All the Stones and Pebbles

Brave

2012-01-02T08:58:00.000-07:00

Chloe Turns 6

2009-12-01T15:35:00.005-07:00

So I've been really sick with a "post viral cough" which means I've feel yucky but I'm not really sick nor am I contagious sooooooo I didn't get the blog updated last week and now I'm 2 weeks behind. For those of you asking "Why is she telling me this?" I'll tell you.

I've never been good at journaling. I'm not very good at scrapbooking. In fact, the last pictures that I printed from my digital camera were printed in 2007. That means I have 2 years worth of events stored on a hard drive or USB stick somewhere floating around letting me forget what actually happened. I'm really trying to remedy this bad habit. So my goal starting in November was to update the Blog at least once a week. That way there would be at least some record of my life. So here is my Dear Diary I'm sorry I haven't written to you in _______ but here goes excuse out of the way.

___________________________________________________________

On November, 19 2009 Chloe turned 6. She has been in our family 6 whole years. I can not believe it. She started Kindergarten this year. At her parent teacher conference she was excelling at everything. The only comment that her teacher had was "We are working on Chloe not always having to be in charge." Oh why do we pass off our bad habits to our children.

Chloe is sure of herself. She is brave. She is a kind friend. She is always making sure that everyone is included. She loves when smaller kids are over at our house so that she can take care of them. Thanks to a wonderful "T" Chloe is taking and loving every second of dance. She is growing up to be a beautiful and thoughtful girl.

Happy Birthday Chloe - Even if it is 2 weeks late.

TOFW and Sweet Assurance

2009-12-01T14:59:00.004-07:00

Are you in the know? Do you know the joy that the 4 letters TOFW bring? If not let me edjamacate you. Time Out for Women is a yearly touring event put on by Deseret Book. It is a 1-2 day event featuring uplifting speakers and music and girl time. The past few years I've been attending with my sisters (in laws count as sisters right?), my cousins, my aunt, and my mom. It has been a special time just for the women. This year in addition to all of those wonderful people another aunt and a good friend got to come too. It was so fun to see my mom with all her sisters. They sat in a row in front of the "girls" for Day 2's events and I can't describe how neat it was to watch these women who I've looked up to my whole life and who remind me more and more of my loving Grandma. My kids are so lucky to have women like this in their lives.

The theme of this years tour was Sweet Assurance. The speakers touched on the feeling of assurance that can come from knowing truths. Not only were we able to hear the music of Jenny Oaks Baker and Hillary Weeks, but we also heard from Wendy Watson Nelson, Mary Ellen Edmunds, Kris Belcher, Emily Watts, S. Michael Wilcox and my favorite Sherri Dew.

Here are some highlights

Wendy Watson Nelson - spoke of filling the measuring of your creation. "Remember the Plan of Salvation is not Plan B."

S. Micheal Wilsox - "Go to Heavenly Father with a need. He will take what you have and multiply it. And it will fill the need."

Emily Watts - "Sometimes it's the trials in our life that make us who Heavenly Father needs us to be."

Kris Belcher - Her amazing story of pain and hope and grace. How even when you feel you've lost everything, you can still feel the love of your Heavenly Father.

Sheri Dew - Taught that sometimes you have to take one for the Lord's Team. (Sound familiar moms?) But you are blessed in return. She also told the story of the Relief Society Wheat and the amazing things that can be accomplished when sisters in zion work together for a righteous cause.

The meeting was closed with the direction to go home and share what each of us knows. I want each of you to know that I know many things. Everything I know stems from this simple truth. I know that I am a daughter of a Heavenly Father who loves me. He knows my name. He knows my life. He loves me unconditionally. This makes it possible for me to get up each day and face the world that isn't always filled with hugs and puppies.

Visit deseretbook.com/time-out/ for more info about the 2010 tour.

The first baptism

2009-11-17T12:31:00.004-07:00

As you may be able to tell, I'm running about a week behind on the blog. So for those of you that this isn't old news please read on.

The first Saturday this month Zachary was able to be baptised and confirmed. Scott was a little nervous since he hadn't baptised anyone since his mission (a long time ago in a far away land). I was nervous too thinking for sure that I'd forgotten something important (like extra underwear) or that something was going to go horribly wrong.

Well all our worry was for nothing. Everything went perfectly. There was not a baptism directly after ours, which in our stake is not the norm, so we were able to have both the opening and closing portion in the chapel. We got to share the day with another family in the ward. We were in charge of the opening portion of the program. Zac picked "Teach me to Walk in the Light" for the opening song. Grandpa Stone to give the opening prayer and Grandpa Hall to give the talk about Baptism. It was beautiful. Then we went down to the font for the baptisms. Zac was up first. Scott teared up but managed to pull through. Zac's little toe came up but didn't break the surface of the water until he was all the way under. Yeah no redo's necessary. After the baptisms we headed back to the chapel and waited for everyone to change.

The other family was in charge of the closing portion. The talk about the Holy Ghost was wonderful. The lady giving the talk wrapped both of the boys in a warm quilt and explained that was how the Holy Ghost could make you feel. It was a great object lesson for both of the boys. Then both were confirmed. Zac was first again, Scott teared up again. I'm thankful that my husband is close with the spirit and has this ailment. He spoke of Zac's strength and how he would be a leader someday.

Then the Bishop and a member of the Primary Presidency spoke. They both spoke of Zac enthusiasm and what a great addition to the ward he would make. The closing song was "Baptism." The song is extremely difficult to play on the piano. Zac had wanted it as the opening song, but I talked him out of it. But the other little boy wanted it too. I talked to my friend who was playing the piano and asked her to just play the melody, because I knew the song was very difficult. She was so sweet and wanted the boys to have the songs they wanted. She tried to learn the song, she tried to find someone to help her play, and in the end her mother came to the entire baptism just to play this song for the kids. Thanks to a great music leader all 4 of my kids know two verses of the song and love it. They all sang every word so loud. The spirit was really strong.

