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Least favorite chore?

That would be a toss-up between laundry and mopping floors. I even prefer cleaning bathrooms to mopping floors!

Ask me anything

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Where is your favorite place you've lived?

That is a really hard question, because I have lived in so many places. I can tell you that I DID NOT like living in Florida, if that helps. But just about everywhere else I've lived, I've loved.

California is just a beautiful state, filled with all sorts of places to go, and things to see. Yosemite, Monterrey Bay, and San Francisco were just a few of the places I loved to visit. I was also married in California, so that's something special there, as well.

I lived in Utah for a time. I loved the fall, winter and spring, but the summers were just a bit hot, and the dorms didn't have a/c, so that was kind of miserable. Summer wasn't too bad once I moved into air-conditioning, though. And the mountains! Oh. My. GOSH! Gorgeous! I miss them.

I absolutely adore Georgia right now. Summertime, not so much, what with the bugs and humidity and bugs and humidity and bugs, but the other three seasons are downright pleasant! Plus the history here is so amazing. And the trees. There are literally trees EVERYWHERE. And just about everyone is polite. "Southern charm" is most definitely not a myth. I really am going to miss the South when we move.

Oh! The only thing Florida has going for it is Orlando. The end.

Ask me anything

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Who would win in a fight: pirates or ninjas?

I would have to say ninjas. Pirates aren't exactly known for their stealth. Unless their undead and can walk underwater. Which is cool.

What was the happiest moment in your life?

This would have to be split five ways: The day I was married and the births of each of my four kids. /sap

What are you most excited about right now?

CHRISTMAS!!! Oh my gosh, I can't even stand it! I might as well be a kid, I'm so excited! And it isn't even about the presents. I just love this time of year, what with all of the happiness floating around. *happy sigh*

Ask me anything

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What We've Been Up to This Past Month

Just as a prologue: We have had somebody sick in our house since before Halloween. Just sayin'.

As a lot of you know, we went to California to see Jarum's sister get married and to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Boyers. We pretty much had three weeks notice which isn't all that much time to get ready. Needless to say it was a very stressful couple of weeks.

Four weeks before the trip everybody got sick with some kind of fever/cold. Most of us had a cough that went away, but for some reason, Josh just wasn't losing the cough. I took him in three weeks before the trip (BT) and the nurse practitioner's init

ial diagnosis was the croup. Yeah. Whatever. I took him in a few days later (two weeks BT) and a DOCTOR diagnosed him with pneumonia. That's right. Pneumonia! We immediately got him on antibiotics. Took him in a week later (Monday BT) and all was well. Unfortunately Jacob was showing signs of a fever and a cough. The day before the trip I took him in to make sure that he didn't have swine flu and was okay to fly. Turns out he had PNEUMONIA! Yep. Got him on antibiotics and a steroid.

Here we turn to our flight out West. We were supposed to leave at 6:45am EST, get to Houston at 8:45am CST, fly out of Houston at 9:30am CST and get to Sacramento at 11:30am PST. Yeah. That so didn't happen. Due to mechanical problems with o

ur very first flight, we missed our connection in Houston and had to stay there for TWELVE HOURS to catch the next flight to Sacramento. So, instead of getting to California at 11:3oam PST, we got there at 11:30PM PST. We were so tired. Thank goodness for the USO! (For more details on this, see previous post)

We got to California and had a blast staying at Jarum's br

other's house. We laughed so hard just about every night that we think we may have tightened our abs just a little bit. The kids had so much fun playing with their cousins, and we had a very nice time at the wedding, seeing more Aunts and Uncles, and visiting with Jarum's parents. We celebrated three birthdays and Thanksgiving as well. Crazy busy! It was also so beautiful in California. I'd forgotten what a pretty state it is.

While we were in California (five days into the trip) Kaylee started showing signs of a fever and a cough. Yep. We took her into Urgent Care and guess what she had. WRONG! It wasn't pneumonia! It was bronchitis and an ear infection! Antibiotics.

On Thanksgiving (two days after Kaylee went to Urgent

Care) I was back there with Joshua. Ear infection. Antibiotics.

