PB-n-J Reynolds

Busy Day

2012-01-31T11:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a busy day for Jaxton.

First he tried out sitting in the Bumbo, which he loved.

And then he discovered he has toes.
Magical.

Never underestimate a Redhead!

2012-01-23T08:43:00.000-08:00

So this little conversation happened yesterday while we were all getting ready for church...

*Jaxton fussing in the swing*

Jessica: "Hey Preston, go in Jimmy's room and get Jaxton's pacifier out of his bed." (repeat)

Preston runs out of the room

Patrick: "If he actually gets the pacifier I'll give you a foot massage."

20 seconds later Preston runs back in with the pacifier in hand

Siiiiiiiigh.... Winning never felt so good!

Shaving

2012-01-18T12:51:00.000-08:00

For Preston's birthday we got him his own play razor w/ shaving cream. Pretty much the perfect gift since he is always taking Patrick's electric razor and trying to shave.
If he ever does get facial hair, he'll be ready to deal with it.

That Time Preston Turned 2...

2012-01-17T18:22:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I have a 2 year old. 2 just seems so much older to me then 1. I'm already hearing warnings about the "terrible two's" but I think we're gonna be ok.

Preston's 2 Year Stats:
WEIGHT: 30.8- 90% (he's like a rock)

LENGTH: 35 3/4"- 90%

HEAD CIRC: 50 1/2"- 90% (has been since the womb)

About Preston:

*He's become such a tease! He will do things like offer you a bite of his food and then at the last minute snatch it away and laugh.

*Has somethings like 16 teeth? I think? It's a lot. And he'll show them to you if you ask.

* Has really strange eating habits. For example- he prefers Corn Flakes over sugary cereals, Turkey Bacon over regular bacon and wont eat mashed potatoes but will eat mashed cauliflour. Weird!!

*His favorite food I would say is chocolate milk, cheese in any form and yogurt. He still isn't a fan of meat, and we hide it in his food, but his iron levels are great & he eats a lot of eggs & peanut butter to make up for it. He is a GOOD eater. For example, he'll eat 3 pieces of pizza in a sitting, or 2 pb&j's and 2 packets of oatmeal.

*He loves to do chores! His favorites are laundry, sweeping, dishes and vacuuming. I'm hoping it continues!
*Is obsessed with airplanes, helicopters, motorcycles, big trucks, basically anything loud. And in typical boy fashion whenever he plays with his cars or stuff at home he'll always make them explode. Everything ends with an explosion. In slow motion.

*Babbles alllllllllllllll the time. He doesn't get frustrated if you don't understand him, he will just keep repeating the word over and over and over again until you repeat it back to him. But I think his vocabulary is getting better.

*Knows his colors! Well, at least 75% of the time. . .

*Still doesn't like to watch movies or shows, but will request that every day at lunch time I put on a show called Pingu (about a claymation penguin) and then he wants his plate put right in front of the tv.

*He's very big on routine. If we do something one way once he wants it like that always. Example- he will want to sit in the same chair every time to color, or will want Jaxton to lay in a certain spot while we get Preston dressed, or if I ask if he wants me to hold him on the couch he wants to sit in a specific spot, with a blanket like we did once when it was cold and we were tired.

*Wants so badly to be just like his Daddy. He wants to be right there in the morning with him putting on deodorant, brushing teeth, doing hair, shaving, brushing his beard... It's adorable.

So big drinking his milk out of the bowl!!

Notice the one sock on?? He always takes just one sock off or just one sock and shoe on and leaves the other. Not sure why.... He's also watching the Yule Log. He loves to build a fire in the fireplace.

Constantly is in the pantry playing with the cans. In fact I think we now keep all of our tuna under the fridge. He was stacking the cans one night and counting them and one time he actually got it right! "1-2-3-4". Of course it was just a fluke because the next time he did it his counting went something like "2-15-mama-2"

LOVES to paint. Prefers it over coloring, although he is starting to like to color.

Asks for Jimmy (or Gi-gi) at least once a day.
Loves him.

He probably says the word "mama" hundreds of times a day. If I leave the room he will call for me over and over and over again.

Loves our daily walks, and looking at the cars/trucks. If a garbage truck or motorcycle ("mo-ma") passes by he'll ask for more again and again.

Our daily routine: Dressed, breakfast, dishes.

Getting a card on his birthday made his day for a few days.

BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

We went to the Phoenix Children's Museum on his actual birthday and he had a blast!!!

Even got to ride a "Mo-ma". Sorry Preston, no motorcycles, family rule.

He was so tired he fell asleep on the way home. See his soccer socks? He picked those out at the store because they were "gi-gi" socks.

Playing in his new sandbox!!! Notice his Spongebob shirt? He's never watched an episode of Sponge bob but asks to wear that shirt just about every day.

Oh Preston, you are so big!!!!

Jaxton at 2 Months

2012-01-17T14:13:00.000-08:00

JAXTON IS 2 MONTHS ALREADY!!!

Ok, well actually he's like 2 1/2 months already.......
But still!!!

He had his 2 month checkup yesterday and here are his stats:

WEIGHT: 12.7lbs- 50% (I had them weigh him twice because I was sure he was heavier then this. He's a solid little thing)
LENGTH: 24 1/2- 90% (The doctor commented twice on how long he is. It's alllll torso just like Patrick and Preston)
HEAD CIRC: 40 3/4"- 50% (MUCH smaller then Preston's head at this age)

Everything looks great with Jaxton. He's finally over all his cold/cough/congestion issues, so he's a normal baby. He's very alert & strong. He holds his head up so well and loves to look around.

More about Jax:

*Sleeps from around 10:30pm-4/5/6am. He doesn't get up to eat at night, but wants to be re-swaddled and get his pacifier when he wakes up between 4-6.

*Eats 4 oz every 3-31/2hrs except when he wakes up and before he goes to bed, then he eats 5oz.

*Smiles A LOT. Was Preston this smiley?! Probably. He also loves to "talk" now.

*He loves balloons. He'll sit and stare at them forever.

*Is not great at self-soothing. When we would let Preston cry it out to sooth himself back to sleep when nothing was wrong he would fall back asleep fast. Jaxton will cry and cry and cry. Loudly.

*Has great expressions. He gets high forehead wrinkles, and scowls and everything. It's great.

*Rolls from his tummy to his back, and almost can roll from his back to his tummy. He also loves to push himself forward if you hold your hands against his feet. He seriously thinks he's older then he is.

Holding his head up making a cute Jaxton face.

Didn't want to wait for nap time.

This was New Years Eve. He didn't make it till Midnight. Lightweight.

Just another crazy Jaxton face!!

Brothers! Preston picked out Jaxton's outfit. I later realized it was exactly like Preston was wearing. Green on top, tan pants.

Spiky hair!!!

Jaxton's Blessing & a Birthday

2012-01-17T13:50:00.001-08:00

We wanted to bless Jaxton while Jimmy was home from BYU, so we held his blessing in our house on Jan 1. It was different, but nice. Everyone came over and Patrick gave Jaxton a name and a blessing (its a church thing). Since all the family was over for the blessing we decided it would be a good time to have a little family party for Preston who would be turning 2 on the 13th.

Our happy family.

(please ignore this less than great pic of me and focus on my cute boys)

So handsome and serious in his blessing outfit! It's the same one Preston and Noah wore, so the tradition continues!
What a cute little pug nose. . . .

So big already! What happened to my baby?!?!

Present time!!!!
His Aunt Jen made him his own boy apron so now he doesn't have to wear my pink flower one! He loves it.
He also got a big truck, new sweater (which he tells me if soft every time he puts it on or off), sand toys- b/c Jimmy made him a sandbox!!! a shaving set, underwear, camera, and some food that is velcro'd together with a wooden knife he can use to cut it. Pretty sure there was more, but it was 17 days ago and I can't remember.

"Happy Birthday to You" is one of his favorite songs, so he loved everyone singing to him. He tried to blow out the candles, but needed a little help.

And here he is at the end of the night in all his glory. He thinks he's hot stuff wearing his Star Wars underwear over his diaper!

CHRISTMAS!!!

2012-01-17T13:33:00.000-08:00

Christmas this year was great. Preston enjoyed it a lot more then he did last year, but still doesn't understand the whole idea. All he cares about is the fact we got to have a tree in our house ("tee-tee-tee" = Christmas tree) and when we drove around at night we got to see lights, which he was very good at pointing out over and over and over again.

Since Christmas was on a Sunday, and we had church at 9am we didn't start our activities till after we got home. But Preston was still very excited when he woke up by the presents around the tree.

We did take a few minutes to look at all the presents & play with the chalkboard he got.
(The chalkboard has since been thrown away b/c I made it from an old picture frame & as much fun as a chalkboard is we couldn't risk broken glass.

Thanks to the Christmas Eve festivities with Patrick's family Preston was a pro at opening presents on Christmas. In fact he wanted to open everyone's presents. He must have been good this year since he got a lot of books, a new puzzle, CD's, Cars slippers, blocks, airplanes, and a bubble mower.

Oh and Jaxton celebrated too by looking cute.

After presents we got to talk to Andrew which was probably the best part of Christmas! Only 71 more days till he's home!!! Then everyone came over for a delicious Christmas dinner & some fun with the Kinect (my gift from Patrick). It was a great day and we're already looking forward to next year when the boys are older and understand more.

2012-01-17T13:05:00.000-08:00

Ok, I have a million posts to catch up on, and since both boys are sleeping at the moment (a late Christmas miracle for sure) I will do my best to post. But bear with me while I PICK and choose the best pictures to share :D

The Evolution of a Smile

2011-12-16T07:56:00.000-08:00

I present to you the evolution of a Jaxton smile:

And just so you don't think I've forgotten about my first born:

A month long catch up!

2011-12-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

Warning, this post will have LOTS of pictures and may be full of too much cuteness.

I'm sorry that I haven't been diligent in my blogging and posting pictures of Preston & Jaxton. I'm thinking about just having ONE blog (probably this one) and will use it to post the daily pictures of Preston or Jaxton or family stuff. I think it would be easier that way, and would ensure that I would post more regularly. Still thinking about it though.

So it's been one month since Jaxton has joined us! Honestly it's been harder then I thought to adjust to life with 2 kids. But that could be because it's been a strange first month.

For most of the first week we were in the hospital.
The second week I was stuck upstairs b/c of the C-Section.
The 3rd week Patrick went back to work after being home for a few weeks.
When Jax was a little over 3 weeks our pediatrician sent us to the ER to have him checked out because he had an awful cough/congestion issue. He had an upper respiratory infection and they put a tube up his nose & down his throat to suction out all the mucus. It helped, but poor baby had a terrible cough for a few weeks. It's really not fun to see your newborn coughing so much that he can't catch his breath & turns blue.
The week after our ER trip we were back at the doctors office after Jaxton spent about 30 hours of projectile vomiting. Thankfully it wasn't anything too serious, but was due to a double ear infection that he had. We're still finishing the antibiotics and he seems to be better.
So yes. Strange month.
Now that everyone is healthy (we all had colds the week of Jaxtons resp. infection) I think we'll be able to get into a better routine and adjust to life better.

Preston is a great big brother, just like we knew he would be. He adores Jaxton. As soon as he gets up in the morning he looks for "Ja-Ja" and insists on giving him lots of kisses throughout the day. Hard to believe that Preston is going to be 2 next month! He's such a little boy now. He's very into airplanes, helicopters, cars and crashes. He likes to make everything crash. He has transitioned from being a Mama's boy to a Daddy's boy, which is ok by me since I'm still the one he wants whenever he's sad or hurt. Only Mama's kisses can heal things like that. He'll follow Patrick around all day wanting to see and do everything he does, especially when it comes to doing things outside. He would play outside all day if I would let him, but I wont. I'll do a more in depth post about Preston after his birthday, but just know that he is healthy, happy, and getting huge.

Jaxton is great. Even with his ear infections and infections he wasn't too irritable. He weighs over 10 pounds now, and is getting bigger every day. He eats about 4 oz every 3 1/2 hours, and some nights will sleep from 11pm-4am! Most nights he gets up once to eat though but then goes back to sleep. Now that he isn't sick I'm trying to teach him to sleep in his pack & play since he's only been sleeping in an upright position in his swing or bouncer. He tolerates Preston's attention very well, and I hope that continues. His hair color is still questionable. It seems to be lightening up around his face and on the sides while the back is still darker. But, after his bath or in the sunlight there is definitely a reddish ting to it!

As for me & Patrick, we are well. We constantly tell each other this is the happiest we've been, which is true. We're gearing up for Christmas and for Patricks work party on Saturday which is always a good time! I'll be sure to post about both.

And now for the pictures :)

I'm pretty sure this is exactly how he slept when he was inside me. Makes my ribs hurt just looking at it.

First bath!! He loooves baths, unlike Preston who wasn't a big fan of them at first.

"My Auntie is Awesome". All of them are awesome.

Sleeping with Daddy

My boys. Love them.

Thanksgiving

I really wish I could sleep anywhere like him.

Someone was trying to sneak a piece of candy!

Patrick took Preston to the Gilbert Days Parade. He loved it, especially the helicopters and airplanes that flew overhead.

We went on our first walk together Preston, Jaxton and I. This is also how we go grocery shopping for now. Preston sits in the cart, Jaxton sleeps in the backpack carrier. Strangely enough people (the old ones) will still come up and touch the baby even though he's covered and in the carrier.

I have to take turns with Preston feeding Jaxton.

Zombie hands!

It's been really cold here, so we snuggle a lot.

He's working on smiling.

I got Preston some Toy Story boots at Goodwill last week, and he loves them! He could care less that they have Buzz & Woody on them, he just likes being able to put them on and take them off by himself.

Old man. . .

His first Sunday at church. Doesn't his hair look redish?!?!

Helping with dishes. I should probably get him a more manly apron to wear. . .

I was cleaning the boys room and Preston grabbed my hand and took me to get "Ja-Ja" and wanted him to go night night by him on his bed.

He just discovered he can crawl under the crib, which he of course thinks is hilarious.

Look what we made!

2011-11-07T21:35:00.001-08:00

Jaxton Jeffrey Reynolds
Tuesday November 1, 2011

12:38 PM

9 Pounds 8 Oz

21 1/2 Inches (although we've gotten a few different measurements this is what they said in the OR)

More details to come, but for now enjoy some pictures.

It's so strange to have a baby who doesn't have red hair, but Jax is wonderful. He's such a good baby (who makes really great old man looking faces), and we all are so in love with him.

FINAL COUNTDOWN!!!!

2011-10-14T11:36:00.001-07:00

36 Weeks 4 Days!

18 DAYS TO GO!!!!

To say that I'm "done" would be an understatement. But I have a feeling these next 3 weeks are going to go even slower then the previous 3 did. But it's almost over!!!

I must be looking pretty pregnant at this point since people have stopped asking "how far along are you?" and are now asking "how much longer do you have?".

I feel like I'm just about ready for baby Jaxton to show up. The only things left on my "to-do" list are to buy batteries for the swing, set up the pack & play bassinet, finish cleaning my room & get the carrier ready for our trip home.

A few weeks ago I made about 14 freezer meals which was a big thing I wanted to do this time around. Now I wont have to worry so much about whats for dinner for a few weeks. Every time I open the fridge & see it all there I feel relieved.

All the baby clothes are ready! Yes. We have a lot of clothes. He probably wont be wearing the same thing twice.
Preston still doesn't really have a clue whats going on. He's a smart kid though, I think he'll figure it all out pretty fast.

As of last Tuesday I was dilated to 0 and 0% effaced. Not that it matters since I'm having a C-Section.

The baby is head down though, and as of 3 weeks ago my doctor estimated he was a little over 5 lbs. I estimate he's MUCH bigger then that at this point seeing as how I gained like 4lbs in 2 weeks.

We're very excited for Jax to be here. And very excited to be able to sleep on my stomach & not get up to use the bathroom 3 times a night. Nov 2nd (the big day) is a Wed, and we'll probably be home Saturday afternoon, but we welcome any visitors who want to stop in either at the hospital or at our home to ooh and ahh over our cute little baby :D

Let the countdown begin!

2011-09-02T15:56:00.000-07:00

9 weeks left.

I wish I could say it was the FINAL countdown, but that doesn't begin till we have 5 weeks left.
As of today I am 213 days pregnant (30wks 4 days) and have only 60 days left!

The C-Section date has been set!!
Mark your calendars and adjust your work schedules, Wednesday November 2, 2011 around 6am will be the birthday of Baby Boy #2 :D
Unless he decided to come early that is.

But as of right now it looks like we'll be on schedule. My blood pressure has been perfect, my swelling minimal, and while there is an 80% chance I'll get preeclampsia again, right now I'm doing great.
Apparently 4,000 IU's of Vitamin D a day keeps your blood pressure down, thank you Dr. Mikel.

Me, today at 30 1/2wks

It's ok if you think I look huge, there happens to be an enormous baby inside of me.
How big?
Well as of 2 weeks ago he was at 2 lbs 12 oz, putting him in the 75th percentile for weight.
They also broke the news to me that his head is enormous.
I suspected as much seeing as how Preston's head has been in the 95th percentile since birth.

We do have a name picked out, and if you want to know what it is, ask and I'll tell you.
It's pretty awesome.

What else to update you on. . . .

I'm not as sick as I use to be. I only throw up like 3-4 times a week now which is MUCH better.

I've gained a total of 8 lbs so far, which my doctor is pleased with.

