Worms

This was taken soon after we moved into our current home. It rained a lot and thousands of worms came out of the ground.

We were coming home from somewhere and I didn't want the boys to step on the worms. I told K to be careful not to step on them and that was the first time he became aware that they were everywhere. I wasn't expecting what happened next and I got the tail end of it all with the video. You can barely see it but there is a worm that's a foot long next to him. I believe he had turned 3 a few months before this day. I guess I don't need girls to have drama around here.

What's New?

The old banner is down and I've changed the face of my blog. Something that usually is easy to do ended up being a hassle because of a word document I posted up on the blog that was messing things up.

We're really excited about Halloween. Last Saturday we all dressed up and went to Chris' work party. Wish we had pics. Sorry.

K's backpack was taken/stolen from him yesterday after school. What's up with that? Hopefully it was a simple mistake and it's returned today. I'll be volunteering a couple Wednesday's a month to help out with the math station and I'm really excited about this.

L is active as usual but very helpful. He is constantly doing things to help me something he's done since he was teeny, tiny. He's also quick to do what's asked of him, such a good boy. During the Primary Sacrament program he was doing spit yoyos. Completely disgusting and if I had known I would have put an end to it. Urgh. He was sitting/standing on the front row.

A is talking tons. He still loves his thumb and bottle of milk. Am I not putting an end to both when I should? It's just so babyish and I'm not sure I'm ready to let go.

Chris is excited about possibly picking up a new client that is just 5-10 minutes away. It would be an engagement that would last through April. That would be really nice.

I'm still going back and forth about doing a triathlon on Nov. 8th. I really do want to do it. It shouldn't be too bad except that the swim is the last event and I am very uncomfortable about this. It would be a different challenge but I don't know if I can swim after running and biking. I guess I'll have to find out this week before making the decision.

Nate and Collete came over of dinner on Sunday and we discussed our trip to Mexico. We are going to try and snorkel from Cozumel which is about 30 minutes from the main island. While there we are thinking about renting a couple of scooters to travel the island and visit ruins. I'm totally looking forward to this. I find it humorous that Nate is afraid Collete will crack her head open. I don't think I've ever heard manly Nate voice any worried concerns about anything. It must be true love ;0).

Chris and I received new callings. We are nursery workers. I am excited about this. For one, I get to hang out with Chris and two I get to play with little munchkins and there are a couple I can't wait to get my hands on.

My thoughts on Polygamy

aren't that sophisticated. I thought it was weird when I first heard about it and glad that my church doesn't practice polygamy anymore. However, it can be a real crutch to people who are trying to find reasons why our church isn't good. This may be a reason why they might not join it or claim it to be the reason why they fell away.

It never was an issue for me. I took more of a rational approach to it that many societies have in fact practiced some type of plural marriage and many are still practicing plural marriages. It has been part of life for a loooooong time people and the church had its reasons for it way back when.

I found this article on CNN about (click)Polyandry (one wife, two husbands) I found rather interesting and actually pretty cool. In this subculture in India they practice polyandry for traditional and economic reasons. Some women may have more than a couple husbands depending on how many brothers there are. Plural marriage is illegal in India however the government has not enforced it.

I really found this village to be quite unpolluted of the world's influence on this topic. To them it's not about sex. It's about tradition, economics, and that's it. I think often times us Americans focus on the sex part. When we think about Warren Jeff's and others of his group we think about the immorality of it all and the victimization of young girls. We immediately suspect that sex is the underlying reason for this lifestyle. I don't know. But with this village in India, plural marriage is part of life, it's not looked at as something nasty and they've made it work.

I prefer to only see this lifestyle as part of indigenous groups and much prefer polyandry than polygamy.

If I lived in India, this would be it for me!! Wow....EEW....Disturbing....

