Snow Day

Other than freezing cold temperatures, the winter here hasn't been too bad.  Last week we walked though a parking lot that had just been sprinkled with salt to help the rain from freezing into ice.  Camden started screaming for me to look at all the snow, and Jace was freaking out because "Santa comes with snow"!  They clearly have no idea what winter is all about.

You can imagine their excitement when we woke up to a yard quickly filling with snow.  They started begging from the minute we woke up to go outside and play.  That's when I realized we are not equipped with proper snow gear.  So we improvised!

2 shirts, 2 coats, Nanny's cheap gloves, 1 pair of pajama pants underneath a pair of sweats, topped with Levis.  Socks and shoes like normal, covered with a plastic grocery bag, held in place with mom's awesome tube socks!  And believe it or not, they actually stayed somewhat dry.

My snowman building skills were a little rusty, but together we managed to come up with a pretty good looking Frosty.

After we got done building the snow man, Camden proceeded to lay in the snow making "snow guys"(snow angels).  He also insisted we have a snow ball fight and eat all the "white snow" because he learned "how to play in the snow from TV".  I'm grateful the TV provided our family with perfect instructions for a fun afternoon in the snow.

Dentist

Jace man's first and last trip to the dentist didn't go over very smoothly, but I knew I needed to give it another try.  I made the appointment, and mentioned it to Jace.  His reaction was the same as last time, flat out refusal. Luckily I had 3 weeks to convince him it was a good idea to go.  I tucked it in the back of my mind and knew I had to come up with something good in order to make this work.

Fast forward to yesterday.  I had to return something to Old Navy and brought Dan and the boys with me.  While wandering the store, Jace found a superhero shirt he couldn't live without.  I secretly bought one for him and Camden thinking I could give it to them as a Valentine's day gift.  As we headed home from the store, the dental office called and had a cancellation the very next day. I took the appointment and began to panic.  I hadn't had enough time to convince Jace it was a good idea to let the dentist check his mouth.  When all of the sudden I remembered the superhero shirts.

That night I showed the boys my purchase and told them they could only wear their shirt if they accepted the first mission assignment as a superhero.  After agreeing to my terms I filled them in on their assignment: "To let the dentist count all the teeth in their mouth".  It worked, Jace was on board.

I went first and had Jace sit on my lap during the entire cleaning and check up.  He didn't make a peep.  Next it was his turn and he didn't even bat an eye.  Hopped right up in the chair, showed the hygienist his shirt, and she went to town.  Not only did the dentist count his teeth but he got a full cleaning and fluoride treatment!

Mission Accomplished.

YW Ideas

I have a tendency to search the Internet for ideas to use in Young Women, but never return the favor by sharing any myself.  So here is my attempt at sharing of few recent ideas that might help someone else who is searching.

For birthday gifts this year we decided to incorporate the 2012 Mutual Theme.  We bought these cute night lights for a great deal and I designed a label to place over the top.  Package that up with some chocolate and a cute ribbon, call it cute!

Using the same design idea as the birthday gifts, I added the rest of the theme and printed it on card stock for our binder inserts.

For Young Women in Excellence last month, our theme was "Live Like You Believe".  We created a video of all our Young Women that was similar to this one.  And the take home gift for the girls was a t-shirt(in their favorite color) with that same theme printed on the front.  Roll up the shirt, add a tulle bow and WHAM- perfect gift.

We are also having this years theme printed on vinyl so the girls can do with it what they'd like.(If I wasn't so computer illiterate I would know how to post what I designed another way besides taking a picture of my computer screen. Oh well)

I don't have a picture of this(dang it, I wish I had recorded it), but during the month of December we had a combined activity with all of our youth(about 100 youth ages 12-18).  They called it "flash mob caroling".  We were divided into groups of about 5-8 people and entered the local grocery store sporadically.  After we were all in our places(strategically scattered throughout the store), one person began singing a Christmas carol and the rest of us followed.  We continued singing as we headed to the front of the store and lined up near the cash registers.  We continued singing just a few songs before leaving.  Employees were crying, customers were grateful, and the spirit was definitely felt.  The store manager(who was notified of what would be going on before we arrived) called our contact person the following morning and thanked her for what our group did.  He invited us to come back often and do it again.  It was a memorable activity.