I'm trying to get things ready for the baby, but still feel like I have lots to do. Like buy diapers.

He moves around A TON, but get's the hiccups a lot less then Preston did at this stage.

Preston and the baby already fight. Preston will sit on my lap and the baby will kick him. Just a sign of things to come I suppose!

Not any huge cravings, the only thing I think I crave a lot of is soda. I don't normally drink it, and I've been giving myself 1 soda a week, but lately all I want everyday is a Pepsi. I don't even LIKE Pepsi!

I've been having a lot of pain with my sciatic nerve and my heels hurting (plantar fasciitis) both of which I'm hoping go away after the baby is born. In the meantime I'm suppose to wear tennis shoes (aka Mom shoes) around all the time. Riiiiiiight....

We're all really really excited for him to come. We just want to snuggle him & talk about how we can't remember what life was like before he came to us.

Snails, Whales and Puppy Dog Tails

2011-06-11T07:42:00.000-07:00

Thursday we went in for our 2nd trimester ultrasound.
Can you believe we're halfway done already?!
I can't.
Lets just hope the 2nd half goes just as fast.

Yep. No doubt about it, we're having another little boy :D
While a girl would have been crazy fun, I'm excited for Preston to have a brother close to his age who he can grow up with and be buddies with.
Plus we make really really cute little boys.

I love this picture of his feet crossed at the ankles because Preston sits all the time with his ankles crossed. In his highchair, car seat, just on the floor when he plays, and it looks like this little guy will be the same way.

The technician kept commenting on how much he was moving around and kicking which is going to make the next 4 months super fun. . .

He kept putting his hand up on his forehead being so dramatic! But you can see all his little fingers, and he's got a little smile on his face, and a nose that looks familiar!

We haven't picked a name out yet, which is strange, so we are going to try to pick one soon.
Feel free to send any suggestions!

(Note to Carly- Don't even bother suggesting Raiden, it's still off the table!)

For the most part everything looks good. We're going to have another ultrasound in a few months to check up on him again. He is already measuring big at 9oz (normal for this stage is between 5 1/2-6), so he may come earlier then our planned C-Section date, which is fine with us.

As far as how I'm doing, I think I can FINALLY say that the morning sickness is subsiding. I still feel queasy around 2pm every day, but I can go dayS now without throwing up! The hormones have been up and down the past few days, but I'd rather cry all day then feel sick all day.

At my last doctors appointment on Tuesday everything was still going well. My blood pressure is still down, I'm not swelling, both of which were problems when we had Preston.
I haven't gained any weight yet, which is fine since the baby is growing and developing normally.
He certainly is an active one, seem like he's constantly moving around! Last night I was able to feel him kick from the outside, so looks like we'll be enjoying that soon.

Now that we know it's a boy it is all starting to seem more real. Now we can start preparing to welcome this little guy into our family!!

2011-06-01T15:56:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- I haven't posted truths in awhile. Lets just blame it on the pregnancy. Everything else gets blamed on the pregnancy, so why not?!

The Truth is- Netflix is weird. When I'm falling asleep at night sometimes I like to have a documentary playing. This way I don't pay too much attention to whats going on and I fall asleep. One night I watched/slept to a documentary about Hiroshima. The next day it recommended that I watch comedian Jim Gaffigan based on my interest in Hiroshima. I just fail to see the connection!

The Truth is- The other night Patrick was playing around and pulled me off the couch. My first instinct was to yell out "NO! The floor is hot lava!"

The Truth is- When I first heard about the book The Hunger Games I thought it was a book about dieting, so I avoided it for a long time. Being hungry is not a fun game at all. Nobody wins in that game.

The Truth is- Maybe I've been watching too much Law & Order because when I get up in the middle of the night to go to the bathroom and I'm walking back to bed I can't help but think "This is exactly how an episode of Law & Order would start...." Of course in Law and Order something terrible would happen and the only terrible thing that happens to me is when I have to get up to go to the bathroom 3 hrs later and have that exact same thought.

Crunching Numbers

2011-05-18T20:20:00.000-07:00

So here's a look at some of the numbers for this pregnancy

107 : The number of day's I've been pregnant so far

437,987 : The approximate number of times I've thrown up. Seriously it's been bad. Worse then with Preston. I'm talking 5-6 times a day for a few weeks and then tapering off to 1-4 times a day for a few weeks.

1 3/4: The longest stretch of day's I've gone WITHOUT throwing up.

4: The number of times I've been to the doctor so far. It's more then normal, but then again I worry more then normal and my doctor knows that so he's very accommodating.

2: The number of anti-nausea pills that have been prescribed for me. 1 I can take every 8 hrs the other every 6 hrs.

4: The number of ultrasounds we've had so far. Plus another in a few weeks when we find out the big question: boy or girl.

6: About the number of Lemon Heads I eat a day to keep to pukies away.

1: The number of Dr. Peppers I limit myself to a week. This is hard.

0: The number of dreams I've had so far about this baby. With Preston I dreamed all the time about him. Of course in those dreams he was a girl...... But still!

2: The number of boy names we have it narrowed down to.

1: The number of girl names we have it narrowed down to.

100: The number of ounces of water I'm suppose to drink a day.

60: The number of ounces of water I realistically drink a day.

9: The number of pills I take every night. 1-Prenatal 1- Calcium 1-Iron 1- Folic Acid 1- Omega 3 4- Vitamin D pills.

80: How old I feel after I take 9 pills a day.

173: The number of days left till our due date!

Can you think of a better excuse?!

2011-05-02T15:38:00.000-07:00

This should pretty much explain my absence from blogging.....

YEP! Adorable Reynolds baby #2 is on his/her way!!
Our due date is Nov. 8th 2011, which puts us at 13 weeks today - Hello 2nd trimester!! Maybe now I'll start to feel better because I have been WAY sick.

We had a genetic screening ultrasound today to test for down syndrome and other big genetic problems, but everything looks PERFECT!

It was amazing that even this little the baby was super active! It was bouncing, twisting, opening its mouth, moving its arms and legs around and everything.

We were even able to get some 3D pictures, which we've never had done before.
They looked to see if it was a boy or a girl, and at first the technician said she was 85% sure it was another boy, but then changed her mind and said she wasn't so sure anymore. She consulted with another doctor who said it was inconclusive and didn't want to even wager a guess at this point, which is fine by me. I'd rather be 100% sure then have a chance it changes.

Oh and we got this creepy view of the baby's face, and it kinda looks like Darth Maul from Star Wars.

And now an update on my garden...

2011-04-06T15:15:00.000-07:00

It's growing like crazy!!
Everything is up and growing, except for the watermelon which WAS looking like it was about to pop out but then changed its mind. Probably because it was like 102 degrees out that day. Can't say I blame them.
Yep.
Looks like I'm actually going to keep this years New Years resolution.

Letters to the editor. . .

2011-03-25T17:22:00.000-07:00

Dear Krissa:
Thank you for buying every single book I want to read & letting me read them before you. I try not to fold the corners so they still seem new when you get around to reading them.

Dear Lady at the grocery store:
Please don't ask me if my child's hair is of Irish or Scottish decent because my first instinct was to say Velocoraptor.

Dear Jimmy:
Your wife called. She said to bring home dinner from Chileros. You should probably give her your number so she stops calling me.

Dear Walmart:
Why don't you sell plain Lemonheads?!? Sometimes people want to buy them you know.

Dear Neti Pot:
Thank you for your existence. I adore you.

Dear Preston:
No matter what anyone tells you, potatoes do not go in with the Tupperware cabinet, and your socks do not belong in the fridge. Also, if you would learn to walk I'd appreciate it.

Dear former manager at UOP:
Thank you for introducing me to Creamy Ranch Burger Hamburger Helper all those years ago. It's still awesome.

Dear Tom Cruise:
You won me back with Knight and Day. Smooth move. Respectively, Cameron Diaz...you still have some work to do. Maybe try making The Holiday 2.

Dear Patrick:
I. love. you.

2011-03-15T14:10:00.001-07:00

Remember how I was going to plant a garden????

BOOM.

Now, those plants on bottom were actually starters & not seeds that have just grown super tall overnight. HOWEVER this morning when I went out to water I did notice 2 tiny little corn stalks sprouting!! Could have been a weed though.... I'll report back on that when there is more evidence.

2011-03-03T16:00:00.000-08:00

A day late, but better then nothing!

The Truth is- the other night I had the best dream ever. I was sitting at a table with Britney Spears talking about Glee. Awesome. It was then followed by a not so great dream involving someone wearing jeggings who should NEVER wear jeggings and white ankle boots. Yikes.

The Truth is- Every time Patrick uses the word aggravated it makes me think of Agraba. You know, that place when Aladdin was from. Then in my mind I start singing Aladdin songs.

The Truth is- Whenever I have a book on hold at the library I like to look at what other people with my last name have on hold. For example, Fionna Roberts (b/c my library card is in my maiden name) is very interested in real life ghost stories. She'd probably be interested in the story of how my Phantom of the Opera music box is possessed.

The Truth is- The other night I was sitting on the couch reading, and I had my phone laying on that space between my neck and my shoulder (b/c I didn't have pockets) and when it vibrated I jumped and screamed a little (causing Patrick to jump also) because I thought it was a bumble bee. Scary!!

The Truth is- When most people watched the documentary Super Size Me about how horrible McDonalds food is they were put off McDonalds for life. Me, I had to pause the movie just so I could go get me some McDonalds before finishing it.

The Truth is- I'm pretty sure one time I counted to a million. I remember I was young and my Dad told me I had to take a nap and I wasn't tired and so he told me if I counted to a million and was still awake I could get up. I distinctly remember getting to a million! However I just looked it up and it would take about 6 days 22hrs 40 minutes to reach a million. Maybe I just reached 1,000.

Have you read. . . .

2011-02-22T20:00:00.000-08:00

So lately I've been doing a little reading. . . .
And since I'm ALWAYS on the hunt for a good book recommendation I thought I'd give you my opinion on the book I've read in the past few weeks.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: It's brilliant. Enough said. The writing style took a few chapters to get use to, but it's perfect.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: It takes place in Germany under the reign of Hitler in the height of WWII, so I don't have to tell you there is much much sadness involved.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: I'm always trying to expand my reading into different genres, but Science Fiction is always the hardest for me to commit to. But this one was really good! Plus it kind of made me think of the Space Mountain ride at Disneyland.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: The alien bad guys are refered to as "buggers". Whenever I hear/read the word bugger I hear/read it in an English accent. So they didn't really strike terror in me.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: I can't really say you should read this book. It does make you want to buy and wear a necklace with an old fashioned key on it. So thats something!

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: It was kind of boring. The main character was bland, it was predictable. But I was also not in the best mood while i read it, so that probably didn't help.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Because you do not want to be the frazzled lady on the cover who looks like she has no control over her kids.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: Some people don't agree with the Love and Logic method - which is basically letting your child experience natural consequences from their actions, and guiding them with controlled choices.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: "We can not change the cards we are delt, just how you play the hand."

WHY YOU SHOULD'NT READ THIS BOOK: The author, Randy Pausch wrote this book after being diagnosed and eventually dying of Pancreatic Cancer. If you have a relative, like my mom who died of Pancreatic Cancer it hits pretty close to home.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: It's part of a trilogy (i love series books), it's about time travel (in a good non-confusing way) and features a main character from Italy.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: It kind of reminded me of Twilight as far as having an average girl who suddenly everyone couldn't live without, and I just didn't get that. Didn't get it in Twilight, didn't get it here. Plus there wasn't a whole lot of chemistry between the 2. But still SUPER good!!

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: The writing is like poetry. Beautifully written lines such as "The nights were blinding cold and casket black and the long reach of the morning had a terrible silence to it."

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: It's a post apocalyptic tale of a man & his son fighting to survive. A lot of things are never explained, such as how this horrible situation came about: asteroid? Nuclear war? And what is the boys name?! He's only referred to as "the boy".

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: It makes you want to go camping and think that walking across the United States is a good idea.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: Within the first few chapters this poor guy has lost his wife, his company and his house. Sad.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Hardly any mention of the whiny man voiced Bella.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: Hardly any mention of golden eyed Edward.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: Its a fun light CLEAN romance book. Trust me those are hard to find. Plus Marcia Lynn McClure always names her characters really great names like Rake.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: Too much hand wringing, trembling, crying done by the heroine Aspen.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK: It takes about an hour or two to get through b/c it's written in stanzas, but it really packs a punch.

WHY YOU SHOULDN'T READ THIS BOOK: "Out of more than a quarter of a million people, only about 800 walked out of the ghetto. Of those who survived, only twelve were children. I was one of the twelve."
Spoiler alert, people die.

2011-02-21T14:06:00.000-08:00

Our weekend was a bust. To sum it up in one word- influenza.
But I'm getting ahead of myself. . . . .

FRIDAY- * Preston slept in till 8:30. Is this normal? No. Was it welcomed? Yes * Walk in the park where Preston proceeded to sleep in his stroller. Again, not normal * Visit from Krissa!! * Mini M&M's (which I suggest eating by pouring the entire packet in your mouth) * Preston acting lethargic. I thought that since he'd had an upset stomach the day before (which is a nice way of saying he threw up all over me) he just had low blood sugar since he hadn't been interested in eating at all. Fed him some yogurt * Cuddled again, not normal. My child is not a cuddler * A visit from the yogurt & milk he'd had earlier (yet another nice way of saying he threw up all over me again.) Poor Preston. Poor poor Preston. He was so pale & limp for a little while, then back to normal * Patrick going to dinner w/ the siblings at Olive Garden * Breadsticks for Jessica * The Book Thief * Being cranky & tired *

SATURDAY- * sickness. Many much sickness for our house. Started for me about 3am. Passed out a couple few times (thank goodness Patrick was there. As well as Preston, for who else would have thrown my phone in the trash?!) * Sleep and strange dreams * Toast. Bananas. Water. Repeat* John getting sick * Preston spending the day with Patrick who seemed immune * Laying in bed wondering how the grandparents in Charlie & The Chocolate Factory could lay in bed for 20 years when I was so stiff & sore after 20 hours * Patrick deciding to join the sick party * Us wondering how we were going to take care of Preston when we could barely get out of bed * Rice Krispies at 2am * More sleep

SUNDAY- * Relief from the sickness for me * A 70% better Patrick & John * a 100% adorable Preston * No church * Finishing The Book Thief and being so sad yet thinking it was so brilliant * Rox & Noah arriving!!!!!! FINALLY! * Dinner brought to us by a very thoughtful friend * The Office * Realizing that baby shampoo from the .99 store smells like dog shampoo. sad but true * Playing shaker cars with Preston in the kitchen, which then turned into see how far you can slide Preston across the kitchen floor * The start of a cold kicking in. Just what I need. * Sleep *

This week...RECOVER. I don't know how I managed to catch a cold while having the flu, but I did, and I did it good * Visiting with Rox/Noah/John * Family dinners * Bruce * Disinfecting our house * Renaissance Festival Saturday!!!!!!!!!

"We're bringin 10k's back..."

2011-02-13T20:48:00.000-08:00

Running a 10k is a lot like being pregnant.
I would know because I was pregnant once. (NO, i am not now)
And I've now run 2 10k's.

See, you start out and you think "oh this isn't so bad". Then you realize you've only gone about .2 miles (weeks).
Then for the first 3 miles (or months) you feel sick. You want to throw up. You want to cry. You don't know why you decided to do this since it's nothing but miserable. Your cold, then your hot, then your cold again.
Your hungry, your thirsty, you don't want anything for fear of throwing up all over your friends.

The last 3 miles (3 months) you just hurt. You hurt in strange places that really have nothing to do with what your doing. Like your right shoulder. Your back hurts, your stomach hurts, your lungs hurt, your legs hurt. Your so so hot. You know that at some point your going to be done, but WHEN?!

People stare at you.
People cheer for you.

Finally your near the end. Your pushing yourself but you don't think you can do it.
Your shouting out random things like "HERE COMES BACK FAT!" and getting/receiving death stares.

And then it's over. And you feel like crying.
It's such a HUGE sense of accomplishment.
Your exhausted, sore, bruised, and so so SO happy it's over.

Sadly though, after a 10k you only go home with a t-shirt.

And then of course 2 days later you start to forget how horrible it was and wonder when you'll do it again.

*It should be noted and shouted from rooftops that we beat our old time by 6 minutes. And that was on a course that was mostly uphill. And thats no exaggeration.

2011-02-09T20:11:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- That I haven't posted truths in awhile and I'm sorry! I'll try to get back into it.

SO. Having said that....

The Truth is- That since Krissa and I ran that 10K I've been blaming it for everything bad that happens. I have a cold, I blame the 10K. Preston is cranky, I blame the 10K. Funny thing is that no one has called me out on this one yet. Maybe the 10K really is to blame for these things.

The Truth is- I've decided that if I ever go on The Amazing Race which I have no plans to do, but IF I do then I've decided I'm taking my brother Jimmy with me. I wouldn't take Patrick because I wouldn't want to fight with him, and Jimmy knows stuff. He did get a smart grant after all..... Plus he's strong, so after I collapse to the ground for the millionth time saying I can't go on, he'd just drag me.

The Truth is- That one time we had a huge container of cheese balls that weren't getting eaten so we decided to have a contest. The contest was Jack (the dog) vs. Patrick (the husband). A cheese ball was tossed to each one of them and then we'd move farther and farther away and whoever caught one in their mouth from the farthest distance won. I'm very pleased and proud to say that Patrick won!!! Thats right! And he's allllllllllllllllll mine :D

The Truth is- That I use to think I'd do pretty good in jail. But then last night I had a dream that I was going to be in jail for 5 weeks (a very specific amount of time I know...) and it wasn't so great. So my opinion has changed.

