The way to be

This post started out with one thought I had & somehow became completely different as I started writing. I'm not sure what that was all about but maybe it's just something I needed to think about.

It's SO easy to get overwhelmed by everything that goes "wrong" in life. All the little things that don't go your way. Everything that comes at the wrong time. Life sometimes happens when you don't want it to, it just does, it's inevitable. We all have to do things we don't necessarily want to do. It's part of being a responsible adult, right? In my albeit biased experience I think women in particular have that "it's got to get done" gene. For example, I have a love/hate relationship with my job. I hate working but I love working at home....most of the time, except when the girls are calling my name every five minutes while I'm in the middle of a file. I love working in sweats....most of the time, except when I look up, it's noon, I still haven't taken a shower, the girls have been watching TV all morning & are still asking for breakfast. It's one of those things that I really wish I didn't HAVE to do, but at the same time I don't MIND doing. Kind of like dishes, laundry, mopping, vacuuming, dusting....I mean who LIKES to do chores? And if any one of you says "I do"....you are welcome to come to our house & enjoy yourself all you want! It makes me wish I were a kid again, when my biggest worry was whether or not I'd eaten enough dinner so that I could go out & play. Instead I see all the things I cannot do or do not get to or am not doing well enough. I feel inadequate in so many ways. I feel like the girls watch too much TV, that I yell at them all the time, that our house is a mess constantly, that I'm never going to loose that last 10 lbs I want to, that I'm always one step behind when I USED to be so on top of things. It gets so easy see the negative. To see everyone else in their "perfect" little lives and compare yourself. To see what everyone else has that you don't. So in the midst of the insanity that ensues on a daily basis it's sometimes hard to focus on the things I should. But don't we all have something that the other might want? Who am I to complain? And yet, still we do. While I was thinking about all of this I remembered a talk that was given by Pres. Hinckley a few years ago & it's a good reminder to me of the way we should really all be:

1. Be grateful.
2. Be smart.
3. Be clean.
4. Be true.
5. Be humble.
6. Be prayerful.

I can't control everything but I can control my reactions to any given situation. Coray and I were having a discussion once and he was talking about being proactive instead of reactive. Sometimes that can be easier said than done. I'm working on it.

Props to Coray this Mother's Day

This will come as no surprise to Coray when I say that I usually know what gift I'm getting for any given occasion. I usually have a short list & he usually sticks right to it or actually just has me buy it myself. I'm particular, I admit it. So what I did at the beginning of the year was to make a pretty large list of things I want. Some specific, some not so specific....just letting him know these are things I want & like & he can use the list all year long. Anyway, I have to give him major props today because he did very well for Mother's Day! He (and the girls) got me a hour massage, manicure/pedicure and lunch gift package!! WOO HOO!!! They are all at different places but all right next to each other....Massage Envy, Nail Lux (salon) and Panda Express (one of my favs!). And he said that he'll watch the girls so I can go & enjoy myself! What's that?! Some alone time?! I can hardly remember. I'm so excited! Plus, he made breakfast & did the dishes. :-) Gracie got up first this morning & came in to our bedroom. Coray told her to tell me Happy Mother's Day & she did in her sweet little voice. About 10 minutes later she said it again all on her own. What an angel. Emma got up about 15 minutes later & ran in to wish me a Happy Mother's Day....she was so excited for me to open their cards because they colored them all by themselves. They are definitely the best part of today, I love being a Mommy!!

"Now presenting the class of 2008"

Our big little girl had her preschool graduation today. It was so cute. They sang and danced and we had such a good time. They each had their name called and were presented certificates. I don't think I could've been more proud. She looked so grown up, I just don't think I'm ready for it. I'm afraid if I blink it'll be her High School graduation.
Time just goes so fast and I want to keep them little forever. It was cute to watch Gracie during the ceremony, she knew almost all the songs they sung because Emma sings them around the house and has taught a lot of them to her. Anyway, we bought Emma flowers and we all went out for ice cream. Her current favorite is Cold Stone's Cotton Candy flavor with sprinkles mixed in. It was a nice day, especially since we're all mostly feeling better.

