The Picture

This is the picture that I'm looking for.. does anybody know where it can be purchased?

(Now I know several people that would love a copy!)

$59.18!

$59.18: That's how well my 3 eBay auctions did today. Not bad!
Whatever will I buy?

Curtains? I saw these at Bed Bath & Beyond-- they block out light and sound! That would be perfect for our bedroom, but I haven't decided on a color yet.. We have 2 inch blinds, but they don't block out all of the light-- and anything that really blocks out sound would be worth the $$$. And if they really work.. maybe I'll invest for the boys' rooms.

The boys slept in until after 8 this morning-- I love those days!
We got ready, had breakfast, & ran a few errands before story time at the Library.
Amy & Avalon met us there. Charlie & Avalon go to the story time for the 3-5 yr. olds in the story room w/ a little their-size door. They love it! Amy & I visit during Jack's toddler-time in the story circle. We brought Amy & Avalon home to play for a little bit afterwards.

Both of the boys took great naps today (Charlie still seems to need one from time to time). I got some more work done on my scrapbook project! It's not so bad after all! I have Jack's stuff all organized already. Charlie's will be harder because I have more years to sort & organize. I also realized that I don't have a single scrap booking pen that works! That just shows how long it's been since I've done any. It's on my list for tomorrow.

Tomorrow I want to get all of my shopping done (walmart & grocery store), & get my Saturday cleaning done... yeah.. we'll see how it goes!

Wednesday-- IT SNOWED!

Happy Spring! We woke up to several inches of snow this morning.. so I sadly wore sneakers today instead of flip-flops. Flip-flop weather should be back by this weekend though.

The boys and I hit the mall today. Mervin's is having a big clearance sale - I got them a bunch of cute long sleeved shirts for $2 each & a few pairs of jeans that were on sale for $7.

My exciting buy was a pair of cute gauchos that I'd seen at Gap when they were $58-- today they were $19.99 and they had my size (They are still $39.99 online)! They are going to be my favorite shorts this summer.

While I was at the mall I looked in Deseret Book for a picture of President Hinckley that Genny wants. I've seen the picture before but she just found out that it's in production. It's an informal profile of him with a hat on. They didn't have it, but the store clerk heard that someone bought it at the BYU bookstore. That will be my next stop in the search. I searched online but didn't find it. I did, however, find some other informal snapshots of him that are really neat. They were taken in Kirtland by Scot Facer Proctor.

DREAM HOUSE

DREAM HOUSE - AS IN, I'M DREAMING IF I THINK IT'S POSSIBLE TO GET INTO RIGHT NOW!!! But it's fun to look anyway!

This house is nearly identical to Jeff & Allie's that they just built recently. It's approximately 2156 square feet. It even has the expanded family room & kitchen. And this house is located right here in our city in a great new developing community. There are 2 brand new schools to choose from. One is a charter school that sounds awesome from the brochures. And this house has been built on the biggest lot in the division, and on the edge - to the immediate west is a huge pasture which belongs to people who refused to sell it to the developers (not to say they would change their mind at some future point, but I love having one side that's just beautiful open fields). To the east of the home there will be a big side yard before the next house is built. The people who built it were supposed to close last week --- but it totally fell through. And actually, we went and saw this house on Saturday and I wouldn't be surprised if it was already gone.

The downstairs has a half bathroom, the laundry room that goes out to the garage (Charlie said, "Hey! Look! A big garage. What are garages for?"-- so deprived!). It has a good sized front Living Room, Dining Room, then a great kitchen that is open up to a huge family room (with a fire place). There are 4 great bedrooms upstairs. The master sweet is awesome, with and big walk in closet & bathroom & vaulted ceilings. The people who built it picked great tile, carpet, & wall color & did updated naughty alder cabinets and fixtures. The downside is there are no basements in the area because of the water table.. an unfinished basement would make it perfect.

The kitchen, kitchen office area, & the family room:




The master walk-in closet & bathroom:




The asking price--- $289,000. *SIGH* I think I just need to come up with an extra $1000/month or so (wink, wink). Plus $ for the extra taxes, utilities, the yard, vinyl fence, & furniture & TV for the family room, & of course a dining room set.... but a girl can dream, can't she?