The Truth is- That Preston has started to recognize Patrick in pictures and say " a dada" when he see's him. Then I point to myself in the picture and say "mama" hoping he'll catch on but instead he just puts his hand up in the sky and says "bird?". Close Preston...close....

Happy New Year to me!

2011-02-02T09:54:00.000-08:00

So tomorrow is the Chinese New Year. I've decided this year we should celebrate. Mostly because on Chinese New Year you can't:

Wash your hair, or you'll wash away all your good luck.
Sweep the floor or clean or else you could sweep away your luck. DARN!
Say the number "four" -which sounds like the Chinese word for death.
Don't mention death or tell ghost stories. But what will we talk about at dinner time?!?

Cook. Done and Done!!
Use knives or scissors or you may cut off fortune. I'm guessing this means no sword fighting either.
Lend money, or you'll be lending all year. Don't need to worry about that....

Borrow money
Greet people who are in mourning. Seems kinda mean, but ok....
Don't drop your chopsticks. But i ALWAYS drop my chopsticks!

HOWEVER, on Chinese New Year you SHOULD:

Wear brand new clothes

Wear the color red for joy & happiness

Greet your relatives, neighbors and friends & wish them joy or "Gung Hey Fat Choy" which means "wishing you prosperity and health".
Put away all brooms & brushes

It's like this holiday was made for me. I don't have to clean, cook, wash my hair or hear scary ghost stories. Gung Hey Fat Choy to you and yours and happy year of the Rabbit.

It's all happening!!

2011-02-01T14:01:00.000-08:00

Sunday when the FIL was over I had him help me come up with a blue print for my garden.
I'll be having 2 4ft x 4ft boxes on opposite sides of the backyard.
The more sensitive plants will be in the box on the West side of the yard while the "full sun" plants will be in a box on the East side of the yard.
Saturday we'll be constructing the boxes and getting supplies, but here is what we have planned so far:

Today I measured out for the box going on the West side and set to work leveling the ground.

He supervised.

I'm SO excited!!!

2011-01-31T13:32:00.000-08:00

FRIDAY- super cranky preston allll daaaay long * quick trip to the library to pick up more books (hooray for reading!!) * Walk with Kylie & Layla * much needed nap for Preston * Starting "The Walk". It was good, but sad. * Getting pep talks throughout the day from Krissa for Saturday's activity * Time outside with Preston looking at birds * Drinking water like a camel * Quick grocery trip for diapers & ingredients for Sunday's dinner * More reading * More pep talks * Going on a 1 day Michael Phelps carbo load diet: macaroni & cheese for lunch, chicken parmigiana/spaghetti for dinner * Game night for Patrick * Fun Run episode of The Office to inspire me * Chatting with Rox on the skinny camera * More reading (yeah, my chores were neglected last week) * Trying to get to bed early, but failing when I couldn't sleep * dreams about missing my alarm *

SATURDAY- Participated in my first (but not last?) 10k - no, thats not 10,000 miles. * Tripping before the race even started * Wishing I could run in a snuggie due to the cold * Finishing the 10k * relaxing * Bruce's birthday party! * Cleaning * Patrick hacking our wii * Dinner * Reading * Bed at like 8:30 *

SUNDAY- ooooooohhhhh the sorenesssss. I shall complain for days no doubt * church * visits with friends * Reading when I should have been napping and then regretting it * Playing Family Feud on the wii * A most delicious dinner * Mapping out my garden * Preston time * Enjoying the outdoors * More reading * Bed

This week we don't have too much planned. Patrick started a new shift. He now works Mon-Fri 9:30-6. Good for Mon-Fri, bad for the not getting off till 6. Means he wont get home till around 6:45 & Preston goes to bed at 7:30. So we'll be pushing Prex's bedtime back a bit to accommodate. Besides that not too much! Bruce a few days, walks, birthday party, and a new Glee on Sunday. F.I.N.A.L.L.Y.

"I was runnin"

2011-01-31T10:30:00.000-08:00

Sometimes your friends talk you into stuff.
Like running a 10k.

And sometimes you try to talk yourself out of it, and into it, and out of it again because your not a runner and obstacles got in the way of your Rocky Balboa training schedule.
But then sometimes you decided your just gonna do it.
Because it's for a good cause.
And because it's with a good friend.
And because you just wanna show people and yourself that you can do it.

And thats how I came to participate in London's Run Saturday at Schnep Farm with Krissa and her mom Becky.

It was a really really pretty day out.
Freezing cold that morning though.

(You can't see it, but there was a look of fear in my eyes hidden by sunglasses)

Our goal was to finish in 1:45 (thats 1Hr 45Min).
MY goal was just to finish.
We ended up doing it in 1:29 (Krissa's mom finished in 1:20!!!)

We could have been faster but we had to take a bathroom break 1/2 mile in.

TOP 5 HIGHLIGHTS

5. Seeing cotton on the trail and realizing it wasn't rabbit tails/feet, but just regular old cotton.
4. Beating the 2 guys who kept trying to pass us.

3. "We Can Do Hard Things": This was the motto of the race, and we tried to repeat it while we were running, but we had a hard time remembering it. Most of the time we just said "We're doing hard things".
2. Passing water stations and acting like a true runner by grabbing the water, drinking it and then throwing the cup. I don't think I actually drank much water, I just wanted to throw the cup.
1. The finish line. I could have cried. Not just because it was over, but because I did it. There was such an overwhelming feeling of accomplishment.

Will I do another?
Probably.
I think we can do it faster.
No, I KNOW we can do it faster.

Plus I give in to peer pressure easily.

You should come to dinner sometime

2011-01-31T09:57:00.001-08:00

I love having people over for dinner!! Gives me a chance to make fancy food instead of our regular staples. Last night Patrick's dad came over and we had a great dinner. Check it out

HERE

And let me know anytime you wanna come eat with us! For reals!!

"Your waiting for a train. . . "

2011-01-25T17:54:00.001-08:00

Dear Leo.

I'm sorry you once again got snubbed by the members of the Academy. You should have been nominated for an Academy Award for Inception. After all, how can a movie be nominated for Best Picture when it's main star (or director for that matter) isn't nominated?!
I'm taking it very personally.
In your honor I shall post this "Truth is" list that my brother John once created.
Maybe next year will be different.
I'll never let go.

The truth is: Leonardo Di Caprio Edition

When I wash my hands I spell out Q-U-A-R-A-N-T-I-N-E.

I heard a news host once call him Di-Craprio and the name stuck ever since.

I have no Idea whats eating Gilbert Grape...

I thought the movie Aviator was about a war, or airplane fights, or Sunglasses... I was Wrong!

Rose Killed Jack! There was enough room on the door/raft she was floating on.

Is it possible? Is it possible to improve on perfection? YES.

I only part I remember from Marvins Room is when the Garage door opens and closes when the old lady turns her pain-killer machine. . . I think it was a sad movie.

2011-01-24T10:24:00.000-08:00

FRIDAY- Went with the MIL and SIL (plus kids) to the park where my child tried to eat as much sand and sticks as he could. This is the same child who refuses to eat veggies and other such goodness but has no problem trying to consume his shoes, or anything he finds in sand or grass. * Was asked where he gets his red hair from (eye rolling followed) * block towers * nap * light cleaning * Patrick hurting his back as he leaned over to pick up his shoes (what an old man!) * mustard pretzels * Practicing my dance moves * Krissa, David & Natalie and Rylie came over for some pizza/wings and delicious things * Best cheese ball EVER!!!!! * Laughing till I cried * Just Dance 2 * Peanut butter cake (moist & decadent) * Staying up past my bedtime * Preston switching from formula to Whole Milk and being ok with it *

SATURDAY- Windy, blustery day * clean and recovered from dance party, and being super tired all day* cheese ball & pizza for breakfast * Reading These is My Words and loving it * trip to the fruit/veggie store * creating a cauliflower and cheese grilled sandwich for Preston and being amazed when he ate it * nap/more reading * chilling with Prex outside looking for birds and airplanes * hotdogs & french fries for dinner * finishing These is My Words * Preston just casually taking 4 steps like it's no big deal but then refusing to recreate it *

SUNDAY- 8 am church. Cool * Raviolis & the end of the Candy Grahams (sad) * nap!!! * reading * making the most delicious salad ever. Avocados, cheese, cucumbers, onion with crutons was delic * Driving to Maricopa * Deciding next time we go on a road trip we'll travel at night when Preston is sleeping otherwise we may go insane * Trying to impress and entertain Preston with singing (badly) to "Don't Wanna Miss a Thing" * Aerosmith sponsoring our road trip as more of their songs came on the radio on the drive * Talking gardens with the FIL * Enjoying family * Preston in a good mood * Home * In depth discussion of 2001: a Space Odyssey * More reading * The end.

Busy week this week: Trips to Target, 1 yr appointment for Preston, Dr Appt for me, Feeding the Missionaries, Bank, Bruce, Gym, Birthday party, Working on the garden and much much more!!

Reading Rainbow

2011-01-19T12:00:00.000-08:00

Books I'm reading right now:

Title: Do I Look Fat in This? Life Doesn't Begin 5 Pounds from now
Author: Jessica Weiner

Why I'm reading it: Because one of my goals, not a new years resolution, but a goal for life is to feel good about myself no matter how I look.

Favorite part/Things I've learned so far: Fat isn't a feeling, but there are a few translations for what you could really be feeling when you say "I feel fat". They are: I feel scared, I feel angry, I feel excited, I feel sad or I feel unworthy.

Title: These Is My Words
Author: Nancy E. Turner

Why I'm reading it: Honestly it's because some blog I came across out there mentioned it and I'm all about reading books that are recommended to me.

Favorite Part/Things I've Learned so Far: I haven't started this one yet, but so far I've learned that the Mesa Public Library has 25 copies of this book and that 12 are available to be checked out. Make that 11. I did look it up on Amazon before checking it out of said library, and it seems interesting enough. "Based on the real-life exploits of the author's great-grandmother, this fictionalized diary vividly details one woman's struggles with life and love in frontier Arizona at the end of the last century. When she begins recording her life, Sarah Prine is an intelligent, headstrong 18-year-old capable of holding her own on her family's settlement near Tucson."

Title: Parenting with Love and Logic
Author: Foster Cline, MD & Jim Fay

Why I'm Reading it: Because I want to be a better parent. And I don't want to have to check out those other books at the library on dealing with a headstrong challenging child in the future. Plus Patrick and I are going to take a Love & Logic parenting class someday and I want to have a head start and know all the answers to the questions they ask.

Favorite Part/What I've Learned so Far: The 2 rules of Love and Logic. 1. Adults must set firm, loving limits using enforceable statements without showing anger, lecturing or using threats. 2. When a child causes a problem, the adult shows empathy through sadness and sorrow and then lovingly hands the problem and its consequences back to the child.

Also, the "Uh-Oh" song. The "Uh-Oh" song is simply another way of saying "Oh, what a sad choice you just made."

Anytime I have a reason to sing, I dig it.

Title: The Goose Girl (series)
Author: Shannon Hale

Why I'm Reading it: I dunno. Peer pressure?? Everyone else was doing it. I heard all these rave reviews, and I thought hey, why not?! Plus I like geese.

Favorite Part/What I've Learned so Far: Hard to say. I'm not a huge fan. At first I thought I didn't like them because they were too fairy tale/magical. But then I remembered I like magical. (i.e Harry Potter....Disneyland...). But I just wasn't a huge fan. Will I read the other 2 books in the series? Yeah. Might as well. Maybe they will get better. Sorry if your The Goose Girls biggest fan.

"If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you'd have invented Facebook."

2011-01-18T11:29:00.000-08:00

Last night I de-friended Justin Timberlake.

It lasted about 5 minutes.

It was no one's fault really.
I watched The Social Network and he just played his part too good.
And I hated him.
So I decided we were un-friends.
But then the movie ended, and I decided we could be friends again.

Oh JT. How far your acting has come since Model Behavior.

Also, I didn't think it was possible for anyone to talk faster then my friends Rory & Lorelai Gilmore, but Mark Zuckerburg (the genius behind of The Facebook), you win the gold in fast talking.
I was going to put subtitles on because he was talking so fast, but then I realized I don't think I could read that fast either.

Good movie

Oh and Andrew Garfield, your hair looked awesome. We'll be seeing you in Spider Man for sure.

I dreamed a dream. . .

2011-01-17T17:00:00.000-08:00

Today I spent a lot of time doing this:

Because today is MLK day. And MLK knew what it was like to have a dream (I would know because in 2nd grade I had to memorize his speech & recite it in front of the whole school). My dream is different though. I want a garden. It's actually one of my 3 New Years Resolutions/goals.

Thank goodness the Mesa Public Library still lets you check out books when you have late fees otherwise I might never be allowed to check books out. So last week I checked out about 4 books on starting a garden.

Now all I need is for someone t0 come over & show me where to put my garden, what to plant, the difference between a weed and a plant and of course teach me to like the things I grow. Like carrots.

The day was also spent doing things like wiping The Orange Ones nose over and over because he has a cold/cough. I doubt anyone dreams about that.

p.s Don't you LOVE my new background & header?!? Webmaster Krissa is awesome at stuff like that!

2011-01-06T07:04:00.001-08:00

So the truth is - I don't know what to do with this blog! Any suggestions?? Do I keep doing weekend updates and Truth Wednesdays? Should I incorporate other things? More pictures? More stories? More Preston? Give me ideas!

And while your brainstorming I'll share these 2 truths with you....

The Truth is- One year (when it was just me & Andrew living here) we were watching the Superbowl. But then it got boring and we ended up watching a marathon of Ghost Hunters instead. Then we got scared and didn't want to go to sleep. Bet the Superbowl wouldn't have given us nightmares. Lesson learned NFL. Lesson learned.

The Truth is- One time I had a Johnny Depp birthday party. And by one time I mean like maybe 5 years ago. There were eyepatches and pirate hats, a pirates drinking game (dr. pepper & mtn. dew of course), and I even made a black pearl replica out of cardboard that people could take their pictures with. Oh yes, I invited guest to the party. It's how Johnny would have wanted it. I even made myself a shirt. It said "I love Johnny Depp" on the front and on the back it said "savvy?" Maybe this year we'll have another one. Save the date- June 9th.

Seriously, I need input on the blog thing.

2010-12-15T08:07:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- When The Green Lantern comes out and everyone is all goo-goo ga-ga over Ryan Reynolds I'm pretty sure I'm going to go around telling people I'm related to him. "Oh cousin Ryan? Ya he's alright." Consider yourself warned.

The Truth is- This conversation actually happened last week & caused me to laugh till I cried.

Patrick: I see you added a movie to our Netflix dvd que. What was it again, "Rene's Mouse Adventures"?
Me: You mean Ramona & Beezus?!
Patrick: Yeah, same thing.
Me: How does Ramona & Beezus become Rene's Mouse Adventures?!?!?!
Patrick: Well I read it and thought about how we had a cat named Ramona, so then I thought about cats chasing mice, and I couldn't remember the name but new it started with an R, and if it's about mice its sure to be an adventure. Rene's Mouse Adventure.
Me: Is Rene the mouse or is Rene a girl who as adventures with mice?
Patrick: She's the girl.
Me: That actually does sound like a movie I'd rent. . . I also added Charlie St. Cloud.
Patrick: Who's in that one again?
Me: Hottie superbomb Zac Efron.
Patrick: Oh ya. I was thinking it was that other cute guy. Whats his name again? Charlie Chaplin?
Me: Charlie Chaplin?!?! The black and white silent movie actor?!?!
Patrick: no.. thats not it... Oh! Channing Tatum! I always want to call him Charlie Tantrum.

At this point I was laughing so much I couldn't breath & may have fallen off the couch. Man we have good times!!!

Go Daddy Holiday Party 2010

2010-12-12T18:37:00.000-08:00

Saturday was Patrick's work Holiday Party.
Bob Parsons (the founder of GoDaddy) spent 4 million dollars on this party.
Thats Million with an M.
1 Million of it he gave out in prizes/money drawings.
$500,000 was donated to a womans AIDS shelter.

The parties we've been to in the past have been good, but this years was the best!!

It was formal dress so we had to look our best:

As soon as you walked into Chase Field you saw this:

Carnival theme!!!!
There was a ferris wheel, bumper cars, carousel, fair food, and fair games.
FANTASTIC!
It was like being at the fair, but for free!!!

In the past the entertainment has been ok. Last year was Paula Poundstone (not funny) & The Temptations & Joan Jett. The year before was Sinbad (yup, he's still alive) and some other band I can't remember.
But THIS year was
Jewel!
George Thorogood & the Destroyers (he sings that song "bad to the bone")
and
ZZTop. Sad to say we got tired and left before zztop took the stage.
Also, Jillian Michaels from Biggest Loser was there since she is the newest "Go Daddy Girl", along with Danica Patrick.

At the end of Jewels set when she started yodeling we decided to ride the ferris wheel.
Scary!!

I was hanging on SUPER tight!!

And Patrick was laughing at me because I was trying to take his picture while screaming & holding on to the rails.

Things we ate that night included:
taffy
garlic fries
sea salt & vinegar fries
pretzel w/ cheese
cotton candy
Philly cheese steaks

meatball sub
turkey/coleslaw sandwich
drumstick (ice cream not chicken)
and a few Pepsi/waters

Best Holiday Party EVER!

