Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Alive and well....

....just busy! We got to our apartment here in Kirksville! We arrived this afternoon and are trying to settle in but our stuff won't be here till Thursday. We made a run to Walmart and got a ton of necessities and I think we'll be okay the next two days using our air mattress and paper plates. :) We like our apartment - nice, clean, newer than our last one, washer and dryer, dishwasher,central air, garbage disposal, mormon neighbors...what more could a girl ask for? We got a little bit of rain this evening and Roy was delighted to discover fireflies outside our door! He was really hoping there'd be some here.

Tomorrow we'll run a few errands around town and start shopping for a couch and dining room table (we left them behind) and maybe even hit a park, since they do wading pools during the summer. Poor Rae, we'll be unloading the truck on her birthday! It's okay though, because we've celebrated it twice already! We are using a neighbor's wireless right now and we'll hopefully get our own, legitimate internet set up this week. And maybe someday I'll have time to write all the stuff I want to write about!!

Sunday, July 20, 2008

Family picture


Just the original Jeppsons:

Talent Show

YouTube limits videos to 10 minutes, so I had to split it into 3 parts and do some slight editing. Part 1:


Part 2:


Part 3:



PS: Those of you who aren't Jeppsons may want to skip to our part of the show, at 2:00 in Part 3.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

We're almost done!

So our whole moving ordeal is halfway over. :) Our apartment was cleaned quickly on Saturday morning thanks to a lot of help from friends from church (thanks again everyone!) and we turned in our keys around 1:30 in the afternoon. We stopped at a couple of friend's houses to say goodbye and then headed to the hotel.

**As a side note, at the last minute we realized it probably wasn't a good idea to put all of our important CDs in the trailer since it was going to sit in the heat for a couple of weeks, so we put them all in our van. Well, I hadn't counted on that much stuff and I spent Saturday morning competely stressed out trying to get everything to fit into our van. Eventually it all fit, but not very well and now we have a lot of stuff that we have to store at my sister's house while we are here. And I didn't have things as organized as I would have liked, so there are a few boxes with just completely random stuff - ugh, stuff like that really bothers me. **

The hotel was nice and the kids enjoyed swimming at the pool. Roy and the kids went to bed around 8, but I took myself shopping because I felt like I needed to do something besides moving stuff! I didn't get home till 9 or so and then I couldn't get to sleep till 10. We got up at 3 and the kids were surprisingly well behaved and reasonably happy. We made it to the airpot and checked in without any problem.

We were getting ready to board (going potty, changing diapers) when I realized that I did not have a SINGLE diaper! Oh my heck - I am never this disorganized or forgetful! So I just started saying a lot of prayers and looking for moms with a kid Blaise's size. No luck. So I got on the plane and hoped for the best. Rae had a window seat and I had the center seat with Blaise on my lap and a nice man sat next to us and before the flight started he noticed that there was an empty seat in the back so he moved there so that I could have more space (probably did it more for his sake than mine!) The extra room was a huge help! The kids were really good. Blaise pooped halfway through the flight and I asked one of the attendants if there happened to be any diapers on board. He checked really throughly for me, which I appreciated, but there weren't any. So I changed Blaise's diaper and lined his onesie with paper towels and just hoped for the best.

Our plane landed in Denver and we had about an hour before our next flight. So we walked around checking every gift shop for diapers and stalking mothers with young children. I even tried to get Blaise to pee on the potty! He peed in his paper towels so I changed him immediately but it had already soaked through to his onesie, so I had to take that off. I put a pantyliner into his shorts and once again hoped for the best. We were just about to board the plane when I saw a mom with a boy Blaise's age so I went up to her and asked if I could buy a diaper off of her. She was super nice and gave me one (no charge) and I quickly put Blaise on the floor and diapered him right there in the middle of the airport! Whew!

The man who sat next to us on the second flight was really nice too. Blaise fell asleep right after we took off and slept for about an hour and a half. Rae was really good. We bought a "mini-meal" snack box in the middle of the flight and the man next to us bought us an extra one for Blaise to have when he woke up. And he also gave Rae his applesauce from his box. Rae had to pee during this flight and she is terrified of the airplane bathroom, so I had to promise that I wouldn't flush the toliet while she was in there, and I had to threaten that we wouldn't go to Colin's house if she didn't go. Luckily that worked. Blaise pooped a few minutes before landing, luckily not any sooner! Chad was waiting for us at the baggage area and everything else went great!

