Her life is a STAGE

We were going to Costco tonight... Good way to burn up some time on nights that the husband works late. . .

Upon arrival, Abby announced that she and Jaxon would be setting up their "stage" and doing performances while they were at Costco.

Me: Um, no Abby. . we need to get our shopping done and I can't leave you there.

Abby: Mom, why doesn't anyone ever give us money when we perform?

Me: Well, the people who set up and perform on streets are usually professionals. . . and they just do set up on streets to make extra money.

Abby: So, you are saying we aren't good enough ?!?!?! (Darn, she is perceptive)

Me: *crickets*


So how would you answer YOUR budding actress without snuffing out all of her hopes and dreams of putting on performances for money? I have not doubt, that someday, Abby will INDEED put her dramatic and artistic flare to good use FOR MONEY. . . but for now. . honestly. I am stumped.

The DISH

I have made a goal. . .



I KNOW.



I don't make many. . because they are endlessly and seamlessly dashed by the 4 people who REALLY run this household, and out of the 4, NONE of them are me.


Anywho. .



Back to my goal.


I am going vegetarian. . .JUST KIDDING! I had to put that in the same line to save your health from falling off your chair in dis-belief. Yeah, you're right. I would never do such a thing.


But I want to.



Like once (maybe twice) a week?


PROBLEM IS:


I don't have Veggie recipes.


I have a *few*


But what are your favs?


Please e-mail. Send links. Comment. What ever you do. DO IT. Cuz, I want one goal I can keep



And



I think



THIS IS IT.



Here is what I made that was Veggie tonight. My kids smashed it down FAST! Musta been good. TONIGHT'S VEGGIE DINNER VIA EVERYDAY FOOD VIA MY FAMILY FOOD BLOG.

The Happy List

RIDING MY BIKE FOR AN HOUR THIS MORNING to THIS SONG. (Thanks to Cassi, this is her fam riding through one of my former hoods, Sandpoint, ID. . . She inspired me to add it to my play list. Doesn't it just make you want to ride a bike?


IN 80 DEGREE WEATHER (NOW you can be jealous of my weather) with BEAUTIFUL SUNSHINE. (Oh wait, it is sunny here every day)


K is FINALLY used to her HELMET.


EATING SUSHI WITH MY LITTLE GIRL! (cuz my hubby is out of town)


EATING SUSHI DURING HAPPY HOUR WHERE SUSHI IS 50% OFF!


MY HUSBAND IS COMING HOME TOMORROW! YAY!


GOING TO CLOUDY WITH A CHANCE OF MEATBALLS WITH MY LITTLE GIRL. . AND GOING TO HARKINS THEATERS. .


I LOVE HARKINS THEATERS. From their $1 re-fillable cups to their Re-fillable popcorn that you can bring on a DIFFERENT visit. That makes for CHEAP movie treats friends!!


K is *SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT* 6 to 6. . No 5 AM wake up for the past 3 days! YIPPEE!!! I can even let her sit in there for a few mins. because she just talks to herself!


Lots to be happy about today. . .

Dear Donny Osmond . . .

Picture via abc.com -- Example of Donny pulling a "face"... but not nearly as bad as last night.

So, we all watched DWTS last night right? (If you do not know what that acronym stands for, you have no business reading this post. Mkay?)

And I just have a few things to say.

Dear Donny,

PLEASE lay off on the facial expressions. They weren't . . how should I say this. . good. They didn't look. . um. . se*y. They looked WEIRD. Like old man and bad plastic surgery weird. . .Like the over bite deacon shuffle weird. Just stop. Ok? Thanks.


Dear Tom,

You being on the show is creepy. YOU are creepy. Please stop. To your partner Cheryl. . You can't win every year, so, please, stop looking so pained to have Tom be your partner, even though he IS creepy.

Dear Ashley,

I know your dad was on the show. I know who he is, but who are you. Seriously. Have you EVER been on TV before this? I know this is very much a "D" list show. . But what are you? Like K? M?

