Halloween Fun

The following/previous (how ever you wanna look at it) two posts are some videos I was playing with the other night.

I used my little sister, little brother, Dad and Eric and I was laughing most of the night.

In the 'Monster Rap' one, I love how my Dad is rocking his bling. He is so not like that so it is just hilarious watching it.

My little sister may disown me for the 'Monster Mash' one, but I think she makes THE GREATEST mad scientist with that face.

ENJOY!

What Happens Next...

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

What Happens Next...

Personalize funny videos and birthday eCards at JibJab!

What Happens Next...

In Case You Were Wondering Wednesday

In Case You Were Wondering Wednesday....

HAVE YOU EVER

(The Ones In Bold Are What I HAVE Done)

Held a parrot
Held a snake - although that is odd for me because I HATE snakes
Touched a worm
Took a ferret out for a walk
Took a dog out for a walk
Had more than 3 pets at a time
Had more than 5 pets at a time
Had a pet bird
Had a pet cat
Had a pet dog
Had a pet ferret
Had a pet horse
Had a pet hampster
Had a pet insect
Had a pet iguana
Had a pet mouse
Had a pet rabbit
Had a pet rat
Had a pet snake
Had a pet tortoise
Had a pet water creature (crab, goldfish etc)
Had a pet rock or something else odd
Had a pet not listed
Stood on a cats tail by accident
Nearly tripped over a little dog
Been bitten by a dog
Been scratched by a cat
Been attacked by any animal
Been to the vets
Been to get your pet put down
Found a stray dog or cat
Nursed an animal back to health
Had a butterfly land on you
Had a ladybug in the palm of your hand
Put your hand in a spiders web
Done bird watching
Been dog racing
Been horse racing
Rode a camel
Had your pet have a litter of little ones
Been stung by a wasp
Been bitten by a mosquito
Walked through a flower garden and took in the smells/sights
Picked a fresh rose
Picked a fresh flower of any sort
Made daisy chains
Made daisy bracelets
Done the buttercup test (under the chin)
Bought someone flowers
Been bought flowers
Done gardening - I stink at it though, that's what I don't do it anymore!
Been out in a thunderstorm
Been out in a snowstorm
Been out when there has been hailestones
Been out when it's been flooding
Been out when it's below -1*C/30*F
Been out when it's been about 40*C/104*F
Been in a heatwave
Been out in 100mph winds
Been out in 120mph or more winds
Seen a waterfall (in person, no books)
Seen the solar eclipse
Seen the lunar eclipse
Seen the aurora borealis
Sat and watched a sunset start to finish
Sat and watched a sunrise from start to finish
Been on a high mountain
Dove deep in the sea
Swam in the sea
Been on an airplane
Been on a boat
Been on a train
Been on a tram
Been on a helicopter
Rode in a taxi - That was an experience
Been in a firemans truck
Been in a police vehicle
Had a ride in an ambulance
Learnt First Aid
Got advanced First Aid knowledge
Seen someone have a fit
Seen someone have a seizure - I need to say something about this...Last week when I posted about all the kids and the major illnesses we've dealt with, Eric reminded me that Tanis had a Febrile Seizure when he was about 14 months old. He literally went unconcious and almost fell off the bed.
Been there when someone had a heart attack
Called 999/911/112 or equivalent
Fainted
Had a fit
Had a seizure
Had an overdose
Got heatstroke
Got anemia
Got asthma
Got diabetes
Broken a bone
Had a minor injury
Had a major injury
Had a life threatening injury
Saved someone from nearly dying
Done CPR
Seen someone get shocked
Witnessed another violent crime
Been mugged
Been raped
Been abused
Had your house burgled
Beat someone up
Stolen something little
Stolen something pricey/big
Stolen something of sentimental value
Committed a violent crime
Been in prison
Dated anyone in prison
Had any family or close friends in prison
Drove without a license
Hot-wheeled
Drove whilst drunk or on drugs
Drove whilst extremely tired or worn down
Drove way too fast
Been on a rollercoaster
Been on a ghost train
Been in the tunnel of love
Been on a carousel
Been bungee jumping
Been scuba diving
Been sky diving
Been in terror tower
Played Bloody Mary
Played with a Ouija board
Used a Ouija board for more than just fun