We were so glad to get settled into Katie (my sister) and Chad's house and since the kids woke up at 3am Pacific time they were already ready for Eastern time and they went to bed around 8 without any problems. Yay! Everyone (my brothers and their families) came over for dinner and we had a lot of fun.

Yesterday we just hung around the house and then went to dinner at my brother Bobby's house. Afterwards we went to the airport to watch planes. All of the kids like that a lot. But we got home too late and got to bed way too late. And the kids didn't sleep in to make up for it.

The best thing about today was that Roy got here early! His trip went really well and since he didn't have anything to do but drive he just kept driving and driving. We weren't expecting him till late tonight, but he got here around 11 this morning. Woohoo! He and Blaise are napping now and then we are going to go swimming. My oldest sister arrives tomorrow afternoon with her husband two little girls and then my parents and little brother arrive early Thursday morning and my other younger brother and his wife arrive late Thursday night. And then my little sister and her little girl and husband get here Saturday and then the family reunion officially begins! It's going to be super crazy and super fun, I'm just glad I get a few days of peace beforehand to prepare and get to stay a few days afterwards to recover!

Oh, and I've been tracking our ABF trailer and it's already in Missouri and is ready to be stored till we are ready for it. That was fast! Hopefully they will get it to us really quickly when we are ready for it. I'm anxious to be finished with this move, but I'm glad I have a break in between to catch up on some sleep and tv. :)

BTW, this blog has turned into more of a journal for me so that's why there are so many random, un-important details that most of you are probably not interested in. I like to write these kinds of things down and if I don't do it within a week of it happening then I never will. So, I'll still try to write other stuff and post pictures more often, but there will be a lot of these long, boring posts with way too many details! I hope you are still willing to read it!

Friday, July 11, 2008

Making progress

Let me start out by saying that I am using Roy's new laptop to write this and I am not used to the layout, so there may be typos that I don't notice.

Anyway, things are going really smoothly here. Our ABF trailer was delivered yesterday at 2 and after taking a look at it and deciding how were going to load it we ran a quick errand to get some rope, a padlock and some new shoes for Blaise. Then our friend brought over dinner (it was SO GOOD Paola!! Thanks again!) and we were able to sit down and have a nice hot dinner with real food. Then our neighbor took the kids downstairs to her apartment and we started loading up the truck. A friend from church came and was a huge help. He took all of the boxes down to the truck and Roy started stacking them. When all the boxes were out we decided to call it a night. The kids had a lot of fun at the neighbor's house (thanks again Linnea!!) and even got pjs on at her house, so when we came inside it was bedtime. Roy and I stayed up and got all of the furniture ready to be taken to the truck in the morning and loaded up the rest of random boxes. We managed to be asleep by 11.

Blaise actually slept in this morning (he always does that when we have something we need to be doing!) so we didn't get up till 7 and we had people coming to help at 8. Rae didn't get out of bed till about 8:15 and I actually had to force her out of her bed so I could put it in the trailer! We had 4 guys come and load stuff up this morning and we were done by 9! I took the kids to another friend's house and by the time I got home Roy and one of the guys had completely finished the trailer and were closing it up. Woo hoo! Since the kids were gone we got a lot done around here. We took out the carpet (except for our bedroom because that's where we are sleeping tonight) and took down the mini-blinds, cleaned up all the random stuff that had been put in random places and showered. It was so nice! Then we went to pick them up (thanks again Diana!!) and got some pizza for lunch and went to Walmart for a few random things. We just got home and all we have here is the laptop, clothes, a few blankets, the air mattress, a few toys and the dining room table (since we are leaving it behind). The kids are supposed to go over to another friend's house in a couple of hours to play, so that will be nice. In the mean time I'll let Rae watch a movie on the portable DVD player and try to get Blaise down for a nap.

We are so blessed to have such great friends and such a great ward! Tomorrow morning we'll load everything up into the van and then some gals from Relief Society will come and help me clean. Tomorrow night we are staying in a hotel and I'm looking forward to relaxing!

This will probably be my last post for a while, just wanted to let everyone know that things are going pretty good and we're getting through this! Can't wait to see the family at our reunion in just a week! Yay!

Tuesday, July 08, 2008

Found!

