I had to go back to the old style...couldn't get used to any others.

So Boston has made great strides in his speech over the past month and the biggest came this past week when he started saying "Carson". Carson had been asking "when is he gonna say my name?"
Well...Boston finally said his name and it really is sweet. Now he says it all the time! It's so cute to hear his little voice. He's a sweet little boy.

So I went grocery shopping today and yesterday. I was quite impressed with what I walked out with for what I payed. It's still a learning process but overall I saved about 90% according to my receipt from Fry's...not a bad deal! Now I need to get those CVS Exrta Care Bucks working for me! I told Brandon whatever I save on groceries gets to go into a vacation fund. I do love my vacations.

So we went swimming at a friends home last night...Summer is officially here!!! I love it! Although the water was a little cold and I didn't feel "swim suit ready" I stilled enjoyed being in the pool. Now that I think about it I don't know if I've ever felt swim suit ready...oh well I have a lot more important things to focus on in my life right now, I'm happy I'm healthy and can exercise each day.

OH NO!!! I just heard the Suns lost to the Spurs...poor Brandon he's watching the game right now at a friends house...they DVR'd it because of meetings. Hopefully there won't be any bad attitudes tomorrow over the game. D#%N (that means darn...I would never say the other word :)) Spurs...just let us win one year please. Speaking of DVR's you never new how good you had it till it's gone...ours is gone and I miss it. Time for bed now.

So I just cut my first set of coupons...I've got a headache, need to figure out how to organize them and what a good deal really is. Is it insane or worth the savings? Becky I might take you up on the shopping trip! Now I have to be up in 5.5 hours to go running. I pray I don't forget everything I was reading and all the tips on saving money. We'll see if I make it to the grocery store tomorrow.

I'm thinking I don't like the new look...i'll wait and see if anybody else has something to say...

Today we went to the Laveen Community Celebration. I heard of this through the paper. We weren't planning on attending because of stuff around the house that needed to be done. Brandon however got a call Friday and all the sudden his Saturday was booked. Needless to say I mowed the lawn last week and didn't feel like doing it today so I took the kids to the celebration and left the work to be done later, there's always tomorrow right? I was pleasantly surprised at the events they had. We got to take a ride in a really old fire truck, sit in a helicopter & police car, jump on bouncy things, eat, get lots of stickers & balloons, make slime with a mad scientist and try free samples of different food. We went early, right when it opened and there was no crowd. I was really impressed to see the community put this together we had good free fun. I wished I had known about it earlier because it would have been perfect to have a booth introducing the Children's Yoga Company to the area and have sign ups for the summer classes. I will look into it for next year. Now both boys are asleep and Brandon is on his way back from his appointments in the east valley and we'll be heading off to the stake Bar-b-Que.

New Look

I'm trying a new look to the blog...what do you think?

Happy Birthday Mom!!

I have to send a "shout out" to my mom...Happy Birthday Mom! You are a wonderful person and a great example of a mother. I can only hope to measure up to your abilities as a mother with my own children. Some of my most happy memories as a child include you. I remember us kids eating multiple pans of brownies you would bake to take on the family vacations. Even if the brownies were all soggy for being in the ice chest in the van they were still yummy and eatable. Having you at all the class parties in school because you were always the "home room mom". Letting us build forts on Sunday afternoon and playing inside with us. Teaching us how to clean...it may not show in my own house, but thanks to you I did learn "cleanliness is next to Godliness". Believing my lies when I came home past curfew! (Really, I think one time there was a flat tire) Hey, at least I didn't get in any big trouble right? Calling the school for me and telling them I was sick even though I was staying home to lay by the pool all day. Sticking up for me in fourth grade when I tried out for cheer leading but then they decided to only let the sixth graders be the cheerleaders. I remember you went down to the school and let one of the teachers have it! Thank you. There are so many great memories. I couldn't have asked for a better childhood or better parents. I Love you, happy 59th Birthday!

The week in review

So another productive week.

