When J. was going to bed tonight he announced that he had already said his prayers, and so he gets to go to bed for free tonight.

I was unaware that prayers are the price for dreamland.

Have you tried these?

These are seriously the best chips known to man.

Jen brought them to a picnic the other day and Matt and I fell in love (with the chips that is.)

Seriously, I am not a potato chip afficianado.

A bag of chips could sit in the pantry for months and I won't snitch even a few.

But I am here to confess that for lunch on Friday I had a bowl (cereal size, of course) for lunch.

Just Kettle Salt and Pepper chips. Nothing else.

DIVINE!

P.S. The best part is that there is just enough pepper on them to keep your kids out of the bag. They'll be all yours.

P.P.S. Matt actually had the nerve to look at the bag just now and ask me if these were at all healthy. Of course not silly man, but they are delicious!

Would You Do This?

I can't believe I didn't write about this right after it happened, but I was thinking about this incident again today and remain very puzzled why someone would do this.

A few weeks ago Matt and I had plans to go to dinner with our friends Mark and Holly. It just so happened that our boys W. and P. had both been invited to a birthday party at around the same time. Not wanting to cancel our evening out just so we could shuttle the boys Holly called the mother of another boy that had been invited and asked if she could bring the boys home to P.'s house when the party was over. The other mom willingly agreed, so we took the boys to the party and left for dinner.

After our evening we picked W. up at P.'s house, and on the way home learned that the other boy never came to the party. When we asked who brought them back to the house, W. told us that at the end of the party, and long after all of the other kids were gone, the party host finally asked where W.'s and P.'s parents were. Naturally the boys told them that we had gone out to dinner. Very puzzled why someone would just drop their kids off at the party go to dinner and then never pick them up, she drove the boys to P.'s house. However, along the way she did learn that another mother was supposed to take the boys home.

So my question is this. If someone called you and asked you to take their children home and you agreed wouldn't you feel totally responsible to do so? Even if your son didn't go to the party wouldn't you at least call either the host or the boy's parents and let them know?

When we arrived home I called the party host and apologized profusely. I was embarassed that she had originally thought that we just left the boys with no thought to return. When I explained that we had made arrangements for another mother to bring the boys home, and then told her who the mother was, she said that she wasn't surprised at all. Apparently this mother does things like that all the time. All the time? What kind of mother does that?

Sticks and Stones

So, with four very active kids it was inevitable, right? Doesn't every child break at least one bone during childhood? Unfortunately, E.'s turn came this week.

On Tuesday afternoon I was watching a friends' children. All of the kids were having a great time outside on one of the very few warm days we've had this spring. They had created a treasure hunt and were running around in the mud outside of the house. E. then stuck her head in the door and asked if they could go to the school playground which is up the street from our house. I always go with them, but I was just getting dinner started and figured they would be safe to go alone, afterall there were six of them. I have to admit I am usually more fearful of lurking strangers than playground accidents. About ten minutes later W. and J. came running through the door announcing that E. was hurt and that I needed to go to the playground right away. Another mom had followed them home and she told me she thought that E. had broken her arm. Sadly, my first thought was that everyone was probably overreacting and that she was probably swinging from the jungle gym again already.

I grabbed C. from her high chair and started running toward the playground. The other mom told me then that she was almost positive that I would need my car. I passed C. off and ran to get my car. When I arrived E. was sitting on the ground wimpering with another mom holding her arm which had a diaper wrapped around it. The mom unwrapped the diaper to reveal her forearm...with the bone poking through. It seems she had just tripped on a step while reaching for the monkey bars.

At that moment crisis mode kicked it. I was stunned for a minute as I tried to think through what I should do with all seven children. I glanced at my sister in-laws' house which was across the playground...no one home. Even though the playground moms offered to take kids I loaded all the kids in my car (almost forgetting one at the park), and drove to another sister in-laws' house nearby to unload the group. E. and I then bee lined for the closest hospital.

Matt met us there. Fortunately in a waiting room filled with unseen patients they took us back immediately. E. was so incredibly brave! She didn't cry at all, just wimpered or whined occasionally. After the X-rays confirmed the break, the Dr.s didn't want to give her any pain medication because she needed to be transfered to Primary Children's Hospital for surgery. They didn't want to have to postpone the surgery because of any pain meds that she may have already had. They did give her some IV antibiotics and sent us up to PCH.

After a long wait at PCH with no pain medication, but a special Priesthood blessing, she had her surgery at 1 a.m. She was so lucky in that the surgeon was a friend of Matt's. The surgery was going to be this Doogie Howser Dr. who looked like he was fresh out of high school let alone medical school. He was very nice, and I'm sure accomplished, but I just didn't want him operating on my daughter. We were relieved when they called Matt's friend to operate. After the surgery they told us E. would have to stay in the hospital for 24-48 hours to make sure there was no risk of infection.

