Small & Simple

Has it really been

2012-01-07T23:06:00.003-05:00

5 months since my last post? I guess so. I sorta lost my purpose in having this blog. Sure, it helps me connect (a little one-sided) with friends and family from a distance. Sure, it gives me a sense of being by announcing my doings, thoughts, feelings, and life to anyone. Sure, it will make a decent family photo journal if I ever get around to Blurb it.

Although each of those has been a reason and a purpose in the past, I've lost a little of that purpose recently. So until I find it again, I will probably post randomly and sporadically. And those who really care the most to follow my insignificant life will keep reading...I love you and appreciate each of you who takes the time out of your busy lives to reconnect with me and my busy-ness.

There you have it...me being transparent about my blog.

Colden, Dylan, Timmy (cousin), and Evelynn sporting the capes Auntie Sarah made them.
December 31, 2011, in Burney, CA.

Super Spencer!!

And while I'm at it...being honest with myself and others...I'm going to share my goals for 2012. I haven't thought them through yet, so we'll see what I come up with.

1. Be better at following through with things I say I'll do. I'll admit it. Sometimes I'm a flake. It's awful, really, to be a flake. The thing is I'll be really committed and driven to do things that are really important to me. But I'll be a bit flakey about other things. It does bother me, and I'm sure my flakiness has bothered other people...especially those who I've flaked out on. So I'll try to be better about understanding something before I commit and sticking it out to the end once I do commit. And anyone is welcome to call me out on it. I'll appreciate the "reminder."

Colden & Dylan playing with the Bubble Wall at the Exploratorium in San Francisco.
December 28, 2011

2. Be a better leader for the children in my congregation. I've been Primary President for 1 1/2 years...and I totally can provide better leadership, especially to the Cub Scout program (so far, I've been really good at delegating that!). I'm learning A LOT about good, effective leadership. Sometimes, trusting others (delegating) is the best way to go. But other times, it is best to be more involved so the people you lead realize that what they are doing is important to you.

3. Be a better wife and mother. I'm always working on those things. Those are most important to me...but I sure can improve a lot.

The handsomest big guy and little guy in the world. I'm so blessed!
December 25, 2011

4. Be a better person and friend. I'm reading Dale Carnegie's book, "How to Win Friends and Influence People." I hope it will be a life-changing book and help me have better relationships with people. Even though it's not a religious book, it's very Christ-like in that he essentially says that we need to focus on others more instead of ourselves. Dale studied successful people throughout the ages...which helped him come to his conclusions that he wrote about.

5. This is related to #1. Follow through better with the promptings the Spirit gives me. I think the number one person I flake out on is God. I've felt Him encouraging me to grow and stretch myself a lot over the last few years (or shall I say my life?). I'm starting to get complacent with the little bit of growth I've done in the last year...but I know He wants me to go further. The best thing about God is that although He knows our potential and expects so much out of us, He lets us grow at our own pace. I just know that He would like me to pick up the pace a little...but I also feel like He's not going to push me like He has done in the past. He wants me to want to do it. So I need to do the things He has asked me to do and not flake out on Him.

So Much Love

2011-08-19T00:55:00.003-05:00

As the 4th kid, Spencer gets all kinds of attention from everyone. Oh, he is adored! So, he doesn't have very many pictures of him and only him. But it sure makes me happy to see all that lovin!

8 days old

4 days old with Nana
Nana also gave him his first bath, and he cried the whole time!

2 weeks old...everyone can't get enough of him!

3 weeks old with Grandma Ruth

First smile caught on camera! One month!

2 months old! So big already!

3 1/2 months old...now he loves his baths!

3 1/2 months old...my buddy and me!

My little royal bunch...July 11. Aren't they so precious?

Time Flies!

2011-08-12T00:34:00.002-05:00

Towards the end of our Phoenix Zoo trip on July 22, Spencer wasn't particularly enjoying the heat nor the stroller...but I just love a little crying photo!
Spencer at 3 months:
He weighed about 13 lbs. He's generally a really great baby...he only cries when he's tired or hungry or lonely (aka not being held). He sleeps well and eats well (wakes up about once a night now)...and he's all smiles! He doesn't like to sit much or lay down because he prefers to stand, with help. I just love everything about him! And now that I KNOW how fast the time flies, I just try to scoop up all his baby deliciousness whenever I can. We love to coo at each other and just stare in each others' eyes. He just adores everyone in his family. He's pretty good in his car seat as long as he has his brothers making faces at him from the back seat. If they're not there, he's not so happy. Just last Sunday, he was given a name and a blessing by his incredible daddy. (Pictures and more about that later.)

It was really difficult for me to gear up for my 4th pregnancy. I was finally getting my body in shape and I was happy to have kept a decent figure for about a year. I was enjoying a mind that could actually think straight and a household that was running decently. I still had a lot of marketing to do for Rob's business (still do) and I just had accepted a leadership calling in our ward (still have it, although I keep submitting my own name for other callings...the Bishop just isn't getting the hint). I was gearing up for our first official homeschool year. Life was busy (still is). But I just knew it was time to bring another little spirit into our family.
It took awhile, but I had to turn my thoughts around. Instead of thinking of pregnancy and the "4th trimester" of recovery as a wasted year of my life, I started to look at it as a sacrifice for something more valuable than a year of my life...a child. Also, this is the time of my life when I can bear children. Even if it's not convenient, once I'm older, I just won't have the option anymore. My shape will come and go, Rob's business is only until retirement, but creating another life is everlasting. It's eternal. And being sealed, I pray that our family will always be together. It was thoughts and realizations like those that helped me gear up for being pregnant again.

The pregnancy, like always, was not fun. And not just for me (you know...when momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy). But, and I knew this would happen, once he came into our lives, I couldn't imagine our family without him. We all adore our little Spencer! A little Colden look-alike. I'm excited to be his mom and to take a front seat in watching him grow and--become.

Look who's 3!!

2011-08-12T00:00:00.002-05:00

I can't believe how quickly my baby girl is growing up!
Well, having another baby really makes my other babies so much bigger.
{sigh}

For Evelynn's birthday, we made birthday pancakes since our waffle iron broke.
After church, we shared a pizza dinner and birthday cake at her cousins' house.
She wanted a purple guitar cake...and I was able to deliver!
On Monday, she requested that we go bowling.
We got there late and bowled until way-past bedtime, but she had a blast!
I tried to upload a video of her darling dancing, but it didn't work.

My dear Evelynn:
I sure love my little girl! I love your energy, your smile, your spunky choice of style. When you look up at me with your beautiful eyes, my heart just melts.
You're 3! Every day is an adventure! You love Kung Fu, hiking, your brothers, teasing your brothers, but not being teased, your new bike, taking baths at least every day, swimming, doing things all by yourself, setting the table, helping me with my chores (sometimes), Nursery, "school" on the computer, drawing, stickers, shopping (that's my girl), baking, friends, running, jumping, screaming, watering the garden, music, dancing, reading books...anything!
One of my favorite things about you is how much you just love LIFE and how much you love being YOU. Just by being you, you bring so much joy to other people. So many people tell me how much they enjoy being with you. And strangers are always telling me how darling you are. It's in your bright eyes, your ready smile, your little energetic body.
Keep smiling, sweetie. I love you!
Mom

Bliss

2011-04-26T21:00:00.003-05:00

Sitting here with my newborn asleep in my arms, listening to I'm Yours.
It's a lovely way to spend an evening.

Randomness of 2011, Thus Far

2011-04-10T23:37:00.003-05:00

Isn't it awesome to see those days tick down? I've been having Braxton Hicks contractions a lot lately. Keep working...let's get this baby here soon! I'm so ready to be done! (Well, I guess we still need to pick out a name and I haven't packed my hospital bag yet...) I was just looking at Evelynn's birth pictures and thought that it would have been a great April Fool's joke to post one of her on here...too bad I'm 10 days late on that one! But here is a look back in time...I just love how gentle and full of love Colden and Dylan are with their brand new sister. I can't wait to see that love in my family again! (They've been getting out of control a little lately....)

My Aunt Rae and Uncle Richard visited us in February. It was fun just catching up with them, and it made us feel special that they took a day just to see us! They're great!

Colden lost his first tooth on February 13th. What a happy kid!

The boys made twin snowmen during one of our few snow storms (we just had another snowstorm just yesterday...in April!)

Rob ran the Ragnar Relay in February. It's close to a 200 mile race with 16? people on the team who take turns running legs of the race. As a team, they literally ran around the clock! We met up with him in Phoenix at the start of one of his legs...then we missed him at the finish line! (Ikea shopping just took a little more time than anticipated...like always?) He ran with a group that had a lot of couples in it. It looked like a lot of fun to do, so I'm hoping to get in shape after this baby comes and join him next year! It's a goal!

Colden's new pet..."Beardie"...his bearded dragon. (He bought it at the end of January.)

Now look how big it's getting! He really loves this pet and takes good care of him. Sometimes he tires of the responsibility, but then he'll hold him and play with him and just exclaim with joy how much he loves the little creature. I'll admit, even though it's a lizard, it's really cute. The only downside is having to also keep live crickets for food.

Remember When

2011-03-23T00:19:00.001-05:00

For the future Blurb book:

These are memories from when I lived in Moab:
I remember when my sister and I were really young, like 3-6, she would have us sing in ward talent shows and one time at the city park. We sang the Rainbow song and Horsey, Horsey. We also sang a couple of years for the 4th of July at the Stake Center.
I remember that our cat had kittens the night I had a sleep over party for my 8th birthday. My friend remembers that when I went to turn on the TV in the morning, my nightgown was caught in my underwear.
I remember playing in our backyard sandbox for hours (it seemed like it) building tunnels and towers.
We also used our grape vine as a club house.
I remember jumping over our neighbor's fence one time and being surprised that I could do it.
I remember climbing the big oak trees in front of our house.
The oak trees also made the side-walk uneven, so that made a great jump for bike riding.
I remember having a pool pass one summer and riding our bikes down to the pool almost every afternoon to go swimming.
My sister's friend, Heather, had an awesome play house in their back yard. Their dad built it and it even had 2 levels. This same friend also had almost every Barbie ever known and her sister had a My Little Ponies collection like you've never seen. We loved playing over there.
Our next-door neighbors had twins (boy/girl) just a year younger than me. We were almost always playing together. Usually we played house. The twin girl and I were the teenage daughters, my sister was the mom, the twin boy was the dad, and my little brother was the son. The twin boy was always a cop...his dad was a Highway Patrol Man and an EMS volunteer.
I remember one time, my neighbor (the cop) was at the scene of a semi truck accident. The truck was hauling wrapping paper and ribbon and gift wrapping. Somehow, my mom ended up with tons of that wrapping paper and ribbon that we used for years.
I remember my mom cutting hot dogs and bologna in half for our sandwiches, adding extra macaroni to the Mac n Cheese, reusing sandwich baggies and tin foil. My dad was without a job for 2 1/2 years, and somehow, my parents made it through that time...thanks to my mom's frugality and my dad getting consulting jobs once in a while. My mom traded babysitting and sewing recital costumes for dance lessons for my sister and me.

My Chore System

2011-03-10T21:29:00.003-05:00

I just wrote this in an email for one of Rob's staff who was wondering what I did for the kids' chores. And I figured I would share it with friends. Basically, I've found what works for me, and I would like to hear what you do, too.

My chore system.

It's really quite simple. And it's based on choices. My kids easily get bored with doing the same thing over and over, so I knew from the start that I couldn't just assign them chores. I also can't keep up with chore charts. I'm good about using them for about a week, then I forget to refer to them and, therefore, so do my kids. What I use are chore cards. One chore is written on each card. As I was setting them up, I divided them into different colors that represent what needs to be done daily, weekly (or less than daily but maybe a few times a week, like laundry), monthly, as needed (like wash and vacuum the van), and seasonally (like gardening, shoveling snow, taking out or putting away seasonal decor). I used colored index cards, which I cut in half so they could go farther.

I then thought about my day and the chores that need to be done daily, weekly, monthly, etc and wrote them out on the cards. I also broke them down so they could be handled in portions (including the parts my kids prefer), like a 4 year old could do part of the breakfast cleanup or gather the laundry or sort the laundry. That was based on what I feel like I can delegate (some chores I feel like I should be the one doing them, you know, until my kids are older and responsible enough to handle them).

That's it. And it's really easy to implement...even when I don't feel like doing much. When Rob's home, I can just have the cards sitting on the table and let him know I need help and he can choose what to do, too. In the morning, preferably during breakfast, I go through the stack and decide what needs to be done. I only require my kids to do one job, extra jobs they can earn extra money for (I'm cheap...$.10/job, unless it's a big one, then $.25...they're still young!). On bigger job days, I will require them to do two or three. Often, I find that if I pull out a monthly one, they jump for the chance to do it since it's more fun (like washing/vacuuming the car). They have personal responsibilities that are not included in the chore cards...like making their beds, cleaning up their bowls and plates after meals, picking up their toys and messes, and my 6yo's daily chore is to take care of his lizard.

Also, since they are young, I consider them "in training" for most of the chores. I let my kids clean toilets and wash sinks and lots of other things that they aren't fully capable of, but I'm right there with them and "making sure" it's done right. When they are able to do the chore competently and independently, I let them take over the chore completely. And that's awesome.

On a separate level, I have set up a "Life Skills" notebook for my boys. I got the idea from a book called "The Parenting Breakthrough" (Or Breakthrough Parenting?) where the mom writes about how she implemented a chore and allowance and savings system for her 4 boys while they grew up...to teach them the importance of work and the value of money. She has an age-based break-down of what kinds of chores and skills are good for age groups. And she would go through a process of introducing a chore to the child, training them, then letting them master it. With this in mind, I decided to create a Life Skills notebook that tracks my kids' progress of the things they learn and are able to do. They can also make personal goals and work towards those goals. This goes beyond the chore card system, but it's nice for them and me to see how they are progressing in Life Skills. Also, since I'm pregnant, I haven't been diligent about it. But once about every 3 months, we do pull them out to see what the kids have learned just by living life. And there is always something they can pass off.

Inspired

2011-03-03T23:49:00.004-05:00

My sister just completed her first Blurb book from 3 years worth of her blog. And that's something I eventually plan on doing, so I really ought to catch up a little on the little bit of exciting stuff we are actually doing.

At the end of January, we decided to take advantage of the good weather and one of Rob's days off and we went to the Verdy Valley, 1 hour west of us, to take a scenic drive and see Montezuma's Well. On the way, we stopped at a picnic area for lunch and...hide-and-seek.

The Well, which I didn't get a picture of, is a natural sink hole filled in with water that Indians used as a water source about 1000 years ago. Evelynn is standing in front of a dwelling...that doorway is seriously just a few inches taller than her! I'm soo glad we don't have to stoop to get into our home!
While we were there, the kids decided that they also wanted to visit Montezuma's Castle instead of go on the drive. So we obliged.

The Castle is an ancient Indian dwelling built in the side of a cliff...much like Mesa Verde in SW Colorado.

We picked up a couple of Junior Ranger packets so the boys (and we) could learn more about the Natives who lived there. They filled out the whole thing and earned a couple of badges. Dylan still proudly wears his when he happens upon it.

Family Core Phase

2011-01-31T19:14:00.002-05:00

A little background: what's a Core phase? In the educational philosophy I have chosen to rear my children, they go through what is called a "core phase." Basically, it's a foundational phase where they develop a strong sense of who they are, and they learn the basics of moral principles as they learn what is right/wrong, good/bad, choices/consequences, and the power they have to make choices based on the outcomes they hope for (so they aren't victims of circumstance, but hopefully leaders of their own destiny).

Anyway, as they are going through their Core phase, it feels like I've been going through a Family core phase. The books and subjects I'm drawn to read mostly help me build the foundations I want my family and household to have in order to be successful, in order to have order, in order to have a learning environment, etc.

For example, I go through spurts in which I can't read enough about these subjects (and I accept blog stocking as acceptable real-time and real-life examples of women/families applying these subjects):

Types of education, including different methods of homeschooling, learning, learning philosophies, learning styles

Home management: chore systems, laundry tips, time-saving tips, finances/budgets, couponing

Organization in the home, time management, schedules, etc

Developing talents (aka, home decor, crafting, sewing, cooking, etc)

Child-rearing: philosophies, tips, discipline techniques, etc

Are there other mothers out there who do or have done the same thing?

I look up to so many mothers who are a little or a lot further along in their role as mother, and I can't help but think that they also went through a Family Core phase...and step by step, I'm bringing myself and my family where I hope we can be someday.

I would love to hear your own adventures and thoughts of how you feel like you're growing as a mother/homemaker.

