My Dream Car

Dave and I have been talking for a year or two about what we will purchase to replace our van. We originally thought we would do it sooner rather than later (maybe due to the combination of the damaged bumper, dented side, rusting spots along the bottom, and the fact that our family makes it seem smaller every year), but as we have no car payments and lots of students loans at this time, we have decided to drive it two more years and save some money along the way.


At one point, I determined I wanted a Suburban. Dave balked. He doesn't like them. They are huge. Who needs that much space? Um, me? And our kids and their friends?


We have talked about an 8 passenger Toyota Sienna. More seating and cargo space than we currently have (with the extra storage underneath the floor). I have hesitated because I think we may be outgrowing a mini-van.



I tried to sell Dave on this sweet conversion van on Ebay.



It was like a living room inside. Tons of space and a killer entertainment system.


He was not feeling the coolness factor of the conversion van. I think he may have even suggested that it was gross. And no, I wouldn't have felt "cool" driving it, but it would be so darn practical and comfortable I don't think I would care! Please, motherhood took away any shred of coolness I may have retained from my cheerleader days.


So finally, I decided what I really wanted. There is a show on Discovery called Jon and Kate Plus 8. It is basically reality TV about a family with first grade twins and three year old septuplets (that is six, right?). I love how cool their mega van looks. It has taken me three weeks to figure out what it was...a Dodge Sprinter.


I showed it to Dave last night. He gasped, and laughed out loud. He was incredulous that I would want something that "doesn't look like a van, it is an airport shuttle!"

I said it only seated 10...he asked how many kids I was planning on having anyway?!? Though I would strongly consider a sixth, after this baby we will already have seven in our family, and sometimes, we might want to take a friend along! I don't think we would have to have any more kids to enjoy the space of the Sprinter.

Dave mocked on and on and on...even insisting that if we had something like that, we would have to charge someone a dollar to ride. He also asked if I would accept his public transport pass.

Trying to win him over (though it was clearly futile) I pointed out that it was clearly a cooler looking van than the conversion type or big Ford vans. He agreed that this might be a possibility.

And then I made the fatal mistake...I told him to give it a chance after he saw the inside of one of them...and I found a picture of the interior of one on the Dodge website:


He laughed himself silly, the triumphant ninny. I think I need a new dream car.

Motherhood is SUCH a Rollercoaster...

sometimes, I just want to get off and throw up! Unfortuneately, you can't get off (though you can throw up...as I often do lately).

Yesterday Dave came home just after the kids had all been tucked in. He found me hiding under the blankets in our bed. I was just completely beaten.

Yesterday was one of those days, where I was left to deal not just with the standard child barfing all over self and floor, pregnant mom barfing, childhood pooping issues, spills, messes, and arguing over toys and "stuff" (and yes, I did deal with all of those yesterday)...but with a constant barage of negativity from my kids.

They yelled at me, called me names, and basically told me how rotten I was for a number of issues, including, but not limited to: incensed hostility with shouts of how much I hate my child after I sent her to her room when she wouldn't apologize after hitting a sibling in the head with a toy hammer (and we don't allow them to use the word hate); being called a liar because I thought I had gotten that child out of the bath first the day before and it wasn't her turn to get out first last night (and we don't allow them to call someone a liar!!); a MAJOR throwdown tantrum over being told that we would not be watching any more shows that day; a tearful "you must not really love me" type of breakdown at bedtime when I revealed that I would not be going with that child on her field trip next month; etc, etc, etc.

Believe me, I could go on and on and on about yesterday. And all three of the girls were represented in my examples from the preceding paragraph. I do get this kind of stuff in doses everyday, but yesterday was a super extra strength dose at a time when I just don't have a whole lot of reserves.

Motherhood sometimes just pushes you down, and kicks you in the guts.

Today was EXTREMELY busy! We were on the go, or on the way to going all day long, from the time I woke up at 6:30 until just now. I was really tired, with off and on nausea and dizziness, and it was very hard to keep up physically with the demands of the day.

