So long...

Well, it's been almost a month since I've posted. A lot has been going on. Our bathroom finally started coming through the ceiling and so we have been in demo and construction since November 17th. I had to postpone our annual cookie swap until this Sunday and put off a visit from the Gates since showering at the house meant wearing flip flops to the basement and cleaning yourself under the bizarre shower nozzel, no joke, in the middle of the ceiling. It's a very bizarre feeling to be scrubbing yourself clean while also taking inventory of your food storage.

But right before that on the 14th, Emily, baby Madelaine, Emily's friend Ali and I went down to Nashville to visit the Gates family (the Georgia Peaches blog) and attend Time Out For Women put on by Deseret Book with Julie and her friend Allison. We were able to go to both Friday night and Saturday meetings. And of course we went WAY OVER BOARD shopping in the mobile Deseret store. Ok, EMILY, went way over board I just stuck my toes in the water then quickly sat back down. But if I had had the means you know I would have been swimming with her. But I knew I was coming back to a mess that would probably have to be my Christmas and birthday present this year!



The Gates were wonderful hosts. My favorite parts were Sean waking up early to make us breakfast before our 7:30 am departure to the conference center and the girls performing their puppet/talent show Saturday night. They were darling!



Then came Thanksgiving and now finals and Christmas. We weren't able to go to New Jersey this year because of Phil's schedule but look forward to getting back on track next year. I'll be done with school next Wednesday and hopefully will be getting Christmas letters and cards out very soon.

Hope all is well, and I'll write more later! Love, Me xoxo

Finally...Halloween!

So here are my little darlings on Halloween. Mena was a
"pumpkin" witch and Jacob was Ben 10. So cute! Our October festivities included a trip to the pumpkin patch with Grandma R., Aunt Margarida, Le Le and Ya Ya (while Daddy was in San Diego, the Truongs annual Halloween party, Trick or Treating with family at Aunt Allies (look to her blog for a much better entry) and then our branch's trunk or treat. Halloween was tons of fun. Especially for Mena who is an expert trick or treater. No fear!

Mommy's lost a body part!

After post lasting Sunday about no baby, I started to have some really severe pain with throwing up...nice. By about 7 in the morning on Monday, Phil had called my mom and had me taken to the hospital.

Well at least it wasn't the flu again. By 12:30 I was being prepped in the O.R. for an emergency appendectomy (aren't they all? Who just asks for an appendectomy? I think that is kind of funny actually). Jacob was horrified that I could lose a body part and was needing to talk to me in the hospital regularly.

They were going to keep me until Wednesday but I asked to go home Tuesday night. I can get better sleep with my little insomniacs than with all those well meaning, every 45 minutes vitals taking, nurses. So I came home.

I've done a lot of sleeping and catching up with the DVR. Unfortunately I've also had too much time to redecorate and reconstruct my living room in my mind again. Get out your checkbook babe!

p.s. We didn't win McDonald's millions.
p.p.s. I will post pics of kids at Halloween this week. I promise! Also, I can't drive for awhile so nothing else can distract me from those lil' lovelies

baby news...

Hi...

I only post today because I have managed to make my desire to have a third baby the business of everyone whether they liked it or not. I have even told my school advisor and one of my theater instructors from fall '07 so now that I have a good portion of american citizens alerted to my conception schedule, here's the news.

There is no news. We can schedule to have fertility tests this week, when they would be the most optimal, but I'm going to skip it. With our maternity insurance running out July 31, 2009, time has run out at least for now anyway. We are interested in adoption but I'm just not up to thinking about it, at least until the holidays are over. So many of my friends are pregnant right now, and I really am VERY happy for them but... you know.

I wouldn't even bother posting about this with Halloween photos and all (which I will add this week) but my mom in California had asked a little while back how the baby experiment was going. It then occurred to me that people are going to start asking because I've made such a big deal about it.

I have two really great kids who keep me busy and usually content. I have spent the last year so caught up in my baby hunger for another #3 that I've forgotten to enjoy the son and daughter I have now.

I'm sad.

I'm very sad, I tried to not let it interfere with Halloween weekend but I found out Friday that it's just not going to happen right now.

You don't need to post any comments or anything I'm just putting the word out in case you were wondering.

IMPORTANT! This requires a second post today!