My Wonderful Kids

2011-01-19T23:47:00.003-05:00

Here are a few darling things my kids have been up to lately:

Today, Colden's new lizard, Iggy, died (we brought her home only 2 weeks ago). She was a green anole, also known as an American Chameleon (since she changes colors). While I was working on emails and, frankly, on Facebook, he completely cleaned out the terrarium all by himself! He washed the plastic leaves, the rocks, the branch, the water bowl, and dug out the dirt. He wants to prepare the terrarium for a new lizard that he'll get tomorrow. He's been so responsible with taking care of his lizard. He fed it crickets and mealworms, sprayed the tank, turned on the lights in the morning, cleaned out her water bowl, cleaned out her poop. The reason why she died is more due to all of us not knowing what to do. We've learned from our mistakes...so this shouldn't happen again.

After she died, I asked him how he felt, and he said, "I'm scared." He really handled it well. I'm so proud of him! Rob and I decided that he's ready for the Bearded Dragon that he originally saved his money for.

For homeschool, I created a Math Chart for Colden and Dylan to encourage them to do math activities. When they complete everything on their chart, Rob or I will take them out for ice cream. They are so motivated to do this!! This morning, even before I was done eating my breakfast, Dylan was writing some numbers. And he was using an old cell phone for the numbers! He would look at the number on the number pad then write down the number on a piece of paper! He cracks me up! He's also learning how to read. And when he's ready to sit down to do a reading lesson, he'll keep going until we complete about 4 or 5 reading lessons! That kid has some perseverance!

Evelynn is in that fun stage where everything she does is just cute. Except scream at her brothers when they tease her too much. Or write on walls with markers or make disastrous messes when she's bored. Whenever she goes to bed, she has to give "huggies" to everyone. She'll climb up Colden's bunk just to give him a hug. And if any of her favorite stuffed dolls/animals are around, she'll give them a kiss on the face and hug them before I put them on the high shelf in her closet (otherwise she wouldn't go to sleep because she would just play with them).
And she loves to pick out her own clothes. I really have no say in it anymore.

They are all excited for their baby brother to come in a few months. They keep talking about when I'll go to the hospital to have the baby. I sure love my little bunch!

THE Mom

2011-01-06T23:48:00.002-05:00

Every once in awhile, Rob and I have a conversation where we discuss my lack of passion in something...like a hobby or a sport or an occupation...you know, that one thing that you do because you love and it's your escape. The last time we had that conversation a couple of weeks ago, I told him that my passion was my family. And my other passion is the Gospel. And outside of that, I'm kind of like a Jane of All Crafts. But I totally look up to many moms who are in my family and among my friends who have passions...and they always inspire me to try something new.

Moms I look up to:

The Always-On-Top-of-It Mom
The Do-It-Yourself Mom
The Crafty Moms...from the Painting Mom to the Scrapbooking Mom to the Sewing Mom
The Organized Mom
The Clean-House Mom
The Always-Cheerful Mom
The Totally-fit Mom
The Photographer Mom
The Working-at-her-Dream-Job-and-Amazingly-Successful Mom
The Coupon Mom
The Mom Chef
The Political Mom
The Serving Mom

So, thank you, all of you who I look up to who inspire me.

2011 New Year's Resolution

2011-01-06T23:38:00.002-05:00

I've been reading New Year's goals all over the place, and honestly, I haven't given mine much thought about it this year. Until now.

My New Year's Goal for 2011:

To Survive

Anything else on top of that will be a fulfillment beyond my wildest dreams. Sure, I hope to organize my house more. Well, I would actually like to stay on top of my cleaning schedule even just for a week. Sure, I hope to stay on top of everything in Primary (so far, my attempts at that have failed...like trying to get to church on Sunday 45 minutes early so we could have the teachers' binders all ready for them for the new year, but just before I left in Rob's car, I mentioned how we should try to start the van...and the battery was worn down...and it took about 30 minutes to charge up...). Sure, I hope to enrich my mind by reading lots and learning lots (but I've got mushy pregnancy brain right now and I'll have mushy newborn mommy brain from May until...). Sure, I hope to inspire my kids to learn lots and maybe even have some more structure. Sure, I hope to market Rob's business so it's successful beyond our wildest dreams. Sure, I would love to make something crafty once in a while.

But we'll see. At least I can plan on surviving the year. So that's what I'll do.

Happy New Year, everyone! (Someday, I'll finish my posts about 2010 photo review.)

2010 Photo Journal Part 1

2010-12-24T21:54:00.008-05:00

I figured that while I'm waiting for the kids to actually fall asleep so Santa can visit our house, I might as well follow up on my promise...

January hike to ancient ruins less than 5 miles from our house. I just LOVE the weather here!

April camping trip in Oak Creek Canyon near Sedona. That was the first time we have driven through Sedona and, let me tell you, we're so glad that we live so close! It's beautiful there!

April hike up to Thumb Butte, local high point. Evelynn hiked most of the 1.75 mile up/down hill hike on her own! In her own style...in flip flops! What a trooper!

Dying and decorating eggs in preparation for Easter.

Even though the Prescott zoo doesn't compare to the St. Louis Zoo, we go there just as often! Occasionally, we take some of the cousins with us...Camille, Jared, and/or Jackson.

Quick weekend trip to San Diego in May. While Rob worked, the kids and I played. We played at the beach (of course) and at the zoo with my first ever best friend, Erynn. This is a picture of the boys and Erynn on the sky mover at the zoo. She was also amazing enough to watch the kids while we went on a date. You would never guess what we did...we went on a run together! We ran around Balboa Park, changed our clothes in the van, then headed to an amazing place for dessert, Extraordinary Desserts. Those desserts not only looked gourmet, they tasted gourmet!
Colden's pre-school graduation (his 3rd...and probably the only one who will "graduate" from pre-school since I haven't done that with any of my other kids...).

Drive through Monument Valley on our way home from Moab, UT. We met my parents and siblings in Moab on Memorial Day weekend for a camping trip, and of course, lots of hiking!

Our new little niece/cousin, Chloe Smith, was born in June!

Colden and Dylan observing and playing with the sea creatures in the tidal pools near Los Osos, CA. We spent the 4th of July weekend with two of Rob's siblings, Joe and Sarah, and their families at Joe's place in central coast California. (Can you tell yet how much we love living closer to family...and closer to the beach?)
Angie at the beginning of her and Rob's anniversary hike up Mt Timpanogus! We made it to the top! And I barely made it back down!
My mom and sister, Missy, graciously watched our kids while we hiked Timp. They took them to the LDS Church museum for the day...the kids just loved being with their cousins!
Rob and Shawn in Yellowstone. We had a big-o Davis family reunion (almost all of my extended family from my Grandpa and Grandma Davis) at Island Park, ID in July. We went to Yellowstone for 2 days and spent each evening with the big family...we ate big family dinners and did family activities together. It was really fun to bond with cousins.
My favorite picture of Dylan this year. His hands are full of marshmallows, and he's probably getting ready to attack someone. He just looks like he's in heaven.

Cool!

2010-12-15T23:45:00.003-05:00

I just looked at my baby count-down calendar on my blog and realized I'm farther along than I thought. 21 weeks! I just thought I was at 20! That's fine by me!

Merry Christmas!!

2010-12-15T23:40:00.002-05:00

I've been intending to do a Year-in-Review post, but that will probably wait until after Christmas. So check back later for that...Since I'm only sending Christmas cards to immediate family this year, I hope most of my friends will take a moment to see what I'm sending to family...this...enjoy!

This year has been a crazy year. Starting a business from scratch, traveling (we love being "out West"...we've been to CA and UT several times, Yellowstone, and camping), expecting baby #4 (a boy!), and homeschooling.

We sure have experienced lots of ups and downs. But the Lord has seen us through each down...and when we are down, He helps us look UP so we don't feel hopeless.

We've been blessed with great health, sane minds (usually) amidst the insanity, answers to prayers, and a wonderfully supportive family (yes, all of you!). And we've learned this crazy but true principle about life...when you are going through something tough, you grow and become better (but as I say, it doesn't make it any easier!).

We're looking forward to 2011 with a new addition to our family and more steadiness in Rob's business...and hopefully, less craziness. (Wishful thinking...)
We miss/are thinking of you this holiday season. We wish you the best!

With lots of love,
Rob, Angie, Colden, Dylan, Evelynn, and ? Patterson

Random Thoughts

2010-11-06T22:15:00.002-05:00

1. One of the hardest things about pregnancy is losing me. Where did I go? Who is this lazy lady? Why do I cry all the time? Why can't I get anything done (duh, the lazy lady took over)? Seriously, where did I go?

2. Looking forward to an ultrasound in 2 weeks! Hopefully I'll be far enough along to determine the gender. (I'm hoping for a girl, Rob could never have enough boys!)

3. Next weekend, Rob and I are taking a quick trip to Dallas for an all day meeting on Friday (why do we hardly ever take a trip with just the two of us just for fun?). I'm so glad my aunt and uncle are excited to see us and let us stay with them...we're hoping to meet up with Rob's sister, too. My mom is graciously coming down to watch our kids. She's the best!

4. Thanksgiving with Rob's parents in Northern California! I love spending foody holidays with them.

5. About once a week, my kids ask, "Can we go to Nana's house today?" (Nana is my mom...she kept many of our toys from growing up so they just love going there.)

Might as well...

2010-10-05T22:59:00.002-05:00

let everyone know that we're expecting! Our little baby is due April 27. The kids are way excited that "Mommy has a baby in her tummy." Even Evelynn understands what's going on!

We're excited to bring another little one into our family...but, honestly, not very excited to be going through the whole pregnancy thing again. bleh. The hardest things in life are worth it, right? And life goes on.

Enlisted

2010-09-13T00:00:00.003-05:00

Date: August 21, 2010

Location: Patterson Residence

Goal: Be All That You Can Be

Step 1: Enlist in the Army, by invitation only, SIR!

Step 2: Complete Boot Camp. Respect your Superiors! Get fit! The Army doesn't take sissy's! Step 3: Obstacle Course: Run through obstacles, crawl under a rope, grab a grenade and throw it before it blows, scale a wall, tag a teammate.
Step 4: Complete your Mission: prepare for the surprise attack with some camouflage face painting and head gear. Decode the messages that take you to your next phase in the mission. Then destroy the evidence. We don't want the enemy to be following us and to sneak up from behind.

Locate the Weapons Cache.

Go for the prize: attack the enemy, distract her, and get into the house for some cake and ice cream.

So, twice, now, I've tried to post a sweet video of the kids attacking me to get their cake. And twice now, it has been an Error. So, no video. Sorry!

If Money Brings One Happiness...

2010-09-06T23:33:00.002-05:00

Then I should be miserable!!

But, oddly, I'm not. Okay, so I do stress out about it once in a while. But it's not making me miserable.

Now why am I blogging about this? Because I'm learning so much right now about faith, family, being frugal, hard work...all because our finances are extremely tight. And I can't just keep these lessons I'm learning to myself...I've got to share them.

Now, as a side note so no one freaks out for us, Rob's business is doing well and it's growing. Maybe a little slower than originally anticipated, but we've seen two months of solid growth and we can only hope it continues. We just need to see a lot more growth before the revenue catches up with the expenses...and when you own your own business, you often put money that you don't have back into your business because you know that will give off the dividends later.

And that brings me to one of the greatest lessons I have learned. Faith in the "later." Hope in the future. So many times in the past few months, I have sat down to pay our bills and looked at our dwindling accounts and thought...we have X amount of months/weeks before we run out. And I freak out. Then I study my scriptures, pray, or go to the temple, and I'm reminded of the assurances the Lord has given us over and over and over again...that He will take care of us. He will make sure we have what we need. And, you know what? He has. The loan that we thought would never go through finally goes through just in the nick of time. And other things like that have kept us on our feet.

But why has God blessed us so? All I can say is that I know that the principles of paying an honest tithing and a generous fast offering are based on truth.

Malachi 8:10 says it best: "10 Bring ye all the ^atithes into the storehouse, that there may be ^bmeat in my house; and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of Hosts, if I will not open you the ^cwindows of heaven, and pour you out a ^dblessing that there shall not be room enough to receive it."

We're still waiting for there to "not be room enough to receive it"...but at the very least, God has not forgotten us and He is making sure we have our necessities covered...and then a little more. But one blessing that we have received abundantly is one of happiness. Sure we are stressed out and busy and worry. But we are happy. So often the Lord takes away our worries and stresses long enough for us to enjoy life, enjoy being here, enjoy being together, enjoy an outing. And then the worries and the stresses are so much more bearable.

I always thought we were very frugal while Rob was going to school. But we have learned to be even more frugal (if that's possible!). We've been learning how to better get by with what we have instead of needing to get things new (in terms of clothing, decorating the house, supplies for my hobbies). It sure has stretched my creativity! One week I was itching to make some home improvements, but I knew I shouldn't go buy anything. So I found this great idea from a friend's blog, copied it on canvas I already had with paint I already had, and I made a free new wall hanging for my home!

I've also been trying really hard to tighten our food budget...that's been hard because we prefer some things that are more expensive like real butter...but I try to make more things from scratch...and it's sooo good when it's freshly made! And, frankly, our wish list just keeps growing and growing. But...hope in the future...someday...until then, we make do without.

And through all this, I have come to accept and almost embrace hard work as a means of happiness. When I was at my parent's home this summer, I spent some time weeding their backyard because I was enjoying myself. My mom thinks I'm so helpful, but I was really just having fun! (We're renting a home that is taken care of by professional landscapers, so I really just needed my yard work fix!) I have learned that when I feel blah or down, the best thing I can do is work on something, work for someone, work on homeschooling, work for the Primary, work on bringing more patients in to Rob's office. And it helps me feel better!

Okay...now tomorrow I have to pay the bills, so I might not be singing the same tune...

3 Week Vacation

2010-08-25T00:18:00.004-05:00

No...the vacation isn't over yet! It's not even half-way! Since my sister was married July 29, the kids and I stayed in Utah while Rob went home to work (good thing, too! He had a bunch of new patients in July!). We stayed with my sister for several days and stayed at my mom's for several days. While at my sister's, we just had to go to the dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point. All of the kids enjoyed looking at the dinosaurs, but they especially had fun playing with the water and "digging" for dinosaur bones. They just didn't want to leave, but the two little ones needed naps...and the Moms can only stand so much...
We also scrapbooked for two days. I brought my embellishments, cutter, stamps, etc, to work on my wedding album (yeah, it's still not done). But I forgot it at home! So I worked on my sister's wedding album instead (she wanted a scrapbook for her engagement and wedding photos to double as the reception sign-in book). And even though it had been a long time since I've scrapped, I was quite pleased with what I came up with! I ended up doing a few extra blank layouts to bring home with me.

The next day, my mom agreed to watch my kids for the afternoon while I went to visit my brother and his wife and see their wee newborn! (My kids couldn't come because there was a bug going around and my kids were definitely exposed.) It was the first time I had been to JJ's home. And I just really enjoyed the chance to bond with him, Kristy, baby Annie (I only held her for about an hour...), and their son, Justus. I also did my bit of "dinner for the new mom" by making them some of my famous stir fry, which they loved.

Then we stayed at my Mom's house for several days. I enjoyed just relaxing, spending a lot of time with the kids, and weeding their back yard (I know, I'm crazy, but I enjoy yard work!). The kids wanted to go in the Great Salt Lake, so off we went! Once you get past the gooey mud, the stink, and the bugs, it's really not bad. The kids had a blast playing in the water and catching Sea Monkeys (brine shrimp). They were literally everywhere! We only had a small water bottle, but I think we caught over 50. We brought them back to Nana's house and the kids enjoyed just watching them. They decided the big white ones were boys and the littler pink ones were girls (or was it the other way around?).

Colden and I went out far enough to float. And while I was telling him that he could "trust me" and float, his head went under water and he got a gulp of that super-salty water. Instantly, he was crying for his life and saying that his brain hurt. Not long after that, Dylan swallowed some water and started doing the same thing! Only Evelynn was cheerfully playing in the water at this point. The only fresh water we had was WAY up the beach (since you walk about 1/4 mile into the lake before it reaches your waist...and the dry non-buggy sand is about 1/8 mile away from the shore). So I booked it as well as I could to get to the fresh water bottles, all the while listening to my boys scream for their lives. Almost as soon as I arrived to the water, their cries subsided. I asked them how they felt, and they said better. grrrrr.

Oh, well. At least they'll never do that again!

A day or two later, I visited one of my favorite cousins, Treasure. I lived with her for a summer after high school, so we really enjoyed catching up. Colden and Dylan had so much fun at her place...especially seeing how many pets she has...dogs, rats, parakeets, parrot, fish. I just love how I feel when I'm around her...she's so full of love!