Seen a ghost
Seen an angel/demon/god
Thought you saw santa
Been so frightened you fainted
Been so frightened you cried and couldn't move
Played a cruel prank
Had a cruel prank pulled on you
Believed an Urban Legend (whether likely or not)
Was too frightened to sleep after watching a movie
Had to keep the lights on because of a movie
Laughed so hard you cried
Cried so hard you laughed
Laughed at a horror film
Cried at a comedy film
Was frightened by a scene or character from a kids movie/show
Watched movies back to back for more than 6 hours
Watched any of the SAWS
Watched any of the Harry Potters
Watched any of the Hellraisers
Watched Annie
Watched Jurassic Park
Watched TV for more than 5 hours solid
Watched episode after episode of a series back-to-back
Watched Smallville
Watched Eastenders
Watched America's/Britains Got Talent
Watched Sky Sports
Watched QVC
Watched Fiver
Broke something of someone elses on purpose
Spent more than 6 hours surfing the net
Spent all night on the computer messaging someone
Accidently clicked on an inappropriate site
Recieved unwanted messages from a stranger
Got emails about viagra
Downloaded music legally
Downloaded movies legally
Downloaded music illegally
Downloaded movies illegally
Listened to online radio
Went on to a website you heard mentioned in an Ad
Gambled online
Played games for fun
Read stories or poetry
Wrote stories or poetry
Looked up song lyrics
Searched your name on Google
Tried to trace your family ancestory
Been on www.allpoetry.com
Been on www.bored.com
Been on www.quizilla.com
Been on www.wittyprofiles.com
Used Facebook
Used Myspace
Used Bebo
Used Gaia
Used LJ
Burned a CD
Made a mixed CD
Burned a DVD
Bought a pirated DVD
Broken your computer
Damaged your keyboard - One time at work I spilled Root Beer all over the keyboard...That was fun to explain...
Lost the battery charger if have laptop
Had a PS
Had a PS2
Had a PS3
Had a Nintendo DS
Had a Wii
Had an Xbox
Had a Gamecube
Owned a CD player
Had a CD rack
Owned over 50 CDs
Owned over 100 CDs
Listened to a CD through your DVD player or Playstation
Owned a DVD player
Laughed at something really inappropriate
Laughed at something and snorted
Cried for no reason
Laughed for no reason
Bought a car
Cooked a 3 course meal
Made an Indian dish
Made a Chinese dish
Accidently dropped money on the street
Had someone close to you steal from you
Been victim to racism
Been victim to sexism
Been bullied
Said sorry when you didn't mean it above 12
Missed someone so much you cried
Ate oyster
Ate octopus
Tried sushi
Made a tuna bake
Baked someone a birthday cake
Got food poisoning
Made a flan
Worked in a pub
Worked in a restaurant
Worked in a shop/store
Gave more than $5 to charity
Gave more than $20 to charity
Gave more than $50 to charity
Fell down a flight of stairs
Kissed someone of the same sex
Opened a bank account
Had a baby
Had a miscarriage
Been skiing
Been skating
Been skateboarding
Been to Europe
Been to an amusement park
Been to a fair
Rollerbladed
Hugged a stranger
Kissed a stranger
Met someone before they were famous
Hit someone
Kicked someone
Punched someone
Smiled at a stranger
Shouted at a stranger
Forgot your pin number
Held a strangers hand
Looked after someone elses child
Forgiven someone too many times
Met someone called Stacey
Met someone called Alyssa
Met someone called Gregory
Forgot your best friends birthday
Forgot a family members birthday
Been sick on a certain food
Lost your temper whilst driving
Been on a bouncy castle
Had a trampoline in your backyard
Had a left someone out deliberately
Cut yourself on purpose for attention
Watched I'm a Celebrity
Been to a book shining
Been to a film premiere
Liked the sequel of a movie more than the original
Drove a boat
Kissed an Italian
Impersonated an accent
Been to a national opera house
Been to a school play
Been in a school play
Swore at a teacher
Swore at a police officer
Stood on a frog by accident
Been in a forest
Swam in a lake
Call someone at a really late time
Had major surgery
Made up a new dance to a song
Parodied a song with funny lyrics
Bought yourself a plasma TV
Caught a snowflake on your tongue
Broke up with someone as you cheated
Broke up with someone to get with someone else

What Happens Next...