I think I have this out of my system now. From our town home (which I love-- I just wish the neighbors weren't so close) we just need to look for the next step up.. this house is probably 3 or 4 steps up. And maybe in a few years we'll be ready for something like this. In the meantime, Greg is starting back up on his MBA in April and we want to stay in a comfortable place, financially, to give him the flexibility to do that.

But a girl can dream...

Just listed on eBay today

Every once in awhile I gather up the formula checks/coupons I have laying around and list them on eBay. Since both Charlie & Jack refused to take a bottle (my fault, I know, I never started early enough) they never drank formula & therefore I never needed to use the retail checks I received. So, I sell them.

Here are today's listings:
$7 ENFAMIL A.R. LIPIL & Gentlease check FREE SHIPPING!

$29 ENFAMIL formula checks expire 5/31- FREE SHIPPING!

$36 Nestle Good Start formula checks - FREE SHIPPING!

I forgot to change my selling template from 3 days to 1 day, so I'll let you know in 2 days, 23 hours how they did.

Expecting and new moms can sign up to receive the retail checks by creating profiles on these sites (nope, I'm not pregnant-- one more cat scan to go first):

Enfamil Family Beginnings

Similac Welcome Addition Club

Nestle Good Start - The Very Best Baby Resource Center

Oh, I'm still here!

-Greg and I got our Advanced Open Water Scuba certification this week... we did 5 dives between Monday & Tuesday.. between Heber & Wendover... exhausting... fun.

-The boys allergies are crazy this Spring.. wiped their noses hundreds of times, I'm sure.

-Pulled out THE SCRAP BOOK STUFF and remembered why I haven't been doing it for the past 2 years (okay, probably longer.. but actually admitting to myself how incredibly far behind I am would just be to discouraging). Really, seriously considering just shoving it right back into the closet.

-Too sleepy tonight for a great elaboration... but I'll upload some pictures maybe tomorrow.. maybe.

Spontaneous Scuba Diving

At about 10:45 this morning I was at the park for play group with the kids. Greg called me on the cell and told me he found out that one of the instructors was taking a few people up to the Homestead Crater in Midway to certify for their Advanced Open Water Scuba Diving certification--- and if we could be there by 4pm we could certify too.

I gave my siblings a quick call & between Alan & Andrew got the boys taken care of for the afternoon & evening. I whipped up a lasagna for them for dinner, packed up the gear, and after a quick stop at Ted's for air tanks and some more equipment we were off!

I love diving at the crater. It's 96 degrees and so calm and relaxing.. the resort uses it as a mineral bath for a spa treatment & after diving in it, I feel like I've had a spa treatment too. We did our 'deep' water dive (it only goes down to 65 ft--- but any dive is fun!) & our 'night' dive, although with the time change, it wasn't as dark as usual, but dark enough to practice our hand signals with flash lights down there.

On our way home we stopped in Heber at the Dairy Keen for well deserved bacon cheese burgers, fries, onion rings, & a burnt almond fudge & brownie shake-- YUM!

While we were at the crater we got details on the rest of the group's plan for driving to Wendover, UT for the rest of their certification dives at Blue Lake (another hot-springs 'lake' that gets to about, oh, I don't know, 75 degrees this time of year?).

March 20, 2007 - Blue Lake Wendover, UT

Mel agreed to watch the boys for us all day, so we woke the up early and drove them up to Bountiful before heading to Wendover. We made great time & read our text chapters in the car on the way there. The lake was so beautiful! We geared up and jumped in.

Greg and I used the Diver Propulsion Vehicles for our first dive. DPVs are supposed to be a 'tool' for scuba divers to be able to cover more area since there are air and time limits-- but they are SO FUN! It's like having a mini hand-held jet ski to pull you around under water. We also did our underwater 'navigation' dive to practice using our compasses & following headings underwater. Oh-- Blue Lake is neat because art students have placed sculptures down there to find. The visibility isn't very good, but we were able to find the toilet (sculpture, that is).

One of my favorite parts of the dive was when i turned around to see Greg using a telephone that for some strange reason was attached to the platform down at 20 feet. It took me by surprise to see him making a 'phone call' when he was supposed to be looking at fish. And there were definately fish, but I don't know exactly what they were. We saw huge ones though that made Greg wish he'd brought his fishing pole. I was surprised to see lots of big bright yellow fish too.

