What's Up Arnett

Happy 4th Birthday Logan

2012-01-31T23:31:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was Logan's 4th birthday, but we put together a party with friends and my side of the family over at my Mom's house for tonight. Lately we have been doing parties at the church, but there was a class in one of the rooms, so I chose to separate his birthday into two little parties. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with such a small space at my Mom's, so I used Pinterest to figure out some ideas.

I used some newsprint paper posted against the back side of the counters to the kitchen and encouraged the kid guest to write a message or draw a picture for Logan - kind of like a giant birthday card. It was very well covered by all the kids and will probably be put on display in his room for a little while.

Another station I picked was with water beads. It was a big hit and I am glad we chose to keep it in the bathroom, however, there was a temporary lack of supervision and a huge mess had to be cleaned up. No big deal, just swept up most of it, and closed that station for the night.

The highlight of the party, to me anyways, was the Robot Juice Boxes. It was set up as another station and the kids, with my help on the hot glue gun, were able to make their robot.

In the end, they had more selection of what they

wanted than put it together.

I did have a cool sign about what steps

and order to do things in on the table,

and hoped the parents would do the

project with their kids,

but the obsessive, won't let anyone try for themselves

side came out and I ended up taking over the

hot glue gunning for everyone.

Will will I ever learn...

All you need:

snack/mini raisin boxes

Juice Boxes

Apple Sauce Snacks

Smarties

Plastic Spoons

Hot Glue

Sharpie Marker

I put them together in this order:

Glue the legs together

Hot glue the legs to the body

(best if glued around the base of the juice)

Then hot glue the arms to the sides of the body.

I used the wrapper ends to secure and it gave the

robots floppy arms.

Like it says, using a Sharpie, draw a face for your robot.

I found that many of the kids went to draw the face on the

bottom of the apple sauce container, rather than

on the side. With a little re-direction, the task was back on track.

The best hold seemed to be if you hot glued the top rectangle

of the juice box and placed the apple sauce on top of that.

Be careful to "center" the head, otherwise they are top heavy

and won't stand on their own.

Next you pick an antenna.

Each kid chose which way they would

have their antenna. We had a creative bunch.

Gluing the spoon on was easy if you used the top/side

rim of the apple sauce container in the back.

Here were the results:

by Wes, Tami (sample box), Faith (hidden), Wyatt, and Lindsay

by Tami, Trevor, and Logan

I made the one with "bunny ears." I was trying to tell some ladies that it would

be cute for Easter to give to their Sunday School kids.

Logan was blessed with a lot of presents, so my hope tomorrow is to

go thru his room and clear out old toys he doesn't play with anymore.

Thanks to everyone who came!

Chore Chart

2012-01-07T16:13:00.000-07:00

The other weekend, Josh told Madison that if she wanted to go stay at people's houses all the time, she needed to start helping out around the house more. It made me begin to wonder if it was time to start her on some chores and what kind of chore chart we would use - a standard one you buy in the store? A homemade one?

After researching for a little bit, I decided to create my own, with a little help from Pinterest and Etsy. First off, I had to think of different chores she could do. I debated on making each chore worth some money (e.g. $0.50 for unloading the dishwasher), but then I went with another type of incentive program. Madi gets to pick her reward that she is working for at the beginning of the week. She has options of: $10 cash allowance, a date night with a parent of choice, a family movie night, or a special sleepover. She picks the "goal" at the beginning of the week and then has to earn 100 points sometime between Monday - Saturday of that week.

So, Madi and I sat down and planned out all the chores, gave them each individual points, and in the beginning she was frustrated to know she had to earn 100 points, but as the week progressed, she saw that is was very simple. Then I had to make the chore chart and this is what I came up with...

It's a piece of sheet metal - I painted it with chalkboard paint. Because the idea of sheet metal being able to slice fingers open on accident, I wanted to make a frame with paper to cover the edges. So, Madi and I ventured out to the craft stores and decided on what the chore options were written (stars) and the "theme" of the board. She found the owl stickers first, and the trees just kind of came with the owl idea.

After framing the board, we painted the stars kind of based on location - the yellow are in the kitchen, blue in the living room, orange in the bathroom, and purple is personal whatever.

Madi added the owls around and we put on the magnets on the back of the stars, but something was missing - how were we going to keep track of when she did what, and then we decided to add the big trees to represent the days.

Here are some of the various chores she can do through out the week to earn points

And this is how she would display them as they are getting done.

She is very excited about the chore chart and earning her choice rewards.
Wish us luck!

2011-08-01T16:33:00.034-06:00

It's a Bird, It's a Plane...

No, it's just my Dad! He went skydiving (finally)

after receiving the gift for Christmas 2007/2008 birthday.

It took about 10 minutes to go up, and only 4 to come down.

He did fall for 40 seconds at 120 miles per hour!

And here is the landing...

He's ready to go up again - and I want to join him!

PLANKING!

I wish I was this strong to do this!

Oregon

I was invited to come be a counselor at Youth Yearly Meeting (YYM) again this year!

I was looking forward to attending once again,

and I learned that OMSI had a special display for

The Chronicles of Narnia.

I scheduled myself some extra time to stop in and check it out.

Natalie needed a ride over and I agreed for her to join me,

and then Lyss joined us also.

We were all excited to stop in at OMSI and play for awhile!

Lyss is trying to hold up this arch - one block was missing,
otherwise it would have stayed on it's own.
You're so strong Lyss!

YYM is always full of fun and getting to know people.
We had a bit of time for recreation and we had to hunt for letters
that eventually spelled out Ephesians 4:13

Here's the letter P and pee.

Planking the E

Going to the beach is a reward for all the hard work we have done from the week: workshops, meetings, service projects, and discerning. We went to Pacific City again, and it was better weather than the year before! The sun was out and there was only a slight breeze all around!

This is THE dune that everyone likes to climb - but only once. :)

These two were tormenting the birds...

I had a wonderful day at the beach with the youth and getting to know Judith - she was my co-counselor for our floor - and she is from Ireland! She put up with all our silly questions on the last night and we all had a lot of good laughs.

Before we were about to head out of town, Ken Redford asked if Lyss could ride home with us and if we would stay a little bit longer in the Berg so she could hang with Jered for a bit. We agreed, but had to find something to do in the meantime - so we went to Critter Cabana. Kitties, puppies, and what?

Whoa! That's a frog - or a toad.

This guy gets to go around as he pleases - he's huge!

We later met back up with Lyss and continued on our way home...

YYM does something to everyone - we are exhausted in some way or another - Nat and Lyss slept almost half of the trip! Shreela fell asleep for a little bit, but I had my audio book to keep me company, so I was okay. Shreela and I thought it would be cool to do a picture with those huge wind power thingys - these are our unsuccessful tries... apparently she took them all upside-down.

We averaged 28 miles to the gallon, so with a quarter of a tank, we decided to push on thru to Baker City for getting our gasoline... the fuel light came on and we barely made it into Baker. There were funny noises and we turned of the A/C, just to make sure we made it... and we did! Whoo hoo! We were really unsure that we would about 3 miles out and laughed at the prospect of running out... oh, good times.

Day with Nieces

2011-07-09T16:39:00.000-06:00

I was called in by my sister-in-law to help watch my nieces while some tests were run for my brother-in-law's upcoming kidney transplant.

I decided to take the kids on a DU: Destination Unknown. Originally I thought of taking them to Sandy Point beach, near Lucky Peak, but then chose to head up to Robie Creek. There is a playground and sandy beach front there, and it's not well known (as far as I know). Plus, they wouldn't have a clue where we were going to go, even if I told them where we were going.

It was killing them, more so Madison Steed. They kept guessing, I kept laughing, it was perfect!

Here is what we did:

Abbie buried Squeaky in the sand

This is the deepest I think he went

Where there is sand, there is some kind of sand sculpting creations.

Where there are Steeds and water, there is some kind of fish being caught.

Needed: a cool place for the caught fish to swim

Final product: never used - destroyed and abandoned once it was finished

Mermaid Time!

In progress

Final design

Pulling Madi out, rather than her standing up

I think that Abbie was trying to get in touch with her inner ostrich??

Sometimes when you are the only adult, it can be to your disadvantage. Especially when you wake up earlier than you want, stay up later than you intended to, and sit in the sun, you just want to fall asleep in a moving vehicle on the way home. But instead all the kids fall asleep and you don't get to... jealous!

All in all, it was a great afternoon!

Growth

2011-07-04T12:50:00.001-06:00

We have a lovely tree next door that had a mass dropping

of "helicopter" seeds in our yard and in our gutters.

Josh cleaned out the gutters in the front,

but some how missed the ones in the back...

Combine any dirt that may have been resting in the gutters,

plus the helicopter seeds, and you have a perfect

little growth in the gutters!

Baby trees - hundreds of them!

They not only have infested our gutter, but also our grass,

flower beds, well, anywhere they were allowed to grow!

Some of the growth is bad - like these baby trees,
But there are a lot of pretty flowers for us to admire!

There is this BEAUTIFUL ivy plant that bloomed this season just

outside of Madison's room!

And a pretty rose bush out front!

Pretty flowers make for fun editing.

Enjoy!

Spummer - The Summer that tried to be Spring

2011-06-23T00:18:00.000-06:00

It has been a cold Spring in Idaho, and a crazy one in the mid-West with flooding and bad tornadoes plaguing them. The high was rarely above 70 degrees...

MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND

Last year we visited Union Creek in Oregon and camped as a small group. This was so fun we chose to do it again for Memorial Day Weekend back in January, this way we could reserve our spaces for one of the busiest weekends of the summer. Only problem is that you cannot guarantee that the weather is going to cooperate and be warm. Thankfully we were able to borrow my grandpa Halvorson's RV camper and my Repp grandparents let the Lau family borrow theirs. There was rain, snow, hail, and sun, all while we were there in Oregon. We stopped in at the annual Sumpter Flea Market and some of the area garage sales. Found this beautiful landscape picture while visiting one of those garage sales...

