Asher's Birthday

Happy Birthday, Asher!

Even though it was two weeks ago, I wanted to post a little about Asher's third birthday party.
We had it at Freestone (the train park). It was pretty early in the morning (hence the squinting in the pictures), but I soon discovered it's never too early for cake.



Many thanks to my brother, David, and our friend, Brandon Webb for protecting three small candles from large wind gusts. And huge thanks to Tacy for yet ANOTHER Lightning McQueen cake. I'm sure my children don't think I know how to bake a birthday cake since Aunt Tacy does theirs every year.

Check out Asher's Birthday Photos here.

I got some photos of our friend's families. None of them were very good shots (but are they ever with squirmy children?), so to make them all feel better I'm putting up the worst of each family.

We all can't have great pictures all the time, can we?

My dad and brother left before I could get a shot of them with my mom and sisters. So here it is.
And, it looks like I'll have a new brother-in-law sooner than I thought. Cami and Cliff moved the wedding up to Feb 15th, I think. (I guess they decided against eloping)

So, Asher got soooo many toys, one of the Brandons looks at me and says, "Where are you going to put all of those toys?"
Good question.
I'm still working on the answer.

Any super ideas on toy storage for kids?

Stories and Photos of Late

I haven't posted too many photos lately, which is strange considering I have a new camera . . .
So, I'm making up for it here.

Fun with Finn!

Here's me and my most adventurous, active, daring baby ever! Mark calls him our little blizzard. He's fast, crazy, and always wet and cold (from all his drool).

Fly, Finn, Fly!

Next is Asher feeding Finn some yogurt. They both LOVED it. I tried to feed Finn mac and cheese a few minutes later, but he wouldn't take it from me, only from his brother!

And then there was the visit with Grandma, where Finn decided to ride the Power Wheels by himself. Asher's still afraid of it and won't even touch it.

The last pic was from tonight. Finn loves to climb up on our new endtables. He thinks it's a perfect perch. He's become so good at falling onto the couch, I'm sure he'll tumble right onto the floor one of these days. He managed to bonk his face on a slide at the park today and several more times at home. He's quite the little bruiser.

Forget the Hybrid, Cut Out Hamburgers!

I just skimmed this article. It shows the global warming costs of America's beef obsession.
Hmm, I think we're having salad for dinner tonight.

Mommy of the Year Award

(This is the first in a new series of posts. Expect great things to follow.)

Asher pooped in his underwear AGAIN.

I made him clean it up.

That's it.

Oh, and Finn fell off the play equipment at the park. He thinks he's 3 years old and sometimes I forget that he's not.

Embarrassing Personal Confession #2

Some time ago, I read a fashion book that discussed the best clothes for each body type. For mine, the most important part of my wardrobe was supposed to be a pair of jeans, dark wash, no design on the pockets, with a boot cut.

I began my quest for the perfect pair of jeans a few weeks ago with my friend Leslie. After probably 20 stores (not kidding) I hadn't located them, so I went back to the mall by myself. At the Gap, I found a pair called "Long and Lean" that matched the above description. Unfortunately, they didn't have my size, so I kept looking, thinking that I would go back later, or to another store, or perhaps find them online on sale.

(In the meantime I found another pair at a new store like Buffalo Exchange, but down the street. I really love this pair, even though they aren't dark, and have stitching on the pockets. But they're cute and comfy.)

This morning, after a late night out with the girls to see a drive-in double feature, I find a pair of jeans on my bed that look oddly familiar. They're obviously not new, they're a little crumpled, but I read the tag curiously,

The Gap
Long and Lean
size 6 reg

The EXACT pair of jeans I almost bought the week before.
Hmm, I try them on and think, "Where did these come from?"

When I call Mark, he explains that he found them in his stack of jeans and put them on the bed.

What?!?

Can it be that the my ideal jeans were in my closet the whole time?

What is most bizarre is that I have no recollection of acquiring these jeans, although I vaguely remember that I've worn them before.

Mark's advice is classic,
"Next time you go shopping, check your closet first."

Are we the only ones . . .?

While enjoying a Mario cart game on the Wii, we lamented (again) about our old tube TV.
Just recently we got the free coupon for the digital converter, so sometimes we have TV channels.

But, our picture is really crummy. The TV is 11 years old and the pixels seem so big and white to me. I have always rejected getting one because we hardly ever watch TV. But now we play the wii, and sometimes watch movies, so maybe . . .

We've (or more accurately, I've) been looking at buying an LCD or Plasma TV (Mark's brother got one for Christmas and this gives me the PERFECT opportunity to show him polishing it. If you look closely, you can see how he had to saw off the top of his entertainment center to make it fit)

My online research is leading me to refurbished TVs, and I really like this site, Second Act and of course I'm always checking craigslist, but maybe a TV is something you buy new. I don't know.

