Disneyland

We decided to take a family vacation. With Brett's knee, and the busy season of Valentine's Day, etc. and then the normal rigors of being a stay-at-home working mom, we needed a break. We loaded the kids up into the car early Thursday morning, still in their PJ's. We started driving, and about Beaver we said to the kids, "Do you know where we are going?' Dillan says, "Boondocks?" Alexis says, "Danny's?" Brett tells them to guess again, and eventually Dillan says, "California, maybe?" When we say "Yes!" He gets all excited. Then we told him about Disneyland, and he was pretty excited. He was not so thrilled he had to wait to drive there and get tickets.

The first few days we were in Anaheim we just played at the resort, and the beach. We went to Balboa Park beach, played on the pier. We also built a big sand castle as a family, but Derrick decided to climb on it.


While we were there, Lexi decided to feed some of her lunch to the seagulls. Pretty soon there were hundreds of seagulls around her. I kept trying to get a picture of it, but everytime I walked up most of them would fly away. My lens can't capture from very far away, so you are stuck with a retelling of it rather than seeing it.

We walked down the pier, and on the walk back, Lexi wanted to push the stroller with Derrick. When we were almost to the end, she let go, and since it is an incline, he went flying, Brett had to get back to his sprinter routes to catch it.

We played on a beach playground, and watched some kids smash the head of a bird, right on the water's edge so there was blood everywhere. Cool huh?

We had an awful dining experience at iHop. Big surprise there. I guess when you eat somewhere like that you can't expect great service. However, the manager was really great, and did rectify it. So, I guess it is rude of me to even mention it.

We spent the weekend in Ramona and enjoyed the Wild Animal Park, and catching up with old friends. We spent time with the Ashton family and enjoyed some of the delicious tacos that they make. Lexi ate a tub of blueberries, and had a blast playing makeup and dressups with the Ashton girls. All in all, she probably had the best time.

We had a great time at Disneyland. We had to start out with the Toy Story ride, because it is one of the kid's favorites. We did not spend much time looking for characters, as the kids enjoy the rides more. Lexi was less than an inch too short for most of the rides, so she had to sit out for most of the rides, which was too bad. She did however, love to see the princesses and female Disney characters, and they all loved her. Mrs. Incredible sat and talked with her forever, and then held her hand and walked all over the park with her. Jasmine just kept hugging her and talking to her, and telling her how great she is. It was really cute.

By the end of the day our feet really hurt. The next day we went to California Adventure and enjoyed those rides, but decided to cut the day short because, let's face it, two days all day with three small kids can be a bit much.

We drove home on Wednesday, and decided to stop over in St. George for the night. We got a condo, and grilled burgers and spent time laying around and watching the Olympics, then finished the drive home Thursday morning. Now we are home, and cleaning up after our trip and playing catch up. Bummer!

Getting skinny and wearing makeup

This morning Dillan had a few gems of funniness. He started out by telling me that, "If you want to get skinny mommy, you should swing." "Oh yeah, why is that?" "Because it is a great butt, hips, and thigh workout. And your tummy if you work real hard." I just laugh a little, then he says, "But you don't have to get skinny if you don't want to, I love you just how you are!" What a brat! He is too funny.

Then he says, "I know you hate winter mommy, but you are just going to have to get over it."
I say, "Oh yeah, how come?"
He says, "Cuz the hornhog saw its shadow."
I say, "The what?"
He says, "The HORNHOG." (All slow like that will help me understand.)
I say, "Do you mean the ground hog?"
He says, "Oh yeah, the groundhog saw its shadow, so now we have to stay bundled up longer, and your flowers might die."

Lastly, he is telling me a story about something Ryker (his cousin) used to do. He says, "He did that at his old house. Ya know, the one where Aunt Betsy had makeup?"
I say, "She doesn't have makeup anymore?"
He says, "She must not, or clothes either, cuz she is always in her pajamas."
Haha, I laughed for a while after that one.

Life is busy and good, still no word on when Brett will get his knee surgery, but he has an appointment on the 17th. We have family pictures later today, so we will see if I update this again later with a rant about how bad my kids are when I need them to behave. Oh well, gotta love it.

LOOOOONG day

Today started early because we have 9 o'clock church. Ugh. The kids are not usually up before 9. Anyway, Derrick, our sweet baby, was a grouch all day. When we came home from church, we tried to take our typical after church nap. Well, Dillan decided to give himself a haircut. Big bald spot in the front now. Grrr. I told him that we pay Christa to cut our hair, so we shouldn't do it ourselves.

We went to Gma and Gpa Simmons, and in the course of jumping up and down and playing with the other kids, Dillan and Danny collided, and Dillan's front tooth went through his lip. A huge piece of his lip was hanging down, blood going everywhere, all over his white shirt, the carpet, the floor, ugh. So we took him to the nearest insta-care, and they sent us to a different one because they do not accept our insurance. We go to the other one, and it is closed. So, we go pick up the other two kids, call a sitter, and head to the third one. They take us, but there is a wait.

By the time we got into the doctor, the bleeding had stopped, and the lip had started to heal. The doctor said it could use a few stitches, but it might be pretty traumatic for him, so we could just try and let it heal on its own, and watch it carefully, making sure it stays clean etc.

So we went home without a big expensive bill, had some dinner, played Risk, cleaned up the house a little, and now I am blogging about it. It doesn't sound as bad in writing, but today just seemed insane to me.

I swear!