The Kommandant's Girl by Pam Jenoff

I just finished this book. It was a lot of things including suspenseful, exciting, informative, romantic, historical and sad. Sad books are not my favorite but it was still a good read. I guess what I am saying is that I prefer happy endings and that's all I will say about that. In short it is about a Jewish girl living a double life during the invasion of the Germans in her Poland country.

Although a fiction, the author says this about the book "Finally, I have come to realize through the writing of this book that the term "historical fiction" is somewhat of an oxymoron. While creating imaginary characters and events, I have endeavored to remain true to the spirit of those who lived and died during World War II and the Holocaust, and to realistically depict the full range of human strengths, frailties and emotions brought out by this tragic and remarkable era."

So although the characters are fictional, Jenoff incorporates things that occurred during the war in her book: things such as the Jewish resistance that was going on underground, the use of double identities to help out the movement, and some of the terrible occurrences of the Holocaust.

The characters seems very real and their experiences realistic as well. I once again found myself sympathetic to the "bad guy." And was intrigued by the dilemma the Kommandant's girl found herself in and having this internal battle of loving two men, her husband and the Kommandant, both very likable. A highlight for me was when she was able to see her father for the last time who was imprisoned in a camp. They spoke through a small opening, a lucky but risky, last farewell. They exchanged sad and happy news, their love for each other, and a few things that tied her to her real identity. My heart broke to read the description of her father, her thoughts of what he must be going through. I can't imagine what these people went through during the war. And I cried and thought about how much I take for granted.

This book got me interested in finding out more about what happened in Poland when the Germans invaded and imprisoned the Polish Jewish Community.

I found a thesis compiled by the efforts of many universities, scholars, and groups that contains in it many of the experiences of these women who had double identities to help in the resistance movement. They were Jewish women who passed as gentile Polish people due to their Aryan looks and fluency in Polish and other languages.

The thesis includes the following about the women: http://www.theverylongview.com/WATH/essays/courier.htm


The couriers were a group of remarkable women who accepted a unique responsibility to their people and to history. Variously referred to as liaisons, runners, girls, and messengers, the couriers worked selflessly for the Jewish resistance in Poland through the duration of the Holocaust. Their pragmatic benefit was to smuggle guns, documents, money and encouragement. On another level, they represented the identity, existence and future of the Jewish people. They left a legacy of defiance to, and heroism within, one of the most oppressive system of terror ever developed.

Polish resistance leader Jan Karski cited other reasons why women became couriers. To Karski, women were better suited than men for espionage: "They were quicker to perceive danger, more optimistic of the outcome, and could make themselves less conspicuous; they were more cautious and discreet, had more common sense and were less inclined to risky bluffing."<sup>45

If you are interested in reading more about the history of Krakow go to the following link a history</sup>

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

I finally watched Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid with Robert Redford, Paul Newman, and Katharine Ross. I actually really liked it having never been big on Western films. Of course I had to get online to find out what really happened to the famous outlaws afterward. The movie ended differently than what the information out there is saying.

It helped that the actors are all gorgeous including Mrs. Katharine Ross (Etta). Wow!! There was a bicycle scene with Etta and Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) that was really cute and hot. She was the Sundance Kid's (Robert Redford) girl but this scene said otherwise. She asked him at the end of the bike ride if they would have been together had she not met the Sundance Kid first. The conversation that went on after that was really witty and cute on Butch Cassidy's part.

I REALLY liked the music they played throughout the movie. I found a review that said the following about the music (you can find the rest of the review with the link below): "Perhaps the oddest aspect of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is Burt Bacharach's score. In all, Bacharach composed only about 12 minutes of music, and it is used during three sequences: when Butch takes Etta for a ride on his bicycle, when the three companions stop in New York on their way to Bolivia, and during a montage that introduces their return to an illegal occupation in South America. Thrown into the mix (during the first sequence) is the hit pop single "Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head". As performed by B.J. Thomas, it became a radio staple during late 1969 and early 1970, but its placement in the film is atypical, to say the least - as is Hill's decision not to use music to highlight moments of tension and suspense."