2010-12-08T05:45:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- It's crazy out there with all the snowbirds and Christmas shoppers. But I remember that my mom use to like to do things like go to Costco on Christmas Eve just because there were going to be a lot of people there and she thought it would be a fun experience. She'd try to think of the place that was going to be the busiest & then join in with the crowd. And then sometimes we'd end up with things we didn't need in the cart and she'd say "everyone else was grabbing them, I thought I should too!". Pretty funny.

The Truth is- Sometimes I, like everyone else misinterpret song lyrics. Like TLC's song Chasing Waterfalls. For a long time I thought it was "don't go Jason Waffles". What a delicious last name! And now there is this song out by Nelly called "Just a Dream" and there is a line in the chorus where he says "opened my eyes" but the way he sings it makes it sound like "threw up in my eye". Nelly, I've had someone (Preston) throw up in my eye, and it's not really that fun. Definitely not something to sing about.

The Truth is- When Patrick and I get bored we do things like search for movies on Netflix that have our name in them. You end up finding movies like Patrick- a movie about a murderer lying in a hospital where the only motion he can muster is the motion to spit but still manages to use his mind to kill people. And Jessica: A Ghost Story about a murdered woman who terrorizes people to insanity while her husband tries to figure out why this restless spirit has returned. People need to make better movies that have our names in the title! Preferably one's where no one is murdered. Something more like Sargent Preston of the Yukon- a television show about a royal Canadian mountie and his trusty horse Rex & steadfast dog Yukon King.

2010-12-06T10:12:00.000-08:00

Seriously short weekend... Maybe it's because a majority of it was spent in pajamas...

FRIDAY- * Finished Christmas Card making * Watched Gabe for a few hours * Visited with Candace & talked little boy stuff (how to make them eat, how they already make sound effects) * DPB * Visit with Krissa * A little boy who didn't want to nap, but who is getting in his 2 front teeth!! * Butter Pecan cake with Coconut pecan frosting (from a box, not from scratch) * Ward Christmas Party * Preston having a major cough attack that lasted hours * Baked potato bar YUMMM * Preston in giant reindeer antlers * More coughing * Dude Where's My Car * Sleep *

SATURDAY- * Started early when Preston started coughing nonstop around 3am. Tried everything I could to get him to stop, including a small warm bottle which he promptly threw up on me as a result of coughing so hard. Fever, trying to rock him to sleep, but having it not work. Miserablness * Patrick went to work, Preston and I went to Urgent Care * Double ear infection & Croup * Trying to find a breathing machine with zero help from insurance/pharmacy/Medical supply store. Apparently being able to breath well is only a Mon-Friday issue * FRUSTRATION/tears * Lunch with Krissa & Bree * Wishing for beef instead of pork * Naps * Finding someone who had a breathing machine!! (cute one too, looks like a panda bear) * Preston starting to feel better * Relaxing, unwinding * Having my own coughing attack * Target for baby vicks vapor rub & a new humidifier filter * Steam treatments * Hot chocolate * Law & Order * BED. SO SO TIRED!!

SUNDAY- * Another 3am wake up call from a coughing preston * More breathing treatments * nap * Spicy chicken * picking up the dvds/video games that Preston pulls out 3x's a day * Haunnakah food - potato latkes yuuuuuuuuuuum!!! * Leftover cake * Starting the movie Angels & Demons and then realizing its almost 3 hrs long * Bones * More steam treatments * Bed *

This week is going to be pretty relaxed. Already took Preston into the doctor to make sure he's healing, and he is! A few other things to take care of, things to clean, hopefully get Christmas cards out by Wed, Thursday at the latest. GoDaddy Holiday party on Saturday, so we get to dress up pretty!!

2010-12-01T07:59:00.000-08:00

So today all my truths are going to be about my brother JIMMY (ok, so thats not Jimmy, but that picture reminds me of him).
Because he came home for Thanksgiving, and it was awesome.
And because he's funny.
But mostly because I love him.

The Truth is- that years and years ago after we saw Casper for the first time Jimmy decided that he was going to have a lot of boys and that he was going to name them Fatso, Stretch, Stinky & Casper. We tried to explain to him that you really shouldn't name your kid Fatso or Stinky but he said it would be funny. So Dear Future Nephews of mine, I'm sorry. I tried.

The Truth is- That Jimmy signed up to be an organ donar should anything happen. I told him that if something happens I want one of his organs. His ACL to be exact. Not the one in his left leg, but the one in his right. He had his right ACL replaced a few years ago and they replaced it with a cadaver ACL. He named it Emmet. So should something happen I want Emmet to sit upon my mantel, on display.

The Truth is- When Jimmy was in Kindergarten he told his teacher that my Grandma had died & that we were moving to the mountains. Neither one of those things were true.

The Truth is- One time all us kids went to the movies (i think we were seeing Anaconda at the dollar theater for like the 4th time) and during the movie Jimmy's leg fell asleep. Well instead of waking it up or asking up to just wait a few minutes he started walking on it. Or at least he tried. It was a long walk back to the car and he was limping and dragging his leg the whole time. We got a lot of looks. People were probably wondering why we didn't park in a handicapped spot instead of making the poor boy with a gimpy leg walk across the parking lot.

The Truth is- A few years ago we all went camping for Andrews birthday. For breakfast in the morning we had some mini muffins and since they were cold we decided to warm them by the fire. If you let them sit for just a little bit they were perfect. Well, Jimmy took his, took a big bite, realized it was boiling lava hot, but instead of spitting it out, he just chewed it really super fast and swallowed it all. So now anytime someone puts something hot in their mouth or complains that something is hot we call it "pulling a Jimmy".

The Truth is- One Summer Jimmy was working construction to earn some money to go on a trip with a friend. He asked some of the Hispanic workers if they could give him & his friend a ride home. They said sure, we'll take you home. I guess once they got into the car the workers didn't turn where Jimmy said to turn & were talking in Spanish & Jimmy & his friend were starting to get nervous. So he texted me and said "Jess, I think they are taking me to Mexico". I thought he was joking, so I texted back "don't let them sell you for less than 5 pesos". Turns out he wasn't joking, they were really scared & when they stopped to fill up for gas Jimmy & his friend wouldn't get back in the car & called a parent to come pick them up. He got home & told me what happened, and I felt REALLY bad! Jimmy's worth a lot more than 5 pesos.

2010-11-30T15:21:00.000-08:00

We had some family pictures taken last week for our Christmas cards.
Here are a few of our favorites:

this was the location. Isn't it beautiful?!

Yup. My hair looks awesome.

Rockin the side part

I love my family!!!

2010-11-29T08:38:00.000-08:00

SUPER long fantastic holiday weekend!

THURSDAY- Jimmy was home!!! * A turkey the size of an infant for 3 people...leftovers * TONS of food * mini nap * Stretchy pants to accommodate the overeating * Massive amounts of pie * Dressing Preston up as a turkey * Family * Golf (the card game) * How to Train Your Dragon = LOVE!!! * Patrick catching some sort of bug which caused him to (in his words) "scream death metal into the toilet all night". Rough night with him sick * Convincing other people to do my black Friday shopping so I could stay with a sick hubs * Sense & Sensibility till I fell asleep *

FRIDAY- Patrick was recovered enough to have a friend from Utah come hang out for the day * Target * Famous Footwear * Walmart * Shopping with Jimmy at all those places * Visit to the Grandparents * A check engine light on, a low coolant light on, an oil light on, then off, then on, then off, then on again * Almost finishing Prestons Christmas shopping * Cute hats with bows * Turkey samich * Toy Story 3 (How to train your dragon was better) * Visits with Krissa * Learning how to eat Dove Peppermint Bark the PROPER way * Speaking in Dove Promises * Annoyances * Cleaning up an entire dog water dish that was tipped over when someone in a walker raced after the dog, causing him to knock over the water. This was then followed by a 2 liter of Dr. Pepper exploding. Fun. * Chilis * Law & Order: SVU *

SATURDAY- Started off well, did some cleaning and laundry, Patrick went to work * Shopping with Krissa at the mall, which wasn't as bad as the parking lot made it seem * Fancy Schmany Church outfit on sale at JCPennys for P-Rex * Searching for a dress to wear for Patricks work Holiday Party * Panda Express * Laundry * Then I started to feel sick, and decided that since Patrick screamed death metal into the toilet that I should lay some background tracks. Translation- SO SICK . Thankfully Patrick had been through it before and could tell me exactly what was going to happen next * Preston spending lots of time with his daddy * sleep *

SUNDAY- Still not feeling too great * naps * monkey bread * Jimmy going back to BYU (sad) * Bree's farewell * An extremely hyper kid during church * Leaving early due to sickness * Bones * Psych * L&O:SVU (I watched a lot of tv while laying around being sick * Lots of time with the snuggie * Running out of Dove Peppermint Bark *

This week....not too much going on. Our ward christmas party is on Friday, got a few errands to run, still looking for a great dress for the holiday party. Crossing my fingers that Preston doesn't catch the sickness!

2010-11-24T07:20:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- I eat chocolate covered peanuts the same way every time I eat them. I split it open in my mouth, move the peanut out and then one side of my mouth gets to eat just the chocolate and the other side eats the peanut. It always feels like I'm punishing one side of my mouth, or playing favorites with the side that gets the chocolate. So sometimes I'll switch which side gets what. Wouldn't want to start an uprising.

The Truth is- You know that cult classic movie The Labyrinth? I saw that movie for the first time like 2 years ago. I dunno how I can call my childhood a childhood with the absence of The Labyrinth. Preston has already watched part of it. The part where David Bowie is singing "Dance Magic Dance" holds his attention quite well. I am kind of hoping its the puppets he's captivated by and not David Bowie dressed as the Goblin King rockin a power mullet.

The Truth is- We use to have this parakeet named Sunny, and she only had 1 trick she could do. She would dance to a song. But not just any song, she would only dance to MMMBop by Hanson. She would move her head up and down and side to side when I played that song. And I played that song A LOT.

The Truth is- Patrick and I have a no "sweetheart" rule. He can't call me "sweetheart" as a term of endearment. It makes me feel old. Like really really old. I'd even prefer him calling me his shorty (but only if he pronounced it shaawwwty) then sweetheart. Maybe I'll change my mind as we grow old together.

2010-11-17T07:14:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- That Mondays use to be "bathroom day" at my house. It was the day set aside for the cleaning of bathrooms and polishing of the porcelain. But then Patrick's schedule got changed to where he is home of Mondays, and I don't want to be cleaning bathrooms when he is home. So bathroom day has been changed. Mondays is now "Dollar Store" day! Yay! I recently discovered my love for the dollar store, and then shared the love with Patrick. So now every Monday we go to the dollar store and then walk out saying things like "I'll never shop anywhere else again!".

The Truth is- Sometimes when I'm alone in the car (or with Preston) I sing songs and practice them as if I would be singing them if we went Karaoke-ing. So don't be shocked if we ever go out karaoking together and I'm shockingly good at a specific song. The truth is I've practiced it a lot.

The Truth is- Sometimes Patrick and I have conversations about such topics as "If the White Witch of Narnia had you in her sled & offered you food, what you you chose?" Because we all know turkish delight while it looks delicious is horrible. I always think that the food has to be bite sized food. Like little smokies wrapped in bacon or something. And Patrick always goes with something really messy so that he could make a mess all over her white fur coat. And then we spend some time practicing our White Witch voices and saying things like "More vienna sausages!?" or "More buttery corn on the cob?!"

We have fun.
Like a G6.

I really think you should play along today.

2010-11-15T08:33:00.000-08:00

FRIDAY- Even though it was a Bruce day Krissa came over and showed me the easiest, yet super creative way of making cards. * Subway * Dove Peppermint Bark = LOVE (but apparently not available in normal stores) *Pride & Prejudice: "You have bewitched me body and soul and I love i love i love you" * Total jammie day. Didn't change all day * Bones (the show) * Finishing Mr. Darcy's Diary. So good. *

SATURDAY- Woke up at 4am with the worst runny nose & face ache. Couldn't go back to sleep, so I watched Notting Hill instead. By the time I was ready to go back to bed Preston woke up. He too had a runny nose & was sneezing. Poor sick baby * Walmart for some formula/diapers * Naps * Hobby Lobby to get paper for Christmas cards * More sleeping for Preston, more card making for me * Watching a special on Disneyland and then having an enormous desire to go to Disneyland * Hanging out with Patrick * Stake Conference: Adult Session where Preston was less then quiet & we spent a majority out in the foyer where he showed me his new skill of finding any little thing on the floor and putting it in his mouth * more Bones (the show) *

SUNDAY- Early church (huzzah!!) * Attempt at a nap, but foiled by a baby who was tapping Morse code on the wall * Family over for dinner- "chicken fried pork chops" (which is what Patrick calls this certain type of pork chop dish i make. No chicken is involved at all, Rosemary Herb potatoes, Green beans, & pumpkin roll * Showing off Prestons new tricks to impressed grandparents * Reading * SLEEP *

This week is going to be.....busy.... babysitting. Lots of babysitting. And a follow up appt for Preston. Hopefully it goes fast because I can't WAIT for Thanksgiving!!! 9 days till Jimmy comes home!!!!

2010-11-10T05:58:00.000-08:00

The Truth is- I don't really understand why orange juice is strictly a breakfast drink. I LOVE orange juice, but I feel like I can only have it in the morning. All the other juices seem to have widened their range & can be drunk at any meal. Well except maybe grapefruit juice. Which is NEVER ok to drink.

The Truth is- I have a bad habit that I need to break. Everytime I see Preston about to fall I close my eyes. It's like if I don't see it it isn't happening. It's going to happen where I close my eyes and don't see what happen and then Patrick will ask me what happened and I'm going to have to make something up. I just don't want to see him get hurt! I can handle it after it's happened, but seeing it makes me feel like I let it happen.

The Truth is- I love Baby Will Smith (aka his son Jaden Smith). Every movie he's in, I cry. Especially The Pursuit of Happyness. Karate Kid is no exception. I didn't like having to watch him get beat up lots. He's a good little actor!

The Truth is- Patrick and I went to Vegas for our 1yr anniversary a few years ago, but we didn't do much. We did walk the strip, kinda. And we did watch the fountain at the Bellagio. But mostly we stayed in our room, cranked the AC and watched a marathon of House. We're such homebody's.

2010-10-27T09:06:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- I'm pretty sure Preston can already tell I'm a dork and embarrassing. Example. Last week I was feeding him raisins (which was an interesting experience on its own) and I showed him how there were 5 more little boxes of raisins. So then in my best Napoleon Dynamite voice I told him "There's a lot more where this came from.... if you go to the dance with me". He just gave me a look.

The Truth is- Sometimes Patrick and I forget that Heath Ledger died. Then we'll be driving in the car and randomly one of us will say "I miss Heath Ledger". Because we do.

The Truth is- We've been sleeping with our bedroom window open, which is so so nice. The only problem is that in the morning before its real light out the birds will start chirping. It wouldn't be a problem, but it's so faint & steady that I think it's our alarm going off. So then I sit straight up in bed and listen and realize it's just the birds. But by then it's too late to go back to sleep, I'm wide awake. Stupid birds.

The Truth is- About every other time I take a sweater off I start singing the song from Grease "Your the one that I Want". It reminds me of that part at the end of the movie where Danny peels off his letterman sweater and then starts singing. Lucky for me Preston thought it was hilarious when we had an impromptu Grease sing-a-long the other day. So maybe he doesn't think everything I do is dorky and embarrassing!

2010-10-20T08:52:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- I have this strange habit where if I'm around someone and they pop something, like knuckles or wrist or whatever I feel like I have to do it too. Sadly I don't have too many body parts that actually pop & crack. Like my back, doesn't crack. But I still try when I see someone else do it.

The Truth is- When we came home from our Honeymoon (to Disneyland) our bedroom door was shut. I thought "aww maybe the boys cleaned it up for us" because when we left it was a mess from moving all Patricks stuff in. Wrong. Our entire room was covered in these creepy old church pictures that the boys had gotten from the library at church. I guess they were getting rid of them and they were somehow rescued by one of the boys and kept in the trunk waiting for the perfect time to use them. I'm not kidding when I say they were everywhere. The ceiling, inside the medicine cabinet, inside the toilet bowl seat cover, inside the cats litter box, in my closet on the walls hiding behind my clothes, taped to the fan, EVERYWHERE. Would have been funny if we weren't so tired & hot (7 hr car ride in June = tired/hot feelings). But it's funny now. I actually still have a few of the pictures hanging up in hidden places in our room.

The Truth is- In my craft room there are caramels. Craft caramels. You can only eat them if your doing crafts. There also happens to be Craft Candy Corn. Makes me very motivated to finish crafts. Delicious.

The Truth is- I just remembered last night that on the day we got engaged I lost one of my favorite sweaters. It was windy out, so I had on a light sweater (it was grey with a small pink butterfly on the left side). I had it tied around my waist on the way back to the car, and noticed when we got to the car it was gone. Sure we could have gone back to get it, but we were in a wing love coma. Wing coma b/c we had a picnic of Native New Yorker wings and Love coma because we had just gotten engaged. Poor lost comfy sweater.

