Yearly Update

I decided I had better do something with my hands, or I was going to be snacking on chicken wontons all night long. I am still behind a couple of ideas for posts, but I can't guarantee full attention on my writing, since I'm home with the baby while Perry is out getting my present (hopefully he can find it, lol), so I'll have to do something that won't suffer from getting up every 2 minutes.


***For some odd reason, I can't upload our family picture, even though Perry was able to. I have tried every way imaginable to get it and am left with this as the only option: this

2006 for the Perry John Family

Caleb- Caleb turned 8 this year and was baptized. He also started Cub Scouts, which he really likes. He's excited for his first pine wood derby next month (Perry's bugging me for some power tools for that one). School is going pretty good. He's in the gifted class once a week. He hates finishing the worksheets in class, though. I can tell he's going to be one of those "aces the tests but are still failing the class because he won't do the homework" types. He loves video games and all things Star Wars. He tries to be a big helper most of the time, even if he isn't very appreciated all of the time by his youngest sibiling.

Mischa- Mischa turned 6 and is the biggest reader. If it's a book, she's reading it (we caught her reading about diaper rash in my What to Expect the First Year book). She is in the gifted class, too, and is a "perfect" student, according to her teacher. She loves being cute and tries to be her best always.

Joshua- Our 4-year-old clown. He is just so fun to be around. He loves to count things. He's also really into video games and Star Wars, too (I think his brother is responsible for that). He's a real love bug, and I always get a quick cuddle first thing in the morning before his "pop-tarts and Disney channel please".

Anneliese- Well on her way to turning 2 in March, she's had quite the year. She loves being a helper. And she is a HUGE cuddle bug. Not as much as last year, since she has things to do now, but I think she'd rather be held most of the time. She isnt' talking too much, so we're teaching her a little sign language here and there. She's up to 9 teeth and 20 lbs. She's eating a lot better now (she wouldn't do textures until 18 months old). She loves chocolate and strawberry milk. She likes to imitate her brothers and sister. Josh Josh is her favourite right now. She loves it when she wakes up before him and gets to climb into bed with him to wake him up.

Me- Busy as ever. Both Cub Scouts and Brownies are going well. Room parent and PTA stuff is going well. I'm babysitting after school for the neighbours on both sides of us. It's been kind of crazy for me, and I'm really missing "me" time to unwind. I think when Anneliese starts playing more by herself and doesn't want up on my lap everytime I sit down, it'll get better. I'm enjoying living close to my dad and the opportunity we have for the kids to know their "Oompah" better. I'm enjoying my sewing lessons, too.

Perry- Working hard, traveling a lot. Losing weight like crazy (totally jealous about that one). He's teaching the 17-18 year-old Sunday School class at church. I won't say much more and make him blog about it.

Overall, it's been a good year. Some things I wouldn't want to go through again, some things I'm sad won't happen again, some things to look forward to. Now bring on those wontons!

The Most Awesome Husband in the World

To say things have been crazy around here lately would be an understatement. A lot has fallen by the wayside as I get things done by their deadlines. Housework would be one of those things. On his day off yesterday, while I was getting things finalized for the class party that afternoon, Perry worked his butt off cleaning. I had more than a twinge of guilt when Michaela walked into the house after school and said, "Wow, it's clean in here!". Thank you so much for your hard work, honey.

An Eye for Detail

Michaela coloured this Christmas tree last night. The very top of the tree is light green because the star was glowing onto the tree.

Life Is Too Busy

I've been wanting to blog since Sunday, but everything has been coming at me fast and furious. I was hoping for a slow down, but there are cookies that need to be baked on Thursday, which hopefully will all be delivered by Friday or Saturday. I had a class party today and a Cub Scout party tomorrow, so I'm dead. I just thought I'd share the little funny that Joshua told us at dinner.

"Remember, mommy, don't eat the spicy round hot dogs."
"Okay, Josh. Why not?"
"Because the wind comes."
I don't think I want to know where this wind comes from, do you?
Ah, the mind of a four year-old.

For My Sister

I would probably post more if you commented more, lol! And you need to start a blog or you suck. Plus, you get to share cute pictures of your kids.

Or..........

You get to embarass your sister with her 7th grade picture. Love ya!!

Rudolph's Nose Isn't the Only Red Thing This Time of Year

Silent night,
Holy night.
All is calm,
All is bright.
Round yon virgin,
Mother and child...

