Grace's Video Debut

Okay, here's Grace's video, singing "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes." Again, sorry about the poor quality, but you get the idea. Pay close attention to her face at the end of the song-she always cheats and just puts her finger on her nose, instead of doing all of the actions. So cute!

Adam's Video Debut

So, we tried experimenting this past weekend with making videos on our digital camera. We still need to work on it. I thought it would be fun to post a video of the kids once in a while for our families (and friends, too). We told Adam to sing a song, and he picked, "Do As I'm Doing." I'm not really sure why what he chose to do was shake his hips. He's never done that before. What a crack-up!

Busy, Busy Day

We started the day with an 8:15 am appointemnt at the doctor for Grace's 18-month well check. This appointment was actually scheduled for Monday (the 3rd), so that Mike could stay home with Adam. However, the receptionist messed up and scheduled it earlier, and since I didn't want to pay a $25 cancellation fee (like that makes sense!), I went on in. Grace was very happy. She even listened to my instructions to not touch the toys, and we read books that I had brought. The MA opened the door, Grace said "hi" and walked back happily... until she spotted the scale.

I think she has some serious issues with it. Probably because I used to cry while I held her as a baby and sob, "You are not going to develop properly if you don't gain weight! Please eat!" It's something she'll go over with a therapist someday. Anyway, she threw an immediate tantrum (head even banging on the floor), until I picked her up and walked past it. I already reported on her awesome weight gain. The doctor said she's doing fantastic, and I was very happy to tell her that she had finally kicked the bottle addiction (we went cold-turkey last night, and threw it away... I reasoned my white lie with that she didn't ask WHEN she gave up the bottle). We got to the immunizations, and I was very worried that Grace would have another panic attack. But, nope! She didn't even flinch! I couldn't believe it. What a girl!

After the doctor, we headed over to Target to get a prescription filled for Grace's eczema cream. And I found some clearanced clothes for Adam for next year (it kinda just hit me recently that he can't go in his underwear to Kindergarten, so I've been stocking up on the clearance racks). And 2 hours later, we left. I don't know why we feel the need to walk up and down every aisle when we go to Target, but we do. It's just fun.

We then came home, made lunch, and Grace took a nap. I packed some boxes, and then un-packed them, when I realized that I still needed some of the dishes I had packed. Moving stinks.

At 2:30 we went over to the library, to check out some books, and watch a marionette puppet show. It was way cool. The Fratello Marionettes performed, "Peter and the Wolf" and the kids both LOVED it! It was really fun to watch... Grace especially loved the wolf. After the play, they showed the kids the rest of the marionettes and explained how they are made. And then they performed a song with a mummy that kept losing parts throughout the song. These guys were talented... and now Adam has added ANOTHER thing to his list of "What I Want to Be When I Grow Up": Cool Puppet Man.

We got home at about 5:00, and while I made dinner (Creamy Italian Chicken-Adam's current favorite), Grace rotated my food storage for me. I don't even know how she got the lid off. But, hey, at least we are using it, right? Thanks, Grace! :)

Wow! We had a really fun, long, tiring day. I don't know why, because we really didn't even do that much, but for some reason, going out with kids is just exhausting. Have a great day, everyone! I'm off to go sweep up some wheat (don't be too jealous)! :)

I Just Can't Win

Grace had her 18-month well check today. I can not believe she's 18 months (or, she will be in 2 days)... CRAZY! She weighed 24 pounds (50th percentile... yay!) and is 33 inches tall (90th percentile... yay!). I was super-happy because she had gained 3 pounds since her last appointment, and it's been such an ordeal for almost a year now to get her to gain weight. I thought her doctor would be thrilled.

Her reaction?

"Wow! 3 pounds in 3 months? What's she eating? We don't want her to become overweight."

I'm glad we're moving to the other side of town, and will then find a new pediatrician. Because I just can't win with this one. :)

And Maybe He's Not Such a Ladies Man After All...

Tonight, Mike asked Adam how much he loved him. Adam replied, "Oh, Dad, I love you to Jupiter and back 80 times!" Cute, right?

