tuesday thoughts

I had several errands to run in Orem today. Unfortunately, I was one of the poor souls stuck on southbound 1-15 this afternoon. Two lanes of the freeway were closed to fix a pothole apparently. This had traffic backed up and basically at a stand still for miles. What should have been a fifteen minute trip took an hour. Fortunately, I had thought to bring my ipod Touch so Nathan and Sawyer were completely happy in the back seat.

I went to Barnes and Noble to pick out a book for tomorrow's Book Club exchange. Unfortunately, they did not have Jimmy Zangwow's Out of this World Moon Pie Adventure. Fortunately, they did have What's New Cupcake.

I picked up a five gallon bucket of coconut oil. Unfortunately, now I have to figure out what do with all that coconut oil. Fortunately, it lasts for a long time and I'm in a health food kick right now.

I picked up another group buy order of grass-fed beef. Unfortunately, I have thirty-three pounds to store in my freezer. Fortunately, it all fit!

I picked up Dave's clarinet from Bert Murdock. Unfortunately, it cost over $200 to repair. Fortunately, he is so totally excited about having it back. Since he almost never spends money on himself, it was totally worth it.

Unfortunately, these errands took a lot longer to complete than I wanted. Fortunately, I still made it home early enough to get Slade off to Scouts and dinner in the oven on time.

water works

After some 35+ man hours to get it installed, we are now the proud owners of a new water softener, tank-less water heater, and reverse osmosis water filter. I still have lots of holes in the basement ceiling too. More man hours are required to fix those.

We are hoping that this will solve the problem of the lukewarm first morning shower and help Dave's eczema in winter. I'm looking forward to the filtered water and endless hot water, not to mention no more water spots on my stainless steel sink. It certainly didn't come cheap so I hope it is all worth it!

giving thanks with pictures

We did have a really wonderful Thanksgiving holiday.

We were able to make it to and from Colorado without any issues on the Wyoming freeways. We left on Tuesday afternoon before "the blizzard of 2010" was supposed to hit in Utah. Keri and Michael who came the next day were not so lucky with road conditions. We were thankful that they made it and that we didn't have drive in such precarious weather.

On Wednesday, Emma, Mom and Amy made pies and got the turkey ready. Emma was in heaven with so much food prep to do. She is a total Food Network junkie and loves to help in the kitchen. Mom said it was fun having her oldest granddaughter be old enough to want to help.



I went to Target to get stuff to make the tables pretty. It may not matter to anyone else but me but it certainly makes me happy. I purchased 28 green chargers and pretty paper plates to go on them. Then I made little Mayflower boats out of brown felt (Pottery Barn inspired).



We finished cooking on Thursday while the men plus Emma went and played soccer at the church. Then it was time for feasting! And feast we did. It was all totally delicious. I could have stopped with the appetizers and been completely happy. We had a traditional dinner complete with turkey and ham, potatoes, vegetables, Jell-O salad and rolls. We put three long tables into the family room and managed to fit all 26 people into one room. Barely. It was cozy but it worked. Dana and Merrit even joined in the fun via life-sized photographs hanging on the wall.




 
 

On Friday, I got to work helping Mom with the pre-move-and-downsize clean out. I cleared the kitchen and sent lots of stuff to Goodwill and lots of other stuff into boxes to take home with me, Keri, Colin and Jeremy. I was thrilled to come home with lots of Mom's entertaining dishes like platters and cake stands. Time to throw a party! Later that evening, we worked on her music. I got lots and lots of Broadway books to add to my collection. Time for a Sunday sing-along!

We left at 6:00 a.m. on Saturday to head home. We wanted to be back in time to get ready for Sunday and to watch the BYU v. Utah game. We listened to the first quarter on the radio and watched the rest on TV at home. What a disappointing way to end a great weekend. Oh well. We spent the rest of Saturday trying to recover from our vacation and get the house in order. I usually bust out the Christmas decorations the day after Thanksgiving, but I am not ready for that at all this year. Hopefully, I can get my house in order and decorate this week.

