Sermon on the Mount (of Laundry)

Check Out the New Digs

2006-05-20T00:11:00.000-06:00

Okay, dear readers, without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to my new digs....drum roll please...and wah wah waaah-nope they're not here. They are at my totally new address (yes, I'm sorry, you'll have to change your links, your bookmarks, your RSS subscription.)

SO- from now on you can find me at

www.sarahsermons.com

Check out my new digs, I'm so excited about them!

UPDATE: If for some reason this link isn't working for you, just go to www.sarahsermons.com- that should get you to the right place! Thanks!

Mother's Day Was...

2006-05-15T09:56:00.000-06:00

Mother's Day Was...

...Hanging out with family and friends...

...Drinking iced green tea...

...Admiring the shape of my pregnant sister...

...Drew bringing me a leaf that he picked out special and saying, "Happy Mommer's Day, Mama!"...

...Going to church and hearing a poignant message...

...Having little boys bounce all over my head, sit on me, and kick me in the face while I wish I was sleeping in : )...

...Watching Drew discover that boys don't always have to wear a shirt...

...Enjoying the well thought out words of my brother-in-law to his mother...

...Enjoying a happy cry...

...Me, falling to the floor at the hand of a pickle slice...

...Watching the season finale of Survivor...

...Soaking up the heat of the day...

...Speaking with friends I haven't seen in years...

...Enjoying meals cooked by the hands of others...

...Watching Drew's reaction to Frog-eye salad...

...a bit of a scavenger hunt..

...that ended in a nice little surprise!...

...spending hours after the boys went to sleep looking through songs in i-Tunes...

...Keeping Beau away from the floor fan...

...Receiving a much needed neck rub...

...Realizing how blessed I am...

Eh, Again.

2006-05-12T17:54:00.000-06:00

I suppose I ought to post something of some sort this afternoon, well actually, early evening. The truth is that me and my whole family have been a little under the weather today. Runny noses, sore throats, sore bodies, no energy, and so on. I've been downing the echinacea so I kick it's butt before it kicks mine. I'm hoping this strategy, along with a ton of water works. Meanwhile, I'm being entertained by all of your blogs and so on...and dinkin' around with my own.

I know, I know, that post really leaves something to be desired. I promise a good one for next week when I'm feeling better. Hope you all have a fabulous illness free weekend. Oh and Happy Mother's Day to all you wonderful mommy-bloggers out there!

Happy Birthday Dad!

2006-05-11T13:09:00.000-06:00

It's my dad's birthday today!
Things I love about my dad:
1. He's one good lookin' Pa Pa.
2. He's one of the hardest and most diligent workers I know.
3. He's always put his family first.
4. He plays the guitar and sings very well.
5. He made it to almost all of my soccer games, (what little number there were of them, it still meant a lot to me.)
6. He was always very supportive of any endevor of ours.
7. He threatened to break some jerk's arm for me once. (That's kind of a funny story, I'll have to share sometime.)
8. He really loves my mom, and takes such good care of her.
9. He's got a quiet, but great sense of humor that will really take you by surprise.
10. He's very mellow.
11. He fell asleep in the car a lot when I was learning how to drive. (This was a GOOD thing.)
12. He used to scare us girls after we were put to bed with his evil laugh, you know, the "BWA HA HA HA HA HA!" We always thought that was fun.
13. He's a prayer warrior, and a spring of wisdom.
14. He's modest.
15. He can ski, snowboard, and telemark like nobody's business.
16. He loves his grandsons.
17. He's very sensible and down to earth.
18. He's a Star Trekkie.
19. He always shared his plumb candy with me on the ski lift.
20. He said "yes" when Kevin asked him if he could marry me. ; )
21. And so so much more...

I love you Dad, you really are the best of the best!

A Perfect Day in the Life of Me

2006-05-10T21:11:00.000-06:00

Well, I'd have to say that today was pretty close to a perfect day for me. I'm trying to relish every last moment of it, because they don't happen that often. Woke up this morning and chose to hold my temper with the kids which proved to improve my mood one hundred fold, (imagine that!) not to mention, the improvement in their behavior. (I knew those two things were connected...) Then I got to go to lunch, sans children, with a good friend of mine. Then we hung around at her place, where she helped me out with some new blog stuff. (Stay tuned for that, I'm really excited about it! Yay!) Then I drove the boys home. Nursed Beau to sleep and he actually stayed asleep. Then I thought it'd be a good idea to clean the bathrooms, so I started on them. Just as I was starting in, you know who started crying. I decided to finish at least the toilet, since I was knee deep in it already. I could hear Drew talking to him, and pretty soon, Drew came sauntering into the bathroom.
"Is Beau crying?" I asked him.
"Yeah," he said, "I give him his drink."
"Oh, did he stop crying then?"
"Uh huh."

So I decided to put in a movie for Drew and go check on Beau, sure enough he'd went right back to sleep. Just in case, you didn't notice: DREW PUT BEAU BACK TO SLEEP!

Then as if my kids were not already precious enough today, I came out from cleaning the rest of the bathroom and Drew was fast asleep on my bed. So cute! So I went on to clean the other bathroom, and then finish folding some laundry. (Some of you may wonder how these tasks possibly have part in the perfect day...accomplishing things like these just make me feel so on top of it...a rare thing...especially the bathrooms!)

Then hubby came home and actually genuinely wanted to know about my day...so naturally, I told him. Then it was off to pottery class where I finished up four mugs, and successfully threw a large bowl. (My arms are really going to hurt tomorrow though, that was a huge slab of clay!) Then I cam home, and nursed my little Beau right to sleep again, only with a little crying, and now I'm posting this here post...so that was my day. Not too shabby. Tomorrow it's off to celebrate my dad's birthday which I almost forgot! Happy birthday DAD! Love you!

Weekend Trip

2006-05-09T17:33:00.000-06:00

Well, last weekend was fun. The whole family trekked over the mountains to go see my MIL graduate from college. Congrats Mom Cherry! (Am I allowed to post a picture of you?) Afterwards, we headed up to the cabin for a graduation party and a family reunion of sorts. We all had fun jamming on instruments and singing songs together. Although, I mostly chased Beau around all day, being his "damage control."
Kevin and I stayed at my cousins house, and her kids have hamsters. (Do you see where this story is going?) So I picked one up, and naturally, Beau wanted to see the thing up close and personal. Before I knew what was happening, (he is lightening quick, I tell you) he was squeezing the tar out of the thing's rear end, and it promptly let out a scream like you've never heard a hamster scream before, and then it bit him. Beau didn't even cry. His face showed only a second of surprise, and then he was onto another thing. But boy did he bleed! We were a little concerned at first that the hamster might be carrying some sort of disease. After hearing that it had bit one of my cousins kids, and she wasn't walking around foaming at the mouth, we assumed he'd be just fine. We dissinfected him, bandaged him up and he was good to go.
The night we got there we headed over to a Tex/Mex restaurant where we became one family's source of entertainment for the evening. The first thing they said when we sat down was, "Where'd the blonde hair come from? The milkman?" Then they proceeded to laugh wholeheartedly as well when they watched Drew take the top off of a pepper shaker and dump half of it into our chips...

We had fun on the way home too. I slept most of the way, arguably the only sleep I got on the trip, ha ha. The best part was stopping at a DQ and getting everyone some cherry dipped cones.

Ariel at I Forgot How Many Weeks

2006-05-05T10:50:00.000-06:00

I think it's about time I posted another shot of her...
well here she is!

From the Mouth of Drew

2006-05-04T14:52:00.000-06:00

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!"

"That's not nice, honey. We don't say things like that to anyone, and especially not Beau. Beau is not stupid and you are not stupid. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"Where did you hear that anyways?"

"Rockymountainpbs.org."

(And I thought I was letting my children watch appropriate TV programming!)

...and on another note...

"Gawilla, gawilla, gawilla!"

"Drew, say Grrrrr!"

"Grrrrr!"

"Now say rilla."

"Rilla!"

"Say Grrrr-rilla!"

"Grrrrr-Willa!"

Happy Mother's Day...Wouldn't You Like to Be Paid What You're Worth?

2006-05-03T21:10:00.000-06:00

You may have already seen this if you read Peach and Pearl, but I just had to share it too. In fact this should be shown to every hard working mother. This is the validation that we have all wanted...

Ideas and Ways to be "Present" for your Kids

2006-05-03T12:14:00.000-06:00

There has been a discussion on better parenting going on over at Rattling Around. We have all been recalling ways to be more "present" for your children, and what we really mean by "present" is more available, more attentive, listening better, and focusing better on our children. Pezmama, listed ways to be more present with her children, so what follows is my list of ideas and ways to be more present with my children. The idea here is to share all of our ideas with one another in the hopes of just helping each other become better parents, so if you have any ideas to add, or would like to do a list on your own blog, please do, and let us know so we can check them out.

* Sacrifice time on the computer for time with your kids.
* Get down on the floor with them, wrestle, throw balls with them, play their games, teach them new games.
* Start conversations with them, ask them about their day, their likes and dislikes, etc.
* Don't tune them out, listen to what they're saying to you, treat them like what they have to say is important to you.
* Encourage them to help you with your projects.
* Be more patient, don't tap your foot when it takes them 10 minutes to put their left shoe on their right foot.
* When they're watching TV, watch with them, sit with your arms around them.
* Dance and sing with them.
* Get them involved in their own projects and help with them.
* Do something with them that they like to do.
* Go for walks together.
* Schedule better times to talk on the phone, or keep conversations to a minimum.
* Don't sweat the small stuff, don't worry about toys on the floor, or, ehem...spilled milk.
* When you're angry with them, whisper instead of yelling.

So that is what I've got so far, and I will be adding if I think of more. I know Pezmama and I would love to hear your ideas so fire away!

A Meme for Tuesday

2006-05-01T23:45:00.000-06:00

Alrighty, I have been tagged by GiBee, so without further ado...here goes....

I AM - happy, just because I actually FEEL happy for once.
I want - some brand new black shoes, and my youngest son to go to sleep.
I wish - that no one had to deal with illnesses on the earth.
I hate - movies that are just a big political agenda disquised as entertainment.
I miss - having a cat.
I hear - the washing machine, groovy music, and my son protesting his nap.
I wonder - if it is going to be nice and warm this week so I can wear some of my new summer clothes.
I regret - that I don't have enough energy to clean my bathrooms today. (But I REALLY don't.)
I am not - wearing any shoes.
I dance - better than I think I do.
I sing - less than I should.
I cry- at the sappiest, stupidest little things.
I am not always - an emotional time bomb.
I make with my hands - pottery, good food, drawings, knitting.
I write - like I talk, most of the time.
I confuse - Ethan Hawke with Christian Bale.
I need - to eat a snack.
I should - dust my tables and such.
I start - my car, the wash, exercising.
I finish - brownies, popcorn, my glass of water.
I need to tag - Allie, Jill, Mama C-ta, and Fuzzypeach

All's Well That Ends Well, Right?

2006-05-01T21:00:00.000-06:00

Today was too much of a stressful day for me. It started off with rushing around the house trying to make it to my chiropractor appointment on time (one of the only non-stressful events of my day.) In the rushing around, I never got a bite to eat, so by the time I got done with my appointment I was one hungry/grumpy/unstable mess. Just as I was leaving my appointment Drew decided to throw a fit right there in the office because I told him he couldn't have a cookie (after he'd already had who knows how many.) This really stressed me out because it is so hard to know what to do when you have to discipline your child in public. I really didn't want to brush this episode off because he has really been acting up lately. Fortunately, my sister is the secretary at the chiropractor's so I handed her Beau and took Drew outside so I could talk to him. Even after the "disciplinary action" he was still asking for the cookie and crying that he didn't get it because it was "his", and he wanted to ask Ariel if he could have it. I have such a hard time knowing what a three-year-old is capable of understanding. Sometimes he demonstrates understanding of things that blow me away, and other times I don't know if he just doesn't get it, or he's just being very defiant. So then we proceeded to finally eat lunch, and meet up with Kevin. Thank goodness for food or I would have melted onto the floor of our Suburban in frustration by that point. Then we proceeded to Sam's Club which really went just fine, except for the 2,678,000 things Drew asked for while we were there. I don't' think there is a way curb the asking for things unfortunately, but if any of you out there have any good solutions for that one, I'd love to hear them. Then it was across the street to Wal-Mart where I not only had to finish grocery shopping for myself, I had to get groceries for my grandmother as well. So I kept Drew out of the cart this time so I could easily separate my groceries from her groceries. Well, Drew whined the entire time, pulled and yanked the cart this way and that when he wanted to go towards something he wanted, put random things he wanted in the cart, and pitched fits several times when I told him he couldn't have things. We're talking screaming and jumping up and down here. Let me tell you, people, that I am one of those people who will shy away from any public attention even if it is good. Imagine my embarrassment, when my child is acting like a holy terror! In the midst of all this, my conscience starts kicking in, asking myself questions. "Why is he behaving like this?" "Is it my fault?" "Am I not giving him enough attention?" "Am I giving him the wrong kind of attention?" "What is the right kind of attention?" "What if it's already too late?" Fortunately, I found a job for him in the grocery cart: being the wall the separated our groceries from grandma's groceries. Finding something for him to help me with, helped to keep him out of trouble. Let's hope I remember that the next time he's having a day like this. While I'm in the grocery store, my grandmother, bless her heart, calls to tell me some other items she forgot on her grocery list. I was already 3/4 of the way done. And must I mention, Wal-Mart's ability to have everything in stock but the thing that I want. So then we dropped off the groceries with grandma and went home to cook dinner. Drew was just fine after this because he was, well, asleep.
I was in a hurry to cook dinner because I wanted to make sure Kev had something to eat before his recording session at 6. When he got home, to my relief, he told me it was cancelled, at which point I began to breath again. Then he went and decided to clean the toilets, because, and I am ashamed to admit it, but I haven't cleaned my bathrooms in at least a month. Aside from the laundry, the bathroom cleaning is one of the first things I would hire out to someone else if I could afford it. However, I still felt bad that he had to go clean them. I'm thankful I have a husband that is willing to do it, don't get me wrong, but there is still some part of me that feels guilty when my husband has to go clean the toilets. So Kevin cleaned the toilets, I made dinner and everything else went fine for the evening. No complaints. (Could I complain any more?) Now I'm just watching an incredibly depressing movie, but I'm keeping myself distracted by writing this. All I have to say, is it better end well.