Big-O Davis Family Reunion

2010-08-24T23:52:00.005-05:00

Two days after we hiked Timp, we headed up to Island Park, ID, for a huge Davis family reunion. Most of my Grandma Davis' descendants came to this reunion, and it sure was fun! We (mostly I) had a great time catching up with cousins that I hadn't seen for years. We stayed up late one night playing games with some of the cousins close to my age. I also had a bunch of fun playing Nertz with my youngest cousins who are just starting college or in High School. They made me feel young and cool again. :) The kids played with hosts of 1st and 2nd cousins.

We were also close enough to go to Yellowstone for two of the days. The first day, we hiked around by the Waterfalls. We hiked down to just above the lower falls and it was amazing to be so close to all of that powerful water crashing over the rocks.
We drove around the upper loop (and were amazed at how a couple of stops took up our WHOLE day...Yellowstone is huge!) and ended up at Mammoth Springs.

We saw a herd of elk, some bison, bald eagles, and beautiful landscape everywhere. The next day, we stopped at Old Faithful and saw some other amazing geysers. Later that night, the kids, along with their cousins, found some balloons and kept filling them with water and letting them spout and calling them "geysers."

That night, as part of the reunion, our huge family accomplished something that I thought would be impossible...with all the little kids...a live family tree made out of rolls of butcher paper for the trunk and branches and all the people in their appropriate branch. My Aunt Marilyn can pull anything off!

My single sister made sure to add an extra leaf to her branch.

(Our camera's battery was dead, so all of these photos are courtesy of my sister's blog, who is also an awesome photographer! Missy...do you have any more photos you could email me? Especially ones with us in them? I need to ask Mom that, too, since we borrowed her camera.)

8 Years!

2010-08-01T23:53:00.004-05:00

Due to an "unfortunate" misunderstanding as to when my big-o Davis family reunion (more about that later) would start (for some reason, I thought it was starting on Wed when it started on Thurs), Rob ended up taking work off of every day during the 2nd week of July. So we planned an impromptu Anniversary excursion...and did something that Rob didn't think I could do. We drove up to Utah on Monday (do you see a pattern here? can you go on too many vacations?) and had 2 full days to kill before we needed to head up to Island Park, ID, for the family reunion. Luckily, my mom was willing to rearrange her schedule and watch our kids so we could go on our first-ever-since-we've-had-kids anniversary get-away! We were so excited!

I talked Rob into hiking Mt. Timpanogos. Well, I didn't have to talk him into hiking it, I just had to talk him into believing that I could do it (and that I wouldn't complain about my pain afterwards)! It was an amazing hike and a wonderful experience. It is personally empowering to do something physically difficult...and, oddly, it helps me tackle other difficult things in life with more optimism. Anyway, enough philosophy. Check out these beautiful pictures!

Yes, that is Rob cooling off in a lake fed by glacier run-off. (He brought a pair of swimming trunks for this...the lake he was intending to swim in still had a glacier in it!)

On top of the world!

We hiked through multiple streams, over snow, through mountain meadows, over rock slides, and constantly up, up, up.

At this point, the summit actually seems close and attainable!

We definitely hiked it during the best time of the year. The meadows were covered with wild flowers. This is one of a dozen beautiful flower pictures Rob took on the hike.

In 5 1/2 hours, we reached the summit of Mt. Timpanogos. Rob was quite amazed at that. And then he thought we would get down in 1/2 that time...since it's always easier to go down than up! But I was afraid of injuring my joints (knees or ankles), so I went down slowly...and by then I was exhausted. So the last two miles were probably excruciatingly slow for Rob (at least he didn't complain!). We finally drove into Heber City about 6:30 pm...hungry and tired. We luckily were able to book a stay at a really nice bed and breakfast. That jacuzzi hot tub did wonders for my sore legs! And it was so nice to stay in a nice place, just the two of us.

4th of July Weekend at Uncle Joe's

2010-08-01T23:00:00.005-05:00

The day after Rob returned home from Scout Camp, we took off for the tiny town of Santa Margarita, CA (near San Luis Obispo), to spend the 4th of July weekend with 2 of Rob's siblings and their families. Uncle Joe and Aunt Stephanie live on a great piece of property with all kinds of fruit trees, a big yard, a hot tub, and lots of other cool things that little kids enjoy.

On Friday night, Joe kindly stayed back after the kids went to bed while the rest of us went running or on a bike ride. On Saturday morning, Sarah helped push me into running twice as far as I originally intended...that was awesome. After we all exercised, we headed over to some tide pools near Los Osos. All the kids (and kids at heart) enjoyed looking for the little marine animals left behind in the cracks of the rocks.

Colden and Dylan touching a sea anemone.

Rob and Sarah headed off to another sections of rocks to see if they could find anything different. They found some fist-sized crabs and other cool things.

I just had to take a pic of this cute scene! Dylan and his cousin, Timmy, were holding hands on the hike back to the car!

Later that afternoon, we went surfing at a beach in Morro Bay. Steph let me borrow a wet suit and I actually got to surf! Well, I caught a few waves and got up on my knees. But when I tried to stand, I always fell (the one time I tried...I think I need to practice skate boarding more to work on my board balance). Rob surfed a bunch of waves. Sarah was in the water and surfing before we set our towels on the beach. Brian also surfed a bunch. Joe surfed and surfed and surfed and just didn't stop! When I couldn't surf anymore, Steph used the wet suit and surfed until everyone was done. Colden and Dylan kept chasing waves and birds. And the little kids (Timmy, Evelynn, and Olivia) had fun playing in the sand.

Sunday, July 4th, was spent mostly relaxing (except for the 5k that several ran in the morning) and ended with a fun cribbage tournament in the evening.

PV Crazy Daze of Summer

2010-06-21T17:37:00.003-05:00

One of the great things about living in a small town is the chance to do small-town stuff...like going to a parade that actually throws candy. I've never actually taken my kids to a parade, so that morning, they were asking me, "What's a parade?" (The big ones are also just too boring to watch on TV, so my poor children haven't been exposed. Well, I think we may have started a tradition. And Rob enjoyed getting as much free candy as Halloween.)

(the best float in the parade)

After the parade, since we were already out and had the rest of the morning to kill, we went to Goldwater Lake (sorry, no pics). And then after naptime, we headed back to Prescott Valley for the Carnival. The kids thought they would get to ride 10 rides, since Fern in Charlotte's Web gets to. But we told them they could only ride 1. And a good thing, too. The rides were a rippin $3-5 each! The boys really wanted to ride the Ferris Wheel, but Evelynn couldn't because she was too short (too bad I had already bought hers and my tickets...so we had to waste them on something else that she could ride...a long slide).

After they were done with the Ferris Wheel, they wanted to ride about half-a-dozen more. So we had a talk about how expensive it is, how we saved up our money just to go on that one ride, and how they can save up their money if they want to go on more rides next year...such a fun conversation to have while sitting on the pavement at the carnival. I almost thought it would ruin their experience. But, no. Yesterday, we passed the carnival on our way home from church...and they were talking about how they want to go again next year!

Moab...it's in my blood

2010-06-12T00:44:00.004-05:00

Over Memorial Day weekend, we met up with all my family in Moab for a mini reunion. We had so much fun camping together and being in the place where our family started! 3 of my siblings and I were born in Moab. I lived there until I was 9, so I remember a lot about that fun town. It was great to relive memories and share that wonderful place with the next generation.

We went to church in the same building I grew up going to (wow...nostalgia hit me hard when we were at that church...especially when I walked into the bathroom! Yes! Of all places! As I was walking into the bathroom, I could see in my mind what I would see before I opened the door or turn the corner...and it looks exactly the same! Even down to the same trash cans!)

We all arrived on Friday night and set up camp then ate some dinner at a local burger shop. We passed our old Elementary school on the way. :) The next morning, we headed to Arches National Park to hike to the symbol of Utah...Delicate Arch. We grew up hiking that frequently...almost every time someone came into town, we would go on that hike. The kids did really well on the hike. Evelynn even hiked a good portion of it on her own! My favorite part of the hike was seeing Rob and my dad hiking next to each other and conversing! My dad is a quiet guy, so I really wanted to get him and Rob together in my dad's favorite element...hiking...in Moab...and I knew that they would bond. My plan worked!

After hiking Delicate Arch, we went to the Windows area and hiked over to Double Arch. We hiked around in the shade of the arch...always nice in the heat of the day.

My sister, Mandy, recently got engaged to Nate Summers. Here is the happy couple enjoying their hike together! And we enjoyed getting to know Nate, too. (They'll be getting married in July then likely moving to Ohio for law school! Deja-vu Crazy!

On Sunday afternoon, we went on a drive down the Colorado River. We saw several people rock climbing (I knew my dad and brother just wanted to get out and climb...but it was Sunday), and we viewed petroglyphs and took a little hike to see these dinosaur footprints up close. When we were getting out of the car to go on "another hike," Colden and Dylan were whining a little. But as soon as we said "dinosaur footprints," they were running up the trail! Those two boys were so excited to see real dinosaur footprints! And my dad also pointed out another slab of rock that had the other side of the footprints on it. Talk about heaven.
(My dad is in front...doesn't he look so young in that hat?)

I also really enjoyed bonding with my "baby" sister, Tiffany. She frequently volunteered to ride with me while we went to different places. So we talked about her guy friends, her major, and her dreams. She's turning 19 in 3 days! She has so much going for her and so much to discover. Tiffany, the world is what you make of it! You can reach any of your dreams if you want to. You already have what it takes to do that. Some of them will require you to step outside of your comfort zone, but if it's your dream, it's worth it. So just go for it!

Going to Moab just makes me want to go back and go back and go back to share more of Moab with my family (more hikes to more arches, rafting the Colorado, fishing in the LaSal Mountains, and biking Slickrock) . There just wasn't enough time in 3 days to experience even a small portion of all the beauty and fun that Moab has to offer!

I Need some Ideas

2010-06-10T18:06:00.003-05:00

1. Are there any cottage industry things I can do that require very little set up cost but high return? Any ideas out there? I know, I'm dreaming. I've been experimenting with making artisan bread (we've had asiago cheese bread and sun-dried tomato and basil bread just this week!). But I can't see charging more than $4 a loaf, and I would have to sell a bunch of those to make it worth it (thinking of the high return $$ side).

PS--Rob decided to buy peach pies instead of making them. I also couldn't figure out the logistics of even temporarily storing 35 pies in my home...I don't have that much counter space!

2. I've been coming up with a family "theme" or motto or something like that (I just read The Parenting Breakthrough...loved it!). I would really like to make something beautiful out of it and hang it on a wall. But my mind is so not in a crafty creative mode right now...any ideas? Can you send me links of beautiful things you just love? We're renting, so I don't want to stick vinyl directly on the wall.

The theme/motto I would like to work with and creatively display in our home:

Pattersons: We are a Happy Family (I might go with a vinyl board for this one)

Pattersons are happy because we:
Love God and know He loves us back
Feel the Spirit in our Home
Put our Family First
Love to Learn
Serve Others
Follow the Prophet
Take Care of our Bodies
Enjoy Nature
Work Hard and Play Hard
Enjoy Discovering and Developing Talents
Take Care of our Home and our Earth

I love this post

2010-06-09T00:02:00.002-05:00

This mirrors how I feel about motherhood...I'm so glad to be a mother! I wouldn't trade it for anything!

http://www.latter-dayhomeschooling.com/2010/05/having-it-all.html

San Diego Trip

2010-06-05T00:36:00.005-05:00

What better way to spend a weekend than in San Diego? And better yet, with my first ever BFF, Erynn Ruth! She was incredible enough to even let us stay in her home, and I haven't seen the girl for over 15 years! (Yeah, she's that great of a person!) It was great catching up with her and seeing her mom and brother again after all this time. You're the best!We took this quick weekend trip because Rob attended a 1 1/2 day training seminar. When we first arrived there on Thursday, Rob and I decided ahead of time to attend the temple so we wouldn't have to make a trip to Mesa this month. The kids enjoyed walking around the grounds, enjoying the sea breeze air, and playing in the van (even after 7 hours of driving...yeah...they love playing in the car) while we took turns. Then we went to my friend's house and started to catch up.

Friday morning was a bit chilly. So after I dropped Rob off at his seminar, I took the kids to the Mormon Battalion visitor center. They really enjoyed the tour and Colden had a lot of fun digging for gold afterwards. That afternoon, we headed towards a lesser known beach on the bay side (thanks, Erynn, for the recommendation!). The only waves came in from boats. The kids had so much fun playing in the sand and the water--building sand castles, finding shells, making rivers and lakes in the sand, burying feet. Even Evelynn enjoyed getting in the water.

The next morning after we dropped Rob off, we headed for the Mission Beach, which is on the ocean side. The weather forecast said the waves would be larger than normal and I had to take the kids to see the big waves! As we pulled into the near-empty parking lot, we all decided to get out and go on the beach--in our pajamas! But it was fantastic! There were few people there so there were a bunch of birds. The kids chased gulls and pigeons. We also went close to the water to chase sand pipers. While we were there, a wave caught Evelynn by surprise and kinda knocked her down. After that, she was just afraid of the ocean.

We spent the rest of the morning at the San Diego Zoo. That place was amazing! We were there for several hours and didn't even see 1/2 of the animals. Even though they have a new Polar Bear exhibit that is really awesome, I think the kids thought the reptile house was the highlight of the zoo. Boy were they in for a treat on Sunday!

After we picked up Rob, we all headed to the beach for the afternoon. The real beach with the ocean waves. Rob, Colden, and Dylan all had a blast in the ocean. Rob body-surfed a few of those big waves. Evelynn was completely content playing in the sand near me...and I was content staying dry (I'm not a fan of cold water and cool air).

That night, Erynn stayed with our kids so we could go on a date. We chose to go running together at a park (I think I did about 3 miles! I ran for close to 40 minutes! Rob had to toughen his run up a little by sprinting behind me and running back a few times). And then we got desert at this place called Extraordinary Deserts. And the deserts live up to their name! They were fabulous! Not only were they delicious, but they were pieces of art...topped with edible gold leaves and flowers. Talk about garnishes!

Sunday morning after church, we had a yummy waffles and bacon brunch with Erynn and her family. It was so much fun spending time with them that weekend! Her younger brother also has several pet pythons. He took one out and let the kids touch it and play with it. They were in heaven!

(I just realized most of my pictures are on Rob's work camera...hopefully I'll upload some more someday for whenever I get around to turning this into a blurb book...)

Lately...

2010-06-03T00:20:00.003-05:00

Life has been busy in a fun way lately! Soon, I'll post pictures and details of what we've been doing. Today, we worked hard to clean the house. Then, as a reward, we went swimming with my niece and nephews. While we were at the pool, my SIL went into full labor. She gave birth to a healthy baby girl with a full head of black hair. Can't wait to see her! And find out what her name is! (I forgot to ask...and nobody told...)

Last weekend, we went to Moab for a mini camping reunion with my side of the family. Oh, we had a blast! The weekend before that, we took a quick trip to San Diego so Rob could attend a seminar. We were lucky enough to stay with my first-ever best friend, Erynn Ruth. She was an amazing hostess! The weekend before that, Rob and the boys went on a Fathers and Sons campout! My little sister, Mandy, also became officially engaged, so Evelynn and I had to go shopping for a sexy bridal shower present (an older sister who is still madly in love with her own husband just couldn't resist...I also don't think she keeps up with my blog, so it should be a surprise).

So far, we don't have anything scheduled for this weekend...although Rob asked me today how long it would take/how much it would cost to make 35 peach pies. He's trying to come up with a "signature" gift...something unique from him...for dentists in the area. We'll see about that!

Greatness

2010-05-16T16:40:00.003-05:00

Lately, I have found myself unintentionally reading and studying several books that have a common thread: greatness, goodness, and leadership. They all use different methods to talk about the same thing...unleashing our individual potential to make a significant contribution in our world. It's a fascinating study that's personal yet universal.

I want to share what I've been studying because I believe that someone (or many ones?) in my circle of friends and family might desire to take the time to also engage in a similar study at some point. And so, here you go...take it or leave it. As Rob would say, he has to scroll so it's TMI (too much information).

Here are the books I'm currently reading/listening to:

Leadership Education: Phases of Learning, by Oliver and Rachel DeMille
Les Miserables, by Victor Hugo
The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness, by Steven Covey
the Scriptures and talks from the April 2010 General Conference
I also got half way through Born to Run, by Christopher McDougall (even though my eyes were opened to the amazing capabilities of the human body, I chose to stop reading because of my personal desire not to read books with an abundance of vulgarity and profanity.)

These books have been really inspiring to me. They all relate to each other. Leadership Education and The 8th Habit are contemporary and they both acknowledge that our current society is lacking in leadership. The 8th Habit says we are moving from an industrial age to an information/knowledge age where the rules we have been following in the workplace have to change, too. Leadership Education emphasizes the need to raise our children in an environment that essentially trains them to become leaders. It describes many things we can do in our homes to do that (yeah, it's a homeschool book, but there are many ideas most families can use, too).

