New Blog

I decided to start a new blog.  We have been in Alaska for over two years now and are somewhat getting settled.  Our sixth baby is nine months and becoming so fun and not so colicky.  I decided I would try to start blogging again.  Check out our new place!hullabaloosweethullabaloo.blogspot.com

Which Way Is Up

Are you up or are you down?  Are you sideways, crossways or upside down?  I ask myself this as I sit here in my new life in Alaska.  You will notice that I haven't written on our blog for almost a year.  This is because right about a year ago my life took a ride on a giant beautiful roller coaster.  

It started that we were moving from Great Falls Montana.  But where might that be?  Could it be Germany or Singapore?  How about the Middle East, Big Fork Montana, Kirsville Missouri, Heber city Utah?  All of these were job offers as well as others.  We traveled to many of these places and even took temporary jobs at some of them.  Our family stayed together at some of the places while we tried it out.  We thought long and hard and prayed often. We even home schooled that year so we could take our kids with us on our hunt.   We wanted to make the perfect decision for our family.  There were many  turned down opportunities because they did not feel right.  

Finally, we thought we had made the right decision; twice.  We were all but moved to Missouri when it fell through.  Next, we were a day away from buying a house in Utah.  It was not meant to be.  After the ten month process, we were back to square one.

"Well,"   I said to Jeremy, "We have tried all the places I was interested in.  Why don't you go ahead and research Alaska."

  Jeremy thought I was on drugs.  He'd been trying to get me to Alaska for years.  It was a closed book in my mind. . . ."A whole country away from family."  Jeremy had already done research in Alaska.  It had many dental opportunities and the economy was good there compared to the lower 48 states.  

Every thing went super fast at that point.  It all fell into place.  Come June of 2010 we bought a dental practice in Alaska.  We packed up and moved from our beautiful home in Montana.   The 24 foot trailer was filled and headed North for our new adventure.  Jeremy Drove out on the Alaskan Highway for

a five day journey.   I stayed behind and flew up two months later with the dog and kids;  both of which are stories in and of itself which I will share later.  

Since we all arrived here late July we have "only" moved three times.  It must be a record somewhere.  We started out pretty organized with boxes labeled and things easy to find.  By the time we got to this last house, everything was chaos.  We were so tired of moving it did not matter what box this or that was in; only if it got there.  Needless to say, although we have been in our last place for two months, we are often playing treasure hunt when we need any particular item. 

Moving is a funny thing.  It's like a rebirth.  You start from scratch all over again.  It is quite refreshing.  It's also a somewhat daunting task.  All of our routines, schedules, and any kind of order that was once in place fell out from the moving truck somewhere in the last three moves.  

It feels like I am just starting my family again in some ways.  

"Chore chart, what chore chart?"

"There's jobs around here? Who knew"

"Let's have a contest to see who can have the longest hair.  We can't find the clippers and we don't know a good barber in town anyway." (I think Tilly won that one.) 

I should have taken my zapper gun and froze the kids so they would not grow.  Buy the time we found all of our clothing they had all out grown them.  Bummer! 

Half of our furniture is still in Great Falls staging our house to sell.  So, mats on the floor will have to do. 

                    But, life goes on and you throw yourself in!  The kids had friends calling right away.  Thank goodness for the church which snapped our teenagers up and kept them busy with amazing activities.  Jer's business has kept him hopping to say the least.  

School started a month after we got here.  Between school, preschool, football practice, dance, piano, scouts, the kids cleaning their dad's office every day, and packing or unpacking (which ever applied),  we didn't have a second to catch our breath.  

Now that it's been six months and the roller coaster is dying down, I take a step back . . . . . .

and find myself in Alaska!

It is beautiful!

Lately I have had a bit of a let down I guess.  I suppose that's normal after big events.  I'm deciding however, that instead of feeling lost I'm just going to recreate our life.  What a perfect time to sit pack and decide what you really want your life to be about. . . and make it that way.

I hope to share with you (our loved ones and dear friends) our adventures in "The Last Frontier".  It's my way of hopefully bridging the gap over Canada.  :)

March Madness!

