Easter 2008

Below are some pictures from Easter weekend. We had three different Easter Egg hunts: one at each grandparent's house and one Easter morning in our house.

Oaklen finally discovered that those "nicely wrapped little rectangles" were chocolate! He successfully opened a few and got quite the chocolate face. I was a nice mom and let him indulge just a little since it was Easter. He made up for it by carrying around some broccoli and munched on that for a while. He likes to eat all the flowers off the broccoli and leave the stem. He enjoyed finding the eggs and many times we would "recycle" the egg by taking it out of the basket and dropping it so he could find it again. He kept pointing and saying "egg!"

Salem had the 4-yr-old excitement. He enjoyed the whole weekend. He was a good sport about the candy and only ate a little. He enjoyed the baseball mitt that the Stidham's gave him and wore it the whole day on Saturday. On Sunday there was an empty basket with a picture of Christ next to it, signifying Jesus Christ's tomb, he thought that was neat, especially since he got to keep the picture. In primary on Sunday we talked about the resurrection and Salem raised his hand and asked "Are animals resurrected too?" It was so adorable! (Yes, animals are resurrected too.)

Darrell was able to be home on Sunday morning and didn't have any church meetings. That was a treat. He also was able to come home with us after church, which was unbelievable. He started walking out to the car with us and I thought he was just going to help us into the car, but he came home too!

We had great fun with lots family.

Yoga for kids

A few weeks ago Salem wanted to get a yoga for kids video from the library. He was so excited! :)

We came home and he did the video twice that day then every morning that week. He ran into the bedroom and woke me up and said "Mom, will you turn on the TV so I can do Yoga for kids?" He put on his "yoga" clothes, got out my mat, and did poses like "downward dog," "cobra" and his favorite "lion" so that he could roar like a lion. Oaklen thought it was pretty cool watching his big brother.

Happy Birthday Tiger

Today commemorates my old cat's birthday. Tiger was born March 25, 1987.

She was a fun and loving cat and we miss her. She was cross between a Siamese and a Tabby so she had quite the personality and meow. She grew up with me and was there for almost all of my life's major events thus far. I knew her on this earth longer than I knew my father on this earth. We had to put her to sleep in 2005 due to a sickness, but she lived a long and happy life.

Here are a few pics...

Tiger's portrait

Sleeping at the end my bed, her paw is over her eyes.

She would always snuggle up with me when I slept...whether I liked it or not. :)

She always had to be where the action was, she'd always be sitting on my textbook when doing homework and here she is "helping" my mom with the bills.

She even helped me get ready on my wedding day...

Oaklen the Turkey

Everyday I find myself saying this phrase "Oaklen is a Turkey." He's always doing something that warrants me to say that like:
*he won't take a nap
*he got into my curio cabinet
*he was played with the vacuum and knocked out the dirt container
*he figured out how to open the door and go downstairs to the main floor...in the middle of the night!
*he got into the peanut butter and it got all over his clothes and face
*he managed to swipe food from someone else's plate
*he turned off the computer when I was in the middle of writing an email
*he climbed up on a chair or couch and played with the light switch
*he got into a kitchen cabinet and put everything out on the floor
*he got my keys and went to the door knob to try to unlock the door

I've now even got him to raise his hand when I say "Raise your hand if you're a turkey!"

But, he's a cute turkey and we love him! :)

Your influence has been felt by many

A friend from my teenage years passed away on Sunday. She lived up the street from me and was in my ward. She always had the cutest smile and personality. Tanya died due to complications from Wegeners disease. She will be missed by many.

Although I haven't been in touch with her for years, she had an impact on my life. It makes you stop and think about all the people that you know that have made an influence in your life. I want to thank all the family and friends that have been in my life to make me who I am today. I love you!

Here is a fun picture of Tanya & me going on a trip to California with her mom, Pam. (Her little brother, Tyler, is in the background doing the bunny ears.) Taken in 1995.

Brace yourself

Brace yourself for the most exciting news of the day...