Mike then asked how much Adam loved ME. Adam's answer? "Well, I was disappointed that Mommy wouldn't let me have a cookie before dinner. So, right now, I just love Mommy to the Focus's (our car) steering wheel and back."

WHAT?!? Like he's going to get a cookie NOW! Sheesh... learn to at least fake the compliments, Adam! :)

Isn't He Sweet?

Adam was helping me pack this afternoon (he's such a great helper!), and he told me:

"Mommy, every time you tell me you love me, I feel my heart grow bigger and bigger!"

Isn't that the sweetest thing? What a cutie.

Our Favorite Shows

I try not to let my kids watch TOO much TV, because it's not that great for them, and most of the shows make me want to bang my head against the wall after the 400th time of viewing it. However, since moving and losing our free cable, we have discovered some really cute shows on PBS that not only are educational, but that we all enjoy watching together.

1) Curious George

This is our absolute favorite. It's just plain cute. It teaches math and science concepts in a kid-friendly manner, has some humor thrown in for the adult viewers, and never fails to make Adam laugh. Grace loves that it features a monkey. She loves monkeys. I know she's not supposed to be watching TV yet, but it's really the only show she watches... promise!

2) Super Why!

This is a new show to PBS this year. It teaches the alphabet, spelling, and reading for beginning readers. Adam's all about super-heroes right now, so he loves that this show has that aspect. The kids on the show generally have a problem to solve, and solve it by "looking in a book" and spelling and reading along the way. Adam loves shouting out the letters and sounding out the words along with the characters.

3) Arthur

This last one is on in the afternoon (or, at least in Las Vegas, it is). It has cute characters and fun stories about social issues (like lying, doing homework, going to the doctor, etc.). Adam thinks that it's hilarious, and it gives a chance to talk about different issues that he might have to deal with in school, or that he has questions about.

I hate to admit that I was an eensy-bit worried when we moved to Las Vegas, because Adam loved Dora and Diego, and we would no longer be able to watch them. But, I am SO glad that we don't have cable, because (personally) we love the shows so much more and I love the educational aspect. And, not once have I ever wanted to throw a book through the TV when Adam wants to watch one of them. :)

My Little Napoleon

You start to REALLY re-think your decision to watch Napoleon Dynamite while folding the laundry, while your kids are coloring at the table, when you ask your 4-year-old a few days later what he's doing in his room, and he replies:

"Whatever I feel like doing! Gosh!"

Focus

"Each second we live is a new and unique moment of the universe, a moment that will never be again . . . And what do we teach our children? We teach them that two and two make four, and that Paris is the capital of France. When will we also teach them what they are? We should say to each of them: Do you know what you are? You are a marvel. You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you. Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move. You may become a Shakespeare, a Michaelangelo, a Beethoven. You have the capacity for anything. Yes, you are a marvel. And when you grow up, can you then harm another who is, like you, a marvel? You must work--we must all work--to make the world worthy of its children."

-Pablo Casals

Sometimes I get so caught up in making sure Adam is ready for school, that he knows his letters, is beginning to read, can write his numbers, etc., that I lose focus on just cherishing and loving him. I came across this tonight, and it's helped me to focus. Tomorrow I will play Transformers with him, play ball at the park with him, and tell him how much I love him. I will strive to help him to understand how truly incredible he is, and that his ability to add numbers or write his name is no match for his compassion, creativity, and sense of humor. He is truly a marvel, and I want him to know that more than anything.

Proud Mommy Moment, Silly Adam, and Adorable!

Adam read his first entire book today all by himself! I really hope that I don't sound like I'm bragging... but I am SO proud of him! Last year I taught him all of the letters and letter sounds, and then about a month ago, he started sounding out words and reading. This has made stretching the truth to him a little more difficult... (i.e. "Mom, why do you say that that place is closed? O-P-E-N spells 'open'"). But, we hadn't attempted reading any books entirely yet. At the library yesterday, we checked out some of the "Early Readers" books, and he read one of them all by himself today. I am so happy that he loves reading. It was the sweetest thing in the world today, to cuddle next to him, while he read. Yay, Adam!

