A Girl of Many Hats

I'll admit Caroline is cute, dang cute at that. I've always said she's a twit, a cute twit, but a twit nonetheless. The other day she decided that it was her turn to put on all of Owen's hats, just because he wanted to play with one of them, she took them all. I tried not to encourage her to do this, but I guess that sort of went out the window when I grabbed the camera. Oh well. I'm sure there will be plenty more opportunities to teach her to share.

Is There Really Anything Else to Say?!?!

Didn't think so.

3, 2, 1, ..... Blast Off!

Adam and Owen were shooting the rocket off the other day, so I jumped on the opportunity to take a few pictures so you all would understand the type of rocket I was talking about. They're really fun and Owen LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to pump the air and then pull the cord to send it flying in the sky. He runs over to where it lands, picks it up, puts the rocket back on and he starts the cycle all over again. It's fun to watch his excitement.

Van Gogh's Apprentice

It's my fault I realize, but it was too late when I walked past the green writing instrument and thought, "I better put this away before Owen gets a hold of it." It was then that I turned around and saw this, this, this, and this....






These wonderful creations are not on my walls. No sirrrreee! They are on my refrigerator and countertop (last picture)!!!!! It was all made proudly by this guy claiming his masterpiece.



I am hoping that this will work in taking the green writing instrument, which was this, off of my fridge and my countertop. Can't really get made at him, since it was my fault. what is one to do other than what I did - have him pose next to the creations and post it on my blog.

The funny thing is last week at his 6 month re-evaluation for speech, the therapist was doing some cognitive evaluations as well. He couldn't, or wouldn't, color in a circle while she was there. I guess he just needed the real opportunity to show me that he really could color in circles, without even being asked. Here's to you Onie B!

Checkin' In & Up

Friday was Caroline's 15 month well check at the doctor's office. She's growing well at 22 lbs. 15 oz. (let's just call it 23 lbs. shall we?) and 31 1/2" long. It puts her in the 50th percentile for weight and 80% for height. Do we need to wonder where she got her genes from? I don't think so. Let's just hope this trend continues.........

"The Man Who Dared to Question Ethanol"

Just in case you think I'm blowing hot air about "renewable sources of energy" or anything else I post on my blog, here's to you, straight from the NY Times....


http://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/13/business/13feed.html?_r=3&oref=slogin&ref=business&pagewanted=print&oref=slogin

Read it and weep!!!!!!

$3 Trillion Inconvenient Truth

Gore's "scare-umentary", Inconvenient Truth, has finally come full circle, so to speak. (For those of you that really know me are in completely and utter amazement that I even typed his name onto the blog for you know how much I despise that man and that party).

Gore (I refuse to say his first name, use his former political office or refer to him as "Mr." as he doesn't deserve that distinction of a mister in my book. It would imply that he is a gentleman, and I think that is the furthest thing from the truth) was busted by what I call the "green police" with his huge sprawling mansion and acreage in Tennessee and the amount of energy that it consumes. So, he decided to do some "remodeling" to the place to make it more "energy efficient." Now that the remodeling has been completed, what he doesn't want anyone to know is that he is using even MORE energy to cool, heat, light, etc. his place in Tennessee. What a friggin' hypocrite. It's just one of the many reasons why I can't stand him or that party. Tell me what to do, but not willing to live by the same rules he is trying to force me to live by.

Moving on. I just saw on the news that Gore wants all energy sources to come from "renewable' sources by 2018! Are you kidding me?! He wants all energy to come from wind, solar, and renewable fuels in just 10 years. One question for you Gore, are you willing to have one of those windmill farms on your acreage in Tennessee, or are you all of a sudden going to catch a case of the NIMBY disease?


(Somehow, I don't see Gore willing to have this anywhere near his home, do you? Does a lot for the property values, don't you think?)




His proposal amounts to a $3 trillion tax increase for all Americans, "rich", poor, and middle class. This would also mean paying close to $8 for a gallon of gas. Geez, the $4.21 I paid today would be cheap at that rate. Even the NY Times, hardly a right-wing or conservative newspaper, had trouble with this guy's plan. That should tell you something right there.

Does he not realize that the only thing (in my opinion) the French have done right in a very long time - next to electing a Bush-friendly and pro-American president, Nicholas Sarkozy, - is to use nuclear energy. Nuclear energy is dang cheap and CLEAN BURNING. I could be wrong on this point, but I do believe that nuclear energy has very little, if any, carbon footprint. But, you don't see him touting this now do you. Nope. He's worried about another Chernobyl accident. Can you really compare the Russian's technology with the U.S.? I don't think so.