Yesterday, during my scripture study, I decided to look up scriptures about Greatness and Leadership. I felt the desire to see how many scriptures I could find on the Scripture Mastery cards. Look at this amazing list I found! As I saw this list grow, I thought how these scriptures are basically studied by thousands and tens of thousands of youth each year and how we were introduced to principles of greatness and leadership in our youth. (I wonder how many other themes you can pick out just by organizing the scriptures in different categories?)

The Old Testament
Moses 1:39
Abraham 3:22-23
Genesis 1:26-27
Genesis 39:9 (read this whole story in context...it's a great study in how his greatness came from his commitment to goodness.)
Exodus 20:3-17
Exodus 33:11 (I just read an article in the BYU alumni magazine about Face to Face leadership...see?!? Leadership stuff is all over the place!)
Leviticus 19:18
Joshua 24:15
1 Samuel 16:7
Proverbs 3:5-6
Isaiah 1:18
Isaiah 55:8-9
Amos 3:7

The New Testament
Matthew 5:14-16
Matthew 25:40
Romans 1:16
James 1:5-6
James 2:17-18

The Book of Mormon
1 Nephi 3:7
2 Nephi 2:25
2 Nephi 9:28-29
2 Nephi 32:3
Mosiah 2:17
Alma 32:21
Alma 37:6-7
Helaman 5:12
Ether 12:27
Moroni 7:45

Doctrine and Covenants
D&C 1:37-38
D&C 8:2-3
D&C 10:5
D&C 18:10, 15-16
D&C 58:26-28
D&C 82:3
D&C 88:123-125
D&C 89:18-21
D&C 121:34-35 Choose, for yourself, to be Chosen.
JS-H 1:15-20, 25 (the calling of a great leader. He didn't ever back down--even and especially when it was hard)

My Internet Tabs

2010-05-11T23:13:00.002-05:00

Here is a sample of what internet tabs have been left on the computer since the last time Rob used it (I thought of doing this as I was closing some out...):

What do crawdads eat?
Tadpoles: Growing Baby Frogs
Amazon.com: Garmin Forerunner GPS receiver
Hal Higdon's MARATHON TRAINING GUIDE
Blitzes

I just though it would be interesting to share...a little glimpse of our life. I have decided to go ahead and let Colden have a pet...a free one that he can catch (he's been begging for over a year...I guess he's learned some responsibility since the snake died of dehydration and filth). So Rob has been researching what they eat, what kind of aquarium to get, etc. He also will be running the St. George Marathon this October, so he has been researching training schedules (Go Rob!!). And he made crepes for breakfast on Mother's Day, and he looked up what to do with the leftovers...dinner blitzes.

Places I've navigated today:
usaa.com
VerizonWireless (downsize our phone service--yeah!)
Prescott Valley Public Services (pay a bill)
ingdirect.com
Lexington Academy
Google search for Dan Ralph's youth leadership seminar (unsuccessful)
Yahoo! mail
Google mail
my sister's blog
foodgawker.com

So, now I'm curious, what tabs are on your browser? If you don't keep tabs up, what pages have you navigated today?

This will be fun to see! :)

Grand Opening Update

2010-05-04T23:44:00.002-05:00

I forgot to post an update about the Grand Opening event. It went really well. We had people there almost consistently during those 4 hours. Everyone who came was really friendly. And, of course, they were hoping to win a free set of braces! We were able to schedule several new patient exams. And several dentists also came who weren't able to make it to the invitation-only open house.

It was such a good evening. And the next morning, I woke up and realized that my neck didn't have that tight spot in it anymore...I didn't realize I was stressing out that much. I took a few days of down-time to re-coupe, and now I'm sorta planning on doing a Cinco de Mayo party tomorrow night...I just haven't invited anyone to join us yet. I know, I'm crazy!! I just can't slow down!

Do you want to join us?

Outtakes

2010-05-04T23:36:00.003-05:00

Last night, we took "portrait" pictures of each of us (really just snapshots) for a special photo album that my mom is putting together for my Grandma for our big-o family reunion this summer. The kids started asking us to make silly faces, so here are the outtakes!

Today's the Big Grand Opening!

2010-04-28T12:00:00.002-05:00

I can't believe how nervous I am for this. I wasn't as nervous for the Open House. Maybe it's because I knew what to expect...I knew people were going to be there. This thing...who knows?

This morning while I went on my run, which turned into a walk, I noticed some flowers growing wildly on the side of the walkway. On my way back, I stopped to look at some of the flowers. Then I noticed several varieties of flower plants growing in a stone heap. I couldn't help but think that beautiful things grow out of adversity.

Even though I've been stressing out a lot lately, I have been able to do some pretty cool things. This radio ad has been playing on the radio this last week...it was a pretty cool experience to record it!

Did you hear?

2010-04-24T00:52:00.002-05:00

All the National Parks have free entrance this week! Check this link out, then find one close to you...there are hundreds all over the country.

http://www.nps.gov/findapark/feefreeparks.htm

I think we'll be going to one of these places tomorrow...

Question

2010-04-19T16:47:00.002-05:00

How do you get 100,000 people to know your business is in town and open?

We need more patients!! We also have a Grand Opening event coming up next Wednesay...and I'm getting kinda nervous about it. People are just too busy for that kind of stuff now. We want it well attended, so we're advertising that we will have a drawing for a free set of braces. Now, it's just getting the word out.

I'm open for suggestions!!

Last week, I recorded a radio ad that will broadcast on two local stations. We're getting advertising in the local papers. I've posted on all the local internet public calendars I can find. We're posting up fliers around club houses and community centers. We've given fliers to the dentists to give to their patients. We've told friends and others. The Chamber of Commerce will be coming and doing a ribbon cutting ceremony.

I'm also nervous because our invitation-only open house (for dentists and staff) was attended by about 1/2 the people who said they would come. It was a success...everyone who came was impressed with the office and the event. It's just getting people there that we're having trouble with...

Anyway, we're praying like crazy for success (specifically...patients who progress into treatment). Can you join us in that prayer?

We have felt assured, many times, by the Lord that Rob will have a successful business. It's just getting close to that line that if his business doesn't pick up soon (I'm projecting by the end of the summer...I would love to see it pick up a lot more before then), he will have to work as a PT orthodontist somewhere (ideally...the pay beats anything I could do PT) in order to meet our personal and his business financial obligations.

Thoughts that keep me from going berserk:

The Lord's promises are sure
Ye receive no reward until after the trial of your faith
Faith precedes the miracle
Give thanks to God for all things
D&C 98:2 ^aWaiting patiently on the Lord, for your prayers have entered into the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth, and are recorded with this seal and testament—the Lord hath sworn and decreed that they shall be granted.
Matt 6:28-29 Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:

29 And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.

Sometimes, faith requires an active choice.
A choice to believe and not doubt.
A choice to hope and not fall into despair.
A choice to act to make the miracle happen that you're praying for and not idly wait.

So, right now, I choose to have faith.
And I believe that the Lord will bless us.
And I hope for that miracle.
And we all are doing all that we can to make the miracle happen.
And so we wait.

There's a 4 Year Old in the House

2010-04-17T22:13:00.005-05:00

Last night at dinner time, I asked Dylan what his favorite part about his birthday was.

He said, "everything."What a sweetie!

We started the morning with birthday cinnamon rolls (he didn't want the traditional waffles...go figure...it's Dylan). We tried to tell him then that he was already 4, but he said that he wouldn't be 4 until he blew out the candles on his birthday cake. Ever since last year, when I didn't make the tractor cake he had asked for, he wanted a tractor cake. So, this is what I came up with (thanks to Google searches)!

At 10am, 5 little friends came over for a little birthday party. We tried to keep it at a farmer/cowboy theme. They gathered eggs, played with squirt guns, played Foosball (that wasn't part of the plan, but it's irresistible), ate a lot of cake, and opened a bunch of presents. Most of the time, they played and did their own thing. Dylan enjoyed being the center of attention. Colden did really well at passing on the spotlight. Evelynn enjoyed playing in the tubs of water for the squirt guns (I'm thinking that I'll have to leave that out there this summer...she was so thoroughly entertained!).

As soon as the presents were opened, Dylan almost forgot he had friends over. He was enjoying them so much! In fact, him and Colden had so much fun with the gifts that they played right through quiet time without watching their customary DVD.

How Dylan has grown this year:

You are growing up into such a fine boy. For the longest time, before you were 4, you loved to say that you were "three and three quarters" because you knew that you were bigger than most 3 year olds...but just not quite 4.

You are a wonderful big brother to your little sister. You're really sweet with her when you play together. I just love to catch the two of you playing. You also have a very special connection with your older brother. You love to play with him, wrestle him, tease him (and Evelynn, too), and just be with him. You guys are so lucky to have each other.

You are learning and growing so much! You are learning how to read and help me with jobs around the house. You love to run and play and laugh and ride your bike and be first on hikes. You are very creative when you play and you love to build things with your building toys. Sometimes the washing machine is the "wetter" and your brain is "my thinker". Your mind is so keen, you learn things quickly and if you don't know what something is, your "thinker" helps you figure it out! Although you're not into writing much, you can already write your own name and you can put batteries into your own toys (with unscrewing and screwing tiny screws) and disassemble/reassemble (sort-of) flash lights. You also enjoy making up songs with your voice, on musical toys, and the piano. (Dylan did this puzzle mostly himself, with a little help from me...rated for 5 years and older!)

Dylan, I love you so much. And I'm so glad you're a part of my life and a part of our family.

Thoughts on Easter...a little late :)

2010-04-16T03:07:00.001-05:00

When I was in Jerusalem for a study abroad during college, I had the opportunity to be there during Easter. Palm Sunday was awesome. Christians packed the road from Bethany to Jerusalem, about 2 miles, and many held huge palm leaves. We sang songs (Glory, Glory, Hallelujah) and rejoiced that Jesus is the King of Kings. The procession went over the Mount of Olives and through Lion's Gate (since the East Gate is permanently closed) and ended at the Church of St Ann (across the path from the Dome of the Rock, aka Holy Mount) where a band was playing and people were dancing. And we joined in the festivities, too.

On Good Friday, we walked the Via Delorosa, the Way of the Cross, which begins just outside the Holy Mount and ends up at Catholic site of the tomb. The small streets were packed, and some people carried their own crosses as they walked that path. That day was more somber. Other Christians went to the Garden Tomb, which is another site that is traditionally believed to be Jesus' sepulcher. On one evening, several of us got together and went from the Upper Room where Jesus and his apostles ate the Passover. We read scriptures and sang songs. Then we went to the Garden of Gethsemane and read the scriptural accounts of Jesus' suffering there. From there, we went to a church that is built over what is believed to have been Caiaphas' house. Jesus was imprisoned there overnight and that was where Peter denied knowing Jesus 3 times before the cock crowed thrice. Roosters still crow near that site. By then, it was really late and really dark. We walked to a dark street in Jerusalem near the ruins of the fortress of Pilot where we read the scriptures about the people choosing to crucify Jesus and let Barnabas free. We read about His crucifixion. The darkness of the night was heavy by then. We felt sad and tired and lonely as the streets were deserted.

Easter was a gloriously beautiful day. We made our way to the Garden Tomb. The flowers were in bloom, the trees were green. We brought our scriptures and read of the Resurrection in Luke and John. I learned that Jesus, in addition to appearing to Mary in front of the tomb, appeared to the other women who had left her in order to tell the other disciples what the angels had told them. On the door of the tomb is a wooden plaque that says, "He is not here, for he is risen." The disciples didn't believe the women...it's not like he had fallen sick and died like Lazarus, whom Jesus brought back to life. He was crucified, tortured to death, and pierced to the heart after he died to confirm that he was dead. But Jesus didn't come back to life. As the Son of God, He had the power within Him to be resurrected. The disciples finally believed when they saw this glorious being and touched Him and conversed with Him and ate with Him. The prophesies were fulfilled. Jesus the Christ broke the bands of death. He was victorious over the grave. The true Pascal lamb had been slain and the law of Moses was all fulfilled.

Just days before, Jesus ate the Passover feast with the Jews, which they did in remembrance of the destroying angel passing over the Hebrews and slaying the Egyptian's first-born--the Hebrews soon to be delivered out of Egypt. How many Jews realized that that Passover was actually a symbol of Jesus and His atonement? It's not a coincidence that Jesus bled from every pore in Gethsemane as He took upon himself the sins of the world...the same night he ate the Passover feast with His disciples. It's not a coincidence that Spring is a time of rejuvenation and renewal in the natural world, as it is the time we celebrate our Savior's resurrection...which is a gift, like the blooming of the flowers, to all of us. I rejoice to know that we will all be resurrected someday.

He Lives!

Inspired

2010-04-03T23:29:00.002-05:00

I just read through many friends' and family blogs.
I enjoy catching glimpses of their fun family memories and the cute things their children do.
I love seeing the creations they make.
My heart saddens when I read of the sorrows they go through.
I see hope when I see them enjoying life even when they're going through some rough times.
But most of all, I see wonderful women.
Raising wonderful families, in their own ways, with their own talents.
And I see strong marriages.
And happy families.
Lots of them.

And I am inspired.

I sure am one lucky person to have so many wonderful role models as sisters (including in-laws) and friends. sniff, sniff.

PS. I just have to say that I'm also on a spiritual high after today's sessions of General Conference. I just loved the focus on the responsibilities we have towards our own families...guiding them through personal revelation, teaching them about God and morals, ignoring the "fashions" and sinful "trends" that are "popular", being examples to our children, helping them recognize goodness and the Spirit while they are young, praying with them, reading the scriptures with them, living examples of every our testimonies and not "do as I say not as I do," keeping the goodness in our children that is inherent in them, loving our spouses with a pure love, and I could just go on. How is it related to my tribute above? Because every blog I visited today, I saw an example of pure womanly love towards those in her family. And to the best men in this world, that is down right sexy!

Family Work

2010-04-01T16:02:00.002-05:00

About a year ago, I felt the need to really start including Colden in the housework. I never found a system that I felt like I could keep up with. I know I can't do chore charts...I am just no good at keeping up on things like that...daily...and for multiple tasks. I don't like the idea of assigning chores. Kids seem to go with it for about a week or two, then they often gripe and say that theirs is the hardest assignment and the other kid(s) is the easier one. I feel like a choice-based system is best, but how to do that?

So, I came across a system that I really like (I found it in the book The Thomas Jefferson Home Companion), but I haven't implemented it because it's also a bit more detailed than I think I can handle. Basically, this is what it entails:

Mom makes cards of every job in the household/yard that need to be done
She assigns them a value based on difficulty. A chores and B chores. B chores are harder and worth 2 A chores
Every child has to do 4 chores each day: 4 A chores, 2 A chores + 1 B chore, or 2 B chores
Every morning, Mom pulls out the cards of the chores that need to be done that day
Kids get to pick what they want to do, making sure that they fill their quota
Mom does what wasn't picked by kids
These 4 chores are in addition to: tidying up their own room, making own beds, and self-grooming (basically, the personal stuff)...so the 4 chores are family work (I'm learning more as I'm writing this...awesome!)
She's a homeschool mom, but she "rewards" the kids with an extra chore if they don't get their morning routines done by breakfast at 8 am. For public school kids, that could mean that if they don't make their beds, tidy their rooms, and groom themselves before they go to school, they have to do an extra chore when they come home.
Young children learn things as they are able to do them and interested in doing them. Until then, they shadow mom and "help" with the family work in their own little ways.

I recently found this article about Family Work from a BYU Alumni magazine. I know it's a long article, but I think it's worth it to read. I really like how she emphasizes that family work is for the family to do, not the parent to delegate. I've been trying that in my home more...when asking the kids to clean up, I help clean up, too (I, admittingly, always have my own stuff that needs to be cleaned up). I also like how she reminds us that family work can be a time when we bond and chat and laugh and tell stories and love. I'm reminded that family work helps us serve one another and serve others, too.

This article really has helped change my outlook of housework. I'm seeing it as drudgery less...and that's good!

I welcome a discussion about this topic...I would love to hear what works for you and your family.

PS--I decided to just focus on the basics...getting dressed, making the bed, and cleaning up toys. Since our move, he's made his bed about 5 times, well, so have I. But, he has taken on emptying the trash as his own chore. And sometimes he'll empty the dishwasher, too.

PPS--I just found this while visiting OrganizedHome.com

http://organizedhome.com/family-ties/kids-chores-chilling-chore-wars

Yet another view on what I would like to see happen in my home...now the challenge...implementation...

I'm 31!