But it was SO much better than yesterday. Number Two had the best, most positive and responsible day she has had in weeks. The kids were so good after gymnastics and dinner. Number One practiced her piano. Number Two cleaned the library. At devotional time I told them about my crawling into bed last night, devastated. And told them how pleased I was with them today. How opposite today was, and how much I appreciated it.

Tonight I am exhausted, with laundry left to fold, and some clothes left to lay out for tomorrow. I am physically spent, but completely at peace, as I feel so uplifted by the sweet spirit I felt in our home and with my children today.

I think Eve really did have it figured out...it is better for us to pass through sorrow that we may know by our own experience the good from the evil, and the trials from the blessings.

Dreaming of Warmer Weather

It is really cold here. So cold in fact, that today, at 30 degrees, we feel like it is a heat wave. That is how brutal this winter has been. This is the first day I can recall in a LONG time that we had such amazing warmth in the absence of rain or snow.

I love this area. I love the community, the opportunities for our family, our friends, and lots of other things. But I feel something akin to the opposite of love for the seemingly endless winter weather here.


So in continuing to support the beach theme I had going on with Number Four's birthday cake, I decided to post these pictures taken at the beach in southern California on our way to the airport to return home from a Thanksgiving gathering at my brother's house.


Unfortuneately, this was the only beach outing I got on the trip. Heartbreaking really, as that was the most important activity on my agenda: a family outing to the beach.


As circumstances turned out, only Number One and Number Three got to enjoy that fun beach outing. You think life is complicated when there are four little children involved? Try adding the extended family!


But, I did get one quick photo with my dashing son on his first beach trip. Hopefully this summer's visit will provide us with further beach opportunities.

And in the meantime, I can stare at these pictures and do what I can to imagine away the brutal winter.

Ten Years Ago Today (and Pictures Galore)

I just downloaded TONS of pictures from a couple of memory cards. I won't be posting them all at once, but they will come over time.

Also, I went back to my post about Number Four's birthday and inserted some pictures of the handsome guy. Be sure to check them out.


And finally...how about these beauties? Delivered today on the 10 year anniversary of the day that Dave proposed...in Spanish. How fun that was! (Especially since the only other spanish phrases he knows introduces himself as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints who doesn't speak Spanish, but who can take down contact information and give it to Spanish-speaking missionaries.)


The message he sent with the flowers was very loving, and I have to say that after 10 years, I am very glad I said yes, and then went through with marrying him 8 months and 2 days later.

Interestingly enough, our last date was to a dinner at our church which featured a marriage counselor and his wife speaking about relationships. It was all very nice, but both Dave and I found we didn't relate very well to the presentation. We are fortunate enough to not really identify with the many issues the counselor brought up which cause and promote struggles in marriage. Though we may have had a rough patch or two along the way, our marriage has really been phenomenal. What a blessing!

AND WE HAVE HEAT!!!

Not outside...but you might remember me mentioning our heater's complete inability to keep up with the cold temperatures.

I had planned to have someone out to look at it a few weeks ago, but then it got a little warmer outside, and I felt so sick, that I just never got around to. I didn't really want anyone in my house anyway.

Then this morning it was 56 degrees. NOT acceptable. So, I got a referral for someone who came and checked things out, and we are no longer freezing inside.

He said something about poor installation and design, with a baffle covering three of our six heating chambers (or something like that). Basically our furnace is more than powerful enough to heat our home, but it was working on what he estimated to be 40% capacity, which wasn't cutting it. Apparently the baffle was to offer separation between some part of the air conditioning unit and the heat, but it was insulating the switch which controls the burners, so the fan would continuously blow, but the burners were off much of the time, because it was toasty in that area due to the baffle. Or something along those lines.

Unfortuneately, he came a little later than planned, and I had to rush him out at the end to go get Number One from school. So, I missed some of what he said, along with major concepts like how this would effect our cooling in the summer, and what efficiency we are running at now.

He suggested we look into replacing our heating and cooling system (to the tune of 7500-10000). Our system is a bit old, I guess, and has these air flow and efficiency issues.