Okay, Because it's Saturday, and I'm Bored Out of My Gourd

2006-04-29T17:37:00.000-06:00

Just so you know, these are not all true for me, but I can relate to OH so many of them. Oh, and I know lots of people who were actually born here...

You Know You're From Colorado When...

People move onto the highway at 15 miles an hour.

You have absolutely no recognizable accent.

If the humidity gets above 25%, you consider it "muggy".

You only go to Central City when friends are in from out of town.

You have been skiing less than 10 times in your life

You think 5-points is a ghetto.

You are the third car to run a red light after it has changed.

You say things like "I don't care how big Golden is,
it's still a one-horse town".

You think only stupid people get lost in your town.

When giving directions, you never say "Turn left, turn right", it's always go West, then South.

During a thunderstorm you wonder "which I-25 underpass is flooding".

You never plan a picnic between 3:30 and 6:00 in Spring or Summer months.

If it rains more than 2 days straight you compare the weather to being in Seattle.

You voted for higher taxes to fund Coors field, but voted down taxes for public transportation.

You have a broken windshield.

You see no reason to travel to Aurora.

The only RTD bus you've been on is the 16th Street shuttle.

You carry your $3,000 mountain bike on top of your $500 car.

You thought "Californication" would be banned by Amendment 2.

You think "South Park" is a place to stop for gas on your way to Buena Vista.

You have a business degree and are frying burgers at a McDonald's in Vail.

You have a flat tire in your refrigerator and your garage.

You own a big dog named Aspen, Buck, Cheyenne or Dakota that wears a bandanna.

You cast out your fishing line while white-water rafting.

You've never seen the tourist attractions in your own city.

You think a pass does not involve a football or a woman.

You are 82 years old and take up snowboarding.

Your real Y2K fear was running out of Celestial Seasonings tea and trail mix.

The entire top of your head is bald, but you still have a pony tail.

You personally wouldn't pay $10 per head to drive up Pikes Peak unless it was the only mountain on earth, but you tell all our house-guests to do it.

You get depressed after one day of foggy weather.

You think that formal wear is ironed denim.

North means "mountains to the left;" south is "mountains to the right;" and east and west are where all those damned liberals keep moving in from.

You go anywhere else on the planet and the air feels "sticky" and you notice the sky is no longer blue.

You consider a three-piece suit to be a pair of shorts, a sweatshirt and Birkenstocks.

You see your East Coast relatives now more than when you lived there.

You think gun control is a steady hand.

You can run up 10 flights of stairs without huffing and puffing.

You've stood on solid ground and looked down on an airplane in flight.

You know what the "Peoples Republic of Boulder" means.

You're a meat eating vegetarian.

You think the major food groups are Boulder Bars, tofu and Fat Tire Beer.

You've been tear gassed in a riot to celebrate your local sports team's victory.

You can drive over a 12,000 foot pass in 4 feet of snow, but can't get to work if there are 4 inches of snow.

You know the correct pronunciation of Buena Vista.

When you visit friends at sea level, you can drink a case of beer and not get a buzz.

Your car insurance costs more than your car.

You have surge protectors on every outlet.

April showers bring May blizzards.

You see someone riding a Harley in a snowstorm, and you look closer to see if it's anyone you know.

"Timberline" is someplace you have actually been. Many times.

You know what a "Chinook" is. You know what a "rocky mountain oyster" is. You know what a "fourteener" is. But you don't know what a "turn signal" is.

A bear on your front porch doesn't bother you nearly as much as a Democrat in Congress does.

Your golf bag has a 9-iron, a 3-wood and a lightning-rod.

People from other states breathe 5 times as often as you do.

Having a Senator named Nighthorse doesn't seem strange.

Thunder has set off your car alarm.

A sudden loss of cabin pressure is not a big deal.

"Where we're going, we don't need roads!"

You know where Doc Holliday's grave is.

You can recognize the license plates of all 50 states on sight.

Driving directions usually include 'Go over ____ Pass...'

You've used "checking for ticks" as an excuse to get someone naked.

You've gone skiing in July. You've gone sunbathing in January. They were both in the same year.

You get a certain feeling of satisfaction from knowing that California and Texas are both downstream

You know the elevation of a town, but not its population.

You never pack away your coat and sweaters.

You can name only two people you know who were actually born in Colorado.

You call tumbleweed "groundcover".

You love your Broncos, your Avs, your Rockies, Nuggets - well you can't have everything.

You or someone you know plays golf 12 months of the year.

You don't have AC in your home, but you use it in your car all winter long.

If it snows in the morning you expect it to be gone by lunchtime.

You can name the states that make up the Four Corners.

You know what and where the Continental Divide is.

You actually get these jokes and pass them on to other friends from Colorado.

Get Your Own "You Know You're From" Meme Here

More cool things for your blog at
Blogthings

My Sweeties

2006-04-28T10:08:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I plopped down on the chaise lounge and put my hands on my head.

"What's wong mommy?" asked Drew.

"I have a headache."

"Oh." and then he kissed my cheek to make me feel better and start rubbing my head with his tiny little hands.

Then Beau, who was struggling to get up on the lounge with us, finally made his way up. Seeing his big brother give mommy a kiss, he, in his toddler way, stumbled forward and gave me a kiss as well. He must have felt like he needed some practice, because he kissed me many times. (This is his first attempt at kisses, by the way.)

I love my little boys.

Pottery!

2006-04-25T14:00:00.000-06:00

After months and months of anticipation, I have finally completed another batch of pottery. I hope to be turning out peices on more of a regular basis. The more I do this, the more I enjoy it, and of course, there is always room for improvement. So without further ado, here are the photos:

The Drew Vase: made especially for Drew one night when he came to see what mommy does at pottery class.

The Butter Bell: also known as a French butter dish, I believe. Butter is placed into smaller "bell" and then water is put in larger container, keeping the butter smooth and spreadable, while keeping it fresh.

Top of the butter bell.

My Lopsided Purple Bowl: For sale: $15

Lovey-Dovey Mugs: For Sale: $20 for the set.

I Am From

2006-04-24T15:45:00.000-06:00

I am from lean-to chicken coops, from cheetos and Plum Candy, and Lip Trip to protect my lips from the wind as I snowboard down Sun King.

I am from the cozy little, one room with a loft, log cabin, nestled by the chilly resevoir.

I am from the aspen trees, the heart shaped leaves, fluttering and clapping in the breeze.

I am from ambling down unknown (by us) country roads, and fun-loving, from Summer and Dirty Al and Grandma Bunny.

I am from the eating dinner past eight p.m and laughing at bathroom talk at the table, and having belching contests with my two sisters.

From being told there were children somewhere else in the world that were starving while I refused to eat my ginger flavored veggie burrito, and "can't never could."

I am from the Bible Church, memorizing Psalm 100, having a puppet show for Sunday School, and singing the Music Machine. (Theres' no other gadget that you've ever seen.)

I'm from Colorado and California, from fried burritos, chips, salsa, and beer, and lush, colorful salads.

From the concert at the Vineyard, where my best friend told me about the drummer, and I noticed him checking me out, and he later became my husband, and from a mother and father who prayed for him when I was a little girl with pigtails.

I am from Grandpa Al's old chest, the drawers in the buffet table, my mother's knick knack cabinet, from the blood, sweat and tears of three days of labor, from being fought for, from being prayed for, from being happily given away.

I stole this inspiration from Faith. You can find the template here, should you decide to do it yourself. Let us know if you do, so we can read yours too.

A Crazy Week

2006-04-21T12:17:00.000-06:00

Well, this has been one crazy week. Let me give you a little update on everything. I decided not to continue teaching after last week. I really enjoyed teaching, and if anything, I know that I can do it now, however, after talking with my dear hubby, we both came to the same conclusion: we were dreading the next three weeks of me being gone. After talking with my mom about the job and so on, she decided she wouldn't be going back either. We both think it will be best for her to take a good chunk of time off and focus on herself, and my dad, and getting well. So I also thought it would be better for the kids if they have the same teacher for the rest of the year. I may go back to finish at least one project with the seventh graders though. They were really excited about the claymation project, and so was I, so I'd really like to be able to finish it with them.
It turned out to be a really good thing I decided to not continue the teaching thing, because (and unfortunately) it turned out that my mom was needed down here this week. My poor grandma needed her care after taking a spill last Friday night and spiral fracturing her pinky toe, chipping her ankle bone, possibly seperating a rib, and getting a bruise and bump the size of Manhattan on her fluffy white-headed noggin. Needless to say, this was pretty stressful for all involved (and let me say, the receptionist at the ER didn't make it any easier for us.) Yesterday, my body had apparently had enough of all my internalized stress, and forced me to lay down with a migraine.
Today I feel much better and much less stressed. My grandma is doing very well, and we will all be helping her out with what is beyond her reach. My mom is headed home to my dad. And I get to hang out with my best bud tonight and watch a chick flick.
All has been crazy, but all is well, and will be well, even if a little rain falls here and there. However, if next week even remotely begins to resemble the craziness of this week: I'm going on vacation!

The Easter Gorilla

2006-04-20T12:34:00.000-06:00

We asked Drew if he wanted the Easter bunny to bring him some candy and he said, "Uuuuh, how 'bout King Kong?"

Ariel at 19 Weeks

2006-04-17T17:46:00.000-06:00

Isn't she so cute! (I picked out this dress, by the way. Yes, I know I have good taste...ha ha ha)
The ultrasound went very well, the baby is healthy, and the baby is going to be a GIRL! Yeah!

Dear Beau,

2006-04-14T10:07:00.000-06:00

I cut your hair today. All your golden curls are now gone, and you look more like a little boy than ever. The only thing holding you back in babyhood world, are your gorgeous chubby cheeks. Those seem to be diminishing ever so slightly too. Your neck is getting longer, your mouth is getting full of teeth. Each day you learn a new word. As I sat and looked at your sleeping face today, lost in dreams of mama's warm milk, I missed seeing your beautiful curls on my arm. I did not want to cut them, but your father has mentioned it so many times, I thought it might be a good idea. Looking at the ratted mess on the back of your head this morning sealed the deal, and I got the clippers out. Now I'm cursing myself for ushering you into boyhood a bit too soon, just by clipping your hair. Watching you and Drew grow up is such a bittersweet thing. I wish I could keep you young forever, but I am excited to see what the future brings for each of you. What kind of things will you be passionate about? Who will you emulate? What will you look like? What will you become? Who will you marry?I promise you both, I will enjoy and relish every moment of your growing up, because it goes much too quickly.
I love you both so much. You have brought such light into my life.
Love,
Mama

I Survived Week One

2006-04-13T21:25:00.000-06:00

Well. I survived my first week of teaching! I think, by all comparisons to various teachers first weeks of teaching, mine went incredibly well. The students seemed to respond to me well for the most part. We didn't have any major behavioral issues, and I am learning quickly enough what is okay and not okay in the classroom and how to control the atmosphere in there. I can honestly say I really wish I had some teaching classes under my belt, like teaching techniques, and commanding your students respect and so on...but alas it is not to be at this point. At least I'm a quick learner. (I think.)
It was hard being away from my hubby for three days, (especially after being away for 11 days a week earlier!) and it was hard not to come home to my own little space if you know what I mean. I think I must be officially grown up now that my old home doesn't feel as much like home than my own house now...if that actually made any sense. It's just difficult to acclimate yourself and two infant children to a room in a house that serves as a guest room, and and office and a staging room of sorts, but anyways.
It has yet to be decided if I will go back next week. I suppose we will be "playing it by ear" for the whole month, as all of this rests on my mom's health/energy levels and so forth. So far, she is responding rather well to the medicine, Praise God! She is just VERY tired. I don't know about you, but I'd rather be tired than feel like I have the flu, so I'm thankful. Her dosage is upped this Friday, so pray that she doesn't acquire any side affects with the additional milligrams (or whatever they are.)
On the flip side, I'm kind of excited about some of my students and the projects we are doing. (See, I'm already calling them "MY" students.) My seventh graders consist of seven boys, and they are the funnest class. We are going to do a short clay-mation film. They are really jazzed about it, and just buzzing with ideas. So I'm really excited about that. I have to admit, I wanna stick around just to see that come to completion. If I do keep teaching them all, I will be taking a more hands-on approach and starting my own projects with them. It's much easier to teach them something that I've come up with, rather than trying to finish something my mom started with them.
Well, I wont bore you with any more of this drizzle. This was kind of a diarrhea of the mouth post for me, but it feels good to just let it all out.

Second Day and Fire Poop

2006-04-12T22:37:00.000-06:00

Okay, so the second day wasn't so bad either. I had the fifth graders and the second graders today, and they were a little more testy than the students yesterday, but overall no serious problems. I'm getting a little bit better about asserting myself as well, and expect more improvements in the near future. Tomorrow is the biggest day of the week, with four classes taking up the entire day. Then I drive back home to my hubby! Yay!
Let's hope that Beau doesn't wake up the whole house at three in the morning again, like he did last night. Poor little guy, was really upset and I couldn't get him to go back to sleep for anything. I was freaking out because I wanted to get some sleep and because I knew he was waking up everyone else in the house. After several minutes of crying, "Pfffffffrrrrrbbbbtttt!" Yeah, he pooped, and we were fine. I have this terrible addiction to Flamin' Hot Cheetos you see, and Beau likes them too, so last night we had a few. So when my mom said to my dad, at 3 in the morn- "What the heck is going on up there?!" My dad aptly replied, "Maybe he's having a flaming hot poo..." To some extent, I'd say he was right. But we got back to sleep, and we've had no cheetos tonight, so hopefully we be able to all sleep peacefully...

Tomorrow I get my highspeed internet back! Not to mention, my Mac......
Until then!

First Day of School

2006-04-11T23:54:00.000-06:00

Well today was my first day teaching, ever. And I have to say it didn't go too bad. I started out with the highschoolers, and ended with kindergartners. Talk about two different worlds! But so far it has been fun, and once I figure out how to command the kids attention, I think I'll be fine. I need to not worry about everyone liking me, and put my foot down on certain issues. I can really see how the little ones in particular will walk all over me if I don't show them I'm not a push-over. So...tomorrow I have fifth graders and second graders. I hear the second graders can be a bit of challenge sometimes...so we'll see. I DO think that having two rowdy boys, somehow helps qualify me for all of this, so I'm sure I'll be okay.

