Happy Birthday Halle!

Halle was due November 17, my mother-in-law's birthday. At 30 weeks gestation I started feeling really strange. I suffered from severe cases of vertigo. After seeing several doctors they decided it was blood pressure related and sent me to bed. I was on bed rest for 10 weeks. Half of the time I lived at my mom's and the other half she spent at my place. I gained 55 pounds.

My doctor told me to call the hospital on Nov. 14 and see if I could come in to be induced. I was SO ready to have the baby. I called and they said, "There's no room at the Inn. You can't come in today, we're too full. Try again tomorrow." Ughhh....talk about tears. I didn't care if there wasn't "room at the inn", I was having that baby the next day or else. Lucky for all the hospital staff there was room and I delivered Halle around 8pm on the 15th.

Halle was stuck and the dr. tried to use the vacuum thing, but Halle had too much hair and it kept slipping off. So he ended up having to use forceps. Her shoulders caught, but eventually we got her out. There was meconium in the water so they quickly showed her to me and then whisked her away to suction her out and make sure she didn't swallow or inhale anything. She was perfectly healthy and weighed in at 8 lbs. 6 oz., nice and chunky.



Over the months her growth just tapered off until she was a teeny tiny 4th percentile one year old. She was the cutest little thing ever. And what made her even more cute, was her big spit fire personality inside her tiny little body. This girl has always been able to hold her own. She walked at 10 months after showing no signs of even wanting to. One day I just glanced over and there she was toddling across the room. She's been going strong ever since.

And now my tiny firecracker is 8 years old! She's still on the tiny side but her big personality hasn't changed a bit. Halle is such a creative spirit and enjoys all things crafty. She's particular about how she likes things done and can't rest until its to her specifications. She LOVES babies, any baby, and would kiss on and hug them all day if the other mommies would let her. She's also limber as a rubber band. (Something she did NOT inherit from me.) She can whip out the splits like nobody's business. Halle is all about having fun. If is isn't fun, it isn't worth her time. (Something I'm afraid she did inherit from me.)


I love my little Halle Loo. Our family would not be complete without her. Along with that firecracker personality she is the sweetest most sincere child you will ever meet. Happy Birthday baby, hope it is a wonderful 8th year!

That'll Be $60 Please

Why is it that preparing to go to the gynecologist, takes almost more effort than preparing for your wedding night? Seriously, there's a lot of prep work to look good for the doctor. (Don't worry, she's a lady. Well, maybe that should make us all worry more.)

After spending the necessary amount of time getting myself presentable, I showed up at the doctors office yesterday, right at my appointed time. You see, it was time for my "yearly". Yes, the appointment that I've put off for nearly 2 years because I love going oh-so-much.

As I glanced around the waiting room I counted 8 other ladies waiting. "Oh dear, this can't be good." Jarom was home watching the kiddos and had a meeting scheduled an hour later that he HAD to attend. (Honestly an hour should be plenty of time to get in and out of the doctor's office. Don't ya think?) But the nurse called my name and took me back almost immediately, so I figured all would be fine.

So back to the room I went, leaving my magazine on the waiting room table. The nurse handed me the robe and sheet, told me to undress, ("The robe opens in back, and the sheet goes on your lap.") and said the dr. would be right in. Let me tell you, I've been walked in on before while undressing and that isn't pleasant, so I undressed with the speed of lightening and hopped onto the table, covered myself with the sheet and proceeded to wait. And wait, and wait....and wait, and wait some more. I was kicking myself for setting the magazine down. Why don't they have things to read in the actual exam rooms anyway? Well, there was the breast feeding chart, complete with pictures, on the wall.

I started sweating knowing that Jarom needed me to get home and also I was getting nervous about the oh-so-pleasant procedure that would be taking place (hopefully) shortly. Then I started sticking to that stupid tissue paper on the table. Move, "riiiiippp", shift, "crackle crackle". I felt like the whole world could hear every move I made. Not to mention my back was killing me from sitting like that. "Should I lay down on the pillow? Maybe pretend that I'm at the spa?"

My purse with my phone (and clock) was sitting just out of reach for me to grab so that I could check the time. I contemplated whether or not I'd have enough time to jump off the table, grab my phone, and get back on the table before the door to the room flew open and the entire hallway saw my exposed back side.

