I can finally think and PACK!!

I don't know how people pack and move with children around! This is what my attempt to packing for our move looked like while my children were here . . .really, how many things can children do with boxes? Apparently quite a bit!



Craig thought building the kids a fort would help to entertain them while we packed. It worked for like 20 min., but then they just wanted us to play in the fort with them!




And of course, Ambree wanted to climb in everything that we cleaned out! She just doesn't understand this whole moving thing! I don't know why! :)



Oh, and of course there were still all the additional messes I had to clean up while trying to move. . . If you don't have children, enjoy your clean house now, because when you do have children, you will have messes like this all the time!



My sweet mother in law and sister in law flew out here a few days ago, and now they are on their way back to Utah with my children! Craig and I will leave on either Thurs. or Friday with the moving van to meet up with them there. Yeah, I have a few days to actually think and pack without distractions besides blogging of course (hey, I needed a break). Now our attempts to pack are looking like this . . .



I think we are making progress . . . what do you think?

Halloween is in one week! What are you going to be?

Here is a "little" clue as to what we are going to be, but you'll have to wait for pictures to see exactly how it turns out and who is what!

Grandma Carol (Craig's mom) sent the kids some Halloween stickers and socks. The kids love getting packages from her, which she sends every once in a while!

We've had fun making some Halloween crafts that I found in Family Fun Magazine. It's a lot more fun to decorate for holidays when you have kids who get excited about it. I'm sure this is only the beginning of our holiday decorating days with kids!

This is a picture of our front porch . . . can you see the hanging bats? We were going to do ghosts too, but I think that will have to wait until next year!

Happy Halloween!!!

Cade's first trip to the dentist!

After watching various shows and reading various books about the dentist, Cade was very anxious to go. He would regularly remind me that he really needed to go to the dentist, and I agreed, since he just turned three and had never been, so I made an appointment and off we went!

On the way there he kept saying that the dentist was going to put pink stuff in his mouth and it tasted yummy! He also said he was going to get a pink shirt! Who knows where he heard that from. I agreed that he would probably get pink stuff . . . but yummy? I said sure, but personally I can't stand it! And the pink shirt, I told him most likely not, but maybe a sticker! This didn't deter his excitement. He was acting as if we were going to an amusment park or something!

Here he is right before it was his turn. . . happy as can be!

Cade's thoughts: Ohhh, this must be the magnificent "dentist" (to him all the workers there are dentists). Maybe this is the yummy pink stuff I've heard so much about!

Cade cooperated for the x-rays of his front teeth but wouldn't bite down for the back ones. I heard the dental assistant tell him not to bite her finger, and when I asked him why he wouldn't bite down he said, "I didn't want to bite the dentist's finger." Next time I'll have to warn the dental assistant not to say that.

Cade's thougths: Ummm, there isn't anything yummy or exciting about this! Elmo and Blue made it seem much more exciting!

Dentist: OK Cade, it's time to recline your chair and see your teeth.

Cade: But I'm watching Blue's Clues! (It is always a bad thing when you try to pry this kid away from one of his shows when he is right in the middle of watching it).

Dentist: You can watch Blue's Clues when we are done.

Chair reclining and Cade is whining and trying to sit up. (I can tell at this point it is not going to be good so I go over and hold down his hands so the dentist can look in his mouth without him wacking her)!

Me: Cade, the dentist is putting the yummy pink stuff in your mouth now.

Cade: Gagging . . . I don't like it!

Cade after his dentist appointmt: I was decieved. I'm never trusting Elmo or Blue again and I am never coming back here!

After all was said and done, we found out Cade has no cavities (in his front teeth anyway). We'll have to wait for another appointment to find out about the back teeth. Hopefully he will cooperate a little better for the next one, if I can even get him out the door to go! Even though he didn't cooperate that well, he still got a little toy, a sticker, a toothbrush, and a certificate that says he is officially a member of the "Happy Tooth Cavity Fighter Club," but no pink shirt! Bummer!

As stated at the bottom of the award, he is entitled to all the rights and privileges of full membership in this club . . . whatever that means!

My dream home . . .

What is your dream home like?

Do you want a house with water front property?

Or maybe not water front, but definitely close to the beach!

Or maybe the desert?

Perhaps you can't stand the heat and want a house in the snow, maybe even dome shaped so you feel like an Eskimo right in the middle of Alaska!


Maybe you want a big fancy house in a crowded, upper class city like Beverly Hills or Hollywood?


Or do you prefer a quaint little cabin in the mountains with very few people around you?

I'll tell you what my dream home is. I don't care where it is located, or what it looks like from the outside as long as it has the following:

1. A big walk-in pantry in the kitchen where I can put the broom, mop, and garbage can inside and lock the door!
2. Bathroom cupboards that are high enough that my kid's cannot reach them and long enough for me to put the plunger, the toilet bowl scrubber, and the bathroom trash can into.
3. A high place to put the toilet paper roll.
4. Floors and counters that are not white (Preferably some type of neutral/tan tile with dark grout)!
5. Carpet that is not beige (preferably something that doesn't show the dirt very easily).
6. Toilets, tables, couches, beds, counters, and chairs that rise up and down, preferably high enough to be out of the kis's reach.
7. Closets in the bedrooms that have lots of bars for the clothes that are up high and not at the same level as my kid's little hands.
8. Closet doors that have locks on them and don't slide open.
9. An entertainment center that has a very high location for our videos/DVDs.
10. A lot more counter space and some type of seat to put my kids in and buckle them in while I am cooking and they insist to be up watching me. . . something to buckle their hands down would be nice too.
11. Doors that I can put childproof knobs on.
12. A computer, TV, radio, VCR, dishwasher, and oven/burners that my children cannot turn on, turn off, open, or close.
13. Lot's of high cupboard space in my children's rooms to put diapers, wipes, and TOYS on.
14. A play room for my kids.
15. A theatre for my kids (not that I let them watch much TV . . . I would never do that)! :)
16. A big yard with lots of fun things to entertain the kids!
17. A maid would be nice too!

