Wordless Wednesdays

Gee... "thanks" husband!

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Mere Christianity

I am ready to write my official review of the book Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis since we have now had our book club discussion. Keep in mind while you read this review that my fellow book clubbers and myself are all members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints so of course our oppinions are based around our beliefs. As for myself I have real mixed feelings about how I felt about the book. There was so much stuff in it that I learned and inspired me to better myself, but there were other things that I think he was very confused on and it appeared that he didn't know the full truth. The s at book club agreed on this mostly. Up until the chapter on "The One Personal God" we loved everything & could tell that he totally got what Christianity was all about. When he'd discuss the Holy Trinity, as one lady put it, he just barely missed the boat. He'd be saying all this wonderful stuff & it'd make sense and then he'd steer off in the wrong direction. Still, there were so many great points made that helps lead to the full truth. He is, though, the most quoted non-LDS writer by general authorities... that's awesome. Overall, I would recommend this book to others, but I'm in no hurry to read it again.

Car Seat Safety 101

I can't tell you how uncomfortable it is finding out that your kids really aren't safe. We spend money on these car seats, but what's this... their faulty. True, nothing is so perfect, but it's an uneasy feeling thinking that all that preparation could be tossed out the window by chance in one . When I heard the news of the car seat tests in New York for the infant seats that use bases I was appalled to learn that 10 out of the 12 flew off their bases in a 35 mph collision (two or three others didn't even pass regulation but were already in circulation... WHAT!?!). I looked into it further... this isn't the exact site or article but it is the same topic just written by the consumer's union. My car seat is a Graco which I was happy to learn was one of the ones that didn't leave it's base. Still, I wasn't sure that the was the same so I removed the base from the car & now take the extra time to buckle his seat down directly with the seat belt. This little bit of extra inconvience has left me with a great deal of peace of mind! I'm bringing this all about today because this wonderful woman has made a pledge to donate $3 for each comment she gets on this post about Kyle. His story is touching & devestating. I can't begin to imagine loosing my children so I was glad to give my little post and help where I can. I'm not sure how long she'll be following the pledge, but still go check out this little video & leave a comment if you wish... And make sure you double check your car seats & all information you can find.

Imagination!

"... Adults don't really teach children to go potty. Children teach themselves by teaching their dolls." from Potty Train Your Child In Just One Day

I think this is so true and fun. Here Liv is helping her stuffed Olivia the pig doll, not because I showed her but she just started doing it one day. The book suggests that you set aside one day to have a "Potty Party" where for the first half of the day you demo with a doll all about the potty training, then for the other half of the day it's a combined experience for the child & the doll working together to learn. Well, I didn't do that & walked in one day to find Liv teaching her friend to go pee-pee on the potty! Then I read that quote & thought that it is so very very true! It's been a week since we started with panties & Liv isn't free. But I have learned so much from this "wonderful" experience. I have learned to see the progress not just the end project, because it is real obvious that Liv is learning. One other thing that really helped me was realizing that this is her learning about her body functions... like walking (which my little boy is learning how to walk so this was real easy for me to understand). When a kid is learning to walk we don't get mad when he falls, instead we keep encouraging him to try again and again. He doesn't fall just to spite us... he's just learning. Same with potty training, so encourage, encourage, and encourage! Also, when I notice Liv needing to go potty I don't ask her anymore I just say "It's potty time, let's race to the potty!" She loves this! So I'm always learning, sorry I am so focused on this subject, but I wanted to share what I have accomplished!

Ten Years Ago...

One of my favorite blogger, Fantastic Five, did a post on where she was ten years ago. I thought this was a great idea, then I realized that ten years ago I was in seventh grade & twelve years-old. I decided to check out my journal anyways and see what I was up to. I ended up rolling over laughing cause January of 1997 I did something classic...



On January 24th, 1997 I threw a party at my house while my parents were out of town and I was babysitting my brothers. They knew I was going to have friends over... of the sort, but of course the whole idea was to invite boys over. I even remember bribing my little brothers not to tell mom and dad (although I'm not sure with what... maybe getting to stay up later? I wonder if they remember!) It was great fun... until the next day. In church the next morning one of the boys' dad told me dad told my dad that he thought it was great that he trusted me enough to have a party while they were out. I am so grateful that we were in the church house that day or else I probably would've died! I remember being terrified to leave the building after I saw the look in my dad's eyes as he told me to get to the car. I don't blame my dad for his reaction... I did something really wrong. I definitely learned my lesson & worked real hard to earn their trust back. It was not a good idea overall. And while it's a fun learning experience to look back on I will never forget how heartbroken I was when I realized I had disappointed my parents.