Our last dive was the 'altitude' dive - which just means you're diving at an altitude above sea level-- but that would be all dives done in UT. We just have to learn how to correctly account for nitrogen levels & 'theoretical depth at altitude'.

It was a long long day, but so fun. I honestly think it wiped me out for the rest of the week. But, now I have my Advanced Open Water Certification, which just means I'm certified to do a few more different kinds of dives. Greg is going to be taking the Rescue Diver course next-- which I think would be a really really good course to take, but I don't know if the boys will let us both get away for that much. They weren't thrilled about our 2 days away. But I might at least be able to get in on the CPR courses.. I've done them a few times, but I still don't feel confident to actually perform it. ("Annie, Annie, are you okay?" How about that, Miss King, for a flash to the past?")

Jack's first day of Nursery!

This is a picture of Jack before his first day of nursery (Sunday March 18, 2007).

We've been waiting for months to be able to take Jack into the nursery (The little baby class for little ones ages 18 months - 2 1/2 yrs old during the last 2 hours of church). He became bored with the adult Sunday School class months ago, and preferred Family History because they are a little more casual there (and I don't mind-- I've been loving the Family History class too.)

When I opened the door to the nursery, he ran right in and stopped. He stood there, looking around as if thinking to himself "I DIDN'T KNOW THIS PLACE WAS HERE!" He immediately ran in and started playing with all of the new toys. He knows a lot of the children from play group & from playing with them at the playground. But there were children I didn't even know-- there were 17 kids there that day. But they had lots of teachers too who all seemed very involved with the children.

After standing at the back of the room for about 15 minutes, Jack seemed comfortable enough with the teachers and children that I decided to take my chances and see how he would do on his own in there. I almost expected them to bring him to me after just a few minutes, but he did really well. He stayed there for about half an hour before apparently he got his finger pinched and couldn't quite recover - he needed his mom.

He calmed down immediately and after about 10 minutes he started to beg to "Play.. kids!" I took him back just in time for play dough. He LOVED it! And for the first time didn't try to eat it. He was doing so well, that I left again after a few minutes, but this time they brought him back to me right away. I decided to stay with him for the rest of the time there. He did fine, and just checked every few moments to make sure was still there in the room.

It took Charlie months before he would even let us out of his sight. But Charlie eventually fell in love with his nursery teachers and begged to go there, and hated to leave when it was time to go home. I think Jack will get the hang of things quickly too. He's growing so quickly. He's not a little baby anymore!

Grand Opening

IKEA Draper to Open!
Air out your camping gear! Customers can begin lining up at IKEA Draper at 8:00 am on Monday morning, May 21, 2007 - in advance of our May 23rd opening.

(holy cow.. do people really line up that early? Well, we were planning on doing some camping this summer anyway...)

Weekend in progress...

Friday--- Jack had his 18 month appointment with our pediatrician's physician assistant (who, as it turns out, went to Jr. Prom with Greg's older brother-- small world! And so funny how these things come up.. we were talking about taking the kids to a pediatric dentist for a first check up & knowing one of them on the list she gave us because he was Greg's friend's older brother, and she said that she went to high school with him & we said oh, well then you must have gone to high school with Greg's brothers & she said actually, she'd gone to prom with one of them. TANGENT!)

Jack is doing very well & was very good for the doctor. He is 31 3/4 inches tall (40%), weighs 25 pounds (40%), & his head measures at 50cm (95%-- such consistently big brained kids). He got his second Hepatitis A shot, which he quickly forgave because the nurse gave him a band aid with cars on it (although last time he liked the My Little Pony one too).

Greg took the afternoon off and got a chance to catch up on the phone with his buddy John who mentioned he was going to start the police academy.. hummm.. something Greg's tossing around too.. it's appealing. There's a federal government program that pays you while you train then after having you work 2 years with local law enforcement places you within the FBI. Just something to look into and think about... just another one of those possibilities out there to consider.