2010-03-31T15:59:00.002-05:00

I had a wonderful birthday yesterday with my family. Rob was awesome. He made birthday breakfast waffles, did the dishes, and even came home early! I thought he was just going to come home for lunch, but he ended up staying all afternoon. We took advantage of that by going swimming at our neighborhood pool, going out to In and Out for dinner (so neither of us had to cook or clean up on my birthday), and last-minute present shopping at Target.

I sure love my family.

Evelynn Growing Up

2010-03-24T23:41:00.002-05:00

I guess I missed an 18 month update, but I hope this makes up for it (she's 20 months). Evelynn is a bit fearless, she loves to squeal and scream, she gets into everything, and lately, she has begun to tease Dylan. He's not good at taking it, so it only encourages her to tease him more. Her favorite thing is to take something of his and run. He reacts by crying and getting mad, and she just thinks it's the greatest game.

When she pulls her hair elastics out, her hair sticks out in all directions (sometimes we say that she's crazy...out of pure love). She also does not like it when you push her away, even if you are playing. It hurts her feelings and makes her sad (I'm guessing that's a girl thing because the boys have never reacted like that).

She loves to color and draw and paint and "help" me cook. She is very opinionated already. She usually picks out what she will wear for the day (usually by picking at least 3 shirts, and I pick one from among those), and she picks out her cereal every morning. She loves blowing kisses, her family, playing baby games, singing, dancing, praying, and swimming. Her vocabulary has grown from about 5 words to about 10. So she still communicates very well with nodding her head yes or saying no. Oh, and today, Rob found that she now has 6 teeth, and 6 more are coming in...but she can eat anything she wants to eat.

We just love our little Evelynn! I enjoy this stage so much. She's growing so fast and learning so much. She changes a little every day and just makes us laugh and love her more and more.

My Thinking

2010-03-19T16:33:00.004-05:00

Last night, as I was helping Dylan get ready to say his prayers, we had a conversation that went something like this...

Me--Are you ready to say your prayers?

silence

Dylan--I can't right now because my thinking isn't working.

Figuring things Out

2010-03-14T23:15:00.004-05:00

February was a month for getting settled and for figuring things out--sort of. Luckily, Rob's parents spent the greater part of the month in Prescott. They spent about a week with us and a little over a week with the Smiths. The kids really love spending time with their Grandma and Grandpa. Evelynn has a little soft spot for her Grandpa, and she was even starting to say Gumpa towards the end of their stay! They were also able to watch the kids a few times while I did a bunch of shopping for the practice and other odds and ends for the practice. We also attended a homeschool forum in Pheonix together (the four of us) one Saturday.

Colden developed a fascination with Harry Potter and told me that he wanted to read the book. Since his reading skills are at a minimum right now, I figured this would be a great motivation for him to do his reading lessons (taken from the book, Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons). We made a chart with the numbers 1-100 on it (which is also helping him learn those numbers) and he gets a sticker every time he finishes a lesson. When he finishes all 100 lessons, I will buy him a copy of the first Harry Potter book, which he has to read before he can watch the movie (I figure if he can read the book, he can handle the movie...he still gets easily scared about stuff, so if he knows what will happen beforehand, then he shouldn't get nightmares). So, Colden is learning how to read! He's already on lesson 28 (well, we started in October then went very sporadically through the first dozen lessons). He's been really good about learning how to read, and I catch him reading other things, too. So exciting!

Dylan is growing so tall. Most of his pants are floods (Colden's, too), but since Spring and Summer are almost here, I'm too cheap to go buy new pants. He just loves to play outside and he still won't sit still much. The last time I did a "reading" lesson with him, he kept pushing his head off the couch after every letter he sounded out. He made it through the whole book, but it required some patience so I wouldn't get him to sit still...I'm convinced that he's a kinetic learner, so I'm not trying to force him to sit still much. Hopefully, this bouncing with bounce the letter sounds into his head and he'll learn anyway!

Evelynn is just crazy. She easily smiles and loves to please us. But she's also quick to scream and yell and squeal. And when she takes her elastics out of her hair, she looks as crazy as she acts. Her new word is "gross." She sure understands a lot of what we say, but she's been slow at saying things back, besides "uh" (you know, point to something and say "uh", like a caveman), "buhbie" (blanket) and "ball". Oh, and her favorite toy is this screaming monkey, who screams when you fling him in the air, hit him on the ground, or just hit him (we decided that he taught her how to scream...as soon as she sees her monkey, she screams just like him).

The pictures include Evelynn with "buhbie" and random pictures with monkey...I even found a video of her playing with him when she was just sitting...it must have been a year ago!

Oh, and back to the homeschool thing, I have decided to homeschool. YIKES! And I figured that out in February (one of the things I figured out that month). Why? I have read too many books about education philosophies that I no longer believe in the effectiveness most public school systems (so, my advice to someone who prefers sending their kids to school: don't read books about homeschool philosophies...unless you think you might pull your kids out of school and need the encouragement). I guess I actually made that decision awhile ago. I started a blog about my adventures in hsing young kids. Sometimes, I might get on my soapbox (like I don't here, right?). But, hopefully, I'll also share some of the fun stuff we do that's all part of our "school."

My Homeschool Experiment

Reunion T-shirts

2010-03-14T23:10:00.001-05:00

We're looking forward to a big-o Davis family reunion in Yellowstone this summer. Almost all of my Grandma's descendants (105, to be exact) will be there. Our family (my parents and siblings) has been put in charge of the T-shirt design. You know, that T-shirt you only wear at the reunion, then you wear the next time you change your oil or repaint your bathroom. So, of course, there's the desire to design it so it becomes a normal, wearable T-shirt. But then, wouldn't it be just so much fun to make it a little crazy? Based on that desire, Rob decided to come up with some ideas to spruce up the family reunion t-shirt.

Our favorite:

front:
"Be fruitful and multiply..."
Gen. 1:28

back:

We Did.
DFR 2010

What a crazy month

2010-03-09T00:55:00.002-05:00

January 2010.

With the build out of the office done, we had a lot of organizing to do. And a lot of systems to set up. We didn't know much of our future. And everything we were doing was big and important and it all felt like it should have been done weeks ago. It was stressful. Although Rob's sister was as helpful as she could be (pregnant and homeschooling her 4 other kids), we just couldn't drop our kids off to her full time so we could work at the office full time. One Saturday, while we were organizing, we ended up putting Evelynn down for a nap in Rob's office while the kids watched a movie on a computer. We almost had to do that another time.

A new employee was necessary. Rob felt stuck at the office so he could answer phones, but he really wanted to get out to meet dentists (the main referral base). I went in when I could, and when I couldn't, I was shopping and doing business as well as I could at home, with three small children often needing me. We posted an ad for a front office administrator...and within a week, we had over 100 applicants! It was crazy reading through all those resumes! My heart went out to so many of them, knowing that times are tough. But we also wanted someone "wonderful." I did 8 phone interviews and narrowed it down to about 6 personal interviews for Rob. Although they were all highly qualified, and we had narrowed it down to a favorite, none of them had worked for an orthodontist before, and it just didn't feel right when we prayed about it. We felt like we needed someone with experience working for an orthodontist.

I was burned out from reading resumes. But, I didn't want to work full time at the office, either. It just doesn't feel right for me (and, luckily, Rob supports me in that). So, I went through the "qualified" ones one last time and did phone interviews with two ladies. One talked about the office she worked for...and it was almost picture perfect. She described a work atmosphere and systems that we wanted in place at our office. The other talked about all the problems at the last office...so that made our choice easy. Rob interviewed the first and hired her on the spot. She started working two weeks later, and she really has been a huge asset to Rob's practice.

But we did manage to have some fun. It helped us stay sane...and at least laugh through the tears.Afternoon at the park...in t-shirts! Jan 10

Then a couple of snow days after a big snow! Jan 21

A family hike on a nearby trail. Jan 16

Celebration dinner on Jan 13. Celebrate Rob's first patient, first day of real work, and Chris and Elice found out they are having a girl!

One Sunday Afternoon

2010-02-26T23:55:00.000-05:00

3 year old deep in the mode of Play Concentration

5 year old heavily focused on a puzzle

18 month old...all smiles and full of joy

"Thyself thy foe...

2010-02-25T23:20:00.002-05:00

...to thy sweet self too cruel." ~Shakespeare

Isn't that the truth? Aren't we usually our own worst critic? I was in that slump around Valentine's Day. Poor Rob. I wasn't in much of a celebratory mood for lovey dovey stuff while I was feeling down. But while I was down, I thought of several great things that I want to share.

My attitude often trumps all. I can have a day where everything goes wrong in the day, but when I have a great attitude, I handle it with ease (maybe not with grace) and I feel happy.

My story is how I choose to tell it...and that, amazingly, affects my attitude. I reflected on this concept soon after I was introduced to this amazing woman, Stephanie Nielson, in the blogosphere (many of you probably already know who she is). She started her blog to write about her life with her family: the husband she adores and their 4 kids. She wrote about her life being like a fairy tale. It's awesome to read. I'm sure there were days where she didn't feel like writing a fairy tale...I'm sure there were days she just wanted to pout and complain. But she doesn't...or when she does, it's in that loving and strengthening way. Then about 1 1/2 years ago, her and her husband survived a horrible small airplane crash and she ended up with 80% of her body burned. It made me cry to go from reading this picture-perfect life to a difficult and painful life. But, as hard as her life is right now, she tries hard to continue to tell a positive story. It's not a fairy tale anymore. It's real life with aches and pains and dreams of being the woman she once was.

Reading her story makes me feel like the stories of my family can be uplifting, too. Then, when I go throughout the day, I find myself thinking about how I would blog "this story" in a positive way, and that helps me think more positively. Case in point: Compare the stories.

I just love watching how Colden is growing and maturing. Lately, he has taken on new responsibilities. Sometimes he unloads the dishwasher on his own. Some days he decides that he needs to take out the trash. One day, after I took a particularly long shower, I came out to see him feeding his younger brother and sister a snack. It was such a touching sight to see.

The other day, when I was feeling down, I was on my kids' cases all morning long. They were each asking something different of me. In a huff, I took off to my room, closed and locked the door to take a shower. And I took a very long shower. When I came out and finally unlocked the door, I saw Colden responsibly feeding Dylan and Evelynn a snack. It melted the huff out of my heart...and I eventually got out of my rut.

Same story, different telling. Both truthful, different angles.

Now, honestly, which story do you like best?

Holy Cow!!

2010-02-12T17:46:00.003-05:00

My mom emailed me this link...

http://breakpointtrades.com/controls/preview.php?nl_id=423

I can't believe how cold it is in St Louis! And I'm so glad I'm not there :). So, I want to know from my friends there how they've been living with the cold...and if they got to go walk on the river.

The Mississippi River frozen over. That's just crazy!

So Big!!

2010-02-09T15:29:00.000-05:00

3 months ago (in Nov)

A couple of weeks ago

the snow 2 weeks ago

Once again, I just feel like my baby isn't a baby anymore. Look at how big she's getting! Look at all that hair! And she's so good about doing "big" things, like getting a cup for herself when she's thirsty and "helping" me with the dishes and taking a bath on her own (I tried looking for the photo where she just climbed into the tub with her brothers while still in her PJs).

Mmmm...Kate's Apple Crisp

2010-02-08T15:09:00.004-05:00

This apple crisp is the best. Absolutely the best. It's got plenty of the part that we like most...yeah, the crisp part, of course. And I have to give total credit to my friend, Kate McKamey, for this recipe. She made it for an apple pie once (yeah...that was amazing). When I asked her for the recipe, she said that she didn't really have one. So she wrote it down from off the top of her head. Get ready to print it and make it. And be ready to make it again tomorrow, because there won't be any left after tonight.

Apple Crisp

Mix:
1 c flour (may use gluten-free flour*)
3/4 c rolled oats
1 c brown sugar (or pure cane sugar--for the "healthy" version*)
1/2 c melted butter
1 tsp cinnamon
dashes of ground cloves, nutmeg, and allspice

Press half of that in greased 9X9 pan.

Apple mixture (may be made ahead of time and put in the fridge or freezer...or do double batch and put half in fridge/freezer for easy desert in the future):

Combine:
3 fresh Granny Smith's cut
3 Tbsp flour
1/2 c brown sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp allspice
1/8 tsp ground cloves

Pour on top of half of crisp in pan. Cover with remaining half of crisp. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-45 minutes.

Serve hot with vanilla ice cream. And you're in heaven!

I'm sorry I don't have pictures. It never lasts long enough.

*Since I've been to Prescott, I've also converted it into a gluten-free recipe with "healthy" sugar (you know, the pure sugar cane kind). And it's still awesome (my SIL and niece can't have gluten, and I like to bake...so I had to come up with something).

Invitations

2010-02-03T17:55:00.003-05:00

We're getting ready to print our invitations for our Open House. I just started looking into it and I thought that some of my friends might know of some little card shop that has awesome custom cards. If you know of a cool place like that, please post their link in your comment.

So far, I've received a recommendation for this site:

A La Carde

Food, Glorious Food

2010-02-01T00:35:00.002-05:00

Everyone else around me seems to be in a winter crafty mood. I think I'm just hungry.

I'm looking at these yummy bagel recipes. I seriously think I have to try them soon (besides nothing being better than homemade baked goods, a dozen bagels costs $5! And they freeze so well, too).

Basic bagel recipe

Cranberry Orange and Everything Bagel recipe

Jalepeno Cheddar Recipe
(per Rob's request)

Cheese and Onion Bagels
(now those look extremely mouth-watering)

I found all of these recipes from FoodGawker.com, the first place I go when I want to try out a new recipe. I love that web site!

I've been feeling the need to cut back on food expenses (obviously?). My friend, Holly, introduced me to Angel Food Ministries while we were in St. Louis. I didn't know if they provided the food here, but they do! They provide good food for a low price for anyone who wants to buy it. I'm getting a week's worth of dinners for $30 (the main "box") and a bunch of fruit and vegetables for $22.

Roller Coaster Life

2010-01-14T00:56:00.003-05:00

Things are looking up right now. I hope that they will stay that way, but I'm sure there will be an incident in the near future that will drag me down again. (Did I mention that I never made it to the interview with the reporter? I had actually asked a new friend to watch the kids that morning. But she got a flat tire on the way to dropping her kids off at school. I quickly got the kids ready after I had to transfer all the food from the fridge/freezer to our spare one in the garage because I found a puddle of water on the floor next to it and soft food in the freezer and warm food in the fridge. That all happened before 8:30am Monday morning.)

Thanks to the article that ran today, Rob has 4 new patient consults scheduled for next week!! Wa-hoo! Let's hope that most will choose to continue with their treatment!!

And a super-awesome woman accepted the position for Front Office Administrator. I'll be doing a little feature about her on the practice blog. She has over 20 years of experience in an orthodontic office. Everything she said that the practice was is everything we want ours to be...and she'll help us make it that way.

Wa-hoo!!!

Things are looking up right now.

Featured!

2010-01-13T10:36:00.003-05:00

Here is a bright spot amidst the trials we are going through. (Said like Forrest Gump, "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get." It's just not always sweet with us.)

We got featured in the local newspaper! Yay!!

Right around Christmas time, I sent a Press Release to the local newspaper. When I spoke with the business writer, he told me to just send it in an email with the header titled "New Business." Well, that wasn't good enough for me. I mean, this was my major in college! I had written press releases before. I think I've received a total of 5 column inches from the several press releases I've written. So, I didn't expect much. But I expected that this guy didn't get professional press releases very often. I brushed myself up on "the rules" and sent him this:

PRESS RELEASE--NEW BUSINESS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Rob Patterson, DDS, MS
Patterson Orthodontics
Phone: 928-713-4597
email: pattersonortho@gmail.com

Orthodontist Opens New Practice in Prescott Valley

Prescott Valley, Arizona (December 21, 2009) --Robert Patterson, DDS, MS, will open the doors of his new practice in Prescott Valley for patients on January 4, 2010. Patterson Orthodontics will provide orthodontic care for children, teenagers, and adults for the Tri-cities area.

“When I was looking into different areas to set up my practice, I recognized a need for a full-time orthodontist in Prescott Valley,” says Dr. Patterson. “The population has grown significantly over the past 30 years, but there hasn’t been a full-time orthodontist to serve it.”

Patterson Orthodontics is located near the corner of Florentine Road and Windsong Drive at 3033 N. Windsong Drive, Suite 201, in Prescott Valley next to CVS Pharmacy. For more information, call 928-713-4597 or go to www.pattersonorthodontics.blogspot.com.

# # #

I kept it newsworthy but not too heavy on the self-promotion side. And check out what transpired from Rob's interview with the reporter, Jason!

http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?SectionID=74&subsectionID=100&articleID=76632

Yay!!

Our Move

2010-01-07T09:51:00.001-05:00

Our move was very eventful. I came across this description written by Rob in an email to one of his friends...this is mostly a journal entry so we can remember the adventure this has been...