We had a great time on our trip with our friends, and the ladies truly enjoyed watching the kids vs. dads in a game of Capture the Flag!

LOOK AT THE SKY!

Came out to see the sunset on 04/25 - surprised by the rainbow instead!!

May 19 - captured from my car on the connector on the way to pick up my kids

June 3 - After working a busy evening with Dan, I ended up leaving later than I planned and what a blessing it turned out to be - had I left earlier in the evening, I would have missed it altogether! So very beautiful in the different transitions1!

PHOTOS WITH AUNT MICHELLE

A "CULTURAL" EXPERIENCE

Tami B. invited me to attend the Treasure Valley Roller Derby with her in June - Josh invited his two sisters and their men to join us for this new cultural experience called the Derby. Interesting it was - the rules were fairly easy to catch up on while watching. The fellow audience members were just as... interesting. Had I known that it was the "B" team up first, I think I wouldn't have rushed to get inside and waited for the "A" team - they were much faster and aggressive, but we were all uninterested by the time is was their turn - I'd go back, however, if someone gave me free tickets. Again, I would end up waiting until the A team is out to kick some butt...

SWIMMING LESSONS

Madison has been doing alright on her swimming, but I wanted to see her do better, plus it was about time for Logan to start some lessons himself. I thought that even Trevor could take some lessons so that he would be able to actually swim when we go to Roaring Springs. A few years back the two older kids took lessons at Cathy's Swim School for Lil Fish and I enjoyed that, so I looked up to see about getting them in - I procrastinated too long and all the classes were FULL for the summer! All the kids were put on a wait list and eventually made it in to some other classes!

In Madi's advanced class, she is learning the various strokes, along with improving her front crawl

Logan loves to swim - just not get his ears wet

Trevor and Logan are in the beginning class together. Logan enjoys cheering for his cousin as he swims.

Meridian Speedway Fun

2011-05-16T14:26:00.002-06:00

Logan watching turn one

Logan LOVES the races at Meridian Speedway. He went a few times last year with his Uncle Danny and must have really enjoyed them. The other day we were in Madison's room, where she has some autographed pictures from racers of last season. Logan started shouting about how he wanted to go to see the race cars and it was arranged that he would attend with Uncle Danny once again that weekend.

And that's all we heard about for the whole week. "Go see race cars?!" "Sorry, Logan, not til Saturday," which, of course, means nothing to him. The day finally came and he was able to go watch his race cars. Turns out that he was the only one of the kids who went that actually cared about what was really going on around the track.

My brother gave me the night off from work, so I planned to attend the races with my parents and my man for the evening. After announcing this to Logan, he was ecstatic! Another night of race cars was on his agenda, and there was no way of convincing him otherwise!

Rain or shine, we planned to still attend this race, probably so we didn't disappoint the little fan. It did rain after all, but it was only a small shower. We had packed our hoodies and blankets and stayed fairly warm while we waited out the weather.

The track did get a little too wet, but they were determined to keep everything going in the meantime. So, they had a bunch of cars circle the track to keep it "warm" and dry-ish. No crashes here, but it was pretty full of different kinds of cars all kinds.

Madi enjoying some time with Mom, and trying to steal my warmth

The boys - not too concerned about what is happening on the track

Dad holding Logan, who is passed out

Going to Roaring Springs earlier in the day probably didn't help because as much as Logan LOVES the races, he was exhausted at the same time. He fell asleep in his Dad's arms after the rain and slept thru a couple main events. I stole him away from Josh, I knew that doing so would help me to stay warm, holding my little bundle of love in my arms. He did wake up in time to watch the boat races and the fireworks, probably the best parts of the whole night.

Now, after doing everything they could to keep the track dry earlier, at the end of the night they brought out this big truck full of water and soaked the track for boat races. Mom saw them last year and insisted that we see them when we had a chance. The Thunderdog class are the perpetrators of this crazy "race", if you can call it a race.

Each car has a fiberglass boat that it is hauling via a chain. The point of the race is to be the last one standing with 4' or more of a boat, either that you are dragging or pushing, or whatever. It'll kind of like demolition derby on steroids. Chaos and laughter ensued and it was well worth sitting in the rain for a moment to watch this! The track was a MESS afterward, and the entire time they were "racing," I kept wondering how or why they allow them to do this. Some guys "cheated" and once they lost one boat and were disqualified, they would return with a second, or even a third boat!

The night concluded with a small fireworks show. I had to laugh when it ended and Logan looked at us and said, while signing, "More!" It made me think of almost two years earlier when we watched the fireworks at the God and Country Festival (of which I thought I had a blog about, but I guess I don't)

All in all, it was a great night with the family!

What's Up

2011-04-22T11:18:00.000-06:00

Wow.

I wish I dedicated more time to updating this thing -

I guess I have just been too busy with sewing and creating other things here and there.

Let's see what I have in my photo archive...

Ah yes, what is better than friends?

Not a lot, except maybe chocolate -

but chocolate doesn't make you laugh or listen to your

weirdness and still appreciate you.

Oh look, here's my baby. He is getting so big!

He is doing great in preschool and I am

starting to understand him more and

more everyday. We were at Winco the other

day and he was doing his usual babbling

then all of a sudden he says, "O, O, D"

and I looked up and he was reading the letters

for the seafood sign! WOW!

The other morning he made me laugh

cause when he woke up he said,

"Cars? Cars! Cars."

Yesterday it was just me and Logan

and I was trying to get him to lay down

and go to sleep, but he just wanted

to hug and kiss me. How sweet -

I do love hugs from my little man!

Awww! There's my two babies!

Madison is doing awesomely in gymnastics.

She flips and twists and jumps all over the place.

I keep telling Josh that when we move, we need

to have another place that has a large room for

her to flip around in. Our living room is currently

her practice area - and a wrestling room for when

her dad and Logan wanna wrestle with her.

Myself, I have been busy with my sewing stuff -

I set up another blog and Facebook page

for my sewing stuff

TMI Craftiness (blog) (Facebook)

I even made new business cards and price tags - I am that excited and dedicated!

Everyone asks me if I have thought about setting

up an Etsy account, but it usually helps if you have that

inventory to sell, rather than just posting all your previous

bags you've made. I hope to create an inventory soon, especially with

different events that I could use in the summer to get my name out there,

plus it saves me time of sewing or getting behind on orders.

I had two orders from out-of-state people and look forward to expanding

my stuff beyond my friends and family!

Thanks for checking in to see what is up.

Arnett out!

A Free Day

2011-02-18T15:16:00.000-07:00

The enjoyable things about Fridays is that they are fairly free of plans. Logan doesn't have school, and the one thing I must do is pick up Trevor from Kindergarten.

Logan must have had a good nights rest because he was in a good mood when he woke up today at 8:00 am. Madi recorded the words he was saying, and it sounded like they were playing Wii Sports this morning. Josh left for work and Madi for school, which meant it was time to drag myself out of bed...

Logan has figured out how to open doors (well, most doors) and occasionally escapes into the garage. Not much for him to do out there, but now he can open car doors, and so if it is a little too quiet in the house, you can hear the garage door opening and closing - the magic of buttons. He hasn't figured out how to get out of the car, but knows once that door to the garage opens, Mom will be standing there and demanding his presence back inside (speaking of, I just had to rescue him from my mom's car - stinker).

Logan then brought me Just Dance 2. His favorite song to dance to is Rockafellar Skank by Fatboy Slim.

He also loves a couple others - he doesn't quite get what he is doing, but has made quite a bit improvement matching the person on the screen. Another song he enjoys is "Monster Mash", but I will show you why later in this post...

It was time to get ready and head out to pick up Trevor from school. Fridays are cupcake days and Danny sent Trevor with two quarters so Trev could get a cupcake for himself and Logan. Then it was off to hang out with Grandpa Ken at Yen Ching (well, it's something like Ghuang Zhou or something, but it will always be Yen Ching to me). Logan loves Yen Ching's egg drop soup - that's all he eats while we are there. It's not the cleanest eat, but he at least tries to use the funky spoon.

We've tried potty training, and it has it's days - usually while he is naked are the more successful ones. Can't go into public naked, so we try big boy underwear - but usually it is too late by the time he lets us know there was an accident. Two accidents today, and now he is naked...

After lunch it was still sunny and felt like it was warm. By the time we got to Julia Davis to feed the ducks, the big, nasty black cloud was blotting out the sun. Surprisingly, Julia Davis had more ducks than geese (whereas Ann Morrison is the opposite). Mandy called with warning that there would be hail falling from that cloud soon, so we hurried in our keeping the ducks co-dependency on humans...

Holy smokes! It's a swan - and it didn't take crap from any of the ducks or geese.

We had some squirrel friends who wanted in on some of the action, but we were already out of food by the time they showed up. Fashionably late doesn't always pay off... Also, they were a little too fearless in coming close to us; all I could think was "crazy rabid squirrel"

I don't like geese, never have, and never will. They are the bullies of the pond, honking at the ducks in order to take their food. When I was little, there was a white goose that was missing an eye and it was one mean goose. He ruined it for me for any other geese loving I may have had deep down. So, now when the bully geese try to prevent our feeding of the ducks, this is what we do:

And sure enough, Mandy was right, it did hail, but not until we were on the final stretch of my mom's street. We ran in and began just vegging on whatever we could find to do. Logan keeps running around saying "That's good!" in a grunting from Just Dance's Monster Mash. It's funny cause it's not til the end of the song, and I think Igor is actually saying "Master," but I am not sure. I tried to catch him saying it, but once the phone comes out, he knows to put on the dramatics...