We then returned to our house for a light lunch. I had been ill, so we had lots of help. We had little pizzas, salad, oranges, donuts, and Grandma Hall made some red jello Z's for a great meal. It was really fun to visit with family and friends. (Natalie you and Allysa were missed). It was a perfect day and I hope one that Zac remembers for a long time.

Zac starts Cub Scouts

2009-11-13T13:19:00.002-07:00

I never realized how exciting it was to turn 8. Well being a girl, I guess you can't blame me for not knowing how fun cub scouts was. I was 10 when my brother turned 8, and going to Pack Meeting was not exactly a major party. I'm not sure what I expected from scouts as a mom. Ok for anyone reading this - Don't tell Zac - but I totally forgot about scouts. It wasn't even on my radar.

Zac turned 8 on Tues and his Wolf group meets on Wednesday, so he got to go to scouts for the 1st time the day after he turned 8. The first activity was bike-riding. Zac hasn't quite mastered riding on 2 wheels yet (I'm sure that a way too small bike doesn't help). I called his leader to see if he could ride his scooter instead. She said it would be fine, but it might be hard to keep up. The boys road to our stake center which is down the road quite a ways, and the leaders said that Zac kept up with all the other boys on bikes. He took one big spill but got right back on for another try. He is WAY TOUGH.

The next week they had a Halloween party and this past week was his 1st Pack Meeting. In a trial by fire welcome to scouts blaze of glory, the first pack meeting was Pine Wood Derby. We learned the lesson of not making the car for FHE the day before the race. I was impressed at how many of the cars looked like the boys had worked hard to make them, not just painted the car that dad made. Each racer got to race 4 times. The slowest time was dropped and winners crowned based on top 3 scores. Zac didn't win, but ended up a close 2nd in the last heat. He won the award for "A Lightening Fast Car." Scott's being reading Harry Potter to the kids and Zac put a Harry Potter lightening bolt on the top of the car.

It is so amazing to watch my kids grow up. I'm so thankful that my Heavenly Father lets me have a piece of these kids that belong to him. I'm so proud of all the accomplishments Zac has made in just 8 years. Can't wait for the next.

Zac turns 8

2009-11-09T12:15:00.003-07:00

On Oct 20, Zac turned 8. Every year on his birthday I think back to what life was like, before he was born. Mostly I was clueless. I'm not sure that I've really learned all that much useful information in the last 8 years. But I know how to change a poopy diaper like a pro. I can dispell most minor arguements. I can tell you what time The Dinosaur Train starts, and why parents don't like Spongebob Squarepants.

The day he was born was scary. It's even scarier now that I'm less clueless. I think that's the problem with the oldest kid. I don't know what I'm doing. I don't even know enough to know that I should be really scared. I worry that I'm screwing up a lot, and know that I probably am screwing up a lot.

Zac is wonderful. He is very energetic and full of life. He is a great big brother and a kind friend. He always wants everyone to be included. He has no fear. Let me say again, HE HAS NO FEAR. He has no problem asking for directions, explanations, or help from store employees. He doesn't worry that he is singing louder than everyone else. He doesn't care what any one else thinks about him. He is just happy being Zac. I hope that he never changes. I look forward to many more happy birthdays as he grows into a young man.

Why does everything have to be scheduled for the same day?

2009-11-04T12:45:00.002-07:00

Last year, Chloe started taking dance. She really enjoyed both tap and ballet and wanted to continue learning both. I didn't feel like she or I was ready to deal with the competition dance world, so there was once choice of class. I looked around for another studio, but no one taught a ballet/tap combo for anyone older than 4. So I signed her up for the Wednesday at 5pm class.

Move forward 3 months, Zac is ready to start soccer. And soccer practice is going to be . . . . . yep you guessed it, Wednesday at 5pm. Luckily I have a very nice neighbor with a son on the team, who was willing to shuttle Zac to and from practice. I'm thinking, "This isn't so bad. It's only 2 months." Soccer ends and now I only have Chloe's dance and laundry. Life is moving pretty good, UNTIL Zac turns 8 (More on that later). Well now Zac is in Cub Scouts - Way cool he's getting older. So now Zac goes to Scouts at 4:30 and right after I get him off, we head out to take Chloe to dance.

I'm glad and happy to let my kids participate in some extra curricular activies. I hope that the twins forgive me for spending the afternoon shuttling them around. And I wonder how I'll ever make it work next year with 4 kids each in their own activity. At least I've got a few months to figure it out.

Long Time No Posts

2009-11-04T12:25:00.002-07:00

The kids went back to school about 6 weeks ago. I thought that now, finally, I was going to have a chance to get some extra work done. But alas, just like the summer the weeks have slipped away. So as I sit here today in the mist of laundry, extra children to babysit, questions to answer for ChaCha, and nursing my cold I decided to attempt to get this blog caught up. If you are very lucky, Scott may even add some pictures at a later date.

The Stone Grocery Store is open for business!

2009-08-21T10:24:00.002-06:00

I learned early in our relationship that when Liz gets a grasp of an idea that she believes in, there is no stopping her. Lately they have been really selling this coupon sysem of saving money (they have been doing open houses around the neighborhood and at the church) and Liz has not only grasped this idea, but she has made it her own.

We get 4 Sunday papers and she takes full advantage of them - now we have something that we never thought possible - FOOD STORAGE!

YEA!!!!

Did you see all of the Diet Coke? Yup - she loves me!!!

Zac's first soccer game

2009-08-21T10:17:00.001-06:00

Zac is playing soccer this year in Eagle Mountain. He loves it since running, screaming and kicking are pasttimes he currently enjoys at home. The games are a bit like chaos in a box, but they sure have fun. We aren't sure who won or who lost, but the team did a great job. Zac had an assist for a goal and for the most part kept in the mess of stuff.

We are so proud of him - GO COUGARS!!!

