True stories:

So I'm playing single mamma this week. :( But it's just for a week, right? Well, 10 days--but I can DO this!

Sunday: Joe went to China. Did church alone. It went ok. Grant fell asleep on his friends in primary. 

Monday: Grant threw up at the table just as we are sitting down to eat breakfast. He throws up again right be fore we go to take the kids to school.

Tuesday: I knew it was going to be a hectic night: 5:00 soccer practice for Madi, 6:00 3rd grade meeting at the school, 6:30-8:00 soccer practice for Logan. I tell the kids if they get through the night ok then we will have ice cream when we get home. 1 minute later, as I am backing out of the driveway I hear yelling and crying. 

Me: WHAT is going on???

Madi: Grant hit me with his thermos! 

Grant: Madi spit at me. 

Me: So sad. No ice cream.

Practice one goes ok. We get to the school, which is supposed to have babysitting. They tell me the big kids play in the gym, the little kids go to the art room. I explain that the baby will do much better if he has a sibling. I drop everyone off and head to the classroom. 50 minutes later I return to find a screaming Ammon and a crying Grant. Apparently it is not so cool abandoned in a strange place with strange people. 

We arrive at practice two 30 minutes late. It goes ok.

On the way home (at 8:00--bedtime) I tell the kids that if they hurry and get showered and dressed for bed, then they can have a banana bar and milk (we ate dinner at 4 and had been out running around in 90 degree weather for 3 hours, they had to be starving). I hand Logan the keys to the house. I get in the house to see Madison and Logan kicking each other and calling each other names. 

Me: Welp, you just lost the banana bars. You may have a glass of milk.

Crying and gnashing of teeth for the next 30 minutes. By Madison and Grant. But mostly Madison. There may have been some voluntary head banging on the walls. GEESH!

Wednesday: I've been looking forward to this day. No soccer. No meetings at school. I scheduled an appointment at a car shop because the van had been making a funny noise.

OK, quick side story. Last week I spent two days at the car place because 1. I had to get the car inspected and 2. the Noise. They didn't diagnose the problem until the end of the day, so Joe went in to pick up the car and find out what was up. The mechanics saw his "BYU Law" shirt and immediately said to each other that they had to be careful because he was a lawyer. Then they said it was highly unlikely, but legally they needed to tell him that the worse case scenario was that my tires would BREAK OFF while driving!!! Joe explained that he would be out of town for a week. . . would it be ok for a week? Probably, but no promises. Sounds GOOD!

So anyway, I arranged with some friends to drop our other car off at the car place so I could drop the van off, switch car seats, and then drive the car home. 

The car wouldn't start. 

Seriously. I can't even make this stuff up. So I go back in there and hand them my car keys and explain that they are going to make a bundle of money off of me today. They feel bad for this mom with 2 kids (they don't know that there are actually FOUR kids!) at 8:00 am, so they have someone come look at it right then. It's just the battery. Whew! So I walk next door and buy a $120 battery and it takes about 5 minutes for the mechanic to fix it "for free." Not really, because he kept my battery that I could have gotten a $20 refund for, but oh well. At that point I just wanted to get out of there.

(I just heard back from said car shop. Along with the $100 I spent last week to diagnose the problems, it is going to cost me another $500 to get everything fixed. I guess it could be worse, much worse, but I can think of a lot of things to spend $750 on!)

So.... It seems to me that when Joe goes out of town, there is some crazy going on. It might be funny. Like in a year from now. 

I do have to acknowledge that it could have been worse. I mean, Grant only threw up twice. And since he hadn't eaten for 12 hours, it wasn't really that bad. Knock on wood, but no one else has gotten sick. And the car? What better place to be stuck than at a car shop? And friends? I had several friends ready to come and pick me up and cart me around town. A good friend even brought us a delicious dinner and a stack of paper plates and boxes of plastic ware! So my life is still pretty good. Baby, I've GOT this! 

Any bets for what will happen tomorrow?

