Personal DNA

I'm an Attentive Curator.

Check out the results of my personality here. Some parts are earily right on.

God Laughs

My sister in law has this saying, "make plans and hear God laugh" and she is soooo right.

Kim emailed everyone from our link group asking for volunteers to host this weekend. I volunteered.

My sister in law is coming this tuesday to help me with stuff for moving. She is an organizational freak and I am lucky she is so willing to help me, considering she lives in Portland.

This morning, the boys woke up with green goo. GREEN GOO. Their noses look like they had green play doh shoved up there. Totally gross. Oh, and Owen is coughing a bit. Oh, AND he threw up last night. Projectile vomit across the couch. For about an hour or so afterwards I was in a complete panic waiting for "the other shoe to drop." It never did, thank God. Owen remained bubbly and happy and NOT passed out. ;-)

God is laughing at my plans I think. I had to cancel on link group :( and I emailed my sister in law telling her about the boys. If they are sick she can't come b/c she has a 3yo and my brother in law is self employed so he REALLY can't get sick.

I am really really hoping and praying they are not sick come Monday night/Tuesday morning.

I'm frustrated today.

I had a dream about moving last night. We moved into the most narrow house ever. It was a nice house, but it was narrow. Weird. Oh, and we made the drive in two days. That was sweet.

God, please don't laugh at our plans to move. ;-)

Oh and something really great: Owen is crawling. The kid is on the move!! It's amazing how fast they pick this stuff up. He is better today than he was yesterday. Every day he gets better and better. I love it.

I love my kids. I love watching them be creative. For Valentines I got them play doh sets. A play doh duffel bag of play doh stuff with cutters, and a pasta maker, and a roller. They each got one. And they each got a play doh tub. One tub is for picnic stuff and the other is for animals. They have played with those for HOURS. They love it. Especially Dylan. :D I thought I would not like them having play doh but they seem to be doing pretty well with it.

Today we are going to go through more stuff to take to the dump. I wish I could snap my fingers and have this done. I am seriosly contemplating moving into our trailer NOW and just coming to the house to do stuff for the move. That way what I get done stays done. I don't know. That seems extreme. But it also would simplify things for me. If my sister in law (she does have a name btw, it's Teresa haha) comes I think we'll do that after she leaves actually. That is what we were going to do after the movers take all of our stuff anyway.

Okay, off to do something productive. I promised Sean I'd blog about the sweet potato allergy thing, so I will for sure be back this weekend with that. ;-) Check Sean out. He has a baby on the way. :D

Funny Ha Ha Friday

I forgot to add the funnies to my previous post about getting busted. ;-)

Here are a few funnies from the last week with the kids:

McKenna was running to the boys' room and she said "Lets go Dylan! You're tagging me!" and squeeled and ran off. hahaha!!! Kind of like a few weeks ago when she was running/hopping and I said "McKenna I said no running" and she said "I'm not, I'm hopping hip" (skipping) heehee Oh the things kids say. ;-)

I was putting the kiddos down for a nap and Aidan lost his paci one day. This is what happens....he has it and tries to hide from me (b/c he's not supposed to have it) and then he loses it somewhere in the house. Normally I take it from them and put them up, but this morning he left it in his bed like he's supposed to so I didn't think about it again. Anyway, I'm looking for this paci and getting IRRITATED b/c he can't sleep without it and I can't find it. I said "This is so stupid!" while I was looking through toys and stuffed animals. Then, from his crib, he says, "mommy, we don't say soopid. Soopid is a mean." hahaha!! I love when they correct me.Honest. I do. It means they know it. ;-)

Today the boys were taking their bikes to the backyard from the garage and Aidan was pushing his bike and said "I have BIIIIIIIG muscles!"

Earlier this week I caught Dylan and McKenna playing "baby." She was trying to nurse him. That was a fun game to walk in on! I had to explain how only mommies and babies do that sort of thing. ;-) haha!!