17 years ago today I got my braces on! (March 19th, 1991.) That makes me sound really old but I was only 10 yrs old when I got them on. I got the braces on in the middle of my 5th grade year and then had them off the August before my 7th grade year. (Then got my wisdom teeth out a year later.)

Here is a picture of me about half-way through my braces phase. My orthodontist gave me this T-shirt. I think I only wore it once. "The tin grin is in."

Homemade star show

Salem did the activity tonight for family home evening. We got a flash light and a vegetable steamer (cooking pot with holes on the bottom.) We went into our bedroom, turned off the light and put a blanket on the window to make it extra dark.

We laid on the bed and he turned on the flashlight and shined it through the vegetable steamer. It made a pretty cool star show on the ceiling for Oaklen, Darrell and me. Afterward I showed them a few shadow images like the classic shadow dog and butterfly.

Good times...

My life isn't....

My life isn't all hearts & flowers...




Sometimes it's shamrocks!

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

S !

Oaklen's first letter to learn has been S. I'm not exactly sure how or why he learned S first, but whenever I have a writing utensil in my hand and a paper, he always wants me to write an S. He sees S's all over the place, when we're in the car he'll see an S on a truck driving by, he'll point out the S's in the grocery store, or on a poster or a book.

Salem of course likes S too since it's the first letter of his name. Recently he learned to write S's the correct way as I mentioned in another post about his pottery.

When Darrell and I were in DC, we went to the top of the Washington Monument. There were letters on the ground to point to North, South, East, and West. I had to get a picture next to the S, just for my boys.

Salem's Samuel

Salem did the lesson for family home evening on Monday, it was about Samuel the Lamanite prophesying to the Nephites about the coming of the savior. He used his legos to build a wall, his pirate men were the Nephites, a village man was Nephi and an action figure was Samuel the Lamanite.

He did a good job and told us the story. He ended with bearing his testimony that the "iwall was really strong and that Heavenly Father protected Samuel the Lamanite." Later Oaklen and Salem played with the pieces for the activity.

Salem helped me make cinnamon bread for the treat.

Banana Boys

I have banana boys. We love bananas at our house and luckily our local Smith's sell red-band bananas. These are the bananas that are ripening so the store tapes them up to mark & sell them at a discount ($.29 a pound .)

We eat them a lot so when I see those bananas available I buy a bunch of bunches. :) Sometimes I freeze a few but most of the time they're consumed before they turn very bad.

I take the bananas home and I can't even get the kids to wait long enough for me to take a picture, thus the cute little hand in the bottom corner.
Then being the frugal self that I am, I save that great red tape! I carefully take it off the bananas and wrap it around a plastic spoon. We use that tape for art projects and whatever Salem wants it for. He loves to wrap up "presents" (various objects around the house) for Oaklen or Dad to open later that day.

Oaklen knows the sign language for banana and he is always saying banana and doing the sign to try to finagle another banana. I usually limit to two a day just so he can have variety in his diet!

Olive Oil

My boys and I went to institute yesterday morning and talked about Jacob Chapter 5; the allegory of the olive tree. We talked about how olive oil represents Jesus Christ. There were a few points that I had never thought of:

Olive oil is used in many different ways. Each still represents Christ.
Healing - Jesus Christ heals us
Anointing - Jesus Christ is the anointed one
Food & cooking - Through Jesus Christ's teachings we are spiritually fed
Light - Jesus Christ is the light, we seek him in darkness
Preservative - Jesus Christ preserves our lives, he keeps us safe
Polish - Jesus Christ refines us

Jesus Christ bled from every pore in the Garden of Gethsemane (Gethsemane means olive press.)

This Easter may we think about Him and all that he is, not was.

1.78 pages

I just got home from church. I listened to my friend Lyndsey give a talk about being prepared. She mentioned about the challenge that our bishop gave us to the read the Book of Mormon this year. We were a given a reading schedule so you could finish by the end of the year. My family and I have been reading (as always) so I'm grateful for that, but I do know that I probably could be a little better at reading since sometimes it's just a verse or two.

