At Home Day

Nonny's surgery went well. Her septum is now straight; Her enlarged adenoids are removed; and her nasal turbinates are reduced. She was amazed when the doctor removed the packing and she could actually breathe through her nose! That only lasted for a little while. The reason: due to the surgery, she can't blow her nose and she is having some drainage & bleeding. SO...she has gauze under her nose to catch the mess.

The surgery was Tuesday. I took the day off from work to stay with her and care for her. (Except for an excursion to the School Board Meeting in the evening.) Wednesday was Veteran's Day, so everyone was off from work and school. Today, Thursday, school and work resumed, so Dad, Rose, Joe, Monroe, and Jim are gone. I was supposed to go into work today. Baby comes with me and Beth attends preschool. But...I didn't think Nonny was ready to be left alone yet. So Beth, Baby, and I stayed home with her. 

She slept until about 9:00 a.m. When she woke up and saw us still here, she was happy and relieved. She did not want to be left alone, but also didn't want me to feel like I had to stay. Goofy kid! Some of her friends' parents work. She knows that it is a big deal for parents to stay home with sick kids and that jobs can sometimes be at stake. Lucky for us, my boss's main priorities are the same as mine...Our Kids! :)  

Hubby forwarded the work phone to my cell phone. My work tasks for today are to monitor e-mails and update the business finances. Easy-peasy! I figured I'd work on those once the baby fell asleep. But while he was still awake, I thought: Since I'm home, I might as well start a load of laundry. Which took all of one minute. Then I looked at the dishwasher. It hadn't been unloaded this morning (a certain kid's chore). Usually I'd leave it for the kid to do when they got home, but our dishes are already backed up because our sink wasn't working for a few days. So I went ahead and unloaded the dishwasher, reloaded and started it, then hand-washed a load of dishes, and cleaned the sink. That took about ten minutes with Melanie's help. I also took a few minutes to pick up the kitchen and dining room floors. 

NOW...my house is still a big mess. It is far from complete. But I can feel the difference. AND it is kind of irritating because it took hardly anytime at all AND every job I did was supposed to have been done by a kid. EXCEPT, my kids didn't do those chores because the chores were too hard or too long or I always make them do the work. The funny thing is, while I was pregnant, I was too sick and tired to follow through on the kids getting their chores done. So my house slowly got grungier. And after I had the baby I was too sleep-deprived to even notice if the house was clean. And since going to work, by the time I return home in the evenings I am so focused on getting dinner made, kids' homework complete, scriptures read, fights resolved, etc., that I haven't stood my ground and made the kids actually get their chores done. And I've been too tired to get them done myself. 

Today, staying home to care for Nonny and having my two youngest children with me, I was able to catch up on some housework while spending quality time with the kiddos. Now, my house has a long ways to go before it can be officially deemed "clean", but I can see that it's possible and I am recommitted to the priority of teaching my kids the value of Hard Work and Cleanliness!

Oh My...

It has been three months since I have posted any updates. Three Months!

 

While I am planning on doing a complete update covering those months, an update that will span several blog posts and include lots of photos, for now I only have time to type up a quick and brief update.

 

The events and activities of the last three months mostly fall under one of the following categories...

 

1. Four children in school, which means: three different school schedules to work around, three different bus schedules, 1 orchestra member, 2 band members, extracurricular activities, fundraisers, and more.

 

2. Fixing up our new house which is falling apart. This poor little house has not been cared for in several, several years. There are so many things wrong with it. We keep thinking we've got things fixed and done, then something else breaks. It has been quite overwhelming at times. The only thing that got us through was my parents. I am so fortunate to have a Dad who knows how to fix just about anything! My Mom is his trusty helper/planner. The two of them are a great home improvement team and they have graciously come to our little town several times over the past few months. FYI: the drive is 3 1/2 hours one way. They have been absolute life-savers for my sanity!

 

3. A new baby. Our sweet baby girl Beth arrived in mid-September. My life has since been filled with trying to figure out a new baby (each one is different and each one likes to be held certain ways or to sleep in certain positions, etc. It takes lots of trial and error to figure out the preferences of a new baby) and trying to get enough sleep to properly recover from labor and delivery.

 

 

I will be posting more detailed updates in the following weeks.

 

Until then,  Happy Thanksgiving!!

Washing Machine Woes

My washing machine hates our new house.

It is a fancy Samsung with all sorts of sensors built in to ensure the perfect wash. Hubby picked it out special just because of those special sensors. He has been so happy with his choice. It worked fine at our old house. But the thing does not work well here.

The problem?

Well water!

Our washing machine, with all its fancy sensors, despises the well water.

We've tried all sorts of different remedies. None have fully worked. Our last resort was to unplug the hot & cold water hoses and manually add water to the machine after it ran its initial scans. Then during the rinsed cycle, we would manually add water again.

It worked for a whole two days. And then it stopped. I don't know what happened, but the sensors are not loving our little trick and so have gone on strike.

