Hailey enjoyed playing with her new bubble machine that she received on Easter with Grammy. Brady caught these pictures.

 

Hailey's Look vs My High School Look!

Hunter likes anything that he is offered just about but he is especially crazy about Reeses Pieces. Brady purchased a large bag of them during the car trip to the lake house for Easter. We thought they would be little like normal but these were huge pieces. So we would have to bite them in half for Hunter to enjoy. At one point, I looked back to check on him and I thought he had a bloody nose! After thinking about it briefly, I realized it was just the red treat he was eating.

 

So for about a month now I have had the only large cooking pot I own on the kitchen counter top by the sink. I made some potato soup for Brady one night and wound up burning the soup. It burned so bad that not just the bottom layer of the soup that got scorched to the pan was horrible but the rest tasted burned as well. I have tried to clean the pan SEVERAL times. I would scrub away, let it sit in hot water for days hoping that some of it would wash away. So about a week ago, I got out the BAR KEEPERS FRIEND canister. I sprinkled the entire bottom of the pan and then added just enough water. I then put the pan back in its familiar home and let it just sit some more. I left it until this evening. Hailey and I were doing the lovely task of washing the dishes. I glanced over at the pan and decided I guess I would try to tackle it yet again. All the water had evaporated. I added just a little water back into the pan and in went my washcloth. Oh my goodness, it was wiping away with ease. I normally reserve Bar Keepers Friend for cleaning the bottoms of my pans when I see that they are terrible unappealing. You can not imagine how excited I was. Now I have back my large cooking pot. I have been putting my stuff into the largest saucepan I own and it has worked out just fine but it is nice to not have to worry about liquids bubbling up and over. So... if you haven't used Bar Keepers Friend, I recommend it to anyone. Brady's mother told me about it when we first got married. Just read the can. I looked at it a few minutes ago and it said to make a paste and let it sit on there for no longer than one minute. Oops! Does leaving it for a week not count? Glad my pan is not ruined.

Hailey loves to help me vacuum. First we gather all the miscellaneous things left on the carpet and put the big stuff up on the couches and chairs. She is getting pretty good at this cleaning task. She now knows to avoid hitting the furniture with the vacuum or not to run over the cord. Hunter likes the vacuum just like his sister did. He likes to chase it. For some reason, they both since infancy have been fascinated by me vacuuming. I have some really cute pictures of Hailey "talking" to vacuums. I will have to go find them on her website.

P.S. Is it just me or is the word vacuum hard to spell? I have trouble every time I write the word. Good thing spell checker keeps me in line!

When Spring arrives everything that was dormant gets happy and grows. This includes the lovely weeds. Purple chickweed looks so pretty at first. Then it slowly takes over and gets all brown and when it is in this state you realize you should have put down that yearly preventative measure of weed killers and grass fertilizers.

 

 

 

 

 

Hunter Update:

I took Hunter in to his follow up visit with the GI Specialist today. Since his tests came back NEGATIVE, he doesn't feel anything more is needed unless he continues to flucuate in his height/weight again. He gained weight since his last visit there but his height remained the same. GOOD NEWS!

 

 

Hailey's Easter Basket

 

 

Hunter's Easter Basket

 

 

What the Bunny left on the couch

 

 

Hailey left one of her cookies & 4 carrots for the Bunny

 

What the Bunny Ate!

At the lake house, Smokey put in a volleyball court in the field across from the house. Hailey enjoys digging in the sand. Hunter really liked this new experience too. Good thing the Easter Bunny brought the children a sand turtle box to take home!

 

 

Hailey and Hunter picking dandelions

Walking with Grammy

 

 

Hunter inside the fence at the cemetery

Pretty Flowers

Banging Sticks

Happy Hunter

This year Grammy bought Hailey a Wilton Easter Egg Cookie Kit. She enjoyed decorating the colorful eggs just about as much as she enjoyed eating the little ball candy. The gum drops weren't so good according to Hailey. Grammy also got her a regular egg dye kit and a Tye Dye kit. It was kind of messy but Brady did a good job- since he hates to get all messy. Hailey liked Tye Dying Easter eggs more. It was too late when we started to color eggs so Hunter didn't get to participate as I had so wanted. Maybe next year. He sat in the high chair and looked on and every now and then would gripe at us to hurry up. He wanted out and to go to bed!

I tried my best but the nice Easter picture did not happen. Hunter wasn't in the mood and did not want to sit next to Hailey and his jacket was still on. Hailey kept giving me weird faces and being silly. This is what I captured. It brought back memories of Easter time and us taking the famous Easter picture after Church when we were ready to take off our outfits. I can really relate to how upset mother must have been!

Today I dropped off our car at the carwash place. They said it would take about 5 or so hours to do the job. So Hailey, Hunter and I bummed around Bryant Square for about 2 1/2 hours. We headed to the donut shop first where Hailey enjoyed a sprinkle donut and Hunter ate some of a twist but kept gagging on it so he moved to the glazed one and scarfed it down. After that we went into Ross where I found a skirt and some shoes for me, another pair of shoes for Hunter and Hailey got a $3 Polly Pocket set which has occupied her most of the day! Hunter fell asleep in the stroller so we headed to the Pet Store next. Hailey enjoyed seeing all the animals but she wanted to take the cute turtle home most of all. He was enjoying his lunch which did look rather tasty. It was a bed of lettuce and nicely cut up cantaloupe. Hunter woke up about this time and was facinated. We headed back to the carwash place and rested for a bit. Then I decided it was time to call someone. I called a friend and she came and picked us up. I didn't think we could last 3 more hours! Brady came and rescued us and took us back to get the car. It is so nice to have a clean car. I was totally excited about the clean carpets. They did a great job. They completely missed cleaning the side trays on the doors so I will have to attack those tomorrow as well as a few spots but overall it looks good. This only means that tomorrow it will rain or something and the finish on the outside will be ruined. I washed it last week and it looked so pretty. The next day it rained dirt. I had round dirt spots on my clean car. At least most of all the annoying crumbs have been sucked up out of sight! We will see how long it lasts. No matter how careful I think we are being, the crumbs creep up on me!

