busy, busy

I realized that if I hurry, I can get as many blog posts as there are days for the month of May. Today was the most productive day I have had in a long time. Just the mere idea of us moving has totally motivated me to get some things done. Yesterday I decided I should paint over the depressing blue walls that were in our bedroom. I have wanted to do this ever since we moved in, but never got around to it. I got out the left over tan paint from our dining room and the blue is no more. Luckily it wasn't on all of the walls, just one main one and then the one around our closet. We had to take the bedroom door off in order to get a chair out of the room, so while it was off I decided that we needed to paint it from old brown, to gleaming white. So we did that today. When we went to the hardware store to get the paint, we decided to pick up some plants as well. We got the front of our house cleared out and picked out some lovely shrubs to plant and we even got them planted today. I also planted some other flowers along the side of the house and Justin finished getting the rest of the seeds into the garden. And in between all of this work, I gave three violin lessons.

Katelyn was sure a big helper. She helped put rocks in the bucket. She helped dump the rocks back out of the bucket, she sprinkled potting soil in the lawn...just like Daddy...sort of. She helped sand the door before painting and she also tried falling down the front stairs.

What a great day! I am worn out!

Oh yeah, I forgot to mention: If you look at the pictures below, you can see that there is a large something or other covered with tarp in front of the house. Well, it's a weight set thing that we tried to sell at our yard sale. No takers. We decided today to put it out by the curb with a "FREE, U-HAUL" sign on it. Within 2 hours it was gone. People are hilarious. We are glad to get rid of it though.

When I go to work, Justin takes care of Katelyn. After my long day of work today (3 hrs.), I came home to find this: I love it when Justin does things like this. He is such a great daddy!

Below are some pictures of our totally sweet house (yes, sarcasm is intended).

Actually, we have enjoyed this house for the past year and a half.

It is at least 100 years old and has some really neat old features, BUT

that being said, it also has a lot of things that need work. The last

picture is of our garden. Justin got out to till it today and planted the

first seeds in the ground and put in the tomato plants. It is our 2nd

garden and it's really fun to watch things grow and then be able to eat them too.

Vinyl siding is not my favorite, but I do really love this tree.

some cool girls!

I was able to sneak in a quick visit with Molly. Love ya girl!

~Katelyn the Biker Babe~

~With Aunt Tammy~

Kennewick

Wow! It has been a really nice weekend. There was rain in the forecast, but it was beautiful and SUNNY pretty much the entire time we were in Kennewick. Justin had a really great ride-a-long and said he could picture himself working down here, so that made me feel good. We have prayed a lot about this, and feel good about it, but we know that ultimately is it in the Lord's hands. Still, there is a quote I read once that I really like, it says: "don't ask the Lord to guide your footsteps unless you are willing to move your feet." I think that we are doing what we can to move our feet.

Sunday afternoon we drove all over Kennewick looking at the different neighborhoods and trying to find our way around. It was great! There are some really nice areas there and I actually think it is beautiful. There are plenty of trees and parks and the river. Not only that, but we saw some wildlife in town on Saturday night-two racoons ran across the street in front of us.

Justin would rather I didn't talk about it so much, especially on the blog...just "in case" he doesn't get hired. Gotta BE POSITIVE!!!!! I am hopeful though.

...

Being sick is the pits! I have been lying in bed for the last two days like a big pile of...whatever. I finally started feeling a little better this evening, but keep having these waves of nausea roll over me. Feels kinda like morning sickness, but sorry, no news to tell. It is very odd though. This all just came out of no where.

This weekend Justin and I are heading down to Kennewick. Since it's not really a secret anymore (and not because I blabbed my big mouth so much..it was him) I can sort of talk about it. I don't know why we get scared to talk about things sometimes. Maybe it seems like we are going to jinx ourselves or bring on some bad omen.

Anyway, Justin is looking into a potential job change, so he is going to go down and do a ride-a-long with someone in the Kennewick P.D. and I get to go with him (not on the ride, just for the trip). What is even better is my mom and Dale have graciously agreed to keep Kate for the weekend, so Justin and I finally get some time alone~WOOHOO! I cannot wait!

