Stupid Lies

Tonight I sent Jannica up to her room to go to bed, like she does every night.  A half an hour later I couls still hear some rumbling about, so I went to see why she was out of bed.  I must have startled her when I opened her door because she didn't have enough time to lay down.  I asked her what she was doing as she was quickly trying to hide something.  So I went over and discovered that she had her mp3 player and was trying to listen to it.  Not a big sin and surely nothing to get in big trouble about.  So I asked her when she grabbed it.  I was thinking that she had just grabbed it because of all the noise that I could hear.  She replied with, "I don't know know how that got there."  She was acting all tired like she didn't know what was going on.  Good thing I'm smarter than a box of rocks though.  I just sweetly said, "You are grounded for a day for lying to me.  Not for trying to listen or hide the mp3 player, but for lying.  Now, would you like to make it 2 days?  Just lie to me again!"  Then I asked her when she grabbed the mp3 player.  Then miraculously, she remembered all the info.  She wouldn't have been in any trouble if she had just told the truth.

It's kind of funny to think that she thought, "I don't know how that got there" would work when she clearly had been playing with it.  It makes me think of when I was a kid and I wonder if my parents remember any stupid lies that I thought I could get away with.  I'm sure I did. 

Chef Jannica

Jannica and Ryan were starving (as usual) when we got home. I was not in the mood to cook, so I was in no hurry to get food on the table. Jannica thought for a minute and then asked if she could make dinner for Ryan and herself. I was gonna say no, because that usually means more work for me. She must have seen the no coming because she instantly said, "I will read all of the instructions and I will do it all myself." How could I fight that? 

Jannica decided that it would be mac and cheese for dinner tonight and got the box out. She followed instructions, asked a lot of questions and needed help with the stove, but eventually she made a pretty good batch of mac and cheese. 

I let the girls eat in the front room (who needs structure) and got a great picture. Yes, Ryan is naked and wearing a witch's hat, but she sure loved her dinner!

Great work Jannica! 

Washington D.C.....Again

Ryan loves to chase the "chickens" and yell at them to get off the grass.  (I don't know where she gets this stuff

Waiting for Kelly in the metro station, we were bored and this was the funniest thing I could think of.  The girls love posing for the camera?

We went to D.C. this weekend and had a blast. We have been there several times, but surprisingly, we don't get sick of it. We visited all new places on this trip, it was cool! Our hotel was right on Capital Hill and so we were able to walk everywhere we wanted to go. 

My sister-in-law, Sheri, and her girls went on a walk with me and my girls on Friday. We discovered a cool little place called the spring grotto, it is right on the capital grounds. It is this neat little area that is a real spring and they have built a fountain and a secluded little place to sit and relax. I loved it. I tried to show it to Kelly today, but it was all closed up and he was not impressed. At least the girls can share the memories. 

We also discovered the Botanical Gardens. Sheri and I explored the outside (which is super cool!) with the kids on Friday and then Kelly and I went back to visit the inside today. This was a totally kid centered, interactive and beautiful place to visit. They had a medicinal plants section, cool little smelling stations and a children's garden where the kids could play (to highlight a few of the sections). It was all Sheri's idea to go, I am so glad she thought of it! 

Saturday we went to the zoo with the Martinez's and had a blast. We got to see an elephant get a bath! It was super cool. Ryan loved the hippos, especially the "big giant" in the water. Jannica was a great sport with the little girls who think she walks on water, and aspire to be her when they grow up and turn eight. After a vote, we decide that the zoo in D.C. is way better than the ATL Zoo but not nearly as great as the Prague Zoo. Where is your favorite zoo?

Angie and I got to go to the Relief Society meeting that night. It was great to have some nice spiritual time, sans kiddos. We were fed well, listened to some great music, that her HUGE stake provided, and got to hear some great talks. I miss having Angie around. She is such a great person and so sweet. I love that we can laugh at ourselves together and have a good time. We are totally lame, but we have fun doing it. I am so happy that she will be in Idaho. My mom probably is too, because Angie being there means I will be out to visit a lot more often! I have so many reasons to go to Idaho, but never enough to make me want to stay!