The First Day of School

2009-08-21T10:09:00.003-06:00

AH - school days are upon us once again! Seems like the summer just got here and now it is over. We had a lot of fun this summer - with the kids getting older we are able to do a lot more. Zac and Chloe are attending the Ranches Academy in Eagle Mountain this year. Zac is entering the 2nd grade and has Mrs. Milton - she told the kids that she had "crazy fun" in her class. Chloe is going into Kindergarden and is in the AM class. Her teacher is Mrs Brown (we love her) and though she was a bit shy at first, has really grasped the idea of school.

Good luck to you both!

Zac is in the second grade

Chloe is starting Kindergarden

They actually were this happy to go back!

Give me a BREAK!

2009-08-21T09:55:00.004-06:00

You might have noticed from the temple openhouse pictures that Chloe's arm was a bit on the "pink" side. Well, that is what happens when you break your arm and choose pink for your cast color. I had been working a particularly long day and had left the office early. I was planning the stay for the whole time, but at 4:00 I looked at the clock and decided to leave (Holy Spirit lately?). I was close to the crossroads in Saratoga Springs when I got the call from Liz - Chloe might have broken her arm.

Since I was close to the InstaCare, I was able to stop there and verify that the insurance was accepted there and that we didn't need to go to the emergency room (our insurance is awesome but if we don't go to the right place we can get screwed). Once I gave Liz the green light she was there and soon Alaina was there to help rangle the other kids for us.

Chloe was such a trooper. She is by far our most sensative child - she had red eyes from some early tears (she broke her arm for heavens sake) but not another one fell about her arm - the entire time. She said that she broke it when getting off of her bunk bed (the side withOUT the ladder, of course), started to fall and grabbed the railing to catch herself and SNAP! Liz felt bad because Chloe cries so often we sometimes just let her go with a hug and a kiss and she kept calling her to come downstairs. When she wouldn't come down, Liz went up and there she was in a heap on the floor. To the emergency room!

The doctors were great! She had a splint for a week and then had to be fitted for a cast at Primary Childrens the week after. Of course she chose pink. She had everyone she could think of sign it and thought that was one of the best parts of the whole deal.

She had to start school with it, but it was off the day after. She said it was "heavy" and didn't want to move it, but it had heal enough that she didn't need another cast. YEA!!!!

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open house

2009-08-21T09:44:00.002-06:00

We were able to go to the temple dedication as a family on the last day possible. Liz was AWESOME and got us a ticket so we could go to this beautiful temple. We attended the Draper openhouse, but Nathan was struggling that day and didn't come with us. This was our first time together as a family in the temple.

As crazy as it was, they kids did a great job and other than a couple of situations involving shoes and a couch we didn't have any problems. The temple has lighter tones for the wood, beautiful designs on the windows and the chandeliers have star designs.

Zac liked the chandeliers, Chloe liked them too and the twins said that the cookies at the end were their favorites... I hope this doesn't start a precidence with them... temple attendance=cookies :)

They really were tired and the end of it - glad at least we got this picture

Our Forever Family

View of the temple from the que

No more diapers for me, we've got Potty Power

2009-07-21T16:29:00.003-06:00

It is official. The day I never thought would never ever come has come. Jessica and her experts assured me that my kids wouldn't be wearing diapers to college. I told Jessica that she didn't know my children. For the last 7.5 years I have been changing diapers. At one point I had all 4 kids in diapers at the same time. I remember saying that Heaven is not having to change someone else's poop for an entire day. Well for the last 3 days I have been in heaven. Each person in the house can now go potty all by themselves. Sometimes Mommy even gets to go by herself too. We are out of daipers both day and night. Yippee Skippee!!!!!

I'm sure that I'll have lots of other countdowns and my days of Heaven won't last forever. There will be some new chore that I will grow to abhor and wish away, but for now this is pretty great.

It's official: Nathan is crazy (silly)

2009-06-01T10:57:00.003-06:00

It is no secret that Nathan is the closet to me when it comes to personality. When he is happy, he is happy (just like me). When he is angry, he is really angry and can't let it go (just like me). When he is sick, he insists on the entire world knowing how miserable he is (sadly, just like me).

Along with this, he also has the ability to make faces and make people laugh. He has the "angry face" where he furrows his brow and gives a scowl that would melt steele and now is has the "blow up face".

The "blow up face" is one of the best and I hope that he never stops doing it! It includes his little voice informing you that "I'm going to blow up!"....

I will let the picture speak...

(I love this kid!)

Zac's friend get baptized

2009-06-01T10:51:00.001-06:00

On Saturday afternoon, Zac and I went to his friends baptizm. They have been good friends for a very long time and Zac spent most of Chloe's recital concerned about missing it. Fortunately we were able to attend both. Zac will be turning 8 in October and will be baptized then. He is very excited!

Chloe's big dance recital

2009-06-01T10:30:00.010-06:00

Saturday morning was pretty crazy around our house. Chloe had her first big dance recital with Ultimate Dancing in Saratoga Springs. She has been dancing there this year learning ballet, tap and the basics of dance. She is a natural (which she must get from someone other than me) and she was AWESOME! The recital was held at the charter high school in Eagle Mountain and it was packed. They had seating for 750 people and I would estimate that closer to a 1000 showed up. I got there with Zac about 1 hour early and we were on the 3rd row.

Liz had done Chloe's hair in curlers and enough hairspray to keep the space shuttle in flight and followed up with a little makeup and she was set to go. Grandma and Grandpa Stone were there (even though they had to park in the next county) and Alaina was able to join us right as it started. The dance that she performed was a ballet and Chloe did great job! You could see her counting the steps in her head and making sure that her partner was in the right place. When it was done, Liz went to got find her and bring her to the row to watch the rest of the show but couldn't find her or the entire dance group. I was just shutting down the camera when I looked up and saw Chloe on the edge of the stage! One of the girls in the dance number had gotten there late so they got to do it again. Chloe thought that was pretty cool!

She did a great job and we are looking forward to more dancing recitals!

(with eyes like that... we are in SOOOOO much trouble!)