And Then It Hit Me

I have a story to tell.

But, before I can begin I need to introduce you to three characters.

This is a true story, but I have changed names to protect individuals. They may not care if I share their real names, but they might. So to play it on the safe side, they have new names.

I shall first introduce you to Ella. Ella has been in this neighborhood about the same amount of time as I have. I've known her since then, but I haven't really known her. She was always really kind and nice and would say hi when she saw me. She started a playgroup thing a few years ago and invited me to join and we had a few discussions then. But then the weather changed and the playgroup fell apart. She then played a big part in getting a book club together and made sure to include me on the emails she sent about it. I eventually went to book club and was thankful for the invite.

Next, I'll introduce you to Ava. Ava is new in the neighborhood. She moved in this past summer. She seemed really friendly and outgoing, but I didn't really get to know her then as I shortly got pulled into Primary. Then I get an invite from her as a friend on Facebook and I accepted. I thought it was cool she'd invite me though we'd only talked once or twice. Looking at her profile I then discovered that we shared a birthday, even the same year. We are EXACTLY the same age (although, she is older. ;) ) I then find out that I am her visiting teacher. I've gone to visit her one time, but we had a blast and she even volunteered to watch a couple kids while I ran an errand.

Finally I will introduce Grace. Grace has lived in this neighborhood probably since its inception. She is a quiet person (even more than me, if you can imagine) and I always wanted to meet her, but never had the guts to. Eric was the family's home teacher for awhile and after every visit he would say, "You have a lot in common, you should talk to her." Well I never really did - then we became Visiting Teaching companions. She is so good at getting the schedule set so that we go. Through this companionship I've learned A LOT about her and I realized she's nothing like I had envisioned. (That's a good thing)

Now back to the story...

In the middle of last week I got a message on Facebook from Ella and/or Ava inviting me to join them for frozen yogurt on Saturday. I also saw that they had invited Grace. I was THRILLED to have been invited somewhere with these wonderful ladies. I of course replied that I would love to go.

Saturday afternoon arrived and off we headed. Ava had to run an errand before our 'date' so she drove separately, but Ella, Grace and I had a nice conversation during our ride. We learned a bit more about each other and it was nice.

At the yogurt place we spent 2 1/2 hours visiting. It was awesome! To be able to do so without worrying about kids was so nice. During our visit I learned something about something that I've really struggled to overcome.

For a long time I've felt out of place in this neighborhood and it's been a struggle to go to Relief Society things and even to church at times because of this. But in listening to Ella talk, she has felt EVERYTHING I've felt in that regard.

Ava, Grace and I had also all came to the same conclusion about 'belonging' and why it's hard with certain people. However, Ava had put a much more positive spin on it and it changed my way of thinking.

As we were driving home and continuing on this topic, Ava pointed out that its always hard to go to places where you don't feel wanted, but you should still try. So then it all just hit me. I am NOT the ONLY one who feels or has felt like I do. I DO have places where I feel I 'belong' and I need to quit concentrating on the fact that I'm not necessarily LOVED by others in the area. I need to just be me and people with either like me or not, and if not it's their loss not mine.

I also got thinking that maybe I've appeared to be somewhat stand-offish and non-inclusive at times. If any of you reading this have EVER felt that from me, I apologize. I'm really not like that. I am just quiet and shy and I've been told by some people that before they really knew me, they thought I was stuck-up.

Anyway, Ella & Ava - thank you so much for thinking of me and inviting me out. I had a really nice time! And Grace, it was so nice to get to know you better. I hope we get to have more excursions in the future!

What Happens Next...

In Case You Were Wondering Wednesday

So, I realize it's actually THURSDAY, but I have a real excuse for being a day late this time.

Yesterday our internet was down ALL DAY! When Eric called the provider they said that a fiber optic cable had been cut. Apparently that takes a LONG time to fix. Our internet came back up around 11 last night, but I was in bed.

So how do I know it came on around 11? Because I left my computer on and suddenly I got notifications from my Instand Messaging program. But that's beside the point.