We're all about sharing

Coray & I are sick now. Nice. I can't remember the last time I felt this bad or threw up so much. And here I was thinking I got lucky. Coray got sick last night around 8:00. He threw up a bowl of yuck I couldn't even look at. And I'm not talking a cereal bowl here, I'm talking my big Rubbermaid bowl (yeah, we're sterilizing that thing after all it's been through these past few days). It didn't hit me until 4:00 this morning. The girls are bored already with Coray & I laying around like wet noodles. I feel so weak it isn't funny & I get dizzy every time I stand up. I'm achy & have a headache all at the same time. Plus I'm running a low fever...I get chills then hot sweats. Being sick it just the worst.

Buckets of throw up & loads of laundry

Well, it's been a long 24 hours. Yesterday Emma stayed home from Preschool. She said she wasn't feeling very well & I wasn't too motivated to get moving yesterday morning, so she stayed home. We ran a couple errands & around 4:30 she started complaining her stomach was hurting. I asked her several times if she felt like she needed to throw up but she said no. I should've known, I should've trusted that Mommy instinct that was going off like an alarm in my head....but I didn't. She fell asleep on the couch around 5:15 & I thought "I should get a bowl for her....just in case". Nope, didn't do it. My own fault. She woke up about 6:00 & just lost it. All over the couch, all over her, all over the rug. I had one of those moments of being frozen not knowing what to do first. Do I grab a bowl? Do I grab some towels? Do I get her to the bathroom? I hesitated too long & she started her second round of throwing up as I was rushing a towel to her. Yeah, a towel cause apparently I temporarily forgot where the bowls were. It's ok, you can laugh. We got everything cleaned up & I moved her upstairs to her bed so she could rest. I started the first load of laundry. She had a bowl & she's pretty good at getting to it on time. Coray came home & she was wanting to see him. He went upstairs & was talking to her, after a second she started throwing up again. I don't know that I've ever seen him move to the door so fast! He took Emma into the bathroom to clean her up & let her soak in a warm bath. So I got everything cleaned up & started another load of laundry & changed the sheets. I got the girls to bed around 8:30. No more than half an hour later Gracie woke up gasping for breath. I think she'd thrown up a little & choked a bit. I grabbed her & took her to the bathroom just in time for her to throw up...at least we made it into the potty that time! She has really never thrown up before & it scared her to death. She was shaking & crying & just really scared. At the same time, Emma woke up & started throwing up again. She made it mostly into the bowl but we had a fun time with both of them doing it....not. So, I started load number three. Granted these are pretty small loads but I was running out of sheets & pillow cases so it was necessary. Plus, I don't have any trouble watching them throw up but it really doesn't smell very good. Anyway, that started a long night of throwing up & crying & laundry & changing clothes. I eventually just threw some towels down on the bed for Gracie, who had the most trouble getting it into the bowl. I had to sleep next to her (if you can call it sleep) and jump up anytime I heard her start to wretch. Emma got really good at just waking up, leaning over her bowl, throwing up & then going right back to sleep. She said to me once, "Mommy, throwing up is not fun". No baby, it sure isn't. I think I finally got to bed around 4:30. After a few hours sleep, we all got up around 8:00. Emma hasn't thrown up all day but she was running a low fever & has been pretty quiet & just resting today. Gracie threw up once more this morning but nothing since. They both had good naps. We camped out in front of the TV downstairs & had a nice little jammie/TV/rest day. I have a couple more loads of laundry to do (with my new dryer...yay), the dishes are stacked up, and they both need baths again but I think they're on the mend. They just started munching on some crackers & have been keeping water, Sprite & very diluted white grape juice down all day. Thank goodness. Let's just hope they get some sleep tonight & that there's NO MORE THROW UP!