Basketball Brackets

March was just that for us. Complete madness!  What other way is there?!  First off we of course had to fill out our basketball brackets!  We even invited  a friend to be in the family bracket.  With the winnings being 5o bucks we were all motivated.  And who won? . . . . .       drum roll . . . . . .  MJ!!!  Yeah!  She is already scheming what to do with her prize!  BJ was not too happy, beings he cares more about sports than the whole family put together, except for Jer of course; he is the king!  I have to chuckle at the irony.  It's even worse that during our family Fantasy Football league this year I won and MJ came in second.  Kudos to the girls!!

MJ, BJ, and friend filling out their brackets!

Next was St. Patty's Day!!!  

After eating our traditional Lucky Charm breakfast (thanks Grandma S. for giving us that idea years ago) We took off to the parade decked out in our green.

Notice the two party poopers Dad and BJ are not there.  They boycotted the parade to watch the basketball games on T.V.  Go figure!  (It was good, they would have went crazy knowing they were missing all those games to watch a bunch of people in green march down the road.)

We had fun without them anyway.  The kids were most enamored by the loads of candy being thrown.

I was so surprised how many Irish families there are in Great Falls.

For school we studied the origin of St Patrick's Day....

Patty's Day Trivia Facts

1. St. Patrick was responsible for bringing Christianity to Ireland.

2.  He was not originally Christian, but was kidnapped from Roman Britain by Irish raiders at the age of 16.  

3. When he escaped and went back to his home he converted to the church.

4. He went back to Ireland to teach Christianity.

5. St. Patrick's Day became a national public Holiday in Ireland in 1903.

6. The shamrock came to be because Saint Patrick used it to teach the people of "The Trinity."

7. The color associated with Saint Patrick was originally blue, but they changed it to green because of the Shamrock.

8. Saint Patrick's Day is now celebrated by many countries. 

9.  Since 1991 March was declared by the U.S. Congress as Irish-American Heritage month.

10. In Ireland it is still a widely religious holiday and used to celebrate missionaries as well as Irish Heritage.

We decided to start a new tradition and use the holiday to celebrate the missionaries for our religion.  What better way to do this than to write Limericks!  We have three full time missionaries out from our ward right now.  Here are some of the Limerick's the kids wrote for them.

There once was a prophet named Nephi,

who had a father named Lehi.

He always did good,

he did what he should.

That's why he's my favorite good guy.

by C.J

There once was a good missionary,

who taught the gospel to Larry.

He though it was true,

and taught it to Sue.

Then in the temple they marry.

by M.J

An Elder was going to Lima,

but somebody lost his visa.

It could not be ignored,

so he prayed to the Lord,

Now Jaron is preaching in Lima.

by B.J

We hope they will enjoy our Saint Patrick's Day packages although they will get them much later than Saint Patrick's Day.

Of course we had to end the day with a green dinner.

L.J. sporting her fancy mint shake mustache

Leprechaun Traps

They say  that Leprechauns can be found around St. Patrick's Day so we set a trap in hopes of catching one and sharing his treasure.

They love shiny and pretty things so C.J. thought we could use some of L.J's pretty bows along with tinsel, and glitter to bate him.  When I woke early in the morning before the kids, this is what I found. . .

Our trap was tripped with a little Leprechaun shoe pinched underneath.  He must have dropped all this treasure trying to get away!!


However, he did get us back.  By the time the kids got up most all of the gold Rollo candies were gone.  I thought for sure the dog ate them and waited for her to get sick all day.  She never did get sick.  A couple of days ago I found all the Rollo's stashed in the vacuum.  That tricky little Leprechaun.

These Holidays keep me going and break the monotony of life.  I am grateful to my family for humoring me and going along with it all.

Visit

We ended our month with a visit from our friends in Missoula.  We met  each other in Dental school.  What a treat it was to see them again.  It's been three years since we've managed to get together.  We played games, watched movies, went out to lunch, and. . .

 We even broke out the frisbee golf game.

The kids got along great!

What a busy month full of craziness!  We are so blessed!

Look Who's a Big Girl!

As much as I have tried to stop her, she is growing up with or without me.  LJ is officially two and 1/2.  Her vocabulary is multiplying every day, she sleeps in a "big girl" bed, and. . . .