I'm staying with my mom for the three days I am working, as she lives much closer to the school than I do. Lets just put it this way, the school is a 50 minute drive from her house and I live and hour and fifteen minutes away from her...so naturally... All that to say, she lives out in the boonies and does not have high speed internet, so I apologize if I am unable to make it to your blog this week, or comment. Hope you are all having fabulous weeks!

Mrs. Sarah

2006-04-10T11:05:00.000-06:00

Well, it's official, folks. I will be teaching art to kindergartners through twelfth graders for three days a week for the next month. This is normally my mom's job, but she is taking a break to adjust to the medicine she will be taking to combat the MS. Fortunately, she is feeling well enough to be able to watch my boys, and I will take her job for her for the next month. This should be an interesting learning experience for both of us. Please keeps us both in your prayers as we embark on this journey together.

Ariel at I Forgot How Many Weeks

2006-04-07T17:22:00.000-06:00

She has an ultrasound on Monday...so hopefully we can see if it is a boy or a girl! Will keep you updated!

More Spring Break Shots

2006-04-07T16:57:00.000-06:00

Alright. Here are the last of the spring break pictures.

Beau asleep on the way down there. Just had to catch him with his arm around his hairy ball.

The boys at the start of the Science museum. I think Drew would have slept the entire time if we had let him. He fell asleep in the car and we transferred him to the stroller, then walked down the street past a construction zone where they were using a jack-hammer, ordered lunch, endured loud children, and he slept through it all. And no, the jack-hammer part is NOT and exaggeration. We woke him up, because this was mainly for his enjoyment, and I'm glad we did. He had a ball there and started crying when we had to leave.

They had an exhibit on robots, with a robot hall of fame. So Drew and I had to pose next to C-3PO, naturally. I was a little bummed they didn't have R2-D2 though...

And here's Drew's best smile outside of the museum on a picturesque rock we found. He is way more excited about the dinosaur egg that I bought him, which is what is in his hands.

Zippity ZOO Da

2006-04-06T20:05:00.000-06:00

Sorry for the barrage of zoo pics, that is where we took the majority of our pictures, for obvious reasons. The kids really had a blast there. It was fun to see their little minds absorbing all the new sensory information. One of the neatest things about this trip is that I know that both of my kids, Drew in particular, are smarter from all the new experiences they've had.

Drew, Hannah and Mom, and yes, we really were that close to the rhino, and that is all that was separating us from it. However someone did point out that "I don't think a rhino is going to JUMP over that."

Although, this picture does kind of look like she's getting ready to charge. (I assume it was a female, I really don't know...and I wasn't trying to find out. Hee hee)

Beau, totally conked out from all the running around.

Hannah and Drew on the train. I don't know if you can tell be the look on his face, but he is super excited to be on this thing.

The minute he saw he didn't stop talking about it until he got to ride on it. Later his daddy asked him what his favorite thing about the trip was, and he said, "I don't know...uh..the train. I go on a train!"

Momma and the Beau. There is actually some exotic bird in this picture too, but it is being blocked by my head.

The second of two carousel rides we took on the trip. The first one, was Drew's first carousel ride ever and I had the most fun, and such a "mommy moment" watching his face transform as we rode. At first he was just in awe of the thing, trying to decide if it was okay to smile or not, then he let the smile come out, and it was pure joy on his face. I couldn't contain myself, and started to cry...truth be told, there are tears in my eyes as I'm telling you right now. It was just one of those things... I know my explanation doesn't do it justice...but anyways...had to share.

"I like to move it, move it! I like to move it, move it. You like to? MOVE IT!" (Only those who have watched Madagascar will know what I'm talking about)

Auntie Hannah and the Beau...she doesn't look at all like me does she? This could totally be me, just with red hair...like four or five months ago...

Some lovely macaws (I think.) This was one of the times, actually this whole day at the zoo, I really wished I had my Nikon. It would have totally been worth lugging it around. It doesn't fit in my purse, but I had my camera out most of the time anyways, so it wouldn't have made a difference....but alas...the Kodak did just fine.

Feeding The Giraffes

2006-04-05T15:41:00.000-06:00

Okay, pardon me for making you wait to see ALL of the vacation pics...by just dispersing them a few at a time. But I must mention that not only does it take a week to prepare for a vacation, it takes a week to settle back in as well... Not to mention, doctors appointments and other things....inhale...exhale....

So without any further explanations...here are some shots of the giraffes we got to feed. Very interesting animals, with long slimy tongues. I couldn't help but shrug and shudder and say "eeewww!" after feeding it. Drew keeps on saying, "It looks like Melman." Ha ha ha.

Bouncy Slide Fun

2006-04-04T11:52:00.000-06:00

My sister and her husband own a bounce company, so they set up one of the bouncy slides for Drew and Beau on the last day. We all had a lot of fun on it. Drew went up and down that thing so many times he ended up with little scratches all over the place from scraping the velcro. He looked like he'd been in a fight with a kitten. Beau was absolutely fearless. He was laughing the whole time he was on the slide. He climbed up the ladder/stairs all by himself a couple of times.

Explanations.

2006-04-03T22:24:00.000-06:00

Well. Now that I am back I am really glad I had a little vacation. I didn't think about any of my weekly duties while I was gone, and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Many thanks to my mom, sister and brother-in-law and his sister and parents for helping me out with the boys last week, I felt like I got a break from the mom role as well. (My sister is blessed with wonderful in-laws, just like me!) I didn't realize how badly I needed a break and how much it would help, until I settled back into The Routine today. Talk about stress. However, I was able to handle things with a little more tolerance and patience because of my little break. So I'm glad I went, and I'm glad I'm back.

So, okay- I think a few things need some explanations.

No, the falling chair episode did not happen at Ikea (too bad, maybe we would've gotten something for free...just kidding...Really.) Beau was venturing through my sister's kitchen when he tripped and grabbed onto her chair to steady himself. Unfortunately the lightweight chair came tumbling down on top of him and hit his ear. It was pretty nasty looking. And I felt pretty bad it happened, even though I was just three steps away when it happened. It has gone through an array of colors now, ranging from dead to green and I'm sure yellow is just around the corner.

The same night of the chair incident, I got Beau out of bed to nurse, put him in the bed with me an promptly fell asleep. Beau, then woke up, stood up, and fell right off the bed...onto Drew. Needless to say, both started crying...and that is one account of my sleep deprivation. All other accounts are mainly due to staying up until the wee hours enjoying chatting with my sis.

Burst water lines? Two ornery dogs. Need I say more?

Tomorrow I will post some pics with some more highlights from the trip...Did I mention we actually got to feed a giraffe?

I'm Baaaaaaack!

2006-04-03T10:14:00.000-06:00

Hello! I am back now. I got here yesterday after two days of driving. And after a week in Phoenix, all I have to say is Brrrrrr, it's cold here! I can't write a whole lot right now, I need to take a shower and jet off to a much needed chiropractor appointment. I went to sleep with another searing headache last night, so I'm looking forward to an adjustment.

I will definitely be back today with pictures and details. Stay tuned!

Tales From the Crypt

2006-03-30T08:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, not really the crypt, but it does seem like I've been dead, doesn't it? I've been getting complaints about being gone too long,so I thought I'd let you all know what's up. What I forgot to tell you in my previous post is that I was going to be gone for a week, but it was going to take me a week to get ready as well. Ha ha ha. I'm sure you all understand...you know, clean the house, make sure hubby has food so he doesn't starve, pack gobs and gobs of clothing and unnecessary items for yourself and your toddlers, etc. etc. So I actually left for my vacation on last Thursday and took two days to arrive. I will be leaving to come back on Saturday and will arrive back home on Sunday. Fortunately, my sister has a computer which enables me to write this right here. I'm sorry you've all been feeling neglected...
...but I'm having fun! So far we've been to IKEA, Cirque Du Soleil, the Science Museum, several malls, and today we're going to the ZOO. This has just been one booked trip. We've also enjoyed, exploding ovaries, chairs falling on children, children falling on children, burst water lines, and a bit of sleep deprivation. I'm enjoying hanging with my sister, but I do miss my hubby a lot, and I am looking forward to coming back home. I hope to have some fun pictures for you all. I tried to take some at the Cirque Du Soleil last night, but I got busted...whoops! So that is all folks. I may check in again if I get the chance! Love, Sarah

Spring Break

2006-03-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

I'm headed off to hang with my sister over what I used to remember as Spring Break. I guess this is a bit of a break for me. While I wont be leaving the boys behind, I'll still have a lot of help and we'll be doing a ton of fun stuff. Yippee!! So anyways...if I'm not around much for the next week and a half that is why.
Hope you are all enjoying your breaks (if you're lucky enough to get one!)

Anniversary Date

2006-03-20T21:27:00.000-07:00

Kev and I had a fabulous sixth anniversary. We left the boys with Papa and Gramma Summer, and went snowboarding for the day. Seeing that neither of us have been working out for the last, well, six years, we were a little beat at the end of the day, but
we had a lot of fun none the less and really enjoyed our time alone together. I realized that I felt like a teenager again, following my hubby through the trees and gliding through the powder together. I also noticed that my hubby was trying to impress me flying off jumps and speeding past me. After sore calves and bruised ankles and feet (from ill-fitting boots, new ones next year!), we decided to call it a day for the boarding.
Then we headed off to one of our favorite restaurants, Juicy Lucy's. BEST.STEAKS.IN.THE.WORLD. We had the window seat and had fun watching various people walk by, and at one point were making faces at two little girls, who started it, of course!
Then we headed off to the Hot Springs Pool, to meet Gramma and Papa with the boys. A perfect cap to our perfect day. And since we were so exhausted, coupled with the soak in the pool, we slept rather nicely that night. Mmmmmmm. Good Day!

Happy Anniversary, My Love.

2006-03-17T11:09:00.000-07:00

Six years ago, tomorrow, we got married on a clear blue day. The sun was shining, but it was still rather chilly. We chose to get married in March so we could go snowboarding on our honeymoon during my spring break from college. Consequently, I failed one of my classes that semester- I was too busy planning the wedding and swooning over my soon to be husband. We did go snowboarding on our honeymoon, four days of snowy bliss. It still remains our most memorable trip to date. Those were the days. For snowboarding, I mean. Since then, the snowboarding has declined quite a bit, (being pregnant two winters is very inconvenient) but our love has grown stronger and deeper. We appreciate and understand each other better with each passing year. We have fought for and forged so much in our marriage. We really are one. I just don't feel like myself without you. You are my supporter, my motivational speaker, my soft shoulder to cry on, my rationality, my admirer, my can-do man, my masseuse, my swift kick in the rear, my best friend, the sharer of my dreams, my dreamer, my idea guy, my fix-it man, you are my stability, my goof-ball, my rockstar, my moody musician, my sensitive manly man, my dark and handsome, more than I ever dreamed, more than I need, more than I asked for. My life is so full, so blessed, so fun, so interesting, because of you. To the end of our days, my darling, I will love you, and I can't wait to hit the slopes with you tomorrow. Love, Sarah

Jung Test Results

2006-03-16T10:24:00.000-07:00

Some more fun with personality tests again, via the Bees Knees (I'm too lazy, link in sidebar). If you take it, let me know what your results are as well-if you want, that is.

ISFJ - "Conservator". Desires to be of service and to minister to individual needs - very loyal. 13.8% of total population.

Take Free Jung Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

ISFP - "Artist". Interested in the fine arts. Expression primarily through action or art form. The senses are keener than in other types. 8.8% of total population.

Take Free Jung Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Here is a link to further explain what these results mean.

Main type	Variant

Take Free Enneagram Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

Enneagram Test Results

Type 1	Perfectionism	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	56%
Type 2	Helpfulness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	60%
Type 3	Image Awareness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%
Type 4	Sensitivity	\|\|\|\|	16%
Type 5	Detachment	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%
Type 6	Anxiety	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%
Type 7	Adventurousness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	40%
Type 8	Aggressiveness	\|\|\|\|	13%
Type 9	Calmness	\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|\|	50%

Your main type is 2
Your variant is social

Take Free Enneagram Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

As far as these go, I'd say the ISFJ more accurately describes me, but the ISFP occasionally comes out, and is what I often wish I were, but anyway...

Eh.

2006-03-15T18:25:00.000-07:00

I was about to apologize to all of my readers for not having interesting enough posts, and then I thought, "what's not interesting about a one year old diving into his birthday cake?" Then I thought, well I just don't feel like my life has been very interesting lately. I've been having a hard time coming up with things to post. But then I realized that my life isn't boring either. I've just haven't wrote about what has been going on because it's sensitive, and I don't want to sound like a whiner either. I think I just need to get some things off my chest and be done with it. Truth be told, I've been having a pretty rough two weeks or months depending on how you look at it. I've been feeling rather depressed and I'm not sure what is the main cause, or if there even is one, but I can pinpoint a bunch of little triggers. Like the fact that I had two migraines last week and several lesser headaches between. I haven't been sleeping well because I've had really active dreams, you know the kind where you wake up in a bad mood because of what happens in them. However, I can't remember what any of them was about (which is probably a good thing.) I've had a lot of mental anguish, which I probably could write a whole post about by itself. Things in my life are changing, some good, some not so much. I know that sometimes changes, even good ones, can bring about anxiety. The whether has been super crappy. After what I thought was going to be spring, we had a real snowy week. I was happy about spring coming and then I was stuck indoors without much sunlight all last week. So I've been down in the dumps a bit, but I'm feeling a little better just letting it all out. I have to say that my husband has been an incredible support through all of this-he's been letting me cry on his shoulder and letting me talk it all out which is really what I've needed. My life really is good and I have a million and one things to be thankful for and I know I just need to focus on those instead of the bad. It's just hard sometimes. So that is all. I know things are going to get better and I'm not going to stay in this place. Adapting and adjusting are just parts of life.

Dirty Laundry Day

2006-03-14T21:17:00.000-07:00

A little about me:

I found this via The Bee's Knees. A quite accurate personality quiz. Check it out.

