Spring Break 2009!

We heard all of the news about violence south of the border, and almost decided not to go to Mexico this year, but then at the last minute the family across the street from us, and another family in our ward asked us if we were going. They wanted to go, so I called up my sister and said, what the heck, let's go too! Our family went with the Green family and the Brown family (really, that's their names) and my sister Kimbie's family to Mexico and had such a great time! I hope they keep warning the college students and others NOT to go down to Rocky Point, because this week was SO great! It was awesome to go into town and not have drunk, bikini clad college students with all of their loud music and foam parties! I know, I sound like such an old fart, but we love to be able to have our kids not have to see all of the craziness that is college life--not yet anyway! Crossing the border was great--with hardly any lines, even coming home! The resort was awesome, as usual, and not as crowded, which was really nice.

Sunday, we went to church, and missed the 9 a.m. gringo session (where they translate), because we thought it was at 10, so we went to the 1:00 spanish session instead. I realized how many words in Spanish that I DON'T know! Man is that boring to sit through, especially for my kids since they have trouble sitting through an English sacrament meeting! That was some kind of slow torture. I really need to take a spanish class sometime! (I'll put that on my list of things to do once the children are all gone). It is wonderful to know that the church is the same everywhere though, and great that the Rocky Point branch has grown from one meeting to two since we started going down there 5 years ago. They have some great people running the branch down there, and it is wonderful to see the gospel growing!

The kids had a great time swimming in the ocean and pools--except for Journey, and Erin, who got stung in the ocean by stingrays. Journey was first, and her Dad took her to the doctor who works for the resort. He gave her 4 shots, 3 in the hiney, and one in her foot to numb it. UGH--I hate shots! Little did they know when it was all said and done--the bill was $400! Holy crap--we thought doctors were cheaper in Mexico! Two days later, when Erin got stung, Todd, who is not as nice as my sister's husband, sat with Erin for an hour or so while she toughed out the pain with her foot in a bath full of ice water! We gave her some Mexican antibiotics and voila--she's okay now. Thank goodness it wasn't as serious of a sting. She kept telling us the rest of the trip that we owed her things since we didn't take her to the doctor--"I saved you $400, now buy me a pina colada!" Sad to say, we usually did! Guilt is a beautiful thing for a child to use against you! Next time we go, maybe the kids will use those ugly, hideous, disgusting water socks that I buy them every year and they NEVER wear! Then again, probably not!

We took some family pictures down at the beach--(Thanks Kimbie!) for my blog book that is going to be finished soon. I have my friend Tawni, (Todd's cousin's wife) making me a book of my blog and pictures for last year. They are so awesome! If you want one--check out her website at: http://tomorrowsmemoriestoday.blogspot.com/

I can't wait until it's finished! She does such a great job! The pictures turned out really cute, even though we took them a little too early in the day--I couldn't keep my family dressed up forever on Sunday! Check them out!

I wrote a little message for my hubby in the sand--and thought it was cute until Josh comes over and says, "Why does it only say Todd mom? Don't you love us too?" Ugh, man my heart broke! He proceeded to write his name before mine, and all of the other kids names after Todd's with little hearts between all of them. "There, now it's fixed mom!" It was so flippin' cute! Love that boy! Todd made a little volcano for the kids to crawl through--that was the bomb!

The kids had a great time with their cousins, and also with our friends. They swam, ate, and even found time for some bingo. This was Cole and Scout sitting at the table with all the old people playing bingo. Too funny!Lastly, check out Joshua who lost not one, but TWO front teeth in Mexico! How cute is my toothless little guy! The best thing about the toothless stage is that little lisp! Love it!Adios Amigos! Until next year!

Fun with Cousins...

Yesterday we went to the park to celebrate Jack and his cousin Stacia's birthdays with all the little cousins who are home during the day. It was so much fun! My kids LOVE their cousins! I love that they have so many to play with, and that we all live so close--except you Kristy--we missed you! Happy birthday to little Wrigley too! These three babies were born within a week of each other--and we were all due the same DAY! Try planning that! Thanks for a great day girls!