 

 

Today was Hunter's first time to be front facing in his car seat! The general rule of thumb to be able to turn your children around is 1 year AND 20 pounds. Well he meets the year mark and the 20 pounds (give or take a cup of liquid or a full up diaper!). I have been weighing him this week and he keeps going back and forth between 19 and 20 pounds.

I decided to turn him around when this sweet lady picked me up from the carwash place so we could go home for a bit while they finished up detailing our car. It was much easier than re-doing and adjusting the car seat. I think he liked it so on the way home I had Brady put it front facing as well. This will be fun as he can now see my face better when I drive instead of looking into the child mirror I have hanging up- and he won't get a neck ache from trying to turn his head around to talk to me. Another milestone... Love you baby Hunter!

The weather is beautiful here today- a wee bit windy but it is pleasant to be outside and soak up some comfortable weather! The Bradford Pear trees are blooming now and Hailey now spots them all over town. She will say "Another sign of Spring!". I am anxious to get outdoors, clean up, plant some pretty flowers and get our tomato garden started. My favorite time of the year is Fall but Spring is a welcome change!

Hunter fell asleep this afternoon while playing with Hailey and watching tv!

 

 

 

I like to make these super simple treats called "Bacon & Eggs".  I made them for Hailey last year and she really liked them so I decided to make them again this year! I just use pretzels, melted white chocolate chips and yellow m&m's. You can buy m&m's in various colors at the grocery store right now. So stock up if you have a project to do and don't want to order them online!

 

Since Hailey got poked so many times, the nurses went to find her some "gifts" that get donated to make her feel better. They usually give out just stickers. This is what is remaining of her sticker collection and the gifts she received from the hospital nurses. Hailey had to get the first set of shots in her legs Sunday night. I woke her up to go get them. I didn't think she would want stickers afterward because she was so sleepy. I told the nurse it was okay and we headed off down the hall. She had a whole collection anyway. Well we got a few steps down they hall and through her tears she says "My stickers!" The nurse looked at me and then ran back to get her some. What an ordeal it was to try to get an IV in Hailey and then top it off with 4 shots in her legs. She received the second round of shots Monday night. She now takes the antibiotic orally which is much more pleasant. Since putting it in the legs is painful, they added some pain medication to it as well which numbed her leg and it really freaked her out the first night. She didn't like the fact it burned and she couldn't feel her legs for a bit. The second night went much better and Brady snuggled with her  in the bed and she drifted off to sleep.

 

The turkey's are back! Brady was on the phone this morning and he put them on hold to tell me the turkey's are in the back yard. I ran and got the camera. We have seen them in the creek and in the front but not in the back yard. We put up a large feeder in the back yard last year and one in the front in hopes of seeing some critters. We have enjoyed watching the turkey's over the past year. I counted at least 14 today! I think there were 3 males in the back of the line. They sure can walk fast when they need too. Now I REALLY want to go get more feed for the feeders!

 

Today is my father's birthday. I love him so much and wish I could be there to give him birthday hugs and kisses. Hope you had a great day today dad. Thanks for being the best!

 

 

Since I am new to publishing pictures- they seem to look GREAT if you open up my webpage using Firefox. I opened them up in Internet Explorer and they are all crazy. I will have to have Brady help me fix the viewing problem later. So I am promoting Firefox if you want to see my webpage a little bit better!

 

Today I put my recliner in the middle of the living room near the tv and set Hailey up and made her comfy. (Not so crazy about her potentially throwing up on the couches!) She has been in and out of sleep, sipping gatorade slowly (after I convinced her it was NOT Hunter's yucky pedialyte) and watching tv. She only ate about 1/2 of a cracker but that is to be expected after the long night she had. I told her I sent a list with her daddy and hopefully he will bring popsicles home!

 

 

 

Hunter has become very attached to his daddy lately. Today Brady left to go to work out the deck door so as to not wake up Hailey who was sleeping in the living room. Hunter cries after he leaves but gets over it after a few minutes. I thought he was fine until I found him wandering in the kitchen calling "Daddy, Daddy, Daddy!". He would look out the window and reach up to the door knob. He was really sad.

One of the things he loves his daddy for is that Brady takes him to "see things". Hunter points to objects and Brady takes him there to see and touch it. He also likes it when he gets to hold Brady's cell phone. He has learned which button to push to make the screen picture come back if it goes away. He especially likes to listen to daddy's Zune and wear his headphones. Hunter has heard way too many episodes of Turtles lately and gets super excited when the theme song comes on. He laughs loudly, dances and says his version of "Turtles"! It is actually pretty cute to see.

P.S. The nurse called from the GI clinic and said that the blood test for Celiac Disease came back negative. Hooray! Now let's mark Cystic Fibrosis off that list...

I am out of everything in my kitchen just about- even things I don't use very much. I wish I had a secret store in my home sometimes. You know...when you go to the cabinet and reach for that item your hand magically reaches to the grocery store shelf and wa-la you have the item you needed! I also wish I had a ridiculous amount of the items I like and a place to stash it all. I would absolutley love a walk-in pantry someday. I would be in grocery/organization heaven. A small money tree or magical wand that really worked would be nice too! My mother had a similar desire but hers was office supplies. She had way too many red pens and tape! I was helping her once make a list for the store and she had me put tape on the list. I told her she already had bunches of tape and she said "You never know. I just don't want to run out!". So my goal for the next couple of months is to build my Secret Store and my pantry back up!

We have officially gotten the yucky bug! It started last Monday when I woke up in the middle of the night getting sick. I usually never get so sick it takes me down. This time it did and Brady had to stay home from work to take care of the children. I get the usual stuff now and then but this time it wasn't pleasant. Hunter woke up at 5 am Saturday morning and proceeded to get sick. This is his first time to be sick. He has had runny noses and a slight fever once but this time it was different. He threw up countless times - even at the doctor's office. Brady even got to help out by saving the carpet when Hunter decided to throw up on him. Luckily it all landed on his pants and not the carpet. Sorry Brady! He ate 2 saltines, half of a graham cracker and about a half cup to a cup of pedialyte yesterday. This was really late in the evening though. All day he either slept or pushed and threw his cup down. He would even shake his head back and forth. It was kind of cute though. We spent the day snuggling just about.