Also this week, Aidan found "cat poop" under the kitchen table one morning. We don't have a cat. Upon further examination I realized HE had pooped under the table. The night before. After bath. When we let them run naked for a few minutes. How this went unnoticed you ask? It was late, the lights were off, and we had already had dinner with no reason to go back to the table. I can't believe I didn't notice it. I did however SMELL it that night, but thought they just were tooting. Next time I think I'll follow my nose. ;-)

Dylan to McKenna: "Do you know what gooerish means? It means when I don't like something"

Dylan: "Mommy! Aidan says HE is Uncle Nate and he's not!"
Me: "Well it's okay if he wants to pretend to be Uncle Nate"
Dylan: "But IIIIIIIIIIIII want to be Uncle Nate!!"
Me: "You can be Uncle Nate too"
Dylan: "NO! I want Aidan to be Aunt Teresa!"
hahahahaha!!!!
He was literally in tears over this. Hysterically crying. haha!

BUSTED

Brent busted me!

Okay so I said I wouldn't be getting on here for a few days, and while I did really good the first day, the second day not so much. I did refrain from posting and commenting though. Now that is quite the accomplishment on my part. haha!

Even though I didn't completely stay away, I did minimize my time drastically. And what a difference it made! It was a good lesson for me in priorities, boundaries, and everything in MODERATION. Too much of anything IS a bad thing.

In my profile when I say I tend to get sucked into the computer once I turn it on....yeah, I wasn't kidding. Even though I am reading some amazing stuff and having some great conversations, or enjoying a friendly debate here and there, too much is too much. And when your kid tells you he feels gooerish about you being on the computer....well, that'll snap you to attention if nothing else.

I did accomplish a lot these last few days, and the best part, I was able to hear God without all the "noise" in my head. God knows my heart, and he knows what I am struggling with, but when I am so immersed in what I am doing elsewhere, I can't hear him. What I miss when I am not paying attention! All this time (last couple of months) I've felt like a failure at being a good mom, wife, homemaker. Brent reminded me that I am a perfectionist. Yes, yes I am. *Hi I'm Brandy and I am a perfectionist* meaning that I have this IDEA in my mind of how I want things to be, and I can NEVER reach it. EVER. And I know it. So instead of just trying to be good at stuff, I don't even try b/c I know I won't reach my level of perfection.....the unrealistic one I have in my head. Just being good is not good enough. It has to be perfect. And if it's not, why bother? See my problem? I have a feeling this is going to be a life long battle for me. Like an alcoholic is always an alcoholic. A perfectionist is always a perfectionist. Every day is a battle to "stay on the wagon" so to say, for lack of a better example at the moment.

I have always been a fan of the sayings "go big or go home" and "if you're going to do a half a$$ job, don't do it at all" and "there is right way and a wrong way and your way is not right" (haha). That last one is a testament to the fact that I can't accept help either. I am bad at that. And only I can fix that.

The other thing I have enjoyed these last two days: my kids. Oh the fun we've had! And that's always worth it.

So here is my attempt at adding a little imperfect "grey" into my life. Finding a middle ground. Setting some boundaries. Being imperfect. ;-)

Talk To Me Tuesday

Okay so my question today is, what do you do when you find yourself so overwhelmed with life to the point where you are not coping well?? How do you get back on track? How do you realign yourself??

I am so off track I just yelled at my son b/c he couldn't figure out his v-smile game. Not my proudest moment. At all.

So to realign myself, with my kids, with my husband, with my house, with my God, I am getting rid of distractions. For a while. And this, this has been a distraction. One I enjoy very much. Very much.

So I am off for a while to clean, to spend time with my kiddos, to spend time with God, to spend time with myself, to spend time paying attention to Jake. BUT, when I come back I want lots of advice on other ways to get back on track. Lots of advice. Preferably advice that would keep me from reaching this point of feeling overwhelmed. My sister in law says I am a black and white person. This is true. Very true. I need some shades of grey. ;-)

I'll be back, in a few days or so. And I won't be lurking (aww that was just painful to say).

Looooooooove yoooooouuuus!

Issues

Obviously I'm having blog issues. I'm not very happy about this. :(

My links will all be back up soon and I'll have a decent layout back up too.

I'm irritated. At myself. Grrrrr.