Lyndsey did the math and figured out that if you started the Book of Mormon today and read 1.78 pages each day, you'd finish by the end of the year. She mentioned that we spend maybe 1.78 page reading time on our blogs, watching TV, or doing other things. :) (The blog part really hit home to me, but I didn't feel guilty since there have been many blog ideas left untold because I didn't have time to write them.)

So I challenge you to pick up the Book of Mormon today and read at least 1.78 pages each day.

Successful Mothering Convention

I was in charge of a booth at the Successful Mothering Convention last Saturday. The Utah Breastfeeding Coalition sponsored a breastfeeding nook for nursing moms. I sat there for a few hours and gave out information about breastfeeding. I was able to listen to a couple different speakers, and also go look at the other booths.

I didn't stop at every booth, but there were a few noteworthy places, and I thought I'd type their web addresses, etc. for both my good as well as for you. Enjoy!

Utah Breastfeeding Coalition
(This was my booth, I'm the chairperson for the Promotions & Marketing Committee.)
www.utahbreastfeeding.org

Utah Birth Network
They're going to start screening The Business of Being Born at local libraries.
Parenting support groups
Bellycasting
www.utahbirth.net

Noodlesoup
Helping you build strong families
www.noodlesoup.com

Children's Service Society of Utah
Child Care Resource & Referral ~ Metro
Your child care connection
Free child care referrals online
www.css.utah.org

Learn with Shamu
There was a motivational speaker named Laura Surovik. Her topic was "The power of positive training techniques used to train Seaworld's famous killer whale, Shamu!"

Shamu's Life Balance HELPRS
H Husbandry & Rest
E Exercise
L Learning
P Play
R Relationship
S Shows
www.learnwithshamu.com

Morsels of Wisdom
There was a speaker named Vivian Cline. Her topic was "Morsels of Wisdom"
She spoke about a book called Simple Abundance by Sarah Ban Breathnach, it has a little quote for each day.
She also talked about a book called The Ultimate Career by Daryl Hoole, the website is:
www.theartofhomemaking.com

Wasatch Woman
Magazine
http://www.wasatchwoman.com/

American Mother's Inc.
Stregthening the Moral and Spiritual Foundatoins of the Family and Home
www.americanmothers.org
www.amiutah.org

Utah Home Education Association
When it comes to education, there's no place like home.
www.uhea.org

The Lighted Candle Society
Awaken our fellow citizens to the ultimate dangers of pornography
www.lightedcandle.org
www.familyfragments.com
www.herstorylives.com

UCan
Utah Cancer Action Network
www.ucan.cc

Parents as Teachers
Increase parent knowledge of early childhood development and improve parenting practices
Provide early detection of developmental delays and health issues
Prevent child abuse and neglect
Increase children's school readiness and school success
www.patnc.org

One World Everybody Eats
Fresh organic vegetarian and meat dishes
www.oneworldeverybodyeats.org

Just Between Friends
Children's consignment shop
You get 70% of the sale of your clothes & items
www.jbfsale.com

Utah All Kids Sale
Children's consignment shop
You get 70%-80% of the sale of your clothes & items
www.utahallkidssale.com

Yoga Monkeys
Yoga for little minds, bodies & hearts!
Mom & tot classes available
www.utahyogamonkeys.com

See abc's
Develops reading skills 2-10 times faster
www.seeabcs.com

ATI Grocery
This guy showed how he can get groceries for cheap, but I like pinchingyourpennies.com better. He said that you have to pay to get his info. LAME!
www.atigrocery.com/1

Internet Keep Safe Coalition
Protect your child from internet danger
www.ikeepsafe.org

Mom-ease
A non-profit making it wasy for families to live healthy, sustainable lifestyles
www.momease.info

Rollercoaster Hill

I take a mom & me institute class on Mondays up at the U of U. It's hosted at a nearby chapel on Sunnyside Avenue.

We get to go on rollercoaster hill as part of our route. It's the hill on 800 South between 1000 East and 1300 East, near East High school.