Now since I have been putting this post together, I have watched most of the selection of Just Dance 2's songs - I think Logan is picking up so new moves or something. He seems to be studying them very intently.

Thanks for reading! Hopefully it won't be 5 months before the next time!

Catching up...

2010-09-30T14:59:00.000-06:00

So, I haven't posted for awhile, which I am not impressed with for myself, so, here's like a Reader's Digest of what's been going on...


This has to be one of the creepiest advertisements I have seen (school shopping) - This girl is just the definition of "creeper"


First day of School - 2010

Madison is now officially in third grade! It's amazing how fast she has grown and how old she is getting! She recently had some issues with seeing in class, so after further inspection, she needed glasses - reading glasses. She loves them and I'm pretty sure wears them outside of reading in class at school...

Logan stays home with me on Tuesdays and Thursdays while "Sis-sis" is at school. Periodically we are doing speech therapy and I have seen his speech improve over the summer. He will be re-evaluated in November, and there is a possibility that he will start pre-school in January.

He still provides laughs for us and is always entertaining to record him on the phone. He really likes to watch the videos of himself, over and over and over again...

Unlike his sister, he finally decided that is was okay to put his head in the water! I had to get a photo as proof... I even have video! Swimming in the bath has become a favorite thing to do over the summer after spending some time at Roaring Springs...

Taking a toddler to the grocery store can cause many to groan due to tantrums thrown or the children wanting to touch everything on the shelf... Logan is typically the latter, but I found a way to entertain him (and others) the other week.

We took his little blue doll stroller and his singing dog he calls "Ruff" and I allowed him to push that throughout the store while I was getting my grocery shopping done. He did a great job of staying near the cart, and only intentionally crashed into me a couple times. There were plenty of strangers that would see him and a smile would appear on their faces - he is pretty cute!

All in all, it turned out to be a very successful shopping trip and look forward to trying it again!

I still try to get the occasional sewing done between school, stuff at church, being a mom, and attempting to keep the house clean... here are some of my latest projects!

**** Mom's Messenger ****

(She picked out the material)

*** Michelle's Purse ***

(my first zipper)

**** Cherry Bag ****

(I've been trying to teach Mandy how to sew some of the bags, or at least the TMI logo on so I can sew the bag - here's the results of her hard work!)

**** Lexi Birthday Present ****

I finally figured out how to make a bottom for bags the simple, fast way - it has saved so much time (and gives the bags more personality/depth)

Look at this adorable little model!!

***** Halloween Candy Bags *****

**** Current Projects ****

I know what you are thinking... those are kind of small and won't hold enough candy -

I thought the same thing once, and then I tested how much they actually hold ...

80 "Fun-sized" candies!

PROOF:

NOW THAT'S A LOT OF CANDY!!

**** Pillow Cases ****

So, I wanted to make some pillow cases for my kids to show that my sewing is important to me to them... make sense? I didn't think that they would actually be as "cool" as they are. Trevor has a Toy Story pillow case here at my house and one at Danny's. Danny even have a Dallas Cowboys one that I made, and he likes it! Now, can you imagine how special I feel when my brother likes something I made him??

So, you can see that I have kept myself busy...

I am enjoying classes so far at school, well, except Growth and Development...

The other night I met Mandy and her kids, plus two little ones that I was watching at Planet Kid. It hit me that my blog is now a year old! I had a great time climbing around the play place with the kids...

Logan and Jensen enjoying the little ball pit

So, there are some other things that I want to do an actual post about, but that will be another day.

Tomorrow we leave for Orlando!

I am SO excited!

Working Hard or Hardly Working

2010-08-28T01:34:00.000-06:00

Messenger for Kya - she picked the material


Birthday bag for Kadee Joy

Festive Red Outside, Watermelons inside

Probably my favorite bag so for - Birthday present for Shelby

Reversible for Sydney

Small messenger for Teagan - the fabric is actually a brighter pink

Mommy/Daughter Date

2010-08-11T00:36:00.001-06:00

There was recent monetary deposit for past due child support for Madison, so we used that money to go on a date as a Mom and Daughter.

It started out by going to Yen Ching for dinner. It was a great time without Logan, and a chance to just be able to talk and hang out. Madison likes to remind us that she is almost nine - that's right, almost nine ( I have to read it again myself to make sure it isn't a typo) - where has the time gone!?!?

Then we headed out to Old Navy to get some new school clothes. She tried on super skinny jeans - it was sick and wrong!

So, after refusing to get her the super skinny jeans, this is what we came up with for outfits...

I love this sweater. It was a GREAT date. We had fun!

Union Creek Campout with Small Group

2010-08-11T00:35:00.000-06:00

Although YYM was a wonderful time, it was time to return back to a partial reality. I had to drive home – well, not all the way home, but to Union Creek Campgrounds. Our small group from church planned a camping trip just outside of Baker City, OR. It’s amazing how much the week, and lack of sleep, ended up wearing on me. I pulled out of Newberg a little after 11:30 AM, but only made it to Multnomah Falls before I pulled over and took a nap; I was absolutely exhausted!

Once I made it to the campgrounds, I had to wait for my family to show up, so to pass the time I fell asleep, again.

Not long after I woke up, my family, the Lau family, and the Messick family pulled in. We all set up camp, but daylight was burning, so the Smith’s started up a fire and we started roasting marshmallows. Derek Smith is a master marshmallow roaster – he has to have perfect coals, and once he gets them, he is just magical. On a two pronged stick, he can get the marshmallows to fluff and expand so much that they begin to touch one another! It’s amazing!

Josh came up sick. He had the shakes after he set up our tent and so he ended up passing out for the rest of the night. This irritated me because it was like a guarantee that he would snore all night. I later put Logan down to sleep in his pack-n-play, grabbed my sleeping bag, and proceeded to head to the car – I didn’t think I could sleep in there, but it seemed to work twice already, so I did it one more time.

Union Creek is off a reservoir and it was perfect to swim at – the temperature was good, according to the kids, who had a great time playing on the floating dock not too far away.

Logan liked throwing the rocks into the water (surprise, surprise), but he did not like me putting him into a tube to float around in the water.

Sydney didn’t get to swim each time the older kids did, so she insisted that I take her picture instead…

On Saturday, a bee must have been bored or something... He was discovered to be stuck via his stinger in the football.It must have been quite the struggle to know that if he lost his stinger, he wouldn't live much longer... He didn't make it after all, in case you wondered.

All in all it was a good weekend, but I would never recommend camping with a sick spouse, especially after you have spent an exhausting week at YYM.

Youth Yearly Meeting 2010

2010-08-10T22:56:00.000-06:00

Earlier in July, I received a call from the Yearly Meeting office asking if Josh and I could be counselors at Youth Yearly Meeting (YYM). I gladly accepted, and later so did Josh - he wasn't able to go later, unfortunately.

I drove over alone to Newberg on Satruday the 24th. I arrived right on time and met the fellow counselors and YYM officers that I would be interacting with for the week.

I tried my best to keep it a secret from the youth that I would be working there, but that only worked for a couple of them. I shocked Lyssa Redford when I was running up to her all goofy-like when she walked in the next day for registration. Shreela was also surprised and greeted me with a big hug - both had just returned from Mexico.

Thankfully the weather was mild, and it could have been like last year - I heard it was during the heat wave and the temperature was something like 110 degrees! I was posted up on the third floor of Hobson with 7 girls, none of them Meridian Friends girls - but I knew who Mareesa and Talli were, so I didn't feel too out of place.

It was a wonderful weekend and I am thankful that I was able to experience it. One gal had her 16th birthday during YYM, and her floormates celebrated with her at midnight with cake, gifts, and a mouthful of whipped cream shoved into her face. I also got to meet up with my friend Mandy a couple times - it was perfect cause she happened to be visiting family the same week at YM. She took me to Thai food, and it was alright, but I think I will stick with my Americanized Chinese food. :)

I had never been to Yearly Meeting before, so it was great to see what it was all about. The day the youth when into the adult business meeting, I did a plug for quizzing (I love helping with quizzing). The speaker was funny and he did an awesome job. One night the youth lead the worship and it was really cool to see how many musically gifted there are in the Yearly Meeting! I loved hearing about the different experiences with YCLS, YCEW, and SLP (servant leadership program?), and wished I had known more about them when I was in high school. I think that there was some interest sparked for future service for some MFC youth. The 2011 YCEW team is going to Cambodia - I wish I could go.

Beach day was wonderful and glorious! I guess in the past they would pull this all off over night, but this year we went early in the morning to the beach - Pacific City. The ocean is so magnificent and how God put it together using the moon with the gravitational pull to create the waves - amazing. It was cloudy and cold once we arrived. Everyone gravitated toward the giant sand dune, slowly making their way to the top. Some boys were running down and doing some crazy stuff, like flipping in mid-stride. I volunteered to stay near the bottom and watch everyone's stuff - wear their jackets, hold cell phones, etc. After awhile I gravitated more to the sand closer to the water, this way I could keep an eye on all the stuff, and play in the sand by building something at the same time.

Before lunch, I walked to the coffee shop with some youth - barefoot because I had misplaced my flip-flops somewhere - across the highway. Next door was a little hotel and I wandered into their gift shop. I wanted some type of souvenir; I ended up with two magnets (sea horse and fish) and a book called, "Made you Look" - its a book with a series of different visual puzzles. It worked perfect to use for our final small/family group. We ate our lunch and worked together to solve the puzzles - some were harder than others.

We came back to closing ceremonies - and that was just silly and fun and wonderful! It was the end of a wonderful week together, and it was sad at the same time. We, in Idaho, don't have the advantage to get together with the kids from the Newberg area outside of YM events. We could get together more with the local churches, but there is something about that connection to those friends over in Oregon.

Silliness ensued - hilarious skits put on by Brian S. and Aaron Cl Games that you can only find in a youth group of some sort... like this:

It was a magical time, and I didn't want it to end - I did miss my family back home, and I know they missed me.