I am going to have to get more information before we fork over such major bucks (when I am not stressed about getting my first grader from school), but at least in the meantime I am not freezing in my house anymore!

Warm at last. Warm at last.

A Little MIA and a Happy Birthday

So, sorry I have been a little AWOL lately. I have been either sick or busy, and just not up to blogging.

The big news of today is that Number Four is ONE!!!!!

I am too tired to upload and do the pictures tonight, but I will post some tomorrow.
[OR, maybe 11 days later instead...]



I can hardly believe that my handsome little man is one already! He is up and cruising on furniture, and took a few steps today for the first time while holding on to one of the ride on toys. Number Four has a few words, loves to laugh, and just cut his seventh and eighth teeth.


Last night Dave said, just think, a year ago tonight you were pregnant...did you ever think that a year later you would STILL be pregnant?!?

You're too funny love.


For dinner we had tater tot casserole, as it is one of Number Four's favorites. We all took a turn to share what we liked about him, or to share memories we have of him.


Number Two told us about how she remembered the first time she got him out of his crib in the morning by herself. She loves to close the door to his room and play with him, just the two of them, when he first wakes up. He really loves that too.


Number One told us about how she loved to play with Number Four, and how much fun she had had playing cars with him today, as well as holding him and dancing when Dave was playing the piano.


Number Three, with a little help, said she liked that Number Four was her friend, and that she likes to wrestle with him.


I mentioned how much I love the faces Number Four makes, like his squinty-eye look. I love what he teaches us about boys. I love how happy he is to see me whenever he has first woken up. And I love how happy he is.


Dave mentioned his faces too, as well as the way he turns his head to the side to play shy. He loves that Number Four is ALWAYS happy to see him, no matter what. It's true too. When Dave comes home from work, or just enters the room Number Four is in, he is always greeted by the 1000 watt grin from his adoring son. He also mentioned Number Four's unending happiness, as well as his ability to keep his eye on the ball when they practice playing catch.


In traditional first birthday style, we took FOREVER trying to assist Number Four in opening his gifts (only 6 total)...he still doesn't really get the whole gift opening thing, though he does loves to pull off bows!


And then on to the "make a mess of your own cake" portion of the festivities. We all had a fun time watching Number Four do his thing. We had predicted that he would be the most agressive of all of the kids, but I am not sure that this turned out to be accurate. I tried to actually make his cake cute, and so I don't think that he understood it was a cake at first. I gave him a fork to help him make the connection, and from that point on, he was far more interested in digging in and flinging with the fork than his hands. Still fun to watch though.

All in all, it was a successful first birthday. We sure adore our little guy.

[A couple of additional thoughts added eleven days later...My wishful thinking after so much snowy-freezing-sludgy-overcast-gloomy-bone-chilling-depressing-endless wintery weather was the inspiration for the cake...with a beach vehicle loaded with a surfboard at the ocean. Notice Number Four is opening gifts in two different outfits...one grandparent package arrived the day after the birthday (darn USPS)...though of course Number Four didn't know the difference, so all was well.]

And finally...


"I sure love my Daddy!"


"I think he really loves me too."


"I bet he would love a taste of this awesome cake Mom made for me."


"Yes. This sure is good stuff...me, my Dad, a birthday, and some cake."

Caramel

Okay, the caramel was really good.

I have made caramel in the past, and found that it is a LOT of effort...stirring and stirring until just the right temperature. And, I think the caramel I have made that way was a little better than the kind we made tonight...

BUT, the kind we made tonight was too easy to taste this good.

I would like to credit the person I got this recipe from, except I can't remember where I found it. I know that about a week ago I was checking in on a friend's blog and saw a name on one of their links that looked familiar. Turns out that I didn't actually know the friend's friend, but that friend of my friend had posted a caramel recipe that looked easy, so I emailed it to myself right then.

If anyone knows which blog I got this recipe from, feel free to let me know and I will properly credit them.

In the meantime, I highly recommend you all go ahead and try this one. Then let me know if you thought it was good too.