When they wheeled her to her hospital room at 4 in the morning I realized that in this huge hospital she was going to be staying in the exact same room that her good friend H. was in a few years ago. He's healed well, so it was bit of good karma.

Other than being "hungover" from the surgery E. did well in the hospital. She enjoyed the "anything you want to eat, at any time you want" from the room service menu. In that aspect it was like a cruise. Even though E. was very still quiet and subdued in the hospital she never cried or complained.

However, the moment we crossed the threshold of our house the floodgates were opened. I think the realization of what had happened hit her. She cried and cried all night. I think she may have even cried herself to sleep. She was still weeping in her bed when I went to get her the next morning. You see her nickname is UPSIDE DOWN E. because she spends more time upside down doing cartwheels, handstands and roundoffs than anything else. Her goal this summer was to perfect her backhandspring. Guess that will have to be put on hold for a bit.

Now a few days later she's doing better. Her spirits are back to normal, and she is having fun playing the game with her brothers, "Let's see if you can do THIS one handed." They all made their beds this morning with one hand in a contest. I'm also happy to say that I can crack an egg one handed without any shell.

She returned to school today like a celebrity with everyone cheering and calling her name. It will probably be a difficult three months for her, but I'm sure she'll handle it just like the amazingly brave girl she has proven herself to be.

A Dog, A Dog, A Dog, A Dog

I have an 8 year old boy that cries himself to sleep at night because he wants a dog so much. I, on the other hand, absolutely, positively, do not want a dog. I have a husband ,that although he will support me, wants a dog as much as the 8 year old boy. During breakfast W. begs for a dog. At the dinner table he begs for a dog. I dropped him off at school this morning sniffling for a dog. His argument is that EVERYONE has one, and that EVERY 8 year old boy needs one.

I will admit that I had a dog as a child....several in fact. The only thing I can think of now though is, "What were my parents thinking??" My mom, especially. They are so much work! And let's face it, as much as the begging child thinks that he will take care of the dog ,it is really Mom's responsibility. I can't handle that kind of commitment right now my life. My Dad loves dogs. Even now that all of his children are grown and gone he owns a dog. He is the first to admit, however, dogs are a lot of work. It's like having a permanently 2 year old child in your house. One that never gets old enough to at least go to school during the day. A child that constantly begs to go to the park, and a child that wakes up at the crack of dawn every day and can't get his own cereal and watch cartoons. And at least when I'm potty training a child I have hope that one day they will figure out how to use the toilet. Not so with dogs. I have four young children already, I cannot have a dog as well.

Unfortunately, W. doesn't understand this argument at all! Since my response to the dog question has been, "not now" he wants to know when exactly. While I really don't ever want a dog I've told him maybe when he's about 12 or so. He tells me he'll be too lazy then to take care of a dog. He believes teenagers are lazy and plans on being just that. W. has lots of friends and cousins with dogs. As I mentioned my Dad has a dog that W. can play with or take to the park anytime. But he tells me it's just not the same as having a dog of one's own. I see all the negatives of having a dog: pooping and peeing on the carpet (even trained dogs have accidents), brown spots all over the yard, fights about who's turn it is to feed him, digging in the flower beds, dog hair, dog hair, dog hair, and the smell (most dogs do, and don't try and tell me that YOURS doesn't). W. only sees the positives: a best friend unconditionally, a playmate, a cute and cuddly buddy, and exercise companion. Even though Matt wants a dog just as much as W. does, I absolutely refuse to give in on this one. I'm wondering if we can compromise on a guinea pig instead?

I DID IT!!

Yesterday I ran the SLC 1/2 marathon! What a blast it was. I had so much fun, and would do it again next Saturday if I could. The day went down something like this:

5:00 a.m.-Lisa arrives to pick me up. It's a beautiful morning...warm with a slight breeze. I decide that it is the warmest morning I will have run in so far this year. We are both giddy with excitment.

5:45 a.m.-We board a very crowded TRAX train at the Gateway to take us to the start line. I can't believe that this many people are running either the 1/2 or the full marathon. I get slightly claustrophobic as a very tall man stands directly in front of me. He even backed up and stepped on my poor toes a few times. "Not the toes!" I want to yell. The time passed quickly on TRAX as Lisa and I talked to a 50 time marathoner and his buddy. He was full of information and bragging rights. He gave us the low down and running tips on all the marathons he's run. These marathons include the Las Vegas Rock and Roll dressed as Elvis, and when he bonked at mile 18 during the Boston marathon just a few years ago because he was totally hungover and it was 85 degrees outside. He had some hilarious stories.