Every Thursday at the library, they have a performance for kids. We try and go to it a few times a month. Yesterday, we watched "Lacey the Performing Dog" do some tricks. Her trainer juggled with her on his back, she lept through hoops, and "spoke." For her final trick, she jumped over 5 kids. Adam watched as she did this and was immediately rewarded with a bacon treat. As we were leaving to check out our books, he asked if we could stop at the store for some bacon. When I asked why, he told me that he figured if HE ate bacon (like Lacey), he would be able to leap over children at the park. So funny. However, if that's his train of thought, I kinda wish that the trainer had rewarded Lacey with broccoli. :)

Last night, as I was finishing up the dishes, Adam and Grace were playing in the living room before bed. Adam left to choose some books, and I noticed that Grace was being awfully quiet. We have a bunch of stuff by our door for Mike to take to D.I., including our cold carseat. After looking around for her for awhile, I found her in it! She had crawled in the carseat, and had falled asleep. It was the most adorable thing ever. Sigh... I love that girl. However, I really wish that she had enjoyed her carseat when she actually FIT in it, as much as she does now. :)

All right... we aren't getting a hamster. Mike's definitely against it. However, I think once we move over to our new apartments, we will probably get a fish (start small, right?). And I can probably get at least 10 minutes of peace out of that one. :)

What Would I Do for 20 Minutes of Peace?

Tonight, I took the kids to Petsmart. Because as far as I'm concerned, they have the best kind of pets. The kind that you don't have to feed or clean up after. That stay in their cute cages, and you admire from a distance. Not that I'm an animal-hater or anything, but I already feed and clean up after 3 people, so why add another?

But, anyways, we go to Petsmart frequently. The kids love it. And I'm not too embarrassed to go into a store twice a week and never buy anything there (okay, I am a little bit, but I can't be the only one who does this). But tonight, our visit there really got me thinking. Adam and Grace LOVE hamsters. Everytime we visit, they run over. Tonight, they both sat in front of the hamster display for 20 minutes. Grace kept screaming "jump!" "jump!", wanting the hamster to do aerobics, I guess. Adam just laughed and laughed at it, and pointed out to Grace all of the wonderful things that hamsters can do.

I mean, they did this for 20 minutes before I finally pulled them away. 20 whole minutes! And it got me thinking... what if we OWNED a hamster, and I brought it out and let them stare at it, when I needed 20 minutes to myself? Do you have any idea what I could do in 20 minutes? I could shower. Catch a quick nap. Do my hair. Make dinner. Scrapbook. Find out what's going on in the world. Fix the economy. Pack. Talk to someone on the phone without quietly screaming, "Stop sitting on your sister" 15 times. Dust my fan. Negotiate world peace. Clean out the refrigerator. Read a book with big words. Blog. Paint my nails. Listen to the radio without Adam complaining that my music isn't "awesome."

Wow! The possibilities! However, I would have to clean up and feed another member of the family in exchange for this 20 minutes of peace. Not to mention that hamsters do kind of smell.

But... seriously... for 20 minutes to myself? I think I can do it.

Now I just have to convince Mike, who isn't a huge hamster fan. We'll see. :)

Our New Apartment

So, you all know that we've been looking at apartments for a while. We narrowed are search down to 2. Neither were in a great area, but they weren't in horrible areas either. One seemed SO much better to me. It had a slightly better school, bigger apartments that had a security gate, and were in a bit of a better area. The other apartments that we looked at had more grass and play area, but the school didn't meet state requirements last year (not enough kids passed the test and lots of violence). So, obviously I was leaning toward the other one.

Mike and I prayed about it together, and we knew without a doubt that we should move to the apartments that weren't so great. Isn't that how it goes. :) I'm still a little nervous about moving there, but I know that it's where we should be. And it kinda helped me with Adam's schooling, too, because there's NO WAY he's going to THAT school! So I filled out paperwork at 2 charter schools and I'm praying he gets into one. Otherwise, I'm homeschooling him.