I'm completely memorized by this blogger I was led to by my favorite little crackerjack Loralee at looneytunes.com (look left at the blogs I follow). Yes, I like to brag that "I knew Mistress Tunes when". Lo was my first roommate at USU and one of the shining stars in my universe. But you know that, right? So, like, I only talk about her ALL the time. Well on her blog today she is wearing a t-shirt sent to her by a fellow blogger TAMN.

Anyway, look left again and you'll see I added TAMN today. She is the only non-friend/family blogger on my list. Why would I add a stranger to my family blog, you ask? Because I "KNOW" her, and scary, I think I may be her in another dimension. Except not the cool, thin, FABULOUS her. But the elastic pant band, frazzled hair, scary her. The one who actually DOES have a family blog for journal purposes. You know, just so I don't have to write long hand and still follow the prophets' admonitions to write our personal history.

TAMN is a fictional Utah, young, 1st time "Mo-mom" (Mormon uber mother)who shames even the most seasoned LDS Relief Society presidents and Enrichment leaders. The real author hides her genius behind anonymity. Now you don't have to be a Latter-day Saint to appreciate her but the levels of glee and recognizable embarrassment definitely is increased.

So for example...this excerpt comes from her October 13th post (it made me laugh so hard I cried and peed at the same time, REALLY!)

...I started asking this other preggo chica there if she was nervy about labor. Not to be rude but she was seriously HUGE so I figured she was due like next week, only suprise, we're the same amount of weeks.


Um, awkward. Not to mention SAD.


We're way close of friends but things got a little weird when I said next time I'd make us sushi (which I do way well, but I didn't say that) and she said "Um, I don't know if you know this but your not supposed to eat sushi while you're preggo." Thanks, downer. So I said "Um, I don't know if you know this but your not supposed to be so huge." I smiled after so she knew not to take it personal, but she still bawled her head off and I about died.

I meant it nice, you guys!! Didn't mean it RUDE. She's super darling (at least, she use to be) and we're way close so I was suprised she got so ticked. But, it worked out good bc I was able to use my patient response to her lame preggo hormone overreaction as an example of forgiveness, which "just so happened" was the YW lesson! SO greatful for the empathy I was able to take away from that experience. I mean, can't rilly blame her for crying. Guess it isn't very fair for her since she's double my bigness and I'm double her cuteness.


Read her. Love her! And if anyone is looking for Christmas gift ideas for me, each t-shirt on her site is now on my wish list.

Just a couple of cholesterol cuties....

Dear Fellow Moms/Friends/Family Members With Nothing Better To Think About,
How are you today? Have you heard this one?

So what do a two moms, one who does not gamble because of religous leanings, do when they want free money but do not want to lend support to state education institutions by purchasing lottery tickets? They eat McD's until they have to hurl. Oh! Did you guess it was me? Well me and my sister Allison.

Here's the deal. We just know that we are going to find a Board Walk game piece in the next week and a half and split $1 million dollars! If you would like to get in on this action we are calling for all game pieces that you would normally just throw out anyway. We are willing to share with anyone who mails theirs to us. But remember, they are due November 3rd. So if you want in on this little project they have to be to us by the 2nd.

Wait! Stop laughing!!! We're going to win and we aren't sharing ANY of it with you if you keep pointing and giggling. Sheesh. Who'll be the loser then?

Sincerely,
the very rich,
cholesterol cuties

Is there really a depression?

This is just quick blog today. It's more of a reaction to my girlfriend's blog about budgeting (check out Meagan's blog on my list). I commented on her site but I think this is something we are all thinking about it. Especially with Christmas coming on. How do we handle the money we have as well as that which may start coming in more slowly. Please respond here with any great ideas you have for making Christmas special not spendy!

Part of me, admittedly a sick part, has always had this romantic notion of the depression from the 1930's. Having to be scrappers and hardworking. I love movies like The Cinderella Man, Annie, etc. I use to ask my grandparents about what it was like for them when they were growing up during the bottom of the depression. And I liked how creative they had to be to accomplish their needs let alone their wants.

I was listening to NPR the other day and there was a story of a woman who is married with three kids of their own and the guardianship of her sister's three who has passed away. Her husband is in construction in Las Vegas, and business is slowing down, and she recently has lost her job. They were featuring her because with her hair down in a clean ponytail and clean clothes she was panhandling on the freeway off-ramp to pay their, $650-something, electric bill. I really don't believe severe tragedy is our determined future. But I do believe that now is the time to be smart with our resources until this is worked out.