Global Personality Test Results

Stability (56%) moderately high which suggests you are relaxed, calm, secure, and optimistic.
Orderliness (53%) medium which suggests you are moderately organized, hard working, and reliable while still remaining flexible, efficient, and fun.
Extraversion (26%) low which suggests you are very reclusive, quiet, unassertive, and secretive.

Take Free Global Personality Test
personality tests by similarminds.com

First Birthday Cake

2006-03-13T16:45:00.000-07:00

Dear Beau,

2006-03-08T20:49:00.000-07:00

Happy First birthday little dude! I cannot believe you are already one. I'm so excited to see what the future brings, but a little sad that you're technically not a baby any more. You will always be my baby though.
I think I've already told your birth story, it was basically my first entry on this blog, but here it is:

"Okay, so here goes my first blog.
First I'm going to put down my sleeping infant son, so I can type better.
Anyways, so lets start by talking about the insanity of my life at this point in time. It all started a little over a month ago, when I was two weeks overdue with my second son. I don't understand what happened- my first son was only four days late and came out all on his own. They had to induce me to get the second out. And let me just say that the second labor, though a lot shorter than the first, was lot more intense and hurt a lot more. I must have scared every yet to deliver mother on the floor, because you could hear me yelling all the way down the hall!

Funny story: During this whole ordeal- I was in the jacuzzi ( for pain management) when the contractions hit really hard and I started to basically yell to help myself deal with the pain. My sister was down the hall and looked at my mom and said, "Is that Sarah?" My mom listened closer and confirmed that yes it was me. She also happened to catch a maintenance man who was outside the jacuzzi door, he commented and said, "Sounds like someone's having some fun in there, " and my mom looked at him and said, "No, someone had some fun."

Anyways, my son came out in fine form, is perfectly healthy and kind of a chunk. He gained 2 pounds in the first two weeks!"

So that is my glimpse into the past and here's me glimpsing at my newborn with my grandma. I can't believe how much you've changed. You weren't ever that small, were you ? And you still like sleeping next to mommy best. Momma likes it when you sleep next her too, even if she is wearing dorky glasses.So wave goodbye to your infancy, as we trek forward together in this new year of milestones and beginnings. Happy Birthday little man!

Ariel at 15 Weeks

2006-03-07T12:38:00.000-07:00

Okay, okay, now does she actually look sort of preggers? I think so...

That is AWESOME!

2006-03-07T12:03:00.000-07:00

Exciting news! Drew completed his sticker chart, so he was able to get his big reward which was a (Gasp!) Storm Trooper gun. Needless to say, he was thrilled about it and is now very excited about going potty. And of course, much to my dismay, the Storm Trooper gun, that has lovely sound effects, comes everywhere with us. But hey, our little guy is getting it, and that is worth the constant barrage of phaser noises (I think.) However, with such knowledge, sometimes comes consequences...
Last night at about 2 in the morning, our little potty trainer came bursting into our room,
"Da," he says in a loud and excited whisper, "Da, I go poop!"
A startled and sleepy Kevin finally came to, "Wha...wha...what?" Thinking that this could possibly be a disaster.
"DA! I GO POOP! I GO POOP IN THE POTTY!"
Kevin looked down to see a bottomless Drew almost jumping up and down with excitement. He slithered out of bed and rubbed his groggy eyes as he followed Drew down the hall to the lit bathroom. Sure enough, there was a big poopy in the potty.
"See DA, I go POOP! I get a Storm Trooper!" says an exuberant Drew, no doubt expecting to jump in the car with his Dad and go right down to the store to get his toy. Poor Kevin was caught between bewilderment at being wakened this way, being proud of his advancing son and the task at hand: getting the excited three year old wiped up and calmed enough to go back to bed.

Tootin' My Horn

2006-03-06T15:58:00.000-07:00

I am totally Wonder Woman. Today I woke up and got a migraine in about 30 minutes. I get the type of migraines that come with a twenty minute visual warning: I see this weird flashy aura and it totally messes up my vision, and twenty minutes later the headache sets in. So this morning when that happened, instead of freaking out, like I have in the past, I just calmly got as much done as I could in the next twenty minutes so I could take care of my kids and my husband wouldn't have to come home and bail me out. I finished feeding them breakfast, I ate breakfast and drank a whole glass of water, I cleaned up their trays, cleaned up my mess, put dinner in the crock pot, drew myself a bath, set the kids up with a movie and some toys, set myself up with the phone and some water and the remotes, and took two Excedrin Migraine. Then the migraine hit and I got into the tub, which was not warm enough, so I crawled into bed and toughed it out with the kids, even nursed Beau. Three hours later, I was feeling much better. So the Excedrin worked. It has caffeine in it though, so if you like to beat your headaches by sleeping, I don't recommend it. (Which is what I normally would do.) So now I feel pretty good considering... I thought about actually going to the grocery store, but I'm happy with the status of Wonder Woman I've already gained today, thank you very much.

I SO Called This One

2006-03-06T15:47:00.000-07:00

With my hubby as my only witness, last night while watching the Oscars I said, "that dress is terrible, it is soooo going to be on Go Fug Yourself tomorrow". By the way, if you like laughing at celebrity fashion disasters, this is a site you should add to your bookmarks, it makes me laugh on a regular basis...

Can I Wear These?

2006-03-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

Tryin' on momma's shoes...

Photo of the Day

2006-03-02T16:26:00.000-07:00

...and please try to ignore the fact that I desperately need to touch up my roots...

Can You Tell What's Happened Here?

2006-03-02T14:39:00.000-07:00

This is what happens when you let your son have free reign over the bathroom, just so you can have a sob-free moment to put on your make-up.

Potty Training Manual (or What worked fer Us)

2006-03-01T11:05:00.000-07:00

I'm so proud of my little boy! And I hope that I'm not speaking too soon here, but Drew has made leaps and bounds in the potty training department. We've spear headed the whole issue here in the last month, meaning mommy just got tough and trained herself, and we've had a lot of progress. Today, while I was on the phone (yes, there is significance in that) he ran to the bathroom all by himself, got right up on the toilet and went pee! Yeah! Just in case your curious, this is what we've been doing. The first couple of days I let him go sans diaper or pull-up, just undies. As you might imagine, we had a lot of wet undies and pants, and he had to take them off and deal with them himself. If there was a puddle, he had to clean it up. I was getting a little wiser too, so I started setting the timer every half hour and taking himto the bathroom when it went off. In the bathroom, he was allowed to get off the potty after he went pee or poo (this seemed to be pivotal step.) Once he did go, not only was he really pleased with himself, but so was I, and I made sure he knew it! That was another important thing, I made sure I was positive and encouraging about every issue here. When he wet his pants, I was calm and just explained that he could avoid this if he'd go in the toilet. When he wanted to get off the potty (not having gone yet,) I'd just say, "You CAN get off, after you go pee." instead of "you CAN'T get off until you go pee." We also have a rewards system. He gets a sticker on his sticker chart every time he goes, and once it is full, he gets a big present. To encourage pooping, he gets a little football helmet everytime he goes on the potty. So far this method has really been working for us. Thank the Lord, because I was about to lose my mind.

He's not perfect yet, but he's getting it!

The Love and Respect Marriage Conference

2006-02-27T21:08:00.000-07:00

Okay. So there is so much to share about this conference I really don't know where to begin. Let me just start by saying that it was an awesome conference and if you can make it, you should totally fork out the cash and go. It will probably be one of the best things you'll ever do for your marriage. Also, it doesn't matter what state your marriage is in, whether it's never been better or could really use some help, this conference is for any marriage. Basically, Dr. Emerson Eggerichs has taken the verse in Ephesians 5:33 "However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband," and made a mantra for marriage out of it. You know those fights you get into with your spouse where whatever you were arguing about to begin with, turns into something totally different, obviously deep seeded and previously unresolved? Well, the idea is that the wife is crying out for and needs love and so she begins to respond to her husband without respect, and vice versa, the husband needs and wants respect, so he responds to his wife without love. Women have a deep need to be loved and nurtured and men have a deep need to be respected. And so you can see, and as Dr. Eggerichs labeled it, this "crazy cycle" begins where you just go back and forth until one of you gets what you need. And once you realize that you are in the "crazy cycle", one of you, whoever is the most mature *wink, wink*, needs to set aside their needs for a moment and apologize and begin to respond with love/respect. That was a fraction of what the conference covered, but kind of one of the foundations that was built on. He also adressed the differences between men and women, (because for some reason, some people think we are the same, but if you've been around for any length of time you KNOW, that just isn't true) and one thing he kept on saying that I really liked was, that doing/thinking things a mans way or doing/thinking things a womans way isn't wrong, just different. So we were encouraged and given examples of ways to begin relating to our spouse in their own language. For men, examples of how to treat them respectfully, and for women, examples for how to treat them lovingly.

I know all of this may sound simple (that is if I've done it any justice in explaining it, I apologize if I've confused you), and it is simple, but it isn't at the same time. I was really struck by my lack of understand for how the male brain works. I really thought I understood how they worked, but I really don't. Now that I've gone to this conference, I feel like I have a better tool for understanding and communicating with my husband.

I would share more with all of you, but frankly there is way too much to cover (and that could be a bit boring coming from me too). Just know that I highly recommend this conference. If you can't go, I recommend the books. I know my hubby and I wished that every married couple we knew could go. So if you have a chance, and the health of your marriage is important to you, check it out, you'll be happy you did. (The link is the post below.)

Love and Respect

2006-02-24T17:20:00.000-07:00

I am supposed to be getting ready right now, but I'm not, basically because the baby just had a meltdown. He is now sitting on my lap watching the words appear as I type them. Anyways, my parents are coming down to watch the boys tonight and tomorrow so my hubby and I can go to this. I'm really excited about it and hope I have some good stuff to share with you on Monday. Have a good weekend y'all!

Da Da Da, Da da-da, Da da-da!!!!

2006-02-22T21:54:00.000-07:00

I can't think of anything interesting to write, people, my head hurts too much. You know those lymphnodes that are under your ears and they swell up when fighting sickness? Yeah, they're at work on me right now. So anyways...not going to bore you with mindnumbing drivel. Off to find a picture or two to share. When in doubt of what to say-find a picture!

Long long ago in a galaxy far far away, there was no mistaking children of Jedi Masters...

...and Darth Vader had a hard time seeing out of his helmet...(sorry this pic is a little fuzzy.)

Ariel at 13 Weeks

2006-02-21T22:51:00.000-07:00

Okay, so to the best of my abilities and along with my sister, I am going to try and post a weekly picture of her belly development. This is mostly for our sister, Hannah's, benefit, but I thought there are many of you out there who might enjoy watching the progression yourselves. So here we go, she is just about thirteen weeks along, due September 2, having an enviable pregnancy so far, and looking luscious as always.

Ariel and her Pea Pod.

Things to Meditate On, Things to Make You Laugh, Things to Enjoy

2006-02-20T15:23:00.000-07:00

Thought I'd like to let ruminate for a while: Having young kids is really a great thing, and I should try to enjoy it as much as possible. Because you know all those years that I remember from being a kid so fondly, and wish I could relive or at least remember a little clearer ? I can really enjoy those again through my kids. I'm so thankful God chose me to be a mother. How blessed am I ?

How my husband captured this look is beyond me, but dern if isn't funny!

Training him to be a future gold medalist in the half-pipe.

I just love the innocent look...

Too bad you can't do the splits on a snowboard.

For those of you who doubted that Drew looked like his daddy.

Goin' for a drive.

For My Mom

2006-02-17T15:33:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, I made this post, and if you read it, you may have wondered what I might be talking about. What is 'disappointing' and 'catastrophic'?
So here goes-last month my precious mother whom I am so close with and adore so much was diagnosed with MS. I apologize in advance if this post comes out a bit funny. This is difficult and weird for me to try and write about, but for my mom's sake and my family's sake, I just wanted to make sure this situation was represented in the right light.
First of all, to those of you who know and have offered your prayers and support and any other help, THANK YOU! We really appreciate you and are glad to have you on board with us while we face this thing head on. To those of you who are just finding out, we hope finding out in this venue isn't offensive to you. One of the most difficult things about this has been telling people.
As for my mom, she is a fighter. She isn't going to let this thing have her. How is she fighting? She is educating herself on the disease and treatment options, and seeing an MS specialist. (And if you choose to do some research on the disease, she asks that you seek info from the National MS Society, since it is the most accurate and up to date.) She is staying active, snowboarding, and teaching. She is eating healthy (has been, for a long time!) She is laughing and making good use of humor. She will be starting a drug therapy soon, that should halt any progression of the disease, if it works. So right now we are praying that it works! Which brings me to the spiritual side of this. We are keeping our eyes on God. When we begin to look astray and focus on the disease and what may or may not happen, just like Peter, we start to sink. We are praying vigilantly, and invite you to do the same. Yes, we believe that God can heal Mom and are even praying that He will, but at this moment, it is still present in her body and we are going to confront it where it's at and hopefully nip in the bud by going forth with the drug therapy.
And at this point, that is where it all stands. Any encouragement, prayers, accurate and helpful information, are welcome. Just know that my mom and our family with her, are fully dependent on God. He is our strength. He is our answer. Not only do we know He is in control, but we are aware of it and grateful.

More Encouragement

2006-02-16T22:53:00.000-07:00

I get daily emails from the MOPS website, and this was today's and I thought I would share it with you in light of this post. You know, even if you can't devote a whole hour or two for a nice substantial quiet time (in my idealistic, but impractical world), something is better than nothing. So without further ado...

Time For God
There was time for dating, getting married, and having a baby. Now, there is a renewed desire to have time for God.
Many of the moms I've met through MOPS seek out Christianity when they become mothers. Some are returning to their roots; others want a new perspective on life as they parent. All can find hope and guidance in the teachings of Christ as they take time to learn who he is and what he can teach us about himself. Robert D. Foster wrote a tiny booklet many years ago called Seven Minutes with God. In it, he outlines how a regular person like you or me can begin talking to God with just seven minutes of our day. Sometimes that's all a mother has without an interruption! Where can you find seven minutes?