Randomness running through my head. . .

To be honest, I'm having a hard time being motivated as far as summer updating goes. Time consuming. Lots of words. Boring. So today it's just: what I am thinking.

Oooh yeah.

1. I was thinking about some of my favoritest, happiest, things. Most of them involve me being lazy. Like someone else making dinner. Someone else cleaning my house. Those things don't happen very often. Does that mean I'm not lazy? Anyway. One of my favoritest, happiest things is when I am still sleeping and Joe goes to work. That sounds bad, I know, but hear me out. This also doesn't happen very often because a) the kids are in school most of the year and b) even when they are not in school they get up at 6 a.m. c) I have this thing about us all uniting for a hot breakfast before everyone leaves for the day. Soooo...... on the rare occasions that Joe goes to work before I get up, he stops by the bed to give me a kiss and tell me good bye. And he smells SO GOOD! Think shower gel, shaving cream, toothpaste, mouth wash, mouth rinse, and cologne. There is nothing like waking up to that mixture of clean smelling goodness. And he's a lawyer (I'm married to a LAWYER!!), which means that on most days he's all dressed up in a suit and tie. It's a nice way to wake up, that's all.

2. I said something to a friend about 5 years ago, and it has haunted me ever since. We invited a few friends over and one of the gals said, "Every time we come to your house it is spotless. Is your house ever dirty?" Trying to be honest, I said, "Well.... I hate messes. So yeah, I try really hard to keep it clean." *Don't those people make you so MAD?* That was right before Grant was born. And as we add people we add things. And also there are more people. Did you know that more people = more mess? Also, contrary to popular belief: the older people get the more mess they are capable of making. Funny how that works. So let me tell you right now: My house is not always clean. I still spend more time than I'd like cleaning, but it is rarely ever spotless. And for heaven's sake, do NOT look in the garage. Or the master walk-in closet. I realize I talk about the state of my home on here a lot. I believe it is a sensitive subject for me--one that I am trying to overcome and become comfortable with. Because the truth is: my house is not always organized. And that is ok. There are 6 people growing, playing, living, and learning here--and cleaning should not be my main priority. (Plus, to be honest, I don't really love cleaning toilets. Surprise!) I worry that it takes up too much of my life, but if I don't do it I go crazy. It's just one of those things that has to get done. So as we are preparing to send kids off to school (wah!) and the 50 bags of school supplies are piled up by my front door. Etc. Etc. I am trying to remind myself that I am in the business of raising children. And Melinda, if you somehow read this: please forgive me for my ignorance!


Joe: While I appreciate that Jenny thinks I smell good in the mornings (it's Acqua Di Gio, case you're wondering), I am compelled to set a record straight. The truth is that I teach early morning Seminary each morning, and I can count on one hand the mornings she got up with me. 

Catching Up is So Hard to Do:

*I forgot to mention that the 3 older kids sang "The Army of Helaman" with Brent on his last Sunday before leaving on his mission. I played for them and they sounded so great! Even Grant knew the words, and I don't think any of them really got stage fright.



Week 2 kind of running together and getting all mixed up with week 3, but to the best of my memory:

Monday: ?

Tuesday: we invited Priscilla and her boys over to play and for lunch. Fun, fun! Grandpa also butchered two hens for us to eat for dinner. They were yummy, and I ate them, but it was kind of weird to know that I was eating something that had been running around on the farm a few hours earlier. Then. . . the electricity went out and somehow (coincidentally?) the water pump died. No water pump means no running water anywhere in the house. It was a little stressful. So while Grandma and Grandpa rushed to get water going before all the stores closed, the kids and I went swimming at a friend's house down the road.

*Side story: Grandpa told the the kids that they couldn't flush the toilet because the electricity was out (this is before we knew the pump had died). He was explaining the science behind it--so we didn't notice Grant walk out of the room. A few seconds later he jubilantly runs back into the living room and announces, "You are wrong Grandpa! The toilet still flushes!" SOOOO.... the last flush was all for nothing. :) What could we do but laugh?