I knew we would find it when we moved! Roy just pulled out the computer desk in living room and my wedding ring was under there. I finally broke down a few months ago and bought a new ring but it looks like I should have waited!! I really like both of my rings though, and my new one is a little loose, so maybe it will be my ring for when I'm pregnant and chubby-handed. Roy lost his ring and watch a month or so ago, maybe it will turn up under the dresser or something. :)

Sunday, July 06, 2008

Love in a can

Hardcore snacking at the Wright house:



Blaise is so torn -- his tongue says "yes" but the rest of his face says "no no no!"

Early Birthday Celebration *Edited*

Since we will have just moved to Kirksville on Rae's birthday (the 31st) we decided to have a birthday party for her before leaving. It was all very last minute, but turned out great. We had it in the apartment complex community center, so I didn't have to worry about cleaning my house or anything, which was great. I've gone to lots of parties in the community center, but this was my first time reserving it. Wish I had done it more often!

When the girls (all girls, btw, no boys allowed at the princess party - besides, she doesn't have many boy friends and Abe moved) arrived I had princess crown door hangers (thank you Dollar Tree) out to decorate with glitter and stickers. They all seemed to enjoy that.



Roy whipped up a cute "pin the kiss on the frog" game, so we played that next and the girls got a kick out of it.





Then we had birthday cake. I'm not very creative with cake decorating, so I just used whatever I had in my "decoration collection" and left it up to Roy, and he did an awesome job.







After that we opened presents. Rae got a lot of good travel type gifts, I think everyone had that in mind when picking what to give her. I really appreciate all the great gifts and Rae is already having a blast with them!




After that we did the pinata (which cost WAY too much money, btw, and was NOT EVEN worth it!) And then the girls all ran around crazy and played with balloons and ate candy!



It was pretty fun, and very un-stressful for me, which is really the most important part! (Seriously, what is the point of stressing yourself out for a 4-year old's party. And I get easily stressed with things like this...okay, I just get easily stressed!)

Anyway, here are some picture for your enjoyment.

**I forgot to mention that Roy and I got Rae a digital camera for her birthday. It's one of those basic, 20 buck ones. She always wants to use ours, so now she has her very own. I'm a little disappointed in the quality of the "view screen" because it's a little blurry and Rae can't see what she's taking a picture of, but I think she'll get used to it, and she's still very excited. Her words: "Now I have a camera of my very own". We wanted to give it to her before our trip so she could take pictures along the way.

Friday, July 04, 2008

Happy 4th

Our family looked really cute this morning in our matching patriotic shirts, but we didn't get a picture and now we all have various food items on our clothes from our ward's pancake breakfast this morning.

I'm on the Activities Committee at church, so I had to be there at 7 this morning to help set up. We cooked pancakes and sausage, and also had some muffins,fruit and donuts. It was great and everything went really well and was cleaned up by 10. This was my last activity and I just hope that when we move I can finally have a break from the activities committee! (I've been doing it for 3 years now, along with other various callings at the same time)

I don't think we are going to go see any fireworks tonight. Rae doesn't even know that there are going to be fireworks and it's so just late at night before they even start. I'm not sure it's worth having them tired and cranky. Plus, in Davis it's hard to even get any parking at the park where the fireworks are, and I'm sure it takes an hour to just get out of there, so I think we'll just stay home and enjoy an early bedtime. :) Plus, Rae's party is tomorrow and I don't want her to be too tired.

Anyway, Happy Fourth Of July to everyone! Have fun doing whatever you do today!

Thursday, July 03, 2008

One week later

My wisdom teeth were removed one week ago (in case you missed the post). One week later and I'm FINALLY feeling normal again! Apparently the surgeon left behind some tooth! I noticed on Sunday or Monday and it just felt like a wiggly tooth like when you were younger and would wiggle your tooth with your tongue. But I wasn't quite sure if it was tooth material or just some skin that was supposed to be there. So I wasn't sure if I should mess with it. Tuesday night it was really driving me crazy and last night it started bugging me a lot and I decided to try to wiggle it a little everyday and see if it would come out. Well, this morning I was getting up with Blaise (at the crack of dawn) and it just fell out! I caught it and put it in a little zip lock bag and I'm going to take it to my follow-up appointment on Saturday. After that fell out the pain in my mouth reduced drastically! Seriously, last night I still couldn't open my mouth wide enough to eat normally and this morning I can open my mouth all the way with hardly any discomfort. I am so happy and relieved. I can't believe how much tooth was left in there - crazy!