Monday...we...actually I have no clue what we did Monday...I don't remember.
Tuesday...we went grocery shopping. This was an experience. I haven't gone "major" grocery shopping for a very long time and for even longer I haven't taken both boys major shopping with me. I managed not to yell at all, we didn't make any big scenes in the store and I didn't buy any junk food to bribe them. We've made progress. The hardest part was keeping Boston by my side, he doesn't like sitting in the cart any more. I also tried to shop with coupons, that was a joke. I signed up for coupon sense but I walked out of the store so ticked because I didn't understand what I was doing and I was irritated at my lack of knowledge. If anyone is really into it and wants to have a tag-along-partner with them next time let me know, I would love for someone to show me the ropes.
Wednesday...Boston got sick. Actually he got sick Tuesday but I thought he was getting teeth in which is no big deal. I worked a little in the morning while both boys were asleep...yes, by 10am I layed both of them down for bed. That's what happens when they wake up at 5:50am. Then I watched my friends kids for the afternoon, 5 kids total and it was actually pretty fun. Poor Boston was still sick though, after eating about two bites of his lunch he pucked everywhere. In a way it was nice because he then just let me hold him for the next few hours. Wednesday night we celebrated mom's 59th birthday and a restaurant with everyone and Julie and Kody came into town. Then we went to the mall to take pictures of all the grand kids together...that was an interesting experience but we did get some cute pictures.
Thursday...Jeaniece and Dustin stayed with us while he worked. We met the Binghams and Colliers at Westgate to let the kids play in the splash pad. I really like the ambiance of that place, not to mention my legs got a killer tan! (Did I mention I LOVE the sun and summer time?) We missed Boston playing with us, he stayed home with Jeaniece and slept cause he was still sick. Then we got home and Brandon, Carson and I went to Kindergarten Round up, that was fun.
Friday...Jeaniece, the kids and I met my dad for lunch and saw the alligator at the mall. Now here I am writing on the blog when I should be working!

I'm thankful Boston is feeling better. I'm thankful we didn't have to go to the doctor. I'm thankful J & D could come down and spend a few days with us. I'm thankful we could see J & K and the kids...hopefully next time we'll be able to see them for longer than a few hours! I'm grateful there are organizations out there to help others save money!

Disneyland March 2008

So it's late Saturday night and I can't sleep, what is going on? Any how I realized I hadn't posted the pictures from our California trip yet. So here are a few...yes only a few. My small camera is still broke and Brandon was with the boys by himself while I was at the yoga training so he didn't want to take the big camera every time they went. I don't blame him...one less thing to possibly get lost.

What 4 & 2 year old boy doesn't want to sit on a fire truck? This is in Toon town on our first day.

This is the boys at California Adventure without me :( I wish I could have seen their faces when the got to meet Woody!

This is how much Boston enjoyed the trip! Quick story about the double stroller...I got it from someone in our neighborhood who had obviously moved and was throwing it out. We were leaving in 2 days for our trip and I didn't have a double stroller. Carson doesn't really need a stroller but I knew if I had one I would use it and so would he, especially after long days. Anyhow I took it, Brandon was completely appalled I would take some strangers trash (it was pretty beat up). I put new tires on it, whipped it down and poof...a double stroller (even if the seats were all ripped and were being held up by a bungee cord :)). After having both boys by himself I think he was very grateful he married someone who isn't afraid to be a "dumpster diver!"

Carson and Papi on the Matterhorn! I think he's a little nervous :) (Carson not Brandon)

Last but not least, we couldn't go to California and not go to the beach. Even if it is 50 degrees and windy. We (I) love the water.

I just liked this picture of their little feet.

So I think this was the most fun and cheapest family vacation we've ever had. 4 days at Disneyland/California Adventure for $160...I bought the tickets off Craig's list! One tank of gas to drive there, one tank to get home. A great hotel for a great rate with a fridge. (Thanks Siddoway's for hooking us up!) I took 90% of our food and we ate in the hotel or packed a lunch to take to the parks. We had a great time and it helped me get my yoga training finished! (Does this post scream I am cheap or what?!)

Thursday, Friday & Saturday's activities

Warning...another long entry.

So it's Saturday night and all my primary stuff for tomorrow was done this afternoon...usually I am finishing it up about 11pm and begging Brandon to help me color the last few pages! I should finish it earlier more often this feels great!

