What a morning...

Ryan got up super early to ride rollers before he headed out for work. I realized this morning that when he rides rollers in the garage a lamp in our bedroom vibrates and rattles...weird. I hadn't noticed that before. Anyway, so I finally roll out of bed around 6:30...that's about the time Ryan is eating his breakfast and just about to leave for the day. He's all flustered. He had spilled a bottle of vegetable oil on the floor. He did his best to clean it up...but come on...it's vegetable oil...it's going to take more than paper towels to clean that up! And then to make matters worse the coffee maker is broken. Good morning...NOT! Plus, I'm starving, but I can't eat because I have to go in for my glucose test after I take Haley to school...I needed to fast. Let me just say, fasting and pregnant DO NOT MIX!! So anyway, when Ryan leaves for work I like to stand at the doorway from the kitchen to the garage. I wave goodbye as he backs out, then shut the big garage door before going back inside. So I'm standing in the garage with the kitchen door, closed, at my back...waving. I hear this fast paced pitter patter of feet running through the house, and then this HUGE crash into the door behind me! I quickly open the door, and there's Haley laying on the floor in a heap. She had just woke up and heard Ryan leaving, she didn't want to miss him, so in her hurry to get to the door in time to wave to Ryan she slid out on the newly greased (with vegetable oil) floor and crashed into the door. Poor thing. However, she did manage to jump up in time to wave to Ryan before he pulled away in the car. So we have a major hazard in our kitchen right now, as I also managed to slip later in the morning. So I guess I'll be mopping today.

So my glucose test went well...other than the fact that I was STARVING!! I got out of there around 10:30. As I was driving home all I could think about was the left over danishes that I made for Jeff's birthday and how badly I wanted one. I knew Jeff had left for school while I was gone and I panicked when it occurred to me that he may have eaten all of it before he left. I forgot to take a piece out before I left to hide somewhere so I would be guaranteed to have one!The thought of all of it being gone nearly brought tears to my eyes...I wanted a danish!!! Luckily, to my relief, there was some left. I devoured it...licking the plate clean.

Happy Birthday!

Happy Birthday Jeffy Boy!

We started the festivities off this morning...the girls and I woke him up around 7:15 this morning singing Happy Birthday and presented him with a homemade danish complete with candle. This is something my mom did for us growing up every year...a tradition that I want to keep up in this house. Not that it has to be something homemade...a bagel, pancakes...anything will do in a pinch. It's the thought that counts. Although, I haven't been able to do to the girls because they always get up before us...I'm sure that won't last forever. Anyway, last year for Jeff's Birthday I forgot to present him with a Birthday breakfast treat. I will never live that down...I still feel so bad about it. So there was no way I would let that slide again! It was kinda funny because the room was dark (obviously...he was sleeping) when we came in singing. The only light came from the candle. And his room wasn't the the cleanest at the moment. So the girls had a little trouble walking to the bed, they kept tripping on random things...shoes, ski boots, backpack, books. They would be singing "Happy Birthday to...(trip) Umphf, ouch...You! Happy...(trip) Ahh, ouch...Birthday to You!". Ahhh, good times.

I think we'll be going out for burgers (his request) tonight, and then have a family party on the weekend with the cake. Another excuse to pig out...which I might add, I have been doing a lot of lately!

Spotlight Week for Haley

Not much to report for the weekend...pretty low key. We finally got some snow Friday night. Saturday morning both girls had their snow clothes on over their jammies, skipped breakfast, and were out there playing in it by 8:00 in the morning! Later that day we took them sledding at a local park with a huge hill. Funny, Morgan was the one who was more into it. She wasn't scared a bit sledding down pretty steep hills all by herself. Too bad I forgot my camera. Haley was much more tentative. Perhaps that has something to do with some bad spills on icy slopes last year...she has a very good memory! We kept encouraging her, and she finally mastered it by the time we left. Now, we just have to get them to master climbing back up the hill while pulling up their sled at the same time. Ryan did a lot of back and forth helping them up or retrieving a sled.

So last night after watching a couple of episodes of Season 2 Mad Men (my new favorite show) we went to bed...it was around 10:30 or so. It was then that I remembered that Haley has Spotlight this week in her Kindergarten class!!!! I can't believe I forgot!!! She's supposed to bring in a poster board full of pictures of herself to share Monday morning! So Ryan and I leap out of bed scouring the house for some kind of poster board to use in a pinch...of course we couldn't find a thing. Note to self: Always have poster board on hand!! Ryan decided that he would get up first thing and buy some poster board, and in the meantime I could get everything ready to put on it. So here it is, 11:00 at night, I'm exhausted...but none the less, I'm sitting at the computer printing up as many pictures I can find. Because my little girl will NOT go to school without her poster!!! I don't want to be classified as a bad mom who...gasp...FORGOT!!