See more pictures and read Mom's take on the weekend here:
http://www.slademomma.net/2010/11/no-230-poof-there-goes/

death by chocolate

After three weeks of perfect scores in my challenge, I was done in today by Tootsie Rolls and frosted donuts. The challenge has been difficult to follow this week even with two full free days and my perfect score is no more. I shan't give up though! I've been really pleased with the good things the challenge has helped me to do. The key to perfection is proper planning which I did not do this week. However there are four more weeks to go and I won't let them go to waste!

give thanks for thanksgiving

1. I'm thankful for too many cooks in the kitchen.
2. I'm thankful for pretty tables.
3. I'm thankful for a room filled to the bursting with my loved ones.
4. I'm thankful for good food.
5. I'm thankful for free days!
6. I'm thankful for my most amazing husband.
7. I'm thankful for five awesome children.
8. I'm thankful for my new ipod Touch.
9. I'm thankful for games and movies.
10. I'm thankful for Thanksgiving.

give thanks 24

1. I'm thankful for the conversation I overheard this morning between Slade and my dad. It was so cute.
2. I'm thankful that my kids get to have a lazy day at Grandma's.
3. I'm thankful that technology usually works.
4. I'm thankful for getting to go to Target all by myself.

give thanks 23

1. I'm thankful for nice and helpful neighbors.
2. I'm thankful for being able to go to Colorado for Thanksgiving.
3. I'm thankful for clear roads through Wyoming.
4. I'm thankful for a safe arrival.

give thanks 22

1. I'm thankful that Dave can come home for lunch. Today he came home while I took Emma and Sawyer to the dentist. Emma had three teeth pulled. The dentist told me it was really good that she got them done because the teeth were nearly fused to the bone. Sawyer went back to the dentist to have cavities filled on the other side of his mouth. He absolutely freaked out and wouldn't let them do them work. Instead, the dentist said to have him take an antibiotic for the infection that seems to be developing where the first cavities were filled (Sawyer is still complaining about his cheek hurting several days later).
2. I'm thankful that I didn't have to go anywhere else today. I needed to be home while our new water softener and tank-less water heater were being installed. Ten hours later, the installers left without installing anything.
3. I'm thankful that we are so exceptional. The dentist told me that both Emma's teeth and Sawyer's infection are very rare. And our water system was exceptionally difficult to install. I mean if we were just normal where would all the fun be?!
4. I'm thankful that I got a closet cleaned out and three boxes of cookbooks from my mom sorted. Organizing and decluttering always makes me happy.

give thanks 21

1. I'm thankful for being the Primary Chorister. I have had this calling for 8 out of the last 12 years I think. Either I am good at it or I'm not learning what I'm supposed to be. Either way, it is fun to be in there.
2. I'm thankful for being able to go up to Salt Lake for Josh's priesthood ordination. We missed the actual ordination by just a few minutes and only got to stay at Keri's for about an hour. Still we were glad for the food and company.
3. I'm thankful for the scriptures. If nothing else, this 8-week challenge has helped me to get back in the habit of reading my scriptures daily.

give thanks 20

1. I'm thankful for children who were motivated to get up this morning and help clean the church without complaint.
2. I'm thankful for our dentist who provided said motivation (movie tickets) for free.
3. I'm thankful for getting to watch Harry Potter 7 this morning. Perhaps I am a bad mother because I took three of my kids. I was conflicted after hearing some of the reports. I left the movie wondering what all the hoopla was about. Nathan kept saying, "When is the scary part?"
4. I'm thankful that Dave got to go the BYU game and that it didn't rain on him. I'm glad he survived the cold.     

give thanks 19

1. I'm thankful for quiet mornings with no demands. Everyone slept in this morning (except Dave who diligently went to work). We don't do school work on Friday, so I let the kids indulge in a bit of screen time while I read Harry Potter.
2. I'm thankful for the opportunity to read books again. I remember so very little in the way of details it is almost like reading it the first time.
3. I'm thankful that Emma got to go to a Girls' Night Out with her homeschool friends tonight to make jewelery.
4. I'm thankful that we have a babysitter that we all adore. The kids ask us to go out on dates so Sarah can babysit.
5. I'm thankful that I got to go on yet another date with Dave tonight. We went again to the theater but this time we saw a wonderful, funny, entertaining, delightful show. In contrast to Tuesday's show, we didn't think about walking out even once.