Fun in the Boise River

2010-07-22T21:04:00.000-06:00

During the summer we end up meeting up with the in-laws a lot more to do a little something around town. We started the morning out seeing the new Veggie Tales at Overland Park Cinema (I love that theater!!) - the lessons from this Veggie Tales was about beauty being on the inside, not on the outside, and that God loves us and created us to be how we are. It was good for Madison to hear, even if she rolled her eyes when I asked her what she learned.

My sister-in-law, Sarah, took Madi with her after the movie and we met up after nap at the Boise River to play in the water. We used to take our black lab (way back in 05) to the other side of this little island near Eagle Road. Amy and her other sister-in-law were there, too. It must have been the time to go to this place because there ended up being an influx of visitors after I got there.

The little Steed girls are known for their love of animals and most everywhere we go, they are thinking of what to catch, how they'll feed it, and then proceed to catch it. There were minnows that were everywhere along the shore. Becca led the group in fishing for these little fish...

Checking out what they have so far...

Here's one of their catches in a plastic container they started saving them in.

See that large bunch of lines - yeah, those are fish. Seriously, they were all over... That's Becca in the background catching some other ones...

Logan's favorite part was... throwing rocks into the water, of course!

Find the perfect rock

Cock back the rocket arm

Make a big splash

And it wouldn't be a complete trip with out some sandy cheeks somewhere... thanks Squeaky!

Easy Money

2010-07-22T20:59:00.001-06:00

Many people know that I work the home football games for BSU, but I also get to work at the Taco Ballerina (ok, it's really the Taco Bell Arena) when major events come... mostly concerts and graduations. I didn't go swimming at the river because I had to work the Toby Keith concert. Earlier that week it was that I "got to" work the concert, darn. But afterwards, it turned more into I had to.

The church's softball team had a game that night, and I felt bad that I was missing it because it was against the regular season undefeated team, Immanuel Lutheran - we won, and ended up placing 3rd in the league! A major improvement from last season!!

My job of the night was to help rip tickets and get the people in the door and up the stairs. It's an easy job, and I would rather deal with that than the drunk patrons upstairs during the concert. They informed us that at the briefing there would be 11 stands to serve beer and wine - 11 STANDS! Flash backs of the George Strait concert began to change my attitude about the night. Drunk ladies using the men's restrooms, practically peeing themselves, and then going back for another beer. Chew left overs in cups under seats (puke).

The doors opened and the crowd began pushing their way in - like someone else might get their reserved seat. Our lobby needed some wheel chairs, and so I ran to the other side of the Taco Ballerina to get some, walked right by Toby Keith, but didn't say anything to him - he is tall. After returning to my ticket ripping, I was continually bombarded with the most important question of the night - "Where's the beer?!" I reassured them that there was plenty, and as they walked off, I am sure there was some kind of disgusted look on my face...

We forgot to write down the numbers for the turn styles before everyone came in, so I started counting tickets. I think me and other gal ended up counting like 3,000 tickets. Crazy!

One "perk" we have is that we are paid to work these events that many times people paid more than what I am paid to be there. So, the opening acts were over and Toby took to the stage. The incoming patron line had slowed down a lot, so my supervisor told me to go check out the show.

I once liked Toby Keith. He is a great singer and a very successful one at that. But when I was in there listening to his lyrics of some of his newer songs, I was disgusted. Two stuck out in my mind - one was about "being someone" when you are drunk, so let's all go to the bar and get drunk... yuck. The other was about smoking weed with Willie Nelson - double yuck.

The celebration of being drunk was evident before the concert even began. I am so over that stage in my life. Being drunk is so childish - and I can say that in hindsight. I did drink a couple months ago, and I didn't control the number I had, but I didn't do anything too stupid - but as my nephrons kept clearing my system and sending me to the bathroom - and I felt so guilty. Why did I drink? It was stupid.

I believe that the music we listen to can influence what we do in life - even if you are passively listening to it. Lyrics that encourage risky behavior slowly blur moral lines and make us fall into the lies that those things are okay. If we should just practice moderation, I would say getting drunk is beyond moderation. I could go on, but I will stop here...

I did save a girl while I was there, however; it wasn't all doom and gloom. Some guy (drunk, of course) made his way to the floor seats and started hitting on some girls. Someone came and told me, and I "tricked" the guy to come into the lobby with me - then I told him that when he could find his ticket, he could come back into the concert - but not to the floor, cause that was not where his ticket was for. The relief on the girls' faces - Tami to the rescue.

Lagoon - It's What Fun Is!

2010-07-20T02:11:00.000-06:00

Ah, Lagoon. A five hour jaunt to Utah for roller coaster fun!

It had been five years since our last trip - it's an easy calculation to remember because Trevor was only nine months old last time - and now he is five years old (and 10 months).

It was unfortunate that the Lau family was unable to join us, but after loading everything into the back of the truck, I am not too sure there would have been enough room! We ended up strapping Mandy's double jogging stroller on the top of the bed cover, and the back of the van was pretty full too.

My parents must have had to use the car to put me to sleep as a child because I don't think I have stayed awake for any trip over 30 minutes! Crammed into the back, I think I fell asleep a couple times. The kids resisted taking a nap for the longest time, but eventually caved in. In the meantime, Logan and Wesley decided to share their snacks, which was brought to a screeching halt when the Goldfish began flying throughout the van.

Wes sharing some of his Goldfish

Once we finally arrived, it was HOT. Our spaces for camping next to Lagoon were closer to the entrance than we have ever been, which made us happy. The shade wasn't in our favor immediately, so we set up our stuff in the heat and headed to dinner, then Mandy and I dropped Josh at his brother's house - Josh was staying the night because he was singing a duet the next morning at his bro's church. Madi ended up staying the last minute, which worked out fine.
With the forecast being in the 90's and sunny for the week, we hadn't bothered putting the tarp up on the Lau's tent (that they let us borrow). Mandy laid down with her kids, but Logan was showing no signs of wanting to fall asleep. We watched part of a movie in the van while passing the time and then I thought it should be time to go lie down together and fall asleep. The kid was restless. I wanted to show him I was in charge and we were going to fall asleep - sometimes you need to be conscious of the battles you choose to fight, cause he wanted his milk and was determined to get it in order to fall asleep. I fought him as quietly as I could, I didn't want to wake Mandy's kiddos, and so I finally surrendered, out of pure frustration, and he fell asleep without any problem.
Although we had a space closer to the park entrance, we were also much closer to the highway, which proved to be quite the pain - trains, traffic, and helicopters woke me throughout the night, and the snore-free night was ruined. Plus, Logan was tossing and turning and whining all night. Near 5:00 AM, I awoke annoyed that I was awake again. Lying there, hoping to fall asleep again, I felt a drop, but thought perhaps I imagined it - then more drops followed. Mandy and I jumped up from our beds and hurried to find the tarp - in the dark - with kids crying while they were getting wet. Everyone emerged from their tents to start putting perishables away - WHERE did this storm come from - it was clear skies when we fell asleep! Scurrying around in the dark, trying to figure out the next move, Mandy found the tarp and we quickly threw it on our tent. Thankfully we got it done just in time because the rain came down harder, followed by streaks of lightning and claps of thunder. All I could do was laugh and shake my head - what a way to always remember this trip!

Hours later the sun peaked over the mountain and it was instantly hot. There was some shade, but as the sun peaked higher and higher, our shade began to disappear. Opening at 11:00 AM can seem like it takes forever when you are hot and there isn't too much to do to pass the time - it just ticks by in slow motion.
Mandy was able to catch some fun pictures of us while we were hanging out...

Probably one of THE best pictures of Danny and Trevor

It makes you wonder what Logan is thinking??

Mandy and I ran off to listen to Josh sing - he sounded beautiful. The anticipation of riding rides was killing me and the service seemed to be longer than one could handle. Josh sang, we ditched. The family was already inside riding rides, and we caught up with them on the Log Flume.

Because of the heat, we headed over to Rattlesnake Rapids - everyone had already been on this while waiting for us to show up. Wes was not a fan, so Dad eagerly stayed back with him so Mandy could ride with us.
Madi and I were excited, but Josh doesn't always share our enthusiasm...

It seemed as soon as we got there, it was almost time for lunch already! We were able to get a few rides in, but mostly for the kiddos...

Logan waving like he is in a parade

Logan wasn't sure of this ride at first, but as we cheered and waved to him, he started to really enjoy them!

Since Madi and Trevor were tall enough to ride many of the rides, we were ditched for a little while as the little tikes stayed in the Kiddieland. Josh said he would watch them while Mandy and I rode the Tidal Wave (that ride doesn't agree with his stomach). I found Madison and made her ride it with me, even when she told me she didn't like the ride. I knew this from 5 years ago when she held on and screamed for her life at age 3 - so I wanted to relive the moment... and she did it exactly the same as five years ago.
Before:

During and After:

I then forced her onto THE WICKED - Lagoon's newest ride.

(from the campgrounds)
We had been watching the YouTube videos for this ride for weeks - we were pumped to get to ride it.

After turning the corner, at high speeds, you go straight up, straight down, and then all over!
It is AWESOME!
Madi closed her eyes the whole first time - and swore she would never ride it again. Josh's stomach kept its contents inside, but still caused an uprising of sorts.

After lunch and naps, we headed to Lagoon-a-Beach, along with most of the park attendees.

Faith and Josh enjoyed a little dancing together.

And the volcano slide was a lot of fun.

One "disadvantage" to camping next door is heading back for meals. Sure, it saves some money, but it doesn't save any time. I was getting a little annoyed with how long everyone was taking to return to eat dinner, then eat their dinner, that with an hour left before closing, I grabbed the kids and headed for the entrance.
We were able to get one major ride in: The Wooden White Roller Coaster. This ride is best at dusk because it adds to the experience of intensity - this ride is loud and the noise always trips my fear of the ride breaking because of all the creaking and clanking that happens.

