A Day in the Life of a Bosch

Birth Announcement

2009-08-24T10:56:00.004-06:00

I know this is WAY late in coming, but I do have an excuse. I have been searching my computer for my list of addresses. It's the list that I refer to every time I send out Christmas cards and ... birth announcements. It is lost. I cannot find my list anywhere and without your help, it will take me months, maybe years, to create a new one, so please, if you are reading this, leave your address in a comment so I can recreate my list. Or email it to me at celestial49@hotmail.com. I would really appreciate it.

And courtesy of my mom's awesome digital scrapbooking skills, here she is...

Updates

2009-06-26T21:12:00.001-06:00

I have obviously had a difficult time keeping our blog up to date, but I am hoping to change that. Hold on to your hat for some major updates. We've had A LOT going on.......

Before and After

2009-06-25T11:20:00.000-06:00

Our back yard is finally finished!!

Here is the before picture...

Here are the after pictures...

Nana and Papa Came to Visit

2009-06-16T11:10:00.001-06:00

Andrew's parents came to visit the new baby and we had a great time with them.

We made a trip to the park and had lunch.

Papa played ball with the kids.

One night, Andrew's mom and I made a late night shopping trip to the mall. Allie apparently wouldn't go to sleep until I got home, but just couldn't quite make it. This is where she fell asleep about 15 minutes before I got home.

The boys stayed busy in the yard, creating and building a play set for the kids.

We're excited for it to be finished!

I'll Get You My Pretty....

2009-06-13T11:05:00.002-06:00

...and your little dog, too!

Allie had her first dance recital! The theme was the Wizard of Oz and Allie played the part of the wicked witch of the west. She was the cutest witch ever! Here she is right before the show with her friend, Lindy.

This is pretty much how her entire class stood during their part. They looked a little clueless, as expected.

This is their ending pose.

Way to go, Allie! We are so proud of you!

Bouncing Like a Kangaroo!

2009-06-04T10:55:00.004-06:00

After a couple of weeks of being cooped up in the house on account of the new baby, we knew it was time to let the kids get their built up energy out. They definitely deserved it. So we called our friends, the Pereas to join us for a fun day of Kangaroo Zoo and then to Iceberg for ice cream. They had so much fun!

Olivia's First Photo Shoot

2009-05-27T10:41:00.003-06:00

What a sweet baby we have! My mom came into town to help with the kids. That was such a life saver! Thanks, mom! She is a great photographer. You can check out her stuff here. She brought camera equipment, props, and backdrops up the wazoo. It was great!

Olivia Pearl Bosch Has Arrived!

2009-05-23T10:23:00.004-06:00

She's here! After 38 weeks of pregnancy, Olivia Pearl Bosch was born Saturday, May 23, 2009 at 7:45 am. She weighed 6 lbs. 4 oz. and was 17.5 inches long. She is perfect and healthy.

We arrived at the hospital around 6:30 and got all set up for the c-section. Here is Andrew's get-up.

Here is Olivia's first picture. I'm impressed with how pink she is. With the c-section, I am strapped to a table with a sheet blocking the view of the surgery. The first time I saw Allie or Kallin was after they had been wiped clean and wrapped up, about 15 minutes after they were born. This time, however, just as they were about to pull Olivia out, the anesthesiologist lowered the sheet and raised up my head just enough that I could see her just as she entered the world. It was amazing.

She was much smaller than she appears in this photo.

Allie and Kallin were so excited to meet their baby sister.

Proud parents.

Boys Being Boys

2009-05-08T22:26:00.001-06:00

If Andrew is doing something outdoors, Kallin wants to be right in the action, even if it's chores.

Easter Is Here!

2009-04-12T22:19:00.005-06:00

The Easter Bunny made a trip to our house and filled the kids' Easter buckets.

Of course they were thrilled. Kallin got a Thomas the train, and Allie got a fairy bracelet. Not to mention candy that took them weeks to eat.

Another Sleeping Photo

2009-03-29T22:16:00.000-06:00

I love that their hands are both folded the same way. Kallin loves his daddy.

Time for Tea.....

2009-03-28T22:04:00.000-06:00

...or hot chocolate.

Allie had her 4th birthday. I can't believe my baby is 4! For her birthday party, she wanted to do a tea party. Her friends were instructed to dress up, which they did, and they looked so adorable.

We started by painting finger nails and putting on make-up, then the tea party officially began.

We used hot chocolate for "tea" and had heart-shaped sandwiches.

The girls had so much fun having lunch together. I love you, Allie! Happy birthday!

Allie's Big Girl Bike

2009-03-20T21:58:00.000-06:00

For Allie's birthday, she got her first bike. And she was thrilled, as you can see.