More graduation pics

2009-06-01T10:22:00.002-06:00

Now that the weekend is over I had a chance to get a few more pictures of Chloe's graduation off of the camera...

Chloe and her diploma

Chloe and her teacher, Miss Katie

Chloe's Graduation from Preschool

2009-05-28T16:14:00.006-06:00

On Tuesday, Chloe graduated from Miss Katie's pre-school class. Liz, Katelyn, Nathan and I were joined by Grandma and Grandpa Stone and Grandma Hall for the ceremony. As always, Chloe took charge of the program; reminding the other kids of where to stand when they stood in the wrong place, projecting her memorized part the best and singing her heart out.

Way to go Chloe! We are proud of you!

To all the other Mothers

2009-05-10T23:17:00.003-06:00

Mother's Day is great and awesome. I am fortunate to have 2 great mothers and I am thankful for them every day. I'm glad to have a Mother's day to celebrate all the great mothers in the world. But this post goes out to all those other mothers who don't get a day of recognition.

You may be wondering what an "other mother" is. Well if you have ever

Paid for lessons of a child who isn't yours
Taught a primary, young women/men's, or sunday school lesson
Kissed a booboo, tied a shoe, given a love to someone who didn't belong to you
etc

well then you are an "other mother." Other mother's are part of what makes the world a better place. They can be any age, they can have kids or not. Each lends a hand when not strictly required by biology. This post is a thank all of my other mothers and to all the other mothers of my children. You make life a better and easier place. You help when times are rough. Sometimes you can even make checkout at Wal-mart with 4 kids possible. You entertain and smile when you don't have to. Your patient, loving, helpful, nice, and happy when real mothers need a hand. So, take some time to not only celebrate the mothers, but the other mothers that make our lives so great.

Thank you Grandmas, Aunts, Sisters, Cousins, Teachers, Neighbors, and Friends. You make my job as a mother actually possible.

Beware of the microwave

2009-04-16T17:39:00.002-06:00

For those of you who know me very well, I tend to have unusual circumstances around injuries: falling down a single stair = on crutches at camp, Spraining ankle because you got locked in your 4 yr olds room and dropped out 2nd story window, walking into side view mirrors of trucks, etc, this story is no less unusual. And it's a really good thing that I have super observant neighbors.

When I was little, and not so little, My mom used to tell me to "Be reware." I would walk into and trip over all sorts of things. I still have to pay really close attention or I walk into the wall when rounding a corner. Last Thursday, I was cooking dinner. It was something with rice. I had cooked the rice in the microwave with my handy dandy Pampered Chef Rice Cooker. I pulled the rice out of the microwave and placed it on the counter. I turned to get glasses out of the cupboard and without looking attempted to shut the microwave. I was also talking on the phone to Scott and I was not "being reware." I must not have pushed the door hard enough and it swung back and the handle hit me in the back of the head. It hurt really bad. But I was proud of myself and didn't say any naughty words. No I couldn't recreate the effect for curious observers.

As aforementioned I tend to get injured a lot so I didn't really think anything of the injury, UNTIL . . . I had a neighbor stop by. Now I have super great neighbors. I'm sorry to all of my friends and family but I live in the hands down best ward that ever could exist. We were chatting, and she looks at me and says "Are your eyes usually dilated differently? Did you just hit your head?" I mentioned that the microwave had swung and hit me in the back of the head, but it was no big deal. She was getting really concerned and asked when Scott was coming home. Of course, he was at play practice and wouldn't be home for another 3-4 hours. She gets more worried, and says that I should go get checked, and she was going to call me and check in on me.

I laughed it off. Oh whatever, I hit my head all the time. I'm always fine. I'll get the kids in bed and worry about it later. We ate dinner, and the kids got in jammies, and my doorbell rang. Apparently neighbor #1 had called neighbor #2 to come check on me. Neighbor #2 then proceeded to tell me horror stories of death with supposedly minor head injuries. I ask, "Are you sure that it isn't just the light. Are my eyes really different?" She says, "Yes they are different, and it's worse in the light." I tell her that I'll put the kids to bed, and find someone to come help me. She offers to either watch my kids or come with me to the ER. Yes I told you I have great neighbors.

So I put the kids in bed and call my Mom, who just happens to be kind of close at the Draper Costco. Then I call Instacare to see if they'll take me if I can get there 5 min. before they close. Guess what? With a head injury, you have to go to the ER - no choice. So I'm officially freaking out. I've looked at my eyes, they look different. I'm going to die. I call Scott and have him leave play practice. Now Mom, Dad, and Scott are all on their way to help me. I sit and watch 10 minutes of Life and begin to feel really stupid. It was just a microwave door. . . I'm not dying . . . this isn't a big deal. . . why did I bother everyone. . .

Well one hour and one blessing later, I'm on my way to the ER with Scott. One CT scan and 3 hours later, I'm on my way home. I have a regular old concussion. And I have a concussion from my microwave door. A week later, I feel back to normal. Headache, dizziness, nausea, vomiting all gone. Feeling like an idiot, still very prevalent.

I'm extremely grateful for my vigilant neighbors that worried about me over the night. I grateful my Mom and Dad were close and could watch my kids. I'm grateful for a husband to drop what he was doing, give me a blessing, take me to the hospital, and sit with me for the next 24 hours because I couldn't be left alone. I'm grateful that I wasn't hurt worse. I grateful for pain killer for went I felt hurt worse.

So now you know, if you are perfectly normal you can disregard this warning. But if like me you have ever gotten hurt in an unusual way, please beware of your microwave.

Days of the Week

2009-03-25T11:50:00.002-06:00

While talking to Scott last week I realized the advantage to being super busy. You always know what day it is. I don't have to rely on a calendar or even what's on TV tonight. Usually during the month I can even tell you what week of the month it is. Like I know the 3rd Thursday. I couldn't tell you the date, but I know during the week that it's the 3rd Thursday. Here is how I became aware of my amazing talents.

