Sunday with Daddy

The kids woke up around 5:30 this morning . . . which was actually 4:30 with the time change.  Isaac woke up Abby, and downstairs they went to take advantage of their new "freedom/talent": turning on the television and Netflix all by themselves.  It was a while before my tired mind cued into what was happening, and I got downstairs to bring them back up and put them in bed.  But Isaac never went back to sleep . . . Abby didn't sleep for long.  Brianna, who had been asleep in our bed since 3:00 with nightmares or who knows what, also woke up.  And Mommy never got back to sleep.

Two hours later, we realized there had ALSO been a time change.  So I went to church by myself; and Dave stayed home to put all the kids down for a nap.

When I got home, I found that NO ONE had slept yet!  Instead, they'd had a Daddy day:

They ate Daddy's homemade pumpkin/raisin muffins.

They read stories.

They learned to take pictures of each other.

They played Memory Match with the Animal Cards.

And they watched Veggie Tales.

It was a fantastic day!  When I got home, I had eyes peering down from the upstairs window and was greeted with huge hugs and bursts of excitement!  Now I know how Dave feels when he comes home every day.

We continued to play games.
And we had lunch.
And we ALL took a nap . . . all except Brianna.

Then Abby woke me up, asking if she could lay with me.  As we cuddled, she told me, "Mommy, did you know that I LOVE that there's a baby in your tummy?  And did you know that the baby in your tummy has a little egg around it to protect it?  Daddy showed us all the babies of the other Mommies in the book.  And they have an egg around them and are floating in water.  And then, they're going to come out of the egg.  Ummmm . . . I'm not exactly sure how they get out of there.  But the doctor takes them out, right Mommy?  And then we get to have a baby BROTHER!  I'm so excited for our new baby!  It's going to be SO CUTE!"  Dave bought a book on babies at D.I. and showed them all the pictures of what is happening inside my tummy!  And Abby is now ALL-KNOWING on all things baby!  Except how the doctor gets it out of there . . . . I think that one's going to remain a mystery for a while! :-)

After we cuddled and talked, we went down and played the matching game with Brianna.  And Daddy and Isaac sat on the sofa and talked and played games on the Tablet.  Until they watched a Living Scriptures DVD while Mommy and Daddy played Scrabble at the kitchen table.

We finished the night with baked sweet potatoes, steamed veggies, and grilled ham - everyone's favorite!

Before we put them to bed, Isaac started saying that there was a big, SCARY ghost in his room.  So Dave told him that tomorrow, for FHE, we are going to make "special necklaces" that keep ghosts away.

And then he said, "I think we need a story tonight.  Who's ready for a story?" This is a nightly tradition in our house - well, most nights at least.  Daddy reads or tells the kids a story before bed.

So they all gathered around to hear Daddy's bedtime story.  It started out, "Once upon a time, there was a man named Feklehump.  He had a wife - with a HUGE belly with a baby in it - and three kids:  One beautiful, sweet little girl with long, golden hair. One handsome little boy who liked to do things his own way.  And one adorable little toddler who was so much fun every time she got really tired.

One day, Feklehump turned into a ghost . . . . -- Um, Melinda?  Where is this story going?  I need a plot."

"I don't know - but it can't be scary or they'll have nightmares all night long.  Make it kind of funny like Casper."

"Oh - okay.  So Feklehump turned into a ghost.  And everyone knows that ghosts are supposed to scare people.  In fact, it's ghost CODE that they have to scare people, right?  And Feklehump was no different.  But he found out really fast that he had a very. serious. problem.  Every time he opened his mouth to scare people, it came out like this . . . ."

Then he took his hands and started to reach towards the terrified kids before suddenly yelling, 'Hahahahahaha!'" as he started to tickle them!

In seconds, fear turned into surprised delight, and they were ROLLING on the floor, laughing.  Abby was laughing that laugh that only comes to little girls when they are OVERtired and can't keep the laughter from coming out, no matter how hard they try.

And that was just the beginning . . . . .

And the ending of a PERFECT day with Daddy!

Daddy Records a Day with Brianna

Dave is working each week on documenting our year through a weekly journal he is creating in Publisher.  That was one of his goals for the year, and he is always GREAT at accomplishing his goals! And then at the end of the year, we'll have a fantastic journal created by Daddy and some filler stuff from the blog that I always write but never . . . illustrate. :-)  So here is this week's entry.  A day with Brianna - a Sunday at that.  I'll post the last few weeks' pages in separate posts.  Without further adieu . . .

Picture This . . .

No camera for these moments, but a few memories I don't want to forget:

*Tonight at our church Christmas Party, Dave told the kids they had to have ONE BITE of all of the food on their plates: ham, potatoes, green beans, and a roll.  Only THEN could they have a cookie.  Isaac took a bite of the ham.  And a few more.  He tried a bite of the beans.  And one was enough.  Then the potatoes.  One bite was all, friends -- just one small bite.

Fast forward AN HOUR AND A HALF LATER!  The band had played, the crowd had sung, Santa had circled the gym on a skateboard with lights on it, and all the while . . . there sat Isaac, completely silent, refusing to swallow that ONE BITE of potatoes.  And Daddy determined it was a battle of the wills that Isaac was NOT going to win.

We tried everything -- "Isaac, here hold the cookie - all you have to do is swallow the potatoes and you can eat the cookie!" (He tried stuffing the cookie in beside the potatoes in his mouth -- but it didn't work very well, so he just held it!)  When Santa left the room, "Isaac - hurry and swallow your potatoes so you can talk to Santa!  You can't talk to Santa and get candy if your mouth is full!"  Nothing!  He just looked at us, taking it all in.  A young man in the ward gave him a box of nerds.  Again, he tried really hard to fit them in next to the potatoes.  But again, he sat and listened to all the prods to just SWALLOW the potatoes and quietly shook his head.  Dave said, "Well - I guess we have found a solution to the days when he is so loud we need an off button."  I said, "I think you should just take him to the bathroom and let him spit it out!"  But he wasn't "giving in." As we waited in line to see Santa, someone tried to get him to swallow by making it a competition, see who could swallow first.  Isaac just stared and did nothing.

Then, just as we got to the door, Isaac threw his head forward and spit those potatoes all over the floor!  I don't think it was intentional -- he was covered and looked pretty flustered by it all.  I think Abby started to faint because I heard someone say, "No - Abby! Don't touch!" and I turned to find her falling on her knees almost RIGHT IN the mess on the floor - which she would NEVER intentionally do because she HATES being dirty.  I handed Brianna off and went to clean Isaac up as Dave dashed to the bathroom for paper towels to clean up the mess.

In the bathroom, I said, "Isaac! Why did you spit the potatoes all over the floor - why didn't you just SWALLOW them?"  He said, "Because I wanted to talk to Santa!"  I guess he was listening after all . . . . And you have NEVER heard a more proud and excited boy than the one who ran up and climbed up on Santa's lap and told him that he wanted DINOSAURS for Christmas.  He talked about it the whole way home - that he sat on Santa's lap and talked to Santa and got candy!

And, I might add, beat Daddy in the battle of the wills!  Who learned a lesson tonight?

Two other memories I need to record:
* I walked into the kitchen to make dinner only to find Brianna . . . sitting in a pile of broken glass and salsa!  YIKES!  Fortunately we grabbed her, discovered the blood all over my arm was just from a small cut on her right hand, and got her into the bath before more damage was done.  Tender, tender mercies!  With the size and the extent of the shattered glass, it could have been much, MUCH worse!

* I was changing Brianna's diaper, and she started to just cry and scream and wiggle away from me.  Abby and Isaac came and knelt beside her, and Abby started stroking her hair and saying, "It's okay, Bria!"  Then Isaac took her hand and kissed it and Abby started to sing "I Am a Child of God" to her while I finished.  She calmed right down.  I LOVE how tender my twins are sometimes!

