I just wanted to take a moment out of my day to wish a Merry Christmas to all . We open gifts on Christmas Eve so we can remember Christ today . He gave us so much with the life that He lived and the example He set for us . We are blessed as Christians to know Him and His life and His sacrifice he made . He sacrificed His life so we can return to His presence and the presence of our Heavenly Father . There has never been a greater man , nor a great example . At this time , I want to resolve to live my life to be more like Him . I want to forgive faster and admit my shortcomings . I want to be humble enough to admit when I am wrong . Anyone that knows me , knows I hate to say sorry , but I will do it . I don 't think I am a bad person , don 't get me wrong , but I know I am not the person I could be . I want our Savior , Jesus Christ , to know that I appreciate His life and His sacrifice . I want to take the time to help others feel His love by the things that I do . I want my children to know how much I love them . They are my life . I would not want to be here without them . The smiles they give make each day worth waking up to . It is always a blessing to see the joy on their faces when they open a gift that they wanted , and I am guessing they weren 't sure they would receive . We are blessed to be a family , even an eternal family . My children have a quick wit about them . They make me laugh at things that might not be funny if it were anyone else doing them ( if that makes any sense ) . I am blessed to be a wife to one of my best friends in the world . Sometimes I forget that it is a blessing , life isn 't always easy , but no one said it would be . I sometimes forget the excitement of the day I met him , of the day he proposed to me , of the day we were married , of the day we were sealed in the Salt Lake City Temple , of the day we brought each of our children into the world . He held my hand at all of those times . He has held me up at times when I thought I couldn 't do it anymore , when life has seemed to be too hard . I would be nothing without my family . My parents , my brothers and sisters , have always been my best friends . They know me like others never will . They have seen me at my best and at my worst , and have loved me regardless of what those moments were like . Christmas Day has always been a time where we celebrate with family . Although we can 't all be together , I think of them and wish we were . We have traditions , that although we can 't do them together , we do them wherever we are , and knoat I can 't believe how quickly time flies . Apparently the last time I wrote was October 15 , today it is December 2 . So much has happened ! We have celebrated Halloween and Thanksgiving . My whole family came to visit , except for my niece , for Thanksgiving . My sister - in - law came on Friday , she spent it with her sister in Washington . My Aunt Georgia came for Thanksgiving as well . The house was crowded and full of love . I couldn 't have asked for a better Thanksgiving ! My brother - in - law and his wife also came to enjoy Thanksgiving dinner with us . His wife made the most delicious pies I have ever had . Starting the Monday before Thanksgiving , someone in the house was sick daily for a week . My mom got sick Monday , my nephew got sick Tuesday , my 4 year - old got sick Wednesday , my 8 year - old got sick Thursday night / Friday morning , another nephew got sick on Saturday . I thought the illness had left the house until early Tuesday morning when I woke up at 5 AM sick . I am hoping that I am the last to get it . It was a horrid experience . It is now Sunday and no one else has gotten sick , knock on wood . My baby has been pooping several times a day , but at least she hasn 't puked . My stomach still hasn 't recovered fully , but I am glad that the puking ended 7 hours after it began for me . I got to spend an hour in class with my four year - old a couple weeks ago . It was wonderful . I sat with him while he ate breakfast and then read some books to him in the book area of the classroom . We then had circle time . After circle time , I had to leave . It was an enjoyable time with him and his class . I still run a couple times a week , when I am healthy . I hope to get to run more frequently than that . I need to get back into a good routine . I feel good when I am running . It helps me ward off depression and sadness . It has been hard for me since we moved here to Utah . I am so thankful that my sister is with me , but I miss being close to the rest of my family . I miss being able to put my children in my van and drive to my parents ' house , or just walk over there . I have started taking Zoloft regularly . It was prescribed to me for postpartum depression , but I think I need it for depression in general . I don 't think that it makes me happy , I think it more or less numbs feelings . As much as I wanted to cry when my family left after Thanksgiving , I didn 't . I don 't worry as much as I used to . I also have to admit that I have a huge problem with anxiety . I would lay awake at night worrying about things that I really had no control over . My baby started to walk on Thanksgiving . She had lots of help with all her cousins and siblings around . My niece and my daughter were her biggest support to get her walking . I have never been much to encourage walking , I have always figured that they would start walking when they were good and ready . It is fun to watch her walk . She doesn 't bend her knees very well when walking so it is quite the sight to see her go . We got an artificial Christmas tree last night . My children had a wonderful time putting it together and pushing down the limbs . I have to admit that it looks a lot like a Charlie Brown Christmas tree , but the more decorations we put on it , the better it looks . I guess that is what I should expect for a $ 40 Christmas tree . The children love it , and that is really all that matters . " Mom , I 'm having a tea party ! " This is the announcement my four year - old son just made . " Do you want to come ? " This was the next question . Of course , I said yes , so I am having a tea party and will finish this in a little bit . He runs quickly upstairs telling me he is getting the food for the party . This kid knows how to throw a party . He runs downstairs with " steak . " The tea party consists of Legos . I have a round Lego for a cup and a long red Lego for steak . He keeps telling me that one of the pretend people is spilling . My steak happens to be " lemonade steak . " I believe I have gotten lucky ! Although I 've never had lemonade steak before , I think it is supposed to be delicious . I haven 't had a tea party in a while . I wonder if they do this at his school or what made him think about it . It is nice to take a moment and have a tea party though . The party ends as abruptly as it started . My four year - old got up and ran out to see his older siblings . It was fun while it lasted ! On another note , my baby is sound asleep on my lap . I told one of my friends today that it is hard to believe that my last baby is one . She is still small , only 18 pounds , so she is still rear - facing in her car seat . I am sure she looks forward to being able to see out the front window . Tonight I got to go to see my daughter perform on stage . I have to admit , I was incredibly proud of her . She did something that I could never dream of doing , and she did it without a problem . I could never stand in front of a crowd , and not want to cry . It is a horribly stressful time to me . She has always wanted to be an actress / singer . I think her favorite person on television is Victoria Justice from " Victorious . " She prefers to be the center of attention , so this was right up her alley . When I asked the children if this was something they would want to do , it went exactly how I imagined . My 9 year - old son said no , and my 8 year - old daughter said yes . I made the appointment , they gave me the time of her casting call . My daughter loves the spotlight . She loves to get makeup put on her . I am not a makeup artist by any stretch of the imagination , but I do my best . She needs to get it on before the shows . I hope that this is just the beginning of many performances for her . She seems like a natural . Ever since she was a baby , I knew she liked performing . She would perform songs in front of us and our friends . My other three children went to the show tonight with my sister and I . They were captivated . I was so proud of how good they did . We sat in the second to the last row , which wasn 't a good idea , since they had a hard time seeing . I was holding my baby up so she could see and my 4 year - old son sat on my sister 's lap so he could see . At the end of the show , when the audience came out to the crowd to thank us all for coming , each of my sons gave her a rose . We surprised her , she didn 't know we were coming to tonight . She was very surprised and happy that we were there . Her eyes lit up when she us after the show . My mother was here for a visit from Sept . 21 to Sept 27 . She left early on Sept 27 to go up and see my brothers in WA state . It was sad to see her go , but I knew that my brothers were excited to see her . When my mom got here , we headed to WY to see my sister and her family . The time there flew by quickly . We rented a minivan for that trip , it was super nice one . We had to get our Guinea pig in there too . She had to ride in the very back , which she fit in nicely . We couldn 't leave her home . She traveled well . Mom had her birthday when we were over in Wyoming . That day , Saturday , we went and watched Matthew play football . We had to watch both games , in case he got to play in the first one . After the game , we went over to a Chinese restaurant . It was good food . We celebrated my sisters ' birthday , my anniversary , and my mom 's anniversary that day . We had to leave on Sunday morning to get the van back here on time . We barely made it . When we got to my house , we had to toss everything out and then continue on to Salt Lake City . I was so tired , but I had to make that trip so I could drive the car to pick up my husband at the airport after he dropped off the car . On Monday , we went and bought a baby Guinea pig . Her name is Elizabeth . Our other Guinea pig is Grace . The kids named both of them . I wanted to go with Disney names , but they didn 't . Grace is a short - haired and Elizabeth is a long - haired . We brought her home and let her get acquainted with Grace . Mom , the children and I , then continued on to the indoor playground . They always enjoy that ! I love getting the Icee 's . I am a glutton when it comes to those ! My mom and I did a lot of running around while