Back to our trip. We visited the botanical gardens today and then the aquarium and a neat exhibit on Jim Henson. That guy is great! I am so glad he had the gumption to do what he wanted and the heart to know what people needed. I will forever love Sesame Street and especially Grover (thanks to my sister, Katie, for helping me love her and Grover, I could never do his voice like she can).  Muppets rock!

We had a fun and fast weekend, but that is how we like it here. We get bored quickly. Kelly and I are thinking of starting a travel blog. It would be geared to people who travel like us. It would have tips for what you can do with the kids in vacation spots, have airline deals and any other crap we could throw in there. Watch for it as a link, we should have it up and running by Thanksgiving (travel tip #1 don't travel during Thanksgiving!).

An afternoon of Art

                                                                     

I have been meaning to paint this shelf to be used as a FHE job chart/hook thingy. I

 just did not want Ryan's help, so I have been reluctant. Thanks to Grandpa Curlee though, the opportunity for group painting presented itself. He made Ryan a step stool to use in the bathroom. She uses it everywhere and her reach range is much larger, so I don't know if I am grateful to him or not, time will tell. 

Ryan now had something to paint while I painted my thing. Perfect. I had so much fun helping her choose colors, and use the sponge shapes and letters. We ended up working on hers together after I finished mine. That was all she wanted. She likes to work with me and feel like we are accomplishing something together. If only I could get her to clean like Drew Pistorious. 

I can't help myself

I LOVE Halloween! It is one of my very favorite holidays. I love to get dressed up in cool costumes. I love costume parties. I love to see all of the kids getting dressed up and I love to get my kids all dressed up. Most of all I love decorating for Halloween and I love it when people go all out and make spooky yards and houses. 

Last week I decided that I could wait no longer, the decorations had to be put up. I will let you do the math to figure out the date. I don't want to say. Kelly and the kids were just as excited, and Autumn, our friend from up the street, was here to help too! We spent a few hours putting up decorations, deciding the best place for everything, and figuring out what to put in all of the Halloween candy dishes that we have seemed to collect each year. Luckily we had a ton of parade candy left. I say had, because Ryan has pretty well cleaned us out this week. She will eat one piece while opening another. The candy highs are awesome, she is so happy, look out though, when she comes down, she is downright evil!

I digress........Our house is just about ready and so am I! I can't wait for Boo and the Zoo, trunk or treat, parties, campfires and the big day. I love this time of year and it lasts clear until Easter with all of the birthday parties and holidays. I am in seventh heaven! Happy Fall Y'all. 

Thanks for the boob mom!

I know by the title you may think this will be naughty, but it really isn't. Just read....

Ryan was just starting to dig into a bowl of Spaghetti-O's (the ABCDEFG kind, per Ryan.) I remembered I had this bib I made out of one of Jac's old shirts, so I told Ryan to wait while I got her a bib. I put it on her and she said "You got me a boob? Thanks for the boob mom. I like my boob, now I wear a boob." I was laughing so hard and she was talking so fast because of her excitement, it took me a minute to be able to correct her. 

I love this job!

Founder's Day

So Saturday was the big Founder's Day celebration here in our little town. Every year there is a parade and carnival. We have never gone before because it falls on or around Kelly's birthday, and we are usually out of town. We went this year not quite knowing what to expect. Before the parade the girls got to play in the field with their friends. Jac sat at the side of the road looking through the lens of her camera obviously waiting for the first shot of the parade. In fact, she spent the first ten minutes of the parade looking through the camera, only taking a few pictures. I finally made her put the dumb thing down and get some candy like a normal kid. How else was I gonna get my candy fix?

Ryan and Kelly ran to the other side of the street, as it was less crowded, and Ryan got a TON of candy. She could not even lift the bag! Delores Ponzio was also on their side of the road and kept throwing candy missiles at us saying she just wanted to be sure we got candy. I sensed some malice when I was tagged in the back by a bunch of tootsie rolls (OUCH!).