She is barely big enough for it, but she is so proud of herself.

March Flowers

2009-03-19T21:52:00.000-06:00

I first noticed my crocuses blooming on my birthday. I love spring!!

Allie's the Birthday Girl!

2009-03-08T21:47:00.000-06:00

Allie got to be the birthday girl at school to celebrate her birthday. Teacher Nisha gave her a birthday hat and I made her a birthday poster to hang up at school for the month. Allie was so excited to be the queen for the day.

Milk, Anyone?

2009-03-07T21:42:00.000-07:00

Kallin got into the Oreos, and as his Nana says, got more on his face than in his mouth.

So, of course, we had to let Allie have some, too, but her face got much less messy.

I'm glad they're such good friends.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz

2009-03-07T21:13:00.000-07:00

Kallin is still having a hard time staying awake all day. He curled up nice and comfy in his chair and fell asleep. Oh, to be a kid again.

Allie fell asleep one night while "reading" the Book of Mormon. Priceless.

Questions to Allie

2009-03-06T15:01:00.002-07:00

I got tagged on Facebook to ask my child(ren) a series of questions about "mommy" and write down their responses. Here is what Allie had to say about me:

1.What is something mom always says to you?
"time to eat"

2. What makes mom happy?
"when we (her and Kallin) stop getting grumpy"

3. What makes mom sad?
"when we (her and Kallin) be mad at you"

4. How does your mom make you laugh?
"tickle me"

5. What was your mom like as a child?
"carrots" (I think she thought I asked what I liked as a child, as in food)

6. How old is your mom?
"26 (I’m 24)"

7. How tall is your mom?
she held her hand over my head and said, “this tall”

8. What is her favorite thing to do?
"cook and clean up"

9. What does your mom do when you're not around?
"probably cook"

10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for?
"cause people like you"

11. What is your mom really good at?
"me"

12. What is your mom not very good at?
"Kallin"

13. What does your mom do for a job?
"eat lunch"

14.What is your mom's favorite food?
"graham crackers and milk"

15.What makes you proud of your mom?
"washing the clothes"

16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be?
"a girl Yogi bear"

17. What do you and your mom do together?
"play games and watch movies"

18. How are you and your mom the same?
"cause we’re just girls"

19. How are you and your mom different?
"our chests are different and I have socks on but you don’t"

20. How do you know that your mom loves you?
"you just do"

21. What does your mom like most about your dad?
"you like to help daddy put me and Kallin to bed"

22. Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
"grocery store"

Tuckered Out

2009-02-10T12:52:00.003-07:00

We have been under the impression from Kallin for quite a few months now that he is over the whole nap thing. Every once in a while he has one of those days where he requires a nap, but even then, it is like pulling teeth to actually make that happen. He is just not interested and does alright with that for the most part.

Apparently, however, he's not over naps. This is a picture from Saturday, taken at about 4:30 in the afternoon while he was sitting on the stairs eating fish crackers.

He was actually in the middle of eating a fish cracker when he fell asleep. Classic!

This picture was taken on Sunday afternoon at 4:00. Again, Kallin was eating, only at the table this time.

We're rethinking the whole nap thing......

Websites to Check Out

2009-01-14T11:17:00.002-07:00

Besides the hilarious Seriously, so blessed! website, there are 2 more websites that you should check out.

The first is a forum where women (usually women, anyway) post questions about EVERYTHING! No subject is off limits. Questions from sex to relationships, to children, to jobs, to pets, to politics, EVERYTHING! It's really interesting. It is called ask-any-thing.blogspot.com

The next is one that I found today. I want these t-shirts so bad. They are t-shirts for husbands, wives and children. Really cute..... I might get some for Andrew and me to where on our anniversary date. I'm sure he'd appreciate it. It is called frommetees.com

Check these out!

Cowboy Kallin

2009-01-13T10:50:00.002-07:00

This is Kallin's new look. We just got him some new cowboy boots and they are on his feet 24/7. He loves them!

Daddy's Little Girl

2009-01-07T23:09:00.002-07:00

Tonight after baths, Allie wanted Andrew to get her ready for bed while I got Kallin ready. After putting on her pajamas, she asked him to blow dry her hair. After getting Kallin in his bed, I snuck in to my bathroom where the primping was taking place and saw a tender dad gently blow drying his little girl's hair. I am so greatful for such a wonderful man who takes time for the little things. He is such a great daddy.

And the Verdict Is......

2009-01-07T13:46:00.004-07:00

We went to the doctor today for the sonogram. We were late (oops) and so they almost couldn't get us in to see the technician. She only had about 10 minutes for us instead of the usual 30, so she had to focus on the medical stuff. The first thing she told us was that I am actually 2 weeks less than I originally thought. My due date is now June 12th. (Ugh!)

