The Bad and The Good

The Bad

We came home from spending Christmas with my family to find that ALL the pipes in our house were frozen solid. It really shouldn't have been that much of a surprise because it got down below zero several days and our house has no insulation in the walls. Really... it doesn't have any. We are putting a bathroom in our upstairs bedroom and Jon was able to drop the pipes right through the exterior wall. I guess 100 years ago they didn't believe in insulation yet. Oh, the joys of an old house! Remember OHDD? I think we have a confirmed case. Surprisingly though our heating bill isn't too high and our house stays remarkably cool in the summer... don't really know how but I'm not complaining.

Anyway, last night we heated our house up to about a thousand degrees in order to thaw out the pipes and ran a space heater in front of our main water pipe. We waited several hours hoping the water would start flowing again. No such luck. We had to tap into our food storage water supply in order to flush the toilet, make dinner and quench the parched lips of a demanding two year old. I've realized that we have NO WHERE near enough water for a real emergency. We had about 20 gallons stored and it hardly lasted us one night. We were humbled and realized we need to store about 4 times that much. I also gained such a greater appreciation for how wonderful indoor plumbing is and how much easier my life is because of it. I tried to make bread last night and after having to pour my water out of the big barrel, heat it up in the microwave, wash my hands in snow, and not have a way to clean my dishes I realized that I live a pampered life compared to most women in the world. At least I didn't have to build a fire to cook it over or boil my water before I used it. Gee whiz!

We went to bed hoping our space heater would do the job but this morning there was still no water... meaning no shower for me... meaning I was grumpy. Around 10 AM we finally figured out that the water line from the street to our house was what was frozen. We called the city and they came and worked their magic. Luckily none of our pipes burst (that we know of) and I was able to take a shower and wash my dishes. I now have a new understanding of the scriptures that talk about Christ as the living water. Nothing can get clean without water. A life without water is dirty and stinky. Ponder on that for awhile :)

Okay now for

The Good

We had a great Christmas with my family. I think my kids are going through attention withdrawals because there is no possible way Jon and I can give them the same amount of love and adoration they got from their grandparents, uncle and aunts.

It was also so much fun to see them open their gifts. I don't think Rosie really knew what was going on but Asher got the hang of Christmas and gifts real fast.

The Bad

Rosie has a major bald spot on the back of her head. Asher never had one this big and I feel bad because I think it means she doesn't get held as much as he did. Or it could just be because she sleeps in her swing. Or because she is super curious and is always wiggling her head around to look at people. Hopefully it grows back before she hits Jr. High.

The Good

Asher had a really wonderful birthday.

I wanted to make him a basketball cake that was shaped like a basketball. It turned out pretty good but Jon decided he wanted to frost it. After battling about the amount of butter that went into the frosting, what color it should be, how much should go on the cake, and how it should be applied I am happy to report that we are still married... though I might have to frost the next cake when Jon is in bed. He actually did do a great job even if it wasn't quite what I would have done.


Okay and one last sequence of pictures... just because he is cute. Asher got finger paints for his birthday and as I was trying to get a picture of him painting he gave me several different responses when I asked "Give me a smile!"

#1

#2 # 3

What a goof.

Hope you all had a great holiday!

Old House Delusion Disease

I just had to share this.

I found it on a house remodeling blog and when I read it I couldn't stop laughing. I read it to my husband and it just got funnier and funnier.

We both DEFINITELY have Old House Delusion Disease (OHDD).

The first time the real estate agent walked us through what is now our house we wondered who in their right mind would ever by such a disgusting house. Then we needed up buying it... even after the inspector's report came back with about 50 things that were wrong with it. Obviously we had (and still have) a bad case of OHDD.







We've definitely improved things but it has been quite the adventure. Our house was built in 1916 and as we've worked on it we've actually discovered some pretty cool things in our walls and basement. Maybe someday I'll do a post showcasing all our artifacts. Anyway, if you've ever bought an old house or done remodeling you will enjoy this.

Home Sickness

by Dave Barry

Old House Delusion Disease

More than once I have had my brain paralyzed by what psychiatrists call Old House Delusion Disease (OHDD). My wife and I bought an old house that had every known old-house problem, including termites, not to mention a grand total of one closet, and an entire room that had no electrical outlets -- a clear indication that the house was not built by or for people with a need for, say, lighting. Were we discouraged?

No! We thought it was quaint!

Here's how delusional we were. We had plumbing problems (of course), and in an effort to fix a leak, some plumbing guys were crawling around under our house. They emerged holding some yellowed, crumbling, rolled-up newspapers, which they'd found wrapped around our pipes, apparently as insulation. We carefully unwrapped one of the newspapers and found that it was a Miami Herald from 1927. It had a story in it about Charles Lindbergh.