I really enjoyed the relationship that Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid had. They had a fun chemistry together that worked well. I enjoyed the humorous depiction of the outlaws. I was actually rooting for them because they were so likeable! And of course sad when they died.

Here's the review I read http://www.reelviews.net/movies/b/butch_cassidy.html

Running shoes I'm stuck with

This is the Mizuno wave rider II running shoe that I purchased recently. I went to Wasatch Running thinking they would find me a good shoe to help me with the issues I was having with my feet. Chris and I went there a long time ago to find a shoe for him. They watched him run down a path they have in their store to see how he runs and then fit a shoe to accommodate his running style. Then they let him try on a handful of pairs that were all ridiculously priced. Anyways, we left and he bought a decent pair he likes for less than half the price.

I went back just before my marathon to see if this company could help me with my feet issues. I left having paid way to much for this pair. I can't say they help me with my feet issues. I still had feet pain when I ran and even when I walk in them now. Not to mention that there is not much padding on the heal and I felt like my heals were being ripped apart before I put padding underneath the soles.

BTW, Chris is a better shopper than I am. He's patient, does his research, shops around and compares.

River Secrets by Shannon Hale......

was so good. Razo, the main character, is one of those people I would die to be friends with. Well I wouldn't die but you know what I mean. He makes you laugh by what he says and does and just by looking at him. Who couldn't use a friend like that? He really struggled with who he is and never seemed to measure up to anything. But, as he matured and served his country, he found himself not necessarily fall into the mold of the other greats, but found that he was unique and as important a member of his community as the others.

Reading a book from a male perspective was fun. I haven't read any from a male point of view in a long time. Although a fantasy, the book has a good mix of mystery and adventure as well as a little romance.

And as I mentioned before, it was nice to pick up the book and the characters from where I last left them and to be able to read what they've been up to lately.

I'd recommend the Bayern series to anyone.

Enna Burning by Hale and my perspective on relationships, marriage, the bad rap some marriages made at BYU get (you know the 3 month courtships)

I just finished this book by Shannon Hale. It was so nice to pick up this book after reading the Goose Girl. After reading a good book, I miss the characters and long to know what else. So I was glad to pick up where I last left them.

I liked it but enjoyed the Goose Girl more. I loved how an ordinary girl who was bored with her ordinary life found herself to become extraordinary and fell into some amazing situations. The imagery for me wasn't as good as with Goose Girl and neither was the love story. Sorry I keep comparing it with the first book. Nevertheless, it was good and a fast read.

****Spoiler

I'm torn between Sileph and Finn. She made the right choice of course but the chemistry between Sileph and Enna was exciting, not based on true love but had potential. I was intrigued by how overprotective he was of her. I do think that Sileph loved Enna but for all the wrong reasons. He was a powerful man motivated by position, status, wealth, materialism and greed. I don't think he was a bad person just difficult and unusual. I still think it could have worked. Enna was definitely attracted to Sileph and has a special place in her heart for him but was able to see clearly finally and I am glad for her. It would be a hard thing to leave a man with the gift of people speaking, a man with power, good looks, that cared for you and made the possibility of an extraordinary future so possible.

Introspective

I wonder if I favor that relationship because for Chris and I it was that love at first sight sort of thing. Actually I don't remember the first time we met unfortunately but what I'm saying is that we weren't long time friends before we started dating and having feelings for one another. Back in the day, I much preferred having an attraction first and then becoming friends. But, I do love hearing of people getting together after having been friends for a long time. I think it's easier to have a lasting, healthy relationship that way. And don't get me wrong, I don't believe Chris and my relationship was shallow. I believe it was more inspiration than anything. I truly feel that. Especially when I look at pics of myself when we were dating.....ughhh and knowing my track record for being a friend and now knowing Chris' inability to have empathy. It was for the best we didn't know each other that well. Perhaps we are a Sileph/Enna couple and am just rooting for the underdog. I'm not saying we are materialistic and in love for all the wrong reasons but more that we are unusual and difficult people, a couple of Silephs.

