Just Proud Parents?

Matt Here.

It seems like every parent is convinced that their child is exceptionally bright or talented in some way, and that is usually a good thing. Having parents with high expectations , even if the parents are a little disillusioned and the kid really isn't particularly bright. Last night Christa and I had a conversation about Alexis and whether she really was as smart as we thought she was, or is it just that we are over excited parents. One great thing about Alexis is that she expresses everything that pops into her mind, like in the Old McDonald video below, so she is always talking and interacting with people around her. Christa brought up a good point and reminded me of something cool this week. When Christa called the pizza place they asked for her phone number. Christa said, "967 (pause) 96 (pause)," and then Alexis, out of nowhere, said the last two numbers. Needless to say, Christa was a little surprised. She told me the story when I got home and when I asked Alexis what her phone number was, she told me the whole thing without any hesitation. How's that for smart?

Wicked

So I'll start from the beginning of our trip, and work forwards as far as the blog posting goes. Matt, Lexi, and I braved the snow on Monday, and drove to St George. On Tuesday morning, my mom, 2 sisters, and I drove to LA to see Wicked. If you haven't seen Wicked, it is worth the drive, although it's leaving LA in January. (if you've never heard of Wicked...I don't even know what to say to you!)...anyway, with the crazy traffic and the accident we ran into in Barstow, it took us about 8 hours to get there. We made it to my in-laws with a couple of hours to spare, and were able to have a nice visit. After each and every one of us rated Bruce as the greatest father-in-law of all time (he hooked us up with the tickets) we headed on down to the Pantages Theater. The play was every bit as good as I remembered it and everyone had a SPLENDID WONDERFULLY AWESOME time! Both my sisters had those exact smiles on their faces through most of the show. My mom also wore her very own cape in honor of the Wicked Witch, this picture doesn't really do it justice though. After the show we headed back on home, but couldn't make it a whole lot further than Victorville. We rolled into bed around 2, and after a short night of musical dreams, we hopped back into the car at 7 to get my sisters home to work by noon. It was crazy, and we were all seriously wipped out when we got back, but everyone was still glad we went, and the truth is, I would do it all again tomorrow if I had the tickets and time!

Christmas Morn'

My mom took lots of pictures and videos of our Christmas vacation. I can't possibly upload them all, but I'll do a few at a time. I think this was everyone's all time favorite Christmas morning moment. Lexi opened more then her fair share of presents, and if you can't tell what's going on in this video, she opened up a farm, and had to break out into a rendition of 'E-I-E-I O' It was hilarious! The girl sure loves to sing!

So Who's Christa?

Matt Here.

Whenever I tell people that my wife and I have a candy apple business people usually assume that Christa makes all the apples and I'm just a hanger on. I also take time to respond to emails we get on the website and always sign the emails "Christa." I mean, people want to buy apples from Christa, not some random dude.

So the other night we got a phone call from someone who found our phone number (not an easy task). I talked to her and took the order. Christa was working that evening, so I made the apples, and then the lady stopped by our house the next morning and I met her to give the apples. When she was handing me the check she asked me who Christa was and where was she.

I totally felt like one of the twin brothers in The Prestige, sharing an identity and taking turns being a different person. Well, I guess that's just dedication to the trade!

Busy Week...and more to come!

It has been a CRAZY week, I think we've made 600 apples in the last week! Sorry to all the friends and family who've been shafted thus far, but if I have to caramel another apple, I may scream...or cry..whichever emotion overcomes me first. Maybe we'll be passing around New Years gifts this year. I am SUPER excited for this next week though. If we can make it to St George alive (the snow is coming in full force this week), I'll get to keep on trecking to California. My super awesome father in law scored some tickets to Wicked for my two sisters, my mom, and I. So the 4 of us are going to leave poor Matt, Lexi, and my Dad in the dust and drive in and out just to see this show. I have seen it once, and I tell you, it's worth the drive! Then we'll spend the rest of the week in St George eating too much food and enjoying the Christmas season. So Happy Holidays to all and be safe where ever you are spending this magical time of year.

Sometimes, life is just tough!