she was here . I was hoping to find a baby gate , so I went to the Deseret Industries ( it is like Goodwill ) . I didn 't find a baby gate , but I found a television with a VCR built - in for the kids ' playroom . That led me to buying many VHS tapes . They were 50 cents each . I found many Disney movies and Pixar , movies that can 't be bought until they open the vault , unless you find them somewhere like this . I found a rake , which we will need , since we have a giant tree and a couple smaller ones . The leaves have started to fall off the trees , so the rake will be getting put to use soon . Mom was patient while I looked around . I have discovered that I enjoy thrift shops , seems like they have everything ( except baby gates ) . Mom rode with me to drop off and pick up my 4 year - old from school . He goes to school almost 4 miles away . It was nice to have someone to ride with . The first day , they put up a roadblock on my way home . Once I took the detour , I got extremely lost . They didn 't have any signs to show us where to go after we took our first turn . I ended up a lot further away from home than I thought . I finally knew where I was when I saw the Wal - Mart and the Starbucks . I love Starbucks , and I loved it even more that day . I introduced my mom to the Chocolate cookie crumble frappucino without coffee . They are super tasty . Since I knew where I was , I was finally able to get us home . The next couple of days , I would go home the other way , so that if they did block off the road , I knew where I was . I have no clue if they blocked it off or not , but I didn 't want to find out the hard way . My mom encouraged me to start running again . I started running on Wednesday . I went back and forth to the school . It is . 62 miles each way . I would get a break while I waited for the children to come out of the school . Then we would all run home together . It is hard to get back into running , but I know I will enjoy it once I build up my endurance again . Mom made fried pan stew . That is my 8 year - old daughter 's favorite meal . It is something that my grandpa and great - grandma would make . It is so delicious . It takes a while to make . I need to get the recipe from my mom . On Wednesday , we inherited a bushel of tomatoes . I have never canned before in my life . My mom mentioned to the person that gave them to us that we would have to learn to make salsa . She told us of a mix you can buy and then can them . She lent us her water bath pot , we went and bought a bunch of medium salsa mixes and canning jars . I canned for the first time in my life and my mom canned for the second time in her life . I really enjoyed it . I don 't know if it was because of the company or if it is really fun . It makes me want to go and buy everything I would ever need to start canning . On at I need to face it , I have been making excuses . I just don 't want to go back to running , because I know there is a lot of time before I am back to where I used to be . I was never fast , but I was faster than I will be when I lace up my shoes and run out my front door . I am going to face struggles , such as learning to breathe and run at the same time . That is the hardest one . . . breathing is such an important part of life , regardless if running or not . Time . . . another big excuse I use . No time , actually . Trying to figure out when to lace up those shoes and hit the pavement . I need to just do it . There is generally some time in the mornings before my husband has to leave for work . That would be the perfect time . I could leave the baby with him and head out . I have been walking to pick up the kids from school . I have done that everyday , except one that it rained . It is time to lace up those shoes . Fear . . . I am afraid of remarks I will hear as I start running again . Not everyone is kind . Not everyone understands that there are some people that start exercising when they are overweight , so they can get into shape . There are people that think that only people in perfect shape should be outside running . There have been the people that have " mooed " and " barked " as I have run . It always startled me . I have two more marathon finisher medals that I have to earn . Almost all of the races in this area are on Saturday . There is absolutely no reason why I shouldn 't be out there . I want to give each of my children one of my medals . I only have two medals right now . I have four children . I need to get on the ball ! My 4 year - old gets out of school a couple of hours before my older two children . He goes to school 3 miles away from home . It was the only school in the area with an opening for Head Start . My older two children went to Head Start back east , I am a believer in what they do . Today I had to go to the grocery store before I picked him up . It is much easier doing it with one child than with two or more , especially since the one child I brought with me doesn 't ask for everything . I went to the store this morning after dropping him off at school , but didn 't realize that I had enough milk for one bowl of cereal . The shopping trip this afternoon was for more milk . It was on sale at a local store for $ 1 . 99 , so I got two . I get skim milk and 1 % milk . While I was there , I saw that M & M 's were on sale for 50 cents per package . I thought those would be a great thing for my 4 year - old to enjoy after school . After finishing at the store , I headed to his school . I was about a mile away from home , so I thought I would take a different route to pick him up . Never a good idea to attempt a different route in an area you don 't know . My GPS was confused too . It just wasn 't good . I finally got myself to a road that I knew and thankfully I wasn 't late to pick him up . On the way out of the school , I told him what treat I got him . He wasn 't really impressed . In fact , I think he told me he hates M & M 's . This was quite shocking to me . I thought , " Perhaps he had a bad experience with them lately ? ! " Nope , that wasn 't it ! He wanted a Beyblade . He doesn 't hate M & M 's , he hates that he got those instead of a Beyblade . Those cost a little more than 50 cents . Well , I convinced him to let me have a few of his M & M 's before I started driving again . I took several and tossed them into my mouth . I made sure he was strapped in and away we went . By the time we got home , he had enjoyed most of the M & M 's and announced that they had gotten rotten on our way home . He set them on the foot rest to our couch when he got inside . Along came my baby girl . She is quite mobile these days . She hasn 't quite gotten to the point where she walks , but she is a huge fan of crawling . She is also talented at cruising along the furniture . She got to the foot rest , apparently . I was out in the kitchen making myself a delicious bowl of ice cream . When I came out , this is what I saw : If you can 't tell , she has blue and orange around her mouth . She finished off her brother 's M & M 's . Thankfully they weren 't really rotten ! She held on to that wrapper for several minutes after they were gone . I think she wanted to be sure that there weren 't any extra ones that would come out . I have to admit , she knows what the good stuff is ! : ) Yesterday I got to go to the dentist . I was expecting good things . A quick cleaning and be set on my way . Not this time . . . although I faithfully brush and floss , I managed to get not one , not two , but three cavities . I missed flossing perhaps three times in the past 6 months . I blame that on just falling to sleep . . . I didn 't plan to fall to sleep . It just happened . Perhaps , I got a cavity each of those nights ? ! I have to admit that I was stunned . My teeth don 't hurt . Well , they didn 't hurt . After getting the cleaning of a lifetime , I think that my teeth have never hurt so bad . I haven 't had on of those metal things run along my gum lines in a really long time . My dentist previously used something a lot more humane , although I didn 't realize until I was returned to the metal thing . I had never had such a thorough check up . I had to stick out my tongue and he grabbed it with his hand and felt all over it . I had to relax my tongue so he could do this and then feel all around inside my mouth . I am happy to report that I have no signs of oral cancer : ) I do have geographic tongue , but I had diagnosed myself with that years ago , after my little brother was diagnosed . That wasn 't too shocking . At the end of the day , the good news far outweighed the bad news . I would much rather be told that I have 3 cavities and geographic tongue , than to be told that I didn 't pass my oral cancer screening ! I go back for fillings in October . I shall continue to diligently brush and floss my teeth . I took up flossing nightly a year ago . I used to not be quite as diligent , to be quite honest . I would floss whenever I felt like it , usually when I had something stuck between my teeth . I don 't know why I was lazy about that , I just was . I have bought my children the animal shaped flossing things . They are still not quite as diligent about flossing , but they do use mouthwash and brush every night before bed . I guess baby steps and someday they will use the flossing things nightly too . Just an update , his dental check - up went well . No cavities ! He chose strawberry flavored flouride for after the cleaning . The hygienist was putting that on his teeth when my 9 year - old glanced over and saw 4 year - old 's mouth and teeth completely red . My 9 year - old turned completely white and asked me what happened to his brother . I realized that he thought it was blood . I assured him it wasn 't and the color quickly came back . I have a son that is just like me ! I don 't handle blood very well . . . My two older children started school on Tuesday and my 4 year - old started school on Wednesday . They were all excited for that first day of school . Since moving into our new home , my children haven 't had the vast array of friends in the neighborhood that they are used to . We have always lived in apartments that were comprised of many families , so it seemed that friends came built in . The older children were also excited to start school because the school provides netbooks for the children to use during the school year . That would be quite exciting for a child . I was worried about the fact that they might bring them home and break them . I was excited to learn after the first day of school that the netbook is not permitted to come home . My four year - old was sad to see his older siblings leave for school . I had to go to a meeting at his school , so he got to go with his aunt and cousins for several hours , so that helped