This morning he was so thirsty and so far 4 ounces of liquid and a few cheerios have stayed down. He is running a fever but hopefully it will pass soon. The doctor we saw said the stomach bug is going around really bad right now and that medication won't help. So... GET OUT OF OUR HOUSE YOU NASTY BUG and DON'T GO TO HAILEY!!!

Hailey and I spied the first signs of Spring in our backyard this afternoon while we were looking out the back windows. We saw some yellow in all the brown foliage. Upon taking a closer peek, we found the yellow to be these pretty flowers - I did not plant! The bulbs along the driveway have been growing as well. Tonight one of the flowers emerged as well. Wish I would have remembered to plant tulips in the fall. I love tulips. Someday I want a whole mess of them in my yard!

 

Another sign Spring is coming- SPIDERS and WASPS

I do not care for either one of these creatures especially in my home and both have made their appearances already!

This is one of Brady's favorite photos of me. We were sitting in his pickup truck at lunch time in high school. He got this interesting look out of me. I wish I could remember what exactly I was thinking about at the time. I sure look angry!

Brady gave Hailey his old laptop and she likes to use the Paint program on it to design her pictures and watch movies. Yesterday afternoon we heard a loud noise. She had fallen asleep on the keyboard and it was beeping away. You would have thought the noise would have woken her up but it didn't!

For Christmas, I purchased this activity set called Marbulous from Lakeshore Learning Center for Hailey. Brady and Hailey both enjoy putting stuff together and it looked like a great activity she could spend some time doing by herself and with Brady. On Christmas Eve she opened it up and wanted to play with it. I told Brady to let her play with it so she would be occupied while the rest of the family opened up presents. I never imagined him getting so involved. I thought she would just tinker with it and enjoy. He spent the entire time just about putting the thing together for her like the example picture! She has enjoyed playing with it on and off since then. Last night she got it out and started to create something. Brady came over and they both played for a long time and wound up using all the pieces. Something which thrilled them both. They had a great time seeing whose marble went down faster. Hailey had a hard time being careful at times though. It stayed there until this morning when she put way to much pressure on the top and it came crashing down!

 

 

I am trying to teach Hunter to use his spoon and self feed. He likes this idea! He does pretty well for about the first few bites but then just has to dig in... I actually got to finish my dinner at the table tonight while he enjoyed his potatoes.

We took Hunter in to see the pediatric specialist at Mercy yesterday. The doctor looked at his body and then explained his growth chart to us. He was very thorough and said most likely nothing is going on but to just rule out that option, he will be tested for Cystic Fibrosis and Celiac disease in a couple of weeks. Before we left, he had to have blood drawn to compare it to the blood work he had done in October. Hunter hated it of course! Who would want a tiny needle stuck in their arm? Poor baby. I felt so bad listening to him scream away as Brady was holding him. Hailey was watching on and kept telling me she wanted her Hunter. One of the men who was helping to draw Hunter's blood gave him a little green bear as we left. The day snowballed on from there where everything didn't go just right. I kept messing things up at home, couldn't find stuff right in front of me and then wound up burning Brady's dinner of potato soup. I decided to make him eggs and biscuits to make up for it. Well those were rubbery and horrible. He wound up eating Ramen noodles and some of the very sugary homemade applesauce that Hailey made. Before retiring to bed, Hailey and I read the book Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good Very Bad Day! At the end of the book it says that mom says some days are like that. Hopefully today will bring something better!

Now that Hunter walks and climbs with ease, he is really interested in getting to the fireplace knob that opens and closes the flue. He so far has just climbed up there and sat down. He obediently will sit back down if he stands up. Well today he made it to the knob before I had a chance to tell him to sit down or get down. He is really good at repeating "sit" and"git" back to me with a handsome smile.

Friday Hailey comes walking down the hall and tells me to guess what she is acting like. After some guesses, I tell her a cat. She is excited and then walks off. I can see her brain ticking away! She gets some paper, scissors and the tape and cuts like a mad little woman right on the kitchen floor while I am washing the dishes. She then comes over to me. She has taped "whiskers" to her face and wants me to tape on her "tail". She has a blast for a few short minutes being a cat and then she transforms herself into a dog. Since I had to capture this moment, I got my camera. This picture is of her saying "Some dogs do this!" as she puts her foot up to her face. Then she decides the game is over and the paper comes off and she is off to something else. Hailey can be very creative sometimes and will improvise when necessary. I love that about her.

 

The journal entry below is an ongoing list and will be updated for YEARS if it works out! I have kept a journal since I was about 8 years old and the entries are sometimes more detailed- usually about a specific event. I decided to just list out the things I can remember from my past and present and put them down randomly for my children to read about someday. This is so they might get a better feel on what happened in my life. I am a very simple, ordinary person but looking at all these things you can see how they all come together and make up who you are today. I would like to think that they one day will make me Extraordinary as I strive to be a better human being to my husband, children and those around me.

