So, I tried out the recipe....

For Whoopie pies posted by Mindy a little bit ago....I made them for work...tomorrow night we're having a potluck to wish well a friend who's quitting to stay home with her kids full time(lucky girl). Of course, I had to try one to make sure they were OK....I think they're pretty close. I also let Kyle have one...and you would have thought he'd died and gone to cookie heaven. I got an enthusiastic 2 thumbs up, as he devoured it and tried to convince me not to take them to work....I'm not sure I got the frosting quite right, but it still tasted good.

I can't wait to see how they go over here at work....

Thanks for sharing, Mindy!!!!!!

Oh, and we definitely need to have a crafternoon......

32?!!!

So, yesterday was my birthday, and I turned 32. As I considered this, I realized that my 32nd year has tons of potential...after all, this was me at 31.... Granted, I had an almost 2 month old baby, but all things considered, look at me now, at 32...
At 32, I weigh less than I've weighed since I was 25...I look pretty darn good to myself, and that's a big boost when you realized that you're getting older. A few more years, and I will have been an adult as long as I was a child....kind of an interesting thought.
I had a really good birthday. I worked the night before(and it turned into my birthday at midnight) and the people I work with got together and we had fresh salsa and chips...and ice cream...it's always fun to celebrate birthdays at work. I got about 3 1/2 hours of sleep in the morning before Talia woke...but then she took a 2 hour nap from 9:30 to 11:30, so I got a nap then...it was great. We headed out to mom's pool in the afternoon, for our first swim this year. The kids were so excited, they drove me crazy all morning asking when we were going to Nana's...they had a great time.

Kyle couldn't wait to jump in....

Alec was a little more nervous to start with, but it came back to him pretty quicky.
Talia LOVED the water...she didn't mind being dunked, didn't mind being splashed, and stayed in a long time...she was having so much fun!!!
My little brother and me...hanging out and keeping an eye on our kids....
"Swimming Lessons" with daddy...it's really nice for us that Cole taught swim lessons when he was younger...it makes it easy for him to teach our kids.

After we swam, we came home, had Olive Garden take out for dinner, and Cole bought me an ice cream cake...oreo...yummy. He also gave me what I wanted...and external hard drive for my laptop. Now, hopefully I can transfer my iTunes to that, and free up space on our main family computer. I'm also going to transfer all the pictures onto it, so that I have another backup...just in case. My parents and grandparents gave me money, which I plan to put to good use in a couple weeks...and Mindy, thanks for the scrapbook stuff!!!
By the end of the night, I was exhausted (5 1/2 total hours of sleep, remember). I crawled into bed at 9:20, and fell asleep pretty quickly. And slept til almost 8 this morning. Life is good.

I took the kids to the library today to get some books....they were really, really good, and made it easy. Hopefully they will like the books we got...

All in all, 32 is shaping up to be the best year of my life so far. I have a wonderful, amazing husband, 3 beautiful, smart and fun kids, a great job, great friends and family....Here's to looking forward to a spectacular year!!!!

We love our Firepit!!!!!

We had so much fun with our new firepit!!! All the benefits of a campfire, but no smoky smell or ashes to worry about!!! The hot dogs and sausages cooked perfectly, the smores and marshmallows were delicious....and the boys had a ton of fun!!!
Kyle eats a s'more....

My mother in law and I cook our dinner....
Kyle and Alec figure out how to roast their hot dogs!
Talia loved the marshmallows...and did pretty good staying away from the flames (with some gentle reminders, of course.)

Alec just ate chocolate, (he doesn't like marshmallows)....

Despite the crappy weather, it's obvious that summer has begun!!!!!

What a way to spend the weekend....

Sick with a cold!!!! It started out on friday morning with what I thought was an allergy/asthma attack. I had to use my inhaler for the first time in a really long time. When I felt the consolidation in my chest that night at work, I figured it was just the lung response to the attack. But as Saturday progressed, I felt worse and worse...and by Sunday morning it seemed like the mucus was just pouring out of me...I had a fever, I couldn't breathe, and I felt like crap. I took it really easy yesterday...and it paid off. Today I feel much better, although not completely recovered.

We took advantage of the Memorial Day sales to go looking for some bedroom furniture for Talia...We found her a really cute Sleigh bed at Ashley Home furniture in Layton. The set, for a dresser, mirror, nightstand, and the bed and rails was about what I wanted to spend, so I felt really good about it. It will be delivered on the 12th.....

We're currently hoping the weather will clear up and stay cleared up so we can roast hot dogs and marshmallows (and have smore's) over our new firepit....

So I know I've been a Slacker...