So then the techinician tried to see what the gender was. She was having a hard time because the baby would not stop moving. Eventually, though, we found out that we are having a GIRL!! Allie was right all along. When we were telling her that it was a girl, she just kept saying, "I know!" like we were the ones that were behind on what was going on.

Anyway, we are very excited and can't wait for our little bundle of joy to arrive!

Seriously So Blessed

2009-01-05T19:55:00.002-07:00

My cousin brought this hilarious website to my attention. When I first read it, I was so annoyed with how shallow the author was. After reading into it a little, however, I found it hilarious. The author has created this fake person that is based on stereotypical Mormon women. It is really funny. The whole thing is totally satirical. Keep that in mind as you read. And enjoy!

Boy or Girl?

2008-12-30T10:10:00.002-07:00

On Wednesday, January 7, we go in for our ultrasound. We will find out if we are having a boy or girl. But first, we want to know what you think. Let us know!

Finally Some Snow!

2008-12-16T21:44:00.003-07:00

It finally snowed! The forecast has said "snow" for the past week. I think it has snowed for about 2 hours total during the past week. This morning, we woke up and low and behold, SNOW!

It took about 30 minutes to get the kids all bundled up. Kallin was so anxious to get outside that by the time we got to putting on his gloves, he would not let me put the water proof pair over his regular gloves. Oh well. He didn't seem to notice.

Allie really liked making snow angels.

Allie was insistent that we make a snowman. We started. We got the bottom of the snowman made and she decided she was done. As it turns out, she didn't want to make a snowman, she wanted to accessorize the snowman. She just wanted to put rocks on for the eyes and mouth, a carrot for the nose, and sticks for the arms. So the kid in me took over and I finished the snowman myself.

The kids had a blast!

Yay for snow!

2008-12-09T10:29:00.001-07:00

The next 5 posts are new. I am finally caught up. Hope you enjoy.

In the Rhino

2008-12-09T10:06:00.004-07:00

After Disneyland, we headed to my parents' house in Henderson (suburb of Las Vegas) for Thanksgiving. Kallin's obsession of course was the Rhino. All day long we heard "I wanna go in da Rhino." And he wouldn't stop saying it until you gave in and took him in the Rhino. Andrew, obviously, didn't mind much and had just as much fun as Kallin.

If you look closely, you can see that Kallin's left hand is gripping the steering wheel. I thought it was so cute.

The Happiest Place on Earth

2008-12-09T09:33:00.004-07:00

Let me just start by saying, Disneyland was awesome! We all had such a great time! The kids loved it and did so great. There were very few rides they couldn't go on: Indiana Jones, Splash Mountain, and Space Mountain are the only ones I can think of. Andrew had to take the kids on a few things by himself because I was limited as to what I could do.

On one of the days we got there, we were first in line to enter the park and so we got to see Pluto and take some pictures with him. I couldn't get Allie near enough to actually be in the picture.

Andrew took Allie on the Matterhorn. Kallin barely missed the height requirement.

Since he couldn't go on the Matterhorn, Nana took Kallin on the teacups.

Here are Kallin and Allie in Tarzan's tree house.

Allie and her cousin Abigail taking a cruise through the jungle.

We had the hardest time getting Kallin away from Mr. Toad's Wild Ride. It had a steering wheel. Need I say more?

Allie, the cousins and me on the teacups. It was my favorite ride when I was little.

This was at California Adventure in the Bug's Life section. Look at the smiles on the kids' faces!

Andrew took the kids on a rocket ride (I cannot remember the name) at Disneyland in Tomorrowland. You can only see him in the picture. The ride was going so fast I couldn't get a good picture.

Here's a bunch of the family on the Rocky Mountain Railroad. Andrew was supposed to be in this picture, too, but again, the ride was moving (fast) and I had a hard time getting just the right picture.

We stopped and got a family picture at the big Christmas tree on Main Street at Disneyland.

There's actually a lot more the the story and you can read about that here. Andrew tells it a lot better than I do.

Andrew Turned the BIG 3-0!

2008-12-09T09:03:00.005-07:00

Andrew turned 30 this year. After his 29th birthday, he hounded me for about 6 months about me needing to throw him surprise party for his 30th. Once he kind of forgot about it, I got started planning. My wonderful and gracious friend, Tiercy allowed me to use her house as the setting. And I ended up with not a single picture of her!! I cannot believe it!

Here is her wonderful husband that I am also very grateful to for letting us use his house.