1. I love clovers. Especially four leaf clovers. I love to find them in the grass and actually welcome the plant growing wildly in my yard in the summer. I will spend a lot of time glancing down or sitting in the grass finding four leaf clovers. I used to have a large collection of them. I have even found 5, 6, and 7 leaf clovers! When I pass someday, I want my tombstone to be in the shape of a four leaf clover. Doesn't have to be green though. I am sure that is an awful cost, so a four leaf clover etched in the stone will do!
2. I love shrimp. It is so yummy and I can eat a large quantity of them.
3. I have horrible food allergies and I love to eat a lot of things that make me sick which is depressing at times.
4. I love chocolate. I think I have Hailey hooked too!
5. I have a B.S. Degree in Early Childhood and can teach grades PK-3rd. I taught Kindergarten for 8 years in inner city schools.
6. Despite the fact I have a degree and taught school, I did not have a desire to EVER go to college. My father informed me that my idea was not an option and I am so glad. He drove me to UCO, walked me up to the enrollment counter where I got a booklet of classes. We then sat and filled out paperwork and discussed what I would take. He then took me to the lovely counselor where I got officially enrolled in my first semester. History was one of the courses. I like History but not at 7 am. I think it was a combo of not wanting to be in school and the time but needless to say I flunked that course. Which he says I did on purpose and it makes me laugh thinking about it now. I retook the course because I had to and made a D. Hmmm... I couldn't bear to tell him that I made a D so I told him that I made a C. Sorry dad! I guess after this long I can confess.
7. I am the second oldest in my family. I have an older brother, a younger brother and a younger sister.
8. I was born at Edwards Air force Base in California and cost a little over 7 dollars to be born and my dad says that is only because my mother ate while she was there! I remember growing up being sad that I was such a cheap baby and that my sister was thousands of dollars. Now that I have 2 children of my own, I can't believe that I ever thought that was bad.
9. My grandmother gave me a black poodle for my birthday when I was 5 I think. Her name was Muffet. We called her Muffy. It became our family pet. She had a horrible skin condition later on in her life and she lived a long time. She died when I was like 16.
10. I was a Bishops daughter 4 times. My father became a bishop for the first time when I was 8 years old. I thought that was pretty cool. I loved watching my mother decorate his office and find interesting and appropriate things for his office. Tithing settlements were always fun!
11. I had RED hair for the longest time. It was a bright copper color. I have never colored my hair and the older I get the darker it appears. In the winter it lightens up and in the summer it darkens. Total opposite of what should happen. I also have a natural dark streak through one section of my hair which makes the hair dressers think I did something to it. That section over the last few years fills up with tiny bits of lovely gray hair. AHHH! My sister also has red hair but hers was always lighter- more strawberry colored. My mother would always find us dolls and Christmas ornaments that matched our hair color. Hailey my daughter, has a beautiful shade of RED hair. The other day I let her see what was in my hope chest and I pulled out my hair braid that my mother saved for me when I got my hair cut on my 8th birthday. It was really long and I wanted it cut so she braided it and cut it off below the braid. Afterwards we went to the beauty shop for a hair do. I put the braid up to Hailey's hair and it was the exact same shade! Red hair runs in my family as well as my husbands. Brady's brother and I had the same color hair when we met! Oh and I never cut my own hair as a child. I do cut my own bangs now but don't ask me give you a haircut. I am horrible. Brady can attest to this. He sweetly asked me to cut his hair so it would look nice for his grandmother's funeral. I wound up butchering his hair and cutting my own fingers. That was the first time and last time I ever cut someone's hair.
12. Besides getting my hair cut on my 8th birthday, I was also allowed to get my ears pierced. I picked some out (with help I am sure) and both ears were done at the same time by what I called "Ear Guns". It scared me but it didn't last long. I got a Snoopy Earring holder for all my earrings. I was so excited!
13. I dressed up like Annie for the church road show and sang Tomorrow on stage. Later on I sang it on tape at one of those Oklahoma State Fair Song Booths. One of my friends at the time talked me into it. We also sang another song. I never would have done it without someone else. My mother basically had to talk me into doing Annie as it was but it is a great memory and I still remember the cute dress I wore.
14. I took Ballet classes for the longest time- even in college. I have fond memories of ballet recitals and performances. I love to dance.
15. I also took piano classes and went to competitions when appropriate. I was and still am not very good. I can play one hand, read a few notes but not all those sharps and flats! My mother loved music and singing and was a perfectionist about it. At times, I felt inferior and I hated that feeling of not measuring up so I did not try as hard which frustrated her. It wasn't my thing when I was young but I love music- all types except for opera. It does something crazy to me and makes irritable. On the other hand, I am not good at listening to the words. Crazy I know but I have been known to listen to a totally inappropriate song and be be-bopping to the music when Brady will inform me that I am nuts! I also am notorious for singing the wrong words to songs. I have no idea who sings what song or what band they are in but I know a lot of songs and will hum away loudly when no one is looking- especially in the car. My children don't count. They hear it all in the car!
16. I write Thank-You notes and mail them SNAIL MAIL. It was something my mother did and it has left a deep impression on me. I love getting cards from family and I will save those. The others after some time- go in the trash but the precious ones from family get glued into my memory book for someone to look at someday and gawk at...
17. I got my first job (other than babysitting) when I was 18 years old. I was planning on living with my parents forever I think. My dad encouraged me to get out but that wasn't enough. Brady graciously offered to take me around to places and get applications and fill them out. I was a nervous wreck at the first place. I filled out applications at Nursing Homes and Day Care Centers. I am comfortable helping others- behind the scenes type. I am totally afraid of food type jobs. You have to count money- something I am horrible at. I got my first job at Ms. Nancy's here in Edmond and loved it! I started in the toddler room. The lady that has cleaned my teeth since I was 15 had a daughter in my class that first year. Fun memories!
18. Speaking of teeth, I got my first cavity when I was pregnant with Hailey when I was 31.
19. I also got my first speeding ticket when I was 35. I was on the way back from a doctor's appointment for Hunter. A couple of months later on his 1st birthday, I got another. That is 2 now! Maybe I am making up for having such a great record (hee, hee).
20. I threw up for months when I was pregnant with Hailey and Hunter. With Hailey, I threw up everyday for 3 or so months and refused to take anything. First time mommy doing everything right thing. With Hunter, I threw up everyday 8 or 9 times a day for about 7 1/2 months. After being so ill and losing so much weight, I happily agreed to take anything. Babies born extremely healthy despite all the yuckies. I also drank Coke and ate lots of Kentucky Fried Chicken Mashed Potatoes with Hunter. It was just about the only thing that calmed my stomach down. Everything else would come up.
21. I can swim and like to be in pools. I do not like and am afraid of swimming in lake water. Something about murky water and the unknown below. I love to ride in boats and suntan on floating rafts on the lake water though. My roommate and I would do that every summer as much as possible while I was in college. She would tan and I would get red and crispy. I have occasionally had a slight tan! I do not water ski needless to say. I did go snow skiing when we were first married. We spent Christmas with Brady's family at Copper Mountain in Colorado. I learned how to ski which cracked Brady up at times and frustrated him all at the same time. I learned but was too nervous about wrecking and breaking my foot again. I broke my foot a year or so prior to this trip and it made me so anxious. It was a great trip though. Getting off the ski lift by myself was humorous. I think I think too much about things. On one exit, I ran into a tree and Brady has a lovely picture of me doing so!