Onto this weeks:

MOMMY SURVEY

1. How old were you with your pregnancy?
TANIS - 20
SHAYLYN - 22
ALEX - 24
NATE - 28
AILEY - 30

2. How far along were you when you found out?
This is pretty much the same answer for all 5 kids. I've known at 4 weeks. Sometimes a bit sooner.

3. Any morning sickness?
TANIS - Occasionally, he was the one where I couldn't eat very much with at first. SHAYLYN - I only got sick if I didn't eat
ALEX - I don't remember...
NATE - I couldn't eat for the first few weeks with him
AILEY - I lived on soda crackers on Gingerale the first 3 months with her

4. What did you crave?
TANIS - Donuts and Hamburgers
SHAYLYN - I can't remember
ALEX - I can't remember
NATE - Bottlecap Candy
AILEY - Fruits and Pizza

5. How much weight did you gain?
TANIS - About 60 lbs.
SHAYLYN - 30 lbs.
ALEX - Probably around 50 lbs.
NATE - 40 lbs. or so
AILEY - Again 40 lbs. or so

6. Did you exercise while pregnant?
I only exercised religiously with Shaylyn, and occasionally with Ailey. I never did with the boys.

7. Did you like being pregnant?
TANIS - Yes
SHAYLYN - Yes
LEX - For the most part
NATE - Yes
AILEY - Not at first

8. Were you scared?
TANIS - Yes
SHAYLYN - No
LEX - No
NATE - No
AILEY - Yes

9. Would you do it again?
If I felt like I needed to, but at this point, I don't feel like it'll be necessary

10. How did you know you were in labor?
TANIS - My water broke
SHAYLYN - I had major contractions (probably was only Braxton Hicks though)
ALEX -Woke up to a wet bed
NATE - He was forced to come, so there wasn't a knowing period for him
AILEY - My water broke

11. Did your water break?
With everyone except for Shaylyn and Nate, as you can read above

12. How long did labor last?
TANIS - About 14 hours
SHAYLYN - About 5 hours
ALEX - 3 hours
NATE - 4 - 6 hours...(I can't remember what time they started me exactly)
AILEY - 7 hours

13. Who was in the room with you?
Just Eric and the medical staff, although with Tanis we also had a few people from NICU there, just in case.

14. Would you change that?
Nope, never... okay, maybe the part about the NICU staff with Tanis - that was scary.

15. Who cut the cord?
Eric cut each one

16. How was the baby's name chosen?
TANIS - It was a characters name in a book Eric read and he really like the character and all that he represented.
SHAYLYN - Was a name I heard when I was young and I decided then that I was going to name my daughter that. Luckily Eric agreed.
ALEXANDER - Was one of two names we had finally settled on. We decided after watching Smallville and hearing that Lex Luthor's real name was Alexander, we went with that. Not because we hoped our son would be villianous, but because we liked the nickname of 'Lex' and that it wasn't 'Alex'
NATHANIEL - Quite honestly it was the only name we could both agree upon.
AILEY - A few years after Shaylyn came around, Eric was playing with names for his characters on one of his video games. He came up with Ailey and decided he really liked it and if we EVER had a girl again, that would be her name. Luckily for him, I liked it too.

17. Weight at birth?
TANIS - 6 lbs. 11 oz.
SHAYLYN - 6 lbs. 5 oz.
ALEX - 6 lbs. 5 oz.
NATHANIEL - 6 lbs. 11 oz.
AILEY - 6 lbs. 15 oz.

18. Length at birth?
TANIS - 19 inches
SHAYLYN - 20 inches
ALEX - 19 1/2 inches
NATE - 20 inches
AILEY - 19 inches

19. Age today?
TANIS - 10
SHAYLYN - 8, anxiously going on 30
ALEX - 6
NATE - 2
AILEY - 5 months (sniff, sniff)

20. Who does the child look like?
TANIS - Used to look like my little brother, but now I'm convinced he's just a mix. SHAYLYN - Another mixed up child
ALEX - Definitely looks like my little brother. It's a little scary to me at times.
NATE - A dead ringer for his Dad
AILEY - Still trying to figure it out...but looks like her Dad at times

21. Who is the father?
Eric is the father for all of them, in case any of you were actually wondering...

22. Do you love him?
More than anything in the world

23. Is he a good dad?
It's been difficult for him, but he is great. He sometimes doubts that, but I think he is awesome! Especially as the kids get older.