Danny and Trevor in front of us

Jade and Madi behind us

And all this was only Day 1 of 2!

DAY 2
We started Day 2 at Lagoon-a-Beach. This wore the kids out early and naps were easy this go round.
The kids were starting to have more fun and ride more rides after naps were over. My favorite was the Ladybug Bop, which is like a little version of The Rocket. Faith was a little nervous to ride it after we were buckled in, but I told her that we could scream if she was scared - that seemed to comfort her and the screaming ensued.

Waiting for their turn

Patiently waiting our turn to ride Puff the Fire Dragon

Josh made me so proud when he hopped on a ride that would have made him throw up with Logan. Faith and Wes had me and Mandy to ride with, and Logan didn't have an adult to ride with. So, Josh sucked it up and rode in circles with all of us so that his little boy could enjoy the ride with his friends!

Thankfully Mom and Dad were exhausted from riding their rides with Madi and Trevor, so they took the little ones from us and Mandy and I were able to ride some more intense rides. One of my favorite is The Rocket - Re-Entry. It slowly climbs to the top, and I mean slowly. It seemed to take forever to get to the top and everything was getting smaller. Finally we reached the top and then you sit there for a few seconds, waiting for the ride to drop you in a free fall that makes your stomach touch your brain. I rode this type of ride in Nevada at one of our hotels on my Mexico trips, and every time we would say, "I hate this ride, why am I riding it?" followed by, "This ride it the best ride ever!"

WICKED was the family favorite - the line was the longest for this, but we were able to bypass the long lines when we rode with Madi and Trevor.


Again, Josh isn't AS excited as Madi or me

Danny took some cool video, that I eventually hope to add, of him riding Wicked with Madison and Trevor. Both kids were finally brave enough to open their eyes for the WHOLE ride.


The WICKED gang

We jammed so much into two days and made some great memories. Hopefully it won't be another five years before we go back - but hopefully Logan will be at least 46 inches...

Lagoon, con't

2010-07-20T01:11:00.000-06:00

While we passed the time for lunch, or waiting for the park to finally open, the kids were able to find ample entertainment... the wagon. Pushing and pulling one another around our campsite turned out to be a lot of fun for those under three.

And proved to be an excellent form of transportation for the kids (along with the double jogging stroller)

And now for a shout out for those who cooked and prepared our meals - you guys rock!


Mom, Mandy, and Josh - Breakfast of Champions


My Man - working the grill - Yummy!

Thanks also to the Lau family for lending us the great grill (and the tent)!

I had a wonderful time with my family, along with my newly adopted family.

Faith, Mandy, and Wes Jenkins

My Buddy and Me

Shoshone Falls, Idaho

2010-07-20T00:15:00.000-06:00

To conclude our trip to Lagoon, we stopped at Shoshone Falls on our way back home. The water level was "low," so I cannot imagine what "high" looks like...

Is Josh checking out my butt or the waterfalls?

Trevor and Danny

Faith, Mandy, and Wes

Josh, Madi, Tami, and Logan

Fourth of July Weekend

2010-07-06T23:58:00.000-06:00

Wow, now I need to actually remember what I did this weekend...

Friday was my father-in-law's birthday. Josh and his brother surprised him by taking him out for the night, which left me alone for the night with Madi, Logan, and Trevor.

Before dropping Josh off for dinner with the guys, he set up the tent for us to do a sleepover in.

On the way to dinner we found another storm on the horizon (Why!? We are supposed to have a fun date in the tent!). After watching the wind get a little crazier at dinner (West of Philly), I canceled our original plan of going to Settlers Park to watch the movie in the park (Astro Boy). Instead I finished doing the finishing touches on my apron I sewed for my mother-in-law.

She's really big into the red, white, and blue, and so when I saw this material, I was inspired to make her an apron for her with it. I even got my logo on there. Josh doesn't like it, the logo. He says he would have gone all white for the palm trees. I wanted it to blend a little and have a little firework flavor. Who asked him anyways? (Oops, I did)

As the weather settled, Madi, Trevor and I watched some Sandlot. What a funny movie!! I forget how funny it is, and was glad to share it once again with the kiddos

"You're killing me Smalls!"

"FOR-EV-ER! FOR-EV-ER! FOR-EV-ER"

We finally ventured out to the tent for some sleep. I love backyard camp-outs cause it is easy to forget you are in your own backyard. It was only in the high 50s when we went out, and my only regret was that I didn't have something to sleep on on top of the hard ground.

Saturday morning I woke up and went to my niece Abbie's LDS baptism. Most of the family was in town for this big event, except Rachel and her family over in Florida. After Abbie was baptized, most everyone returned to their seats and waited for the next two to finish. The one following kid was dunked, and then a little boy stands up in front and tried to look over the glass, I turned to my bro-in-law and whispered, "Paul! That's your kid!" Cade also kept saying, "I want to get in the water." It will be interesting if he does anything like that when his sister Emmi gets baptized at home at the end of the month... I gave my Mom-in-law her apron at the after baptism party. I felt awfully amature-ish when I gave it to her cause she had just been talking to Wendy Steed about the time and precision Wendy had just put into Abbie's dress (like 40 hours!). Ruth was a little thrown off when I handed it to her, a gift for no reason; she appreciated it (and wore it all day on the 4th).

I made my favorite dinner for my friends: Creamy Parmesan Chicken. Mmmmm, it was delicious! The weather was gorgeous and we ate outside, then headed over to Sub Zero for some frozen deliciousness. We realized that the ice cream needs to thaw in order to enjoy the flavor, otherwise it's too cold, kind of like dip-n-dots... Toward the end I was able to taste the deliciousness of the Kit Kats in my ice cream.

We went back home and played some cards. Let's face it, I am a poor sport, but I think I held my composure well when being defeated greatly in Spades. I changed the game over to Hand and Foot, but only for a few hands, and then some quick Nertz before everyone left - I ended up 1 for 3. Ouch.

I had originally planned to sleep in a few weeks ago when I knew I wasn't scheduled to work first hour, but then I remembered I had announcements for GLO (Global and Local Outreach).

Ashley, Haley, and Jasmine were scheduled to talk about their trip to Portland. I am glad they had a wonderful time serving over there. I asked them if they would do it again, and they said "YES." So, I am going to see if an "All Church Spring Break Mission" to Portland could happen, perhaps even in 2011!

Dinner was with the Arnett Clan. We had a wonderful time with everyone, except the mosquitos - I disliked them greatly. They were the merciless, immune to the bug spray. Here are a few pictures of our day...

What a ham!

Josh and I used our skills of game playing and coordinated the kids into tossing water balloons with towels (ok, so maybe we stole the idea from VBS the other year). I would say that it was a hit with the kids, of course not as cool as the water fight that happened later...

The little fam and I went along Mountain View to watch the fireworks down at Ann Morrison. We climbed up on the top of the silver Malibu and watched as a family. It was nice to spend a little bit of time all together and enjoy the show from afar; well, a little too far. The diameter of some of those fireworks were huge far away, I couldn't imagine how huge they looked from the ground.

After the big firework show, we met up with my brother and had our own little version. Logan was impressed with a lot of the variety displayed, but Trevor was more concerned with starting a fire with the used fountains and roman candles.

The fire started out small, but then grew to this (with help from the parents)...

And with that, we ventured home and hit the sack - it was a LONG day.

Happy July!

2010-07-01T14:59:00.014-06:00

Where has the time gone? It's July already!

Because we had stayed up so late the night before, when there was a knock at the door at 9:45 AM, I was barely awake enough to hear it. Then I remembered - Madi had a playdate with Miss Kara!

I ran in and woke her up and sent her on her way. A few hours later I pulled up to see that she and Kara were playing in a bright pink Barbie Power Wheels Jeep.

Miss Kara lives in a culd-a-sac and I remember when Madi was 4 at our house off of Prescott - she and the neighbor girl would ride around the culd-a-sac in their little Jeeps. [sigh] I miss living in a culd-a-sac sometimes.

Madi was nice enough to take Logan for a spin... He had a great time!

I have decided to start potty training Logan. Last night we went to my Mom's house and I let him run around naked outside. At one point he was stressing out, so I asked him if he needed to go potty - so we went inside and he went potty in the toilet! He didn't even potty on the floor outside or anything. He doesn't like underwear, but at the same time he tears the cloth fiber off his diaper, so I am determined to potty train him now! So far, so good!

Cool Ice Cream Store

Sub Zero

(Next to Five Guys at Milwaukee and Fairview)

One of the guys that we have played softball against for the last 8 years (or so) just opened up this ice cream shop. They had a coupon in the mailers today, so we decided to check them out. This place is amazing!!

First you pick your size, then your cream (premium, low fat, rice or soy milk, or half and half). Next you choose your flavor of ice cream (33 flavors to choose from), and finally you pick a topping (Reeses, Oreos, Nerds, etc). The worker mixes all these liquids in bowl and then ...

Then they stick the liquid under this spout -

fancy science happens called cyrogenics!

It hardens up into ice cream and then you have one cool customer...

Madi chose Bubble gum flavor with Nerds

The night didn't end there - it was time to mow the lawn and Logan wanted to help... I'll need to make note of this now, cause in 7-8 years, we'll be telling him to mow.

God and Country Fest

2010-06-30T17:26:00.000-06:00

I started out the day watching the Tiner kids. Pretty simple job. Kadee was so funny because she wanted this Princess vanity that Madi bought last year at a yard sale - since we put the computer in, it's been in Logan's room. She was so concerned that if I didn't say it was okay for her to take it with her, she would be stealing it from us. I reassured her that it was fine, it had to be okay with her parents. Sure enough, once they walked in, she took them into the room and showed them. They caved and now it has another home, one in which the Princess will use it a lot.