Dear Chuck,

You are scary. Even when they try to make you look nice. You still look scary.

Dear Louie,

Len took the words right out of my mouth. . Hobbit Head.

Dear Maksim,

You looked like a sad, kicked puppy last night, and you were only on TV for 5 minutes. Do you and Cheryl need to hang out in the sad face Dept?

Dear Karina,

I know you just broke up with Maks, but do you have to look so HAPPY? I am sure you guys broke up because of your mis-matched desires to start a family because your career is so *HOT* right now (look, I just know these things) and I have one thing to say to you. . . Jennifer Aniston.

Signing off.

Cracker Flacker

I bought a new cracker. . . I think it will remain nameless.

I told Abby to put one in her lunch.

She looked at me with fear in her eyes.

I said, "What's the problem?"

She said, "My friend had one and said they were DISGUSTING!" (Said with complete and total drama--nostrils flared)

I said, "Did you try it?"

She said, "No".

I said, "You have to try it, before you can say you don't like it"

She said, "NO!"

I opened one.

She protested more.

I threatened everything I could think of.

She still said no.

I giggled to myself thinking, "I can't believe this is this big of a deal?!?!?!"

But I couldn't lose the battle.

I was holding a quarter sized bite in my fingers that was causing severe emotional trauma.

It was rediculous.

She started to CRY! CRY?!?!?!??!!

I thought, "I can't believe this! She hasn't even TRIED IT!!!!"

I insisted.

I was mad.

She finally took the smallest tiniest ity bity bite. (While plugging her nose)

She was replused.

ppppppsffffffffffttttttttttt.

She was being rediculous.

I think she needs an Academy Award.

I think I need a straight jacket.

There is a spring in my step. .

I wasn't sure what it was . . I just felt different today. There was a spring in my step. A kind of giddy-ness. I felt free. I felt happy. I wanted to dance and sing and shout, HURRAY! I wanted to "lunch out". I wanted to celebrate.


I wondered to myself, "Wow, why am I so happy today?"


and I realized.

















Because it is under 100 degrees. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. . . Thank you.

Have you met Jessica?

This picture was totally stolen from her blog. Mkay?


She posts comments on my blog from time to time. Ok, like every time I post a post. . she makes a comment. It makes for a LOVE/LOVE relationship. . She is amazing. She has two girls and is an adoptive parent to one stinkin' cute boy named little-c. Well, that is just what they call him anyway. She has got some serious ambition, and I love her. . . Want proof?




This is me, at like, MIDNIGHT, at her house this summer. We were watching SYTYCD (see her on her couch?) And she let my hairdresser come over (HI WHITNEY! --Cute blonde girl) and cut like, 5 inches off my head in her kitchen. . NOW THAT IS LOVE.

I tried to make it up to her though, because I brought her my favorite cup cakes from THIS bakery in her home town/my old home town.

Looking at this picture makes me instantly hungry and makes me crave cupcakes. . NOW. Sad. I am like a Pavlovian dog. . . trained to respond to cupcakes. Anywho...

Back to Jessica. .

Ambitious.. . That is what I was saying. . and awesome. . and author. . You can check it out here. Say hello, and tell her she is great. . Because she is. :)

POP Culture

The VMA's were last night. I didn't watch them, but, I heard there was some "drama" so, I went to the site to check it out. . Here is what I found:

Lady Gaga (photo via mtv.com)

Can you say, issues?


I mean, this takes issues to a whole new level. . no? (Lady Gaga--again)

And Madge, you need to lay off the plastic surgery. You aren't foolin' anyone anymore as the most youthful 51 year old. Mmmkay? You are starting to look like the cat woman. .

I'm just sayin'. . you are about one step away. . It is a fine, fine line.


But now, to the REAL reason I visited the VMA site. . I heard they previewed a new movie trailer. .