The parade was full of beauty queens of all ages, 50 different churches handing out fliers, people dressed up like Dolly, Elvis, the Chick-fil-et cow and many more. I saw a mini-church on wheels, and Jen Schaefer, whom I know reads this blog. She could not give me the time of day, thank you very much Jen, I was a Pocahontas princess too, but that is as deep as our friendship goes apparently!

Anyway, the parade was AWESOME! I have not been to a parade that candyful in a long time. I know the girls had a blast. Kelly had a ton of fun playing frisbee with Steven Turlington. They were across the street from each other and kept seeing how close a float could get before they had to stop throwing it. Frisbee chicken I guess. Melissa had to take their toy away after a while.

Later that night we went to the carnival. Kelly hates to "waste" our money on carnivals, but I LOVE them, and I was able to talk him into letting Ryan get a pass for rides too. Jannica was off with the Ponzio's and being brave. She only cried on one ride, and it was pretty freaky, so that is okay.

Ryan had a ton of fun riding with Gavin on the rides. She especially loved this little fun house and went through it like 15 times. She kept hiding out in the balls and I had to really coax her to get her to keep going. The problem was that I was on the outside because parents were not allowed in. The more I tried to get her to keep going the more devious the look on her face. Finally I just gave up and let her do her thing. It always seems to work that way with her. She is a touch independent, I don't know where she gets it.

When we first got there some kid ran up to me and said "hey, I won this fish and I don't want it, please take it!" So of course I did. By the end of the night we ended up with five, yes five, goldfish and we did not pay for any of them. The kids were ecstatic and have spent today watching them swim. I guess I am getting my come-uppance for getting my sister frogs and other reptiles for her birthdays. It is pretty fun though.

The night ended with a bang. Literally. There was a cool fireworks display. Everyone was separated when the fireworks started, but thanks to cell phones, we were all able to meet up in a centralized location. That location happened to be in front of the port-o-potties, but the smell wasn't too bad, kind of airfreshener like. We all kicked back on the ground and enjoyed the fireworks, Kelly and I sipping on lime rickies, Jac and Ryan sitting by their favorite person, Melissa (eating all of her french fries). The cool (finally) September weather was wonderful. What a great way to officially say goodbye to summer and welcome fall with all of her beautiful non-sticky weather.

You mean you have to brush and floss?

I was not raised as a flosser. I don't do it very often and I feel that it is very time consuming. Obviously, if I don't do it for myself, it will not be something I push with the kids. Jac and I have learned our lessons. Jac was found to have two cavities at her cleaning appointment (I had 3 at mine!)  and today the dreaded "filling day" arrived. I don't think she had the first clue about what to expect. I had tried to tell her, but I didn't want her to freak out. "What?!" you say, "you're eight-going-on-15-year-old drama queen, freak out? I don't believe it!" Well believe it sister! In the past Jac has been to known to get herself a little, shall we say, worked up. So I try to sugar coat, but explain the details. Jannica also has a wild imagination, so she can take something you tell her and convolute the story so much, that in 10 minutes she is sure that the martians are invading and she and she alone is going to save the world! But I digress.........

We got to the dentist and they gave her the laughing gas. From that point on she was great, she didn't cry, no yelling, she didn't even know she had a shot or that they had drilled her teeth. When she came out her mouth was numb on one side so I got some silly pictures and Ryan, of course, had to have her picture taken as well. The drive home was a little teary for Jac, but she got some Motrin, got to watch HSM2 and relax for a bit. The numbness finally wore off and she called her Mom and Nana to tell them "did you know they filled my teeth up today!?" She is such a cutie. She acts so grown up that I forget that she is still seeing the world through innocent little eyes and is trying to make sense of it all.

Lopsided smile, and what cute hair!

Jac trying to puff out her cheeks!

The filled up teeth

Always has to be cool like big sis!

Hot Date with the Indigo Girls

Kelly, my dashing and brave husband, worked up the courage (yet again) to donate blood. He is the strong silent type hero that saves lives one drop of blood at a time. The thought of needles jabbing his arm makes him queasy, let alone actually volunteering to have it done. He is my knight in bright orange armor!

Moving on...