2010-10-18T07:42:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- after a week of company everyone left & boy were things quiet * "I am Number Four" (its a book. Its a GOOD book) * Girls night!! * Banana cake, guacamole, quiche, basically all deliciousness * MOW - its pronounced like now but with an M. Not Mow like some people (me) thought. Fun game though! * Finding the lost pacifier * Patrick watching scary movies with Eliott (since I can't watch them with him) * Start of watching When in Rome (ehhh...I wont watch the rest of it. )

SATURDAY- *Community garage sale!!! Got Preston some things for Christmas like some books & a speak-n-say. shhhh don't tell him! Also got him a walker that seems to be possessed b/c it on several ocassions it will make noise & then not shut off or make the noise when I press the buttons. Hence the batteries were taken out * Finishing "I am Number Four" (you should read it b/c there is a movie coming out soon) * Barros * Patrick cutting a pumpkin in half with his sword so that I could make some pumpkin puree "I thought it tasted a little like sword...." * Making the puree and feeling like a pioneer woman * Pumpkin Gingersnap Caramel Cheesecake. Yup. * Watching a National Geographic special on Tornado's with the hubs. Saturday night and we're home watching national geographic specials. Sad!! *

SUNDAY- * Watched a few episodes of Bones * Chopped things up for the dinner we would be having * Church* Patrick's dad came over for a delicious buttery dinner of - Marlboro Man Sandwiches, Resturant style smashed potatoes & The cheesecake * An extremely tired Preston. He was up from 1:15pm-8pm * More Bones, but this time I fell asleep. I wonder how that episode ends . . . .

This week not much is going on: Dr's appt for PRex, grocery shopping, Bruce, chores (blehhhh) and perhaps a craft day Saturday!!

2010-10-13T08:39:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- This is my 100th post!!!! I kind of expected balloons and confetti to fall from the sky in it's honor. Didn't happen. Yet. . . . .

The Truth is- When we were younger, when the boys were younger if a movie had someone kissing in it they would always yell out "It's rated K for Kissing!". I still think about that when someone gets smooched in a movie.

The Truth is- Once I raked up over $60 in library overdue book fee's. I don't know how it happened. But it did. And so for my punishment I grounded myself from the library and lost my library checkout privilages. I didn't go to the library for over a year. Which, if you know me is a BIG DEAL. I read A LOT. But I figured I learned a lesson. Well last a few weeks ago I lifted the punishment and took Preston to the library to get some books. I also checked out 2 movies for us. And the truth is that those two movies were returned late. I didn't know they were due back in a week! They were 3 days late. I now have overdue fee's. I guess I didn't learn my lesson.

The Truth is- It's strange to me that people check the expiration date on milk before they buy it. When the boys all lived here we went through 6+ gallons of milk a week. I'd go grocery shopping and have 6 gallons in my cart and hear a lot of "thats a lot of milk" comments. But the truth is if our fridge would hold more I would have bought more. ANYWAYS, I was in the store the other day and heard a lady say "this one expires in a week from tomorrow" and her husband said "we'll never finish it by then". Whats that like?!?! Because even now that it's just Patrick & I living here we go through at least 3 gallons a week if not more.

The Truth is- One year when I was in elementary school I had to miss a day to go to rehearsal for The Nutcracker. However instead of telling everyone I had to miss because of dress rehearsal I told them I had to miss because I was going to a New Kids on the Block concert. And thats the story of how for 1 day I was popular.

2010-10-06T07:29:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- There is a rat on our bedroom door. Not a REAL rat of course. It's a picture of a rat that my nephew drew in school that one of the boys found and stuck onto our door. And we left it there. Partly because we didn't know what it was for awhile (a rat holding a piece of cheese can look very different when drawn by an 8yr old) but mostly because it's fun to tell people "it's the room with the rat on the door" when they are looking for our bedroom.

The Truth is- Yesterday there was this huge storm. And thats fine. But last night we were out of formula so I went up to Bashas to get more. It was calm when I left, calm when I got to the store, apocalyptic when I came out. But I got to my car, used both hands to get the door shut and then sat there. The wind was blowing cars so much car alarms were going off, sideways rain and then there was hail. And I thought. I've seen Twister. I know what happens next. So I turned on my lights. Because if there is a tornado coming towards me I want to be able to see it.

The Truth is- When we first moved here I was 12, and people kept talking about "Snowbirds". I was 12! From California. I had NO IDEA what a snowbird was. Did I tell anyone I didn't know? Nope. Just stayed on the lookout for some strange exotic type bird that apparently reeked havoc on you when driving. The bird never surfaced, and as the years passed I learned the true meaning of snowbird.

The Truth is- Patricks been trying for a looooong time to talk me into getting Netflix. I don't know why I've been holding out, maybe it was the idea of another bill every month. But yesterday new Karate Kid movie came out. And I really really wanted to see this movie. And so first thing in the morning I checked our local Blockbuster Express kiosk and it wasn't there (sometimes they don't add new movies for awhile). And that was the straw that broke the camels back. The Karate Kid starring Jaden Smith has forced us to become Netflixers.

2010-10-03T22:00:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Bruce day * Visit from Krissa * Discussing crafts * Cudding with a cuddly Preston * Very cheesy Cheeze its * Joann's for fabric * Getting a work out carting around bolts of felt * A new Glee cd!!! * Oreo McFlurry = McDeliciousness * Ironman 2 (well at least the first half) * The best picture of Preston EVER * Insomnia *

SATURDAY- *conference * Learning to use my sewing machine! Now I can sew just as well in real life as I can in my head!! * Hearing the phrase "I bet your wondering what this has to do with flying an airplane" * Visiting with Krissa * Cutting felt for our pillows * Patrick drooling over a Pumpkin pie Blizzard * A super adventurous Preston * Lots of vacuuming * Grocery store * LOTS OF CRAFTS! Oh like what you ask? Let me show you what I made Saturday:

A Halloween Wreath
I'm not crazy about it...looks like a black sun with orange beams. But it's growing on me!

A pillow.
These are the colors I want to use for the living room. It was the first thing I've sewn since Jr. High Home Ec.

Ghosts decorations.
I'm going to poke holes in the top and put twinkle lights inside to illuminate them.
Thanks for eating 6 jars of baby food a day Preston.
Finally I can put the jars to good use!

Flower petal pillow.
There is a lot I would do different for this pillow for next time.
But thats ok! it was fun and SUPER cute!

Headband.
Made it for Krissa because I'm just that nice.
And technically I made it Sunday, but it still gets put in Saturday crafts.

SUNDAY- * a dream within a dream. Was someone trying to Inception me?! It won't work! * Making a LOT of quiche. But having it be delicious * naping * Family bday dinner for Carly & Blaine * curly hair * new to me clothes * Preston with flame hair * more conference * HEADACHE * more quiche * more fun *

This week: Hopefully the car will pass emissions this time around *fingers crossed! Family over for dinner, probably more crafting/sewing, cleaning, library, and who knows what surprises will come our way!

2010-09-29T07:27:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- As of right now I only have 3 truths for today. So I'm going to post them and if I think of more I'll add them. Just look for the quality of the truths, not the quantity.

The truth is- Everytime we eat jell-o we MUST renact the scene from Jurassic Park where the girl is eating jell-o and then starts shaking b/c she see's a dinosaur (velosoraptor to be exact) and then the jell-o starts shaking. Now I don't like jell-o, but I'll eat it just for this purpose. Patrick has even gone as far as to practice his shaking scared face in the mirror, and truth be told, it looks pretty good at this point! Pretty much looks identical to this:

The Truth is- You would think that the plastic covering over CD's and DVD's would have gotten easier to open over the years. It hasn't. There was a point in my prime when I was buying a lot of CD's and was SUPER fast and getting it open. Like Olympic world record fast. But those days are past us. And now it takes me forever to rip that plastic off. I have the same sort of issues with getting the plastic off of gum.

The Truth is- When we were at the Diamondbacks game on Saturday they showed on the big screen this group of high school boys who were wearing shorts and had taken their shirts off and were waving them around. Patrick leans over to me and says "They must be on Team Jacob". (You know, b/c on the Twilight movies Jacob is always taking his shirt off or walking around with his shirt off and it makes me roll my eyes REAL loud). It's just further proof that Patrick is the only one for me.

2010-09-27T15:40:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- (ok the truth is when I tried to type Friday it came out Monday. Then i tried again and it came out Sunday. Third time is a charm) * Bruce was over! Preston is obsessed with him. He gets greater separation anxiety when Bruce leaves a room then when I do * Krissa came over to play! I'm trying to forget about the part where Preston spit up all over her white shirt * Patrick had a work activity so Pfub & i chilled at home * Crafts- boy did I make something super cute! Don't you wish I'd post a picture of it? Someday! * Prestonsaurus Rex did not want to go to bed, so after a little more hanging out he went to sleep & I got more crafting done * Chats w/ Jimmy @ lost sunglass lens... *

SATURDAY- * Patrick worked * Carly's birthday! Now we're the same age again! * Breakfast at The Egg & I. Deliciousness * Preston got his sock stuck to gum under the booth (does anyone know how to get gum off clothes?!?!) * Nap for preston, cleaning up for me * Rilla of Ingleside (yep, another Anne of Green Gables book.) * License to Wed * Diamondbacks game!!! - All you can eat section * Me debating whether or not to try to become the new hot dog eating champion of the world * Extreme dehydration due to the hot dogs consumed * Lots of fun * Falling asleep while reading (fav.) *

SUNDAY- * chillin * church * naps * Wearing new church shoes * Having the FIL over for dinner * Most excellent new chicken recipie * Peach cobbler w/ ice cream * Mario Kart * Writing to Andrew * Watching Friends & cuddling with the hubs * sleeeeeep *

It was a good weekend. Some crazy moments, but really nice. This week: Getting the car fixed/emissions/registration, Bruce over to play, Conference weekend, Making more peach cobbler (the peaches on sale at Frys are delicious!).

2010-09-25T13:57:00.000-07:00

Did you know that I have another blog?

Well BESIDES Preston365.

It's one I contribute to with some other lovely ladies called "Oh Snap".
It's a blog where we post crafts/recipes/and other projects to.
(Which reminds me we need to update it with some recent projects.......)
But now you know!

Now that you know I should tell you Oh Snaps is having a giveaway.
You can enter now till the end of the month to win a $45 gift card to a place called CSN Stores.

That store has everything.
And $45 buys a lot of goodies.
Especially with the holidays coming up.
Or you could just buy something for this guy

All you need to do is click HERE, and you can enter the giveaway.

I suppose I should tell you that Krissa is also doing a giveaway on her site for a gift card for $35. Although by telling you this I decrease my chances of winning....

2010-09-22T08:19:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- Yesterday I was cleaning out the fridge. Like REALLY cleaning it out, washing shelfs and such. As I pulled out the fruit crisper (I think that's what it's called) I found something interesting underneath it. A sunglass lens. Just one. A left one. And I sat there for a few minutes thinking "HOW did this get here?! How long has it been here?! When did someone lose just ONE lens from their sunglasses?!"" Then I realized it's just a sunglass lens, not a dinosaur bone, drop the questions and feeling of awe and move on! So I did. Although I still wonder how it got there....

The Truth is- Whenever we play The Price is Right on the Wii I take bidding on the showcase showdown very seriously. For some reason I decide on whether to bid or pass based on real life. Such as "Oh that trip to Egypt would be really fun...but we couldn't take Preston b/c he would just get super sunburned. Although it would make for some good pictures for him....but who would watch him while we are away?! I should really be sensible and bid on the new bedroom set. Plus we need new carpet and it comes with 500 yards of carpet." I'm pretty sure that's how it would go down in my head if we ever really were on the Price is Right. Plus if we went to Egypt we'd just spend the whole time quoting "The Mummy".

The Truth is- Remember last week when I posted that picture of Beyonce posing with her foot bent up towards her head?! The truth is that after I posted that I tried to get into that position. Not happening.

The Truth is- When I put away dishes from the dishwasher I tend to not close any of the cupboards till I'm done. I'm not sure why, but when I'm done there will be quite a few doors open. Kinda reminds me of that scene in The 6th Sense where the mom leaves the boy in the kitchen and when she walks back in 2 seconds later all the cupboard doors are open. Only my version is less creepy because it's me doing it not some dead person who doesn't know they are dead.

You really should play along, it's fun!!

2010-09-20T15:32:00.000-07:00

Sorry it's taken me so long to post my WU today, just feels like Saturday. AGAIN.

FRIDAY- We watched Bruice Boy, which even though Preston is sick he LOVED. He really loves being around other kids * Krissa came over for a chat * DSW for some church shoes. Ones that don't have dog teeth marks on the heel or sharpie cover-up marks * A debate over Cheesecake Factory vs. Texas Road House * CF being victorious * Lots of laughs and GREAT times * Did you know that 1/2 of a whole cheesecake at CF is only like $25?!?! Insane! * Coming home with lots of leftovers & the voice of a smoker * Patrick having Eliott over for game night * Sleep *

SATURDAY- Patrick worked (of course) so Preston and I (the sickies) hung out * Naps * coughs * runny noses * watched 1/2 of Finding Neverland followed by 1/2 of Leap Year * "Rainbow Valley" - its one of the sequels to Anne of Green Gables. And ok, maybe I'm a nerd and like those books. It is what it is. * Canceling our Saturday night plans b/c of the wicked wheezing going on in Prestons chest * Trying to find the perfect Halloween costume for Preston, coming up with a few ideas, but not been too keen on spending $50 for an outfit he'll wear ONCE. * Nyquil * Glee * Sleep *

SUNDAY- Stake Conference but Preston and I stayed home being down with the sickness. Which made Sunday the LONGEST DAY EVER. * Read more * played with Preston more * Finished Glee * Finished Leap Year (cute!!) * The Best Two Years * Texts * Letters to Andrew * Nap * Talking about how it was the longest day EVER * Having lots of fun on faceinhole.com-See Prestons photos HERE * Nachos * Still reading Rainbow Valley * Resorting to watching some Lifetime movie on Hulu staring Melissa Joan Hart & Joey Lawrence (where did all his hair go?!?!). Seriously, thats how long the day was. Plus it felt like Saturday since we didn't go to church * BED *

This week.....Well it isn't starting off so great. But I'm hoping greener pastures are ahead. Doctors appointments, bruce, Diamondbacks game w/ Patricks dad for his bday present, trying to get my car fixed before the tags expire *fingers crossed*, Carly's bday, and im sure lots more fun stuff.
What did YOU do this weekend?!?!

2010-09-15T08:55:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- The last 2 times that we have had to use Tarter Sauce I have called it Tater-Tot Sauce. Not on purpose. On accident. Even typing this up I typed Tater Tot instead of Tarter sauce. What the heck would tater tot sauce even be?! Ketchup??

The Truth is- I've never liked David Letterman. I don't know why. I don't think it's because of his gap'd front teeth, or his annoying music guy who wears the itty bitty glasses. I think it's just because he's not funny.

The Truth is- I found out earlier this week that Beyonce turned 29 at the beginning of this month. Which means that from the end of April until now her and I were the same age. I'm the same age as Beyonce?!?! Let me explain this a little better . . . .

BEYONCE

One more time......

BEYONCE

How are we the same age for 5 months out of the year?!?!?!

The Truth is- When it comes to important major sporting events I'm not allowed to watch them. I'm kinda bad luck. I blame myself completely for the Cardinals losing the Superbowl. You see, they were winning and I was upstairs in my room listening to everyone go crazy, and then I came downstairs because I figured it was safe. It wasn't safe at all. All of the sudden things took a turn for the worse and we ended up losing. Sorry Kurt Warner. My bad. At the same time, I'm partly responsible for the Diamondbacks winning the world series! I was in a different room, and had to keep my back turned to the tv, so I didn't see the winning home run, but I heard it. Your welcome Arizona. Your welcome.

2010-09-13T13:11:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Krissa came over & I taught her how to make oreo truffles (You can learn by clicking HERE). My method of teaching her involved her doing all the work and me painting my nails. She's the worker bee & I'm the encourager bee * Trip to the mall for some Glee apparel & wishful window shopping * Subway * Play time with Preston * Natalie's surprise party (success) * puffy hair * Dropping off the truffles at Jen & Eliott's for Saturdays luncheon * Reading before bed *

SATURDAY- Early AM for Preston and a bath that included lavender & oatmeal lotion (for him, not me) * Seth's baptism * Luncheon with yummy yummy salads * Family * 4 hr nap for Preston once we got home * Reading (nothing good really) * Attempt at swimming, but it was too cold!!! Seriously, I'm not just being a baby, it was COLD! * The Village "Sometimes we do not do the things we want to do so that others will not know we want to do them." * French fries for dinner (love having a deep fryer) * Price is Right on the Wii * Bed

SUNDAY- Hanging out with Preston * Huge breakfast burritos * small nap * church * 1st Cardinals game of the season (we won!!!) * catching up with friends * chicken alfredo * More reading * More Price is Right * Mafia (Did you know Bella's dad from Twilight is in this movie?! Its weird!) *

This week: More movie watching, Doctor's appointments, CHORES (i feel like my house is a mess), Weeding the front yard, trips to the park, time with the hubs.

p.s Preston is 8 months old today!!!

2010-09-08T08:34:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- There are some big tv shows that have a huge following that I've never seen an entire episode of. Such as M*A*S*H. Or Golden Girls. I hear the Mash theme song and all I can think is "oh that means Seinfeld is over" (b/c is use to come on right after Seinfeld reruns on channel 10). Oh and Cheers. Never seen an entire episode. And I'm ok with that.