to make the day more bearable . I forgot to set up a place to meet after school to get the children , so I got to wait in a long line of cars at the school . As soon as I got all the children , I showed them where we would meet daily . That has made the pickup a lot easier ! School started the next day for my 4 year - old . He was not quite as thrilled to head out the door . He was excited to start school until he found out that I had no clue where his Pokemon cards were . I haven 't seen them since we moved . I didn 't know that Pokemon cards were a must have for the first day of school . . . I had to do everything short of drag him out of the door to get him to go . Thankfully , by the end of the day , he forgot all about the need for Pokemon cards . All of the children seem to like their teachers , which is always a wonderful way to start the school year . I met the teachers of the older children yesterday . I met my four year - old 's teacher before school started . I have to admit that the children seem to be in good hands at school . As a parent , I hope the children pick up on what they are being taught quickly . I hope that they make many good friends and good memories . I hope they treat all the others with the respect that they deserve . I hope they will take the children that look lonely and without friends under their wings . Most of all , I hope they have a wonderful year at school . My grandmother returned to our Heavenly Father 25 years ago today . I was 13 when she left this earth . The world lost a wonderful woman this day 25 years ago . I have many wonderful memories of her . My first memories include a trip to Lake Havasu to visit her . I thought that the lake was hers . I was really young , I wasn 't even in Kindergarten yet . I rode with my Dad and my sisters to Arizona from Houston . It was a very memorable trip . We still talk about it . I don 't remember a lot of the trip , of course . I remember we stayed in a hotel that had a vibrating bed . Dad put a coin in the bed that my sisters and I were sharing and the thing started vibrating . I remember arriving at my Grandmother 's house the next day . She had cookies . It almost seems like they were Thin Mints , but I can 't say for sure . She also had cans of soda pop . We went out on her lake . We rented a paddle boat . My grandmother and I rode in it together . I couldn 't reach the pedals , so in all my wisdom , I got down on my knees , and tried to do the pedals with my hand . That was a horrible idea . . . my life jacket got all tangled up in that thing ! Good thing paddle boats aren 't known for tipping over ! There was a little shooting gallery there by the lake . You would shoot little targets and different things would happen . The thing I remember the most would be the piano starting to play . My Grandma would come to visit us every so often . I can 't really remember how often though . It seemed like once or twice a year . When Grandma would come to visit , she would perm my hair . I always looked forward to the perm . She gave me the best perms going . I do remember once , a brush or curler , or something got stuck in my hair . It definitely wasn 't a good thing . It did get out and I got to keep all of my hair . The year before she died , we all went to Bridgeport . It was the last time we would all be together . All of my cousins , my Aunts and Uncle , and my Grandma and Grandpa . We have a picture of all of us together . My sister uses it on her Ipad as the desktop photo . The following summer , Grandma was already sick . We had made plans for me to go out and visit her for the summer . I was young , 13 years - old . I left my family and went to Albuquerque to stay with my Grandma and my Aunt . We went on a trip to Lake Powell where we met my Aunt , Uncle and their children . We stayed on a houseboat for a couple days ( I really have no idea how long we were on that ) , I do know I slept on it for a night or two , at least . We would fish off of the boat . We would swim . We would nap . We would get off the boat and go on dry land . We had grilled walleye and catfish , which we caught . My cousin was reading the map one day . Grandma asked where it was . He looked out the window and upstream from where we were . Grandma got a big laugh out of that . We still made it back to where we started from . I 'm not sure if we had another map . I was in Albuquerque for the Fourth of July . We had a little party at my Aunt 's house . She had some of her friends over . It was a really nice get - together . There was watermelon . I was shy . I hate watermelon . They gave me a slice and I ate it , very slowly ! I helped to get everything put away . While I was there , Grandma and I would watch " Three 's Company . " She had never seen it before . I was a regular viewer . I didn 't understand what was going on at that age , to me , it was just a funny show . It still is a funny show , but I understand it now . My grandmother would just laugh and laugh . I would lie in bed with her and just watch TV during the day . This was during the Iran - Contra hearings . I can remember that Grandma didn 't like that those were taking place of all the shows she enjoyed watching during the day . We had to find alternate viewing . There was lots of leftover watermelon . Whenever Grandma would get up , she would bring me a slice of watermelon . I , being the shy , and polite person that I was , would eat it . Very slowly , I would eat it . My Grandma had cancer . I was blessed to spend some of the last days that she was healthy enough to go out and have some fun . She was an amazing woman . I was blessed to be able to know her . There are a lot of people that never get to know their grandparents . My Grandma was always quick with a joke and she had an amazing laugh . She had a great sense of humor ! I remember her saying , " Are we having fun yet ? " I would have loved to be able to have her around much longer . I would have loved to have her meet my children , hold my children . I would not wish her to have lived another day with the cancer and the pain and sickness she had though . at On Saturday , August 25 , 2012 , my 8 year - old had her first audition . I saw on Twitter that my city was having a play in October and there was going to be auditions . I asked my two children that are old enough if they would want to do that . I knew that my daughter would and that my son would not , but I had to give them both the option . I was right . I made the appointment for the audition , several days before , and we were set to go . My daughter was looking forward to this audition for the next several days . She would ask me how many days until the audition . There was no way that she would let me forget what was going on . This opportunity was the highlight of her life , since we moved to this house . That morning , she woke up , got a shower , had her outfit picked out and ready to go . She woke me up , a couple hours early , to be sure she wouldn 't be late . The audition was set for 10 am and she had to be there by 9 : 45 am to read over the lines . We got there about 9 : 35 so that we could be sure that we found the right place . I am still getting used to where everything is around here . We went in and she let them know who she was . They gave her a number . She was number 41 . I had to fill out a form and we both had to initial it and sign it . After we were finished , we went into the hallway so that she could start reading lines . Since she has no background in theater , I had to explain to her that she doesn 't just read the lines , that she has to add emotion . She did a great job reading , I thought . The children had to line up in numerical order to go in for the audition . Away my daughter went . . . I went on a walk with my baby in her carrier . I figured I should do something for that half hour . I got back a little early and waited for her to come out . She didn 't get a " call back " slip . I told her that was okay , and we came home . On Tuesday , as directed , we went back to find out if she got a part . She is going to be the " Narrator 1 " in the Pre - show Show . I was very happy with that . She wanted to be in the " real " show . I told her that there were many children that are not going to get to do anything . I also told her that this is a stepping stone . Since she has no experience in theater , to this point , it is nice that she got a part . This will give her experience . She was happy with that explanation . My son has decided that next time he is going to audition too . I guess the thought of actually being in the play sounds like a good idea to him . The thought of trying out wasn 't quite as enticing . at Today was a big day in our life as homeowners . On Saturday , I went to Lowes and bought a bunch of things . The things include a hose , oscillating sprinkler , sealant for our roof , a brush to spread it , mulch , soil and fertilizer , grass seed , grass seed spreader , cherry tree , and a peach tree . The cherry tree is going to make a return visit to Lowes . My husband has heard that birds eat the cherries and then decide to poop on the house , which will leave stains , according to him . We certainly don 't want red , bird poop stains on our house or cars . We don 't want to stain our neighbors ' cars either . My husband and daughter borrowed a shovel from our neighbor across the street . Then my husband went in the backyard and started digging . My husband apparently found an underground anthill . I would dare say there were thousands of them . Since he already had a good hole going , he just kept digging . Our peach tree went into that hole . It is a cute little tree . We put the soil and fertilizer around it . We watered it . We followed the directions . I am excited to see what happens with our peach tree next year . I was told that it would be producing fruit next year . It is a little tree , so I imagine we might get 2 peaches next year . I am not sure how much the tree will grow in the fall , winter and spring . We shall see ! The grass seed got spread in the front yard on Saturday , shortly after I got here with it . My 4 year - old had gone to Lowes with me . He was very excited to spread the seeds . We wanted to do the front yard first because everyone sees that . The backyard needs the seeds too . We will seed that this weekend . The oscillating sprinkler has been put to good use . The children like to run it all over the yard . They also like to run through it . Ever since we lived at our last apartment , the children have enjoyed sprinkler parties . It is very fun if they can turn the sprinklers on and have their own sprinkler party , on their own terms . If it weren 't for the poisonous spiders that seem to inhabit this area of my world , I think I would