It's Here!!!

Still playing around with the actual arrangment...but loving the colors, the lines, and the contrast details!

In Preparation...

It looks a little bare, doesn't it...We moved all our furniture around last night, anticipating the arrival of our new furniture this afternoon. A HUGE thanks to my brother Chris, who we can always count on to come help us, and to my SIL Brenda, who let us steal Chris for an hour, even though he had been gone all day and had to bo to YM that night. Love you guys!!!
Cole asked me, "What are you going to do tomorrow...with no comfortable furniture to sit on until later on?" I answered, "I'm going to do a long yoga practice...it's like having my own personal yoga studio for a day!" Honestly, since this morning I've been doing minor cleaning, then I'll exercise, after my shower it will be lunchtime, and I have crafting plans this afternoon...I would have been spending most of the day at the kitchen table anyway. Tonight, I'll post pics of the new room!

I was relieved with the snowfall this week. I LOVE winter, but around this time of year, when everything starts to look all dirty and dingy, I feel very blessed when a new, white, clean blanket of snow covers all the icky up. Until things start to get green and "Springy" outside, I prefer the snow to be fresh and pretty.

Here's the view out my front doors on Tuesday morning...I was playing with the settings of my camera, trying to figure out how to get the best snow pics.

Our week in review...

It seems like it's been a busy week, but as I sit here, I'm having trouble remembering exactly why it was so busy. Talia came down with mild croup type stuff on Monday...I was on call at work, but was glad I didn't get called in, because with her high fever, all she wanted to do was snuggle with Mommy. Tuesday she felt better...no fever, but still the really congested, painful sounding cough. Wednesday I got my hair cut and colored, and Thursday...yes Thursday. We had a well baby checkup at 9 am. Well, the boys were a little slow getting ready for school, so we were scrambling to get there on time. Everything looks great, Talia is 80th percentile for height and head circumference, and 50th percentile for weight. She had her shots, and really did pretty well...she cried for a minute, but wasn't hysterical. Plus, she didn't react to them like she has in the past (with swollen, painful legs), so that was a plus. I wanted to take lunch to my mom, and I had some errands to run. So...I ended up with 2 new pairs of shoes(I had a coupon at Famous Footwear that was about to expire), some new socks, and Cole got a new shirt...it was a really good morning. Talia was an absolute ANGEL during our shopping trip. We had lunch with my mom, and Talia zonked out in the car on the way home...less than a minute was all it took. During her extra long nap, I curled up on the couch and caught up on my Tivo'd shows. Hung out with the kids after school, and our family hung out together all night. Friday I worked, and today I was called off.
A very ordinary week, but it ended up being pretty good.

A year of Personal Growth.

If you read this blog regularly, you know that I bought myself a guided journal this year. It's titled "The Sacred Journey", and I'm finding it to be just that. Now, to give you some background...I love to buy journals. I love blank books, love the idea of writing daily, of using it to help me achieve whatever goals I have. For the past 9 years (since Kyle was 1) I have sat down on January 1st (or pretty close) and written my goals and aspirations in my journal. Sometimes a new book, sometimes in the one that I never finished last year. Because, despite my best efforts...I have a block when it comes to keeping a personal journal. I had an incident as a child/young woman, when the privacy of my journal was invaded by members of my family. Ever since, I have had a very, very hard time keeping a personal journal, and being honest with myself in it. I love to write, I always have. However, my personal, private thoughts are for me, not anyone else. Even my husband. Cole was innocently teasing me, early in our marriage, about reading my journal...and I have never kept one regularly. The mere thought of the invasion of privacy is too painful. Even though I KNOW he would never do such a thing, and he knows better than to tease me now...the block exists.

