The Secret Lives of Neighbors

Look what I found on my friend's blog......My neighbor in a cone bra with tassels!

Go Sherri!

Bow chicka bow bow!

A Royal Party

One last birthday post for Bryce.

Bryce hosted a birthday luncheon, at a local tea room, for all of the special princesses in his life....complete with tiaras. He is not quite to the stage of life where he has little friends his own age. It's actually quite awkward whenever he gets together with another one year old. They sit. They stare. Neither one breaks the ice. They eventually get bored and travel in separate directions - playing with their own toys.....and rolling their eyes when their mama's try to move them back together.

He much prefers the women in his life. He is so blessed with plethora of ladies to choose from. Their interactions are quite different.

Anne - His favorite rocker. He loves to lounge with her.....especially in the winter when she has a fire going. Back and forth they rock - while she rythmically feeds him Cheerios or some other delicacy. Never a lack of kisses. Never a lack of compliments. Bryce never wants for anything when "Angel" is around. (Bradley nicknamed her this).
Katie: His blonde bombshell. Always traipsing around in high heels and schmootsy clothes. She confiscates him in Relief Society and feeds him a steady stream of snacks and kisses. He especially loves her because she lets him steal sips of Dr. Pepper when his mama isn't looking. She had to leave early due to her son having a fever. He was devastated! We found the closest pic possible to represent her.

Shannon: His auntie. Always has his back. He enjoyed a summer of dips with her at various pools. They always exchange looks of admiration, as well as a few whispers.I think I overheard him saying, "Give me a cousin, Shanaynay."

Grandma- The ultimate princess. The giver of his gift....his mama. He loves his grandma for the way she takes time for him and praises him and tells him how good and sweet he is. She is also a bearer of the treats. Ever prepared. Ever ready. She is always there for him and he lives for the praises she sings.

Grandpa- So he isn't a princess.....but he sure is a King. Bryce loves him because he has given him a blueprint for manhood. When others aren't watching, grandpa swoops him up and holds him quietly on his lap.....flashing smiles and winks in privacy. Bryce loves the way he smells....so refreshing to smell freshly shaved whiskers after being around princess perfume all day.

Courtney (Nie-Nie)- His favorite hip to ride. So petite and compact! She is his traveling friend. She packs him around and shows him the world - taking pit stops for nuzzles and kisses. He loves it when she buries her face in his hair - breathing in all of it's Johnson & Johnson freshness. She whispers secrets to him....and he smiles.

Jenni- The future mother in law. He has eyes for little Evie. Jenni offers him the acceptance he will need to pursue this relationship in a few years. A Queen, indeed.

Bradley- His prince of a brother. His light and joy. His everything he wants to be. His assistant in unwrapping gifts. His best friend.

Mama- The Queen of da milk. His soft place to fall. His soft place to poop. His soft place to spit up. His soft place to cry. Just the right, soft place for him...always.

(side story - The other day Bradley patted my chest and said, "Do you remember when I was a baby and drank milk out of doze boobies?" "yes.....", I answered. "Doze was some gooooood boobies.")

Happy wishes my little prince.

Dreams of chocolate milk.

Shout Out to Nitrous Oxide!

Went to the dentist today.

"Do you want some gas to take the edge off?", she asked.

I hesitantly agreed.......I was uneasy and unsure - as I had never experienced this before.

The mask went on - and my doubts were quickly swallowed up in euphoria.

Body heavy - mind free from cares.

My limp arm fell across my Dentist's leg......didn't care - nope - left it there because he was just so warm.

Watched the Dow plummet 500 points and all I could do was giggle.

Drove home. Laughed all the way. Laughed like a hyena - until I cried.

Toes still tingling.

Arms still heavy.

They probably shouldn't didn't give me enough oxygen before I left.

In fact, they probably shouldn't have let me out the door.

Still not a care. Not a care. Not a care in the world.

Can't wait to go back next time and visit with my new best friend.

Draw Nearer

Hello Kiddos...My sweet little bear cubs. This weekend we were able to watch General Conference together. I noticed that you guys especially enjoyed the music. Whenever the choir sang, you would grab your blankies and climb up on the couch to cuddle with me or Daddy. Tonight I wanted to tell you about one of my favorite talks.

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, Second Counselor in the First Presidency, of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, gave one of the most powerful talks on "Hope" that I have ever heard.

