Jammin' July

Here's this months installment of all the random crap this family does in a month.

{...A SCENIC DAY OUT...}

Lex's baseball team won 1st place or something in our city's league which meant they were able to go to a state or region tournament (I'm still not sure which it was). His first game was set for about 9 or 10 in the morning and it ended up that the other team never showed so Lex's team got an auto win. They had another game later on in the afternoon and the coach's also wanted to have a team picnic. They found a park close to the ballfield and we had a picnic.

I left the other kids home, but took Jace with me. It was going to be a long day and I knew it would be rough for the other kids. So while Lex was off with his ball friends, Jace and I strolled around the park and I really enjoyed the scenery.

(Yes, I'm a horrible mother and didn't get any pics of the tourney)

{...The Goose With No Fear...}

{...I texted this picture to Eric saying it was almost his dream home. He really dreams of having turret type architecture on his dream home...}

Really this park was one of the most beautiful parks I've seen in my life. I had to spend a little too much time there, but at least it was peaceful and calm.

{...CRAZY HAIR DON'T CARE...}

Shaylyn and her BF, Mikayla are two of a kind. They don't mind being crazy and wild together and they are always good for a laugh. They're also good sports and let their crazy moms take pictures that will embarrass them as they get older.

{...A LITTLE TOO MUCH...}

When we bought our new car (Hey, we bought a new car sometime in June) we got the option to get some DVD players installed. The DVD players came with headphones! BONUS for mom. The older kids are pretty good at using them, but Jace wasn't too sure of them. One Sunday heading to Eric's mom's I caught Jace wearing a set. It was very brief and they were off almost as soon as they were on, but dang this boy looked cute with them on.

{...TIME FOR BED?!?!...}

I told the kids it was almost time for bed. Ailey ran into her room for a minute and came out with every play necklace and bracelet she owns. She told me she was THEN ready for bed. I'm not sure how she thought she could get any sleep with all of those necklaces on!

{...SOUS CHEF...}

Ailey really has an interest in baking and cooking. I can't count the number of times she asks if she can help when I'm doing either. There are times I let time issues get to me or issues with a bigger mess and tell her no. But there are other times I really understand that her help really isn't going to hurt much. There was a night she asked to help with dinner and since it was something so super simple, I let her help. She was beyond thrilled.

What Happens Next...

March Mayhem

March was one of those months that had a lot of just random things happen, but they were all in need of being photographed. Or that might just be my opinion...

We'll start off with teenage girls getting ahold of my phone and thinking they're funny. (And I thought I needed to keep my phone away from the little ones)

Our trip then takes us to pictures the 5 year old likes to take. Most of the time they are of her little toys, but she actually got one that was worth keeping. Domino is such a snuggler and likes to snuggle up with whatever. It's usually one of us humans, but sometimes a blanket works just as well.

Wanna know what happens when kids get into the container full of random plugs and things Dad still thinks he needs and then leaves them out? The power source to one such things gets left somewhat out of the box and then when Mommy's in a hurry she'll step on it just right so that it causes this:

And after two days of trying her best to stay off the foot as much as possible, but it's not so easy because life doesn't slow down - it looks like this:

Because I'm a cool mom, I let Shaylyn get her hair dyed purple. No, I'm not kidding. I seriously let this kid do it. I figure it's just hair it'll grow out eventually and it did. It didn't last as long as I hoped, but it made this kid happier than happy.

As soon as a mutual friend of mine and Eric's introduced something to the FB world, Eric's words were something like, "Oh dear." Because he knew exactly what would happen. I sent him the following picture with the caption, "Oh, yes we did!" Sadly, it was a bit of a letdown for me, but Shaylyn really loved them.

Then allergies attacked! They attacked the kid I was least expecting them too. This poor kid could barely open his eye. And it was one of those times just looking at him hurt me as his mom (it still does). He got a free pass to stay home from school this day.

When you're little, you can find the BEST hiding spaces. Jace found one in one of Grandma's entertainment center cupboards. Sadly I wasn't quick enough to get him hiding out in there, but I got him as he was escaping. 

