A Decade of Valentines

Today gives me the privilege of recounting over a decade worth of Valentines with my dear sweet Jennifer. Here is a brief highlight reel:

2001 – This was our first Valentine’s date. We went to a dance together, but she kept hanging around this other boy so I asked, “Who’s this clown?”

“He’s my date! And why do you keep following me?”

2002 – This was our first V-day married. I bought Jenny a stuffed armadillo to symbolize that our love had a thick protective shell around it. She smiled, but then said I didn’t have to buy her any more gifts for Valentine’s Day in the future.

2003 – I know that when a wife says “don’t buy me gifts,” she doesn’t mean it. So the next year I bought her a dozen fresh-cut red roses. First question when I walked through the door: “How much did those cost?” (True story)

2004 – We decided to take a romantic getaway to Kauai. As we were boarding the plane, however, two gentlemen in suits approached me and insisted my name was Ismael Asmud Hussein, and tried to carry me off for further questioning. We spent good money on those tickets, so Jenny decided to board anyway. She blew me a kiss as my heels dragged across the airport linoleum, my arms interlocked with the officers’. Jenny never really explained how her Hawaiian vacation went—she says she just doesn’t want to make me jealous. All I know is that every Valentine’s Day since we receive several post cards with pictures of embarrassingly muscular Polynesian men.

2005 – I arranged a scavenger hunt for Jenny, but I got disoriented after hiding the 2^nd clue. Needless to say, she never arrived at the ice rink I rented out. I had to share the heart-shaped ice cream cake with Victor, the Zamboni driver.

2006 – Most of Valentine’s Day in 2006 was spent with Jennifer trying to meet my bail. Since it detracts from the spirit of this post, I’m going to skip past 2006.

2007 – Jenny thought it would be romantic to replay our youth and do a shopping cart derby at the grocery store. Unfortunately, I’m not a great shopping cart driver. I bumped the bread isle, which brought down the soup aisle, which set off a domino of crashing aisles across the store. The restraining order expires in 2018.

2008 – Who knew people could be allergic to saffron? Well, Jenny does. And so does the South Euclid Fire & Rescue.

2009 – This Valentine’s Day was rough because we couldn’t spend it together. Instead I was stopping the heist of a collection of rare art from a Belgium gallery. His Majesty Prince Albert greatly appreciated my service.

2010 – We had just moved to Texas, and our new house needed to be repainted. Jenny took in a few too many paint fumes and got “lightheaded.” The paint splotches on her clothes convinced her that she was a super-heroine named “Rainbow Fight,” and that she needed to stop a crime in progress across town. The police found her in the back of an Albertson’s showing people her new-found powers by karate-chopping wood pallets.

2011 – Last year was bittersweet. That was the day—of all days—I received the divorce papers in the mail. I mean, who does that on Valentine’s Day??? I went into a primal rage. I poured leftover paint on all our carpets, dumped our oatmeal food storage into the commodes, tubs, and sinks, and then I set our mattress on fire as I threw it out our 2^nd story window. When Jenny got home she pretended like she didn’t know what was going on. That’s when I examined the court papers a bit more carefully: “Juan Castro Jimenez-Rocha v. Candelaria Rosa Jimenez-Sanchez.” Wrong address.

2012 – Too be continued . . . .

12 Year-Old Me Meets 30 Year-Old Me

*Please note that if you were involved in one of these stories, I am not writing about you and am not attacking in anyway. This is simply about me growing up and figuring out who I am. 

Scholastic Book Fair, Sugar Grove Elementary 199(3?):

I am in love with the Sweet Valley Twins Book series, and they are selling one at the book fair. The book is $1.99. I can't decide if I am going to spend my hard-earned allowance on this book, and while discussing it with a friend, she says something like, "It's only $2. What's the big deal?" Boy do I feel dumb. A few days later I try to convince a different friend to spend her money on the book by saying, "It's only $2--what's the big deal? You should get it." She replies, "Yeah, but it's my $2, and I'm saving it for something else." Why didn't I say that?