really like it here ! I killed a black widow spider today . It is not something I ever envisioned myself doing . I never associated them with Utah . I came to college here . I lived here for a couple years before I moved back east . It is not something I want to deal with : ( I was told before I bought a house here that Black Widow spiders are not uncommon in the area . I was also told that I should buy some chickens to keep them at bay . I was all about buying a herd of chickens . I do not suffer from arachnophobia , much to the contrary , in fact . I think that I might be the reason that my two younger brothers do suffer from arachnophobia . I had absolutely no problem , as a child , grabbing one of the eight legs and chasing my brothers around the house . I did it to be mean . I thought it was funny . Looking back , I could have thought of better things to do , but I was young . I liked to hear them scream and run away . I am thankful that we didn 't live near snakes , because I am sure they wouldn 't have had a problem grabbing one of those and chasing me around the house . Well , I can 't buy chickens , because the city council members decided that citizens could not have chickens , unless it was in an agriculturally zoned area . I am sure I am not in an agriculturally zoned area . I live a block off of the main street that runs through here and a block from the interstate . There went my dreams of having chickens eat the spiders , and having fresh eggs . The chickens would have never become meat , I couldn 't do that to an animal , well , unless I was starving to death . Then I am sure I would cry the whole time . . . I cry when my goldfish die . Well , my husband was at work on Friday . My 9 year - old came inside and told me he was sure he found a black widow spider . I asked him how he knew that it was a black widow . He said , " It has a red hourglass on its back . " That made enough sense to me . My next question was , " Where is the spider ? " I was hoping that he located it down the road a ways . He told me , " It is under the mailbox . " Too close for comfort ! I got up and went to explore . The spider was about 2 to 3 feet below the mailbox . It had something red on its back , clear as day . I didn 't get close enough to make sure that it was an hourglass . I guess that a black spider with anything on its back should be considered a black widow . I went to my neighbor 's house . We have become friends . I rang his doorbell and asked him if he would know a black widow if he saw one . He kind of giggled and said yes . I told him that I thought we had one , but I wanted to be sure . He was in middle of cooking his dinner , so he said when it was done he would be right over . I told him I was sure it wasn 't going anywhere . While he finished his supper , I put mine in the oven . We were having pork chops and mashed potatoes . He came over and brought a stick and spider spray . I showed him the spider and he said it certainly was a black widow . He squished it with his stick and then used the stick to take down the web . The web crackles when being removed . I told him how my 9 year - old was the one that spotted it . He said he was glad that he didn 't mess with it . I am too ! I am glad he noticed it . I go out to the mailbox daily . I don 't need to upset a black widow . We walk past it several times a day . I would never want my children or anyone visiting to get bit by a black widow . Needless to say , I pay very close attention these days to any arachnids in the area . I will not let my children see me remove some outside . I don 't want them to think they should do that , because they might not know which ones aren 't safe . My sister came upstairs last night , after my 4 year - old came up , trembling . He had just finished watching a terrifying movie , a movie called " Winnie the Pooh . " It is a rated G movie . She came up to tell me that he was scared to death of something in the movie , " Winnie the Pooh . " I wasn 't sure I heard her right , so I repeated it back . She confirmed . Who would think that " Winnie the Pooh " would have anything that could be remotely scary ? ! He woke her up to let her know . He came running up here , scared to death , and lay down beside me . He was not able to talk about it for a few minutes . I kept asking him what was scary . He told me that it had horns and a triton . So , I was wondering if Piglet had a pitchfork or something . Tonight , we fast forwarded the movie , so he could show us what was scary . The thing appears to be a bull , with a ring through its nose . I haven 't watched the whole movie yet , but I needed to see the scary thing . Seeing through the eyes of a child is difficult . I can 't figure out how it is scary . He was hiding under a pillow while he pointed it out . He truly is afraid of that thing , referred to as " Backson . " I am going to have to watch the whole thing , to get the full jest of the Backson . My sister said when she woke up , the credits were running . So , I am guessing that it comes back toward the end of the movie . I will be watching it soon , when he isn 't in the room . I don 't see the point in scaring him . I want to understand though why that thing is scary . We are sitting here right now watching " Tangled . " Another rated G movie by Disney . He asked to watch something else so he wouldn 't have " that dream " again . " Tangled " is something else . " That dream " was probably a nightmare about Backson last night . I know as a young child , I was scared to death of a rocking horse that was in my room . I would hide under the bed when I would wake up . I still remember some of the nightmares I would have about it . I am sure if I would have told my parents , it wouldn 't have remained in my room , but I was scared to death of that thing . I know that although things don 't seem scary , they can be . at This morning , that is what I woke up to . The sound of breaking glass . It is that kind of sound that just makes you sit right up and try to figure out what is going on . It made me really hope that it was something on the interior , not someone breaking in . I got up and went on a search . I guess I should have been a little more careful since I didn 't really know what was going on . I started hearing the children . Then I knew that it was at least something inside the house . First , I need to explain a part of our house . The playroom was added on to the house , it is virtually an enclosed patio with walls , carpeting , sliding glass door . . . . It was added on many years ago . There is a window that leads from the playroom to the downstairs bathroom and another to a bedroom . My oldest son was trying to open the window from the wrong side , from inside the playroom . The glass ended up popping out and shattering on the bathroom floor . I was so thankful that the children weren 't injured . I am also thankful that no one was in the bathroom when that happened ! Now the children understand why we told them not to play with the windows . They liked to open the windows and climb in and out of the rooms . I am glad the lesson was learned without injury ! at Is it exercise if you enjoy it ? Or is it just a good way to have fun and burn some calories ? Well , I have discovered that crawling around is what brought up that question . My baby is a very good crawler . She enjoys having the whole house as her playground . I decided one night to get down on the ground and crawl around with her . As I got down there , on my hands and knees , and started chasing her around , something very interesting happened . She got the biggest smile possible and turned and started crawling toward me . She would get really close to me and then lie down . Later that evening , when my sister got home , I told her what happens . I showed her too . I got down on the ground , the baby got a big old smile and started crawling toward me . I started crawling away , then she got close to me and down she went to her belly . My sister realized what she was doing . She wanted to go under me . I then got up higher and under she went . . . like a boat going under a bridge . I have daily been getting down there and playing with her . She will follow me all over the house . I never realized how painful crawling on tile can be . I will definitely be keeping the thick carpeting until she is well past her crawling and falling phase . When I go from the family room ( thick carpet ) , to the kitchen ( painful tile ) , then to the dining room ( thick carpet ) , I look forward to the carpet again . I am glad that we have the carpeting now . I wanted hardwood floors , I will get them when the baby is a bit older . It is a good workout . I had been trying to figure out why my arms have been hurting . It is the crawling and going up and down to be at her level and then let her go under me . It is well worth it , I love the smile I receive when I get down there and she knows what is about to happen . She is my little crawling buddy ! My four year - old was playing around on Thursday and " slammed " into my daughter 's dresser . I heard crying like I hadn 't heard in quite awhile . The children brought him upstairs and I saw a big old knot next to his left eye . I asked what happened , and they said , " He slammed into a dresser . " I immediately put a package of frozen peas on the knot . The knot next to his eye on Thursday , turned into a black eye by Friday morning . I am starting to wonder how long it can last . Here we are on Monday and he still has a black eye . I do believe that this is his first black eye . I am also hoping it is his last . The poor fellow ! I am thankful that he hit the dresser where he did . . . a little further to the right and he would have gotten his eye , a little further to the left he would have gotten his temple . So , if this had to happen , it happened in the right place . at My ten month - old daughter seems to get her teeth in pairs . Her first two teeth , the bottom two in the front , popped out around July 10th . There wasn 't much of a fuss with those . You wouldn 't even know she was teething , except you could see them cutting through the gums . She is now getting her two front teeth . You can see the whole things through her gums , they just haven 't broken through yet . They are not coming quite as easily as she would prefer . To the creator of Orajel , thank you ! To the creator of Baby Acetaminophen , thank you ! My baby seems to be having some anger issues with these teeth . I think that she is trying to tell them to either pop out , or stay forever embedded in her gums , but to please stop hurting ! She is a very happy baby , so it is sad to see this pain , and to have her temperament change . It is amusing to see her chew effectively with only 2 teeth . She can eat quite well , using her gums for most of the chewing . She has become very talented in feeding herself . I don 't think a parent realizes how well the baby 's hand - mouth coordination is until you spot a foreign object in a dirty diaper . Today , for example , there was a red piece of paper in her diaper , which turned out to be a label , that wasn 't chewed very well , that said " Made in . . . . " Not quite sure where the label was made . Just reminds me that I need to pay closer attention to what is on my floor . I guess that I need to vacuum several times a day ! It was a wonderful Sunday , my husband , baby and I went to church . My sister and children came back from Wyoming . It is always wonderful to be back together again : ) Yesterday my three oldest children went on an adventure with their Aunt Brenda and cousin . They went to Wyoming to bring their cousin back to his parents after he visited us for a week . It was a wonderful week they got to spend together . There was a lot of playing and running , and I didn 't have to worry about them bothering the downstairs neighbors with all the noise , since we no longer have downstairs neighbors . Sometimes I forget we don 't have downstairs neighbors anymore and I tell them they have to be quiet . My youngest wasn 't originally going to go with them on the trip . I worry how he will do without me . I recalled earlier yesterday , how sad he was when his brother left to come out here with Grandpa , Uncles Jim and Bob . My daughter drove out with her Aunt Susan . They drove out here and my two younger children and myself flew home . When it was time to say goodbye to his brother , my youngest son cried and cried . He wanted , with all of his heart , to go with him . He kept repeating , " I am going to miss Caleb , I am going to miss my brother , I want to go with him . " Tears streaming down his face . I wanted them to be together , but I worried that they would get several hundred miles away and he would want me and there would be nothing anyone could do to fix it . I don 't think that would have happened . He has always been one for adventure . There is the off chance though that it would have . Yesterday , as I remembered that scene in Erie , I sent my sister a note and told her that I was going to pack him a bag , just in case it happened again . When it was time for them to get going , my sister said goodbye to him . He said he was going with her . I told him that he was going to stay home with me . He had that sad / hurt look on his face . He really wanted to go on this adventure . I couldn 't hold him back this time . The furthest away he would be is 4 1 / 2 hours . If worse came to worse , I would make that trip and get him . The only reason I didn 't go this time is that I am not sure my van would make those mountain passes . It has a hard time on hills , and those would be mountains . As they got ready to leave , I told them each I love them , gave them hug and kiss , and waved and blew kisses . My youngest son wanted to tell me something , and I couldn 't hear him . I got close to the car , and he said to me " I love you and I will miss you , " I said it back and away they went , I watched them get to the corner . I watched my sister get out of the car and check her tire , then get back into the car and drive away . Then I came inside , I saw the older children 's suitcase sitting on the floor . I called them . They came back and got it , took a potty break , and headed off . I gave them each another kiss and waved goodbye . My heart broke as they drove away . Goodbyes are hard for everyone . I always look forward to getting together again . Saying goodbye to family and friends has always been difficult for me , but I know that my family knows that I love them no matter where we are . I hope my friends know that as well . Getting together again is always the most joyful of reunions . I fully intended to start running this week , I want to get back into shape and get at least two more marathon finisher medals . I want to have one to give to each of my children . I have 2 . . . well , I know that at one point I had two . I haven 't seen them in a while , so I might get to run 4 more , we shall see . . . Anyway , I got ready for church Sunday . I found a skirt and a top that would go with it . I had to hold my breath and zip ( to be honest ) . I need to wear a skirt and top since I nurse my baby and wearing a dress is impractical . I found some shoes that I hadn 't worn in a long time . As I walked to church , I remembered about 3 / 4 of the way there why I hadn 't worn those shoes in a LONG time . The back of both of my heels were bleeding . The shoes have straps that criss - cross in the back . I loosened the straps once I was sitting down . The damage had already been done . After church , I came home , took off the shoes , and the skirt . So , I was able to breathe again normally and my feet could begin the healing process . They have not healed yet . Therefore , I am not lacing up any running shoes , knowing the pain I would be in . I imagine that I will be able to start running again on Monday . I 'll keep this updated ! Tonight my daughter is having her first sleepover with someone outside the family . The girl that is sleeping over is the only other child that is living on our street right now . There are a couple other children that will be back soon , they are away visiting family , so we haven 't met them yet . My daughter had that little ray of sunshine in her eyes when she asked . I remember when I was young and I would have a sleepover . Half the time , I would end up back at home in middle of the night . I started to pretend that I was at home as I would doze off to sleep . That made the homesickness go away . We had Family Home Evening tonight . It was on miracles . I know that miracles still happen today . I have seen them happen for myself and for others . Each of my children are a miracle . I was once told that I would not be able to have children without fertility treatments . I never had to have fertility treatments and I have four wonderful children . I had made brownies and bought ice cream so we could have brownie sundaes for the treat . My daughter asked if she could invite her friend for the treat . I told her that she could . So , her friend came over for that . She was then invited to go running with my husband and children . I had her find out if her family wanted the rest of the brownies . When she asked if she could go running , she found out that they would take the brownies . The brownies were delivered on the way to the park . It was at the park that I was asked if the friend could spend the night . I tried to think of several reasons why she shouldn 't stay . In the end , I thought it would be nice for the girls to have this time to spend together and forge a good friendship . As a mother , I have always wanted my children to have good friends . That is what enticed me to go with my children to find friends . They didn 't want to go by themselves to see if there were children . I didn 't really want them to , because I didn 't know who lived around here . So , we went on the adventure together and found a child . You would think that in a neighborhood , there would be more than a few children . I think we doubled the child population here ! I remember when we moved to NY in 1983 , my family doubled the child population there . I realize now that the older neighbors probably weren 't so excited ! 1 . I wish it would rain for at least 10 minutes every morning and every evening , preferably around 7 am and 6 pm . 2 . I wish that unpacking was a fun , joyous event . 3 . I wish that my vacuum sucked better than it does . . . ( this is the only thing I think I will ever wish sucked , and it doesn 't ) . 4 . I wish I had unlimited funds to decorate ( okay , perhaps it is something I have thought about regularly in the past ) . Just a plug for a great concept . Last I knew , it wasn 't available in the Southern Tier of NY . I am living in UT now and I absolutely love it . Today I was able to give some items away , completely free , to someone that could really use them . I have received things from Freecycle , but today was the first time I gave something away . It is nice to be able to receive items , but it was a much different feeling to give . I think the payment is the appreciation that was given . On Freecycle , I see things being offered daily . I see things being requested daily . I see things being received daily . I think that it would be a great idea for every community to adopt . It is an organized " FREE " community yard sale . People pick up the items , you don 't have to deliver them to the recipient . My baby never ceases to amaze me . Today she was being awfully quiet so I went to check on her . She had been playing with her older siblings . When I came from the family room to the kitchen , this is what I saw : my baby was eating a cookie . It was a cookie that my sister brought home for me last night , quite large , and very tasty . It was completely chocolate . I had broken it into pieces to get the middle of it , which looked like it had a melted Hershey 's kiss . Somehow . she had managed to get it to the floor , still in the box . She was enjoying each bite she took . After watching her enjoy the cookie for a few minutes , and having my children take pictures , I decided it was time to bathe her . She was quite the chocolatey mess , something I would like to someday say about myself ! I went to Wal - Mart today , it isn 't an unusual occurrence in my life . In fact , I have been doing that quite regularly since my move . I need to buy things that didn 't make the packing cut , or things that I need that I have no clue where to find . Of course , I find it shortly after purchasing a duplicate . Well , today 's trip consisted of a high chair , some fruits and vegetables , some washcloths , a bath rug , a bath towel , and a few other odds and ends . My two daughters and my sister joined me for the shopping trip . My ten month - old was in her car seat , which rested on the part of the cart where children usually sit . My 8 year - old was wondering around trying to find something at the checkout stand to buy . I was minding my own business , talking to my baby girl and my sister . The female cashier asked me how old the baby was . I answered her truthfully . She then asked me , " How old ARE you ? " Once again , I answered truthfully , saying I am 38 . The line of questions began . . . I didn 't know where the questions were coming from , or what the purpose was . I would guess the cashier was early to mid - twenties . The next question was , " So , did you wait until you were older to have children ? " To which I answered , " I waited