So to let you know what happened on our way out here:

1) The night before we left, Angie got in a car accident with the kids and her mom. Fortunately, no one but the car was hurt.
2) We started for Prescott Valley, and I got to drive a 26ft penske truck with a trailer attached with the van on it.
3) Arrived in OK city, not much to worry about, but it iced over that night.
4) Left on second day, and we drove through the storm that was passing through the country. There were 45 mph winds going through Amarillo, with garbage and dust flying all around, and I went through a tank of gas about twice as fast as I had been. After a super long day of driving, made it to Albuquerque. However, when we got there, I was following Angie to the hotel (I didn't know where it was) and told her, "Whatever you do, if you have to turn around, don't make me do a u-turn. It's pretty hard to back up the truck with the car behind it.
5) So we miss the turn, and I follow them into a hotel parking lot, that doesn't have any room to turn around, and somehow I manage to get a pole in the parking lot between the van and the truck. So we decide to take off the trailer, so we can maneuver better, and in the process, sheared off the latch for the trailer hitch. So now the trailer is done.
6) So we leave the van and the trailer in the parking lot, go back to the hotel, and I spent the next 1.5 hrs getting a new trailer.
7) We started out the next morning, and within five miles, one of the wheels on the new trailer got shredded. So I spent the next hour waiting for a new wheel.
8) Finally going again, I kept plugging and later that day (about 6pm) we made it into Prescott, happy that we didn't have to be on the road all day the next day.

Pure Dylan

2010-01-03T23:59:00.000-05:00

Christmas Wrap-Up

2010-01-02T22:46:00.006-05:00

As I sat down on the computer tonight, I intended to get some work done for the practice. Somehow, I ended up blogging (it started when I looked at the Patterson Orthodontics blog, trying to think of something to post on there). And now I don't want to work. Go figure. I think I'm a little burned out anyway. Thank goodness it's Sunday tomorrow.

My sister's blog inspired me to write a journal-post about Christmas.

In the wee hours of the morning of Dec 23 (aka 3am), Joe and Stephanie (Rob's brother and his wife) arrived at our house from CA. The next morning, I made a bunch of waffles for his birthday...the Patterson traditional birthday waffles topped with strawberries and whip cream. The whole crew came over (Rob's sister, Sarah, and her family of 3 stayed at the Smith's house--Rob's other sister and her family of 6 who live in Prescott...they introduced us to this area) and we had fun eating and hanging out. That afternoon, we went mini-golfing (the b-day boy's idea and insistence...he said that he never got to do cool outdoor stuff for his December birthday). After we warmed up inside, we all took a turn on the climbing wall. And then we went to dinner at a Thai place. The food was really good. When we got back to the Smith's house, where the kiddos were, they had a birthday cake ready for their uncle Joey. We had fun celebrating his birthday with him. Rob even gave him a present--hand-me-down socks. Ahh...the memories.

On Christmas Eve, most of us went to a local trail to run/jog/walk/push strollers for some exercise. Some of us slow-pokes raced in a speed-walking race. I was busting up laughing...and I couldn't speed walk at all! The pregnant lady easily beat me!

We had planned on doing a Christmas Eve program, with a reading of Luke 2 and carol singing, but somehow the day passed by without it. We did do a White-Elephant gift exchange with the kids (the adults did theirs the night before). They enjoyed their presents...and the attention.

That night, we set out the presents. (Side note: Despite my last post, right before Christmas I did feel like I didn't give Christmas gifts enough of a thought...even though I said that it was okay that we were having a small Christmas, I felt like I should have done more to have some thoughtful gifts...and...well...just more gifts. I expressed my thoughts to Rob CE morning, who bought some thoughtful gifts that day for the kids from Dad from the Sport's Store--a sleeping bag for Colden, a fishing pole for Dylan, and a pink water bottle for Evelynn. He even bought me a camera! What a guy!)

And then when Joe and Steph arrived at our house, Santa came, too! He came with 3 big presents for the kids and 3 big bouncy balls. So Christmas ended up so much bigger than I ever dreamed. Thanks, Santa and Rob, for making our dreams come true!

We're sure glad to have spent Christmas with family. It was so much fun being with Sarah, Brian, Timmy, Joe and Stephanie. I always love being around Sarah's playful attitude...she makes everything fun and funny. Brian is so easy going. Timmy is always cheerful (I wonder where he gets that from...) and he has so much determination. Joe also brought an infectious spirit of fun. And I had fun talking with Stephanie about their upcoming birth and relaxing with her one night while the guys stayed up and played a computer game. We sure needed you guys this year to help us to remember how to have fun and to stop stressing about everything.

A Bah-Humbug Lesson

2009-12-18T23:24:00.003-05:00

And the Grinch, with his Grinch-feet ice cold in the snow,
stood puzzling and puzzling, how could it be so?
It came without ribbons. It came without tags.
It came without packages, boxes or bags.

And he puzzled and puzzled ’till his puzzler was sore.
Then the Grinch thought of something he hadn’t before.
What if Christmas, he thought, doesn’t come from a store.
What if Christmas, perhaps, means a little bit more.

What a time of year to move! As you can see (in the background), we got our tree up. The Nativity is set up, too. I put the rest of the decorations away. Presents are a minimum this year. But two of Rob's siblings, the ones who live in California and who we haven't seen much the last 7 years, are coming to Prescott for Christmas! Yay!

We are all alive (I got in a minor car accident with the kids before we left St Louis--the van is in the shop for several weeks, but none of us were hurt). We are safe (we had a couple of issues with the towing trailer on the way here). We are getting healthy (we've all been sick at some point during the move...I really think it might have been the flu...so fun...and we're working hard on getting better so we can play with Timmy).

This year, Christmas hustle and bustle is not even a thought for us. But I have to say that Christ is in the center of our lives. When we think we are alone, He is there to comfort us. When we are financially strapped, He already provided a way. When we think we can't go on, He lifts us up and gives us strength to shoulder our burdens. Although we haven't been kept from danger, He has protected us through the danger. He has put people in our paths that have helped and supported us. He has given us families who love us and who make all kinds of sacrifices for us.

We are so grateful for all of the gifts that have been given to us this Christmas season. The ones that we are most grateful for are not wrapped in ribbons and bows, but wrapped in love and sacrifice. I can't even begin to thank all of the people who have blessed us in the last while. Let me try. :)

Dad for co-signing on Rob's business loan
Chris for his endless advice and sympathy stress
Elice for her spiritual support and hours of watching our kids
Melissa for helping us unpack and cleaning our new house
Guys from the ward helping us
Mom for driving out with us and sacrificing a special luncheon for this and unpacking the truck and watching the kids while we took care of problems with our trailer
Bob, Ruth, Henry, Fran, and Maren for coming to Rob's graduation and packing boxes and packing the truck and cleaning the house and being an emotional support to me after the accident
Matt, Jared, the missionaries, Jeff for helping us move stuff into the truck...and packing a few boxes, too
Kate for helping me start packing the kitchen and doing vinyl lettering and wood blocks and watching my kids and picking me up at the YMCA when I lost my keys
Kathy and Candi and Holly and Aubrey for watching my kids while I did moving prep and pre-marketing for the business
Debbie for watching our kids (again and again) so Rob and I could go to the temple together and so I could just get stuff done
Heather for giving me the right size boxes for all my food storage
Cari for home-made pizza dinners
Supper Club ladies for friendship, fun, and recipies
Candi and Kathy and Kate for making "Pie Night" a going-away party for us
Carol for going over to our house minutes after arriving to Pie Night to be there with our sleeping sick kids so Rob could come to Pie Night, too

Thanks, everyone, for the best Christmas presents ever! We have the best friends and family in the whole world.

We are blessed!

Logo Unveiled...

2009-12-18T23:23:00.002-05:00

:)

2009-11-29T22:04:00.002-05:00

I'm so happy that we decided to go out of town and escape our house and lives of stress this weekend. Thanks, Henry and Fran, for inviting us to your house for Thanksgiving!

Here is another thing that's making me happy right now:
The smell of home.

It's nice to be home.

(I hope our next home will smell good, too.)

LOST

2009-11-25T23:34:00.000-05:00

Okay, maybe I really am losing my mind. I also can't find my digital camera. There have been lots of "shots" that I've missed the past month...so use your imagination.

the boys building their "bridge" in the area behind our backyard

playing in the huge pile of leaves in the middle of the trees in the mini-forrest behind our backyard

Evelynn climbing up on the swingset during that in-between time when I send the kids out to play before I go to join them

friends we will miss

pumpkins

kids in costumes

Evelynn climbing up on the toilet and turning on the water in the bathroom trying to give her favorite stuffed animal a bath (he deserves a video post...her favorite stuffed animal is a screaming monkey)

Colden and Dylan climbing around in their "boat" (empty storage room shelves because the contents of the storage room is a part of their boat strewn all over the floor)

New Moon

2009-11-24T22:30:00.002-05:00

What's better than a girl's night out?

A girl's night out watching a really good chick flick.

My achilles heel

2009-11-23T23:18:00.003-05:00

Keys. Car keys. My car keys. Right now, just my van key.
It's gone.
Again.
At least I know where it is this time.
It's at the shop where the van DVD player is getting fixed.
We brought the van home...
but left the key there because the shop was closed
an hour before closing time.
Rob tried to get the key
during regular business hours
but no one was there.
We'll try again tomorrow.

Last week
I couldn't find my keys in my house.
I searched.
Everywhere.
I slammed doors (I was mad at myself).
I cried (okay, bawled).
I prayed.
I remembered that I put them in my church bag.
Yay!

3 weeks ago
I dropped my kids off at someone's house
so I could get some desperately-needed work done.
I desperately needed some exercise
so I went to the closest park
3 miles away.
I took a key off my key chain
locked the other keys in the van
and went on my walk.
As I approached the van,
I realized I had the wrong key.
That extra 3 miles was a long walk.

2 months ago
I locked my keys in the car.
when we went to Purina Farms.
Luckily, I had several friends there
who helped me get the car unlocked.

3 months ago
I lost my keys at the YMCA.
We searched everywhere
for an hour.
I keep hoping that
whoever found them
will turn them into
Lost and Found.
I ask almost every time I go there.
They're still lost.

Most of the time
I can keep it together.
I can be busy
and working hard on
marketing
moving
mothering
but when I can't find my keys
I lose it.
And it's just keys!

AAAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!

Is there something small, silly, and almost insignificant that puts you over the edge when you're stressed out? Please share!! I don't want to feel alone!! Or else I may think I'm losing my mind!!

Patterson Orthodontics

2009-11-13T15:57:00.004-05:00

So Patterson Orthodontics has been nearly consuming my life lately. But it's a good thing. I want to help Rob get it started quickly and help him have it ready by Jan 4. I mean...the sooner he can have patients coming in, the sooner he gets paid for those treatments, the sooner we can have a real salary, the sooner we can get out of debt...or just be able to pay it...so you get my drift. Me helping him really equals me helping our family situation.

Mainly, I'm his administrative assistant. So when he says...look this up for me. Or find out about this for me. I do it (like I should be looking into business banking options right now...but I'm blogging:) ). But I'm also getting the marketing going...all for those referrals and patients that we want. One of those marketing tools is a.....blog. Patt Ortho will have a website...but it's likely not to be up and running until late Feb or early March (we're still in the process of logo design...the previous idea just didn't work...so we're back to square one). So I thought a blog would be a great way to communicate with anyone and dentists and their office staff about how the practice is coming along and such.

Since most of the people who read this blog are friends and family, I thought you might be interested in the blog, too. So...you've been waiting for this....

drum roll.....

Patterson Orthodontics

Did I make you scroll to get to it? Cool.

Anyway, enjoy! Make a comment. Put it on your RSS reader...check back frequently (yeah, I'm begging for it to have traffic so it shows up higher on search engines...) and don't be afraid to leave comments...even if you don't live in Prescott Valley nor do you ever intend to!! Just help us look popular!

And if you do these things, I'll love you forever. And I'll forever keep your blog on my Google Reader and in my bookmarks (even if I don't link it here...).

Happy Halloween!!

2009-10-31T22:02:00.002-05:00

I cannot find my camera, so this is the best we could do tonight. The kids had so much fun trick-or-treating. Here, they're expected to tell a joke before they get their candy (our native St Louisan friends are surprised that no where else does this tradition). Here's the joke, the first time I heard them tell it to someone...

Colden: What's a sleeping dinosaur?
Dylan: (immediately) A Stega-snore-us!!
Person: haha. So cute!! What a good one! You guys are so cute.

After 3 houses, it ended up like this (Dylan was ready to tell the joke and get the full spotlight).
Ding-dong. As soon as the person opens the door...
Dylan: What do you call a sleeping dinosaur? A stega-snore-us!!

After 3 houses like that, I could tell Colden was frustrated that he wasn't getting his turn, so I made them take turns after that. But it sure was cute!! Evelynn just enjoyed following them, picking up candy from the people, and putting them into her bucket. Halloween is Colden's favorite holiday. I think it just became Evelynn's, too. Right before bed time, Rob and the kids were wrestling on the floor, and Evelynn was thoroughly enjoying being on the bottom of the doggy-pile. For several minutes after I put her to bed, I could just hear her squealing in delight in her bedroom...and she didn't even eat any candy tonight. Colden and Dylan just love getting all this candy from other people. They think it's heaven. And they love seeing all the other kids in their costumes and handing out candy to them when we're at home.

The ward party last night was also amazing. It 3 years ago, the ward Halloween party was basically a flop. This year, it was comparable to a county fair/festival. So organized, so many prizes and treats, and of course, time to spend with good friends.

What a great holiday.

Pretty Good

2009-10-20T21:29:00.002-05:00

Tonight, we tested BBQ apples. They turned out pretty good on their own, but they are a whole lot better cut up with cinnamon sugar sprinkled on them, a few scoops of ice cream, and hot caramel topping.

How we BBQed them:
Wrap the apples with foil and place them on the grill in indirect heat for about 35-45 minutes. Rob put them on the grill around the edges at the same time he put on the pork chops and hot dogs. The chops and dogs were done quickly so the apples stayed on while we ate dinner...perfect timing for dessert!

Next time, I want to try doing it without the foil...I wonder if smokey apples taste any good.

Random Thoughts

2009-10-17T21:51:00.002-05:00

1. I just looked at the title of my blog and thought...

my life is SO not Small & Simple right now. It's Crazy & Complicated.

2. I really like the alliteration on those phrases...it's almost poetic (the sss is a soothing and simple sound, the C is a hard, staccato sound).

3. I'm still wearing my coat. Last night, someone said it was going to be sunny and "warmer" today. So I went to Colden's soccer game with only a light coat on. That hour, the sky was overcast and there was a chilly breeze (one that I didn't feel from outside of my house). I wished I could have played soccer with the kids instead of freeze at the sidelines. And I wish I was like the other parents who suffered in silence...I was very vocal about my dislike of the weather today.

4. I'm learning important lessons on how to be a wise spectator mom...blankets, mittens, hats, all of it.

5. I wish we could rent a beautiful home for $1200...instead, reality is prompting me to rent an average home for $850. Welcome to the real world of an average salary, not a 3 times per year student loan installment where you can splurge some months and cut back on others.

6. Things don't just get done on their own...no matter how much you wish it to get done. Most good things in life require work...and a lot of it.

7. There are some really great things about St Louis that I'm going to miss. The parks, the museums, the zoo, the animals...but especially, all of our wonderful friends here. All of you. We will miss the many family friends that we have here...and there are several families who we love and who we will miss.

8. Sometimes when you pray to help someone else, you find that you're the recipient of a great service, and you became the object of someone else's loving service. And either way, you feel that God loves His children and smiles when we help each other.

Right Now...

2009-10-10T21:01:00.004-05:00

I figured it was a good time to re-visit the post I made a couple of months ago and see how we've come along.

We made our goal by putting our house on the market by Labor Day weekend. And just over a week ago, it was put under contract!! Now we just have to get through the inspections and hope that the buyers' financing goes through. In the contract, we asked if we could rent-back the house for a month so we could stay here through Rob's graduation (we close on Nov 6, Rob graduates on Dec 4). They're okay with that! So that's a little answer to my prayers! (And a huge stress reliever about not having to figure out interim housing here or there or anywhere.) And I don't have to worry about packing, just yet, anyway.

The Interior Designer is done with her part, the plans were submitted and have been approved by Prescott Valley city...so the General Contractor is moving forward with the buildout of Rob's office.