So, here's some pictures of the apartment complex and the floorplan. It's pretty cute, right? We are excited to live closer to Mike's work so we can see him again! It always makes me sad when Adam and Grace go days without seeing him (some days he leaves before they get up, and he gets home after they are asleep). They are SO happy about spending more time with him, and occassionally dropping in for lunch (I'm happy, too). We are excited to make some new friends and see where our lives bring us in a new ward and area!

Whoops!

Yesterday, we RANSACKED our house, and made a huge run to D.I. I have been wanting to do this for a long time. We have so much stuff that we never use, and I really wanted to de-clutter. One reason that we have so much stuff, is that we were given a lot of doubles or triples on wedding gifts. Like, we have 3 huge crock-pots, 2 ice cream makers, 3 blenders, 2 skillets, etc. I have been trying to get Mike to let use get rid of some of these things FOREVER! He loves keeping things "just in case." But, we hardly ever use one blender... let alone 3! And we haven't made homemade ice cream in years.

So, I finally convinced him (because, I reasoned, if we got rid of enough, we could rent a smaller moving van), and we donated a lot of stuff. For a FHE treat last night, we decided to make homemade ice cream, because we already had the ice cream maker out. Well, we tried making ice cream, anyways.

It turns out that one of the ice cream makers was broken. And we donated the non-broken one. Mike's a bit irritated with me for making him donate it. Whoops!

So, for the first time, we could have actually used one of our "just in case" items, and we donated it. I tried explaining to Mike, that we should feel good, because some family is going to have the opportunity to have homemade ice cream. (Even if we aren't). But I don't think he bought it. Note to self: check appliances before donating to see if all are working. :)

Our Pizza Night

There aren't too many meals that all 4 of us love, but one of them is pizza (of course!). When Mike and I were first married, we used to go to the Wilkins' pizza night. When we left Phoenix, we have tried to have our own pizza night once a week, to continue the tradition (except we normally make our own). We used to use the Jiffy pizza mix to make the dough, just because it was so easy. But, a few years ago, I set off to find a recipe for whole wheat pizza, to make it a bit healthier. I found one that we love (and it's so easy to make):

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

1 package dry yeast (I use 2 1/2 teaspoons out of our large bag)

1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

2 cups whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 TB olive oil

1 TB honey

1/2 tsp. salt (sometimes I substitute garlic salt for some extra flavor)

Proof yeast in small bowl with warm water. Whisk together honey and olive oil in a separate bowl. In a food processor (I just use my Kitchen-aid, with the dough hook), combine whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, proofed yeast, olive oil/honey mixture, and salt. Process (or mix) until ball forms. Remove, and place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled (I put mine in the oven with a pan of hot water next to it). Punch down dough, and knead on a floured surface and knead briefly. Divide into 4 sections, and roll each into a ball. Cover in the refrigerator for 2 hours (or overnight).

Let balls of dough come to room temperature. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Roll each into a 7-8 inch circle, and top as desired. Bake for 8-10 minutes per pizza.

So, what we normally do, is give everyone one ball of dough. I put pizza sauce and cheese out in bowls on the table. And then I let everyone scrounge the refrigerator and cupboard for toppings (this is a great what to use leftovers, by the way). We all roll out/hit/throw our dough until its how we want it, and then we top them. Everyone tops their own pizza however they like. However, our rule is that while you can put whatever you want on your own pizza, you have to eat it. Surprisingly, this rule applies more to Mike, than the kids. He tends to put strange things on, and then beg us for our pizza when his turns out gross. Like tonight, he put an ENTIRE layer of chopped garlic under the cheese, which he actually ate and loved... the dentist is going to love examining him tomorrow. :)

On the kids' pizzas tonight, Adam chose to depict a battle between the Decepticon and Autobot Transformers, in peas and carrots. I helped Grace make a smiley face out of pepperoni and peas and carrots, and then she promptly ate off the peas and carrots while it was waiting for the oven.