6:30 a.m.- When we got off TRAX our travel friends asked what we expected our times to be. Lisa proudly announced that she was aiming for 1:42. She so desperately wanted to place in her age group and had trained well. They were impressed and wondered if she might school them with her time. When they asked my ETA I was too embarrassed to say 2:30 so I bumped it up a little to 2:15. They gave me a hard time, stating that the race officials will have to track my time by lunar calendar instead of the clock. Whatever, I was just happy to be there.

6:45 a.m.-We stretched while we waited in the long porta potty lines. We then had just enough time for a drink and a Gu Gel. I might mention here that I am not a regular gu connoisseur. And despite all that I've read about not trying something for the first time right before the race, I ripped a Vanilla Gu with my teeth and shot it to the back of my throat as Lisa taught me. It took all of my energy to keep it down. I usually don't have much of a gag reflex, but it sure did want to come back up. It took a bit to regain composure as we headed to the start line.

7:00 a.m.-In my opinion the start was kind of anti climatic. We waited for the beginning of the race with Lisa's friend Kristin while listening to a gospel choir. I was waiting for some kind of gun to go off, but instead an announcer just counted backward from 10. (Actually maybe there was some kind of gun, but I just didn't hear it because I was so far back.) It took about 3-4 minutes to get to the official start line. After I crossed the start I had tears well up in my eyes. It felt so good to train so hard and to just be there crossing the starting line. I wanted to cry I was so happy.

Mile 1-2. I didn't turn on my ipod at all. I was just enjoying keeping pace with the energetic crowd. I looked down at my watch a few times I found I was running at an 8:30 pace. (A bit fast for me.) I felt great, and kept it up. I know that veterans counsel not to start the race too fast or you'll burn out, I have the opposite opinion. It feels good for me to start fast and go with the flow, then I just slow down later on when I need to.

Mile 2.2-I started with a jacket on and it was so warm I had to take it off. I totally had to stop while I readjusted my ipod and struggled to get my jacket off. I felt like a 3 year old all tangled up trying to get everything over my head.

Mile 3-I saw a teacher from my kids' school cheering the runners on, and while I don't know her well I felt encouraged that someone I sort of knew was there.

Mile 4-8 - Wow. I felt good. I lost track of time and felt like I wasn't even running at all. I was having such a good time running on this beautiful day with a bunch of others that had the same goal. I was running at about a 9:30 pace, and feeling wonderful. However, the cut off for the marathoners vs. half marathoners was somewhere in here, (mile 5?) and I felt secretly glad that I didn't have to run the full marathon.

Mile 8-10. Still feeling pretty good. I walked for a minute through the gatorade station and took an excedrin. However, closer to mile 10 I started to slow down 10:30 or so. And the wind picked up.

Mile 10-11-Liberty Park. It seemed like I ran around that park for forever. I was starting to get kind of tired, and felt like I was running upstream into the headwind. It was kind of like those dreams when someone is chasing you, but you can't move.

Mile 11-12.2-Still windy. REALLY WINDY. I started feeling kind of sick, and we were running slightly uphill. Maybe I should have listened to those who suggest not to start so fast? I walked for another minute or so. These last few miles seemed to really drag for me. Of course I could stop and walk the rest of the way, but I didn't train to walk my way to the finish line.

Mile 12.5-13.1-The excitment of nearing the finish started to build. I have to say that Aerosmith, "Walk This Way" came on my ipod at just the right moment and carried me the rest of the way in. It was awesome running down the Gateway with crowds on either side cheering us on. There were quite a few runners that sprinted past me, however, I really didn't have the energy for a sprint. I just plugged along to the finish. I started to tear up again when I saw my family cheering me on just a few yards from the finish. I had done it!!

FINISH-The official clock time when I crossed was 2:18 and some seconds, however, it took a few minutes for me to cross the start line so I'm guessing I finished somewhere between 2:15 and 2:16. Even though I had my watch I forgot to stop it right when I crossed. The official results STILL aren't posted. The crazy thing is the first marathoner finished not too far behind me in 2:22 or so. He had run an entire 26.2 miles in the time it took me to do 13.1. WOW!

After receiving my medal and glorious massage (is that the only reason I ran?), we headed home. What a great day! I was so happy I finished what I set out to do. However, I still felt really sick until early afternoon. I'm not sure why.

So here's the deal: I REALLY want to be able to run a marathon. However, after that race I am pretty sure I could not have run another mile, let alone another 13. I wonder what I have to do to get to that point? I am closer that I ever have been (or probaby every will be) in getting there, but I still don't know what to do to get there. After I finished the race I wondered if 13 will just be my race and maybe I shouldn't even attempt to do more. I'm not sure yet. I just know that I had a fantastic time the whole way there.