In other news, we finally settled on a moving company and actually have our truck reserved. Whew. We are going with ABF U-Pack. They drop an empty 28ft trailer off at your house and you fill it with how ever much space you need (we have 10ft listed in our quote) and then they pick it up the next day. They fill the rest of the truck with freight material. They are going to store it for us (big chunk of money for them to do that for us, but we don't have a choice) and then deliver it to our house in Kirksville. This is what I wanted to do from the very beginning but I didn't think I could fit a 28ft trailer into the parking lot here. Well, the other day a neighbor was moving in and they did it with ABF, so I now know it can be done. And I got in contact with the City Manager in Kirksville and got permission to park it on the street in front of our new place. So glad that is all taken care of!

The other hold-up we had with deciding how to move our stuff was that we didn't have an answer from our landlord about when we could move in. Our lease says the 29th but he said that we might be able to get in earlier than that because the people living there now were thinking about leaving early. Well, apparently their plans changed, so we have to stick with the original date of the 29th. Which means we get to hangout with family in Charlotte for extra long and try to be good guests. Unfortunately it also means that we had to pay ABF 500 bucks to store our stuff. Oh well, moving sucks and it's so expensive and there's not much you can do about it. The other option was Roy driving a uhaul and towing our van behind it, getting to Kirksville, unloading our stuff into a storage unit, drop off the uhaul, and then drive to Charlotte for the reunion. It would been a little bit cheaper, but a lot more hassle and effort and stress, all of which I decided are worth a few hundred dollars to eliminate.

Anyway, I'm sure you all were dying to hear all of those details. :) Packing is going pretty good here. Roy takes the kids out in the morning and I get a ton done while he is gone. I realized that although I like making lists of what needs done, I work a lot better if I can just randomly walk around the house and pack whatever it is that I feel like packing and can work on several projects at once. Like, if I'm in the middle of packing their stuffed animals and find a puzzle piece, it's okay to drop everything and start packing the puzzles. I can do anything in whatever order I want, just as long as it's all done and organized before the kids get home. I've known this about me before with things like cleaning. (I'll often be cleaning the kitchen and stop to use the bathroom and then start cleaning the bathroom) Maybe that's why I don't clean very well with other people around. Hmmm.

Okay, time to get packing. We are having a late start this morning!

Monday, June 30, 2008

Nummers

This post is mainly for my siblings, who will understand.

Know what I ate for dinner? A hot dog and cheese burrito. :) Roy was making quesadillas for dinner and I was making hot dogs for the kids, and first I thought of making a classic Jeppson pizza with a tortilla, ketchup (seasoned with Italian seasoning) cheese and cut up hot dog. But then I remembered my absolute favorite ghetto meal. You take a hot dog, heat it up. Then you put cheese on a tortilla and heat that up. Then you slap it together and roll it up. Totally unhealthy, but oh so good. Roy threatened to leave, but it's worth it even then. :)

Maybe tomorrow morning I'll make spaghetti eggs.

Saturday, June 28, 2008

Me, me, me

I started blogging in August 2006. I didn't do much at first, but almost two years later I'm getting the hang of it. :) I was the first person in my family to start blogging and I don't take all the credit, but I do hope I had something to do with the amount of family members blogging now. My sisters all started blogs about a year after me and then my brother's wife and then my other brother and his wife. I have a few cousins that have blogs, an uncle, an aunt and the newest additions are my mom and her sister! I'm so excited. We don't get to see each other very often so reading each other's blogs helps us all stay in touch and I really enjoy it.

Just remember that I was ahead of you all in the trend! (although behind most people in the trend) I'm just glad we all got with the trend and I hope that when the trend wears off that we'll all keep going strong!

Friday, June 27, 2008

Other special occasions

I started this post last week and I'm gonna go ahead and publish it now...it's not really finished, but oh well.


This was a busy week for us! Last Wednesday my in-laws and mom arrived. We went to the Farmer's Market that evening, where the kids got to ride the ponies (twice!).






Thursday morning we went bowling and then Roy's graduation was that afternoon. We left the kiddos with some great friends (thanks again!) and got to "enjoy" the super long ordeal! Boring! But it was great to see Roy get hooded and all that stuff. And it got done earlier than expected, so that was nice.