Have you seen the movie Twilight? I mean, during the day, when you are not surrounded by a million screaming teenagers, and when you are not hopped up on caffeine? Because there were parts that were laughable. Seriously. Don't hurt me.

THE GOOD NEWS IS: NEW MOON LOOKS A WHOLE LOT BETTER!!!

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

PS- Dear Kanye, we are all tired of your tirades. . Time to lay off the sauce and go to rehab.

Things I LIke

There were so many things that I liked around the blogosphere this week... I usually post them because I want you to get in on "the deal" too. But this week, it wasn't as much about the "deal" as it was about the stuff! I like that too. So, I think from time to time, I am going to do a 'Round the Blogosphere' post. Except, I need a catchier phrase. . . ANYONE? ANYONE? No, ok. . . Moving on.

Ever wanted to know how to do a smokey eye? I wanted to! And got a play by play with pix here: SMOKEY EYE. I tried it. . and I think I would have looked JUST LIKE HER except that I don't have that cool eye shape and have WAY TOO MUCH SKIN ON MY EYELID! (Thanks Dad) Just add that to the plastic surgery bill. . .


I was reminded of a great book that I LOVE and now I want to buy it for Abby, Jacko too. I think they would BOTH dig it. I did when I was a kid. . COOL BOOK.


Ok, So, I DID do a little on-line shopping. . Ugh. I am such a sucker... and if you are wondering where I get the $$$ for this stuff, I EBAY! I heart selling stuff on Ebay. . . Oh back to the purchase: CHEAPO EARRINGS What a deal huh? I found a few cute pairs. . .


Here is a fun way to decorate! I love decorating. I wouldn't say I am a pro at it, but I sure do like to think about it! Even if it is not my house! Here is a great idea and a tutorial to go along with it! :) IDEA: TUTORIAL: I LOVE a good decorating idea!


Some girlies in my old ward started a blog about freezer meals. It has been on my mind lately, yours too? Unfortunately, I don't have room in my freezer for ANYTHING. (Because of all my coupon-ing) BUT, if I did, I would totally try out some of their ideas. . . Lately, I would have really liked coming home to a home cooked meal that I didn't cook that day. . . ? Anywho, it is HERE: FREEZER MEALS.


And for ONE thing I DiD NOT like. . . Ed and Jill on Ellen. I haven't watched the Ellen show in forever, and for some reason, my tivo picked up an episode last week and Ed and Jill were on "defending their love". . Blech. She was acting weird and not touching him (her body language was speaking VOLUMES) and he sounded. . Stupid. Ed, if I ever said I was rooting for you, I now apologize for being soooo wrong about you.


Oh, I also like it when people read books that I might want to read, but then, give me a synopsis, so I don't have to read it. ;) Book on
Homework and Kids. Thanks D-Dawg!

And then, there is Natalie. She doesn't post very often, but when she does, you are in for an "experience". We met in "blogland" and she blog stalked me for a while (I have a lot of those... NAME YOURSELF!) then, we met in TRUE LIFE when she saw me at a fundraiser for Nie Nie! (Can you believe that was a year ago Nat? We need to get together!) Anywho.. I just so WHOLEHEARTEDLY loved reading her last two posts... Just loved. Kisses Nat. You are a good mom.

That's it for now! Enjoy my slice of the blogosphere!

No Babies Were Actually Harmed for this Blog Post

And although mighty-minis might not be considered "babyfood" the sure help out in the teething department. . . K is trying to debut some new bottom teeth, and she devoured a couple of mighty minis in an effort to "chill" them out. . .


However, post mighty mini-she looked somewhat like an accident victim. .

But, I promise, it was under very close supervision. . . Right on top of my counter... >
Don't worry. I balanced out all that sugar with some real fruit later :)

However, someone else had a hankering for mighty mini's at about 4:00 a.m. He came into my room anyway. I didn't realize his hankering until I was shooing him back down the stairs. . There was one on the steps about 3 steps down that he ever so politely picked up and gave to me. . .