-When you first wake up
-After a shower
-While you dry your hair
-In the car after you drop off your child at preschool
-While you are walking or jogging or riding your bike
-When you are feeding your baby late at night
-At the beginning of naptime
Once you find seven minutes, Robert Foster suggests thirty seconds to clear your mind of all the responsibilities and worries calling you, four minutes to read the Bible, and two and a half minutes to pray. Whatever amount of time you have to spend with God, he will bless you with rest, hope and courage to face whatever mommy challenges you may face that day. Twinkle and shine this month as you enjoy each new day God has given you.
From www.MOPS.org.

Dear Beau,

2006-02-15T23:01:00.000-07:00

It's the 15th and I was supposed to write a letter to you on the 8th! Whoops!
Well, little buddy, I can't believe you are going to be a year old in just a few short weeks. Your looks are beginning to change and some of your baby fat is melting away. You're slowly becoming a toddler and will no longer be my little baby. I hope you always are a cuddler though. If you always want to cuddle with me, I think I will get over the fact that you are growing up. Lets see, milestones this month: you're getting your 5th tooth. This one has been a doozy I believe (I hope it's the tooth and not your ears) A couple days ago you were so clingy I was thinking of renaming you 'Velcro'. Having you not take to teething so well still throws me for a loop, because Drew was so easy in that respect. Now I understand what all the parents were groaning about when they explained that their child was teething. So hurry up and sprout them things out, no need to prolong this pain for either us, K? Can you do that fer me? And you're progressing a little more with eating solid food. I discovered that you like pizza for instance. I'm still nursing you primarily and letting you go at your own pace with the solids. You are such a headstrong little guy, you don't want me putting a spoon to your mouth anyways. You have also become a professional and industrious climber this month. If it can be climbed, you are there. Today you discover how to turn the laundry basket over and climb on top of it to get things previously out of your reach. Yes, ladies and gents, I am in trouble! Which brings me to my next point, a redundant one at that, you have developed an independent and determination streak matched only by your father. I don't' really know what else to say about that except that I have my work cut out for me. (At least I know it!) We also finally moved you into your own room this month. Glorious and heavenly sleep has returned to me, only to wake up in the morning with rock boobs...but hey, you can't have it ALL! I knew you'd start sleeping through the night if you were in your own room and I was right, there has been a rare few nights that you have woke up crying to eat, which is fine by me because I still enjoy having your chubby little body asleep next to mine. You have also developed this comforting little habit of caressing my side with your soft little baby hands while you nurse. How did I get so lucky? My child massages me while he nurses! And today I gave you your first haircut. The mop was getting a little long on top, so I took the clipper to ya. You handled it like a pro. I tried to save most of your cute little curls in the back which I think are absolutely adorable. Your father has threatened to cut them off.I told him if he did, I'd cut him off, ehem. Bonus: your brother saw how unaffected you were by the clippers and let my buzz his head too! Thanks buddy! You are learning to speak this month as well, with your hands! I decided to try the whole sign language thing. And though I admittedly don't know what I'm really doing, whatever it is that I'm teaching you, you are certainly picking up. The first sign I taught you was for milk and you picked up almost instantaneously. I was amazed. I figured it would take you a lot longer. But if there is one thing I have learned from growing up and from being a parent, is that parents tend to underestimate what their kids are capable of. So I know if I keep it up, pretty soon you are gonna be out-communicating me with your hands. I chose to teach you American Sign Language, so you are basically going to be bi-lingual. You can thank me later. (Once I teach the sign.) Did I mention last month that you are walking like a pro? As if it wasn't obvious with my earlier mention of your climbing feats...
Well, I love you buddy. I hope you know that, and I'm sure you do, every time I try to eat your cheeks whole. My mom always called my sister Hannah, her second child, her Sunshine, and I think I finally understand that. You are my Sunshine too! Keep on smiling, babe!
Love, Momma

Sisterly Visit Review

2006-02-14T23:10:00.000-07:00

Ok, so for once, I'm going to actually do what I said I was going to, abeit late, but I'm doing it: talking about my busy week a few weeks ago when family was visiting. My sister Hannah graced us with her presence for a week. It was so nice to see her, since it had been six months. I do have to say though, that we missed her hubby Darin who was unable to come this time do to work. Next time dude! (Hopefully, like, in March, right?)
I am such a family person. My closest relationships are with my mom and my sisters (besides my hubby of course!) When we are all together are some of the happiest times in my life. I look forward to the day when my sister and her hubby move back here and hang with us all more often...either that, or we begin to make enough money to afford to fly out to see each other on a monthly basis. Ha ha! Anyways, here are some of the more lovely shots of her visit. Enjoy.

Now you know where Beau gets the red hair from. He could totally be Hannah's son.

Drew and Hannah lovin' on each other.

My two beautiful sisters, and that is MY son, I repeat...despite appearances, he belongs to me. Thank you very much.

Can't resist, he's just so cute!

No...we're not related or anything... (Mom standing behind us.)
Checking out, gasp! blogs all together. Please ignore the fact that it looks like we've all been sitting in front of the computer for hours on end...oh wait...we have.

A Bit of Encouragement from MY Mom

2006-02-13T10:35:00.000-07:00

My mom called the other day because she had something special she wanted to share with me: she read me this passage from a book she is reading because she thought it might be encouraging to me as a mother and a Christian. I had her type it up and send it to me so I could share it with the rest of you.

From "The Life You've Always Wanted" By John Ortberg

"Wise training will take into account our season of life. There is more good news that our season of life is not a barrier to spiritual growth. A mother in our small group suggested that it was easier for her to ''work on her spiritual life'' before she became a mom. As we talked it became clear what she meant. To her, reading the Bible and praying were the only two activities that counted spiritually. As a mother she felt that ''time alone'' was an oxymoron. In this the church had failed her. She had never been taught to see that caring for two young boys, offered daily with expressions of gratitude and prayers for help, and patient acceptance of trials, might become a kind of school for transformation into powerful servanthood beyond anything she had ever known. Somehow having a ''quiet time'' COUNTED toward spiritual devotion, and caring for two young boys did not. It took creative effort for this young mother to carve out time for solitude and stillness, and even then she could not free up the amount of time she had in college. But as a mother she had new opportunities for growth she did not have back then. OUR SEASON OF LIFE ---- WHATEVER IT IS----- IS NO BARRIER TO HAVING CHRIST FORMED IN US. NOT IN THE LEAST ! "

I was really encouraged by this. I have never thought of my time spent being a mother as spiritual training grounds for the future, let alone counting toward my spiritual growth. I am constantly beating myself up because I didn't have the time to sit down and read my Bible, thinking I was falling that much more behind in my spiritual growth. I feel a renewed sense of freedom with this bit of knowledge that has been passed on to me. I will certainly keep trying to make time for reading my Bible, because that is always important, but I'm not going to feel guilty for missing. I know God is using my everyday experiences to teach me. I will look at motherhood with a bit of a different spiritual perspective, and each time I encounter a fussy child or an intensely smelly poopy diaper, I will know that somehow, through this, God is making me a better, more equipped person, so that when I am finished with the job of raising my kids, I will be fully trained and ready for the next calling God has on my life.

Warning: The Following Post Contains References to Flatulence

2006-02-10T10:50:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I've been reading most of you peoples blogs instead of posting on my own...
Feeling much better thank you, to all of you for your hugs and prayers and well wishes. I still don't know what I had, but I think it may have been a bit of food poisoning...via some lettuce that was supposed to be triple washed...but probably got contaminated after the fact (or didn't really get washed 3 times.) So anyways...out with the lettuce, and we're being careful with anything else we prepare these days too. Not that we weren't before, we're just overly careful now...or extra..extra's not bad when you've been puking and don't want to do that again for well...ever...I don't ever want to do that again. But anyways, it's Friday and I was inspired by Na Uh! Ya Huh! and decided to share one of my own, majorly embarrassing moments.

So it was Christmas 2004, I was 8 months pregnant. We had steak for dinner. And all of us, meaning, my family, and my in-laws were playing Balderdash together around the table. Being that I was pregnant, and that we had a significant amount of protein for dinner, I became a little gassy. (If you are, or have been pregnant, you can vouch for the extra gassiness, thank you very much!) So I'm sitting there trying to let out a little flatulence, slowly, so it wont be loud and embarrassing. Fortunately it wasn't stinky so the noise would have been all you would have noticed had I let it rip. It comes out quietly, but still making an audible noise, if not identifiable. To my horror, my husband looks up at my mother and says, "What was that?" And my sister interjects and says, "Sounds like someone was trying really hard to hold in a fart but it squeaked out anyways." There must have been guilt all over my face because my husband then asked me if it was me, to which I lied, "NO!" Then my mom and he were worried that it was the dog in the back yard and were about to go check on her, and I, who cannot tell a lie (for very long anyways) said, "Okay, fine, it was me!!!" At this point I am burying my head in shame and Kev asks, "Really?" and noticing my state, says, "It must have been, because look at how red you are turning!" Then everyone pretty much erupts in laughter. I could not look at my FIL, because I was SO embarrassed. Somehow, having him be a witness to all of this made it much more embarrassing... So there you have it, my most embarrassing moment to date, probably, and I wasn't even in a whole crowd of people I didn't know. Just goes to show you what a pregger mind (and body) can do to you.

Anyways...hope I made ya laugh today : )

Ug.

2006-02-08T22:22:00.000-07:00

Oh dear. This has been one of those weeks...and its only Wednesday. Yesterday I was pretty sick with something...I'm not quite sure what, but I'm scared to eat some of the leftovers in my fridge. So today, I have just been wiped out, recovering from yesterday. I've actually gotten things done today, believe it or not. I've just been in the same pajamas for 48 hours. So here's to a feeling better rest of the week.

Strange Happenings in the Ladies Bathroom at Wal-Mart

2006-02-06T10:18:00.000-07:00

So while we were in Wal-Mart this Saturday (yes I know I am crazy) Drew asked to go to the bathroom. Not one to hinder any progress at all in the potty training department, I agreed and left Beau with Kevin while Drew and I headed for the ladies bathroom. So I sit him on the toilet (with a seat protector, of course!) and we are just kind of sitting there waiting for things to happen. Then the toilet, which is the self-flushing kind, starts to flush, and I look at Drew to see how he is going to react, expecting at least for him to freak out a bit. His eyes get really big, and I know he is a little scared, but he looks at me and can see the laughter in my eyes. The toilet finishes flushing and he exclaims loudly, (everyone inside and outside the bathroom could hear, I'm sure), "THAT'S NOT VERY NICE!!!" Then I explain that it was just flushing and that it flushes all by itself. Then, the toilet flushes again, and we both start to laugh. Drew is really thinking this is pretty funny, and I haven't heard him squeal like this in quite some time, or ever, maybe. And the toilet flushes again. And we laugh even harder. At this point, I swear that somebody is watching us and controlling the toilet flushing, because it started flushing one right after the other and Drew's laughter kept getting louder and higher pitched with each flush. I was trying to quiet him down, but couldn't contain my own laughter, so nothing was helping. Finally, the flushing stopped and Drew decided he was finished (dropping no kids off at the pool, mind you.) So he hopped down and we finished our strange, but funny little excursion to the Wal-Mart bathroom.

I Am Not Dead

2006-02-02T11:18:00.000-07:00

Just have family visiting this week, so I've been a little too busy to blog. I'll have lots of pics and fun stuff to post soon. I promise!

Drew's Birth Story

2006-01-30T15:35:00.000-07:00

Since I didn't have this blog three years ago...I thought it only fair to share his birth story on his birthday. For posterity.

If I remember correctly, it was a Wednesday that I went into labor. It all started out pretty normal. I woke up, was feeling kind of funny and then I lost my plug. Then the contractions started in. They didn't hurt, but they were very regular, but not long enough or often enough to go to the hospital yet. We called my sister, who had an anytime ticket to get here in order to be here for the birth. (She was studying to be a labor and delivery nurse at the time, and has plans to be a midwife.) So Hannah was on her way. Meanwhile, my mom and I made ourselves busy, but not too much, didn't want to tire myself out. I remember going to the college, because I was still enrolled, and would be graduating in three months, and talking to one of my art professors and a few fellow students. We were pretty sure I was in labor, so we were telling everyone. Now, knowing that I actually was in labor, makes me wonder how I ever went anywhere...but I expected it to be a long time so.... (My mom labored with me for three whole days, so who knew how long it would take.) Then we went to the airport to pick up Hannah, and by that time the contractions were a little closer together, but not still not enough to go the hospital yet. I was just waiting for that five minute apart point. Kevin was at home having a recording session, so Mom and Hannah and I went to the Olive Garden for dinner, and dragged my Grandma along. I was acquainted with our waitress, so we told her I was in labor, and after recommending the eggplant Parmesan, to help out the labor, she told us all about her birth story. (And after that, I wasn't so sure I wanted to be in labor any more...but I digress.) So...I had the eggplant Parmesan. Meanwhile, the contractions are still getting stronger and coming faster. So we go home, and hubby finishes his recording session. At about nine or ten p.m. I have my first noticeably painful contraction. Mom and Hannah go to Grandma's house for the night, and Kevin and I decide to take a walk to encourage things along. Sure enough, the contractions keep coming. Still regular intervals. Getting stronger. Still waiting for the five minutes apart mark. We walk home and I hop in the shower, yet again to encourage the labor. We crawl in bed and I'm too excited to sleep, but know that it would benefit me, so I try. I don't know how much I really slept, but I kept my eyes closed until each contraction, when I would look at the clock to see how far apart they were. They were really starting to hurt at this point, and I had started my breathing techniques through them. At about two o'clock, they were pretty strong and definitely close enough together to call the midwife. So we did, and she said to head up to the hospital and she would meet us there. We get up to the hospital and I am happy to see my best friend, Mel, who is the secretary up in labor and delivery. And I'm sure she is excited to see me there too. So we get all checked in, yadda, yadda, you know how it goes. And they check me, and I'm only at a two. Yippee skippee. My labor was progressing just fine, so they gave me the option to stay, but I wanted to try and sleep so we went back home. Some how I made it through the night, with the contractions getting stronger and stronger. In the morning they were to the pretty painful stage. I was hungry, so I tried to eat a few saltines. I wanted to labor as much as possible at home, so we held out as long as we could. I wanted to get in the bathtub to help out with the pain a little bit and I had to crawl to get there, the contractions hurt so bad. Finally, at about 11:30 a.m. I couldn't stand it any longer and said we need to go to the hospital now. We called Mom and Hannah, and let them know we were going. Kev called his dad on the way to the hospital, and he was embarked on the six hour drive to get here and see his coming grandson. When we got to the hospital they checked me and I was only at a four...a little better, but still a ways to go. So my midwife said I could sit in the jacuzzi. Once I did, I felt a lot better, but I relaxed so much that my contractions slowed down, so I had to get out and walk around. I tried all the other non-drug medical relief techniques like the birthing ball (sent the contractions right up my spine, ouch!), but breathing worked the best for me. Kev was a fantastic coach and held my hand the entire time. He was fully focused on me and that helped me immensely. Eventually I developed a hand movement where I would just move my hands forward like I was pushing something away, every time I had a contraction, and that seemed to really help out too. Finally, once I got to a seven, we decided to go ahead and break my water to get the show on the road. After that it was transition time, which I got to do back in the jacuzzi thank goodness! Then I sort of started feeling the urge to push. I wasn't real sure about it, but we got out of the tub just in case and back to the room. I remember going to the bathroom and kind of freaking out once I got in there, because the urge to push got a lot stronger and I was worried I was going to be stuck in there giving birth. So everybody got ready for this baby to come out. Then my midwife talked to me about pushing. She said sometimes for first births it can take 2 hours of pushing to get the baby out. I thought to myself, "Aint NO way I'm pushing that long!" I was so tired, I didn't think I'd last in two hours of pushing. So when I had to push...I PUSHED. Thirty minutes later, his head finally came out, and I said, "THANK GOOOOD!!!" really loud. They had to suction his nose and throat with the special equipment since he had the meconium, but they were good, and they were quick. Then my midwife said I could reach down and grab him, so I did, and my hubby didn't know that my midwife and I had previously agreed on doing this so he said, "What are you doing, Sarah?!" We quickly assured him it was okay, and then I had my little baby boy in my arms. All gross and squishy, but I barely noticed. What I do remember is that he pooped on me, so they had to clean us both up. I remember looking down at his precious little face and thinking he was the best looking newborn I had ever seen, and he had such luscious big lips. I thought he looked very much like Kevin, with his little nose, lips and brown hair. It was 5:17 p.m. on January 30. He was 7 lbs. 9 oz, and 21 1/2 inches long.

