A Great Day

Today was a great day! 

Today is my mom's birthday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! We celebrated by going out to lunch to Panera Bread - yummy!

Then we found out today that my dad got a new job! Yippee! After 30 years with a company they let him go last October due to the down-turn in the economy. After 2 weeks of meeting with and talking to this dealership, he finally got word today that they wanted to hire him. Thank goodness!

What a great birthday present for my mom!

Yes, today was a GREAT day!

Happy Night!

Last night was just a great night! The kids came home from school happy, they happily did their homework, I had a great time reading with Kayla while Hailey and Evan played happily upstairs (turns out they were scarfing down Valentines candy but, hey, at least they were happy), I happily cooked dinner (doesn't happen every night), Kurt came home from an appointment happy after signing another contract - GO DAD! (okay, this guy is always happy, so I should say he came home happier), we happily enjoyed dinner together. It was just a very HAPPY night.

One of the funniest things last night was that Hailey helped Evan finish his dinner. He has a hard time eating dinner so Kurt and I usually keep telling him to take a bite, etc. Last night Hailey had finished her dinner and decided to help Evan eat his so she was feeding him bites. Evan happily accepted every bite she gave him - GO HAILEY! It wasn't until he tried to speak that we realized that she had been feeding him too fast and he hadn't been able to swallow his previous bites. With his mouth stuffed full of food, he managed to get out "Wow Hailey, you are really good at this!". We all laughed so hard - it was hilarious! She did get him to eat his whole dinner - I think this may be her new job!

From across the table Kurt and I just looked at each other in total amazement of this amazing family we have. We still don't understand where they all came from or how they have grown so fast but we are totally in love with our family. Neither of us would trade this for anything!

We are truly blessed!

Only with kids

There are situations in life that you can only experience if you have kids. Those of you who have kids know what I am talking about. Those embarrassing, humbling, I'm-never-leaving-the-house-again experiences.

I had one of those today.

Now when your kids are little you kind-of get used to these experiences happening on a more frequent basis. I had learned to deal with them and "roll with punches". Well, as your kids get older, the experiences get few and far between and you get a "false sense of security" that your kids have outgrown them.

Well, today I learned that we haven't.

So, today was our Stake Conference (this is where our church ward meets with other wards in our area to hear from the local church leaders). Well, we meet in a building that has a huge area and there is a stage at the back of the room. They put chairs up on the stage for additional seating. We sat on the ground level about 3 rows in front of the stage. After a few speakers we all stood to sing a song. Evan was standing on the chair next to me. I was focusing on the screen with the words so I could sing along. Suddenly I felt Evan's hand slide down my back. 

Then I felt something slide over my, um, back side. 

I quickly realized that it was my skirt!

Evan was falling off of his chair and he was taking my skirt with him! The skirt had an elastic waist so it easily went with him.

Now the dilemma - save Evan or my skirt? Hmmm.

I grabbed for Evan with one hand and grabbed my slipping skirt with the other - I guess that's what they call multitasking. Well, I managed to get Evan up in his chair and pull my skirt back up. I am still not exactly sure how far my skirt went down (I think about mid-thigh)  - I don't think I really want to know - but I saw enough of my slip to know I was "exposed".

Now it wouldn't have been too bad had only the row behind us been able to see but unfortunately the seats behind us were empty so the whole stage had a direct view. All I can hope is that they were all so busy singing that they didn't see the "show".

Ahhh, the joy of kids! How boring my life would be without experiences like this! You just have to laugh and roll with the punches because what else are you going to do?

I just love this roller coaster ride called parenting!

Catching up

Okay, so I am so far behind in everything - shopping, cleaning, blogging. I am making a quick attempt at catching up on what we have been up to.