Some people at BYU get a bad rap because they met, courted, and married all in under 3 months and for even doing it in a year. It's easy to tease people about it for one reason or another. But, I have a different perspective on it. I honestly feel that people get inspiration in this matter and there is no need to drag it out and better not to in certain situations. I commend people who are that in tune and make good choices. (of course not all short courtships happened for the right reasons)

One major reason why we "dragged" it out as long as we did (11 months) is that I was afraid to deal with the fact that I wanted a temple marriage and I am a convert to the church creating the dilemma of not being able to have my family with me. Talk about a rough internal battle! You have no idea how hard that was for me. I felt like I needed more time but in actuality I was afraid to face what I was going to have to do and in some ways it felt like a betrayal. I had already done the unthinkable--joined some "cult," moved far away, served a mission and continued to "grow farther apart." (It wasn't that bad because we wrote back and forth on my mission, kept in contact, and I always came home during the spring/summer semesters.) But now I was going to do this. If I would have followed Chris' idea we would have been married about 4 months earlier, making it a 7 month courtship. It turned out fine and we did the best we could and it was wonderful.

I feel it a shame when people are hesitant to get married for whatever reasons but mostly because they're trying to find the perfect person, not necessarily the perfect person for them, but literally a perfect person. There won't ever be a perfect person. Get married, struggle, grow closer together through trials, get over the imperfections, and grow up. Marriage isn't easy for many and then you have life on top of that. It can be hard. But, it's a good choice.

My parents*Us after getting married in the Salt Lake Temple*Ring Ceremony at the JSB

Movies

We rented this one. My taste in movies is.......not picky. I'm easily pleased. I really liked it but then again I'm a sucker for a romance especially for one with a twist. I loved My Best Friends Wedding, so this one was a fun treat. It wasn't great or anything just entertaining and it had a couple funny parts. Definitely not a movie for kids and I'm going to add, teenagers, because of adult content, or husbands who hate chick flicks.

We went and saw Space Chimps with the boys at the Dollar theaters. It was actually good. We all enjoyed it. The boys did great which is a good indication.

Favorite Famous People

With his recent death there has been lots of talk about Paul Newman. Seeing his picture on the cover of magazines, I decided to get acquainted with this person. Things to do this week include watching Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Wow look at those eyes and lips, a second close to my hot husbands. I'm a sucker for pretty eyes and lips.

Now that I mention pretty eyes and lips, Elvis Presley was a favorite person of mine when I was a kid. I probably was too young to watch his movies, but I did and often hunted for them. Grrrr, what a hottie!

I also fell in love with the Beatles way back when after watching a documentary about them. Another set of hot babes.

Some of my other favorite, famous people growing up included females as well, such as Nadia Comaneci, the gymnast, and Lynda Carter known for her famous, sexy roll, Wonder Woman.

Today

Playing Outside

The boys and I pretty much worked all day outside. I handed L a hammer, some nails, a piece of wood, and some pipes to play with. Between that, their bikes, and gardening they were entertained all morning. (the final product was a trap to keep Cats out of the garden which basically was a long piece of wood with nails sticking out in a pattern and evenly spaced. nice job L)

I've told myself over and over to leave the yard work for Chris since I seem to always feel sore and injured after working in the garden. However, I can't resist. I love doing it and am satisfied with the work.

I usually do the trimming, weeding, and detailing of the garden. It just seems to be my job. Chris doesn't seem to care about that stuff.

I finally decided to add some color to the front yard and after all the weeding, trimming, and ripping out of grass in the flower bed, we headed to what the boys call "the dirty store." We picked up fall flowers from Home Depot and Lowes. All the boys planted a couple plants including K who did his after school.