And that is the story of Drew's birth. Of course, much more happened after the fact, but since this post is already the size of a novel, I will save it for another day.

His Grandma Cherry, who braved the snow and the interstate and drove four hours down a couple days later, just to see her first grandson...

Wee Willie Winky

Less than a day old, my little old man. I still think he was a beautiful newborn. (At least in this shot anyways.)

Happy Birthday Drew!!!

2006-01-30T14:48:00.000-07:00

Wow! Buddy, you are three today! And I am so proud of you! You have been growing up so much in the last month and it has been so much fun to watch you. You impress me everyday with the things that you remember, how smart you are, and how articulate you are (for a three year old.)

We had your party yesterday and boy you really scored big time with the loot! Let me just say that if you never get this many toys for a birthday again, it's because Toys R Us is gone. They were having their big closing sale this year and well, it was just too hard to resist, everything was pretty cheap...so we indulged you...and I wasn't the only one that went. Mom+Auntie+Auntie+Uncle+Grandma=way too many toys! But it was fun, and remarkably, you seem to be unspoiled by it! I expected a cranky kid yesterday, but you behaved pretty well. (I guess that means that I'm doing a good job? LOL!)

So Happy Birthday little man! It's your day! Your daddy and I love you so much, and our lives have been so much more enriched since the day you arrived. You are very special!

Blowing out candles on your special "Storm Trooper" cake as you dubbed it.

Momma laughing because we put those trick candles on your cake and this is probably the fourth time you blew them out, so Alannah is now helping you.

Are those really all mine?

CAN'T.DECIDE.WHICH.ONE.TO.OPEN.FIRST.

Having a battle with your Darth Vader penny bank.

Latest Finished Work

2006-01-30T14:42:00.000-07:00

This is a ribbed scarf done in a cotton wool blend yarn. It is soooo soft and comfy (two things I never thought wool could be!)

Good To Me

2006-01-27T21:34:00.000-07:00

This past month has been a pretty hard one for me. Life has taken some unexpected and, truthfully, dissappointing changes. I am trying my best to deal with these changes and not let them affect my life in a negative way. When catostrophic things happen, the only thing you can control is your reaction. So, though it is hard and my emotions run away with me sometimes, I am saying right here and right now, that I choose to trust God. I choose to live life even more to fullest. I choose to grow closer to my family. I choose to look and find the best in things.

So today, I feel like this worship song was brought to my remembrance, by God, to help me out: Enjoy!

Artist: Eric Myers
Album: Life Of Worship
Title: Good To Me

I cry out for Your hand of mercy to heal me
I am weak, and I need Your love to free me
Oh Lord, my rock
My strength in weakness
Come rescue me, oh Lord

You are my hope
Your promise never fails me
And my desire is to follow You forever
For You are good
For You are good
For You are good to me
For You are good
For You are good
For You are good to me

And let me just also state, for the record, that God IS so good to me. My life has been filled to overflowing with blessings. My family is wonderful and I am incredibly thankful for everyone in my life and my current situation in life. Sometimes I survey my life, and know that the only reason things are as good as they are is because of God's grace. He loves me so much even though I've done nothing to deserve it.
I love you God!

Aspiring to be...

2006-01-26T15:04:00.000-07:00

"The Opera Singer"

"The Anglerfish"

Monkey Boy

2006-01-24T21:29:00.000-07:00

Twentysix years ago, my mom gave birth to a monkey (that would me), and twentyfive years later the monkey in me has come out (that would be Beau.) The little guy is only ten months old, people, and crawling up and over just about anything his short little legs will allow. The other day I was sitting on my couch and I was surprised to see his little face pop up over the back. He had crawled up on his toy box, and then he swung his little legs up over the top and came over face first. He also has been crawling all over our little jungle gym, and figured out how to slide down the slide. Thank goodness he's not tall enough to crawl over the gate at the top of our stairs, although, if he takes after his grandma, he'll just stick his toes in the loops like their steps to a ladder and climb right over. He already tries to scale his changing table and thinks he can crawl down from our bed. I'm proud of him though, even if it means I'll have to keep a closer eye on him...

Four Things Meme

2006-01-23T23:37:00.000-07:00

I have been tagged by Jill...
so without further a do...

4-Jobs you have had in your life.
1. Lifeguard
2. Food Prep
3. Minion at a day-planner plant
4. Dragon painter and butt-stuffer

4-Movies you would watch over and over again.
1.Charlie's Angels
2.Star Wars (Not by choice)
3.Kung Fu Hustle
4.Anne of Green Gables

4-Places I have lived.
1. Basalt, CO
2. Palisade, CO
3. Carbondale, CO
4. El Jebel, CO

4-tv show you love to watch.
1. Friends
2. That 70's Show
3. Alias
4. Cribs

4-Places you have been on vaction.
1. New Hampshire
2. Dominican Republic
3. New York City
4. Jackson Hole, Wyoming

4-Websites you visit daily
1. Strawberry Blush
2. Pretending Sanity
3. Spilt Milk
4. My Bloglines Feeds Page

4-Favorite foods.
1. Chinese
2. Popcorn
3. Steak and salad
4. Spinach Canneloni

4-Places you would rather be right now.
1. Some place warm and toasy
2. Hot tub
3. In bed
4. On the beach

4-People you tag to complete this.
1. The Random Redhead (Hey you knew I had to give you a reason to post!)
2. Just a girl
3. Hello Nurse
4. My Mother-in-Law (you can leave your answers in the comments if you want : )

Sisters

2006-01-20T16:14:00.000-07:00

I just have to say that today, I am really thankful for my sisters. I'm so glad I have two women in my life, close to my age, who understand me, grew up with me, and know me and the inner workings of my family, sometimes better than I know myself. I'm thankful that we are all women of God who pray for each other, advise each other, and wish only the best for each other. We have a bond that only sisters could have. God knew what he was doing when he gave my mom three girls. I love you both so much, and don't you ever forget it!

The Naptime Uprising

2006-01-19T11:53:00.000-07:00

Hello y'all. Sorry I didn't post yesterday. That seems to happen a lot on Wednesdays, because I have my pottery class at night, and that is when I usually have time to post. Although, today I am posting in the middle of the day...so go figure.
There is an uprising going on at my house. My kids have been refusing to take naps. Yes, even Beau. I can understand an almost 3 year old not wanting to take a nap, much less be tired...but Beau? I so need these kids to take naps. I rely so much on that hour (at the least) to have a little time to myself or get things done. I think I just may have to get myself and the kiddos on more of schedule. I hate schedules, really. I resist them with every fiber in my body (thanks Mom,) but I think that if I can implement a few regular daily things here- maybe I can get the kids to take a regular nap and then I can actually get things done around here. So here goes...wish me luck, or even better, just that my kids will take naps more often. We're talking the difference between sane and insane here.....

What Are These?

2006-01-17T22:06:00.000-07:00

So today (and my apologies in advance if this offends any of you, but I had to share, just thought it was too funny, but anyway...) I was getting Drew dressed and he looked down at his little boy pecks and asked me what they were. I explained to him, that little boys have pecks. And I thought we had learned that fact pretty well. Later on, I was telling my sister Ariel about the incident and so she stopped Drew and asked him, pointing to his pecks, what they were. To which he replied, "Tits!" Yes, ladies and gentlemen, somehow, (and I have my suspicions, ahem, you know who you are) my son learned this word, and it was NOT from me. But hey, it made for a good laugh. Now lets just hope he doesn't say this in front of his great grandparents. (Oh the horror!)

Beau Wagging His Head

2006-01-16T19:32:00.000-07:00

Dailymotion blogged video
100_1594
Video sent by sarahgrace

Here is the video I was talking about...hope you enjoy and please ignore my dorky laugh...sheesh! I'm such a dork. Also, that is a half of a grape fruit he is eating, and Drew's voice in the background.

Drew's First Prayer

2006-01-16T18:42:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we celebrated our newest family member, Jeremiah's birthday at his parents home. As we were all gathered around the kitchen to say a dinner blessing, the normal family banter continued, prolonging our wait for dinner. Apparently Drew seemed to want to get the show on the road so he spoke up and said to all of our surprise, "Dear Jesus, thank you for this food. Amen!" I know this might be one of those instances where you would have to have been there, but I thought it was the cutest thing ever, and I was super proud of him. My son's first spontaneous prayer, no prodding from the parents! Yay!

Just a Few Things

2006-01-13T21:02:00.000-07:00

I finished my second scarf a couple of days ago. I am don't make enough dough to be a "yarn snob"-so it's just acrylic yarn that is supposed to have a mohair look to it. I was able to buy a wool/cotton blend yarn with a gift certificate I got for Christmas- so I just might make another scarf with that as well. I haven't been brave enough to try anything new like a hat yet- but I'm working up to it...

Please ignore the food in my trap, rather, focus on the look of sheer excitement on my face.

I'm a sucker for messy kid food shots. I couldn't resist this one with the puffed rice stuck to Beau's cute little nose.
I actually have some video that goes along with this shot, but I'm not sure what to use to upload it. (If you have any suggestions, I'm open!)

Have a fantabulous weekend!

Talk About Getting What You Deserve...

2006-01-12T10:05:00.000-07:00

While at Sam's Club Today...

2006-01-11T17:34:00.000-07:00

So a few weeks ago, right before Christmas, my madre and I were shopping at Sam's Club. She had Drew in her cart (I had Beau in mine...but anyways) She and Drew happened upon one those giant mechanical Santa Clauses. Drew wasn't impressed with him either, as he had a pointer finger broken off (which someone had strategically placed in Santa's belt) and his other hand was in pieces as well. So my mother and he dubbed him the "creepy Santa Claus." So today as we are walking through Sam's again, Drew says to me, "Momma, I wan go see keepy San Claus." My kid's memory: keepy.

Just When I Was Having a Good Day...I Decided to Open My Mail...

2006-01-10T14:03:00.000-07:00

Can you see the steam rising from my house? It's coming from my head. I just got a bill from the doctor's office. Yes the same ones that diagnosed my son with ptosis of the left eye and neglected to tell me (which can be found on my Thursday, August 11th Post). They sent me a ginormous bill for things all the way back to my first son's visits. Apparently there were things that the insurance company couldn't/wouldn't pay for- so apparently I have to pay for them (duh?) Not so much. All the bills I received in the past had notes on them stating that they were waiting for the insurance company to respond, etc. etc. So naturally, I thought it had been taken care of. I knew that we were going to owe a big bill for Beau, because he wasn't covered anymore once he turned a month old. (And THAT is another rant!) But I really had no clue we still owed stuff for Drew. For crying out loud! I told Kevin I'm so mad I could just punch my fist threw a wall, but he said, "Now don't go do that, because we can't afford to take you to the doctor."

I've pretty much lost all faith in doctor's offices and insurance companies. No more frivolous check-ups. If my baby is healthy, I aint goin'. The only way I'm walking through those doors (and I'm definitely going to change offices... for reasons in addition to the ones stated above) is if I have an emergency.

So, say a prayer for me today as I sift through, and cross-reference bills and statements from the doctor's and insurance offices.
Aaaaargggh!!!!!!!

Dear Beau,

2006-01-09T10:17:00.000-07:00

Hey little buddy, it's your turn for the month. You turned 10 months old yesterday. Wow time flies! (Haven't said that before...snort) You are such a chunk still, but I think, I think you may be slowing down. You have been fitting into your twelve month clothes for several months now and haven't quite moved to the eighteen month stuff yet (though you do fit into some...)

This month your determination has reached crisis status. Well, okay, maybe not crisis- but geez! Could you just lay off the outlets! Your hair doesn't need to be any curlier than it already is. I don't mind you being driven to get at anything else (famous last words...ha ha) it's just the outlets that are so dangerous kid. I don't see what your fascination is with them, but hey- I'm not ten months old, nor am I a boy.

Just in the last two weeks since Christmas you have really traded in your knee pads for walking shoes. You figured out how to bring yourself to standing from the floor all by yourself and you try to walk everywhere you can. I'll admit sometimes you look a bit like a wobbly drunk man walking- but hey you'll overcome that and get even more steady on your feet.

