Negative Press

There is nothing worse than sick kids (vomiting, diarrhea, fever)...Poor things, and poor me...



EXCEPT....


a sick dog. That's right, vomiting and diarrhea. Can you get me the number to Stanley Steamer? If you don't have a dog, don't ever get a dog.




There's nothing worse than getting an oil change without a coupon. Stupid car maintenance costs so much and takes so much time....


EXCEPT...




at same said oil change finding out there is a LARGE mouse nest in your air duct system. Eeeew. I feel so dirty and violated.



There's nothing worse than being honked at as you race through a parking garage....(where does that person think you should be going? There are cars on every side of you, literally.)...




EXCEPT....



trying to leave same said parking garage through the one-and-only stairwell only to be blocked, along with a great number of other people, by three young, avid texters. Southern California is a great place to visit but I could NOT live there.



There's nothing worse than growing out your bangs...


EXCEPT...




growing out the bangs of your four-year-old. Is it worth it and will we ever be done?




There's nothing worse than a snow day on April 17th(like the can't-leave-to-go-to-the-mall kind of snow day)...

EXCEPT...

a snow day on April 17th followed by a four-day weekend. Aaargh. Are you kidding me? We were just trying to recommit to less media time! It's "TV Free Week" starting today but I don't know about that.

"TV Free what? C'mon, Mom. Be serious."

Just kidding, really. The dog sequestered herself in the laundry room for the bulk of the illness that took place while I was sleeping. There were no mice, dead or alive in my car, and I know it could have been worse on that account. The snow day was blissfully relaxing with some sledding and a trip to Avery and Evan's thrown in. It's all well that ends well.

But I do think I'll stop letting myself use that expression..."there's nothing worse than..." because the universe will try to show me differently.

The Mind of A Four-Year-Old

Do you ever wonder what goes through the mind of a 4-year-old?

Self portrait March 2009

If so, head on over to our house to find out. Rachel is sure to tell you exactly what she's thinking every second of every minute. Stream of consciousness, really. When we are out and about it is less pronounced so we've been on a school field trip, to the zoo, to playgroup, to the mall; all in an effort to give my brain a break. She is a talking maniac. Who knew such a quiet girl would have so so so much to say?! Whew. Even Dave, who spends a fraction of the time I spend with her, is EXHAUSTED.

Love you, Rachel but maybe you could get a journal or something to write down some of your thoughts...without talking out loud the whole time?

Easter Egg Hunt

Yesterday Rachel and I hosted our playgroup for the 2nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt. It was very fun but different than last year because we had the "big kids" participate last year.

Ben was such a nice big brother (and son) because he got up extra early to hide a whole bunch of eggs before he went to school. Jake probably would've helped if he weren't frantically trying to get some homework done before nearly missing the bus...oh, to be thirteen. Simply one injustice after another.

We have a couple new ladies with kids in our playgroup (after the ward boundary changes) and it has helped revitalize our little group. Rachel is really enjoying the "babies" in the group. And Fox now has some boys to join in playing with the lightsabers. Fun times and good memories.

Let's do it again next year.

P.S.- Annee, did you notice Rachel's jumper is the same fabric as the skirt you made her? We saw it at Costco and she spotted it literally yards away. "That's for me, Momma. I need that one. Did Ruby and Jane make this one too?"

A new pet and "big" snowkids

When Dave has time off we all hold our breath to see what the next adventure will be. The window was broken at the beginning of his last week off and then followed up with capturing this new family pet.


He's a blue-belly lizard. Ben spotted it while shooting hoops with Dave and then Dave managed to capture it, due to years of experience capturing reptiles. Yikes.

The lizard is in heaven in the terrarium, and much to my relief, it appears he can not escape like the gecko did. That's also welcome news for any house guests we have. Our aquarium days are officially over for now, due to two fires, but this terrarium is working out beautifully. I'm still holding my ground on NO SNAKES. That was in the pre-nup. I think allowing reptiles of any kind is very accommodating.

The week ended without any major injuries and a snowman on the deck. Dave thought this looked like a snowgirl with a dress but Rachel said no because she's too "chunky". Where does this stuff come from? I know at school last week there was an incident with another girl who was upsetting Rachel by saying that she is prettier than Rachel. They're so young to be doing this, right? The teacher settled it by telling them that Jesus makes us all pretty. You gotta love private, Christian preschool where they can say that sort of thing.

Too chunky. I don't think so. There's no such thing for a snowperson.

Pinewood Derby

This year Ben made an awesome car for the races. The kids and I arrived at the church more than an hour before it was scheduled to start so that "the man" could set up the track. (We were doing Dave a favor, as he is the Cub Master). Ben brought last year's car to race against this year's creation while we waited for everyone to arrive. Great idea.

When Evan arrived without a car, Ben immediately offered to let him use last year's racebox. Evan took third place overall with the loaner. Ben won fourth overall and first in his age group as well as the "Best Rear End" award. (Can you tell Ben's den leaders know about his sense of humor?) Not bad, Dave. Third and fourth. You must be proud.

Let's do it again next year!