Sleepless in California

I'm having a hard time sleeping tonight. Probably because Brianna was having a hard time sleeping and I fell asleep with her at 8:30 and then woke up at midnight to an adrenaline rush from killing a huge cockroach in my bathroom!  But whatever the reason . . . here are some things on my mind:

• I love rainstorms.  A really good rainstorm has always taken me back to Ricks College and dancing in the parking lot with my roommates, drenched through and through and LOVING it, splashing each other with mud puddles, laughing our heads off each and every time.  Today, though, I got a new rain memory.  My two-year-olds hearing the rain while they played in their room and running through the house to the back sliding glass door, anxiously asking me to please open the blinds and screaming with excitement as large raindrops turned to large puddles, which turned to a large-though-shallow lake across our patio, which turned to large splashes in the lake.  And once Brianna heard them, she crawled in as fast as she could and squealed with them, standing up next to the window, tapping the glass and laughing in excitement!  Once it was over, nothing could keep those two inside!  They begged me to let them jump on the trampoline, and after stripping them down to their diapers and pulling Abby's hair up, out they went!  They literally played until the huge 1" deep lake was all dried up.  And that memory - of them splashing and kicking water at each other, crawling under the trampoline and back out, throwing water from their little cup all over each other, stomping and squealing with glee and surprise every time they got splashed, etc. - will always bring a smile to my face!
• I love a clean house!  In fact, there are few things that make me happier than sitting in my house with nothing to clean, enjoying the order and spirit and freshness and liberation of it all!
• Tonight we read a few books on the sofa together - just me and my twins!  I treasure those moments! It never ceases to amaze me how much they are like little sponges, wanting to interact and interface with everything in sight!  They would seriously jump into every book we ever read if they could.  And they already ask questions to understand the story/pictures better -- but then again, Dr. Seuss invites questions sometimes, doesn't he? ;-D  And as we read the ABC book in English and I had them repeat the words in Spanish and they scurried off to find any objects in the book that they have in real life, I just smiled!  Our nighttime song tonight was "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" because X stands for Xylophone and they ran and got their xylophone - and that's the only song I have sat down to learn how to play on it!  And since they threw the stick under the stove where it just might stay forever . . . we played it with the hooves of Abby's "Forsey" (horsey).
• I'll never get over cockroaches, no matter how many times I have to kill them - big or "small" (less big, but still BIG).  I hate them, I hate them, I hate them, I hate them.  And I know this is an irrational feeling towards such strange little bugs . . . but I really stopped caring a long time ago!  Yep - I am SOOOO over the fact that my hate is irrational!  And hate it truly, truly, truly is!
• Simplicity.  Oh the power of that word!  I have grown to LOVE and SEEK simplicity!  Easy dinner of sliced lettuce, diced grilled chicken, cottage cheese, and salsa - sign me up!  Can I use the same plate and cup and utensils all day to avoid a ton of dishes?  Yes, yes I can!  Can I pack away clothes that are cute but we really don't need and/or get around to wearing and I realize that having them just gives me excuses to put off doing laundry and more laundry to do when I finally get around to it?  Yes, actually!  And I do so with GLEE!!!  Do I pack away toys that the kids only play with when they're throwing them out of the toy box in search of the toys they really want and I find myself spending more time cleaning them up than the kids spent dumping them out?  I do, I do, I really do!  And I don't feel bad when they discover the boxes/bags of said toys and throw a tantrum because I won't open them up and let them dump them all over the room/house again.  Nope - not one bit.  Why?  Because simplicity frees me up to enjoy more things - like story time on the sofa with my kids because dinner didn't take an hour to clean up after and the toys didn't take an extra fifteen minutes to get them to clean up after.  And it frees me to hold Brianna's hand and walk down the hall or across the room with her a few more times during the day.  And it lets me sit unabashed and watch my kids play in the water outside or *gulp* - and I'm still perfecting this one - go out and play WITH them.  And at the end of the day . . . everyone is just that much happier!
• Brianna . . . oh my dear little angel girl!  There is only one room in the house she is really outlawed from entering un-accompanied.  And it is precisely that room that she hovers outside of in unsuspecting moments and crawls toward as fast as she can whenever she sees the open door opportunity, letting out squeals of delight that give her away and let me intercept her just as she finally makes it in: the Bathroom!  And today, she just started clapping and smiling whenever she hears someone say yay!  And we played like that for a while, me pretending to ignore her and then randomly screaming, "Yay!" and her face lighting up as she realized that was her cue to start clapping again!  It was really a fun game!  One I got a very tired girl to repeat for Daddy after much prodding at the dinner table tonight.  Now we're working on "Hip-hip Hooray!" with her arms high above her head!  And by working on it I mean that it's my focus of playtime tomorrow!
• We bought all the stuff to make these really cute 4th of July 'Smore suckers I saw on The Idea Room website.  We invited people over to join the fun.  We made the 'smores and we melted the chocolate.  And it didn't melt like we had thought it would.  So Dave added some milk to smooth it out/liquify it a bit more so we could dip the 'smores in it and . . . you are already laughing?  So you realize that you should NEVER add milk to melted chocolate?  Why didn't you tell me?  And next time, we will freeze the 'smores and then stick the sticker stick in them and THEN try dipping them in our non-milky milk chocolate dipping sauce.  It'll be fabulous enough to take pictures!!!  And no, we didn't throw the chocolate out.  Dave is freezing it for one day in the future when we aren't on a no-sugar-besides-on-holidays kick and he can make his chocolate praline pecan cheesecake for some lucky friends to enjoy with us.  I really can't wait!
• I really love brushing my teeth!  In fact, if I had time to brush my teeth five times a day, just to have that fresh, minty, clean feeling all day long, I would totally do it!  Well, if I wasn't watching money like a hawk and felt that doing so was quite unnecessary and even potentially wasteful.  Cuz I would think of something like that. :-)
• Budgeting.  If budgeting were chocolate, my sister would be an addict.  And I would be the one sitting by, watching her eat, licking my lips and wishing I could have a bite - a morsel - a lick even some days!  But today I spent hours - for the umpteenth time this year - trying to work out a budget for the next year.  Knock on wood because EVERY SINGLE TIME I have done this in the last six months, something has happened that required enough money to completely blow my budget out of the water and send me back to the drawing board, resigned to the fact that we would never have money in savings again!  But this time -- this time I really hope it sticks!  We're trying to get back to grad school, hoping to move back to northern Idaho/Eastern Washington in the process and - try as I may to get around it - moving and grad school mean lots of sacrifices and money!  So I'm praying we can cut and shave and pinch and sell and make it. 
• Friends are like . . . well there are a lot of phrases I could use to end that statement.  Chocolate. A sunny afternoon. A walk on the beach.  A pile of clean laundry.  But tonight I am thinking that friends are just plain good to have.  Cuz I'm a "people who need people" person, not gonna lie!  And not having people could quite possibly be one of the hardest things for me in this world!  And by people I mean friends!  Maybe it's because I fear that I could pass through an entire stage of my life completely unnoticed, no one caring I was there or missing my presence when I left.  I think anywhere you go, everywhere you live, everything you do, etc. - you need real friends.  Even if it is just one.  One golden friend who will accept you for who you are, not judge you when your house is a mess or your kids are bouncing off the walls and ceiling and kitchen sink and . . . . One golden friend who truly cares about what you are doing during the day, even if it really isn't anything at all.  One friend you are comfortable having drop by your house when you're still in your pajamas at 3:00 in the afternoon and your kids are running around in nothing but diapers or perched on the sofa watching Dora the Explorer for the fifth time that day.  Better still, one you can drop in on without feeling like an imposition, even if you might be one at the moment.  One golden friend who you gladly let use your bathroom without worrying that the entire world will hear that your toilet hasn't been cleaned in a while - or make microwave popcorn with without worrying that the spaghetti-splatted microwave you didn't have time to stop and clean in the moment and consequently haven't had triple the time to clean since will get you "the look".  And definitely a friend you can spend holidays with and, more importantly, cry with.  And after typing this I just realized that I am married to him.  And that makes me smile.  But that means I also have to change this entire paragraph to TWO friends!  You need TWO such friends! :-)

Queen for a Day

This has been a really mixed-emotion weekend.  We attended a beautiful funeral for a dear girl in our ward today - Chloe Mohun.  Funerals have been an overarching theme of my 2011 experience, and each one brings the same mixture of gratitude, sorrow, fear, hope, love, desire to serve and lift and create days free of any regrets just in case -- a lot of emotions, really!

Second of all, today is my birthday.

My dear friend Emily sent me a gift card from Fandango for my birthday (movie theaters, if you are clueless like me and wondering what Fandango is).  So we took the kids to Cars 2 yesterday.  It was their first time in a movie theater.  We had a couple of meltdowns/tantrums when the popcorn made us all really thirsty and we were trying to be cheap and not buy a drink to go along with it.  But we made it through them and mostly it was just really fun!  Abby stood through almost all of it, shouting, "Yay, you did it!" when the 'good' cars got away from the 'bad' cars.  She and Brianna danced to all the music.  And Abby would randomly yell out, "This is fun, Mom!" or "Woo-hoo!  Good job!" and other encouraging bursts of two-year-old enthusiasm aimed at the characters on the screen.  Isaac mostly just sat, mesmerized by it all.  But then he spent the entire evening with his red toy car - which suddenly took on the name "Qween" - running away from the school bus and fire engine and ambulance and always victorious!  In fact, I am sure he'll be inseparably connected to that little red race car for a long time!

My mom sent me the cutest apple-themed Chore Chart with our pictures in small frames that hang below each person's list of chores to do.  She spent a lot of time on it, and it really is so worth it!!!