My Favorite Things

Beaming boy smiles and little baby kisses
Long brown eyelashes and magical wishes
Pulling around all their cars with a string
These are a few of my favorite things

Warm cups of hot chocolate and marshmallow minis
Special treats and good eats and magical pennies
Watching them run and gleefully sing
These are a few of my favorite things

Boys in blue jeans with dirt on their knees
Hearing "I love you" and "thanks" and "please"
Kissing their boo boos after a ding
These are a few of my favorite things

When my head hurts
When the dinner burns
When I'm feeling mad
I simply remember my favorite things
And then I don't feel so bad

Mouthwatering Monday

<--- This is Aidan. Cute isn't he? ;-) He loves his coffee first thing in the morning, just like mom. And by coffee I mean Hot Chocolate in one of my coffee cups. We started doing this b/c he would really drink my coffee when I wasn't looking. I'd leave my coffee unattended for a few moments, to go do some other "mom" thing, and when I came back I'd have nothing left. Same thing happens to Jake's soda at night. Jake is a HUGE soda drinker. HUGE. He'll leave a 44 oz fountain drink out from the store down the road and come back to almost nothing. Just two nights ago I found Aidan sucking one down and took it to Jake and said "how much was left in here" and he took it and said "OH MY GOSH! It was at least half full!" and now it was empty. Aidan sucked it dry. And it's not like I don't give this kid something to drink all day either. I guess he just wants to be like mom and dad. You can't beat that. We'll take it while we can get it! And, just like mom and dad, he doesn't like to be messed with while he's enjoying his drink! haha!!

<--- Now this is a much nicer looking view of my boy. How cute he is! He is my lover and my snuggler. And he's at that stage where his talking is too cute.

"I wuv you mommeeeeee"

"I shump a biiiig one" (I jump a big one)

"das ma toyee over dare" (that's my toy over there)

"beebee Oweeeeen ish shup" (baby Owen is up)

"I wuv puppy rooooooniiiiii's" (I love pepperoni's-- last night at dinner)

"awww buuuuddy" That one he says all the time to everyone. We love it.

Okay that's enough bragging. Here's my Mouthwatering Monday recipe:

I got this recipe in one of my presents for my bridal shower. Jake and I LOVE it and it is soooo yummy. Don't pay any attention to the fact that it is probably not the healthiest thing you could eat, that would ruin the creamy goodness of it!

Jack Cheese Enchiladas

1dz corn tortillas

1/2 cup cooking oil

3/4 cup chopped green onions (I use more, I like them)

1/4 cup butter

2 cups Jack Cheese (again, I use however much I want)

1/4 cup flour

2cups chx broth

1 cup sour cream (me looooovs sour cream!)

1 small can chopped green chilies (sometimes I use two)

Directions: In skillet, cook tortillas in hot oil for 14 seconds (7 seconds each side). Place 2T cheese and 1T onion on each tortilla. Roll up and place seam side down in pan.

Sauce: In a saucepan, melt butter; blend in flour and chx broth. Cook stirring constantly until mixture thickens and bubbles. Remove from heat. Stir in sour cream and green chilies. Cook until heated through. DO NOT BOIL.

Pour over rolled tortillas. Bake at 375* for 30 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining cheese and return to oven until cheese melts.

It is oooooooooh sooooooo goooooood! It goes great with rice and beans! :D Topping it with olives is yummy too! If you try it let me know how it turned out. :D

My sneaky sneaky husband!

<---- See that? THAT was my early Valentines present tonight, along with matching earrings. A few days ago Jake asked if we were going to go out for Valentines Day and I said NO b/c for one, Teresa and Kambrie would probably (hopefully) be here and for two, we NEVER go out for Valentines Day. We don't even celebrate it really. It's more of an annoying "dating" holiday I think. So for some reason he is really pressing going out for V Day which is odd, so we agree to go AFTER the actual day, either the 15th or 16th. Better that way anyway, avoid the crowds. I hate crowds. So tonight the boys went to my moms to stay the night. We didn't take them over there until about 8 b/c they took such LATE naps today. I normally wouldn't have put them down so late (3:30) but we had planned on going to church tonight and I didn't want them to be pills. Well, 5pm came around and they were STILL sleeping and I didn't have the heart to wake them. So, we didn't, and missed church. (sorry Deb! If you went)We can go in the morning. I am glad I didn't wake them b/c Dylan slept until almost 6 and Aidan slept until almost 7!! Normally I do NOT like them to sleep that late, but they played hard today and hadn't had a nap in two days. They needed it. So anyway, after we took them to moms around 8 I got in the shower b/c Jake insisted that we go out to eat since we were minus two boys. We kept Owen home with us. So, we go to Red Robin. Where the heck else would we go. I swear we should buy stock in that place! While we were sitting there, out of NOWHERE, Jake pulls this jewelry box from JCPenney out and and plops it down on the table and says "so, uh, I got a little somethin' here" and he kind of says it under his breath. He cracks me up. heehee I just BEAM and stare at it. I got all excited and asked what it was for and he says....VALENTINE'S DAY! hahaha! I said "It's not for another week" and he said "yeah but I wanted to give it to you ON that day, not after, so I'm giving it to you now" and I said "but it's still not ON that day" and he said "I'd rather give it to you earlier than later" hahaha! He is so funny! So, there it is. My pretty pretty necklace and matching earrings. LUCKILY I hadn't worn anything tonight. I just wore jeans and a long sleeve fitted black top so I was pretty bare and boring, but the necklace and earrings were the perfect touch! Thank you babe! I love them! :D oh yeah, and I love you too. ;-) heehee