So, Tuesday after I picked Dillan up from Preschool he says, "Mom, I have to tell you something but you can't get mad."

With great hesitation at the prospect of what I was about to hear I say, "What?"

His response..."I used to swear but I don't any more."

Mine..."What? When?....Dillan, did you say a bad word at preschool today?"

His..."Nooooo...Mom! It was a long time ago."

Me..."So, why did you stop?"

Him... "Because it is SO bad, and I didn't want to have to put my dollars in the "swear jar."'

We had a good laugh at his reasoning. It all boils down to money in the end. On game night we have some friends with colorful language come over, so in order to help keep things at an appropriate level for kids, we implemented the swear jar. Every cuss word equals a dollar in the jar. Dillan caught on quick! LOL

Becoming a troll!

We had a very interesting week, and a wonderful one. I was able to attend the wedding of a friend, in San Diego. Brett found out he has to have surgery again on his knee. Lexi had her second dance performance of the Nutcracker. The list goes on. We had a peaceful and relaxing Christmas spent with family. And, we decided to de-junk.

In the process of de-junking we decided to put the kids in the same room, and make the other room a toy room, in order to contain some of the messes. The only problem with this is that Derrick goes to bed before the other two. So, we adjusted their bed times in order to make it work. Last night was the first night, and it went okay. Lexi cried for 20 minutes, but fell asleep fine. Derrick got jealous that I was snuggling the other two, and would not go to sleep until he got to join in the cuddle fest. Dillan wanted to talk all night. However, they all eventually went to sleep. Tonight, Lexi had just woken up from a long Sunday nap when it was time to put the boys to bed. So, we put her in our room to watch a show while I put the boys to bed. It went okay. However, Lex is still up and it is almost midnight.

Brett turned on a movie to try and get Lexi to sleep, and said, "Let's see who stays up longer, me or you?" Lexi laughs and says, "Me, of course." Then she goes on to say, "But I won't stay up all night. If I stay up all night I will turn into a troll." We got a good laugh from that. She went on to explain that Derrick is exempt from this quandary because he is still a baby. She has such an imagination, always coming up with the silliest things. She tells funny stories.

They are growing up too fast. My baby turns 1 on Saturday, and I am feeling old as a result. Wonderful week, wonderful holiday, crazy busy time, always too much to do. Lots of love.

No go on Grad School for now

So, since many are asking, I thought I had better update on here. Grad School is not going to happen right now. Although I asked my past professors for letters of recommendation several months in advance of when I actually needed them, and although I asked 15 different professors for letters even though I only needed 3, I did not get a single letter.

UCSD won't accept an incomplete application, and without letters of recommendation, mine was incomplete. At this point I am not sure what I can do, so I guess I will keep harassing them, write a letter to the President of BYU about it, and go from there.

However, it is probably a good thing, as our family has plenty going on right now, and graduate school would only add to the stress! I am disappointed, but I will live.

My gratitude check!

Okay so this week is obviously Thanksgiving, and so the "thankful for's" are abounding, but today I had a gratitude check and felt like I should put it on here.

My day sucked. I spent the whole day in the car driving around, running errands, none of which seemed to get done. For example, I stopped at a store I needed something from, and they were not open. I went to return something, and had the wrong receipt. I went up to the Gateway to the Apple store to get an iPod fixed, and did not realize I needed to make an appointment first. It was a long, crappy day with whining kids, and messes that needed cleaning, and work that needed doing. None of which got taken care of.

I was in "Pity me" mode. I was ornery with my kids, my mom (who watched my kids last week while I was on vacation, yeah, what is my problem?) and just about everyone but Brett. I probably spent the better part of my day moping around about what a bad day I had. But guess what? I realized something... Sure I have a lot to do, but it is because I spent my entire last week out having fun with my husband on vacation while my friends and family helped me by taking care of my kids, etc. I am very blessed.

So sure...

My house needs cleaning, but at least I have one. This week my good friend had to move out quickly because of a problem with the construction on their house. So, hey, at least I am not trying to move my family right now. And there is stuff everywhere, but it is because I am still unpacking and getting back into real life mode.

My work is not done, but I have a job. I get overwhelmed and frustrated. I get upset when people borrow money and don't repay it, or want stuff from me when they are capable of getting things for themselves, etc. I get ornery when the work piles up, or I can't seem to find time to sit down and focus on my writing. But you know what? At least I have money to lend, I have income that pays the bills, I have friends who feel comfortable asking me for help when they are in need. I am doing something I love, and getting paid for it.

My kids were whining at me, but that is normal, and I am so blessed to have three beautiful children, who are healthy, smart, loving, and wonderful. Sure I get irritated with them, but would I really trade them? No.

I realized that I do have a lot on my plate, and I am juggling a lot of responsibilities that add to my stress levels, but they are all good things. I am a mom. I am a wife. I am trying to plan fun things, that I am privileged to be in a financial position, and have the kind of employment that allows me to do them. I have great parents who are generous with what they have. I have great in-laws who are always willing to help, and do what they can for us.

The point of my rambling: Life sucks sometimes, but I really do have it good. I am not struggling to keep my house or put food on the table. I am not in jeopardy of losing my job if I get a little behind. God loves me and has blessed me with an amazing family, generous friends, and a great life. So when my writers turn work in late, or someone in my family gets on my nerves, or the kids won't let me have more than a moment of peace, or I just want to give up, I am going to smile, and remember all that I have to be grateful for. At least until tomorrow anyway!