   She has braved the uncharted waters of potty training!  Hands down my least favorite responsibility of a parent.  Potty Training. . . EEEEEEKKKKK!  Usually that is what it makes me want to do at the top of my lungs while pulling my hair out!  I must say I did remain quite patient and calm with her through the whole ordeal.  Alas, every last ounce of my patience was used up by her so, there was zero left for the rest of the family.  Some how we  made it through in tact.  
  All seemed to be going pretty well at first.  She would tell us quickly before she had to go and we would dash  off to the bathroom as fast as we could caper.  She would then happily climb up on her throne.  Once there, all of a sudden she would scream bloody murder.  I have never seen anything like it!  Stage fright I guess.  I would loving tell her it was okay and that soon she would pee and it would all be fine.  Seriously, it sounded like someone was trying to kill her.  But, as quickly as it started the terror would stop as soon as she started to go.  She would stop screaming and giggle triumphantly; so proud of herself.  It was as if I was witnessing Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hide right there on the toilet.
     This was the routine for every time she went to the bathroom for about a week.  It's no big deal when you're in your own bathroom, but when your in a public place it's a whole different story!  We were traveling on a necessary road trip and LJ announces she has to go.  I tell her just to go in her pull up beings we were in the middle of no where.  That of course did not fly!  After all she had worked so hard to be a big girl for a week and suddenly I wanted her to put all that work aside and go in her pants?!  We luckily found a tiny gas station where I rushed LJ in who was of course all smiles.  As soon as we got in the tiny closet bathroom however, out came a fitful Mr. Hide.  I just knew the workers would think I was beating her.  I looked around hoping there would be a camera to prove that I was not hurting this poor child.  She finally went and was happy, quiet, and proud of herself.  As we walked out both attendants glared at me.  I just smiled back, bought LJ a treat for her reward, and left half expecting Child Services on my door step the next day!
  I'm so glad we've finally mastered that hurdle and even night times!  Now however, we are having the same  stage fright problems when it comes to number two!  Oh the Joys!!

Don't grow up LJ please, please, please!

 

Do you know your presidents?

U.S. president trivia. . . .

1. Which president was offered the opportunity to be king, but turned it down?
2. Which president ran a peanut farm before he became president?
3. Which Presidents played football in college?
4. Which Presidents died in office?
5. Who was the youngest and oldest president?
6. How many U.S presidents were previous soldiers?
7. Who had 2 crocodiles as pets?
8. Who was the only U.S. president with a Masters Degree?
9. Which president found proof for the Pythagorean Theorem?
10. Who sent Lewis and Clark on their expedition?


How did you do?  You can find the answers at the bottom.  The kids did better than I thought they would with our little trivia game.   During our Presidents Day dinner, I learned a few new things also.  I was so lucky that my friend shared all of her presidents research with me!  It made for a fun way to remember past presidents.  A definite add on to our tradition list.
We served our meal from the President's favorite foods list. . . .  
Fish. . .George Washington's favorite food
Bread. . . many president's favorites
Apple Cider . . . again popular for many
Baked apples . .. one of Lincoln's first choice as well as several others
Fresh Vegies. . .  Thomas Jefferson's preferred
And of course desert!
Ice cream. . .  George Washington
Jelly Beans. . . Ronald Reagan

                                               AJ excitedly awaits his food! 
      Don't you love the artistic chandelier?!  Credit goes to Jer's head. . . Another story for another day!


It was a well deserved meal to an active day.  The weather had finally reached bearable conditions!(above zero)  I am embarrassed to say that we have not played in the snow once this year;  not even skiing.  What kind of Montanans are we?  So. . . .
This morning I repented and we all went sledding!




Rigorous Preparation!    Please, don't have to pee now!

                                                  Snow bunny!

            CJ, Conquerer of the mountain. AJ, still sitting in the sled trying to decide if it was fun or not.

                                                  

                                                        Friends join in the fun!  MJ's buddy!

            

       These two find the one hill with more mud than snow; of Course!  Mud is a boy magnet right?

 LJ(2) could not solve the dilemma of  decreased hand mobility with gloves on, but freezing cold hands with gloves off!  What to do, what to do?  Answer; sit in the car with the dog.