Isn't that the saddest picture you've ever seen? Lexi finds herself in time-out at least once every day. (and a lot more often than that if there are other kids around to steal toys from!). Whenever she gets sent to time out she lays on her bed with her blanket and lets us know how unfair life is. But as soon as we say 'all done time-out', she bounces back with loves for everyone and a smile on her face. She sure is a dramatic little girl. But at least all can be forgiven fairly easy.

Introducing...

Christmas Apples

I feel kind of ghetto plugging our business on the blog. I know it's not what most of you came here for. But it's my blog, and I'll do what I want. My mother-in-law had a request for some Christmas themed apples, and we liked them so much, we posted them on the website. Yummy, and festive too!

Rantings of a stressed mother....

Today I wish to vent about my crazy kid! Alexis does A LOT of things really well, she sleeps really well, she sings really well, and she sits on time out really well. She gives good loves, and her memory surprises me daily! But the thing she does not do really well, is play with other kids. She is not grasping the concept of sharing, or that it's just not ok to hit other kids for no good reason. About a month ago I started going to the gym and took Lexi to the gym daycare. She was in there for about a week, and got written up for pushing other kids. They made me sign a form saying if she was pushing again, she'd be suspended for 7 days. Oh man, did I stress about that, I STILL stress every time I take her in there. Today they said she was stealing toys from the little kids. And then we went to play group and I watched her go up to some kid and give him a good push for who knows what reason, the kid wasn't even looking at her! So I packed her up and took her home. If you can't play nice, you can't play at all. But then I think, there obviously arn't any kids here, so if I keep taking her away, it isn't helping her play nice...but I can't let her terrorize the other kids to help her learn...I'm at a loss. We talk about sharing and playing nice all day, and every time she acts up she sits on time out, or we take her home all together, what else can I do? This parenting this is harder than it looks...
I know what my mom is thinking, 'she's 2, she'll grow out of it', and I tell myself that all day to calm down. So until she grows out of it, I'll just make a public apology to all those moms out there who's kids are getting pushed around by crazy Lexi.

Death of a silver bullet...

The silver bullet died today, due to causes having something to do with a timing belt...blast it all! The first car I drove in High School was simply named 'The King', it was a 1991 Toyota Tercel, with no air, no radio, and some 150,000 miles on it when I first started driving it. To my High School friends without cars of their own, it was 'The King'. It had it's glory days, and then died during my freshman year at college when the engine burned up because it didn't have any oil in it. There is still an ongoing debate in my family who's fault that was, but I still claim my innocence in the matter. So I moved onward and upward and bought a 2001 Hyundai Accent which my grandpa named 'The Silver Bullet'. I did A LOT of driving back and forth from Utah to California my college years, stopping often in Las Vegas where my grandparents live. I drove that car until Matt and I got married, and being the generous wife I am, I have allowed him the privileged of driving it the last 2 years. Well, here we are 7 years later and the ride is over. The mechanic says we are welcome to dump $1500 in it to keep the dream alive, but I think I'm gonna let this one go.... So if anyone has any great deals on a cheap car for my good husband, let us know, cause we'll be looking!

Well we made it home safe and sound, about 1500 miles, 6 tanks of gas, and 15 viewings of the Little Mermaid by Lexi well not quite that many, but she did get her fair share...thanks Papa Bruce for the DVD player. Here are some highlights!

The first night in LA we went to the Clippers/Nuggets game. We even got in early for 'Autograph Alley' where the not so stellar players will sign a hat or T-shirt. We had a good time seeing them up close, and had awesome seats! We sat behind the visitors bench and had some pretty good hecklers next to us which made for some pretty good entertainment.



Thanksgiving morning we made some apples to share with the friends and family, they are always a treat! The rest of the traditional food was amazing as well, lots of turkey, ham, potatoes, etc.

On Friday we jumped back into the car and headed up to Sacramento for my niece's sealing and blessing. It was the most perfect day! The weather was gorgeous, the temple was beautiful and the events were so special. I will always be thankful we made it for such a momentous day.

We spent a lot of time with family and made some great memories. Now we are looking forward to Christmas, my favorite holiday of all!