I'm a mom who's trying to stay-at-home. When I'm done with school I won't be above working midnights at a care home or taking care of kids in my house to stay here until the youngest is in kindergarten and I go back for a masters. But as a SAH I realize that my job is not to bring money in, but to utilize all of my talents in keeping it. I pore over grocery ads, and coupons, doing a little shopping all the time with where my driving routes take me. I also have been very thankful this summer that I live in walking and biking distance to just about anywhere I have to go in town. I try to not have the t.v. and computer on at the same time and am vigilant with lights (energy efficient of course) and heat/AC that's what clothes and windows are for! I'm realizing how hard it really can be. I think about our budget all the time. The first things I'd like to get rid of would be our cable. I hate how much time is suffocated by the t.v. I'd like to be better about utilizing our library for movies. If it wasn't for keeping in touch with you guys I frankly would do away with the Internet as well. Of course...hmmm....well I'll come back to that. Who would like to start writing letters with me? It's fun to get snail mail sometimes, right?!

As I was reading Meg's blog and thinking about this topic Jacob came up to me, "Mom, what's for dinner?" Phil's in So.Cal. and I've been trying to keep the kids occupied. Swimming at the YMCA yesterday (free and in walking distance)/Halloween specials on cable ($3.87/day) tomorrow a trip to the pumpkin patch for games and pumpkin buying/painting (approx. $8 plus gas) and dinner at Grandma's. Tonight I planned on a trip down the frozen crap aisle with a movie rental, not big money but bigger than we usually do on an average friday night; especially frozen food which I think is pure garbage and in someways worse than drive-thru. Kid Cuisine? Are you kidding me? It has more fat and sodium than a plain hamburger at McDonald's with apple dippers which my kids, LOVE! Of course that's why Jacob thinks Kid Cuisine is so wonderful.

I digress, when I offered the frozen aisle this was his reply. "I KNOW! How about PBJ's?!" Ahhhh, I love that kid, and I think we'll be taking a little trip to the library as well.

Just a little stream of consciousness for you this morning, not really so quick. :-)

My Sweetheart

Most of you know how Phil and I met and married. If you are reading this blog with any regularity you are probably close family and/or friends and don't need to have our funny song and dance act shoved down your throat ONCE AGAIN!




But I thought I'd take some space and just remind myself, him,and all of you, how much I love him.

Yesterday, my sister Allison had an all day crop at her house and it was a blast! 8 hours of gossip, food, and crafting. Phil then had 10 hours of quality father time. Lately, he's been having a lot of that. You might say, well of course, he IS the other half of their DNA! But it goes beyond that. He really looks for ways to serve me out of love. Sometimes the effort is a hit and sometimes it's a miss. But it's always done with the right intention and many times I'm not appreciative enough of that.



Unfortunately, marriage in our culture isn't given the respect that it deserves. I'm grateful for my marriage and the companionship that I share with my sweetheart. He is my intimate on so many levels. We share inside jokes, our thoughts on world headlines as well as opinions that sometimes have to be held close to the vest in most social situations, we share fears, embarrassments and bitterness. It's all there, laid bare on the table and I still love him and more importantly, today I'm secure in knowing he still loves me too. And I'm grateful.

I love you honey, happy 6 1/2 years!

TAG - I'm it!

This is very cute. I was tagged by my sweetie in Oregon, Megan Conser: http://meganeconser.spaces.live.com.

And I honestly don't think I can come up with 7 random facts about myself that she doesn't know but here goes nothing....

1. When I was in Jr. High I wanted to only adopt 5 children. The oldest was white boy, Brigham LaMar, then an African-American girl, an asian boy, a blonde white girl, Emma Ruth, with a girl of eastern european descent as the youngest. I had a sketch card from a charity group (UNICEF or something) that I kept on my bedroom mirror until college because they seemed like the perfect family to me.

2. I count steps because I want to be prepared for when I go blind, childhood habit.

3. For YEARS I thought bi-racial people were called Mandarins because when I was in the first grade I had a friend who was bi-racial with very curly BRIGHT ORANGE hair. And when I talked about him my mom must have called him the old fashion term "mulatto" (remember this is the 70's) and I mis-heard her as having said mandarin which made sense to me because his hair was the same color as mandarin oranges.

