Good Evening Tag

I was tagged awhile ago (sorry, soybeanlover!) and it looked like fun, so here's our house in the [early] evening. (This is actually from last night, but I got side-tracked by dinner and kids' bedtime and never made it back to this. . . )

#1 My Kitchen Sink--this is one area of FlyLady that I am sadly lacking in--I don't do all that great of a job keeping it empty and shiny. But we do manage to get the dishes washed after dinner most of the time. I am in the middle of dinner right now (don't you always use the computer as you fix dinner? ;)

#2 My Favorite Room--this is so random, but for some reason it really is my favorite room in this house. I don't know if its the cute little door (which just goes under the eaves in the front of the house) or the fact that the roof slopes just a little on that side, but it feels so cozy in there. I haven't decided if I'm moving my craft stuff to it, or eventually setting it up as a guest room or let one of the kids move in there when they get tired of sharing. . .

#3 Me right now--just glad that Bugsy, aka The Tornado, is standing right by me at this post. You'll see why in a second. . .

#4 My Closet--um, really? I don't think anyone wants to see it. We haven't managed to unpack everything, (partially because we don't have a dresser and so the suitcases are very handy for containing all our extra clothing articles that don't hang and don't fit on the shelves I have hanging.

#5 My Fridge--OK, this one was hilarious. This is what I found when I went to see the fridge. Maybe I should have saved this picture for #8. (There is an entire post coming dedicate to this little guy's antics today. . .)

But I have to say, I LOVE my fridge. We have never really bought appliances before (I guess we did get a used washer/dryer set in UT, and then replaced the washer with a new, but cheap washer--but those weren't fun, nice ones.) and decided to go ahead and get what we really wanted and will last us for a LONG time.

#6 The Laundry Room--I love my new washer--LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that it has a delay feature, so, when I'm on top of it (which isn't as often as I'd like), I can throw a load in at night, set it to start in the wee hours of the morning, and then its ready for the dryer when I wake up in the morning. Those are the days my laundry is folded and put away before Bean goes to school.

#7 My Favorite Shoes--A little sad, I know. I said I was retiring them after the painting this fall since they are now probably some of the ugliest shoes on the planet (some people would argue the same about brand new ones), but they are just so comfy and so easy to slip on. I really need to go shoe shopping and find something a little more respectable to wear in public.


#8 What my Kids are doing right now--Well, as you saw, this wasn't the only thing they were doing while I blogged. . .

#9 My Bathroom--this is one area that will eventually be getting a much needed makeover (the counter/vanity is the shortest we've ever had and DH doesn't love having to practically stand on his head to brush his teeth.). But for now, I love the garden tub that you can just see a corner of on the left.

#10--My Dream Vacation--I decided to go with my most recent dream vacation--I have way too many places I'd like to vacation in the future, but I think I've been on a few pretty great ones already. I loved the cruise Daddy-o and I took in May. I think to really be a vacation, it just has to be kid free. At least, at this point in our lives.

Tag

Got tagged by Katie last week, so here goes:

The rules are; List 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions and 3 random surprising facts about yourself. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names..

3 Joys

1. Watching my kids hug each other.

2. Reading a good book (Just finished The Historian, by Elizabeth Kostova--excellent read!)

3. A good massage (Thanks, Daddy-o, for the awesome mother's day present--which I just used today--a spa package).

3 Fears

1. We're not going to be able to find the right house/neighborhood for us.

2. Someone is going to come into our home and hurt me or my kids

3. Ants. And there seem to be a lot of them out here.

3 Goals

1. Lose the last of the baby weight. . . FINALLY.

2. Go to bed before 11:30--the east coast is ruining my chance to get 8 hours of sleep!

3. Make some new friends here :) Only 5 days left until Daddy-o will be gone all day and I won't have constant adult interaction.

3 Current Obsessions

1. Searching house listings and any info I can find on elementary schools

2. Cherries--I LOVE cherry season.

3. Hmmm. . .I can't think of a third, which is odd for me because I'm usually a pretty obsessive person. But for some reason, I've been remarkably balanced and calm lately--except for the whole house hunting thing. Maybe that's enough of an obsession to block out all others.