Video Games

Something I've noticed is that the boys haven't played video games since Loyd moved out. It seemed to be the thing to do with Loyd. He left an old play station that the kids got bored of. Chris bought an x box years ago. The boys loved playing lego star wars on that. But, I don't even know where the game is now and they haven't asked to play in a long time. I can't even remember when the last time was. And I'm so pleased.

The boys do watch PBS. Some favorites include curious George, which A will drop anything he's doing to go see, Ruff Ruff, and CyberChase.

Most of the time they build, create, make, and play with stuff, not necessarily with toys. They keep real busy and seem to go from one room to another. K is always making stuff, drawing, cutting, designing (games, ideas, plans). Right now he's way into Yugioh cards and is constantly making stuff to organize them (arm bands, folders, boxes). He has made several versions of a game board. The boys are so busy and happy. I can hand them tape, glue, sissors, paper and they'll be entertained literally the whole day. I'm proud of them.

Just Me and K

K gets to stay up later than the other boys sometimes. Usually the other two crash after a certain point.

Alot of times this is when K does homework and reads. And I'm more than happy to feed him again since he eats so little during meals.

So we chatted and hung out. And it was nice.

October Activities

There are tons of things going on this month that you can do as a family. I'm so excited about it all.....corn mazes, haunted houses, wheeler farms festivities, gallivan center is having a party for kids, thanksgiving point festivities... I have a list.

Anyway, the boys are earning positive points to be able to go to these. It's my way to get them to do their part around here. Hey, we all work for food, including these boys.

Overslept

We usually are heading out the door at 8 a.m. to take K to school which starts at 8:15 a.m.

My alarm goes off at 7:15. I turned it off and do what I always do: go back to sleep. When L comes up to me and whispers, "mom I'm hungry." I gage how I'm feeling and realize that it's way past snooze and we may even be cutting it close.

I look at my time. 8:05.

K, we're late, it's 8:05, we over slept, get up, get dressed, you're having school lunch today, let's go guys.

I throw K some clothes, make him a sandwich to eat for breakfast, help him put his shoes on, smooth out his hair with some spit (jk).

Kids barefoot, with my morning hair, I put sunglasses on, drive with no hands as I fix my hair, and somehow we get K to school before that final bell.

Me to K...When we hit the driveway you need to get unbuckled, put your bag on, and when I say go, jump out and run.

I was feeling relieved but as I was driving home felt bad for all the things that didn't happen:

K didn't use the toilet
He didn't get a drink with that sandwich.
Didn't get gel and hairspray, chap stick, and moisturizer with sunscreen.
An "I love you"
Didn't get family prayer.

I'm sick of looking at my marathon post (Rated R, for language)

My camera broke, bummer or maybe not. Means I get a new camera in the near future? Maybe.

My foot is feeling uninjured, but I have yet to run on it.

A learned to urinate on his own since I was limping around. Usually I held him up a few inches and helped him aim. But, we found a better system. He tip toes and sits his penis on the rim of the toilet and makes it just fine. Of course I would never let him do that using someone else's toilet. gross. We found an even better system. The kids found a very heavy Accounting book that A uses to get him up a couple inches instead of tip toeing. It works great. If he has to go poop, he tells me and I say "o.k. call me when you're done." He sets his toilet insert and adjust things so he doesn't spray and calls me when he's done to finish business. What a kid.

My brother, his wife, and baby visited from Vegas this weekend. It was nice to have company. The kids seemed to enjoy the extra ears. They were pleasant company and I think his wife is great.

I played softball. I'm on a team with people from Chris' work. I've been showing up without Chris since he's been out of town going on 3/7 weeks. Every week someone asks me where he's at and I remind them "out of town." But they don't seem to mind me coming, in fact they ask me to come and so now I just make sure I have a sitter on that night. We've had a lot of close games under pressure which makes things exciting. This week my luck ran out and I need to head for the batting cages asap. Anyone wanna join me?