We spent the rest of the afternoon playing at the park outside. Our friends Tony & Shayna & their kids were there-- we have a great time chatting with them & it was easy to stay there for an hour and a half while the kids ran around like monkeys. When we finally brought the kids home we threw them in the tub for an early bath and got them ready to spend the evening with Katie & her boyfriend, Scott (who a year ago Charlie affectionately called "Sock" or "Ox"-- couldn't quite remember his name), while Greg & I had a night out with some friends (THANK YOU SO MUCH, KATIE! And tell Scott that the first thing Charlie wanted to know when he woke up this morning was "Where's Scott & Katie? I wanted them to stay here"). We helped cook a big Japaneses meal (10 rolls of sushi, tons of gyozas, & friend noodles). It was SO good. Then we settled in and watched Casino Royale. I likey this new James blond-- hot & hilarious. The torture scene was pretty funny.

Saturday---
Nothing terribly exciting. Greg worked at Ted's today. The boys & I went to a neighborhood watch meeting & then took Greg lunch at work. Ted gave me a Scuba Ted t-shirt! And I found out that Greg signed us up for our advanced open water scuba class on Monday.. normally it would be $100 for each of us, but Ted is letting buy just one book for $36 and that's it. So, although Greg had to work all day today.. the awesome discounts on scuba classes & gear is really really good.

I made creme puffs & lemon cheese tarts for Susan's (Greg's mom) 65th birthday party. The creme puffs were my mom's recipe & turned out great. The lemon tarts looked perfect, tasted great, but completely stuck to the papers when you tried to eat them- no biggie.

Greg got home at 4 & we got ready & stopped at Tai Pan Trading Company on our way to the party. I love that store, but Charlie was super grumpy so it was a really quick stop. They didn't have the coat rack wall hangy thing I want to get for behind my front door so the search continues. But actually.. maybe I'll end up just getting this one at Target.

We had a great time at Milt & Susan's house tonight but even though we didn't leave until after 9:30 we felt rushed getting back-- Greg had to work at his other extra-just-for-the-heck-of-it job where he gets paid all night to pretty much hang out with his buddy & watch movies & periodically do security checks all night. We realize that once again it's time to re-evaluate how things are going and come up with another plan.. go back to school? study what? get a better job? We've just been winging it.. coasting along & getting along great but now we're at a cross roads. But that's what keeps it interesting.. trying to decide what should be next & then seeing where life carries you despite your good intentions best laid plans.

Jack - 18 months old

Yesterday, Jack reached his 18 month mile-stone. I had intended to get him outside and take some pictures of him, but each time the boys went out they got so dirty that I kept putting it off. Finally, last night they were outside playing hockey & I snapped this picture of Jack with his dirty mouth & runny nose & realized that this is probably the most honest picture of him I could have taken.

He was having the best time running around with Charlie & Greg. He's enjoying his new-found freedom being permitted to play in our little backyard without being hovered over. He goes from the bike to the slide, to shooting hoops, to digging rocks out of the flower bed, to following bugs & spiders.

Spring is here (I hope!)

I don't care if it's because of the silly time change, but when the first sound you hear from your children doesn't come until the clock says 8:20 am.. it's gonna be a great day.

We did our usual morning thing.. start the laundry, make breakfast, clean up the kitchen, get dressed.. and it was time to head out the door for play-group. We met at the church & because it was so beautiful outside, we let the kids run around after they decorated cupcakes, under the pavilion, for St. Patrick's Day. Charlie ran around with his little pals; Cole, Will, Nate, & Jacob as they all waved big sticks & dug holes in the sandy volley ball court. Charlie came running up to me with a huge dirt ring around his mouth and I knew it must be spring. Jack tried his best to keep up with the boys but seemed to always be about 30 feet behind. He would chase them for awhile, then come back and try playing with the babies left hanging out on their mom's lap but they weren't nearly as entertaining. He still had a good time though-- cupcakes were involved.

Right after playgroup they came home to take a walk with daddy & have lunch while I ran in for a 'quick' eye doctor appointment (just a check up on new contacts.. but I was gone for an hour and a half-- but on the upside, finished my slacker-wife book while I waited.) Greg had put Jack down for his nap while I was gone, so I didn't think he'd sleep all that long.. he ended up taking a 3 hour nap though!