"Caramel Recipe

1/2 c. butter melted
1/2 c. corn syrup
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. sweetened condensed milk

Mix all ingredients together in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 6 1/2-7 minutes. (My microwave cooks fast so I do 6 1/2 minutes...its just trial and error) As soon as it is done pour into a 8x8 pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. It will be REALLY hot and boiling, but you have to pour it right away. Cool for 10 minutes at room temp. Then put in the refrigerator for another 30-35 minutes. Cut into dice size squares and then roll into wax paper!"

I did two batches (since you can do two batches with one can of sweetened condensed milk, and what would I have done with the other half?)...one at 6 minutes and one at 6.5 minutes. Our microwave is super powerful, and I liked the 6 minute batch better.

Enjoy!

Addendum--I discovered the source of the recipe...http://wilderfam.blogspot.com/2007/12/caramel-recipe.html

Deleted Comments

I deleted two comments this week. Dave asked if the first one was "scandalous."

No. Neither of them were. If fact, they were both very kind congratulatory-type comments. However, they also both contained the first name of one of our children, and that is why I elected to delete them.

When I first signed up for a hotmail account many many years ago (before I was married), I was afraid to use my real name on the form. So, sitting in the BYU Study Abroad Center in London, I came up with the absurd fake name of Geraldine Bloomers. Yes, also the name I chose to use on my previous blog address. The funny thing is, my name wasn't going to anyone but the hotmail people...it wasn't even part of my actual email address.

I am not so frightened of the internet as I once was. I have come a long way. I even do a fair amount of shopping online.

Even so, I am still protective of some of our personal information. When I started blogging just over a year and a half ago, I debated back and forth over whether or not I ought to make my blog public or private.

Ultimately, I decided there were people I knew from message boards, and other places who may never end up reading it if I were to make it private, people who over time have let me know that they really enjoyed the blog.

But, I wasn't completely comfortable with having everything be so public. So, I determined not to use our last name, the first names of our children, or to identify where we live. That is my way of keeping some anonymity in my blogging life.

Long story short...thanks so much for the warm comments. I really did appreciate them. Number Two particularly appreciated learning that the picture she sent was up. It made her really happy. And in the future, I will continue to delete comments that use the kids' first names. I am just silly like that.

Have a great evening! I am off to attempt to make caramel with the kids.

Blanket Forts

There is just nothing quite so magical as having adventures in a blanket fort.


I LOVED to construct a blanket fort with my brothers in the family room at home when I was growing up. We would use the big comforters from our beds, with the two chairs and game table as supports.


Honestly, I don't think it mattered to us what we actually did inside the forts, it was just all somehow more fun, whether we played a game, had a snack, played with toys, or read a book.


As I have mentioned, when it is super cold (like below freezing with a big windchill) our heater just doesn't keep up. It can maintain about 60 degrees, but that doesn't cut it for me.


So in order to try to trap the heat from one of the vents, I decided to teach the girls the art of making a fort...strategically located over said vent.


It was really a lot of fun. They had a great time, even decorating the roof with some of their "friends."


Since then, we have had other fun fort adventures, including a squishy Peter Pan reading time (not the Disney version) with the whole family...Dave included. And even thought Number Four looks ready to run away in this last photo, even he had a delightful time hiding in our family fort. Any other fort builders out there?

Number Five

So, earlier this week I posted a picture of our four kids and the number five. Some of you caught on, but as it turns out, many didn't. In a couple of other posts during the week I made references to the new baby, in mentioning that Number Four would be a big brother, and also mentioning morning sickness. I received some questions as to whether we were announcing something.

Yes, we are expecting Number Five...due to arrive in August. Of course, I was having all of my children in March, April, and May. We will now be 0 for 5. Oh well.

I had planned to wait to announce this baby until about Valentine's Day, when I would be about 13 weeks. However, last Sunday I became sick of trying to hide my little baby bump, so I gave up. I can still hide it rather well in everyday clothes, but there is something about skirts and dresses that makes it rather difficult to hide, even at 10 and 11 weeks. And seeing as how this is my fifth, my body is responding to this pregnancy as if to say, "Oh, I remember about this, I just let the whole belly hang right out." Fun.