This year, however, I decided I wanted to live my life a certain way. I wanted a spiritual quest. I say "spiritual", and not "religious", because I believe spirituality is more than just religion...although my belief system plays a major role. In comes my own, personal "Sacred Journey". It's a daily planner, with guides for goals, and other things necessary to creating the "spiritual" me that I want. I am sooooooo NOT perfect....and I have a long way to go to reach my goals. Thus "Karma"... it has become my focus for the year. My own, personal Karma....I am in charge of my destiny, and I know that I have much growth to achieve.
So, I'm pleased to report that I'm journaling daily. Even just a few words about my day, what the kids have done, who's sick (which has seemed to be never ending this year...) what I did that day, what I didn't do. It's working well for me, and hopefully breaking down those mental blocks I have against keeping a personal journal. I'm using this blog as a "Personal Record" of such...more detailed info on our family, and for my family to keep up on everday events (I'm not much of a phone person...it comes from years of doing collections over the phone). Splitting my "personal record" from my "private journal" seems to be working well for me. I am in charge over both...they are my own personal universe, for me to manage at my own will.

As for illness, I'm about ready for it to be OVER. It started the first week of the month...Kyle was sick with a cold and a fever. The next week, it was Alec. The 3rd week, it was Cole...and now, going into the 4th week of the month, Talia has it...croupy cough, and fever all day yesterday and last night. This morning, she seems to be better, so I'm hopeful it will be passing. I'm praying that I don't get it next.

Weddings and Excitement!

I had the priviledge to attend the wedding of my cousin Andrea and her (now) husband Jonny yesterday. Cole was able to switch his Friday to come down to the Salt Lake Temple with me, and we joined my family to welcome another member. I was the oldest grandchild on that side of my family, and was 14 when Andrea was born. I have been so proud to call her my cousin...she has grown into such an amazing young woman. She's very young, not quite 19, and her husband isn't much older. Seeing them together, though, it is quite obvious they are very in love, and our family feels like they are a good match.
After the ceremony and pictures, we headed up to La Caille for the wedding luncheon. The food was incredible, and the atmosphere so romantic. What a perfect day for the couple!


(I remember when this couple was also a very young bride and groom...and we're happier today than we were then...we didn't know how happy we really could be back then...and I'm sure we'll learn even more as we continue to grow older together.)

So, after the wedding, we headed out to a tropical fish wholesaler in SLC...and bought some beautiful black angelfish for our aquarium. Cole says he's going to take pics tomorrow, so check out the aquarium blog in the next couple of days if you want to see pictures.

Today was our normal cleaning day. The entire house is now clean, vacuumed, mopped, and scrubbed. This afternoon, we were a little restless and headed out to do a little window shopping...which turned out to be actual shopping. Look what's coming to my house, I'm so excited!!!!




Since Christmas, we've had our sectional in pieces to give our room a different look. We've always liked to change our furniture around on a regular basis, but with the odd shape of our kitchen/living room, we've not had many options. We've decided to try these few slightly smaller pieces, that will be more easily mobile, to see if we can change up our options a bit. 12 days, and they'll be here....I feel like everything in my home is finally coming together. When we moved in here, we had big plans for minor to moderate renovations. We've done a lot of what we wanted, until we take on the major renovation of expanding the house. We hope to be able to do that in about 5 years. Until then though, my house is starting to be nearly perfect for what we can have right now.

If you're wondering about my "subtitle"...I needed reminding that no matter what happens to me, I need to respond with lovingkindess.
I needed to remember that good Karma on my part is the only thing that will really make me feel better.

Preserving Memories...

I've spent over 2 hour since last night transferring all our digital images from CD's to my external hard drive. We bought our first digital cameras in 2003, and I had thousands of images burned onto CD. I originally thought that would be enough...imagine my surprise that after 5-10 years, CD's start to degrade? (who knew, my music cd's all seem fine). Cole gave me the hard drive for my birthday (it was exactly what I wanted!), and I had originally intended to move my itunes music library to it. I haven't been able to make that work yet, but I still have plenty of room...all my pics so far (I have from 2003 to 2008 all saved) only take up 4% of the memory. If anyone out there knows how to get my itunes library on the external hard drive so that I can clear memory on our desktop computer, shoot me a comment.

