There's no crying

We bought a fathers day card last week, the kind that talks when opened up. This particular card has a movie line quip by Tom Hanks from a league of their own... you know the one "there's no crying. There's no crying in baseball!" James and Ben are obsessed with that card and have been going around all week repeating that infamous line, which makes me laugh cuz Ben says it "der no eye-ing. der no eye-ing in bey-balls." and its just fun to hear him talk- but things got even better when at swim lessons James told him "there's no crying. there's no crying in swim lessons!" after Ben broke into the saddest cry when it was his turn to swim. Now James, Ben and I all say it on our way to swim lessons- although it hasnt helped. Ben still cries whenever its his turn.
We made a quick trip to San Diego last weekend, and spent a few hours at the beach. I got everyone all sunscreened up, but the wind coming off the ocean managed to interfere with my spray on protection. The kids had some interesting designs from some of the sunscreen working, and other parts of their skin being exposed to the sunrays. Ben was the best though- his swimsuit covered his buns when I sprayed him up, but as he played and ran his swimsuit kept slipping down, exposing his cheeks quite a bit- so his little bunz have been red and white striped this week.

James has been obsessed with Mario Galaxy-(Daniel bought it for some family Wii bonding time a couple of weeks ago) and whenever I tell him his time is up he has been throwing tantrums equal to those of his 2 year old stage. Not fun. I have been told at least 100 times that he hates me. I think I hate video games. They seem to be turning my sweet loving boy into a gremlin. So one would think that I would just ban my 4 year old(he says he is anyway) from the wii, but the reason I let him play is cuz it gives me 30 minutes to take my shower and get dressed and do my hair for the day without him and Ben upsatirs with me, schmearing toothpaste and bagbalm on the mirror the whole time. So the gremlin behavior is easier to clean up, and doesnt pose as much of a threat that my arm will come out of its socket in the process like cleaning that mirror does. Which has happened several times in the past few months, but I have been VERY LUCKY that its gone right back in. I really should hire a maid to clean my house, as its obviously hazardous to my health to do it myself. :)
Toast and Kylie have been doing a day camp this week. Daniel and I thought it would be something fun for them to do, but we are kinda disappointed with it. It's been lame-o. Just my opinion. I dont think we will be investing our time in that again. It feels like a day care. Which I dont need or want for my kids. We have lots of fun together doing our own "day-camp" things throughout the summer, but I thought this would be a good way for them to be more social as they are both very shy. And they have made a few new friends-Kylie has met 2 other girls her age named Kylie, which is fun cuz she has never met anyone yet with her same name- but all in all- it has not been what we were thinking it was going to be like. Live and learn I guess.

We have the leap frog alphabet letter fridge magnets on our fridge and for the past year Daniel and I have been exchanging love notes by taking turns rearranging the letters into creatively spelled messages of love. We are so cheesy sometimes it kills me, but I love it. Its fun to go to the fridge throughout the day and see something like- Kimmys my favorite- with upside down L's or sideways w's to make up for missing letters. We have had some pretty good laughs at some of the  messages we come up with, like- Daniel is magically delicious- or Kimmy is my love heroine- but what has made this even more fun is that the kids have gotten  in on it. I had arranged Kimmy really loves Daniel-(one of my rather basic and simple messages, but heartfelt just the same) but Toast decided to spice it up with this..

All I can say is, yes I do. It is a rather nice rump, in my opinion.

Toast to Toast

Daniel really likes to channel Bob Parr aka Mr Incredible when the kids have any kind of recognition program- such as kindergarten graduation. He thinks "its psychotic- they keep creating new ways to celebrate mediocrity." So he was not very excited to have to go to Toasts graduation  last night. It didnt help that we were in the very back row, and that  I left him with the 2 yahoos aka James and Bennie-boo, and crept down the aisle to the front so I could snap a few pictures. (there were a bunch of other parents who had the same idea, so I was still pretty far back and then ended up with pictures of the backs of other people heads from them popping up the exact moment I was trying to snap a picture, so my effort was pretty much wasted anyway)
But Toast was very excited and that made it worthwhile. Now for some squint your eyes and try to find him pictures.
                                                 (T is for Toast- does that help you find him?)