Scott woke up on Wednesday and said, "Didn't I do this yesterday?" I replied, "Nope, today is laudry day, yesterday was kickboxing." Then on Thursday, Scott woke up and said "Didn't I do this yesterday?" And I replied, "Nope, today is recipe group, and scripture group, and dance. It's totally different than yesterday." You see every day Scott gets up and goes to his important job and basically does the same thing he did yesterday.

I get up and work, drive the car pool to preschool and dance, change a diaper, etc. Yep I get up and I'm a Mom. Some people, myself included, don't think that being a Mom is very glamous. It's not - most days I'm covered in ick and I don't know how or when it got there. You might thing that it isn't very exciting, and it gets very very boring, every day being the same as the one before. This is far from the truth and exactly why I know what day it is every day.

Take a look at our Schedule. Just the basic things we do week in and week out

Sunday - Go to church
Monday - Chloe has preschool, Mom gets to work
Tuesday - Kickboxing
Wednesday - preschool again and laundry day. Each week has different "extra" loads (1st adult sheets, 2nd kids sheets, 3rd lounging blankets, 4th towels - then repeat)
Thursday - scripture group, dance
Friday - Grandma's
Saturday - Dad is home, go grocery shopping and run errands

1st Thursday & Saturday = Quilting Class
3rd Thursday = Recipe Group
4th Thursday = Writing Group

My life is full of so many wonderful activities. I run around like a chicken with my head cut off most days, but at least I know what day it is.

I love Friday!

2009-03-06T10:07:00.002-07:00

I love Friday. Let me say it again I love Friday. The kids would say I don't like Friday, I LUUUUUV Friday. It is the last day of the school week, the last day I have to get up early to get someone else ready. The last day the alarm goes off. The last day my personal heater pulls off the covers, making me have to get up. I don't have to drive car pool. I can stay in my jammies until noon. Friday afternoon, we always go to Scott's parents house. The kids get to play outside in the safe, fenced back yard. Pa takes them on walks. I get to talk to my sister (the one I had to get married to get so I have 20 years of no sister conversation to catch up on). The kids watch a movie, the adults play games, and get silly. I don't have to think about what's for dinner. I don't have to clean the house. I don't have to worry about who needs to be where and when they need to be there. I don't have to worry about home "fun." And the best part is I get to see my best friend for almost 2 days straight. Friday is heaven. I can enjoy the few hours of freedom before the work of Saturday.

And best of all, our tax return should be direct deposited today and I'll be able to book our hotel to go visit my brother who moved away to California. I can think about a whole week of just the pool, the beach, and baby Maren (and Andy and Nicole too). Oh the joy. I just love Friday.

Quiet

2009-03-04T13:17:00.003-07:00

My house is quiet. Okay it's not really quiet, the dishwasher, washing machine and dryer are all running, and my ChaCha doorbell is ringing. But the 3 kids who are home are actually having quiet time in their new rooms. And they are actually being quiet. We haven't had actual quiet time for . . . well I can't remember when the last time was. It is so nice for my brain to be able to think about home stuff. Usually I can only think in the shower, or on the rare occasions when I'm alone in the car. In the shower, I'm always obsessing about my dreams or making a list of the things I need to do that day, or thinking hmmmmm HOT WATER. Usually I'm only alone in the car when I'm on my way somewhere - thinking about the Pampered Chef show, did I remember the quilt block, etc. Now I can think about . . . well I can think about anything.

I opened the curtains in my room, which I haven't done all winter. It's stormy outside but the sunshine is so nice. The snow is finally all melted from the yard and soon we'll start to see the shoots of new flowers and the grass will start to turn green. It feels like I spend my whole life wishing the days away, or being so consumed will all the jobs I've got to get done today. Then suddenly tomorrow is today. Today in the quiet, I was thinking, someday almost every day will be this quiet. In 2 years I'll have all 4 kids in school. In 3, they will all be gone from 8-3 Monday thru Friday. They are so much fun as they get older, and smarter, and more independent. Will I enjoy them then as I much as I do now? Will I wish away all my tomorrows and wonder what happened when they all leave to be grownup?

I love the quiet, and I love that my kids are growing up. I was never one to wish back the baby stage. I didn't miss them sleeping in my arms (maybe because they never did) or rocking a screaming baby to sleep. I think I'll miss the funny things that they do and say everyday. I may even miss them playing in the water in the bathroom sink (and soaking themselves and the floor), and running down the hall at church panties in hand - dress pulled up to nose. Today's quiet was a good reminder to not skip past everything. I'm very thankful for something as small as a quiet house, if even for only an hour.

Do you have magic in your brain?

2009-02-27T07:37:00.003-07:00

At Christmas time, Grandma & Grandpa Stone had a snowman on their kitchen table. The snowman would sing if you bumped the table. Katie really enjoyed it this year. She would walk up to the table and slap it in her hand (the table, not the snowman). Grandpa asked her why it worked, she said "I have magic in my brain. The magic makes the snowman sing." Occasionally we'll ask her if she still has magic in her brain, since the snowman is packed away now. Yesterday, Chloe was in dance and the boys were playing at the playground outside of the dance studio. It was windy and Katie was cold so the 2 of us were in the van. I asked her if she still had magic in her brain. She said "Yes, the magic in my brain makes the snowman sing." I asked if I had magic in my brain. She replied "No, mommy you are a big big kid, only little kids have magic in their brains." She told me that Daddy didn't have magic, but Zachary, Chloe, and Nathan did.

So are you a big big kid or a little kid? Do you have magic in your brain?

Stop Eating your shirt!

2009-02-25T13:06:00.002-07:00

I knew that once I became a parent I'd say things that I didn't expect. I fully expected to sound like my parents. I totally expected that I'd say parent things "If I've told you once. . ." and "If all your friends jumped off of a cliff. . . " Today after saying "Stop eating your shirt!" for about the 100th time, I realized that this part of my life isn't going to be normal either. Here is a list of things I've actually said that I never thought I would.