Some friends traveled long distances to be there. This is Joel and Emily. I grew up with Emily and then she and her family happened to move into our ward in Cedar Hills right before we left.

And some friends traveled from next door. These people are our wonderful neighbors that we borrow stuff from all the time.

This is Joe, Asher, and little Taylor.

Here is Kelly.

Ben and Mikki.

Allie had a great time running around with all the kids. She was so excited to celebrate her daddy's birthday.

Andrew had a great time, too.....I hope. He was seriously surprised. He had no idea it was coming. He says it was only because he happened to be so busy at work. I admit that did help keep the secret, but I thought I was pretty dang sly.

Kallin loved the cake. He also loved singing "Happy Birthday" and hasn't stopped singing it since.

Happy birthday, Andrew! I love you!!

Trick-or-Treating

2008-12-09T08:53:00.005-07:00

The kids were so excited to get into their costumes and go trick-or-treating. Last year I remember there being snow on the ground and it was WAY cold, so we didn't do much because the kids were so young. This year, though, it was pretty warm. Neither of the kids needed to wear jackets while Andrew took them around to the neighbors.

Allie was a princess. We put sponge roller in her hair and glitter all over. She carried Kallin's bucket for him and made sure that he was doing the trick-or-treating right.

Kallin was a bat. He didn't quite get the whole trick-or-treating thing. As he got candy from each house, he wanted to sit on their porch and start eating it instead of move on to the next house. I don't think he ever really caught on. That's why Allie had to carry his bucket.

Murder Mystery Party

2008-12-08T16:57:00.006-07:00

Shavonne and I threw a Murder Mystery dinner party for Halloween. It took a lot of planning and a lot of cooperation from the friends we invited. Everyone did awesome playing their parts. It was a blast. Actually, it was a blast from the past, as it was an eighties-themed party (as you can tell by the pictures).

This is the whole group decked out in their eighties ensembles.

Here is Andrew and Kelly. His character had a big crush on her character and he had to sing to her to try to woo her. She wasn't falling for it. It was hilarious!

Lindsey played a mysterious female 007.

Mikki was a klepto gymnast. Ben was a stuttering professional football player. What a match!

Asher was a narcolepic ballerina, struggling to make it in the breakdancing business. Joe was a professional breakdancer.

Steve was a scanelous evangelist minister. He played his part well. Tiercy was his wife. She had an eye goop problem, which always makes it look like she's crying.

Mary was the president of the Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtle fan club. And Cole was the leader of the "C Team." (Bascially he was a white Mr. T)

Our wonderful host and hostess.... Greg played the president of a hairspray company with a very large flatulence problem. Shavonne was his wife who got stood up at prom and hasn't been able to get over it. Thanks guys for hosting this fun party!

It was so much fun and a tradition that I hope to continue!

White Chili Recipe

2008-11-11T11:59:00.004-07:00

I have been promising Debbie Wilkins that I would get her this recipe so here it is. It is so yummy.

White Chili

1 lb. chicken (I use 2 cans of chicken)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 1/2 tsp. garlic powder (I use chopped garlic when I have it on hand)
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
2 cans Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
1 can chicken broth
2 cans chopped green chili, not fire roasted (I use 1 can)
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper (I use about 4 times this amount)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream

Saute the chicken (if you aren't using canned) and the onion in the vegetable oil. (If you are using chopped garlic instead of garlic powder, add it for the last minute of sauteing.) Put in a large pot. Add remaining ingredients except for the sour cream and whipping cream. Simmer for 30 minutes. Turn off heat. Add sour cream and whipping cream. Enjoy!

(Disclosure: This is not a picture of the white chili recipe that I just posted, just a picture of white chili that I found online.)

Our Sunday Activities

2008-10-19T20:34:00.003-06:00

This is what happens when the Bosch family gets bored on a Sunday and starts playing on a Mac...

Movie Trailers

2008-10-15T22:31:00.003-06:00

I don't know what made me go looking for these tonight, but I AM SO EXCITED!! You've got to check them out!

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi1065091097/

http://www.imdb.com/video/imdb/vi4235788313/

YAY!!!

BIG News

2008-10-13T22:30:00.004-06:00

Well, here it is. We have some news.

It's a little blurry, I know. But for those of you that can't tell, that is a home pregnancy test. It's positive!! We are expecting baby #3.

I'm am about 7 weeks along and haven't had any major symptoms. I crave some foods, and get less excited about others, but no real sickness. Andrew's kind of hoping for another boy (alright, I admit, at first I was too), but I am kind of getting the feeling it's a girl. We'll see.....in about 3 months.