About posting this week. It's been a busy week, mostly good though. Caught my princess in a rare pouty look.... We spent the warmer days this week in the backyard.....The kids all love the tramp, and we took advantage of the fact that I was called off on Tuesday night to go get....
A new firepit!!!!
It's a propane firepit. We saw it at Target in the beginning of spring, but I just didn't have $250 to spend on it. A friend from Cole's work (thanks, Emily!!!! ) saw that it had gone on clearance for 50% off, so we ran out there Tuesday night...and because the floor model was the only one left, we got an extra 20% off...It was an amazing deal for something we have wanted for the past couple of years. We got it home, got it hooked up to the propane tank....and then Cole spent some time see if he could make the propane burn green (obviously it worked, and he was very excited). After we put the kids to bed, and it was dark, Cole and I sat out there with our soda's and talked around the light and warmth of the fire...it was really, really nice.

Wednesday morning was Kindergartgen Graduation...which was fun. I got there early enough to get a great, front row seat, with a perfect view of Alec. Talia was really good, even though she was tired and ready for her nap by the end.
Alec and Miss Ashby, his teacher...

My little "Graduate" and me...

I'm always surprised when I see pics of myself these days, My face is so skinny....I guess that's a result of losing weight, but I don't see that when I look in the mirror. I see it on the rest of my body, just not in my face....

Wednesday night, my hair appointment got cancelled, which was bad, because my hair is in desperate need of a color and texturizing...and I had to reschedule for Saturday, which ruins my plans for that day. However, I did get to hang out with the most AWESOME girls...you know who you are. Our Presidency meeting turned therapy session was therapeautic even for me, and I'm so glad to reaffirm that I can count on you girls for anything.

Thursday, I got a little irritated with the school (OK, a lot, but I tried hard not to take it out on the messengers). Alec really wanted to walk home, and since he had to go in the morning these last few days, it would be alone. I told him OK, and waited for him. Then I get a call from the school..."are you picking him up?" "No, I told him to walk". "We can't let Kindergarteners walk home by themselves". So, I dragged Talia out of her high chair, with my hair still soaked from my shower, and then of course he was in the office by then, so I had to go into the school to get him. I think it's ridiculous that I give my parental permission for my child to walk home from school, and the school (or district) refuses to let him go. When Kyle was in kindergarten, he walked home alone for 1/2 the school year, I never had problems then. I was seriously irritated.

Thursday afternoon, we saw "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull". It was pretty good, but maybe the buildup spoiled it a little for me...It didn't quite live up to my expectations. If you don't mind spoilers, check out Cole's review of the movie. We went home, went to bed, and then at midnight, the phone rings...It's my FIL. My MIL has been having blood pressure problems, and he had to go to work and didn't want to leave her alone. They worked it out, and I was so, so glad they called us....But I wish they'd let us help them more. Toni, if you read this, you're in my thoughts, and please, please, please call us for anything at all.

Tonight I'm at work, and we've been psycho busy until the last hour or so....

What a great week!!!!

I had a great week starting on Tuesday...I was called off on Tuesday, so I was rested for Wednesday...instead of tired like I would have been. A whole extra day off....which I spent in my sweat capri's and a t-shirt. I did shower, but I did the no makeup, and relaxed...it felt great. So great, that I contemplated having the same kind of day on Thursday...but I had a bunch of stuff I needed to get done, so....I kicked shopping butt on Thursday....this is my haul....
A new bedspread and decorative pillow for Talia (we like to put our kids in beds around 15 months, but I had to find matching colors for her room. A friend told me Mervyns had a matching color scheme, and they were having a bedding sale, so...) Sandals for the boys, and canvas shoes for Talia...a couple of pairs of shorts for Kyle (we'll cut off all his jeans after school's out), and 4 new pairs of shorts for Alec (He's finally put on enough weight to outgrow his jeans :))
A swimsuit for Alec (Kyle and Talia already had theirs)...because my mom's opening the pool on the 24th. Sunscreen wipes for me (I've heard great things about MD Skincare's sunscreen wipes)...and I tried them today and I love them. Then, I've wanted to try the Slimquick extreme...and found it at GNC for a reasonable price. We'll see if it works better than the normal one...All in all I felt I accomplished quite a bit.

Friday was the second "Mini Society" day...Kyle's partner from last time told him afterschool on THURSDAY that he wasn't going to be his partner again....Which irritated me a little because of the last minute thing...but it worked out GREAT for Kyle...

This was his stand this time. We told him to get a place along a wall, not in a corner so that everyone would have to walk by...he sold all his "crystal" skulls, all his regular skulls, and almost all the bracelets...He made almost 500 Scholar dollars. Add that to the 350 he had in his "bank"...I was really happy about it, and he was too. Then I went scrapbooking at Mindy's Friday night...I didn't get much done, I wasn't in a real creative mood, but it was good to hang out, eat whoopie pies, and talk with the girls...

