These are a Few of My Favorite Things

So with Oprah retiring in like a year and a half,

I decided that I should probably step in

to share some of my "favorite things".

Except these are things you could

actually afford to buy.

No, I will not be giving one of everything

to all readers so keep your heads on.

(SNL skit-pretty funny)

(The only place I could find it

was this random blog)

These are just a few things that are pretty small

but I am pretty fond of these days. It's great to have

things around your house

or things you use everyday that

bring a little smile to your face.

#1 Johnsons Buddies Soap

No not for my use, but I love it

for the kids. It's great for when they are out

of that baby wash stage but not ready for the harsh adult soap.

It isn't slippery and it smells good too.

#2 The Map Shower Curtain

If you have to sit on the toilet anyway.......

I have found myself using the kids bathroom

on purpose at times, just so

I could brush up on

my Geography.

#3 Island of Saints
by: Andy Andrews
We got this book from Jared's
mom and dad a few years ago. It has
been one of my all time
favorite reads. You can't put it
down and it has a great message
at the end.


#4 C.O. Bigelow's
My Favorite Lip Balm
My favorite is shea butter and sweet almond oil.
sounds so good you want to eat it, but don't.
It's found at your local Bath and Body Works.

#5 Cuties
I love when these come into season. In fact I just
ate one a few minutes ago. Not only
are they delicious, they also peel
so easily you don't even need one
of those nifty orange peelers. I would have to agree
with the tag on the bag: It really is
Nature's perfect fruit.


#6 Bath and Body Works
Nectarine Mint Hand Soap
This stuff smells so good. Really that's it.

There's a.......

Bun in the oven!!

OK, so not that kind, but more like this kind.....

(no, this is not an actual picture of me)

I'm 13 weeks (but look like I'm 6 months).

Due date is June 12th. We are very excited.

Bored

So we had one of those mornings today.

Max woke up early even after going to bed

pretty late last night. He woke me up by peeing and flushing the

toilet in the hall with the bathroom door wide open. Then....

He was instantly bored.

He stood in my room for awhile and hovered over my bed.

Super Annoying.

Then he figured he would go

clean the playroom, which is nice but it woke

up his brother who was sleeping in the next room.

Not nice.

After he had successfully woken up everyone

in the family. He and Sam proceeded to

say how bored they were.

Can I tell you how much I hate this word now?

It gets used way too much in this house. I believe being bored is a choice so I decided to make a rule: everytime one of the kids

comes up to me and says they are bored and there is nothing to do they owe me a quarter. Maybe I should be better but sometimes I am fresh out of circus tricks and people need to entertain themselves.

About 1/2 an hour later all three boys are doing this 3D Alligator puzzle and they are all fighting.

So I tell Max to go upstairs and find something

else to do since he has done the puzzle a dozen times before.

He tells me that, "this whole morning has been boring." So I tell him that he owes me a quarter.

He tells me that he doesn't like that rule and if I'm going to have that rule then he doesn't want to live here.

He proceeds out the door.

Sam is stressing because he thinks he may never see his brother again. I'm pretty sure he is not going past the porch in his pajamas and no jacket or shoes.

I'm right.

He comes back in 5 minutes later to get his jacket and heads back out. After about 10 minutes I checked on him and he told me that I had the "dumbest rules on Earth." 10 minutes later I checked in again to snap a picture of the lovely image.

Looks pretty boring to me.

I had a shower and came downstairs to find Max had decided to "come home" after 45 minutes of sitting on the porch. He did try to negotiate his way out of this rule and I shut that down pretty quick. He made his choice and decided to stay.

Oh, and as we are having our "discussion" in the hallway, I am standing in my towel. Then my Father in Law comes to the door.

Sorry Glen.

Needless to say, I haven't heard the

word bored the rest of the day.

But it's only 1pm.

I Love Thrift Store Books!

