My New Best Friend

Meet Stoney

O.K. I really haven't stooped low enough to NAME it (although I may just do that in the future--suggestions welcome). And I am not being paid to promote Pampered Chef (but maybe I should be...Hmmm...), but can I just say

how much

I LOVE

my new stoneware cookie sheet?

My friends, if you only KNEW how much I love this sheet, you would totally buy one.

IT IS FAB-DABULOUS!

You must know, if you don't already, I'm not that high-maintenance when it comes to kitchen gadgets and gizmos. I was amazed when we got married and Bart insisted we buy a cookie scooper (you know, those little tiny ice cream scoops?). I mean, what's wrong with two spoons? That's how my family always rolled and we SURVIVED. I also lived in a place for 2 years where the only kitchen appliances we had were the European-sized fridge and small gas stove/oven. Oh, and a toaster. AND I made bread almost every day! By hand. And we survived.

So the mere fact that I feel it important enough to post should tell you something.

*eh-hem*

Back to the original point.

Not only does Stoney (uh-oh...) cook things up just perfectly, it is so versatile! AND not only that, it's big enough that I can bake pizza on it (tried and true!), AND I can fit 20, (did you hear that?)

20

good-sized cookies on it! (and that cuts cookie batch baking time!)

The down sides are that it is big, and it is a little heavy. Right now I have to store it on top of the microwave.

HOWEVER, it has great built-in (formed, molded, whatever) handles and it's BIG, and it BAKES UP A GREAT BATCH OF...WHATEVER!

IT

IS

AMAZING!

the end

I Can't Hear You!

What is it with kids pushing each other's buttons? Charlie will say, "No it's not," when he knows Jane thinks (or KNOWS) that IT IS. Jane will call Charlie a "pretend name" that she knows he dislikes.

Pick, pick, pick.

Today at lunch they were having an argument over something silly. Jane has mastered the skill of knowing exactly what buttons to push to get the biggest rise. After listening to them go back and forth a few times and knowing that Charlie was getting more and more upset, I finally said,

"Charlie, just ignore Jane. Pretend you can't hear her!"

Jane immediately looked at the toy frog she had in her hand and made him say back to herself, "I can hear you..."

Oh, Heaven help us.

Walking a Mile In Someone Else's Pants

"Whatcha doin', Jane?" I asked.

"Switching their pants," she said in a what-else-would-I-be-doing? kind of voice.

Jane's fashion sense is extending beyond her own wardrobe now.

Lucky Lego guys.

*Click the image to make it larger if you need to.*

"...They're kind of an annual thing..." --Rapunzel

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BART!

...the best daddy we could ever ask for.

An Explanation

Charlie: These, [pointing his light sabers into a "V"] are THE BECANO. (think, volcano) And when The Becano 'splodes when it's getting washed out when the policeman washes it in his house. Then when the hot lava touches us we jump and say, "AHH! HOT! HOT! HOT!"

Jane: And then we get our feet wash-ted off with cold water.

Charlie: Yeah and then it can't work any more because it's unplugged.

I'm glad I have kids. Otherwise, nothing in this world would make sense. =)

Sunday Naps Are The Best!

"It's a BLUE POTTY!"

exclaimed Jane as we walked out our front door to this view:

(It's there for the workers who are re-roofing the buildings in our complex.)

I'm glad somebody's excited about it. Now if we could just get Jane, who has regressed in potty-going at all, to get excited about an indoor potty--especially since I AM NOT taking her to an outhouse. THAT would be something!

A Decade Ago...

Our first date was especially romantic.

Oh, wait. Back up. Let's start at "the beginning." :)

It was 13 Feb, late afternoon. Bart and I were up in the Student Government office of the College where we met. I was in Student Government. Bart was the farthest student from Student Government I had ever met. He was there to take advantage of the awesome benefits I had--you know, being apart of such an elite group and all. Computer access was HUGE then. And I had access.

So, there we were. I was watching him play a computer game. Important business, you know.

We were chatting about nothing in particular when Bart, eyes still on the screen, said,

"So, are you going to the dance tomorrow?"

"No. Are you?"

"No. Do you want to go?"

Pause.

He said it nonchalantly and I was thinking, Is this a rhetorical question or is he really asking me to go with HIM?

"Uh. Do you mean, do I want to go with YOU?"

"Yeah. Do you want to go with me?" If we were having this conversation today he would end that sentence with, "Knucklehead!" But at this point in the game he was not accustomed to calling me names.

My response: "Sure."

The date itself was fun. It's just images now, really. We went in a group that had invited Bart, but I didn't really know anyone else and we didn't stay with them.

The dance was happenin'! We danced, we laughed (I think--I don't really remember). We put in a guess on a gigantic canister full of an assortment of candy. We guessed the EXACT amount of candy and got to take that home with us to divvy up. It was a sign, don't you think?

Bart kissed my cheek when he dropped me off.

It was magical.

OK. So it wasn't MAGICAL.

The dance wasn't THAT great--it was just a dance.

I didn't love the way my hair was done (Sorry, Mo. I know you had good intentions) and I was in a DRESS, (we all know how I felt about dresses then), and Bart was in a SUIT (we all know how he feels about "real" clothes).

But we did have a good time, mostly because we were with each other.

And the rest, as they say, is history.

I'm glad to be making it with him.

Milk, It Does the Body Good.

I don't know about anyone else, but we drink a lot of MILK:

I'm talking a Gallon a day.