Oh, and then a butter knife? One more item to pick up on our route to bed. . ANOTHER mighty mini. . (I guess he was REALLY hungry) Of course, when we got to his bedroom door, it was locked. (A butter knife is the prefered method of opening doors around here... Now it is all making sense?) I opened the door and got him back into bed. . . Who knows what else he did while he was galavanting around the house last night... But it wasn't my usual sneaker. I have a new one.
Maybe the smurfs made him do it. . . Wish him luck tomorrow... He is going to be seeing smurfs in his sleep at the surgery center! ;)

How do you solve a problem like Kaylin?

Please re-read that title and sing it to the "How do you solve a problem like Maria? "


Because K got fitted for her Cranial Band today. But, from here on out, let's just call it a helmet. Ok? Cuz that is what it is.

And no, that is not it.. She was just being fitted today... As you can see from the pix last time.. it will be much more sleek. . Today, she just had to look like Maria for a little while.

She was pretty good. Cried a little. . I think she liked her photo shoot. I love it because the Dr. was trying to "reassure me" that it wasn't going to hurt and that she would be fine. . . I was like. . Sir, this is the last of 4 children of mine. . . and you don't know the 1/2 of what I have been through... .I'll be fine--I am not worried. That seemed to put him at ease. . .



But, she was more happy when she got to take off her habit. . I mean, plaster mold. :)


But, maybe we should borrow the mold for Halloween. . no?

Cheery and Random

How about a more cheery post than the one before, mkay? Sorry about that. . . sometimes . . well, you know.



Anywho. . I am still dreadfully ill, but, moving on. . I got something CUTE IN THE MAIL!!! Remember this? Well, I got my GET CUTE NOW stuff in the mail, and it is FAR BETTER than I had hoped.



I got them for so cheap that I thought, just for a minute, maybe they are super tiny or something?? You know, sometimes deals just aren't what they seem. . But nope! They are fabulous and I LOVE them! I am so glad I spotted them because they were such a great deal, and although I still tote my diaper bag (even though it is super cute) for the most part, now, if I leave K home, I don't have to take my diaper bag!! YAY!




Here is me (during my sick days.. sorry, no make-up. Just keepin' it REAL ya'll!) toting the black bag and Abby toting the Green (almost was orange, but chose green at the last second) bag!

See how super serious of a model she is? Yeah. When I handed her the bag she said, is this one mine??? Hahahah.. Not on your life girlfriend! What she goes from 8 to 16in like point 2!

I love em! And you will be seeing alot of those purses if you see me around! If you got one, post and tell me which one! I hope you scored a great deal too!

In other news: Thank you to Kathy Ireland who has let all the world see her post baby body. . If you want a good idea of what mine looks like, here you go.

That is pretty much my gut in a nut shell. Ugh. To make me even a little more crazy, my hubby is losing weight. I hate that. (Good for you honey, really, I mean it. And you are NOT going to catch me. . even though I say you might) I really need to do something now... . I think I might have to post a before pick on here with measurements and blog about it every week, because I am just not feelin' the motivation to work out. I think I might need a little encouragement from blog land.

In other big news: Kaylin is getting one of these:

Why you might ask? She needs one. Remember when I asked if anyone knew anything about Torticollis? (Was that just on the FB?) Anyway, she had it. I think I worked through it pretty well for the most part, but, there are some head shape issues. The Dr. who fits babies for this asked me how severe I thought it was on a scale from 1-5. I said a 3. After measuring her head, he said, "Well, I would say on scale from 1-5, she is about a 3. . . " [Cheater] Anywho. It is purely cosmetic. And you might say, THAT IS CRUEL! And to you I would say, This baby has an 99.9% chance that she will be over 6'1" tall. She needs to have a nice head shape and no other abnormalities... trust me. (currently she is sporting a nice sloped forehead b/c of the torticollis, and although it is slight, and mostly hidden by her hair, I don't want to take any chances.) Besides, she is dangerously close to learning how to crawl, so, she could use a little extra head padding, don't cha think?