Allie's reaction to the news? "Babies. They poop and they cry and they eat. That's what babies do." I don't know how she knows all that. Every time she talks about the baby in my tummy, she refers to it as a "she."

Free Handbag

2008-10-09T22:00:00.000-06:00

These are really cute bags. Sign up to win a free one!

http://www.handbagplanet.com/

Winter Wonderland

2008-10-07T16:47:00.008-06:00

We went to my parents' cabin over conference weekend. It is near Brian Head (outside of Cedar City) at Panguitch Lake. We had heard all the talk of a storm hitting our home here, in Eagle Mountain, and were hoping we wouldn't see it at the cabin. Well, we did.

We got there Friday evening. It started raining a couple hours later. It didn't stop until it started snowing Saturday night. Sunday we woke up to the sound of snow falling from the roof and a snow-covered ground.

We decided to brave the Rhino ride up the mountain to deeper snow, so we bundled up the kids and took off.

It was really beautiful. The leaves were changing colors.

There was a section of the road where the trees were bent over making an arch passageway.

The kids' favorite part? Seeing the deer.

It was so foggy towards the top of the mountain. This scene got me so excited for Halloween. It looked so spooky. It was WAY too cold to get me excited about winter.

My Little Camera Flirt

2008-09-25T11:40:00.008-06:00

Yesterday I took Allie to find some dance clothes for her dance class that starts October 6. I'm sure I had more fun than she did. I decided I better have her try everything on to make sure it all fit. She wanted me to take a picture, then another, then another, etc. You can see from the following pictures that she likes having her picture taken....

I promise that I did NOT tell her to pose. I asked her to stand next to the wall so that I could get one picture (I didn't even post that one). She would run over to the camera after I took a picture, look at it on the screen, and run back over by the wall and strike a pose and tell me to take another picture. As you can see, she got really into it. I only posted about half of the pictures.

Kallin Taking a Walk in Daddy's Shoes

2008-09-25T11:34:00.005-06:00

I had forgotten I took pictures of Kallin trying on Andrew's shoes. He has a fetish. Next time I'll try to catch him trying on my high heals.

Midnight Sun: Edward's Version

2008-09-16T15:43:00.004-06:00

I'm sure all of us Twilight Series fans have heard about a new book that Stephenie Meyer is (or was) working on about Edward's perspective of meeting Bella. Well, my sister is visiting from out of town and told me about Stephenie Meyer's website and a letter that she wrote to her readers about that book. You can find that letter here.

If you ask me, Stephenie Meyer seems a bit immature and dramatic. Anyway, just thought you other Twilight fans out there would want to know the latest (if you didn't already).

I'm in the process of reading what Stephanie wrote of Midnight Sun and I can't wait to discuss it with those of you that plan to read it, too.

Allie's First Day of Preschool and the Worst Day of My Life

2008-09-06T17:47:00.004-06:00

So Allie started preschool yesterday. It was very difficult for me sending my little girl to a place that she had never been with kids and a teacher she had never met.

Kallin and I walked her up to Nisha Murray's home based preschool. While the kids waited for all their "friends" to arrive, they played outside. Allie was ok at first. There were just a few kids there, and Kallin was playing with her. But as more kids showed up, Allie became more and more nervous. I started wondering how she was going to handle this. She had been looking forward to preschool all summer. She stayed by my side until it was time to go inside and then said good-bye and followed the other kids inside with no problem. I was so proud of her.

Kallin and I made the teary-eyed walk back home and decided to make cookies for Allie when she got home. Kallin was going in and out of the open garage, just like always, when he came up to me and asked, "Where did Allie go?" I told him that she was at school and we would get her later. He went back outside.

About a minute went by and I didn't hear him. I went outside to see what he was up to and didn't see him. I looked up the street and down the street and saw nothing. I went back inside, thinking he had just gone upstairs to play. I couldn't find him anywhere in the house. I looked outside again, walking the perimeter of the house. Still no Kallin. I started panicking. I said a prayer that I would find him safe and that I could stay calm.

I just kept thinking that he must have gone to Allie's school to get her. I got in the car to search for him, with the phone in hand, ready to call the police if I didn't find him in the next 10 seconds. I turned the corner to Allie's school and there he was, on a bike that I didn't recognize. I got out of the car and hugged him, saying a prayer of thanks and told him to take the bike back. He started off down the street. He kept riding and riding and riding. Finally, we rounded another corner and went three quarters of the way down the street to a house with lots of toys in the yard. By this point I was freaking out, imaging that my little boy had gone that far from home by himself and I had no idea that he was there.

I took him by the hand and led him back to the car, buckled him in (tightly), and went back home. We finished the cookies (with him sitting on the counter next to me so he couldn't escape) and then went to pick up Allie. Her teacher said she did great, except when she was told to sit down for snack time. But Allie seemed to really enjoy it and can't wait to go back!