So anyway this morning, Ryan (the hero), finds the poster board first thing in the morning...he has it back home by 7:00 so I can start assembling it. I whip that thing out in an hour...I'm pretty proud, because it looked pretty dang good for being last minute! My counter is still full of scissors, glue sticks, scrap paper, markers and stickers...gotta get that cleaned up sometime. I drove her to class...poster in hand...ON TIME!!! Yay for me, and Ryan of course!! As I was walking her into her classroom I felt like I should have some kind of applause or something. I must have had a huge cheesy grin, like, "Look at me! Here I am! I'm on time...and my daughter has her poster! Look how good it is!!". But no...just a class full of little kids doing their thing. Oh well.

Now...I can't forget...she has to bring in her favorite snack for the class on Thursday...can't forget!!

MRI's and Piggy Banks

I had an MRI on my brain this morning. Long story short...I've been suffering from a consistent one sided (in very central location) pressure/throbbing pain on my head. It used to last a few days then go away, but lately it's been all day, every day. I finally caved and went to the doctor yesterday. He felt it was necessary to examine further with an MRI...he assured me that these procedures are perfectly safe to do on pregnant women. So this morning at 6:30, there I was laying in a very tight, closed in contraption getting pictures taken of my brain. Kinda surreal in a way. All I could think of was how I should be getting Haley ready for school, eating breakfast, starting my day...and here I was laying in a hospital. It just seemed so drastic...and scary! Thoughts of brain tumors and cancer swept over me. I knew MRIs can make people pretty uncomfortable and uneasy and I gotta say...I can see how people can have a near panic attack in one of those things!!

Bottom line...I'm fine. The results came back normal...thank goodness! But now that leaves me with, "What's wrong with my head?"!! I think I'll change my pillow...I'll get one of those old person, orthopedic thingys. Maybe that will help.

In other news, we've been waiting and waiting for this snow fall that they keep saying is coming. It constantly looks like it's about to snow, but nothing happens. I'm anxious for a new dumping...that's right...I'm anxious for new snow, I said it! I like the temps in the upper 30's and low 40's, but because of the warmer weather our backyard has become a huge mud pit, complete with muddy dogs! Time for new snow!

The girls decorated piggy banks this afternoon. They both completed their little incentive charts I keep, and this is the prize they picked out. I thought they came out very well!

Success!!

Swim lessons went very well yesterday! I'm so pleased! I was a little nervous when Morgan ran back to me and buried her head in my leg as soon as her instructor said "hello". I thought "No, no, no...I am NOT going through what I went through with Haley...you are getting in that water!" But luckily, she quickly warmed up to him and had a good time. Haley's class was a little further out in the water by the wall, and every so often Haley would wave and call out, "Hi Morgan!!!". Very cute! And I had a very relaxing 30 minutes to myself while I watched.

Morgan is just having a ball this year with all the new things she gets to participate in. Not only does she get to be in swim lessons with Haley, but she also gets to go with the older kids in church now. No more nursery for her! She was just thrilled to pieces to be able to walk with Haley to the Primary class. They walked hand in hand down the hall...melted my heart!

Return of Swim Lessons

This afternoon the girls are going to their first swim lesson of the year. This will be Morgan's first time ever...I just hope it will go a little smoother for her compared to Haley's first time. If you remember, Haley's first lesson was an absolute nightmare. I try not think about it, but I do recall their was a lot of screaming involved (from Haley).

This time around Haley is much more excited about it, which luckily rubs off onto Morgan. I guess Morgan doesn't remember Haley's traumatic first time experience...thank goodness. I guess she was too young.

I'm excited to just sit and watch them both in the water...KID FREE!

So anyway...wish me luck!

Need a laugh...read Cosmo.

The other day when I went online an article popped up on my msn home page...something like "Four Crucial Kisses You Must Master to Drive your Man Wild". Need I even mention that the article was from Cosmo Magazine? Anyway, the title drew me in...I clicked on it.

