Christmas pictures as promised!

Another digital slideshow by Smilebox

Ferguson Family Online Auction

The Ferguson family in Mendon lost 2 of their little boys the Sat. before Christmas (2 of their daughters were hurt in the same accident). Their basement flooded that same day! They have no life or medical insurance because they are self employed. Someone here in Cache County has set up an online auction to raise donations for this family. You can bid until midnight on Dec. 31st. They are still accepting donations too. Go check it out. I bid on a few items myself!

http://wwwfergusonfamilyfundraiser.blogspot.com/

Christmas!

**Disclaimer - pictures will come in another post. I still need to download all of them to my computer!

Wow! I can't believe how fast it has all come & gone! Christmas usually lasts for a week after the big day for us because we head south. This year we went south early though so now I'm not quite sure what to do with myself since I didn't have to pack up & leave town first thing this morning!

We went to Manti the weekend of the 18th. We were able to visit with Trav's Grandma & Grandpa Whitlock & most of the Whitlock family on Saturday. Lots of food and presents! It's fun doing white elephant with kids. We let them pick from youngest to oldest and then after everyone opens presents THEN whoever wants to trade can trade. That way there's "No bawlin'!". On the 19th we had Christmas with the Bown clan. I hear there's 58 of us now and 2 more on the way. No wonder we have to have the party at the senior citizen's center! Lots and lots of good food again as well as some fun presents. The kids draw names on this side of the family, so they get to trade presents with cousins. Fun to trade, hard to buy presents sometimes!

After our weekend in Manti we got home and said our good bye's to Travis as he had to head back to work for 2 more weeks. We were glad he got to do Christmas in Manti with us. If he had been working I don't think I would have taken the kids down by myself this year.

We spent Christmas Eve at my mom's house. We just ate lots of food (again...apparently I'm getting pretty good at that!) and had the kids open presents. My poor brother ended up wrapping all the presents and I think it took him & Scott something like 3 hrs of both of them wrapping to get it all done! They wrapped all the presents up and then put them in a big box so it looked like the kids were just getting 1 big box for a present. They were pretty surprised when they opened their big box to a bunch of smaller wrapped presents. They were sure excited. I don't think there was any disappointment at all! Caleb's favorite present was the tractor pillow thing my mom got. That kid has adored that sucker every time we go into JoAnn's (and we go there A LOT) for like 6 months! It was around $25 so I couldn't ever justify buying it. I was SOOO glad my mom got it for him. I'm not sure how glad I am that the sucker makes noise though! We didn't know that when we admired from the store! I was excited to find some cute new baby girl clothes in my big box of presents! They're SO tiny! I had totally forgotten how fun baby girl clothes are! I'll be in trouble when I take Sam shopping now!!

Christmas Day we were allowed to sleep in until 8:30 when Sam woke us and her brothers up. As soon as Caleb saw his 4 wheeler (one he can sit on and ride) he was pretty much not interested in what else there was for him. It was cute! You should have seen his face when he accidently hit the accelerator and ran into the couch! I surprised Travis by having his wedding ring fixed (it was cut off in his accident 3 1/2 yrs ago). I also bought him a new wedding ring (scratch resistant, life time guarantee, titanium, and thicker). I also had my grandpa make him a strap for his acoustic guitar and his gun. Those were his idea, but they turned out amazing and I think he'd kinda forgotten that he asked me about having that done for him. I also bought him a new set of binoculars and a book light (for when he's stuck on the side of the road in a blizzard again!). The kids were super surprised when they opened their new xbox 360. Our playstation2 died a few months ago and they were kinda bummed out because they had just figured out how to play it and we had gotten some kid friendly games at the big Hollywood video sellout. We also got Rock Band Beetles edition. Nash is quite the drummer and Sam is an awesome singer. I tried it for the first time tonight and didn't do too bad on the drums (Caleb was helping though). I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to get the guitar to work right (neither could Nash or Sam so I don't feel too stupid). I think once we have the guitar figured out (hopefully we can figure it out on our own without Trav!) the kids and I might have some serious Rock Band wars!

Today was a double whammy of Christmas parties. We were able to go to my Grandpa Maughan's for dinner this afternoon. I've only been lucky enough to hit this party about twice in the 11 1/2 years since we've been married. Grandpa usually does it after Christmas and that's usually when we're in Manti. It was fun to go. Not nearly as many people were there as I had hoped, but it was still fun to see those that were there. I found out that one cousin and his wife are expecting a baby boy on the same day as I am. I also found out that a cousin and his wife are adopting a new baby boy in April. And, another cousin and his wife are expecting in July. My sister and I were talking to Grandpa trying to figure out how many we are in numbers now. We decided after the five babies that are "on the way" we will number about 81. Now that's a lot of Maughans!!

After dinner at Grandpa's we headed over to my aunt's house for another dose of Christmas. I couldn't eat dinner again, but had to sample Grandma's fudge! I think just about everyone was at this Christmas party (only missing one or two). After dinner Grandpa and Grandma gave the great grandkids and grandkids their Christmas presents. Grandma had my cousin Ashlee make calendars for us using pictures of all of us. She even put all the birthdays, wedding anniversaries, and due dates on the calendar! I'm impressed Ash! They turned out super cute! The kids got pillow pets and are using them as they watch a new Scooby Doo movie. I don't think Caleb can fit many more animals in his bed. I'll have to get a picture of that kid tonight. He's in a toddler bed and has around a dozen animals he sleeps with and usually one or two books and a sippy cup! I'm glad he'll be in the double bed when he moves downstairs with his brother instead of just the twin! Of course, the twin would even be a step up from what he's got now! I just don't know how the heck that kid even fits in his bed with all those critters!