It's been an uneventful couple of days at our house...Sunday I slept in after working, and Cole took the kids to church. Of course, when he got home, he wasn't feeling good...he caught what Alec had last week...fever, excruciating headache...he even had to stay home from work yesterday. He was really miserable and out of it...I felt really bad that he dragged himself to church. Now I'm just praying that Talia and I don't get it...especially since we have my cousin Andrea's wedding on Friday.
We finally have a new printer coming to our house...as some of you know, the printer that we've had since we got our very first computer, 10 years ago, died last October. We really wanted a wireless printer, so that we can easily print from our laptops. We saw a good deal on one at Costco back in late October, but since then, they've all been more than we wanted to spend. So, we've been limping along...I've been forwarding anything I need printed to my work email (shhh), and luckily it hasn't been much. We saw a good deal on a Canon print/copy/scan for $100 this week...of course, it was out of stock at both Best Buy and Staples. Best Buy was no help...and wouldn't give me a raincheck. Staples, however, was wonderful...they ordered it for me and sent it to my house for NO CHARGE. It should be arriving Friday. Staples had great customer service.

Talia is all of a sudden very into her baby dolls...the Cabbage Patch Kid she got for Christmas, and my very first Cabbage patch kid. She insists on sleeping with one of them, carries them around the house, hugs and kisses them, puts them to bed with her blankie and binkie...and the other night, Cole was teasing her by throwing the baby on the floor...she went hysterical on him.
Some cute pics I got of my kids on Sunday...
Talia loves Kyle, and Kyle adores her right back...

Alec plays his gameboy...

This CAN'T be comfortable, but it's common for him...


Just a side note on a little disappointment...I bought some of those triangle shaped crayons, the ones for toddlers to learn how to hold them correctly. What a waste of money! They have a hollow core, so they aren't sturdy at all. The first time Talia used them she broke 2. Now, most of them are broken, some just from falling on the floor. They say they're for 2 year olds, but they're really not sturdy enough for that age group. She's done better with normal crayons.

Mommy's girl

Talia and I have always had a special relationship. From the time of her birth, she has looked at me with a look that says, "you're my mommy, and I love you." Both my Mom and Grandma commented on it when she was just a couple of months old. This has recently turned into a bit of an issue at my house...considering if I lay down for a nap, she comes to the door, tapping on it and crying "Mommy....MOOOOOMMMMMMYYYYYY," when I leave her home with anyone, including Cole, she cries for me at the door. I'm the first person she comes to for comfort, and she doesn't like me to leave, or to leave me. This is slightly irritating to her father. I know it's just a stage, and most kids go through it. I just hope she always loves me this much.

My Yesterday

So, I did not get to scrapbook yesterday. I was slow to get moving yesterday morning...and I had a bunch of errands to get done so that we could go where we went last night. So, I'm sad that I didn't get to scrapbook, but on the up side...Cole has a bunch of new church clothes, Talia has new jammies and a really cute dress for this summer, and I found me a darling sweater to wear to my sister's wedding. For 50% off, plus my 15% coupon. Yay!!!

Last night we had the privilege to attend the temple with my cousin and her fiance as they went through for the first time. It was so special to be there, and remember the first time I went through. It was neat to be there with my parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles...

After, we went to dinner with my parents and grandparents. I enjoyed getting to have them all to myself for awhile...it doesn't happen very often.

Winding down....

Well, technically I accomplished everything on my list for today. By technically, I mean, I haven't gone to bed YET...but I do intend to in a couple of hours. The other technicality was craft time...of course my sweet angel daughter only slept for 1 1/2 hours. I did get my beading projects done...I was playing with my Cricut and some vinyl when she woke up. I attempted to continue on...it was a valiant attempt in my eyes, but I gave up shortly after the boys arrived home, and my project wasn't turning out as I had envisioned it. It's currently about 1/3 done..and I made enough mistakes (both cutting and design) that I'm out of red vinyl. So, hopefully I can pick up some more tomorrow, and continue with that project next week. Tomorrow I'm off again...and Cole is too. I'm hoping to get some scrapbooking done.