We flew home on Black Friday. The kids did really well on the flight, considering Josh was only 12 hours into his antibiotic treatment. We did have a bit of trouble landing in Dulles, though. There were 50-60 mph winds hitting the airport. Needless to say four of the six of us had to use our barf bags. I won't go into details, but one of the little o

nes didn't really make it into the bag. I am so sorry, airplane cleaners! However, we were not the only ones on the flight to have to use those little bags, so that should just tell you how bumpy that landing was. We had to use up all of our wipes just cleaning up one of the kids, and wouldn't you know it, on our connecting flight back to Savannah, Josh exploded out of his diaper. No problem, I thought. I'll just use the paper towels in the lavatory, and I've got extra clothes for him. Really, no problem. WRONG! When I got to the lavatory, there was a plastic bag over the faucet and packages of moist towelettes in the sink. !!!! I think I used, like, nine of them. Note to self: Bring extra wipes. Way more than you think you m

ight ever need.

We made it home safe and sound, no problems. The house was still here, the pets were glad to see us. It was so nice to be home!

On Saturday we got our Christmas Tree. We had a blast going to the Christmas Tree farm. We found a tree right away and all of the kids helped Jarum cut it down. We then went on a hayride, saw some farm animals, and then came home. By the end of the day we had all of the Christmas decorations up, the tree done, and we watched BYU bea

t Utah.

Then Sunday came.

After church Matthew wasn't looking so well. In fact, he was hot! 101F. (Have you been keeping track of everyone who has gotten sick? Because I don't think I even know anymore!) Since the CDC has been suggesting that those with fevers stay home until they have been fever-free for 24 hours, Matthew didn't go to school on Monday. He was very sad. He was fever-free for most of the morning but then it came back, rearing its ugly head in the afternoon. Seriously! So no school for him on Tuesday, either. He did, however, manage to

stay all better all of Tuesday, which brings us to today.

Matt is back at school.

I'm not feeling so well.

Can I please go on vacation?

Some pictures for your enjoyment:

In the USO

He decided he needed a nap 15 minutes before we had to board for our flight. D'oh!

This isn't the most flattering picture of me (I'm really not that big) but Jarum was hot, so I had to post it. :D

Jarum's brother Chris and his wife Jill. Don't they look like they're taking a prom picture? Classic!

At Grandma and Grandpa Boyer's house

We visited the very first A&W restaurant EVER. Yeah. Be jealous.

The kids playing freeze tag with Jill's younger brothers and sisters.

Kaylee working the Christmas Tree Farm

See the Gnome on top? See it!? I still get the giggles every time I go in there.

Joshy's nursery teacher is absolutely the best. She helped them make these as they were learning about putting on the "Armor of God."

Our can rotation/storage system. We put it together last night. We can't seem to stop taking a can out and watching it roll through. It is pretty cool. And we know the thing on the bottom is upside down. Being the frugal people we are, we bought a floor-model. :)

Houston

As of right now we have been in the Houston airport for the last seven hours and still have another three hours to go. Why, you ask? Because we were lucky enough to book a flight that had mechanical problems instead of no mechanical problems. It took off from Savannah an hour and a half later than scheduled, thus making us miss our connecting flight in Houston. So, instead of getting to California at 11:21am WST we are now going to get to California at 11:15pm, WST standard time. To put it in perspective, we have been up since 3am EST. We will probably walk through the door of Chris and Jill's house around midnight WST.

Do the math.

However, as hard as this has been, it hasn't been absolutely horrible. Due to Jarum's active duty military status, we did not have to pay for any checked luggage, thereby saving us a tidy sum of money for the whole trip. We have also been able to spend most of the time at a newly remodeled USO. I don't know what we would've done without the USO, that is for sure! The people who have been working here (for the both shifts we have been here) have been absolutely wonderful! They have been so kind, and so helpful with the kids. We almost even had a Bertar, I mean Guitar, Hero tournament! Jarum and I were also even able to get some staggared power naps. THANK YOU, USO!