Wednesday: we met up with some of my high school friends and went swimming. We stayed much longer than anticipated, but only because we were having so much fun. I was a little worried that it would be awkward because I haven't seen these girls for years and years--and we are at different stages in life. It was fun, though.

Thursday: ?

Friday: we went to McDonald's for lunch and then walked around the mall while Grandma got a perm. I was going to get my hair dyed for the first time ever. . . but chickened out when I found out it would cost $100. This is when Grant had his freak-out moment with the poopy bum in the men's restroom. Anyway, I was checking out the prices of jeans for new school clothes, and the best I could find was $12 at JCPennys. Now, this is not a horrible price but Logan needed new pants, Madi needed new pants, and you'd think I'd be good on pants for everyone else, but Logan started going through pants every 4ish months when he turned 5. Grant happens to need size 5 pants: Grant needed pants. Luckily, we still have hand-me-downs for Ammon. So even if I skimped on pants and just got 5 pairs for 3 kids--that's
  15
x12
------
$180

That's not even thinking about shirts, socks, shoes, dresses, underwear, etc. So I asked Dad if I could leave the kids with him for a bit while I checked out the thrift store. As I was on my way out I saw my mom paying for her hair, so I recruited her to go with me. We ended up with 16 pairs of pants and 1 dress for $28! Every single article of clothing was in great condition, and we are all set on pants for the next year! It was a tender  mercy.

Saturday: We went to a pioneer day celebration at Kinzua Park. I think that is where it was. The kids fished for a while, we ate dinner, there were some games (3-legged races, watermelon seed spitting, Red Rover, and a shoe-hunt where Logan won $5). Then we went over to the beach side of the park and let everyone swim for a few minutes. Our goal that evening was to get the kids in bed by 8:00, and we didn't know if we could make it because of the mandatory showers that needed to take place. What did we do? When we got back to the house I hopped out of the car to grab everyone's stuff, and then we drove up into the woods and all the kids took separate showers at the same time at the girl's camp (that's right--my parent's have a girl's camp up in their woods!). There is nothing quite like taking a warm shower out in the open air! (There are wrap around shower curtains, but when you look up it's all sky and tree branches). They were in bed by 8:09.

Sunday: The McGregor kids made up about 50% of the primary choir that morning, and they sang 2-3 pioneer songs in Sacrament Meeting.

Summary of Characters:

While I'm at it--I wanted to do a quick a summary of people rather than events:

Ammon: can talk. He is especially good at saying, "no," "done," "more," and "mine." But he also says, "please," "cup," and "yes." His names include "momma," "dad," "grandpa," and "Ammon." Other random words include: car, cat, dog, book, uhuh, and animal noises, plus so many more that I can't remember right now. He's brilliant, you know. 

I am pretty sure he is allergic to milk. I am not sure to what extent, and I probably should take him to an allergist to find out, but in the meantime we are dealing with lots of ouchy poopy diapers and lots of bottom medicine. We are grateful to live in a time of Almond milk, electric ice cream makers (with Almond milk), artificial cheese (which is gross), and other alternatives to milk. Unfortunately, milk is in almost everything we eat, so I have started to make Ammon separate food so that we can still have some variety in our diets. 

Grant: Is getting ever-more super hero crazy. He now turns all of his shirts around because he thinks it is more super-heroish. Grandpa bought him a watch and he is learning how to tell time. He knows how to swim--sort of. He gets under the water and kicks but doesn't really go anywhere. He also needs to learn how to wipe his own bottom.