The best news though...my new Journal came today!! It's a guided journal....I can't wait to sit down and use it. Just the intro is so cool..I hope it helps me the way I want it to.

My "To Do" List

I have a list of things to do today...some that I need to accomplish, and some that I want to accomplish. Here they are...

1. Drink my 20 oz of water, and wait til after my workout to have a diet Pepsi.
2. Pick up Talia's toys that are scattered all over my upstairs.
3. Try to distract Talia with a DVD...probably Finding Nemo.
4. Do Cardio Taebo while Talia is (hopefully) distracted.
5. Shower.
6. Make Hamburger Soup. Recipe:
Brown 1 lb. Hamburger (I use 93/7 for less fat)
Cut up 4-6 carrots (I dislike peeling them, so I buy the peeled baby
carrots and just cut them up until I feel like the
soup has enough.)
Put in Stockpot with a big bottle of tomato juice, 4 cans beef consumme,
3 cans water, 1 tsp salt, and I like to add 1/2 tsp pepper. Boil for 30-
45 minutes. (I figured out the calories at one point to 88 cal per 8 oz
serving).
Cole is not a soup person, and says he might eat it if I added potatoes...but I love the flavor of this soup, and it's filling without being heavy on the calories. It is an easy base, however, you could easily add more vegetables (I think the original recipe called for whole canned tomatoes, but my siblings and I disliked them, so my mom just ommitted them). I had planned to buy some whole wheat pasta of some kind to add to it (upping the fiber), but I got distracted while shopping yesterday.

7. Lunch
8. Put Talia down for a nap!!!!!
9. Craft time!!! Here is where my lofty aspirations for my days off come in. I need to fix the lanyard I made for my badge, make some new bracelets for Talia to match the clothes she got for Christmas, use my Cricut to cut some vinyl for the Valentine's decoration I'm making for my mantel, actually make the decoration, and scrapbook.

Ok, I know that sounds like a lot to do in a 2 hour nap time...but I have tomorrow off as well, and whatever I don't get to today, I'll get to tomorrow. Hey, maybe I'll get lucky and she'll sleep for 2 1/2 hours :).

10. Help the boys with their homework.
11. Make dinner.
12. Hang out with my husband and kids.
13. Go to bed.

Ok, so now you know what I'm up to today. Pictures of any accomplished crafts to come later.

How....?

Do you decide to keep your child home from school? Are they really "sick", or do they just have a cold? Every time Alec gets a cold, he sounds a little croupy. Cole says he was the same way as a child. Yesterday morning, when I got the kids up for school, Alec's temperature was normal. He said he hadn't coughed all night, and he was FINE to go to school. I debated, but he looked fine, his breathing was good, and he had all his normal energy. So, I sent him to school, with the instructions that if he started not feeling good, to tell his teacher he was sick and needed to call his mom. When I picked the boys up yesterday, I could tell from the moment I saw Alec that he wasn't feeling good. Sure enough, when I got him home, his temp was 102, and after he was inside for awhile, his breathing was worrying me. I HATE exposing other people, but especially kids, to illness. Being a Respiratory Therapist, I know that some kids can end up in the hospital with croup, even at Alec's age and size. I feel terrible for sending him to school.

So, anyway, I tore apart my bedroom looking for my stethescope until a call to Cole reminded me that I had put it in my car so that if my MIL needed her blood pressure checked, it would be right there...I listened to him, and his lungs were fine, and he wasn't having difficulty breathing...he just had some upper airway sounds that made it sound like he was having trouble. So, I gave him motrin, and cough medicine before bedtime...he slept well, but he told me this morning he doesn't feel good enough to go to school. He looks better and sounds better to me today...but what do you do? So he's home today. Hopefully a day of laying on the couch will be enough to make him feel better.

Guilt and Motherhood...

These two things sometimes go hand in hand, I guess. I'm having a rough day reconciling my guilt....