When you're tired, you're tired and sometimes you sleep in funny ways and sometimes Mommy actually gets a picture of it. Maybe he knew it was good for his heart???

You know it's rarely good news when you get a phone call from the school. You know it's worse news when the message says, "We have our little Nate friend here and he hit his head on the cement...." My heart skipped about 20 beats. His teacher then calls my cell phone and says he fell while playing at recess, he did hit it on concrete, they stopped the bleeding, it wasn't that bad and he currently has ice on it - but he wanted to talk to me. So I talk to him and he wants to come home. I don't blame the kid so I go get him from school and poor kid had a nasty goose egg. You could definitely tell it hurt - he was also a bit more solemn that day.

Totally don't blame the kid. Guess March was the month of unexpectedness...or something.

What Happens Next...

Another First

The boys were all in need of haircuts, so I asked my cute friend Jobi to help out. We set up a day and that was that.

In the period between talking to Jobi and actually getting the haircuts I had decided that Jace was also in need of a haircut, but I was sad that it meant we'd have to cut off his cute little blonde curls.

On the other hand, it was long and the poor kid looked like he had wings coming out of his head. It was just time to get it done.

I was nervous about how he'd take to having a 'stranger' so close to him. But he surprised both Jobi and I and did an awesome job. Jobi said he was one of the best babies she'd ever had to cut hair for. YAY!

And I left my camera at home, but thank goodness for cell phones. We got a few cute pictures and I'm glad we have them.

The only downside of the experience was how grown up Jace looked after all was said and done. And yes, we kept some of his little curls. Eric thinks I've gone to a whole new level of weird.

What Happens Next...

Hair Crazy

So Jace has hair that grows in at weird times. Some of it is longer than other parts of it and sometimes it makes me crazy to look at. His hair is especially long on the sides and I wonder if I should just chop it off, but at the same time it scares me to death to do so.

The other day I had to run to the store. I decided to try an experiment with Jace. My little sister likes to give her 1 year old son a faux-hawk and it's absolutely adorable on the kid. He's got this fine hair and it works so well. I thought we should try it out with Jace.

Jace also has some thin hair, but I don't think it's quite as fine. So while we were going for a faux-hawk and mostly accomplished that goal, his hair was a little heavier and we got a bit of curl to it.

So while it wasn't exactly what I was going for, he still looked dang cute. And IT STAYED in place ALL DAY! Jace even got the attention of a few ladies while we were in the store and he didn't mind it at all.

I think I'll take to doing his hair most every day, he cooperates so much better than Ailey does. 

What Happens Next...

If I Was A Teenager...

...I'd have this whole taking selfies thing down.

All I wanted to do was get a picture of my new hairdo. Could I accomplish that feat? No. It's too bad too, because my friend, Brandee did a terrific job. I went with very subtle highlights and a cut that's become my norm as of late.

Even though getting the pictures was a bust, getting my hair done wasn't. It was a much needed day out and it was so nice to visit with someone that doesn't insist on yelling at/for me every 2 minutes.

What Happens Next...

Cute Girls Hairstyles And Oz

For any of you that REALLY know me, you know I'm somewhat anal about having the girls hair done when we go places. If we're at home or I don't feel great, all bets are off. However, I make darn well sure that if we're going to be in public, hair gets done!

I love my Mom, I really, really do - but hair was never big on her to-do list for us. So I pretty much hate all pictures of my childhood cause I look like an orphan. I didn't want that with my girls, but finding a new do for every single day proved difficult at times.

Then, a few years ago, one of my good friends from school, Jenn - started up a hair blog. I followed her daily and she had links to so many other hair blogs and I was good to go. Because of Jenn's blog I happened across Cute Girls Hairstyles. Love her blog!

Well since then Facebook has become huge and Mindy's done a lot of videos on YouTube and being the more visual learner that I am, I followed her YouTube page and her Facebook page. Towards the end of February she posted that she had rented out a theater to see the new Oz movie that was coming out. She was even able to get a showing the night before it 'technically' opened. It was a sort of meet and greet and to be entered you just had to sign up for her newsletter.