Story: We were walking around the mall a few weeks ago and he announced he needed to go to the bathroom. I sent Logan as his escort while the rest of us waited in the hall. And waited. And waited. I started calling "Grant? Logan?" Finally Logan came out and explained that he had taken the opportunity to go to the bathroom, too. And Grant was going poop. Uh-oh. That took a while, and then I was yelling into the men's bathroom, "It's ok Grant! You can wipe all by yourself! You are a big boy." He wasn't convinced. Logan went in and wiped him. That wasn't good enough. Then I started hearing Grantee sobs, "I have a poopy bottom! I need help! Mom, come wipe me!" I shouted back, "Grant, I can't go in there, it's the men's bathroom!" A man came out and informed me that it was empty and I could go in to help him, but as he was walking away two more men went in. Finally, I called my dad, who was at Home Depot, and asked him to come over and wipe Grant. 

He's been practicing ever since, but I tell ya, it's not pretty. I hope he doesn't need to poop during preschool this year.

Madison: Is no longer terrified of the water! When she saw how everyone was praising Grant for swimming she got her act together and got her head in the water. Now she's a fish, swimming and diving in the water. 

Logan: Asked me today if he could have something to put in his hair. I gave him some Matrix gel-wax that we picked up at mom and dad's, and I have a feeling that we are entering a new tween stage. Yikes. He did look pretty cute handsome, though. He is also a fish in the water. But more on that later. 

Jenny: Oh my gosh, what a summer!! I can't wait to talk about it--but all in due time. I was spoiled rotten this past month, and I loved every moment. I should mention that my sister informed me that my posture is pretty sad, and even though it was sad to hear, it has been confirmed in too many pictures to not be true. So that is what I'm working on. Standing and sitting straight. 

Joe: He's my favorite man ever. Need I say more? Plus he's not telling me what to write about himself. 

Oh Summer!

How do you sum up a month's worth of summer? In 50,000 words? In 400+ pictures (and I didn't take nearly enough)? Over days? Weeks? Bear with me....

Week 1:

We drove 22 hours straight through, took two 20 minute gas/potty stops and arrived at 2:00 am here-- in the northwest corner of beautiful Pennsylvania.

This is the house I grew up in, surrounded by hundreds of acres of fields and forests. Beautiful. 

We did a lot of reading. 

And relaxing. Outside! In 70-80 degree weather. 

We picked raspberries.

And ate them. 

We swung around. 

And we helped out on the farm (in our church clothes, apparently). 

We sent my baby brother, Brent, on his 2-year mission in Brazil. 

And Joe and I celebrated 11 years of marriage by spending 3 days in New York City. Alone. Without kids. !!!!

Joe has all those pictures on his phone, though. Also, it deserves it's own post. 

We finished the week by joining the kids and grandparents at Cayuga Lake and campgrounds. We camped, swam in the lake, kayaked, saw the Hill Cumorah Pageant, toured my Dad's hometown, and took Joe to the airport. 

I don't have pictures of that, either. 

In short, week one was busy, memorable, and fun, fun, fun!

Getting Domestic

I'm not shy about telling people that I do not enjoy crafting. Mostly it's because I am in some ways a perfectionist and the things I make are far from perfect. I get very frustrated, and making things is not that fun when you have an idea in your head and the end product does not live up to that idea. Plus I just don't have the patience (or time) it takes to make things look the way I think they should look. This is one huge reason I did not stay in the Interior Design program at BYU-I, but that's another story. 

I actually do know how to sew. My mom sews very well (she made my wedding dress), and she has spent hours helping and teaching me to sew. When we lived in Ohio I would save my sewing projects for trips to her house and then we (she) would make the ideas I had in my head. 

Like these super hero capes. 

 The aprons.

 And Halloween costumes (She made Leia's dress and the cloak without a pattern out of old sheets).

Joe bought me a sewing machine for Christmas because now it's not so easy to bring projects over to my mom for help. I have ideas in my head, but I have been afraid to actually pull the machine out and learn how to thread it. I told a friend (Kristy) I wanted to make pillows for the sofas and beds, but I was afraid to start. She called me up a few weeks ago and said, "Let's make pillows." It turns out the machine has numbers to remind me how to thread it and the pillows were pretty easy to make. I did "break" my machine the first time I tried to use it away from Kristy, and she had to come to my house to help me figure out that I was not threading it right. :) 

Anyway, I have pillows. Turns out it was a silly thing to want because the kids think they are personal trampolines. They throw them on the floor, jump on them, line them up on the floor and lay on them. But when they go to bed I put them back on the furniture and it looks nice. Just don't look too closely. 