Wait, wait, wait...tick, tick, tick...crackle, rip, creek, crackle. "Okay, DASH!!!" The time? 10:48. Ten forty eight people!!! I had been waiting, naked, on the table, just shy of 50 minutes. "What to do now? Even if she does come in here within the next 5 minutes it will still take at least 10 minutes for the procedure plus discussion time." There was nothing to do but get dressed and leave.

So I redressed with that lightening bolt speed, shoved my under garments in my purse (Oh yes I did!) for fear of someone walking in on me while I took time to put them on, and then I left. I told the receptionist that I had to get home and couldn't wait any longer. To which she replied, "Oh, well did you just want to reschedule then? The next appointment we have available is a month away." No "sorry you had to wait for an hour," ...or "we know your time is valuable" ...or "we understand the prep work it took to get here." Nope, just "we can't see you again until next month." Arggghhhh....

Days like this are when I wish I was brave enough to send them a bill for my time.

Happy Birthday Sami!

Today my niece Samantha turns 11! She told her mom that instead of a birthday party this year, she just wants to come to Idaho Falls to visit. How cute is that? So we're hoping to get to see our cousins this weekend. Have a great day Sambo!

Wendy's Give Away

I almost forgot to post about another fun give away. My friend Wendy (okay she's another virtual friend that I don't "really" know) is doing a 100th post give away. But you better hurry cause it ends tomorrow night. Just take a look at the cute loot you might win!

Bling on the Teeth

Alyssa's got a whole new smile today. After many tears and worries over a lose tooth, the orthodontist was able to get Alyssa's braces in place. We're doing them early in her life to try to avoid a full set later. But man, nothing makes a parent feel old like seeing their kid in braces. Wasn't it just yesterday that I had my own on? CRAZY!!!

Before

After (You can't see them real well in this picture, but she chose turquoise bands. I told her that my first day with braces, I chose black and white alternating. I looked like every other tooth was rotten. I went right back in the next day and had them all changed to white.)

And just for fun, a picture of me (and Jarom) with my braces at my baccalaureate. (I'm not crazy right? That's what it was called? It wasn't my high school graduation, it was another ceremony the night before. And would you take a look at those GINORMOUS glasses!! So funny.)

Try-It-Tuesday

Okay folks, let's make some fried chicken. Talk about comfort food. Mmmm.....mmmmmm. And just for kicks and giggles, let's pretend I'm Pioneer Woman and look at the pictures I attempted to take while cooking. This is a recipe where I don't measure anything, so I figured pictures would be the best way to share it.

First, place about 3/4c. flour, a couple shakes of sage (maybe 1/2 tsp.?), about the same amount of rosemary, and some pepper to taste, on a plate and toss to mix together. (I like to chop the rosemary up a little before hand. I once found ground rosemary and that was the BEST, but I haven't found any since.) Anyway, take several tablespoons of the seasoned flour and set them aside to use for the gravy later.

Liberally salt the chicken. And I do mean liberally. It really tastes best extra salty. I use boneless, skinless, hand trimmed by the butcher, breasts. (Yes, I am completely spoiled and this is one thing I refuse to skimp on.) Oh, and here's your tip of the day: Always check the meat prices in the case before you buy the packaged stuff. I've found on most occasions the EXACT same meat will be cheaper in the butcher's case. This chicken, for instance, was a whole dollar cheaper than the packaged stuff in the refrigerated shelves.

Dredge the salted chicken in flour mixture.

Put several (3 or 4) heaping tablespoons of Crisco in a hot skillet. Then turn the heat down to medium low.

Set those babies in the hot grease and let em' fry.

DON'T turn them for at least 5 minutes and maybe even 7 if you can make yourself leave them alone. That's the secret to making the breading stick to the chicken and not the pan.

Looking a little more done. If they are no longer pink in the center take them out and set them on a paper-towel lined plate to "rest" while you make the gravy.

If the Crisco has cooked out, add a little bit more and be sure to leave all those yummy brown bits in the pan.

Pour in the seasoned flour that you set aside earlier.

Get it all nice and bubbly. Add more flour if you need to thicken it.