I just wish he would shut up and stop trying to brain wash people with his "inconvenient truths" which turn out to be lies. "Going green" is more expensive and does more harm to the environment, he claims to protect, in a lot of ways that just letting us live our lives the way we choose to live them. When he uses less energy that the "average American" (which he claims to be), then I will adjust my lifestyle. Until then, SHUT UP AND QUIT TELLING ME WHERE TO SET MY THERMOSTAT!!!!!!!

Hitting the Pause Button

So, I've signed up and paid for my Chemistry class that starts on August 23rd. Although it's a scary subject for me to take, never having taken anything like this before even in high school - which was waaaaaaay too many years ago to even count, I was excited to start the class.

I was trying to figure out how I was going to fit in my class and lab on Monday nights, class on Wednesday nights, 3 work-outs at the gym (minimum), Owen's preschool classes on Tuesday and Thursday morning, his fitness class on Wednesday morning with his speech on Wednesday afternoon, all the while trying to spend some time with Adam, work on projects around the house that need to get done, etc. etc. It wasn't going to be easy, but I was determined to do it. Then, about 2 weeks ago, I got this nagging feeling. This feeling that I should be doing something else that is definitely more important, especially at this time.

This "feeling" that I kept coming back to was the need to spend some more time with Caroline and Owen. What?!?! I am home ALL DAY long, how much more time do I need to spend with them? But, in looking at everything that was going on and realizing that the kids are only this small for such a short amount of time, I began to rethink the whole Chemistry class. That class is going to take every ounce of time that I have and then some. Is this really fair to my family?

Adam is supportive of me 100%, no matter what I decide to do. But, being gone for class 2 nights a week, and then wanting to go to the gym the other 3 nights, where in the world would I find the time to spend with him? Things just weren't adding up. So, this is why I'm pretty sure (80% of the way there) that I'm going to hit the pause button and postpone the chemistry class for one semester. Maybe next semester my life won't be so crazy and there will be slightly more time to accomplish all of things that I want/need to in my life.

Now, I just have to go back to the campus and get my money back. Wish me luck on that one - I think the Chemistry class might be easier. :-)

Final Grade

I know all of you have been on pins and needles to find out what the final grade was in my psychology class. I absolutely passed the class. Whether or not I actually deserved the final grade, I don't know. Doesn't matter though. What's done is done. So, you want to know what the final grade was. I got an......

A

I better savor the moment because I know this will not be the final result of my Chemistry class that starts in a mere 6 weeks. Oh boy!

4th of July

As promised, here are some of the pictures we took while on our vacation over the 4th of July. So much fun! Did I mention I can hardly wait until next year to do this again?

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Blast Off!

For Adam's birthday, my sister and her family gave Adam an Air Hog Boeing Delta rocket. It works on an air hydraulic system and will soar about 120 feet in the air. It is so cool! Owen LOVES, LOVES, LOVES to pump up the air pressure and then pull the cord to make it go. Once the rocket lands, he runs after it and the fun starts all over again. Tonight, we took it out into the backyard and launched it a few times. It landed in the pool and Owen thought that we especially funny. Next time we launch the rocket, I'll take some pictures and you'll have a better idea of it all. The box does say for children ages 10+, but when have those guidelines ever stopped us before...THEY HAVEN'T! If you're ever having trouble finding something for a boy for a present, whether it is birthday, Christmas, or whatever the occasion might be, I highly recommend these toys. They're awesome.

2nd Annual 4th of July Trip

Airline miles for 3 tickets: 105,000

Rental car for 7 1/2 days: $260

Days spent on vacation: 8

Hours driven on the trip: 9

Number of kids in house aged 8 and under: 6

Number of fights between the two 2 years old: endless

Dollars donated by the residents of Hailey for the firework show: $22,000

Kids who threw-up in the car: 1

Kids who threw-up in the airport on the way home: 1

New t-shirt for kid who threw-up in the airport: $13.83

Time spent at the antique fair in Hailey, ID: 3 hours

Time spent at Tai Pan Trading: 45 minutes (so not enough time)

Cost to ship all of my "treasures" home: $108.00

Days 'til we do it again next year: 357 (as of this post)

Memories made on vacation: PRICELESS!!

We had such a great time in Hailey, Idaho over the 4th. Mindy's little girl, Mylie, is so adorable. She is such a great baby. Doesn't really cry unless hungry or tired. There were plenty of kids around to entertain her. Owen was fascinated with her and absolutely loved her. He gave her kisses, hugs, and even asked to hold her a few times. That surprised me! Caroline loved Mylie as well and every time she saw Mylie, she would say: "Baby! Baby! Baby!"