I debated about entering. I knew that they live out in the same county I do, so the show would be at a close theater, but it was the Meet & Greet I wasn't so sure about. Being the shy person I was, I wasn't sure I was going to be comfortable meeting her and talking to her. There was also the issue of crowds. I'm not a fan of crowds.

After thinking about it though, I decided it'd be a neat experience for Shaylyn and I if we actually got tickets, so I entered. I was anxiously waiting for an email the day she said she'd send emails to the 'winners'. I wasn't getting it, wasn't getting it. Then around 6:00 at night when I had pretty much figured we hadn't been picked, I got an email.

I was actually excited and Shaylyn got excited when I told her. Eric was less excited. I was going to see a movie he wanted to see without him and he'd have to watch the other kids. HAHAHA!

On March 7th, Shaylyn and I headed to the theater and my nerves weren't as bad as I thought they'd might be. There was a crowd, but it wasn't as bad as I had anticipated either. We got our tickets and then got it line to get pictures with Mindy and her girls. Luckily for me there really wasn't a lot of time to chit-chat, so I worried about that for nothing. I did make sure to say thanks for the opportunity and the girl standing next to me, Brooklyn, actually noticed something Shaylyn was wearing (handmade) and asked her if she made it using some sort of something. Shaylyn knew what she was talking about and they chatted about that for a minute. I thought that was pretty cool.

After the Meet and Greet, Shaylyn and I grabbed some food, ate and then went and waited in line to get seated in the theater. I was so happy about our seats. We were in the front row of the upper level. We had no one in front of us, which meant plenty of leg space.

RadioDisney was also there and kept the audience entertained while we waited for the gang of CuteGirlHairstyles to finish up the Meet & Greet and for the movie to start. They had the audience do all sorts of dances and stuff and Shaylyn really had a fun time. She got a Wreck-It Ralph door hanger for her room just for having a CuteGirlHairstyle that night. She could've got more prizes, but she didn't dare go down to the bottom and dance around. We also didn't win any of the cool giveaway prizes that CuteGirlHairstyles were giving away, but we got to see a new movie for free. I was happy with that.

The movie was great. I really liked it and I don't care much for the actor that plays Oz, so that says something. I thought they did a great job incorporating certain things from The Wizard Of Oz into this movie and that really made me happy.

We had a great night and I'm so glad that I got over some of my insecurities so that I could share a fun night out with my Shaylynnie.

What Happens Next...

Why Do I Care?

Here we go...

I am bit confused as to why a few things are bothering me lately, when in all reality they shouldn't. Thus, the question: Why do I care?

#1: This whole layout competition thing - I went in just wanting to get the free kits and totally not expecting to really get anywhere. So why does it leave me thinking I have no talent for this and why did I do it when I knew what would happen. However, I didn't expect to only get 2 votes (and no, I didn't vote for myself) when others were getting 30.

Guess that could've been worse at least 2 people thought I was worth the effort. That made me feel a bit better. And then comes the pride issue. I look at the ones that made it through and wonder, "How the heck did that happen?"

#2: After posting our family pics on Facebook and getting all sorts of compliments (mainly on the kids) I then get one comment from an aquaintance I had in high school that says this: "sorry shilo not ment for you." Now I am assuming that this person was talking about my hair. (I guess they could've been talking about any number of things, or they accidentally posted something on my pics, when they meant another person's pics...Only there's not a deleted post prior to that one, so I doubt it)

It annoyed me. I have no idea why as this person is one of the VERY LAST people I would ever go to for fashion/style advice. And yes, this person is free to have their opinion - but why say something like that to someone? That's something you should keep to yourself.

I for one actually like my hair and quite a few other people have said the same. I suppose other people could be lying to me, but why? The girl that did my hair (You ARE AWESOME BTW) loved how it turned out as well and had so many nice things to say to me afterwards.

So why, when someone who isn't really in the 'fashion know' tells me something isn't meant for me, does it bug me so?