until I was married , I didn 't get married until I was 27 , then I had my first baby when I was 29 . " The following question , " How many children do you have ? " To which I answered , " I have four children , two boys , two girls . " Then she volunteered that she had her first baby when she was 19 and that she has 2 daughters , her baby will be 5 months soon . She said that in some ways it is smart to wait until you are older to have children , because we know what is going on . I 'm not sure I know what is going on all the time , but I know that I know more than when I was younger , so I agreed . After I finished paying for all my stuff , I was kind of dumbfounded . I think that what I learned is that I should always expect the unexpected . The cashier was being friendly , in her own way . I could not imagine carrying on that line of questions with a stranger . The other thing I have always known , is that I am proud of my age and getting older . I have always said that it beats the alternative ! As I mentioned previously , my husband was busy packing and signing closing papers on a house while I was back east . We had located the house that we wanted to buy before I headed out . He was blessed to sign the closing papers on July 31 , which was 5 days after we were supposed to . Thankfully the family we bought the house from signed the papers to extend the closing date . It was quite stressful having that out of our hands . On Saturday , several men from my church came and helped load our stuff out of the storage unit into the UHaul and then unload it into our new house . We have a TON of stuff to do . We have to unpack all of our stuff . Thankfully , the men brought the heavy stuff in . We have a couch in our family room , beds in the bedrooms , desks and dressers where they should be . As I look around , I see a lot of boxes . I know that eventually they will be empty , and I look forward to that day . I am thankful to know that this is likely the last time I will move for a long time . My children have been very helpful . They enjoy unloading boxes and discovering what is in each one . It is almost like Christmas . My 4 year - old found a box full of whiffle balls today . He had a blast with those . This year I went back east to visit family and friends . We left Utah on Independence Day . We meaning myself and my four children . We were dropped off at the Salt Lake City Airport and spent the next 9 hours either on a plane or in an airport . It never fails to amaze me how flying to Buffalo can mean a stop in Washington DC . I love DC , but it is a bit further east than Buffalo . My children were amazing on the flights . We flew with only one DS . The children shared it well . They read or just talked when it wasn 't their turn . My daughter , being the outgoing child she always has been , made a friend at the airport during a layover . Her friend 's name is Nina . She ended up flying the second leg of the flight with Nina and her mother . That made her time in the airport and the flight go quicker . We arrived in Buffalo a little before 9 pm . We hadn 't checked any bags , so we hurried to roadway to be picked up . It was wonderful to see my mom , sister and bro - in - law waiting for us . We hoped to make it to my hometown in time to see the fireworks . My bro - in - law adjusted the carseat for my baby and off we went . My three older children with them , and myself and my baby with my mom . On the way home , we had to make a pitstop at a Burger King for potty time . We missed the fireworks by about 10 minutes . We met the rest of the family at a local ballpark . My sister had bought the lantern balloons ( whatever they are called , as seen on " Tangled " ) . They set them off up in to the air one at a time . I wondered if some of them would clear some electric lines and trees , but they all did . It was amazing to watch them lift off . It was beautiful . They flew away into the sky , where they would turn into little lights and then fade away . During those four weeks , we got to watch some softball games , and tournaments . We were going to participate in a kickball tournament but it ended up being the last day we would all be together . There was a UHaul that had to be packed , as my sister and her family were moving to WY the next day . We spent many hours in the backyard on the swings . We would laugh and talk like old times . Any time we get together , it is a good time . Dad grilled some food , which is always delicious . We watched the birds . The squirrels came around to scare me . I have a horrible fear of them . They are fine if they stay 10 feet or more away from me . My baby warmed up to the family within 48 hours . She took an instant liking to her Uncle Bob . I warned him before I gave her to him that she will probably cry . Not a peep out of her mouth . She was content . I was amazed . The children got to get re - acquainted with some of their friends . My son got to see his closest friend several times , for which I am thankful . The children spent a lot of time with their cousins . I miss those times . My older brother came into town for a visit for a few days before he had to go down to Pittsburgh for a conference . We got to watch all the boys play in a softball tournament together . That was awesome . The next day we went up to the Rock . It is where my dad grew up . It is a special place to our family . My poor baby was a little sweat ball by the time we finished the hike , since she was in a baby carrier . On the way home , we stopped and got a few buckets of ice cream , as tradition would have it . My mom , two younger brothers , my sister , her son , my kids and I all went to Palmyra , NY , to see the Hill Cumorah Pageant . We got to visit the Joseph Smith Home and walk through the Sacred Grove . We went up and walked around the Palmyra Temple as well . It was a wonderful time . I was blessed to get to visit with some of my dear friends . I saw some of them at church and some stopped by my parents ' house to see me . I enjoyed getting to visit with each of them . 28 days flew by . There were many people that I wanted to see , that I didn 't get to . One day quickly became the next , and one week , quickly became 4 . Time flies when you are having fun , right ! ? On Sunday , July 29 , my little brother and my sister and her family , moved out of New York . My brother was headed to Washington State , and as mentioned before , my sister was headed for Wyoming . They drove out west and took my two older children for the trip . They arrived here on Tuesday . My two younger children and I flew out of Buffalo and arrived in Salt Lake on August 1 . It was a good flight . I had never flown during a storm . It was quite amazing to see the lightning below us . It was late , so my children slept through it . There was at least an hour of turbulence , so that was for the best . I came home to a new house . My husband closed on a house while I was on vacation . He packed up most of the apartment and did a great job . I did some packing before I left . Now we face the task of unpacking . I plan on this being our last move . I really hope that this is the house that I grow old in , that this is the house that the children call home , even when they no longer live here . My parents ' house will always be home to me . I have heard that statement more times in the past couple of weeks , than I had in the previous 38 years of my life . My children had been asking for Beyblades for quite a while . I had no clue what they were , to be honest . They are these little toys that I can 't explain better than saying they are tops that come with a thing that you put it on , then pull a cord , and they spin incredibly fast . They are little tops that battle with other ones . I guess the last one spinning wins . The children spin time with their friends letting them rip . You have to say " 3 . . . 2 . . . . 1 . . . Let ' em rip . " Then you pull the cord , and away the go . My children play with their Beyblades with their friends . It seems like these are one of the more popular toys around . It has come to my attention that there is even a cartoon called " Beyblades . " My 4 year - old enjoys watching it , when he can . I haven 't really paid any attention to it . I am much more into " SpongeBob SquarePants " and " Victorious , " when it comes to children 's shows . This evening , I took my two youngest children on a walk to Target . It was a nice walk . I had the baby strapped into the baby carrier . This always helps her to fall to sleep . I just think the movement and the sound of my heartbeat is soothing to her . She has not popped out a tooth yet , so we are still waiting for that . She has been a little miserable lately , so I imagine that big event is right around the corner . As we were walking , we walked past the school which had its sprinklers on . My 4 year - old loved every second of that . I kept track of him as I didn 't want him to try to run out of them and dart into the road . The road is one of the two main thoroughfares through town . He didn 't get very wet on the way there . We walked there because we needed dishwasher tablets . We ran out last night . If I want clean dishes , I need those . I don 't have time to go and wash dishes , and it is easier for the children to load the dishwasher , and I don 't have to worry about how well they washed them When we got to Target , we went looking for the dishwashing detergent . I finally had to ask someone where it was . She brought me right there . My son wanted a new Beyblade . When we were there earlier today , I bought him one . It keeps him occupied while I try to get some of my work done . He loves the thing . To me , it is just another thing to be sure I don 't step on , because a - it will hurt and b - it would break , which would lead to much sadness . After we got the detergent , I ordered 2 Icees from the little dining area . I ordered one large and one small . I intended to have the large , but my son announced that he wanted a large too . I gave that to him . We filled it up with a mix of blue raspberry and cherry . I had cherry . While we were walking home , he looked up , and noticed for the first time that I had a small one . He asked me why . I told him because he wanted the large one , so I let him have it . He gave his to me , and told me I could have a taste . I thought that was sweet of the little guy . Mine was to the point that makes you realize why they are also called " slurpees . " I was trying to get the last drops out . We walked through the sprinklers on the way home too . He got soaked this time . He knew that we had already accomplished going to the store and looking like we didn 't wet ourselves . The baby was still sleeping , until she got a few drops of the