Oh, this blog post is so fun! Are you bored to tears yet? You are probably only still reading if you know me personally... Thank you.

Last bit of news: Wade is getting tubes and an adenoidectomy next Friday. YIPPEE! I say that with all sincerity because he has already had 4 ear infections since ONE of his tubes has fallen out and we are on our way into fall. . . after which Peter has promised to snip all of his binki's off. Stay tuned for that fun week.

Did I mention we have ROCKIN' health insurance??? SERIOUSLY ROCKIN! I am on my way into checking about my varicose veins, Peter's vasectomy and a possible tummy tuck for me. . . I am sure I can find some medical reason for it! :)

Delusional Motherhood

Today I was sick. I mean, flu, yuk sick. It stunk. The worst part was, I had to take care of two kids while I was sick. It made is stink even worse. It was a long, long, long, tiresome day. But, it is over.

I was thinking how "hard" Kaylin has been. You know, she is not sleeping through the night. . . Ok, she does on occasion, but then wakes up at 5:00 a.m. It is killing me. I am tired. I would love to consider getting my body back, but I am so stinkin' tired, I don't even know what to do with myself. The funny thing is. . I was sitting here thinking that Kaylin is definitely my hardest baby. D.E.F.I.N.I.T.E.L.Y. I mean, she is soooooooooooo high maintenance!!!

She is starting to want to get up on all fours, and I was trying to remember when my other kids got up on all 4's, so I ventured into Abby's room to get her baby calendar. Yep, I did one of those. . . for my FIRST child. Anyone out there do one for a second child? If you did, you are my idol. Seriously.

I started to read it, and started to laugh. . out loud because I have basically no memory of Abby. Ok, well, I do, but not exactly as I had written it down. I remember she had a hard time going to sleep. . Like, she would cry . . FOREVER! An hour! Sometimes 2!! If she could hear me and Peter (in our 800 sq.ft. apartment) or see any light under the door, she would SCREAM! She hated going to bed because she felt like she was going to miss the party. . (Um, not too much unlike she is now). Anywho. ..

Her calendar goes like this:

April 7th: Naps were a struggle again today. I think you are teething and growing!
April 11th: You wanted to stay up late tonight!
April 12th: You have been waking up at 5:00 a.m.! Mommy doesn't like it!
(There were entries on the days in between the 12th and the 19th but they had nothing to do with sleep deprivation, so, I am omitting them)
April 19th: You did not want to take an afternoon nap today! You cried for 2 hours!

Under Your Habits I put: You don't like going to bed, you think crawling is awesome and you growl when you eat!

Now, if you would have asked me, I would have said she woke up at 6 or 6:30. . . and that she was an excellent baby on a great schedule. . . The truth of the matter is, she struggled with nap time and woke up too early and cried for an hour every night before going to bed.

Delusional Motherhood.

It is why we do it again, right? Well, I am here to state that I WILL NOT BE DOING IT AGAIN, and I am trying sooooooooooooooo hard to enjoy this baby, but the truth of the matter is: I AM SO TIRED it is hard to. . . I am just too old for this biz, and if you were to read Kaylin's "calendar" (which I am not doing) it would read:

August 29th: You woke up at the crack of dawn. I am exhausted
August 30st: You woke up at 3:00 a.m. and then decided to wake up at 6:00 a.m. for the day. I need more sleep.
September 1st: I have no idea what day it is and I am losing my mind over sleep deprivation.
September 2nd. I am sick as a dog, and can barely handle myself, let alone a baby and a 2 year old. . . Calgon take me away.

There you have it folks! I have spent the last few weeks reading about how you all are home alone all day and having nothing to do. . and let me tell you. . I am ready to join your ranks! (In like, 5 years. . . )