give thanks 18

1. I'm thankful that today is over! I did not feel very good today so I hope I can get some sleep and wake up happy tomorrow.

give thanks 17

1. I'm thankful that my two boys made it through their dentist appointments without too much drama.
2. I'm thankful for quiet days.
3. I'm thankful to get a photo session completed.
4. I'm thankful that my blog isn't always this boring!

give thanks 16

1. I'm thankful that the dentist told me I had no cavities.
2. I'm thankful that we have the money to pay for the other 10 fillings and 2 extractions that my children need.
3. I'm thankful I got to go on a date with my husband tonight.
4. I'm thankful for good food and good company when the play we saw was less than stellar.
5. I'm thankful we came home to find everything safe and sound.

give thanks 15

1. I'm so very thankful for the amazing, wonderful, talented, and beautiful daughter that I was blessed with 11 years ago.
2. I'm thankful that Emma had a good birthday complete with breakfast in bed, presents to open, and a surprise party planned by her friends.
3. I'm thankful that Emma has such good friends. Her friend, Eliza, approached me at church on Sunday and asked me if they could kidnap her today. I thought it would just be a couple of friends taking Emma over to Eliza's house for cake or something. I was very surprised when 6 or 7 showed up wearing bandannas. They took her and had a full fledged party with cupcakes, games and presents even.
4. I'm thankful Emma makes such a great impression on others when she is outside our home. I receive compliments often about how wonderful she is. The latest was on Sunday when her Activity Days leader told me with tears in her eyes how much she will miss Emma. She said, "She is always so kind and helpful. She is a self-starter. She helps so much to smooth over the rough spots with other girls."
5. I'm thankful for all the ways Emma blesses our family.

Happy Birthday, Emma!

give thanks 14

1. I'm thankful for beautiful Thanksgiving songs to sing in Primary.
Life is O'erflowing with Beautiful Things
2. I'm thankful for a home that can accommodate our ward choir practices. Its getting a little tight but we still fit.
3. I'm thankful for cozy sweatshirts to wear on chilly days like today.
4. I'm thankful for a brother and sister and their families who come to my house for good food and conversation. I love my family.

give thanks 13

1. I'm thankful for thirty four years of a great life.
2. I'm thankful for a yummy lunch with my sister-in-law
3. I'm thankful for time to get some shopping done for Emma's birthday and Christmas.
4. I'm thankful for Target.
5. I'm thankful for free days and yummy treats to eat.
6. I'm thankful for a quiet night at home watching Mansfield Park.
7. I'm thankful for so many birthday wishes by phone, note, Facebook and email. I felt very loved.

12 on 12 | november

[click to enlarge]

1. Emma went to see The Five Browns perform at Kingsbury Hall this morning. She said it was amazing.
2. Sawyer pushing Anne around in the empty laundry basket.
3. Nathan and Sawyer playing with friends who have every other Friday off.
4. Slade found a new game on the computer that he thought was so cool.
5. I watched Food Inc. while the kids were playing. Disturbing.
6. The cushions off the couch for the bajillionth time.
7. Friday is Pizza Night. I overcooked one of the crusts a bit. Still tasted good though.
8. I escaped to the library by myself. I forgot to bring the books that were due though. Oops.
9. Listening to Outlander finally upon my sisters and Mom's recommendation.
10. I came home to find this note from Emma. She was running in a 5K the next day and wanted my opinion on what to wear. Her spelling really scares me. Why is it that she spells everything perfectly in her Spelling assignments but cannot spell at all when she is writing on her own?
11. Dave playing Wii sports for his challenge exercise.
12. My challenge tracking sheet. Perfect score so far.

give thanks 12

1. I'm thankful for Netflix. Particularly the "Watch Instantly" feature.
2. I'm thankful for the library.
3. I'm thankful for trips to the grocery store taken all by myself.
4. I'm thankful for my iPod and finally listening to Outlander. It made for a very enjoyable shopping experience.

give thanks 11

In honor of 11/11, I'm sharing 11 blogs that I love to read. I'm very thankful for blogs. Believe me, there are many, many more in my Google Reader. In no particular order, I present you a few of my favorites.