Friday was our 6-year anniversary. We went to Vacaville, did a little shopping and went to Olive Garden for lunch. Not exactly a romantic night-out, but the inlaws picked up the tab, so that was nice! :) Then we went to the pool and had a lot of fun there.

Saturday morning we went to Ikea to pick up some things that you can only get at Ikea, which they don't have in Missouri! Then the in-laws left and we just lounged around the rest of the day. Sunday we were all sick (except for my mom, lucky!) so we stayed home from church and Roy didn't get much of a special day, but he's great and totally didn't care. Yesterday and today we've been trying to get a bit of packing done while we have an extra adult around (who just happens to be great at packing and cleaning - she even pulled out the stove and cleaned behind it- so awesome!) Tomorrow my mom leaves in the morning and I'm taking the day off from packing and just hanging out with the kiddos and trying to get completely better from my cold.

Oh, and if anyone has advice about moving companies, let me know! We're considering using ABF U-Pack. Oh, and did I mention that we found somewhere to live? We found a great 3 bedroom,1 bath duplex (well, 8-plex) for $550 a month. The price is a little above average for the area, but it's a really nice, new property that a couple of members of the church live in (I called someone there and she told me all about it) and it has a washer and dryer included and I really like the layout. And, everything for rent was filling up really fast and we had to just grab whatever we could get. And, this is one of the only properties that could let us in July instead of the 2nd week of August.

Thursday, June 26, 2008

Two things today

First of all, Happy Birthday to my nephew Nolan! He turned 6 today! Hope you had a fun day. He's the oldest biological grandchild in our family. His parents just adopted 2 kids older than him and one younger than him, so he no longer holds the "oldest grandchild" title. But he'll always be my first nephew!

Secondly, I did something horrible today. I had my wisdom teeth removed. Ugh. Our dental insurance options when we move won't be very good so I decided I better get it done while it's free. (Thank you tax payers) I called yesterday to make an appointment and they had a free slot today, which was a good thing because I didn't have enough time to talk myself out of it. (Although this morning I was back and forth about whether I was going to do it) I thought my teeth were fine and had decided to just get it done after the next pregnancy, but this week one of them started hurting again, so I just bit the bullet and did it.

The only dental work I've ever had done are x-rays, cleanings, and one small cavity filled (without any kind of numbing). This was a big deal for me. They just used local anesthesia and that was the worst part of it all. The shots hurt a lot. The numbing drove me crazy. The actual removal of the teeth was super quick and painless. It was very frustrating to not be able to talk with the gauze in my mouth, especially since we went grocery shopping immediately after and I couldn't communicate with my family! And then Roy and the kids got a pizza on the way home and it was torture to smell and see it and not be able to eat it!!

I finally stopped bleeding about an hour and a half afterwards and I felt a lot better with the gauze out of my mouth. But then the numbing started to slowly wear off and the pain was so intense! Roy got home with my Vicodin prescription just in time. I only took one and it didn't help, so an hour later I took another and now I feel fantastic! I'm definitely going to have to stay on top of the painkillers!

So far I've had a can of Slim Fast and some tomato soup. It feels fine to drink but I don't really feel hungry so I'm hoping this will be a good chance for some rapid weight loss! (Slim Fast and tomato soup are super Weight Watchers friendly)

I was going to post a picture of my cheeks, but they really aren't very big. My face just looks the way it looked before I lost weight. Maybe tomorrow they will be bigger.

Oh, and the dentist office was 20 miles away in our favorite town (Vacaville) so Roy and the kids dropped me off and went to Nut Tree and rode some rides and had fun while I got tortured. :) Then we all went shopping at our favorite store that we are going to miss so much: WinCo. By the way, have I mentioned how fantastic it is to have a husband home full time?? Well, most of the time it's great, sometimes I wish we could have more of a regular schedule, but on days like this I'm thrilled. He's been taking such good care of the kids and me today and will continue to until I'm all healed. Perfect timing, really, to get this done...I have time to heal before the serious moving stuff starts.

Anyway, just thought you'd all love to hear about my day. :) Hopefully if I stay on the pain medicine I'll keep feeling as good as I feel right now, because earlier in the day I felt like I was going to die! (I seriously felt as horrible as being in labor - in a different way, of course)

Oh, and I looked into Medicaid in Missouri and it looks like we might qualify. (Me at least for pregnancy when it comes along) I've also been looking at other forms of insurance too (thanks for the tip Andrea) and don't feel quite as stressed about it.