A month ago, I plunged into homeschooling...all the way...and realized that was an all-consuming endeavor...and I do not have time for that right now. So I backed out of the plunge into my original plan of just planning on HSing for this year and not deciding on the long-term decisions until I have had a chance to check out the local schools in Prescott and Prescott Valley. I'm doing "classes" every day (Pre-K and K) with the boys. It's actually quite fun and not too stressful...usually. We've done some fun things like moon walking, a night with the symphony, letter books, Tots of Fun at the library and homeschoolers at the library, museums, zoo, math games, magnet experiments. I also bought some books to help me teach Colden how to read--he really seems ready. He also gets upset if we don't do a class every day. Such a good student!

I've started some of the marketing strategies (aka, contacting dentist offices to verify address for the family Christmas photo-card we will be mailing them to introduce ourselves...sorry to family and friends who will be reading this, you may or may not get Christmas cards this year...priorities...$$$$ comes first, ahem, I mean business).

We have also actually enjoyed ourselves, somewhat. We finally went camping as a family at a wonderful place we loved the first time we saw it...Marshall Farm. We will miss that place.

We also went to another Cardinal's Baseball game...and this time we went as a whole family. The kids loved it! And the Cards played really well that night. It was a fun game to watch.

Rob turned 32. He didn't get any real presents, just money to go towards the Big Green Egg BBQ grill he really, really wants. But this is a picture of him on his birthday.

I also just took the kids to Texas to visit my aunt and uncle in Dallas for a couple of nights and Rob's sister and her family in Houston for several days. The cousins had a lot of fun with each other...Evelynn loved their dogs (almost too much)...and I had some great conversations with Maren.

Rob got a lonely vacation from his family so he could stay at school as long as he needed to work on his research for his thesis. His research is done...now he's working on the paper.

Anyway, gotta go enjoy an episode of the Office with Rob now. ciao

My Hot Date

2009-09-26T22:46:00.003-05:00

I love going on dates with Rob. It's his birthday next week, so earlier this week I asked him if he wanted to do a Friday night date or a Saturday afternoon date. He chose Saturday afternoon. I'm so glad! We played Disc Golf (golfing with Frisbees that you throw into an above-ground basket...very fun) at a local park. It had just rained so I brought a change of clothes to play in so I could keep my date clothes nice.

Then we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner. Wow. Their steak and ribs were just awesome. And they were just so smart when they decided to give everyone peanuts in their shells and just let everyone drop the shells on the ground. What a great gimmick to set them apart from other steakhouses (yeah, we're very aware of marketing strategies right now...in all businesses).

After the date, Rob dropped me off at the other Stake Center (church) for a Relief Society broadcast (where the leaders of the Church talk to all the women of the Church throughout the world). It was great to be reminded that I'm a daughter of God and that He loves all of us (it's great to have that reminder when your prayers aren't getting answered in the ways you are hoping...my keys are still lost and no one has looked at our house in over a week, but at least I know God loves me). I was grateful to hear the messages about service and charity, too. Hopefully, I'll be able to do some small things during this busy time that help and lift others, and help them feel God's love for them, too.

Anyway, I love afternoon dates...it's fun doing sporty things without the kids slowing us down (although they enjoy Disc Golf, too). And we pay the babysitter to actually watch the kids, instead of just being here while they sleep.

Logo Design

2009-09-22T22:21:00.002-05:00

We're working on a logo design concept for Patterson Orthodontics. Our favorite idea is layering Patterson in a script font over ORTHODONTICS in a block font...very similar to the vinyl lettering stuff many of us have in our homes.

Now I need some comments, suggestions, advice.

Mainly, it will be used on printed signs, business cards, letterhead, new patient folders, invoices, etc. So, I'm assuming that as long as it's in a JPEG format, it should work with any of that stuff.

Now the questions...

Is that a good idea for a logo?

I've been looking around town at logos while I drive around, and I've never seen that kind of logo. So, does it work? Would it work? Is it too trendy or too much of a fad (definitely don't want a logo to be outdated in 2 years)? Is it professional enough? Is it cutting edge and modern?

Please let me know your thoughts about something like that.

Tribute Continued

2009-09-18T22:45:00.000-05:00

Colden is the kind of kid that you just need to see in action to really see how much of a joy he is to be around...because he is just so full of happiness. This is a video clip of his birthday treasure hunt.

Enjoy!

Tribute to Big C

2009-09-17T21:48:00.004-05:00

Colden recently turned 5! He had a fun birthday party with his friends at the World Bird Sanctuary, quite possibly one of his most favorite places here (a place that will be terribly missed). He requested a dinosaur cake and a Transformer's birthday party. We also went to the zoo on his actual birthday, since his party was 4 days later.

Oh, how I love my Colden! I am so proud to watch him grow and learn and love others. Just yesterday, we had a neighbor kid over, who we haven't had over for awhile due to busyness, and he just hugged him as soon as he walked in our door. Colden has a huge heart, and he's not afraid to show his love for others. He hates it when his dad goes to school every day, and he's all smiles when Daddy comes home.

This kid has many amazing qualities. He has a keen ability to pay attention to details. Right now, his favorite subject is dinosaurs. He'll tell you which dino has an "up claw" (like the thumb-claw on an Iguanadon), if a T-Rex is drawn incorrectly (with 3 fingers instead of 2), and most of the answers in his own dinosaur game (Rob and I played with him once, and we were amazed at how much he knew). He's also great at memory games. He also knows if we're going home the right way or not. He knows if we're close to certain friend's homes, the zoo, the science center, Daddy's school, and several other places. He knows all of his letters and doesn't even get b or d mixed up.

Colden loves everything about science: animals, nature, dinosaurs, the solar system, and all things boy: like collecting rocks, shells, catching frogs, worms, keeping "pets" like caterpillars and a snake, and fishing.

This kid is also full of faith. He knows that when he gets sick, Heavenly Father will help him get better. He loves to receive blessings from his dad when he needs them. He also has prayed for courage when he's scared, to help me find lost things, and to help us sell our house. When his cousin had a horrible accident with her hand, he kept praying for her and her hand months after the incident. Speaking of his cousin, he loves all of his relatives and is always excited to see them. He knows who are daddy's siblings and who are mommy's siblings. And he always says how much he loves them. He also loves their pets...especially Killer (the bunny--Mommy, we need to go visit Killer...).

Colden is my first. He often takes on the responsibility of the world--and he doesn't like to disappoint his parents. He also loves to be first, the fastest, the best, etc. Oh, he is so much like me!

5 Year Old favorites:

DVDs: Land Before Time, Eyewitness videos of Dinosaurs
Computer Game: Go, Diego, Go!!
Books: Lots of books, but probably his Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs
Game: Freeze Tag
Sport: Running
Food: mac n' cheese and bologna sandwiches and Frosted Mini Wheats ("square cereal")
Pastimes: Playing with Daddy (usually involves chasing, teasing, and growling), going to fun places
Toy: Helicopter Transformer

Today

2009-09-17T21:32:00.005-05:00

When we, Colden and I, went to pick up Evelynn from her nap today, her hair looked just like this. (It was in pig-tails today...)

I commented about her crazy hair, to which Colden responded,

She looks like a Triceratops with three horns!

Okay, so maybe you just had to be there...but it was funny to me!

The Oatmeal Jelly Bean Parable

2009-09-13T07:49:00.003-05:00

This morning, my kids wanted a jelly bean after breakfast. I told them that if they ate all their oatmeal, they could have a jelly bean. Dylan gobbled his down and happily got his jelly bean. Colden slowly ate his, then decided half-way through that he didn't like it anymore. He still wanted a jelly bean. But he couldn't have it because he didn't meet the requirements (justice). He started to weep...I expected wailing, but he composed himself enough to just weep. He did eat 5 more small bites, which I thought was a good effort. But I still didn't want to give in (because I knew a healthy breakfast was better for him since we're going to church and he won't get his customary large mid-morning snack...aka 4th meal).
Well, he settled down. The softie in me came into play. Then I suggested an alternative (mercy). If he chose to eat another healthy cereal, then he could have a jelly bean. So, he's eating his cereal in anticipation for a jelly bean. Justice was served (a healthy breakfast) and mercy was granted (a different choice of breakfast).
And then I thought--what a wonderful parable!!

And you should see the smile on his face when he realized that he could have the jelly bean. What joy!!

Education Advice

2009-08-16T20:59:00.002-05:00

Well, I think I've finalized my decision about putting my kids into school. I have to check out the schools first because Prescott has an open enrollment with several charter school options. So that decision will have to be made later.

Now, I'm wondering what kind of advice you parents of older kids can give me. Colden misses the Kindergarten cut-off in Missouri by 24 days, but when we get to AZ, we could register him in Kindergarten with no problem. I'm just wondering if I should wait a year and put him into Kindergarten next year or get him ready to go when we move. What is your advice? And you reasoning behind it? (Either based on personal experience growing up or with your own kids now.)

Intermitten Fun

2009-08-11T22:39:00.003-05:00

Gotta survive somehow!

Evelynn's birthday cake...yes, it's a butterfly. And yes, I ran out of blue food coloring so I couldn't make it purple, and I didn't want it pink, so I went with orange. I didn't get really good pictures of her on her birthday...but we got a cute video...someday, I might post it!

Here's my big girl! Evelynn hiking up the stairs at Cahokia Mounds. She went up half of them...there were probably 100! Rob was also very patient.
We've been here over 2 years...and this was our first time at the Sea Lion show at the Zoo. We just loved it.
Colden brought his quarters, dimes, nickels, and pennies so he could pet the sting rays (we told him last time that we couldn't because it costs money that we don't have--he still didn't have enough, but we were touched with his inciative!). They were really soft and fun to pet.
Yes, that's the T. Rex named Sue in the background--the most complete T. Rex skeleton found to date. She's only missing one arm, one foot and leg bone, a few ribs, and something else (hip?). The skeleton on display is plaster, so that the original fossil can be preserved at the museum (so it looks complete). A museum in Chicago bought the original fossil at an auction for $4.8 million. Amazing! Can you tell that Colden is in heaven? Dylan is along for the ride (look how big he's getting!!).

Gotta love the Science Center on a hot, summer day.

Right Now...

2009-08-10T20:12:00.003-05:00

S to the T to the RESS!! I'm with my friend, Emilie, right now.

...awaiting drawings from interior architect to send to general contractor for Rob's practice.
...gathering all the student loan information to figure out what becomes due and when.
...creating a potential budget so we know how much Rob should alot for his salary (crazy, huh...how he can decide on his own salary, almost).
...hoping that the word-of-mouth buyer for our home will come through so we don't actually have to put the house on the market.
...deep cleaning the house, 15 minutes at a time (I keep getting interrupted by one of three culprits).
...hoping that the paint color I "matched" for the basement matches close enough so I can get away with only touching it up and not having to repaint the whole thing.
...developing a marketing strategy for Rob's practice.
...creating new patient documents and other clerical stuff for the practice.
...getting excited for the design appointment on Thursday where we meet with the interior architect and select colors, designs, finishes, furniture for the practice.
...surviving Evelynn's teething escapade--she still only has 2 teeth, but she's been drooling a lot the past few days and she hasn't slept well today.
...exercising every day. I've got to--if I'm ever going to function as I would like to without fearing a lower back failure.
...home schooling Colden's Pre-school/early Kindergarten days. He doesn't qualify for K here (by age), but he does in Arizona.
...researching schooling options in Arizona. They have open enrollment and a few Charter Elementary schools. Although, my favorite one is a private school. I don't think that will be allowable in the budget yet.
...trying not to forget Dylan as the middle, often overlooked child.
...cooking with the food in our freezer and food storage so we don't waste as much or have to move as much (ohhh, I've made some delicious stuff lately...I also have a surpluss of chocolate chips, which I don't think move very well. More cookies!!)
...trying not to have a nervous breakdown by trying to stay positive, doing fun things with the kids (it helps all of us de-stress), and reading my scriptures every day.
...getting really, really excited for the SCRAPBOOK RETREAT at Aunt Doralyn's cabin next weekend! I hope I can make it! (And I DESERVE IT!!)

Yeah, it looks like I'm doing a lot here. Maybe it looks like more than my share. But Rob's plate is more than full (he's working on his Master's Thesis, studying for a liscensure exam, working on a 40+ page business plan for financing, making desisions about ortho supplies and equipment and computers and.....getting through the legal aspects of starting up a business, getting an accountant, and also exercising every day to stay sane). So I figure I can help out where I can.

LOST

2009-08-05T14:45:00.003-05:00

I just unintentionally spent 2 1/2 hours at the YMCA. 1 hour for the workout/shower. 1 hour looking everywhere for my keys. 1/2 hour waiting for a good friend (thanks, Kate!) to pick me and the kids up to take us home.

The keys are still lost. The van is still there (whew--at least that isn't lost, too).

But at least we are all home.

Update (August 9):
The keys are still lost. But at least we have a spare.

Family Pictures

2009-08-03T21:44:00.003-05:00

My sister did some awesome pictures of our family when they were here a few weeks ago. Go to her photo blog to check them out!

Family Photos

I can't wait to get the prints!

Two Musical Bits

2009-07-29T16:16:00.002-05:00

I'm not starting an advice column, but I thought I had two bits to share about musical training on the piano. I'm no concert pianist, but I enjoy playing. I also enjoy accompanying others. Several of my friends and family are beginning to put their kids into piano lessons, so I just thought I would share some advice from my experience...

I'm not an expert, but I believe that playing for a recital and accompanying are almost two different talents. I say that because I have known several people who are a whole lot better at playing the piano than I am, but they freak out when they have to accompany. I had to learn how to accompany--by doing it. I started when I was 12 when I sometimes played for my church Young Women's group. I almost cried sometimes because I would get lost as they kept singing--a capella. But, somehow, I kept finding myself being asked accompany--and agreeing to because no one else could/would--until I became used to it. Now I don't care if I mess up. I figure if someone else is judging my accompanying skills, they can just take my place and play for me!

As the child grows in playing skill, I also think it's important to include the songs from their church's Hymn book (they can start with easy versions) or Children's songs with their other piano lesson books. When Rob and I took piano lessons last year, Rob asked our teacher if he should bring along the Hymn book. He was playing classical music. She said it wasn't necessary since classical music teaches you what you need to know. In a way, that's right. But Hymns are a style in and of their own, and songs made for accompanyment are a bit different...so it's important to include them in the playing repretoire. And when you practice a song every day for a week, you may not play it for a couple of years, come back to it, and your fingers will still have some memory of how it's played. (Yeah, that's based on personal experience.)

Anyway, I hope those two bits were a little bit helpful!

Kid Quotes

2009-07-23T20:44:00.002-05:00

Last Friday, Colden chose to help me frost Evelynn's birthday cake instead of watch his regular afternoon movie (I was shocked by that).
While I was whipping up the frosting, he sat in the chair and said with a huge smile on his face, "My tummy feels funny."
Then I asked, "Are you excited?"
And he just nodded with that huge grin on his face. I just thought that it was so cute that he was excited for his sister's birthday.

Tonight, while Rob was helping Dylan brush his teeth, he was looking in Dylan's mouth. Dylan didn't want him to.

Rob: I'm a Dentist.
Dylan: No you're not.
Rob: I am.
Dylan: No you're not.
Rob: I am. What am I, then?
Dylan: You're a Daddy.

Evelynn just loves to drop things and then say, "Uh-oh."

And she loves to scream whenever anything delights her--toys, playgrounds, slides, and her screaming monkey. And she loves to scream whenever something bothers her--diaper changes, drying off after a bath, and her brothers teasing her.

Gettin Creative

2009-07-14T19:20:00.000-05:00

In June, we took a trip to Virginia to visit Rob's parents one last time before they move from Richmond. I blogged about it last month. But tonight, I made a video about it on our cool new computer and video editing software. It was so fun and easy!

Enjoy!

Intellegence

2009-07-13T20:29:00.001-05:00

Evelynn communicates with us a lot. She doesn't say words yet, but those eyes, her looks, those screams, and her grunts sure say a lot.

Last night, after I fed her bottle to her, I rocked her for a minute and just cuddled with her. She pushed away from my chest and just looked at me with those deep, penetrating eyes. I asked her if she was ready to go to sleep. As she looked at me, she nodded her head in agreement. Shocked, I hugged her and put her to bed.

I tried it again tonight, but she just wanted to climb all over the rocking chair. Oh, well. I still believe that she understood me last night. I still believe that she's smart!

Davis Family Reunion

2009-07-12T19:59:00.006-05:00

Last week, we hosted a family reunion at our house. I'm so glad that most of my family (my brother and his family couldn't make it--we missed them) made the trip to come out here. We sure did a lot, and I think everyone had a good time, at least most of the time.

On Wednesday, July 1, we took the kids to Suson Park. That place is always a hit with the kids--thanks to the farm animals and the great playground. Then my sister did two photo shoots for some of our friends later that day. She also has better blog posts and pictures about our reunion...so if you're interested, you can check out her page.