And Dave treated me to a day filled with everything special for me!  He went shopping this morning and bought two doughnuts to share with the kids and was good enough to NOT buy me one!  Instead, he got me a small bag of my favorite sugar-free cinnamon bears from the bulk section at WinCo!  They were fresh, too!  YUM!  Other food favorites that he splurged on for my birthday included ham steak - grilled on the grill outside, baked sweet potatoes, our first watermelon in a year, and some sugar-free ice cream and diet A&W Root Beer for root beer floats!  Top it off with my "cake" this year - a mostly-sugar-free mixed berry, jello, pudding, angel food cake trifle - and it was pretty much the perfect day!!!  Although we actually haven't eaten the watermelon or cake yet -- but it's a holiday weekend, so there's plenty of time to get around to all of that!  We are also splurging for the 4th of July and having corn on the cob!!!  I'm really excited!


More than anything, though - Dave just did a million small things today to make it special!  He even wrote this on my Facebook wall: "Happy birthday to the most awesome mother, coolest wife, most attractive English major, most deadly secret government agent and all around best person in the world!"  In case you were wondering, this was my reply, "Thanks Dave! I definitely couldn't do any of it without you . . . especially the secret government agent part. They would have found out a long time ago that my i.d. was fake and I have no idea how to use a gun if it weren't for your dashing good looks and smooth tongue that are always distracting them! I love you! Thanks for making it the best birthday and . . . every day . . . ever! I know, I know . . . you put up with a lot! ;-D"

I felt like a Queen today!  And if that is what it means to be 31 -- er -- 29 again -- then WELCOME, WELCOME!!!

I also got to have a couple of really good conversations with my brother and sister, and that always makes me feel good to know I have people who love me!  Perhaps particularly in lieu of the funeral today, that is THE most important gift I think you could get for your birthday!

The Things You Say . . . are Unforgettable!

Abby and Isaac got started on our long haul to update them on their shots about two weeks ago now.  Isaac had the HARDEST time - I could hear him screaming in the waiting room!  Abby did a lot better.  Dave said she cried, but she handled it in stride and didn't even have to be "wrestled" to the table.  When Isaac and I went back in to get Abby -- first of all, I was VERY impressed that Isaac went back in.  He was actually REALLY concerned about Abby and Brianna.  And then I saw Abby and gave her a hug and she said, "Mommy - that doctor not very nice!  He NOT listen and obey!" Of course we had the talk that the doctor didn't hurt them, the shots did; but the shots are to help them not get sick.  But it was SO cute the way her mind worked!

The other night we were kneeling for prayer.  Isaac wanted his shark!  And of course, we don't have toys during prayer time.  But it really disturbed him that he didn't know where to find it and we wouldn't just jump up and go look for it for him.  Finally he calmed down for prayer.  Daddy prayed, Abby prayed, and when it was Isaac's turn he simply said, "Heavenly Father - I very sad - name of Jesus Kist, amen."  After that, we searched the whole house over to find that shark!

Abby and Isaac were eating dinner last night. We have a rule now that we sit at the table for a half hour with them.  Then, if they don't want to eat - they can get down.  And if they want to keep eating, they can but we can then get up and start cleaning up.  It saves a LOT of contention and just makes the whole mealtime experience feel so much nicer!  As I loaded the dishwasher, Isaac was done and got down and started to play.  Abby was not, however, and WANTED to keep eating.  But Isaac started taunting her with his toys, trying to get her to come and chase him and play with him.  She scolded him for that, "No - Isaac - I still eating, Isaac!"  Then he grabbed her favorite toy -- her horsey!  And she fell apart.  Through her tears, once I got her to settle down a little bit, she told him, "Isaac - you makin' me sad!"

I was having a hard time finding something to wear this morning for church -- yep, still fighting through those fun pregnancy pounds!!!  At one point, I tried on something and yelled when it didn't fit.  Isaac was in the bathroom and said, "Uh-oh.  What happened?"  I told him that I couldn't find anything to wear because nothing was fitting me.  He pointed to a skirt and said, "How 'bout THIS one?"  I said, "This one?" and pointed to it.  He said, "Yep - yes. There you go, Mommy!  It fit you!"  His triumphant smile was unforgettable!!!  He just KNEW he had solved all my problems and was the best son in the world for having done it.  Of course, it also made me smile!

As I got ready for church today, Isaac and Abby came into the closet singing, "Follow the Prophet" as they followed each other in circles around me.  Then Isaac took the blocks he was holding in his hand and put them, one on top of the other, on the counter next to me.  He got really excited and yelled, "Look, Mommy!  Temple!"  I said, "Is that the temple?" half laughing at his creativity.  And he smiled that "I'm so proud of myself" smile and said, "Yep - that's the temple!" and then laughed like he had said the funniest thing in the world - then he left.  A few minutes later he came back in and said, "Mommy, please make-em Isaac hair handsome."  And so we did!

Dave decided we were going to camp in our back yard, since we have been rained out and stormed out and distanced out of every other camping trip we have planned in the last few months.  He took a VERY proud Isaac out back to help him set up the tent.  And that became a fun fort for the rest of the day!  Then, just before dinner, we were going out to grill chicken sausages and noticed the VERY dark, looming clouds!  Another one bites the dust!  But we're determined!  We'll make it one of these times!

My Favorite Things

This has been a "My Favorite Things" weekend.  In fact, it's almost as if Dave decided that my Mother's Day gift this year was going to be him giving me a weekend filled with all of my favorite things!  When he came home from work Friday night, he brought a movie.  And we had an amazing date night, just sitting together and watching the new Chronicles of Narnia movie.  When we were dating, we used to read Chronicles of Narnia together on Sunday nights.  And whenever we traveled, we listened to it on tape in the car.  That has ALWAYS been one of my FAVORITE things.

Saturday we went for a LONG walk.  We walked everywhere we needed to go that day.  And when we came home, we put the kids down to bed and cleaned the ENTIRE house to have everything ready for a nice, relaxing Sabbath!  Once we got everything clean, we had a laundry party/movie night.  We washed and folded and put away all but one load of laundry.  And we watched a few episodes of "The Ghost Whisperer" - a show I used to watch all the time at my mom's while I was literally FLAT in bed (on the sofa that was my bed) sick with Brianna.  He had never seen it -- and it was fun to see some episodes "where it all began."  It was also nice to NOT have him rushing off to do something that NEEDED to be done, returning home exhausted and not interested in doing anything more than going to bed.  AND working TOGETHER - doing laundry or sorting through boxes or cleaning or cooking or whatever - is also one of my favorite things!

Because the laundry took a long time to completely pull together, Dave fell asleep on the sofa Saturday night.  At least, I thought he stayed out on the sofa because he was too tired to get to bed.  But in reality, he had plans for Sunday morning.  He got up at 5:00 this morning and made me CINNAMON ROLLS - which definitely top the list of my favorite things (if you get a good one - but you already know my feelings on THAT topic).  And he did pretty well with the recipe he chose.  It wasn't the BEST, but it was far from the worst!  In fact, we ate an entire pan today . . . and I decided to let what happens in Mother's Day stay in Mother's Day and NOT count those additional sugar calories for the week!  When the kids woke up, he kidnapped them and got them to help him finish his job for mom.  And then he got them all dressed in their Sunday clothes and came into the room (where he had kindly requested I stay put until he came to get me) to present me with breakfast "in bed."  The kids were SO excited!  I could tell they had a LOT of fun cooking me breakfast with Daddy.  And those moments are some of my FAVORITE things.  He also got me a very small bag of a licorice mix you can buy in bulk at WinCo that has always been a favorite/temptation for me.  Like I said, it was a small bag -- and the kids loved it as much as I did and even got most of the colors right when they requested some of them.

I did Abby's hair as I ate my cinnamon roll breakfast.  Just as I was finishing, Dave came into the room.  Her eyes BEAMED up at him as she simply said, "DADDY?!?!?" anticipating that he would tell her how pretty she looked with her hair done.  And Daddy sure did rise to the occasion.  He said, "ABBY!  I thought you were so pretty this morning when we got your dress on but now . . . with your hair done . . . you are just so BEAUTIFUL!!!  Come here, give me a hug!"  And she beamed and she twirled and she ran into his arms and gave him a hug that even I felt just watching it!  And those moments - moments when I know that my daughter has a daddy who treats her like a PRINCESS and teaches her every day that she is beautiful, irreplaceable, the apple of his eye, and everything in the world to him - those moments are among my favorite things.  Because in those moments my daughter is learning how she should be treated and gaining the confidence that will help her find an eternal companion who treats her the same.  Isaac coming for "his turn" of Mommy doing hair and his big, thankful hug after I comply with some hairspray or even a butterfly clip temporarily in his hair is another favorite thing! ;-D

After church we ALL took a nap - also a pastime that has been MISSING in my life as of late.  I woke from my nap to the sound of Isaac, not calling me to come and get him, but singing at the TOP of his lungs so I would KNOW it was time to come and get him.  The song, sung under the door and echoing down the hallway to my room, went something like this: "Twinkle, twinkle, e, f, g, la, la, la, la, what you AAAAAARE!!!"  And then he moved away from the door and continued to sing a song that went something like this, "I yuv you; you yuv me; hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, hmmm, yuv me TOOOOOOOOOO!"  Hearing my children sing is one of my VERY favorite things!