I also have to give huge kudos to the kids. They have been wonderful, given the circumstances. They have been well-behaved and almost completely whine-free. Although, as of this writing, we have been going for quite some time without naps, so they are starting to lose it just a little bit. But it could be worse. I'm not complaining. THANK YOU FOR BEING AWESOME, KIDS!

Seriously, though, I can't wait to lie down and go to bed tonight. Really. I just want to sleep. That is all.

I just hope the airline doesn't lose our luggage. :p

(Jarum thinks I just jinxed us.)

Thanksgiving Poem

I like Thanksgiving a lot,

I like to see the turkey fresh out of the pot.

Carrots and lettuce and pie, oh my!

When I'm stuffed with food,

I feel like I would die.

I'm thankful for clothes,

And my long garden hose.

But when it is cold,

I cannot feel my toes!

We're in November and next is December,

I don't want to name the rest.

I still like Halloween and Christmas,

But I think Thanksgiving's the best!

Jacob Boyer - 4th Grade

Jacob the Writer

Our Jacob has become quite the writer over the years. I didn't really know it until he started bringing home his writing assignments from school. They often make me laugh, and I have started saving them in his school folder. Here is his latest piece:

(no corrections have been made and all of the spelling and punctuation are typed as written by Jacob)

One day when I came to school there was a big, lumpy sack on the teacher's desk. When the teacher left, the sack started to move. Then it burst open and thick, green blobs shot out. I was covered in it.

Then I saw a brown thing climb out. It was a big turantula! We all screamed and ran out the door. When the teacher came back she said, "Where did the class go?" Then she saw the spider.

"AAAH!" she screamed and ran out the door. Me, Aidan, and Cameron P. are best friends. We didn't know what to do. Then we saw the spider come out of the room. It saw us and ran at us. "Come on," I shouted, "Let's get out of here!" We ran as fast as we could to the doors. We saw the teacher's car speeding away. We hid inside a bush right before the spider came out.

"I've got it," I whispered.

"What?" asked Cameron a little louder then we wanted. The spider looked our way and started walking slowly to us.

"Are there any cliffs around here?" I asked.

"Yeah, there's one down the street," said Aiden.

"Why?" Cameron asked.

"You'll see," I said.

"1, 2, 3 RUN!" I yelled. We ran to the cliff.

"Turn around when you get to the edge," I said. We did. When the spider tried, it fell off. We were safe. When the spider hit the ground it started squealing.

"Aww, cannot get your ship out," I said. We laughed.

Isn't it great? I love it! (says a proud Mom!)

Weather

I'm just curious: what's the weather like for everyone? We've been experiencing warmer temperatures for the last week, but tomorrow the high will barely break 60F. And it has been raining.

So. Whatca feelin'?

I could have sworn I'd already posted today, but I suppose I was wrong. Things are going much better, today. No one is puking and the coughing is significantly less frequent. Everyone seems to be in a much better mood. Everyone, that is, except for me. I have a sore throat. :p. Here's hoping that it's just a sympathy sore throat!

Dying

We are now on our third straight week of at least one of the children being sick. Josh has had a cough for the last three weeks, took him into the Dr.'s last Wednesday and was told it was the croup. Decided to take him in again today due to no improvement and found out that it is, in fact, pneumonia. Yeah. Good times. He's on his way to recovery (THANK YOU, ANTIBIOTICS!) and we are all happy.

This afternoon Jacob complained of a headache and promptly threw up. He has since been asleep (as of this writing) since 3:30pm EST. *sigh*

California, here we come!

I am TIRED!!!

'nuff said.

A Few Things...

I forgot to post the pumpkins. Thank goodness for pseudo-potato head decorations! WHEEEEE!

Also, the little green monster/goblin pumpkin is Kaylee's and award-winning for "scariest pumpkin." Congratulations, Kaylee!

And this is for my mother. And everyone else who has been whining about not seeing the dog in a while. This is the best shot we had of her, as she kept trying to give loves to the camera. :)

Whew!

I almost completely forgot to post today! I was going to post pics of our pumpkins, or perhaps a pic of my dog, but the following will have to do:

I LOVE THE FALL!