What a memory to come across... now you all should post what you were doing ten years ago!

Missing Mom

I haven't been able to post anything lately since I have been real focused on the whole potty training business with Liv. Well, and cause nothing real special has been happening...

Today Liv and I sat down and watched Ice Age The Meltdown (we had tried once before... we went to the dollar theatre where I thought it'd be safe to bring a two year old. People only pay a dollar to get in there so why would they be complaining, right!? Well, there was only one other family there & he was real impatient, so it wasn't a good experience). Liv loved watching Scrat and all his attempts to keep ahold of his acorn. She'd laugh and laugh at that little critter & I swear I could hear my mom laughing right along with her. See, my mom passed away when Liv was four months old from stupid Breast Cancer so they only got to know each other for a short time, which is real bad since Liv is a spitting image of my mom. Anyways, my mom, Suzanne, loved Ice Age and would laugh until tears came from her eyes. She had a very contagious laugh & I loved that she would just let it go on so far... she enjoyed things that much! So watching Liv laugh at something Mom loved as well and feeling my mom there laughing with us was a very spectacular moment... tiny mercies of our Lord!

Sleep In?

I remember back in the day when I got to sleep in, now days that's unheard of. I've come to accept this as life & I realize that one day my kids will be teens & I'll be trying to drag them out of bed because they have slept in long enough. As for today, though, I wanted to share this morning shot with you. The kids joined us in bed as long as I could take it & then I worked on talking them into breakfast so we could go to more wide open spaces! Well, Liv didn't want to leave her daddy. After Gary & I ate I went to check on her & found my husband tucked in with a whole lot of stuffed animals & his daughter! It's great being a parent! Maybe he got to sleep in a little, somehow!

As a side note, after many discussions with other moms we have switched Liv over to panties this morning. I use a vinyl cloth diaper cover over the panties to slow the leakage of s to protect my furniture. We are really working the system in hopes to get her trained in a week. I know, there will still be s & diapers for the night... but overall I would like her to be ready for panties! Todd wanted me to put as a warning to anyone who uses the old fashioned training pants or the vinyl cover to watch out for the elasticity of the coverings. He had a very unfortunate experience with a -filled one. You're a great Daddy, honey!!

A Mommy Moment

This afternoon I was real busy picking up the hundreds of toys that all end up in the living room so I could reach the floor to vacuum. I loaded up my arms and headed down the hall to drop them off in Liv's room. When I returned back to the front room I saw out of the corner of my eye Gary sitting inside the guinea pig cage! I first I was all upset but he looked up at me and gave me this big cheesy smile that caused me to bust up laughing! Of course, then I had to grab my camera & document the moment. Besides it's always real fun to show Todd what he missed during the day & he got a real good laugh too!

Lunch with Grandma-Great

Usually, at least lately, my Grandma Betty watches my kids on Wednesdays. This week I went to the scrpabook store so we decided to have a day out with Grandma! First we went to TGIFridays for lunch. I hadn't been there in ages & it was okay food, filled my picky belly up well enough! Then we were going to take my kids to a pet store since Liv just lights up at those places, she love seeing all the animals through a protective sheet of glass. Instead, since we were in the same parking lot, we decided to check out a bead shop inside Cottonwood Mall. It is devestating how great that place has died down. Not even half the store lots were filled with a business. However; the bead shop, Heart Beads Jewelry, was fantastic. I love their customer service & the awesome set up they have. Instead of just strings of beads & small plastic squares full to pick from she has the string beads a few square tuperwares & then a bunch of different shapes of champagne glasses and small bowls. I like it a lot! The kids were so good in this place full of little pieces that they weren't allowed to touch, so we stopped by the kids play area that they have there in the mall. The kids enjoyed playing on the oversized sweet food items... ice cream cones, sandwiches, sundaes, a spilt coke cup, and a cupcake. It was a wonderful photo oppurtunity for your's truely... you know me I can't leave the house without the camera!!