You are starting to fight back with your brother. Now when he goes for something you have, you know enough to pull it back from him to keep it. (Good job! Hee hee) You are constantly undergoing the Drew-gauntlet however, being knocked over, and poked at and the practice Mr. Potato Head. I'm trying to reduce the amount of times you are forced to go through the gauntlet, but well, Drew is having a hard time cooperating with me. I figure it (you) will come back to bite him in the butt though. After dealing with all his pestering, you are gonna be one tough kid.

You are starting to lose your infant "can do no wrong" appeal, which makes me sad. I enjoy that stage so much. It seems to slip away every time you scream at the top of your lungs, which is too often these days. I've become desperate to try and find ways to stop you from doing it, but oh well. I think it is just a stage, that SHALL SOON PASS! Got it? Okay good, just wanted to make sure we understood each other there. : )

Well, babe, I can't think of any more highlights from this month. All is well with you all is good. You are still the cutest guy, getting cuter everyday. I love your chubby little cheeks, especially when you smile, and the way your deep green eyes sparkle when someone smiles back at you. Here's to your eleventh month, with less screaming in it, tee hee. I love you!
Love,
Momma

My Two Christmas Angels

2006-01-04T21:33:00.000-07:00

Thank you again, to my mom and dad who lovingly toted around little Beau (who was not feeling well) on Christmas day. Without whom I would have been melting in a puddle of my own breast milk, and everyone (but Beau) would have starved or just had to have been satisified with peanuts.

Revelations

2006-01-04T21:20:00.000-07:00

I've been pretty gritchy the last three weeks, some might even say "hard to live with." And while I know what some of the major issues were that were causing said, "gritchiness" it dawned on me tonight as I was headed off to my pottery class that the amount of time I had spent in cranky mode matched the amount of weeks I'd been without my pottery class. Hhmmm. Coincidence, I think not. I didn't realize just how much of an effect getting out to do something all by myself, having other adult/human contact, and having a creative outlet on my mood was. Boy if I had two "Sarah" hours to myself every night- my personality might change from kind of melancholy/serious to like happy-go-lucky or something, and I might learn to talk in full sentences again! No, but really, just for the sake of the people who might of said I was "hard to live with" I think I need to definitely keep the pottery class or something like it on my schedule indefinitely, and maybe add a night or a Saturday here and there. Just does wonders for my mood. How nice.

Drew Learned ANOTHER New Word

2006-01-03T22:50:00.000-07:00

So, let me stress that this was said while we were eating chili for lunch today. Drew spritely said to my hubby, "Beau has diarrhea Da da!!"

Dear Drew,

2006-01-02T18:50:00.000-07:00

Wow-one month left and you will be three! When we asked you what kind of birthday cake we should make for Jesus- you insisted on a Star Wars cake, so I think we will at least be making you one for your birthday.
You have been mostly fun this month. Besides a little testing of the wills with Momma and Da (as you now refer to him), you have been pretty agreeable, curious, talkative, eager to learn and just plain fun. When we ask you questions, usually about an item you are playing with, you will repeat the question back to us as if playing "shadow" and often when we ask you a yes or no question, you'll respond with an uninterested, "oh." To which we just giggle in reply. Then there is your excited, "Oh!" when you've just learned something new or particularly pleasing. This is not to say that your vocabulary is limited to just "oh's." You have been vocalising quite a bit, and your speech is getting clearer and clearer. In fact, one of your new words this month was, "frustrated." I happen to use that word to express myself quite often and as with all almost 3 year olds, you picked up on it. After a particularly FRUSTRATING day...you went and told your father, "Da da, I'm fus-ter-Ated." Then a few days later you and Beau were playing around the staircase and you had a book or something that I didn't want you playing with and I asked you to go put it back and you promptly threw it down the stairs. (See, testing my will, you were.) So I lifted you up to get some eye contact with you while I explained why you weren't to do things like that, and you head-butted me. So then I took you to your room for some time out. When I came back to talk to you, I asked you if you knew why you were in time out, and you said, "I frustrated you..." Too true, too true. Actually it made me feel pretty bad when you told me that, so I assured you then, and now, that (now lets be honest here, even though parenthood is frustrating at times) I love you very much! And with that said, let me also say, that no matter how many times you head butt me, defy me, whatever you may do, I will ALWAYS love you! Let me tell you what you have said this month though, that makes me feel good, "Momma, I don't wan the sun down, I want the sun up." Translation- "Momma, since you can make the sun rise, would you keep it awake for a few more hours, please?!!" Ha ha, I'm glad you think I'm so talented, and I will be sad the day you figure out that I'm not capable of this. You also asked your father to do the same later on and he said, "I can't do anything about the sun, that's God's department, so you need to take that up with him."

Well, Drew-bug I'm looking forward to your birthday. Even though you were just spoiled with many many Christmas presents, I see things at the store I'd still love to get for you. Seeing a smile on your face, enjoying your expressions of wonderment, watching you learn new things, hearing you say new words, is the highlight of my life. You're a pretty rad little dude, and don't you ever forget it. You are and will always be loved.
Love, Momma

Just delightful Drew (and holding a Star Wars ornament, no doubt.)

Working hard at opening that stocking stuffer. Concentration unmatched by any other almost three year old.

Rockin' on the guitar-still one of your favorites.

Most assuredly on of your "Oh!" moments, after Gramma O. showed you that the doggy puppet could bark on it's own.

Thinking About Resolutions...

2005-12-31T11:00:00.000-07:00

I think everybody makes some sort of New Years resolution. Even if you don't write out yours on a piece of paper or declare it loudly to all your friends and family, almost everyone looks at the new year and thinks about ways to change it and make it better than the last. I know next year I definitely have some things I'd like to do and not do, new things I'd like to try, goals I'd like to achieve, children I'd like to avoid creating...
So here is a list of some of my resolutions, in no particular order:

-Cut waaay down on the TV watching-the watching my kids do and the watching I do (I watched "The Cable Guy" last night and it really freaked me out!)
-I want to make good choices on the TV we do watch.
-I'd like to spend a lot more time creating things this year, whether it be knitting, pottery, drawing, beading or new recipes...I just really want to be productive.
-I want to learn how to make a basic website.
-I want to be active more: go on more walks and hikes, maybe start riding my bike again, jumping on the trampoline, and snowboarding (!!)
-I want to read more, and I especially want to read my Bible more!
-I want to manage our finances better and more tightly- yeah I know, how many people's new years res it to be a "tight wad" (LOL!)
-I want to be a better parent, not get frustrated with my kids, not manipulate, not yell. Be more affectionate and fun and less disciplinarian (not to stop discipline, mind you, I just feel like some days all I do is discipline Drew...and I'd like that to change.)
-I want to be a better wife.
(Not that I'm horrible at the last too, I'm actually pretty good, but I think there is always room for improvement.)

So we'll have to see how I do with this list- it'll be fun to actually have a record and be able to check back and look and see what kind of progress I've made.

A Working Dog

2005-12-27T11:08:00.000-07:00

How I wish that I could enjoy Christmas vacation just like kids do. Playing with their new toys. I know this is a big shock, but mom's don't get vacations, like, ever. Okay, okay, well maybe someday it'll happen, but I'm still in the stage of "total twenty-four hour dependence"- meaning someone is depending on me ALL the time, not the other way around. (And even though- I'd really like to wait a good two years to have another kid, the thought has occurred to me to just go ahead and have another one sooner so I don't get too used to having any freedom, and then forgo having a third kid at all, but I digress...) Yesterday, was nice though...I never changed out of my pajamas and the only work I did was prepare leftovers from Christmas and nurse Beau. And no complaints from the other half (who has a hard time grasping the concept of rest, but I love him anyways and at least the house projects he starts actually are finished in a reasonable amount of time.) But this week in which I am longing to just sit and play with some yarn and my new knitting needles, spend my gift certificates, and eat the leftover candy, I still have to do laundry, and feed Beau, and feed Drew, and feed Kevin, keep things clean, (including myself), pay the bills, and so on and so forth. Just lamenting the fact, the FACT, that a mothers work is never done. Just wanted to share my pity party with you.

And not forgetting that there is the other half's side of work never being done, here is Kev's quote from last week: I asked him what kind of a dog he'd want if we were to get one, and he said, "One that goes to work and pays all the bills."

In Other News...

2005-12-26T23:03:00.000-07:00

...my Gramma gave me a cool knitting book "Stitch N Bitch"- which should be helpful for nights when I stay up till 2:30, like I did this Christmas morning. (I know, I know...sigh.) It was a gift for Jeremiah, so here is a pic of him wearing it.

Christmas Surprise!

2005-12-26T21:43:00.000-07:00

Well, it's December 26th, and I hope all of you out there had a nice holiday-whichever it is that you celebrated or are celebrating. My Christmas was quite a bit of fun. We had a lot of family over to our place which translates into a lot of work, so I felt like I was constantly cleaning and straightening up and putting away and getting out. Unfortunately, Beau seemed to be suffering from either a cold or just a hell day of cutting teeth. Thanks to my mom and dad for cuddling him for several hours so I could be a hostess. I still ended up opening my presents while he was nursing. (You'd be surprised what you can do with a kid attached to you!) And opening presents: herein lies the story of the day... So I'm sitting there watching my hubby play Santa and hand everyone their gifts. Everyone is reading their tags, and tearing the wrapping paper looking at what they uncovered and giving thanks to their givers. I hadn't had a present handed to me yet, and I thought my sister must have noticed I'd been forgotten, because she jumped up and handed me my present from her and Jeremiah. When she handed it to me she made sure that the tag was facing me and that I read it. She had a funny look on her face. She sits down and I look at my tag: it says "To: Aunt Sarah" and that is as far as I get. I think to myself, I'm not an aunt...then I scream, "ARE YOU GUYS PREGNANT!" and she nods "yes." Then of course all the family members in between insert their own exclamations and there is much commotion and excitement. Yes, Ariel and Jeremiah are in fact going to have a baby! Wow! So there you have it, one of the best Christmas gifts, I finally get to be the aunt. Something to add to my "woman" resume. I'm so happy and excited for her. It hasn't quite settled in my mind yet, that my sister is going to have a baby- so every once in a while I have to giggle with anticipation. She should be due around the end of August.
Later on I discovered that she learned this news on the Tuesday before Christmas. She had to endure my mother and I dragging her all over town to do the Christmas food shopping before she could get home to tell her hubby... Sorry, Ariel! Then she kept it in through a Wednesday of rehearsing Christmas songs (for a little Christmas album we recorded-nothing special) and the Thursday of recording them. She told our sister, Hannah on Thursday, because it was her birthday and....and she just happens to be a labor and delivery nurse. Had I checked her blog...I would have been suspiscious.

So from now on, I'm sure you'll read plenty of my driveling about her pregnancy and so on...I'll try not to be too boring.
Here are a few shots from our Christmas day...

Yes, that is wrapping paper on my head...

The tired pregnant woman.

Intently working with the playdough...the pursed lips are his concentration look.

In "Light" of Christmas...

2005-12-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

From the MOPs daily devotional:

I Can't Share My Light
Christ tells His followers, "You are the light of the world." Well, what if we think our light isn't good enough?
Does any human soul feel up to the task of sharing our faith?

I can't . . . I have such a small light. How could I possibly make a difference?
I can't . . . I might fail. I might mess up at sharing my faith.
I can't . . . I don't want to get involved. Sharing with others is risky and expensive.
I can't . . . I don't want to offend.
I can't . . . I don't have a dramatic story to tell. It'd be different if I did.
I can't . . . I don't know all the answers.
I can't . . . I don't know how to relate to people who aren't like me.

And yet, we who have God's light burning within us are asked to share that light with others. All of us. I have this gut conviction that God wouldn't invite us to be a part of something impossible. In my soul, I have a feeling that we make the whole share-your-faith thing much more difficult than God makes it. I have this suspicion that our "I can'ts" won't hold up in real life when we meet a person stuck in a dark and hopeless situation. We can hide behind them, but God's light will poke out of our very beings-if only from our very real human cracks.

MOPS groups (Mothers of Preschoolers) are meeting all over the country -so join us as we TWINKLE and shine during this season of mothering! Visit our Web site at www.MOPS.org to find a MOPS Group in your area.

This really speaks to me...not only during the Christmas season, but every day of the year- this is what it's all about.
I wish each and every one of you a very Merry Christmas- and as the cards that I sent out say, "May the gifts of the season, renew your spirit."

Holiday Thoughts

2005-12-21T08:26:00.000-07:00

Yesterday as I went to the bathroom in an overcrowded Wal-Mart, sans children (they were with Gramma), and sans cart (also with Gramma), I sat in the quiet stall all by myself and exhaled. It was so nice to be alone, even if it was in fifteen cubic feet of space. I thought, "I could sit here for hours-too bad I don't have my knitting with me."

Yay for Pickles!

2005-12-19T23:19:00.000-07:00

As you can see...we discovered that we have yet another child who likes pickles.
(Too cute not to share.)

Notice Anything Different?

2005-12-19T16:36:00.000-07:00

Being that this was the only end of the hair color spectrum I hadn't explored, you knew it had to happen at some point in time. However, I must say that this was actually not my idea. It was Kevin's. He cooked it up and Ariel (whose hair is the same color at the moment) jumped in the frying pan, and at the end of the night, my hair looked like this. I think I like it, and Kevin likes it, which by all means, is actually more important than me liking it, since he has to look at me all the time. I just forget that I did it and then I surprise myself every time I look in the mirror...
Happy Hair Coloring- People!

Oh and p.s. those little whisps up by my bangs- yeah those are from when my hair started falling out when Beau was four months old...dern HERmones!

Due to the Response....

2005-12-16T08:27:00.000-07:00

I just have to say thank you all for your nice compliments about my pottery work. You all are very flattering!

And since I have no "shopping button" here's my solution for that:

If you would like to purchase a mug or a bowl or sugarbowl, or a set, or commission something in particular, here are my prices:

Coffee mug: $8 (Personalized with a name: $10)

Sugar bowl: $16

Small bowl: $6

Any other pieces- I will give you a quote for, and of course if you live out of town- you will have to pay shipping.
So if you are interested, leave me a comment with your email address and what it is you are interested in, and I will contact you as soon as possible to make arrangements with you.