First let me say that I am at work and I should be dealing with this:

and not blogging but blogging is so much funner! This is my desk currently - it never looks like this. It is usually so clean and everything is put where it belongs. Anyone who knows me knows that I can't stand being disorganized - so this is very stressful for me. So my solution - ignore it and blog! I am sitting at the other desk so my blogging won't be slowed down by the mess. Ha ha!

Here is what we have been up to the last few weeks:

FINALLY, on January 31st our sweet Kayla was able to have her birthday party - it was 3 weeks overdue but she was patient and it turned out great! She had 11 friends come over and it quickly became apparent to Kurt and I that if we were going to survive the party, we needed some organized games before our house was completely destroyed! We had a great time playing a balloon game, pictionary, and pin/tape the balloon on the wall (it was too late to go get pin the tail on the donkey and we were desperate). Here are some pics of all the fun:

Here is daddy playing pin the balloon on the wall:

And here is where he pinned /taped it - right in the middle of Hailey's forhead.

Here is Kayla opening some gifts. She had a Webkinz party so she got quite a few new Webkinz!

Then last week was a crazy week for us. Kurt and I had a training certification class to attend in Concord so we left Monday night and returned Wednesday night. Thank you so much to my parents for watching the kids for us (this included getting everyone up and ready for school for 2 days - no easy task!). Kurt and I went to work on Thursday, did as much as we could and then we all left Thursday evening for a trip up to Portland, OR to visit family.

Kurt had 3 siblings that lived within 2 hours of us here in CA but within the last 6 months they have all moved away. His 2 sisters both moved up to the Portland area and his brother Paul moved to Cedar City, UT. We feel so abandoned! =(

April's oldest son, Kaulana and his wife, Michelle, were going to be blessing their baby in Vancouver, WA and we couldn't miss the opportunity to see everyone - so off we went.

Thursday night was a bit crazy driving in the snow. Luckily the kids were asleep so Kurt and I could concentrate on the road but Friday was a BEAUTIFUL day to travel. We arrived at Margo's house Friday afternoon. Here is a picture of Saturday morning and the kids making sugar cookies!

She is so brave - she let Evan play in the flour and make a mess - a big mess. He had a BLAST! Thanks Auntie Margo!

While all the family was together we celebrated Josh and Makana achievement of obtaining their Eagle Scouts.

We are so proud of both of you!

Here is sweet baby Madelyn

After 11 hours in the car, only 1 was still awake!

Our kids are amazing travelers! They did so good both ways. We were blessed with amazing weather coming home on Monday too. We love getting together with everyone and wish that we were still close. It was so hard to leave!

Well, I guess I should go tackle my desk.

Wish me luck!

Good news and bad news

Last Friday I went with my mom to a doctors appoitment to get the results of her current PET scan.

My mom had breast cancer 9 years ago and was able to beat it. Her lymph nodes were clear so we had high expectations that this was the end.

But it wasn't.

In November 07, blood test showed something was going on and my mom has now been battling the breast cancer again but this time it is in her liver. Apparently at least one cell was able to get through the lymph nodes undetected.

So her current PET scan came back saying that it has not spread to anywhere else in her body. GREAT news! Her bones and lungs are all clear. Also her liver function is normal and is not enlarged. YES!

The bad news was that the current chemo she is on is not working good enough. The cancer is not one mass on her liver but is "numerous" spots all over her liver. Some of the spots have grown, some are brighter on the test and there are new ones. Scarey! So they are switching her chemo again (this will be her 3rd one); this one will be more aggressive.

She is incredibly strong (even though she doesn't feel that she is) and we are so proud of her. She is such an example to me and I love her so much. I know she can get through this. I ask that you keep her in your thoughts and prayers as the power of prayer is amazing!

Man, was I in HOT water!

No, not that kind of hot water.

I took a bath.

A HOT bath.

Let me explain . . .

After a near mental breakdown Friday morning I decided Friday night to take a bath. I have not taken a bath in over 2 years because in the past I have had a husband, 3 kids, a dog, and numerous My Little Ponies and Barbies all trying to join me - not very relaxing. But last night the kids were in bed, Kurt was on his way home from another home show, and word had not reached the toyroom yet that a bath was happening. So I decided to indulge.