Home for the Holidays

We're going home for the holidays! And when I mean home, we're hitting just about every city I've ever lived in on the way. We'll make a quick dinner stop in St. George (where my parents currently reside), and drive the rest of the way to LA to Matt's family. We'll spend Thanksgiving day there with his family, and then on Friday we'll head up to Sacramento for the rest of the weekend. My brother and his wife are sealing and blessing thier daughter in the temple of up there. We'll be able to see the rest of my family, as well as most of my Dad's extended family which some of whom have never even seen Alexis, crazy huh? So it will be an insane amount of driving, and we'll probably be more tired by the time we get back then when we departed on this so-called vacation, but I'm excited to do it!

So HAPPY THANKSGIVING to all, and jump start on your shopping, cause there are only 31 days until Christmas :)

4th Folder, 4th Picture

I've been seeing this tag on several blogs now (post your 4th picture in your 4th folder), and I've been waiting with bated breath for my turn...well maybe I've been breathing normal but I was hoping my turn would come around sooner or later, thanks Alisa. So here it is! This is my good friend Gina, and this was taken at a baby shower for my other good friend Jana. In some fun news, Jana of course had the baby we were expecting at that time, and Gina (cute gal in the pic) gave birth to twins a month ago! She had just announced at that party. Time sure flies!

Reaching For The Stars

Matt Here.

Great blogging topics have once again been coming to me in day visions and other eureka moments, not unlike how Dr. House miraculously realizes a life saving diagnosis in a moment of clarity and genius. There is probably a direct correlation between the Laker's winning streak (now 11-1, woohoo!) and my general good mood and clever wit. I've decided that if the Lakers win it all this year, I'll go out and buy myself a new team jersey. Actually, here in Utah, Lakers fans are tolerated about as much as the Plague and polygamy jokes, so I'll most likely have to buy that memorabilia online. That really puts a wet blanket on my wild and crazy plans, since anything I buy with a credit card must pass under the all seeing eye of she who must be appeased. Now I'm rambling.

In totally unrelated news, our candy apply business has started to pick up again now that people are starting to recover from the Halloween crash and the candy high and are once again on the search for sugar and clever gifts. Our business has reached a new level of status in the community; we received an order today from none other than Merrill Osmond. Yes, that Merrill Osmond. Our business now caters to an exclusive group of celebrities, wealthy businessmen and social elite (and anyone else who can do a simple Google search and place an order on our site; please feel free!).

That's all I got. certainly more later.

When I Was Your Age!

Matt Here.

I must be getting way old. I like to listen to the radio when I drive and listen to some online music sites at work. As many of you know, I am a secret thug and usually listen to gangster gangsta rap. Maybe it's just me, but it seems that rap is not as good as it once was. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Lil' Wayne, but what out there is as good as some of the classic albums like Dre's The Chronic & Aftermath 2001, Tupac's Greatest Hits, B.I.G.'s Life After Death, or Diddy's No Way Out? Those are timeless.

Anyways, I have recently tempered my choice of music and thought I'd share some of my favorite non-rap songs with you. Some of these are mainstream, others not. If I were way trendy (normal?), I would have an ipod and these would all be on it:

DCFC, I Will Follow You. This got a little play some time ago, then disappeared. It has now reappeared.

PINK, Sober. Just making its way onto the radio here. I always turn the sound up and rock it.

Jeff Buckely, Hallelujah. You may recognize it from Shrek, this isn't the original, but it's way better than all the other covers out there. Sad to say, Jeff drowned in a river shortley after recording this.

Beyonce, If I Were A Boy. What's the deal? This is totally sappy and girly, but I dig it!

Marvin Gaye, National Anthem. I've been known to listen to some of the Gayester, so when I heard this was the theme song for Team USA Basketball 2008, I had to hear it, so do you. It was controversial when he first sang it, now it's a classic.

Also important to note, the Lakers continue to roll, posting the best record in the NBA, while the Jazz complain about injuries while the lose to the equally injured Spurs, as well as the Wizards, Bobcats, Knicks, and any other organization that can find 5 guys off the street to wear a uniform. Life is good.

Our Family

I stole this idea from my cousin Missy! Thanks..I think it's way cute!

Get your own Family Sticker Maker & MySpace Layouts.

Apples and More

Matt Here.

So Alexis and I made a trip to get some candy apple supplies this evening. As usual, we were rocking out to some Rhianna on My 99.5 FM. It is a really cool radio station that you can call in and record a simple message that will be played on the air shortly after. All of a sudden I saw this really cute looking Chihuahua looking dog running down the middle of the road staring into my headlights. I saw it again just a second later in my rear view mirror as it was flipping around in the air. I thought to myself that it was a little late for dogs to be out by themselves, so I turned around, but when I caught up to the dog it was taking a nap on the side of the road. Silly dog.

