February

Well, we made it to February. January seemed long at times, then short at the end. We have had really nice weather, I'm not sure whether to get out the spring clothes or play it safe and keep the winter stuff out. We never know. Cash's 6th birthday is coming up next month. He's already making lists of what he would like to get. We recently started playing the game Cashflow for Kids, he's really good at it and has won each time. It doesn't take them long to figure anything out. Dakot is walking everywhere, he's learning a few signs and loves to hug our kitten. Well I had better head to work, it's Monday!D

Christmas Picture

Here is our 2011 Christmas picture. Somehow Evin talked me out of our normal annual family picture. I still haven't done Dakota's one year pictures but I'm going to soon. I love, love looking back at Cash's pictures and how much he's changed. Cash just started Karate yesterday. I'll have to take a picture of him in his uniform. He is returning to this after about a year off. He's been begging to go and I was so proud of him in class yesterday, mostly because he didn't make me go and participate with him which he thought I should do when he was 4. He has grown so much from attending Kindergarten at Vista Charter School and although Homeschooling trends are on the rise, I see lots of great things that come from the public school system. I've been working part-time at Washington County Assessor's Dept. There are so many great people that work there, I enjoy working with them and am grateful to have a job and a break from being a mom. I love being a mom but I also enjoy some quiet time. I'm thankful that Evin is available and willing to watch the kids while I'm at work. My first few weeks at work were quiet, it took some getting used to. For 2012 I've decided to simplify my life even more, which usually means change. I'd like to purchase less and repurpose more. It's a lofty goal but we'll give it a try. When I read Your Money or your Life my purchasing habits changed. I used to buy items based on future need and for the most part I now purchase based on current need. I still shop sales but don't use coupons. It took me about a year to realize that the coupons encouraged me to buy packaged items which were cheap but not necessarily healthy for your body. Now I avoid the inside isles at the grocery store which saves me money. I learned to make my own windex (Evin still prefers the real stuff) and shower spray. I use cloth diapers and cloth wipes for Dakota and wish I had with Cash, it would have saved us about $1,500-2,000. I would love to eliminate paper towels but I think Evin would flip. Currently, I'm reading Unfair Advantage by Robert Kiyosaki. I enjoy his style of writing and enjoy reading about his real life experiences. He's a lot more famous than when I read his first book Rich Dad, Poor Dad but he seems like he's still trying to teach the same concepts. Well I had better get ready for the day.......

Wow, it's been too long. It's a New Year and with it comes more promises to myself. Promises like updating my blog more often, keeping a cleaner house, organizing more, eating less, exercising more, catch up on scrapbooking all while working a part-time job, tending to two kids and a husband. It's a tall order and I may not get it all done but at least in my mind it could happen. Since the last post we've added to our family. Dakota Wayne Proffitt was born two days before Christmas in 2011. He just turned one and is such a joy to have in our family. He laughs at us all the time, especially when he's in trouble. He's learning hot and although he can't say the words, he can sign milk, hungry, night-night and good-bye. He understands a lot. Cash is now 5 and is in Kindergarten. His teacher says he's a great student, always listening and doing what he's told. I wonder if she's confusing him with another kid? Actually he is pretty well behaved when out and about, at home he's a usual kid testing his boundaries and testing or parenting skills. So with two boys we are one happy family. We are excited to enter 2012 and embrace ourselves for the best year ever. Evin and I will have been married for 15 years this August and we are at the point that we don't remember life apart. Each year brings new challenges but we are looking forward it. Oh, almost forgot. Cash got a kitty named Sonic at Christmas, he's also a fun addition to our family. I'll post some pictures soon.............

Happy 2010 or not? When you've gotten into a hole?

Just wanted to post a Happy New Year for 2010. I know it's already the middle of January but I was in a fog for a few weeks. I hope everyone is inspired to meet or beat their New Years Goals. I'm still working on my list but there's so many other things going on right now. Today's world requires us to work faster, smarter and harder just to keep up. I'm committed to living in the here and now world and try to not worry about what lays ahead.

My mantra "It will all work out"

The worst part of 2010:

Jan Week 1: $150.08 bill arrives in our home mail box (weird to me since we always use our PO Box for bills) from a local company right after Christmas for Evin's jaw surgery which occurred in 2007. The anesthesiologist hadn't got paid his $1508.00 from the Insurance Company until 11/2009. Now that the insurance company paid their 90%, they wanted us to pay the remaining 10%.

Jan Week 2: The flu plagues our house for 7 days, sending Cash into a miserable state while Evin and I decide who has the worst aches/pains and who's going to tend to Cash in the middle of the night. The official coughing contest is on.

Jan Week 2 1/2: Our home refinance is begging for attention when the mortgage company accidentally adds $5k to the payoff, we find this out the day before closing.