I found several cute shorts on sale that I purchased. I had one pair of shorts and really needed to add some to my wardrobe. I love shopping again. Dangerous.

Now that the marathon is past, I've moved some of my focus to our Yucatan trip this Fall. Yucatecos don't like to be called Mexicans. The term Mexicans are what they use for the people from Mexico City. In fact when I was talking to my grandma a few years ago, I asked her how Merida was and she replied that there is more crime now that Mexicans are moving in. Granted she is "Mexican" because she is from Mexico but she is actually from Merida and doesn't consider herself "Mexican." Does that make sense? And she speaks Mayan, because that's what they speak. I think that is soooo cool. I wish I could.

So the general outline for the trip will be to fly into Cancun, rent a car, drive to Merida (4 hours) to my parent's house on the first day. Visit ruins, the city, site see, from there. Now, I ask myself why not fly into Merida out from Cancun? I remember now, it was way cheaper to fly into and out of Cancun. On the fourth day, we'll stay in Tulum and explore that place. Maybe two nights there and the last night in Cancun. But as of yesterday, it was two nights in Cancun. Go snorkeling at one of those two places. My brother suggested to use a company because they boat you out to the coral reefs and know exactly where to take you. We wouldn't even know where to start. So it will cost a pretty penny for that activity but should be worth it. Don't be jealous if you weren't invited this time around. We've made Nate and Collete our "guinea pigs." There probably will be a next time and maybe you won't want to come depending on whether the trip was a flop or not. I'm hoping that no one gets sick; a very big concern for me since I always spend a great deal of time on or over the toilets when I go.

This week the boys had 5 birthday parties between the two oldest! It all worked out but yeah, at this rate I'm going to have to cut down on milk to buy birthday gifts.

L did awesome at his soccer game. Now that he's not playing in the nets and laying around, he's doing amazing. And I'm so proud of him. He was so happy today. He was pleasant and his emotional bank account was full and I really enjoyed him today since it was just him and I for a few hours. Sometimes it's hard to see their goodness when they're fighting over attention, all talking over each other and competing. It's so much easier to see them for who they are when it's just that one. And remember......oh yeah, this one is easy to shop with or this one is self entertained or really fun and easy going. I remembered that about L today. Such a good boy. All of them are.

September 20th has come and gone

Thank goodness! I would do it again as long as I know my body is healthy enough to do one again. I took it really slow coming in at the half way point at 2 hours 25 minutes. Sweet I thought. At this pace I will be under 5 hours. However, the last 6 miles I added a couple minutes per mile, slowing down quite a bit. I came in at 5 hours 3 minutes. Which I am both happy and disappointed about. Happy because I thought it would take me more than that and disappointed because I was so close to the time I wanted to come under.

At mile 10 my left ankle started hurting. I have never had problems with that ankle and was confused. I ran a few more miles on it and couldn't take it any more. I prayed. A minute later I moved the timing chip off my ankle and up my leg. The pain went away. I was able to continue the race as I had been doing. But, the damage was already done. So in the middle of the night I woke up and my foot was swollen. I thought maybe I broke/fractured my leg but today the swelling is down and I've been able to walk on it this morning. Everything else feels really good. I wish I would have known to keep the Velcro loose and I would have avoided that all together.

I did walk a short stretch between mile 23 and 24 but it hurt to walk so I decided to run again . The hill that people were warning me about was nothing compared to the hills I trained on. Cake to say the least.