We've had more than a few flour fights, and we generally make a big mess of the toppings, but we always have a TON of fun doing it, everyone loves it, and everyone always gets whatever they want on their pizza. I normally try to do it on Sunday or Monday, so Mike's there to help... however, since he starts most of the flour fights, I'm not sure how much he's REALLY helping. :)

Valentine's Dinner

Every year (for as long as I can remember), my Grandma has had Valentine's dinner at her house. This is the first year that we haven't been able to go, and we definitely missed it. So, last night for Valentine's day, I tried to re-create it, using some of her recipes. I made her meatloaf with the ketchup on the top in the shape of the heart (I substituted ground turkey, but it was her recipe), her potatoes and cheese, and I even made her "heart beets" using a heart cookie cutter and canned beets. I was going to make a chocolate heart-shaped cake, and realized that we were out of baking soda. I couldn't believe it! My parents gave us a HUGE Costco-sized box our first year of marriage, and we finally went through it. I've been using it a lot for cleaning, so it makes sense. I really didn't want to go to the store, though, so we skipped dessert.











Well, I thought everything turned out well. It was my first time ever making meatloaf, and my first time in 7 years making potatoes-and-cheese, so I was pretty happy with how it all turned out. But, the kids weren't that thrilled. Adam loved the meatloaf, but refused to even try the potatoes or beets (why?... they are potatoes... he LOVES potatoes). Grace would ONLY eat the beets. She LOVED them! But, she spit the potatoes and meat out. And then dumped her plate on the floor. I'm not sure at all why she's such a skinny thing! :)



Overall, it was a fun dinner. Mike really appreciated it when he got home that night, anyway, so at least someone liked it. :) It definitely wasn't as good as my Grandma's, but it was fun keeping the tradition alive.

We had a great Valentine's day... hope you all did, too!

Adam's Dental Prize, Valentine for Daddy, and Happy Valentine's Day!

Adam's always been pretty good about brushing his teeth. But, last year he had to get 2 "baby" root canals and 2 fillings. It cost us about $500 (ouch!) and it hurt him, so I definitely never wanted to go that route again. We switched him to an adult toothpaste, started flossing his teeth daily, and tried to keep the hard candy, soda, and juice from him. And brush after every meal. He wasn't too thrilled about all that, but I didn't know what else to do. I was talking to a friend in our ward last October, however, and she told me that she PAYS her kids $50 if they don't have cavities, because it saves her so much money. I talked it over with Mike, and we decided to give Adam $20 if at his next appointment he was cavity-free.

The bribe motivational reward, totally motivated him. He brushed his teeth 5 or 6 times a day, and tried not to complain too much about the "minty" toothpaste. As his appointment got nearer, he got more excited, and I started feeling really bad. I mean, what if by some fluke, he had a cavity? He had worked SO hard, and I really didn't want him to be disappointed. So, I began praying really hard that his hard work would pay off.

His check-up was Monday, and.... it DID pay off! He was COMPLETELY cavity and plaque-free. In fact, the dentist gave him an A+ on his "dental report card" and let him pick out 3 prizes! AND we went straight to Target afterward. He already had some money saved up, so he was able to buy 3 Transformers (Megatron, Ramjet, and Optimus Prime... aren't I so cool for knowing all of those names? :) ). He's ecstatic over his new Transformers... he's done little else other than play with them. I have done little else other than helping him transform them and re-attach loose arms. :)

But we are all so proud of him. Yay, Adam!

Yesterday, the kids and I went to the library for a Valentine's day party (storytime and crafts). I seriously love our library and the librarians. They are just so fun! Then we came home and made Daddy a Valentine's day card. Adam and I have been talking about it for a few days now, and trying to decided what we wanted to do. He finally decided on making him a "candy bar card." After the library, we went and bought the ones we needed and made him this:

It says:

"Mr. Gooddad (Mr. Goodbar), We love you! We love when you make us Snicker(s). We love when you Take 5 minutes to play with us. We love to talk to you on your Fast Break(s). We love that you are so Kissable! We love you to the Milky Way and back! Happy Valentine's Day! Love, Adam and Grace"

It was a lot of fun to make, and we know that Mike will have fun eating it (and sharing it). Adam and I snuck down to the car last night and put it on Mike's seat. We also decided to clean out his car for him, because it was totally GROSS! As we were cleaning, Adam found a water bottle. He looked at it, and then said, "Mom, I didn't know that Dad drank water! When do you think he began doing that?" LOL! He's so funny!