I love this glass bead blogger: http://marshalljodie.blogspot.com/

Pretty Princess

I thought this was so stinkin' cute... Liv loves stickers so her grandma Young gave her a coloring book loaded with stickers for Christmas. Inside was a demo of how to make a crown out of paper plates. She took the book to her dad, opened to that page, and started pointing at the crown. So Todd, being the wonderful Dad he is, got some paper plates & helped her put together a special crown & one for him too. I was sitting there on the couch the whole time & was amazed. How easy it would've been for him just to ask me to do it... say something like "you're the crafty one" but nope he just saw an oppurtunity to bond with his little princess and flew with it! So sweet!

Yikes!!

So a couple of weeks ago I started smelling something odd while I was out driving.. . really stinky something. It was when the snow storms had started so I just assumed it was the "lake effect" (anyone living in salt lake valley knows that wonderful rotten egg stench that comes when a storm has passed over the Great Salt Lake before dumping on the valley). A couple days later, same thing. But then I noticed that the smell didn't extend past my vehicle. The smell thing became very disturbing to me at that moment. One day I mentioned to my husband that my engine smelt funny... he agreed & asked if I needed an oil change because it smelt like the engine was burning (that was as far as he went... Todd is not a mechanic by any means. Sure he can replace a flat tire lickety-split, but he'll take it somewhere for any other reason... so no opening the hood or anything like that, just the advice to get an oil change). By that point the smell wasn't of rotten eggs it really was the smell of something burning... bad! So I took it to get it's oil changed the next day. While the mechanic was giving me the run down on my engine and such I asked him if the engine smelt funny to him. He gave me a wierd look & said "yeah" then I asked him if he knew why... another weird look then he said "there's dog food on your engine." Shock swept over me & immediately I thought "Who is the stinker playing this gross prank on me?" So the guys vaccumed out as much as they could & that was that. UNTIL the smell came back strong again today. So I popped the hood & there was a replenished supply of dog food sitting on the engine. We figure there is some little creature that has taken up residence in our garage for the winter... he has it made, a container always full of dog food & a warm engine to snuggle up in... NO GOOD! So now we're taking measures to try to get rid of the situation. I totally feel for the little critter, but if only you could catch a wiff of my engine you'd say "Oh my...." and agree that drastic times call for drastic measures!

Scooby Doo

Our friend, Cory, is getting work where ever he can as they save up to pursue an acting career in New York. One of his current jobs is dressing up for Cartoon Network to promote boomerang and comcast. I could NOT resist this excellent oppurtunity to snap some shots of my kids with their friend dressed up all furry like. Liv did NOT think this was so neat. And the more I tried to explain that it was Cory in a costume the more confused she got. Gary, on the other hand, absolutely loved this big creature. He has a thing for large stuffed animals & what does this guy look like... a GIANT stuffed animal. He was all about trying to cuddle up next to him, and eat him as he likes to do with everything except food. You can't tell in the picture though... the kids are too involved in each other. Oh now, Gary's touching Liv, and Liv's freaked out by the Scooby Doo... but, hey, I'm smiling all nice and pretty for the picture!

More Presents!?!

A special note to my dear Aunt Shannon Cook... Grandma brought by the gift you sent up for me. First of all, you already spoiled me enough so stop it already! As you can see, though, I was not the one to open the present. Gary has gotten the hang of this whole present deal & he ripped right into that thing so fast! It was nuts, but he looked so stinkin' cute doing it... so I forgive him! Thanks for the stuff... it is good that we help however we can in the fight against Breast Cancer. I know I sure don't do my share... mostly I live in denile, at least for now. I thinking of that stupid stupid disease, I just... GRRR! Anyways, so here's to the super aunt & the adorable little boy!

Let's Getaway!

