She's Like No Other

When Landon and Emma were toddlers, I would always hear Moms complain about the "terrible two's", but I seriously thought they were exaggerating. I couldn't imagine my kids ever behaving that way. Landon had a perfect temperament from the day he was born. Emma was a really hard baby, but by the time she was 2, she was an angel. They didn't throw fits, they listened to directions and they usually behaved. When Emma was 3, we flew to Florida and she sat still and was perfect throughout the entire 5 hour flight. I figured that was normal toddler behavior.

...Enter Olivia.


This chick is a spitfire. She does everything all of those moms complained about. She tests my limits constantly. Right now, her big thing is to throw her food on the floor and yell, "no, no no" as she does it. At a soccer game she kept trying to run onto the field, and after several reprimands, she slowly walked backwards onto the field, staring me down the whole time. When Emma is in the bath, Livi gets mad that she's not in there with her (she's no longer allowed since she poops in the bath-another thing I just love). So in retaliation she throws things like shoes, hairbrushes, and watches in the bath with Emma. She's also in this phase where she climbs into small spaces and gets stuck. After I free her from her death scream, she crawls right back in again. I feel so out of my element. I'm finding myself reading books and looking on the internet to get advice like I'm a first-time parent.

Although there are days that I handle this better than others, for the most part, it's kind of amusing to me. I've just never seen anything like it. Something else that I'm experiencing for the first time, is how much emulates her older siblings. Because Landon and Emma were so close in age, I raised them together. Since Livi is so much younger, she is trying to do everything they do. She follows them everywhere and has to do exactly what they are doing. During homework, she has to sit right in the middle of them and do it too. When the kids brush their teeth, Livi does too...I can't help her, she HAS to do it. Whenever we go to school functions, she insists on sitting with the class. When the kids are on the computer, she will pinch and push them until they get off and then she climbs up and copies them.


Watching her do all these things makes me laugh so I just had to write it down so I can remember how crazy she was. I love that she's growing up. I love that she's copying the two most perfect children, so one day she will start acting like them. I love the dirty looks she's giving me right now because I'm on the computer and not giving her my undivided attention. I love you Livi!

The Big O

It's something we all wish we could do, yet some of us just don't know how. Some of us simply don't have the time. Yes, you know what I'm talking about. I know you're scared to open yourself up to this topic, because then you will feel like you have to do it too. I'm here to tell you that it's okay, and once you've done it, you won't go back. That's right, I'm going to discuss, "The Big O".

Organization.

I'm addicted to Organization. It's a bit of a sickness. I drool over places like The Container Store and Real Simple Magazine. It takes a lot of time and commitment upfront to organize your areas, but once it's done, you will save so much time and headache.

When you step back and look at your entire house and see all the stuff that needs to be done, it can get really overwhelming. In these cases, I like to refer to the old saying, "How do you eat an Elephant? One bite at a time." Take one small section of your house based on the amount of time you have available. Once you've done that one area, it will be easy to keep it organized and clean, and then you can move on to the next. It may be a lengthy process (I'm on 2 years and counting), but will ultimately get done and make your life easier.

My "Big O" topic today is a label maker. Everyone must own one. It's as necessary as toilet paper ladies. Seriously. You can pick one of these bad boys up for about $15, yet the organizational possibilities are, yup, you guessed it...priceless.

Although I like things clean and clutter free, I think kids really need a space of their own where they can make a mess and have some fun. In our home, toys are not allowed in their rooms or in the main living spaces. However, they have the entire basement to just go nuts. Sometimes it looks like a tornado hit down there, which could be a nightmare for me to clean up. However, because I took the time to organize and label all of the toy bins, I never have to clean up after the kids. At the end of the night, I tell them to clean up the toys, and within fifteen minutes or so, everything is in it's place and looks just as anal nice as if I did it myself.

Big O quote of the day:
"Clutterers often suffer from false beliefs that we do not deserve any better, that we are failures, that there will never be enough for us. Clutterless helps us eradicate these ideas."

A Historical Day

Dear Landon and Emma,

For the last few months, our country has been inundated with political messages from John McCain and Barack Obama. Dad and I had to think long and hard about who we wanted to run our country since our current President, George Bush, has made quite a mess. We have always tried to communicate openly with you about our beliefs. Obviously, politics have taken center stage in our family discussions over the last few weeks. During this time, you've listened to us discuss topics like taxes and war, and you've done your best to join in the conversation. A few weeks ago, Dad and I decided we were going to support Obama.