<---- And this picture right here, that is how I ended my night. Isn't he cute????? This would be Owen, who you all prayed for. Such a beautiful and healthy boy!!! By the way, his problem, he's allergic to sweet potatoes. More on that later. ;-)

Have a great Sunday! :D

Funny Ha Ha Friday

So as I lurk through blogland (or blogosphere, whatever) I notice that a lot of people do a "wordless wednesday" or a "thankful thursday" or like my friend Tam at InProgress does, a "Fill In Friday" (which is really fun!) and I really like that they do this. Kind of simplifies things for when you can't think of something to blog about, or for when you are thinking of too much to blog about, which happens to be the case for me most of the time. I have been told more than once that some of my blog posts are little novelas. ;-) So today I was thinking about my blog and I thought I wanted to revamp a few things, and having a point to each day kind of strikes my fancy. ;-) Yes I said "strikes my fancy" just like I also say "draw the boys a bath" to Jake, to which he says "seriously? did you seriously just say DRAW them a bath?" Yes. Yes I did.

Anyway, I came up with a Monday through Friday theme and I have to say I am kind of excited about it. Plus, I think in the next few weeks (2 months about) when our lives will SO extremely chaotic with moving and everything that entails, it will be good to still post a blog w/o thinking much about it. I'll save the weekends for my outpours. Jake is home then and that will give me quiet time. :D

So this is what I came up with:

Mouthwatering Monday: For all of my easy family recipes that we love. They are so great I am always passing them on to friends. In fact several of my cookbooks are loaned out right now. I must get those back. ;-)

Talk To Me Tuesday: I'll post a question that has been on my mind that I wonder what everyone else thinks about. I often wonder what others think about things, or if others think about the same things. Tuesday though could also be Top Ten Tuesday, just depends on my mood. I haven't decided yet. haha! ;-)

Wordless Wednesday: I like the idea of this one and enjoy looking at others' wordless wednesdays. :D I see it all over blogland.

Thankful Thursday: This one really blesses me to read on other blogs. It reminds me to be thankful for the little things, not just the big things. One that I read said "tiny hands patting my cheek" and I instantly felt all warm and fuzzy thinking of when Owen pats my cheek or when Dylan rubs my arm or when Aidan runs his fingers through my hair. Lots to be thankful for! :D

Funny Ha Ha Friday: The boys are CONSTANTLY saying funny stuff. I am sure that I can find something to add every friday here. ;-)

So to start it off today Dylan said the most hilarious thing to me. I couldn't stop laughing. I was talking to him about moving to North Dakota, b/c he seems very nervous about it. He is always asking to see pics of where we are going and lately he has been very clingy and even climbing into our bed several times at night, just since we found out. He even asked once if we were going to leave him behind! :( This is how our conversation went today:

M: Dylan how do you feel about us moving to North Dakota? (after we had talked about it a bit)

D: I don't like it.

M: you don't?

D: No, I don't.

M: Why not? Does it made you sad?

D: It makes me feel gooerish.

M: Gooberish?

D: no, gooerish

M: GOOerish??

D: yeah, gooerish, not gooberish. (B/c there is clearly a difference)

M: Oh. Well what does gooerish mean?

D: Gooerish is when I don't like something.

M: Oh, so you feel gooerish about moving? You don't like it?

D: yeah, it's gooerish.

Okay then. ;-) hahahahaha! I love my kids! heehee