Hubby says that he will get it fixed this weekend. I told him that, at this point, I'd rather he just buy me an old-fashioned washboard.

I've wasted three hours this morning trying to get ONE load of laundry washed in that finicky machine. If I had a washboard, I could have had ALL my laundry washed in an hour.

Oh well, Hubby is going to give it one more shot this weekend. In the meantime, there is always the laundrymat. :)

Fixing It Up

We've spent the last few months in limbo trying to purchase a run-down house in the county. On June 18, everything finally went through! The loan funded, the title recorded, and the keys were officially turned over to us.

We had done many renovations on the house during that time, trying to get it fixed up enough for a lender to agree it was worth the risk. We got the well running, installed a new water heater, put on a new roof, put in new carpet, fixed a faucet, fixed a door, fixed some walls, put on baseboards, removed three abandoned vehicles from the property, removed several truckloads of garbage from property, added a ground wire for the electrical, fixed a few jerry-rigged electrical problems, installed a couple light fixtures to replace the naked & exposed wiring that had been left behind, and crossed our fingers that those things would be enough.

Thank heavens it was!

But now that the place is ours, the renovations have kicked into high gear. 

Here's what we've been working on the past few weeks:

Taking more garbage to the dump.

Ripping out the bathroom. Please note the dirt. 

A gopher had been living under this tub...

Finding honeycomb & a dead beehive in the bathroom walls.

Taking another load to the dump.

Taking time out to nurture the garden at our current house.

Those are giant pumpkin vines around my kids.

Ripping out the kitchen cabinets. Please note my rounding belly.

Getting a 2-Yard bin for trash. That's right people...I have a BIN!!

Turning into a ghost painting the ceilings & walls at the county house.

Painted living room.

Installing new bathroom pipes & fixtures.

Framing in a unnecessary, heat-increasing window in the kitchen.

Cleaning up blood after the windowpane shattered, injuring my dear neighbor.

Still framing in the window.

Installing new cabinets in the kitchen.

Installing counter tops too.

Having a yard sale. Necessary when moving to a house 700 sq. ft. smaller.

Moving a HEAVY tool shed to the new house.

Please note the Dad in the blue shirt. He is instructing his sons to 

hold on tight and not die. They are sitting on the front of the ATV 

to add weight so the thing won't pop up.

I am happy to report that no one died...yet.

Hubby and I have been very blessed with loads of help from family and neighbors. We appreciate the time and efforts they've spent on our behalf.

Unfortunately, the work is only halfway done...

Wish us luck. :)

Another Quick Update

It seems like all I have for lately is Quick Updates. Sorry about that. Life has just been crazy and anytime I do have some down time...I take a nap. :)


Obviously I can't catch you up on three months worth of happenings quickly. So I will just make note of the few big things that are happening in my life.


1. Student Teaching is DONE! Hooray!


2. I have officially graduated from Northern Arizona University with a Masters of Elementary Education. I earned a 4.0 GPA and completed all requirements in only 17 months. 


3. I have decided that I hate school and never want to step in another one as long as I live. Haha! I'm sure I just need a break, a BIG break. I might go back when I'm 50.


4. I'm pregnant. 


I am 23 weeks along and having a little girl in September. And yes, that means I was in the beginning stages of pregnancy while student teaching. It was not fun being prego sick, student teaching, and pretending all the while to be happy and healthy, but let me tell you...I rocked it. No one at that school had any idea I was pregnant until I was 16 weeks along. (side note: my cooperating teacher insists, after the fact, that she knew I was pregnant before the 16 weeks. my unspoken comment: yeah right.)


5. I attended Wood Badge. I have wanted to go to Wood Badge for the past ten years! It was different than what I was expecting. And they gave me homework!! No one said anything about homework before I went. It's probably good that they didn't, because I was sick of school by then and wouldn't have gone.


Anyhoo, it was quite the adventure.


6. We're moving.


We're not moving to a different city. Just a different house about two miles away. It is in the county. It is lots smaller than our current house. It only has three bedrooms. It is in poor condition. So why are we doing it??


That darling, crumbling little house is sitting on THREE acres of IRRIGATED land. It is very exciting. 


Adios, Amigos!

No Baby Yet...

Today, April 16, is exactly five days before my due date. I feel great, which is making me grouchy. Haha! I feel like I should be doing something, but I don't want to start any new projects. Remember that great book by Dr. Seuss,"Oh, The Places You'll Go"? I am stuck in the waiting place, for people just waiting. I keep thinking that I could go into labor at any time and I really don't want to have to put a project away while laboring! So what to do...what to do...

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I decided to go shopping.

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I know, I know. What is the world coming to if Sarah Blue is voluntarily shopping? Haha! My Mom and Sisters jaws will probably drop when they read that.

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I have several South African souvenirs given to me by my dear Grandparents. I have had them in my cedar chest for years! Finally, I have a spot where it is safe and beautiful to display them. I already have two pieces out and have been searching for a way to display a third piece. The problem is...it is an Ostrich Egg. And nobody makes displays specifically for Ostrich Eggs. So I've been hunting around, keeping my eye out for something that would work.