cold water and quickly woke up . She just kept looking up at me , wondering what I was doing . It was nice to get back home . To walk into the A / C . . . except for the A / C was off . I promptly turned it back on . As I sit and write this a few hours later , it is very cool again . at I am pretty sure that today , the baby has been alive longer than I was pregnant with her . If only my pregnancy went this quickly ! If you read my blog while I was pregnant , you know that I have / had a rare pregnancy rash . Yes , I still suffer from Pemphigoid Gestationis . The longest someone has had it post pregnancy is 7 years . I am hoping that I don 't beat any records . I have been off the prednisone since March . I am learning to deal with it . It isn 't as severe as when I was pregnant , thank goodness ! As I write tonight , my baby girl is sleeping soundly on my lap . She was 16 lbs 2 oz last Sunday , when we went to urgent care . She was diagnosed with Bronchiolitis . That is the first time she had a fever , that wasn 't shot related . She must be near 27 inches by now . She grows like a weed . She is my biggest fan . She loves being with me . She prefers me over everyone . The only thing I can come up with , is she knows that I am the one that feeds her most often . If I had someone that I depended on for food , I think I would want to stay close to that person also . I have a 9 year - old . . . I can 't believe that it has been over 9 years since I first became a mom . My 9 year - old is wonderful . He is a sensitive little guy . He likes to please others . He likes to see people happy . He is a loyal fella . He is a great big brother to all his siblings . They are lucky to have him . He loves all his siblings . He likes being tucked in at night and say his prayers with his baby sister there . 13 months and 13 days after the birth of my 9 year - old , we welcomed my daughter into our family . She came into the world , making some whimpers and crying . It was a most welcome sound . My son didn 't make any noise , which I learned is because he wasn 't breathing . He was ran immediately to NICU . When I heard her cry , tears welled up in my eyes . She is strong - minded . She knows how she wants things , and she doesn 't like to budge . She is a protector . She will not allow anything to happen to her siblings if she can prevent it . She is a lot like me in that way . She is a very outgoing child , she has never gone without a friend . Since the time she was a toddler , she could make a friend , even if we were hours from home . We welcomed my son when the children were 3 and 4 years - old . I gave birth after they went to sleep one night , so they found out in the morning that they had another sibling . They stopped by and met the baby after school . My 4 year - old looked at his baby brother and stated " I think I love him . " That was good news : ) My daughter wanted to hold him , he was a living doll . He has grown to be a funny little fellow . He enjoys telling knock - knock jokes . They aren 't really ones that make a lot of sense , but they are funny because he tells them . One of them : Knock , knock . Who 's there ? Mommy ? Mommy who ? You are mommy ! : ) When this little one I was holding was born , I had a 3 yr old , 7 yr old and 8 yr old . My sister brought them to the hospital to meet her , before they went to school . They were at the hospital when she was born . They got to meet her when she was still less than an hour old . They each got to hold her , sitting down . In these months that have passed , they can hold her standing up . They adore her . They watch out for her . It seems like yesterday that I became a mother for the 4th time . It doesn 't seem like more than 4 years that I became a mother for the first time . Where does time go ? I am so thankful for the blessings I have in my life . My children make me so happy . I , like most mothers , would do anything for then . As I watch them grow , I see the people they are becoming . I hope that they will always respect others and treat them well . I hope they have good friends that lift them up and they do the same in return . at I remember the first person I thought I was in love with . . . I thought we would be together forever . I was 4 , in preschool and thought he was the best thing that could have ever happened in my life . Well , I might have thought that , I don 't remember . I do remember that I was " in love . " The lucky boy . . . well , he lived close by . He was a neighborhood boy . Why am I reminiscing . . . . ? Well , it has recently come to my attention that one of my children has found a lucky someone . The lucky person also lives close by . My heart breaks knowing that this will likely not last forever , that I am going to end up having a sad child . My husband and I have explained to the child that there is no dating until the age of 16 , and then it is only double dating . We expect this child not to be holding hands or kissing . This can be no more than a friendship . As easy as it is to say these things and for the child to agree , from my own memories of my " first love , " I know that it is something the child will always remember . I hope that when this child grows up that this " friendship " will be a good memory . I hope that my child will be able to remember the wisdom that was gained and be able to pass it on to my grandchildren ( that is still a long ways away ! ) . I still remember the name of my first love , I have no idea where life has taken him . I lost track of him when I ( my parents and siblings ) moved to New York from Houston . I am so thankful for how things turned out . I am thankful that as life went on , I was blessed to find my husband . I am thankful for the blessing of my four children . at There are these little toys , not sure if that is the right word , called Orbeez . When you put them in water , they are supposed to grow . My children that range in age from 4 to 9 came inside and grabbed some of their coins . I stopped them and asked what they were doing . My 4 year - old announced that one of the neighbor children were selling Arby 's . I know I made a confused look , I may have even went cross - eyed . He said he was going to go buy some . At this point , my daughter had already run outside with her money , so I had my husband call her in . I asked what she was doing . She told me she was buying Orbeez . I asked what they were , she explained they are things that grow in water . The neighbor was selling them for a penny each , I saw no harm , except for the fact that they could spend their money on something useful . They re - appeared , grabbing zip - loc bags , and other things , filling them with water . They were watching these things grow . They don 't grow quickly , but they do grow . They are blue , red , green , and maybe a few other colors . My 4 year - old continued to call them Arbys , I would continue to correct him and call them Orbeez . I never , in a million years , could have guessed what would happen in a few minutes after they were placed in the water . He started eating them . He ate at least one , before my sister noticed what was happening . I don 't know what menu item he might have thought it was , but he honestly thought he had Arbys . This led to a frantic internet search . . . " ORBEEZ . " I didn 't know if I should call Poison Control or not , and if I did , if they would even know what I was talking about . I really know nothing about the things , at that moment . In my search , I found that Orbeez are non - toxic , and will pass through the digestive system . That is something to be thankful for . These things look like they could be little candies . Perhaps they can be mistaken for those little ice cream balls , I don 't know . By the next morning , much to the amusement of my two older children , his Orbeez shrunk . We don 't know what might have caused it . . . maybe they saw what happened to their little friend , and they are trying to disappear ? ! ( I do know that isn 't possible ) . We did joke about that though , that my four year - old won that fight . My older kids couldn 't stop laughing for a little while trying to figure out why they would shrink . Who knows ? ! June 2nd was my 8 year - old daughter 's baptism . This is a very special day in the life of a child that has been raised in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter - day Saints . Children are baptized at the age of 8 , because we believe at this age , children start really understanding the difference between right and wrong , and can be held accountable for choices they make . We believe that we are will be punished for our own sins and not for Adam 's transgression , therefore , we don 't have children baptized at birth , or shortly thereafter . We believe that they should be able to choose whether they want to be baptized or not . My mother gave the talk on baptism at the baptism . There were 2 other girls baptized the same day . Mom made a ladder for each of them as a gift to remind them that it is steps that need to be taken to return to our Heavenly Father . Everyone loved that . I gave the opening prayer at the baptism . My dad baptized her and my husband confirmed her a member of the Church . A family member of the other two girls gave the talk on the Holy Ghost following the baptism . It was a truly enjoyable talk he gave as well . After she was baptized , she changed into the dress that I was baptized in . She felt like a princess . It had the faded look that would happen after 30 yrs , so we didn 't think it would be appropriate to be baptized in . Some of our friends made it to the baptism , and then we had a picnic at a park afterward . It was so nice to get to visit with them . It was wonderful to have my parents in town for this special occasion . I loved seeing the happiness on my daughter 's face . After the baptism , my 4 year - old was telling everyone that his sister had been baptized . When mom and I brought the two of them to the pool , he was even telling complete strangers . He has been looking forward to being baptized since his big brother was . He will be able to make that decision in under 4 years . I am thankful for all the soldiers that have given the ultimate sacrifice . I know that I wouldn 't have the freedoms I have today , if there weren 't soldiers that have fought for it . I am grateful for the sacrifice all soldiers have made . They leave their families and friends and go out and fight for freedoms . This morning I woke up , knowing that I had to get a run in . I haven 't run in almost a week , because the longer I put it off during the day , the less likely I am to actually do it . So , I went in , put on some running clothes and announced I was heading out for a run . That was when my