The last few days have been a little busy but fun days. I was reminded again on Thursday how nice it is to live in a city that has so much to offer. I seem to be consistently hearing about community events that invite families to spend time together with something to do. Usually I don't feel the need to attend these activities because I feel the church also has many activities and our family has plenty to do already. However when I was on the treadmill Wednesday morning the news was doing this story about Shaq's Dunkman Contest. It was at US Airways Center and it was FREE and opened to the public. I thought "man Carson would love that but he has school tomorrow." Then I thought "school, schmool...we're going." After Boston's therapy Thursday morning the two boys and I were off to the arena to watch the final five guys who represented their region of the United States as having the best basketball dunking skills! It was actually pretty fun. And some of those men could jump! They were all in their 20's and just street ballers trying to win some cash. The winner walked away with $10k and a photo shoot in some basketball magazine. We got their early so we sat like 7 rows up from the floor. The entire thing lasted about 2 hours and it was good entertainment. I packed a lunch & snacks for us and we ate our PB&J while watching the competition. I learned about all the different charities Shaq is involved with and walked away with a greater appreciation of how he gives back to the community. After it was over we came back home and the boys both took a nap while I worked then when Brandon was done working we headed out to Mesa for a family dinner and games to say goodbye to Uncle Ryan who is leaving to go work in Colorado for the next few months.

I realized a few blessing from that day:
1. When we were out the boys were very patient and obedient as we waited in line to get into the arena. (we waited about 25 mins & neither one of them ever complained or tried to run off)
2. Even though the sign said "no outside food or drink" the man checking my bag realized I was by myself with 2 little kids and said I could take our bag full of food in.
3. Boston doesn't really need a stroller anymore so that is one less thing to load up and have to cart around
4. We seem to always enjoy each other when the three of us go out. (of course we enjoy it when Brandon is there to but he had so much work to do)
5. Not one time during the entire 2 hours watching the show (which at points did move very slowly) did Carson or Boston try to walk away or even go anywhere out of my sight. I never had to leave my seat.
6. We live in a great community that has a lot to offer...not to mention that living in our neck of the woods we are centrally located to so many things.

Friday was a day I had planned to run errands in the morning then clean the house really well in the afternoon. The day started off not as planned when I didn't wake up from my alarm to go running (sorry running friends...I must have been very tired). Then Carson's carpool came to pick him up but I had just woken up and Carson was still asleep. Two days of missed school...oh well, it's just preschool. (sorry Shawna). After breakfast I told Carson he could ride his bike while I ran and pushed Boston in the stroller so we could all get exercise for the day. We all got dressed in our exercise clothes and went out to the garage to find Carson had a flat tire on his bike. Brandon had switched tools on his air compressor and I didn't know where the right tool was to pump up the tire and he was already gone for the day. We came back in and I decided to do our errands earlier than planned and off we went. (I hadn't even showered yet but we weren't going anywhere too important). So off we were to the errands but first we stopped by the park for park day and the boys played for about 20 minutes then I got a call from my sister who needed a babysitter ASAP so we quickly did the few things we needed to do and went straight out to Surprise. By late afternoon I was smelling pretty bad but the boys had tons of fun playing with their cousins. I realized I'm making progress in learning to roll with the punches...my day didn't go as planned and I didn't even hyperventilate!

Saturday we enjoyed having Papi (a.k.a. Brandon) around. This is the first Saturday in about 8 weeks he didn't work...ok, so he did work a little this morning but only for about 1.5 hours so that doesn't really count. We cleaned up the back yard, did laundry, watched the suns game, made brownies, went on a bike ride, worked on primary stuff and attended a ward party in the late afternoon. It was nice being together and not having to go anywhere.

I made this new game for primary to teach the kids this months song so hopefully it'll be a success.

Another good day

Ok...another great day of weather. So I took the boys to the library today for story time. Carson was not thrilled to go, I think because in the past we always went to "baby time" which was more for Boston. However on Wednesday's story time is geared more for 3-5 year olds. Carson actually got into the dancing and playing around and listened to the story. It was fun to watch him come out of his shell and not be so afraid to participate in front of other people. Boston on the other hand was an emotional wreck. I probably should have stayed home and let him take a nap but we all needed to get out. He cried because some one took his spot on the rug, then he cried because he didn't get a bean bag fast enough, then he cried because he didn't get a rattle, then he cried because he didn't put the bean bag and rattle away when the other kids were putting them away. There were plenty of bean bags and rattles he was upset because he didn't move fast enough to get one out of the bucket and had to pick it up off the floor. However, his mood quickly shifted when story time was over and he got to pick out a movie of his own choice...of course it was a "Thomas the Train" movie. He really loves trains right now. Carson was excited to pick out "Quest for Camelot." Then I found a new Pilate's DVD which I hope to try out tomorrow.