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This morning the Cakes and I hit the boutiques downtown. And boy did we luck out! I was fortunate enough to be waited on by a woman with imagination...something I am a bit lacking in. She pulled out a beautiful piece that I knew would be much too large. Then she started telling me her idea: fill it with twigs and put the egg on top...like a nest! Wow! I absolutely never thought of that. Maybe you would have, but not me. I was just hoping for a small vase with a wide mouth or maybe a big goblet. This is a much cuter idea.

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Here is the egg and it's soon to be home.

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Here are the twigs soaking. The woman suggested just breaking them into small pieces and sticking them together. However, if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it right. I'm soaking the pieces then bending them. That yellow bowl is currently sitting on my counter with a bunch of twigs and water. I'm going to drain them in about five minutes and then let them dry and set in the circular pattern.

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I'm going to keep the black material in the bowl. I'm a quilter! How could I not? ;)
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I plan on putting the twigs on top. But I'm going to play around with it to see what looks best.
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In the meantime, here's a picture of another project that I completed last weekend. I added little loops to all the big towels in my house. My kids would hang up their towels after baths, only to have them fall down again. With the loops, no more falling towels. Hooray!
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And finally, a little more pregnant info, if you're interested.

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I have gained a full forty pounds. That is pretty good for me. I've gained sixty before.

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The boy usually rides low. It is very uncomfortable, but I figure Hey! At least I can breathe! For an asthmatic that is a huge thing. I never liked having my lungs smushed. The kid is stretching out in this picture...not that you can tell. But trust me, he is. ;)

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I am currently dilated to 3 cm. I have been for two or three weeks now. No big deal. I've been dilated to 4 cm before without going into labor.

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Hubby's coworkers have decided to try and guess how big this baby is going to be. Hubby called me for some statistics to help them in their guessing. I have the stats memorized. Haha! I've been trying to guess the size of this baby too.

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In case you want to play along, here is the information we are using to guess:

Baby #1 weighed 7 lbs, 12 oz at 20 days early.

Baby #2 weighed 10 lbs, 1 oz at 3 days late.

Baby #3 weighed 9 lbs, 7 oz on his due date.

Baby #4 weighed 8 lbs, 11 oz at 14 days early.

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Let me know what you think. But if you try and guess something like eleven pounds or more, be warned. I will probably never talk to you again. Especially if you end up being right. I will blame you for jinxing me.

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And now I'm off to do some more shopping. This time I am shopping for clothes...wedding clothes. Wish me luck! Maybe my water will break if I walk around enough. ;)

Counting Down

Today marks eight days until my due date. Phew! There is not a lot of time left. I have been working hard during the last few weeks, trying to get a some projects completed before the baby arrives.

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Which projects? Well, I'll tell you...

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1) Write thank you notes to Hubby's coworkers. Those crazy people threw a baby shower for me. ME! A woman who is on her fifth pregnancy. I couldn't believe it. I told Hubby to let them know I already had everything I needed. But they insisted! And they really went all out. Their generosity and thoughtfulness were quite overwhelming. I guess Hubby must be doing something right at work to endear so many of his coworkers to him and his little family.

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2) Make a baby quilt for Baby Kate. Hubby's best buddy and his wife had their first baby. It was quite the big event for their family to finally be blessed with a dear baby. Hubby was able to drive out for the blessing on Sunday. Of course he couldn't go empty-handed...
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This quilt was one of the JoAnn projects I made up. I chose the colors specifically for baby Kate. However, the JoAnn layout was completely different. I didn't care for it at all. So I just saved the blocks I had made, then sliced them and put them together how I wanted. Isn't it cute?
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Please note the machine quilting. I did it my very own self. I was nervous after my goof up with Cakes' quilt. But it turns out that I'm pretty good at free-motion quilting. It's just straight lines I have problems with. Hahaha!!

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This is the back of the quilt. Isn't the material gorgeous! I've had this in my stash for thirteen years. I think Baby Kate is a worthy recipient of such a highly treasured print. ;)

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3) Get the dogs licensed. Ey-yah! I totally spaced it. I was supposed to license them in January. But I'm used to dogs getting licensed once and staying licensed for life. This whole license your dog every year thing is not sticking in my brain. So off I went to a rabies clinic where I sat with Dash and Astro for an hour and a half waiting for our turn. Then I whisked those dogs down to the Humane Society to get their licenses. I of course had to pay a late fee, but whatever. They are now officially licensed.

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4) Paint Master Bedroom and Master Bathroom. Hubby painted the bathroom for me. It took him three weeks. Why? Because the man is super-busy! The first weekend he had time to prep the walls, remove all the fixtures, and tape the areas he didn't want painted. The next weekend he painted the ceiling and cut in the walls. The third weekend he filled in with a roller. It was quite the production.