"Mom," a little voice in the back of the car pipes up, "what's a virgin?".
"This one's yours, " my ever so helpful husband tells me. Thanks. Thanks a lot. As I mull over how to explain to my 6 year old daughter this little Christmas lesson that wasn't exactly in my holiday to do list for this year, we see something out the window and mama gets a pass. Until last night.
I had seen pictures of a show on the National Geographic Channel called In the Womb, about animal development. Once we sat down and watched it, even I, a pre-vet student, learned some really cool things. But the fun of how we discovered it was on. I was flipping through the channels, trying to find a Christmas special for the kids. Michaela was the main driving force on this, so she was watching the screen intently. We pass a shot of white squiggly things swimming. I instantly recognize the little guys and keep flipping, making a mental note to come back after the Amazing Race and watch the show. "No, no, mommy, go back to the white things. I want to watch that!". I flip back, and have to do a little sperm and egg talk real quick. I am spared the embarrassment of explaining how the sperm gets there, however, as the show does a little "flashback" of that very thing with Golden Retrievers. The act itself was very brief, but in dogs, the male is "tied" to the female from 5 to 20 minutes. Fortunately, seeing two dogs standing end to end was too funny for Mischa to ask further questions. My nightmare was that she was going to go to school and share her new found knowledge with everyone. I'm sure that would be a phone call that was just as awkward to make as to receive, lol.

Really Neat Website

For the most beautiful pictures of snowflakes, check out Dr. Kenneth Libbrecht's website. Better Homes and Gardens has a bunch of ideas for using his pictures- either printed out onto cards, or onto sticker paper to stick onto your presents. Chances are you'll see his photography this Christmas in your mail- four of his designs were chosen by the Post Office for their holiday stamps.

Third Times a Charm

I went to bed Saturday night with the thoughts of hot dogs going through my head. Thought I would share my yummiest hot dog recipe ( broiled Ball Park franks on a toasted buttered bun, topped with melted sharp cheddar cheese and sour cream), how I absolutely can't stand boiled hot dogs but how, when I was younger, would eat uncooked Oscar Meyer hot dogs (the texture finally did me in), and how I can practically eat a whole package of hot dogs (including buns) in one sitting if they're done on a campfire.
I never had a chance to post on Sunday, and went to bed Sunday night with a whole different post in my head. It's too much to get into right now, since I don't have time to do it justice.
Leave it to Caleb (who lost his 3rd tooth last night) and Mischa, though, to give me something. We were finally (their impatience, not mine) getting around to putting ornaments on the tree. Anneliese was starting to get into it, too. She would get mad when the other kids would take her ornaments away from her to hang on the tree. Anyway, Caleb and Mischa were having a great planning session how they were going to be missionaries and go up to the North Pole and teach Santa the Gospel. I hope they remember their parkas, lol!

Opposite Day (Cuz I Got Nuthin')

Today and yesterday were all grey and yucky. I went out to the bus stop yesterday afternoon and got rained on. It was raining this morning, too. I'm glad I took this picture to remind me how pretty the day can be. I don't know if it's the weather, or what, but I've been a little down lately. Even the nonstop Christmas carols on the radio have been able to get me in the spirit of the season. We're putting our tree up tonight (we'll probably do the ornaments tomorrow, but a bare tree with lights is one of the prettiest things). This ought to be a fun Christmas this year, though, since this is really the first Christmas that Anneliese will be able to get some of the things going on. Caleb has now declared it the best Christmas ever. All based on a half put together tree. Glad to see there aren't any high expectations for decorations around here, lol!

Bad Mama Moments

Poor little Liese. She has been such a pill lately. Wanting up, wanting down, all that fun stuff. She wants to nurse, I let her, she then decides to switch sides, kick her legs while I'm trying to type, or falls asleep and starts biting down (which causes me to pry her mouth open really quick, thereby waking her up and starting the whole thing over again). Perry discovered the answer to the mystery of why she was such a grump- in addition to the eye tooth that was starting to peek through, and the other eye tooth that might be breaking through in the next few weeks, she was getting two molars coming in. I feel like such a bad mama for being short with her. Poor little baby!

Locks of Love

I have donated my hair twice to Locks of Love. The first time, I came home and Caleb burst into tears. I showed him the website and where mommy's hair was going to go and he thought it was pretty cool. Today my daughter, Michaela, joined me in my donations. She has had the longest, prettiest, blonde hair forever. She got it trimmed once, but that's been it in all of her 6 years. I was going in for to get a few inches off and asked if she wanted to go. She went and thought it was the neatest thing. She got just over 10 inches cut off.