4. Even though I grew up on planes, now that I have children I am terrified of flying alone and dying leaving them motherless. I just plead when I have to do it that nothing will happen to me. If we're all together I'm much more relaxed because then no one has to be left behind. Kinda creepy?

5. My favorite "sick time" movie is Clue with Tim Curry. It is very relaxing for me to watch. And I'm still counting figures in every scene trying to remember who was where, when.

6. Monopoly is my favorite game but when I'm not doing well I start to have panic attacks because it becomes too life like and I can't handle the pressure.

7. When I grow up I want to be an accomplished gardener with lush overgrown English gardens and stone walk-ways.

8. Um...I'm kind of eccentric... oh wait! you already knew that....

TAG, YOU'RE IT! (I don't know if I should tag my sisters because I'm not sure I want to know what I don't know about them...hee hee)

1: Nicole Kinnunen: http://iapet.us/nicole/index.shtml
2: Julie Gates http://juliemoyer-gates.blogspot.com/
3. KayLyn Wescoatt and kids http://wkidsgang.com
4. Loralee Choate (who is a professional blogger so I don't expect her to post this on her blog but maybe she could do a list in my comment section as her dear old friend) http://loraleeslooneytunes.com/
5. Jana Brown: http://jimandjana.blogspot.com/

Oh I give up, I have limited friends and lots of sisters which actually puts me over the 7 count.

6. Tiana Gates: http://randomgates.blogspot.com/
7. Allison Taurence http://acat16b.blogspot.com/
8. Meghan Elison http://paganmeghan.blogspot.com/

The NY Giants Largest Ohio Fan Base...the W's!

This actually happened a few weeks ago but I'm just now getting to it...

Phil and I came to a compromise when we were first married and he had just joined the church. I came from a strong stance of "no sports on Sundays" and he came from a family was sports on Sundays (and any other day in which any sport of any team might have air time) was how they connected and enjoyed their time together. So as the brand new heads of our new family unit, we decided that when the NY Football Giants play Sunday games, that are broadcast in our local area, we would watch as a family.

This year their first game was on Thursday, the 9th, against the Washington Redskins, which we won! It was extra special because Michael Strahan, who retired after their Superbowl win, returned to present NY with the championship trophy. I'm going to miss him. He was my favorite player. Now I'll have to pick a new favorite teammate to cheer on for equally obscure and ridiculous reasons.

As part of our tradition we all dress in gear for the game and I make a big deal of making tailgating cuisine for dinner for the first game of the season. Chili, soda pop, wings, am I a fantastic wife or what? Not a single vegetable or fruit was forced! Both of my babies have scrapbook pages of their first televised Giants game in their baby books. This is actually a big deal for us and a really fun family tradition.

Hey, hey, here I am!

So I've been taking pics of the kids and mentally creating awesome blog notes about the fam, and work and school, BUT... then I get caught up in fam, and work, and school...and voila! Here I am 10 days later without a post and that on the 3rd was a cop out.

I do beleive in getting out the vote. Please remember that I was a voting deputy registrar and Perot campaigner in the '92 elections. I am a complete POTUS08 and NPR addict this go around but I'll be honest, cutting and pasting on the 3rd?! I didn't even make one single comment on how I FEEL about this election! What kind of blog entry was that? One in which I didn't have to download and cut and paste any of my adorable pics. So I'll be getting to the new family photos soon enough.

So about school.

I am in an awesome craft of fiction class that is already kicking my butt and making me fabulous. Oh yes, brothers and sisters I think this may be ticket on the train of stardom. OK maybe not. But I love my two stories this week and one still makes me giggle and when I get back it back on Monday from my instructor and tinker with it a bit more I'll post it for you guys to read.

The second I think is well crafted for an amateur of my experience but it does have two bad words, which are character appropriate, but I won't post. If you are interested in a suspense driven non-traditional story arc with a handsome rover who says "1" bad word that isn't even one of the terrible 5 but on the fringe, just let me know and I will e-mail it to you. My mom read it, gasped, and wouldn't let my grandmother take a turn because she said Grandma wouldn't look at me the same. There you have it, I like it, but I have to own up to the word choices.