Travis had to leave to head back to work at 11 am today. It was a bummer, but we weren't even sure if he'd be home for Christmas so the fact that he got about five extra days off (with pay) was a nice surprise! We are glad he'll only be gone a week this time. Unfortunately, he will miss Sam performing at the USU half time on Wednesday this week. Fortunately, he will be home when Sam gets her tonsils out on Jan. 6th! Samantha was able to feel her sister this past week too! On Christmas Eve Trav and I were watching a movie and he had his hand on my belly. Brookelyn was kicking like crazy and his hand was in the right place but he said he couldn't feel it. I'm sure he'll feel it next time. That girl is doing gymnastics in there just like Sam used to! The night Sam felt her kick I asked Nash if he wanted to feel his sister. He looked at me with this funny look on his face and said "No!". So I rephrased it thinking he might have misunderstood. I asked "You don't want to feel the baby?" I got that funny look again and he said "No!". When I was telling Trav about it later he asked me if it was the "That's the stupidest question anyone has ever asked me" look. That described it perfectly!! It cracked me up to see his face though. He was always excited to feel Caleb kick so I thought he'd want to feel Brookelyn. I guess the Iron Man 2 movie was more exciting!! Shows how much I know!

No plans for New Year's Eve yet. I'm sure it will involve food whatever we do! We're good at that part of parties! Hope you had a great holiday!

The Ultrasound...

Well, apparently my pictures didn't scan very well. Oh well, we'll make do!

1-The first picture is of the feet crossed.

2-The second picture is a bum shot so you can see if it's a boy or a girl.

3-The last picture is of the heart and the heartbeat.

Basically, Brookelyn has 10 fingers and 10 toes! Yes, Samantha FINALLY gets a sister! She couldn't be happier. We'll see how long that feeling lasts when she isn't the center of attention anymore!

Bown Family Pictures 2010

This digital slideshow generated with Smilebox Thanks again to Shalise for taking these! We love them lots & are excited to print them!

Our Weekend at a Glance

Saturday:

1-Go to Hyrum's Holiday at the Hardware - check.

2-Visit Santa and have mom's head chopped off in the photo - check

3-Wait in line to go on a sleigh ride to "see Santa's elk" - check

4-After waiting in line for 20 minutes and moving 3 feet give up and decide to come back another day with dad - check.

5-Finish 12 of 18 rows on a levi quilt - check.

6-Sell something on my etsy website - check.

7-Sell an apron & 2 bags to a friend - check.

8-Make 3 trips to Logan when I wasn't planning on making any trips at all - check.

9-Tuck all 3 kids in bed at 10:30 pm and NOT have a single one get out of bed - CHECK!!

10-Stay up until 2 am working on sewing projects - check.

11-Make 3 more goodies for the Christmas plates for neighbors - check.

Sunday:

1-Wake up to Nash croup coughing - check.

2-Wake up to 2 children and a dog in my bed - check.

3-Watch Drake & Josh's Holiday Show with kids - check.

4-Bake for 3 hours straight and not finish the Christmas baking - check.

5-Wonder why on Earth Caleb keeps striping down and running through the house like a wild streaker man - check.

6-Kill a batch of Pineapple Upside Down Cupcakes - check.

7-Do a few batches of laundry but don't get it put away - check.

8-Decide to bake "just one more" Christmas treat at 9 pm - check.

9-Get a bunch of stuff ready to mail tomorrow - check.

10-Wrap Sam's teacher present for her to take to school tomorrow - check.

11-Be super excited about my ultrasound tomorrow - CHECK!

Sarah's Key

I just finished reading Sarah's Key last night. This was a book I inherited from my aunt. I love reading historical fiction and I thought I'd read quite a bit about WW2 (it's my favorite time period because of all the interesting politics that were going on). Anyway, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that this book dealt with something that happened in France in 1942 that I had read (and known) NOTHING about! It was a super good book. I was about 1/2 way through it when I laid down to read last night. I couldn't put it down (surprise) and finished it at 2:04 am!

Things you should know before you read this book:

1-There were quite a few French names of people & places (glad I took French for 3 out of 4 of my high school years!), but I was able to decipher them well enough to understand what was going on.

2-It deals with a part of the Holocaust that occurred in France. The reason I think you should know this is that not everyone can deal with that (it was harder for me this time - maybe because I'm pregnant?). What was especially heart wrenching was the description of what happened to the little children. (It was told from the point of view of a 10 yr. old girl.)

3-There are a few cuss words (not too bad though).

4-I found the attitude of the French citizens toward what happened difficult to understand. So many people are knowledgeable about the events of the Holocaust and are sensitive to them. The author portrayed the French citizens as totally indifferent to what happened to the French Jews- both in 1942 and in current day. That bothered me. Not that they were indifferent in 1942, I can understand that, but their indifference to what happened today.

Anyway, it was a great book and I'd highly recommend it. If you want to borrow it, just let me know!

Festival of the Trees

Before I tell you about the Festival of the Trees, I must say how thoroughly happy I am that my 5 year old SON will play Barbies with my 7 year old DAUGHTER. In fact, he was perfectly content to play Barbies by HIMSELF while she was busy doing homework! How awesome is that? Not necessarily that he plays Barbies, but that he plays with his big sister so willingly and at HER choice of playing!

Last night Samantha danced at the Festival of Trees with her dance group, LaShar's. I had never been before, so I had no idea what to expect. I know it's a fundraiser for Primary Children's Hospital (which holds a special place in my heart), but that's about it.

I learned that they have AMAZING gingerbread houses that are put up for sale. Can you even imagine creating this sucker?!
They also had quilts, center pieces, wreathes, and trees of all shapes and sizes that had been decorated and placed for sale. I think I might try and find out how to donate items to be sold for next year.

The entire Expo Center was decorated beautifully...
This is Sam all costumed, make up'd and ready to go...