As I was growing up, I'd go to the store with my mom. People would look at her cart full of 6 gallons of milk in disbelief. The inevitable, "WOW! That's a lot of milk!" would follow. Mom would always smile her little smile, and as the exclaimer walked down the aisle and out of earshot she'd turn to me and say, "Let's not tell them that we do this twice a week, ok?"

I have four brothers and a sister--all of us milk drinkers, even if my mom had to cajole Brothers 1 & 3 to drink it with chocolate powder. That's a lot of people drinking milk in one house. I thought everyone was that way. Give or take a few gallons.

Fast Forward to NOW. I still drink milk. I married a milk drinker. Our children are milk drinkers. (No comments on the baby, please.) =)

Last night we were on our last 1/2 Gallon. I went to the store and put our usual 5 Gallons in my cart and wheeled it through check out. As I was exiting the store a lady stopped me and said,

"Do you freeze your milk?"

*smiling* "No. We just drink this much milk."

"Really? How long does it take you to go through that?"

"We usually drink a Gallon a day."

"WOW! That's a lot of milk! I've been trying to decide if I need to cut back from 1/2 Gallon to a Quart."

*smile. Exit*

Really?

It never ceases to amaze me how many people do NOT drink milk. Ever. I understand those who are intolerant of it or those who genuinely dislike it. And it's not like our family never drinks anything else. Granted, we don't drink Coffee or Tea, and we only have juice and pop as a treat once in a while. But what about the rest of people?

Don't they ever have cereal?

Cookies?

Chocolate Cake?

PB&Js?

Isn't it just about the most refreshing thing in the world to wash down your dinner with a nice, deep swig of delicious MILK?

Why don't People drink milk?

WHY?!

Things on my mind...

I've had some things on my mind of late. Not important things. Just STUFF. I know, I know. My high school English teacher (whom I LOVE, by the way) would tell me to come up with more "expensive" words to describe what I mean. But really, it is just STUFF.

Firstly, winter always makes me feel a little pent up.

So I've been reminiscing about these days:

Ah, how young and innocent we were. How simple life was. How good that water smelled, looked, tasted. It makes me want to take a vacation somewhere tropical.

And then there were times like these:

I love being out doors. Bart would tell you I have my limits of being "dirty" (and I'm not so proud that I will admit otherwise--I mean, what's wrong with being clean even while being recreational?) There's just something exhilarating about feeling your legs burning after a good volleyball game or hike. I love the fresh air in my lungs.

HOWEVER, we can't go on any big vacations right now. Mostly because of this

and this little cutie.

Secondly, I've been thinking a lot about these people:

That gets me thinking about where we will eventually end up and how close to family we will be. *sigh*

That thought leads to the actual place we will live. That, of course, is undetermined and in my experience, even when you THINK life is going to go a certain way and that you'll do this, and this, and this, it doesn't turn out that way. Ever. At least, that has been MY experience.

So I begin thinking about our white picket fence

and how we will decorate.

I don't give this much thought because I know virtually NOTHING about home decor.

THAT thought leads to how I need to learn more about things I know nothing about (shouldn't be hard, should it?) I need to improve my mind and get physically and mentally fit. I need to beautify my soul.




I know that thoughts of this kind will always be there. There will always be SOMETHING I want to do that I can't at the moment. Admittedly, it's very easy to get feeling sorry for myself. Waa, waa, waa.

That's why we have to take trips like these:

Yes, it's February. Yes, we have to wear jackets. But there is just nothing like getting out and playing in the sand. My thoughts were refreshed and rejuvenated as I listened to the ocean, the gulls, and felt the fresh air fill my lungs. Life is good. My family is healthy and happy.

*contented sigh*

Now, what was I saying?

Slump

What's wrong with me? I have no creative juices and nothing to say lately. And when I say nothing, I mean

Nothing.

Nada.

Zilch.

Squat.

A big fat ZERO.

That's truly sad because our kids do funny things every day. They say endearing, cute things, too. At the time they say it I think, "Aww. I want to remember that forever! I'll put it on the blog." They also do maddening things that make me think, "I should document that so SOMEDAY when each of you whip out the 'I was the perfect child' card, I'll have proof that you WEREN'T." But then I think, "Does anyone else care, but me? Their mother? The one who will love them always, no matter what?"

THEN I think, "Maybe I should write about something I have very strong feelings about, like... *enter indefinite pause and crickets chirping here*" Uh-huh.

So I'm not feelin' it. That's ok, right? I'll get my blogging on again someday soon. I promise.

Until then, here are some really cute pictures for you to see.

Charlie turned 5. FIVE! Can you believe it?

Apparently neither can he!

Tommy is by far the cutest baby on the block.

Anne and Jane got new do's.

This is just all cuteness.

And, as always, I am forever chasing these kids around.

Sorry there's no picture of our dear Cap'n Bart. That's what happens when you're the one behind the camera, I guess.

(For the record, he's still as hot as he ever was!)

A Recap of Festivities

Our Holiday Festivities began a few days before Christmas.

BART HAD VACATION TIME! WOO-HOO!

We began with cake and ice cream.

Jane turned 3.

The Jolly Fat Man made a pit-stop at our home making our li'l ones

BELIEVE.

Snow fell for the 3rd year in a row.

("We NEVER see snow here!" MY FOOT)

Unlike the other years, I was actually excited about it--mostly because they cancelled church for the 8" we had!

(Just don't tell my bishop, OK JOANNA??) :)

We relaxed, napped, and watched a gross amount of movies.

We taught Tommy about cookie-making and had an accident with the flour. It was EVERYWHERE--mainly on him.

We built a gingerbread house...

...poorly.

And now Tommy is 4 months old and growing fast!

Where does the time go?

Happy New Year, (late) everyone!