I wanted to tell the owner what the dog was up to, so I called the radio station and left the following message, which I heard on the drive home after buying the apples:

"This is Matt from Taylorsville, if you are looking for you really cute dog, it is taking a nap on 6200 South. You better go get your dog, it looks really tired. Thanks My 99.5!"

True Story.

Happy Birthday Jacob!

A good friend in our ward had a birthday party on Friday. It was lots and lots of fun!! We had pizza, kicked balls around, and each kid had a hand in the pinata. Unfortunatly our kids weren't strong enough to do any damage, so Marci rocked that thing! Thank you Marci for a great party, and to Jacob for being born!

It's Autumn Time!!

If you'd been in town last weekend, you would have thought we skipped Fall...but luckily the snow melted and we were able to enjoy the leaves this weekend. Matt worked really hard to rake them all up, and Lexi worked equally as hard to spread them around again :)







She has also taken to dolls, Elmo's, and other smaller toys as of late. She drags them around the house, gives them drinks of juice, puts them in the highchair for breakfast, and puts them down with a blanket for a nap. She also put Elmo on the other side of the swing while she was playing outside...does this kid need a sibling or what?

New President...What's New?

Matt here.

I'm not sure if you've heard, but I guess we have a new president. Christa went out with the girls on Tuesday, so I got to hang out at home and watch the happenings unfold. I'm not a big fan of Obama, but after reading the news today, I'm glad Sarah Palin isn't making any important decisions; apparantly she's not too up to date on world issues, like who the members of NAFTA are, and that Africa is, in fact, a continent. I think she is somewhere in this video.

A bunch of people are freaking out because they think the country is going to self destruct and sink into the ocean on it's way down to hell. Really, are you serious? To tell you the truth, I don't think he's all that bad.

A great story in newsweek talks about his devout Christian beliefs, he is against gay marriage and will let the states decide, he plans on lowering our taxes (with the exception of all my close friends, associates, business partners, aides, advisors, personal gurus, and mentors who make more that $250k), and he supports a higher education tax credit available to all. I think he is a good, moral man and I hope he can make this country a better place.

The truth is, what can a president really do that affects me? Someone was ranting about how we will have to pay more for gas. Really? Gas was $1.25 when Bush came into office. Are the current prices his fault? I guess maybe if that war he is running in the Middle East has anything to do with it, but then again, we were all gung ho for that 5 years ago, and people should stop driving SUVs.

I guess I can support him for many of the same reasons I support Ron Paul; we need a change from all those cheats and liars (Democrat and Republican) running our county, and I think he is that.

Hey, and how about those Lakers!!

Pumpking Carving

Our good friends the Wilde's invited us over to carve pumpkins on Halloween Eve. I was impressed with all the skills that were shown. Even Ian got into the fun. Zack seemed to have more fun playing on the counter than with the pumpkins.

Singing Time

Alexis LOVES to sing! She is getting really good at some of the words, however she is easily distracted! Here is Baa Baa Black Sheep for you.

Gardner Village

Gardner Village is the best place for Halloween pictures! This is my third year running! Matt and I tried to go to 'Boo at the Zoo' Saturday, however the crowd that gathered there was astonishing. We couldn't even get close to the door, so we turned around and headed to the village. We had a great time looking at all the pumpkins and witches.


Lexi is a lady bug this year (thanks to Celeste for letting me borrow the costume!) She thinks it is the GREATEST to wear the wings and little headband. But even greater then that (she soon discovered) is all you have to say is 'trick or treat' and people fill your bucket with candy! What more could a little girl ask for?

Halloween Party!

Saturday night was the ward Halloween Party! This is time honored tradition in the Mormon world! My best friend Cara was in town for the event. Fun was had by all!

Lexi and I were matching Lady Bugs!

Cara joined in the fun with a witches hat.


Matt has been wearing this farmer/cowboy costume 4 years running. He does try to get creative..but I always veto his ideas before the big night, and this is his fall back. For some reason I just don't think digging up the old 'kissing booth' costume is appropriate.

Getting work done....