Another thing I don't love to do is cook and bake. I think I have gotten lazier about this over the years. I don't mind the cooking so much as I mind the cleaning up. My goal is to use as few dishes as possible. We eat a lot of casseroles and crockpot meals. I also am not a food-lover. I think that might make a difference as far as my enjoyment of cooking. I eat because I get hungry and I need to eat, but eating does not bring me pleasure. When we go out to eat I am almost always disappointed that we spent so much on a meal that didn't even taste that good to me. I know, I'm crazy. 

One thing that I do love is breakfast. And I hate cold cereal. As a result, I DO make a hot breakfast almost every day. It is unfortunate that the norm is to invite people over for dinner instead of breakfast, because this is the meal I would feel most comfortable making for others. My breakfasts are good. :) 

Unfortunately, good breakfasts often mean unhealthy. At least for me. Lots of sugar. We also do breakfast burritos and biscuits and gravy often. But I love the sugary breakfasts. 

I have recently rediscovered a pancake recipe that is actually very, very healthy. The syrup will never be healthy--but at least I can feel like I am putting something yummy AND healthy into our bodies.

It is from a Good Housekeeping magazine (mom subscribed it) a few years ago. So easy, fast, healthy, and delicious. This is a recipe for 12 pancakes (they must be tiny), but I double it for my family of 6. Some people add the wet and dry ingredients in separate bowls--not me! You do the wet first and then the dry with the baking powder very last. One dirty dish. 

Whole-Grain Pancakes

mix:

1 egg

1 1/4 c milk

1 T veg. oil

add on top: 

1 c. wheat flour (use white wheat. if you don't do half white flour)

1/2 c. oatmeal (I use old-fashioned, not quick)

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

blend until wet and make pancakes! 

I usually add some vanilla and cinnamon, and because I use the bigger oats I let it sit for about 5 minutes to let them get a little more wet. I often throw in some blueberries. Yum!

The kids LOVE them! Today Logan ate 5, Madi 4, Grant 3, and Ammon 2. And I feel good about it! Sometimes I mix some berries and a little bit of sugar to make a berry syrup. We also make our own lite-syrup with Mapeline. (I double the recipe on the bottle but use about half the sugar it calls for and add vanilla and cinnamon). Once you try it you will never go back to store-bought syrup. And if you want to keep it all healthy, don't do syrup at all! We also like our pancakes with yogurt (homemade is best!) or applesauce.  

So my point is: I'm pretty undomestic. If I can do these things, anyone can. :) 

Hello Summer!

Summer is:

Swimming

Friends

Homework

Naps

Wii (sometimes)

Reading

Cleaning

Movies (sometimes)

Library

Cooking 

Eating

Siblings

Fighting

Singing

Dancing

Computer (sometimes) 

Working

Playing

Late nights

Ice Cream

Traveling

Sleeping in (I wish)

Writing

Chores

Creating

Piano 

*****************************
What I've been thinking about:

I recently watched a home video of a one year old who could dance! It was very cute, but made me feel like I was a bad mom because my kids don't know how to dance=we aren't doing enough dancing at home. Silly? A little? I know. But nonetheless, it has made me think about how as mothers there are some things we are really great at teaching our kids and somethings that we struggle to teach. For me, I think I am good at getting the kids to read, play on their own, and we do a lot outside. We don't watch t.v. or movies (seriously, maybe 3 hours a week--and that is including our Friday family movie). I wish I was more dedicated at teaching the kids piano (we've had one lesson in the last 2 weeks). I feel like I am constantly cleaning, but yet my house is never completely clean! I wish we danced more! I wish we did science projects and crafts (ok--I wish the kids had that experience, but it's not something I really enjoy, so we don't do a lot of that stuff). How do you balance it all and find time for everything?