3 Random Facts about Me

1. I spent 5 months after graduating from college living in the semi-ghetto in North Long Beach.

2. I talk to people in my head while I run. I hope that doesn't make me totally nutters, but there are always so many conversations that I wish I'd had and just never get to out loud.

3. My high school volleyball team didn't win a single game my Jr. year. Only one of us had ever played before and it showed. But we had a LOT of fun.

And now, I tag (if you want to play along) Louise, Erin, Gina, Danna, and Julia. And anyone else who wants to share :)

5 Positives

My friend, Rachel, posted about 5 positives in her life right now and got me thinking about what my 5 would be right at this moment:

Rain! A welcome relief from all the snow (especially since its been about 20 degrees warmer than January.)

A clean kitchen, and the awesome husband who made it that way--its so much nicer to cook dinner in a kitchen with an empty sink and counter space to work on.

Sunday morning church--and the Sunday afternoon nap that goes with it. So much better than last year when it was at 1 p.m. Both kids actually slept today.

Healthy, happy kids! We've finally kicked all the illnesses (I think) which meant DH and I got to enjoy date night (and date afternoon on Friday), he and Savannah had a Daddy-daughter date to a dance performance Saturday afternoon, we spent Sat. evening with DH's brothers, and all were able to go to church this morning (although because of the later nights, the happy part didn't kick in today until after naptime today. Much better than staying home all weekend.

And. . . Silliness. Lots of that here. It just makes life easier to bear, I mean, enjoy :)

Tagged

I've been tagged by two people in the last few days, so I think I better actually respond. I'm cheating and combining the two, but they both had similar options. The other choice for the first one involved listing off the 7 most famous or infamous people I've met, and while my list of famous people I've seen in fairly close contact is decent (Sarah Michelle Gellar, Emilio Estevez, Ryan Phillippe, Seth Green, John McCain), the only famous person I could think of who I've actually spoken to is Steve Young. So you'll have to settle for 7 Things You Probably Don't Know About Me. Although, I'll be honest--I've done so many emails like this (including a fairly recent one that a few of you got), I'm not sure how unknown most of these will be. But I tried to throw at least one on there that I don't think my mom even knew. :)



1)I'm absolutely terrified of ants. There's a story behind it, which I know some of you know, so this isn't all that unknown, but yeah, can't stand 'em--make my skin crawl when I see a big swarm (?) of them on the sidewalk.



2) I wrote a screenplay--not a great screenplay (as a couple of you can attest to because you've read it), but a full length screenplay. Unfortunately, I got sidetracked about 30 pages into the revision, which I think was actually showing some real promise, and I haven't made it back to it. I keep saying I'm going to pull it out--I even started some writing again the summer before Bugaboo was born, although on a completely different project. And once again, got sidetracked (by a move and a baby) and that one never got finished either. But I do love to write when I feel the inspiration.



3)I used to have recurring nightmares of being chased/hunted down/trapped with someone after me. For as long as I can remember with no idea why. I would wake up terrified to move in case the chaser saw me. And they pretty much stopped after I got married. The ironic thing is that in one of those dreams my DH and his roommate were the ones hunting me. But still, he makes me feel safe :)



4)I love bagels with pickles and cream cheese. I don't eat it very often anymore, but it was one of my favorite lunches from my lifeguarding days and still tastes great to me.



5)I read in the shower. I never thought this was particularly unusual until I was at dinner with a bunch of ladies and one of them mentioned that she does it and everyone in her bookclub thinks she's nuts. I am curious about how many other shower-readers there are out there. . .



6)I don't like using the phone. Almost to the point of it being a phobia. It takes a lot for me to pick up the phone and call someone. I haven't always been this way, and I know some of my phone call issues are logical (its almost impossible to hear the person on the other end when you have two kids hanging on your legs begging to talk on the phone--even if its just the cable provider), but I'm not sure when I transitioned from the teenager who always had a phone attatched to her ear to the mom who screens her calls and struggles to return them.