Stop drinking your sisters bottle. To a 1 1/2 year old
Stop hugging your brother.
Mommy's in time out. You can't talk to me right now.
Please stop helping me.
Stop biting yourself

And I'm sure many more. And I sit and wonder, How did this end up being my life?

Long Time No Updates

2009-02-09T11:23:00.003-07:00

It has been a long time with no updates on the blog.

For those of you who know very little about me I tend to overschedule myself. I relate with Mr. Incredible at the beginning of the movie a little too much (yeah I got time). So when making my schedule for the beginning of the year, I added a little to much. I'm still trying to get our schedule set so that everything gets down and nothing gets left out. Last week I wrote my February calendar out so that I could schedule doctors appointments. Excluding Sunday's I have 4 days with nothing. Yep out of the whole month. Here's a little taste of my craziness.

1. All 4 kids + Mom to the dentist.
2. All 4 kids to the doctor - the insurance FINALLY paid Chloe's 2007 wellness visit and now we are behind on well visits.
3. Liz activites - Kickboxing, Pilates, Scripture group, quiliting group, writing group, recipe group
4. Chloe dance & preschool
5. Zac homework, Chloe reading program - daily
6. ChaCha & Pampered Chef for money to pay the bills
7. Don't forget to get dressed, brush teeth, do the dishes, clean the house, shovel the walk, meet with friends, keep up on facebook, read your email, pay the bills, do the taxes, visit with family, dinner to a sick neighbor, and update the blog.

Hopefully now you get a little bit of our chaos and understand why the blog hasn't been updated since December. I wish that I could say that February was abnormal for us, but we just keep getting busier. I have lots of updates (Chloe & Zac's Christmas programs, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Fondue, and many more.) The blog is the only diary/scrapbooking/etc thing I do right now, and I'd like to have a record, so wait for updates. Hopefully in the near future.

Chloe's Dance Recital

2008-12-29T14:32:00.008-07:00

Chloe has enjoyed taking a ballet/tap class this year, thanks to 'T' who pays for the lessons. Now they can speak their own language. Chloe has learned all 5 positions, to leap, plie, and many more things that I can't pronounce. Taking completely after her dad, she loved to be in the spotlight. She kept tellling him to "Take a picture of me, Dad." The class is only 45 minutes once a week, 30 minutes of ballet, and 10-15 of tap. We are moving Chloe to a different class as of the first of the year because she is almost 2 years older than a lot of girls in her class. She was helping the other girls in the class with the dance. It was so cute. Chloe loves her teacher Misty and can't wait for classes to start back up next week.

Nathan and Katie Turn 3

2008-12-29T13:45:00.007-07:00

My babies turned 3 on December 13th. It is so much fun to think back and remember how much more fun now is then it was to have newborn twins. We are so very blessed and lucky that everyone survived that first year. Nathan loved his "Geotrax all aboard" and his Cars blanket. Katie got a Tinkerbell blanket and all of the baby doll accessories. She enjoys playing "mommies" with Chloe. The baby puppy, monkey, baby crying gets a little on Mom's nervous, but it is worth it to see the 2 girls playing so nicely together. Both got puzzles from T. Katie has already managed to eat 1 or 2 pieces.

As an added bonus Katie is now potty trained during the day! That was a great birthday present for mom. Both kids are enjoying their new "big kid" status. They've been going to sharing time this month to get them ready to enter Sunbeams next year. They won't let me call them babies anymore.

Alaina's Birthday

2008-11-30T00:22:00.003-07:00

There comes a certain point in everyone's life when they have to allow the ravages of time to finally take what is left of your soul, your dignity and your mind; that day was here for Alaina on the 28th of November. She once again has turned that ripe old age of 29 (don't worry Sis - I won't tell them that you really are 37 - that wouldn't be proper) and we took the family to get her a birthday present; a family photo. After about an hour I was ready for a nap (do you REALLY know how many times a 3 year old can run in a circle without getting tired?) We will post the pics one we choose the ones that we want.

We then were given the wonderful treat of Mom and Dad springing for Alaina's b-day dinner...

I am thankful at this time of year... for all of the little shrimp and clams and lobsters and wild french fries that gave up their lives for me... (tear)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BAIN!!!!!!

:)

This crazy holiday season

2008-11-30T00:13:00.002-07:00

Wow! What a crazy, hectic and fun few days our family has had! Thanksgiving was really fun this year and didn't include the normal frantic stress out that it has in past years. We invited my folks and my sister, Alaina to our house this year which meant that we were on turkey duty and WOW!!!!! I LOVE TURKEY!!!!! We used a cooking bag this year - I will never go back to the rack again. Liz took time out of her busy schedule to make some home made rolls (which were devine) and I took my hand at actually making a pie OTHER than an apple. I personally think that my chocolate cream and lemon sour cream pies were excellent (though Liz would just say that I was biased to them so my opinion really doesn't count).

After stuffing our faces with a ton of food that we really didn't need (Mom made enough stuffing to feed the whole of Camp Williams) we turned our attention to the real matter of the day - the Wii. Can I begin to explain how FRUSTRATING (and proud) I can get when my 7 year old tromps my rear on every game that he plays? Between my total inability to do anything simply and Pa's attempt at trying to remove his skin one scrape at a time, Zac was unstoppable.

We are both grateful for all that we have at this time of year and wish the same to all of you.

Obsession

2008-11-27T09:30:00.002-07:00

Okay I admit it, I'm fully obsessed. I love a good story. It is the best form of escape. I can travel to far away places and meet interesting people and have adventures . . . do things that I would never never dare to do. I love all types of stories, sci fi, fantasy, legal, historical, romance, mystery. I get immersed in the story and the characters become real people to me. It doesn't matter the medium: written, spoken, or seen. If the story is good enough I can devour it again and again and again. Each time I do, I catch different pieces that make a more complete picture of the story.