#3: I feel like no one really reads this blog. Which again, shouldn't make me upset since this is my way of keeping a 'journal' and I am hoping my decendants will want to take a gander at at least a few of my posts, yet it makes me feel sad.



Yeah, I know that isn't anyone's fault but my own. It's just one of those facts that's hard to face when the other blogs I read have comments almost daily or followers up the wazoo. I don't really need a crapload of followers or comments, but to know there's more people reading this blog than my little sister would be awfully nice.

The answer to most of these questions is because I am totally unsure of myself. It's something I've struggled with ALL MY LIFE! And I am sick of it, but it's one of those things that is just so hard to change!

I had to laugh/cry the other night while I was watching a past episode of "Ghost Whisperer." In short the person that was being 'haunted' was looking for a certain type of love. The ghost pointed out that the type of love she was looking for wasn't going to be found with another person. In short, she needed to love herself before she could get the acceptance and love she was after.

It's totally where I struggle. Loving myself....It ain't easy.

What Happens Next...

More Hair!

So, it was time once again for the boys to get their haircuts. It was long overdue.

Tanis is always a trooper and cooperates pretty good. He gets anxious when I have to take the guide off of the razor to take care of stray ends around the ears and on the neck, but other than that he is great.

Lex is always a little restless and most often screams. I usually have to have Eric hold Lex in his lap to cooperate. However, last night he was a totally different child and cooperated ever so nicely.

I finished the older boys and then had a dilemma. Do I try and shave my 9 month old? His hair was getting long and something had to be done, but do I dare do it myself. Well I finally gave in and gave Nate his first haircut.

And how did he react?

He laughed at first, probably cause it tickled and then he just got annoyed. Not the screaming, crying annoyed. Just the annoyed where he didn't want to hold still and just wanted to be moving around.

I've been anxious about his hair cut since I did it, but then this morning I read my friends blog and I decided it was okay after reading that her 7 month old already had his 2nd hair cut. Then again, his grandma was a hair stylist for many years...

And for those of you in the ward, I was not trying to copy the Balls. I've always preferred having my boys heads shaved because then it takes little to no effort to take care of their hair. :D

Anyway, I leave you with a cute before and after shot of my little trooper.

What Happens Next...

It's Gone!

So there was a small hiatus with me posting anything - I would love to say that it was because I was on a tropical island getaway, but alas, no. It's just that there wasn't really anything happening that I felt needed posting - until now!

Saturday afternoon, Shaylyn and I took a trip to the hair salon. The salon we go to is in West Jordan, so it is kind of a trip for us. I go to that specific salon because my cousin's wife is owner and she cuts our hair. It's nice to have a family member that I know and trust be our "stylist".

Shaylyn was long overdue for a trim, so we just had her hair trimmed up to look healthy. I can't tell you how long it had been since she had even a trim. It was just time and it looks so much better now.

(I know you can't really see the ends real well in the pic, but trust me, it looks better)

As for me, the plan was a trim to keep my hair healthy and looking it's best. However, when the time came I decided I was ready for a change and I had her actually CUT not TRIM my hair. Remember I trust this person, so I wasn't scared at all.

After all was said and done, I loved it. I still love it, but at times miss my longer hair... (Pretty sad since it's only been 3 days.) Oh well. It's been a good change and I can't believe how much less time it takes to do. That has definitely been a blessing.

And of course, I am leaving you with pics of it... Though, I am tempted not too because I am a goof.

And while we are on the topic of hair, Shaylyn and me....

Friday night (Yes, while Eric was working) I decided to once again take a stab at making some bows. When I first planned to do the bows I found some purple ribbon that I wanted to use. But since it was close to Christmas when I finally got around to doing it, I did Christmas first.

Anyway, Friday night I finally made the purple bows and loved them.... It even took less time and I read less of the instructions and followed more of an example.

Then Shaylyn decided she wanted to try her hand at making a bow... I set her free. She did a pretty dang good job (if I do say so myself) and she just eyeballed an example.

What Happens Next...