Things I want to remember but you don't have to read:
Looked out the window and it was raining. I was worried because I didn't have rain gear. I did have a plastic rain Pancho in our emergency kit I took with me just in case.
The rain cleared and it was a gorgeous run with a few spurts of sprinkles to cool me down.
Sat next to someone on the bus and chatted all the way up. Glad for friendly people.
I was starving when we got to the top of the canyon. I was worried about not having any fuel to run when I found a lone banana perched on a light post. Should I eat it? I kept eying it and was feeling desperate and embarrassed that I would stoop so low. But, it was calling my name and everyone was in line to start the race. After looking around and asking the opinion of the guy next to me, he said "it still has it's cover!" So I devoured it with a smile on my face, thankful for this banana I found practically on the floor.
Someone lost a package of Gu (carbohydrates) and the guy cleaning up asked me if I wanted it. I took it and nibbled on it slowly, thankful for the carbs.
There were two guys walking/running around me. They'd pass me, I'd pass them. I swear they were trying to keep up. Finally, they told me to slow down because they were trying to keep my pace. They hadn't trained at all!!!!! Good grief. So we started jogging together. After a while they just couldn't keep up even though I was really slow and I never saw them again until after the race. They didn't do too shabby considering their lack of training.
Some lady dropped her shorts a few feet off the course to relieve herself in my perfect view. Just fabulous. There's no shame when you're desperate, as I've learned for myself.
Mile 14, I'm feeling really good. I lost my breath when I saw Chris and the boys.
After looking around, I thought that this might be the place for retirement.
Mile 16, if I can just get to mile 20 then I can think about walking.
Mile 20, I think I can still keep going. phhh. 6 miles left. that's nothing. one more hour. If I can just get to the 5 miles and counting down.
Mile 21, where is the next mile marker. Why is it taking longer to reach them?!! I hit the "wall."
Mile 22, just 4 more and counting down.
Mile 25, Ok, last one, picking up the pace, as fast as I can possibly make my body go towards the finish line, which was probably pathetic for a sprint.
Went and visited the Dameron's in Tremonton, who we were originally going to stay with. What a good family!

Walmart Trash

Yesterday we went to ShopKo to grab some things we needed. We were in the toy section because K wanted to pick up some cards when L starts pulling out pennies from his pocket. He wanted to know what he could get with them. So he hands some of them to me to count. I was thinking it wouldn't take me more than a minute to count when baby A says "peepee, bafrom." I was in the middle of counting, should I make him wait? So, I told him to wait, otherwise we'd never get out of the store! It was a dilemma. I was so stubborn, I was going to get at least one task done before moving on to the next, when A went all over the floor. All right guys, time to go, I say. I stuff the pennies I wasn't finished counting back into L's pockets.

I was trying to be discreet when I went to the front to ask for paper towels when L belts out, "I can't believe my baby brother peed all over the floor!" If you know L, he's never satisfied telling you once, so he said it several times. Needless to say he got a lecture for that. And I was feeling a little violent.

By the time we got back to the mess, someone had stepped in it. Folks, this is why you shouldn't wear shoes in the house because you never know what you or your kids have stepped in and you may be the victim of some wreckless and stubborn mother and desperate 2 year old.

When we were paying for our products, the boys start unloading their pockets full of pennies. Seriously?! I was so embarrassed. We counted over 300 pennies and I couldn't look anyone in the eyes after that.

Either I need to wear a paperbag over my head when I shop with these funny little boys or we should just stick with Walmart because truly we fit right in!!

By the Way, if you ever want to annoy your sister in law, leave her kids a jug full of thousands of pennies when you move out. Because the second they get it, they will empty it out and her house will forever be oozing pennies out of everywhere--the dryer, the washer, on the floors everywhere, in the bathtub. The kids hands will constantly smell like dirty money and she will have to count hundreds of pennies at the counter while other customers glare at her with hateful eyes and make the back of her head and face burn with fire.

Wow, I just typed up a lot. Can you tell my spouse is out of town? Usually I'd have this conversation with him but guess your stuck with me!! hmmmm, I wonder when he's going to call?

Cleaning and Purging

It took me almost 2 hours to clean our teeny, tiny bathroom downstairs today. It hasn't been thoroughly cleaned in months and was so disgusting I thought I was going to catch a disease. My brother, wife and my nephew are coming into town next week and oh how I love to welcome my guests with a clean and comfy place to stay!!