24. What has been the worst illness so far?
TANIS - He hasn't gotten anything worse than the flu or a cold
SHAYLYN - RSV at 3 months
ALEX - His lips turned blue as well as his extremities. When we took him in they said it was just a cold.
NATE - Hasn't really been that sick. Our biggest concern with him has been his skin issues.
AILEY - Thankfully we haven't had anything happen with her yet.

25. What is the biggest achievement recently?
TANIS - He can ride a bike w/o training wheels (Yes, it's sad....we failed the poor boy)
SHAYLYN - Ah heck...She's become a little entrepeneur
ALEX - Has also learned to ride a bike w/o training wheels
NATE - He sleeps all night! FINALLY!!!
AILEY - Can roll all over the place now

26. What's the child's favorite thing to do?
TANIS - Play video games
SHAYLYN - Come up with ways to earn money
ALEX - Loves to be with friends
NATE - Play with action figures and the like
AILEY - Make sure people pay attention to her

27. Would you change anything?
TANIS - I would work harder at making his self-esteem higher
SHAYLYN - I wouldn't try to ignore her ideas
ALEX - I would be more patient with him
NATE - I would've been more stubborn about where he slept
AILEY - I wouldn't change anything yet, but she's still young!

What Happens Next...

Which Witch?

Yesterday afternoon I had plans with my mother and sister to go to Gardner Village so that the kids could see the witches and do the petting zoo and pony rides.

I pick the kids up from school and we head on over. I told my sister to plan on us being there about a quarter after 3. Well I was a little behind and at 3:15 she calls and asks where we're at. Tanis (he answered my phone cause I was busy at the ATM) tells her that we are about 5 minutes away, then my mom gets on and tells Tanis we might beat them there.

It's about 3:30 when we get parked, so I call my sister and asked where she was. Her reply: "We're almost leaving Mom's. So I figure they'll get there in about 25 minutes, I'll feed Ailey. That was all fine and good for Ailey, but the big kids got antsy. You try being stuck in a packed car for 25 minutes when you're young.

So when Ailey is done eating, I decide we can get out of the car at least so that the kids won't be so ornery and Ailey will have a change of scenery. We waited outside for a good 15 minutes before my sister, mom and little brother show up. (If you were keeping track that means I was waiting for 45 minutes for them...GRRR....)

Anyway, we head straight to the petting zoo and pony rides as they were supposed to close at 5. We then discover that the prices have really gone up and it'll cost $5 for each of my kids to do both the pony ride AND petting zoo. Say goodbye to $20 fast. Then they expected parents to pay $3 to get into the petting zoo as well.

Well, my little sister only had 1 kid to pay for, so she said she'd pay to go into the petting zoo with all the kids. When I went to pay for the pony rides and petting zoo, the girl says, "And it costs parents $3 for the petting zoo." I looked at her and said, "I'm not going in, (pointing to my sister) she's going in with all the kids." Take that you stupid overcharged venue! Okay, so maybe I was a little irritated after having to wait for 45 minutes with 5 kids.... Oh, I guess I should mention that they don't take cards, and all I had was a $20 bill. Had they taken cards I probably would've paid the extra $3 for me to get in.

The Pony Ride Pics: (I don't have any from the petting zoo (obviously), but my little sis promises to send the ones she took to me)



... Poor kid was so scared, he was trying to climb off the whole time. I was trying to avoid droppings ...



After the Pony Ride/Petting Zoo we went to work finding the witches and trying to get pics of the kids. The kids weren't so thrilled with taking pics as they wanted their cookie that they'd get for finding all the witches.

It was fun to see how excited the kids got when they actually found a witch. Lex started filling out his paper, but after deciding he was too slow to write the locations down, he had me take over.

... Tanis is either casting a spell or directing traffic, not sure which ...

... The little girls DID NOT like the hay ...

... Once again, they are color coordinated without prior planning ...

... She'll be watched over as she gets older ...

We found all the witches, though we had to guess on one and then headed to the bakery to get the discounted cookies. The kids were thrilled that I even let them have a can of soda. Aren't I nice?

