Peanuts & Ice Cold Rootbeer

This past week I have been trying to get some spring cleaning done, but it has been harder than I thought because my sweet darlings had other plans for the house. It started on Thursday when I was deep-cleaning the upstairs bathrooms. My girls and two of their friends came up looking like little snow-people because they had gone "swimming" in packing peanuts. As I looked behind them, I think that it was more like a triathlon because they took those peanuts all over the house.
It took me the better part of the morning to get them and the house de-peanuted. Then, on Friday I decided to continue my quest by tackling the basement. When I came up to get the girls lunch, I discovered that they couldn't wait and tried to get some root beer and a snack by using the side compartments on the fridge as a ladder, breaking three drawers in the process. Naturally neither one would admit to being the instigator, so I made them both sit on the ground next to me while I cleaned up the mess, called for replacement parts, and cleaned out the fridge. Finally, Sarah admitted that she was the culprit, and apologized to Ellie who previously stated that it was "the worst day of her life." However, when she got to go watch a show all by herself while Sarah continued to sit by me, she felt a little bit better. The good news is, I was putting off cleaning out the fridge because I have found that the girls always need something "urgent" as soon as I get everything out on the counter and when they were both sitting there with their arms folded I was able to get everything spic-and-span without worrying about what was going on elsewhere in the house :)

Ha Ha!

This morning was a great one for funny comments. It started out with a conversation Greg and I had. We were discussing a young man we know who is a great person, but I recently had a conversation with his mom about how expensive it has been around their house because he has been trying to be "helpful" with a few projects out of his league. Greg asked me what he wanted to do (career wise), and I responded "cause trouble" in jest. Greg looked at me with a most quizzical look and said, "He wants to be a constable?"

Then, at breakfast, Greg asked Sarah to say the prayer. We have been having some difficulty teaching our kids what needs to be said at different prayers, and lately have spent a lot of time reviewing the fact that we tell Heavenly Father that we are grateful for the food, and ask His blessing on it. So, after asking Sarah to please say the blessing, he reminded her to "say what you're supposed to."
We all bowed our heads, and Sarah gave this prayer: "Heavenly Father, you're supposed to" and closed her prayer.
Yep, it looks like we have a few more family night lessons just waiting to be given.

Thanks to the Local Law Enforcement

Well, we have crossed a new bridge in the parenting game. I hoped it would never happen, but I suppose it's better to have it happen now than when they are in high school...the police brought our children home (or at least back to Grandma and Grandpa's). After eating dinner at my parents, the kids wanted to play outside, but they didn't have very good shoes, so I told them to stay inside. Well, Greg went downstairs, I washed the dishes, and the girls decided to trek up to our house alone....barefoot. When it was time to go, I asked Greg where the girls were, and he said he didn't know. I searched the house and told him to look outside, where interestingly enough a police car had just pulled into the driveway. I couldn't find the girls anywhere inside, and ran out the back door around to the garage to find Greg talking to an officer and an elderly couple who had brought the girls back down the hill after seeing them walking a busy road unattended.
I asked them why they went without my permission--(they have NEVER ventured off before, and just the other day I was saying that Ellie's lack of wandering was about the only boundary she hadn't pushed) and they told me they were walking home to get Ellie some shoes and to get Sarah some toilet paper. Yes, apparently they had forgotten that Grandma does in fact have toilet paper, too.
Well, I will admit that I felt horrible that the police had to bring them home, but at the same time, I am SOOOOO glad that they are safe at home....and this might push me to get one of those sensors that beeps and tells you which door is open (and I'll install it on their bedroom doors where they will be spending a lot of time) :)

Peaches and Cream Without the Peaches

A few days ago I needed some cream for a recipe, and the half pints were only 50 cents, so I picked up an extra to use or freeze as needed. Well, as I was whipping up the cream I needed, Ellie and Sarah wanted a drink of milk, so to save myself a little work, I poured the milk into the empty cream cartons and told them that this was like drinking milk at school. They liked that idea, and I didn't have to wash any dishes.
Yesterday, I noticed that Ellie had taken one of the cartons out of the garbage and had taken it up to her room. I was glad that she enjoyed drinking "from the carton" and didn't think anything of it until this morning.
My mom just called and asked if I would bring a dessert on Sunday, and so I decided to see if I had all the ingredients to make a key-lime pie (one of which was the last half-pint of cream). Well, I scoured the fridge, but couldn't find the extra cream anywhere. Then I took a closer look at the carton I had found in Ellie's room. It was evident that I had not opened it (It was opened from the back and looked a little bedraggled). I guess that I need to explain to Ellie that cream cartons may look like school milk cartons, but there is a big difference.....although I now understand her lack of appetite at dinner last night.