Now I would be lying if I said I never read a Cosmo magazine. I remember when I first started teaching around 9 years ago. I was teaching 5th grade and all fifth graders get to go to a week long camp...and yes, teachers had to go too. I remember numerous nights us teachers stayed up way too late talking...and most of conversations stemmed from the Cosmo magazines we brought. Ahhh...good times.

So anyway, back to the four crucial kisses. Ryan and I were in hysterics reading this article! The first crucial kiss: The Hot Hello.

See if you can read this and keep a straight face...I mean seriously, are they for real?!

"The hot hello actually starts long before your lips meet. Let's set the scene: You see your guy. Maybe he's working his way across the bar, maybe he's standing on your doorstep. You lock eyes, flash him a smile, and slowly begin your approach, maintaining eye contact the whole way. When he's in close range, utter a husky "Hey there, gorgeous" and press your body up against his. This is key for creating intimacy: You don't want to strike the disastrous A-frame pose (think lips together, hips miles apart), according to William Cane, kissing coach and author of The Art of Kissing.

Okay, bodies meshed? Roger that. Now it's time to pucker up, baby. Wrap your hand around the nape of his neck and pull his face gently toward you. When your mouths finally meet, maintain a strong but closed-lip seal for up to 10 sultry seconds."

I think the part when it says, "utter a husky "Hey there, gorgeous." made me lose it! I think I would scare Ryan away if I did that! First of all, the word "husky" is just not an attractive word to me.

And then the part where it says, "maintain a strong but closed-lip seal for up to 10 seconds"...that's a long time! Of course Ryan and I had to try it immediately! We failed...I couldn't keep a straight face, I laughed every time. Of course I couldn't leave out the husky "Hey there gorgeous." right before it...so maybe that had something to do with not being able to make it 10 seconds without laughing.

The other crucial kisses: The Movie Start Make-Out, The Sweet Tease, and The Sizzling Send Off. If you want a good laugh you might want to click over to Cosmo Magazine!

Besides, we all know what a man really wants...they don't care about kissing. All they want are boobs. Flash him a boob...and you got your man.

"Buns of Steel"...starting early.

Jen, Jeff's girlfriend is flying back home today. We've really enjoyed having her here...especially the girls.

The other day Jen was doing one of her workouts in the living room, it didn't take long for the girls to get in on it. I was actually pretty impressed...they didn't do too bad!

Drama Queens

Haley has always been on the dramatic side, and now I think Morgan is picking up on it.

When one of the girls gets into trouble because they are not playing nicely, they usually end up on a chair by themselves in another room until they can calm down. Haley has always tried to use her dramatics to get herself off the chair and back to playing. I never fall for it...yet she continues to try. One of her favorites is to call for daddy. "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy...I need YOU...you are the only one who understands!!!". I would be lying if I said that didn't bother me. Us mothers have to do most of the dirty work (give punishments) to the kids, and the dads get all the fun kid time when they get home from work. But that's a different post.

Anyway, so lately, when Haley gets into trouble she has been yelling from her chair, "NO, I hate getting into trouble...everyone HATES me here...I try so hard...but everyone hates me!". But since that's not working she's now added, "Everyone hates me here! And everyone hates me at my school!". Now, yes that completely breaks my heart inside. Is it true? Probably not...okay, I hope not. I refuse to fall for it! I'll talk to her later about those issues...but by all means...she's NOT getting off of the chair that easy!!

So, yesterday Morgan gets into trouble...I put her on the chair. What does she do..."Mommy, everyone hates me!! And everyone hates me at Haley's school!!".

Drama Queens!

"Keep those tips up."

So what does a ski instructor need for Christmas? A REALLY big photo of a hot chick skiing with her breasts hanging out of her jumpsuit, of course.

This picture was from an old Lange advertisement...Lange being the company that sells ski boots.

So now I'm happy to report that this piece of artwork is now hanging in my house...in Jeff's room. He is now on a mission to get Lange ski boots. Well...you know what they say..."Sex sells."

Oil Balls anyone?

This week Jeff's girlfriend, Jen, has been in town. She goes to school in San Diego, so they don't get to see each other very often during the school year...so it's nice that she got a chance to come out for a visit. Especially since Jeff wasn't able to go home for Christmas. Now that he's working as a ski instructor at Sundance he had to work every day during his break.