Along with this, I read something about a mom who decided not to stress so much about making her kids clean their rooms. They had an hour on Saturday where they tidied it up for the week. I thought it sounded interesting, and I was going to give it a try, but it lasted ONE day! It does something to my stomach when I walk into their bedrooms and the floor is covered in clothes, papers, and toys. I don't know how to find balance as far as that goes. I don't want everyone to spend hours every day cleaning, but I start to feel frantic when there is a mess--and it's hard for me to be happy, which means I'm grouching at everyone to "hurry and clean" and "why can't you just pick up your stuff?" then they aren't having a good time either. Ideas on how you find balance would be appreciated. :)

Balance.

Moment of Impact

To make a long story short: lice. Not that long ago I would have been shocked to think of someone talking about this, but I guess it's like modesty when you are having a baby: you get over it.  :)

So here is the longer story, and if it makes you queasy: stop now. Also, don't think less of me or my family. I am really trusting you by putting this all out here.

We went to church on Sunday and on my way to primary we were told that some of the kids in primary had lice. Madison and I made a detour to the bathroom and a few other moms and I started pulling her braids apart looking. It didn't take long. Madison started crying before I did.

The bad news is: lice. And Joe is 10,000 miles away.

The good news is: we caught it very early. If you know anything about lice, you know that they multiply very, very quickly. I think we caught it before any of the eggs hatched, and that is very, very lucky. Also, it looks like I do not have it. 4 women in the past 3 days have checked my hair and all with the same verdict. It is almost unbelievable, but this good news has kept me on the more-sane side of things. :)

Also (and this deserves it's own paragraph), my kids are AMAZING. We left church and I immediately called my parents in PA and started sobbing on the phone about the timing of the matter. I have to admit, I was kind of hoping my mom would come and save me again. She said, "I'm sorry honey, but we have 2 state tests this week and I wish I could come to help you but I can't (she's a principal)." So the kids and I sat in Wal-Mart's parking for about 20 minutes and I said, "I need your help. I'm all alone and this is a lot of work, and I can't do it by myself."

We got home and the 3 big kids pulled off their bedding and put them on my bathroom floor. Madison emptied her dresser and closet and added to the pile. While I started working on Madison's hair Logan cleaned the upstairs and vacuumed the entire house. He took a whiney, tired Ammon and entertained him for several hours. Logan and Madison have also been helpful in switching the laundry when asked.

Luckily I had put some meatballs and marinara sauce in the crock pot, so we had an easy, fast dinner--because the last thing you want to be worrying about in the middle of this ordeal is making, feeding, and cleaning up food.

A friend came over to cut the boys' hair (I didn't even check them, and I'm sure they didn't have anything, but I just didn't even want to ever check or worry about it). After a little internal crying I decided to go ahead and have her cut Ammon's hair. We then spent a few hours going through Madison's hair, which as I mentioned, was actually (and thankfully) not too bad.

most recent "before" picture of all the kids when sending dad off to China.

Ammon's first haircut!

After picture

I keep imagining the "moment of impact." I imagine it had something to do with her long hair (that is always pulled back!) and a well-intentioned hug. Madison loves to hug, and how do you tell someone to stop hugging!! Today while we were going through her hair again she said, "Mom, I kept telling my friends that I'm not allowed to hug, but they didn't listen." So we talked.

I've done a lot of researching, and I found this quote by Patricia Heaton (mom on "Everybody Loves Raymond"): "I've learned how to pick out head lice - and I don't really mind doing it, which is scary." I can't say that I don't mind doing it, but it is what it is, and I'm not alone.

The other good news is that Joe feels terrible about not being here to help out. He wrote me a sweet email and promised to make it up to me. He also poetically said, "your feet will feel like pillows"(because I love it when he rubs my feet).