I guess that's all for now. I have a couple of draft posts that I've been working on for a while that I'm gonna try to get to this week before all the major packing has to begin. I gave myself this week to relax and hang out with the kids and stop stressing about packing and then I'm going to start back up next week.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

Sigh

So, I'm not trying to be a baby with this whole thing, trying to get someone to hold my hand and help me make a decision, but I do feel like the purpose of me blogging is to get some advice and input from people who have more experience than me and can give some insight to my decisions. (Man, what a run-on sentence!) It's been a long time since we've had to do the whole health insurance thing and I'm just having a hard time wrapping my head around each plan and the benefits and drawbacks of both. I appreciate the comments everyone has left, and I was wondering if I could get more input if I put some of the specific numbers. (You know that commercial where the girl talks to everyone she comes across about her car insurance? Sorry, I'm going to be like that for a bit here)

Medical Rates

Plan A

Plan B

A few things to keep in mind. Besides well-child visits, so far Rae and Blaise have been to the doctor maybe 10 times. They've only ever had 3 prescriptions and no hospital stays. Rae went to the emergency room once, but not for a true emergency. All of this could change in the next year, so I don't want to have my hopes up.

As for me, I plan to be pregnant while on this insurance. Both plans have the same maternity coverage. I'm leaning towards Plan A, since they have the "co-pay" type plan. (except not for maternity if I'm reading it correctly) Roy would like to be able to go to the doctor a few times for checkups, since he hasn't been to one in like 5 years. Anyway, any input is helpful. Thanks.

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Bleh

Trying to figure out health insurance is the pits. Roy will have decent insurance through the school and they have a dependent plan, but I don't know what type to choose. All I know is that my kids go to the doctor for well-child visits and not much else. They hardly ever need any medication and we have only been to the ER once (just because we were in Blythe and couldn't go anywhere else) But then what if something serious happens to them and I'm stuck paying some big ol' deductible the ONE time they actually need medical attention. And with me, man, I never go to the doctor, mainly because I hate making appointments. :) But I do know I want to have another kid soon and I don't want to have to pay a bunch of money every month for insurance and STILL have to pay my deductible AND my co-pay. I never realized how easy we had it on state provided insurance. Man oh man, the good ol' days of stealing other people's taxes! :)

Seriously though, any advice out there? High deductible, low monthly payment? Vice-versa? One thing I will mention is that with whatever plan we go with, the well-child visits and immunizations are completely covered, so that's nice (even though I guess now that Blaise is older he doesn't need them nearly as often, so it doesn't really matter) Anyway, what do ya'll think?

Sunday, June 22, 2008

Family Reunion

Hey all you Blythe Jeppsons, I have a question for you! When are you coming to the family reunion, and when are you leaving? We are trying to plan a trip to see Roy's dad while we are there and want to figure out when the best time is.

I'll start: I decided to fly to Charlotte with the kiddos and Roy will be driving our van and meeting us there. I'll arrive Sunday the 13th in the evening and then Roy will probably get there anytime Tuesday-Thursday (not sure yet when he'll be leaving Davis) We'll most likely be leaving Tuesday the 22nd. And how about you Christie? And Lindsey? And Aaron? And mom and dad? Your answers are appreciated!

Saturday, June 21, 2008

Gross

I woke up to a lovely sight this morning. Thousands of ants in two trails from my balcony to my kitchen. I'm talking trails that were 3 or 4 ants wide, not just a small trail. One trail was focusing on the fruit near the trash can and the other trail was focused on the washing machine. Now, I know, you are probably thinking "hey, you should clean your house". Yes, I should. But it isn't even that messy. Yesterday I never got around to sweeping the kitchen like I usually do several times a day. And I didn't get around to vacuuming the living room, but it's not like it was that dirty. And yesterday was the first day in a week that we didn't do the dishes or wipe down the counters before bed. And this is the FIRST time this has EVER happened while living here. We often get a handful of ants in the bathroom, looking for water, but never in the kitchen! Ugh, so gross. Now my house reeks of bug spray (which it's lucky we even had - I hate to use it and I don't even remember when I bought it) which I wouldn't usually use, but how else do you kill a ton of ants before your son gets eaten by them??