Just a note on naps. After a week of Charlie struggling to fall asleep before 9:30 or 10, we decided it was finally time to get rid of his afternoon nap (which I was pretty much forcing him to take anyway & he would end up sleeping away the afternoon from 2 - 5pm). He has done amazingly well without them! He doesn't even get cranky. He spends that time in the afternoon doing quiet things like playing with play dough or painting or looking at books. I thought I was going to dread not having my alone time, but he's so pleasant & quiet that I can still have a little time to myself (today I read the paper). I think he's so well behaved because he knows if he acts up I won't hesitate to throw caution to the wind and put him down for a nap anyway.

We've also just recently killed Jack's morning nap. All this time he's been taking a 1 1/2- 2 hour morning nap at around 9am & then an afternoon nap at 2pm (during charlie's afternoon nap but never lasting as long). I can't believe how nice it is! I can go out in the mornings and get errands done, bring the boys home for lunch, then Jack goes down for his nap immediately after lunch, and by the time he wakes us, there's still plenty of the the afternoon left to get out again before dinner time. This is going to be perfect for swimming this summer. We can swim in the morning, eat lunch, & swim again after nap time.

This afternoon after Jack's mega-nap, we headed out for a walk with our wagon.. we took out the recycling, got the mail, & then went to the play ground and played for an hour and a half.. there were tons of neighbors out with their little kids and we had a blast! Jack had a blast playing like the big kids and got his own ring of dirt around his mouth. After a quick dinner, we went to Scuba Ted's to visit Greg who went in for a couple of hours to cover for someone else-- and to get popcorn. Scuba Ted has a popcorn machine & a beautiful salt water fish tank, and this is why they love going to Scuba Ted's (plus he lets them try on the masks and fins).

Greg pointed out a lion fish to Jack & he promptly ROARED like a lion. He was so proud of himself. It was like he was thinking "I just made a joke!"

Then I said to Charlie, "Look at his face, Charlie. He looks sad." And Charlie said, "Why is he so sad? Does he miss his family?"

Oh my gosh, that was the saddest thing I ever heard my little 3 1/2 year old say.

But then I found the little puffer fish hiding behind a rock. And he looked happy. That made me feel better.

"Do we have bread?"

I just started a new book, Confessions of a Slacker Wife, by Muffy Mead-Ferro. It's promising to be very funny and articulating all those thoughts & feelings I've had while trying to figure out all this mom/wife stuff. This is my favorite excerpt (so far) - she's talking about how jumpy, irritable, & even unreasonable she sometimes gets.

"Case in point: My husband exasperates me sorely from time to time by asking such questions as "Do we have bread?"

"I realize from an intellectual standpoint that this is nothing to get irked about. I am aware that from my husband's straightforward viewpoint, "Do we have bread?" is a yes-or-no question as to the status of a simple material fact. "Do we have bread?" does not, in his mind, warrant a reply such as the following from me:

"Do we have bread? Am I to understand, from your question, that you are saying you do not know after the five-and-a-half years we have spent in this house where the bread is kept? Or should I simply infer that you are too lazy to look in the bread basket? And is it also the case, since you would never be expected to keep abreast of what the bread supply is or, God forbid, actually go to the store to replace the bread that we've eaten or let get moldy, that it is my job and my job alone to know what the bread inventory is and to do what's necessary to make sure it is maintained at a level where you can eat bread whenever you feel like it? Or is this just your irritatingly indirect way of asking me to get up and get you a piece of bread?"

"Not that I would ever, ever let loose with that kind of a sarcastic diatribe. Besides, if I did, the only point it would make with my husband would be that I was grouchy. And he'd be right. But sometimes I do feel grouchy. Because keeping us supplied with groceries is just one of the many thankless if not completely invisible chores that it seems i have on my list simply because I am the wife."

Amen, Sister! She also talks about wondering aloud, "When can I get my own wife?"--- WHICH I'VE BEEN SCREAMIN' FOR YEARS!

I really love my little family, and I'm proud of my position in it but it sure is good to hear that other people have felt the same way you do from time to time. And I love it when people admit their imperfections & admit to being REAL people. We're all just trying our best here, folks.

What's for dinner?

• sourdough bread pizzas w/ canadian bacon or pepperoni, mushrooms, onions, & motzarella

What's for dinner?