1. One Pretty Thing
2. Sweet Something Designs
3. Life
4. Pastel Photography
5. Becky Higgins
6. Our Best Bites
7. One Charming Party
8. Remodelaholic
9. Tatertots and Jello
10. Make It and Love It
11. Tip Junkie

give thanks 10

1. I'm thankful for my most wonderful husband who sent me encouraging text messages after I told him I felt like a failure.
2. I'm thankful that tomorrow is a day fresh without any mistakes in it. Thanks for teaching me that, Anne Shirley.
3. I'm thankful that my children came with their own personalities which are anything but boring. No, really I am.
4. I'm thankful that I have a furnace because, baby, it's cold outside.
5. I'm thankful for Leftover Night and NCIS episodes on-line.
6. I'm thankful for sisters who call me for decorating advice. Hang in there, sister. Change is a good thing.

give thanks 9

1. I'm thankful that I figured out a way to get Slade to finish his work before noon. At least for one day. We'll see how tomorrow goes.
2. I'm thankful that I'm finding this challenge motivating enough to not indulge in all the sweets around the house. It perplexes me that it is that motivating. I mean, how many times have I tried to cut out sweets before?!
3. I'm thankful that the pictures I've been taking of family and friends make them happy. I feel like I am in a bit of a rut with photography. Need to shoot more but can't make it a business right now. Need a new camera but can't justify the expense since it isn't a business. Need to improve my technique but don't feel its the right time to spend a lot of time on photography. Sigh. Oh well. I guess I will just keep shooting and crossing my fingers that people like the pictures imperfect as they are.
4. I'm thankful for fun ideas and beautiful things on the internet. We will be going to Thanksgiving in CO this year and with my parents' current circumstances might not be having a traditional dinner. I probably won't get to use these great ideas this year but I'll just stash them away in my Inspiration folder for later.

give thanks 8

1. I'm thankful for rainy weather on a day when I didn't have to go anywhere.
2. I'm thankful for how Annie replies in the affirmative to questions by saying 'kay not yes.
Me: Do you want a drink?
Anne: 'Kay
Me: Do you want to get out of your seat?
Anne: 'Kay
It's so cute. She definitely knows how to say no too.
3. I'm thankful for a walk with my husband tonight. The wind was bitingly cold but we got our 30 minutes in.
4. I'm thankful for Dave mopping the floor for me when I didn't even ask him to do it. Love him!

give thanks 7

1. I'm thankful that Anne went back to sleep this morning after waking up at 6:30.
2. I'm thankful that I got to eat some treats today--Lemon Cream Cheese Cupcakes and Pumpkin Roll. Now I feel totally sick though so I think I am ready to go back to no sweets.
3. I'm thankful that we were able to host all of Dave's siblings at our house tonight.
4. I'm thankful that Dave's parents are serving a mission. We missed them tonight but are grateful they have the  opportunity to serve.
5. I'm thankful that my dad will be coming home this week. Finally. It's been just over two months since he was first hospitalized.

give thanks 6

1. I'm thankful that it was a good day for Cougar football.
2. I'm thankful for a walk and a chat in the dark with my friend.
3. I'm thankful for how many photos I managed to get edited today. Lots more to go.
4. I'm thankful for my friend, Internet, and all the great ideas she gives me.

give thanks 5

1. I'm thankful that Dave came home from Boise tonight! The six weeks of transfer that he has been gone have been the easiest of all the ones he has done. That said, I sure am much happier when he is here.
2. I'm thankful that the kids have such good friends in the neighborhood.
3. I'm thankful that the store is close enough to walk to.
4. I'm thankful that I was able to finish reading a friend's novel today. I really enjoyed it but now need to think back over it with a critical eye. Not an easy thing to critique a friend's work.

halloween

We began our Halloween celebrations with a homeschooling party at the park. We brought candycorn cupcakes to share. They had orange and yellow layers and then white frosting. Should have taken a picture. This party was organized somewhat at the last minute but it turned out amazingly well. I am so grateful for the group that we belong to.