In fact I'm only posting now at 7:30 am on Saturday because I'm at my mom's taking care of her dogs for the weekend and ignoring a 3-5 page paper on how character and setting effect the short stories "Cold Snap" and "Brokeback Mountain".

I'm in two other classes as well and besides having to memorize a speech for Wednesday (I chose Emma Goldman's "An Anarchist Looks at Life") and trying to stay awake in a warm dark classroom from 4:30-5:45 to look at slides and read from a pre-composed lecture handout. They are boring and not worth talking about today, even in avoidance of my paper.

Love you guys, talk to you later.

In honor of Labor day - and because I forgot to take pics of family picnic

My apologies to the creators of this e-mail that was sent to me. I don't know who you are but I stand by the thought...

A Message for all women

THIS IS MOVING. HOW QUICKLY WE FORGET.....IF ....WE EVER KNEW......

WHY WOMEN SHOULD VOTE

This is the story of our Grandmothers and Great-grandmothers; they lived only 90 years ago.

Remember, it was not until 1920

that women were granted the right to go to the polls and vote.

The women were innocent and defenseless, but they were jailed
nonetheless for picketing the White House, carrying signs asking
for the vote.

And by the end of the night, they were barely alive.
Forty prison guards wielding clubs and their warden's blessing
went on a rampage against the 33 women wrongly convicted of
'obstructing sidewalk traffic.'


(Lucy Burns)
They beat Lucy Burns, chained her hands to the cell bars above
her head and left her hanging fo! r the ni ght, bleeding and gasping
for air.

(Dora Lewis)
They hurled Dora Lewis into a dark cell, smashed her
head against an iron bed and knocked her out cold. Her cellmate,
Alice Cosu, thought Lewis was dead and suffered a heart attack.
Additional affidavits describe the guards grabbing, dragging,
beating, choking, slamming, pinching, twisting and kicking the women.

Thus unfolded the 'Night of Terror' on Nov. 15, 1917,
when the warden at the Occoquan Workhouse in Virginia ordered his
guards to teach a lesson to the suffragists imprisoned there because
they dared to picket Woodrow Wilson's White House for the right
to vote.
For weeks, the women's only water came from an open pail. Their
food--all of it colorless slop--was infested with worms.

(Alice Paul)
When one of the leaders, Alice Paul, embarked on a hunger strike, they tied her to a chair, forced a tube down her throat and poured liquid into her until she vomited. She was tortured like this for weeks
until word was smuggled out to the press.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/collections/suffrage/nwp/prisoners.pdf

So, refresh my memory. Some women won't vote this year because-
-why, exactly? We have carpool duties? We have to get to work?
Our vote doesn't matter? It's raining?

Last week, I went to a sparsely attended screening of HBO's new
movie 'Iron Jawed Angels.' It is a graphic depiction of the battle
these women waged so that I could pull the curtain at the polling
booth and have my say. I am ashamed to say I needed the reminder.

All these years later, voter registration is still my passion. But the
actual act of voting had become less personal for me, more rote.
Frankly, voting often felt more like an obligation than a privilege.
Sometimes it was inconvenient.

My friend Wendy, who is my age and studied women's history,
saw the HBO movie, too. When she stopped by my desk to talk
about it, she looked angry. She was--with herself. 'One thought
kept coming back to me as I watched that movie,' she said.
'What would those women think of the way I use, or don't use,
my right to vote? All of us take it for granted now, not just
younger women, but those of us who did seek to learn.' The
right to vote, she said, had become valuable to her 'all over again.'

HBO released the movie on video and DVD . I wish all history,
social studies and government teachers would include the movie in
their curriculum I want it shown on Bunco night, too, and anywhere
else women gather. I realize this isn't our usual idea of socializing,
but we are not voting in the numbers that we should be, and I think
a little shock therapy is in order.

It is jarring to watch Woodrow Wilson and his cronies try to persuade a psychiatrist to declare Alice Paul insane so that she could be permanently institutionalized. And it is inspiring to watch the doctor refuse. Alice Paul was strong, he said, and brave. That didn't make her crazy.

The doctor admonished the men: 'Courage in women is often mistaken for insanity.'

Please, if you are so inclined, pass this on to all the women you know.

We need to get out and vote and use this right that was fought so
hard for by these very courageous women. Whether you vote democratic, republican or independent party - remember to vote.

History is being made.