Most days it is very difficult to get any work done on the computer when Lexi is awake...she likes to jump on my lap and press the keys. We usually get our emails typed by splitting the screen with Barney. Mom's gotta do what a mom's gotta do right?

Bloggers Block

I haven't intentionally been neglecting my blog...I just haven't had anything clever to post as of late. Or even funny, nor have I taken any cute pictures of Lexi lately. Plus, both Matt and I have been making candy apples like nobodies business. 140 go out tomorrow, I've already been to the post office once today, plus I busted out a quick dozen to go out as soon as Lexi wakes up. It's craziness! So I'll try and post something good as soon as I get the chocolate out from under my fingernails....

The Best I've Ever Made!

My sister-in-law Tamara joined up with a website called 'cooking and eating as a family' where friends and family can post recipes. I've been hitting this website regularly to spice up my dinner menu. It seems like I've been making the same old things for the last 4 years we've been married. At any rate, last night I pulled a recipe for 'Bacon Pie' submitted by my other sister-in-law Lisa Hall. It's actually more of a breakfast food, but we ate if for dinner and then leftovers for lunch today. I thought it was awesome, and Matt went as far to say this was the best thing I've ever made....I don't know about that, but it was pretty scrumptious! Here's the recipe if you're looking for something new!


1 1/2 cubes softened butter
1 1/2 c. pancake mix ("just add water" kind)
6 eggs
3 c. milk
1/4 tsp nutmeg
dash of pepper
1/2-2/3 lb. cooked bacon
2 c. montery jack & gruyere (combined total is 2 c.)
**We also added spinach and broccoli**

Directions:
1. Mix butter & pancake mix
2. Add eggs, milk, nutmeg, & pepper
3. Grease 13 x 9 pan
4. Put bacon in bottom, then cheese, then pour in egg mixture
5. Cook at 350ºF for 1 hour

Birthday Musings

Yup, today's my birthday, turned the big 26 today...didn't think it would ever happen to me, but here I am!

My younger sister is in her first year of college at Snow, the last day or two she's been posting about loneliness. She just so happened to pick a school where she only knows a handful of people, and it happens to be in a smaller town, so I can imagine it could get lonely from time to time. My cousin Shara posted a comment on her blog, it said "you have no idea how cool alone time can be lol time to sort out your thoughts catch up on things read your scriptures and so on... what i wouldn't give for some peace and quiet at my house" Shara has 2 small boys and her husband is in the military so he has to be gone a lot. Looking at these two perspectives got me thinking how interesting life is.

Take elementary school, now that was the life! Recess, nap times, summers off, who could ask for more? But how we couldn't wait to get to High School. Now High School was full of fun times, first dates, first driving experiences, first jobs, all the things we dreamt about in elementary school, but boy I couldn't wait for college. When I got to college, that was real freedom! No parents, no curfews, practically no rules at all. College was definitely the most selfish time in my life...but I spent all too often waiting to be married. And before I knew it, I was married, and life was good! We both had good jobs, money to spend, traveling to do...but before too long we were wondering when we should have a kid. Then the baby comes and we think it'll be great when she can crawl, walk, talk, be potty trained, go to school, go to college, and although this is the phase I'm in, I'm sure it'll all be over before I know it too.

So I think happiness is really a choice we make, not something that will come to us someday or from someone. Enjoy the phase you're in, laugh at the things that go wrong. Be thankful every single day for big and small things! That when when you look back you wont have wasted a single moment.

Pictures

For those of you who don't know, a few weeks ago Matt was called to be the 2nd counselor in the YM presidency. In our ward, that title also comes with Scoutmaster. Crazy huh? Well this week for scouts, the boys all went on a bike ride. I ended up getting scheduled that day, so Matt strapped Lexi on his bike and and she got to go too.


She's waving in this picture.

And this one is my favorite! Look at her smile!



When Lexi was in St. George, Grammi hooked her up with some new overalls. They look darling on her, and I think they'll fit through next year! She's getting the hang of this picture thing, this morning she was telling me to smile while I was taking this picture.

Blogs are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're gonna get!