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Hubby agreed to let me hire someone to paint our room. They painted it a gorgeous gray! They were in and out in a day...including prep, taping, cutting in, and filling in. They did a great job. The only problem is that Hubby has now decided that our bathroom should be the same gray color. He is planning on repainting it...eventually. ;)

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5) Finish my Pay It Forward gifts. I have gone back and forth all year on what exactly to make. I finally decided to make Sudoko quilts for each lady. I finished each quilt by just tying them. I really wasn't in the mood to try quilting straight lines again. The ties turned out great though. They are approximately 49 inches by 49 inches. The color themes are Autumn, Summer, and Spring.

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6) Celebrating!! Today's project is the best. Today my project is this guy. Three years ago, on Friday the Thirteenth, Cakes joined our family. I'm so happy that the new babe has waited until after his brother's birthday to be born, enabling me to spend this special day with my special guy.

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Our activities thus far: cards and presents at breakfast, shopping for some cool new shirts, playing at Chuck E. Cheese's, hamburgers from McDonald's, lots of well wishes from family, the Happy Birthday song sung at least once every half hour, and many, many hugs and kisses. Still to come, a special birthday dinner and cake, cake, cake!

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Which reminds me...who is the idiot who coined the phrase "You can't have your cake and eat it too"? What in the world were they talking about? The whole reason to bake a cake in the first place is to eat it! To enjoy it. I mean really. Who in their right mind bakes a cake and then lets it just sit there? Getting moldy! Yuck! What a waste. But not us. We are going to have a cake AND eat it too. Because that is the way it is supposed to be. ;)

Random Update

I haven't updated for a while. I have put posts up, but they're mostly about Lost. And while my life does slightly revolve around that show, it mostly revolves around my darling children and dear husband. So...in no particular order and with absolutely no pictures, here is an update from the Blue Family:

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1) Spring Break was this past week. For my elementary kids it continues into this week. Miss Q, the lucky high schooler, goes back tomorrow. Wednesday she gets to take the Math AIMS test. Keep her in your prayers!

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2) This past week was also Fair Week. I was going to take the kids myself, but since I was rear-ended Hubby got to spend Wednesday with me instead of going to work. He was supposed to make sure that I took it easy. Poor guy. I drug his cute fanny to the Fair with the kids. Then I sauntered from exhibit to exhibit while he chased the little people around. It was very nice...For Me! ;)

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3) Miss Q entered a painting into the Fine Arts category. She won a third place ribbon. She was shocked. Somehow she didn't make the connection between entering a fair and being judged. She'd never won a ribbon before and was ecstatic!

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4) Rose entered a bag into the Home Economics category. She won a first place ribbon. I think it was the french seams, grommets, and sturdy handle that won the judges over. She made the bag herself, with me just giving the occasional instruction.

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5) Anne entered a skirt into the Home Economics category. She won a first place ribbon. She loves this skirt and wears it often. She was worried that the judges would realize she had worn it and that it wasn't new. Gasp!! I told her that if it was clean the judges would never know. She also worried that those judges would try to sell her skirt to someone else. (In Miss Q's category they sell their stuff.) The judges themselves assured her that the Home Ec category sells nothing. The exact quote: "We spend way too much time making these things to just sell them off like that." Anne is happy to have a blue ribbon and is greatly relieved to have her skirt back in her hands.

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6) I entered the Snow White costume I made last summer for Into the Woods. It won a first place ribbon. The fair judges don't give out just one First place, one Second place, and one Third place. They can give as many of each ribbon as they want. The places are determined by the quality of the work. I was quite pleased that my work earned a blue ribbon.

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7) I also entered a cross-stitch sampler I had made. I was confused when I first saw the ribbon on this one...it was purple. But it said "Outstanding" so I figured it was alright. Turns out, purple is better than blue. Who knew?! I won an award from the town's EGA chapter, Embroidery Guild of America. The award was Ten Dollars cash. How exciting!

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8) We had an earthquake on Easter Sunday. I was kind of ticked by it. I was having some pretty hard contractions that had started to get closer together. Then the ground started shaking and the contractions stopped. Oh well. The quake lasted about a minute or two. The epicenter was many mile away from us. No damage was done. There were several aftershocks during the remainder of the day.

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One of my neighbors wants to move out of here now. The quake really scared her. With what I know of tectonic plates and the earth's shifting movements, an earthquake could happen anywhere. I would much rather deal with a little shaking than some other natural disasters...

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9) I was officially cleared to have this baby any time last Monday. I had another appointment today. I am dilated to 2-3 cm. Which means NOTHING! I have been dilated to 3+ for weeks before I've given birth. I really wish there was an accurate indicator that would tell me when this babe is coming. It would be so much more convenient for me. Haha! Listen to me whine. Sorry about that. I have everything prepared for my kids and for the two Fosters. Babysitters in place, respite plans in place, bags packed. Now I just need some regular contractions 5 - 7 minutes apart or my water to break. ;)

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10) Conference freaked me out. The Saturday sessions were fine, but Sunday morning was NOT! We listened to conference over the internet and I didn't catch the name of the man who gave this particular talk, but...he really freaked me out! He gave a lovely talk about how we shouldn't take offense even when horrible things happen to us. I'm sure that in a few months I will look on this talk as one of my favorites. I have often talked about this very subject in lessons I have given in Sacrament.