Her group, Dyna-kids...
Getting ready for a practice run...
The entire group of LaShar's girls that performed...
They also have a "kids corner" at Festival of Trees. You buy tickets (3/$1.00) and then the kids can do different activities with their tickets. I bought Sam $5 worth of tickets (so 15 tickets). She got her face tattooed, made a stained glass ornament, painted a plaster ornament, visited the giving tree, made some sand layering (that got shook up and is not a beautiful assortment of colors instead of the nice even layers), oh and she made a reindeer light bulb ornament too.
This tree made of lights was out in the foyer. It was HUGE!
She did great and had fun. I videoed her dances but it is taking FOREVER to try and load them. Perhaps I'll try that again another day!

Winter Fun

Personalize your own picture slideshow

A job, a job!

Today I had 2 job interviews. One job interview was for an ESL aide at South Cache 8-9 center. The other job was at the Valley Montessori pre-school. I interviewed for the job at South Cache at 11 am. I was done in about 20 minutes. At 12, they called and offered me the job! I still interviewed at the Montessori school (I thought it might be afternoon hours). I still have a job interview scheduled at 1:15 at Ellis Elementary tomorrow. I think I'm going to cancel that job. It's not really worth driving to Logan for 2 hrs of work at about $9/hr.

So, my new job should be exciting. I realized when I was at the 8-9 center I hadn't been there since I was in 8th grade (like 15-16 years ago). Wow, that made me feel old! The principal there was the vice principal when I was there in 8th grade. Finally I will be working for a MAN principal! Perhaps things will go better this time (considering the last 3 principals I had were women!).

I will be working with 2 (yes, TWO) students. Let me rephrase that. I will be working with 2 students, but 1 on 1. A teacher's dream come true I think! One of these students recently arrived from Guatamala and doesn't speak English, just Spanish (sounds familiar to my teacher brain). The other student recently arrived from Canada and doesn't speak English, just French (I knew there was a reason I took French all 4 years of high school!). There is actually a curriculum for me to use this time (not like when I was working over in Brigham or teaching English to construction workers). I'm hoping that the curriculum won't seem so juvenile to the students this time (last year was ROUGH because the curriculum was geared more towards beginner English speakers or to be used like a reading curriculum). I will only work for 1.5 hrs a day (9:30-11:00). This means that both of my boys will be in daycare, but, I think what they're paying me will work out fine. Of course, I don't have to figure in 30 min. (or even 2 hrs) travel time per day either, so that helps!

I am excited because this will at least keep me in a classroom working with students. It will also allow me to be home with my kids (no parent teacher conferences, after school "stuff", grading papers, curriculum planning, etc.).

And, to top it all off, since I will be under 40 hrs and less than 30% of my weekly unemployment check, I still qualify for my unemployment. So, this is like extra money in my pocket. Ah the benefits of joblessness!

Have a Little Faith

I love author Mitch Albom. I read his book "Tuesdays with Morrie" back in high school. I recently read "The 5 People You Meet In Heaven" too. There's just something about his style of writing that pulls you in and keeps you completely and totally sucked in his world.

Last night I finished "Have a Little Faith." I wasn't sure what to expect when I first started this book. I actually saw the book listed in a magazine and thought I'd better see if I could find it. The library once again came to my rescue.

This book reminded me of "Tuesdays with Morrie" a little bit. In the beginning of the book he is asked by his childhood rabbi if he would give the eulogy at his funeral when he passed away. Mitch Albom was thinking the man had weeks or days left and decided he'd best learn about "the man" rather than just "the rabbi." Thus begins his visits. His visits continue for EIGHT YEARS. Along the way you begin to hear about a pastor named Henry Covington. I couldn't quite figure out the connection between the three until about 3/4 of the way through the book, but I finally got it.

I think the reason I enjoyed this book so much is because 1-it did remind me of Tuesdays with Morrie & I love that book and 2- ever since my AP European History class in 10th grade with Mrs. Morgan, I have had a growing curiosity to learn more about other religions.

This book gave me the chance to see that religion isn't static and it isn't a completely different idea in my LDS church from what it is in a Jewish synogog (sp?) or a "Christian" church with a Baptist like pastor. The main idea is the same and the people are the same. Mitch Albom mentions that he always separated "us" from "them" and I can see how so many people do that (and how easy it is to do). Perhaps if more people could erase the "us" and "them" line, things would be much better in different places of the world. Easier said than done, I know!

Anyway, I thought this book was a really good one and wanted to tell you that if you have the chance, you should read it. And, if you haven't read his other books, give them a try - I can almost guarantee you'll be hooked just as quickly as I was!

Favorites Tag

My sister tagged me before Halloween & I just noticed! For some reason my blog doesn't show when she updates her blog so I have to check it randomly. Guess I never scrolled far enough down to see this one! Sorry I'm slow Cass!

1- What is your favorite picture?

I actually love all the pictures Shalamar did. I can't wait to have her do them again after baby is born. Actually, I'm thinking of having her do some maternity ones. Anyway, I love, love, love this picture. It shows the true personality of the kids. Even though they fight with each other and act like they don't want anything to do with each other sometimes, I know they still love each other. This picture shows how loving Sam & Nash are to Caleb and how much Caleb wants to be just like his big brother and sister. I'm contemplating blowing this up to an 11 x 14 for my front entryway (right now it's just an 8x10).

2- What is your favorite book, and why?

I LOVE the Children of the Promise series. I love reading Historical Fiction and this is not only based during my favorite time period to study, but it's also about an LDS family in SLC.

After all the books I've read this summer/fall I have several others that I love as well. However, I must say that I still think this is my all time favorite. I'm thinking about reading it again.

If I had to pick an author (aside from Dean Hughes) I'd pick Mitch Albom. Right now I'm reading his latest book Have a Little Faith.

3- Post your favorite recipe.

I LOVE the chicken enchilada ring from Pampered Chef!