I also cleaned out our guest bedroom, cleaning all surfaces and going through our stored things in the closet. I took a car load to the D.I. and threw out so much junk. I'm really purging our home of garbage and it feels so000 good.

I organized our laundry room/storage room. It's quite spacious and is easy to dump things in. There's still a lot of junk but it's better now.

I've also been working on laundering all our blankets. They smell dusty and I much prefer the smell of detergent and dryer sheets. I do one or two here and there. Not like I didn't already have loads to wash and put away today.

Oh and I even IRONED. Shocking. I'm not anti ironing it's just that I'm miserable at it. I make more wrinkles, get annoyed with the lack of perfection, I make my iron spit out brown stuff and end up having to rewash the item of clothing, and I burn myself quite often. But for some reason I want K's clothes to be wrinkle free for school and have been making time for ironing. Since the iron was warm I did their church clothes as well. Let's see how long this lasts.

Besides cooking, cleaning, running errands (went to the library and shoe store), I added more music to my shuffle, which takes a lot of time and is very tedious.

And I'm hoping for a restful, more playful day with the kids the rest of the week.

My kids

My kids have a way of keeping me humble.

I was trying to sing along with my ipod when K says "Wow, you sound like an Indian." I'm assuming he's talking about the chanting at Pow Wows. If you haven't had a chance to hear the drumming and singing, it might be worth while. Then you'll know what I sound like when I sing without being able to hear myself.
I had sat down after working out and asked A to give me a kiss. He replied "Ewww, YUCK!" He'd never done that before, I must have smelt and looked pretty bad!

The other day L says to me "You look like you have a baby in your tummy." I'm not pregnant either. At the ward walk about, he looks at the Bishop and says, "You don't have any hair, I see that." We laughed, uncomfortably. Guess I need to work on our candidness.

L asked Chris to do something for him when he was busy so Chris asked him to ask me. He replied, "NOOOO, all she does is sleep and play on the computer." Wow, so not true but that's how he perceives me. I had a nice talk with him about that comment and made sure he knew all the things that I've done and do.

I was dancing because that's what I do around here sometimes, when A asks, "You Running, mom?" heehee. I look like I am running when I dance. just fabulous. Oh, how my kids remind me of how uncool I am.

Dreams

I'm getting excited and anxious about the marathon on Saturday. I've been trying to work out the details for the last few days trying to get the kinks out of everything. I think I've been overthinking it because I had the following dreams last night:

That I was at the race ready to go and realized I didn't have my race bib on and the time they were handing out the bibs and timing chips was past.

The following two have to do with triathlons but nevertheless I had them

That I was about to jump in the pool and realized I had forgotten my swimming suit so I was going through all the lockers trying to find something to wear, in a panic.

That I was ready to start the bike and I forgot my helmet so I grabbed someone elses with the intention of returning it later.
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Things I've done to get ready:
Got new shoes, my old ones were giving me grief.
Got jelly beans for carbs for the second half of the race.
Got tons of music from the library and have been adding new songs onto my shuffle. Let me know if there's a song you think is good to run with.
Found a place to stay the night by Logan so I don't have to do the drive the day of.
Since my last long run, I've run 15 miles (training on hills as well) and am hoping to put in another 10, although resting sounds like a good plan as well.
Went over the course

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Things I'm still trying to decide:
What to wear ( I hear it's pretty cold up there and the altitude is much higher than here)
Whether to hold a waterbottle in my hand like I've been doing on my training runs, wear a belt with waterbottles (which I've never done before), or not have anything and rely on the aid stations for hydration. hmmm what to do.

More of Today

Chris, Carson, and Micky went to the game today. These were a couple of the pics Chris took for me. As we all know UCLA was shut out by BYU. It was a good game so I heard. And while they were off having a well deserved time, the boys and I continued to work on getting the house cleaned up. They earned new things today for helping out.