Nutella

It might be kind of geeky but I saved two proofs of purchase and mailed them to Nutella to get this free shirt. Most of my other white T-shirts are about 8 years old.


I am sure you wish you had one of these...

Whoa

I went to the dentist today. I had to make a follow up appointment for more cleaning. Really. But, no cavities. I came out better than this kid -



BTW - I can't believe how many people have seen this video. I hadn't until today.

thoughts of a homemaker

My house is not always clean. Not that its dirty, but its usually messy. I am often in awe at those who manage to keep an immaculate home. Now, I know how to clean. I spend time every day cleaning my house, and it gets done. But it never stays done. I don't really know how to keep my house clean. I usually blame it on Ana. She must make the mess because I clean up every day.

The other day I realized something, and it came in 2 parts. The first was a dream I had the other day that our "landlords" (a.k.a. Dave's brother and his wife) told me my bathroom was too messy, and I needed to keep it cleaner. (Not that they would ever do that - its not that bad.) I woke up feeling all awkward about it and realized that if I am so paranoid at what other people think of my homemaking skills, I needed to do something about it.

So that day I looked around and took notice of what made my home look messy. And I was surprised to find that it wasn't Ana's toys that caused the problem..... It was my mess. I was the one who was getting stuff out and not putting it back away. Dave was by no means off the hook either. We were the problem.

So we came up with a game/competition to help our little problem. It is day 1 of that game, and I have to admit, its an adjustment. It sounds so easy to simply put things away when you get it out, but its a habit that is hard to get into. I am becoming much more aware of it, though, and I think its the beginning of some better housekeeping on my part. Usually by this time of day, my living room is beginning to show the activities of the day, but surprisingly it has stayed much more orderly (with the exception of a few toys on the floor). Its a good feeling.

Now I wanted to add a few pictures of Jack, since its been a while and he's getting so big!

Playing with Ana:


Playing with Ana again:


He found a piece of chocolate that somehow was left in his reach, and wasn't discovered until it was too late:

Happy Tuesday!

My new love

I rode this bike when I was in Logan on Saturday. It was really nice. It was the first time I actually got to ride a little on a nice road bike in my size.

two movies and a book

Movie #1: I'll begin with our most recent choice of entertainment: The Golden Compass. Dave covered our general impression and thoughts: HERE.

Movie #2: On Saturday night Dave and I saw Twilight. I really enjoyed it. I hadn't read the books yet, and I thought the story was entertaining, especially once the bad guy was revealed and there was that intense conflict. I know that some people thought the acting was bad, but I didn't notice the awkward pauses as much. (I was a little distracted by how many little kids were in the movie theater. It was a little too sensual/intense for a 9 year old, I thought. But that's a whole other post). I got annoyed with Bella's heaving bosoms, but I really liked Charlie. He was my favorite character in the movie. Anyway, I thought it was worth the $4 we paid. We were entertained, and the more I thought about it, the more I liked it.

Book: I couldn't really get the story out of my head for a few days, so yesterday I sat down (all day) and read the first Twilight book. Now, my history with books usually results in serious neglect, and though I managed to feed and dress my children and myself, and wash a batch of laundry, my house was in shambles by nightfall. I did not want to put it down. So I figured I'd just finish it and be done with it. I really really liked the book. I liked that Bella and Edward's relationship became more that just heaving bosoms and passion, like it was portrayed in the movie. The lack of meaningful conversation in the first half started to bug me, and I liked it more once they started being comfortable with each other and started teasing a bit. I liked Edward, not so much for his beauty and passion, but for his restraint. And Bella's lack of it kind drove me crazy. I loved the Cullens (particularly the parents), and Charlie. As much as I enjoyed it, I don't think I'll read the rest of the books. I'm completely satisfied with where it left off and I don't think I, or my home and family, could endure my book-reading techniques just so I could end up disappointed. Besides, if I'm going to neglect home and family, I definitely prefer Elizabeth Bennett in her right mind than Bella Swan all fueled up on teenage passion and drama.

Well, now its back to mommy-life. I think it missed me!

The Golden Compass

So, I am not much of a movie critic. Most of the time I come away from a movie thinking at least "I guess it was alright." Tonight we watched TGC for the first time and I did not think that.

After 45 minutes I was seriously tempted to turn it off - if you know me that's saying something. I always have to finish a movie. There were about 1,000,000 bits of information that seemed useless to the story and they were not coming together. The end started to come together a little bit but it was THE END. Basically, the whole thing felt kind of choppy and there were these crazy things going on with absolutely no framework for it all to fall into.

Am I crazy? No. I am interested to hear what you thought of this movie if you saw it.

my little conversationalist

(she was making a grumpy face for the camara)

I've become aware recently of how well my little 2 1/2 year old talks. We had the following conversation this morning:

Me: Do you want to help me vacuum your bedroom?

Ana: No, I want to do it by myself.
Me: By yourself? What will Mommy do while you are vacuuming?
Ana: You hold Baby Jack so he doesn't cry.