Kelly donated blood and the Red Cross and Delta gave him 4 tickets to see the Indigo girls at Chastain amphitheater. I was totally stoked! I loved the Indigo Girls in high school, but since the menace of country music has taken over, I have not heard them in a loooooooong time. It was our date week (since the awesome Johnsons trade off with us) and we were all set to go. (Just the 2 of us, we couldn't talk anyone else into doubling with us) I was busy getting ready, and came out of the bano to find Ryan telling Kelly "I brush your hair," and "Time to shave, I do it for you." I had to get a picture, it was so cute. Ryan alternated between shaving Kelly's head and "combing" his "hair." He is such a good sport, I think he actually enjoys it, kinda. A few minutes later I was doing my hair and heard a "ouch, be careful!" Apparently Ryan got Kelly in the eye, no eyebrows or eyelashes lost, thank heavens!

The concert was great, I only knew a few songs and Kelly was a good sport. I learned that I am definitely not as liberal as I once was. The venue was awesome. It is this outdoor amphitheater,

and you can bring your own little tables and food and drinks and light a candle and listen to music. Kelly and I did not know this before hand and so we had to just imagine the romance that could blossom in such a setting. I'm sure that it could be great! I can't wait to go again and enjoy the ambiance, maybe a jazz or folk concert. Dates are awesome and I highly recommend them. Kelly and I really did not know what we were missing.

Thanks Laura and Stan for your awesome swap idea!

Little Artist

Ryan has recently started drawing more than usual. She loves to paint, color, cut, tape, anything at all that makes a mess and gets in my way. Anyway, I came downstairs the other day and heard her talking in the kitchen. she was saying, "this my hair, my long beau-ful hair, this my eyes, my nose, my mouth" I walked in then and asked what she was doing. She said "I draw my picture." I was amazed at the brilliance of my child! Kelly got a call at work and all of my friends have heard this story, but I wanted to blog about it anyway.

Later that week I came in the house and she was sitting at the coffee table drawing. (she wasn't alone, Kelly was playing with his new computer right next to her.) I asked her what she was drawing and she said "Mr. tadoe head". Again I was overwhelmed by her brilliance. I feel bad for all of you who are reading this and have to feel bad that your kids just aren't as bright as mine. Oh, well, you'll get over it! (I hope we all know I'm kidding, right?)

Last of all, yesterday I was trying to read New Moon (for the 5th time, sorry Laura), and Ryan was not happy with being ignored. She laid down on the bed next to me and started doodling on some papers. She started talking about her turtle and his tail and then there he was on the paper, and it really looked like a turtle! I am sure that I am obsessing, but I won't say anything else after this. I have an artistic kid.

(side note: I have 2 actually. Jac is as right brained as they come, she could draw, sing and paint all day!)

Pride

We are so proud of Jac! She got an award at school for being so kind, outgoing and helpful. She gets to be the kid who shows new kids in her class where everything is. I know that this is not a huge thing, but we are so freaking proud of her. The school sent home a little letter that just praised her and I about bawled because I was so happy. I love being a mom at times like these. Jannica is such a sweet girl and always loves to help out. I am so lucky to have her around to be my little right hand. What an amazing little spirit that our family has been blessed with! What a strong, sweet, amazing girl! I don't know why Heavenly Father let this one come to us, but I know it was more for our benefit than ours.

September 11

I want to remember. I can remember what I did that day, I can remember how I felt. I was just so shocked and sat staring at the TV with my jaw hanging open. I held Kelly's hand and felt so blessed that I had him there with me. I went to work, and even in the Alzheimer's unit there was a somber mood. The mood there was usually anything but somber. I wanted to go to ground zero and offer any help that I could, but no one who was pulled from the rubble really needed medical help, so there was no point.
I saw a clip of the plane crashing into one of the buildings a couple of years ago and I was amazed at how shaken up I was. But I don't want to forget what happened. I want to remember and feel what I felt that day. I want to never forget the compassion that I felt for all of those poor people and their families. I don't feel anger, I don't feel fear, I don't feel hatred. All that I feel is compassion and a greater need to rely on my Heavenly Father. I am so blessed and I forget that so often. I don't want to forget. I want to see the footage, not everyday, but on the anniversary it would be nice. I want to have at least a few hours or a day to truly remember those who were lost, those who survived and those who sacrificed, then maybe I would work a little harder to make more of myself than I am and remember to lean on the Lord a little bit more.