2 c. coarsely chopped cooked chicken

1 c. shredded Cheddar/Monterey Jack cheese

1/2 c. mayo (not miracle whip)

2 roma tomotoes

2/3 c. finely crushed corn tortilla chips, divided (I usually don't use these)

salsa

1/4 c. chopped olives

1 can (4 oz) chopped or diced green chilies, undrained

1 TBSP Pantry Southwestern Seasoning Mix (this is pampered chef brand - you can use taco seasoning too, but it isn't quite as good)

1 lime

2 pkgs (8 oz each) refrigerated crescent rolls

sour cream

Preheat oven to 375. Chop chicken and olives using food chopper, place in mixing bowl. Add cheese, green chilies, mayo and seasoning mix.

Chop 1 tomato. Slice lime in half. Juice one half of the lime to measure 1 tsp. of juice. Reserve remaining lime for garnish. Add chopped tomato and lime juice to chicken mixture.

Reserve 2 TBSP crushed chips; add remaining chips to chicken mixture and mix well. Sprinkle reserved crushed chips over flat side of large grooved cutting board. Unroll crescent dough. Place dough sticky side down onto crushed chips; press down lightly so chips adhere to dough. Separate dough into triangles. Arrange triangles, chip side down, in a circle on classic round stone (or round pan) with wide ends overlapping in the center and points towards outside. There should be a 5 inch diameter opening in the center. Using medium scoop, scoop chicken mixture evenly onto widest end of each triangle. Bring points of triangles up over filling and tuck under wide ends of dough at center of ring. Filling will not be completely covered. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.

For garnish, cut remaining tomato into 8 wedges. Cut remaining half of lime into 4 slices; cut in half. Arrange between openings of ring. Cut using spatula. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

4- What is your biggest pet peeve?

I REALLY hate it when Trav goes in my kitchen and turns a can 1/4 turn so I can't see the label. Drives me NUTS! I have quite a few pet peeves though.

5- What are you going to be for Halloween?

I contemplated being a pregnant nun. But, I went with the kids and didn't dress up because of the rain and because I never made it to my mom's house to get the nun costume.

6- Describe your dream vacation.

I'd love to go back to New Zealand, Australia, and Hawaii. If I couldn't do that then I'd like to go to France, Germany and Italy. I don't think I'd take Trav though. He HATES foreigners and he doesn't care too much for travel. I think I'd take my mother and leave the kids home with Trav!

7- What is your proudest accomplishment?

Graduating college? Getting married and staying married to the same person for 11 1/2 yrs? Having children and not selling any of them to strangers? Not too sure.

8- What is something you are looking forward to?

Despite my initial feelings, I am excited to stay home with the kids. I'm looking forward to having the boys' room finished downstairs and them moving into it. I'm looking forward to finding out if this baby is a boy or a girl. I'm looking forward to getting this baby here and losing the atrocious amount of weight I know I'm going to gain!

Here are my 8 new questions (those tagged answer these instead of the same ones I answered, yes, some of them are the same):

1-What is your favorite picture and why?

2-What is your favorite movie and why?

3-Would you rather go on your dream vacation with your husband or take the family and why?

4-What is something you are looking forward to?

5-What is your biggest pet peeve and why?

6-Post a favorite recipe or craft directions.

7-What is your favorite Christmas tradition and why?

8-What is one new Christmas tradition you would like to begin and why?

I Tag:

1-Ashlee

2-Tannie

3-Heather

4-Natalee

5-Nic

6-Angela

7-Amy

8-Anyone else who wants to play!

The things kids do...

Caleb has become addicted to Charlotte's Web. I remember all too well Samantha's phase of this...I have a dog that reminds me of it every day! He doesn't call it Charlotte's Web though. Nope, it's "The Piggy Movie." He wants to watch one of them (we have 3 different ones) every night before bed. When I won't let him watch it, he insists on taking the dvd to bed with him!

When I took the kids to the book fair at the school on Monday, Caleb picked out a True or False Farm Animals book. It is affectionately referred to as "Piggy Book." I think God miscalculated when he placed this farm boy in our home! Not only does he now sleep with his "Tractor Book," but also his "Piggy Book," "Piggy Movie," Lamb (all 3 or 4 of them - depending on how many we can find at bedtime), his pink Care Bear which he calls his "Buffalo," his horse, his green dinosaur that Grandpa Larry gave him when he got tubes, his monkey and his cow. Whew! Even my mom commented on how little room there was for him in his bed the other day when she was here and helped tuck him into bed. Little does she know that when he wakes up in the middle of the night and comes to snuggle with me he brings EACH and EVERY item from his bed to mine! Granted, sometimes I find a trail from his room to my bed, but generally speaking most of them end up in bed with us.

This boy is a farm boy at heart. I feel bad that we don't live on a farm because I know how much he loves EVERYTHING (yes everything - from the cowboy boots to the cow poop) that has to do with farm life. He is in 7th heaven when we go to Manti and he can become Grandpa Butter's little shadow. I think that perhaps I should make more trips to Manti just for Caleb!

Caleb has recently rediscovered the Fisher Price Little People farm that we got when Sam was little. He was thrilled! I don't think he's going to allow me to put it away for quite some time. In fact, I'm wondering how long it will be before he manages to get the entire farm, zoo and all the people and animals that go with them upstairs! Today I picked up the farmer, the tractor, and several animals. I don't think it will be long before the rest appears.

Despite all his farm "quirkiness" I can't deny how much this little boy makes me smile every day. He will be a great big brother - especially if he can manage to pass his love of farming on to his sibling!

FYI

Last night I was messing around and clicked on the link in my list "How does she". If you click this link it pulls up a blog & just under the slideshow to the right is a link called Free Calendar = Perfect Present. I was feeling venturous and went ahead and clicked. I ended up at vistaprint (I've bought business cards from them and have been happy). Anyway - you can get a wall calendar that you personalize with your photos (you choose background, add birthdays/events, etc.) or a desk calendar for only the price of shipping! I did one for my mom & one for my father in law. I know it isn't as awesome as when I did the scrapbook calendars, but lets face it...I don't have the time or energy (or the empty calendar sitting in my office not to mention that would mean I would have to finish shoveling out my office so I could work down there) to do the scrapbook calendars this year!