As for all pieces pictured: they are currently spoken for, so I cannot sell any of them to you. However I should be able to duplicate the green color in future pieces, if that is what you like. Keep in mind that it may take as long as month for a piece or set to be completed as each piece has to be thrown, then bisque fired, then glazed and then glaze fired.

Please feel free to ask any questions! Thanks so much!

Results

2005-12-15T09:40:00.000-07:00

Since I've been gushing here and there about my pottery class, I thought it only fair to share with you the results. This is my first batch of things, and there will be more to come since I am going to keep taking my class! Enjoy!

The Evil Wal-Mart Spider Momster

2005-12-14T15:56:00.000-07:00

So today as we (meaning myself and the boys) are walking through evil Wal-Mart, I discovered a giant evil fake rubber black widow. Apparently it had made its way from its rightful spot in the toy aisle. So naturally, the "eldest child" in me coming out, I had to pick it up and try to scare to Drew with it. I was expecting him to laugh and pretend he was scared, and then want to play with it himself, try to scare Beau like any normal curious two year old, toy hungry, eldest child and last but not least: BOY. But no, to my surprise, he screamed so high pitched that people actually stopped to see what was going on. Who knows what they were thinking I had done to my poor child. He wanted absolutely nothing to do with the thing and wanted it as far away from his as possible. Call me what you will, but I could not contain my laughter. I was not expecting this reaction, and it was just too funny and surprising. Of course, then I felt horrible for torturing my own child and thinking it was funny, so I tried to show him it wasn't real, but he would have none of it. So then I showed it to Beau, who was only too happy to chew on the thing. We returned the spider to it's rightful spot (I think.) And I am comforted knowing that as long as it is small enough, I will at least have one bonafide spider-smoosher (but only with heavy duty shoes on, mind you.) Beau will be the kid who brings them in crawling all over his hands to show me how cool they are. Sorry Drew! I really do love you!

Call Me Hooked

2005-12-12T09:28:00.000-07:00

Okay, maybe not exactly, but I DID try knitting for the first time this weekend- and to my surprise, I liked it! We had an impromptu surprise party for my best buddy Mel. (Her birthday is Christmas Eve, so we never really get to celebrate with her.) Allie and Jim came up- and later when things kind of settled down a bit (meaning the guys were out in the family room with the kids and the TV) us girls sat out in the quiet(er) living room, and Allie brought in her knitting work. She was working on a cute little purse. Anyways, Mel and I both expressed interest in wanting to learn and Allie happened to have enough extra string and needles, so we got an impromptu lesson! (It was the night of all things impromptu!) We had a blast all sitting there knitting and talking (hence the term stitch n' bitch, pardon the french.) Mel and I decided this should be a weekly thing, so Allie you're committed whether you like it or not, HA! No, but really, I did enjoy it quite a bit and would like to continue on. I don't know how much time I'll have to commit to it, but that's pretty much the story with anything.

Dear Beau,

2005-12-08T15:20:00.000-07:00

You're nine months old today, kiddo. You're about to be a full blown walker. I aint got a clue how much you weigh, well, actually probably about 25 pounds. One of your daddy's recording clients actually dubbed you "beefcake." Ha ha! Which is really so true, I just never imagined that one of your father and my kids would be as chunky as you are. But I just love your cute little chubby cheeks. They are so fun to kiss. And it is super cute when we wrap you up in your down jacket and you fall asleep and your cheeks and lips all pooch forward and jiggle every time we hit a bump. You are still pretty smiley most of the time. But this month you've taken to screaming quite a bit. Not sure where that came from, but your brother went through that stage too. You have the determination of your father. I know you don't know quite what that means right now, but lets just put it this way: your father pursues his dreams and lesser things as well with every fiber in his body. He doesn't stop for roadblocks, he just plows through, and when he sees a mountain, he runs up it instead of slowing down. Yes, that is the kind of determination you have. I can't tell you how many times yesterday I told you "NO" while you were desperately trying to get the ornaments off the Christmas tree. Then you finally grabbed a branch and pulled the whole thing over (the fake one.) And your determination shows with you constantly trying to walk. Not slowly either- when you are finally able to master your balance, you'll be running. (Lucky for me...) Now lets talk about your sleeping habits kiddo- (as if I could actually "talk" you into sleeping.) You are still waking up to be fed every night and you have a knack for doing it just as I am drifting off to sleep. Still headbutting the headboard and now your father, but thankfully haven't gone for the end of the bed again. No, we haven't gotten you into your own room yet. Lets just say that the family room has been ready for weeks and we're just now moving toys out there. So it might still be a while yet. Oh well, I like your warm little heater body next to mine when it's not wiggling. I'm going to savor these moments since you may be my last baby. (Although the other morning, your father informed me that we need to have five boys. And I said, "Five! Can't just ONE of them be a girl, then? Just One?!" To which he replied, "Well, okay, she'll have to play bass then, but she has to be good!") You and your brother are playing together more and more these days, which is kind of nice. However, whenever I put you both in that "car" cart at City Market, you two almost start to fight with each other. I didn't know it began so early. And I must admit that when Drew is taking his nap, (and you are not, ehem...) you roam the toys with glee and make yourself readily and happily busy.
You are also getting in your top two teeth this month. (Once again, yay for me! Ha!) That has made for some interesting ear pulling, snot sucking, and sopping drool moments.
Well, I think I hear the jingle of Christmas ornaments being played with, so I must run to see what you are up to...buddy!
I love you so much!
Love,
Momma

Not That I Endorse Any of This, but You May Relate...

2005-12-06T15:25:00.000-07:00

HOW THE BIRTH ORDER OF YOUR CHILDREN CHANGES THE WAY THINGS ARE DONE:

Your Clothes:
1st baby: You begin wearing maternity clothes as soon as your OB/GYN confirms your pregnancy.
2nd baby: You wear your regular clothes for as long as possible.
3rd baby: Your maternity clothes ARE your regular clothes.

Preparing for the Birth:
1st baby: You practice your breathing religiously.
2nd baby: You don't bother because you remember that last time, breathing didn't do a thing.
3rd baby: You ask for an epidural in your eighth month.

The Layette:
1st baby: You pre-wash newborn's clothes, color-coordinate them, and fold them neatly in the baby's little bureau.
2nd baby: You check to make sure that the clothes are clean and discard only the ones with the darkest stains.
3rd baby: Boys can wear pink, can't they?

Worries:
1st baby: At the first sign of distress--a whimper, a frown--you pick up the baby.
2nd baby: You pick the baby up when her wails threaten to wake your firstborn.
3rd baby: You teach your three-year-old how to rewind the mechanical swing.

Pacifier:
1st baby: If the pacifier falls on the floor, you put it away until you can go home and wash and boil it.
2nd baby: When the pacifier falls on the floor, you squirt it off with some juice from the baby's bottle.
3rd baby: You wipe it off on your shirt and pop it back in.

Diapering:
1st baby: You change your baby's diapers every hour, whether they need it or not.
2nd baby: You change their diaper every two to three hours, if needed.
3rd baby: You try to change their diaper before others start to complain about the smell or you see it sagging to their knees.

Activities:
1st baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics, Baby Swing, and Baby Story Hour.
2nd baby: You take your infant to Baby Gymnastics.
3rd baby: You take your infant to the supermarket and the dry cleaner.

Going Out:
1st baby: The first time you leave your baby with a sitter, you call home five times.
2nd baby: Just before you walk out the door, you remember to leave a number where you can be reached.
3rd baby: You leave instructions for the sitter to call only if she sees blood.

At Home:
1st baby: You spend a good bit of every day just gazing at the baby.
2nd baby: You spend a bit of everyday watching to be sure your older child isn't squeezing, poking, or hitting the baby.
3rd baby: You spend a little bit of every day hiding from the children.

Swallowing Coins
1st child: When first child swallows a coin, you rush the child to the hospital and demand x-rays.
2nd child: When second child swallows a coin, you carefully watch for the coin to pass.
3rd child: When third child swallows a coin you deduct it from his allowance!

Sent to me, courtesy of my hubby...

Walking

2005-12-05T14:10:00.000-07:00

Okay, I just have to spill the beans. For all intensive purposes...Beau is walking!!! He is still really wobbly and falls down constantly, but boy is he determined! He has no concept that falling hurts and tries to walk as much as he can. He doesn't just walk to me and Kev either- he'll walk from furniture piece to furniture piece. I'm pretty sure he'll be fluid by Christmas. And...and...he turns nine months on the eighth! I'm so proud of my baby! (As if you couldn't tell...)

Saturday, December 3, 1999

2005-12-03T12:35:00.000-07:00

Six years ago on this very day (and it was even a Saturday!) Kevin and I went for a hike up to our favorite rock overlooking the valley. However, that is not where the story begins. Earlier that week Kevin and had talked about going snowboarding on the weekend. I explained that I couldn't because I had to study for finals, and Kevin was a little upset about it. That was my first clue, because normally he didn't complain about school or school work one iota. My second clue was a couple of days later when I heard Kevin's dissertation on all things diamonds. The cut, the color, the clarity, you know. He told me everything he had learned. And then Friday night, while sitting under the Christmas tree, Kevin reaches into his coat pocket and says, "What have I got here?" My heart jumps into my throat and quickly back into my stomach as he reveals his cell phone. "KEVIN!" I yell at him. "What?!" he teases. "Like you don't know! " I say back. Then we head off to dinner with our best friends to a place with kareoke and some guy proposed to his girl there. I very clearly explain that I think that is the cheasiest thing ever. Meanwhile, Kevin and I make plans to go on a hike on Saturday in the middle of all my studying. On Saturday, we arrive at the beginning of the trail. It is a beautiful and clear winter day. The sun is shining, but it is still chilly. We start making our way towards the top. I remember being very tired. About half way up, Kevin, who has already been so transparent this week, asks if we can run the rest of the way. Eyeing the many steep switchbacks and trying to catch my breath, I giggle out a "Yeah, right, I can't do that!" So we make our way up the rest of the hike. We scale the rock that looks like a ball-cap and look out over our beautiful valley. We snap a few pictures of each other. Then, Kevin, reaches into his coat pocket and says, "What have I got here?" This time he pulls out a little jewelry box. Then he opens it up, and says (something to the effect of), "Sarah, you are my best friend, and I love you. Will you marry me?" I have probably been beaming since oh, Tuesday, but I smile even more and say, "Yes." Then Kevin realizes he is not down one knee, repositions himself- and asks again. And of course, I say "yes" again. Then we snap some more pictures of each other. And happily skip back down the trail. Later, he reveals to me that the night before while we were sitting beneath the Christmas tree, the ring had been hanging on one of the branches and had I been observant enough to notice, he would have asked me right there. I gasp and giggle at the thought, but I am really glad it happened the way it did. In the year and a half preceding the proposal I had gone on the same hike with my best friend Melissa. While sitting up there and pondering what lay before us, I had said to her, " Wouldn't it be neat if you got proposed to up here?" And there I was with Kevin, who had no idea I had ever said those words, and he was proposing to me. It was perfect. I'd like to say things still are, but this is reality and they aren't all the time. But I love him even more now than I did then. My life has been so full and rewarding, and changed in ways I could never imagine because of him. I love you, Baby!

These are the pictures we took that day and my cheesy way that I put them in my photo album....

Quotes from Eden

2005-12-02T17:43:00.000-07:00

I'm glad I waited till later to post today because I wouldn't have gotten these adorable quotes from Eden. (I was watching Allison's kids this afternoon for a couple of hours.)

After stubbing her toe on the floor:

Me: "Are you okay sweetie?"
Eden: "It's okay, (her toe) it didn't fall off, it stayed on."

After being chased around by Drew.
"Drew, you really are a weird guy!"

Talking to me about her Daddy.
"My Daddy's a funny guy because he bites people's toes. But they don't fall off, because he's funny."

Here's Drew and Eden coloring and having a snack. These kids could be brother and sister.

Sermon on the Mount (of Laundry)

Check Out the New Digs

Mother's Day Was...

Eh, Again.

Happy Birthday Dad!

A Perfect Day in the Life of Me

Weekend Trip

Ariel at I Forgot How Many Weeks

From the Mouth of Drew

Happy Mother's Day...Wouldn't You Like to Be Paid What You're Worth?

Ideas and Ways to be "Present" for your Kids

A Meme for Tuesday

All's Well That Ends Well, Right?

Okay, Because it's Saturday, and I'm Bored Out of My Gourd

My Sweeties

Pottery!

I Am From

A Crazy Week

The Easter Gorilla

Ariel at 19 Weeks

Dear Beau,

I Survived Week One

Second Day and Fire Poop

First Day of School

Mrs. Sarah

Ariel at I Forgot How Many Weeks

More Spring Break Shots

Zippity ZOO Da

Feeding The Giraffes

Bouncy Slide Fun

Explanations.

I'm Baaaaaaack!

Tales From the Crypt

Spring Break

Anniversary Date

Happy Anniversary, My Love.

Jung Test Results

Eh.

Dirty Laundry Day

First Birthday Cake

Dear Beau,

Ariel at 15 Weeks

That is AWESOME!

Tootin' My Horn

I *SO* Called This One

Can I Wear These?

Photo of the Day

Can You Tell What's Happened Here?

Potty Training Manual (or What worked fer Us)

The Love and Respect Marriage Conference

Love and Respect

Da Da Da, Da da-da, Da da-da!!!!

Ariel at 13 Weeks

Things to Meditate On, Things to Make You Laugh, Things to Enjoy

For My Mom

More Encouragement

Dear Beau,

Sisterly Visit Review

A Bit of Encouragement from MY Mom

Warning: The Following Post Contains References to Flatulence

Ug.

Strange Happenings in the Ladies Bathroom at Wal-Mart

I Am Not Dead

Drew's Birth Story

Happy Birthday Drew!!!

Latest Finished Work

Good To Me

Aspiring to be...

Monkey Boy

Four Things Meme

Sisters

The Naptime Uprising

What Are These?

Beau Wagging His Head

Drew's First Prayer

Just a Few Things

Talk About Getting What You Deserve...

While at Sam's Club Today...

Just When I Was Having a Good Day...I Decided to Open My Mail...

Dear Beau,

I SO Called This One