Today was also the God and Country Festival.

I think this is our fourth or fifth year attending, but it has been in existence for over 40 years!

Last year we got there too late and had to sit in the not so ideal area, so we were determined to get there early enough to score our regular seats. The Laus, Jenkins, and Bradys joined us, along with my Mom and Trevor, so we had a large space to save. Thankfully the weather was perfect - it was hot, but not so hot that you felt your skin was going to melt off; I was able to chill in my jeans (just rolled them up for awhile).

Mandy was taking pictures of everyone and I couldn't help but do some goofy ones,

Cause that's how I roll.

Need to Breathe was the headliner and I only knew 4 of their songs.

They were alright, not my favorite band, and poor Trevor kept asking when the fireworks were going to start.

I had been a little weary of taking Logan with us, for fear he would run off. Well, he kind of did - more so to make new friends and speak gibberish to them. He kept trying to talk to a gal in front of us, showing her stuff he had and whatnot. I grabbed him before the fireworks started - he curled up next to me, I covered his ears, and he watched in awe. Similar to last year, when the finale concluded, he inspected the sky and asked for "more?" Awe! How cute! I wish there were more, just cause he was so darn cute. Wesley wanted more, but Oliver was not impressed whatsoever.

I should have packed a hoodie, and I knew better. Thankfully there were enough extra blankets to cover up. We learned from the first year that it is just senseless to try to leave the parking lot and not have patience. We have made it a new tradition to just chill in the parking lot with a post-concert dinner (with a side of exhaust). As we pulled in, we saw some spots available by the grass - what a way to have a picnic, right.

During our meal, some sprinklers came up in an adjacent patch of grass - we all looked at each other in suspense, knowing that our spot would probably be next. But instead, we all just sat there - and it happened, they came on without warning and got everything wet. I had moved into the inside of Mandy's Highlander before the sprinklers attacked. Poor little Wesley was the one who got it the worse - he was trapped and couldn't move - I kept yelling "GET WES! GET WES!" He was finally rescued and instead of being upset that he was wet, he was more upset that he wasn't sitting in the back of the Highlander with me, Logan, and Faith. Silly kid!

We made it home around 1:00 AM - and we crashed!

Publish Post

So Cute

2010-06-29T17:08:00.002-06:00

So, earlier in June it was my niece Brooklynn's 4th birthday. She is away in Florida and I wanted to make her a little something - a little late, I know, but perhaps it will be more special this way. I had already sewed her a cute little bag (reversible).

But the purse wasn't enough, so today I made this:

A reversible apron!

It even has my little logo on it!

And every girl needs to accessorize, right?

I ended up adding pockets to both sides - they match the logo (opposite side)

This is getting fun!

I love sewing!

Hanging with Friends

2010-06-28T17:00:00.044-06:00

It was forecast to be a hot one on Monday night - what to do?

David Lau invited us (and the Jenkins) over for some swimming in the community pool and a BBQ dinner afterward. The pool was great and everyone swam (even Justin and his cat like aversion to the water)!

After swimming we enjoyed a dinner together - BBQ Pork and Hot dogs - although I didn't bring enough pop to drink - my bad.

Then we began discussing our trip to Lagoon in few weeks, so David busted out the tent he was given to see if we could use it. So as a team, everyone tried to put it together (except me, of course)

Sucess!

The evening made a cool transition and the clouds were rolling in from the western horizon...

There were some pretty awesome lightning strikes that jumped from one cloud to another, and then clouds spewed the rain down for a few minutes and stopped (typical weather pattern). We were able to enjoy the rest of the evening on the patio with clean, crisp air.

Lo and behold, God wasn't done - he had one more trick up his sleeve - a gorgeous sunset! The amazing part of it all was that the lightning continued to dance in the clouds, which was something I had never really seen before.

(this just doesn't do it justice!)

Summer, so far.

2010-06-27T17:44:00.000-06:00

Trevor and Madison at Roaring Springs

Last season we bought passes to Roaring Springs. We have already been there a few times this season, and we love going together as a family.

It can be a little challenging when we take Logan, but it's still fun all the same.

Last week at church was Vacation Bible School - it was the High Seas Adventure. My new buddy Mandy J and I painted a mural for the backdrop and helped put together the sanctuary... Mandy also had the Bible story to prep for, and she did a great job changing the "sets."

This was my special project - The God Sightings Board. It's a giant treasure map. The kids ended up covering it with "God Sightings" that they talked about in Chadder's Theater.

You cannot see it, but there is a TMI logo at the bottom near the compass. Ha ha, I couldn't help it.

VBS is always fun, and this year I was asked to help Captain Ken with the opening skit that presented the Bible point for the day. As always, one character is a dunce (that would be me - Sailor Jackie) who learns with the kids what the week is all about. There were plenty of rolled eyes by the adults in the crowd. During one rotation, I decided to live as a celebrity and shake hands and thank kids for attending VBS. The younger kids thought is was cool, so I lived it up for the moment.

I participated in one of the closings - on the third day. The theme was "God's Word is Surprising (Let's GO!). Captain Ken was having kids guess what was under each cloth - and as he took them away, it was a ball of some sort...

IT WAS ME!
The shock and awe on the kids' faces -
priceless!!

Trevor received his first Bible. He was happy to get it, I know the picture doesn't exactly show it - He still doesn't like to get in front of crowds - it's embarrassing!

The New Stuff

2010-05-28T16:07:00.001-06:00

So, the Census has come to an end (which is bittersweet). With school being out and the house being straightened up, I have had time to do a bag or two - here are the results...

Madi graciously posed for this bag. The strap is a lot thicker than the previous bag, hopefully not too thick.

Here is the bag I am working on for myself. I am still doing everything from my head, so it isn't perfect yet...

If you like these, check out my I'm Crafty posting for the material I do have available...

Sleep

2010-04-28T03:26:00.000-06:00

I should be sleeping right now.

But its something I won't allow.

Logan went down at 10:30, at the least;

He was running around like a little beast.

Girl talk was all Madi wanted to do,

And somehow the time just flew.

11:00 was when she finally went to bed

And I should have too, but instead...

I play on facebook and look at silly stuff,

You'd think after working, my brain would have had enough.

But no, I doink around, sometimes until three

Looking for words to rhyme, like "Tennessee."

I know this isn't good for my body,

and it could make my work a little shoddy,

but my brain seems to be stuck in "on,"

I cannot even remember if I let out a yawn.

My tummy grumbles and wants to fed,

but I don't want to get out of bed.

I need to find something better to do,

and sleep is something I should pursue...

My mind debates if it would be a mistake

to sleep for a few hours or just stay awake.

Insomnia is not what is keeping me here,

I just like to not sleep a few times each year.

Writing a poem, at this hour, probably isn't the best,

But it's like I just don't want to rest.

I'm Crafty

2010-04-24T01:46:00.001-06:00

So, when I was about Madison's age, I used to go to my Grandma Dolly's house and she taught me to sew, kinda, one summer. I never really did anything with what she taught me, until now...

It started last summer when I made bags, without a pattern - just picking something out of my brain. I was at a yard sale that had a lot of material, and another yard sale had a kid's sewing machine that I bought for Madison - we could sew bean bags together... So, I made a bag, that now serves as one of the many diaper bags for Logan. It's red with jean material as flowers. Then I made bags for the three nieces whose birthdays are in June. Then one friend had a baby, I made a little purse for her other daughter, and then it began. A bag for me for the summer, another for the winter... I day dream about sewing; it's like scrapbooking in a way... you have to formulate a pattern, what will look good with each other, and so on.

Here is some of my most recent stuff...

This was a bag for my niece Allie.

And this is the most recent - my niece Elizabeth asked me in March when she was going to get her bag... her birthday isn't until September, but I couldn't resist making a bag for someone I knew wanted one!

So, I have been offered to make some bags, and get paid for it too... wowza. Here are the patterns I have enough material to make a bag for...

I really need to take pictures of the other bags I have made. I will have to hunt those people down and ask them if I can take a picture of what I made them...

I have a few potential orders, I just need some time to fulfill them, plus a couple other birthdays coming up. I am going to be experimenting with some different styles. Plus, I bought an actual pattern and need to make a shirt with the stuff I bought -- that could get interesting.

If you are interested learning to sew a bag, or just want me to make one, shoot me an email to tamanoma@If you are interested learning to sew a bag, or just want me to make one, shoot me an email to tamanoma@yahoo.com and we'll see what we can do!

Seriously!

2010-04-11T22:22:00.002-06:00

Well, it was bound to happen, especially when history has a tendency to repeat itself. That's right, Logan thought the new iPhone needed a bath in the toilet at my Mom's. I didn't even give him the phone, he found it charging, and no one was watching, so why not put it in the toilet.

THANKFULLY, we discovered a new place called Cell Me Cell Phones repair. I explained I had another iPhone that was cracked, they said if I bring the two in, they'll give me 50% off the repairs of this new one!
Sweet deal there.
I am going to go drop it off tomorrow.

Naughty baby!

Never Underestimate!

2010-04-06T11:02:00.000-06:00

Logan has been in love with the Wii since he was allowed to play with it at Grandpa Ken's. He has learned how to play a few of the games, but still needs to understand a little more about pushing buttons or holding them in order to play other games.
A month ago Grandma and Grandpa bought a Wii Fit Plus to go along with Trevor's Wii (that stays at their house). What a brilliant idea... make games that make you work out while having fun! I "stole" the Wii Fit the other day and we have been playing it at home. Logan woke up this morning and after everyone left for school and work, he asked in his own little way if we could play some Fit.
This is when I learned to never underestimate the understanding of a two year old. Logan may not talk a lot, but he certainly knows a lot. He navigates my iPhone to load the movies he wants, he knows how to advance a movie he is bored with, and he knows what he is doing when it comes to a Wii Fit...