Anyway, so we're thinking about it, but we may wait until next Christmas, or until Mark gets a bonus or I get a side job.

What kind of TV do you have?
Are we the only ones who still have our decade old dinosaur TV? (Not that we're trying to keep up with the Jones', we're not.)
Really.

Dream Job or One For the Money

At my most recent book group, we discussed this month's selection, Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray. We each brought a cake (mine was part of the story and the recipe included at the end of the book: Sweet Potato Bundt Cake with Rum Plumped Raisins and a Spiked Sugar Glaze) and discussed the book while devouring a month's worth of calories.

The book was a light read (like Angel food cake), about a woman with a mid-life crisis who decides to turn her hobby (baking cakes) into a business.

So, we discussed what kind of business or job we would dive into if we were this woman. I'm starting to really think I can and want to do something on the side to have a little extra money for bar stools and a trip to Disneyland.

It seems like there are a few ways of looking at this.

Dream Jobs: Getting paid is a bonus, but you LOVE to do this thing.
Convenient Jobs: The kind that you have experience for, or can do from home, or you have connections with.

In the book, baking cakes was both of these for the main character, Ruth. In real life, I doubt many people have that luxury.

Photography
The closest thing I have to a dream job is my love of photography. I'm interested in being a photographer for families, weddings, babies, etc. I really love taking, editing, printing, and hanging photographs. All I need is a class or two to help me take better pictures (and understand my fancy new camera!)

Law
Since I graduated, I've always wanted to go to law school and be an attorney. That's looking less convenient and less dreamy every year, so perhaps that will never be my job.

Computer Science
My BFF Leslie's husband says that jobs in the computer industry are great for SAHMs. I'm looking into what fields are open and what specific training I would need to begin that kind of work.

Non-Profit
My work on the board of the Arizona Hemophilia Association for the last five years would make me a good candidate to stay in the non-profit world, either with fundraising, consulting or management. I'm a little burned out at this point, so I'm not sure that's in my future either.

Transcription
Another friend is doing transcription from home, and while I couldn't keep up on my blogging if I was busy typing for work all night, it would be nice to have a source of side income.

So, these are my ideas.

What do you think?
Do you have a dream job?

Embarrassing Personal Confession #1

Following in the footsteps of one of my favorite bloggers, and with the resolution of making my blog more "real" and less "TAMN" in 2009, I'm starting a new series.

Be forewarned, these posts may contain TMI (too much information) so, read with caution. (this post is clean, though)

Last night, while playing a card game with friends, I was trying to make a word out of the letters on each of my cards.

They were something like

P, D, G, I, F

So, I organize them and ask, "is GID a word?"

Brandon responds, "Um, no but DIG is."

Duh . . . (it was late).

(and so is FIG, and PIG, in case you were wondering)

Baby Sister

This is my baby sister.
Yep, she's engaged. Not two months past 19, she's getting married sometime in March.

Incredible.

Wasn't it yesterday that she was born? Even at the ripe age of 10, I knew enough to make a deal with my younger sister Tacy before my mom gave birth.
"This baby will be MINE and you can have the next one."

I fully expected my parents would have NO more children. :)

So, it worked out well that they did, and I got to keep Cami is my baby.
Even though I went away to college, I came back a few years later, married of course, and watched her graduated from elementary school.

But, she's not so little anymore. Graduating from High School and Cosmetology school a few short months ago, Cami thinks she has all the skills she needs to survive in this world. Well, she really does, I guess. It's in her personality to be a peacemaker and help those around her.

We took these pics on our trip to shop for wedding dresses.

(I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that it took all the strength I had to NOT try on wedding dresses? Talk about glamorous. I reminded Cami that the wedding is the most glamorous part of being married. It goes downhill from there in the glamor department)

Isn't she cute? I love her.

Congratulations, Cami!

Little Friends

We watched the Webb kids on Monday night and all of us had a great time.

During dinner, Jaxon remarked to Ethan (also the oldest son) about his youngest sister Mariah,
"She's beautiful, your baby."
He also defended her when someone was saying she was bald, "But, her hair is growing."
I think he's in love with Mariah.

Later that night, Finn grabbed my purse and looked like he was heading out.
My guess is he was going to a wet t-shirt contest.
From the looks of it, he'd win hands down.

PS. It's all drool. No kidding.

Irony

Imagine you're at the library with two crazy boys, ages 2 and 1.