The Sandusky County Fair 2008 Edition

Phil and I first visited Fremont for my mom and Rob's wedding in March of '03. We saw nothing but the historic district around the Hayes Presidential Center and were mildly impressed with what we saw. We returned a year and a half later, and that was when Fremont really wooed us. The county fair! I love county and state fairs. They bring real tears to my eyes! No joke...the whole America-ness feeling of comraderie and history in cheering on our fellow citizens to win the blue ribbon for fattest pig, or tallest sunflower, how about a blue ribbon for mixed art media ages4-8 and it's a velvet picture from K-mart that some kid colored. How great is that!? I especially love the horse show as riders of all different ages and levels compete against each other. Unfortunately Jacob finds it B-O-R-I-N-G so until Mena can take my side I'm usually out voted.


I was afraid this year I was going to miss it because of Jacob's arm. We didn't want to take him and have him disappointed that he couldn't ride any of the rides, which is the only reason my son wants to go anyway. One cool thing about our fair is that your $7 entrance fee covers all attractions and rides except for Nighttime grandstand shows. But we did end up going on Saturday and had a great time.

This year there even was a small family circus that was surprisingly good.




From there we went the animal barns, which is Mena's and my favorite. We went on to the home ec buildings to look at 4-H and American Campfires and Girl/Boy Scout projects.

Next was the Sandusky Historical Society barn which has items and family history charts from the area. They're pretty involved for such a small county and I always enjoy their exhibits. Phil even had his annual deep fried cheese curds at Mike's Cheese Curds of Au Claire, WI. It was pretty hot and Mena was falling asleep so we walked home (That's right folks! One of the reasons our house attracted us was its proximity to the fair grounds!) .

After cooling down and having dinner at home we returned for the rides after dark. Even though Jacob had to stick to baby putt-putt rides they were much more fun all lit up at night. We had a great time.

Thought of the week: Walking home in the bright summer afternoon underneath the canopy of trees that lines Rawson Ave and the two blocks between the fairgrounds to my house it occurs to me, that though New York is more exciting and L.A. more glamorous, there are days when my small Ohio town amongst the cornfields, is just a little slice of heaven.
If you wish to publish a post, share with us your favorite thing about your town.

p.s. Jacob's pins were removed yesterday, Monday, without needing a cast! He did see the last pin in his arm before it was removed which tramautized him pretty deeply. He just screamed "Mommy" and clung to me. But he's ok now and again thank you all for your concern and prayers. Love the W's.

Blog Entry...blah,blah,blah.

So I've had this goal since May to blog every Sunday in place of my journal entries like when I was single. Of course when I was single I had TONS to write about. So and so is cute, or "I'm so lonely!" , or how do I deal with a life that is so absolutely average when I should really be a "SUPERSTAR!"

Then I met Mr. Right and had children and have had to work harder than I ever thought I would just to be the wife and mother I would like to brag about being in my silver sneaker years. And so even though I have had tons to journal about it fell to the wayside. Besides, I've never been into handwriting because it takes so freakin' long! And so my entries were always short so as to not get hand cramps.

I have absolutely nothing to say this week. This little space on the information highway is suppose to be a peaceful little rest stop for friends and family to gather and visit with the W's during an otherwise harried day of cyber-surfing. But I've not nada.

Jacob still has the pins and is suppose to be getting his hard cast next Monday, but the doctors think it's healing well enough to just have the pins removed. So it's a wait and see situation. Mena is becoming shoe obsessed and her mother is very VERY proud. She has a new pair of princess flip-flops from the Disney Store that I bought on clearance a size bigger for next summer but she loves them "Ena's ip-ops".

Phil works extremely long hours but he's home just enough for me to still stick him with bath duty. Next Monday I start school again and am excited to be taking the first half of a fiction writing course. We'll see how it goes but if I do well I'm seriously considering a Masters in Creative Writing which BGSU offers and it would allow me to teach gen ed English at the university. A couple of my professors have approached me about continuing with a masters either in Creative Writing, Pop Culture, or Theater. All equally useless in the real world when tied to a family in Northwest Ohio, but at least with the writing I can teach there.

Then there's my new fantasy of being the next Stephanie Meyers and finally having the moolah to rid ourselves of our bat infestation. Oh yes, my friends, THREE in the house this week. No wonder we've never had to suffer much in the winters without insulation. Their furry, black and brown bodies are creating a nice little barrier between us and the blustery elements, BLECH!