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The problem I have with his talk is that he kept talking about women who died in childbirth!!! Aaaaahhh!!!! And the babies died too! After he started talking about the second woman dying, I screamed for Hubby to turn the blasted thing off!!! It was not a very good example to set for my kids, but COME ON! This whole pregnancy I have been extremely worried about either myself or my child dying. Hubby has done his best to reassure me that we'll be okay, but I'm still nervous about stuff.

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Luckily, the man's talk ended a few minutes after my outburst. I kind of zoned out after that, trying to get a grip on myself. I came back when the Prophet began to speak. Holy Guacamole!! That dear man, whom I love and sustain with all my heart, started talking about dying too! He spoke of how it was alright and how we would be together again someday. And I just couldn't take it. I don't want to be together someday with my family. I want to be together NOW. I do not want to die. I do not want my babe to die. Again, I'm sure I will look back on this talk in a few months and really appreciate his words. But as my dear Prophet was speaking, I was praying that his talk would end and end soon. Gah!

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The afternoon session was a bust for me because I just kept replaying the first speaker's and the Prophet's words about death and wondering if it was an omen...a warning to me to get myself ready. Hubby has done his best to tell me I'm crazy and am not going to die. I am trying really hard to believe him. Too bad my hormonal state with this pregnancy is a worried mess. Last pregnancy I was just grouchy about everything. Little things would irritate me greatly. I think I would rather be grouchy and irritable than paranoid and worried. :(

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11) I finally have some of my South African souvenirs out on display. They have been sitting in my memory box since my Grandparents returned from their mission back in 1987. Now they are on display in my kitchen. I will take pictures and post them at some point. Just not today.

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Well, that's all I can think of right now. All the Blue's are happy and healthy. We are just counting down to the baby's arrival. Tomorrow marks 15 days to Zero. Wish me luck...Oh! And if I do die, make sure to tell my kids how much I loved them. Hubby already knows how much I love him, but little kids tend to forget and my kids are just little enough that some of them might not remember at all.

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Did I mention that I am slightly paranoid and worried???

Picture Update

I haven't posted any pictures for a while. My computer got a virus. Hubby fixed it, but my picture program needs to be reloaded and I keep forgetting to ask him. There is another picture program on my computer that is s-l-o-w! And it kind of freezes up after downloading a few pictures, making the whole process even longer. Oh well. I worked around it and now have some pictures to share.
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Homemade Bunk Beds

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My kids are big kids. And they keep getting bigger! I wanted to put bunk beds in the boys' bedroom to free up space for playing. Did you know that most top bunk beds only support between 100 - 150 pounds? And that they all have warnings about not jumping or rough-housing or rolling in your sleep due to the shakiness of the bed? Well, they do. And let me think... My oldest daughter (who turns ten in a month) is already 100 pounds. Crazy, I know. She's also already in size 8 shoes and is close to 5 foot tall, if not over! If that's any indication of how my boys are going to grow, I knew that none of the bunk beds on the market would suit our family's needs.

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I talked to one of the Air Force guys in my neighborhood to find out where they get their bunk beds. I was informed that they were special ordered, special made by one of the defense contractors. Sheesh! There went that option. Hubby quickly volunteered to make bunk beds himself. I was very skeptical. I've seen his other woodwork. I love the man, but woodworking is a talent that he is most definitely still in the development stage. Despite my skepticism0, they turned out pretty good! They are solid and sturdy. Hubby jumped up and down on them to illustrate to me how sturdy they were. I told him if he fell through and hurt himself, I wasn't going to take him to the hospital and would be mad at him for a year. He laughed and kept jumping. Surprisingly, the beds held his weight!

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The bunk bed pieces soaking up their stain.

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Hubby and Joe putting the beds together.

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Roadshow!

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Miss Q participated in our Stake's Roadshow. The whole experience for her was hilarious for me (the Mom) to watch. Miss Q had never done anything like this before. She is a kind of shy and very unsure of herself. She was worried about looking like an idiot, which is the goal of every Roadshow I've ever seen! ;) She was also super excited about participating. So she would go back and forth between biting-her-fingernails-off-scared (practically begging me to get her out of it) to school-girl-giddy in anticipation. Silly Girl!

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She did a good job. She's in the middle of the picture holding a palm frawn.
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Pinocchio

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Missoula Children's Theatre came to our town. Joe, Anne, Rose, and Miss Q tried out. The three girls were cast. Poor Joe was so sad. He and another little boy (whose sister had been cast) started crying when they realized that "everyone got picked but me." Poblacito!

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The three girls had an intense week of rehearsing. Monday through Friday we would race from school to the rehearsal site. Saturday afternoon was spent rehearsing. That evening was the performance. It was an interesting take on Pinocchio. Anne played a Ballerina Doll, Rose played a Treasure Island Kid, and Miss Q played Candlewick. They were all very brave and did a great job!