So there we were, confronted with stark evidence that our pipes, in addition to leaking, were very old. It's like being aboard a boat in the middle of the Pacific and discovering that not only were you sinking, but also your hull was made entirely of Triscuits.

How did we react to this horrible news? We were thrilled! Charles Lindbergh! It was so charming! The plumbers were also very excited, but in their case it was because they knew we would be putting all their children through Harvard.

Our House Delusion Disease is very powerful. Usually, when you buy an old house, you hire professional house inspectors. These inspectors are very thorough: They spend a whole day crawling around the house, and then they give you a detailed, written report, which says "Do not buy this house, you idiot!"

Love Is Blind

Not in so many words, of course. The report breaks the house down by major defects, then sub-defects. The house, according to the report, consists entirely of defects. You read the report, but because you have OHDD, none of it actually penetrates your brain, even when the inspector goes out of his way to warn you about serious problems:

INSPECTOR: I want to show you something in the living room ...

YOU: Don't you love that room? It has such character! The molding!

INSPECTOR: About the molding -- I wanted you to see this. (The inspector takes a screwdriver and taps it against the molding. The molding disappears in a smokelike puff of wood particles. Then a large part of the wall itself collapses, leaving a gaping hole, through which can be seen, in the gloom, an exposed wire that periodically emits a shower of sparks, illuminating a dripping pipe covered with green slime. A rat darts by, pursued by what seems to be a boa constrictor.)

YOU: Ha ha! These quirky old houses! That can be repaired, right?

INSPECTOR: Well, I suppose it could, if you're willing to ...

YOU: I'm not worried about cosmetic problems, as long as the house is structurally sound. (You stamp your foot on the floor to emphasize this point. Your foot goes through the floor.)

INSPECTOR: Um, that's another thing. Your floor joists have been almost entirely eaten away.

YOU: (retracting your foot) Termites? No biggie! A lot of these old houses have termites! We can just have it treated by ...

INSPECTOR: Actually, it's beavers. They're building a dam in the basement.

YOU: (silence)

INSPECTOR: I've never seen that before.

YOU: (recovering) Well, the kids have been wanting a pet!

At this point the inspector, who has dealt with OHDD before, gives up and edges out of the room, taking care not to put too much weight on any one part of the floor.

You, of course, buy the house. As a true OHDD victim, you would buy this house if it were on fire. Once it's yours, you begin calling what will become a never-ending parade of highly paid craftsmen, who will spend so much time at your house that eventually they will become a part of your family, and invite you to attend all their children's graduations from college.

Answering Cloth Diaper Questions

I've had quite a few questions about cloth diapers since my last post and I thought I'd take a minute to answer some of them here in case there are others of you with the same questions.

Which diapers to do I like the best?

I gave some of my recommendations in this post and have to say that I like the Fuzzibunz and BumGenius pocket diapers the best.

Which are better FuzziBunz or BumGenius?

Honestly, I like both of them. When I first tested out cloth diapers I was going to invest in some one-sized BumGenius diapers because the Velcro was so much easier to use than the snaps. Then I ended up finding a woman who was selling her stash of small, medium and large Fuzzibunz for cheaper than what it would cost to buy one-sized ones. I have to admit that at first I was a little discouraged by the snaps because they take a more work to figure out than the Velcro. Snaps take a few seconds longer to do up and sometimes it is easy to snap them so that the diaper is crooked. There is a small learning curve to the snaps, but it isn't hard to get over. The learning curve is true for the the one sized diapers as well. BumGenius one-sized diapers are easier to adjust than the Fuzzibunz, but once you've figured out how the elastic adjust the Fuzzibunz one-sized aren't hard at all. To me it seems like the Fuzzibunz and the BumGenius one-sized diapers seem to be about the same amount of bulkiness... which in all honesty, after all my fussing, isn't really that noticeable.

While I like both brands of diapers I am glad that I got the Fuzzibunz instead of the BumGenius because I've only had my BumGenius for 6 months and the Velcro is already starting to be less sticky. I think it will probably survive these two babies but I don't think it will hold together for more babies. If you are intending to use your cloth diapers for more than one or two babies I'd invest in a diaper that has snaps. Plus, toddlers can't pull snaps off as easy as they can Velcro! I also like the Fuzzibunz because the don't have a lip over where the insert goes in like the BumGenius do. With the lip you have to reach in a pull the insert out, which sometimes can be kind of gross. If the diaper doesn't have a lip the you can just shake the liner out into the diaper pail. Less touching of bodily fluids.... good.