The best part of 2010:

Jan Week 1: After 2 hours on the phone playing phone tag. I beg a very nice lady to let me pay the $150.08 in installments. She agrees to write the whole bill off. I actually had to ask if she was being serious. I knew I owed the money, I just didn't know how fast I could pay it off. This day she is my hero. Glad we didn't get sent to collections on this one. I had no idea someone didn't get paid for their work. Apparently the insurance company got the bill 1yr after service (the doctors have 2 yrs to bill the insurance company) one check got lost and never got cashed. A year later the doc sends another bill and bamo they get paid. The doc's office said they couldn't bill me until the insurance company paid. The other part, we moved. We had a 6mo. forward on our old home address but Jan 2008 we also moved PO Boxes. I pondered this move for a few years and just got tired of driving to the other post office every week. Hopefully I won't ever have to move PO Boxes again. I knew something like this would happen, it always does when you move.

Jan Week 2: We start to feel better from the flu after talking with a nurse on the phone who made some good suggestions. Lemon juice, water, humidifier, delsym 12h cough syrup. Thanks you were my hero.

Jan Week 2 1/2: The refinance. We close on our refinance that's only taken 2 months to accomplish. This is only after much work on everyone's part to figure out how much we owe the bank, how much they want us to pay them for the refinance. Thanks to the amazing ladies at the Title Company who went beyond our expectations. It's nice when they call you and tell you they've already handled the problem and deposited the overage in your account on a Friday. You are my hero's this day.

If you are still reading, don't feel sorry for me this is normal day to day life that we all experience. Feel sorry for the Haiti people that just had everything ripped from their lives. I feel saddened for the people left behind to clean up and rebuild while trying to deal with the hardest part of life which is death. They are human, they will learn and grow just like all of us. I'm sure they'd love an earthship home right now, I encourage myself and all readers to learn self sustaining methods as we may one day need to build self sufficient homes. We may even create a shortage of used tires and glass bottles. I'm still trying to decide what can I do right now to help ease the suffering and pain of these people? Oh how I wish I was self sufficient and able to jump on a plane to help in any way I can. They need physical labor, supplies and a plan fast. Help the Haiti people help themselves by offering your love and support in any way you can. Be aware, aware, aware of the scams that result from human tragedies. Unfortunately there are people who prey on this. Know who you are giving your most sensitive info to and check them out. Take the time to find out if they are legitimate. Fraud is rampant so please don't let anyone steal your identity. Good luck to all and the best of wishes to you this year and always!

P.S When you've gotten into a hole, find a way to get out!

Christmas

Christmas was fun. Favorite present: Abu Garcia Jigging combo. Too bad Fish Lake is probably frozen. When I asked Evin what would happen if I accidentally let go of the rod. He concluded "You'll be going in there after it" Maybe I'll keep using his for a while, the water is freezing in August.D

Frogs for Christmas!

Santa delivered two frogs who are still without names. One is a firebelly toad, the other is a tree frog. Went to the pet store to get some crickets, they were sold out. Brought a firebelly toad home. The two firebelly's have made friends and the tree frog prefers to hug the glass. Now we have three nameless frogs. Cash is considering Batman, Robin and Ironman. Evin suggested to change their names everyday!

Blogging

I'm thinking about moving my blog over to www.StGeorgeGrapevine.com maybe I will be better about posting more often. I will have to figure out how to keep all my prior posts. I'm hoping my friends and family will join me. We had a lot of fun in Salt Lake City. We first visited with Eliza and her family, got to see their new huge house. Cash had fun playing with the kids. We went to Jungle Jim's (definitely recommend if you have little kids) and Ikea (also highly recommend letting them "play" for an hour while you shop if they are potty trained and over 37"). Went to the movies, saw "2012" excellent but tense movie. We also went to McDonald's in Lehi, they had a new play area and everything seemed to play music, the toddlers area was nice for the little one's so they didn't get trampled on by the big kids. We met Roger Stubbs, his wife and their twins. The place was crazy busy but we got to visit, it was great to see everyone and their families. Then we travelled to Camille's. We went bowling with some other friends from high school, Aaron Grandy and Jessica Grandy Mills and their families. We had a few hiccups but finally got to let the kids bowl. Cash is much better on the wii but only because he gets to practice more. I only got to bowl once and the holes were too small for my fingers so of course it was a horrible throw! We had a lot of fun and ended up eating dinner at Tres Hombres, the food was great but I couldn't finish it (unusual for me, we were raised to finish all the food on our plate and not waste anything). Cash thought he saw Santa Claus so he convinced me we needed to go and find him. After scouring the restaurant I found a person that had worn a red hat and jacket. He didn't have white hair and wasn't over 35! I explained to him what my son had told me and we had a good laugh! Our kids were crazy at the restaurant but we all had a great time. Cash got to play in the snow, he found out the hard way that the snow was not very deep. He ended up with some dirt in his mouth instead of just snow, yep he did! He loves to eat snow, never thought I would have to say "We don't eat snow off the ground of the parking lot, it's not clean snow" it looked good to him (in his defense it was fresh).We left while it was snowing in SLC and then we brought the cold weather home with us. I'll post pictures later, Cash is demanding breakfast!Later.D