Here Logan is doing the obstacle course. You have to walk in place to make your character move and jump. He made it to the second level after avoiding 5 swaying cannonballs!

He is specific about which games he would like to play. We ask him to show us which one and he promptly runs to the screen and points to the one he would like...

He even tries to follow along with the step aerobics. I know he has watched Grandma and Grandpa do this one at their house...

Even the other day while at my sister-in-laws, we learned that Kaylee can count in Spanish. She is only a month younger than Logan. Amy started with uno, Kaylee followed with dos, and they continued up to twelve. Amy said the other day they were counting in English, and then after they said "seven", Kaylee transitioned to Spanish and continued from "ocho" on her own!
AMAZING!

Spring Break

2010-03-31T13:10:00.000-06:00

Well, our spring break started off by dog sitting the Jenkins' dog, Bingo.

The Jenkins were headed to Oregon for Easter, and they are looking to give Bingo a new home, so we thought we would help them out in both ways. After informing the landlord of our intentions, they said "NO WAY!!" to allowing us to own a dog. Josh was most upset about this because he is the one who wants the dog the most. He is a very good dog - he knows some commands, loves kids, and is probably one of the most mellow labs I have ever met. We pleaded with the landlord to reconsider, but they went on vacation, and honestly, I think they are still going to say no, even if this was one of the most trained, mellow dogs in the world.

Although I do have some homework over the break, I did some house work these past few days. First around the house, and then finally to Logan's room. Just imagine toys and clothes, everywhere, with a little path from the door to his bed. I would love to blame Logan for the mess, but in all reality, it was all me and my laziness to put away his clothes. I did however go through his drawers and hand-me-down clothes and his dresser is now equiped with clothes that will fit him for the next year (2T). I am so thankful that he has as many clothes as he does, thank goodness for hand-me-downs, cause finding boys clothes at garage sales is rare.

As you can see, there are a lot of boxes... those are all clothes to get rid of because he has grown out of these. That's like 6 diaper boxes full, and there are 4 of those in 3T clothes just waiting for Logan to grow into them!

When you clean rooms, you find cool things that were once missing - Logan found these...

After cleaning Logan's room, I came out to find this!

WHAT!? It's Spring Break - oh wait, it's spring break in Idaho. We had a little of rain, hail, sleet, snow, and then the sun eventually peeked out behind some clouds (but then was quickly shut out again).

We made the best of the weather... now to get that darn research done...

He's All Hands

2010-03-26T12:29:00.000-06:00

Logan is two and is very insistent that he feed himself.

He hasn't mastered the fork, spoon, or spork,

So he goes for the next best thing...

His hands.

Occasionally he will actually use the utinsils,

But typically he is all hands.

Silly little man.

Even dessert doesn't stand a chance...

Nice Idea - But is it Practical??

2010-03-15T11:12:00.000-06:00

So I get the whole daylight savings thing, but man, did I pick a lousy weekend to stay out late!

My alarm went off this morning, and as usual, I hit the snooze. Madi had an alarm set for herself, and last week she did a great job of waking up and then waking me up. Even Logan has some kind of hollaring around 8:30 that wakes me up... nothing. I turned off the snooze and slept. Suddenly my body awoke to find it was 9:20! *@(#)$*#!! Logan and I had a date at The Little Gym to play - at 9:15! I woke up the house, we jumped in the van and made it for the last 20 minutes of class. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my "free" visit. Grrrrrrrr!

A WHAT!?!

2010-03-03T10:59:00.000-07:00

So, when I was little, my parents "invented" this game for us to play on long trips or moments we just needed to pass the time called, "Noah's Ark". It's just 20 questions for animals, and you start the game out by saying, "I am thinking of an animal that went on Noah's Ark..." Then everyone must ask Yes or No questions in order to figure out what the animal is.

Madison has excelled at this game and we give up a lot because she thinks of animals we don't think she would use - the little stinker. The other day, it was Josh's turn to pick an animal. So, it looked a little something like this:

Madi and Tami: Is it wild?

Josh: Yes.

MT: Is it a mammal?

J: (pause) No.

MT: Is it a reptile?

J: (pause) Yes

MT: Is it a dinosaur? (because we are young Earth creationist and believe dinosaurs could have been on the Ark - it was big enough)

J: Yes

MT: Is it a T-Rex?

J: No
MT: Brachiosaurus?
J: No
MT: Triceratops?

J: No

MT: The one with the big spiky tail? A pterodactyl? Velociraptor?

J: No, no, no. Give up?

MT: Yes, cause we cannot think of any other dinosaur that you would know that we wouldn't.

J: A Rhinosaurus

T: A WHAT?! Did you just say -Rhino-saurus?

J: Yes.

T: You mean a rhinoceros? As in a Rhino?

J: (thinking for a second) Oh, yeah. That's what I meant. What did I say?

T: Rhino-saurus! And a rhinoceros is a mammal!

J: Oh.

And then we all laughed. Silly Josh! We love him so much! I can understand where he might think the way he did...

Disconnected

2010-03-02T23:09:00.001-07:00

Aaaaaaaagh!

In an honest attempt to potty train Logan yesterday, I put him up on the potty after changing his diaper. He has done a good job here and there when I do put him up there - in fact, he peed two times in the toilet on Sunday.
So, I thought we could pass some potty time with him watching a little Sesame Street, and Logan proceeded to drop, errr, chuck the phone into the toilet.
I wouldn't have panicked, but in September he cracked my phone, and so this caused the water to get into the internal circuitry faster. It died. It's gone. I can't text. At all. I cannot check my email at a moments notice. I cannot access the internet for useless information or trivia. I cannot feed my sick addiction to know what everyone's business is on Facebook.

Aaaaaaagh!

It's only been one day and I feel so disconnected from everything, and then I have to wonder, like many others have, what was my life before cell phones, Facebook, or the internet.

Pathetic.

Rest in Peace iPhone (more like pieces after I demolish it).

Ready for the surgery!

2010-03-01T23:25:00.001-07:00

Oh, only 18 more days until I have my surgery! I am so thankful I am going to get it done! No more cramps for me! It will be such a relief! I have endometriosis and I am having surgery for that too. It will be such a relief!

The official date it Friday, March 19th. It's an outpatient surgery. The tubes will be tied and a uterine ablation will occur with the endometriosis stuff. The doc says I should be ready to go back to work on Monday - thankfully I don't work, but I don't know how well Logan will understand I can't lift him up. This could get interesting!

An Awesome Reminder

2010-02-16T23:50:00.000-07:00

I was cruising between Air 1 and KTSY tonight, and More by Matthew West came on. What an awesome reminder from God. Here's the video, and then the lyrics. I don't think Matthew West made a video and so this was put together by someone else...

More by Matthew West
Take a look at the mountains
Stretching a mile high
Take a look at the ocean
Far as your eye can see
And think of Me

Take a look at the desert
Do you feel like a grain of sand?
I am with you wherever
Where you go is where I am

And I'm always thinking of you
Take a look around you
I'm spelling it out one by one

(Chorus)
I love you more than the sun
And the stars that I taught how to shine
You are mine, and you shine for me too
I love you yesterday and today
And tomorrow, I'll say it again and again
I love you more

Just a face in the city
Just a tear on a crowded street
But you are one in a million
And you belong to Me

And I want you to know
That I'm not letting go
Even when you come undone

(Chorus)

Shine for Me
Shine for Me
Shine on, shine on
Shine for Me

(Chorus x2)

I love you more

And I see you
And I made you
And I love you more than you can imagine
More than you can fathom

I love you more than the sun
And you shine for me

She Could Be A Model

2010-02-15T15:04:00.000-07:00

Oh, my Miss Madison is such a poser! And I love it, and so does my sister! Michelle is aspiring to be a photographer and has had the perfect little model to create a cute little portfolio with...

It's Almost Spring! (ok, not really)

2010-02-13T03:27:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhh, it was a beautiful day today. Temperatures were over 50 and the sun peaked out from behind the clouds (even if it was only for a little bit). While waiting for Josh to get off work and haul his truck over to the truck place off Broadway, the kids and I went to Ivy Wild and checked out the playground (although the older two saw the water park and became bummed out when we weren't going swimming).

It turned out to be a wonderful repreave from the stuffy indoors that the cold temperatures forces us into.

Logan went down all the bigger slides without any assistance and tried his best to keep up with Trevor and Madison.

Hopefully we can make this into a regular habit (playing outside).

Well Said Relient K!

2010-02-12T02:41:00.000-07:00

Click the music to your right to follow along!

ENJOY!