kids and husband announced that they wanted to go also . So , it turned into a family event . My two older children , my husband and I ran 4 miles on May 12 for an event . It took us 52 minutes , but we did it . I was proud of my children for doing this . That was the furthest they had gone . I ran around 2 1 / 4 miles today . It was a nice run . My daughter ran a little bit with me . I did a little more than 1 mile pushing my baby in the stroller , then my husband took over pushing the stroller . I came home and did some work and hung out with my children . I had to get my sister in Salt Lake so my three youngest kids took the trip down there with me . On the way back , we stopped at BK , and got $ 1 smoothies . It was good : ) We spent the evening with some family friends we met when they lived back east . We all live in this area now . There were a couple that were visiting from back east as well . They made shish kebab and grilled it outside . It was so good ! My oldest son even enjoyed some of the vegetables that were on it . We have made plans to see them again this Saturday . We put an offer on a house on Saturday . I am waiting most patiently to hear anything back . It is not easy to wait to hear anything . We had a great day overall . at Eight years ago today I met one of my best friends . I gave birth to a beautiful little girl 8 years ago today , shortly after noon . I had gone into labor the night before while I was at work . I waited to go in and see my doctor until the next day , when she announced I was at 3 cm . I was ordered to go to the hospital and prepare to have my baby girl . I had to get my husband from work . I picked him up and then we had to figure out who could watch my 13 month - old son while I gave birth . Since he was a C - section , my baby girl would be born via C - section as well . I called everyone I knew . Everyone was at Womens Conference except my visiting teacher . Although she had a young child herself , she came to the hospital and sat with my son so my husband could be with me . She has grown a lot since that day . She loves to read . She is an outgoing child with many friends . She is protective of her brothers . She reminds me a lot of myself . Her favorite colors are pink and purple . She enjoys cooking . She is still in the beginning stages , but she can make a good bowl of ramen noodles . She loves those ! On more than one occasion , she has asked for Ramen noodles w / chicken , corn and peas , as her meal for the week . She has recently made chocolate chip pancakes ( a favorite that her grandma makes ) , macaroni and cheese , and Rice Krispies treats . She even prepared the dough for oatmeal cookies one day . She has developed a love for Food Network . " Sweet Genius " and " Chopped " rate high on her list of favorite shows . Tonight we went to an indoor playground and had supper and let the children play . Saturday was the birthday party . My two oldest children had their party together , they went to see " Chimpanzee " with their friends . Needless to say , I didn 't get to see much of it , but I am glad the children had a great time ! We got a cake from Costco and I bought ice cream and strawberries from Wal - Mart . That was a fun day as well . Today I had a great idea , so I thought . It ended up being one of the worse ideas I 've had in my life , I think . I thought it would be a good idea to get my baby 's ears pierced . I thought it would feel like getting a shot , that it would hurt for a moment and then be over with . Nope , it was very painful . Painful to her to have happen , and painful for me to hear and see . I keep telling myself , " At least she won 't remember it when she is older . . . . " It doesn 't seem to make me feel any better . I have never heard such a sad cry from a baby . It is one of those things that I wished there was one person doing each ear at the same time . She was crying in pain after the first one . . . and then she had to get the other . I didn 't want her running around with one hole in her ear . My husband and my sister both pointed out that I could have just had them take the first out and not do the other . Wish I would have thought of that ! Now she has two holes and two beautiful earrings , but I am sure she wants me to feel her pain . Every time she has nursed today , he has bit me . I think I deserve that . When she gets her first tooth , I think she is going to try to single - handedly pierce her food supply . I can 't say I 'd blame her . My sister pointed out though that once her tooth comes out , it won 't bother her much , since she knows the pain of ear piercing . So , to any one that reads this , and is contemplating having a baby girl 's ears pierced . It isn 't like getting a shot . It is like the most painful thing you could ever imagine happening to a healthy baby girl . I wouldn 't do it again . I wish I didn 't do it this time . I will advise my children not to do it to my granddaughters . I thought I was doing her a favor so she wouldn 't remember it when she was older , but I think she would have taken it a lot better . My sister got a hotel room for us all to go down to on Friday night . She thought it would be a fun time for the kids to be able to go swimming and meet a friend to go to dinner with . She was right . It made the children 's day when we got into the room and there was something on the table announcing her as the guest of the day . There was a small package of Pepperidge Farms Milano cookies , a little ziploc bag of samples and a couple bottles of water . There were also two bedrooms , a family room / kitchen , a fireplace , two bathrooms , and 3 flat screen televisions . It was as if we landed in the lap of luxury . The rooms were beautiful ! The kids went swimming twice . Once on Friday night and once on Saturday morning before we had to check - out . They also left their swimsuits at the hotel . Keith called this morning and thankfully they were still there . He will pick them up tomorrow before he comes home from work . We ate at the Chinese Gourmet restaurant . It was good food and good company . My children seemed to love the mashed potatoes , shrimp and all - you - can - eat dessert . I love salad bars . Perhaps , when dinner costs as much as it does these days , I shouldn 't fill up on salad , but it what I prefer . Nothing like a good salad with a lot of yummy , fresh toppings and ranch dressing to top it off . It was wonderful to get away for a night . I tried to work , but the internet connection was too slow , so it was probably meant to be . I can 't deal with slow internet . We hung out and had a wonderful time . Thanks Sis ! Six months ago , I gave birth to my little girl . It is hard for me to believe that it has been 6 months since I was blessed with her in my life . I am so thankful for the health of all four of my children . It is amazing how fast they grow up . They are born being completely dependent on someone they don 't even recognize . She wouldn 't have known me from any other woman in the world . A baby 's life literally depends on their family . At birth , a baby is a spastic , uncoordinated , very flexible person . There were times she would hit herself in the face , or kick herself in her bootie . My older children found it quite hilarious that she would kick herself . Today , she knows who I am . She isn 't a fan of me leaving the room , let alone the house , without her . She will often break out in a full - fledged cry . Perhaps it is because she sees her buffet leaving . Who knows ? You can already tell that she has an amazing sense of humor . Sometimes she will laugh so hard that she has to stop to take a breath . She likes to figure things out too . Yesterday , my husband came home from work and fell asleep on the couch . She was in her Bumbo seat sitting next to me . My husband started to snore , and she was leaning over in his direction just looking at him . She couldn 't figure out what was wrong , or right for that matter , with her daddy , but she certainly wanted to . My children still love to hold her . It is the first thing they want to do in the morning when they wake up . Even if she is still asleep . I love to see them with her . You can see complete love in their eyes . When she is awake , it is reciprocated . She will sometimes look at them , and they don 't know it , and she will just smile so big . I enjoy seeing her , and my other three children , growing up . As a parent , I have always wanted my children to be happy . For the most part , they always are . There are definitely those moments when they want something that they don 't need , that they aren 't too happy when I say no . There is also chore time which is not always a joyous time . Those are just small moments , compared to the eternal perspective . Life is good : ) Last week I found a Couch to 5K ( C25K ) program online . I had started to feel that I was trying to do too much , too soon . I guess that I had been driven by pride , trying to get back to those days of running miles at a time . I had to finally breakdown and admit to myself that I was just overdoing it . My body was hurting and it just wasn 't too much fun . It was actually quite the opposite . . . depressing . I thought that I should be able to run miles at a time in no time flat . . . since I have run a couple marathons . It just doesn 't work that way . I asked my daughter if she wanted to do the C25K with me . Then I asked my 9 year - old son . My 4 year - old also wanted to join in . So , I had my crew and they wanted to join in . My husband also decided that he would like to give it a try . My sister has a bad knee , so she stays home with my baby . The plan for running is quite easy , and it is nothing I have done before . I have never done a walk / run plan . It seems to be working for all of us . I don 't feel like I am doing more than I should . I am enjoying the time with my family . I enjoy being able to share my love of running with them . My daughter started to show an interest in running with me right before I found out I was pregnant with my baby . We had gone out running a couple times before that . I would let her lead the way , she would pace the run . I am so excited to be doing this with the children and my husband . I hope that someday they will be running the long distances with me . It takes a lot of time and a lot of training , but I would love to have someone running a half - marathon or a marathon with me . Someone that I can talk to and have motivate me to keep going . I believe it would go a lot faster with someone beside me . I am a wife , mother , daughter and sister . These are the most important roles in my life . I enjoy blogging about my family and about my training for races . The training blog helps keep me motivated .