Once everyone was awake, Dave made dinner.  Now, we would have had kebabs - another favorite thing - but that would have required one of us to go to the grocery store last night instead of enjoying the night together.  So we opted instead for his homemade spaghetti sauce over cooked shrimp with some Romano cheese on top and a mixed green salad on the side (hey - had to make up for the cinnamon rolls somewhere, right?).  It's always been one of my favorite meals and doesn't take long to throw together.  Consequently, the kids didn't fight us clear through dinner!  And a meal without fighting kids to get them to eat is DEFINITELY a favorite thing.

While Dave cooked, I went back and laid on my bed to feed Brianna.  Soon Abby and Isaac joined me, playing in my quilt, hiding from each other, playfully wrestling each other, giggling that contagious giggle that they get right before they hit their too-tired-to-sleep point.  But it was fun tonight because, as I lay there feeding Brianna, Brianna started kicking her feet at the sound.  And Isaac, who originally came out fully loaded to yell at her to stop kicking him, saw her face and simply asked her not to kick him.  However, when she saw him peek out from under the blanket to tell her to stop, she thought he was playing peek-a-boo with her and started just giggling like crazy!  And Isaac's annoyance literally melted away as the two of them had a hide-and-seek-and-tag-each-other giggle fest!  It is SOOOO much fun to see my kids playing together, hear them laughing together, watch them working together.  And to see their infant sister be included as ALL THREE of them CELEBRATED EACH OTHER tonight -- oh, it was a tender mommy moment.  And I KNOW it will continue to be one of my favorite things!

We got them to bed and played a game of Quiddler - also one of my favorite things!  And though he was over 40 points ahead of me going into the LAST hand - well, he got a whopper hand dealt to him and so did I.  I managed to beat HIM by over 40 points!  And, I'm not gonna lie - that's also one of my favorite things! ;-D  And, hey - it's only at Quiddler that I EVER beat him, so I have to take what I can get!

In the midst of all of this, Dave surprised me by telling me that he took Monday and Tuesday off so we could go hiking/camping.  That tops my list of top ten favorite things, for sure!  And if we can find a safe place to go, we're escaping this crazy city life and taking a much-needed break.  We probably won't stay the night . . . the weather took a turn and Brianna is too young still for really cold/roughing it camping.  But if we can build a fire and do tin foil dinner and smores with the kids at the end of a day hike . . . it will be HEAVEN to me!


Oh - and I can't forget to add that Brianna said "Ma-ma-ma-ma" for the FIRST time today!  And hearing my kids say Mama -- most of the time, at least -- is DEFINITELY one of my FAVORITE things!  Hearing it for the first time from her -- PRICELESS!!!

Happy Mother's Day everyone!

My Name Isaac

A little conversation today after Dave got home from work. Context: the girls were still asleep and to keep them that way, I had put "Toy Story 2" on for Isaac to cuddle with me on the sofa and watch.  He was sitting next to me, eyes glued to the television, when Dave decided to join us on the sofa. 

Dave sat on the other side of Isaac and, giving him a big hug, said, "Hi, Buddy!" 

Isaac, without even glancing in his direction, said, "My name Isaac." 

Ummmmmmm . . . .

Life is like Hair Follicles

In other news, I would like to record that after 32 long years of fighting pokey hair and horns, David FINALLY learned how to comb his hair!  We are SOOOO proud of him! Hahahahahahaha! 

In all seriousness, though, he said he was standing in front of the mirror yesterday, fighting with getting enough gel in his hair to get his spike to stay down in the back when he thought, "I wonder what would happen if I parted it and combed it the other way."  Know what happened?  It stayed that way.  All day.  All night, too.  All these years he has been going against the grain, and his hair NEVER conformed! And now we know why.

I was thinking about how much that pertains to LIFE.  How often do we spend a TON of time, energy, money, etc. trying to make something in our lives go the way we think it should go?  When in reality, it was never meant to go that way.  We try this product and that product, this spray and that spray, and surely this one is what will finally make it be what we want it to be.  But the fix is so much simpler than that - just let it be, comb it the other way. 

Unfortunately for David, and for many of us, he wasn't trying to make it something it wasn't.  He just simply didn't realize what it was.  And as soon as he did and went along with what it WAS, everything went smoothly!  Something he had spent YEARS trying to control ended up being something he had spent years trying to change - and once he tapped into it for what it was, VIOLA!  PRESTO!  No more problem.  No more expensive products. No more too-short hair cuts just to keep it from being a problem.  No more hat days just to hid the spike!

I'm only sorry he didn't learn earlier that his hair GREW in the opposite direction and would never comb the way he was trying to comb it without a spike!  Too bad he never had anyone come along with the expertise in "hair follicles" to tell him he was simply combing it the wrong way.  It would have been easier - gotten rid of one extra stress (albeit a small stress - it was still a stress for YEARS) in his life.

Another lesson for life - some simple solutions just have to be learned in time.  No one else can point them out.  No one else can discover the problem or create the change. Learn what IS and let it BE! ;-D

Scrooge Meets Valentine's Day

So remember when you were (perhaps still are) single and had anti-Valentine's Day parties with all of your girlfriends and non-boyfriend boys who were your friends to just get together and celebrate (with a hint of longing and bitterness) that you were single and unattached and therefore NOT going to waste your time on a silly holiday about LOVE unless you got to have a party to make fun of it?  Love-schmove, right?  Well, I'm NOT single.  And as I was making dinner last night while Dave read over the lesson he was teaching in church today, we suddenly had the following conversation:

Dave: Melinda, we need to talk about our Valentine's Day budget/plans.
Me: (wondering where in the WORLD that came from and where in the WORLD it was going since I wasn't aware we HAD a Valentine's budget category OR plans) Uh-huh?
Dave: Yeah, like I don't want to spend ANY money on this holiday.
Me: (staring at him for a long time to try and determine if this is a trick because he already spent money on me but doesn't want to be outdone or . . .) Are you being serious?
Dave: Yeah. I mean, really, look at what this holiday has turned into - people thinking they have to go out and spend ridiculous amounts of money on candy and flowers and dinner and jewelry and who knows what?  No!  That's not what love is about.  So I think we shouldn't spend any money.  We can get a babysitter to watch the kids while we go for a walk or something, but I don't want to buy into all the commercialism surrounding "love."
Me: (amused, not gonna lie - and with all that has been going on the last few weeks, I hadn't really given the day any thought yet) Okay - sounds good to me.  I really hadn't thought about it yet, but I don't mind not spending money.
Dave: Okay, good.
Me: Okay, good.

Is it strange that I totally get where he's coming from and really, really, really DON'T mind NOT spending money on THE day of buy or make people things to show them you LOVE them?  Or do I really secretly WANT him to have gotten me a gift or to give me permission to do something romantic for him that would require me spending money to either have something to give or to buy the stuff I need to make something to give?  Does this mean we are Valentine's Day SCROOGES or say something about our relationship?  I would say it says we're cheap if it was me that came up with the idea cuz - frankly - until we are 100% debt-free, done with Dave's education, done having children, settled and more established, I am CHEAP about all things spending money.  But Dave -- Dave isn't.  Dave's the one that talked me into working fun money for each other AND our family into our budget.  He isn't cheap.  He's frugal - sometimes with some friendly persuasive reminders from yours truly, but he isn't cheap. 

Overthinking - totally overthinking!

Hmmmm . . . I wonder how we'll feel about it in 10, 25, 50 years down the road? :-0

The First Three Years in Pictures

Click here to view this photo book larger

Is it sad that these are the only pictures we have of us in the last three years?  You'd think we had kids who took over the camera or something! ;-D

Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday was Dave and I's THIRD anniversary!  I seriously feel like we've been on a ride since day ONE.  And that we should have been married for like ten years instead of three -- I mean, in the last three years we have had three children, Dave graduated, we bought a condo, remodeled it from the ground up, bought a car, moved to California, went through sickness and surgery until I can't even talk about it anymore - the list is endless.  And all in JUST THREE YEARS?

And of all the amazing things I could talk about that we have experienced together, there is one thing that I learned on our date last night:

There is nowhere more calming, comforting, peaceful, secure, the list goes on and on - than in Dave's arms.  We sat on the sofa and watched a movie for the first time in months - MONTHS.  There weren't kids running around or dodging in between us or pushing one or the other of us away to have their own cuddle time with Mommy/Daddy.  There weren't fires to put out, messes to clean up, fights to stop, toys to return, time-outs to get through, temper tantrums, high-pitched squeals or cries or laughter or whatever.  There wasn't a welcome but draining dinner guest or game guest or other type of guest to keep our attention at least partially diverted from each other to focus on our visitors and play the role of host and hostess.  There was nothing but us and the movie (until Brianna got hungry, but even she fit very nicely into my little moment of bliss).