We got to relax and cool off in the wonderful weather up there. The hottest day in Hailey while we were there was 89 degrees. Then it cooled off so nicely at night we slept with the windows open. What a treat especially this time of year. We didn't do a whole lot of activities, which was nice. We hung out, relaxed, ate, laughed, ate, enjoyed the kids, ate, and cooled off. Did I mention all of the yummy food we ate? It was soooooo delicious.

The visit started with the day we got to Mindy's house, Caroline bonked her head on the headboard of the guest room bed, right on her eyebrow of the left eye. Thank heavens it wasn't hard enough that it split the eye open and we avoided a trip to the ER while we were there.

All of us went to the 4th of July parade. We saw some neat cars, fire trucks, had candy thrown to us and passed out to us. Owen was a little bit scared of the horns on the fire trucks. He ran and wanted to sit on my lap. Once he realized it was okay, he clapped and cheered for more. Later that day, Mindy and I snuck off to the antique fair and had a grand old time. She got some great pieces and I found a few treasures myself.

That night, we did the whole sparkler-thing for the little kids and, this year, Owen loved them. He thought they were really neat. Caroline turned in really early and missed the whole show again this year. It was just fine by me because she had been really cranky since her schedule was off and was going to bed much later than usual. Since it doesn't get dark up there 'til around 10:00 or so, she wasn't in bed until 9:15 or 9:30 and then up with the sun at around 7:30. Not enough time for her beauty sleep. Owen had a fabulous nap that day and saw the whole show. He loved it and wanted more fireworks.

The Town of Hailey has an incredible firework show, both from the neighborhood where my sister lives, and the actual show put on by the Town. Some residents go to the neighboring town of Shoshone, which is on an Indian reservation, and buy their firworks there and bring 'em back for all to enjoy. That is a lot of fun, even if it is illegal fireworks! :-)

Adam and Jason, Mindy's husband, and their son, Carson, went for a great hike to 4th of July Lake in the Sawtooth National Forest, and then continued on in their hike up to Washington Lake. Adam enjoyed the hike and although it was an "easy" hike and only 5 miles round trip, all of them were beat by the time they got home.

We left early Sunday morning and drove back down to SLC to stay with Adam's parents. We got stuck in some bad traffic around Farmington. Once we stopped, Caroline woke up and proceeded to throw up her french fries and apple juice we just got her in Tremonton. Poor little girl. She tried so hard to be in good spirits the rest of the trip, but continued to throw up a couple of times each day, including the day we left. That day, she threw up on Adam as we were trying to get ready and to the airport. Adam's mom helped us run another load of laundry quickly, ran to the store to get some Gatorade. We are both very thankful for her and she was a big help with the kids.

Owen wasn't left behind in the throw up regard either. As Adam and I were eating our breakfast by the gate in the airport, Owen and Caroline were in their stroller. I would ask Owen if he wanted a bite of my cinnamon roll, which he refused. Odd! I asked him if he wanted a drink, which he refused. Odd! I asked him what he wanted and he said to sit on my lap. I proceeded to unbuckle him from the stroller. He climbed down and came over to me. He turned around so his back was facing me so I could hoist him onto my lap. Before I got the chance to do that, he proceeded to throw up all down the front of him, on my leg, etc. etc. Adam was sent on an errand to find a replacement outfit because I didn't pack a replacement in my carry-on outfit for him, I packed one for Caroline. After all, she was the one who threw up that morning.

All Adam could find was a shirt. He took the dirty shirt and shorts to the men's bathroom. He rinsed out the shirt and washed the shorts. Adam attempted to dry the shorts under the hand dryers in the bathroom, but was getting too many dirty looks. We tried to put the "clean" shorts back on Owen, but he refused. So, my little boy flew home in his new shirt, diaper, socks and shoes. He was happy with that, I could have cared less and didn't want to battle him over stupid shorts.

When we got home, Adam's brother, Steve, who lives in Washington was down here during the same exact days we were gone. But, on his way to the airport, he was able to stop by our house and see our family. We haven't seen Steve in about 5 years, and he has never met the kids. We are so glad we got the little bit of time to spend with Steve.

Even after all of this, I still can't wait to do it all again next year. I've already put in my "reservations" at my sister's house and am looking forward to the antique fair and Tai Pan Trading. (Why can't we have a Tai Pan Trading down here!!!!!????? That store is the freakin' bomb! Then again, maybe it's a good thing we don't have one here. I'd be there ALL THE TIME.)

I'll post some pictures of our trip once we take all 400+ pictures off the camera card. I just don't have the energy to do it right now. Stay tuned.