Anyway, I still had fun creating it and I know they'll love it anyway because it has all our beautiful smiling faces on every single month of the year! I thought I'd pass along the info - you know, just in case you're feeling venturous too!

In a completely random side note - I sold my 2nd item on my etsy website! It was even one I designed this time! HA! It was one of my baby tag blankets.

On another completely random side note - I left Caleb with my friend today & came home to sew (did I mention I might get a booth in Paradise this Saturday?). Anyway, I finished 8 (yes, 8) baby tag blankets & 3 burp cloths! I was excited! I have 2 blankets I'm going to finish tonight & I've also cut 6 inch squares (7 x 7 size for the finished product) for 3 more baby blankets that I'm piecing (yes Cass, you can pick one - all 3 are girlie!).

Baby updates

Today I went to see my dr. (Dr. Fowers). He had a hard time finding the baby's heartbeat, but after some searching was able to catch it long enough to make sure it was a strong heart beat. Apparently baby was doing somersaults - not looking forward to that in the near future!

The "highlight" of my appointment was when Dr. Fowers looked at my chart and then back at me and said, "You know you're on the track to gain a LOT of weight, right?" Um..yeah, last time I gained 62 lbs!! After I reminded him of that he asked me if I lose it all ok. I had the pleasure of telling him that although I gained 62 lbs last time, I also lost 80. His kind reply was "I guess gaining a lot is just your norm then." Thanks...I hadn't figured that one out. I have to remember that he didn't see me with my first two pregnancies. In fact, he didn't start seeing me until half way through Caleb's pregnancy. So, I guess I'm still "new" to him! I think the reason he pointed this out to me is that I've already gained like 30 lbs. Yeah, I said 30. Normally I gain a pound a week until the end of the second trimester and then it kicks into overdrive. I guess this baby might hit the 10 lb mark! He asked me about my diet and as I explained to him, I eat fairly normal. I'm not freaking out on treats - unfortunately the sound of many of them make me want to puke. I'm going to blame it on the fact that my body knows I'm pregnant and is just gearing up for the long winter!

I was able to schedule my ultrasound for Dec. 13th. Unfortunately, Travis won't be home. That's the day before he gets here. I didn't have many dates to choose from though, so that's what we took.

Since my appointment was this morning, I left the boys at Laura's house. She was kind enough to let me leave Caleb until 3. In that time I managed to get 3 burp clothes and 8 (yes, 8) baby tag blankets completed. I cut them all out last night (Caleb REFUSED to stay in or go to bed until midnight). Now I have 2 baby blankets pinned and ready to sew and 2 more that need to be cut (6 inch blocks of 2 different fabrics) and pinned. My girlfriend from next door told me she might be able to get me a booth at the art/craft/music thing in Paradise on Saturday. I'm crossing my fingers since the Lewiston booth didn't work out! Looks like I've got a few long nights ahead of me. I guess if the booth doesn't work out at least I'll have more items for my etsy.com website!

Pictures!

You know, it's moments like these that I think, "Ah...maybe 1 more won't be so bad." And then they wake up! ;)I picked out some fabric to make a carseat canopy. When I know if we're having a girl or a boy then I'll know if I can girly it up or boy it down! I'm planning to make it reversible and use ribbon to attach it to the carseat handle.
I also picked up some fabric to make a cute bag for my mother in law for Christmas.
My aunt's family was sealed in the temple to their adopted daughter today. Miss Sadie requested a chocolate purple panda bear cake. Not to disappoint......
I did send a picture to Trav on my phone & he said it looked blue. I assured him it was quite a lavender purple. Later I guess he watched Kung Fu Panda and he told me that I did a good job because the panda cake looked just like the panda on the movie! Thanks for the vote of confidence Trav!

And tomorrow I will be 15 weeks. I don't think I look as big in this picture as I did in the last one. However, I think it's only because I'm not holding my belly so my shirt is much more poofy!

The diagnosis....

I had Sam's file from the pediatrician faxed over to the ENT the other day. When Dr. Blotter (the ENT) came into the office he was kind enough not to mention the bulging size of her ever growing folder!

He took one look in her throat and said, "Yeah...those do not look good. They need to come out." Awesome. Yes, we can wait until January (an awesome without sarcasm). Check her ears while we're here why don't we? What? She still has a hole in her left ear drum from the tubes that were taken out almost a year ago?? Awesome (yes, more sarcasm).

Proposal:

1-Take out the tonsils

2-Check the adenoids while we're in there to make sure they haven't grown back (wouldn't that be awesome?)

3-Do a sort of sheetrock patch on the hole in her left ear drum. What the heck, why not?

When Dr. Blotter and his nurse told me that when Samantha gets older and asks why we didn't take a lot of super expensive family vacations I can just show her her medical file and say, "Because we did THIS instead!" I told Dr. Blotter I am positive we have paid for his summer home. His response? "Looks like a few over at the Budge Clinic too." Gee, thanks. I hadn't noticed! Keep in mind, this is just 1...ONE...of my children out of soon to be 4...FOUR...What in the blazes was I thinking??? Apparently not about their bulging medical files!

Dr. Blotter told me that normally to fix the hole in her ear drum they would do a 2 hour surgery where they essentially life the ear drum up and graft behind and over it. However, since she's already going to be down 30 minutes for the tonsils and who knows how long for her adenoids (depends on if they've grown back or not and need to come out again), he doesn't really want to keep her under another 2 hours. So, instead he is going to a do a procedure that has a slightly (yes, I said slightly) lower success rate (still 60-70%) but takes less time. This is where they go in and do a sort of sheet rock patch on her ear drum. He said the 2 hour surgery is super delicate and finicky as well. He did it on another patient and she got the flu the next day so her ear surgery didn't take. That would NOT be awesome!