We Have Grass!!

2008-09-06T17:33:00.002-06:00

We finished our front yard.....almost. We have a few finishing touches to do, but we're basically done, and here it is.

I finished planting bulbs. It has been quite a project, spanning about a week with an hour here and an hour there. I didn't realize just how many bulbs I had planted until I was finished and started looking at all the empty bags. I started adding them up and was shocked when I got over 300. I started with a bag of 40 mixed daffodils, a bag of 40 mixed tulips, a bag of 50 Crocuses. That wasn't even enough to complete the middle circle of our front yard so I went to Costco and bought more. I got bags of 100 Crocuses, 60 Daffodils, and 120 Muscari. The total came to 410 bulbs! Spring is going to be so exciting!!

Kallin's Room

2008-09-04T12:49:00.007-06:00

So Kallin's room has been very barren since we moved in. My mom and I got Allie's room decorated pretty quick. But I could not decide what type of theme I wanted to do for Kallin's room. I was debating between a cowboy western and a sports. At Tai Pan Trading one day, I came across a few of the cutest cowboy decorations I have ever seen and, of course, they were reasonably priced so I bought them.

Then I went to another store, and another and by chance just kept finding this great, inexpensive cowboy stuff. This is how it turned out! I'm so excited!!

Family Reunion

2008-08-04T12:28:00.000-06:00

The first weekend in August we had a reunion with my extended family. It was at my parent's cabin. We had so much fun and so did the kids....

They loved the huge swing that my dad rigged up.

So did the adults. That's me being thrown into the air by the pull of a four-wheeler. It was so much fun!!

I would all of a sudden notice the kids were missing and without fail, I would find them in the driver's seat of something.

Kallin ate and ate and ate junk food. Here he is with a doughnut.

Allie fell in love with my cousin's dog and what you see there is what she spent the ENTIRE weekend doing. Easy Lenny. That poor dog.

Kids Say the Darndest Things

2008-07-31T12:30:00.004-06:00

Allie: Mommy, where did all the clouds go?

Me: I don't know.

Allie: Did they melt?

Me: (laughing) Yeah, I guess so.

Allie: Woooooow.

The Messy Shirt

2008-07-24T22:55:00.004-06:00

As I was getting ready for bed tonight, I took a quick look at myself in the mirror. I noticed the events of the day were displayed on my shirt.

I had dirt smudges from playing with the kids outside,
a blood spot from Kallin splitting his lip open,
tears from comforting him afterward,
little splats of bread dough from trying to make sourdough bread for the first time,
sloppy joe sauce splatter from warming up leftovers for lunch,
dirty dish water splashes from hand washing the dishes I couldn't squeeze into the dishwasher,
mayonnaise from making chicken salad for dinner,
and the toothpaste that dribbled because I started laughing from all the stains I noticed while I was brushing my teeth.

I love my life! Here's to many more messy shirt days!

Kallin's 2nd Birthday Party

2008-07-22T14:03:00.010-06:00

Kallin is officially 2 years old! I can't believe that my baby is 2! His birthday was on Saturday. We had a little birthday party Friday night since all of Andrew's family was in town and here are the pictures from that fun event.

Here is Kallin on one of his two new bikes.

Here he is on the other one. This kid was in heaven!

They went down slides....

And swung on swings.

Then they took a whack at the pinata.

Kallin was just in heaven when he opened all his gifts. Trucks, trucks and more trucks....his favorite.

Thanks for all the gifts and fun time!

A Week With the Cousins

2008-07-22T12:22:00.011-06:00

OK, I'm back. Most of you have probably stopped even checking my blog because it has been so long since I last posted, but here I am.

Since my last post (not the posts about Andrew), we had my sister-in-law and her 4 kids staying with us for a week while they were in the process of moving. This is a picture of one of her adorable kids (Isabelle) and my kids thinking they were so big.

Then I went to girls camp. Pictures of that are found on Kelly's, Mikki's and Tiercy's pages which are on my Family and Friends List.

Then Andrew went to San Fransisco. You can read about that on his blog.

Then we were awaiting the arrival of Andrew's family. His parents, two sisters and their families came to visit and just left on Saturday.

The first thing we did was go to the fountains at The Gateway in Salt Lake. The kids had a great time with Nana and Papa and their cousins.

The kids played ring around the rosie.

They all got a taste of Nana's lemonade...at the same time.

All the grandkids together (except Grayson who got left behind).

When we got home the kids had popsicles. We think Kallin liked it the most.

Then Papa told stories for bedtime. The kids loved it!