"The Best Thing"

It's been a year
Filled with problems
But now you're here
Almost as if to solve them
And I can't live in a world without you now

All my life
I've been searching for you
How did I survive
In this world before you
Cause I don't wanna live another day without you now

This is the best thing
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's
Happening to you and me

All I'm gonna have
Is all that you can give me
And I'll give right back
Everything I have in me
Cause nothing ever felt as right
As this does right now

I'll go back to before we met
Try and erase the past
Try harder to forget cause
Nothing will ever be as good as here and now

Cause when I looked into your eyes
And you dared to stare right back
You should've said "Nice to meet you, I'm your other half"

And this is the best thing
The best thing that could be happening
And I think you would agree
The best thing is that it's happening
This is the best thing (the best thing)
The best thing that could be happening (the best thing)
And I think you would agree (whoooaaa whooaa)
The best thing is that it's
Happening to you and me

Always knew
I'd find someone
I never dreamt
It'd be like this
You've surpassed
All that I've hoped for (and ever wished)
And I'm tryin'
So hard
With all my heart and mind
To make your life
As good as you've made mine

This is the best thing (the best thing)
The best thing that could be happening (the best thing)

And I think you would agree (whooaaa)
The best thing is that it's happening to you and me

The best thing is that it's happening to you and me
The best thing is that it's happening to you and me

(The best thing) The best thing that could be happening
(The best thing) I think you would agree

The best thing is that it's happening to you and me

"Getting Into You"

When I made up my mind

And my heart along with that

To live not for myself

But yet for God, somebody said

Do you know what you are getting yourself into

When I finally ironed out

All of my priorities

And asked God to remove the doubt

That makes me so unsure of these

Things I ask myself, I ask myself

Do you know what you are getting yourself into

[Chorus]

I'm getting into you

Because you got to me, in a way words can't describe

I'm getting into you

Because I've got to be

You're essential to survive

I'm going to love you with my life

When he looked at me and said

I kind of view you as a son

And for a second our eyes met

And I met that with a question

Do you know what you are getting yourself into

[Chorus]

I've been a liar and I'll never amount to

The kind of person you deserve to worship you

You say you will not dwell on what I did but rather what I do you say

I love you and that's what you are getting yourself into

[Chorus]

He said, I love you and that's what you are getting yourself into

"Who I Am Hates Who I've Been"
I watched the proverbial sunrise
Coming up over the Pacific and
You might think I'm losing my mind,
But I will shy away from the specifics...

'cause I don't want you to know where I am
'cause then you'll see my heart
In the saddest state it's ever been.

This is no place to try and live my life.

[Pre-Chorus]
Stop right there. That's exactly where I lost it.
See that line. Well I never should have crossed it.
Stop right there. Well I never should have said
That it's the very moment that
I wish that I could take back.

[Chorus]
I'm sorry for the person I became.
I'm sorry that it took so long for me to change.
I'm ready to be sure I never become that way again
'cause who I am hates who I've been.
Who I am hates who I've been.

I talk to absolutely no one.
Couldn't keep to myself enough.
And the things bottled inside have finally begun
To create so much pressure that I'll soon blow up.

I heard the reverberating footsteps
Synching up to the beating of my heart,
And I was positive that unless I got myself together,
I would watch me fall apart.

And I can't let that happen again
'cause then you'll see my heart
In the saddest state it's ever been.
This is no place to try and live my life.

[Pre-Chorus x2]
[Chorus]

Who I am hates who I've been
And who I am will take the second chance you gave me.
Who I am hates who I've been
'cause who I've been only ever made me...

So sorry for the person I became.
So sorry that it took so long for me to change.
I'm ready to be sure I never become that way again
'cause who I am hates who I've been.
Who I am hates who I've been.

“Mood Rings”

We all know the girls that I am talking about.

Well they are time bombs and they are ticking

And the only question is when...they'll blow up!

And they'll blow up, we know that without a doubt.

Cause they're those girls, yeah, you know those girls

That let their emotions get the best of them.

Go!

And I've contrived some sort of a plan

To help my fellow man...

Let's get emotional girls to all wear mood rings

So we'll be tipped off to when they're ticked off

Cause we'll know just what they're thinking,

Just what they're thinking...

She's so pretty but she doesn't always act that way

Emotions swinging on the swing set almost everyday

She said to me that she's so happy it's depressing

And all I said was "Someone get that girl a mood ring!"

If it's drama you want, then look no further

They're like the Real World meets Boy Meets World

meets Days of Our Lives.

And it just kills me how they get away with murder

They'll anger you then bat their eyes

Those pretty eyes that watch you sympathize

And I've contrived some sort of a plan

To help my fellow man...

Let's get emotional girls to all wear mood rings

So we'll be tipped off to when they're ticked off

Cause we'll know just what they're thinking,

Just what they're thinking...

She's so pretty but she doesn't always act that way

Emotions swinging on the swing set almost everyday

She said to me that she's so stressed out it's soothing

And all I said was "Someone get that girl a mood ring!"

Cause when it's black it means "watch your back"

because you're probably

The last person in the world right now that she will want to see

And when it's blue it means you should call her up immediately

and ask her out because she'll most likely agree

And when it's green it simply means that she is really stressed

And when it's clear it means she is comfortably emotionless

And that's alright I must confess

We all know the girls that I am talking about

She likes you Wednesday, but now it's Friday

And she has to wash her hair

And it just figures that we'll never figure them out

Well, first she's Jekyll and then she's Hyde...

at least she makes a lovely pair.

Mood Ring, oh Mood Ring,

oh tell me will you bring the key

To unlock this mystery?

Of girls and their emotions

Play it back in slow motions

So I may understand

The complex infostucture

known as the female mind

“High of 75”
We were talking together
I said, "what's up with this weather?"
Don't know whether or not
How sad I just got
Was of my own volition.
Or if I'm just missing the sun

And tomorrow, I know,
Will be rainy at best.
And the forecast, I know,
Is that I'll be depressed.
But I'll wait outside
Hoping that I'll catch sight of the sun.

[Chorus:]
Because on and off,
The clouds have fought
Their control over the sky

And lately the weather
Has been so Bi-polar
And Consequently so have I

And now I'm sunny with a High
of 75
Since You took my heavy heart
And made it light

And its funny how you find
You enjoy your life
When you're happy to be alive

[Chorus]

And the temperature is freezing
And then, after dark,
There is a cold frost sweeping
In over my heart

And we might break up
If I don't wake up to the sun

[Chorus]

Sunny with a High of 75
Since You took my heavy heart
And made it light (made it light)

And its funny how you find
You enjoy your life
When you're happy to be...
Alive

"In Love With The 80's (Pink Tux To The Prom)"

So it was Jeremy in 1983,

In his Ocean Pacific tee,

Who got a bloody knee,

On his skateboard,

In the halfpipe,

In the backyard,

That tuesday night.

And I'm only gonna pierce my left ear,

And I've been working on this mustache all summer long,

And my favorite band will always be Tears for Fears,

And I'm gonna to wear a pink tux to the prom, a pink tux to the prom.

Cuttin class through the next four windowies,

Drivin fast because I never did things slow,

And I look up to my big bro cuz in the eighties all the ladies grabbed his

hands and wouldn't let go.

And I'm only gonna pierce my left ear,

And I've been working on this mustache all summer long,

And my favorite band will always be tears for fears,

And I'm gonna to wear a pink tux to the prom, a pink tux to the prom.

Do, do, do-do, do, do, Pink tux to the prom, [x2]

I am going to wear, a pink tux to the prom,

Live without a care, what can possibly go wrong.

When you're the president of The Breakfast Club,

And you're not hesitant to fall in love,

To fall in love with the eighties, to fall away,

To fall in love with the eighties.

I am going to wear, a pink tux to the prom,

Live without a care, what can possibly go wrong,

I am going to wear a pink tux to the prom,

Live without a care cause you threw it away to fall in love, with the eighties..

Do, do, do-do, do, do [x2]

He was SO little!

2010-02-12T00:01:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago Logan turned two years old. I am amazed at how much he has grown since his birth and finally, after four years of trying, God blessed us with this little man. The labor was long and we could hardly wait to offically meet him, and then he came. The whole family was there anticipating his arrival too, and so he was passed around and admired until it was time to head upstairs at Luke's. He started holding his breath at his first feeding, and ended up needing too much attention alotted babies in the regular nursery, and so down to the NICU he went.

He had a little bit of a temp and the doctor wanted to give him antibiotics, which would prolong our stay for an additional 72 hours. We pleaded with the doctor to give him a little more time because we were sure the fever was from delivery, not because he was sick.

Breast is best and Logan lived by that motto until he was almost one! He refused the nasty formula they wanted him to drink in the NICU and so I was on-call for feeding through out the night.

Our total time in the NICU was less than 36 hours, which is really rare for NICU patients. We took Logan home on February 1, 2008.

He has such a personality! He is talking a little bit, and still uses some of his signing we taught him. He LOVES playing on my iPhone and watcing Cars or Kung Fu Panda. We are working on animal sounds right now, and we try the occassional potty sit. He insists on giving "knuckles" to strangers in the grocery store. If there is music, you can usually catch him shaking his booty or running around with arms flailing, he is a maniac for music! He is very much a show stealer and, like his sister, prefers to be with older kids...

During Vaction Bible School, he really dug the music. When the kids presented the music they learned to the congregation, Logan insisted on getting up front with the other kids to sing and dance the songs... So, he ran up the middle, crawled up the stairs and stood stage right of the group singing. He then proceeded to sway back and forth, clapping his hands, just like the other kids. He absolutely stole the show, of that there is no doubt. As you can see in this picture, he shows an early love for the microphone and singing (thankfully it was off).

I am definately looking forward to this summer! We have passes to Roaring Springs. This is our third summer having them (we had ones for the very end of last season), and I think we are in for quite the treat with Logan walking and becoming more independent. I will still plan for the occassional nap by the kiddie pool, but I will have to keep an extra eye on him on the slides. A couple weeks we got to swim at the Y for a birthday party and he was crazy! He insisted on going down the large curly slide and was going down the "baby" slide head first or feet first, but on his stomach.

I love this little man and look forward to our many other adventures, because I know they will be there!

I will be blogging more

2010-02-09T12:54:00.000-07:00

Well, here I am in my English class and we are creating a blog page at Blogger.com, and I already have one... whoo hoo. It'll be another blog, not on this page, but perhaps this will keep me more consistent with this blog... that would be AWESOME!

I have begun journalin more, but got off track for a couple days and it made me mad. So, I am going to try again, and my goal is to make it a priority over TV, Facebook, and reading trivia on IMDB -that's right, I am officially a dork!

2010 had been good so far and we celebrated Logan's birthday a weekend ago, he is now two! He is talking a little more everyday and continues to make us laugh, all the time. I love that little man so much. Madison started gymnastics at The Little Gym and she is enjoying that very much.

Oh, I have to go... cause now I have to do some school work.