7)OK--I probably shouldn't even admit this because I've always felt so lame, but I was trying to come up with something that wasn't just another fear. So, here goes. . . I get choked up when I see a group/team/assembly of people working together. I don't know what it is--I guess just the beauty of humans connecting and trying to achieve something with the support of their peers, but its always gotten to me--especially if it involves music. For instance, I used to substitute teach in a couple not so great school districts and one day, I was in a high school when they were having a pep-rally. Their school had a dance team, that despite the background that they all came from, was pretty good and had performed in a few big venues (Disneyland, a cruise ship). And I seriously started crying as I watched this team dance. Same thing when I watch a musical and they have the big finale, or see little kids I know at their dance recital or school play--or watch their sports team win. I'm going to embarrass the heck out of my kids someday, I'm sure! :)

So, anyone who's reading and wants to play along, I'd love to hear from you. :)

12 Questions of Christmas

Real or artificial tree? Grew up with artificial, have only had real since leaving home (we can't afford an artificial yet--and yes, I know we've spent about the same as a cheap artificial in the last few years, but not all at once and we've enjoyed the smell). BUT, I am really excited to get a pre-lit tree next year--I don't enjoy putting the lights on, but I also don't enjoy the way it looks if you hastily wrap them around so I spend way too much time carefully weaving lights into all the branches of our tree.


Do you like eggnog?Love it--little nutmeg sprinkled on top--YUM! We only buy it once or twice during the holidays--way too many calories in there.

Favorite gift received as a child? Um, I'm really not sure. The one that stands out right now is when I was 8 and got a guinea pig. The funny thing was, I had asked for a hamster and when I saw the cage with this fat, hairy animal in it, I had NO idea what it was and was a little dissappointed, but raising guinea pigs over the next few years turned out to be so much fun--and they are way better pets for a little kid than a hamster.

Do you have a nativity scene? We have 3--two very small ones (one only has Mary, Joseph and Baby Jesus in a manger made from popscicle sticks) and then we added the Little People Nativity to our collection this year and it has been a HUGE hit. I love that the kids can play with it. Seemed more logical at this stage in our lives than a big, breakable one, although I'd love one of those some day as well.

Hardest? Easiest person to buy for?The hardest is probably a tie between all the men in my life. My brothers are both pretty much minimalists who say they want nothing. So I try to come up with non-clutter, useful gifts, but with the limited budget we have, it isn't always easy. Especially to make it fun. And Daddy-o--I know there are things he wants, but he has so little free time right now that I am usually at a loss to get something fun for him that he'll actually be able to play with. And even our little Bugaboo is a little hard to shop for because we already have plenty of toys for his age range and we've been determined to not just wrap up all the things they need and we would buy anyway (like clothes, socks, etc. . .) just to have presents under the tree. I figure that I'd rather have Christmas giving about finding something special for that person than giving them a multitude of presents in the name of Christmas.

Easiest--By far, Bean. As our oldest, there is always something we don't have that I know she'd love and she's now old enough to be very clear about her interests. Plus, I'm making a lot of gifts this year and its just easier to make gifts for girls than boys.

Favorite Christmas movie? It's a Wonderful Life. I love the Daddy-o and I both love this movie and have been watching it every year together since before we were married. Makes me cry every time (well, if I can stay awake. For some reason ***cough-kids-cough****, the last couple years I haven't made it to the end)

White lights or colored lights?White lights. And I have to steal this from a friend because her reasoning is right on: No blinking lights anywhere - I love the serenity provided by steady lighting. I chase enough moving things in a day already.

Favorite Christmas song? The classic--Silent Night. It just signifies everything I want Christmas to be. But I also love Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree & Let it Snow (since moving to Utah, the first line of that song gets sung all winter long around here, and if I keep going, Bean always informs me that, "No, Mom! We have some place to go!")


Travel for Christmas or stay home? We switch off every other year--its worked out that way since we got married because we've had a newish baby (1-6 months) every other year. And I have really LOVED how easy its been the years we stay home. But I also love seeing family at the holidays--we switch every other travel year with the two sides of our family, so they really aren't getting much of us--but considering how our Christmases have been, I'm not sure they are all that dissappointed--we're still waiting for the fun Christmas morning with an excited kid instead of a sick exhausted one.