I have fond memories of my mom taking me on this same road and saying "pedal faster...pedal faster!" Now I say that to my boys and they get so excited. I look back at them as I'm driving up the hill and their eyes and mouths are open wide. It tickles their tummy if I go a little faster than the speed limit. :)

On the way home I get to go down the hill. This was a thrill for me also when driving home from the U everyday. It's better when it's late at night and there are no cars there to slow you down. I haven't gone too fast down the hill with the kids, the cars in front of me always brake. I'm glad because one time I saw a cop at the end of the hill.

One time when I went to the zoo for a field trip, the bus driver said "Okay kids, if you're good, I'll take you down roller coaster hill!" Well, we were good and that was the best bus ride I've ever had.

Do you vacuum your vacuum?

Today I got out the vacuum and had to take it apart to put the belt back on. It's hilarious to watch my kids when the vacuum is out.

Oaklen has loved it from day #1 and will sit there and stare at it until it's on, then when it's on he'll follow you wherever you go. Now that he's older he uses his fisher-price popcorn popper vacuum and "helps" out.

Salem usually sits on the couch and then runs and sits on the other couch to watch.

I got the drill to unscrew a couple screws on the vacuum and now I know how Darrell feels when the boys are always wanting to watch him do everything. They get such a thrill out of tools and especially power tools! :)

Oaklen - August 2007

The business of being born

Darrell and I went to tonight to see the documentary "The Business of Being Born." It was a great show! Ricki Lake is the executive producer and she takes you through how the United States is so backwards as far as birthing is concerned. Midwives only attend about 8% of the births in the United States, whereas it's higher than 50% in other countries. At the time of the film, the US was the 2nd worst in maternal death rate, since then we are the worst.

I challenge you to know the facts about birth and to make wise, informed decisions. What's preferred by the medical industry isn't necessarily best for the mom and baby. Some births need medical interventions but the majority of births don't. Birth is a rite of passage, it doesn't have to be a medical procedure.

http://www.thebusinessofbeingborn.com/

Zoo day

The last Wednesdays of the winter months (Nov - Mar) are free for the zoo. Marie Gentry and I went, it was pretty fun! It was attack of the strollers, I've never seen so many in my life! :) We got a few good pics, although afterward I realized that we didn't get any of Marie and I together!

Dylan & OaklenIsn't love cute? These monkeys are intertwined...

Salem in front of the big elephant

This big elephant is new to me, it's been years since I've been here

Oaklen loved the big cats

The giraffes were inside today

Okay...I had to take this mainly because Salem and Oaklen love the book "Everyone Poops"

THE END! :)

Most used small kitchen appliance

Guess... What is the most used small kitchen appliance at our house?

A coffee grinder!

We first got one as a wedding gift, only the words "coffee grinder" were scratched out on the box and "flaxseed grinder" was written with marker in it's place. I admit I didn't use it at first, it was stored away in a closet for a while.

After I had Salem I got it out and started using it to grind rice, millet, flax seeds, or beans for baby food. It's so great! This Bosch coffee grinder lasted 5 years then we finally had to replace it. I got a cheaper Toastmaster one but it's been just as good. These cost anywhere from $10 - $30 so they are quite affordable.

I use the grinder every morning to grind flax seeds to sprinkle on my hot cereal or cold cereal. I also use it to grind rice, wheat, oats, or millet for the hot cereal, or a coarse flour. You can use it to grind beans and make a quick bean dip, grind split peas to make peas porridge, grind garbanzo beans to make hummus. It's so fast and easy!

Okay, there's my commercial, now go out and buy one! :)

Happiness is... Part II

Here's another round of happy things. It's been a running list for a few weeks so now I'll finally post it.

Happiness is...
Finding the last "drive cart" at the grocery store
Watching my boys eat cheerios with a fork
Finding a lot of "red-band" bananas
When the grocery store actually owes you money after all the coupons & sales (yes it's legal.)
Being able to get up earlier in the morning to exercise
Empty laundry baskets and hampers
Listening to "Movin 100.7" (I gets me goin'!)
Hearing Salem pray...about his light saber!
Singing the good morning song to my kids
Playing "My father owns a grocery store..." with Salem
Watching Darrell speak or conduct a meeting at church