We took some time to eat our cookies and in the meantime, my older sister surprised everyone by showing up and hanging out with us. We actually left after we finished the cookies and tried (unsuccessfully) to get a picture of Grandma and all her Grandkids, but my sisters, mom and little bro all stayed.

... Literally, the best pic I got of all the grandkids, except for Nate ...

... This is what this little bugger preferred doing ...

I left so that I'd get home at the same time as Eric and before I spent money I didn't have in the cute little stores. I am proud of myself for practicing a little self control.

All in all it was a good day, but it left me worn out. That's usually what happens when I take all 5 kids anywhere by myself.

What Happens Next...

Getting In The Spirit Of Halloween

So, Eric and I got invited to an Adult (read: no kids) Halloween Party this past weekend, but there was one minor issue: Eric DOESN'T dress up. Getting him to dress up as a 50's greaser for a murder party a few years ago was like pulling teeth, so I didn't know how this 'costume required' party would work out for him.

A few years ago we had this plan and made a deal that if I lost x amount of pounds (my idea), we'd dress up as Men In Black for Halloween. Well I didn't lose any weight so he didn't have to keep his side of the deal.

So when we got this invite, we were thinking we'd just do our Men In Black idea. Well that meant we'd have to search for a suit coat and slacks for me. Then, Eric started thinking that he could do 'Street Wolverine':


He had it all planned out and was so excited about it. But when he told the host of his plans, the host told Eric that their friend, Eric, was already planning on being Wolverine. So it was back to Men In Black.

I was kinda sad about not being able to do the Wolverine thing because I can see Eric in a suit and tie weekly. I wanted to see him actually dress up. After sharing my feelings with Eric, this is what we came up with:


If you don't know who we are...try this.

This:


Translated into this:


And this:


Translated into this:


If you still don't have a clue, I guess I will tell you. I was Rogue and Eric was Gambit. Both are characters from Marvel Comics X-Men. I have liked the character Rogue since I was first introduced to her in a cartoon that was on while I was in Jr.High. Eric's always loved the X-Men and his fave character is Wolverine. But since Wolverine was already taken he went with another likeable character and that was Gambit.

While the party was fun and a great night out sans kids, I had the most fun planning and shopping with my best friend. It was fun to see him somewhat excited about dressing up and to have him pretty much put my costume together. (Plus I got a killer pair of boots to wear whenever) It was also fun to see the kids reactions. They were excited to see Mom & Dad dress up and Shaylyn was even taking pictures with her DS while we were taking pics with our camera.

What Happens Next...

In Case You Were Wondering Wednesday

This weeks entry...

Amusing Questions

1. Who is your best friend? Eric

2. What were you doing 8 hours ago? Sleeping

3. Who was the last person you kissed? Baby Ailey

4. Where is your cell phone? In the front room

5. Are you grandparents still alive? 3 out of 4 are

6. Do you live in a 2 story house? Only if the basement counts as a story

7. Where are you? In my house

8. Who did you go out to eat with last? My mom, sisters and daughters

9. Where to? Olive Garden

10. Are you drinking/eating anything? Not at this moment, no

11. What is your mood? Just kinda ho hum...

12. What is your favorite number? 16

13. Where do you shop the most? Wally's World

14. Snow or rain? Rain

15. What was the last movie you watched on TV? Heck, I don't remember. I don't usually watch movies on TV.

16. What was the last movie you saw in theaters? I think it was Inception

17. Who is in your house right now? Me, the 2 year old and the baby

18. Who was the last person you commented? My little sis

19. Who was the last person to comment you? My hubby's friend

20. Who was the last person you im'd? The hubby

21. Who was the last person to im you? The hubby

22. Next place you will travel to? That's yet to be decided

23. How many siblings do you have? 6

24. What cell phone company do you have? AT&T

25. Are you listening to music? Nope

26. Last person you were in a car with? The whole family

27. Last time you went to a park? On Labor Day

28. What are you doing today? Laundry and that's about it.

29. What will you do tomorrow? Crack the whip and make the kids clean the basement whilst I clean out some closets...At least that's the plan...