Do you open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?I think we've only opened them Christmas morning, but honestly not sure--growing up we opened the grandparent gifts Christmas eve--not sure why, but we did every year.

Do you tell the Christmas story? Yep--we always read Luke 2 Christmas eve. And this year we are having the fun of acting out the story and telling it each week for Family night. Bean is old enough to get the story and loves riding the donkey/Daddy-o around to look for a place to sleep.

Favorite Christmas tradition: We're still in the process of creating our family traditions (and I guess we always will be--I hope its a holiday that will evolve for our family as we grow).
My favorites from my childhood that we've continued are reading Luke 2 and singing carols on Christmas eve & cinnamon rolls for breakfast, and the best one--giving Christmas boxes to families who needed them--Christmas dinner, sometimes gifts for the kids or even clothes depending on how much the family was struggling at the time. Seriously, my absolute favorite Christmas memory is of watching from behind the bushes as a couple little kids who couldn't be more than 6 answered the door and started excitedly yelling for their mom to come look at all the food they got. I was only about 10 at the time, but that sight was enough for me to realize that THIS was so much better than opening my own presents.

New ones we've started: Buying an ornament for the family as well as one for each kid each year--this way they'll have a small collection when they leave home and its fun to look at what they picked (well, Bean's the only one who has picked one so far, but this years is a BRIGHT pink ball with a smiley face on it). And we buy a new building for our Christmas village each year. Daddy-o and I have both always wanted one of these villages and we're having fun watching it grow--By the time we have very many, we will also have more room to put them. And maybe then we'll add a train! We've also started a tradition in our little family that on Christmas eve, we each write down a gift we're going to try to give our Savior in the upcoming year and place it in an extra stocking which we then open the next year and read what we've tried to do and make a new gift. Looking back on this last year, I've done a HORRIBLE job at my "gift" but I still like the idea and I think it helps us to remember a bit of what we're actually celebrating. And as the kids get older, I want to add more service and random giving to our Christmas traditions--for now, we support Angel trees, occasionally doorbell ditch goodies or small gifts.

Parenting 101

So, I think my friends have decided that I need to be evaluating my job as a parent more closely--I've just been challenged to make a list of all the good and bad things that I've done as a parent the last few days. I was going to start with the good because of course I'd rather think about that, but then realized that would mean leaving all the bad stuff fresh in everyone's minds as they finish reading this post, and lets face it, I'd prefer it if my friends and family all continue to see me as the fabulous person I've pretended to be all these years :)

So the bad:

~I forced Bean to fall asleep against her will (but really, that was for her own good--she NEEDED a nap)
~I put off a couple diaper changes for about an hour even though I knew Bugaboo was poopy
~I let Bean eat 3 brownies and 1 cookie for lunch (she did eat half a slice of watermelon first)
~I continue to fix dinners that I know Bean won't eat because I get tired of eating pasta and burritos every night
~I wasn't as patient during the morning hair-brushing wrestle as I should have been
~I let Bugaboo play with toys that are probably too small just to keep him from screaming
~I keep falling asleep while breastfeeding Bugaboo at night so he still sleeps in our bed half the night
~I complain about how I get no sleep at night (yet I haven't really tried to change it)
~I let Bean watch Extreme Makeover, Home Edition last night just so I could read blogs
~I got mad when Bean pushed Bugaboo and snapped at her
~I forgot to give the kids their amoxicillin this a.m.



The good:

~I took Bean to her first dance class today and she LOVED it!
~I prepped dinner during afternoon naptime
~I planned our meals for the week and made a shopping list
~I made baby food
~I washed diapers (and keep doing so every 2 days--need to buy a few more so it isn't such a tight schedule)
~I made a new hairclip for Bean
~I bought the goods for Halloween costumes for both kids already (still have to do the sewing)
~I have washed all the bedding in our house in hot water and de-dustmited the mattresses
~I made Beans favorite breakfast this morning (oatmeal--what kid loves oatmeal more than pancakes?!)
~I have supported my child's wishes even when she makes no sense to me and is dissappointing others--but what she thinks of me and feels towards me comes first

So who else wants to play? How about Isa, Margo, and Sheila? (cause I know you ladies think about this stuff too!)