Fast-forward 18 years:


I am eating with some beautiful and talented friends and we are discussing Valentine's Day. They are throwing out complicated (to me) Valentine's cards ideas. The conversation is roughly as follows:

me: Are you doing that for her teacher? (I never thought about doing a special Valentine for the teacher.)


friend(s): No, I (we) make our Valentines.

me: You don't just buy the ones from WalMart for $2?

friend(s): No, they come home and I throw all those away.

me: Yeah, I LOVE that!!!

friend(s): (something about making them cute and personal.)

me: Yeah, Madison put some silly bands in hers and Logan got Star Wars cards that change pictures. They love 'em, and we did them all last night while we watched a movie. It took 30 minutes.


I'm not fancy or complicated and I hate stressing over things (like planning birthday parties). I'm not gonna' lie. . . sometimes I feel guilty about this personality flaw. But I feel like I'm finally coming to terms with who I am. And I'm okay if other people know I'd rather buy already made cards at WalMart than spend my time making some. We are all awesome in different ways, and that isn't one of my ways of being awesome. I think I'd even be ok telling someone that I didn't want to spend $2 on a book. Being 30 is wonderful. 


A more normal face (which, by the way, Joe says must mean I am confident if I can put that crazy picture out for the public to see. lol, that's one way to look at it. :) 

Thinking Thursday, and something truly frightful (but downright funny)

1. My brother Brent just got his mission call to somewhere is Brazil (never heard of the mission and can't remember what it is). 

2. Last night I put a pound of spinach in the lasagna. I was either finding a good way to get my kids to eat spinach, OR, I was ruining an entire pan of lasagna. Even Joe said it was good, so that means I have another way to hide veggies. Actually, my kids love veggies, just not spinach.

3. Signed the kids up for soccer, which means the next 10 weeks are booked--specifically Saturdays. After paying a good amount of money to register and to buy shoes, shin guards, socks, balls, and some sportsy clothes, I think we are good to go. Madi had her first practice Tues (I think she's going to do well) and Logan's is tonight.

4. Ammon is almost one!! He wants so badly to be a big kid (see pic below). He's close to walking, and he just figured out (not mastered) how to get down the stairs. In all fairness, he rarely wants to get down, but always wants to get up. 

4a. We've encouraged something naughty. . . when we say "no" he smiles and starts shaking his head. It's pretty cute, so we let him get away with telling us "no" and laugh instead. I see trouble in our future.

5. Grant and I have been working each morning on our letters and numbers. I know a lot of your children the same age already know these things--but he's baby number three, which means he is interested in other things, I have other things going on, and quite honestly I'm not overly worried about it--he's going to be in school for the next 13+ years of his life! OK, so I actually feel like a bad mom that he hasn't quite mastered writing his first name (among other things). But you know what? Logan knew all of his letters and numbers before Madison was born (at 21 months, so there). Anyway, my point is that Grant and I finally have time together to play games and learn, it is going well, and we are having fun. 

6. Since Joe started teaching seminary, he has been getting up at 4:30 a.m., which means I wake up at 4:30 a.m. (not to be confused with getting up). We don't go to bed early enough to avoid being tired during the day. But on Tuesday we went to bed at 9:00 and I didn't need a nap the next day! I'm actually considering getting up early and doing something constructive in the morning. It really would require getting to bed earlier, which is hard because when the kids go to bed I feel like I'm finally free. 

7. Truly frightening but funny at the same time: Madison took this picture a while ago (my crazy face). I laughed so hard when I saw it, and I have been debating whether or not I should show anyone. Because come on, it's FUNNY! But it's also kind of embarrassing. So I don't know how long I will leave this on here, and if you see it, please don't think any less of me, just laugh.

The Nice Lady

You know I'm not talking about me.

A few weeks ago I made a last-ditch effort to inspire the kids to make their beds and keep their rooms clean--for a whole week.

Bribery.

The winner got a date with me to a destination of his or her choice.