AJ(5) could not figure out how to go down a screaming fast hill (because it was so fun), but not get chunks of snow in the face simultaneously.  

Answer; sit in the car with the dog.

Result; mommy sits in the car with the dog and the two problem solvers.  

Chalk it up to another fun memory making day!

Answers

1.George Washington 2. James Carter 3. Ford (U of MI), JFK (freshman Harvard), Nixon (reserve tackle at Whittier College), Reagan (lineman Eureka College), Eisenhower (played against Jim Thorpe for Army) 4.  Harrison, Taylor, Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, Harding, FDR, JFK 5. Teddy (42), Reagan (69)  6. Seven 7. Hoover  8. GW Bush 9. James Garfield 10. Thomas Jefferson

"I Love You a Bushel and a Peck!"

   That's the Song my kids sang to their Valentines today, as well as, "Love at Home."  Since the kids couldn't give Valentines away at "school", and because dad was away on business, we kept ourselves busy being Valentine Cupids today!  We first had to get the house dressed for the occasion of course!

By the time the kids were finished  most of the free wall space and windows were covered in hearts.  Next, it was time for our Valentine breakfast  . . . .

Strawberry Waffles, and Strawberry Smoothies on the menu.

I had lots of helpers of course!

The kids were so excited to eat on the China and use the special Champagne glasses!

We paused the celebrations for a moment, since it was clean day, to get our chores done.  Rats!!  Mom is no fun sometimes!

Then it was back to baking and crafting.

      We found that it is RSV season at the hospital and discovered four sick children that could use some Valentine cheer.  The kids got to work making the best Valentines ever.  We added some treats and stuffed friends to keep the little one's company during their hospital stay.  We were so busy creating that we forgot to take very many pictures.  I did get this one of CJ,  so proud of his valentine creation.

We decided that while we were at it we might as well bring some love to the Retirement Home and some neighbors.  MJ baked scrumptious Sugar Cookies and Jelly Cupcakes for us to decorate.  We added them to the paper valentines and were on our way to deliver.

We were disappointed to learn that we could not deliver them personally to the children in the hospital.  It's the policy during RSV season so as not to spread more germs.  We were assured however, by the nurses, that the children would receive  them and were bound to enjoy them!  

Next we stopped at the Retirement Center.  The kids were surprised by the smell and I had to explain to them that because they were so old, it was hard for them to get to the bathroom at times (somebody just shoot me when I get like that please)!  Some of them were also sick.  Most of the people we visited really enjoyed the kids and gifts.  We stopped at each room.  We asked if we could give them a Valentine and sing to them.  They loved seeing LJ dance while we sang.  I was so proud of my kids! Watching them so enthusiastic about serving made me  choke up and teary; especially when they sang "Love at Home"(rewards of a Momma).

  There were a couple patrons who were a little grouchy.  The kids and I talked about how service isn't always comfortable and it's not always appreciated like we hope.  But, we do it all the same because it is what the Savior would do.  We delivered our last Valentine to the missionaries.  I think the kids liked that part best!  

Finally at 9:00p.m it was time to pick up dinner and hang up our cupid wings.  The kids were grateful to receive Valentines from me before they went to bed.

 Last but not least we couldn't forget to make some treats for ourselves!  It was worth it all when I overheard the kids exclaim that this was the best Valentines Day Ever!

I was glad to be so busy to keep my mind off missing my sweet Valentine.  Jer is doing work for a health clinic 5 hours away until we choose what we want to do permanently for our future.  We are so grateful to have many options.  We're just being careful and prayerful to make the right decision.  Until then, we see Jer on the weekends.  We are lucky to have a dad and husband that works so hard for us.

We hope you all had a very Happy Valentine's Day from our house to yours.

p.s. I just looked around my before I came to bed and observed that it looks as if Valentines Day threw up all over our house: stickers, paper, cookies, frosting, sprinkles and glue from floor to ceiling.  I tried to lessen the damage until I hit a wall (energy level zero).    Oh, well tomorrow is another day!  Please forgive any typos as I can not see straight at this point but had to get this all down before I forgot it all.