Outdoor fun

One of the nice things about where we live is that there are a couple kids on our street that the girls love to play with. Directly across from us is another family in our ward & they have a five year old boy who Emma & Gracie both just LOVE. His name is Christopher. In the unit next to us is a family with two little boys, Logan & Cody, who are exactly the girls ages. In fact, Logan & Emma will be in the same Kindergarten class next year. We all get together outside sometimes to let the kids play. Granted it's in the street but with several parents watching it's pretty safe. Plus no one really drives on our street unless you live here, so it's not bad. Anyway, we were all out last night & the kids were playing. Gracie really is adventurous. Nana & Grandpa (Neilson) gave Emma her battery operated Princess car for her 3rd birthday. Emma was a bit scared of it & hesitant to drive it around. Not so with Gracie. She jumped right in it last night & was all over the place. Not that she steers very well but I set her driving in a circle & she was having a blast for quite awhile. Then Emma & Christopher took a turn....he's a dang good driver!
I also got the girls a scooter the other day & again, Gracie jumped right on it. She's been borrowing one of the boys scooters so I knew she'd enjoy it. Emma does well on the scooter too but mostly she likes to run around & play. I'm glad they have some friends in the neighborhood. We're even thinking of having a block party!

Where's Gracie?

Gracie is definitely our little adventurous one who doesn't mind alone time. A few mornings ago I was sitting at my desk working (it's right near our patio door that goes outside) and realized I didn't know where Gracie was. I called her but she typically doesn't answer (definitely little Ms. Independent). I checked upstairs, not there. I wasn't worried because I knew everything was locked up & she couldn't get out but I knew she could get into mischief (she's good at that). It only took a minute to find her. I have a love/hate relationship with the sandbox. The girls love it but the sand sure does get everywhere. Of course once Emma realized Gracie was outside playing she had to join in on the fun.

No more burned clothes!!!

We have a new dryer! YAY!!!! Coray doesn't understand my excitement. See, we bought this place with the washer, dryer & refrigerator included. And now that we know we're staying for awhile there are going to be a few changes. Anyway, the dryer was awful. It burned clothes! So for all of you, take note....NEVER, NEVER buy a dryer with a stainless steel drum. Trust me, you will regret it. When it burned the first blanket, a few weeks after we moved in, I thought I'd done something. It was a super soft, super nice micro-plush blanket that I loved. Gone, had to throw it away. I was so disappointed in myself thinking I'd done something. I couldn't figure it out. Then it was one of Gracie's fleece PJ's. All of a sudden a light went off in my head....was it the dryer?! I'd NEVER had a dryer burn clothes before but somehow it made sense. I looked inside & noticed the steel drum. I'd never had one before, I'd never heard of that before. I did a little online research (ok, so I asked some of the other Mom's on the Baby Board I frequent...some of them had horror stories of dryers burning clothes). I started putting fleece clothes to dry on the "low" setting...still too hot...another blanket & couple more items of fleece (clothes) burned. By burned I mean the fleece gets matted & "hard". The micro-plush blankets were weird, they'd get like "pilly" all over & literally start shedding (like a dog or something)...to where there's no way you could use them. And yes, we had/have quite a few micro-plush blankets & throws...they are pretty cheap at WalMart. Well, this past Monday was the straw that broke my back. It burned the girls lavender throw I used on their bed. It had gotten to the point where all I did was put any fleece/micro-plush on the low setting to tumble for less than 20 minutes & then I'd hang it to dry. That's all I ever did & still...it burned it. Not bad enough to throw it out or shed but it's matted & crispy in a couple spots....just not the cozy throw it used to be. It was shortly after Coray had gotten home from work & I noticed it. I think out of sheer frustration I must've screamed outloud (not too loudly though) & commented that "I hate that #$(%&@ dryer"! He agreed we should get a new one. I'm glad he did because I think I would've just done it anyway (thank goodness we got a super nice tax return). So, I looked on the Sears website, found a Kenmore that was basic but good & went with the girls to our local store on Tuesday to buy it....they delivered it this morning & it's all hooked up & ready to go! YAY!!!!!!! I love Sears. You can't beat their deals or their Customer Service. I actually bought it from the same lady who we bought our water softener from last summer. She even remembered Coray, though he wasn't with us, and told me to tell him "hi"....I think he has a fan. ;-) Plus....it comes with a "get your delivery $$ back" rebate, 1 year interest free financing & even 10% cash back for using a Sears card. Even better! And best of all is that it has a PORCELAIN drum!! WOO HOO! Yeah, it's the little things. Ok, the dryer is not so little but peace of mind? Yeah. Soft, fluffy, NON-burned clothes...oh yeah!. Nope, Coray just doesn't understand my excitement...but I'm ok with that.