And with all my talk of dating before Brianna was born, we somehow forgot completely to date -- or perhaps just the fact that the number one ingredient in our dates is uninterrupted time spent together.

But I have to say that - well, starting at the very beginning is a very good place to start.  And this was the beginning of all future anniversary celebrations.  What a blessing!

When Daddy Comes Home

I don't know if I've ever written a post about this or not, because it somehow seems familiar to me.  Maybe I've just written it a few times in my head.

This is a tribute to David as Daddy in our home.  My children LOVE him.  They really, really love him.  And it's no wonder why - he's a pretty lovable guy.  But what has hit me lately is how much he is a PART of them.  There's the age-old debate about whether we are more of a consequence of nature or nurture.  And I don't know that it is an either/or answer.  But I definitely see and feel the nurture part of David in my children.

For example, it's prayer time.  The kids are ti-i-red, and so are we.  As we round up overnight diapers and pajamas and milk and scriptures, they sometimes get more and more rowdy by the second.  Pretty soon, they are running around the house, jumping on their beds, and - BAM - Abby tackles Isaac, screaming, "Tackle" and laughing as loud as she can.  Isaac reacts in one of two ways: He laughs OR he cries.  Not a real cry, but a cry that he thinks is going to get him attention, or at least annoy his sister who just literally PINNED him to the ground in a millisecond!  Abby's reaction to him laughing or crying is usually the same - tackle him again as fast as she can and let out yet another squeal of triumph!

She gets that from Daddy.

Or when Abby and Isaac are mutually playing tackle and loving it.  Suddenly, Isaac lifts Abby's shirt up and bites her on the stomach.  Initial reaction of most toddler mom's: Biting stage, explain biting is wrong, have some sort of punishment, and hope it sticks in.  Not so in our house.  That WAS my initial reaction until an image flashed before my eyes as I was moving to act on my impulse.  The image was one of Daddy coming home from work, tackling the kids, then scooping them up in his arms and pretending to eat them like corn on the cob, tickling their sides with his teeth in the process.

He learned that from Daddy. He's a little sketchy in the particulars, but the general idea was right there.

Or when you're sitting on the sofa, feeding a newborn or reading or typing or whatever.  Suddenly Abby comes up and starts to tickle you as hard and as fast as she can, yelling, "Tickle, tickle, tickle!"  Mostly it hurts, but the concept is there.  And she's laughing as if she were the one being tickled the whole time she's doing it.

She gets tickle wars from Daddy.

Or when we're sitting at the dinner table tonight and Abby, who asked me to help her eat her food, begins to chant, "Chuga tuga tuga tuga woo woo" as I go to put food in her mouth.  Then, just as I'm about to put the spoon into her mouth, she yells, "Stop!  No!  Horsey! Ee up Ee up Ee up -- (whinnies) Ee up Ee up Ee up -- (whinnies)."

She gets that mostly from Daddy.

Or when you go to put food in Isaac's mouth and he pretends to take a big bite and then chew it - over-emphasized chewing of the food that is still sitting on the spoon.  Yes, that also comes from Daddy when Daddy is trying to get them to eat and says, "Okay - Daddy take a bite, Isaac take a bite.  Ready, Daddy (insert fake bite and exaggerated chewing) - and now Isaac (typically insert real bite and chewing -- until recently when he figured it out)."  And he does it with that teasing, silently laughing twinkle in his eye.  He gets that one from Daddy as well.

My kids have the gift of laughter.  And they get a LOT of it from their Daddy!  He plays with them, teases them, wrestles with them. tackles them, tickles them, and loves, loves, loves them.  And seeing and feeling HIM in THEM always makes me smile . . . or laugh . . . (or cry when they get a little TOO into their rough and tumble play).  But always makes me so grateful that they have a daddy like him!

Prayer of the Children

Can you hear the prayer of the children on bended knee, in the shadow of an unknown room? Empty eyes with no more tears to cry turning heavenward toward the light.
Last night the kids were so moody and wound up that we decided, after a lot of attempts to get them settled down, some yelling and spanking for them not listening, some time-outs, etc., etc., etc. - to split them up and have one-on-one prayer with them.  Isaac and David had banged heads a little more than he and I had, so I took a broken-hearted and overtired Isaac into his room to have prayer while Daddy got a hyper-active, bouncing off the walls Abby.

When we entered his room, he immediately knelt down on the floor.  I followed suit.  He climbed up on my lap for a minute, and I gave him a hug, and then he knelt down in front of me and said,

"Dear Heavenly Father - thank oo this day, please bless Isaac, no more spankins, in the name of Jesus Kist - Awmen."

It was all said very quietly, through a few leftover sobs.  I was speechless.  I didn't even say amen because I didn't know what to say.  His tired, tearful blue eyes looked up at me.  He climbed up on my lap and got another hug and then quickly knelt back down and said his normal prayer. 

During all of this, I hadn't said anything.  And I realized he probably noticed I didn't say amen and decided he hadn't said his prayer right and needed to say it again.  I softly said amen this time, not wanting to send the wrong message, and pulled him into a big hug and told him I had loved BOTH of his prayers and was very proud of him and that we had had a really hard night but we loved him very, VERY much. 

He got right into bed, and I went to find his cup of milk.  And paused en route to tell his daddy what he had just prayed.  Then Daddy took a minute to go in and talk to his tender-hearted little boy.  He left Isaac laughing, smiling, and Isaac returned David's "I love you" with "Yuv you" - which has become less common as an immediate response lately.

Can you hear the prayers of the children?  They're walking through the shadows of so many unknown rooms, trying to figure out what it's all about, what their boundaries are, what their voices are, what they can do and what it's okay to feel and when it's okay to just say now or no or enough or "I no want it" or stop or help or "please bless Isaac, no more spankins."

I was amazed and so thankful that my little two-year-old has already learned the concept of prayer and asking for what is in your heart.  Because I know from so many experiences that THAT is what will get him out of those shadows.  That THAT is what will put him in tune with the LIGHT that he will need in unknown rooms my crazy imagination hasn't even visualized.  And I know that he has just reminded ME of this fact because sometimes I forget.

And I know we make so many mistakes along the way with him - with both of them - with each other, even.  But I guess that's what walking through and kneeling in unknown shadows is all about - learning, gaining enlightenment, coming to know -- know our limitations, know our strengths; know our hearts, know our way, know when to crawl, when to walk, and when to stop and kneel; know how to rise and walk and apologize and laugh and love and sleep and wake and try again -- another day.

And all this speechless mommy can say to this whole experience is: Amen, Isaac!  Amen.

Putting up the Christmas Tree

Tonight we decorated for Christmas.  It was SO MUCH FUN!!!  Abby and Isaac put all of our family ornaments on the tree, plus a few of the crocheted snowflakes from our wedding.  We recorded most of it, but it was fun to see how they both approached it so differently.  Abby wanted to get them on the tree and rush back to get another one as fast as she could.  And she wanted all the pretty ones (like - don't hand me that plain old crocheted snowflake, mom - I want the PITTY one!).  Isaac meticulously and methodically hung each one he received and then came back and asked calmly, "Nother one, please, Mommy - nother one, please."  And if he hung one that didn't hang "just right" - he took it back off and hung another one.  Towards the end, he had four or five snowflakes hanging on the same branch.  I guess he just really liked how they hung there!  I am hopeful that having them take control of decorating it will minimize their interest in touching and taking down and moving the ornaments later.  We'll see.

I also had some window stickers that I bought last year and we put those up on the glass door in the kitchen.  Again, it was really a fun distraction/perfect activity for two two-year-olds.

And isn't it amazing the difference a Christmas tree will make?  Even our small one that my mom thankfully loaned us from our wedding reception.  It's simple and has pre-hung lights attached to it, but it is perfect!  I am amazed that there is a completely different feeling in our home/living room whenever I look at it.

I also moved our kitchen island into the entry-way and put our nativity set on it on a cream table cloth.  And I FINALLY finished the advent calendar my sisters and I started making last year (more to come, including ideas for things to do with young children).  I'll have to post some pictures once we get it hung up.  But it looks SO AMAZING - and we made it ENTIRELY from scratch!!!

Incidentally, if you want to do an advent calendar but don't have a lot of time or money, my friend made one that I WISH WISH WISH I had seen last year, because it is about ten thousand times easier (and cheaper, even shopping sales with extra coupons and discounts) than the one I made!  Hahahahahahha!   Anyway, for a picture and tutorial, go here.