Taking Care of Mommy

Yesterday I came down with some kind of a flu bug and it has knocked me out. I have been in bed for almost the last 24 hours. Justin was able to stay home from work tonight and he has been taking really good care of me. He got up with Katelyn this morning, has kept her out of the bedroom so I could sleep, took her to the store with him to get me Ginger Ale, Chicken Noodle Soup, and chocolate chip cookies (isn't he thoughtful-just what a sick gal needs!) Later this evening he even took Kate outside with him to get the lawn mowed. I had to get a picture of this. He is trying so hard to take care of me and let me rest. What a guy!

Mommy Thoughts

1. Typically what time do you wake up?? I wake up over and over again all night, but I don't usually get about of bed till about 7:30-8:30am (whenever Katelyn wakes up)

2. On a good night what time are your kids in bed? HA! Justin works nights, so we are all backwards. There are some nights when Katelyn is up until 10pm

3.How long have you been a mommy? 1 year 23 months and 9 days

4.How old were you when you became a mommy? 4 months before my 29th birthday

5.What is your favorite kids tv show/movie? Monsters Inc., Aladdin, Prince of Egypt

6.What is your least favorite kids show? I don't watch that many, but I hate Sponge-Bob.

7. What are your kids 'favorite' chores? She doesn't really have chores yet, but when she is done eating, she will say "done" and hand me her bowl and cup and then say "thank-you".

8.What is your favorite meal to cook? Lately nothing. But one thing I like to make is sauteed steak with green peppers and onions and then have it over rice.

9.What is the meal you cook most often? See above, or some kind of chicken dish.

10.What is your kids favorite meal? I wish she had a favorite meal. She is such a terribly picky eater. She most enjoys cold cereal.

11.What is your favorite thing your husband does with your kids? When he takes her out on a walk, just the two of them, or plays with her, or reads to her.

12.What are five things that make you smile when being a mom?1. Seeing Katelyn smile; 2. hearing her say new words or when she counts and says her ABC's; 3. Snuggles; 4. When she rubs my face gently or kisses her daddy's "wowie"; 5. Having her ask to say prayers.

13.If you could take your kids anywhere, where would it be? Right now. I would take her to a pool and go swimming.

14.When was the last time you went somewhere without your kids? It's sad that I have to think about it that hard...I don't know...going to sleep at night (LAME!) We need to get out!!!!!

15.What is your favorite pass time activity to do with your kids? Definitely putting Katelyn in the stroller and going for walks/jogs.

16.Name one thing you said you would never do as a mom? Name call. I think I do pretty well in this area. I mean, I do call her a "turkey" or "stinker" or things like that on occasion, but I just don't want to get in the habit of calling her names like "brat" "lazy" "selfish" -things you might say when you get really frustrated or mad.

17. What is your favorite quality your mom has? She is very giving

18.What is your advice for new moms? Be kind to yourself. And know that you have the most important job in the world.

19.What is the scariest or most heartbreaking moment as a mom? Scary-"losing" her in a store. Heartbreaking-if I think she is sad.

20.What is your most joyful moment of being a mom? Seeing and holding her for the first time.

21. When was the last time you were told 'I love you' by one of your kids? Today. It sounds like this: "uvvyou"

Snuggling with Daddy (see how she has her hand on his head)

no more puppy

Well, I did everything within my capabilities to help out the puppy. I was really hoping to get him to a Pit Bull Rescue, but I guess things just don't work out sometimes. I did learn a lot of things about rescues as well as Pit Bulls. I will never pre-judge a Pit Bull again. And if and when the time comes for us to add a dog to our family, I will definitely try to get one from a Rescue.

We took the dog down to SpokAnimal only for them to tell us that they couldn't take him because we found him in Elk. So, they told us to take him to SCRAPS, which made me want to vomit because one of the rescues that wrote me back told me specifically NOT to take him there because they are a killing shelter. So we went to the Humane Society and they wouldn't take him there either. We had no other option than to take him out to SCRAPS way the heck out in the Spokane Valley. I couldn't believe it, but I got super emotional and started crying when we handed the puppy over to them. I felt like we were sentencing him to death. I'm sure most people think that would be ok since he is Pit Bull, but I know that he will be a good pet for someone. Hopefully someone will see what a good pup he is and snatch him up.