The bottom line...they are both really great... one-sized diapers are a good idea... and BumGenius just came out with snap diapers which look fantastic.

How many diapers do you have? Is it enough?

I have 13 diapers for Rose and about 15 for Asher. I think this is a pretty good number. I could probably do with fewer for Asher, around 10 would be plenty, but wouldn't mind having one or two more for Rose.

As for sizing I think it is safe to say that if your child is wearing a disposable size 1 or 2 then they would fit a small sized cloth diapers, if they are wearing a 3 or 4 then they would be a medium sized cloth diaper, and if they are in a 5 or larger they would be a large sized cloth diaper. Asher is two years old, he isn't super skinny or super chubby, he weighs about 35 lbs, and wears a size 4 disposable diaper. His large cloth diapers are still too big for him-- we have to put them on the smallest setting-- and I don't know if he will grow into them before he is potty trained. They might come in handy as nighttime pants for him while he is learning to use the potty at bedtime, but I am considering selling them because I don't know how much we will use them.

Where can I buy diapers?

I got some of mine from Jillians Drawers and really like them.

I've also heard good things about Nicki's Diapers, Green Mountain Diapers, and the Diaper Pin.

The cheapest way is to find someone in your area selling their stash... check the classifieds or craigslist.

Does anyone else have recommendations for where to buy cloth diapers or how to make your own?

Rolling Thumb Sucker

Rose has started to suck her thumb. She's been trying to ever since she was born but just recently she has mastered the art of finding her thumb. She can get it now whenever she wants rather than whenever it happens to end up near her mouth.

I should probably discourage her...

chronic thumb sucking until an embarrassing age runs in the family...

but I just think it is too cute.

She has also has started rolling over. She hasn't mastered this yet and it is kind of hit or miss when she will actually do it. Though several Sundays ago every time I put her on her tummy to button up her dress she would roll over. I almost got it on video but my camera ran out of memory at the EXACT, literally, moment she rolled over. At the end of this video you can see it. Rose gives me a big smile and then BAM she rolls over but BING my camera dies. It was almost like she planned it that way.

And for all those who are related to me and care about this type of thing... here is one more of her... just because she is so cute.

Does anyone else find it highly ironic...

...that yesterday the president of the country with the world's largest military, who is waging 2 foreign wars, and not even a week ago announced a troop increase in Afghanistan, just accepted the Nobel Peace Prize?

The Nobel committee explained the award by saying that President Obama has, "...captured the world's attention and given its people hope for a better future. His diplomacy is founded in the concept that those who are to lead the world must do so on the basis of values and attitudes that are shared by the majority of the world's population." Yet it just seems a bit premature to give such an prestigious and lofty award to someone who is just a hope for peace, but hasn't actually done a whole lot to do it.

Don't get me wrong. I like our President. I respect him as a leader and as a man. I just don't understand what he has done that is on par with what other Nobel Prize winners like Muhammad Yunus, Médecins Sans Frontières, Nelson Mandela, Desmond Tutu or Mother Teresa have done.

In his speech the President also seemed a little abashed at the award and admitted the whole irony of the situation. He then acknowledged that the fact that force is sometimes necessary in maintaining and protecting peace. He said:

...I face the world as it is, and cannot stand idle in the face of threats to the American people. For make no mistake: Evil does exist in the world. A nonviolent movement could not have halted Hitler's armies. Negotiations cannot convince al Qaeda's leaders to lay down their arms. To say that force is sometimes necessary is not a call to cynicism -- it is a recognition of history; the imperfections of man and the limits of reason."

I agree with what he said and realize that there is a time and place for force... but doesn't it seem like if you are going to give someone a PEACE prize that you should wait until after the WAR is over... or at least seems to have an end in sight?

I am feeling a bit inclined to agree with those protesters who stood outside the Nobel awards venue yesterday with a sign reading: "Obama: You won it. Now earn it!"

It is Starting to Feel a lot Like Christmas

So, the best part about having your parents get remarried is that all of a sudden they have two of everything and need someone to give the extra stuff to... me! Which means that this year I have lots of beautiful Christmas tree decorations, which resulted in a tree that looks like this

Trust me... it looks better in real life

This Christmas tree is an improvement over our past three Christmas trees which have been decorated with our one box of thrift store tree bulbs, a garland I made out of leftover the material leftover from my bridesmaid's dresses, and a cardboard star covered in tin foil. Those trees always turned out pretty beautiful and I will always remember the one I stared at while in labor with Asher but it is kind of nice to have real decorations this year!