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Joe and Cakes killing time before the performance.

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Anne, the cutest Ballerina Doll ever!

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Rose, the Treasure Island Kid, smiling because she just broke a window. ;)

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Candlewick and her gang, being PUNKS! Miss Q is on the right end.

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BLOCKS

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We try to keep the Sabbath day holy. It is a tough job! One of the activities that we use to keep our brains and hands occupied is building with blocks while listening to jazzy hymns. (No one said all hymns have to be slow and monotonous!) The kids begged Hubby to take pictures of their creations. Here they are. :)

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Anne's block city and flowers

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Joe's tower. Cakes helped by not knocking it down until after the picture.

(That's me in the background, trying to figure out what to name this baby!)

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Annie

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After Pinocchio, the acting bug stuck with Anne and Rose. Hubby volunteered to take them to try-outs. I made him promise that he would not try-out or let himself get roped into Annie in any way other than doting stage father. He laughed and said there was "no way he would try-out". He assured me that he was "way too busy to participate in Annie". The Bum! He had no chance against the audition ladies. He was cast as "Rooster" and the girls were cast as "Chorus".

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For the last few months, they have worked hard memorizing lines and songs, learning choreography, and developing their acting skills. Joe, Miss Q and I attended the opening night show last Thursday. It was great! Rose and Anne did a wonderful job. They sung "Hooverville" and "A New Deal for Christmas". It was such a joy to see them up there having fun. They have one more week of performances, starting tonight. Afterwards, they don't want to do another play as long as they live! Haha! As much as they've enjoyed it, they have really missed playing with friends, riding bikes, and going to bed at a decent hour.

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Hubby did a good job too. It was hilarious to watch him, Lily, and Miss Hannigan. What goofballs! Hubby did fine, but Lily completely stole the spotlight every time she opened her mouth. Hahaha!!!

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Hubby, like the girls, does not want to participate in another play for a long, long time. I told him that was fine by me! Especially since he wasn't supposed to do this one in the first place. Haha. Although, I do expect him to participate in the opera Desert Pointe in putting on next December: "Ahmal and the Night Visitors". My man can S-I-N-G!!! And Opera is right up his alley. *sigh*

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My Chorus Girls

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Lily & Rooster

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Oh! I never posted the Into the Woods pictures. I will get to that...eventually. ;)

Ramblings and News

One of the bad things about moving is leaving all your good friends behind.

I left my friends a year ago. Then I spent several months in transition and most recently have been trying to get my own home decorated and in order. Basically, I haven't had much time for socializing. I've met many wonderful women, but I haven't made that "great" friend yet. Hold on. Let me rephrase that. I probably have met the great friend, I just haven't had time to develop a "great" friendship yet.

Alright, so what does this have to do with my blog? Well, since I don't yet have that great friend to share all my good news, funny stories, weird experiences, etc. with, I've decided to share them here. I've been brimming over with a few good news items and if I don't let them out soon, I am likely to explode and spill my guts to some random stranger in the grocery store who casually asks How I Am. So, to avoid the embarrassment and awkwardness that would surely follow such an explosion, I will instead spill my guts here, where I know a few of the friends I left behind still visit me.

Good News!

1. I earned my Teaching Certificate this summer! Yahoo! I am now certified to teach K - 12 Family and Consumer Sciences (FACS). For those who don't know, FACS covers eight areas:

a. Human Development

b. Family and Human Relations

c. Clothing, Textiles, and Fashion Merchandising

d. Nutrition and Food Preparation

e. Facility Management, Housing, and Interior Design

f. Consumer Economics, Family Resources, Personal Finance, and Family Financial Management

g. Food Production and Culinary Arts

h. Child Development

I could teach any of these subjects. It's very exciting. I was sorely tempted to apply for two open positions in our High School District. One was Culinary Arts and the other was Fashion Design. Fortunately, my good sense (Hubby) kicked in and reminded me that I had already committed to other projects that would interfere with a full-time teaching position. Whatever. I'm just super-excited that I finally have the certificate in my hands!

2. What commitments do I have? Children? A house to run? Psh. Those are easy! No, my commitment is to JoAnn's. I was hired on as an Independent Contractor to teach Sewing and Quilting Classes. Aaaaah!!! Can you believe it?!?! I'm going to be teaching sewing and quilting. And I'll get paid for it! I'm on their calendar starting November 1. In the meantime, I am working on sewing up samples for display in the store. I'm also trying to time myself-how long each step takes to complete, figure out the order I'll teach the sewing steps in, what items should be sent home as homework, and all that fun stuff.