The whole thing just makes me furious. People who have pets really should make every attempt to spay or neuter them. And people who decide to have pets should also be more responsible. It is heartbreaking to me that animals get "dumped" off and left ALL the time. Those shelters are so depressing. Even if they get treated well while there, they have got to be doggie HELL!

I don't care if anyone reads this or not. I consider this a form of journaling, so I am just writing this for me mostly. So, my last words are to SPAY OR NEUTER YOUR PET-AND-DON'T JUDGE A PIT BULL BY IT'S REPUTATION!

ahh, the heat is here!

Oh man, it was hot today! Katelyn thought that playing in the water was a pretty cool idea. Haven't got her a new swim-suit this year yet. I was pleasantly surprised that last year's swim diapers actually still fit.

Katelyn was saying "shhh" because the puppy was sleeping.

This little guy is still with us. I was going to take him to an animal rescue in Priest River, but they won't take a Pitt Bull puppy. Poor little thing...I haven't quite figured out what to do with him. I don't want to take him to a shelter because he may be put down quickly just because of his breed. I have been reading up on the breed (American Pitt Bull Terrior and American Staffordshire Terrior, we aren't quite sure which he is, or if he is a mix of some kind), they do have a bad reputation, but are said to be great family pets and companions. Typically, there aggression is toward other animals, but if well socialized as a youngster, they will do ok. I am really tempted to keep him, but Justin is just not on board with that idea. This little guy follows me like a shadow. Very good pup.

The Pinnacle of Motherhood

I struggle to even find the words to write...(long, thoughtful pause). This evening motherhood has reached an all time high for me. After my heroic deed of the day (puppy rescue), I take a few minutes to put a post on Craig's List in hopes to return this dog to it's rightful and loving owner. Katelyn has an extremely wet diaper, so I take it off of her and let her run commando for a bit, as I do on a fairly regular basis. Only minutes later, I hear her crying about something, so I turn around to find her face horror stricken and dark spots on the carpet. I go in for a closer look. Has she hurt herself? If only it had been that simple. I approach the scene to realize that no, she is not hurt. Instead, she has laid a giant, green turd right on top of one of her toys and had poop smeared up and down her legs and feet. She was flipping out about it! Rightly so. Unbelievable!

lost and found

WHERE DO I BELONG?

VERY CUDDLY, SWEET PIT BULL PUPPY.

ANYONE LOOKING FOR A NICE PET?

I was driving home from my violin lesson today and spotted this little guy running along all by himself. I thought it seemed odd as we were out on kind of a back road. Although there are plenty of people who live along there. I thought I should pull over and see if I could help. The poor little guy was covered in sweat and foaming at the mouth. He seemed like he had been on the run for a while and it was pretty warm today. As I was pulling over another car came along and must have spotted him too because they pulled over as well. When the man tried to pick the dog up, the dog cowered away from him so it made me wonder if he had been hurt before. The man offered to take him and find him a "good home", but you just never know. Since the dog seemed timid I told the man I would take him. He is just a young thing, probably only a few months old. Hopefully we can get him taken care of. Justin was thoroughly annoyed with my rescue attempt. I just felt really bad for the puppy and wanted to try and help.

place your vote now

I am going to be getting some new running shoes soon. FINALLY!

Which shoes do you think look the coolest?

I have already researched and any of these shoes

(the last two are the same, different color)

and all of them would be fine for me. I was just wondering

what you all thought. I like the top ones the best... I think

testing mommy

Katelyn has such a sweet way of trying my patience.

I have to ask her repeatedly to do things...

usually that I want her to stop doing. So today she

was walking around with two large canning jars. She took

them and bumped them together, so I asked her not to

do it again, and told her we need to be soft with glass.

What does she do? BAM! Hits them together even

harder and one of them breaks into a million pieces.

I grabbed her immediately to get her away from the glass

and scolded her (lovingly, of course). She started bawling,

probably more out of fear than anything. We got the glass cleaned

up and then I noticed there was blood coming from her hands.

She had cut her little thumb, and then started crying even more.

Now, I am not the kind of person to react, or over-react

to a little blood, so don't go thinking that I freaked out and

made her cry about the blood. Anyway, we got it all

cleaned up and went to put a band-aid on her thumb. You

would have thought I had cut her open again, she totally

freaked out at the band-aid, did not want anything

to do with it. I guess I need to get some cute princess

band-aids or something so it will be more fun next time.