We didn't even go to bed till midnight last night and Blaise woke up at 6 this morning - those ants are really fast!

And, if you are wondering, we spent the day doing far more important things than cleaning. For instance, I grumped around the house till noon and finally got dressed when Blaise went down for a nap and then we went to the river and came home that exhausted and dirty and fairly miserable. And after the kids went to bed I spent 3 hours packing and planning stuff. See, far too busy to clean. :)

Out of respect for my mother-in-law...

...I will respond to a tag, just this once.

5 things I did 10 years ago
1. Graduated high school.
2. Started college at Cal State Fullerton (mathematics major).
3. Almost got arrested for misuse of a laser pointer and a Geo Metro.
4. Went to my first LAN party.
5. Bred rodents.


5 things on my list for tomorrow (Ashley is dictating this to me)
1. Clean out my office (at school).
2. Take out the trash.
3. Bathe the kids, as usual.
4. Dishes.
5. Pack (maybe).


5 favorite snacks/food
1. Oatmeal
Instant oatmeal blended to a fine powder, then mixed with cold milk, peanut butter, cinnamon, and Splenda. This is also Blaise's favorite.
2. Quesadillas
Canned refried beans pureed to a fine mush, then mixed with Taco Bell hot sauce and shredded cheese between two tortillas, baked. Or sour cream instead of the beans.
3. Buffalo Chicken Strips with Bleu Cheese Dressing
Chicken breast meat processed to a fine pulp, then... just kidding.
4. Mushroom Pizza
Or, more specifically, Papa John's pizza with chicken and mushrooms, if I could afford it.
5. Olive Garden
Just about anything from Olive Garden.


5 things I would do if I were a billionaire
1. Papa John's!
2. Free up enough time to write several books.
3. Get a proper bathroom with a bidet!
4. Have more kids.
5. I don't know, mostly donate it away, but very strategically.


5 bad habits
1. Reading blogs.
2. Getting behind on dishes.
3. Obsessing over things.
4. See #3.
5. See #3.


5 places I have lived
1. Flint, MI.
2. Anaheim, CA.
3. Argentina.
4. Fullerton, CA.
5. Irvine, CA.


People I tag
I abstain.

Sunday, June 15, 2008

Happy Father's Day

Since I feel like I was a total slacker for Father's Day this year, I thought I should at least write a bit about some of the fathers in my life.



My pops always works so hard for his family and still finds time to be a great dad and grandpa! My mom has been here for a few days for Roy's graduation (oh yeah, I should post about that) but my dad wasn't able to come and we sure miss him!
Some of my favorite memories of my dad:

It always made me feel so good to know that he was such a good member of the church. He was in the bishopric most of my childhood, and having him on the stand being an example to everyone else always made me feel good. And it was comforting to know that he could give me priestood blessings when I needed them, and he often gave us "back to school" blessings.

He worked in the summer in the melon sheds (he was a HS teacher and with 8 kids we needed extra income in the summer) and he'd come home smelling like melons. Whenever I smell a cantaloupe I think of my dad!

He's supportive of decisions that I've made as an adult, but he also gives advice when he can see that it is needed.

If he lays down for more than 2 minutes he'll fall asleep....usually with the tv on. But if you try to take the remote control from him he'll wake up and say "hey, I'm awake".





And, my other favorite dad, the father of my kiddos! When Rae was born Roy wasn't quite sure what to do, but he was very willing to learn! He was even the one who changed her first poopy diaper! And now he's a diaper changing, getting kids baths and bed, kid chasing, wrestling dad that is so much fun!



By the time Blaise came along Roy had a pretty good idea of what he was doing, and he was much more willing to get Blaise down for naps and to sleep at night so that I wouldn't have to be a human pacifier. He makes Blaise's favorite food (oatmeal) better than I can and is quick to get him in the tub after he's smeared it all over his hair. Man oh man, I love this father and how much effort he puts into making our life happy!

Roy's dad hasn't really been part of his life but we've recently started talking to him and visited him last fall. We'll see him again in a few weeks and it's nice to know that he's there for us when we need him and is making an effort into trying to make up for lost years.

Roy's mom married a great guy a few years ago, and he's a fun grandpa and the kids really like him. When we got married I didn't have a father-in-law, so it's been fun to have this role filled!

Happy Father's Day to all the fathers out there!