• grilled london broil
• steamed broccoli
• salad

Jack's BIG BOY accomplishment

Yesterday the weather was so nice that after nap time we walked over to the park. Jack's favorite goggy, Rusty (who lives next door & Jack can watch from his bedroom window) was there as well. Jack was thrilled to see him.

Rusty was being hilarious & started to climb the big yellow ladder (something I've been trying to encourage Jack to do so I don't have to heave him up so he can go down the big slide). Jack was truly inspired by Rusty's ability to climb the ladder & finally did it without hesitation (with his tongue sticking out the whole time).

Thank you, Rusty!

One of Charlie's favorite pastimes

When Jack is napping, Charlie loves to pretend that he's a carpenter. This envolves him turning the coffee table over & pretending to pound a little screw into it with he beloved yellow hammer (this hammer he sleeps with at night).


Yesterday he was 'building a house for John Beck' (former BYU quarterback).

Boys will be boys

Here's one reason why the boys like it when I get the vacuum out.

Charlie's "Where do babies come from?" saga continues...

An ultrasound picture of Jack flashed up on our screen saver today.

Charlie said, "Hey! What's that a picture of? Is that black thing a baby?"

"Yup! In Mommy's tummy."

"What baby?"

"That baby!" I said pointing to Jack who was standing next to him.

"Oh! Well, I don't see the seed in it anywhere!" He said, referring back to the picture.

I knew that egg/seed thing would keep coming back!

(Actually, now that I'm looking at the picture, it kind of does look like an egg and a seed..weird.)

Jack & his toes

Jack really loves toes. When he was a baby he used to suck on his toes. When he was just crawling around, he'd crawl up to anyone and start attacking their toes (and even attempted sucking on other people's toes a time or two). He especially likes to put his index finger between them.

A couple of months ago he discovered that his socks put little fuzzies between his toes, so periodically throughout the day he'd remove his socks and clean out his toes. After a bath he'd inspect them to make sure they were all clean.

Most recently however, he's decided that it's fun to put food between his toes. So, while he's finishing up a snack, he seems to look at his feet & think, "hummm, my snack is almost gone, I'd better save this last one to try to get in between my toes." And he immediately gets to work.

He's tried several foods.. animal crackers, bread, raisins, but fruit snacks work the best. Today I finally got some pictures of this strange little habit of his. And yes... he DID eat the fruit snack when he'd succeeded (gross, I know.. but he has a bath every day & he's fanatic about maintaining their cleanliness anyway).

*Wouldn't you know... as soon as I posted this blog I turned around and saw Jack putting keys between his toes. Silly kid.

What's for dinner?

• chicken & eggplant casserolle
• 2 cheese spaghetti squash

24 hours without the internet - TORTURE!

The things you don't appreciate until they're gone - the internet. Mine was MIA for 24 hours & I was amazed at what a HUGE inconvenience it was. I wanted to watched missed episodes of Heroes last night - couldn't. I needed to pay some bills online & balance my checkbook this morning. It was killing me not to check my e-mail and update my blog (I had a bajillion little updates - we'll see how many I can actually remember now). I have formula checks to list on eBay... wanted to look up some library call numbers & see how many more days I had to pick up a book that's on hold-dah!.. and I was lost without my instant messenger... Greg & I chat back & forth all day long about little random things (things not important enough to make a phone call but information nevertheless). And all of my other friends that I keep in touch with-- no Internet = seclusion from the outside world. But - now, I'm back! It was funny to me how THRILLED I was when I saw my little IM boxes loading & my little g-mail notices on the screen. My computer is pretty useless without the Internet. I have tons of pictures & a bunch of recipes.. but that's it! (Okay & a few calendars and other documents for Young Women's - but I'm out of ink so unless I can e-mail those documents, those are useless too).

Ahhhh, I'm so happy to be online....

What's for dinner?

• baked salmon with creamy lemon sauce
• rice pilaf
• peas

What's for dinner?