Colin and Amy surprised us by coming dressed up to our family get together Friday night. Jeremy and Kim were in town with their boys so we had a Slade family party. Lots of delicious soup, rolls, cookies and cupcakes. Since most of us were starting our challenge on Monday we made sure to fill up on the good stuff.

Nathan carved this pumpkin all by himself and it turned out great.

 Finally, it was time for trick or treating.

 

 

 

 I stayed home to answer the door so I watched Food Matters on Netflix with the laptop. It was kind of ironic to be watching a show about healthy eating while I passed out candy. Emma went off with friends and Dave took the rest of the kids. When they left, the rain was coming in a downpour. Anne and Nathan only lasted about one street and came home to watch a movie. Sawyer and Slade kept going and stayed out quite a while since the rain finally stopped.

first snow

The first snow of the season came last week. Dave came in to warn me about 6 in the morning on his way to the airport. I was not excited but of course the kids were. With the exception of Slade, they all worked really hard to get their work done so they could go out and play.

Slade on the other hand was ranting about how unfair it was that he couldn't go out. He was a few days behind on his schoolwork because he had been completely refusing to do any of it. He would not make the connection of his choices to the consequence though. Instead he just told me how mean I was. After a rough start, he did make better choices this week. He managed to get caught up on everything by Wednesday and actually did all his work without complaint on Thursday. Perhaps, he can be taught after all!

pinewood derby

Slade just participated in his first Pinewood Derby at the end of last month. I don't have anything to compare it to but the night seem to be very well organized and efficient. Dave let Slade take the lead in making the car. He did all the painting himself. His car was underweight so they had him tape some pennies on the back. He didn't win a single race. In fact he came in dead last by a long shot every time. Perhaps, we'll have to debate how much parental involvement there should be in things another day. He seemed happy enough with whole affair though perhaps a bit bored. He was awarded "Most Original Hand Painted Design."

give thanks 4

1. I'm thankful that we managed to get all our schoolwork done today even though we all slept in late. The boys didn't wake up until almost 10! Next week we will need to recommit to our schedule but today it was nice to have a quiet morning.
2 I'm thankful that I got to attend a session with my ward at the temple tonight.
3. I'm thankful I finally finished blogging about my trip to Boston. I back dated the posts so if you missed any, just click here.

give thanks 3

1. I'm thankful for Photoshop which allows me to edit the bajillion pictures I've taken in the last few weeks. I'm really, REALLY far behind in editing photo sessions but it is my personal goal this week to get caught up.
2. I'm thankful for homeschooling friends who were willing to listen to me at the park. They gave great advice about how to parent Slade. I'm hopeful that implementing some of their suggestions will make a difference in the coming days.
3. I'm thankful Slade actually participated at co-op today. This is way outside of the norm for him.
4. I'm thankful that Slade decided to get caught up in his school work this afternoon. We even had some good interaction during Grammar that made us both laugh. He promised he would get his stuff done on time tomorrow. Fingers crossed.
5. I'm thankful for getting in touch with old friends via Facebook. This particular friend sent me some old folk dance pictures with Dave and me in them. Can you believe how young Dave looks here?

give thanks 2

1. I'm thankful for the right to vote.
2. I'm thankful for beautiful fall weather.
3. I'm thankful for a friend who thought to call me this afternoon. She was a very sympathetic, listening ear. It was just nice to be thought of.
4. I'm thankful for a husband who sends me love notes from Boise.

give thanks 1

1. I'm thankful that today I succeeded in making healthy choices. I organized an official version of this challenge with 42 participants. I don't know why but this is the motivation I need to stay away from the sweets. I wasn't even tempted by the Halloween candy.
2. I'm thankful that I didn't throttle Slade within an inch of his life even though I really wanted to. The last few weeks he has been completely unwilling to do any of his responsibilities. He has been spending a lot of time in his room. I'm praying hard for some inspiration in how to motivate him. It is such a change from the beginning of the school year.
3. I'm thankful that I managed to get all the laundry cleared out of my laundry room. Four loads today.
4. I'm thankful that the whole of the Book of Mormon is not quoting Isaiah. Those are some hard chapters to get through in 2 Nephi. I feel lame for being so clueless.