The Olympic Spirit!

So as most of you know we once had big dreams for Jacob and his men's gymnastics future. But now that he lives in a huge hamster ball, at his mother's bequest, that no longer seems likely.

Of course I should have been prepared for the end of my son's sports career when he asked me a few weeks ago what a jock is. "Mom, what's a jock?" "Hmmm, well a jock is a boy or girl who likes to play sports a lot usually outside, like your cousin Spencer". "Oh, ok, I'm a jock" "No, honey, playing video games inside doesn't count" "I AM a jock! I like to play frisbee!!" Ah, clue number one your child is destined to be president of the Audio/Visual Club.

But we have been enjoying the Olympics in Beijing safely from our couch.

I'm going to try to add video of Mena and Jacob dancing to the music from Sunday night's women's floor exercises. As you can see Jacob is doing much better and thank you all for notes, calls and cards we really appreciate your thinking of us.

ok I can't figure out the video aspect of my camera so here's a picture of someone that is not me.

Maria Valentina: U.S. Fencing...um, not me.

Mommy You Were Suppose to Catch Me...

On Thursday at 9:10 p.m. my sweet son fell and shattered his elbow. Phil was an hour away at a stake Priesthood meeting and I was home alone with the kids visiting teaching. I had asked my Relief Society sisters to stay and visit for a little bit because I was kind of having a bad day and Phil had been working late all week and I just needed some adult interaction. Luckily they were there because when Jacob fell from the playhouse I completely panicked. But my good friend Kina picked Jacob up, told me to stop screaming, and put us both into her car. Carol then stayed with the girls while Kina stayed with me until Phil showed up. We spent 2.5 hours at Fremont Memorial and then transferred to St. Vincent's at midnight. Jacob had surgery the following morning at 9:30 a.m.

He was such a trooper he of course cried but he still remembered his manners and thanked the doctors and nurses for helping him as well as just being such an awesome kid!

On the way to the hospital he kept saying, "Mommy this is your fault, you were suppose to catch me". That just made me cry harder. "Oh, my beautiful boy, I'm so sorry I couldn't catch you, if I only knew". How many times in his life is he going to make poor decisions and then wonder why I wasn't there to pick him up? How many times do we blame our Heavenly Father for not catching us and then we have to face consequences that hurt us physically or emotionally. I've been thinking a lot about this since that eternal car ride to the ER.

Once we were finally put into a room in the pediatric wing, I could hear other children screaming and crying. And I just pleaded in my heart that they and their parents would be comforted, that they would be ok and I know that some of them weren't going to be, and I'm sorry. I'm sorry for their pain and their potential loss. I'm particularly sorrowful for the children who are hurting and don't have a mommy or daddy to kiss their boo boos and tell them that it's going to be alright.

Is that what it's like to be God, to hear the innermost cries of His children and carry his own sadness of not being able to cradle us in our pain? He has given all of us the comfort of the Holy Ghost but at times he must want to physically hold us, and gently caress our tear stained cheeks. Much like I wanted to hold and comfort my Jacob but could only hold his hand.

These are my thoughts this week. This is my testimony that I know God and Jesus Christ live and that each of us has the right to a personal relationship them as children of a Heavenly Father. In the name of my Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.

p.s. Jacob did have surgery Friday morning. They put four pins into his elbow and he was back in his room by noon. He was released and home by 1:30 p.m. on Saturday and is on bed rest until Tuesday. But he's in great spirits and is loving all of the visits and goodies from loving friends and family. Each of the primary kids even made him get well cards and a bag of Hershey kisses, one from each of his church friends, delivered by Kina, her husband Ken and their daughter Alexa. Jacob's doing awesome whereas his dear ol' ma is fighting the internal battle to not put her babies into child size hamster balls.

Introducing: Madeleine Ruth Householder....

She's here!!! I knew it! She's a GIRL! And this is one proud Auntie!!! Have I used enough exclamation points?

Stats: Madeleine Ruth Householder
July 18, 2008, 12:37 p.m.
7 lb. 5 oz.
19 in.
One mom, one dad, 7 big brothers and sisters!

It's finally time to kiss my baby boy, goodbye...