Logan won hands-down and he chose the bookstore.

In our family the bookstore means Half-Priced-Books because we are too cheap to buy books at full-price (especially when you can check them out and return them (no storage!) for free to the library).

So we went and I gave him a $5 budget.

While he was agonizing over $25 worth of books a nice lady (if I tell you her race am I racist?) asked me discreetly if she could buy one of his books for him "because she is so happy to see a boy who loves to read and wants him to be able to get the books he wants." At first I felt a little embarrassed. . . I mean, $5 was the budget, I wasn't trying to discourage reading. But then I realized she was trying to be nice, so she gave Logan $3 to cover an extra book, and he told her thank-you. In the moment I said, "What do you say?" and she said, "He said thank-you," and Logan said, "Thank you," again. I felt kind of bad about that.

On the way home from our date I told Logan I would either take him to get a root beer float or we could get supplies for root beer floats and share with everyone at home. He chose to share with everyone at home, and I thought that was pretty cool.

That was two weeks ago.

Today they asked me who was winning for the week. I explained that the offer had expired, but in case you are wondering, it's a tie. . . for messiest room.

Introducing: Sally, Pally, Master, and Blackcoon

I don't do pets. But as Joe and I were talking about something meaningful to get Madison for Christmas we talked extensively about her love for animals. At first we considered getting her one of those "fur real" pets that you put batteries in and they walk and bark and pant. But, honestly, she has so many stuffed animals that I am constantly sneakily stuffing them in plastic garbage bags. When we rented out the house we are in--we actually asked the owner to add "no pets" to the contract so we would have a good excuse to give the kids every time they asked for a cat or dog. But then Joe suggested a fish and I thought maybe I could handle a fish. We got permission from the landlord and bought Madison a fish tank for Christmas.

One month later. . . I took Madison to Pet Smart last Saturday and talked to a nice employee for about an hour. I kept emphasizing that we needed something that "was hard to kill" and would "stay alive easily."  I don't know if he thought I was nuts, but he helped us through buying a different fish tank*, getting gravel, chemicals to add to the water, bacteria to add to the water, fish food, and most importantly: fish.

It's been over 72 hours and they are still alive. 

I'm feeling pretty good about this.

Madison is getting ready for school faster than she ever has in her life because if she isn't ready for school by 7:20 then someone else gets to feed the fish. The ultimate threat.

If the fish stay alive for a few more weeks we will go back to get a live plant to put in the box at the bottom.

Can you find all the fish? I tried to figure out a way to circle them, but it was taking too much time.

And, finally, Madison let Logan and Grant name 2 of the fish. Can you guess who chose which names? 

*The fish tank we originally got was less durable and did not have a light. I decided to spend a little more on this one because it actually looked decent, and since it would be living on our kitchen counter I wanted something that looked nice. . . but then I got home and realized that maybe an open fish tank (in the kitchen, no less, which is messy. . . and then I read that fish in the kitchen are "bad chi." oops) with four little kids might not be my most brilliant act. Time will tell.

Goodbyes are so hard to say. . . unless it takes three years.

We've been holding our breath on this announcement, but it's finally safe to say: our Cleveland house has sold!

Three years and three offers later. . . I'd say it's about time.

I won't even tell you what it sold for because you might want to cry. I've already spent my crying-time, so I'm mostly just feeling thankful.

This house represents a lot for me: a new job--our first REAL job, our first home purchase, a baby born, a lost job, a few months as a "single" mom while Joe forged the way for us in Texas, 14 or so birthdays, 3 Christmas's, friends and family visiting.

I loved the wood floors, the flowers that bloomed each season, the sun-lit walls, and Grant's method of getting downstairs. I love the memories we made and the friendships that were built.

Getting rid of it represents a lot for me now: a new start, a better life-style, a job that we have more control over, moving from a small, old house to one that is new (2001!) and monstrous in comparison.