Today was the last soccer game (YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) I love watching their games, but it really eats up our Saturdays. Kyle's team seemed like it finally "clicked" in the 3rd quarter today...until they got all tired out, they played so well. Kyle played really well too, I was so proud of him.

The camera died when I was at Alec's game, but he didn't really play well today (he was distracted playing with his shadow), and I have other pics of him playing, so I don't feel too bad.
I did get this cute pic of Talia sleeping...she fell asleep in the car after Kyle's game on the way to Alec's...we thought for sure she'd wake up when Cole took her out of the car, but she slept for 45 minutes on the blanket...I hope that means that she'll start sleeping better in places other than her crib or her carseat (like church, for example).
I tried to get a nap after the games, but I didn't sleep well...and now I'm here at work. I'm working with a bunch of friends, so it's shaping up to be a fun night.

So that's the, sum of our week....

Days of our Thighs

So, I started the Days of our Thighs blog. If you want an invite to be an author on the blog, leave me a comment with your email address (that you use to sign in to blogger). If you just want to read and comment, that's great. The address is daysofourthighs.blogspot.com If you have any design suggestions, I'm more than happy to incorporate them....

Happy Mother's Day!!!!

First of all, Happy Mother's Day to all the Mom's out there who read my blog. I hope everyone had a good day....I did. I slept in until almost 10am. Cole had breakfast waiting for me. We went to church, which although a little crazy at times, went well. Then, I started with the camera...I've realized that I don't have pictures from many Mother's Days (and Father's Days, for that matter, but that's another story :) ). So, some of my 30 pics of today...
Me and my kids.... Cole with his Mom and the kids....
Me with my Mom, the kids, and Bitzi (the yorkie)... My loot....Kyle gave me a picture "block" he made at scouts, as well as countless cards...Alec made me a foam "flower pot" with a tracing of his hand, and then they bought me a leather Journal (I love blank books!!! )... My MIL gave me the book and some turquoise earrings, and my mom gave me money to give myself a treat (I always like to shop, and she knows that!)
So, of course, I forgot to take a pic of the cute stepping stones that we made for my mom and MIL...I'll try to get a pic later, but I used the kids feet, and they turned out sooooo cute. All in all, I felt very pleased with my mother's day, and I hope everyone else did too!!!

I had an idea....

So, for all you blog-friends out there, I have an idea I've been kicking around...
Many of us have little kids, many of us are.....unsatisfied...with the way we look...for whatever reason. I was thinking about maybe starting a team blog...not exactly about weight loss in particular, but more for encouragement and support for each other's efforts. It could be private, to the Team members only, or we could let anyone see it. We could post more specific things about our personal body goals...and everyone could post on the same blog. I just thought...I've worked hard, and lost 22 lbs since my weight stablilized after Talia. I've hit my original goal weight, and I've set a new goal for 5 more pounds...but I know I will need encouragement to maintain it. None of us ever wants to gain weight back, but sometimes life gets in the way. And personally, I'm an emotional eater. Which is why, last night, having the worst migraine I've had in a long, long time, I ate 500 calories in Cadbury Mini Eggs, which I have hidden in the back of my freezer in the Garage. It did make me feel better, so I guess it can't be completely discounted, but maybe it would have been better if I could go to the blog, and read...oh, she did this today, and look at her goals being realized...I can do it too. So, if you're interested, post a comment here, and I'll get it all set up.

So, in a couple of days, I'll post the pics of the Mother's Day presents we made for my mom and mil...they turned out so good, I'm really excited about them. But I don't want to ruin the surprise....

Tag...5 things to know about....