We had a great time and really enjoyed having everyone. We can't wait to do it again!

Andrew's Travels Continue

2008-06-11T09:13:00.005-06:00

Andrew is gone again. :( He's in San Fransisco at an Apple Convention. But he started his own blog so it's easier to keep up with him.

http://thebravecowboy.blogspot.com/

Andrew Has Left on a Jet Plane

2008-05-18T17:40:00.006-06:00

Andrew left for Tallinn, Estonia (a country by Russia) Friday afternoon. The following is the first email that I received from him after he got there:

So, we arrive 15 minutes late into Amsterdam so they have to book me on another fight to Tallinn. This one has me go through Copenhagen. So I arrive in Copenhagen, so far so good. After running around the airport, I finally find the gate for my flight to Tallinn - 2 for 2. We arrive here in Tallinn and yup, you guessed it...NO BAG!

Off to the Baggage Service it is. I'm told that it should come in tonight on the direct flight from Amsterdam (this is the flight I would have had to wait for if they didn't send me through Copenhagen...) so don't expect it until tomorrow morning...fine.

Off to catch a taxi. Mind you, I haven't changed any dollars because Rene specifically said that ALL taxis take credit cards...yeah...right...

Get to the hotel and yeah...need cash. Walk around until I find an ATM. Don't know the PIN number for my corporate credit card so I have to pull out our Debit card...Dang!

Fine...take out 500 Estonian Kroons (should be about $50) and pay the Taxi dude. Walk into the Hotel...yeah, able to check in - no problems. Get to my room and try turning on some lights - it's a little overcast here - and, of course, nothing turns on. Oh wait, there is an aparatus that says: "Main Switch". Hold on, it looks like my key card fits there...yup, sure enough. I put my key card in and all the lights turn on. Satisfied, I pull it out and the lights turn off...What the heck???

If I walk out of the room and forget my key card, not only will I be locked out, but their electricity bill is going to go through the roof! :)

OK, sit down to watch some TV. I'm hungry at this point but too razzled to go anywhere - plus, I stink...

Try to turn on the TV...nothing...*sigh*

Mess with the batteries a bit...now it's working...lovely.

Nothing good is on, of course.

So, I try to call you. Dial the number, says "Call in progress" - hangs like that for several minutes...nothing. Now I can't do anything, the entire phone is "frozen". Nice

Start up the laptop instead and hook up to free wireless - at least that's one thing I KNOW I can't screw up...LOL

Anyway, how has your day been? :)

I hate coming to new countries and having NO idea what to do...oh well...I'll live.

Kiss the kiddies for me, I'll talk to you later.

I've talked to him since then, and while it is not real exciting, he is adjusting a little bit.

2008-05-08T15:06:00.000-06:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Ancestry search - Family search

2008-05-08T15:05:00.000-06:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Free family tree - Create a family tree

The Difference Between Boys and Girls

2008-05-08T14:32:00.002-06:00

Allie and Kallin love to push strollers around. I started laughing when I saw how distinct the differences are between boys and girls. Allie's stroller consists of a baby doll, the doll's bottle and a pair of shoes. Kallin has a stroller full of cars.

A Little Lady

2008-05-08T14:26:00.004-06:00

Sunday night we called Nana (Andrew's mom) and Allie wanted to talk to her so we handed over the phone. She went straight over to the stairs and got in the position you see in the picture. She looked like a teenager. We felt like we were looking 10 years into the future.

Kallin sat down next to her and kept trying to cross his legs, but he couldn't.

Officially Binkie Free

2008-05-01T14:09:00.003-06:00

Three days later and we are binkie free!! Yea!!

Kallin doesn't even seem to notice anymore that he doesn't have a pacifier. He goes to sleep fine and stays asleep. The only problem we've had is that he's been waking up about 30 minutes earlier in the morning, but that could just be a coincidence. Other than that, we're done.

Bye Bye Binkies

2008-04-28T12:02:00.004-06:00

Today is the first in Operation: Extract the Pacifier. Last night it took Kallin a long time to fall asleep which is very unusual for him. We could hear him playing in his crib. He wasn't crying or anything so we just left him and figured he would fall asleep when he was ready.

I went in to check on him when I was heading to bed and noticed that all of his 6 pacifiers were on the floor next to his crib. I almost picked them up and put them back in his crib with him, but I hid them instead. I figured that if he can fall asleep without them, then why should he have them? So we decided the time has come to say good-bye to the pacifiers.

He asked for it a couple of times this morning, but was not too upset when I told him they were gone. I put him down for a nap and he cried for a few minutes (not at all like him) so I went in his room, rocked him a bit, sang him a song, put him back in his bed and left. I haven't heard him since.