The End.

Hinesville Ward Relief Society Super Saturday 2009

This Blog Entry is for those in the Hinesville Ward Relief Society wishing to sign up for Super Saturday on November 14, 2009

Remember, these are all being provided free of charge, so please select only three and either sign up at the church, or in the form sent out to all Relief Society Sisters via email.

Journal Jar

Do you ever give your journal a blank look and think "I have no idea what to write today!"? Then fret no longer. This Journal Jar is full of ideas designed to aid you in your record keeping. Rest assured that your posterity will love reading about how you became engaged, how you spent your holidays when you were a child, or where you were during key events of past decades!

Felt Gingerbread Man

No, you don't have to run after this one! A few buttons, some stitching, a bit of stuffing and voila! A simple decoration or gift!

Felt Mitten

This very simple project brings the added touch of a Country Christmas to your home. Use it as an ornament, or stuff it with candy and give it as a gift!

Pompom Snowman

This cutie-patootie is made from yarn, colored pipe cleaners, and fluff balls. He's a cheerful addition to anyone's Winter decor!

"Ity Virtues" Embroidery

This simple embroidery project allows you to display your commitment to living a virtuous life. Based on the talk given by Bishop Burton in the October 2009 General Conference. Custom colors available. Choose one from six different flowers, each representing a specific virtue.

(frame NOT included)

Saving Words For Posterity

For those of you out there who have children this will be old hat to you. For those of you who don't, this might be slightly amusing. Or the complete opposite. I leave that up to you.

My kids have all gone through phases of mispronouncing various words or just saying words that are way beyond their age level. Tonight, for your reading pleasure, here are a few of my favorites:

Periodontology (taught to each kid as soon as they could talk)

Hurnicane

Funder (Thunder)

Pasketti (Spaghetti)

Pinano (Piano)

Actually

Serbannah (Savannah)

Downtown Dis-A-ny

According to my research...

Be-caved (Decayed)

Josh: Silence! I Keel You!

And here are two conversations that I had with my sweet two year old Josh, just this evening

(At the Hospital)

Josh: What is this area for?

Me: For people getting medicine.

Josh: What is this area for?

Me: The cafeteria.

Josh: What is this area for?

(You get the idea)

Me: Joshy, how old are you?

Josh: (pause) I'mmmmmmmmmmmm BIG!

And to end this evening's blog post, I give you some classic Matthew:

Me: Matt, why aren't you in bed?

Matt: I wanted to show Aunt Megan my Bertar.

Me and Megan: *blank stares*

Megan: What?

Matt: My Bertar. You know, for "Bertar Hero". *proceeds to sing "I Wanna Rock and Roll All Night"*

(For video of the above CLICK HERE)

Classic.

Paradigm Shift

I walked in the door about 30 minutes ago, after having been at a meeting, to find utter chaos. The kids were still awake, the house was a mess, and my husband was asleep in the bed (which was understandable, seeing as he had a MONSTER headache). Anyway, on any other day this would have perturbed me to no end (did you see that, Melissa?? I used "perturbed"!). However, I was not at all upset. I don't know why, seeing as this would usually set me off in a rant about how nobody cares about our house but me, and why am I the only one to clean, yada yada yada. I just calmly asked the older kids to get the younger kids ready, and voila! Kids in bed in ten minutes.

I think the biggest thing is is that I don't really care about the house being messy. I usually hate having the living room messy at bed time, especially. I like to wake up to a clean house. Tonight? Meh. I now decree that I am going to take this opportunity to put on my jammies, curl up on the couch, and catch up on some TV shows I've missed, all whilst eating a tiny cup of Ben and Jerry's Chocolate Fudge Brownie.

The mess will still be there in the morning for me. Waiting. I think it just wants me to feel as though I'm needed and have purpose to my life. Yeah, my messes tend to be thoughtful like that.

*sigh*

Today was definitely a Monday kind of day. I suppose that is appropriate, seeing as it was a Monday, but it was a Monday kind of Monday. All I know is that I worked hard all day to get things done, and it seems as though I have nothing to show for it. Ever had that happen to you? Yeah, I know. It's kinda depressing.