I don't know why this picture is turned, it's not turned in my photos, but no matter. I was just trying to show the consistency before you start to add the milk. I also like to add a bit of salt at this point.

Pour in some milk and bring the gravy to a boil. Go slowly here, you don't want it to be too thin. If it's too thick, add more milk.

My gravy pictures are conspiring against me. WHY are they all turned?? Anywho, notice the thick bubbles? That's the thickness it should be when it's done.

And just like that, you've got yourself a real tasty dinner.

Born In Boise

Over dinner tonight Jarom asked the kids if they knew which prophet signed his mission call. So we sang the song Latter Day Prophets to try to spark their memories. As soon as they heard Howard W. Hunter they knew it was him right away. So then Jarom asked them, "What do you all have in common with Pres. Hunter?"

I added, "Well, all of you except Kate."

Jarom said, "That's your clue. What do you all have the same, that Kate doesn't?"

Alyssa's answer, "Manners?" LOL!!!

The second guess, "Light skin?" Again, LOL!!!

They finally figured out that the correct answer was "born in Boise." Oh, so funny!

Happy BIrthday Ogden!

The tank turns 4 today!!! Ogden is always such great entertainment. We love this kid and hope he has the best 4th birthday ever!

Tech Savvy Kids

I was talking with Queenie (okay we were emailing each other, but I like to say talking cause it makes me sound like I know her in "real life") about how tech savvy our kids are these days. It really is incredible isn't it?

Just yesterday I had to ask my FOUR year old how to change control on the Wii remote to get number two to turn to number one. (Don't worry if you don't understand, cause I barely do myself.) Carter just talked me right through the entire process. "You click here, then you press that button, and then click here." When I was all done I pressed the "home" button because I couldn't figure any way to get out of the maze he'd woven me through. Carter said, "Mom! Don't press that it takes you out of the game." (Like duh, you old lady!)

And then tonight Alyssa told us a "hilarious" story about how "Libby's phone rang right in the middle of class. Her ring tone was so funny and it just went right off during reading!" (Can you even imagine a phone ringing in the middle of your 4th grade classroom, let alone a phone belonging to another 10 year old?) My Alyssa is the minority in her class because she doesn't carry her own cell. Good grief, I didn't get my first cell phone until I was 24!!

Halle asked Jarom to correct her math; his reply, "Halle, while you're in second grade you bet I'll correct your math, but when you get in 8th grade, we might be in trouble." Eighth grade?! I tried to help Alyssa (remember 4th grade) with her math yesterday. It was geometry. I got a D in geometry my sophomore year of HIGH SCHOOL! (I wasn't much help to her.)

It really is amazing how much more advanced our kids are than we were at their age. Our growing up world is absolutely foreign to them. I sure hope I can keep up, or if all else fails, I hope my kids will be patient with their dinosaur age mother.

Conversations with Carter

Tonight as I was folding laundry, Carter was waiting patiently for me to finish so we could play pirates. Here's how the conversation went:

Carter: Are there robbins outside?

Me: No, all the robbins have flown south for the winter so they can stay warm.

Carter: Not robbin birds, robbings.

Me: Do you mean robbers?

Carter: Yeah, robbings.

Me: No, there are no robbers outside.

Carter: Can robbings see in the dark?

Me: What exactly do you think a robber is?

Carter: Issa and Halle said there's robbers in haunted houses.

Me: Robbers are just people like you and me. They make wrong choices and steal from people. They're just normal people, not monsters. Monsters aren't real and neither are haunted houses.

Carter: (2 second pause) Is China on the other side of the world? How do you get to Mexico? How many girls are in our family?

Oh boy, I can tell I really got through to him.

Obama Makes History

Barack Obama was just named the winner of this year's Presidential election. How far our nation has come to elect the first African-American President of the United States. I have to say that I surprised myself tonight when I "really" realized Obama was black. I mean, yes I know his race, but I just have never really thought about it much with this election. To me Obama was never "black" and McCain was never "white". They were just two men running for President.