**Warning, I post this blog not to offend, but to state my outlook on life***

Today I read a blog posted by a gal in my ward, it started out 'Is your ward full of back-biting, gossiping ladies?? Geez.. my ward is!' Needless to say, it didn't give a very inspiring outlook on the girls in my ward. I have been thinking about that blog most of the afternoon and I feel compelled to say something about my ward. I didn't grow in Utah, neither my family, nor my husbands family lives in a 300 mile radius. I have a few friends I made in college or while working, but for the most part we were on our own when we moved into this ward. I have found a family in this ward.

Even before we moved in Stacie Thomas was on our doorstep inviting us to a young adult activity. The first week in the ward we were invited to a FHE activity where Jessica Staker invited me to the walking group. I have LOVED the walking group, it has made me great friends with Lynnie Wilde, Celeste Humphries, Tara Felix, Sara Wagstaff, Lindsey Allan, and in the old days it gave me a chance to get to know Karen DeLaMare, Jessica Staker, Dawn Plaudis, and Marci Moeller. There are a many others who've joined up with us every now and again, and I've been surprised to learn more about them, and what strengths they have.

The day I found out I was going to miscarry, three of the girls from the walking group offered to take Lexi at the drop of a hat. I got many phone calls checking in on me and Jessica was on the doorstep with yummy cinnamon rolls. I had a wonderful conversation with Stacie that reassured me through one of my harder days. I couldn't have done it without them.

I know there are unbreakable friendships in this ward when I see Amber Warner come back every chance she gets :) I have learned so much from Lindy Merkely both in teaching crafts and listening to me talk about my life. I have been indebted to Marci Moeller and Lindsay Allen for the many hours they watched Lexi while I worked. I can't thank Lynnie Wilde enough for the frienship she has given me, and the friendship her kids give to mine. Sheena Hendrickson cuts my hair and keeps me looking cute, she also spreads laughter in whatever room she's in! I don't know how many times I've come home and there has been one treat or another on the doorstep from a whole array of people, just because!

There are a lot of younger moms in this ward, and due to the close proximity (and honestly I think the blogs are a big part to blame), we are way too up into each others business. However, I don't necessarily think this is wholly a terrible thing. A lot of time information gets passed out of concern, and I don't think any of the ladies in this ward are purposfully mean or hurtful. I see way too much love and service to honestly believe that. And if Lynnie can forgive me for blogging her secrets to the world, I think I can forgive anyone else of anything they may have said, or will yet to say about me.

So even though we can and will continue to be hurt by an insensitive comment, let's forgive and forget. Use the blogs for good and try to inspire rather then hurt or be offensive. And before you're ready to point fingers, look inside and think, can I truly say I've never done that? And thank you to each and every member of this ward who reads this blog, I'm truly thankful for all the friendships I've made.

Fun Week

Last week was very busy! Matt's cousin got married in St. George, but due to some work and church activities, I wasn't able to go. That didn't stop him though, he packed Lexi in the car, and off they went. Both Grandma's were happy to have her! They sounded like they had a great time and are back safe and sound.




Last Tuesday we went to the zoo with Stacie, Lauren, and Kyla. This is the one picture I took. It seems like we have tons and tons of pics at the zoo, but the girls were so cute in this little boat, I couldn't resist.





On Thursday we went to Barnem & Bailey's Circus with the Merkely's and Staker's. The kids were more excited about going on the trax downtown then the actual circus! Wyatt and Lexi were so good about holding hands!


Once it got going, Lexi was very into it, I couldn't even coax her to turn around and take a decent picture!





More fun poses! I really enjoyed the Elephants, they did some amazing tricks! They also had 6 motorcycles in a cage going around and around each other, that was pretty cool. And of course they had tigers, clowns, trapeze...pretty much all the works! It was a great evening and fun with friends.

On our ride home the kids were REALLY tired! They all piled in with Jessica and took turns crying. We were all really glad to be home in the end.

Tagged Again!

Tagged by Lisa For my last post today..I've been tagged again. Can you hardly believe I posted 3 times in one day??

7 Things I plan to do before I die:

1. Go to Italy
2. Sell all the caramel in our garage (500 lbs of it! So buy apples, please!)
3. Obtain a Masters degree, I'm not hard set in what, but I'm gonna get one.
4. Run a 5k
5. Celebrate my 50th wedding anniversary, to Matt of course!
6. See the 7 wonders of the world.
7. Shop like Katie (my mother-in-law) at Costco without flinching. (I'm always in awe of the way she can fill up multiple carts and bust out that credit card without looking back, I'm gonna be able to do that some day!)