                                           (This is him shaking the hands of the tattooed principal)
                             (I tried to figure out what her tattoo was of, but my vision is horrible and my best guess
                                      is a mosquito- as the schools mascot is just that- but I could be wrong)

(and here he is using his certificate as a spotting scope)

 

                                           He looks all innocent and charming as we head out

                                              But he turns into gremlin mode very quickly

                                    Kylie was bored by the whole thing. Note her pirate look
                  She had a pirate party and this was the best "costume" we could come up with
                                          Personally I think its more "punk" than "pirate" but oh well.

Since we made a big deal about Kylies kinder graduation 2 years ago we had to do the same with Toast, so after his little program we let him choose his favorite place for dinner. He chose Olive Garden- weird cuz he isnt a pasta fan, but whatever floats his boat. So we took all 4 yahoos to dinner. Madness ensued. They sat us in a booth right between 2 parties of 4 made up of those 60 and older. They were none too pleased with my Bennie boo turning to them and growling/yelling/and calling them "grandpa". Nor did they appreciate Jamseys continual head bonking against the side of the booth,  (this is why we dont take them out to eat unless its a one on one date-) But again- Toast was so excited that we couldnt be too irritated, and thankfully the old people werent mean about it.

So now we finally get to join the rest of the world on summer vacation. WOOHOO!

Over night

While putting away laundry, I was talking with my Bennie-Boo and asked him why he was so silly. He says, "ohhh just cuz!" That kinda threw me for a loop. When did my baby start talking? A few minutes later he ran into his room and shut the door. So I took a break from the laundry and went and hid against the wall so when he opened it I could jump out with a loud "boo-ya!" and see him jump a mile high. Which he did- and we both laughed. But then he says, "you scared me mommy!"  My jaw literally dropped and I looked at him for a good minute trying to figure out when did this happen. When did my baby go from "goo goo ga ga" to "you scared me mommy"? I think it really must have happened over night.

Since Monday was a holiday, the kids didnt have school, but Daniel had to get some work done, so he stayed home while Ben took a nap and I took the kids to see Shrek 3. When I asked James if he liked the movie this is how he responded: "well the bad guy has really big spikey hair and he has the witches on his team, and he gives Shrek a map that makes Shrek fall out of the sky, but when he hits the ground the witches throw skeleton balls at him and he gets some owies, and then the other shreks dont know him and they go fight the bad guy with the big hair and then everyone breaks into sixty five pieces and then they have a party...the bad guy doesnt like Jesus. But I do. He's so nice."  Shrek in a nutshell.

Toast has yet another loose tooth, but he wont let me pull it out. I snuck into his  room while he was sleeping to try to get it out, but even in his zonked out zone he swatted my hand away and turned his head into a position that wouldnt allow me to pry his mouth open. It's really bugging me cuz his big front tooth has been growing in and its knocking right into the loose one and I just need one good pull and it would be out, but Ty believes in letting it come out on its own. Its going to drive me insane if it doesnt come out soon.

2 weeks ago Kylie was tested at school because of her "academic achievements."(what does that mean? she's finishing up 2nd grade- what academic achievement?) Anyway they sent her results home and she is "an accelerated learner"- in the area of non verbal cognitive abilities-(what the heck is that?) and "above average" in verbal and quantitative cognitive abilities. Shes a smart one, no doubt, but what I find kinda funny and kinda worrisome at the same time is that she was slightly miffed she wasnt at the "genius/gifted" level. What to do with that girl.
I was having some fun the other day with google translator- you can put in any word/phrase/saying and have it translated into the language of your choosing. So I sent Daniel several love texts in Spanish, just to mix it up. He responded with "no comprendo." So I text him to have his Spanish speaking loan officer translate. Which I was kidding about- I figured he would have googled it himself, but  since sarcasm doesnt come through texts very easily he took me seriously and had her translate my love texts to him. I am rather embarrassed now.(not cuz I was inappropriate or anything-  I just really dont think having her translate "you are smoking hott" to Daniel was the best way for that to be said. She thankfully has a sense of humor, so no law suits will be filed.