Last night she spent quite a while "fixing" Dave's and my hair. After she got done with mine, she looked at me with a smile, gave me a big hug and said, "Your hair is beautiful, Mama!"

I have always liked this valentine card. (Click on pic for more info)

And here is one that's a little more personal. I made it just for you. It comes from my exclusive Paint collection.

happy v-day!

My sister-in-law is a part of a home school group and yesterday I hosted a valentine's party for the preschool/kindergarten aged kids in her group. It was a lot of fun! We did sugar cookies, a game, exchanged valentines and then visited with the mom's while the kids played. It was low-key, but I had a good time doing it. I am really interested in homeschooling Ana, especially for her first few years.

Most years, Dave and I haven't really done much for V-day. Our first one, we just went out for milk shakes, and since then we've usually gone out to eat or something like that. But this year, I'm totally feeling the Spirit. I've been leaving Dave a valentine every day this week, and its been fun to try to think of little things he would enjoy. This morning I made pink, heart-shaped (or more like blob shaped) pancakes. Last night Dave and I had a nice night in, and tonight we're going out with some friends. Its been a really fun time for me.


Now, I just want to say that I LOVE my husband! I think he's handsome, smart and sensitive. He works hard so I can stay home, he fulfills his church callings, even when inconvenient, he reads his scriptures and prays, and strives to be led by the Spirit. He is such a good Dad and I know that he loves us all so much. Thanks, Dave for all you are! Happy Valentine's Day.

p.s. I really liked my wedding dress. I wish I could wear it more than once!

I should probably tell you...

I have been invited for an interview on March 12 at UW. I am pretty excited and I want to prepare like CRAZY to do all I can to make them love me and such. I am not dead yet for this application cycle...

Either way, don't forget to download the Mix from the previous post. If you want to. It's just right down there.

Feb Mix - Rainy Day

Receiving the rejection from U of U (See previous post) is what gave me the idea for this mix. Here is the artwork for it, as always made in the high-tech Microsoft Paint program:

To download the mix click here.

I won't go through the whole tracklist here. There are 12 tracks with the high point being a song from Jens Lekman that I got for free from his website a while ago. And, what would a rainy day mix be without a song from The Cure. It is the last song of the mix because it is really long. I guess you will just have to try it to see. Really, I'm not depressed, just going with a theme here.

Let me know if you download it or if there are any problems. It's my first time. Also, it should be all set up to work in itunes after you download the file and unzip it. Like I said, let me know if there are any questions.

Rejection

I got a letter from U of U last Friday (6th) that said I was rejected. It used nicer words but felt the same. I was very happy with my interview and thought I had done all the things they would like most. I am left wondering if I said dumb stuff in the interview and didn't know it or what. There are a lot of other well qualified applicants as well. Either way it was an emotional shock for Friday night and Saturday. Yesterday was pretty good and I was mostly back to normal nerves-wise today. We were finally confronted with the idea of applying again and waiting another year before getting in. I'll be old. There is definitely a lot to think about.

UW still has more Idaho interview dates in March than they did in January. Hopefully I will get to interview there and have another good chance this year. I could still get interviews at a couple other places. I will be kind of surprised if I get interviews anywhere else besides UW but it is possible.

productive

Its 2:00 and I:

*did yoga
*made breakfast
*cleaned and vacuumed both bedrooms
*cleaned off/organized my sewing desk
*cleaned kitchen
*made lunch
*showered and got ready.

Why so productive today? Dave's been on the computer all morning...

the reason i wanted to have children

to help with chores!
No really, she begged for a turn. I might as well take advantage, right?

Feeling a little bummed today. Dave got his first med school rejection in the mail last night. We moved to Rupert last April with such high hopes. He had a great job lined up, we were going to buy a Suburban, and live it up before getting into med school. Things have not quite worked out like we hoped. He ended up going with a different job that paid quite a bit less, we haven't been able to afford a second car, and his work hours are such to significantly limit the "living it up." He's working a 10 hour day today.

But, we're drawing closer to each other in our trials, and that is the most important thing. The Lord still has blessed us despite the challenges and frustrations that have come. I really shouldn't complain.

But today I'm feeling a little bummed.

home town

I've been in my hometown for the last few days. I went to my friend's wedding on Saturday night, then stayed until today. It was a good break.

*Went to the wedding with a couple girl friends. We go way back. The wedding was beautiful. It was lots of fun.

*My sister drove an hour to meet me there. Karianne and I chat a few days a week and it was so good to see her and her kids. Love you, sis!

*Spent an afternoon catching up with a few more girl friends from high school. We went to the playland at the mall and then chatted over breadsticks.

*Made a card table tent/house with my mom. Ana likes it. We just got the basic tent made and now I'm going to embellish it a little. Pictures to come.

*Saw a friend from college who I haven't seen in a few years. Ashley and I were instant friends when we met in 2004, and she just got back from her mission. I haven't seen her since Ana was a baby. Time sure does fly.

It was a fun trip, though I wish I could've seen/talked to more friends. I was having so much fun, I forgot to take pictures. Its good to be home, though. Jack has been completely happy since we got home an hour ago. Ana, too. And we all missed Dave.