I don't know why, but I've just really struggled with Jacob's 5th birthday. It's a big one for us. As a family tradition we only have birthday parties for 1st, 5th, 10th and 16th birthdays. Otherwise it's just cake and ice cream with mom and dad and whatever family members are available. This is good for many reasons. It makes the big birthdays BIG, doesn't teach entitlement to scores of gifts, and when in a large family you aren't having to plan parties every month which is expensive and time consuming.

I loved it when I was growing up. I had no problem only having friend parties every 5-6 years because my mom did such a great job of making them super cool and exciting. I don't really remember my 5th too much other than I think it was a traditional kids party with cake, ice cream, games and church friends. For my 10th I had a slumber party with 10 friends and a treasure hunt that went all around the neighborhood. Even as a kid I recognized that it took a lot of time and talent on her part. For Emily's 10th she and five friends were picked up at school in a limousine and taken out for treats. On my sweet sixteen I was thrown a surprise party with 150 invited guests, a dance floor, and a super cute performer (actually a guy I had a crush on in grade school/very good friends with and had lost touch with) it was AWESOME! These are the kind of birthday memories I would like to give my children.

So this was Jacob's 5th year and it was time for his first big party. It was held at Aunt Emily's house and our good friends, the Michigan crew, and his church class were invited. By the way, I love the MI kids to death and in every way think of them as family. Those girls, Nicole and Kristen, have had to put up with my growing pains, in some ways, more than my sisters. And I just struggled.

Jacob informed Phil and I in California that he would no longer call us "Mommy and Daddy" because he's a big boy now. It's "Mom and Dad" but because I cried about it for two weeks he still call me mommy in the privacy of our own home. The other day we were taking a walk, holding hands, and when he saw some other boys close to his age he dropped my hand and fell behind. The day is here, he starts kindergarten in August, and he's beginning the journey of leaving my nest and I can't stop crying!

This is why I'm so late in posting his birthday photos. I just haven't been able to deal very well. I also promised myself I would write him a letter for his scrapbook and that hasn't happened either, but it's a goal for this week.

So here they are. Pics of a really great birthday. One that included, family, friends, cake, ice cream, presents (Wii & wii accessories, a soccer ball, puzzles, Kung Fu panda, fart putty, and so much more) and even a surprise guest: Grandpa Blake all the way from California!

Goodbye baby bear, Hello son...

June 24, 25, 26, 2008 - The End of the Road

We had left Sea World to go straight to my friend Paula's new place in Redondo Beach with her husband, Mark, and daughters Jennifer and KayDee. We thought we had to be to Las Vegas Tuesday night for a midnight flight so we only had a short visit after waking with breakfast at Carro's and a trip to the park. But, horribly, that was not the case. We didn't have to leave until the NEXT midnight. So after much teeth gnashing and crying on my part, we checked into the Excalibur hotel. Here is a picture of my darling children attempting a dramatic interpretation of how I was feeling...
To make the most of it we spent Tuesday night walking the strip.

Wednesday we spent the morning at a time share sales pitche (come on...what else did we have to do?) and then went to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay.

By the time we arrived at the airport at 10:30 p.m. I had had enough of fun and was actually looking forward to a long deep sleep with Cleo posted at my head and Rudy at my feet in my own soft, cozy, bed upon the floor.

June 23, 2008 - Shamu, Shamu!

The last family day of our little vacation that could was Sea World. We went as early in the morning as we could possibly manage. We had Mom/Dad (cough, cough, sorry won't make it to work today),

Tiana/Ryan/Quinn,










and my cousin Meagan/her hubbie Tim, and Elizabeth,
John and Meghan weren't able to make it because of it being the first day of school for them at MSJCC, and of course us...
We saw Shamu and friends:















The tide pools, dolphin feeding

and shark encounter:
We also saw the Cirque de la Mer show which is just an amazing water acrobatics show












and Sea Lions Tonight . A hilarious, and should not be missed next time you visit Sea World, parody of all the show with sea lions, otters and one very large walrus:












We ended the night at the dolphin stadium and then Shamu Rocks! Unfortunately I don't have any pics because my little camera's flash couldn't fight off the dark, but needless to say we had a great time and Mena is practicing her swimming to become a Shamu trainer someday.

p.s. pics of Quinn and the starfish, and the Stroller Brigade are compliments of my lil' sis, Tiana's blog. Visit Tears and Rainbows for her version of the big trip.