Samm Says

On the way home tonight Josh and I were laughing at something Samm had said to us. Sometimes she talks more like a sixty year old than a six year old. Like when she asks her little friends if they would like to "join us for dinner". Then Josh made some comment about how he wished that there was somewhere to write down all the funny things she says....Hmm, I wonder what I could use?

OK, so I have to admit that sometimes I forget that this blog is for me and my family and not just to make other people smile and laugh or meditate over important topics. Nope, this is whatever I want it to be. So, from now on I am going to write down all the funny little, meaningless to other people things that my kids say and do. Because they do mean something to me.

So, what did Samm say that was so funny to us. And the key to that sentence is "to us." Well, Grandma gave her a little journal book right before we left her house and Samm was talking about putting stickers in it and so forth. Well, then we had to inform her that it was time for bed when we got home but if she wanted to she could write in it for a little bit in bed. Her response to that was...

"But what if Macy cries so loud and it disturbs my journaling!"

A genuine concern for sure, just not usually for a 6 year old.

Our grown up little girl also bore her testimony in Sacrament Meeting today for the first time. She asked me all on her own if she was allowed to go up and then asked the 2nd counselor if it was OK to bare her testimony. Actually she whispered it in his ear which was really cute.

Her testimony was sweet and pure. "I know this church is true! I know Jesus loves me and I love him too!"

All things Halloween

Are you tired of Halloween yet? I love holidays, but by the time the day arrives I am usually ready for it to be over. I'm ready to put the decorations away and have my house back to its "normal" state of chaos. I"m ready to look to and plan for the next event on the calendar. And this year I'm really ready to not have to put the kids in their costumes and paint their faces again. 3 times in one week was just a little too much for me this year.

I do want to be that mom though. The one that makes holidays and birthdays fun and memorable for her kids. So I do what I can. I don't always succeed, but I try. Although I'm pretty sure a lot of what I do is more for me than them. In fact I'm pretty sure they don't care about half of it. Oh well.

Here is the trick or treating crew. Every year we meet up with Josh's sister Kory at their parents house and knock doors in their neighborhood. The neighbor across the street from them gives out full size candy bars. That's the real reason we go there!

L to R. Lexie, James, Logan, Gabe, Samm

Next on the calender...A birthday for James.

Pajama day

Ever since Samm had pajama day at school a couple of weeks ago James has asked me almost every single morning if it was his turn to wear pajamas to school. I think they actually were going to have a pajama day sometime soon, but since he is no longer in school (did I ever mention that) we decided to have a pajama day at home.

I did finally give up at 3:00. One can only go about their day without a shower for so long you know. James and Macy held strong though until it was time to put on Halloween costumes for our wards annual trunk or treat at the church. Even then, James did have his on under his costume so I guess he is the winner.

It was really fun to just lounge around in our comfy clothes and chillax for a while. BTW, that is an actual word... but only if your 16. Thanks again for the lingo education David!

We did lots of tickling, raspberries on the tummy, telling secrets in each other's ears, and jumping on the trampoline. We even rode a train to Disneyland. And of course their was lots and lots of picture taking. James is my little photographer. Oh ya, there was also lots of "Mommy is starting to get really upset because your not listening to me."

James had to start building up his sugar tolerance before the trunk or treating.

Not the best picture of Macy, but she is finally on all fours!

Now this picture of Macy I LOVE! Look at those cute cheeks.

At one point Macy did get half way undressed.

So of course James immediately stripped his shirt off too.

James took this lovely picture of me in all of my un-showered glory.

Now don't think that all we did was play all day. Oh no, there was plenty of work to be done. Several loads of laundry to be washed and dried. I even folded all the clothes and put them all away. Usually they just sit in a pile on the couch for a while or stay in the dryer until I need them. I also cleaned both of the kid's bedrooms. Normally I make the kids do it themselves, but every once in a while the rooms are screaming out for Mom to come and rescue them.

Today was such a day.

When Samm was little I used to split her toys in half and rotate them every month. That way there wasn't so much clutter and she actually played with her toys more because she hadn't seem them for a while. I don't know when I got away from doing it, but I decided today that it was time to start rotating again. So I gutted out each room by throwing away all the broken junky toys and bagging up half of the rest. Some of the toys they do play with a lot I don't ever put up so it wasn't quite half of the toys that I put in the closet, but still a good amount.