The two year old is potty-training, but can't manage to poop on the potty. (Let's just say he pooped in his underwear this morning and had to have a shower. Yuck.)

The one-year old is running around because, let's just say for this example, that you forgot to bring your stroller to the library. You swear up and down you will never forget again, but that's what you said last time.

So, you sit down at the computer and search, "potty training" for books and DVDs. As the list comes up, your two year old walks up to you. His pants look oddly shiny, all the way down to his ankles . . .
Wait. They're wet. Soaking wet.

Yep, he peed his pants while you were looking for potty training aids, in the library.

Ironic.

Steed Brothers

(Apologies to those with RSS readers, I've had problems with Picasa posting my photos, so I had to do it again.)
Over Christmas break, Mark got to spend some quality time with his homeboys, I mean, brothers.
Past vacations have seen them playing video games and watching football. So imagine my surprise when this vacation they, GASP! played video games and watched football. (But it was less bothersome because I love Rock Band now, too!)

Mark's older brother, Nate, pronounced Naten, was our fabulous host (still looking for the pic of him polishing the plasma screen). His wife Sandrine (admittedly his better half) is one of my closest friends. They're a greatpair. I'll describe Nate as smart, funny, and intense. Together, Nate and Mark are an unstoppable comedic force.

Mark's younger brother, David, is quite a charming young man. Like his brothers, he has a great sense of humor and an easy-going manner. He's also really great with his nephews and neice(some are closer to his age than his siblings, actually).David is 19 years old and very handsome, and plans to serve a mission for our church this fall. Currently, he's playing trumpet at college in UT and plans to come visit us over Spring Break.

These three guys love to play Rock Band, watch football, and discuss politics, literature, and the art of poker.Here's a photo of them playing Rock Band, including Nate playing guitar behind his head on EXPERT! (No, I am not joking. Did I mention he's a bit of a show-off? But, I would be too if I was that skilled.) Not to let their elder brother outshine then, Mark and Dave are all-around rock stars on vocals, guitar and drums.

Photo three is the crew playing dominoes at the museum. We had a fun time, and I'm not sure who eventually got to knock down the long chain of dominoes, but I'm guessing it was Jaxon, who did it without asking, thus incurring the wrath of the entire family. Hopefully, I'm wrong.

Oh, and the last photo is your typical brotherly silliness, caught on camera. It was some inside joke about a bottle of ranch dressing, or at least that's what I can remember.I'm glad Mark has such awesome brothers. I just wish they lived closer. :)

Snapped!

As I unloaded the kids at soccer practice yesterday, I realized that our team was practicing on the other side of the field. I put Finn back in his carseat, to drive around to the other side while the older boys ran across the field.

Strike One: LAZY

Then, I put the key in the ignition and started the car. As I turned the steering wheel, the strap from the diaper bag, to which my keys were attached with a clip, caught on the fuzzy steering wheel cover.
Expecting things to loosen, I kept turning, then felt the strap give and heard the car die.
What? The big end of my key fell down and the little end, yep, still in the ignition. The key snapped.

Strike Two: Not paying attention.

So, Danielle let's me borrow her car (thanks, Danielle!) and I go to get a magnet, some tape, and chewing gum.
I drop the kids off at home with Mark (thanks, Mark!) Go back to the car, but nothing works.
Then I spend an hour calling AAA to renew our membership and get a locksmith.

When I take Mark to the car to wait, he tries to put the broken key into the ignition.
Ta Da! It works.

Strike Three: Stupid!

The locksmith comes to our home, extracts the key with a VACUUM and gives us the broken bit with advice to have a mechanical copy made, then super glue it to the back of the bigger key, so I can still use it.

Brilliant.

So, instead of a $250 new key, I can have a $2 new key taped to the back of my old key. Works for me.

So Pizza

A few days ago I participated in a phone survey about pizza chains.
I'm listening to the questions thinking smugly, "I hardly ever eat pizza. We just have Little Ceasars a few times a month because it's cheap and easy. That's it."

So, imagine my dismay at the next part of the survey.

Caller: "Yes or No, have you eaten at the following chains in the last month?"

"Pizza Hut?"

Me: "Yes."

Caller: "Little Caesar's?"

Me: "Yes."

Caller: "Papa John's?"

Me: "Yes."

Caller: "Peter Piper Pizza?"

Me: "Yes."

Oh dear, how embarrassing. We're pizza addicts!
But not really. Pizza Hut was in the airport, Papa John's was at Nate and Sandrine's in Michigan. Peter Piper was the soccer party.

That's the most pizza in one month we've had all year (at least the most variety).

So her last question,

Caller, "What is your favorite pizza chain?"

Me: "Barro's"

Isn't that ironic?