The Truth is- Every week I make a grocery list and bring it with me to the store. But every week I play this game where I get to the store and try to remember without looking everything thats on my list. Then when I think I've got it all or can remember no more I pull out the list and see how close I got. I'm REAL good at this game. It's the little things that make grocery shopping a tad more enjoyable for me.

The Truth is- When I was pregnant with Preston and I was at a store somewhere and they asked "would you like to donate a $1 for (insert charity fundraiser here)?" I'd always say yes, and then put Preston Reynolds as the donor. He's just so generous even from a young age!

The Truth is- My dear Justin Beiber, I have tried to like you, but I can't. Which is strange because your music is usually the type of thing I live for. I don't know if it's your voice, or your extra large teeth, or that your hair looks like a mini Donald Trump wig, or the fact that Usher "discovered" you (and we know how I feel about usher), or maybe a combination of all those. I'm sorry, but your music will never be my favorite.

The Truth is- I hate the people in the mall who work at those little kiosks and relentlessly try to sell you things or get you to try things. I hate them SO much that if I'm at the mall I'll pull out my cell phone and pretend like I'm talking on it just so that they don't try to talk to me. And usually they will leave me alone if they see that I'm "on the phone". I just want to shop in peace, not have to have fake phone conversations!

2010-09-06T13:26:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- midday I decided we should go out to dinner. Mostly because I was feeling lazy. And halfly because we haven't been out to dinner (just the 2 of us) for awhile. So first I made a few flowers to go along with my outfit which means I made a few hotglue gun burns on my fingers. * Cheesecake factory!! (with our 3rd wheel Preston haha!!) * Bellyaches from too much food * a brief bout of binging and purging * Reading Catching Fire - have you taken my advice and read it yet? * Bedtime

SATURDAY- Patrick worked * Preston spent the mornng at Eliott & Jens while I helped Krissa & her family move. LOVE the new place by the way, even if it ment lots of trips up the stairs * Cleaning * Laughing as we moved heavy things (to keep from crying) * Karate kicking closets to tear them apart * Adopting a plant * A joyful reunion with Preston * Nap for him, cheesecake for me * Finishing Catching Fire - I wasn't kidding when I said you should read it * Trip to Krissa's to provide a distraction in the name of Pfub * Weekly trip to Target * Started Mockingjay * Bed too late *

SUNDAY- Early bedtime for Preston on Saturday ment early to rise for Preston Sunday morning * More flowermaking * Lots moe reading * Church * Chicken & biscuits (yes please!) * Romeo & Juliet "for never was a story of more woe than this of Juliet and her Romeo" * Chocolate chip cookies * Finishing Mockingjay (good, but oh so brutal) * Watching Friends till I went to sleep *

THE END!

This week: family visits, lunch with friends, crafts, stuff & junk, baptism for Seth. Translation- BUSY!!! but fun.

2010-09-03T20:49:00.000-07:00

Dear people of the world,

You should read this book:
(no, its not a book about dieting)

For seriously it is SO SO good.

And once you've read that, you should read it's sequel, this book:

Really really.

And once you've finished that, follow it up with a little bit of this-

Book #3. Which I have not yet read, but I know its good.

People, I love these books more than the Twilight books.
Yep. I said it.
And I'm not taking it back.
Read them.

2010-09-01T08:33:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- Whenever we go somewhere like the movies I'm always afraid to put my hair over the seat. What if someone cuts it off?!?! I try to make sure it's over my shoulder or that I'm leaning back on it. It's safer that way. Cause if someone cut off my hair it would take AGES for it to grow back.

The Truth is- Movies about horses make me cry. Like more so then normal sad movies. Think about it. Flicka. Dreamer. Wild Hearts Can't be Broken. All heart warming and happy/sad/sappy. You'll find me tearing up at any point during them.

The Truth is- You know the counter tops in kitchens? I call those sinks. Everyone in my family does. It's just what they are called! But the problem is they are counters, and the sink is where you wash dishes's. So if I tell Patrick to put in on the sink, he puts it in the sink but I want it on the counter. I'm really trying to work on this habit, but after 28 years of it being a sink it may forever stay a sink. Sorry Patrick.

The Truth is- The other night we saw a mosquito in our room and after the night of being bit 17 times we were adamant about killing it. So we were being quiet looking around real hard and I thought to myself "I bet this is exactly how Harry Potter feels when he is looking for the golden snitch". But I didn't tell Patrick because that would have been my second Harry Potter reference of the day and I only allow myself one. Well at least allow myself to vocalize only one.

2010-08-30T14:14:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Friday I babysat Bruce (18mo) and Gabe (14mo) all day, which combined with my 7 1/2 mo old was....harder then I remembered it being. Of course last time I did have Jimmy to soften the blow of 3 kids under 18 mo.... * Game night for Patrick = one on one time for me and Preston, which was needed after our day of sharing attention * Elizabethtown (oh Orlando Bloom. Thanks you.) * Finishing my topiary (pictures soon on oh snaps ) Staying awake till Patrick got home, but then falling asleep while he was in the bathroom before he came to bed *

SATURDAY- Patrick works Saturdays, so usually Saturday is craft day (ok ok everyday is craft day!) * Cleaned some * Played with almost crawling Preston - he army crawls as well as does the worm to get where he wants to go* Freedom Writers * Visit from Krissa * Return of fire eyes * Chats with Bree * Temple Night * Storm and crazy thunder/rain! * Date Night (the movie) * Cookies * The Hunger Games (Yeah, I've already read the books, but want to re-read #1 and 2 before I read #3 in the near future) *

SUNDAY- Woke up to 17 mosquito bites. Patrick sleeping right next to me woke up to 0 bites. I don't know if that makes me the winner or loser * Nap since the itching and paranoia kept me up a few hours in the middle of the night * Letters to Andrew * Grind (The movie, not some crazy dancing) * Church * Preston in a tuxedo shirt See pictures HERE * Seth's birthday party! * Teryaki chicken & Texas sheet cake (did you know you have to boil stuff to make that!) * Popcorn - which get's a mention in weekend update b/c I haven't wanted popcorn since before pregnancy. * Late night hanging with the hubs * More Hunger Games * Dreams about New York that make me want to travel *

This week- NOTHING. no, really, there is nothing on our schedule! Sometimes we love weeks like that.

2010-08-25T08:23:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- 3 more people last week said Preston looks like Jimmy. Will someone please tell me that my child does actually resemble me?!

The Truth is- Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and have forgotten how to tell time. I'll look at my phone to check the time and stare at the numbers (for like 2 seconds) and think to myself "ok I know these numbers mean something...." and then I'll remember. Or I'll look at it and transpose the numbers and see that its like 3:74 instead of 3:47 and lay back down thinking it's only 3:74. Then Like a minute later I'll realize that just doesn't make any sense! Happens quite a bit.

The Truth is- I've picked up a habit from Patrick since meeting him. If someone else is talking and he thinks of something he wants to say instead of interrupting he crosses his fingers so that once they are done he can share what it is he wanted to say. I do the same thing now, but I think people think I'm just trying to get some good luck or something.

The Truth is- I hate pie. I really do. Maybe it's because it's usually served with whip cream and I don't like whipped cream. Pumpkin pie is the worst. No. Lemon Meringue. Pie is not good. But sometimes I'll crave it. My mind is trying to betray my stomach.

The Truth is- I have this CD I made awhile ago and I labeled it "Angy Girl Music". And on this CD is a lot of Britney Spears and Mandy Moore songs. Not exactly Angry Girl Music.... Maybe I just wanted people to think I was hardcore!

The Truth is- The Dirty Dancing Soundtrack will forever remind me of growing up in California and having to wash the dishes with my sister. Of course we'd take turns washing/rinsing/drying/putting away, but we never really listened to anything besides that tape. Yup. Cassette tape. I heard the song "Hungry Eyes" on the way home from the gym yesterday and had flashbacks of washing spaghetti pots and pans (those were the worst!!).

2010-08-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Preston slept in super late, so I cleaned before he woke up * Friday was the end of Wedding Season. We no longer have any receptions planned. But we ended on a high note with 2 receptions on the same night! Lots of pie, lots of creme puffs, lots of people! After Patrick, Krissa, P-bibby, Samantha and I went to Chili's. Some fries dipped in honey mustard later we were home and I was asleep.

SATURDAY- Crafts!!! Krissa & I both got some glue gun burns, and even glue in our hair ( i dont know how it happened ) * Hobby Lobby * Subway * Jimmy's birthday!!! * Lots of laughing * Happy news/times * Saturday night my cousin Jon invited Patrick and I to the Diamondbacks game. SO FUN! Our seats were in the "all you can eat" section (which we didnt know existed and will never want to sit anywhere else again!). Preston LOVED it, and so did we! * Mario Kart then bed *

SUNDAY- Preston slept in super late, till like 830 (probably b/c he didnt go to bed till almost 10 the night before) * lazy Sunday morning * Church * A very cranky unreasonable Preston - probably b/c of all those teeth coming in.... * Family dinner w/ green chili YUM! * Cookies * Home to finish Eat Pray Love * Bed *

This week is semi busy. Well actually just TODAY is busy. Getting Patrick's car fixed, play dates, Doctor's appt's, going to look at new phones, and so on!

2010-08-18T06:34:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- That since I started doing "The Truth is Wed" I will have conversations with people or things will happen and they will say "Hey, you should use that in your truths!" For example....

The Truth is- that in the past few weeks a few different people have told me out of nowhere that Preston looks like Jimmy. Personally I don't see it. I'm not trying NOT to see it, I just don't see it. And normally I would think that Jimmy told them to tell me that Preston looks like him as a joke, but he doesn't even know one of the people who have said that! He think's it's pretty funny and said "hey, you should use that as a truth." Consider it done.

The Truth is- I think I've been playing too much Mario Kart lately. I say this because we'll be driving around and I'll see someone on a motorcycle and I'll think to myself "I wonder how that bike is on speed vs. acceleration" or wonder why they aren't bumping into people to push them out of the way, like on Mario Kart. But then I'll remember we're in the real world now. Might be time to cut back.

The Truth is- That Preston can say "mama". But it doesn't count because he doesn't know he's saying mama. Mostly he'll do it when he's crying or getting whiny. But it's just sounds he makes. He doesn't associate it with me. Which is sad, but also brings up the issue of can that really be his first word if he doesn't know he is saying it??

The Truth is- Everytime I smell or make Top Ramen I think of University of Phoenix. SO many people (myself included) would eat Top Ramen for lunch there b/c it was simple and quick and you didn't have to wait in line to use one of the 3 microwaves they had. But I haven't been able to eat Top Ramen since leaving UOP. I smell it and think of work. Then I think of how much sodium is in it. Lose lose situation.

The Truth is- I'm not a good Hobby Lobby shopper. I go in and completely forget all crafts that I'm working on and what I need or don't need. I never have a list. Or measurements of what I need. Or anything really. Except the weekly coupon! I always have that! Which is how I ended up with no glue sticks, 2 extra bottle of sea foam blue acrylic paint and needing to buy fabric but having no idea how much I needed. The store just overwhelms me! Moral of the story: Make a list before you go to Hobby Lobby. And always check next door at Dollar General before making purchases at Hobby Lobby.
(btw, that conversation happened with someone who also said "you can use it as a truth!")

2010-08-16T14:53:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Babysitting Bruce went a lot faster with a visit (and Subway!!) from Krissa * Mario Kart with the hubs , then solo when he went to game night * Good times with Preston * Finding THE BEST craft blog ever (Lemon Tree Creations) * Falling asleep while reading "Eat Pray Love"

SATURDAY- Quick walk w/ Preston up to Bashas * Craft days with Natlie, Samantha, and Krissa * Making satin flowers with them as well as sharing laughs/stories. Plus Preston got to play with his true love Riley while we damaged our retinas by staring at a flame for a few hours. (and maybe there was some spilled wax involved. ahem. ) * Snaking all day, but not eating any solid food * Jamie, Patrick's old roommate was visiting from Chicago and came over to visit * A reception. Yeah. * Sonic!! * Grocery shopping and the oh so sweet bag girl putting 32 jars of baby food in 1 bag. Bad idea. * Ended the day with the feeling of starting to get a cold.

SUNDAY- *Patrick officially passed his cold on to me. Thanks. * Leftover pizza * Naps, even after sleeping in * Arrested Development * Preston time * Church * Visiting with friends * A dinner that would have made the chefs at Olive Garden jealous * Letters to Andrew * Nyquil = early night *

This week I must: Get rid of this cold, do some crafts, move some furniture around, keep working on Preston's crawling, mail Jimmy's birthday present and so on.

2010-08-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- The first time Andrew had Bree watch the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off she asked what it was about and he said "Time machines and dinosaurs". And she believed him till about halfway through the movie. So now if someone asks Andrew what a movie is about and he say "time machines and dinosaurs" you know its not true! But it's funny.

The Truth is- a few truths ago I posted about how Jimmy mixed up the silverware every time he unloaded the dishwasher and he read about it and we had the following conversation:
jimmy "oh by the way the silverware thing was totally done on purpose"
jess "SERIOUS?!?! I never knew!"
jimmy "well we never talked about it!"
jess "well ya, I didn't want to say something and have you take it the wrong way and never unload the dishwasher again."
jimmy "it's pretty funny. I'm doing the same thing here. No one's said anything yet either."
Oh jimmy....we miss you.

The Truth is- I got yet another reminder about my High School Reunion the other day. This one included a "Top 10 reasons you should go" list. On that list was "If you don't go people will talk about you behind your back". WOW. REALLY!?!? Seems so high school of them... Can't imagine why I don't want to go! Oh and my 2nd favorite reason was "all your regular friends are sick of hearing about your kids." Say it ain't so!

The Truth is- Out of all the times I've been on an airplane (and its somewhere over 35 times) I've not once used the airplane bathroom. Kind of scares me in the fact that it's so small and what if there is turbulence?! Plus I watched Lost. I know what happened to the tail section of the plane when it broke off. But I am curious as to what they are really like inside. And the powerful flushing intrigues me. But I don't want to risk it.

The Truth is- When we were younger we use to have a talking calculator. It would speak whatever buttons you were pushing. I don't know what the purpose of that would be, but we had fun times with it. We'd say "is it going to be clear or cloudy out today" and then press the clear button and hear "Clear". Is Laura's head full of thoughts or is it clear?" "Clear". Still makes me laugh thinking about it.

2010-08-09T09:01:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY- Our house was transformed into the Hollow Tree where the Keebler Elves reside. I baked most of the day. First there were the oreo truffles. Then salsa (btw the recipe and other craft projects as of late are posted HERE). Then Chocolate Chip cookies. Then Peanut Butter cookies. Then finishing the Oreo truffles. Whew! But it was fun. All the baking was for the party we had that night with our Sunday School class. We really like those kids. They came over, we ordered too much Little Ceasers Pizza, played some Guitar Hero, played some Mario Kart, and then I showed them all how good I am at Apples to Apples. Like really good! They left and I chatted with Krissa for awhile Then as Patrick is sick, we went to bed early. Preston wins the award for going to bed the earliest though with his time of 7:15.

SATURDAY- Strange day for Preston. He wasn't himself. Very lethargic in the AM, sleepy for the remainder of the day. Oh and don't forget about when he threw up his breakfast all over me. Poor kid. Nothing is worse then seeing your baby not feel good. But as the day progressed so did he. Eat, Pray, Love the book. But also did all 3 of those things this weekend. Good book though. Preston slept a lot, and Patrick was at work, so I spent a lot of time working on my mad Mario Kart skills. Which means I looked up shortcuts online. Patrick got home. Naps. Candy Graham consumption. Debates on old Eminem vs newer Eminem. Consensus- old Eminem sounds like a chipmunk, new Eminem is more mature sounding. Reception. Arrested Development. Bed.

SUNDAY- Lazy Sunday morning. Did I mention how Sat/Sun and even today Mon Preston has slept in till around 7:30. He must really love me. Play time with the Preston. Texting. Church. Emailing Andrew. Chats w/ the boys. Count of Monte Cristo. Looking at old family pictures and talking about what a cute kid I was.

Things to look forward to this week: Patrick feeling better. Babysitting for a friend on Wed. Dinner at the MIL's. Craft time Saturday. Visits w/ Krissa. Preston working more on his crawling. Preston turning 7 mo (CRAZY!!!). Getting back to the gym after a lazy week.

2010-08-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- That since Jimmy left our silverware drawer has stayed the same. I'll explain. When Jimmy would unload the silverware from the dishwasher he would constantly change which spot he'd choose to put the spoons/knifes/forks in. I don't know if he did it on purpose or just didn't remember which were their designated spots. Since he's been gone everything has stayed in the same spot.

The Truth is- If I had to write a paper for school about "how i spent my summer vacation" it would sound a little like this. This summer I started out heading East to spend 7 seasons with those delightful Gilmore Girls. We laughed, we cried, we talked fast. But then those 7 seasons passed in a flash and I packed up and headed West to visit The OC. I'll only be visiting The OC for 4 seasons, but so far it has been so full of drama! Translation: this summer I've watched the entire collection of Gilmore Girls and am now watching all the seasons of The OC. It's been wonderful.

The Truth is- I think I would do good in jail. That is if I were alone and didn't have to deal with any inmates. I just really like having a schedule and a routine and am ok with being told what to do. I'm sure that I would grow tired of it after awhile, but I think I could handle it without going crazy. Is that crazy?

The Truth is- If I had to be a semi truck driver I would never want to be one who has to drive around gasoline. I'd be paranoid that something would happen big or small and then all of the sudden KA-BLAMO! Driving around a truck full of eggs would be hard too. But with less fire if it resulted in a crash.