Now usually when I have taken a bath in the past I set the water to what I think is the just right temp. My body doesn't like really hot or really cold. (Yes, I am the person standing on the stairs for a half an hour trying to get into a pool - it's pathetic, I know). Anyways, what happens is that the water gets cold too fast and I end up getting out because I am cold. So last night I decided to really warm up the water. I set it for a lot hotter than I usually like because I wanted to really enjoy if for awhile. It was a bit hot and I had to slowly get in so I could adjust to the temp but I managed to get in.

Well, I was probably only in for 15 minutes and I heard Kurt come in so I decided to go downstairs with him while he ate his dinner. I sat up and realized that my head felt funny. I sat there for a minute and decided to stand up - bad idea. I managed to get out of the tub but when Kurt walked in to give me a kiss, the room was spinning. I told him that I thought I might pass out. I stumbled to the bed and fell over sideways trying to get on the bed. Kurt said that my skin was really red. I layed there on my stomach for about 30 minutes and I could feel every heart beat pulsate through my entire body. It was the weirdest thing ever!

When Kurt came up from eating his dinner, the water still hot enough for him to get in. He really likes HOT water so it must have still been really hot for him to enjoy it.

So basically I cooked myself. It took me more time to recouperate from my bath than for me to enjoy the bath.

So I think it might be another 2 years before I take a bath again! Haha!

Actually, the soaking part was really nice; just not the cooking part. I just need to turn down the temp next time!

A moment of Honesty

Okay, so a moment of honesty - I have been struggling lately. Struggling with having a good attitude, struggling with having energy, struggling with focusing. For those of you who don't know, we own our own business. It is a landscaping company and Kurt has always run the crews and I have always run the office. When our kids were little, the company was small and I could do all the office work during nap time. Well, as our family grew so did our company and just before Evan was born we hired someone to run the office so I could officially be a "stay-at-home-mom". Over the last 3 years we have had someone helping me in the office but I have always had a supervisory role in the office. Well, as you can probably imagine, landscaping is not a necessity and so in this economy, business has slowed waaaaaay down. We are doing okay but we have had to cut back and that means we had to get rid of the office staff. So it is all back on me to run the company.

My struggles have come from working what is a full time job and doing it in part time hours and then going home and trying to fill my responsibilities as wife, mother, homework helper, housekeeper, cook, etc. Honestly, I am just exhausted. Working and motherhood just don't mix! Trying to stay on top of everything in the office, Kurt's schedule, kid's school activities, calling, grocery shopping, cleaning . . . it is all very overwhelming. Lately I feel like I am in a daze, cloudy headed and I am starting to forget things, which has never been a problem for me before. Poor Kayla - her birthday was on the 10th and we still have not had a birthday party for her. I am still trying to get invitations out for a party on the 31st. What is wrong with me??!! Urgh! Sigh. Deep breathe.

Okay, I know that this is a phase and it will pass. I just feel like I am being pulled in 100 different directions.

I have been trying to focus on what I am thankful for, like: I am incredibly grateful for an amazing husband who tries to help as much as he can. I am grateful for my 3 amazing children who are always wanting to do what is right. I am grateful for my parents who help me with Evan and especially my mom who is always helping with our laundry (I can't imaging trying to do all the laundry too!) I am thankful for a job that I can work around my kids school schedule (I'm only in the office while the girls are at school, hence the part time hours). I am especially thankful for the jobs that we have been able to sign lately. I am thankful for my ward family and my friends there. I am thankful for the power of prayer and for the blessings that come from being obedient. I am thankful for our home and the love that is there.

See, now I am feeling a bit better. Thanks for listening and letting me vent. I better get back to work before my boss (Kurt) catches me blogging - again! He he!