Last night Scott and I were talking about movies. Lately almost all of the movies I have fallen in love with (read obsessed about) have been based off of some of my favorite books. Narnia, Harry Potter, Twilight . . . Yes, I hang my head in shame to admit, I became obsessed with Twilight. I hate "jumping on the latest bandwagon" but I love the story. I dislike the characters at times (most of the time) and even at one point I through Eclipse across the room in frustration and then ran to pick it up because I had to know what happens next.

Alaina, I hope you can forgive me. A bunch of ladies from the ward went to the Twilight movie. It was like 9th grade and even though I KNEW the movie was going to be horrible, I was giddy to have been invited. Someone drove their 15 passenger van and the grown women were a little like screaming fan girls. We did manage to not scream at the movie screen when Edward was introduced though. The movie was low budget and VERY VERY cheesy but I (another head hung in shame) really enjoyed it. Part of that was the frenzy of energy in the theatre but the other part was the story underneath.

Okay back to topic, Scott and I were talking about movies and the one thing I wish that Hollywood would learn from the success of Twilight (and Mamma Mia!, and Harry Potter, and Narnia, Enchanted, etc) is that you can make money with a good story. It doesn't have to be overly sexual, or violent, or have bad language. It just needs to have a good story. The action movies have a place. The epic Oscar seeking movies have a place. A couple of times of year it would be nice to have a movie with a good story to go to. Before Twilight, the last 4 movies I went to in the theatre were all Harry Potter movies. After they are finished, what am I going to see for my yearly outing?

Hollywood, please. There are still moral people who just want to escape into a good story. Someone needs to step up to fulfil this need without making a "dumbed down" kid movie. The teenage girl/grown women audience has money to spend. We don't want to always go to the guy movie because it's the only one available. Look at the $70 million opening of Twilight and hear our plea!!!!!!

Chloe turns 5

2008-11-21T07:34:00.006-07:00

Chloe, our princess, turned 5 this week. Preschool had a field trip scheduled on the day. Lucky Chloe got to visit the grocery store with 26 of her closest preschool friends. At the bakery, Chloe got to talk about being 5 and then she received an extra cookie with "5" in frosting on top.

Chloe has been the princess since she was born. She is very happy, but demands the attention she deserves. She is a very good big sister. She loves to "help" little kids with toys, and learning words, and feeling welcome. She wants to make sure that everyone is included.

She teaches her mom a lot about being a girl. She hates wearing pants, and only does so when forced. She loves playing dress up and having her nails painted. She loves to dance. Her aunt is paying for dance lessons this year and it is Chloe's favorite part of the week. She already knows many of the terms and can show you the individual poses and steps if you ask.

We are so glad that Chloe joined our family!!!!!

Who has a cute bum?

2008-11-10T14:02:00.002-07:00

I've been working on comparisons with the twins. All day long I'm asking them who has eyes, who is a girl, who is wearing blue, etc. You all know me and I have to be silly, so yesterday I asked Katie, "Who has a cute bum?" She said, "Me" then "Chloe and Nathan." Next I asked, "Does mommy have a cute bum?" She replied "No, mommy has a big bum." Ouch!

I wish I could freeze time

2008-11-10T13:12:00.003-07:00

Do you remeber the 80's tv show called Out of This World. It was about a teenager who could freeze time. Her Dad was an alien, and he'd talk to her every night from this flashy cube thing. I used to think it was the coolest thing, ranking right up there with Charles in Charge. Anywho . . . since then I've always wanted to freeze time. Think about it, in the morning your alarm would go off, but you could freeze time and sleep until you weren't tired. You wouldn't need to take an hour to pay the bills and reconsile your checking account. I could read as long as I wanted and not feel guilty about it.

The time turner just wouldn't do it for me, because time still keeps going, and I'd mess it up and go crazy because I saw my future self. I also wouldn't want the speed up time remote, because I already feel like I'm missing too much. But right now, a time free nap sounds really nice.

What do you wish your super power was?

Go VOTE!

2008-11-04T09:11:00.002-07:00

So one day a year I can be giddy about the political process of our great nation and not be considered all that crazy. I got by BS degree in Political Science. I can't really say that politics are BS to me (hehe). You can always write to the people that represent you but today is the time you get to choose who those people are. Voting is a HUGE privilege that we are so blessed to have. Please study the issues and go vote!!! This is how we are heard en mass.

Andy & Nicole - We are thinking about you not being able to vote on Prop 8 today. You have been amazing in the work you've done, even though you don't get a say. Thanks for being great examples by not be frustrated by your circumstances!!! We love you!!

Binky Free - at last!

2008-11-03T08:49:00.002-07:00

It is a big step for our family - Nate and Kate are finally binky free (officially as of last night) and are now sleeping through the night without them. Nate had been using both of his as a chew toy and had ripped them into two pieces. When he would suck on them all you could hear was air. Convincing him wasn't too hard once he understood that it was broken. Things did get interesting when I threw Katie's away (and it wasn't broken). Oh, the fits of screaming that she had - a wonderful performance that made her actor daddy very proud.

I tried to have a "funeral" over the garbage can in tribute to the Cosby Show and the fish... but all that did was drag out the pain. A few screaming fits, complete and total irritation and 30 minutes later they finally calmed down.

Interestingly enough we did it on the night that Liz had writing group and wasn't home...

Hmmmmm.....

:)

Halloween

2008-11-02T22:42:00.011-07:00

And once again we come to that time of year when we send out our children during the night, dressed up as fightening ghouls... and have them beg for candy door to door. We had a lot of fun this year - Grandma and Grandpa Stone and Aunt Alaina came out to the house for dinner and getting in costumes and trick-or-treating and then Grandma and Grandpa Hall came out to the house toward the end of the night. It was wonderfully fun and we enjoyed the company.

Zac was a vampire - we were thankful about the vampire too. His first idea was to be a "super hero trooper" - basically a storm trooper costume, a cape and a Darth Vader helmet and mask. (Don't ask me...) Chloe made the rounds on which princess she was going to be and finally chose on Snow White. Katie didn't really care (I think down deep she is a minimalist) so she was happy with Elmo. Convincing Nathan and being Thomas the train was cooler than being Lightning McQueen was more difficult than I would have thought (I think the pumpkin helped). All 4 kids made it around 2 blocks in the rain; Zac made 3. Dad almost didn't make it!