I hope you all had a fabulous Thanksgiving.  We went to Dave's supervisor's house.  It was so wonderful!!!  They have five kids and their entire house is like a toy store -- except you can actually PLAY with ALL the toys!!!  Isaac didn't want to leave.  He cried and cried when we took him away.  I guess we'll have to drive to Rosamond to have play dates.  It would be great for all of us, I think!!!  I also met another girl with whom I really could relate and I think we could be really great friends!  If only they didn't live in Rosamond. :)

Oh, and if you attempted Black Friday sales, I hope you had as much fun/success as we did.  We have a tradition of buying the kids an ornament that represents something from that year (and we have a Christmas journal in which we write down what they got and why) and we also give them each a book and then one more gift.  Stockings are for oranges, nuts, and small pieces of candy (and Dave likes to do wool socks as well!).  This year, we found glass airplanes for like $2.50 a piece after all the sales and extra discounts.  NICE!!!  We bought one for every one of us to represent our first Christmas at Edwards.  I also bought some of the charity Dr. Seuss books at Kohls for my kids.  For only $5 a piece, it was a STEAL!!!  And with that, we're giving them some presents we bought last year for their third gift of Christmas (like the wise men's three gifts -- get it?) and our shopping is officially done!  I also got the rest of Dave's Christmas present, but I can't write about that yet.  Now to finish making Grandma and Grandpa gifts!

I love this time of year!!!

Christmas Around the World

I don't want to take away from my last post.  If you love Beauty and the Beast, you HAVE to read it.  But I am also really excited about our Ward Christmas Party this year and wanted to write about it.  I mulled over a lot of ideas!  And in the end, this one just felt RIGHT.  Dave found a free Christmas card on the web and used it to create our announcement.  Isn't it so amazing?  He did a great job!!!!  Without further adieu . . .

What I really wanted to do for this activity is focus on the strong testimony I have of Jesus Christ, the Savior of the World, Emmanuel, the Beginning and the End, the Light and the Life of the World - and His incredible life that began with such a humble birth.  We have two accounts of His life and teachings, including His birth.  One in the Bible, another in the Book of Mormon: Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  I wanted to remind our Ward members that we are so blessed to know that the Earth received her King, not only in Jerusalem where the bright star shone over the humble stable in Bethlehem but also in other parts of the world.  We have record, for example, of the sign of his birth in a town called Zarahemla on the American continent.  There wasn't a star, but there was a day and a night and a day without darkness.  The Light of the world had come, and that was the sign to believer and non-believer alike - a night bright as day.  It will be amazing someday to see what other signs the Lord used to communicate to His other children around the world at that time that Jesus Christ, of whom the prophets had testified and witnessed and prepared the world, had indeed been born on that day.  We now call it Christmas.  And it is celebrated all over the world, in different ways by different cultures.  And it has always been an international event, celebrated and announced in different ways but representing the same, unifying occasion: the birth of Christ.

So that was the focus for the theme.  Not just on the spiritual side of Christ being born but also on the secular side of Christmas and giving and all the joys and traditions, different though they may be, around the world.  I found the idea on the web, though I don't remember where, and we tweaked it a bit for our little area.  Here's the general outline, in case you are ever interested in doing this or something similar:

Date/Time: Friday, December 10 - 6:00 p.m.

Theme: Christmas Around the World

 

Dinner:

Tri-Tip Steak and Ham

Baked Potatoes and Baked Sweet Potatoes/Yams

Green Salad

Green Beans

Desserts

* We are going to pass around sign-up sheets on Sunday for people to bake the potatoes and bring desserts.

 

Decorations:

Christmas Trees in each of the Four Corners

Country-themed Table Decorations

Lights and Garland around the gym

* We are going to pass around sign-up sheets on Sunday for people to volunteer to do a centerpiece representing different countries.  

We'll fill in the gaps for the rest of the tables and serving tables

 

Program:

Ward Choir and youth will do their numbers from the Stake Nativity Night/Program.  Then there will be a few other special numbers.  As many as possible will include the music in different languages, performed by people who lived or served in other countries and members of the Ward of different nationalities.

 

MEANWHILE back at the ranch . . .

 

We'll do Christmas Around the World activities with the children.  

 

Activities/Countries will include:

Germany -- Graham Cracker houses and Gingerbread Cookies to decorate

England -- Christmas cards for missionaries and/or snowflakes

Japan -- Fans and Origami Swans

Mexico -- Shoes with candy and Paper Plate Morraccas

Phillipines -- TBA

After the children are done, we'll have them come out and sing the last song on the program and then have a ward sing-along of both traditional songs and hymns until Santa comes in.  Then we'll have him go to another room where the children will be invited to sit on his lap and have a picture taken.

 

Giving Tree

We are going to do a money giving tree, a fabric tree with buttons for hanging Christmas die-cuts with amounts written on them.  Then the Bishop will take the money and distribute it to needy families to provide food, pay bills, buy Christmas for their children, etc.

 

Publicity

Bulletin

Larger Poster for our spot in the hall

Fliers

* We're going to ask everyone to take one for themselves and one to give away to a friend.

Tale as Old as Time . . .

First of all, super cute moment.  I was expecting Abby to catch onto the whole breastfeeding thing.  And sure enough, she has become a little Mommy to her two babies.  One's name is Marie and the other is named Dollie (of course, right?).  Anyway, she hops into bed next to me or onto the sofa or wherever I am and feeds her babies every time I feed Brianna.  What I hadn't thought about was Isaac picking up on it.  But he has become quite the jealous little man!  He looks for opportunities to steal Abby's babies (which, of course, is like ripping her HEART out and stomping on it 1,000 times), and though sometimes he is trying to upset her for attention, sometimes I think he is just plain jealous.  And today, while I was feeding Brianna and Abby was feeding Dollie, Isaac snatched Marie out of Abby's other hand and lifted up his shirt and started to feed her.  As Abby told David tonight, "Isaac shirt baby feed stomach."  Isaac fed the baby on his stomach.  It was really pretty cute, I thought.

Second of all -- for all of you who absolutely positively think that Beauty and the Beast is one of THE BEST movies of ALL TIME . . . how would you like to own it on Blu-Ray for around $5.00?  That's right, folks.  But you have to act by tomorrow.  Here's how:

1) Go to Disney Movie Rewards and print off the $10 off coupon (if you aren't a member, just create an account - it's free!).

2) Go to Target's Printable Coupons and print off the $5 off coupon for a Disney Blu-Ray $16.99 or above.

3) Go to Campbell's Kitchen and print off the $5 off coupon there.

4) Go to Campbell's Kitchen and print off a coupon for the soup of your choice (one that fills the requirements in the $5 off coupon).

How does it all come together?
Blu-Ray Sale Price: $24.99 until tomorrow.
Less $10 Disney Coupon: $14.99
Less $5 Target Coupon: $9.99
Less $5 Campbell's Coupon: $4.99

The soup should cost around $1, maybe $2.  Add in taxes and a stamp, and you're looking at $5-$7.  Pretty slick deal, eh? Oh, and if you go to your local Wal-Mart and take the Target Coupon and Disney coupon, they should price match and accept them both, and their sale price on Beauty and the Beast is only $22.96 - which makes it that much cheaper, right?  And if you watch Albertsons ads, sometimes they have a double value coupon, so you would save $2 on three cans instead of $1 on three cans.  Which would probably make them free.  As long as everything happens in the next month or so, in time to mail in the rebates, it's totally legit!

I need . . .

A vacation . . .

"Vacation is what you take when you can't take what you've been taking any longer."


- Lion from Wizard of Oz

Since my last post, we found out Dave had mono, found out the twins didn't respond to medicine and had to have heavier antibiotics, found out Abby had scarletina during a quick ER stop in a random town on our way to my mom's, found out Abby was allergic to the second round of antibiotics they gave her, and have been in Boise for about three weeks now (one and a half to go - but who's counting?).  And Dave found out yesterday at lunchtime that he's being discharged from the National Guard (yesterday) and we found out that we no longer have health insurance, effective the day of his discharge. 

So now I'm praying Abby doesn't have another ear infection and that no one gets sick until we can get health insurance through Dave's work figured out and to kick in.  And I'm praying that the new insurance doesn't go from January to December, cuz that means we will have just met our first deductible for the other insurance and have to meet it again between now and December for the new insurance and then start all over yet again in January.  But that's trivial, right?  And I'm hoping that we have dental insurance options we can afford to get through all the dental work that Dave hasn't been able to get done yet because he's been sick and our dental insurance is also . . . over and out.

And after one more day of crying, I officially need a vacation.

And the upside of all of this is that they didn't decide to discharge Dave until AFTER Brianna was born and our last month of health chaos (I'm keeping my word choice g-rated on that one ;-D) and over 12 doctor's visits in a month.  And the other upside is that Dave has a job where we can GET health insurance. 

So we're still VERY blessed and officially have NOT hit rock bottom. 