Alec Roy....Alec was born on July 14th, 2002. He picked the worst possible day of the whole summer to be born, because my parents were headed to Las Vegas to pick up their new car. He was 3 1/2 weeks early, and he was a boy, so his father and I were nervous. I went into labor early in the morning, but later stalled out. The doctor came in an checked me, and said if I hadn't changed in an hour, he was sending me home. NO JOKE, the contractions started up again, every 2 minutes, and things started to happen. Alec didn't tolerate the labor well..in fact, they were prepping me for an emergency C-section, when he finally decided to turn his head the right way so he could be born. His cord was wrapped around his neck twice, and I really think he might have been stillborn if he had not been born that day. But the day of his labor was so emotionally worrying and traumatic for my husband, it took ALOT for me to convince him to try one more time. Alec's first "clean"baby pic...(since I don't have a scanner...it's a pic of the scrapbook page)...6 lbs 12 oz, 20 inches long... Alec was a restless soul and marched to the beat of his own drummer from the beginning. He tried to be born from the time I was 25 weeks along, and still does EVERYTHING on his own time scale.
As an infant, he was difficult for me, because he didn't want a schedule, wouldn't take a pacifier but obviously wanted one, and seemed to be afraid to miss something...I had to move his position every few minutes, he was never satisfied to stay in the same place for long. Once he could crawl, he was much happier.
His hair was very curly, until he turned 2...after his haircut around his 2nd birthday, it grew back with texture, but no more curls. When he was a baby, I knew it was time to cut his hair when people started saying..."Oh, what a pretty little girl you have!"...
He LOVES to dress up in costumes...and pretend he's whoever. He loves to be superhero of some kind, and do "Power Moves" on the trampoline...currently his knuckles are all scraped up from his adventures.
He loves hats, his eyes are dark sage green....and the only reason he's still alive is because of Peanut Butter, bread, and milk...that's 90% of what he eats...
He's also extremely literal...like his uncle David....you have to spell everything out exactly, he doesn't pick up on the nuances. Everything is black and white to him, there are no shades of gray.
Alec really has been such a blessing...I know he was meant to be my son. He loves his little sister more than anything, and tries so hard to be a very good boy.

On to the rest of our happenings...Walking is a FULL CONTACT Sport at our house...first the bruise on her right cheek, and now THIS....

See the lovely cut and bruise above her left eye? It's not as deep as it looks, and it didn't need stitches (it hardly even bled, it looks worse than it is). She fell (I think) into the drain in the shower this morning. Apparently, the gene that attracts my sons to cement is also in my daughter....

And I'm currently on 4 hours of sleep here at work, so if I post later with strange ramblings, you'll know why.

It's been a really, really, really long week.....

So, It's been a long and somewhat crappy week.

Monday:
I worked. It was a long, busy night, trying to keep a set of micropreemie twins alive.

Tuesday:
I was able to get all-day daycare for Talia, so after I got Kyle off to school, I dropped her off, then went home and tried to sleep. I didn't sleep very well...I never do during the day if I have to wake up for awhile, but I did get to lay there and doze all day, which makes a huge difference in how I feel when I have to go back to work for the second in a row. So, then I went back to work, where I spent the night trying to keep the same babies alive and well....they still here tonight, so I guess it's all good.

Wednesday:
After having such a busy night at work, I was exhausted. I was cranky, and then we finally got it out of Kyle...he hadn't been honest with us. When he said his friend wanted to be partners, and we said no, he didn't tell us that he and his friend had SIGNED UP together to be partners...I was so, so angry...and so, so hurt that he had been lying to me almost daily for 2 weeks....I really felt like my heart was bleeding, I couldn't eat, and later I couldn't sleep....Cole finally ordered Kyle to the car, and they drove over to the boy's house to straighten it out with his parents...it turns out, they didn't realize the scope of the work that we had done, and were really upset that their son hadn't done any of the work. I felt better that we had worked all that out, and they took over doing the sign for the business...and the boys will stay partners, and will work together to replenish their stock.

Thursday:
Talia turned 13 months, and just like Kyle (I looked back at the scrapbook to check), she started walking. 13 months to the day for both of them. I'd forgotten how much fun it is to watch those unsteady steps...watch them learn to turn corners, and navigate obstacles...she's really doing pretty well. I also had the conversation with Kyle...I told him how I felt like it was cheating for him to do all the work, and his friend not do any, and they were 50/50 partners...and how I felt like because of the way it happened, Cole and I were forced into helping them cheat. I tried to emphasize how wrong I felt that was...and tried to explain to him how every time he lies to me it's like he's beaten me up...that I actually physically hurt. I understand it's partially the age, but it's been so, so hard on me.

Friday:
So, Mini Society....here's the stand....they cleaned up. They made $600 between the skulls and the bracelets....they sold about half of their stock of both. They also had 6 "crystal" skulls...made of casting resin. They sold those for the most they could, and sold out of those early. They're planning to make more of those. Talia had fun too...first thing I did, I went and bought candy from the "8 treats for $1 " booth...gave her a dum dum sucker. She was a sticky mess, but she enjoyed it immensly. She also had smarties for the first time, and liked them a lot.
Saturday:
Soccer....my baby did really good walking in sandals(and on uneven ground) for the first time.
Alec saw me getting ready to take the picture, so he posed....
I actually managed to get some good shots of Kyle as well....Kyle played really well today, had 2 really good blocked goals when he played goalie, and played well as both a defender and forward also.
So, that's the end of our week...now I'm here at work again. Hopefully, next week will be a bit calmer...