GIANT SNOWMAN

This is the giant snowman my kids built this weekend. Ryan had to put the head on it. He said he thinks it stood about 8 feet high. They were so proud. (I know that this is posting sideways...I have attempted to upload and post this picture 4 times now and for some reason it is straight before the upload but during the upload it rotates it and I can't get it to rotate back?? Weird! So - for now just turn your head sideways to look at it and hopefully my next pictures will work right. Oh - and if anyone has any tips on how to fix this leave me a comment!)

Because Ryan was the only one that could reach the snowmans head he got to make the face look the way he wanted. My kids didn't love the beard, or the eyebrows but couldn't reach them to do anything about it. I thought it was funny!

Calling all Mothers

My mother-in-law bought me this book years ago when Oakley was a baby and I have pulled it out over the years to get ideas on everything from potty training to house organization. I pulled it out again today looking for discipline ideas and remembered just how wonderful the book really is. I have read for over an hour now and have found SO MANY great ideas on all sorts of things. So...for all you moms out there looking for some help in life or just looking for someone who understands what we as moms go through this book is a great investment! (They have it really cheap at amazon.com) I promise you will love it!!:)

I ...

I saw this on my old roommates blog and decided I wanted to try it out. You are supposed to finish the sentence with the first thing that comes to your mind. It is kind of long so if you don't finish reading I won't be offended!: )

I am...not a patient person
I know...the church is true
I want… one of my children to turn into a peacemaker: )
I have… a lot of laundry to do today!
I wish… someone else volunteered to do the laundry
I hate… mushrooms and shrimp and ALOT of other nasty foods
I miss… high school - I know that is weird, but wasn't it nice to not have a care in the world other than which boy you liked.
I fear...what the future might bring
I hear… Mom, can I...?all day long
I smell… stinky - it is time to get in the shower: )
I search… the conference talks constantly...I love them.
I wonder… where time went??
I regret… not calling my mother-in-law the day I delivered my miscarried baby in the toliet so she could see my sweet little baby before we took it to the hospital.
I care… about others, even if I don't always show it.
I always… clean, I hate messes
I am not…a patient person...like I said before
I dance… in the kitchen - clogging of course...it always makes my kids laugh!
I sing… as loud as I possibly can. I am always afraid someone is going to come to my door while I am blasting a song.
I don’t… like to cook. In fact I HATE to cook.
I write…my name on every piece of homework that comes through this house.
I win… the prize for worst mom ever...just ask my kids, they will tell you!
I lose… dvd's like crazy. We know Laiklie has a stash of them somewhere, we have yet to find the stash though.
I dislike…only having one bathroom in our house.
I never… buy any clothes at regular price - I always find good deals, or I don't buy it.
I listen… not very well...I am a better talker than listener.
I am scared… of how we are going to get Oakley's diabetic supplies in the future with the bad economy and everything else we know we are going to eventually go through.
I read…everyones blogs and my family website daily.
I am happy... when my children are happy. I love to hear them laugh.
I dare… Ryan to plan Family Home Evening...just one time even
I hope…I am really as strong as I like people to believe I am
I notice… peoples outfits.
I clean…in circles it seems. As soon as I finish I start all over again.: )
I express… my love in funny ways.
I talk… all the time
I drive… too fast and sometimes not very careful.
I watch… TV after my children are in bed everynight.
I dream… some strange things...believe me you don't even want to know.
I need… a cook and a maid and ...the list could go on and on.
I haven’t…got dressed yet today.
I tell…secrets. I am not a good secret keeper, so don't tell me if you don't want someone else to know.
I pick… my family. If I had to pick anything in the world I would pick them.
I find… my 4 year olds comments very funny.
I run… non stop
I quit… saying mean things about others...okay, it is a work in progress.
I jump… when I even think about mice.
I learn… new ideas everytime I watch HGTV
I play… computer games with Oakley
I own… nothing fancy, but I am content with what I have
I make… a trip to town atleast 2 times a week
I live... one day at a time
I bring… craziness into the lives of those around me
I will… one day decided if we are going to have more kids or not
I vote… that someone else should cook dinner tonight
I buy… anything I can get a good deal on with my PYP coupons
I fold… laundry - what other answer is there?
I stand… when I shower.
I can… make my children believe anything I say
I wear… juniors clothes...one of these days I need to start shopping in the womens department, but it sure makes me feel old.
I smile… when my kids giggle. I love their giggles.
I cry… when I watch Extreme Makeover Home Edition
I care… about making others happy
I pray… constantly
I make… bread with my new bread maker
I like… surprising my kids
I move… Hmmm...I dream of moving one day to a house that I actually picked out.
I swear… that I don't swear. I can't swear because if I do than Ryan thinks he can.
I try… to take care of eveyone around me.
I find…toys hidden in the laundry all the time
I draw… cows - they are my specialty. I am also a professional at tracing hands.
I expect… my husband to see the mess around him and volunteer to help, even though it never happens.
I work… on being kinder daily
I admire… the ladies that have their houses always clean and always look gorgeous and have well behaved children during sacrament meeting.
I adore… my sweet husband
I fantasize… about a hot beach somewhere. I have never actually been to a beach, so hope to make it one day.
I look… at my children and wonder what they will look like as adults.
I cherish… my childrens childhood because I know I will miss it when it is gone.
I appreciate… the hugs and kisses and thank yous I get that I don't have to ask for.
I treasure… every day.
I could… accomplish anything with my little family behind me!

TROUBLE

I am sure you are asking yourself how this little bottle of Dial Soap could be trouble. Well, combine this with Laiklie and it is BIG TROUBLE.

What you can't see is that she is sitting in about 4-5 inches of water and is covered in bubbles on the one side of her head. You can tell by her mouth that she is saying "CHEESE." She obviously sees nothing wrong with this.

Not only did she make the soap mess, but she got her brother involved also. Rhett said that he liked the way it made his hair spiky.

I pride myself in being a good mom that is very observant, but it is almost impossible to keep up with Laiklie. I was downstairs helping Ryan for maybe 10 minutes and came up to find this mess. I thought she had learned yesterday that this soap was no fun to play with after she rubbed it all over my TV she rubbed it all over in her eyes and was not a happy little girl. I thought she had learned her lesson, but obviously it was me who should have learned a lesson and apparently didn't. I have learned it now!! I guess after today nobody can say I have dirty kids. They are the cleanest kids around covered from head-to-toe in soap.

New Calling

For those of you who don't know I was released about 3 week ago from my job of being the primary president. The release was something I struggled with more than I thought I would just because like with every release there are alot of mixed emotions. I was definitely ready for something new, but actually leaving and turning it over to someone else was difficult. Today I sat in Relief Society for the first time in almost 8 years and I couldn't help think of the song from Sesame Street that goes "One of these things just doesn't belong here!!!" It was actually very enjoyable, I just couldn't help but think of my 4 little kids up in primary without me. They loved their new teachers and new classes and I felt like I had missed out on it...BUT I did get a new calling today and I am SO excited. I am going to be the assistant Achievement Days leader. It is something that is fun and much more simple - which is what I was going for - and I still get to interact with the primary girls that I have learned to love. So, I am excited to start something new and leave the old behind. Plus, I am sure each week of Relief Society will just get better and better.:)