I guess the thing in common with most of the things that I want in my dream home are things that are high so my kids cannot get into them and things to entertain my kids! It's unfortunate that by the time we might actually be able to afford a house with all these things my kids will probably all be raised and moved out of the home. I guess there will be grandchildren, but I'm sure I will think my grandchildren are perfect and won't need a lot of these things by then, right!? I guess only time will tell!

What were you doing 10 years and four months ago?

I was graduating from High School!

I can't believe it has been 10 years! This past year or so, I knew that my high school 10 year reunion was right around the corner, which was a very strange thought. Part of me thought it would be weird to go and see those people again. What would I say to them? What would they think of the way I looked now (I have had 2 kids since then you know)? Would many people even go to it? Would it cost a lot of money? Would it be annoying for Craig to go with me since he didn't know anyone? What would I wear? You know, all those important details! There was also part of me that thought it would be fun to go and see all of those people again. What did they look like now? What had they done with the last 10 years? Who would be there? Who was married and to whom? Who had kids and how many? After much deliberation with myself and others, weighing the pros and cons, I had decided not to go. That was until Friday, when I received yet another text or two from Robby Noble, one of my best friends from high school, telling me to go because he was in charge of planning the whole thing after all. What kind of friend would I be if I didn't support him (he didn't say that, but I thought it). He also said that there was the option of just going to the dance/mingle after the dinner. That would cut the cost way down, and cut the time that we would be there (just in case we were having a horrible time). So . . . we went to the 10 year reunion and had a great time (Craig would probably say it was bearable, but I had a great time).

Jurupa Valley High School Graduation 1997

Scrap book pages that I made 10 years ago (see, they really do come in handy). Do you think we have changed much in the last 10 years?

Then . . .

Leeann, Breanna, Janell (out of town for the reunion), Me.

Now . . .

Breanna, Leeann, Me

Then . . .

Jonathon, Breanna (married to Jonathan now, with one kid), Me, Janell, Robby

Jen and Liz

Now . . .

Jen, Robby, Me

Liz, Me

Then . . .

Becky, Maria
Maria, Me Tommy, MeNow . . .

Tommy, Becky (married with 3 kids)
Becky, Me
Maria, Me
And of course, My cute husband and me (Maybe next year when it is his 10 year reunion, I'll post some pictures of him in high school)!
It's funny how so much happens in 10 years, and yet when you meet back up with old friends it seems as if no time has passed at all, and you just pick up right where you left off. Hopefully I'll do better at keeping in touch with my friends from high school now instead of waiting to see them until our 20 year reunion(If I even go). By then, who knows how many kids I'll have and pounds I'll have gained! LOL!

Tagged again!

Michelle tagged me, so I thought I'd oblige because I know how it feels when you tag someone and they don't respond . . . uggh rejection.


Jobs I've had (way too many)!

1. Sold and picked blackberries at a blackberry farm.
2. Graziano's Pizza Restaurant
3. Tilly's Clothing Store
4. Hostess at Black Angus
5. YMCA Summer Camp Counselor
6. Sunglow Potato Plant in Idaho (what an interesting experience that was)!
7. Food server at the BYU Idaho Cafeteria
8. Sales Rep for Cutco Cutlery
9. Substitute Teacher (current)
10. Mom (current)

Places I've lived (way too many)!

1. Provo, Utah
2. Seattle, Washington
3. Burley, Idaho
4. Twinfalls, Idaho
5. Declo, Idaho
6. Rexburg, Idaho
7. Tustin, California
8. Riverside, California
9. Temecula, California
10. Fullerton, California
11. Cascais, Portugal
12. Setubal, Portugal
13. Praia, Cape Verde (West Africa)
14. Fogo, Cape Verde (West Aftica)

Foods I love (way too many)!

1. BBQ chicken
2. Homemade Lasagna
3. Cobb Salad and BBQ Chicken Salad
4. Hummus and Pita Chips
5. Peanut Butter with almost anything
6. fresh fruit
7. Frozen Yogurt/Smoothies
8. corn bread
9. cheese cake

Websites I visit (way too many)!

1. Google
2. Mapquest
3. Various Blogs
4. Ebay
5. Craig's List
6. Yahoo
7. Youtube
8. lds.org

Places I'd rather be (way too many)!

1. Hawaii
2. The Beach
3. The Gym
4. Snow Boarding
5. Water Skiing
6. Visiting areas/people I served on my mission.
7. In a big house (I'm done with apartments)!
8. On a date with Craig.
9. Visiting with family and friends I haven't seen for a while.

Movies I love (I'm not a huge movie fan, but here are a few that stand out to me)!

1. Armageddon
2. The Sixth Sense
3. Ann of Green Gables
4. Cheaper by the Dozen
5. Grease
6. Pursuit of Happiness

TV Shows I watch (I don't view these religiously, but if I had a DVR, these would be recorded)!

1. The Biggest Loser
2. Survivor
3. American Idol
4. Oprah

Things I never thought I'd do . . .

Let my 15 month old eat her very own ice cream cone! (Don't mind the red mark on her forhead. . . who knows which fall or collision that was from)!

Let my 15 month old eat her very own cupcake!

Let my kids vegge in front of the TV!

It can't be a good sign when Cade says, "I love the TV!" and gives it a hug!