30. If you had to live on an island for the rest of your life what two clothing items would you bring? Pajamas and a bra

31. What is the closest yellow object to you? The top to the baby's bottle

32. Look to your right, what do you see? Little Nate playing with a Lego boat

33. And your left? A wall

34. How many people do you actually trust? Only a handful

35. Are you single, or taken? Very happily taken

36. What is your favorite movie? I don't really have a favorite

37. What is your favorite TV show? At the moment, probably Glee, but Castle is right up there too.

38. Tell me about the last reason you laughed? Nathaniel is always doing something funny, that is when he isn't ornery

39. Last time you took a walk just because? A couple weeks ago

40. Do many kids live on your street? Uh yeah...

41. You're in a coma, who comes to see you? I would hope the hubby and kids would, and then my parents and siblings...

42. Is anybody watching you fill this out? Well, Nathaniel was...He's not anymore.

What Happens Next...

In The Eyes Of A Child

There are many, many walls in my home. Most of them are filled with pictures and there is really no rhyme or reason to the way they are hung. I try my best to make nice arrangements, but I DO NOT have any skill in interior decorating, so I do my best.

That being said, this is my favorite wall in my home (is it weird to have a favorite wall?) and it recently got 3 new additions to it. Here is my favorite wall.... And please don't look too closely or you might see that some pictures are crooked and some pictures aren't spaced EXACTLY evenly.


If you don't know why this wall would be my favorite then you need help. ;)

Anyway, the 3 new additions happen to be those 2 blue frames and the pink frames. Those are cute pictures of my nephews and niece. And if you notice there is a place underneath Ailey, next to Nate that looks a little off balance - well that, my dear friends, is a very special spot, reserved for a very special little guy named Carson. He will join the wall in just over a month or so.

Andyway, I got those frames from Allie Kelly Frame Co. I love this company. It is a husband/wife team and all their frame collections are named after family members. I love the fact that I can choose whatever colors I want and whatever look I want. (FYI - The vinyl lettering I did on my own. The frames don't come that way) I will eventually replace all my frames so that they are all alike. The black and "white" frames are actually from Rod Works.

Okay, not sure why I went off on that tangent. I just wanted to share my favorite wall with y'all.

And somewhat unrelated, this:


My wonderful clock. It used to house pictures of our family...Eric, Tanis, Shaylyn, Lex, Me, Lex, Shaylyn, Tanis....and it stayed that way for years. Probably close to 4 years since Lex looks about 2 in all the pictures that were in there.

Well, I had this wonderful idea the other day, to change the clock to pics representing the season. It didn't turn out quite as cute as I had hoped, but it is something new and now Eric can't tell me that he is bothered by the fact that it's just our faces staring back at us. HAHAHA!

What Happens Next...

In Case You Were Wondering Wednesday

Week Four! I think this is the best I've done on my 'weekly entries.' Eh, scratch that.... I had this post started yesterday (Wednesday) and then got distracted with a few projects and Parent Teacher Conferences, yada, yada, yada. Then I ran away to book club and didn't return home until 1:00 in the morning. (Yeah, I'll be feeling that later)

Anyway, here we go.

THE IN-LAWS

1. How old are you? 30

2. When did you get married? When I was 19

3. How old is your spouse? 30

4. Where did you get married? At a stake center

5. Did you in-laws help in the wedding plans? Yes

6. Were any in-laws in your wedding? Yes

7. Do they remember your anniversary? I think so

8. Do they know it? If they remember it, than I think they know it...

9. Did they come to your wedding? Yes

10. Do they remember you on your birthday? Yup

11. What was the last gift you received from them? For my birthday, I don't remember. But I got a nice big pot and a nice skillet after Ailey was born. (Early Christmas...hehehe)