Katelyn and her "wowie"

Mother's Day

I had the most wonderful mother's day. Justin really spoiled me. It started Saturday night when he cleaned up the kitchen and got everything ready for Sunday's dinner. He then cooked the entire meal (roast, green bean casserole, jello salad, green salad), set the table, wrapped presents signed cards, served dinner, then cleaned up the kitchen AGAIN! On top of that I got a massage and a much needed, brand new HAIR DRYER along with some salon shampoo. I have such a loving husband! Thank you for a wonderful day babe!

Yummy Fruit Pizza

I made this fruit pizza yesterday for our Primary Meeting.

It was pretty yummy!

Here is the recipe if anyone is interested:

1 pkg (20 oz.) refrigerated sugar cookie dough

1 pkg (8 oz.) cream cheese, softened

1/4 C confectioner's sugar

1 carton ( 8 oz.) frozen cool whip, thawed

2-3 kiwi fruit

1-2 firm bananas, thinly sliced

1 can (11 oz.) mandarin oranges, drained

1/2 C red grapes, halved

1/4 C Sugar

1/4 C orange juice

1 T lemon juice

1.5 t cornstarch

pinch of salt

*fruit choices by preference, of course

DIRECTIONS:

Pat cookie dough into an ungreased 14" pizza pan

Bake at 375 for 10-12 minutes or until browned; cool

In a mixing bowl, beat the cream cheese, and confectioner's sugar until smooth

Fold in whipped topping. Spread over crust. Arrange fruit on top.

In a saucepan, bring sugar, water, OJ, lemon juice, cornstarch and salt to a boil,

stirring constantly for 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool.

Brush over fruit. Chill. Store in refrigerator. YIELD: 16-20 servings.

*note: make sure your pizza pan is large enough or the

cookie dough will bake over the sides, spilling into the oven.

This will then burn while in the bottom of your oven

and will result in your house filling with smoke, the alarms going

off, your child waking from a nap too early, and your house

smelling like burnt food for the next several days....

(not that I have ever experienced this, I'm just saying...)

daddy's training

Justin is so much more into trying to get Katelyn

potty trained. I just find it to be frustrating because

she just doesn't really want to do it yet. This picture

illustrates a Father's way of getting his child to go potty.

All you need is a good book to help you relax.

more cousin love

These kids are two peas in a pod. They have

so much fun playing together. We are really

going to miss Corey, Sarah & Ezra.

Below: Ezra goin' in for a kiss

(it's OK for little cousins to kiss, right?)

Below: Kissin' Kate

Sponge-Bob, LAME-pants

Alright, so yesterday I was trying to get some things done and decided I would let Katelyn watch cartoons, rather than the same movies that she likes to watch over and over...and over ("Boo" and "Me-mo"). I decided to go with Sponge-Bob, Square-Pants. I have only ever seen bits and pieces of the show and am always annoyed beyond description by it. More than being annoyed though, I was disgusted at the messages that were being sent by this cartoon. I had had just about enough of this grotesque little character and his irritating voice and rude messages. I could not take it for another second. When I went to change the channel I saw Katelyn's face as she was watching the show and she had a furrow in her brow, as if to say: "What in the world are you subjecting me to mom!?" I wholeheartedly apologize Katelyn!

p.s. this is not meant to offend those of you who may be fans.

My favorite dancers

Since Justin works nights, every night is "Girl's Night"

at our house. Monday nights Kate and I love to

watch "Dancing With The Stars". This is my favorite

couple! Go Kristi and Mark! I love his facial expressions.

Kate's concerns

Yesterday was Fast Sunday and we had a really nice meeting. Katelyn also enjoyed it, but was expressing great concern about the women who were crying. Every time someone started to cry during their testimony, Katelyn would look up at me with a furrowed brow and say: "crying, crying?" I made sure to tell her that they were okay and that they were crying because they felt good (not that she understood). She has always been very keenly aware of what is going on around her and she is so sensitive.

Towards the end of the meeting I had that oh-so-un-ignorable feeling that I should go up, so I asked Katelyn if she would like to go say her testimony...she of course said: "k". I thought that it might be good if I start taking her up with me so she can get used to the idea. I know as I was growing up I was insanely shy and wouldn't even participate in the Primary Programs without crying. It wasn't until I was in the singles ward that I ever got up to bear my testimony in church. Anyway, Katelyn enjoyed being up there with me and entertained herself by reaching out and grabbing the microphone repeatedly. I love my little daughter!

another lovely day...