22. Sometimes I sleep like a frog. I can put my feet together and legs/knees resting on the bed. Hailey does it too. I used to be very limber and it is a comfortable position for me. If the temperature is just right too I like my feet to stick out of the bottom of the bed. It doesn't even bother me to wear socks to bed.
23. I absolutely hate the inside of my arm/elbow area to be touched. You know the part where they draw blood. It grosses me out and makes me tingle. It doesn't bother me in the least if someone else is bleeding. I can assist and take care of that but when it comes to me, I hate my blood being drawn. I get very weak. Once a lady put a needle in me wrong during an oxygen therapy and it made a huge bubble. I did not know until a lady across the room started screaming for a nurse to come help because I was looking away during the whole thing. I then looked and saw the bubble and it left a huge grouse memory to this day.
24. I always tried to take care of my toys especially my baby dolls. It bugged me if they got dirty. My brother once wrote on my baby dolls face with a pen and I remember being so sad and hurt. I had a whole collection of Cabbage Patch Dolls and Fisher Price Dolls. The only one I really allowed myself to play with was the doll named Jenny. She had blonde hair and wasn't as cute to me as the brown and red head dolls but I loved her a lot. I pulled it out the other day and she was a mess. Her fabric was dirty and she had a chip missing out of her plastic chin. I put her in the washing machine and she came out relatively clean until I decided to dry her. I had washed one of Brady's old chair covers and it stained the dryer blue. Well that lovely blue was etched all over her face. I tried to remove it with an assortment of products and she came mostly clean but now my beloved Jenny doll has another memory of me staining her blue. It makes me even madder because I wanted to only dry her a bit and let her air dry the rest of the way. Should have just listened to that voice in the first place and air dried her first.
25. I love Brady to build me fires in the fireplace in the winter. I like them very hot so I can fall asleep in my pajamas by it.
26. Hailey's toys have to be organized. Her cooking dishes can't be all thrown together. They have to be separated. If it is a cup, it goes in the cup basket, etc. I have an organizing problem and I wish I had tons of money to organize the rest of my home.
27. I love to print. Especially in color. I like things to look nice when I print them out. I also love office supply stores. My husband does too. I would like a zerox machine someday for the heck of it!
28. I can yell really LOUD if I need to.
29. My grandmother Wilson thought I was going to be a boy. My mother disagreed with her and told her that I was going to be a girl. My baby blanket from her is a pretty blue/green color!
30. I DO NOT HAVE FRIENDS. I have aquaintances that are nice to me. I talk to my sister everyday on the phone. She is my outlet and helps me remain sane. I am very grateful we are sisters and have become so close the last few years. I am 8 years older than her and it feels like there is no difference in age and that we grew up as twins.
31. I have lived in California, Arizona, Louisiana and Oklahoma.
32. I moved myself out of the house after my first year of college. I met a guy at church who knew someone who needed a LDS roommate in Norman, Ok. I drove down there, met her briefly, looked at the room and told her I would love to move in. I had very little money and no car. I was allowed to drive my parents new Honda Accord to work and ballet class. I then went and enrolled myself into OU. Once this was done, I packed up my room and told my dad the plan. He and my mother were shocked. They basically had to say yes but some conditions had to be met. I had to work and pay for something. Rent, tuition or books. My dad asked me what I was going to drive and I said I had a bike. He gave in and gave me the new car. Extremely nice of him. I made several trips with my stuff and he brought my bed and larger items. So that was it and it was off to college life for me at OU.
33. I joined the Church Sorority Lambda Delta Sigma and loved it. It was a fun time.
34. I detest ironing. I can do it and do it very well. Brady loves his shirts and pants ironed and I used to spend hours at the task so he will look nice for his clients. It aggravates me how you can spend so long doing this and it just gets all wrinkled again! I never took them into the cleaners before so we could save money. Now I take them to the cleaners and save other places. It is one less thing for me to do and spend hours standing over a board being BORED! I will iron my clothes though and I do it as needed :)
35. I like to have the whole house cleaned/straightened up before leaving for vacation or the weekend. My mother gave me this curse and I must admit I like it. It is so nice to come back to a somewhat clean/straight environment before you mess it all up again! It did cause many waiting sessions growing up though. We NEVER left when dad wanted to if we were driving. Flying is another story. We always were there hours before the plane left because dad likes it that way and so it is.
36. I have learned how to type with a sleeping baby in my arms and do it pretty well.
37. I pooped in the bathtub when I was very young just to see what would happen. Mom was not home and dad was with us. He needless to say was not happy and got very frustrated I am sure. I just had to know I suppose.
38. My father and mother did not spank and if they chose to it was rare. I don't recall very often where it was needed. I was a pretty obedient as a child. Dad had a look and they just told us their expectations and we obeyed. Not exactly sure what would have happened had I not. My dad is a good combo but mostly soft hearted. I do remember one spanking though and it got retracted. I "Shot the Bird" at my brother (how they say flipping someone off in Louisiana). I had no idea what it meant and had seen someone do it at school. My brother told and dad came unglued. Mom intervened and come to find out that I was clueless so dad had to apologize and I never did it again where I can recall until college. I had the nerve to flip someone off that made me mad while driving through campus. He chased me and I was so scared. I finally ditched him. Not a good idea at all!
39. I used to have a pretty flat stomach and sexy thighs and was proud of it. I liked the way I looked in a dress and high heels. No explanation needed now. I wear boring and unsexy clothes!
40. I can't talk business or do personal stuff on the phone if someone is nearby listening. I freeze up and act dorky. This usually just applies to Brady but he rarely listens to my conversations anyway and it is all just yakking to him. My phone bill is fun to look at monthly.
41. I have large tonsils and they need to be removed. It causes many problems along with my long list of food allergies.
42. I grew up eating wacky and wholesome food. We had carob instead of chocolate. There was no pop/soda to be found in our home unless it was a special event. We either had root beer, which my father loves, or sprite/7-up. We visited many health food stores and rarely had treats or junk food in the house. We took vitamins and were hardly ever sick. I was not vaccinated until I was 15 or 16 years old. My mother always signed the disclaimer for schools so I could enter. My brother got the mumps at this time because it cycled back around and she decided to go ahead and get us all vaccinated because my brother got so sick. She blamed herself for years after this.
43. I love to bake and eat desserts and I was always asked to make the stinking salad when I was little. One Sunday, I put crazy stuff in it and my father told me basically not to do that again. I was tired of the salad thing I guess. I always liked to help cook the meals because we had this unspoken rule that whoever cooked did not have to clean the dishes. I liked this option as cleaning up never sounded so good. So my family was a guinea pig of many of my cooking experiments.
44. I attended EARLY MORNING SEMINARY FOR 4 YEARS and had PERFECT ATTENDANCE ALL 4 YEARS! This is something I am quietly proud of to this day. Brady attended a year of seminary with me too!
45. I earned my Young Women's in Excellence Award as a youth.