I asked if we could wait until January seeing as how it would actually be awesome to get some of our new deductible out of the way before baby comes. It helps that we'll have a whole new year of increased medical flex spending to use as well. He said that would be fine but he's fairly certain that she'll get sick again between now and then. So, (since he's so awesome - NO sarcasm) he gave me a prescription for when that happens because as he said, "It will probably be midnight on Christmas Eve and the only place open will be the ER." To which I had to say, "Or we'll be in Manti & the only place open will be the ER." He smiled and told me "Keep it in your purse!" No need to tell me twice...that last trip to the Gunnison ER in Oct. is going to cost me over $100 - not awesome.

Dr. Blotter did tell me she'll be out for about a week for recovery. Sam's excited about that. I told her I don't think she'll be so excited when it comes. In fact, I think she'd much prefer going to school when it comes! Let the drama begin!

Since we're waiting until January they haven't got a schedule that far ahead. I have to call back in mid-December to schedule a surgery time. I'm hoping I can get a time when Trav's home that doesn't interfere with either Relay for Life kickoff that I'd like to help with and that's close to the beginning of the month so she doesn't miss too much after Christmas vacation....here's to wishful thinking!

At least all our dr.'s ARE awesome (and no, there's NO sarcasm there)! That helps me have a better attitude about it. However, one thing still bothers me. How is it that my husband and I still have tonsils but now 2 of our children won't? Blame it on recessive genes I guess??

PS I got some really cute pix of the kids last night and some good video of Sam. Unfortunately, it is nearly midnight and my children (yes, all three of them) are still awake. So, I will have to post them tomorrow!

Ramblings

Since I'm sure everyone that follows my blog is just DYING for me to update, I suppose I will! ;)

This is the new form of go-kart at our house. Apparently it's SUPER fun because I can't seem to keep the barstools upright anymore!

On Monday I took Caleb to the dr. He had been croupy and had a nose that just wouldn't clear up. We got dexamethazone from our favorite pediatrician and was pleasantly surprised when he said it WASN'T a sinus infection! When I went to pick the kids up from school I started to pull out of the parking lot but before I could hit the road Samantha was throwing up. GREAT! Awesome way to start the week. And to think I changed the sheets on all the beds today! She only had a few small episodes after school (she said she was fine until lunch but had felt junkie after that). I thought she was done and we were in t

he clear until 11:30. I put the childproof lock on the inside of their bedroom to keep Caleb in bed several weeks ago. I heard someone fumbling with the knob & figured it was him. After a few minutes I got up & went to see what was going on. It was Sam, standing in throw up and had thrown up in her bed. Yeah....had a mother of the year feeling at that moment. I was glad Trav was there to clean that one up! So, we got her cleaned u

p & back in bed. Trav thought I was mean b/c I wouldn't let her sleep on the couch (I changed the sheets again). But dude! Have you tried getting puke out of a couch? Especially one that has cushions that don't come off. Um..yeah. No thanks for a repeat in that experience department!

Trav took Caleb for a bike ride one day while he was here. Apparently, it's quite the workout for EVERYONE involved!

Tuesday was fairly quiet. I kept Sam home just to be safe. We made a trip to KMart and I finally found a baby book. Do you have any idea how hard it is to find one that's unisex? Dang near impossible!

Travis just left Wednesday morning (like 4 am) to head back to Rock Springs. We were all bummed. There was a bright side....Trav's brother went up Monday to Rock Springs and wasn't planning to come home until Thursday or Friday. At least he'd have a smidge of home that way?? His brother was going for work too.

I sent Sam to school Wednesday since she was fine Tuesday. When I picked her up after school, her first comment was, "Mom! I didn't even feel like calling you once!" Sweet! I'm thinking it's over & we're good. Stupid me. I thought I was doing awesome. I had the kids in bed at 9 pm (that's EARLY at our house) and I didn't even hear a peep out of any of them! I stayed up and made more super cute bows while I watched 2 movies I checked out at the library. At midnight Sam woke up and said she was cold and didn't feel good. I told her to go get in my bed. It should have been a clue when she took a fleece blanket to my HEATED water bed & still used my blankets too.

Here comes Thursday. Sam woke up with a fever. AWESOME! I got the boys up and dressed and fed and left them at daycare while I took Sam to Instacare. Diagnosis? Strep.....AGAIN! This is the third time this year (June, October, November). I called the ENT's office and made an appointment with our super favorite ENT whom I'm sure we've purchased a summer home for. I think Sam might need her tonsils out. On the bright side....if we could put it off until January, it would go towards the new year's deductible & we could use the money we will have in flex spending. Hmmmm...Lord works in mysterious ways??? Perhaps! Not positive she'll need them out, but I'm just saying. Nash has had his out so I think it's a possibility. Besides, the dr. she saw at Instacare (the same one that saw her with her broken arm & asked her where her cast was) asked if she snored. When I told him she snores bad (like last night I thought I was sharing my bed with Travis again) he said that's another sign that they might need to come out. So, tomorrow I get to keep Sam home again (suggestion from her teacher ;) ) and check Nash out of school early so I can take Sam to the ENT to see if I can contribute further to his summer home purchase! At least I have a good attitude about it, right? :)

I talked to Trav about 10:30 tonight. I've decided things could be worse. He got sent to Vernal (again) today. He told me that he gets to get up at 3 am & head out to the site where they will do 3 wells (12 hrs each) before he'll get to come off the site again. That means that he's going to be onsite for 36 hours straight. Awesome....glad it's not me. At least it's better than the 44 hours straight he was onsite last time. Did you know that apparently it's LEGAL to leave guys onsite for 48 hours straight?? Wonder when he'll be forced to hit that mark. Hope he gets a few naps in here and there! What a man.