The Truth is- Sometimes when Preston is eating and he's being a little fussy about finishing off a can of something less then delicious I have to distract him by making noises. At first I was going with the generic "here comes the airplane" but then that turned into "here comes the airplane. Oh no, it's crashing onto an island just like in Lost!" and that turned into me doing character impersonations (every spoonful being a different character of course). If I run out of Lost characters I'll move on and do characters from Mario Kart. He likes it. Sometimes there is laughing involved and then peas get sprayed across the kitchen floor. But he finishes all his food!

2010-08-02T10:41:00.000-07:00

The past few weekends have been quite unusual due to Patrick's work schedule (Thurs-Mon 10pm-8:39am). In fact I didn't even realize it was Friday until Friday late afternoon. But here is what happened:

Friday- (honestly I cant remember much. But here is what I do remember) Rain when I woke up * Cleaning * Preston and Patrick both taking naps at the same time and me sitting wondering what to do * Krissa came over! * Target * Some OC drama (the show not a trip to the actual county) * Mario Kart * Craft blog hopping * Crystal Light energy drink (where have you been all my life and I love you) * Letter to Andrew

Saturday- * 50% off Goodwill day!! Preston and I traveled to 2 different stores and got some great stuff!! Our loot included: 4 plant holders (for an upcoming craft project), 3 onesies and 2 button up shirts for Preston, a new dress shirt for Patrick, 2 candle holders (which will be spray painted), a picture frame (for a project i did as a wedding present) and a little turquoise shelf thing with lots of drawers all for about $13! I love it! * Quick trip to Michaels * A craft that should have been 1hr tops taking about 3 hrs * Sandpapering till i bled * a cranky baby with a cranky mom * Reception!! * Preston getting to see his true love Rylie * bubbles for preston * Carl's Jr trip * Friends (the show AND the actual beings) * Phone calls from Jimmy * Mohawk for Preston *

Sunday - * lots of play time with Preston * Church * Noah is here!! (john and rox will post more details later) * Family in from out of town * CAKE * Smiley Preston *

It's obvious saturdays are usually busiest. But all the days were fun. This week will be....different. But the good news is Patrick goes back to a normal schedule as of Tuesday!! Very happy about that. And its wedding season, lots more receptions to come!

2010-07-28T06:42:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- Every year at the church Halloween party they have a chili cook off. It's one of those things where everyone's a winner and get a different award. 2 years ago I made CHICKEN chili and I won the "Very Vegetarian" award. . . Not sure how that works. . .

The Truth is- My mom and I had a deal that if I didn't kiss a boy till I was 16 she would give me $100. I got my $100. But I think we're going to do the same sort of thing with our kids. Especially Preston. Cause he's already quite popular with the ladies, and loooooooves to give and get kisses. (Pstt...Natalie...you might want to gently break the news to Rylie that although he Preston loves her and will marry her he can't kiss her till after he's 16.)

The Truth is- That we have a few "family rules" that we grew up with and still live by. And these aren't your typical family rules. Some of our family rules are "No motorcycles"- My mom was a nurse and saw too many motorcycle injuries. Later after some incidents this rule was changed to "No motorcycles, no ATV's/Quads, no jet ski's". Sometimes people like Jimmy start to think they might want a motorcycle and then I have to remind them of this rule. Another rule "No dating someone who someone else in the family has dated." That one needs no explanation. Next, "No hitting the soccer ball with your head". Head injuries may ensue. Sometimes I have to remind Jimmy of this one. And lastly "No playing in the fire." Jimmy. Apparently scout camp makes some people, Jimmy, want to jump over the fire or play hot potato with the fiery red coals.

Jimmy.

The Truth is- When Patrick was younger, he thought the phrase "pardon me" was actually "part of me". So he would squeeze by people and say "part of me".

The Truth is- Today, July 28th, marks 4 years since my mom died. I wish I could say "oh wow it's gone by so fast." But then I think about how every single day for the last 4 years I've thought about her, and then it doesn't seem to have gone by fast at all.

2010-07-21T11:50:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- Today feels like I'm living in that children's book "Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day". Been up with Preston since 3am because he's sick. Took him to the doctor, stressed about stuff thats going on, spilled water down the front and back of my pants in public so it looks like i wet myself, couldn't change into what i wanted b/c it was dirty. Ah. Tomorrow will be better.

The Truth is- Sometimes people use certain words that use drive me crazy! Like when people say "for cereal?" instead of "for real?". Clever. Or redonkulous instead of ridiculous. I don't get it. And I don't see the humor in it. Don't even get me started on when people say impordant instead of imporTant.

The Truth is- Facebook has recommended some very strange things lately. For example, the other day they recommended I become a fan of Vin Diesel. Why? Because people who like Twilight: The Saga also like Vin Diesel. Well not this person. Then they recommend I like reading because people who like Lost like reading. It's just head scratching. And don't even get me started on when they recommend that I "reconnect" with Patrick Reynolds and drop him a line to see what he's been up to.

The Truth is- Sometimes when birds fly close to the car when I'm driving I tend to close my eyes. I don't want to see if a bird hits the car! I do realize it is kind of dangerous. but I figure it's kind of like sneezing when you drive, you have to close your eyes for a millisecond, same thing!

The Truth is- One year when it was just Andrew and I at home for Thanksgiving we came home to a bird in the house. We had accidently left the sliding door open, and it came in. Must have been a condor, it was HUGE! Ok, it was probably a sparrow. No, at least the size of a crow. It was flying around knocking pictures off the wall, pooping on other pictures. There was a lot of screaming going on. From both of us. And from the bird. And then pot's and pan's were brought out so we could try to shoo it out and then some sort of Thanksgiving miracle happened and it flew out the front door.

2010-07-14T06:34:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- my family has some special lingo, or phrases that we use. Sometimes I use these around other people and then think "oh gosh they probably think I'm crazy...." They include the words/phrases: "I'm sweating like a hot pig on cheese" (to be used when your really really hot), "Butsmacker" (which is more of an insult then an anything else), "It's an Obama miracle" (Patrick brought this phrase home from a client at work after Obama won, and now we just use it when amazing things happen), "It's all political" (my mom use to say this alllll the time when it came to things like The Academy Awards or Miss America contests. Now we just say it for whenever), "This is why we don't have nice things" (you have to say this after anyone drops anything no matter how big or small). I know there are more, but they all seem so normal to me now that I can't think of them.

The Truth is- every time I eat Cheerio's I feel the need to look into every spoonful and make suer there are not tiny shrunken people swimming around in it just like in Honey I shrunk the Kids. Every single time.

The Truth is- my turtle eats worms. I know, how very carnivorous of her. Many years ago I was getting a worm ready to feed to the turtle, and I don't much care for worms and the way they feel. So i washed it, held it in my hand and then ran around the corner to fling it into her cage. Only problem is I was running with my eyes half closed so i didn't have to see I was holding a worm and ran straight into a bookcase. Had a big bruise on my head after that little stunt. I still don't like feeding her worms, but at least I keep my eyes open now when I take them to her cage.

The Truth is- My Phantom of the Opera music box is haunted. Possibly by the Phantom of the Opera himself. All I know is that on SEVERAL different occasions now I've been in the other room, and it will have been DAYS, even WEEKS since it had been wound (its the barrel monkey playing the symbols sitting on top of a box) and it will play. Sometimes it plays whole stanzas of music, other times it will just play one note over and over. Yeah it creeps me out.

2010-07-12T11:14:00.000-07:00

FRIDAY: We went to see Eclipse w/ Krissa. It was hot. The AC in theater #11 at Harkins was not working (a fact they knew before they sold all the tickets and let us in). People were dropping like flies! But the movie was super good. Luckily there weren't any girls in there who screamed/swooned when Jacob took his shirt off. "Doesn't he own a shirt?" * Carmel popcorn * Visiting with family * Going to see Suzi/Braxton/ baby Kent with Krissa. No worries, didn't make me baby hungry * Gilmore Girls * Rainstorms (was it a Monsoon?) * Sleep *

SATURDAY: Early morning gym trip * Stupid stupid STUPID music videos and a treadmill that shocked me every time I pushed any button or tried to see what my heart rate was. It's not like I was dragging my feet creating friction, I was running * Visit from Bree & Jack's girlfriend Mystique * Humidity from previous days rainstorm (or monsoon) * 2 long long naps for Preston * More Gilmore Girls (halfway through season 5 now!) * Trip to Target for baby food for the baby * Dreams that night about working at Target * Cleaning * So You Think You Can Dance * Relaxing

SUNDAY: Slept in till 7:30 when Preston woke up. I then spent the day adoring him for sleeping in till 7:30 * Apricot jam & scrambled eggs * Lazy Sunday mornings * yes, more Gilmore Girls * Church * Spikey hair for Preston * Visit with the Grandparents & Family * Getting to introduce Preston to cousins, and 2nd cousins he's never met before! * Sad times thinking about Jimmy leaving ( he left for BYU today ) * Writing to Andrew (have you written to him lately?) * Sleep

Not too busy of a week ahead of us. Preston turns 6 months old tomorrow!!! So at some point there will be a Preston post. Typical.

2010-07-07T05:44:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- My whole life we've kept the syrup in the fridge. Patrick comes along and asks why the syrup is in the fridge. I dunno, that's just where the syrup goes! I don't know why, it doesn't need to be refrigerated. It's not served better cold. Thats just how it's always been. Our syrup lives in the pantry now.

The Truth is- My Senior year in High School we had open campus for lunch and one day I went with a friend to Burger King. I let another car who was coming from the opposite direction cut in front of me at the drive in. Guess I must have been feeling extra nice that day. WELL, that lady I let in before me totally paid for our lunches! Free hamburger kids meal for me! And that's why you should always be courteous.

The Truth is- One day Andrew, Bree and I were in the family room watching a movie or something and a lizard fell from the light in the ceiling above the fireplace. A lizard fell from the sky. I then tried to trap it under a bowl, and almost cut its tail off. Needless to say it got away and ran behind the bookshelves. Someone had to rescue us at that point as I was in full panic mode. As a follow up one day Andrew went in to the bathroom and there was a lizard inside the toilet. He screamed and maybe flushed it? I'm not sure, I'll have to check with him. Lizards show up in strange places in our house. And fall from the sky.

The Truth is- Last week I had a dream that I was eating a PB&J with Ellen Degeneres and I asked her why we were friends. She said it was because I had been on the cover of People magazine 4 times. Sure enough on her wall she had all the covers of People Magazine and I was on 4 of them. 2 pre-Preston, 2 post-Preston. She said I was a good "puff piece" and a "feel good human interest story". I just remember standing there looking at my covers thinking "wow. I can so use this for Confession Wed. If I didn't know I was on People Magazine 4 times I bet no one else knows!". This dream has led me to believe I spend a little too much time thinking about what I'm going to use as a confession.

The Truth is- I hate filling up the salt shaker. Not because it's messy, and spills everywhere making you feel like your walking on sand. But becuase after I fill it I look at it and think...wow...we used A LOT of salt. Then I feel guilty. Then I step in salt and forget about feeling guilty.

2010-06-30T06:15:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- I've never had a haircut from a stranger. My mom always cut/trimmed my hair when I was growing up, then by the time I was out of High School my sister Laura was in Beauty School so she took over as my stylist. And just this past weekend my cousin Shay gave me an awesome haircut. I'm hoping I can keep this up.

The Truth is- Preston's toes are so small and squished together that sometimes I think he has more than 5. And even though I know he doesn't, I still have to count everytime.

The Truth is- On the way to my Grandparents house at the beach we always have to tell the same stories. One of those stories is about how one time my dad was driving down and saw a snake in the middle of the road. So he stopped to get out and see it because he thought it was dead. Of course he realized it was alive when he went to pick it up and it bit him. He then went to the hospital with the snake, alive, to make sure it wasn't poisonous, which it wasn't. My question is why did he stop for the snake?! What did he plan on doing with it?!

The Truth is- My car alarm has a mind of it's own. It arms itself. I've learned to deal with the fact that after I disarm it I have about 25 seconds before it arms itself. It's quite embarrassing when you go to have your oil changed, or tires rotated and you can hear your alarm going off several times during the process. And it's not a normal sounding alarm. Then one time on Christmas Eve at like 3am the alarm went off for no reason, we turned it off, 10 minutes later it went off again. We turned it off, an hour later it went off again. At this point we just unhooked the battery. But the truth is that ever since we entered into California on Thursday it's gone back to normal! Unless I press the lock button it doesn't arm itself! California is magical.

The Truth is- I've never been pulled over or gotten a ticket. OH WAIT. One time, the first time I went to Patrick's apartment I wasn't sure where to park, or which apartment was his. So he came out and told me to park anywhere along the darkened culdasac. So I did. Then later he was walking me out and we saw my car about to be towed. I'd parked in front of a driveway, and the people called the cops and I was ticketed. Luckily they didn't tow the car, or charge me for that. Just had to pay the parking ticket. And thats it.

2010-06-23T05:55:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- The show Hells Kitchen reminds me of my family. Not because when we cook there is a red faced Brittish man calling people stupid cows or yelling that the risotto is undercooked and beef wellingtons are over cooked. But because a year or so ago everyone use to come over and we'd have a family dinner and then watch the latest episode of Hells Kitchen.

The Truth is- There are some people at the gym we can't stand. Like the guy who's feet hit the front of the treadmill with every step he takes. Or the lady who's always "saving" the treadmill next to her for her friend who sometimes never shows up. Or the lady who walks at such a high incline that she has to hold onto the handles or else she'll tip over. Just makes us realize that people watch you when your at the gym.

The Truth is- We have this woodpecker who likes our house. Before we had the house painted he had knocked a hole in 2 different places on the side of the house. But now that those are patched up he spends his time pecking the metal pipe that comes out of the chimney. The sound echo's through the house. I think maybe its morse code and he's just trying to communicate with us, because really WHY else would a woodpecker peck on metal?!

The Truth is- When we were younger and lived in California the ice cream man would drive past the back of our house a lot. It was a fenced in yard so you couldn't see in. My Dad always thought it was funny to go out there and yell "STOP! STOP!" and have him slow down and look for who wanted ice cream. And it was pretty funny.

The Truth is- I can handle almost everything Preston throws at me. I'm ok with getting pee'd on, rockin a face full of puke, snot nose. But oh man....if he poo's in his bathwater I'm out of there. Can't handle that. Thank goodness I have a Patrick. Sorry, that one was kind of gross.

The Truth is- I didn't wear the color red all through Jr. High or High School. I read once that redheads can't wear red, and someone told me once it didn't look good on me. So I avoided it. But then one day I tried on a shirt that had red stripes on it and it didn't look too bad! So I started incorporating red into my wardrobe. And I didn't die. Then one time when I was pregnant I was getting a pedicure and the lady sitting at the drying station next to me told me I couldn't really pull off wearing red with my hair color. Thanks strange lady! I do however continue to wear it. And I make Preston wear it all the time.

Couch Potato to 5k

2010-06-21T17:11:00.001-07:00

Lets take a trip back in time to 9 weeks ago to April 19th. . . . . .

I was 27, Preston was just barely 3 months, the weather was cooler, life was good.

9 weeks ago I started this running program called "Couch Potato to 5K".

It's a program that is designed to transform a person who can't run at all (like me), to someone who can run 3 miles...... In only 9 weeks.

You start off doing a simple run for 60 seconds, walk for 90 seconds routine for the first week, and then every week increase.

That first week I thought I was going to die.

But I had my Disney songs, and some Miley, and an outdoor track. So I kept going, running and singing.

Eventually, as the weeks passed I hit the "run 1 mile without stopping" mark. Then the "run 2 miles without stopping" mark.

Today I'm 28, Preston is just barely 5 months, the weather is boiling lava hot, life is good.

And today I ran 3 miles.

Without stopping.

Lets face it, I don't look like a runner, and I don't claim to be. In fact, almost everyday I have to run I complain about how I don't want to run.

But this program has raised my endurance so much. Today while I was running I made it to 2.48 miles before I felt like stopping. But I knew I had to make it to 3 miles.

And I did!

I've NEVER run 3 miles before.

I've never run 2 miles before.

I didn't do it super fast.

According to the program they want you to run 3 miles in 30 minutes. A 10 minute mile?!?! Are you kidding me?!?!

I did it in 34:43.
Thats an 11:48 mile. I don't think I ran a mile that fast in High School.

And I'm not posting thing because I'm bragging or being boastful.
I'm posting this because I'm proud of myself.
And if you think you could never do something like that, think of me.

Doing something you thought you'd never be able to do feels pretty great.

2010-06-21T08:38:00.000-07:00

Coconut bread * Beef Jerky * Family get together in Maricopa * Deciding I want a garden * Bragging about my baby (this happens a lot) * Baths * Reading of BookS * Bad dreams * Gym * Sore knee * Swimming!!! * Dehydration * Thoughts of becoming a professional house sitter * A dog who's face looks like it was hit with a shovel * Girls night/chit-chat with Krissa and Samantha * A child who kind of worships me * Chocolate covered pretzels * Nacho Libre whilst eating nacho's * Cleaning of the computer desk * Doing hardly any chores at all * Finishing up Patrick's fathers day present * Patrick's first Fathers Day! * Breakfast in bed (for him, not me) * Cat naps * Black bean brownies * Church * Dinner at Eliott & Jens * Long days needing better endings * List making

Next weekend is going to be great!! We leave for California on Thursday, and will return Monday afternoon/evening. Not to worry, there will be lots of pictures upon our return.