Before


After

No Words

Face Fun

My sister sent me a fun link- myheritage where you can upload your picture and it tells you what celebrities you look like. Using this picture:

I got the following results:
Annette Bening (74%)
Claudia Schiffer (72%)
Norkys Batista? (70%)
Toni Morrison (68%)
Christie Brinkley (66%)
Cat Deeley (66%)
Jang Nara? (66%)

This site is my new best friend.

Frustrated

I am so ticked I could spit. Yay imagery! This whole girl scouts thing is driving me crazy. We have a troop treasurer, and so far her only job has been to open an account. She got the position in May. We still have no account. I have asked her several times, and have even said that if she was too busy (since she's the PTA treasurer for our local school), I could open the account, no problem. Now we have a problem. We had 3 girls join the troop and they aren't registered because we had all the parents make out checks to the troop. And so the checks sit in my house. With all the paperwork, ready to go. I have already written a check to cover one of our activities that the troop was going to pay for, and now it looks like I'm going to have to do the same for this. My service unit director is going crazy, and rightly so, because the new girls aren't covered by girl scout insurance. I'm going crazy because I delegated and what's the point of delegating if I have to basically do it myself through nagging? I've emailed her several times, asking what she needs. I emailed her one form, then she finds out that she needs the checks to open the account. I've offered to drop them off at her house or at the school, whatever works for her. Then my co-leader forwards me an email the treasurer sent her, basically saying that she (the treasurer) is confused at what we need to do. I'm done. I called the service unit registrar to see if she has a membership form that I need, but no one has called me back. Now it looks like I have to call the service unit director who isn't too happy with me to get the form from her. I'm just not in the mood to be in trouble, especially since it isn't my fault.

Pretty close

Your Five Factor Personality Profile

Extroversion: You have low extroversion. You are quiet and reserved in most social situations. A low key, laid back lifestyle is important to you. You tend to bond slowly, over time, with one or two people. Conscientiousness: You have high conscientiousness. Intelligent and reliable, you tend to succeed in life. Most things in your life are organized and planned well. But you borderline on being a total perfectionist. Agreeableness: You have medium agreeableness. You're generally a friendly and trusting person. But you also have a healthy dose of cynicism. You get along well with others, as long as they play fair. Neuroticism: You have medium neuroticism. You're generally cool and collected, but sometimes you do panic. Little worries or problems can consume you, draining your energy. Your life is pretty smooth, but there's a few emotional bumps you'd like to get rid of. Openness to experience: Your openness to new experiences is low. You're a pretty conservative person, and you favor what's socially acceptable. You think that change for novelty's sake is a very bad idea. While some may see this as boring, many see you as dependable and wise.

The Five Factor Personality Test

Four years

Four years ago I went into the hospital to give birth to baby #3, our second son. Joshua has been such a joy in our lives. My mother told me I could stop after Michaela, since I had a boy and a girl. I'm so glad I didn't. Josh Josh has been more of a joy than I could ever imagine. He is so happy, and that happiness is contagious. He's probably gotten away with more than he should have over the years. He loves his video games and can sing everyone's theme song in Star Wars. He loves to look at animals, but doesn't want them within a 10 foot radius of himself.

A thank you, 8 Brownies, and a belated birthday and anniversary

I just wanted to say thank you to all those who have served in our military. Some of you have been to hell and back, just so I can have peace of mind when I tuck my kids into bed on the other side of the world. Thank you.

Last night my Brownie co-leader and I took our girls out to Target for our service project. We adopted 2 little girls from the Appalachians. Six of the girls were ours, 2 were older sisters of two of the girls. Near the end, it became more of a "ooh, I want that" trip, but we ended up not being kicked out of Target and our two little girls are going to have a really great Christmas.

Yesterday was a complete beast. I helped Caleb's teacher do some copying in the morning. Came home, ate, and went to a neighbourhood playgroup. We ended up staying til it was almost time for the kids to get off the bus, then it was time to clean up a little, make dinner, then head out to Target. Needless to say, having a few minutes on the computer were hard to come by. I wanted to wish a belated birthday to the Marine Corps. Semper fi!

Yesterday was another big day. 16 years have passed since I became a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. I can't believe it's been that long. I can't even imagine what my life would be like if I hadn't been baptized. Well, the baby's crying on me and grabbing at my arm, so typing is next to impossible. I'll have to write my conversion story another time.