46. I went to 4 Years of Girls Camp and loved it. Except the part where I was forgotten EVERY year by my Secret Sister. Every year I would make or buy the cutest things and get so excited about the event and every year I was disappointed. I never received a dang thing and it got to me a little. One year, my mother actually brought stuff and gave it to one of our counselors to give to me and I knew it was from her. They eventually told me it was from dear mom and by this time it made the whole situation so sweet because I knew she loved and cared about me. Now they hardly ever do Secret Sister type things. Probably because of situations like mine...
47. My mother was never an early morning person. Dad always woke us up and drove us to seminary, school, etc. Needless to say he made breakfast. Brady can attest to the fact he loves oatmeal. We had oatmeal and English muffins every single day it seemed. Sometimes it was malto-meal or cream of wheat. I am so allergic to oatmeal it is not even funny now. We always had orange juice too. On special days, dad would make pancakes and eggs or waffles. He made a special syrup that was so yummy too. Dad also liked to grocery shop and we liked to go with him. Why? Because we got chocolate chip cookies and mom didn't know. We would browse the bakery and get samples or he would buy us some and eat them on the way home. Mom always knew though because we would leave wrappers in his truck and when dad got to sneezing she blamed it on the chocolate. Whenever dad eats too much junk food he sneezes over and over and over again.
48. I used to be skinny.
49. I love lemons and everything lemony. We had a lemon tree and a fig tree in our Arizona yard growing up. I love lemon pie, lemon filled doughnuts and lemon yogurt. Brady worked at Winchells Doughnut shop when we first met. He would double pump the doughnuts and leave them on my front door for me and my family. They loved it too. I fell in love with lemon yogurt at a health food store. They had the best lemon yogurt with a yummy lemon layer at the bottom.
50. I was baptized as a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints when I was 8 years old by my father. He wanted to make sure I was completely under the water so he dunked me all the way to the bottom. I remember touching the bottom! My Grandmother and Grandfather Brewer and my Aunt Pat came for the occasion. I was confirmed the next day.
51. I have extremely sensitive skin. I break out in a rash if scented soap or bubble bath is put in the bath or I wash with it. I have to have non latex gloves when I get exams and I use vinyl gloves at home. I can tolerate hand lotion on my arms and hands though.
52. I got the chicken pox shortly after our move to Metairie, Louisiana. My younger brother Ryan had it too. My mother quarantined us in my room so she could take care of us better. I remember taking lots of baths and singing silly jump rope songs I just learned while we bathed. I also remember him destroying my room and when it was time for him to leave he would not help clean it up. I got so annoyed that he wouldn't clean up the mess. As he was leaving my room, I prevented him from leaving and wound up smooching him in the door frame. Guess what happens when you smash your little brother behind a door? It breaks and you get in lots of trouble!
53. Another not so proud moment was when my older brother Daenon was bugging me about something. Not sure now what he said or did but I remember taking one of his glass bottles off his dresser and whacking him upside the head with it. It knocked him out and I thought I killed him. I got my mother and a major talking to. Sorry Daenon!
54. Spell Checker is a great tool. I need to go back and edit a lot of these entries that have been typed in wrong!
55. I chew or bite on my tongue sometimes. Mainly when I am concentrating on a task or I am nervous about something. I would do it in ballet class whenever I had to hold my leg up for a long time. My teacher would catch me concentrating and tell me. Usually I have no idea I am doing it!
56. A rooster pecked at one of my eyes when I was young. He got loose in my cousins backyard. My cousin Jenny ran away from him faster. I saw the gym so I quickly climbed up it and got on top of the monkey bars to escape. Well that silly rooster flew up there and bit me. After some crying, I made my way home next door to my mother who doctored me up. It wasn't that bad but my grandfather and the rest of the family heard about it by now and it was off to take care of that rooster. By the time I was allowed back outside, the chicken's head had been cut off and was running around without it!
57. My cousin's family had a garden in their backyard. Jenny and I would play house and use the garden food sometimes. One day I happened to pick some peppers and get the oil into my eyes. It hurt so badly. Mom came to the rescue yet again!
58. We always had Aloe Vera plants in the yard or potted growing up. I remember playing with the slimy insides for fun. Mother always used it on our skin when warranted.
59. I talk to my sister EVERY DAY via the phone or instant messaging!
60. My mother dressed up like a witch for Halloween when I was in Kindergarten and as the Easter Bunny when I was in First Grade. We lived in Scottsdale, Arizona at the time. I was scared of her when she was the witch. I could hear her cackling down the halls of our school. She came into our room and I froze. She was holding our black cat Gauko. She had to take me into the classroom restroom and convince me she was my mother because I didn't believe it was her. Makes sense why the cat looked so familiar. I heard a rumor later that she went and sat on the principal's lap. I believe it. My mother would have!
61. I do not care for clowns. When I was in school, my art teacher took us through the elements of drawing and one lesson was devoted to clowns. I did my best and drew for her but I was never anything spectacular. The house we lived in at the time had windows on every side- big, beautiful windows. I dreamed a dream one night that there were clowns in every window coming to get me and I have not liked them ever since. THEY SCARE ME and are not even pleasant to me!
62. I am missing the top part of my index finger on my right hand. I was 5 years old and living in Scottsdale, Arizona at the time. I had just learned how to ride a bike. My cousins and friends were all in the alley way at the time. I wanted to ride one their bikes real bad and was told to wait but I did not listen. I ran after the bike and wound up tripping in the gravel. My hand fell into the spokes of the turning wheel. I remember the pain. I most likely went into shock because I kept telling everyone to look for my finger. I didn't know it was still hanging on. They didn't know how to attach it back at the time so it was removed completely. I still remember the horrible smell from the hospital. I also remember the smell of my finger wrapped in comfrey leaves and ointment. My mother got the flesh on the tip of my finger to heal more due to this process. My bone was sticking out and I did not have enough skin. It was stitched up and that was the end of that! I have been somewhat traumatized by this event. I was and still am uncomfortable when it came to tracing my hand. A right of passage it seems for every child in school. I had to learn to write differently too. Most people who know me have no idea as I have learned to hide it well. I often dream of what it will be like in heaven when I see my body again and how fun it will be to look at my finger. Silly!
63. I broke my right foot a few years ago. I was simply walking down the hallway to go see Brady after hanging up the phone with my father. Oh the pain of it was horrible! I was supposed to go on vacation with Tessa and Michael. We were going to visit Grandmother Wilson and everyone in Arizona. I wound up going with a lovely boot attached to me. I took lots of painkillers! I had surgery on it and a pin was placed in my foot for about 6 months and then removed. Teaching school that fall semester was interesting. The children got used to my cane and my limpy foot. I am still cautious about doing any dance type moves as I fear the silly foot will break again!
64. The Strawberry Shortcake Character used to be my favorite thing. I loved my dolls and toys. Hailey even plays with them now.
65. My mom used to take me to the chiropractor a lot. I supposedly had a slight curvature. I often dreaded going to chiro appointments after school as I wanted to do other things but I always felt better. I do remember getting very ill in high school and I developed a massive blocked lymph node under my right arm. I couldn't move it above my head at one point. She took me to numerous holistic doctors to try to heal me but it eventually wound up exploding in the bathtub while I was taking a bath. It was a glorious yet stinky moment. The horrible bump was gone! I still have some nerve damage from it. I failed to mention to her that the reason the lump may have appeared was because I tried to pull out some of my arm pit hair so it wouldn't grow back. Not a good idea at all as pulling out arm pit hair really hurts. I was too embarrassed to tell her this and shortly after the lump appeared. I also was also really ill and got a swollen lymph node behind my ear too so who knows if it was related or not. So back to the chiropractor thing.... in order to help my body to heal, I had my bowels flushed at the chiropractor one day. It was a weird treatment and explaining it is odd! I sat on this clear lounge chair thingy where they put water up one end and you could watch if you wanted the bowel being emptied as it passed through the clear tubes. It was a strange experience and I felt about 10 pounds lighter after it. Might do me some good now!