After the library we went and dropped our stuff off in the car and walked over to the big lake at the park. It was an absolute glorious day. The wind was lightly blowing and the sun wasn't too hot. We walked around the lake for about 45 minutes and Carson & Boston had fun chasing the ducks which were everywhere. I wished I had some bread to feed them as I'm sure they would have loved it. Boston is so into animals. Any animal he sees he wants to hold. It's actually really sweet. It was a great 2 hours of free entertainment.

We got home ate lunch & Boston went down for a nap and I was off to Walgreen's to see how much money I could save on hand soap. I went to Ashlee's last night to learn how she saves all this cash using all different sorts of coupons. I was very impressed and very confused at the same time. When I tried the first deal at Walgreen's it really worked and I got a bunch of hand soap and deodorant and in the end the total will cost me about $3 not bad huh? Now I just need to get more into it and save at every store. I figure if I have to get up extra early before I go running to check deals and figure out coupons for the next few weeks it'll be worth the savings.

I was able to work until Boston woke up and then I fixed this nasty bean dinner. I forgot to get avocado's at the store and I forgot to cook the meat and rice so we just had black and kidney beans with a little cheese on top in a bowl. Really it wasn't good but after complaining everyone ate it...even Brandon. Tomorrow will be a better meal I promise. I don't know where my mind was this afternoon when it came to dinner...the blessing is that no one went to bed hungry tonight. After dinner Brandon took us to the park to drive the RC boat in the lake. That was fun then he headed off to Bishopric meeting and the boys and I went for a 4 mile bike ride with some friends. Today was a good exercise day 3 mile run outdoors with a friend, 2 more miles on the treadmill when I got home, a walk around the lake and then the bike ride tonight. My legs were a little tired on the last mile of the bike considering I was pulling both boys in the bike trailer behind me.

Brandon needs me to teach seminary again tomorrow. I have a much greater appreciation for any volunteer seminary teacher that teaches early morning. It's a lot of preparation and I know Brandon has been blessed with energy each day as he teaches. I never believed the man could get up and be dressed in white shirt and tie by 6:00 am five days a week. It's amazing considering that in almost 9 years of marriage I've seen him roll out of bed before 7am just a hand full of times. He is defiantly a night owl but all-in-all he's been blessed.

Summer is comming...

Can it get any more beautiful outside? I feel guilty these days if by dinner we haven't stepped out side for a bike ride or playtime in the yard. I love having the windows opened during the day and feeling the breeze not to mention the money saved on an electric bill. I love the fact that the boys want to go outside and play. I love that our trees are turning green again and flowers are blooming. I love that Brandon enjoys planting flowers and plants and takes care of them. I also love this time of year because it means I get to enjoy the sun...ok, someday's I might be know to worship it...but the beauty of that is when my skin gets darker in the summer the less makeup I wear and because it's summer that means I can wear my hair up often so if I need to go somewhere I can be showered and out the door in 20 minutes. It's a beautiful thing.

The boys are getting excited to play in the splash pad again this year. We've turned it on a couple of times but it's still a little on the cold side. Maybe sometime in the next 10 years Brandon will have a couple of free days to finish the brick patio around the pad that was started but has yet to be completed.

This week was a good week, busy but lots of blessings. I'm thankful the Lord is aware of our needs and wants and desires to bless us. Hopefully I can continue to learn to have the faith required to fully enable the powers of heaven to assist with our desires.

Lemonade Anyone?

"When life throws you a lemon, make lemonade"

- Easier said than done, but not impossible.

I think I can attribute my hips & thighs to all the lemonade I've had lately.

Ahhhhh...

I sigh of relief. All the books on the businesses are totally caught up and everything balances! Literally a miracle! Another testimony that the power of prayer really works...even when it comes to a small business needing balanced books! To my children...(because this is becoming our family journal) never forget to allow faith to accompany your prayers.

Speaking of prayers...is it the mere fact that I'm getting older and General Conference means more to me now than it did before or was this past conference weekend one of the best. Or is it both? Either way I was amazed at the spirit that accompanied the talks and the direction that was offered. Not to mention the Solemn Assembly that I and my children were able to participate in when sustaining President Thomas S. Monson as the new Prophet, Seer & Revealator (spelling). Amazing.

And what a way to send it out with a bang...the last session on Sunday afternoon was awesome. Not to mention both kids were asleep so there were no distractions.

Also, I am once again so very thankful to live close to family. Like everything else, living near relatives does have it's ups and downs but how thankful I am to live next to family today. My sister took my kids over night last night so I could finish this business work. What a relief to have it all done and know my children were taken care of in the mean time. Thank you Jennifer I am sure they are having so much fun!