We'll keep you posted on how successful we are....

More Than Just an April Shower

2008-04-24T14:33:00.000-06:00

No, I am not stalking my neighbors. This is supposed to be a picture of the snow that we had today. I felt like the calendar had been turned back a couple months and I for one was not happy about it. So for those of you not living in Utah, I stick my tongue out to you.

This is a close up of the neighbor's roof so that you can see very clearly how heavy it's snowing and how big the flakes are. Time for some hot chocolate!

Poor Kallin

2008-04-24T14:22:00.000-06:00

I meant to post this yesterday.....

So Kallin has been really sick with croup. We had a really scary moment Sunday night. We thought that Kallin was literally going to stop breathing. We were beside ourselves sitting in the steamed up bathroom with poor little Kallin at 3:00 in the morning. Andrew gave him a blessing, but when we didn't see immediate results, we were about to jump in the car and head for the emergency room but decided to get the opinion of my brother, Justin, who is a firefighter/paramedic. (thanks Justin) So while Andrew was on the phone with him Kallin's breathing started to become less and less labored. What a relief! I slept on his floor that night and took him to the doctor the next morning where they gave him a dose of steroids that really helped open his airways and got him breathing well.

Well, Allie has just been so sweet to him. As much as I have tried to keep them apart so that she wouldn't get sick as well, she just could not help but be a little mother to him. She would go and find his drink to give to him every time he had a coughing attack. She tried to keep him entertained with toys and by being silly. She was just so sweet to her sick brother. Well, yesterday I caught the two of them sitting on my bed sharing a snack of Goldfish crackers. She was feeding them to him one by one. It was the sweetest thing.

Thankfully, Kallin is all better now and Allie hasn't shown any signs of having caught the croup.

Kallin's Hat Fetish

2008-04-18T12:44:00.000-06:00

Since the weather has been so chilly this spring, when the kids go outside to play, I put a beanie on Kallin to keep his bald head warm. I didn't realize, but it sparked a love affair between him and hats. Now that it's a little warmer, I felt bad putting a warm beanie on him and got him a ball cap instead. He wears it everyday. This is how he put it on himself today and I just had to take a picture.

As soon as I got out the camera, Allie of course wanted to be in the spotlight too so she ran and put on her hat. She put on her clothes by herself today and I think she put her shirt on backwards.

2008-04-17T12:44:00.000-06:00

55 words

Speed test

2008-04-15T16:17:00.001-06:00

The family...

2008-04-15T15:00:00.000-06:00

Well, where do I begin? Allie is 3 and Kallin is 20 months. They are busy, energetic, spunky, sassy, sweet, and, best of all, best friends.

Allie loves to talk. She is so inquisitive and wants to know everything. She is constantly asking questions. She enjoys answering questions as much as she enjoys asking them. Her favorite phrases are, "Don't worry about it," "I'm bigger now. I'm 3," and "Don't talk to me like that." She has all the sass and emotion that a healthy, estrogen filled girl should have. She makes things fun and interesting and keeps us on our toes. She is so helpful to Mommy. She uses a small broom and dustpan to help sweep small areas in the kitchen. She collects dirty clothes and puts them in the hamper. She is very good at cleaning up her room and putting things in their proper place. She is so sweet to Kallin and helps him with whatever it is that he needs help with.

Kallin loves to show off. He has a goofy and sweet personality. He loves to pretend he's sleeping then suddenly wakes up to surprise you. He is saying more and more everyday. His favorite word is "off" as in "get 'off' that chair," "get 'off' the floor," and "get your hands 'off' me." Another of his favorite things to say, as with most children his age, is "MINE" accompanied by shrill screaming and legs kicking. Lately I have caught him singing. I can't understand the words to whatever he is singing, but I definitely recognize the motions to "Daddy's Homecoming." He truly is a character. He never stops moving. He is a boy in every sense of the word. He climbs on, jumps on, runs into, throws, catches, pulls, pushes, and kicks everything. He loves his sister and is her shadow.

Andrew's job as Product Manager over the Patch Solution at Symantec is going well. He has just been given the assignment to become the Macintosh expert for the product. He's excited about that. He has had many opportunities to travel the world. He has made a few trips to Sydney, Australia and has a trip planned to the country of Estonia next month. He has another trip scheduled to Sydney this summer and, hopefully a trip to Holland in October.

The kids are keeping me very busy. I never know what kind of mood they are going to be in or what kind of trouble they are going to cause, but there is nothing more rewarding in the world than being a mother. I have recently been called as the food specialist for girl's camp. I'll get to go and be one of the girls. I am very excited about it.