I love that our country has come so far and race is not such a huge issue anymore. Sure, we have a ways to go, but look how quickly we are growing up and realizing that people are people no matter the color of skin. It was such a short time ago we were so divided. In fact, my own mother went to a segregated school as a child. I commend her for never pushing racial views on me. She taught me that we are all God's children and he loves each and everyone of us. Including Barack Obama.

I hope and pray that tonight's outcome will only continue to bring us closer as a nation and as children of God. I pray for Obama as he takes over our country, that he will be guided and directed to do what is right for the people and for our home. I pray that we will unite with each other and that God will see fit to deliver us from these trying times. May God bless America.

(And I hope and pray that I have offended no one with this post.)

Try-It-Tuesday

(FYI, the audio for T-I-T is all screwed up, I think because I name it the same thing every week.)

It's been rainy and dreary and cold here this week. Perfect fall weather. A nice hot bowl of hearty stew was much needed. Alyssa said, "Hey, it's our first fall food. Or we could call it FFF." Maybe I should rename this stew to FFF. :)

This is a recipe I got from my sister-in-law, Katie, who doesn't do a blog. (But we won't say anything about that. :P )Its as easy as they come and tastes great!



Crockpot Stew (Now known as FFF in my house.)

• One can Tomato Soup


• One can Cream of Mushroom Soup


• One can Golden Mushroom Soup


• One can Cream of Celery Soup


• 3-4 cans water


• One packet Lipton Onion Soup Mix


• Stew Meat


• Potatoes


• Carrots


• Celery if you want

I like to put my stew meat and half the packet of onion soup mix with a tiny bit of water, in the crockpot the night before. Let it cook on low all night. (This makes it nice and tender, but certainly is optional.) The next morning add all the other ingredients and cook on high for 6-8 hours until vegetables are tender.

So get the crockpot out, get dinner going, forget about it, and go out and VOTE!

****If you have a tried and true recipe you'd be willing to share, leave a comment with the recipe title and post the recipe on your blog so we can all come and check it out. Thanks for playing; the more the merrier! ****

Audio Clips

Yes, you've all been wondering about the audio ability my blog now has. I say this with all the love in my heart, but I have a techno-geeky husband. (He know's I love him.) He is testing "podcasts" (I had to 'wikepedia' that word.) out on my blog. So now you can all enjoy listening to my blog just like when you were a kid and listened to a book on tape. The only thing missing is the little "ding" when it's time to move to the next picture.

What Does Your Bed Say About You?

I found this on someone's blog a while ago, can't remember who now. I took the test and thought it was pretty dead on until I got to the relationships bit and head in the clouds dreamer. Those two aren't me, but the rest is pretty good.

What Your Bed Says About You



Outward appearances are a concern of yours, but not your primary concern. You try to take care of yourself and your home, but it's not an obsession.



Your life tends to be completely chaotic. You aren't a very organized person, and you tend to be slow in cleaning up messes.



You are not very high maintenance in general, but you are high maintenance about a few things.



In relationships, you tend to kick back and let the other person be in charge.



You tend to be a dreamy, head in the clouds type of person. You think in terms of possibilities.



You are a bit of a homebody, but you can also make yourself at home anywhere.

What Does Your Bed Say About You?

And now an announcement...

Kat over at Sunshine and Lemonade is doing fun give aways for the next 10 weeks! I'm all about free stuff. But this is more than free stuff, it's AWESOME free stuff! So selfishly I don't want to announce this fun contest, but in order to get yet one more entry to win the SIGNED copy of Wicked, I must tell you about this. So head on over to Kat's place and check her out. I love her by the way, so I'm sure you all will too.

Elena's November Thankful List

Elena Is Thankful For...
the number 1 in front of the price of gas.
mornings when I can sleep in.
beautiful weather.
Excedrin.
warm baths and hot showers.
health.
good books.
telephones.
dear friends.
laughter.
smart kids.
my pillow.
a free nation.
the right to vote.
a full belly.
an extra hour today.

Happy Halloween!

The pumpkins are carved.

The costumes have been tried out at trunk-or-treat.

And the teeth are already rotting.

Oh yes, I'm having fun too!

And there's more fun to come tonight. Happy Halloween!!
(Everyone be safe and have fun tonight.)