Anyhow, I looked sortive pregnant in the dress I wore last Sunday, so after church, we decided to tell the kids. I was 10 weeks then. When my mom called that day, I told her, as she is NOT an e-friendly kind of gal. Then we posted the picture, and decided to just let the word spread from there.

In the past, we have done big elaborate things to announce the news. I have also made some personal phone calls. This time, don't feel left out if you didn't get a call. I just wasn't up to doing all that. I didn't actually make any personal calls to announce (my mom called me!).

This time our method of spreading the word was twofold:

1. Tell the kids. (Of course kids don't keep secrets.)
2. Post the picture on the blog. (Everyone who really cares what is going on with us checks it with some regularity.)

And now in case you missed the more subtle clues, you all have the news.

And in case you were wondering, Number Four and Number Five will be 18 months apart. Number One will turn eight about 3 months after this baby is born. The fun and adventure in our family just continue on.

A Mom HAS to be Flexible

Not in doing the splits, of course, but in knowing that your day will NEVER go as planned, and you will have to be continually able to rethink and plan the family agenda.

Before I go into the gory details of my day yesterday, I want to thank everyone who offered warm thoughts, words, prayers, and even DINNER (yes, from one of my most favorite people in all the world!) on my behalf. It is all so very appreciated.

Yesterday I woke up feeling better than I did on Wednesday, which was rather fortunate as our day was very full. See my plan and the necessary adjustments to said plan below:

6:25[6:50] Wake up to [hit snooze alarm before getting up to]shower and make Dave's lunch before the kids are up, [well, at leat before the two older girls, since Number Three climbed in bed with me sometime around 2:30, and then again around 4:45].

7:00 Take Dave to the bus stop.

7:05 Start getting kids up and ready for the day. Change diapers. Pack Number One's lunch and snack. Make sure everyone is dressed, with hair combed, teeth brushed, and tummy's full. [Make sure Number One is all ready. Work some on the other kids. At 7:45 jump in and out of the shower super quick.]

8:00 [8:06] Take Number One to school, [still making it before the tardy bell at 8:15]. Come home to finish last details. [Dry wet hair. Put on a little makeup to avoid looking sick.] Change diapers.

8:30 [8:38] Take Number Two to school.

8:45 [8:50] Drop Number Two off at school [five minutes late]. Head to Sam's Club, Target, and the grocery store (for sugar cubes for the igloo Number One will be constructing at school.)

10:10 [10:15] Take Number Three to gymnastics [five minutes late again! Just have too much to do and not enough time].

11:00 Hurry and dress Number Three. Load kids in van to get Number Two from school.

11:15 Pick up Number Two from school.

11:30 Drop off sugar cubes to Number One's school.

11:40 Drive through Wendy's and another place with good salads for lunch. (I haven't been eating enough lately because I don't feel well enough to make myself something that sounds good...I knew I needed strength today, so drivethrough became the most appealing option.)

12:00 Unload kids at home. Change diapers. Eat lunch.

[12:02 While still unloading kids, groceries, and lunch items from the car, hear ear-piercing, blood-curdling scream from Number Two often reserved for when Number Three has done something horrendous, like take a toy that is very important to her. Feel frustrated. Enter house to find her clutching her head and dancing in pain. Feel sad for her. Try to soothe her and interest her in lunch. Find she is in a great deal of pain. Discover that she turned too soon when entering the kitchen and whacked her head into the granite countertop overhang of the bar. Administer ibuprofen and try again to calm her, meanwhile setting up lunch and attending to needs of other kids, also setting timer for when we have to be ready to leave. Finally get her to the table to start eating. Feel startled by another shriek when she finds blood on her fingers that were near the wound. Feel badly that I hadn't checked it more carefully. Notice matted blood in her hair in an oval roughly 2 inches by 1.5 inches.

12:18 Try to calm her all over again so I can call the pediatrician. Find that the office is closed from 12-1 for lunch. Attempt to get through answering service. Tell nurse what happened, and ask if I ought to bring her in. Accept nurse's response that I have to clean it thoroughly enough to get a good look before they will schedule me. Endure the trauma of trying to clean the head wound of a still mildly hysterical five year old.