Slideshow pictures, post is below!

Southern California trip

What can I say, we had a great time. We had dinner with Jen & Mark on Sunday night, it was great to see them. We stayed in a hotel near the park and there was a shuttle that took only about 10 minutes to get there. Coray's Uncle Joe signed us in on Monday and we spent all day at Disneyland. Uncle Joe is a drummer in the Disneyland band & we went to see one of their shows. It incorporates Chip & Dale, Goofy & Cruella D'Ville. Well, Uncle Joe must have said something to someone because Cruella pulled Coray out of the audience & had him dressed in a hat & cape dancing with her. It was pretty funny! He was a good sport about it. Uncle Joe actually told me later that they almost pulled me out for one part of the show but I think I'd stepped away for a minute! WHEW! Emma & Gracie both loved the Tea Cups and Gadget's Go Coaster a lot. Coray's best friend Chris and his wife Vicky joined us around noon with their little Lenore. It was lots of fun hanging out with them and finally getting to meet Lenore (whose about 14 months now!). The girls both liked the new Nemo Submarine ride & Emma LOVED driving the car at Autopia, I think Gracie got a kick out of that too. Coray & Chris stayed until the Park closed...well after Vicky & I had to leave with the girls to get them all to bed. Tuesday we met up with my friends Rob & Jim, who signed us in along with Jen, who basically got to spend the whole day with us (Yay!). Rob used to work with me at Disneyland & is now a police officer for the city of Orange. He can still sign people into the Park though because his wife, Kappy, is a big time manager there. Rob, Jen & I all used to work with Jim also, who is still there & is also a manager now. It's good to have connections still, the price of tickets is insane! So Coray, Jen & the girls & I had breakfast at Ariel's Grotto in Disney's California Adventure. It's a character breakfast with several of the princesses attending to do a meet and greet with the guests. Emma was in heaven & Gracie has the "princess head tilt" down to a tee. The food was pretty good too! After breakfast we headed out to hit some rides in DCA, we met up with Rob again for a bit and then we met up with my friend Cindy & her two kids (Hailey & Christian)....they are annual passholders, must be nice! Emma & Hailey are six months apart & had a blast going on rides together (Emma especially liked the rides at A Bugs Land in DCA....nice & slow paced for kids).The only small glitch in our day was Gracie hit her head pretty hard on a pipe near the Soarin' over California ride and got a small gash in her scalp. It was bleeding a little heavier than I liked & there was a nice guy at the turnstile who called a nurse for us. She came and checked her out, gave us some gauze and Polysporin. It wasn't bad enough for stitches but it did "ooze" for quite awhile. She has a nice little scab there now & I think it'll heal up just fine. She was most upset about me holding her & trying to stop the bleeding than she was about the cut itself. After that we headed back to Disneyland & made sure we went on Gadget's Go Coaster & the Tea Cups again. Jen & I also met up with my friend Michelle & her daughter Caitlyn just outside the Parks in Downtown Disney to visit for a bit. While we were doing that Coray was riding the big roller coaster in DCA (that was the only thing I didn't get to do) & that Twilight Zone Tower of Terror ride (you won't catch me going on that one, that's for sure!). But he liked it. The weather was perfect, it wasn't crowded at all, it was so much fun & we definitely want to go back after summer is over. Hopefully all our friends can come again too! It was a great way to spend time with them.

Wednesday we went out to Whittier & stayed with Coray's Dad. We took the girls to a park next to the house. There is a little petting zoo type place there & they had fun feeding the sheep. Emma thought it was hilarious when the sheep was eating the grain out of her hand. We had dinner that night at Uncle Joe & Aunt Verna's house. Coray's Dad and Great Grandpa Neilson also came. The drive is only about 4 1/2 hours so it's not bad at all. I'd have to say it was a great trip. I think Disneyland will be a favorite vacation spot of ours for years to come! Gracie has announced several times since we got back that "next week we're going to Diseylamb". We'll have to start planning our next trip again for sure!