Oh - and the kids ate enough candy to feed a small third-world county.

Carving the Pumpkins

2008-11-02T22:26:00.005-07:00

Scott carved some great pumpkins this year. The kids picked the themes and Scott took care of the rest. Zac helped carve all the straight parts of his pumpkin. The best part was that I didn't have to touch any of the "icky parts." Meaning that Scott dug out the guts and did all of the stringy clean-up. You know it's true love when your spouse doesn't blink at all your issues.

Nathan's is McQueen (would it be anything else), the small one is Chloe's Princess Pumpkin, Zac's Vampire, and Katie's Dog.

Ranches Academy Fall Fest

2008-11-02T21:48:00.005-07:00

Since Zac has been at the Ranches Academy, we have been involved with all of the volunteer stuff that parents are supposed to... (well, Liz has - I just drive the car on weekends). She is there for lunches once a week and various other activities and that doesn't include all of the driving that she does during the day. As part of that, we get the chance to help out with the annual fund raiser called Fun Fest. Last year Liz did a Pampered Chef booth that didn't sell anything because we are all poor, so we smartened up and Liz did some volunteering in the coloring room.

Fall Fest has tons of different activities for the kids to do - we buy a punch card and then the different activities cost a certain number of punches. With Liz being the volunteer, that left me with the fun of running around with the kids. No. I am serious. It was really fun! Now that the twins are starting to be able to find there way around without as much hand holding, it was fun. Once Nathan was convinced that the cake walk was more fun than the playground it got better.

They loved the face painting the most - the bingo was a close second. Total fun and then mom was able to join us later on in the afternoon. Fun had by all!!

Nathan is the one that chose the pumpkin for his nose...

Writing Group

2008-10-31T10:11:00.004-06:00

Every month I go to this great writing group in my ward. We spend about 5 minutes each time working on a writing prompt. The prompt this month was "If I were to murder someone . . . Who would it be and Why." I thought what I wrote was funny. Let me know what you think.

If I were to murder someone it would be the person who wrote the song This is the song that never ends. Because it is a self fulfilling prophecy and doesn't ever end. It's in my head for 3 days. It's horrible! The only way it would work was if I had a time machine, because I'd need to commit the crime prior to the song being composed to stop the insanity. Now let's think . . .

1) Find a time machine.
2) Make friends with the time machine's owner
3) Steal and use said time machine
4) Find composer/song writer and commit murder
5) DO NOT murder my grandfather or step on any butterflies
6) Return home. Return Time Machine

OH NO! One problem. I was in the time machine when time changed and now I'm the only one who knows the song. Do I now have to murder myself?

Scarecrow Festival

2008-10-20T22:14:00.003-06:00

I took the day off work on Monday so we could go to the Scarecrow Festival at Thanksgiving Point. It was really fun, especially for the kids. We rode on a train, had lunch at the cafe in the main building and went on slides and more slides and more slides. Things were great until Nathan took off from us while we were putting shoes on the other kids. At the beginning of the day there weren't very many people and the kids were running from slide to slide. Nathan thought he was good to go and off he went. It was only five minutes (though it seemed like about 20) and there were a lot of prayers he just showed up in the middle of a crowd. He was having a blast going down the slides and didn't even bother to worry about the rest of us...

AHHHH!!!!! Sometimes those kids can just drive you crazy!

Chloe and Kate

Zachy

Nate

The train - YEA!!!

Home safe...

Happy Birthday Zach!!!

2008-10-20T21:44:00.006-06:00

October 20th signified Zach's 7th birthday! Holy cow is he growing up. We took some time on Friday to celebrate with Grandma and Grandpa Stone and Aunt Alaina - they had some fun gifts and a great cake. Then on Saturday I took Zach and 3 of his friends (Josh Morrey, Ben Thomas and Thomas Bartell) to the Zoo. They were great fun and we had a wonderful time. We had a train ride (though I caught my foot and fell out of the train - yea me!), took some time with the animals and then ended the day with a Super Pretzel and red slushies. He had a lot for fun...

The elephants were awesome! It was fun to watch them eat from the top of the haystack

My personal favorite was the tiger - he was nice and lazy today

Crazy kid...

Happy Graduation!!

2008-10-20T21:08:00.006-06:00

Just before Andy and Nicole moved to LA, we wanted to make sure that Andy left Utah with his graduation diploma in hand. See, with all of the work that he done with his final paper, walking for his diploma just wasn't in the cards (and honestly I think that we was just ready to be done) - so Liz and I threw him a graduation party after the priesthood session of General Conference. Everyone in the family but Andy was in on it - except the catch was that Nicole and Natalie didn't know that we were throwing a graduation for them as well! Natalie had graduated from BYU-Idaho online and never walked and Nicole had just finished before Andy and was busy with Marin and moving twice. It was great!

I was the invited as the commencement speaker - both as Donald Duck and then the priest from the Princess Bride

Natalie Chalis Hall - Class of 2000 - Associates Degree

Nicole Iverson Hall - Class of 2008 - Associates Degree

Andy Jensen Hall - Class of 2008 - Masters Degree

Funny Story...

2008-10-16T13:36:00.003-06:00

Thought that I would pass this along just as a funny tidbit...

Last night Chloe came downstairs cry as if she had a bad dream. Come to find out, she had somehow gotten hold of a watch battery and proceeded to stick it up her nose! After some tweezers, a tissue and a good old fashion sneeze, it came out.

When asked "why?" Miss Chloe announced...

I don't know.

(kids - got to love 'em!)

Here we are - I am becoming a blogger...

2008-10-16T13:23:00.003-06:00

With Andy and Nicole moving to LA and our being in Utah County, I guess this is a pretty good way to keep in touch when it is hard to keep in touch.

We will see how it goes...

Scott