On Thursday, we took them to the Science Center. The adults enjoyed a Planetarium show while the kids explored the Discovery Zone. Colden just had to show his cousins the dinosaurs...one cousin liked them, the other didn't. We stayed long enough to almost see all of the exhibits. Later that night, we luckily got a babysitter last minute (it had been Girl's Camp up until 12pm that day) so the adults could go to a Cardinal's game. They played the San Francisco Giants. My brother-in-law played baseball at BYU, so he was really excited to go to the game--especially against the Giants since he's from the Bay area.

The next morning, we all headed to the zoo...like everyone else who had Friday off for the 4th. Well, the place was packed and the road was like a parking lot. So we changed our plans and decided to go to Chuck E Cheese for lunch instead of dinner...and then go to the zoo. Chuck E Cheese is always fun and crazy--and I'm always ready to leave when the tokens run out. We made it to the Zoo around 3:00, so we had 2 hours to see it all. Amazingly, most of my family did get to see almost all of it. They cruised that last hour. At 5:00, we stayed for a few songs at the outdoor concert, then we took some incredibly exhausted kids home.

The 4th of July was a great day. We started with a breakfast and Independence devotional at our church. The breakfast was good--the talks were a little long for a Saturday morning. When we got home, Rob and I started to prepare for our awesome BBQ. Rob has recently decided that grilling is his new hobby. So we grilled zuchinni, hot dogs, and kabobs with the works (onions, peppers, fresh pineapple) and two different meats (chicken and steak) in two different marinades. Yum. Then we went downtown for the Festival at the Arch. It was fun and the kids really enjoyed the bouncy stuff. The concert was good, too, what we heard of it. We had heard horror stories about getting out of downtown after the fireworks. And we could see that the kids were getting tired and we bought a lot of fireworks to set off at home. So we left. As we were driving home, we could see several fireworks going off in different neighborhoods. That was cool.

First thing Sunday morning, the first group left to drive home. My parents stayed until Monday. Just before I took them to the airport, we stopped by the Missouri Botanical Gardens and did a quick tour of that beautiful place.

It sure was great to have family here. We love you and miss you!!

Let the Storm Begin

2009-07-09T08:19:00.003-05:00

For the past few weeks, we've been enjoying life...but we could see the stormy clouds on the horizon. We just knew that we would soon have to really get our house ready to sell...and that we would really need to get Rob's practice set up. We were doing little preparations, but mostly just enjoying life before the long, tough storm.

This week, it all began. Rob is getting the lease agreement finalized and he's submitted an application for licensure in Arizona (a process not short and simple). All of our upstairs furniture is in our kitchen area (and some spilled downstairs) so we can get our carpet stretched. And while the furniture is out of the rooms, we decided that now will be a good time to clean the carpets and paint the trim.

Let the storm begin. We're ready (as we'll ever be) to take it on.

Elephant Rocks

2009-06-25T14:30:00.002-05:00

Dylan refused to smile at the camera. He really was happy to be there.

Colden striding the top of a rock. I just love the sea of green trees in the background. (I look forward to moving to Prescott, but I sure will miss the greenery. I sure have become attached to it.)

All of us in front of an elephant rock.

My cute boys. Best of buds. Sometimes.

A few weeks ago, we discovered a really cool place to go hiking...Elephant Rocks. After a 2 hour drive (1/2 hour getting-un-lost detour), we made it. There are great picnic areas in the shade and literally tons and tons of boulders that are perfect for, well, bouldering.

What a great way to spend a Saturday!

Nostalgia

2009-06-17T15:50:00.004-05:00

Today, I had the opportunity to drive the kids around the very first neighborhood they ever lived in. Yep, I'm in Richmond, VA, right now, visiting my in-laws. Over the weekend, we enjoyed spending time with Rob's brother and his wife, Henry and Fran and little Sophia. Anyway, back to topic. I just loved driving around and letting memories flow freely into my mind. Streets that I had run on, walks we went on, neighbors we had befriended, memories of people I knew from church, outings with the kids to parks and other places. It was sweet to drive down memory lane.

Colden remembered our house. Dylan asked if we could buy it back. I was pleasantly surprised to see that not much changed with the exterior of the house. It looks like that one last paint job I did before we sold has not been re-done (yesss...that was a lot of work). The owner took out the garden beds and seeded the bare parts in the back yard with grass. It looks nice and taken care of. And I'm glad of that.

Being here reminds me that I loved this place and the people here. I'm glad to have the opportunity to visit it again.

Now I understand why my mom loved to take us to her old house where she grew up...and why she was so silent as we drove around the neighborhood. Her memories must have just washed over her mind and taken her back. At least, that is exactly what happened to me.

The Hand of God

2009-05-31T22:13:00.002-05:00

President Henry B. Eyring, First Counselor to the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, recently gave a talk about noticing the hand of God in his daily life. This video is an excerpt of his talk.

Every time I hear or read that talk, I think of what a wonderful idea it is. I'm just not good at consistently writing in my journal. So I decided that I will share thoughts occasionally on my blog (since I intend on turning it into a book for posterity). Of course, I see the hand of God in my relationships with my husband and with each of my children. I especially love to see the intelligence and innocence of my baby, and the natural faith of my small children. But I'll try to focus on other things...thoughts I have, answered prayers, miracles witnessed.

In church today, a young man and his grandfather gave talks--he's about to go on a mission so it was his "farewell." As the grandfather spoke about prayer, he emphasized the importance of expressing gratitude to God for the blessings we have. His daughter, the young man's mother, has a terminal brain tumor (she was diagnosed with it last year). He said that he often prays for her to have health and healing. But then he realized that if he thanks God for the blessings that he sees in her life, he sees that miracles are already happening. The young man had mentioned that she still cleans their house, runs every morning at 5 am, and stays on top of his and his 3 younger brothers' activities--despite the way her meds make her feel. When the grandfather spoke about expressing gratitude for what she still can do, he was able to recognize that a miracle is already going on...she is able to lead a normal life.

Tribute to the Best English Teacher--Ever

2009-05-24T15:37:00.002-05:00

My favorite high school teacher, Miss Beckwith, is retiring this year. Her niece, and other students, have reached out to her former students to write something about her that they can include in a book for her. This is what I wrote. I'm posting it here more as a journal entry than anything.

But, if there was anyone in your youth that profoundly had an influence on you, who was it and how did they influence you? I would love to hear anyone who reads this comment about that.

Miss Beckwith was, by far, the most influential teacher I had in High School.

Even though I already enjoyed reading, she really opened my eyes to literature. She encouraged us to read classical novels, short stories, poetry, and drama. Several reading assignments I had in college were a lot easier, since I had already read the story, poem, or book in high school. I still love a good book...and more than just the cookie-cutter intense/action stuff that frequently makes the best seller lists. (Boring.)

Miss Beckwith encouraged me to become the English Sterling Scholar for the 1996/1997 school year. I learned much and grew a lot from that experience. She also helped me as a Sterling Scholar by encouraging me to write for the MoDel and setting me up with other writing experiences that I still remember. I loved taking B&W pictures with those SLR cameras. Learning how to develop film was really fun. I also felt like I was doing a service for the community with my articles. One of my beats that year was wrestling. I received a few compliments from Delta Wrestling followers about the articles that were published in the local paper. And I still remember writing an article about a controversial topic that involved the principal and a teacher. Those experiences gave me the courage I needed when I wrote for the Daily Universe, the BYU school newspaper, several years later.

Although I left high school with the desire to become an accountant, I later changed my mind when I discovered the major ofPublic Relations. That major combined elements of learning that I had grown to love: English, communications, and business.

Now, I wish I could say that I've become a highly successful PR director of a major company, or something like that. But most of what I write now ends up on my blog, in a scrapbook, or on a craft project for my boys. Most of my reading happens in 5-10 minute increments, on the couch, with a little boy on each side and my baby girl crawling around on the floor below us. I've discovered wonderful children's books and authors that my kids love.

Thank you, Miss Beckwith, for being such a great English teacher. I will always be grateful for what I learned in your classes.

Take Me Out to the Ballgame

2009-05-18T22:16:00.002-05:00

Rob scored some sweet tickets...and he let me take a really hot date to tonight's Cardinal's Game. At 8:30, he said that he wanted to stay for the whole game. By 9:00, he was ready to go home and go to bed.
Oh, well. We still had a great time!!

The game highlights, according to Colden:
the moths flying in the night sky above us, a bat flying through the stadium, the "bad" guys getting all of the points, fly balls, the escalators, the candy.

When we left, the score was 0-5, favoring the Milwaukee Brewer's. Looks like the score is now 4-8, thanks to a home run in the 7th.

An Odd Mother's Day Tribute

2009-05-10T20:10:00.003-05:00

I have had a wonderful Mother's Day. I really have. However, it was far beyond perfect (waking up at 5:47am to take care of the baby, Rob's muffin topping burning and causing the smoke alarm to go off, my extra-long shower made the kids bathe in cold water, and cranky kids due to lack of sleep).

Thanks, Rob, for making my day special. I love and appreciate the thought you put into the muffins...they were still great! The dinner was awesome. You were here to help me get the kids ready for church (yesss). I saw your intentions to make a wonderful day for me, and it is appreciated and felt. You're the best!

It's easy to be a good Mom when I have such a wonderful husband.

xXxOooXXxoOO

I Am My Mother's Daughter*

2009-05-10T16:58:00.006-05:00

My mother is such a beautiful person, inside and out. Isn't she just darling as a young mother? (I'm the one in the pink shirt.) Well, she still is, and now she's a darling grandmother. I find myself becoming more and more like her every day. Sometimes it's small things...like the way my sneeze sounds just like hers (in that explosive way) or the way I smile so easily like her. But there are other traits that I'm discovering, and sometimes developing, that mirror her.

Jack of all Trades. My mom is a Jack of all Trades. She can sew, quilt, bake bread and cinnamon rolls and cookies, make crafts, create games or puzzles, make up stories, sing, scrapbook, and work up a sweat. She enjoys creating things...especially if she's creating something for someone else. She rarely makes something just for herself. But I often hear her talking about a creative project that she's making for someone else. I can't call myself an expert at anything. But I sure like to dabble a little in everything. I enjoy cooking, baking, scrapbooking, creating things for my home, and I will sew (although I don't enjoy that as much as she does).

Thrifty. In the 80s, my Mom would stretch one box of Mac n' Cheese to feed the whole family of six (by adding more macaroni...yeah, it was bland). She still reuses aluminum foil and sandwich baggies. She knows how to shop a bargain, and she won't just buy something just because it's on sale. I've been amazed at how we've been able to get through all these years of school by just living on the student loans...thanks, Mom, for your lessons on thrift. I learned it, and now we live it.

Mom, Dylan, Me

Mothering. My Mom is the best mother. Period. Every time I visit her with my kids, she does things with them that bring back memories to me of my childhood. She has driven with me on two separate road trips with the kids...and she's amazing at entertaining them with songs, games, stories, and her love. She loves nursery rhymes and singing traditional family songs. She valued each of my siblings as individuals and allowed us to pursue our own interests and discover our own talents. I played the piano, my sister danced, my brother played soccer, my other sister excelled at the piano (she had to get better than me...and she did it), and my "baby" sister loves arts and crafts (specifically scrapbooking).

And she's still my mom. I'm still learning from her. After Colden was born, I just couldn't do anything from start to finish without being interrupted. When my Mom visited, I watched how she would rock Colden to sleep, put him down, then do some work. When he woke up a few minutes later, she stopped what she was doing, picked him up, settled him down, put him back down again, and returned to her task. She did it naturally. I learned so much in those few minutes.

*This post was inspired by a friend, thanks, Emilie, for the inspiration.

Happy Birthday, Dylan!!

2009-04-25T12:24:00.003-05:00

Happy Birthday, buddy! You're 3 now! It feels like your age has finally caught up to you. You are smart, happy, energetic, and loving. You still love animals, so this year we went to Purina Farms and the Zoo for your family birthday activities. You also insisted on having a "farm" cake and you wanted to play with it more than eat it. Everyone loves your smile and your goodness.

There are many things you enjoy doing. Here are a few of them:
Playing outside
Taking a bath
Watching Kung Fu Panda, Toy Story 2, Land Before Time, Word World
Teasing Colden, and Evelynn
Running...and running...and running
Digging in the dirt
Cutting with scissors
Drawing
Using keys on locked doors and locked drawers
Helping Mom put the clothes in the washer
Jumping...off of anything: the stairs, the couch, the raised flower bed
Playing in the car
Fishing
Swimming "all by myself"
Baking with Mom (especially licking the batter off of the mixer)
Eating Chicken Nuggets, Cheese burgers, bananas, pears, bread, and "peanut butter on a spoon"
Taking naps
Reading stories, and napping with books
Being curious
Playing computer games like Puppet Playhouse, Usborne vocabulary, Wonder Pets Save the Baby Dinosaur
Throwing and catching balls
Getting stickers on your charts
Chocolate (the farm cake had to be chocolate)
Dumping all the toys out of a box to find the one you want
Pretending
Sword fighting
Going to the zoo, the "airplane" park, the "animal" park, the "train" park, the Science Center, the "bird place" (Wild Bird Sanctuary), the Nature Center, Costco, and Mc-an-Donald's
Watching movies with the family

I hope you always enjoy life and find things to smile about. I sure love my happy Dylan!!

Love,
Mom

The Prince, the Princess, and the Pea

2009-04-07T22:45:00.003-05:00

Last night, Dylan woke up 4 times and Evelynn woke up 3 times. Needless to say, I think Colden was the only one who got a good night's sleep.

Other than sleepless nights, we've been having a great time visiting family and seeing some friends. In Utah, the kids and I saw all of my siblings and their families. We also saw, for the first time, my sister's new home and my brother's condo that he just sold. We visited Great Grandma Davis and saw several of my aunts on my mom's side. We tried to watch General Conference at my parents' house...with everyone there (at least there are only 6 grandkids). I also attended a 10 year reunion with my Jerusalem buddies from our study abroad. It was so great to see everyone there...especially my old roommates. Just like old times.

We're now in Arizona visiting Rob's sister and her family...and looking all over Prescott for a good practice location. Please pray for us so we can find something good! (And so Evelynn and Dylan can sleep tonight....sleep, sleep, sleep)

Dylanism

2009-03-29T20:39:00.002-05:00

Shortly after the second Sacrament prayer was said this morning (where the water is blessed...and we've been teaching the boys that the water represents Jesus' blood that He shed), Dylan turned to me and said,

Jesus picks his nose with his fingers and then blood comes out.

(Can you also guess that Dylan likes to pick his nose...which causes a bloody nose?)

Looking forward to...

2009-03-28T23:10:00.003-05:00

1. My 30th birthday on Monday (phone calls are always appreciated)!

2. My mom coming into to town Monday night (she's going to help me drive the kids to UT...Rob will join us on Saturday).

3. Our quick trip to Utah to spend time with family, see my sister's new house, and attend a 10 year Jerusalem Reunion.

4. Our quick trip to Prescott, AZ, to hunt down a practice location and spend time with Rob's sister and her family.

(I'm not really looking forward to 5 days of driving in the next two weeks.)

Evelynn is Crawling!

2009-03-28T23:09:00.001-05:00

The baby gate is back on the stairs, and anything left on the floor ends up in her mouth.

Watch out, world! Here she comes!

2009-03-19T20:51:00.008-05:00

I just love it when the boys do things with Evelynn. She sure is spoiled. She may not get as much one-on-one time with me, but she sure gets a lot of love from her whole family. She adores all of us...and we all adore her.
One of the kids' favorite past-time with their dad...watching videos on the Internet.

For Valentine's Day, Rob and I went out to eat at a nice restaurant and then to the Symphony to listen to Verdi's Requiem. I just love my man. I gave him the choice of going to the Symphony or to a hockey game and he chose the Symphony!

For the journal sake...for the last several months, Rob and I have been taking piano lessons. We've been trading off every other week for the lessons (but we just quit ths week to simplify life a little). These were the first piano lessons he ever took. He played the trombone in High School and even for the BYU pep band during his Freshman year of college. He also has a really great singing voice. Music is just a part of him. He taught himself how to play the piano, and he often (more than me) just sits down to play. While he was taking piano lessons, he was really dedicated. He would sit down and play his piece and practice it over and over until it was almost perfect. He was actually disappointed that the piano teacher didn't expect perfection from him...because he expected that from himself. He would practice a piece until it was almost good enough for a recital...just short of memorization. But, that's him. Whatever he does, he does with determination...and he gets really close to perfection. Even though I took lessons for over 6 years, we were playing songs from the same book...that's supposed to show how good he is (or it shows how lacking my piano is). He continues to amaze me...and he continues to bring out the best in me. I love you!

Here is the crawling video I promised. I can't believe how fast my baby is growing!!