Tallulah Falls Opry and Squirrel Burgers

The music may not have been beautiful, but it was fun. There were songs about the smokey mountain blues, a yodeling preteen and another song about having a big dinner made of the opossum that was in the singer's headlights. Sometimes I just love living in the south! The city of Tallulah Falls has live music, a big fire and potluck every Saturday in the summer. You make a little donation, dig in and enjoy the atmosphere. Kelly and Ryan roasted hot dogs and marshmallows while Jac ran around playing hide and seek with some kids that were there, I don't think she even knew their names. Ryan and Jake played endlessly on this little hill. Ryan loved all of the food and was the dirtiest kid there. She learned how to roll down the hill and Jake learned to chase her as she rolled down the hill (he wasn't a big fan of rolling).

We headed back to the cabin before it ended, we had to get up early for church the next day.

Which brings me to Squirrel Burgers.

We got to the church a little late and waited out in the hall for the sacrament to be passed. Jac saw a picture of the New Era sitting on a table and said, wisely, "Look! This is how they say "The Friend" in their language!" Kelly had to gently remind her that we were still in the United States and that the people here spoke English. What a well traveled kid though, huh?

Anyway, after the sacrament we snuck in a sat down. The first lady to speak bore her testimony on missionary work and how she loved to feed the missionaries squirrel and bear and wild hog when they ate at her house. Kelly and I turned to each other and said "did she just say squirrel" and, "I think she did!" a few minutes later I asked the guy next to me if it was true and he nodded. Again, I love the south, never ending laughs!

Of course later on after Sunday school my wonderful husband had to go get the recipe for how to cook squirrel, apparently it has to be in season and this was not the season. He was really fishing for an invite, luckily, the lady had no squirrel to offer as it is not squirrel season. Darn it! (don't I sound convincing?)

All in all this was one of the most fun trips that we have been on in ages. The girls still talk about it! Ryan is still telling about her rainbow fish and Jac just keeps trying to forget the fish bleeding, gutting and eating.

Sick kids

I am not a fan! Puke and diarrhea have got to be one of the worst things to deal with, especially in the middle of the night when I am laying with the who is doing the puking or pooping. Ryan woke up 4 times in the last week puking. One night as Ryan hung over the toilet seat "fwope-ing", I held her head and Kelly was blinking back the tears. He said that it just made him so sad to see her standing there looking like an adult and just miserable. During the day she was great except for the intermittent poop running down her leg or filling the swimming pool I let her go swimming in because I thought she was over it. Luckily it was our own swimming pool. Sadly, Jac had decided to take a swim with little sister. Poor Jac. She had horrible stomach cramps and the big D. She did get to miss a day of school though! I guess it has been going around, who knows. Kids attract the yuckiest stuff, I am not a fan of that part of this roller coaster that I am on. 