12. What was the worst? I don't think I ever got anything I didn't appreciate

13. Do you have kids? Yup - 5

14. Do they remember their birthdays? Yes

15. Do you visit your in-laws? Most every Sunday

16. Do you in-laws live close to you? Nope.

17. Do you enjoy spending time with them? Yes

18. Do you go shopping with your MIL? Occasionally, yes

19. Do you do lunch together? Only when we are already out shopping

20. Do you in-laws make problems? Nope

21. Do they talk about you? Probably, but I doubt it's in a bad way

22. Do they include you in family events? Yes

23. Do they tell you they LOVE you? Yup

24. Do you ever just want to get away from them? Nope

25. Have any of them been in jail? Nope

26. Have you ever had words with an in-law? Nope

27. Do you trust your in-laws? Yes

28. Would you give them a key to your home? Yup

29. Do they treat you nice? Yes

30. Does your spouse take their side or yours? He doesn't need to take sides

31. Do you argue with your spouse because of your in-laws? Nope

32. Do you know your MIL's birthday? Yup, August 11

33. Do you know your FIL's birthday? Yes, May 14

34. Are they clean people? Yes

35. What kind of house do they live in? A nicer one than mine

36. Would you let them watch your children? Yes, and they have on many occasions

37. Have they called you names? Not to my face

38. How do they treat your spouse? He is their baby so he is pretty spoiled

39. Do they work? Yup, they both have very full time jobs

40. Do they knock on your door or just come in? Knock, unless they've already arrived and just had to run to the car for various reasons - then they'll just come in.

41. Does your MIL tell you how to clean your house? Nope

42. Does your MIL tell you how to raise your kids? No. She just gives her thoughts when we ask.

43. Are you happy with your in-laws? Yes

44. What kind of emails do they send you? Mostly just asking how we are, occasionally a forward, sometimes pictures of the kids

45. Does your spouse visit them with or without you? Both, but I'm welcome anytime. Sometimes he is just out and about and in the area when I'm not with him.

46. Would you care if they read your answers? Nope

What Happens Next...

We've Got Spirit

Okay, truthfully....we really have ZERO school spirit. Yes, you read that right ZERO. We didn't have school spirit in high school (I went to 1 basketball game and 1 football game my 3 years there, Eric went to a bunch but only for the chicks (his words)) and we certainly don't have it now. We probably won't have it in the years to come either, unless our kids do the sports route - even then, I don't think we'll have school spirit. We will just be going to sporting events to support our kids. Just like we supported Shaylyn this past week.

A few weeks ago Shaylyn brought home a flier that said the High School's drill team and cheerleaders were having a mini drill and cheer clinic. Shaylyn expressed interest in it and I told her she needed to talk with her dad. (He gets to make the odd money decisions like that)

After talking with Eric (I had kinda hoped he'd say, 'no'.) it was decided that she could do it. Though she'd have to do some work to 'pay' for it. (I still need to cash in on that)

So last week the clinics started. She was supposed to go on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Well in the middle of the day on Wednesday I realized that these clinics had started and she had totally missed Tuesdays clinic. Ooooops...I blame 'Mommy Brain'. I was then concerned that her clinics were at 4:30, which is when I had a Visiting Teaching appt. made. I really didn't want to reschedule the appt. so I was glad to read that the cheer clinic was at 5:30.

We went Visiting Teaching at our 4:30 slot and were having a wonderful time visiting. When I explained that I had to go and why I was cutting it so short, this WONDERFUL, NEW sister that I visit teach volunteered to watch the older boys and my sweet little girl so I only had to deal with Nathaniel. (Actually she volunteered to watch Nate too, but he wouldn't stay) I felt so weird that I actually left the kids...It was like saying, "I came to visit teach you now watch my kids." It was so appreciated though.

So I take Shaylyn over to the school and it is major CHAOS. Oh well...whatever. She starts out stretching and then they go right into the routine and cheer they learned on Tuesday (DANG IT!). Shaylyn does her best to catch up, and caught on pretty quick.

The next day we do the same thing all over again, though I had to take all the kids with me this time. Luckily, they were all VERY well behaved! I was glad I didn't have to get mean. I remembered the camera, so I took some pics of her practicing. I wasn't sure that we'd be able to see her at the performance.


Friday night she got to perform at the High School football game. I made Eric take her as we got one free ticket to the game. I don't deal well with crowds for one thing and I had seen the routine the past two days. We also didn't want to pay for the whole family to go the game. (Again, the whole no school spirit thing....)

Luckily, Eric was seated in a spot that he got a good enough view of our Shaylynnie. Eric said that Shaylyn was so happy to see her daddy watching her and she had a big grin on her face for him. (See, it's good I let them have a little daddy/daughter time)


(And yes, I am realizing I like parenthesis almost as much as ellipsis .... Deal with it!)

What Happens Next...