This morning when the kids got up, Mike and I gave them a little Valentine's present: books and a little box of chocolates. I really, really, really wish that I had caught Grace's face on camera when she opened up her box of chocolates. Her mouth dropped open and she just looked around at all of us before squealing. It was hysterical. Adam just yelled and hugged his Berenstein Bears book (he's so obsessed with the Berentstein Bears).

Adam's not feeling too well today, so we are hanging around the house, doing Valentine's crafts and puzzles and reading books. We are having a special dinner tonight, though, so I will post that tomorrow.

Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!

Valentine's Day Survey

So, in honor of it being Valentine's day, I thought I'd do a survey about my husband (and me). I saw it on a few friend's blogs, and it looked fun. Happy Valentine's Day, hon! Hope you don't mind me sharing all of your secrets. :)

What is his name? Mike

How long have you been married? 6 years, 9 months

How long did you date? 8 months

How old his he? 29

Who eats more? He does, most of the time.

Who said I love you first? Mike did... before we even went on our first date. I'm still really not sure what that was about. It was a bit awkward, really. But he's said it every single day since. Which I love.

Who is taller? Mike

Who can sing better? I can't sing to save my life (really... I'm bad), so even though Mike's not that great, he's definitely better than me.

Who is smarter? Me, obviously. Just kidding. I think that we are both about the same, though I definitely applied myself more in school.

Who does the laundry? Me.

Who pays the bills? Me.

Who sleeps on the right side? I do, because the alarm clock is on the left side, and he insists on sleeping by it, in order to snooze it about 10 times each morning.

Who mows the lawn? No lawn.

Who cooks dinner? I do during the week and Saturday, and Mike does on Sundays.

Who drives? We both do, though Mike drives a bit more than me, I think.

Who is more stubborn? Me... Mike's pretty laid back.

Who kissed who first? He kissed me first, in the McDonald's parking lot on our 2nd date. And I got in major trouble waiting for that kiss, because I arrived home 17 minutes after curfew. But, it was worth it. :)

Who asked who out first? Ummm... I told him that I had 2 free tickets to the zoo (thanks, Celeste), and he told me he would take me. So it was kind of a mutual thing.

Who proposed? Mike did, at Mesa temple. He bought the ring in November, and didn't propose until February. He wanted to make sure that it went perfectly.

Who has more friends? We have about the same amount.

Who is more sensitive? Definitely me.

Who has more siblings? Mike

Who wears the pants? I think that I do, because Mike's so laid back that I tend to take charge. But, we definitely are equal partners in our marriage.

Valentine's Craft, A Yummy Recipe, and My Big CTR Boy

So, this is the fun craft that Adam and I made on Tuesday (sorry for the blurry picture): Candy Cane Hearts! I saw it a few weeks ago on-line, and was bummed because I didn't have any candy canes. When I went grocery shopping on Saturday, though, I found them for 10 cents a box, so I bought a bunch. It turns out, it's really fun to melt candy canes! I had no idea you could do this! I put the first batch in for a little too long (about 10 minutes) and they melted flat. They looked kinda cool, with the colors swirled. But, the next batch, I just baked for 6 minutes and they were perfect.

Candy Cane Hearts

- Preheat oven to 250 degrees

- Unwrap the candy canes (leave them whole to make hearts, but break them into longer pieces to spell words and make other designs)

- Place them on a a silicone map or parchment paper on your cookie sheet

- Bake for 6 minutes (check them... it could be more or less, depending on your oven)

- With oven mitts on, smoosh the ends together for hearts, curl longer pieces around the end of a wooden spoon for curls, or spell out letters (Adam loved doing his name)

- Let cool. Hang up with ribbon and decorate or eat them (ewww... I hate candy canes).

I thought they turned out pretty neat looking. It was pretty fun, too. I hung ours on some ribbon in the hall, and now Adam has taken to jumping at it, and trying to lick them. It's fairly funny to watch.