Here's to TGIF!

Go me!

I just made my first sale on my etsy.com website! Funny enough to me, it was a watch band that SAM designed! She & Trav both said "Well I guess she gets the money." To which I replied "Who bought the supplies??" I think I'll give her some of the money anyway! Then I can still get her to help me! She was a bit bummed though because she didn't know that I had listed that one for sale & wanted it for herself! Oops! Good thing I have more of those beads!

Need a laugh?

I saw this on a friend's blog and it made me giggle, so I had to share!

Halloween

This year our Halloween was dad-less again. We thought he might be able to make it home for the weekend festivities, but at the last minute they switched him to day shift & sent him to Colorado & Vernal back to back (44 hours on the clock straight). Despite missing our dad, we still had quite the adventure.

Samantha was a princess in the dress Grandma Terri gave her for her birthday. Nash was Darth Vader but went light saber-less & mostly refused to wear his mask. And Caleb, well, he wore Nash's old Devil costume!
I took the kids into Logan on Saturday to trick or treat down main street. I was surprised at their mellowness. None of them wanted to venture down center or 1st, they were perfectly content staying on Main! It was nice enough to not rain on us during this trick or treating, but it was still chilly. Caleb was super cute even though he was super tired. He'd jump out of his stroller and hold Sam's hand to go in. In his quiet little voice he'd manage to get out "Tik Treat!". How could you not give a kid like that candy?
After Trick or Treating on Main, we came home for a bit so we could get ready to go out to Grandma Kris & Grandpa Scott's house. Grandma's birthday is on Halloween, so we always spend Halloween out there. All the cousins came out & we had lots & lots of fun - despite the on again off again torrential down pour. Sam being the only girl, I think she sticks out kinda like a sore thumb!
After all the Trick or Treating was done, we sang to Grandma & had cake.
This is the cake I made. I saw it in a picture from one of the recipe emails I get & thought it was super cute & I needed to copy it.
Nash was the super star trick or treater. He went out and around Grandma & Grandpa's neighborhood about 3 or 4 times and hit quite a bit of area. In fact, his bag is 3/4 of the way full. Since Caleb fell asleep on our way over, he only went out once while we were there, but he too managed to fill his bucket. Samantha went out once and when the down pour started, she was done! She was the door woman all night & was completely happy about it. At one point when I asked if she was sure she didn't want to go back out she replied, "Yep. I'm staying here. I know my brothers will share with me." A bit presumptuous for her to say about a 5 & 2 year old & their precious candy! She was however, correct!

Another book review

Yes people, I am insane. I started reading Devil's Food Cake yesterday afternoon. I finished it at 4:17 am today. I COULD NOT put that sucker down. I went into my bedroom at 11 thinking I'd just read 20 minutes. Then it turned into just one more chapter. Then just 1 more....Finally it was 30 more minutes. Around 2:30 I finally told myself "Oh forget it! You know you're going to just finish it so quit setting a time limit!"

If you've read Lemon Tart or English Trifle, you'll like this one too. I know I said I like English Trifle even better than Lemon Tart, but this one was THE BEST (so far). There's a new character introduced & I must say - I like him!

There was a line toward the end that had me laughing so hard I thought I'd pee my pants right there in my bed!

Today I shall venture to the library to see if they have Key Lime Pie on the shelf or if I must get on the waiting list for that too. I betting I get the waiting list!

A book review & other things

Last night I finished The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan. It was 513 pages, which, if you ask me is too many for book 1 in a series. I did like it. However, if you've read the Percy Jackson books, you'll find it's essentially the same plot. The main difference is that Percy Jackson is Greek Mythology and The Red Pyramid is Ancient Egypt. I'm pretty sure the next book in the series isn't out yet. And to be completely honest, I'm not sure I would finish this series. If book 1 is this long, how long will the others be? Besides, since I read Percy Jackson, I feel like I've pretty much read this plot before.

I am still waiting for the library to call me & tell me that The Lost Hero is waiting for me. This is the first book in the follow up series to Percy Jackson. We'll see if Mr. Riordan disappoints or not.

I started Devil's Food Cake today. This is book 3 of Josie Kilpack in her "culinary murder mystery" stories. So far, so good. Once I finish this one (it's another library book I had to be on the waiting list for so I read it now or wait again), I will read The Mockingjay (which I got for my birthday - I was #28 on the waiting list at the library & they have 9 copies!).

I have managed to start on another round of Christmas stockings. I did get the one I embroidered sold (it was basically pre-ordered). I also managed to score a big sale on my hairbows last night! A girl I grew up next door to ordered a bunch from me. I must say, the ones she picked the ribbon for turned out absolutely adorable & now I think I must make more of those! One was a lime green zebra type print which would go perfect with Sam's LaShar's warm ups. So, I think that will be the next one she gets to keep. Tonight when I went to my mom's house I was looking at the ribbon in her sewing room and said, "Oh, I should get some of this to make some bows out of (white with cute red cherries on it)." Mom's mistake? She told me to take what I wanted and make what I wanted. A grocery bag later I've got some more ribbon to make bows out of! At least I didn't have to spend a bunch of money on this ribbon, right?

For those that are wondering what I'm charging on stuff...I want some feedback here. I was going to ask $25 on the stockings I don't embroider and $30 on the ones I do. Anyone think that's terribly overpriced? The bows I was going to ask 1 for $2.50 (the ribbon ones) or 2/$4. I was going to ask 1 for $3.00 on the flowers (they cost a bit more to make) or 2/$5. I'm trying to be a little cheaper than the ones I've bought for Sam because I have a hard time spending $5 for a single bow for her. Feedback on it would be great please! If you want something particular, let me know. I've got TONS of ribbon & fabric & would be more than willing to send you pix of either/both so you can see what choices you have.