66. Speaking of weird yucky stuff. I have had the pleasure of having a colonoscopy already. I had my first one in June of last year. Since my mother died of colon cancer and I was experiencing some issues, it was warranted.
67. I found out I had many food allergies in high school. I was tested at a clinic. I fasted before hand and then had to eat a large quantity of fruit before the test. The tips of my fingers were pricked once every half hour for a long time! I had to go to work after the test and I had such a hard time picking up the babies and changing their diapers.
68. One thing I learned from my dad when I was young was you never ask him to sign your paper last minute especially as he was walking out the door to go to work. On a couple of occasions I had failed to get my homework signed and this one particular morning he signed it alright. He signed it really large across the entire paper with his name. I was so upset and cried for a long time as I sat and erased the marks. I still remember him saying sorry and then chuckling at how funny it then became.
69. I was one of the winners of the Book Fair Art Contest when I was in 2nd grade. I drew a scene of some mountains and some books overflowing from it.
70. We had goats in our backyard in Arizona. Mother loved goats. I would watch her milk them and play with them. Dad had some cages installed just to keep them. Mother would keep the milk and we would drink it. I hated it-especially warm. I could tolerate it if it was cold though. My entire Kindergarten class was invited to come over and meet the goats. She had made goat milk ice-cream and I was so nervous about this. I thought all the kids would hate it and say horrible things but it turned out to be a great event and I loved being the leader for the day as we walked to our home!
71. I have weakness for feeding wildlife. I see something outside and I can't help but feed or give it shelter. If I was living outside, I would hope someone would feed me or give me a nice little shelter from the bitter cold! I have owned 2 inside cats but after they did their business and ruined many things, I never want an inside cat again. I absolutely loved them though and at times miss them much.
72. Spiders are okay outside but I am not fond of them in my house. I will squish them. I really do not like those fuzzy ones. Ewweh!
73. I love turtles. The bigger the better. Like the ones Brady and I saw on our honeymoon at the Galapagos Islands. I like to collect tasteful turtle things too.
74. Going to junk stores is fun. I like finding a good bargain. Maybe that is why I like to go to Walmart so often. I have a hard time paying a lot for something I know I can get cheaper elsewhere.
75. Loud noises make me cranky if I am not in the mood. Listening to music really LOUD doesn't count if I am in the right mood. Something about the TV, music playing on the computer or Hailey chit-chattering away loudly makes me uncomfortable and it just needs to be quiet. It all depends on my mood at the time I guess because I have been know to blown many speakers!
76. I like to bird watch and I love Hawks. I play this silly game in the car with Brady where I will try to spot a Hawk first. We tally them up. Crows do not count and are often deducted!
77. I like to attempt to garden with Brady. Every year we plant tomatoes and okra, strawberries, onions, etc. We can grow these! I haven't been successful at growing a really big pumpkin yet. Hailey likes to collect the many tomatoes. I am not real good at eating or canning all the tomatoes though. I seem to let a lot go to waste because we plant so many!
78. I love peas and onions and have been known to put them in many of my dishes.
79. Autumn is my favorite time of the year. I absolutely love pumpkins. I even take pictures of them like they are my family. One just isn't enough either. I also try to see how long I can keep one from rotting away. One year it lasted until March!
80. I hate to be late to appointments or places. I think I got this from my father. He arrives at everything just a wee bit too early but is punctual and that is what I like.
81. I can't spray paint for the life of me. I can paint little detail work but oh my goodness a project will look horrid if I spray paint it. I leave drips and go way overboard I guess. I now leave that stuff up to Brady. I tell him what I want and he is pretty good at it.
82. I like men that look and act like men. Something about a feminine man doesn't sit well with me. You know the type!
83. This one may scare a few folks but I can eat an entire can of sweetened condensed milk. I get these fixes occasionally (usually around that time of the month) and I just need something sweet. One day after no luck of finding something sweet, I opened up a can of this yummy stuff and wound up eating the entire can. Don't read the label. You will be shocked with the nutritional facts. I like it cold too. So good. I try to not keep this stuff around now until it is needed. I am too weak! My father likes this stuff too. I think that the sweetened condensed milk gene got passed to me in a major way!
84. I have lived in the following states: California, Arizona, Louisiana and Oklahoma. I was born at Edwards Air Force Base in California. I don't remember but we lived in Hollywood for a short period of time. I also lived in Diamond Bar there too. In Arizona, we lived in Scottsdale. In Louisiana it was in Metairie and Lafayette. Currently it is good old Edmond, Oklahoma. I lived in Norman prior to moving to Edmond.
85. I "barked" like a crazy little kid at a huge Doberman Pincher in the front of my Brewer Grandparents home when I was about 5 year old. I was walking my dog at the time. It took one look at my little puppy and wanted to eat us both! Luckily my Aunt Barbara heard the commotion and saved us both. This dog belonged to the neighbors and it was always locked up. We would talk to the mean dog through the fence over the years and it always barked away. I could have been lunch meat if it hadn't been for my aunt.
86. Embarrassing to say but my brothers and I got lice from school when we lived in Metairie. It was horrible! The teachers would do these head checks for lice all the time it seemed. Our hair took longer to check because the majority of the children at the school seemed to be African American.
87. When I was 8 or so I would do this thing where I would turn the lights on and off in my room as I was leaving or entering and count how many times I did it. Luckily this strange thing didn't last because it drove me nuts and I remember telling myself it was nuts. I would count lines in the walkway, steps I took, stairs- everything!
88. At the same time I started this thing with feet. My brother's feet could not touch me. It grossed me out. I have a hard time touching other people's feet unless it is someone I know, they need help or it is cute baby feet. Otherwise, feet are yucky!
89. I do not like the smell of lilac. It makes my stomach sick.
90. My favorite superhero is Wonder Woman. I would pretend to be her when I was young and make bracelets and act all grown up!
91. I like to make things for other people. It makes me happy.
92. When I was about 8 or so, my mother took my brothers and I to Sea World in Florida I think. We browsed the gift shop before entering the aquarium and I picked out this really pretty purple sea urchin. The first thing we saw was a big tank and it had a walrus in it. I stood near the edge and that silly walrus came right up to me and breathed on me, spit and all. It stunk so bad and I immediately got sick. You can not imagine how horrible a walrus smells. I remember mom taking us out to the car and leaving. Daenon was also sick but he had something else so we had to leave anyway. I remember it being an exciting day but really off...
93. I am getting better at it but I usually scream when those dang red wasps come near me. I am getting used to killing them in the house but when I am outside they seem to scare me more! I will be glad when we can stop the wasps from coming inside our home. They are pesty little creatures.
94. I tend to "over-tape" a box when preparing to take it to the post office. Usually a few pieces will secure the box but I love to double even triple sections sometimes!
95. Jack-in-the boxes still scare me!