Sewing Classes I will be teaching in November & December:

a. Kid's Sewing 101 - Pillow Case

b. Teen Sewing 101 - Wristlet (a little handbag)

c. Sewing 101 - Pillow Case

d. Sewing 102 - Reusable Gifts Bags

e. Sewing 201- Fleece Vest

f. Sewing 201 - Fleece Robe



Quilting Classes I will be teaching in November & December:

a. Quilting 101 - Hole in the Barn Door Block

b. Quilting 201 - Mini-Quilt Coaster Set

c. Quilting 202 - Steps Through My Garden Quilt

The January/February Calendar will include different items, sent down by the JoAnn bigwigs. In addition to whatever classes they want taught, I will be adding a Trend class of my own...A Stack-and-Slash Baby Quilt. Again, it's very exciting because I LOVE sewing and quilting.

If you live in my town and want to sign up for one of the classes I'll be teaching, call me up and I'll let you know which classes on the schedule are mine. :) OH! And once a month, at JoAnn's Open House, classes are Half-Price! Next open house is September 12.

3. Hubby and I are officially Licensed as Foster Parents. We finished all the paperwork and home inspections in June, by late July we were Licensed, and on Saturday, August 8 we welcomed a 16-year old girl into our home. That's Right! I am now the Mother of a Teenage Girl! Hahaha! Can you believe it?

Last week I went to her High School to meet with a few of her teachers. Funniest thing happened. As Miss Q (our new girl's pseudonym) introduced me as her Mom, one of the female teacher's eyes opened big as saucers and her jaw fell open. Awkward! Female teacher, trying to cover for herself, then said "It's just that you look so young to have a teenage daughter." Haha! I didn't tell her that Miss Q was our Foster Daughter because 1. It's none of her business (I'm not being rude, it's a matter of confidentiality) and 2. If Miss Q wants to introduce me as Mom, then that's who I am. I told Hubby about it later and we figured for us to biological parents to a 16-year old, he would have been 18 and I would have been 15 when that child was born. Yowser!

4. All the rooms in my home are painted, except the Master Bedroom, Master Bath, Hallway, and Laundry Room. The good news is that Hubby, now free from "Into the Woods", has agreed to paint them himself.

5. After much searching and long debates with myself, I have finally decided which quilt pattern to use for my Sister-In-Law's quilt. It's called "Making History". I found it in the Fall/Winter 2008 Quilt Sampler magazine. It uses a Martha Washington star block and a sawtooth star block. Of course, I have to finish my JoAnn samples before I can start on SIL's quilt. Oh, and I need to make Miss Q a quilt and finish BabyCakes quilt. But at least I have the pattern for SIL's quilt figured out. ;)

6. My Sister V came to visit me and she brought her fancy hair cutting scissors. V was nice enough to give myself and all five kids a nice haircut. Hooray!

Bad News

1. The summer heat has killed my apricot tree and white hibiscus plant. I tried to save them, but they just couldn't stand the heat. :( The other fruit trees, hibiscus, and citrus seem to be coping alright. They just have to last another month then the weather will start to cool off.

2. I have been fighting a seriously debilitating ear infection. It has made my whole face, head, and neck ache and pound. It has made me dizzy and nauseous. And it has thrown off my already-shaky balance. As a result, I have many bumps and bruises all over my body from running into walls, posts, doors, or just plain falling down. I see my ENT for an eval tomorrow. Hopefully, he can get everything figured out. :(

3. Can tops hate me. I have a heavy-duty can opener for my year supply. It is fantastic opening #10 cans. It is stinky at opening regular grocery sized cans. It always skips and leaves two spots unopened. In my attempt to open one such can, I sliced my right thumb top clean open. It was awful. It sliced down into my nail. The length of the cut was about 1 1/2 inches, the depth about 1/4 inch...thankfully. Any deeper and I would have needed some heavy stitching. Yuck! As it was, I just lost a lot of blood as the wound spurted all over my kitchen. Later I had a lovely gaping hole on the top of my thumb that stung like the dickens whenever air touched it. I procured this wound just in time to fill out all the registration papers for my kids to attend school. Yay!

The next can-hating incident occurred only a few days later. I was being extra careful, trying to avoid injuring myself again. Psh. Totally didn't work! This time I sliced my right palm directly under my index finger. The can lid sliced clear through the skin...in part. It was nasty and did cause me great pain. Hubby has volunteered to open all my cans from now on. That would be a nice offer, if he wasn't gone so much working. I can't wait for him to open cans for me. Joe said he would open them, but there is no way! I'm too paranoid now to let my sweet innocent five-year old son battle cans for me. I need to buy a different can opener, but that would involve driving and what with my dizziness from the ear infection, I am avoiding driving at all costs. :(

4. I did injure my tailbone...AGAIN!!! It's not the same bone I broke in December 2007. That bone was at the very end of the spine. No, this one is a few bones higher. I injured it while trying to distract BabyCakes during his haircut. Cakes was swinging his arms about and accidentally got my chin. Well, that was pretty funny, so he swung for me again. Ouch. My face must have been hilarious, because he decided to use both fists to get my chin again. I was sitting on a little stool at the time. I shoved the stool back and planned on plopping my buns onto it, out of Cakes' reach, but I slid the stool too far back. Instead of sitting, I slammed the top part of my bum down HARD onto the tile bathroom floor. It was awful!! The pain shot all the way down to my ankles and up to my neck. And not just pain. There were also weird tinglings and then a kind of numbness settled over my body, so that I was still in a ton of pain but completely unable to move any part of my body. That lasted for several minutes. Finally I was able to move, so I crawled out of the bathroom and tried to lay down. That hurt even worse.