And by the way.....he is very handsome for a 68 year old man :)

He told a story about when he was 3 years old, living in Germany during WWII. His father was away and his mother took him and his three siblings and fled Germany on a refugee train as foreign forces approached. The train stopped to reload supplies - and his mother left the four of them on the train while she hurried to look for food for them to eat. When she came back the train was gone.

Just hearing this story retold gave me the sickest pit in my stomach....wondering what must have run through his poor mother's mind. She knew that if she did not find the train, she would never see her children again.

He said that "Her faith overcame her fear" and her "hope overcame despair". She pleaded with God for help and later found the train, which had been moved to a remote area of the train yard. She had been reunited with her children! (but I still cried through the rest of conference wondering what she would have done if she hadn't......that's a mama for you!)

You are too small to notice - but one day you will read about what has been happening in our world these past few weeks. With the potential collapse of the US economy, uncertainty in the political arena, and an unprecedented bailout bill.....mama has been a little stressed. I lived through a recession once....but I was little like you - and didn't even know what was going on. The game has totally changed as an adult....as your caregiver......as your guardian. In the words of Daddy.....sometimes Mama "tends to get worked up into an unnecessary lather". My fears of tomorrow sometimes threaten the joys of today.

President Uchtdorf stated that hope through the Atonement of Jesus Christ is a commandment. We have to overcome the temptation to lose hope. Despair exists because there must be an opposition in all things.....but sometimes we can end up being "bound in suffocating darkness".

"What is hope?" The Hope of Israel, Jesus Christ .

It is "Not knowledge....but TRUST that the Lord will keep his promise.......confidence that we will be blessed......and believing and EXPECTING our prayers to be answered."

It is "patient perseverance".

It makes me sad to think about - but some day you will be old enough to be aware of the happenings of our world.....you will have worries and fears and doubts. He counseled us to "look beyond the horizon of mortality". We have nothing to fear because we have the ability to be cleansed from sin and live forever, through Jesus Christ.

We have to "hope that things will work together for our good" and pray that He will "refresh us with courage". As we hope more - it leads to good works.

Of the virtues Faith, Hope, and Charity .......As one increases, the others grow, as well.

"When faith is eroded, hope is there to uphold us.

" The brighter our hope - the greater our faith.

The stronger our hope - the purer our charity."

So, instead of climbing back into bed tomorrow and hiding under the covers with you.......it's time to "move forward and put faith and hope into action."

Darn......no cartoon hour tomorrow!

I love you, little love bugs.

Keep those chins up.......and keep hoping.

Mama

Naughty beginnings....Sweet Endings

Bryce had a naughty start to his birthday on Tuesday. He began his day by blowing out his diaper in his crib.....one of my favorite things!

He emptied the dirt out of my African Violet....that I had kept alive for nine years.

He had several temper tantrums. And yes, that is syrup gluing his eyelashes to his face. Refusing to be wiped clean after breakfast was another of his naughty tricks.He climbed a few stairs...and fell down them...onto a bag of clothes that I had procrastinated dropping off at the Salvation Army - Lucky for him.

(note that I DID pick him up and comfort him and make sure he was okay before I repositioned him for the photo shoot.)

His day only went up from there. I made him a scrumptious birthday dinner. The fare consisted of a main course of Italian Wedding Soup......check out my meatballs. There's a whole lotta love in those meatballs.

Want the recipe?

Italian Wedding Soup

INGREDIENTS

1/2 pound extra-lean ground beef
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons shredded fresh basil leaves - or you may used a couple teaspoons of dried
1 tablespoon chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
2 green onions, sliced
5 3/4 cups chicken broth
2 cups finely sliced escarole (spinach may be substituted)
1 lemon, zested
1/2 cup orzo (rice-shaped pasta), uncooked - or may substitute 1 Cup small shell pasta
grated Parmesan cheese for topping

DIRECTIONS

Mix together the meat, egg, bread crumbs, cheese, basil, parsley, and green onions; shape into 3/4 inch balls. Pour broth into a large saucepan over high heat. When boiling, drop in meatballs. Stir in escarole(spinach) lemon zest and orzo(pasta). Return to a boil; reduce heat to medium. Cook at a slow boil for 10 minutes or until orzo is tender, stirring frequently. Serve sprinkled with cheese.

Serve with.....

And a little....

And Voila!

Karah: "Did you add lemon to this?"