It really was quite satisfying at the end of the day to see their rooms all nice and organized. I have to say though that by far my favorite part of it all was throwing stuff away. There is just something great about getting junk out of my house. I might even goes as far as to say that I get a little bit of a high from throwing stuff out...Ya I'm a little different. I know.

Trunk or Treating was fun too, but I had my hands a little too full to take pictures.

And can anyone tell me why I can't get the computer to put a space between my paragraphs? I'm about to get seriously ticked off.

A little bit out of the ordinary

It's 11:30 at night and I suddenly have a very strong urge to scrub down my house. Is that weird to anyone else?

And the answer to the question that your all thinking is no!

You will love it

Have you read this article yet? You will cry. If you have sisters you will cry even more.

I do, and I did.

My sister Jenn is my best friend. Just like my Mom always said she would be. Today she helped restyle my living room from 900 miles away. I also love the Internet! (I don't love when my post all mushes together though for some mysterious reason.) I might have some pictures to post tomorrow, but it's not quite ready yet.

In the meantime, here are a few pictures of Josh and I from a Halloween party this weekend.

Josh is on his pediatric rotation this month, so he has to wear his again on Friday to the hospital.

yaba daba doo!

Still not feeling bloggy

Or I guess I should say posty...I'm pretty sure that is no where near being a real word...because I am for sure still loving reading all of your wonderful blogs. And here are a few random blogs that I am loving right now...in case you need something extra to read.

http://www.soulemama.com/soulemama/

http://www.restyledhome.blogspot.com/

Happy blogging!

I'm not feeling particularly bloggy tonight. In fact I'm a little grumpy. But, I still had to show off my "new" old carpenter's desk. I found it at a little flea market by my house and I'm very excited about it. I didn't actually love it at first glance, but the more I walked by it the more it captured me and I had to have it. Now I can't wait to paint it and put a cute little knob on the drawer.

The only problem now is that I actually have to decide on a paint color. I can't even decide what kind of ice cream I want when it's my birthday. Ugh! Any suggestions?

Samm's cute dance...too bad I'm not very bright

Samm had a little in class performance last night at her dance class that was so cute. She absolutely loves going to class every week and talks about her big performance all year long. These little in class ones aren't quite as big of a deal, but the kids still love that they get to perform for all the parents.

Waiting for the music to start

Posing with James afterwards. Oh how he wishes he could dance too.

So, why am I not very smart? There are so many things that could be said here, but I'll stick to the point of this post. I video taped the whole dance so I could post it for you all to see, but I had the camera turned side ways and apparently you can't rotate video clips like you can pictures.

I was going to go ahead and post the video anyway, and tell you all to just tilt your heads, but I've tried three times now and something is wrong with blogger so I'm giving up. Sorry

I'm a real Mom!

Today was the last day of fall break, so Samm and I spent the day knee deep in tulle making her Halloween costume. It's the first time I've ever made one of my kid's costumes and I feel like I've gone through some right of passage into real motherhood.

Usually I just buy the ridiculously over priced costumes from the store because I'd rather pay the money instead of spend my time being frustrated. But this year since Samm wanted to be a pumpkin fairy I figured I could save some serious cash and make the costume myself. Ironically, the one she wanted from The Children's place was thirty bucks and I think I spent close to that making it myself.

We had a good time together though, and I have to say I am feeling rather proud of myself. James was pretty happy today too, because I finally let him try on his over sized Star Wars suit that he has been begging me to wear for the last two weeks.

This is just a sneak peek at the costume. I don't want to ruin the surprise for my Halloween pictures. There is also a pumpkin wand, (hence the pumpkin fairy) and a tiara. And no I did not make the wings. I was going to, but then I saw these at Wal-Mart and the temptation was just too great.

We also had a fine display of artwork today from James

Wearing nothing but his skivvies.

Painting is pretty serious business around here!

Then he got a much needed haircut.

He even swept up his own hair afterwards. (I'm a big believer of child labor.)

And if your wondering where Macy was during all of this...well, the poor kid had to play by herself most of the day, but she was quite the trooper. She did have on big melt down...

But all she really needed was some food to fill up that big belly of hers and she was happy again

Don't worry, she got lots of luvin' once the craziness stopped.

Times when you wish a video camera was rolling

It went like this...

Josh swinging the broom at a mouse.

A scared little mouse running frantically in between my feet.

Me jumping up and down screaming.

James on the couch laughing.

And the fat lazy cat snoozing away on the fireplace.