I thought it would quit hurting after a day, but no. So I went to the ER to have it checked out. The ER wasn't super busy, but was still a long wait. I had to be at the bus stop by Noon to meet Joe and the treatment for a broken tailbone is the same for a bruised one...ice it and take some Tylenol. (There's really not much they can do when you're stupid enough to hurt your bum. :-( ) Anyhoo, since the treatment would be the same and I needed to get out of the ER pronto, I opted not to have the x-rays done. So I don't know the exact extent of the damage I caused nor the exact bone I injured. But after living with the pain and discomfort for the last week and a half, I'm pretty sure I broke it. Hmm. Maybe I can go to the local imaging place and have them take an x-ray. They're pretty quick...

Funny thing about the injured bum: We have a young gal called in our ward to play piano each Sunday. A couple hours before Church started the Sunday after my accident, she called to say she was sick and could I please fill in. I explained my predicament, she said "Ah" in understanding, then asked if I could still play. I guess I didn't explain well enough. Haha! I did play for her, but it was a killer getting up and down off that hard wooden bench.

Luckily for me, it was healed enough by this past Sunday that I could still do nursery all right. Although, there were a few times I thought about walking out and begging someone to take over for me. But I stuck to it and we all had fun.

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And that is the end of my news. Well, at least what I can remember. I was going to write about something weird that happened to me, but cannot remember what it was. Probably because I've been sitting down to long and can't concentrate when my bum is aching.

FYI I'm going to start posting my Good and Bad News occasionally. I need to get this stuff out so I don't explode to some random stranger and bore them with my life story. ;)

Teeth, Paint, Pigeons & Baseball

We have had such a fun and productive summer. While some activities warrant their own post (ie. costumes & trips) the rest can be summed up here. :)

First Tooth GONE!

Joe lost his first tooth Tuesday, June 23. It was the standard pull for our family. What is the standard pull you ask...

That is when the tooth is so wiggly that if you were to look at it wrong it would jump out of the child's mouth, but the child is so nervous about losing their first tooth that they refuse to let your fingers anywhere near their mouth because they just know it's going to hurt terribly. So you, in your sneakiness, ask the child to let you wiggle the tooth...because they all know what a nut their Mom is about wiggling teeth. (Seriously! I love it! Wiggly teeth make me very happy.) And since my children are nice and indulgent, they will inevitably allow me to wiggle their tooth..."But only once!" So then I whip out a Kleenex with the excuse that I don't want to get their saliva all over my hands. As soon as I even start to wiggle the tooth, my goofy kids decide that they've had enough and will pull their heads away...exclaiming that they've changed their mind.

It's pretty funny at this point because they begin ranting about their wiggly tooth and how they are never going to let me wiggle their tooth ever again and trying to shield their mouth from me. It's funny because the tooth that they are trying to shield from me is sitting in the Kleenex in my hand. The kids are always so amazed that it didn't even hurt! Joe was the same. He was so surprised that I had his tooth in my hand and amazing of all, it didn't hurt. Goofy kids!

Extraction

Rose did not have a wiggly tooth. Her adult canine decided to come in above the baby canine tooth. Resulting in a shark-like appearance. Dental intervention was required. The extraction took about five minutes and split her tooth in two.

Paint

It has been a painting frenzy! My sister-in-law just moved to New Zealand and couldn't take some furniture with her. I claimed it for my girls' room. We painted the dresser and nightstand a shade of black. It was quite a project.

Dresser Before

Nightstand Before

Kids painting the dresser drawers

Admiring the paint job

Dad putting on a coat of varnish

Finished Dresser in the girls' room.

Also, note the completed blue paint job. Pretty Schnazy!

In addition to the dresser, I have been painting bedrooms and Hubby painted my outside doors. Hooray!

Welcome to Sarah's Silly House!

Joe's Green Bedroom

BabyCakes yellow room

House painting is almost complete. The only rooms left are my bedroom and bathroom. I have voted to keep the laundry room off-white so then my sewing samples will show better in it. But mostly I voted to not paint it because I am worn out and sick of painting. :)

Pigeons

Just a quick note on the pigeons. After we disposed of the sixth nest, they smartened up slightly. They built their seventh nest on the post that is hidden from the walkway. It only took them seven tries to figure that out. Well, before we disposed of the seventh nest, Hubby was able to shoot one with an air-type BB gun thingy. The pigeon stayed away for two days. Then came back and built on their old post facing the walk. We are still trying to get rid of them. :(

Little League Closing Ceremonies

I already wrote about this, but wanted to include pictures of my kids with their trophies.