As I laid in bed last night, feeding Brianna and trying again to not cry and to let myself feel peace about all of this, I was thankful that I have my children, that there hasn't been a death in the family, that they keep me happy and make me crazy and make me laugh and sometimes swear (like when Isaac fed my grandma's hearing aids to the dog last week -- yeah, that was NOT a good day!!!) and give me reasons to be thankful and to try hard to learn who they are and what they need and what they are capable of that they need me to help them tap into.  I'm thankful that we all have life and (for now, for the most part) health and family and income and the atonement and opportunities to rise each time we fall (even in things like this).

And that's all I've got --- unless, of course, you want to give me a vacation for Christmas? :-)

Dark Clouds with Silver Linings

I realize that my blog update a few days ago was a bit negative.  I would apologize, but I'm kind of coming to realize that bad days or bad seasons are what they are.  They are part of this life experience that make it what it is.  And though there are silver linings to dark clouds, the silver wouldn't shine through without the contrast of the darkness of the cloud.  Sometimes you can be depressed without being clinical and you can have a bad day without being cynical. ;-D

That said, throughout all of this, I was constantly reminded to see the positive by my dear husband.  He's amazing at always seeing the positive.  Even as he has been in bed, taking every drug possible, completely exhausted, locked away from the kids, and totally out of the first week of Brianna's life and all the tiny little moments that I am so blessed to experience, he still says, "In all honesty, Melinda, this week hasn't been that bad.  I've been able to keep going to work, we have an extra room where I can go to stay away from the baby and the twins, and your mom is here to help fill in the gaps.  So really, we've been blessed!"

And we have.  So here are some silver linings I've noticed and sought to see along the way (and by silver linings I mean Heavenly Father's hand and tender mercies gifted directly to us in packages of all shapes and sizes):

1) If Dave's fever hadn't broken the first time, he wouldn't have been there for Brianna's birth.  Which might not have been a bad thing, you might say, since it would have kept her from being exposed to whatever he has.  HOWEVER, that's another silver lining because I am sure Heavenly Father surrounded her with angels to protect her from this mystery flu and allow him to at least be there for her birth and the first hours of her life.

2) If the hospital stay had been more pleasant and Abby hadn't broken out from the allergic reactions to her medicine, my husband would not have taken her to Quick Care that night and have put off yet again going to the doctor to get help for his symptoms because -- let's face it -- who wants to go and sit for hours and hours at "Quick Care" after one long day at work and before another?  NO ONE!  So thankfully, I was inspired to get out of there; Abby was broken out and needed someone to take her in; and Dave had no way to avoid getting to the doctor.  Sure, it was inconclusive, but it was also a starting point.

3) If Brianna hadn't been jaundicey, I wouldn't have had a quick follow-up the next day and wouldn't have talked to the doctor who told me there was no way Dave had strep throat while on antibiotics.  And now that doctor is overseeing and ordering all of the other tests to try and find out what Dave DOES have.

4) If Abby hadn't had a SECOND allergic reaction to the benedryl for her FIRST allergic reaction, we wouldn't have been in to see the doctor and wouldn't have found her double ear infection or strep throat.  Then we wouldn't have gotten Isaac in there to be diagnosed either.  AND, to top off those tender mercies, the doctor was good enough to give my mom sample antibiotics to get her through all of this because she has medical conditions that would have made it REALLY bad for her to have gotten the strep throat (like hospitalization bad).  And with Idaho Medicare as her primary insurance, she couldn't see or be treated by a doctor in California.  She can only go in Idaho.  So it was an amazing blessing that she was able to get the medicine she needed to avoid and/or work through all of this crazy sickness stuff that was hitting the kids.  AND . . .

5) My mom having antibiotics made it possible for her to take care of the kids worry-free while I kept my little Brianna away from them until they had been on medicine long enough to not be contagious anymore.  Had she not been "treated" and/or had she gotten the strep infection, I would have had to find a way to keep Brianna at a distance while taking care of FOUR sickleys.

6) Brianna has been the best, best, best baby EVER!!!  Yes, she has the cold.  And no, it's never fun for a newborn to have to deal with all that cruddy flu stuff when they're still trying to figure out this mortal body of theirs and how it feels and works and what not.  HOWEVER, she didn't get all the symptoms.  She's been protected (from breastfeeding or angels or a combination of both) to not get anything else that's flying around in this house.  And she has handled it really, really well.

7) My delivery could not have gone smoother.  Events and circumstances surrounding the delivery definitely could have.  But the delivery itself was everything I had been praying for for the entire pregnancy.  I had very little internal tearing; once she came, she just came; I didn't have to have a c-section or anything else; and even the post-pregnancy pain has been very bearable in comparison to what I experienced last time and could have experienced this time.  The only thing I feel I have to watch is doing too much -- picking up the twins or whatever.  And that is SUCH a HUGE blessing!!!

8) Modern medicine!!!  I mean, they have the initial strep test and the lab where they send the swab away to make sure they diagnosed it correctly.  They can draw your blood and run tests for any number of diseases and have answers within hours or a few days.  Truly a blessing!

9) Abby and Isaac!!!  I was worried about them waking up and not being around.  But I went into the hospital after we put them to bed and we had a baby about an hour before they woke up, so they were able to come and spend the first hour of her life with us in the hospital!!!  The timing could not have been more perfect!!!  And they have love love loved her!  Tonight as we drove back from a small road trip to look at potential places to live, Abby held Brianna's hand for the entire last leg of the trip and sat back there saying, "Shhhhh, baby -- it's okay!"  And Isaac is the first to run and tell me if she's crying and always says, "What wrong Anna?  Why cwying, Anna?  You hungee?  Huh?"  They have had a hard road with a new baby, Mommy being locked up in the bedroom with her so many hours of the day, Daddy being locked up in the office so much they forget he's around, etc.  But they have done really, really well with it all.  They are such a blessing to each other and to this new little baby -- not to mention to me!!!

10) My mom, my mom, my mom!  I can't say enough thanks for all she has done and the way things lined up for her to be here through all of this!  It hasn't been the tranisition time she or I had planned on, but it has been so nice to not be alone through all of it, to be able to rest and to take care of Brianna without worrying about the twins.  It's been nice to not be alone and to have someone to talk to and laugh with and even eat all that junk I'm not supposed to be eating right now with.  She has been an angel, a true Godsend!!! 

11) You know how they say that you don't appreciate something until you've lost it.  I love love love and appreciate David so much!!!  I miss being with him, laughing with him, talking with him, having him hold me while we make dinner and the kids run around or wrestling with the kids to see who gets to sit next to him right after he's come home from work.  I miss holding hands when we pray or laying my head on his shoulder while we read scriptures at night.  I miss him having energy to do things and being able to talk to him without him being so exhausted that it's never a good time.  I miss watching movies with him at night because he's always too tired to stay awake through them, even on the weekends.  Just so many things that have been gone for so long but have REALLY been completely gone this last week. 

12) The sun before the storm.  In the Triage, I was doing "labor lunges" - I got them from one of my workout videos.  He thought it was HILARIOUS and took a picture of his "hard core wife."  And we had so much fun playing Quiddler and talking and laughing and arguing about whether or not I was going to get the epidural.  And I'm thankful for those small moments before everything else hit.  And I'm looking forward to having them again VERY SOON!!!!

13) My sister Monique.  She has held the fort taking care of my 94-year-old grandma, two five-year-old cousins that don't always see eye to eye, a buddingly independent two-year-old, and a 10-month-old baby.  NEED I SAY MORE about what a HUGE blessing it has been for her to take on such a HUGE load to allow my mom to be with me. 

It's late!  That's all I can think of/remember tonight!  But if I think of something else, I'll add it to the list!

And doesn't that gray cloud look so much prettier somehow with all of that beautiful silver surrounding it?  I sure think so! ;-D

Everything you didn't want to know about my life . . .

First of all, welcome to Brianna Jane -- 7 lbs. 4 oz, 20 1/2 inches long, born at 6:26 a.m. on Sept. 29 after way too many hours of labor, particularly in this hospital (oh to be divinely blessed to have a baby at Gritman again!!!! *sigh*).  And she is an angel, a jewel, the most chillax baby ever, and keeper of the newly-grown segment of mommy's heart.  We love love LOVE her and cannot imagine life without her, even though I am still self-confessing to have a hard time imagining life WITH her.  It's going to be a CRAZY, crazy ride!!!  I really hope the chillax-ed-ness stays, cuz with her older brother and sister, I'm going to need it!  Heck, we're ALL going to need the balance!!!

Second of all, I feel like life the past week has been a living hell.  Yes, I just wrote that "out loud" and even used "that word."  And both after describing our new little angel as an angel and totally chillax and the BEST BABY EVER!!!  Let me expound.