After church today we went over to Pioneer Park along

the Pend Oreille River. It was just beautiful! Our friends

the Turner's came with us and we all enjoyed a picnic.

I've never seen bubbles as big as the ones

that came out of this bubble machine.

Great entertainment for the little ones.

Katelyn was thrilled! Isaac and Kade kept

chasing the bubbles and swinging to hit them, while

Katelyn put both her hands out very

femininely and tried to catch the bubbles.

Justin teaches Katelyn the fine art of skipping rocks.

Look at that form!

Loving every minute of it

Brrrr!

"Just say no to crack" (hehehe) too cute!

Later that night...

Boy we were tired out after a full day of yard sale-ing.

After dinner, we sat down to relax and watch a

movie. We rented "Dan In Real Life". Cute show actually.

Just seconds before this picture, Ezra & Katelyn were

snuggled together in the sweetest embrace~just sitting there

hugging. I wanted to get a shot of that so bad, but oh well.

Katelyn seriously loves her Uncle Corey.

Don't you just love trying to watch a movie with a couple of toddlers? "Down in front guys!"

Yard Sale

It was Newport's annual yard sale day this weekend.

We decided to clean out some more of our things.

Corey & Sarah brought stuff for the sale as

well as Justin's parents. It was hoppin'! We

totally sold so much of our stuff and had a lot of fun.

Ezra & Katelyn testing out the merchandise.

Getting rid of the old freezer, YES!!!

I love my job

I work for the school district here in Newport and my "title" is "Special Services Secretary" (special services meaning 'special education'). So what I get to do is test the kids in the district K-12 who have either been referred for special services or who need a 3 year re-evaluation done. So I have these manuals that I use and basically go by a script to ask them questions. Well, one of the tests in the Reading area is Synonyms/Antonyms. The kiddo has to read the word and then tell me a word that either means the same or the opposite. So last week I was testing just the sweetest little boy who is classified as mentally retarded. We got to the synonym section and he sounded the word out like this: "shhhh-iii-ttt", then says it smoothly (you know how it goes). Oh my gosh! I could not help my self, I chuckled out loud. And immediately after I look at this little boy and he's just staring at me with a confused look on his face, like "why is she laughing?". I instantly felt horrible. The actual word he was reading was "shut".

Seriously though, I just love most of these kids I get to test, especially the elementary kids. They are so sweet and I just wish I could help all of them.

Dude! I got glasses

Yeah, yeah, so this isn't the best shot of me,

but it was the one with the least amount of double chin.

Hehehe~ It's really weird having glasses now, but

man, it is great to see..(without seeing double).

24 things you could care less about me

1) Four places I go over and over:

Safeway
Gas Station
Relatives House
Post Office

2) Four people who email me:

My dad
Jen C.
Karen E.
Sharon H.

3) Four of my favorite foods:

Chocolate chip cookies
BBQ Hamburgers in the summer
Chicken
Fresh Fruit

4) Four places I would rather be right now:

Getting a massage
In a hot tub
Snuggling with Justin
No where

5) 4 people I think will respond: (tag you're it, you have to do this too)

Arah
Tawna
Julie
Erin

6) Four movies I could watch over and over:

The Lord of The Rings (not only could I, but I have)
Monster's Inc.
Finding Nemo
The "Bourne" series (I have a secret crush on Matt Damon)

toddler feet

I don't think the picture really does it justice, but

Katelyn looked so cute in her new shorts. We are

so happy the sun has been shining. We went on a hour

and a half walk today (boy my feet are tired). I can

tell the sun makes Katelyn extra happy because

we went for a walk two days in a row and after

both walks Katelyn was especially happy, playful

and almost a little hyper. Please don't take our

sunshine away!!!

I love watching toddlers learn to run. It's so funny to watch.

Katelyn thinks she is a really fast runner, of course that's what we tell her all the time. I love the flailing arms too :)

Sanity Restored

I guess it wasn't my fault at all that the blog was messed up. It was a malfunction of the system. Phew! I think I have learned my lesson though...maybe :)