• pork loin with roasted raspberry chipolte sauce
• steamed red potatoes
• leftover steamed cauliflower, greenbeans, & salad

Weekend Update

Charlie, Jack, & I kicked off Friday by successfully completing a HUGE trip to Wal-Mart & then to the grocery store-- no small fete with those crazy monkeys. Granted, I did have to start throwing fruit snacks at them half way though Wal-Mart but there was no waiting in line (generally where the toddler-torturing of mommy takes place) - and they accepted all of my coupons (Saved $7.90!). I rewarded their good behavior with their favorite lunch stop - Wendy's & they blissfully dipped their french fries in their Chocolate "Melty" (that's what Charlie calls Frosties, since they melt so quickly). Jack even dipped his chicken nuggets & cheese burger in his, but hey.. at least he ate all of his food. While I was eating and putting the groceries away at the same time, I accidentally spilled my entire Dr. Pepper all over the kitchen floor to which Charlie told me I was going to be in big, big trouble for making a huge mess & Daddy was going to come home and tell me to get in the corner. I explained that it was an accident & I was going to clean it up & this seemed to be a good solution to him (besides eating my double jr. bacon cheese burger without my Dr. Pepper was punishment enough). At least he's not telling me to get in the corner like he was a few weeks ago, but I guess he thinks Daddy can put Mommy in time out if she's naughty.

Uncle Al came over for dinner & to do his laundry & play with his nephews while Greg & I took some time to finally go watch Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest in the movie theater of our club house. I love that Captain Jack Sparrow.. loved the chirography of the sword fights.. was horrified by the sea creature people.. but it definitely felt like a 'middle' to me & I can't wait to see the next one - I think it comes out on May 25th!

When we got back I put Charlie to bed. Alan had successfully changed his first poopy diaper & had gotten Jack to go to sleep successfully. The boys had a great time with him & when Charlie woke up this morning he said "Hey! Why did Uncle Al go home? I wanted him to stay here!" Greg and I vegged in front of the Discovery Channel and watched Lobster Men & contemplated a move and a career change. The crew members made $7800 for 5 days of lobstering!

Greg jumped on an opportunity to work at Scuba Ted's on Saturdays to get a sweet discount on gear & classes. So that's where he's been today. The boys and I went to hang out with him for awhile before their naps. This morning we got all the bedrooms cleaned, the kitchen & living room cleaned & dusted & vacuumed, the upstairs bathroom done & the laundry done. My random-Saturday-project was to straighten out the computer cords and dust/vacuum behind the desk - it it looks awesome. My living room feels so much less cluttered now.

Tonight I'm going to finish my young women's lesson for tomorrow. I'm teaching the combined lesson - so with all of the young women & the leaders. I have too much material & I'm trying to narrow it down. The lesson is called Loving Ourselves & Others and everything I read seems to totally apply & I want to share everything I've learned with them. I know that it's probably the hardest time for these girls, being in Jr. High & High School & dealing with mean girls who are supposedly their friends but hurt them continuously & peer pressure & clicks & wanting to be accepted and trying to figure out who they are and who they want to become---- I just want them to really feel their own value and worth and know that they can ignore those outside pressures and be who they want to be & make the choices they know to be right. We have the cutest, funniest & most accepting group of girls. I'm really loving my calling as the Young Women's secretary & I'm glad I get the chance to teach every few months.

Here are some pictures I uploaded of the boys looking at a caterpillar in the backyard (2-22-07).

Charlie was afraid of it at first, he kept saying it was going to sting him & stayed in the safety of the wagon. Jack was initially intrigued by our little caterpillar.

After following it for awhile, and even holding it while it was on a stick & petting it, Jack decided it was funny to be afraid of it like Charlie was. So this is his 'feigned fear of a fuzzy little caterpillar'. The kid can really act!

What's for dinner?

• meatloaf
• steamed cauliflower
• corn

What's for dinner?

• BBQ grilled chicken
• salad
• steamed green beans

I WANT MY HGTV!!!

I'm SO BUMMED! I just realized my cable line-up changed & I don't get HGTV anymore. My sit-back-and-vege-channel is gone because there's no way I'm going from paying a mere $14.95/month to paying $51.60/month to get it back. *Sigh* Well, I'll just take this as an opportunity to watch even less TV & spend more time doing other things.. I guess... I haven't fully convinced myself of this.. but it'll come... I hope.

What's for dinner?

• steak, onion, & mushroom kabobs
• oven roasted eggplant
• steamed asparagus