"Laughter through tears...

...is my favorite emotion."

In case you didnt know we are HUGE Lost fans. Several years ago, Daniel had a loan assistant whose husband bought her the first 2 seasons of Lost for a Christmas present, and she and he stayed up several nights in a row and watched them. She was obsessed, and brought them in for Daniel saying we had to watch. I remember not wanting to watch cuz it didnt look like my kinda show. I'm not big on drama/suspense/sci-fi. I am totally a romantic comedy/chick flick type.  But we watched it. And pulled several all nighters in a row watching all of the episodes to that point.  Waiting months in between each season was torture. And waiting each week to get more story was even more so. But after these years, it has now come to a close. And while it didnt give us answers to several of the "what the?"s we asked, Daniel and I loved how it concluded. I even cried. And I'm totally not a TV show crier. Certain movies (Charlie, Steel Magnolias, My Life) I can not watch without the water works. But a TV show? Please! But watching the moments of connection the characters had, and the coming full circle, not to mention the comedic tones amid the emotion, well I was weeping. Over a TV show. Sheesh. But I LOVED IT! And am now in mourning that the story has come to an end. Whatever shall we do on Tuesday nights now?

Thievery

Yesterday there was a knock on the door, and when I opened it up there was a package addressed to me. Kinda surprised as I wasnt expecting anything in the mail, I opened it up. Inside was a bag. A really nice handbag. I was very confused though cuz I had not ordered a bag, and my dearest darling Daniel knows that I'm kind of particular, so he would have asked my opinion before buying something like that. Besides there are a bajillion other gift ideas that would come before a bag. 

I happen to be one of the "odd" females who isnt obsessed with bags. I'm just not a bag kinda girl. I stick my license, my debit card and my phone in my pocket, and I'm good to go. And Daniel knows this, so I was suspicious. Therefore, I called him. 

He was just as baffled as me as to where this bag came from. So I say, "perhaps its a promotional gift." Daniel says, "so this company is gonna just send out bags to random people? Besides, where did they get your info?" Well of course I dont know, but it sounded good to me- a free and very nice bag--I'm all for it. No need to be suspicious- it is what it is! Even if I'm not a bag kinda girl- it's nice- and FREE! 

Daniel, being the smarter half of our relationship, decides to investigate.  And you know what he finds out? Well first- the bag is being sold for a hundred bucks. ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS! (dr evil style if you please.) For a bag. For crying out loud- it seems (in my humble opinion- and its probably just cuz I'm not into bags) that a bag is made with fabric- and not a whole lot of it. But sorry,  that's a tangent I'm not meaning to go off on--(if you happen to be a bag kinda person and have spent more or less than this- I'm sure its lovely and probably a great investment! ;)) 

So back to Daniel investigating.. He finds out that it was charged to one of our cards by some suspicious email address not belonging to either one of us, nor anyone we know. So my free bag, was actually NOT free. Daniel looks into that account and finds some other charges that neither of us had placed, so he calls and gets things taken care of. And now we are returning the not free bag and getting a new card. 

So here's the thing, the card is in Daniels name, not mine, but the bag was shipped to Kimmy Jackson, not Daniel Jackson(Daniel Jackson? he's a genius!). And that card is in Daniels wallet which he has with him at all times. So how the fetch did someone get that card number, but my info? I'm rather disturbed by this. And hello- why ship it to our address? If you've stolen someones card number and are placing an order- why ship it here, where someone might be smart enough to realize that we didnt order no stinking badgers and now we are gonna change that stolen info before you can do any more damage to that account?  I, for one, am glad Daniel is smart enough to look into it. I was just gonna go skipping on my way with what I assumed was a promotional gift. I guess I can say I am a bit naive. Daniel completes me. ;)

(Tweeked movie trivia 4 times over, anyone, anyone?)