12:35 Call nurse. Give description of the wound. Make plans, as directed, to go to the local ER. Eat a little lunch, and encourage kids to finish theirs. Change diapers. Call friend to say we will not be visiting.]

12:45 Leave to visit a friend.

1:00 Visit with friend in her home.

[1:00 Leave for the ER. Have a horrible time finding a place to park. Realize after parking a half mile away from the ER that both Number Three and Number Four are asleep. Load Number Four in stroller, and carry Number Three, while encouraging Number Two to trudge through the freezing parking garage with head wound on the way to a place she doesn't want to go. Find ER check-in, and discover that this is the most kid-friendly ER in the world, with a pediatric section and darling elderly volunteers in pink coats who lead the kids on an "adventure" to get to the pediatric part. Breathe a small sigh of relief, and an even bigger one when the doctor says they can glue it rather than shaving her head near the wound and putting in staples.



{Lucky for those of you who dislike the sight of blood, the glue stuff is very reflective which makes it difficult to take an accurate photo of the actual goryness (is that a word?) of the wound. Dave says I should have gotten the picture, "while it was gaped open and bleeding." I will try to remember that next time.}

2:10 Call a friend from ER to ask if she can pick Number One up from school. Call school to ask them to pass the message to Number One.]

2:30 [3:00] Pick up Number One from school [friend's house]. Head home for [super fast gathering of] snacks, diaper changes, and to gather piano books.

3:10[3:15] Leave for piano lesson.

3:30[3:32] Drop Number One off at piano. Sit in van with rest of kids. Try to do something productive.

4:00 Head home from piano.

4:20 Unload kids. [Find that Number Three and Number Four are both asleep. Sit in van with them for a half hour to give them some extra rest before Open House, and to try to get a breather myself. Run in the house, leaving them in van to get ready to do picture reorder. Help Number Two finish gathering props for the Nursery Rhyme she has to present at school Friday. Hear kids crying in van. Unload them. Find self unable to console Number Three who will not stop screaming. Try to calm her for an exceedingly long time. Succeed, but only if I don't put her down.] Call Sears to reorder pictures. Change diapers. Make nutritious dinner.

[5:45 Start boiling water for pasta. Continue to hold Number Three or hear her scream.

6:10 Tell kids to eat quickly so we can go. Realize Dave should already be home. Check email again. See his suggestion that I order a pizza as it has been a rough day. Wish I had checked email earlier.]

6:10 [6:25] Change diapers. Load kids in van to go to Open House at Number One's school.

6:30 [6:40] Open House.

7:30 [7:45] Come home. Throw kids in pajamas. Brush teeth. Read scriptures, sing song, say prayers. Lights out for kids.

8:15 [9:00] [Start to] D[d]o dishes [and other general cleanup]. Clean up house still is disarray from sick mom with busy kids.

[9:25 Sit down by Dave to watch a little MythBusters and hope my stomach will settle so I can finish the dishes. Allow Dave to takeover dishes during commercials. Fall asleep.

12:35 Wake up to realize that dishes aren't quite finished, though they are very close. Finish them. Get last most crucial items accomplished.]

10:00 [12:55] Go to bed. Head to bed. Set alarm, read a little scriptures, say a prayer, and pass out.

And if you are still reading...congratulations! It was a long day, and I am sure it makes for a super long read.

Now, after a day like yesterday, imagine my utter joy to discover that today was a snow day!!! I just couldn't have been happier to find that I didn't have to take anyone anywhere (Dave even worked from home). I got to take a little nap when Number Four did, which I so badly needed. The kids played in the snow with Dave (Number Four and I ventured out for a little while to take some video and still shots). This was the kind of flexibility I was craving after the previous two days.

And then, as if on cue (I had just said to Dave, "Too bad that the cook isn't in the house making dinner right now.") two of my favorite faces pulled up at our home with a dinner delivery of a warm and delicious soup, complete with tasty bread and dessert too! Sometimes, it really pays to be flexible.