My mom, sister, and sister-in-law, and I are also planning a get-away trip to Puerto Rico. I am SO excited!

So: we're pushing through!  This has been a trial, but I feel like Heavenly Father made sure I could do it. I should mention that this didn't even compare to last year's experience with a 4-day old baby.

And if you ever get lice, call me. I know just what to do!

Wishing I still had nothing (to talk about)

So it's 12:38 a.m. Yes, you read that right: A.M.--as in the middle of the night and I should be in bed--A.M.

I'm not ready to talk about it yet.

Suffice it to say that I'm grateful that we got Ammon's pictures last week.

And I'm thankful for friends.

But I'll be glad when Joe gets back.

Because I'm done, only that's not a choice, so I'm not done, but I am.

Hint: the boys now all have almost buzz-cuts and I broke the Sabbath by going to Wal-Mart and doing 32 (I'm almost not exaggerating) loads of laundry.

Tomorrow is looking just as swell.

I've got nothing

Usually I can find something to write about each day--whether it is something funny that happened or some resurfaced memory. But I've got nothing. Has there been nothing? Am I missing things? Inspiration: gone.

Still, there is a need to write.

Today: played, cleaned, folded, watched, fixed, cooked, listened, read, talked. Did not exercise. Did not yell (as much).

What's your story?

Nothing Fabulous, Nothing Bad

I have nothing entertaining or enlightening to share, only that we are doing o.k. Sunday was brutal.  The problem: fighting kids and a tired/impatient mom. Both of those things together = unhappy family. Let's just say I was feeling very guilty by the end of the day. Luckily, we have almost another week to recover and prepare for the next one. 

I have some fantastic friends and visiting teachers in this ward, and that has made life sweet. I mentioned the surprise book drop last week, but since then: my kids were watched for a few hours on Saturday so I could attend a church meeting for women, we were invited to a yummy dinner, given a prepared FHE lesson (!), invited to go swimming, and today there was a cookie-drop off. I truly feel cared for and loved--and I think that means more than the service itself. Every time I go through an "experience" I am reminded of ways I can be more compassionate and charitable to others; this has been a good experience, and I hope I can be better at finding ways to help those in need of lifting up. 

 

Oh, and something kind of exciting: I visited a second-hand shop during Grant's speech today. I was in there for about 15 minutes and found 3 pairs of perfect-condition GAP jeans (that fit!) for $10.99. Boo-Yah! 

Quiet!!!

It's 8:03 and the house is QUIET! It's 90 degrees outside and it was field day at the elementary school. Grant and Ammon and I had a shortened nap because we went to JCPenny's this morning. Add that all together and you've got tired kids and reading time in bed. YES!

Two stories.

First: I make my bed everyday. I gave up on making the kids make their beds everyday (maybe we'll try again this summer). Grant's bed is never, never made. When Madi and Logan were four they knew how to make their beds and they were held accountable for making their beds each day. Grant could probably make a normal bed, except that he destroys his every night. Like--even the fitted sheet is pulled off each morning. Grant has the privilege of sleeping on my bed during nap time so that he doesn't wake up Ammon. As mentioned, I make my bed everyday. But yesterday I just kind of threw the covers up over the pillows and I didn't smooth it down. When he went in to take a nap he said, "Mom, I can't sleep on this! It's not made! You have to make your bed everyday or I can't fall asleep." I don't get it.

Next story: We are going to have to watch Ammon. He is a kisser. If I say, "let's change your diaper," he runs away. If I say, "it's time to get dressed," he runs away. If I say, "can I have a kiss?" He smiles big and runs over with his mouth wide open. He falls for this trick every time.

And lastly, we finally went to get Ammon's first year pictures. We got some cute ones, no thanks to him. The little stinker became shy for the first time in his life and all he wanted to do was hide his head in my chest.

If you want to see them (please do!) there is a link on my facebook page. I don't know how to attach it to the blog.