As most everyone who visits my blog knows, it was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO VERY FREEZING COLD today. (well, technically yesterday, but I'm at work and haven't gone to sleep yet, so it's still today for me) It was the boy's first day back, and I planned on taking them to school...and it's a good thing too, because they were so SLOW!. I dropped them at school, went about my morning business. As I left for work, it was snowing...hard...couple of inches already on the ground...temp was about 20 degrees. I had the stray thought, "I should call (insert name of---one of my buddies who choose to be better mother's than me and stay home with their kids---here) and ask them to pick up my kids. After all, even though they both had on snow clothes, boots, and gloves, they both forgot their hats today, and their gloves are probably wet by now. But I was driving in the snow, and I forgot. Guilt. Especially since Alec's bad cough of this morning has turned into "he's got a fever, and he's not breathing that great, and he's got a bad croup cough." WONDERFUL. I really feel like a terrible mother right now. Logically, I know that's not true. But my baby boy is sick, I'm here at work, worrying about his breathing from 5 miles away.

It's hard to be a mom.

It's going to take some getting used to....

9 a.m. church. OUCH!!!! Great for my kids, not so great for their mommy...who is definitely NOT a morning person. Despite the fact that I did not sleep well last night(my brain wouldn't shut up), and my bad attitude when my alarm went off this morning at 6:55 am (NO ONE should have to get up before the sun unless they enjoy it, like my crazy husband), our morning went rather smoothly, and we arrived at church with 5 minutes to spare. The kids also did much better in Sacrament meeting, mostly because of the earlier time slot. Of course, the flip side is, I chose not to nap, and to organize my "craft" room instead...so my temper this evening is a little short. It will get easier each week....Right?

So, there's been a minor change at our house...Behold...
Before...

The ooze of toys...since Christmas, Talia's room has been a disaster of toys scattered everywhere, and not enough places to stash them. This ooze has encroached into my house, and this picture is actually of what Talia picked up herself on Saturday. Cole kept telling her to take it to her room, and it did make it to her doorway....

After....

The solution...open toy bins. Her toys still need some paring down, I hope to get to that later this week, but it's a start. She can easily get to anything she wants, without dumping everything out at once...although I'm sure she will at some point anyway.



At least she can actually walk on her bedroom floor now.....

Is It...

Really 2009 already? December just seemed to disappear before my eyes....
I was fortunate to have a friend pick up New Year's Eve for me(thanks Sherri!), so I didn't have to work. We spent the evening hanging out as a family...Cole cooked delicious steaks, we had a bunch of junk food...
We spent the first portion of our evening (the Talia's still awake portion) playing Guitar Hero...

I actually got compliments from Kyle, as my skills have improved...
After we put Talia to bed, we stuck the new "Indiana Jones" movie in, and broke out the board games. Alec took us in "Sorry", and then Kyle and I kicked butt in Mille Bornes. At the stroke of 12, we watched the ball drop on TV, Cole and I shared a lovely kiss, and we went out to light a few fireworks...



Then off to bed we went.

On the 1st, we laid around all morning, and at 3 headed over to my in-laws for the annual New Years Day dinner. I made my Artichoke dip (which my husband says is to die for...it is pretty dang good!), and we had a yummy dinner. I never did get around to taking pics though....

I usually take some time to sit and write in my journal on January 1st...I like to catch up on whatever I haven't journaled on, and I like to write in detail my goals and aspirations for the coming year. I didn't do that yesterday however...but I do have my reasons. I've kept a pretty good "blog journal" this year, so I don't feel like I need to catch up my journal as I usually do. And then, I bought myself this really cool guided journal...to help me keep my goals in focus and up front. It hasn't arrived yet...so I'm ruminating on my goals mentally, and plan to put pen to paper as soon as my new journal arrives.

I'm still having a really hard time believing that Monday is back to "Business as usual"...School, homework, etc. I do have lofty plans for crafting during my 3 day off stretch next week though....

Happy New Year to all!!!