Kind of a random post, but nice to have a place for ideas.

Night Owl

I've never been much of a night owl and always have a hard time staying up past 10 o'clock.  But this year was a little different. 

Thanks to my folks, Dan and I went out for a late dinner just the two us.  After getting home we watched the anti climatic "2011 Red Bull: New Year. No Limits" with my dad.

As I was getting ready for bed I noticed my dad had a few fireworks out on the counter. The little boy in him was jumping out of his shell waiting for the clock to strike midnight.  I couldn't resist joining him on this childish adventure.

When midnight struck we wandered out into the street.  He played with fire, and we both giggled that his were the biggest and baddest fireworks in the neighborhood.

Too bad he still doesn't know how to be careful when playing with fire in the wind.  He began the new year with a minor burn and I with a smirk.

Happy New year!

Tis the Season

Man oh man am I behind!  So much to blog about and so many pictures.  I feel overwhelmed trying to give justice to everything we got to do this Christmas.  So here is the readers digest version.

We enjoyed lots of Christmas stories from Nanny's collection of picture books.

 Got matching jammies(a perk for being willing to model for Nanny's quilt store)to wear Christmas eve.

Left yummy treats for Santa that were quickly gobbled right up.

Made Rudolph cookies in our Halloween costume.

Got to meet our baby(who isn't a baby anymore, sniff sniff) cousin for the first time.

Worked hard on "gifts" we could give back to the Savior as the month went on.

Tried our best to focus on the reason for this Christmas season.

Got to visit family in Utah.

Did lots of lounging around and eating.

And got completely spoiled on Christmas day.

The end.

Feeling Jumbled

Sometimes I feel like I can't explain the way I feel.  It's as if what I'm feeling contradicts itself.

Last week I received a Christmas card in the mail from a neighbor who I serve with in the Young Women's program.  She had sent one addressed to my parents, and another addressed to my little family of 4.  I wasn't quite sure why I was so grateful for this card until later that evening. 

I guess it started while I was attending the Relief Society Christmas party.  The evening was very well thought out, and had a sweet spirit along with it.  I knew several other women there and I definitely didn't feel alone.  But during the middle of the program I felt very out of place.  It felt like I had nothing in common with those people around me.  I felt like they could never understand where I was coming from and vice versa.  That's when my bad attitude started to creep in.  I didn't want to be there.  I didn't want to be in Idaho anymore.

As I walked towards the door to leave, I happened to pass the person who sent the Christmas card I opened earlier that day.  I couldn't help but thank her for sending me a card.  I told her it was very sweet to address one separately, just for me.  Another lady overheard and asked her why she did that.  Why she used another stamp if we live in the same house.  She explained how she felt that she had lost her identity when she lived with her in-laws for a period of time.  She didn't want me to feel that way.

I fought back the tears in front of her that night but came home, curled up in my bed and let them fall.  And that is when the contradiction started.

I am happier with life more right now, than I have been in a long time. I am mentally in a place that feels so good.  I love being so much closer to family and seeing my kids get to know them better.  Dan's job here was an answer to so many prayers.  I feel so blessed to have the support and help of my parents and little brother. They have made it so easy to live here and I can see how hard they've tried to let us be our own family.  I honestly feel like I can't complain about how things are.

At the exact same time I feel like life is in limbo.  I feel chaotic and out of place.  I'm hoping to strike gold and get a place of our own.  I miss my routine and my own life in Arizona.  I miss our ward and friends.  I feel guilty for the convenience of having "built-in" babysitters.

The thought of putting my feelings together confuses me to the core.  I guess it is sort of losing your identity.  But at the same time, I feel like I've found the identity I have spent the last few years searching for.

Tradition

 I have a lot of favorite Christmas traditions and decorating gingerbread houses is definitely one of them.  One thing that was different this year...I finally put on my big girl pants and learned how to make them from scratch.  My very own set of(special made) cookie cutters was passed on to me and I put them to work.

After everyone finished decorating, Camden kept saying he was sad his wasn't as cool as the others.  Seriously, does self doubt and self consciousness really have to start at age four?  Not fair.

Camden's house on the left, Jace Man's on the right.  I think they turned out pretty darn good.