About 10 days before Brianna was born, Abby started screaming in the supermarket -- the kind of scream that isn't a two-year-old tantrum and that no mother could ever ignore.  And it didn't stop.  For hours.  After a way-too-long wait at "Quick Care" (like three hours), all with a screaming-in-pain toddler and me nine and a half plus months pregnant, carrying her up and down the hall with a diaper bag full of toys and books to keep her happy during our wait (none of which ever left my bag or distracted her from her obvious pain), we learned she had a double ear infection.  Awesome.  Got the prescription, got the drugs, headed home for another sleepless night of crying and trying home remedies to calm her down and almost setting the house on fire (pretty sure I already wrote about all of this somewhere).  Thought that was the end of another ear infection story.

Fast forward a few days -- Sunday.  We were in the mother's lounge, just trying to get through with the twins, when I got distracted by another new mommy in the ward. I'm still trying to make all the friends I can and find my niche.  And it was great fun until . . . Abby started screaming in pain!!!  Isaac had got her fingers caught on the inside of the shower stall door.  Look away for two seconds . . . . The nursery leader brought her to me an hour or so later and told me she was pretty sure Abby had dislocated her finger because she wasn't using it, it was swolen to her knuckles, and she cried whenver anyone touched it.  Awesome.  Back to Quick Care.  Good news: Same doctor as diagnosed her ear infection; Isaac didn't have one, Abby's was almost all cleared up; the finger was fine!!!  Home again, home again, jiggidy-jig.  To Daddy who was home sick from church.

About five days before Brianna was born, Dave started with cold chills and a fever.  I can't remember if he missed work this time around or not.  It all blends together already.  But needless to say, I was wondering if I was going to have a baby by myself while my husband nursed a fever and my mom watched two crazy toddlers.  And it wasn't looking too promising.  Then two days before, he said the fevers had stopped; he was fine.  We could have her anytime.  Perfect.  Thought that was the end of another Dave-fevers-aches-exhaustion-missing-work-or-church story.

Brianna was born!  It wasn't as relaxing as Gritman had made having a baby.  It wasn't ideal in any sense of the word.  There was no mommy-daddy-new-family-bonding or rest and relaxation while the nurses watched the baby for the first 48 hours and treated the new couple to one last meal all their own by candlelight.  Nope - cuz this hospital leaves the baby with you all the time and doesn't do anything special like that.  But that's another story.  SO -- as Dave and I are trying desperately to get some sleep, keep up with a nameless baby Jane, document every feeding, how long, which side, what kind of diaper came from it, at what time, blah, blah, blah.  And while the nurses kept coming in (or sending someone in) every hour to check on me and keep up with their regulations to incessantly come in and wake me up just to be able to write down how I was sleeping and doing and feeling.  And while the birth certificate lady kept calling us to find out what we were naming our little girl and if we needed a book of names and "I'll bring one right up" and then keep calling you until you make a decision.  And while the breastfeeding expert finished her entire schpeal even as I was struggling more to keep my eyes open than you would in the most boring lecture EVER after only a few hours of sleep in the preceding 72 hours.  And while the wall let out a high-pitched squeal every time someone next door turned on the water in either sink or flushed the toilet or anything.  And while you thought someone else was coming in every time anyone opened a door on either side of your room because it shook and banged your door EVERY SINGLE TIME . . . .

While all of this and more was going on, Dave started getting a sore throat (again) and a horribly throbbing headache.  And kept trying to get some sleep on the makeshift bed in my room.  About noon-ish, after no sleep for two days, he decided to run home and shower and change and steal a quick nap before coming back to get through one more night in the hospital. (Baby Jane was jaundicey and not eating and producing like they thought she should, so they wouldn't really let us go home -- or so we thought at the time).  And he left me with the strict instructions that I was to have a name chosen by the time he got back (I had Samantha, Natalie, and Naomi for approved first names and his stamp of approval on Jane and Grace for middle names -- so I got to draw the lucky combination from a hat and make a decision before he got back -- lucky me!  you can see how well THAT went!).

Meanwhile, back at the Motel-6-disguised-as-the-Palace, I decided I had HAD it with this hospital, staff, hourly visits to make sure I was sleeping and that Baby Jane was peeing and pooping on schedule while I was getting my rest, etc.  So I told them I wanted to go home NOW.  Dave didn't get the memo until later, but I really didn't care anymore.  I vented to one nurse who told the Charge nurse who called the pediatrician and OB.  Dave came back a few hours later, having spent some one-on-one time playing with the twins instead of napping, and we got back to the business of choosing a name so they would let us leave with our "Baby Jane."

Oh, but I forgot to mention that just after Dave got back, he told me he'd had a horrible cough hit and should get a mask from the nurse's station.  Which he did.  And while he was doing that, my mom called and asked me if Dave had mentioned that Abby was broken out all over her body with 1/4" hives and that she was struggling to breathe so much that mom was really worried about her.  No.  He didn't mention either of those things.  Huh.  I pointd mom towards the inhaler on Abby's dresser, was informed by Dave that her hives weren't "that bad" and to not worry too much.  And the birth certificate lady called.  And we were back to choosing a name.

We finally did choose.  And got home.  And Abby's "no big deal" hives were getting worse.  As was Dave's cough.  So we sent Dave and Abby to "Quick Care" and got Isaac in bed and started to settle new baby Brianna Jane into her new home.  And we waited.  And I started to worry about how late it was and how tired Dave was and how early his morning and long his day at work were going to be.  And we waited.  And I called Quick Care and was told they couldn't give me any information -- which I insisted was garbage and pressed further until she told me they must be back with the doctor because she didn't see them in the waiting room.  And we waited.  And four hours later, they came home and announced:

"Abby doesn't have chicken pox but is deathly allergic to amoxicillin -- like the last dose you skipped when she was having a hard time breathing could have cut her off entirely. I, on the other hand, have an upper-respiratory infection, a double ear infection, and strep throat."

Gasp. sigh. cry. stare in disbelief and amazement. escort new baby to bedroom to never leave again.

I couldn't believe it!  It was horrible!  And he's been there from birth to Quick Care visit.  He even cut her umbilical chord.  Totally exposed.  Wow.

But at least Abby got some benedryl and a prescrpition for the next few days and was going to be okay.  Or so we thought.

Dave locked himself in the office (where he still sits today, sometimes lays, on his ever-so-comfie cot), my mom and I started spraying and disinfecting everything in sight, and we restlessly went to bed.

We got Abby's medicine a little late the next day.  So imagine our amazement when a few hours later, she was totally and completely . . . . no, not healed, BROKEN OUT AGAIN!!!  This time the hives were so close on her arms that they were just large lumps.  And on her hands and ears and feet and legs.  And she was pale and swollen all over . . . and an absolute bear!!!  What. the. heck.  With General Conference playing on the internet in the background, I called the Pediatric Allergist and got a prescription of . . . some really powerful medicine.  And we were instructed to bring her in on Monday.

Monday I got Dave in to see a doctor because when I took Brianna in for a jaundice check and me in for a whooping cough vaccine and strep throat check, the doctor told us that it was almost medically impossible for Dave to have strep while on antibiotics for his tooth extraction a week or so before.  So I talked to my friend Emily and my mom and decided he had mono.  But when he went to Quick Care Sunday night, they told him they wouldn't test him for mono because his joints didn't ache.  So I got him in to see the doctor Monday after work.  And they tested him for strep.  And were blown away that the test was positive.  And wouldn't test him for mono but told him to finish out his second, double-strength prescirption of amoxicillin and come back if things didn't improve.  Pins and needles all week long, much hand-washing, hand sanitizer everywhere, etc.

Tuesday we took Abby to the doctor - and her allergy was cleared up.  But her double ear infection was not.  And she had either Fifth Disease or . . . well, he tested her for strep.  Good news! She had strep!  No need to go back for a nasty blood draw that afternoon.  Nope. Isaac and I just got to go back for a strep test that afternoon.  And Isaac tested positive.  One shot in Abby's leg and two prescriptions later, we thought we were finally over the hump!

Until Dave went to the doctor today because he has only gotten worse.  And was told that the long test had come back negative for strep.  So he has a virus.  And they drew blood to test for mono.

But what the heck?  How do Abby and Isaac have strep when Dave has mono . . . .

Or do they all have something else entirely?

Here we sit like birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness, birds in the wilderness.  Here we sit like birds in the wilderness . . . waiting for our food.

Oh, and Abby got some cold virus in all her office visits.  Which, in spite of all of my best efforts and keeping Brianna behind locked doors almost 24/7, not even touching her in the same clothes I had been wearing outside of my bedroom -- Brianna now has.

And my mom flies home on Wednesday.  And I'm praying we have this all figured out/straightened out by then.  Praying . . . praying . . . praying . . . praying.  Please join me!!!!

Who would have ever thought that bringing home a new baby would be the LEAST stressful part of my week?

Like I said, she's an angel . . . an absolute gem!!!