Stone Mountain

The kids love going to Stone Mountain. We had a family pass last year and it was well used. We didn't do it again this year, and so when Perry's office picnic was being held there, the kids were all excited. We had a really great time. Michaela participated in the dance contest and there was tons of great food, and Joshua won a round of BINGO.

A Miracle? For Me?

I was reading my sister-in-law's blog the other day. She had experienced a miracle of her own. Perry and I were thrilled for them, as they deserve all the good things that come to them. Da Momma at Motherhood Is Not For Wimps had been experiencing some pretty awesome things in her life, too. Little did I know that I was next in line to have that touch of divinity in my life. Now before I tell you about my miracle, I need to set the stage. Being Election Day, there is no school. Four kids home. It's pretty much going to be a rainy day all day. Perry is going out of town this afternoon, so he has to vote in the morning. I went with him, and we took turns going in and sitting in the van with the kids. Since he went in late, and is leaving early, coming home to help me really isn't an option (I know, you'd come if I really needed you, but I'd feel so overwhelming guilty, Honey). I had had some flu-like thing over the weekend and had spent yesterday lying on the living room floor, so queasy I almost thought I was pregnant again. Today, however, all I had was a sore throat. So, the scene is now set. Three bored kids (Michaela insists she wasn't bored), stuck in the house, and a mom that, although feeling better, is having that getting better energy drain thing going on. It was at this moment in my life that God blessed me. And He blessed me-













with poo.

Yes, poo. And I was happy with the poo. Now that I've lost any reader that doesn't know me, or isn't a mommy, let me explain. This wasn't my poo. Oh no, I'm not into spilling every secret that happens to me. This blog exists more for the future. Like when my kids' friends are googling their names, Anneliese will forever be linked to poo. Anneliese is weaning herself from nursing and eating more and more solids. However, she really hasn't started to up her liquid intake all that much. Lately, you can tell when she's filling a diaper. 99% of the time, we giggle at her little face, all focused on the task at hand. This time, however, was that dreaded 1% of the time. Poor little Anneliese was having a hard time at this one. She was crying and moving all over the place. She didn't want to be held, couldn't be distracted, anything. It was heartbreaking to me. When I went to her, I could smell what was bothering her. By this time, 15 minutes had passed and she was exhausted, so her crying had stopped. I went to change her diaper, and it looked like she was giving birth. The poo was crowning, but it wasn't going anywhere. I put her diaper back on and nursed her, feeling like that might be enough pain relief and relaxation that she could finish the job. Nope. I called a friend of mine who has 4 kids, thinking the more kids, the greater the likelihood of a mutual experience. She hadn't, but luckily her friend with 5 kids was over and she said that she had used a Q-tip dipped in Vaseline to lube up the area a few times and that had always worked. I had both of those things in the house (yay! no going to Wal-Mart in the rain!). Nada. About 15 minutes later, I gave her a triple dose. Nada. Michaela came over and suggested we pray. She prayed for us. I tried to gently scoop some out with the Q-tip, hoping to get rid of the stuck point. I succeeded in letting it slide back in. Relieved of the obvious pain, Anneliese quieted down and I nursed her again. She slept for about 30 minutes. I'm trying to look up on the internet anything else I can do, short of taking her to the doctor (that phone call would grant us instant name recogition for the next 16 and a half years of Anneliese's pediatrician-going life). After her nap, she went right back into the crying and crouching again. I started looking up things in my parenting books, and they give the Vaseline thing and to call the doctor before giving an enema. Before I call the doctor, I picked her up around her middle, hoping to give some help through pressure. It worked. I am now the proud grandma to a Snickers bar. That poor kid! She was up and dancing and singing minutes after I changed her diaper, so her little tushy doesn't seem to have any long-lasting soreness going on. I proudly announced to her siblings that we had a successful poo, and Michaela started telling me that this was a miracle. And although most miracles are small, and not very easy to notice when they're happening, God knows how to give us exactly what we need. I would start thinking of a way to need a new car, but I would probably end up with a couple of miracles bringing me to my living room floor again with a new 15 passenger van sitting in the driveway. No thanks, I like my poo. And I am very thankful for it.

Quick quiz

***Your Career Personality: Detail-Oriented, Observant, and Hard-Working***
Your Ideal Careers:
Designer
Family counselor
Independent store owner
Interior decorator
Museum curator
Nurse
Preschool teachers
Social worker
Stay at home parent
Teacher
The Quick and Dirty Career Testhttp://www.blogthings.com/quickanddirtycareertest/