7 things I do now:

1. Make caramel apples.
2. Read blogs.
3. Read books, both my own and Lexi's.
4. Walk with the walking group.
5. Work part time with IHC
6. Each lunch in the park with Matt, almost daily.
7. Take naps, again almost daily.

7 things I can't do:
1. Make my child poop in the potty (well she is doing better, and maybe next week I will be able to say I can do this!)
2. Put down a good book ( was up till 2am last night finishing one)
3. Save the stock market
4. Pass up an offer of ice cream.
5. Get my husband into UCLA (maybe he can do this for us!)
6. Win the lottery. (Can't win if you don't play!)
7. Ride Matt's bike. (He thinks maybe I can, but I'm sure I can not!)

7 things that attract me to the opposite sex:
1. Cars-good thing Matt was driving a BMW. It's shallow, but I was impressed.
2. Eyes, not necessarily the color, more if they are sincere or not.
3. Sense of humor
4. Their family and friends (if I like them or not)
5. Ability to give me butterflies.
6. Kissing skills
7. Attention and interest in people around them.

7 celebrities that I like:
1. Reese Witherspoon
2. Kiera Knightly
3. Johnny Depp
4. Brad Pitt
5. John Cusak
6. Julia Roberts
7. Matthew Broderick

7 favorite foods:
1. Ice cream-just about any kind
2. Cobb Salad
3. BBQ chicken pizza
4. Cold cereal
5. Just about any meal my dad makes!
6. Just about any dinner cooked by someone else!
7. Good and Plenties and Candy Corn

7people who need to do this (sorry in advance if you hate tags!):
1. Amanda Lybyer
2. Natalie Permann
3. Lindsey Allen
4. Yannette Traver
5. Doug Hall-I know Tamara was already tagged, but Doug can do it too, ha!
6. Missy (I want to say Tippettes) Wagner
7. Jessica Staker-I want to see this when you get back from your cruise!

For the love of science...and easy money!

So I'd have to say I'm a sucker for research trials. Ya know that movie Dick and Jane, where they are so broke Jane has to go in and do studies and she walks out with fat lips, that's gonna happen to me someday. In college I used to donate plasma on a regular basis for some extra cash, I don't mind needles so much, and what am I doing with all that extra plasma?? They can have it! About a year ago I went in for Lexi's check up, and they wanted me to put her in a study monitering the effects of a shot they were already going to give her, so I signed up for that. And while the lady was giving me that information, she signed me up for a birth control study as well. So I took their pill for about a year, which worked out just fine and I made $300 doing it. But since I'm now trying to get pregnant I signed up for a new study to see how quickly their tools and tricks (and of course the help of my husband) can get me pregnant. Sure, why not! I'll fill out their questionaire and make a couple hundred bucks doing what I was going to do anyway. I think these research trials are awesome!

Angry Blogs

So I've decided to write frustrated blogs more often! After my last post in regards to Lexi's inability to poop in her potty, she managed to go all week long, without any accidents! That's three times in a row, which is definitly making some headway, whew! She's off to grandma's this weekend with her dad, so hopefully the new place wont through her off....maybe tomorrow I will make a post about why my bathroom wont stay clean!

I've been tagged

So I was tagged--thanks Dawn. There have been a lot of different tags going around, this one is asking for 6 quirky things about me, so here it goes....

1. I love to read, and I'm currently overly interested in King Henry VIII fiction novels. I think I've read about 20 of them in the last couple months.

2. I've never broken a bone in my body, and besides working, I've only been to the hospital once, to have a baby!

3. I love good & plenties, (I get that from my mother).

4. I'm a huge fan of Jane Austen, both movies and books!

5. I've visited Poland, I was there for 2 weeks, and I don't speak a word of Polish!

6. I've stayed in touch with friends I made in 2nd grade.

That's it! I'm suppose to tag 6 more friends...but since there are a lot going around, I'm not going to name individuals. I'll just say tag to you! whoever you are reading this blog :)

Diapers are out, Tinkerbell & Ariel are in!