Dear Finley,

It must be hard for you to be the third child, harder still to be the third son. You watch your brothers and want to be just like them, to do exactly what they do. Your life has gone by like a whirlwind. I was looking at pictures for each month of your life and I was amazed at how fast you have grown.

You've been cranky the last few days, I'm not sure if it's teething, a cold, or some combination of the two. Yesterday was particularly difficult and I was having a hard time coping with Jaxon, Asher, and you as you all needed my attention while I was cooking dinner. In a very unmotherly moment, I found myself relaxing in front of the computer for a few minutes while you cried outside the door.

It was that kind of day.

So, I shouldn't have been surprised when Daddy came home and you were delighted to see him. Then, when he went back to the car for something he had forgotten, you cried hysterically, like your heart was broken.
Upon his return, he picked you up and you smiled, patted his back, and kicked your little feet in approval.
Seeing you so happy, I joined the hug, but no, you wanted Daddy to yourself so you pushed me away. Then, I gave Daddy a kiss and you looked a little jealous, so you leaned your forehead towards Daddy's face so he would kiss your soft little hairs. This made Daddy and me laugh, so we tried it again. First Daddy and Mommy kissed, then you leaned in to get your own kiss on the forehead. This went on for a while, just so you were sure that Daddy was going to keep holding you and kissing you.

Today at Costco, you littered the ground with pieces of bread like you thought there was a family of ducks that was going to follow us and pick up after you. Instead, Mommy picked up your pieces of bread and used a big one to wipe the snot off your nose. Yuck, I know, I'm not winning any Mommy of the Year awards with that one. Then we sat down to share a churro and blueberries. After eating a few berries, you decided to throw them at my head. Leslie laughed at you, so you kept doing it. Blueberries everywhere. I had to pick those up, too, there were many more than I expected all over the floor.

You and your little attitude, baby. I don't know where you get it, but I really do love you. Today before we went to Costco, I had to wake you up from your nap, but I just couldn't do it. Instead, I just stood there, watching you sleep. You pushed your head up against the crib bumper and you lay on your side and suck your right thumb, with your blankie-bear held tightly in the same hand. You were so peaceful and content. I think a little bit of heaven is in your room while you sleep. I just wanted to pause that moment forever.

So, even though some days are difficult, not just because Asher's potty-training and Jaxon got a red at school yesterday, but because you really need a little more of me than I have available. I really am trying.
I really do love you, and I really am your mommy. Forever.

PS, the photo is from August, but Finn has been drooling a lot, so it's not too much different than these days.

Steed Christmas

Part of our trip to Michigan involved a stay with Mark's parents near Lansing. Since our last visit, two years ago, Jaxon has been praying EVERY NIGHT to go on an airplane to Michigan. Luckily, we managed to get there this year, because I was beginning to think that he's stop believing in God if it took much longer :)

One of the draws to visit Papa Larry (or just Larry, as Jaxon likes to call him) and Grandma Michele, is that they have a real model train. Jaxon and Asher, and even Finn, were glued to this train and it became quite the popular feature for the visit. The only problem was that they weren't allowed to operate it by themselves, so they ended up with a lot of one-on-one time with Papa Larry.

The first photo is Larry playing chess with Finn. I'm not sure who won, actually . . .

The next two are of the train adventure (note the dining room table was out of comission for our visit. We mostly ate on our laps. And, knowing my mother-in-law, that was quite a sacrifice. She has such beautiful dishes and servingware, she even has a mini set of silver salt and pepper shakers for each place setting. It was really thoughtful of them to make the train the center of our visit.

The last photo is Mark, our kids, and his parents a few moments before we headed out the door. If you look closely, you can see the measuring wall. We made sure to mark our kids' height on the wall before we left.

We loved our trip to visit Mark's parents and can't wait to go again.(Hopefully when we have fewer than two children in diapers, although they are all sleeping through the night and that's a first since we've traveled with children.)

On the First Day of Vacation . . .

Really, I'm not going to blog about every day of our 10 day vacation. I thought about it, though.
This was our first day in Grand Rapids, MI. We were visiting Mark's brother and his family

(Hi, Nate and Sandrine, you guys are the best to let us tear your house apart for the better part of two weeks! Let's do it again sometime. How's this summer?)

Jaxon and I played in the snow, he made a baby snowman (the snow was too powdery for a good snowman).

After Sandrine and relieved the in-ground trampoline of the 3 feet of snow, I decided to jump and land in the snow. It was quite the childish adventure.


Ahh, good times. Jumping, building, sledding in the snow and then we got to leave it all behind and enjoy our 60 degree picnics at the park today in Arizona.