I have a small addiction to buying thrift store books

It goes something like this:

about once a month after I drop Sam off to school,

Van and I head off to the local Deseret Industries

to find treasures. Van must think the bee on the DI logo looks more like

a butterfly because he calls it the butterfly store. Seriously, I can find books

that are in great shape that range from $.25 to $.75. A little wipe down with

a clorox wipe and we are good to go.

And those book orders from school---I am such a sucker.

I can't resist the book every month that is on sale for $1.

So when you are feeling the itch to

buy a little something

for your kids.

Try this.

I Hope

Max and Sam both got Student of the

month at their school.

I hope my kids still like school and are doing well when they are older

I hope my kids are still this interested in the laundry when they get older.

If they are, they will make their future wife one happy woman. I'm not sure if she would appreciate the laundry being done while wearing an Incredibles costume though.
x0x0x0x0x0

Why Me?

Well, it's 8:40pm. Jared is off doing Churchy things and the kids are all snuggled in their beds (and I only had to yell once). The house is quiet and I am snuggled up on the couch with my Caffeine Free Pepsi (that's right-caffeine free). I can go days without one too. Such progress, however it's still my favorite "treat". I haven't blogged in awhile and I got to thinking of what to write about. Here is what's happening lately: I got myself into a bigger project than I bargained for this Halloween by making 3 costumes. I did some research and thought it looked pretty easy, but it ended up being a team effort by Jared and I and a few late nights taping and spraypainting cardboard. My special thanks to Amazing Connie who sewed an awesome Nacho Libre cape and shiny red undies for Van (one of these days I will learn to sew.....Maybe). After he figured out that he actually had to WEAR the costume to get candy things were much easier. How did I get such stubborn kids? Lego guys were a big hit and enjoyed by all. This being the "Thanks" season here is a list of things I appreciate:

I'm thankful to know that I have a Heavenly Father who loves me. I am thankful for the knowledge of who I am, where I came from, why I am here and where I am going.

I am thankful to be a mother. Each day I learn to appreciate the little things even more. I am thankful that I have the power of magical kisses that heal all wounds. I am thankful to have three little faces to look at everyday and for the exchange of countless hugs.

• As I look outside at the cold, I am thankful for a warm house filled with love (most of the time).
  
• I am thankful to be healthy.

I am thankful for a full stomach and food in the pantry for tomorrow.

I am thankful for a husband who loves me (which can be hard at times). I love (and hate) how he can ALWAYS make me laugh, even when I want to be grumpy.

I am thankful for extended family who are all awesome.

I am thankful for great friends who like me (at least to my face). J/K (I think!)

I am thankful that I can look out my back window and see things like a rainbow (picture at top of blog).

I am thankful for pringles salt and vinegar chips (my treat tonight after the kids have gone to bed)

My list could go on and on and on......but I would hate to sound boastful. I heard someone make a comment the other day that when bad things happen we always seem to ask...Why Me? But when good things happen we rarely ask...Why Me? Maybe most of the times we even fail to see all of the good things in our lives.

I decided to make a few goals. I'm going to add some color to my house (it seems too much brown) and I'm going to add some color to my wardrobe. I looked it over the other day and realized I have way to0 many grey, brown and black items. I'm going to try to go brighter. So if you see me and your shocked and wondering.....just let me have my fun.

I also need a good book to read....I'm taking any and all suggestions besides the Twilight series or the Harry Potter series.

Have a great day! Here are some pics of our fall festivities in no particular order.

xxOOxo X o (little kiss, little kiss, big hug, big hug, little kiss, little hug, big kiss, little hug.

I'm pretty sure that I've watched Nacho Libre too many times.

New Family Pictures

It had been a little over 2 years since we last had family pictures, so we decided to update. I wanted to give a huge thank you to Tiffany Ericksen who took our pictures! We love you! You did such a fantastic job. Check out her blog at http://www.tiffs-pics.blogspot.com/. We got so many good ones it was hard to pick a few to share.