Well, we've officially given up diapers at our house. However, when I'm cleaning up poop off the floor and the stairs, I find myself wondering, are diapers really all that expensive? or would it really be that bad if Lexi went to Kindergarten in said diapers? Lexi has #1 pretty much down, she gets through her naps dry and all day as well. We've started putting her in Tinkerbell or Ariel panties at night, and since I usually get up once a night anyway, I just wake her up with me. She's been dry all week! And while we are so proud of that, we are at our wits end over this whole pooping business. She tells us she wants to go, she sits on the potty, and then she firmly repeats 'all done', until we let her up, at which time she's bound to poop in her pants within a few minutes.

It is AMAZINGLY frustrating! On Monday we had an episode such as this, and I told her she is grounded from all TV and movies until she can poop in the potty. She cried, she wailed, life was just too much for her two year old self, but alas I held firm. It was a tough couple days leaving that TV off all day, I rely too much on Barney to give me enough time to shower and get ready for the day, and Curious George usually helps me make dinner, and then The Little Mermaid and Peter Pan help us get through particularly rough evenings...I thought we were on to something Friday morning though, she told me she needed to go, we went up to the potty, and miracle of miracles, she got a tiny bit in the pot, whew! We danced, we sang, we clapped, and Lexi ran straight for the TV and picked Annie for her prize. I knew there would be more though, and I just hoped and prayed we'd have another positive experience...but no such luck. Later that afternoon she started to squirm and even though she said she didn't need to go, the signs were telling me differently. As I picked her up to head up to the bathroom things went very badly...and shortly after that I found myself cleaning the stairs, wondering why diapers are so bad, and a potty trained kid is so good.

Quiet Morning

Well I don't usually find time to blog at 9am, but here it is, and since Lexi is still sleeping, I thought I'd make good use of my time. Yes, I know my child is a miracle sleeper, but if it makes you feel any better she was up at 7 this morning vomiting all over her sheets. Poor thing!
My sister-in-law Tamara does an appreciation moment on her blog, she just picks a person every week or so, and does a really awesome shout-out. I think it's awesome to publicly state all the things and people you are grateful for, so here are some on the top of my list this morning!

#1 My family, and when I say my family I mean my Mom & Dad (who've been there through thick and thin, helping me, teaching me, and loving me through it all), my brother-who I don't think know's I admire and love him as much as I do, and my sisters (including my totally awesome sister-in-law, Yannette). I also mean MY family, which is the three of us for now. I could never ask for a better husband or better father to my little girl. Lexi, excusing the fact that she's two, is my best friend! We hang out all day together, and I get to enjoy her crazy words and actions, and teach her and help her and get frustrated with her (cause we all get frustrated with our friends now and again). It makes for a wonderful life when you have great people around you!

#2 My Extended Family. I have the best in-laws a girl could ask for, they are enourmosly helpful, interested in our life, and sensitive to our needs. My brothers and sisters in-law are all unique, and all a blessing to my life. I've found confidants in both my sisters-in-law and great friends with those Hall boys. They make me laugh and sometimes cry, but all of our gatherings are eventful ones!
If I keep extending out, I'd say my cousins and aunts & uncles and grandparents, there isn't one of them I could do without! I have two cousins that stick out in my mind this morning, Alisa is my eldest cousin, and she has always been a role model to me. She probably doesn't know how much she has impacted my life with the choices she has made. She's also gorgeous, and funny, and knows how to have a good time, she's also got 3 of the cutest kids I've ever seen in one family! And Shara, I grew up with Shara and although we haven't stayed in the best contact through the recent years, we recently had a phone conversation that makes me so grateful to know her. She is an awesome mom, and since her husband is in the military, she has been doing most of it alone. She loves and cares almost too much! She'd give her right arm to you if you asked!

And since I can hear Lexi stirring in the next room-it is 9:30 after all-, I'll have to stop there...but I'll add another 'grateful' post again soon! Have a great day!

New Babies!!

There must be something in the air this week, two of my good friends had baby boys!

Congrats to the Wilde Family and their new addition, Seth Lawrence Wilde! He arrived Sunday morning at 8lbs 9oz and 21 inches.









My dear college roommate Amy had her bundle of joy this very morning! Beckett Isaac North made his debut at a whopping 10 lbs 14 ounces and 21.5 inches!

Congrats to both these ladies and two lucky little boys who have great families!

**Hope it's ok I cut and pasted these pics from you guys!**