Why Mormons Build Temples...

This comes via the church website today--a Mormon Message. I'm so glad I know they have these! This was so great to watch today, especially after my feelings of anger yesterday. The leaders of the church know they don't need to get angry, they just need to teach. Thank goodness for their example of patience and love.

Sad, but true...

Todd and I were able to attend the temple today for a sweet friend who was sealed to her husband and baby. She is a convert to the church, and they are the sweetest little family. It was a beautiful experience, it always is in the temple. I love to feel the spirit, and the peace that comes to my heart when I am in that holy place. I love to listen for the inspiration that almost always comes when I am sitting there learning about God's plan for me and my family. I love that every time I go, something new occurs to me, and I always feel like it was just the experience I needed, at just the right time. I am so grateful for the temple, that it is a refuge from the world, a safe place where I can feel peace, and inspiration.
When I came home from such a beautiful morning--I saw this e-mail on my computer that almost made me want to throw up. I wish I hadn't checked it--but I did, and I feel like I need to let the few people who read this blog know so that we can spread the word. I copied this from my sis-in-law's blog--Thanks Kels...

PASS THIS ON TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW!
Many of you may have heard of HBO's television show, Big Love. It came out a couple of years ago, and it shows polygamous families. When it first came out, the church came out with a strong statement against Big Love and Polygamy. You can see the statement here:
http://www.newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/church-responds-to-questions-on-hbo-s-big-love
However, as if the polygamy weren't bad enough, HBO has taken their unscrupulousness to new heights.On Sunday, March 15, 2009, HBO will be airing a segment of their Big Love series that will show individuals dressed in full temple clothing (you can see the picture right in the TV guide itself), and they are planning on recreating the temple ordinances on public television. They have an ex-member of the church that is helping them make this ceremony as authentic as possible (you can see even from the pictures they have posted how closely they have replicated the clothing).Please help stop HBO from airing such an offensive show! You can go to the link below to submit a comment to HBO.
http://www.hbo.com/apps/submitinfo/contactus/submit.do?title=GeneralInformation&questiontype=generalInformation&questiontype=general
It's imperative that we get as many people to voice their complaints as possible before HBO airs the show. Please pass this information on to as many people as you can!Here is a photo from the episodehttp://students.washington.edu/secular/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/big-love-to-show-mormon-ceremony.pdf
The church also issued a statement about this episode today, that link is below:
http://newsroom.lds.org/ldsnewsroom/eng/commentary/the-publicity-dilemma

I think it's disgusting and sad that people who know nothing about this church would take sacred things and make fun of them. These are not things that were meant to be public. These are things that are sacred, and holy, and not to be trampled under the feet of men. I am sending a letter to HBO, not that I feel like it will help--but just because it's the only thing I can actually do. Sad, but true.

Yum, Yum, Yum...

This was Jack's first attempt at eating with a spoon by himself. I thought I'd video it just for fun. I might have another lefty on my hands--(Josh is lefty too...) we'll see! It started out good, but as you'll see after awhile he kicked into survival mode! Too funny...

The Love Dare...

So we watched the movie Fireproof a few weeks ago, since my sister-in-law recommended it. I thought it was such a great movie. It portrays marriage in a real way that you can relate to if you have been married for any length of time. Mainly how we become selfish, and intolerant of our spouse, and the negative things seem to become the focus instead of the positive things that we fell in love with. My kids got a kick out of the fact that I was in LOVE with Kirk Cameron as a young pre-teen. My walls were filled with his posters when he was on Growing Pains. Man, am I old!