Yesterday, we decided to melt some MORE candy to make these yummy treats. Mike has had a few rough days at work, so I wanted to make him a treat. He LOVES Take 5 candy bars, and so I found this recipe for Pretzel Turtles (which is a bit similar).

Pretzel Turtles

- 1 bag miniature pretzels (I wanted to use the waffle-style ones, but couldn't find them)

- 1 bag Rolos (or you could substitute any flavor Hershey kiss BUT the caramel-filled ones)

- 1 bag M&Ms (or whole pecans or chopped peanuts)

Heat oven to 200 degrees. Place pretzels on silicone mats or parchment paper. Unwrap Rolos (or Hershey kisses) and place on top. (Adam had fun helping with this part) Bake for 7-8 minutes (mine took more like 10). The chocolate won't be completely melted and flat. But take it out, and immediately push M&Ms (or nuts) on top. Let cool in the regrigerator.

Mike was very surprised when he came home and he loved them! Well, we all did. They are SO good. Try 'em sometime. I am planning on making another batch and putting them in Valentine's day baggies for a visiting teaching treat (and for my CTR 5 class).

Adam was SO excited yesterday... because he finally got a CTR ring! The Primary pretty much left getting CTR rings for the kids up to the parents, so I ordered one on-line from the Distribution Center a while ago (they were on backorder). It finally came. Adam loves it... and all day yesterday he went around telling everyone to CTR! When Grace dumped out the bag of pretzels while I was taking a batch of candies out of the oven, he told her, she needed to Choose The Right and let her wear his ring. So sweet!

Well, I'm off for now. Have a great day everyone, and remember to Choose The Right! :)

Updates, Updates

Well, it's been a bit since I've last blogged... pretty much because nothing extremely exciting has been going on. But, here's the whats-up for our family:

- Mike's still working at DI. He's still absolutely loving it. He didn't get much of a "day off" on Monday, though. During the week, I make a list of stuff that I need him to do, when he gets a chance. So every Monday (his day off), he has to do a bunch of stuff around the house. This past Monday, I had a LONG list, which included: changing the oil in the car, fixing the washing machine, fixing the kids' closet doors, and fixing the vacuum. And he did it all! It's nice to be married to such a handy guy. I really appreciate him helping out.

- One of my goals for the year, is to scrapbook one layout a day. And I've done it! I am almost caught up with Grace's book, and then I will do Adam's and then the family's. And then my wedding. How sad is that? But, I think that if I keep this up, and do a layout a day after the kids sleep, I will be ALL caught up by the end of the year. Yay!

- Adam is going through a "Transformers" phase. He LOVES them. On Monday when we went to the library, he borrowed a DVD of the old Transformers shows, that he watches while he plays with his Transformers. I remember my brothers watching these shows when we were little. Crazy! He really wants a Transformers bedroom at our new apaprtment. But, I found some Transformers fabric at Wal-Mart, that I'm sewing some pillows for his bed with, so he will have to make do with that.

- Grace is officially driving me crazy. I guess I have forgotten how destructive toddlers can be. She literally makes messes non-stop. She's so into dumping things right now. On Sunday alone, she dumped Mike's soda on the ground, poured out a box of cereal, unrolled a roll of toilet paper, knocked over the trash, dumped out EVERY one of Adam's games and spread them around her room. Aagh! And it's not like I'm not watching her. The problem is, is that while I'm cleaning up one mess, she runs off and makes another. On the other hand, she is completely sweet and adorable and it's hard being too mad at her. Adam has taken to calling her "Curious Grace"... it's a good way to think of it. I just have to remind myself, "She's just curious what would happen if she opens the refrigerator and pours out a gallon of milk. She's not a demon in pink." She loves singing... her favorite song right now is "If You're Happy and You Know It." If I can figure out how to record her singing it, I will. It's SO cute!

So, now you're updated. The most important thing, is that we are all safe and happy and healthy. Yay! Just wanted to check-in with everyone. Adam and I made THE cutest craft yesterday... I will post pictures soon. Until then, make it a great one!