 

Since going to Arizona isn't an option today to put flowers on Nana's grave, this is what we came up with! Hailey had fun learning how to make paper flowers. We had to improvise on the stems. I was out of pipe cleaners so we used Brady's computer cable ties. Happy Birthday Nana!

 

 

Today happens to be my belated mother's birthday. Yesterday while we were driving, Hailey saw another cemetery and said "Hey that is where Nana is!". We talked about how she was in another cemetery in Arizona and she said that we needed flowers for her grave and that we needed to go put them there. Oh how I wish I could today. So mom... the flowers Hailey and I make are for you. Hope you enjoy! We still love you very much and miss you deeply.

Today is our Wedding Anniversary. We have been married for 8 years. That number sounds very wierd to me today. After dating 12 years, we got married on February 12th, 2000 (at 2:12 we would like to think!). I haven't really truly felt old until recently. All these numbers seem to be adding up! Time is flying by and I feel like I have not accomplished much. But I am happy to be married though and I love my hubby very much!

Hailey is obsessed with skeletons and monsters right now. Her drawing and cutting abilities have really improved over the last few weeks. Today she drew a monster and cut it out. She told me it was "A monster that is tearing up this world". Hmmm... that doesn't sound very nice but her monster was very real like especially when she made it walk on the floor. Oh Hailey!

I love days when I wake up and see snow falling.  It makes a very pretty white carpet and covers up all the brown grass and bare trees. I find myself staring out the windows for long periods of time too. A day like this makes me want to find things to do inside, drink many cups of hot chocolate and not leave the house. I am not fond of driving in snowy weather. I can do it but I prefer not to do so. Something about potentially sliding into something is not exciting to me! On the other hand, I do enjoy going out briefly for a sled ride or to build a snowman but once my ears start to hurt from the bitter cold, it is inside for me!

 

 

I can't believe Hunter celebrated his first birthday a couple of weeks ago. My sweet little guy has accomplished so much in a year - including walking! It is so amazing to see all the changes a baby goes through during their first year of life. What will this year be like?

Today I was driving to the bank to make a deposit and I ran over a curb on the road. It made the car tilt a little and I said "SHOOT! Is everybody okay?" Hailey replied, "Yes mom but SHOOT is a bad word. It means you are gonna kill someone. You shouldn't say that. You should say CRAP-A-MIGHTY. That would be better." So as I am laughing, I say "Hailey I think SHOOT sounds better. CRAP-A-MIGHTY doesn't sound so polite either." The conversation continues as we drive on better things to say!
(By the way, Crap-a-Mighty is not in my everyday vocabulary. Someone else I know uses it and my dear mother would say it. I can still hear her saying it loudly throughout the house when we got much older!)

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As I began trying to type this entry in tonight, Brady began teasing me from his computer chair. I have an extremely difficult time paying attention to more than one thing when it comes to working on my computer. Anything else seems to be fair game. So as he is being silly, I give him a stare and he say's...
"NEVER BLOG WHEN YOU ARE ANGRY" which makes me laugh!!!

Today I had big plans to get out and get a few needed things at the grocery store but after I got in the bath and got the children out of the bath my desire left me. Looking out the back windows,  I see the wind blowing the tree limbs and it is making me colder. I will go tomorrow!