Jen loves to bake, so when she's around we are never low on sweets in the house! Yesterday she tackled Oliebollens, an authentic Dutch treat...sort of like a donut, but with raisins and apples in them. Oliebollens translates to Oil Balls...now doesn't that sound scrumptious! My Grandmother, being Dutch, makes them every year for New Year's. We sure do love eating them, but I've never tried to make them. So Jen gave them a go...and I must say, they turned out very yummy! Anything that requires a deep frier has got to be good...right?

Mmmmmmm!

Morgan has been having a lot of issues sleeping lately. Mainly she wakes up scared, or has a bad dream. Sometimes I can get her to go back to sleep, and other times she winds up in our bed. In any case, the other night around 2:00 in the morning she wakes up, and I hear her calling for me. I thought I would be going in there to comfort her because of another bad dream. Groggy, my eyes nearly closed, I sit beside her. Morgan also half asleep leans over to me, and in a half whisper she says, "Mommy, I just wanted to say that your hair looks just like Ariel's." Thanks Morgie...you might have waited to tell me in the morning, but whatever.

Goofy picture that Haley took.

I think it sums up this household pretty well...complete looney bin!

25 Weeks

I had my sixth month check-up yesterday and everything looked good. In a couple of weeks I'll have to go in for my glucose test and get my rogam shot. I'm A- blood type, so my blood is not compatible with my baby's blood (that is, only if she's Rh positive, which most likely she is). The shot will prevent my body from making antibodies that could attack my baby's blood.

Being Rh incompatible doesn't harm the baby during your first pregnancy. It isn't until your blood mixes with baby's (usually during labor) that you become "Rh sensitized" and the next time your pregnant with Rh positive baby, your antibodies will attack the baby's blood. This would cause a severely anemic baby or even a still birth.

There's your health lesson for the day!

So, I'm very thankful I live in this time period where doctors are aware of this issue with us Rh negative women!

Happy New Year!

I'm back!!! I hope everyone had a fabulous New Year...I know we did! We just got back yesterday after spending a week in Long Beach with my family. I just never can get over the weather there this time of year! It was in the upper 70's the entire time, except for one day when it rained. It's so nice when the kids can spend all day outside and run around barefoot! How I miss that!

So I went a little crazy with the photos...it's just so hard to choose.

We left for Long Beach the day after Christmas. The drive was great...weather was perfect! Although we did see -13 degrees somewhere in the middle of Utah on our way...glad I don't live there! The kids did surprisingly well...only the last hour gets a little nuts.

Sunday morning we had another little gift exchange with the family. The highlight being two horses my parents bought for the girls. These things are awesome!! The girls can actually ride them (there are wheels on the hoofs) like a horse by bouncing up and down on the seat. My brother created a scavenger hunt for them to go on with the horses being the big prize at the end. Needless to say, they went crazy for them! Morgan promptly named hers Bessie (Haley says that's a cow name, but that doesn't phase Morgan) and Haley named hers Jewel.

Monday evening we had another gift exchange with grandparents...I know the fun just never ends! My mom created an English feast! Standing rib roast with Yorkshire pudding! We started the meal by popping our crackers...hence the reason we are all wearing the funny hats. And yes, we ate the entire meal with our hats on.

For the day it rained we spent it at the Cabrillo Aquarium in San Pedro. A perfect outing for a rainy day!

During our visit my brother, Andrew, was in the process of moving out. He's moving into the cutest little house!! A two bedroom, with a little studio off of the living room for him to do his artwork. I'm so proud and excited for him!

I had to post this picture of his dishes in the kitchen cabinet. You know a artist lives in this house!

I'm very jealous...he has an orange tree in his backyard!

Another day we took the girls to Bolsa Chica wetlands. And after hiking around a little bit, we took them over the beach. They have been wanting to get back to the beach for months!!

I love, love, love this next picture! That's Ryan and Haley if you couldn't tell. And I love that you can see Catalina in the background!

Of course I forgot swimsuits, and it didn't take long for both of them to fall into the water. Since Morgan is still young enough we just stripped her down...at least she had pretty new Princess and the Frog panties on to show off! What a cutie!

We also spent an afternoon in Newport Fashion Island. We basically drive out there so the girls can ride on the Carousel and mom and I can get our Almond Twists at Pain du Monde...yum! Unfortunately, the bakery was closed when we got there so we had to go with Gelato...not a bad second choice!

Don't worry the horses made the trip back to Utah too! Oh yeah...you gotta love a Passat Wagon's trunk space! The girls loved looking up and seeing their horses looking over them during the drive home.

I'm anxious to start the new year! This year will bring a new little life into our home and with it, full of change and new beginnings!!