We've learned a lot, and we've grown in so many ways that I can't even explain. I think I can sincerely say I'm glad we had this experience, but I am thankful that now we can let it go.

Goodbye house!

Random from the week

Finally set up the trampoline. = Many hours of play, exercise, and fun.

*note* the neighbor's are not allowed to jump on it (their parents' rule, not ours). I guess that might not be such a bad thing.

Grant dumped an entire tube of blue paint on the carpet floor. Luckily it was (mostly) water-soluble. I have been scrubbing for days to get it out, but when it dries it comes back up to the surface and I scrub some more. 

*note* the best part about this is that he also got the paint all over his face. He looks smurfish. 

Found some decent curtains at Target on super clearance at $6 a panel. Also found curtain rod at Lowe's for $4. Not exactly my favorite of either, but as we are in a hopefully non-permanent rental home, they will do.

*note* the curtain rod is a few inches too short. We only hung them up on one window because I can't decide whether or not I like it better with curtains or bare. All I have right now is a pathetic camera-phone picture, or I'd get your opinion.

A little bit of TMI: Now that Ammon is nearing his first birthday, Aunt Flo has returned.

*note*awful awful awful. Why do women have to go through so much crap? Seriously.

And that about sums up this week at the McGregor's. 

TV or not TV

As I mentioned a few posts ago, we got a bigger than 15" T.V.

This has been a much debated topic in our house because I LOVE not watching television.


I grew up in the middle of nowhere Pennsylvania, and the only television we watched was a very fuzzy channel 12. Instead I read up in my tree, read in the fields, walked in the woods, and did lots and lots of work around the farm. OK, so maybe I was supposed to do lots of work, but I whined so much that I probably didn't do as much as I think I did. And I should probably note that I did not think it was cool at the time to not watch all the shows my peers were watching.

My point is: I hate the noise of the TV. I hate the time wasted in front of the TV. I think that kids should be outside running around and playing with their friends, reading books, doing art, or playing an instrument. Something constructive and healthy.

But. . . when we do family movie nights, it was kind of annoying that we couldn't see the movie without squinting. And my parents surprised us with a Wii for Christmas--and while I think that could also be a time-waster, I am actually excited about the interaction and exercise it could potentially provide. And then there's General Conference. And wouldn't it be nice to maybe someday invite friends over to watch a movie?

So we got one.

Then came the issue of trying to figure out where to put it. At first I wanted it go upstairs in the play area so that my living area could remain distraction-free. But there isn't enough seating upstairs for everyone to enjoy the movie. Plus it's a pain to drag all of the food and dishes upstairs on pizza night. But the main reason I considered putting the t.v. in the main living area is that it is the room that is most likely to be clean and fresh and relaxing (despite what Madison is telling everyone). And let's face it, if I am going to cuddle up and watch a movie, I want it to be in a nice atmosphere--and sometimes the play area is not that place (unless, of course, I want to spend 30 minutes cleaning it, which I don't want to do after the kids are in bed).

The final decision: TV in the downstairs living area.

This presented its own problems, which included several different furniture arrangements. I couldn't win it all, and after Joe kindly moved the piano all over the living room for arrangement experiments, it is now blocking the fire place, which I guess is ok because we don't even use the fire place, but it is a little sad to me anyway.

We do not have cable or satellite, which I am hoping stays that way forever regardless of whether or not we ever have money to pay for it.

I think we've turned it on for one movie night (which I wasn't there for because my dear husband surprised me with a babysitter and took me out on a date!), for a few you-tube videos (check out "cello wars", and some "just dance" and "wii sports." I'm not totally convinced, but so far so good.

Madison tells it like it really is:

"My house has six people.
It smells like (disgusting) trash and (yucky) diapers.
It looks giant."

or

"My house smells like trash and dirty diapers."

Which one do you like better?

When I laughed and put this on here Madison got very upset and said (and I quote), "Don't laugh. Those are good describing words."

Yes, Madison, yes they are.

Maybe I should rethink the WalMart-brand of scentsy.