2010-06-18T06:03:00.000-07:00

Dear Jimmy,

You don't read my blog, so it's ok if I write this.

You play this song A LOT.

LOUDLY.

REPEATEDLY.

You play it at home.

You play it in the car.

You play it while you drive the bus.

(and then elementary school kids make comments about it such as "this is why you don't have a girlfriend.")

But latlely you haven't been playing it.

And I miss it.

Because secretly I love it.

So now whenever it comes on the radio I turn it up.

And I sing to it.

Even though I don't know all the words and think some of them are dumb.

(Your so gangsta I'm so thug.)

We're gonna miss you a lot when you leave in a few weeks.

But I'll always be your Hey Soul Sister.

Love,

Jess

2010-06-16T08:55:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- This year is my 10 year High School Reunion. I'll save you the trouble and admit that I'm old. I tell people its my reunion, and that I don't want to go because why would I want to go and be ignored by people who ignored me 10 yrs ago? People say "ohhhhh you should go it would be fun". And then I say, its $100 a person to go. And then people say "Thats dumb, you shouldn't go." So no, I'm not going.

The Truth is- My Dad use to be really strict about making us clean our rooms. My sister and I shared a room, and in typical childlike fashion would "clean" by just stuffing stuff wherever we could. Closets, beds, dresser drawers. One time my sister stuffed stuff into my backpack. It was only when I got to school and opened it did I discover the hangers and underwear she had put inside there.

The Truth is- That same sister and I use to share a bed. Sometimes at night we'd pull the blanket up to the top of our necks and lay real still. We thought people who walked by would see and think our heads had been chopped off and were just laying on the bed. Kind of morbid!

The Truth is- If I take a shower and I have my wedding ring on I think of that scene in Apollo 13 where Tom Hanks wife is showering and loses her wedding ring down the drain. What if mine comes off and goes down the drain and then my husband is on a shuttle to the moon that ends with an electrical fault that sparks an explosion leaving him to deal with limited power, loss of heat and a critical need to find a way to rig up a carbon dioxide removal system!? I couldn't handle that! So I try to remember to take it off.

The Truth is- I hate being honked at. Makes me feel awful inside. And so I try not to honk at people. And Patrick won't honk at people when I'm in the car with him.

The Truth is- One summer while my mom was working, all of us kids would get our money together and go to the dollar movies like 3 times a week. This was of course when the dollar movies were actually a dollar. I think they hated us paying in change. Oh well! We must have seen Anacondas like 4 times that summer.

The Truth is- I agreed to name Preston Preston before we were even married. Patrick liked the name, but then it was set in stone his first son would be named Preston when he was on his mission and his first area he served in was Preston England. It's kind of fun when you think of it that way. And he TOTALLY looks like a Preston.

2010-06-14T06:34:00.000-07:00

Even though technically I don't go to work, I still look forward to the weekends because of things like this:

* Chimichangas * Increasing my running distance to 2 1/2 miles * Cat naps * Glitter eye shaddow * The best "girls night" EVER!! (tutu's and knee high socks theme- see picture bellow) * Laughing/talking till I was horse * Reading a few books * 80 degree weather- where did it come from!? where did it go?! * Feeding the ducks * Debating on if we saw chipmunks, squirrels or prarie dogs as we walked around the man made lake * The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnasus * Hanging out with Jimmy * Dinner of french fries * Speed Scrabble * Writing to Andrew * Preston's first "guy's night" * Grocery shopping * Lazy Sunday mornings * Headaches/asprin allergys (patrick) * Sore knee (me) * Sweet potatoes (Preston) * Church * Coconut bread * Homemade apricot/Strawberry jam that is so good thinking about it brings tears to my eyes * Preston turning 5 months *

2010-06-11T06:18:00.000-07:00

So Lady Gaga.

Her clothes are weird.
Her lyrics are weird.
Her video's are beyond weird.

But her music is catchy. And fun to dance with a baby around the house to, even if we don't understand what she's singing about half the time...

This version of Poker Face is the best.

It's sort of beautiful.

2010-06-09T08:22:00.000-07:00

The Truth is- One day, when I was about 3 or 4 I was out grocery shopping with my mom and an older lady asked me "where did you get your pretty red hair?" and I replied to her "on sale at JC Pennys." True story. I don't remember it, but my mom use to tell me that story a lot. Speaking of my mom...

The Truth is- The year that John Kerry was running for President my mom refused to buy Heinz Ketchup. John Kerry's wife is heir to the Heinz fortune (or something like that) and she said if we bought it, it would be supporting her since she used a lot of her ketchup money for her husbands campain. To me ketchup is ketchup, but to her it was all political. Kinda glad he didn't win because Heinz has the best ketchup and I wouldn't have wanted to go 4, possibly 8 years without having it.

The Truth is- I use to dance. Ballet dance. I took dance from when I was 3-11, then from 14-18. I wasn't horrible. I wasn't the best. But I miss it a lot. Especially when So You Think You Can Dance is on. Therefore, my daughters will take dance. Even if they hate putting on tights because their legs are sweaty.

The Truth is- Before I go to sleep at night I have to play a game of Speed Scrabble on my phone. I don't have to win, and sometimes I don't even finish a game. I just have to play it. It relaxes me and makes my mind calm down for the night. Speaking of sleeping....

The Truth is- I sleep with a teddy bear. It's true. Patrick got it for me a few years ago for my birthday, but even before the teddy bear I would always sleep with a stuffed animal. I just like to have something to hug and hold against my chest to fall asleep. I tried to stop when Preston was born because I can picture him coming in to our room to tell me he had a bad dream and me sleeping with a teddy bear...embarassing! But I can't give it up! I figure I still have a few more years before he realizes his mom is a baby.

The Truth is- Sometimes I make noises to see if they scare Preston. And then if they do, I kinda want to make them again. Mostly because he has the cutest sad frowny face and I like to comfort him. Too bad for me most of my "scary" noises make him smile. But then again everything makes him smile.

2010-06-07T06:42:00.000-07:00

I dunno...parts of this weekend were really really long! Then others flew by. But it included:

Running a bit too far * trying to stay cool (failing) * Making tutu's with Krissa for our themed girls night this Friday!! * Deciding with Krissa to open up an etsy tutu shop then changing our minds 20 minutes later when we realized we hate cutting tulle * Feeling like a circus tent * late nights * early mornings * crafting with Jen (pictures to come after Fathers Day) * Jimmy coming home!! (he was at scout camp all week) * naps * Dollar Store shopping * Playing with my baby * Text to speech feature on Patrick's cell phone * Putting the Kindle to good use * Lazy Sunday morning * Up! (the movie) * Church * Being hungry for too long * Gabe's 1st brithday party! * Seeing lots of people I haven't seen in awhile * Cranky Preston (sundays throw off his schedule) * Laughing over memories of Andrew * writing to Andrew * Lots of texting * Lots of time with Preston *

2010-06-04T08:02:00.000-07:00

I miss Andrew.
So this song is for him.
You see, when my mom was sick she was in the hospital for a long time.
And then when she was out of that hospital they moved her to a rehabilitation center in Scottsdale.
And it was a long drive.
45 min one way.
And we went there everyday.
Sometimes twice a day.
Listening to the Joseph and the Amazing Technocolor Dreamcoat made things less depressing driving home.
Our family LOVES this movie.
And since we had a long drive everyday Andrew and I memorized all the colors of the coat.
Only we got one part wrong.
Were they say the colors "Cholocate and Mauve" we'd always yell out CHOCOLATE AND MOLD.
Because it's funnier that way.
And we needed to laugh.

One of the last things we did with my mom was Jimmy, Andrew and I took her to see Joseph and the Amazing Technocolor Dreamcoat at Gammage.
Sadly Donny wasn't Joseph.
But Andrew and I still knew all the colors of the coat. Chocolate and mold included!
It was so great.
Good memories.

And in case your wondering.....

It was red and yellow and green and brown

And scarlet and black and ochre and peach
And ruby and olive and violet and fawn
And lilac and gold and chocolate and mauve
And cream and crimson and silver and rose
And azure and lemon and russet and grey
And purple and white and pink and orange
And blue!

2010-06-02T12:11:00.000-07:00

The truth is- Last week I found half of a Cheeto in Preston's carrier. Not a problem except we don't eat/buy Cheeto's in this house. Where did you come from mystery Cheeto?

The truth is- Sometimes when I brush my teeth I have to plug my nose. Not because of the smell or because of nausea or anything like that. It's because I have an electric toothbrush and when I use it it makes my whole face vibrate and really tickles my nose. Someday's I can handle it. Others I can't.

The truth is- I haven't seen all of the Star Wars movies. Hard to believe seeing as how I'm married to Patrick. But I've seen parts of all the Star Wars movies. I've seen all of the first 4, but the last 2 I haven't seen in their entirety. Admitting this means I'll probably be subjected to a Star Wars marathon soon.

The truth is- I've never been stung by a bee. Or wasp. Or scorpion. And as long as I'm playing the I never game, I've never broken a bone, or needed stitches (C-sections don't count.) I hope I'm not allergic to bee's. I saw My Girl. I know how bee sting allergies can effect a person.

The truth is- I can now run 2 miles without stopping. This means if we ever come across a bear, I'm most definitely going to be able to out run you. Sorry, but its true.

The truth is- Jimmy's been gone at Scout Camp this week, giving us a sneak peak of what it will be like when he goes up to BYU in July. All I can say is, we're gonna need a bigger fridge. I don't know how to cook for 2 people.

2010-05-31T06:24:00.000-07:00

Good weekend. Good good weekend:

Glee with Krissa * Subway * So you think you can dance (better be good this season) * Fastest Target trip in history! * Roadtrip to Glendale. Next time we pack snacks * Wedding reception * The phrase "far out" repeated about 10 times in 4 minutes * Carls Jr. * Sleepover night! * Climbing the mountain twice * Suggesting we do the mountain 3 times (the heat made me delusional) * Subway (again) * THE ZOO!!! * Boiling lava hot sun * Feeding a squirrel * long naps * Patrick making me dinner- awesome steak, and fancy watermelon drink * Ninja Warrior * 2 yr Anniversary * lazy Sunday morning * Heath Ledger movies (remember how he use to be alive?!?) * Church * Iron Chief America * A baby who won't stop growing * A baby who really loves his daddy *

2 Years...

2010-05-30T05:44:00.000-07:00

Its been 2 years since Patrick and I were married for time and all eternity. I'm so glad we have together forever.

I carry your heart with me.

I carry it in my heart.

I am never without it.

Anywhere I go, you go, my dear.

And whatever is done by only me...

is your doing, my darling.

I fear no fate...

for you are my fate, my sweet.

I want no world, for, beautiful...

you are my world, my true.

Here is the deepest secret no one knows.

Here is the root of the root...

and the bud of the bud...

and the sky of the sky of a tree called life...

which grows higher than the soul can hope...

or mind can hide.

It is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart.

I carry your heart.

I carry it in my heart.

-E.E. Cummings

2010-05-28T08:25:00.000-07:00

We all knew this was coming.
A Zac Efron musical guilty pleasure song.
The hard part was figuring out what song to use.
Which means there will be more High School Musical songs in the future.
P.S- If I have let you borrow my HSM3 dvd or cd will you please return them!

P.S.S- Try to endure Vanessa Hudgens attempt at a ballet type dance moves in this video.

2010-05-26T05:59:00.000-07:00

The truth is- Sometimes when I'm wearing my glasses I forget they aren't sunglasses and that people can see me if I roll my eyes. And if I wear them outside I have to resist the urge to push them on top of my head, like sunglasses, when I walk inside. I wonder if I'll ever get over this.

The truth is- I finally figured out what my favorite food is. Cereal. Any kind. Which brings me to my next truth. . . .

The truth is- One time I ate bugs. It was the day Andrew left, I was watching a movie, eating some cereal and I looked down to see those little weevils in my bowl of raisin bran. Some were dead. Some were alive and crawling to safety on the sides of the bowl. Of course by the time I noticed half my cereal was gone. I immediately threw up. Then cried. But the crying was probably due to the fact I was super sad Andrew was leaving and was watching The World Trade Center (movie). I was put off cereal for a long time after that.

The truth is- A lot of the "big shot artists" that the world and a lot of people like, I don't like. Like Madonna. Or U2. Or Metallica. Don't like any of them. Kind of think they are overrated. Sorry.

The truth is- I've had so much peanut butter in the last few months that if you cut me I'd probably bleed peanut butter. Creamy style.

The truth is- Sometimes Patrick and I have "sleep-over night". Sleep-over night is when we flip our pillows down to the foot of the bed and switch spots. Sometimes you just sleep better when your in a new different position on your bed. And it always feels so strange to sleep flipped around! It's like your sleeping in someone else's bed. Hence the name "sleep-over night".

The truth is- No one has made any comments about Preston's hair in awhile. Comments like "oh red hair, he must have a temper" or "oh red hair he's going to be stubborn". I'm very glad about this. Because neither he or I have are stubborn or have a temper with our red hair. And now I've jinxed it.

2010-05-24T06:00:00.000-07:00

Lots of fun this weekend!

Grocery shopping (still hate it) * 7 Pounds (the movie)- compelling and interesting yet oh so sad! * Game night * Climbing the mountain * Being happy we only did the mountain once instead of the schedule 2 times * LOTS of time holding/cuddling Preston * Target * Diapers that claim to have "leak guard" that in fact leaked 4 times (so far) * Finally getting Preston a hat that fit * Must Love Dogs (the movie) * Texting * Jesterz * Preston getting babysat by his Nana and by Jimmy * Too little sleep * Gila Valley Temple dedication * attempted naps * failed naps * Peanut butter frosting * Writing to Andrew * Lost finale * Being Lost/unsatisfied by the Lost finale * A smiley baby who finds himself hilarious * straightening the garage (now I can park in there Hooray!!) *

Im hoping this week goes by fast. We need another weekend.

2010-05-21T06:48:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago I impressed Patrick with my knowledge of knowing all the words to this song. Actually "impressed" might not be the right word....

But once upon a time someone bet me I couldnt memorize the words in 1 night.

I did. And it's stuck with me ever sense.

Then they performed it on Glee and it was llike the circle of life was completed.

You know you secretly love this song too....

2010-05-19T06:46:00.000-07:00

The truth is - last week Patrick came home and asked what I did while he was at work, and I told him the truth. I solved crimes. Translation: watched CSI. I'm getting good at figuring things out before the experts!

The truth is- Titanic was on tv a few weeks ago. I wanted to sit and watch it since we all know I have a thing for Titanic.... but it wouldn't end till like 12:30am. So I DVR'd it! I've since watched it a couple few times.

The truth is- I didn't get to try any of the food at my own reception. In fact the only thing I ate was the bite of cake that Patrick fed me. He however had 2 plates of food. After the reception I made him stop at Jack-In-The-Box. Best curly fries and orange Fanta I've ever had.

The truth is- My senior year of High School I don't think I missed a single episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Dawsons Creek. I stopped watching Buffy after Angel left, because really what was the point!? And as for Dawsons Creek, it really should have been called Pacey's Creek.

The truth is- I made a reference the the cartoon/toy My Pet Monster the other day, and Patrick had never heard of it. I felt old.

The truth is- Going to the Glee Tour on Saturday may have made my love for Glee worse. I know what your thinking, how could it be worse.? It is. Oh it is. In fact, look for a Glee post sometime in the future.

The truth is- When Punchy was around (see previous The Truth is Wed for explanation of Punchy) she use to really pick on my nephew Keaton. He'd be playing on the ground with his Thomas trains and she'd sneak up on him and then jump on his head with all 4 feet. He'd push her off and say "stop Punchy, I'm not pwaying wif you right now". Hilarious.

2010-05-17T05:33:00.000-07:00

Seriously too fast of a weekend. Saturday especially flew by. It included:

Jimmy going camping * running * Chatting/laughing/hanging out with Krissa * Climbing the mountain (twice) * Falling down the mountain (once) * scraped knees * yardwork * Red high Heels * Leaving Preston with a real babysitter (ok, it was Krissa, but still the first non-family who's watched him!) * Carly & Blaines wedding * Preston looking super hip in what can only be described as Lady GaGa glasses * Taking a lot of pictures * Sunshine. Lots and lots of sunshine * Dr. Pepper * cute dress * good food * TheLXD dance crew * GLEE TOUR!!!!!!!* Sing-a-longs * Preston impressing us with his dinosaur impression skills * Brownies* Church * Birthday dinner * Tired eyes * Hugs * Kisses * Airplane rides * Going to bed way too late and getting up way too early *

Hopefully this week is just as fun, but with a little more sleep.

2010-05-14T05:40:00.000-07:00

Remember this when I confessed about my love for Backstreet Boys (aka BsB)?!

This is the song that started it all.

And thats all I've got to say about that.

Confession... just watched it twice, and I still love it and remember all the good parts, and still wish that I was one of those girls at the end.

Family Pictures

2010-05-12T21:52:00.000-07:00

So last week we hiked up that mountain to take some family pictures. YUP. Hiked that mountain in a skirt. YUP. Carried Preston halfway up and then back down. YUP. I'm awesome like that.
The pictures turned out GREAT!! (Eliott took them for us). Here are some of my favorites. I put some up of Preston on his blog, and you should go look at them. Preston's making some pretty great faces in some of the pictures, I'll have to post some outtakes soon. But till then, enjoy the eyebrow he's got goin on in the 3rd picture down.