Random Trivia about me

1. Do you like blue cheese? Yes
2. Have you ever smoked heroin? No (I know that may be a shocker)
3. Do you own a gun? No, not even a water gun.
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at sonic? I've never been to Sonic.
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? A little
6. What do you think of hot dogs? I can eat them if I have to.
7. Favorite Christmas movie? I love them ALL!
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? OJ
9. Can you do push ups? At least two!
11. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? Wedding ring
12. Favorite hobby? Reading
14. Do you have A.D.D.? Nope
15. What's one trait you hate about yourself? It takes me forever to fall asleep.
16. Middle name? None
17. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment... What are my kids doing? I need to pay the bills. I should NOT have had a chocolate chip cookie for breakfast.
18. Name 3 things you bought yesterday. Nothing-it was Sunday.
19. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? Water, bottled water, and ice water
20. Current worry? What are my kids doing? (Did I mention that already)
21. Current hate right now? laundry
22. Favorite place to be? Home (other than the laundry room)
23. How did you bring in the New Year? Playing DDR with Greg
24. Where would you like to go? Anywhere other than Las Vegas...I'm glad what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas!
25. Name three people who will complete this? Umm...three people who have never been in my kitchen...For any "Cheers" fans out there.
26. Do you own slippers? Nope. I can't even keep socks on my feet.
27. What shirt are you wearing? a black tee.
28. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? I love luxurious linens!
29. Can you whistle? Yep, but not as well as my mom can.
30. Favorite color? According to my children? Purple (all the other colors have been taken).
31. Would you be a pirate? Yes, just for the jokes! (ARRRe you jealous?)
32. What songs do you sing in the shower? Usually kids' songs because that's what I sing all day
33. Favorite girl's name? ARRRRRwin (see number 31)
34. Favorite boy's name? ARRRRnold (ha ha!) Actually, that's one reason we can be glad we have 4 girls, we can't decide on a boy name.
35. What's in your pocket right now? A band-aid wraper, 13 cents, mini fingernail polish, a bobby pin and a hair elastic.
36. Last thing that made you laugh? Reading Becca's Mother's day poem
37. Best bed sheets as a child? Freshly laundered sheets.
38. Worst injury you've ever had? Does bearing children count as an "Injury"?
39. Do you love where you live? Absolutely
40. How many TVs do you have in your house? 1
41. Who is your loudest friend? ???
42. How many dogs do you have? Zero-I don't need to clean up any more poop than I already do.
43. Does someone have a crush on you?
45. What is your favorite book? Just one? I couldn't possibly be so cruel to the rest of my favorites.
46. What is your favorite candy? The now-extinct Cookies 'n Mint candy bar from Hershey's.
47. Favorite Sports Team? The "stinky" cougars (as my kids now call them thanks to their father and aunt)
48. What song do you want played at your funeral? I don't know. All my favorite hymns seem inappropriate for a funeral.--but perhaps, "let us oft speak kind words" because it has "heather" in the lyrics :)
49. What were you doing 12 AM last night? Putting Sarah back to sleep
50. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke up? Already?

Happy Mother's Day

Yesterday being Mother's Day, I thought I would take a moment to reflect on that special day. It started out by having the girls stretching out their arms to tell me that they love me "this much" then stretching them out a little more to tell me that they love daddy "THIS much."

Then, this morning I found a poem Becca wrote at school for Mother's day, and I thought I would post it:

My mother is always nice to me.
The bad news is that she always makes me clean my room.
The good news is I always can sleep in their bed.
The best news is I can watch my dad play Wii.

Yes, the best thing about me is that Becca can watch Greg play Wii.


HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY EVERYONE!

I am so smart, S-M-R-T!

Today we have yet another Ellie moment to report. Greg has the laptop set up to require either a password or fingerprint to log in, which has been really nice because it means that none of the kids can get on. Well, I had the computer sitting next to me, and Ellie said, "Can I use the computer?" I told her that she could if she could figure out how to get it on, and went back to work. About a minute later, Ellie said. "Watch, Mom. All I have to do is click on this suitcase." Sure enough, she had somehow figured out how to log in as a "guest" even though that option is not typically available. I asked her how she did it, and she said, "Oh, it's just something my brain figured out."

A quick Ellie-ism

This morning at breakfast, I gave the girls their oatmeal and asked, "Who do I love?" to which Sarah said "NOT ME!" and started laughing her head off.
Ellie set he spoon down, put her hands on her hips and said, "Well, isn't Sarah just a kidding machine."
Her seriousness and demeanor made me laugh so hard I had to leave the room.

OK-I have to add another one. Ellie learned how to blow up balloons yesterday, and Sarah found one today and tried to blow it up. She couldn't do it, so Ellie took it from her, blew it up, and said, "I'm sorry. I know I make it look so easy." Then she turned to me and said, "Sometimes it's just hard to have such a talented big sister."

Sci-Fi Friday!

Some of you might wonder what Greg and I do on the weekends...Well, wonder no more. Almost every Friday after dinner we pack the kids up and head over to Grandma and Grandpa's house for everyone's favorite event...Sci-Fi Friday. You may think I speak in jest, but I kid you not, every morning my kids wake up and ask what day it is. If it happens to be Sunday, they realize that they will be headed off to church, if it is Monday we will have Family Home Evening, and if it is Friday they will specify that it is in fact Sci-Fi Friday.
For any of you out of the loop, Sci-Fi Friday is the day when Stargate and Flash Gordon are on the Sci-Fi Channel. Well, my girls may not know who Dale Arden is, but they know that there is a room full of toys waiting for them at grandma's house, and a very good chance of a treat as well.
At present, the shows we watch are on hiatus, so in lieu of a night of television, we went with Grandma and Grandpa to Cabella's this weekend.
Our girls were in heaven, and Rachel learned a few new words, the most common being "DEER!" Our kiddos loved seeing all of the stuffed birds and animals, and thought it was great fun to feed the fish, but the highlight of the trip was the talking moose head. Everyone but Sarah thought it was the funniest thing ever, but I was afraid that Sarah might wet her pants she was so scared. We had to pass under the moose to get to the candy shop, and Greg finally convinced her to go under it in his arms. As they were walking past, the moose started talking, and Sarah laughed nervously, then, as soon as it stopped, turned to Greg and told him rather insistently that it was time to move along.
When we were walking out of the store, laden with fudge and candy, and happy as clams, Greg's dad asked the girls whether they preferred Cabella's or Sci-Fi Friday. They all looked at each other and Becca responded "Both are fun--this is a nice change, but I still like Sci-Fi Friday."
I guess that seals the deal-there is no going back on our tradition now!