After watching the movie, I decided to buy the book that goes along with it, called "The Love Dare". I bought it thinking it sounded like a fun idea, and though my marriage isn't on the brink--at this moment--(not to say we haven't been there at times in the last 15 years)--I thought it would give me some ideas to make my marriage stronger. Really, who couldn't use that? I started with the dare on Day 1--Try to say nothing negative to your spouse today--even if you have to hold your tongue. Wow--if any of you know much about me, you know that it's hard for me to hold my tongue on ANY occasion. This dare took me almost a week. I am so quick to speak, that my tongue got the best of me, even before I knew it many times. Man, am I ever negative toward my spouse. Much of my problem comes from sarcasm. Many times I will make a sarcastic comment, only to realize that it didn't quite come out the way I meant it--and many times it can be hurtful or rude. Todd is pretty good about letting it roll off his back, and to tell the truth, he is good at dishing it out sometimes as well, but I am realizing that it really isn't a healthy way to communicate with my spouse. I need to be more concerned about his feelings, and making him feel loved and respected when he's with me.

It's been almost 3 weeks since I got the book, and I was only on Day 5 as of this weekend, not much for following through--am I? Life gets busy, and I had put it on my bedside table, with my stack of 20 books I have been meaning to read, and it had been forgotten. Then I had a talk with one of my daughters that made me rethink The Love Dare. It seems her friend, that lives in my neighborhood has parents that are separated right now, and contemplating divorce. She was telling me how her dad is living in an apartment, and her mom doesn't even want to talk to him on the phone. They are constantly fighting, and her friend, who is caught in the middle of this mess, is just feeling horrible. Her life, and the lives of her siblings are about to be changed--forever. Her world is about to be shattered, because something happened to tear that marriage apart. Now, I don't know these people very well, so I don't know the circumstances surrounding their separation, or whether it will eventually end in divorce. What I do know, is that MY marriage is important to me. What I do know is that MY marriage isn't as strong as it could be, based just on Dare #1! What I do know is that I don't want MY children to have to live through an ugly, nasty divorce--or live with fighting and contention that comes from an unhealthy marriage.

Yesterday, I picked up the Love Dare and started again--this time with more of a determination to make it through the whole book. My marriage is worth working on for 40 days--and heaven knows, I can use the work! Guess what? Day 1 was a lot easier the second time around.

Torture by swimsuit...

Warning: This post is for women ONLY!Seriously, does anything make a woman feel worse about herself than trying on swimsuits??? We went to a few stores last night, and I decided to try on a few swimsuits for spring break, because I got some new board shorts, and I need a swimsuit to match. After my visit to the dressing room, I decided that I need to starve myself for a year or more before I try on another swimming suit. Oh, and 5 miles running isn't gonna cut it--we need to be doing 10 or 15! That's like some sort of sick torture for a mother to go into a dressing room, with 3 or 4 swimming suits. I'm not kidding when I say that I laughed out loud when I tried one of them on! It was freakin' hilarious! It was one of those popular new tankinis that has the tie around the neck, and the front plunged down almost to my belly button (maybe because I have no boobs--you found that out in the last post). Anyway, it split the girls in two and looked so ridiculous that I burst out laughing, almost to tears. Then I tried on a one piece, thinking it would at least look better than the two piece. Uh, wrong. The one pieces now are almost as revealing as a string bikini. The one I tried had like no back at all, and plunged down to where it almost showed my crack. I guess this is for all of those women with the beautiful tramp stamps that they want to show off--but trust me, the less of my back fat I show off to the world--the better! And can I say thank you, thank you, thank you a million times for the person who invented board shorts for women! Seriously, those things are the only reason I will even step out into the sun in a bathing suit. If you saw my ghostly white legs with my big green varicose veins (another wonderful thing I have because I'm a mother!) you would understand that the more of my thighs you cover up--the better!

The thing is, if you have been to the beach lately--you will see women that look WAY worse then me in those swimming suits--but they buy them anyway, and wear them with confidence. Every time we go to the beach I feel like such a prude. I mean when you see a woman over 300 pounds in a string bikini--strutting her stuff for the world to see, I wonder why I can't even bring myself to even take off my tank top? I guess that's where that crazy "modesty" idea comes in! Thank goodness!

