and I stink, please tell me in a way as nice as possible. gracias.

Lastly, but not least-ly...
Will you pretty please with sugar on top help me earn my Personal Progress Medallion and Honor Bee by participating in my PP blog? I'd be most grateful!  http://honorbee.blogspot.com/.

Bathrooms and Pigs and Sugar Cookies...

When I was a little girl visiting my Grandma Price's house I loved using the upstairs bathroom that was down the hall towards her bedroom. It was pink. BEAUTIFUL pink and the soap had a lovely flower smell. There was a doll with a crocheted skirt that hid toilet paper.  Seriously, it was the perfect bathroom for a little girl. The only problem with it was the light was not by the door, but over by the toilet instead.  I always thought that was a little weird but it didn't bother me too much because I could see the light switch when I walked into the room. One time when I was about 5 years old, I finished with my business and then turned the light off before I walked over to open the door.  It was instantly black. No more lovely pink. I didn't know where the door was. I really scared but I didn't want to call for help and be teased. I remember standing in the middle of the room panicking before walking slowly to a wall, placing my hand on the wall and then walking slowly for what seemed like an eternity, until I found the door. It was easily opened and I was free. Phew! That was a close one.  I learned a lesson that day. I NEVER again turned the light off before opening the door in the pink bathroom.

Today when I left my children's restroom I turned the light off (which is right next to the door) before opening the door. When the room went black, I was suddenly 5 years old at my grandma's remembering that experience. the only difference was I wasn't lost inside the bathroom. I just opened the door. I just thought I'd share.

Another funny thing that happened today:

My friend came over and we were talking about what we were making for dinner.  I told her I was making sloppy joes. She said she was making spaghetti. I told her I don't like spaghetti. (Sorry Kate.) She said she doesn't mind spaghetti but she doesn't like hamburger. I told her my sister, Wendi, doesn't like beef at all. Matthew interrupted:
M: Wendi doesn't like beef?!
Me: nope.
M: How come she has a pig?
Me: Pigs are pork.
M: Oh yeah.

So my friend Kate (who happens to love spaghetti) stole and idea from her friends' blog and I'm stealing it from her. For the month of November, she is sharing one thing each day that she is thankful for. I'm going to do that too.

Yesterday: Believe it or not, yesterday I was thankful for Walmart. It pains me to even type that because I HATE Walmart. But yesterday, they were my dream come true. I bought 3 weeks of groceries for less than $200. there. HOORAY! I also took Ken's watch in to get the battery replaced and they broke it. they couldn't get it put back together, even with THREE associates working on it. They told me they were so sorry and gave him a brand new watch, a nice one like the one they  broke, not a crummy one. Thanks Walmart! I'm thankful for you...for the moment.

Today: I'm thankful for good neighbors. Four of the neighbor girls came over and decorated sugar cookies with us today. They are a lot of them, getting them out of my home. It was great to visit with their mom too. I like her. See pictures below for our cookie decorating awesomeness.

Here is my awesome sugar cookie recipe:
1 1/2 C butter softened, not melted
2 C sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla or almond extract (I used almond)
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
*mix all of the above until well blended (I let them mix in my kitchenaid for about 4 minutes)
5 C flour
*slowly add flour until well blended
*chill for 2-3 hours
*roll out until 1/4-1/2 inch thick
*bake at 400 degrees for 6-8 minutes (I did them for 6)

Frosting
1/3 C butter softened, not melted
1 1/2 tsp vanilla or almond extract (I used almond)
1/4 C milk
4 1/2 cups sifted powdered sugar
*cream butter
*add flavoring and milk
*slowly add powdered sugar
*add more milk if needed, to make it spreadable (I usually end up using about 1/3 C)
*add desired food coloring and enjoy decorating your cookies!

Meet Perri. She is SO SWEET! Except when she eats too much sugar. Some people get hyper. She becomes angry. Before that happened, she went home and then off to Activity Days. I felt kind of like a grandma this afternoon. Sugared her up and then sent her home to detox. :)

Boy Scouts and Long Jumps.

Matthew is working on his Tender Foot in Boy Scouts. This last Thursday they were doing physical fitness. Here are some pictures of him doing to the long jump. He jumped 54 inches. That was an 8 inch improvement of his jump a month ago. He should get his Tender Foot this month. Way to go Matthew!



scripture study from my point of 'view'

Right before we started reading scriptures, this is what my family looked like from my view. Ken's phone he was playing on is on his knee now. Nicole was 'conversing' with her magic 8 ball as opposed to the scriptures sitting on her lap. I'm not really sure about that face...She's funny...and 12.

 Matthew was just taking up far more than his 1 cushion. He did turn 180 degrees before it was his turn to read.



Good Times! We read Mormon 5 tonight. We should finish the Book of Mormon by Christmas...very exciting!

Halloween 2010

For Halloween this year the kids had their first party then we went to the 3 ward + a branch Trunk or Treat at the church.

Here is Nicole in her wedding dress...a beautiful bride.

 Matthew was an army guy.

 Ken was Charlie Brown.

 For our party we celebrated a lot of the holidays through out the year. First we made rest of the year resolutions.  The kids had to think of something they could do for the rest of the year to serve their families.

 For February they made valentines and put them in the stockings that were hanging off the kitchen counter for each of the kids. I forgot to take pictures of them.

For March we decorated shamrock sugar cookies. The recipe is AWESOME. I'll post it soon.

 Next we dyed Easter Eggs.

 For the summer months we talked about our love of camping and outdoors and then we roasted marshmallows on the stove.

 September was hunting season. They shot inflatable pumpkins with a nerf gun.

 November was thanksgiving. They are their cookies, eggs and we made bean dip with chips and salsa.

 We took random breaks between each activity to break out into random dances such as:

The Hokey Pokey

The Bunny Hop

The Cha Cha Slide

The Macarena

The Electric Slide

 More pumpkin hunting.

 Here's our group shot.

 Halfway through the party Nicole decided to change costumes. She'd been wearing the same thing for almost 4 hours! The horror!

 Here they are at the trunk or treat. It was the biggest one I'd ever seen. The WHOLE parking lot was full! Ken says maybe 150 cars. There is certainly no need to go trick or treating after that!

It was a fun day and I'm glad we have tomorrow to recoop from it before starting back to school on Monday! Happy Halloween!!