Tomorrow is Sam's Halloween party at dance & Friday the kids are partying at school. Samantha is going to be a princess & dress in the amazing dress my mom made for her birthday last year. Nash is going as Darth Vader & I still need to hem up the sleeves & pant legs on his costume. Caleb is going as a devil (I made the costume for Nash when he was 2). And, just for some sick humor, I think I may borrow my mom's nun costume & go as a pregnant nun! Travis said he might be able to make it home for the weekend, but he still isn't sure. Either way, we will be out trick or treating & having a birthday party for Grandma Kris.

I went to Parent Teacher Conferences for both kids tonight. Samantha is at or above the class average in everything. I'm not surprised because her teacher sent home a report the other day so I could look over it before the conference. She redid her star test on Oct. 20th and went from 2.5 (in Sept.) to 2.9. Yeah, she reads like her mother & sleeps with books just as often! Her teacher even got to tell me she isn't a drama queen in class like she is at home, so I was happy! Nash is doing good as well. He has moved up a reading group in the last few weeks and only missed a couple of things on the assessment they did in September (which his teacher told me they hadn't really worked on a few of the things they were tested on. So once again, I was happy! She also told me he isn't too much of a goofball or a smart alec in class, so that was good to hear! I have noticed that Sam's strong points are mainly the language areas (like me), although she doesn't do terrible at math. Whereas Nash on the other hand really seems to do well with numbers (like his dad) but struggles a bit more with the language areas. Funny just how opposite they are! Both of them enjoy school and are doing well both socially & academically so that's about all I could ask for!

Well, I have a tired baby so I'd better go tuck him in! Happy haunting!

Projects, projects & more projects!

My computer desk is slowly disappearing...this is the right of my computer desk....This is the left of my computer desk....
Somewhere under all this is my kitchen table...
I did get 5 of these finished tonight...
I only embroidered a name on 1 (special order)...
I can't even tell you the last time I saw the top of my kitchen table & used it as a kitchen table. I think it might have been when we celebrated Trav's birthday over Labor Day. Wow...I have a problem, don't I? I blame my mother entirely!

The boys get a haircut...

Well, I told you Nash cut his own hair.....His excuse? "I thought I was cutting above it." Right...like I'm really going to believe that! Sam did this when she was 3 & Caleb is the one I worry about doing it now. I didn't figure this one would be the culprit. Guess that's what I get for assuming, right?
You can still see where he cut his hair. I had to use the 1/4 inch on my buzzers. Nice Nash. It's not like it's snowing or anything!
Of course if big brother gets a hair cut, Caleb needs one too. So, we put the cape on him & I put the 1 inch attachment on the buzzers. I didn't think that much came off but this morning, I realized more came off than I thought had!
Much to my pleasant surprise, this is what I found at 7:30 last night. I figured he likely wasn't out for the count. He woke up once about 30 minutes later, but mostly just long enough for a mama hug and then he was out again. I thought he'd be up at the crack of dawn (he usually is anyway). He woke up at 5:30 but a sippy cup of pink milk knocked him back out until the pleasant hour of 8:30. Whooo hoo!

I'm still waiting to hear if I got the booth in Lewiston on Nov. 20th. I actually ended up buying one of the things my team put out at the auction at Relay for Life and I'm glad I did because it was good inspiration today! Grandma Bown gave me this tree thing for a display... (should have rotated the pic)...
But, I created a giant copy of what I bought at Relay this past July. Hair bow central!! Samantha (or maybe Nash) told me I need a bigger one! I think I'll just make a bunch more bows & stash them in a gallon zip lock bag to fill in the empty spots as they appear. What I thought was funny was that the fabric I used to cover the board is some that I saw this summer at JoAnns. I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but I loved it so of course I had to buy it! Glad I did! I might have enough left over to cover another board!

Pictures, Pictures, Pictures!

We got a new puppy when we went to Manti over UEA break. Samantha named her Chloe. She has a hernia on her belly but the vet said they would fix it when they spay her. Good. I only have to pay for surgery once! Charlotte tolerates her but I don't think she likes her too much at this point. Caleb on the other hand loves chasing her around listening to her bark & telling me "Kick her butt mom!".We went to the historical farm when Travis was home. They had this giant slide...
Sweet cowboy horses to ride & a bull that our dad roped over and over....
This pit of hay to jump into....
The corn maze (which we technically didn't go all the way through, but we made it in & eventually made it back out through the same entrance we went in through.)
We had corn stalk fighting throughout the corn maze....
We locked our children in the stocks....

Nash chased down the historical farm cat and tortured it some....
We bought pumpkins from the historical farm & went home to carve them....
This is Caleb's all finished...he DID NOT like the pumpkin guts and wanted pretty much nothing to do with it other than to take his shirt off and watch mom do all the work!
Nash did really good on his....
From left: Travis, Nash, Samantha, Caleb, Misty....
We roasted pumpkin seeds (and then mom was the only one that would actually eat them!)....
Mom left the boys unattended for 5 minutes while she checked her email this past Friday morning and the boys found a pink sail boat stamp....
We went & cheered Sam on at the Homecoming Parade on Saturday....
The boys had a prime spot to watch...
Caleb's favorite floats were the vet science ones (cows & tractors)....

Grandma Kris helped Nash chase down candy throwers & get some candy....We visited my Grandma & Grandpa Reeder at their new house....
Mom got fatter (12 weeks now)...
I put a new bedspread on my bed to brighten up the room (thanks Grandma)...
And my favorite photo of all: Caleb & Grandpa Butter on the tractor!

We also went to the pumpkin walk this past Friday but I was stupid & forgot my camera! And I discovered this afternoon that Nash has cut his own hair (picture coming later) so now I have to shave him down. Guess it's a good thing they've already had school pictures!