Labor Day Fun

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Labor Day Vacation

Our friends the Johnsons invited us to come with them to a cabin for the weekend. We could only go for one night since I had to work this weekend, but we decided to go anyway. We got up early Saturday morning and headed out. The cabin is in the North Georgia Mountains and was just a 2.5 hour drive.
You know it is going to be a great vacation when you get out of the car and see a big frog and a cool green cricket. Jannica is fearless when it comes to bugs (not spiders) and frogs and lizards. She will pick anything up! She was able to talk Ryan into holding the cricket, but that did not last long, Ryan is not as brave as Jannica.
We all decided to go to Andy's Trout farm. In the ad it boasted train rides, fishing, paddle boats, and mining for the kids. We pulled up to a rickety shack and a golf cart train. Ryan and Jake thought the train rocked. The cars of train were made of burrels (barrels to you and me). The guy said it was not working and to stay away from the front car because it was "full a yella jackets or sumthin". Obviously the train ride did not work out.
We did have more luck with the fishing. The guy set us up with some cane poles and off we went. Kelly and Jac went ahead of us. As we were walking down to the pond Jac screamed "these fish are CRAZY!" They really were, they were jumping like 2 feet out of the water and clear across the pond. They were pretty big too. Kelly had baited Jannica's hook by the time I got down there. Poor guy just doesn't know how to bait a hook. That's all right though. I do and was able to fix it. Jac went first and every time she got a nibble she yanked that hook right out of the water. We had to work on letting the fish get a chance to take the hook. Patience paid off! We had a fish after about 2 minutes! As we were pulling the fish out of the water Jac backed into a sink hole up to her knees. She was screaming and so excited, but refused to touch the fish. Later she said that the fish was really hyper, that is why she fell in the hole. She also said that Ryan's fish was better because it didn't bleed like hers. We reassured her that hers was the coolest and the biggest and it was normal that fish bleed. I don't know that she will ever go fishing again. I hope so. I loved it.
Ryan was next and I had to sit right next to her to keep the line in the water. We got the fish after about 5 minutes and Ryan was ecstatic! She pulled the fish out of the water and also refused to touch it. She wouldn't even get close to it. I told her it was a rainbow trout fish, so now she tells everyone that she caught a rainbow fish.
Jake was next and he would not leave the pole still. I was laughing so hard! Stan was trying to help him and hold the pole still. You could see how hard Jake was trying to move the pole back and forth. After a while of no luck Laura helped Jake at another creek area and he got one. He wouldn't touch it either.
We took the fish up to be cleaned. We made Jac watch she that she could see what had to happen when you catch a fish. She was pretty disgusted.
When we cooked the fish today Jac was a trooper and tried some, but agrees with me that they are disgusting. Ryan was so excited to eat the rainbow fish. She kept putting her finger on the fish and licking it and saying "yum, I like fishy." When we got it all de-boned and gave her a big bite, her face went from happy, to confusion, to disgust. I was quick to put my hand out to catch the fish she was spitting out. She said "that fish is lucky". (Ryan's word for yucky). So I guess if you come to visit you can count on never having to eat fish.
Back to the trout farm......
The mining did not look very promising and there was only one paddle boat to use on the brown lake. We opted to go to lunch and skip the rest of the Andy's experience. So off we went to Fat Buddies. The best BBQ I have ever had. This place had all the southern BBQ works and Kelly was in seventh heaven. Jac and I love ribs and these were great! I wanted to sit and suck on the bones. Laura pointed out that they had shirts for sale that said "I sucked bones at Fat Buddies" I didn't think my mother would approve, so I passed on getting one. The veggie of the day was creamed corn. No diet could survive in this place.
On the way home we stopped at a gem mining place. The girls sifted through a bunch of dirt and found "precious gems." Jac looked a little depressed afterwards. I asked her what was wrong and she said that she thought we were going into a real mine with hammers and stuff. What a letdown. She was a trooper though and Laura gave her Jake's bag. Now I have a bunch of "precious gems" laying around the house.
I'll have more pictures later, so stay tuned for: Tallulah Falls Opry and Squirrel burgers?

DDR

Jannica is our resident Dance Dance Revolution champ. Ryan wants to be like Jac and loves to hear the music on the Disney DDR game. Jac is so good to come home and play the DDR and let Ryan think that she is the one playing.
Ryan moves her arms more than her legs and usually tries to follow Jac's moves, but is usually 4 beats behind.
Big sister's are the best thing ever! Ryan is lucky to have the one she has got. Ryan drives Jac crazy, but Jannica is so patient and loving and kind. In return Ryan adores Jac and wants to be just like her at all times, which can be annoying for Jac, but imitation is the best form of flattery right?

Buttons like you!

Ryan found out (yet again) where I hid the stickers and started sticking them on her body. By the time Kelly got home Ryan looked like this.
She ran to Kelly (who was wearing a button up shirt) to give him a hug and a kiss. He asked her if she had been playing with stickers. Ryan responded "uh-huh, I have buttons like you!"
If you are wondering why Ryan is naked it is because she spends most of her time this way. It makes potty training easier, and ATL gets sooooo hot in the summer. Hopefully she will be potty trained soon!