On new year's resolutions

Before I say anything else, you should know that I am typing this on my iPhone in a parking lot facing a lake while I wait for the time in between Logan and Madison's first semester award assembly. Ammon is snoring in his carseat and Grant went to work with dad today (because he has been asking for a while and dad told him that Friday (today) he could go).

Let me tell you, I have had a battle going on inside of me because I can think of 101 things I could be doing with only one small child in tow . . . cleaning a house still suffering from Christmas break or going shopping are my top choices. But I keep reminding myself that I am a SAHM (stay at home mom) so that I can go to all of these things for my children, and in the long run it is better time spent.

The SAHM conversation has been going on in my head a lot lately. I feel like our generation is fairly supportive of SAHMs, but I still find I'm defending myself often. Not long ago I was having a conversation about how we didn't get a second car until we'd been married for 6 years and we were in Ohio, expecting baby #3. This person, someone I love very much, said something like, "yeah, but you didn't have a job to get to." That really stung-- and I said something like, "I did have a job, and I was stranded at home alone with 2 little kids, and it was very difficult."

Anyway, I've been so busy that I haven't had time to think of who I wanted to be this next year. It's so easy to see your own weaknesses but everyone else's strengths. This can really get a person down sometimes! Some things I want to make sure happen this year are:

Be more dilligent at teaching the kids piano;

Get Logan and Madison signed up for a sport;

Get Grant signed up for preschool;

Spend my time more wisely;

Be a more optimistic person, and have more spontaneous fun with the family;

Greet Joe with a smile and a kiss each day when he walks in the door;

Buy Joe the camera of his dreams; dear Joe, I was rereading this, thinking that some stuff (especially punctuation) was different, and now I know why. I wish you many nice dreams; maybe you can subconsciously alter them to include that camera. ; ). 

Be filled with gratitude and a desire to help others;

Come what may, and love every single minute; and

Find peace with who I am while striving to be better.

2011: A Partial Year Review

Jennifer and I spent much of the last 3 weeks debating what to call 2011: "The Comeback Year," the "Turnaround Year," the "Resurrection Year." You get the idea.

The point is, looking back, 2011 has been very good to us. It didn't start that way. In January we were out of money. I dropped a few resumes with potential employers thinking I would have to abandon my practice. I contemplated picking up a part-time job to make ends meet. Things were scary, and every penny counted.

To make matters worse, we were living in a pretty crappy house. For the first time in my life I was miserable in my church calling. Our Cleveland house was evaporating value. We were about to have another baby, and I wasn't sure how we would pay for him. And, BYU Football had just wrapped up an extremely disappointing year. It was hard to be happy, and it was sometimes difficult to be a good husband and father.

Needless to say, 2011 started out as a horrible year.

Somewhere in the middle of 2011, though, things began to change. Clients started showing up out of nowhere. With money. We moved into a much better house. I got a new calling (I teach early morning seminary). BYU won 10 games. Our savings account rose from the dead. And best of all, I don't think my marriage has ever been as strong.

I know people use blogs to only write the good stuff about their life. I wanted to relate the bad stuff because that's what makes these days seem so wonderful. In a strange way, I cherish that really rough patch. There are a lot of reasons our lives are much better now, and one major reason is that they were so bad at the beginning of the year. But most importantly, there's no doubt that our fervent prayers and other acts of worship during that time and since were heard and noticed by our Father in Heaven.

I look forward to what next January holds.

Rocket Launch Logan

 The kids got a rocket for Christmas. GREAT gift idea.

The day after Christmas Logan and Grandpa Foster assembled the rocket. On December 27, 2011, against partly cloudy skies and chilly Pennsylvania air, the entire Foster clan gathered around the launch site to watch Logan's first step towards becoming a rocket scientist.

Here Grandpa Foster is explaining to Logan how to trigger the rocket. 

Controller being handed to Logan. We all become a bit nervous.

On cue, Logan commences lift off. 

Rocket tube was recovered a few hundred yards away, ensuring future launches.