More on Muffin Top--

Okay, so if you don't know what "muffin top" is that I referred to in the post below--here is an explanation in this article:

Are you a "Muffin Top" pretending to be a "Six Pack"?

Too Funny.

Because I am a Mother...

13 1/2 years ago, my life changed. The doctor handed me a beautiful baby girl, 8 pounds 9 1/2 ounces, and Todd and I looked at each other and wondered, what now? I had no idea then, how much different I would be because I am a mother.

Because I am a Mother...

*Because I am a Mother, rational thoughts have been replaced with constant worry.

*Because I am a Mother, I say things that make no sense to anyone who isn't a mother. Things like, "I'm going to beat the living daylights out of you!" Huh?

*Because I am a Mother, I can sleep through most of a Die Hard movie at the movie theatre, but the small sound of my newborn infant squirming next to me wakes me up in an instant.

*Because I am a Mother, I have rolls where my stomach muscles used to be, and empty gray matter where my brain used to be.

*Because I am a Mother, I finally appreciate my mother! Thanks Mom, I love you!

*Because I am a Mother, sometimes 3 hours of sleep has to be enough.

*Because I am a Mother, I have to be able to turn from Old Mother Hubbard into Marilyn Monroe in a matter of seconds. Just because I am a Mother, doesn't mean I can't be his wife!

*Because I am a Mother, I have to have a solution for every problem. What kind of mother lets her children struggle with problems on their own? (Maybe a better mother than me...)

*Because I am a Mother, my boobs have been used and abused. I wish I didn't have to go through pain and agony to get a new, improved pair. (My teenager will love that one--don't worry honey--your turn will come...)

*Because I am a Mother, my days are full of some of the highest highs, and some of the lowest lows. Highs usually involve Coca Cola, or chocolate, and the lows? One word...laundry.

*Because I am a Mother, it's not about me.

*Because I am a Mother, I have a chance to live another childhood through my own children. Adolescence? No thanks, once was enough!

*Because I am a Mother, I fear the evil in this world, and I'm determined to protect my children from it at all costs.

*Because I am a Mother, I feel guilty for the dumbest things.

*Because I am a Mother, I demand loyalty, and respect. I'm not a perfect mother, but I'm the only mother they get!

*Because I am a Mother, I blame the dryer instead of the Oreos when my jeans don't fit.

*Because I am a Mother, I'm never quite sure about anything! Ask my kids...

*Because I am a Mother, even when I'm exhausted, sleep evades me, and my mind races 1,000 different directions. Sometimes it's hard to just be still.

*Because I am a Mother, I can multi-task. I can nurse a baby while reading a book to a toddler, while checking my e-mail, and eating a bowl of cereal--this is all before 8 a.m..

*Because I am a Mother, I appreciate other great mothers--especially when their children are friends with my children.

*Because I am a Mother, "muffin top" has become a painful reality. Google it...you'll know if you are an offender too...

*Because I am a Mother, my head hurts--a lot.

*Because I am a Mother, I am proud when my kids make good choices, and my heart breaks when they don't. It's true that when you're a mother, your heart walks around outside your body.

*Because I am a Mother, sometimes the only "quiet place" is in my toilet room. Sometimes I lock myself in there and hide for hours.

*Because I am a Mother, "DIET" is a 4 letter word, offensive in every way. If you mention "EXERCISE" you might get the same hostile reaction from me.

*Because I am a Mother, a clean house almost makes me cry for joy. Needless to say, most days the tears I cry are not tears of joy.

*Because I am a Mother, I am always teaching, whether I realize it or not.

*Because I am a Mother, things that would make a normal person vomit, don't even make me wince anymore. It's just another day at the office...

*Because I am a Mother, I can blame the 10 extra pounds around my middle on baby #4, instead of blaming it on my love/hate relationship with my treadmill.

*Because I am a Mother, my life will never be the same again, and I wouldn't have it any other way.

Some Cute Ideas...