I also finished Rose's Christmas stocking and think it turned out pretty nice, if I do say so myself. I designed, cut out and appliqued all the details on it out of felt and embroidered her name on it.

Both her and Asher's stockings are done to look like the ones my mom made for me and each of my siblings. Our Christmas socks were one of our favorite Christmas decorations and I wanted my kids to have something to treasure.

I am pretty excited for Christmas. This is the first year that Asher will actually get excited about opening presents. Having kids at Christmas time really brings back the magic and excitement that seems to get lost as we get older.

How sweet it is to have two socks for Santa to fill this year!

Call for Birth Stories

Recently I found this woman's blog and am so excited about what she is doing. She is writing a book for LDS women and other women of faith that shares positive and/or spiritual pregnancy and birth stories. Her hope is to help women of faith to make conscious and spiritually based choices about pregnancy, birth, and beyond. She is looking for women to share their birth stories or about their journey through conception, pregnancy, birth and postpartum. She doesn't care how you birthed-- naturally, epidural, at home, unassisted, or c-section-- if you have a spiritual insight about your birthing experience she'd be interested. Here are some of the topics she is still looking for stories about.

I think that this is such an incredible idea for a book and am really excited to see her finished product. Birth is innately and powerfully spiritual. Yet, it seems like the spiritual aspects of birth often gets skipped over for most pregnant women. I'm really excited to read stories from other LDS women who found spiritual strength and power from the birthing experience. She is also in the beginning stages of producing a movie along the same lines as the book. Am I excited? You better believe it!

I've really wanted to write a post about my spiritual journey while being pregnant and giving birth but it is so hard to find all the right words. I have so much in my heart and my mind that I am having a hard time putting it down in print. But I think I am going to try. It will probably take a few posts and you might have to wait awhile for it, but I'll do it. Oh, now I'm committed..eek.

In the meantime if you feel prompted to share your story PLEASE write it down and send it in for this book. God teaches each woman different lessons through childbirth and it strengthens all women to hear them.

My Caridnal Rules For Blogging

About this time last year I had to give myself a month long break from blogging. I felt like blogging was starting to consume my life and my mind. I was constantly writing blog posts in my head, I had to check my email and blog at least 5 times a day, and couldn't wait for everything in my life to get out to the way so I could delve into "blogger land". I felt like I was neglecting my real life for a virtual life and I didn't like the person it was making me into. It was getting bad enough that when Elder Bednar gave his fantastic talk warning about letting virtual things get in the way of the most important things, Jon made me listen to it... and read it. I took the hint.

So I took a break. During that break I realized that blogging was deeply satisfying for me and that I loved to write, I loved the friendships I had made and strengthened through blogging, and I loved having a creative outlet in which to express my ideas and thoughts. But I also realized that if I was going to keep blogging, without letting it consume my life, I was going to have to give myself some boundaries.

Perhaps this sounds strange to some people, but I know I'm not the only woman who loves to write and has a hard time balancing blogging with her actual life. This year I've done much better at finding a balance between blogging and life. I feel like my blogs are just extensions of my heart and mind, which I use to enhance and enrich my life but not to consume it.

It has really helped for me to give myself some "Cardinal Rules For Blogging". Some of these I follow pretty well, others I still need to work on. Remember, these are just my personal rules you don't have to follow them, but feel free to incorporate any of them into your blogging if they help you.

1. Only blog when my babies are asleep and when my husband doesn't need my attention. They need me much more than anyone online ever will.

2. Only blog once during the day. If I choose to blog during nap time then I need to do something else with my free time at night and vise versa.

3. Don't compare my life or blog to anyone else's life or blog. Rejoice in what I've been given and remember that I have something beautiful and worthwhile to share with others. I'm sure that to someone else my life probably looks interesting and exciting too. The grass always looks greener on the other side.

4. Don't compare my children to other people's children. Everyone develops at different rates and has different talents and strengths. It isn't fair to them to compare them.

5. Try to leave comments on other people's blogs whenever a post sparks a thought or makes me smile. If I like to get them, then other people probably do to.

6. Real people take precedence over "virtual" people.

7. Don't write things that might hurt or embarrass anyone. Be especially careful about what I post about my children. It may be cute now but would it be hurtful for them to read it when they are older? What if their High School friends got a hold of it in 10 years, would they mind?

I've also made a sign by my computer that says "Is this the best possible use of your time?" I saw this at Jon's aunt and uncle's house and I thought that I would be a good reminder for me. I love blogging but I just need to do it with discipline. Posting these rules will help me remember and I hope help me follow them better.

What sort of rules do you have for yourself about blogging? How do you find balance?