Me: "I did!" (shocked at her mature palette)

Karah: "Yeah, that's what I thought. This might be the best thing you made....ever."

Bryce gave it the thumbs up.

Bradley approved, as well.

Karah breaks into song. It's sideways - but still hilarious.



Bryce opened some gifts....

And got some loves.

And then some cake.

I love a man with a 5 O'clock shadow. Love it.

Happy 1st Birthday --- Sweet, Naughty Boy of mine.

One Year Ago....

(pardon the pic - I was a bit tired....natural childbirth and pitocin....not a pleasant combo)

One year ago, on September 30th, 2007 - I made a new friend. The minute our eyes met, I was hooked. He had me in the palm of his tiny hand. He didn't have much to say - but I could tell he liked me a lot by the way he looked at me. We hit it off immediately.....and spent the rest of our day hanging out, cuddling, and napping together. He never spent the night in his little, plastic nursery cart.....he preferred the craftmatic adjustable hospital bed.....with mama.

He drank da milk and napped and pooped and then was brought to his new home. He fit in immediately - it was where he belonged....if you can't tell.

He rarely cried - and when he did, we all got excited because it sounded so sweet. Never have I heard such a pleasant little cry. If he had words, he was likely saying, "Excuse me....I don't mean to interrupt...but I was wondering if you might have some milk to spare? Just a few drops is all. I'm sorry for the inconvenience....I'll just grab this little snack and head back to bed....."
The kids have been on cloud 9 ever since he arrived. There was no jealousy - no tears....just love.

An angel baby. Our third in a row!

When we had Karah and were expecting Bradley - I wondered if there would be enough love to go around. It was surreal to think about feeling that way about another child. It was the day I had Bradley that I realized that I had enough love for ANY child that came into our lives. When Bryce arrived - I was even more amazed at my endless well of love that I had to draw from. Instead of "running out of love" - it seemed that with each child I had - my ability to love the others grew even stronger. It occurred to me recently that perhaps this is how God is able to love all of His children. Instead of not having enough love to go around.....the love intensifies with each additional child. Now that is a lot of love!


One year ago ..... (sigh)

So Bryce......please know how much we love you and how much joy you have brought into our lives. What a blessing you are. We love you tiny B.

Wanna Play Tag?

I have just been tagged by my sister in law, Shannon. Will you be next??? The theme-o-the-day is "Fives". Here goes.

FIVES: Five answers to each question:

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?- Ten years ago I was in a long distance relationship with Tommy T. He lived here and I was in Cincinnati. We flew out to see each other every other weekend, taking turns. It was hard to be away from him -wishing that I could be with him every minute of the day. Eventually he decided it was cheaper for me to be his wife than his girlfriend....and he proposed in December. :)

2. What are 5 thing on my to do list today?

• Hang the Halloween Ghosts/Lights in the trees


• Go to Hobby Lobby and buy EVEN MORE Fall decorations


• Wash the kids laundry


• Lunch with Anne


• Date night with Karah....going to the mall to buy her first "Real" earrings. She gets to take her studs out!! Then going to dinner with her......her pick!

3. What are my 5 favorite snacks?

• Almonds/Walnuts - Love da nuts.


• Popcorn- made on the stove - ghetto style


• Apples and Peanut Butter - another form of da nut


• Cottage cheese and Peaches - got this addiction when I was pregnant with Karah and it's never left.


• Milk Duds

4. What 5 things would I do if I was a millionaire

• Laundry


• Dishes


• Mopping


• Change diapers


• Nothing would change - besides traveling a little more

5. Five places I have lived

• Crystal Lake, Illinois


• Charleston, West Virginia


• El Paso, TX


• Tucson, AZ


• New Mexico

6. 5 jobs I've had-

• It all began at McDonalds. I was a rising star. They even offered for me to go to McDonalds University and make it big by becoming a manager. Unfortunately, I didn't have the same vision for myself. I was only in it for the drive thru headset.


• Treatment Specialist for a Delinquent Teen group home. Loved that!


• Taught anger management at Utah State Prison to Sex Offenders.....Not so much.


• Rape Crisis Advocate - would get paged when a rape case was admitted to hospital - to be there if they wanted someone with them during the rape kit. - Decided I would rather work with victims than perps.


• Doula - Help ladies have babies! SO love it!

I now TAG ........

1.Courtney

2.Meg

3.Renee

4. Maren

5. Josie

Get on it ladies!