Maybe I should only post in the mornings when I have the pep and energ.... WAIT A MINUTE! WHEN DID I BECOME A MORNING PERSON!?

Halloweeeeeeeeeeeeeen

And here is Halloween!

This is a picture of Josh right after I finished putting on his face paint. I knew I had to take it then or else I would not get a good pic of him. :D

Three of four. Josh was being cranky and refused to pose.

Jacob as Commander Cody (I think. He's a Clone Trooper)

Kaylee the Kitty

Harry Potter!

Josh finally consented to pose once at the Church's Trunk or Treat, but as you can see, most of his nose and mouth makeup are gone.

Vampire Dad and Harry Potter. If you look closely, you can see Jarum's teeth. He made those himself. Yeah, it's cool being a dentist!

The truck, although Jake is sitting in front of a lot of it. Jarum gave out toothbrushes along with the candy. And, if you look closely in the back, you'll see a sign I found that day that read "Dracula's Dental Care - Free Checkups" TEEHEE I just had to get it!

The jars. I love these jars. I can't wait for Halloween next year, solely to get the jars out again. ;)

I, of course, was a party pooper and just wore my witch hat from last year. Good times.

Oh, and good luck to all of my peeps who are participating in NaNoWriMo! Crank out those novels! I think the name "Naomi" or "Nomes" is awesome for a strong, female character. Just sayin'.

Pumpkin Patch 2009

We discovered a Pumpking (or Punkin) Patch not too far away from where we live, so we decided to take the kids and go have some fun! There were rides, games, a playground and bounce house, not to mention a hay ride to the actual Patch. I think we'll be going again next year. We had a blast!

My Day Thus Far

Sent three kids to school
Done three loads of laundry
Folded two loads of laundry
Baked bread (my house smells so GOOD)
Read stories to Josh (and watched as he carried more and more out into the living room)
Put books away :p
Cast-on a new knitting project. Can't say what it is, as it's a Christmas present for someone very very lucky! :)
Checked Leaky mail
Discovered all of the Crafty Witches birthdays, save one.
Chatted with friends

It is now 10:47am and I have been up since 6:30am. How is your day going?

More Knitting

I've finished a few more projects.

First, I realized that I desperately needed something to corral the bath toys, so:


I also started this Hufflepuff scarf for Matthew months ago, so I figured I'd better complete it. YAY!

My Life and I are Made of Fail Today

All I want is a clean house. Is this too much to ask? I don't think so.

My internet connection keeps going in and out. I've had a tech guy over three times in the last three weeks, to no avail. It might be time to get a new ISP.

I have about a thousand things on my to-do list, and I can't stop knitting! While knitting is a good thing, I need to keep my priorities straight. First, a clean and organized house, and then i can knit!

I unintentionally hurt a very dear friend's feelings today. I had taken steps to do just the opposite, but it blew up in my face.

To my dear friend, I cannot begin to express how deeply sorry I am. I love you and cherish our friendship. I did not mean to hurt you, and please believe that it was your feelings that I had meant to protect, rather than damage. You were all I thought about. I hope that you can forgive me and be happy again.

I am made of fail.

Inspiration

As many of you have already seen my Gnome for my DADA class for the House Cup (see a few entries down) I thought it would be nice to show you where I got my inspiration.

CLICK ME!

This was done by a dear friend of mine, Snakey. Well, that's not really her name, but when I first met her online, her screen name was (and still is in a lot of places) Anguinea. She likes snakes. Yeah, I don't get it either. Regardless, she's awesome and I loved her mandrake, so it made me realize that I can in fact knit more than scarves and dishcloths. Thanks, Snakey! *bite*

And, until Christmas, my Grumpy Gnome lives here:

First Day of School Pics 2009!

Who's ready for school?

WE ARE!

Waiting patiently for the bus.

HERE IT COMES!

And this is how Joshua coped with being the only one at home with Mommy.

And are we all happy that things are back on the school schedule? Yes. Yes we are. :)