(make that 5)

Peace and Quiet

So tonight is the father and sons camp out in our ward. Daniel went in early to work so he could take off early, so that he isnt pitching a tent in the dark like he's done in the past. Toast, Jamus and the Bennie-boo were outta control with excitement. As soon as Daniel walked in the door Toast yells, "ITS THE CAMP OUT!" And James and Ben start yelling their little heads off going "YAAAAAAAY YAAAAAAY YAAAAAAAAY!" It was nuts. They dont even get THAT excited about Christmas. But Im so happy they are going to have some male bonding time. That means Kylie and I get a little girls night out.
I always loved when my dad and brothers would go on the father and sons campout, growing up. It meant my sister, mom and I would get to have some girl time. Our tradition included some Parkers Drive Inn, a good movie, and me getting to sleep on my dads side of their bed at night.
Kylie has some different plans for us. As soon as she gets home from school, we are going out to have our feet pampered and our toenails painted. After which she wants to go to Target and Kohls for some shopping. Then she plans for us to head to Olive Garden for dinner. After that she thinks she is staying up to watch a movie, then she plans on sleeping on her daddys side of the bed for the night.
Its gonna be a fun night, but I gotta say, I am LOVING the peace and quiet for the moment. Its never this quiet during the day with those little rascals of mine. And to top it off my dearest darling Daniel gets to take care of their every little need for the next 20 hours.............. all by himself. BWAHAHAHAHA!

An angel to watch over me

Today I was brought to tears when I received a package in the mail from my dear mother. She wrote a sweet little note that had me choked up, and had sent a little book called "An Angel to Watch Over Me," which got the tears flowing. Its a little book written by a very talented Sally DeFord that goes like this:

"She watched by my cradle through long, sleepless nights,

She taught me to pray as she knelt by my side,

She guarded my childhood, and all through the years,

She echoed my laughter, she counted my tears.

In the arms of my mother, I came to believe

That God sent an angel to watch over me.

She taught me the meaning of courage and faith,

She taught me to live with the Lord as my strength,

She taught me to follow the pathway He marked,

She guided my steps when the journey grew dark,

And I know there were dangers that I could not see,

But God sent an angel to watch over me.

She taught me to serve with a spirit that sings,

She taught me to seek after heavenly things,

And because of her love and her kindness and care,

Because of the place that I hold in her prayers,

And because of her goodness, I still believe

That God sent an angel to watch over me."

My mom sent this book to give praise to and encourage her daughters in their mothering, but the reason it got me chocked up is because this describes how i feel about her.  She is most definitely an angel who has watched over me, supported me, encouraged, cared for, cried with, taught, nurtured, laughed with, protected, and most importantly loved. If there is any good in me, its because of her.

A few weeks ago we had a young womens activity- a getting to know you kind of thing, and we filled out a survey and then shared our answers. One of the questions was "what do you love most about your mom?" I didn't even have to think about it. My mother and I have had many talks on the topic of talents, and we both feel like we must have slept in the day they were handing those out in heaven. We have talked about so many individuals we know and their incredible talents and their ability to create beautiful things. One of her sisters has a gift with flowers- she creates the most beautiful arrangements. I swear she must have helped create the garden of Eden. Another sister is just so smart and kind and plays the piano beautifully. Her sister in law is the most amazing chef you could imagine. She creates the most delicious meals with such little effort. Her daughter in laws are so amazing with crafting and decorating and they have such a gift of patience with their children. Her eldest daughter is a master seamstress, and creates the most beautiful dresses for her daughters. And we have so many friends and extended family members who all have these and many other talents as well.Its hard not to be envious.

But my mom has one of the most incredible talents/gifts and it's one I desire like no other. She has the gift of charity. She is able to love others purely and unconditionally. Even when she knows the skeletons in the closet, she doesn't let that taint her view and her love for the person. And its not just her kids that she is that way with. Its everyone she knows. She doesn't pass judgement on people. She loves. I so want to be like that. Whenever I point this out to her though- She says she isn't like that. (she's also very humble) But those who know her- know she really is. 

Her testimony and her faith are incredible. Anytime one of my siblings and I are in need of a miracle- we ask my mom to pray. We know her prayers are heard and answered because she has this exceeding great faith. 

How extremely grateful I am for the wonderful mother I have. It is one of my greatest hopes, to be the kind of mother that she is.