The SLC 1/2 marathon is coming up in just two short days. After four months of training I can't believe it's finally here. I'm so exicted/nervous. Truthfully I can't believe I've made it this far. Here's what I've learned along the way:

1. Getting up early on Saturday morning and going on a long run almost always feels better than sleeping in.


2. I LOVE it when people ask, "How far did you run today?", and I can casually answer, "10 miles!"


3. Grape Gatorade really burns coming back up.


4. I like being able to show my kids how far I've run.


5. Having a good friend that runs has made all the difference for me. Even though we never run together it's been great swapping war stories with her. Go Lisa!!


6. Always acknowledge other fellow runners on the trail, even if they don't respond.


7. OK...I know this is TOTALLY TMI, but I don't run well if I eat lots of green roughage the day before. It's more run, shuffle, hop, walk...all the way home.


8. A year ago I could barely run more than a mile. After my first long run of 4 miles I told Lisa I was so proud because I ran the whole way without stopping. She didn't snicker at me, just encouraged me to run more.


9. Extra strength excedrin works when many other things fail.


10. I have not lost a single ounce with all of the running I've been doing. Muscle weighs more than fat...or so they say. Good thing weight loss isn't my motivation.


11. My ipod is a necessity. I hate listening to myself breathe.
12. I really should have taken up running a long time ago. Matt has the kids fully dressed, organized, all chores done, and an immaculate house by the time I'm home from my long runs. I love him!
    
13. AND the best thing I've learned while training is that I actually CAN run 13.1 miles. I know, because I did it...once. I'm praying for muscle memory on Saturday. I wish for that and the fact that I don't come in very last. While I can run 13.1, I'm not terribly fast.

In any case I'm so excited for 7:00 a.m. Saturday morning, and even more anticipating 9:30 a.m. when I find my family at the finish line. It's been a fun four months!

Check out this fabulous post in relation to the bizarre happenings at the FLDS compound in Texas.

Upon watching the strange and bizarre findings there I have wanted to shout from the rooftops that the FLDS religion is in NO WAY related to the LDS church. I love how Gabi illustrated this.

If Ye Are Prepared, Ye Shall Not Fear

We just finished Family Home Evening for the night in which we talked about "Being Prepared". Matt is out of town so the kids and I talked about what it means to be prepared both spiritually and physically. For the last few weeks I've realized that our family really isn't very well prepared physically in case of an emergency. We as members of the LDS church have been advised to have a food storage of at least 3 months, but hopefully of a year, of basic necessities so that the family could survive in the event of an emgergency. An emergency could be anything as big as a natural disaster, or as minor a having to supplement monthly budget.

So I confess. When we listed our house last summer I began to let our food storage dwindle. I didn't want to move everything, and was trying to use some of the food that we had stored for several years. However, now that we're settled I have realized that we don't have much more than what is currently in the pantry (which isn't much).

A few years ago Matt and I were on the island of St. Thomas right before a hurricane was about to hit. Very, very few people were prepared for such an emergency. Food was being grabbed from the shelves at quite an incredible rate. What we found amazing was that these people live in the hurricane zone, we didn't understand why they were so unprepared. However, just a few weeks ago a large earthquake hit a tiny town not too far away from us. While we didn't feel it, we've been told that we live in a fault area, and that something like that could happen here at any time. I'm not prepared either. I don't want to live like that.

Here's my current problem though. I am not quite sure what to store for my family of very picky eaters. (Oh, how I wish they weren't so picky. I TRY to get them to eat different things I really do.) But there are very few things that 1) store well, 2) everyone will eat, 3) can easily be rotated into regular meals. We very well can't eat pancakes and cold cereal for every meal in case of an emergency, can we?? (Then again, if it was a real emergency...) I do have lots and lots of wheat stored, but really what do I do with it?? I'm in the process of going through all of my recipes and trying to find things that fit many of those criteria. Not as easy as it sounds.

In my search for help I've found quite a few great websites with some wonderful ideas that I'd like to implement. If you too are looking to get prepared go here first. But also check out this and this. I also found some usable recipes here. So wish us luck as we try to GET PREPARED. If you have any great food storage recipes too, send them our way. We sure could use them.

Hello Dolly

The other night W. and I were watching the results show of American Idol together. Dolly Parton was singing her song and W. commented, "Boy, she has sure had some work done!"

Surprised by his comment I asked him, "What kind of work do you think she's had done?"

"Isn't it totally obvious, Mom?"

Pause, Pause, Pause while I think about how to answer that one.

Then he responds, "She has the whitest face of any singer I've ever seen."

"Why yes she does W.!" I happily announce!

And I am so relieved that my 8 year old boy isn't noticing the "other" work she may have had done as well.