Today has been a FANTASTIC day! I started out by working at the scrapbook store... where I finally broke down and spent most of my saved up store credit. Oops! What can I say, I have this now now now feature built into me where when I see something I really like I have to have it NOW NOW NOW! Anyways, it was mostly good... I just wish it would've been busier for my friends' wallet's sake! That's besides the point. After I got home my husband arrived shortly, from his not so wonderful day of shoveling mud off of the streats in Midvale since the city shut him down & wouldn't let him continue building until the mud was gone... it's not really his fault. Anyways, Todd presented me with a "present" inside was a DVD titled Carnival. I was not going to be so happy if he had broke the budget again to surprise me with an awesome vacation that he knows I've been craving since the day we got married... yes, he would do something like that, he's a sweetie... but also tight on the money, which is good! Fortunately it is a gift from his work! DP sets goals at the beginning of the year with awesome rewards for different levels of achievement... and my hard working husband & his associates earned a cruise. They did the same last year, but Todd & I weren't able to attend since Gary was making his debut into our lives at the same time. We are so stoked, and very grateful for the incredible people at DP that provide our family with so much! And, being the nerd I am, I am especially excited that I get to scrapbook a cruise page or pages... there are a whole lot of cute stuff for the likes & I haven't been able to use them yet, so YIPPEE!!!

Potty-Untraining

Potty training has become my least favorite challenge of being a mom. It's nuts... at least this experience with Liv has been. She has known of the potty and it's purpose for about a year now, she appeared to be ready a long time ago... it was the mom that was being too lazy. Well, after Christmas I was determined to get my potty trained (as my incentive we'd be able to take her on the Disney Cruise with us that I do plan on going on sometime in the near future). All started out real well. I showed her the big panties with Dora on them, she even got to try them on which made her grin from ear to ear. Things were great, she kept her "big diapers" (that's what we call training pants) dry & loved sitting on the potty... although she still hadn't gone pee-pee on the potty, it was like she'd hold it all day then let it out while she was sleeping... weird, but I realize this is a huge adjustment. But somewhere between then and today things have gone haywire. Somewhere in the potty training she picked up that the role of the potty was for wiping. So she'd go pee-pee in her big diaper then tell me she needed to sit on the potty & right away she'd want to wipe then say "All done!" So any advice from you moms and dads would be fantastic! Thanks!

Snow Fun!!

It's been a snowy snowy day here in Utah! As much as I don't like the snow I LOVE playing in it with my kids! So when Todd got home Liv and I bundled up to go play with him (actually he was shoveling, but we talked him into doing something more fun :)). I really love living on this hill cause during the winter it is perfect for sledding! It's great to go play in the snow then walk ten feet & be back in the warmth of my own house. Back when I was a kid my dad would drop my friend, usually Sheena, and myself off at the golf course where we'd stay until Dad came to pick us up. One time we had to go into one of the ponds to snag our snow tube that had gotten away from us... waiting for Dad that time was like ! What a memory! Anyways, Liv was a good sport & liked sledding this year... Gary probably thinks we're nuts!

Hey Good Lookin'

My dear sweet Todd got his hair cut yesterday! He took a trip over to Cuts (don't worry, it was the deal I set with him if he'd cut his hair). It was a great experience for him, they gave him a massage while he waited, washed, cut, washed again, and styled it! He didn't tell me that he was going to do this so it was like falling in love all over again when I saw him walk through the door!

The Influence of Uncle Tyler

It was so great to see Tyler & Kolbi during the holidays... it's very healthy for Todd & the kids especially. During their visit Tyler criss-crossed Liv's velcro shoes. Since then Liv is always playing with the velcro because she has to have them just the way Uncle Ty did them!

New Year's Eve

Last night was a lot of fun. We had friends over to play games... this is a very important factor for this special holiday. New Year's Eve is not among my favorite holidays, especially since I've become a mom that gets tired around 10p. Nonetheless, it is still to be observed if I want to remain normal! So we played games with Cory & Melissa Huff and Jared & April and their daughter Casaday. Liv & Casaday had so much fun playing together & were extra cute when it came to bed time. Yeah, I wasn't expecting to put her down on this very odd day, but she was wiped out! Liv was ready to sleep, but Casaday wanted to chit chat with her all keep on playing. I don't blame her cause if the situation was reversed there wouldn't even be any attempting to put Liv to bed at a friends house. The kids ended up watching a movie while the moms & dads played games (well, by then the mom's were playing a board game upstairs & the dads had escaped to the "man cave" in the basement to play Halo2!). At midnight there was kisses & then for real bed time!