Fun With Carter and Kate

While the big girls are at school, I have fun with Carter and Kate. I thought it would be fun to get some pictures of me with Carter. I don't have many of those, so we sat down and took a few shots.
Let's just say, they didn't turn out exactly like I thought they would, but I still treasure them.

Why do the best ones always come out blurry?

Kate was mad because I wasn't taking any of her. And I wonder why I didn't, with the eyeliner drawn all over her face. But I clicked one anyway just to appease her and it caught her personality so well, I couldn't help but take another.

How can you say no to this perfect child?

And here is another from a few hours after the photo shoot when she abandoned the eyeliner and went straight for mascara.

Unexpected Surprises

Yesterday a very sad and tearful Becky showed up at my door. She's buying her first house and as houses usually go, unexpected things happen. She was supposed to close last week, but there was a glitch. So today was supposed to be the "new" closing date. But....there was another glitch. Thus, a tearful Becky. I think most of us who have been through the house buying process can all say we sympathize with the tears and frustrations of Becky.

While Becky told Jarom and me the story and fretted over canceling the carpet cleaners and the U-Haul truck for the second time, the doorbell rang. And who do you suppose was at the door? Why the UPS man delivering a package for me AND Becky. He couldn't have picked a better day to bring goodies in the mail.

And what was in the package you ask. (Should there be a question mark at the end of that sentence? Hmmm...) New Fall coats!!! A few weeks ago Becky saw a sale for buy one get one free in the Chadwicks magazine. Plus the offer was available on sale prices. So we each picked a $190 jacket that had been marked down to $89. And we each ended up paying only $45 total. We were pretty proud of ourselves.

But we were even more proud of ourselves when we saw how awesome we looked in our new Fall wear.

Try-It-Tuesday

(Fun in a cup...)

To fulfill your Halloween munchies try:

Monster Mix

• Witches Hats = chocolate chips
• Candy Corn
• Broomsticks = pretzel sticks
• Goblin Brains = Crunch-n-Munch Popcorn
• Worms = gummy worms

Let me tell you, a pretzel and a candy corn is a match made in heaven!

(I think eyeballs = raisins and halloween marshmellows would taste good in this too.)

(Or in a big bowl.)

****If you have a tried and true recipe you'd be willing to share, leave a comment with the recipe title and post the recipe on your blog so we can all come and check it out. Thanks for playing; the more the merrier! ****

My baby is TEN?! You've got to be joking!

Well, Alyssa did it. She went and grew up on me. How did that happen so quickly? I swear I was pregnant and COMPLETELY miserable with her just yesterday. Now she's entered the double digit era. What a great kid Alyssa is. I wouldn't trade her for the world. She's always such a help to me and has such a talent for caring for her siblings. She's such an example to us all. You will never hear a naughty word come out of Alyssa's mouth. She's the language Nazi around here. I love that she is so firm in her beliefs and has such great self esteem. Alyssa knows what she wants and where she's going. I knew she would be an amazing person from the minute I laid eyes on her. Happy Birthday baby, I don't care if you're 10, you'll always be my baby.

Alyssa gave me explicit orders that she was going to have a poppy seed cake with NO frosting. That kind of dashed my hopes of decorating a fun Halloween themed cake, but after I added the spider rings, I felt better about it. And besides, it wasn't my birthday.

Building haunted houses was a hit. Thanks Emily for the adorable idea. The kids all loved it.

If you thought that Kate was going to be left out of the fun, you were dead wrong! Thankfully she was satisfied with broken graham crackers and I didn't have to glue a whole house together for her.

How cute did these turn out? (It also looks better if you display them on the counter with a few chocolate sprinkles spilled about.)

I think my ears are still recovering from the din of the party. They played "monster tag" in the dark basement and my oh my can little girls scream. But what fun they had.

Alyssa has asked for an Easy Bake for every birthday and Christmas for the past 3 years. I finally caved and let her have one. Can you see the sheer bliss on her face. She's been a cooking fool ever since.

I'm always so grateful for my mom's help at the birthday parties. She's been to almost every single one I've thrown. Even some when we lived in Boise.

You'd think with a wind up like that, she'd have gotten all the candles in one blow, but...it took two.

After the guests have gone home, I wonder to myself why I even cleaned the house before they came. :)