I wanted to post a few cute ideas I ran across recently--one of them is this super cute candy jar that my best friend Stori made for me for Christmas. She had a Christmas ribbon on it, and Christmas candy in it--until she didn't have time to get it to me at Christmas. So then she put the Valentines ribbon on it, and Valentines candy in it. She calls me up the day before Valentine's day and says--"I have to get this jar to you today, or I'm gonna have to eat all this candy too--and put St. Patricks day candy in here!" Seriously, she is my best friend--we just don't see each other much--we still talk on the phone for hours a day (who does that anymore)! I thought her gift was SO cute, and would be super easy to make! The toppers are just rubber bands with cute ribbon tied around them for each holiday. She got the jars and ribbon at Hobby Lobby. Thanks Stori!Then, there are these flip flops that I made last Sunday when I stayed home from church with sick kids, and I was bored. I didn't have any ribbon, but I ran across a bag of old curling ribbon in some cute colors, and decided to give that a try--I think they turned out super cute--and cheaper than buying ribbon! I found out that if you curl the ribbon first, then tie it on, it goes much faster! Check them out! Crafty--huh? Yes, sometimes I amaze even myself! LOL!
Okay, I've wasted too much time today--back to work...ugh!

Funny Blog...

I was wasting time on the computer today--(big surprise huh??)--and came across this blog, I was laughing SO hard! Check it out:

THE MEANEST MOM

Funny Abby...

So we have been taking the girls out jogging lately after the little kids go to bed, because we are in one of those modes where we want to get in shape...again... Anyway, one of us takes Abby before we go with the older girls, and we just run a mile with her. She has been working really hard to get to the point where she can run the whole thing, and she is really a trooper. It has been fun to talk to her during these little exercise sessions. She is really a funny girl, she cracks me up with the things she says. So last night I went with her, and she had just gotten done watching an old episode of Extreme Home Makeover, which is one of their favorite shows to watch after school lately. She says to me, "Mom, could we move to another house?" I'm like, "why do you want to move to another house?" She goes, "I want to move into a really crappy house, in a bad neighborhood." I'm like, "Huh?" She says, "Yeah, then the people from Extreme Home Makeover can come and I could get a new house!" I started laughing, and I said, "Abby, like a million people apply to be on that show, and usually they have like a sick kid, or something terrible that's happened to their family, that's why they need the new house. We don't really need that, our house is just fine. She says, "Oh, really? I thought they just drive around in their trucks and stop at all the crappiest houses and fix them up." Sometimes kids say the funniest things! So here's an ugly house Abby, think we should buy it? Just kidding!

Emie and Erin are doing really well also, they are up to running almost 2 miles, while Todd and I are almost up to 5 miles a night. Honestly, I didn't think I could do it when we started, but after almost a month, I am surprised at the endurance we have built up. Last night we ran almost 3 1/2 miles without stopping to walk, and the whole 5 miles only walking twice for a short time. It feels good to set a goal for myself and keep it. Last night, I didn't want to run the whole thing, and Todd pushed me, so sometimes it helps if you have someone doing it with you. Now if only I could stay on a diet...that's a topic for another post! :)

Scrubbing the House...

My house is getting SCRUBBED down today with Clorox--I can't handle another week full of SICK kids! I'm not sure what we have, or where we got it, but it's working on ROUND 2 and I'm sick of it! It started last week with Jack and Ashlie--and guess who's sick again today? Jack and Ashlie! UGH~! Not only that, but I have to take Jack to the doctor today for SHOTS! YUCK! I hate doing shots! I hate to say it, but he's behind too, I just haven't been good at taking him in this time around. He's just such a little guy, and I don't feel good about pumping all of those immunizations into his little body. I know, I know, you don't need to lecture me about the importance of immunizations--I get it--all of my kids have them. I have just been wary of this little guy for some reason. I will get them all--I'm just taking a little more time to do it this time, that's all. So tonight, I will probably be up all night again with him. Oh well, at least my house will be clean--and hopefully GERM FREE--(is that even possible??)--I can dream can't I?