I wanted to document this for you to reflect upon later in life, since you are still a little too young to remember this important day. This morning, Emma, you told Dad that if kids could vote, you would vote for Obama. Landon, you wanted McCain because he wouldn't raise our taxes, but quickly shifted your vote when Dad and I agreed to support Obama. Also, you've been learning about voting and tallying in 2nd grade this year. You were impressed to find out that everyone would vote today AND we would be able to tally the whole United States of America in just one day. Although, you were disappointed to go to sleep before finding out the results.

Well, about two hours ago, we elected a new President of the United States. Barack Obama. I actually went into your room to see if you were awake so I could share the news...I knew you would be excited to see "your choice" win. However, you were in dreamland and I didn't want to wake you. He delivered a lovely speech and I hate to admit that I became a little choked up.

You don't understand this now, but we are currently in terrible times.We are in a horrible recession, people are losing their homes and jobs. We are in an unnecessary war that is costing us billions of dollars, and more importantly, innocent lives. There hasn't been a light at the end of this tunnel in quite some time. The media and people in general are pessimistic. Today's election brought out hope of a brighter future and a promise of change. It felt good to feel optimistic again-and that is why I got emotional.

I worry so much about your future. I hope by the time you read this, things are better and all the sacrifices we've made as a family and as a country, have been worth it. I love you!

NaBloPoMo

So I'm a little behind since it's already the 3rd of November, but I'm going to try to take the National Blog Posting Month challenge. 30 posts in 30 days. I don't really have enough to blog about every single day, so it will force me to be more creative. I guess this counts as my first post. That was easy!

Looking Forward

I'm so glad this week is over. I really hate Halloween. I've never liked it. I thought if I had fun with it and dressed up this year, I would get in the spirit of things. Nope. Didn't work.

I think having kids made me hate it even more because there is so much effort, money, and time invested into this holiday...which, I might add, also has a stupid premise. So, after countless costume parties, parades, and gaining five pounds on the candy I had to keep purchasing over and over again, I'm grateful this month is finally over. Yes, the kids had fun. Yes, I enjoyed watching them have fun. Yes, I have lots of pictures. Yes, they look just like everyone else's pictures.

Now that this day is over, I'm getting excited for the upcoming months. I have so much I'm looking forward to. In just a few days we will elect a new, looooong over-due President. A few weeks later I go to Mexico. Then we celebrate our anniversary and of course, Thanksgiving. Then comes my favorite holiday-Christmas. It is such a "feel good" holiday. People are generally much nicer, more thoughtful, and of good cheer Fa-la-la-la la. I love the spirit of giving, family unity, and 2 weeks of no school. I also love Christmas music...it can never start too early. My cd's are locked 'n' loaded in the car and ready to go starting tomorrow.

So goodbye October. Goodbye nice weather. Goodbye Halloween...finally.

Emma's First Ride

The entire summer Emma has been begging me to take off her training wheels so she can learn to ride her bike. We can't just go out to the street, because we live on the mountain and there are no flat areas to learn, so we have to go to the park. With Jeremy working and traveling this whole summer, there wasn't a time when I could take her without Livi.

When we had our first snow at the beginning of October, I knew our window of opportunity had passed and we would do it next summer. However, today, it was such a beautiful fall day and the kids wanted to go outside to ride on our basketball court. Emma again begged me to take off the training wheels. I decided I would let her try since it would probably be the last day of the year she can ride outside.

I took them off and began to show her how to ride. It was only a matter of seconds before Livi started getting in the way, pulling on my shirt, and trying to push Emma off the bike. I kept trying to distract Livi long enough to attend to Emma again. I knew this is how it would be with Livi there and it just re-affirmed my decision to wait until next year.

I took Livi inside to allow her to finish her tantrum and when I looked out the window, Emma was trying to ride on her own. She struggled and I thought she would soon give up. She never really fell, but couldn't get the hang of it. When we taught Landon to ride, we went to a huge parking lot and so he had enough room to get going. By the time Emma got both feet on the pedals, she reached the end of the court and had to get off and turn around. Well, after about ten minutes she decided to just learn to balance AND turn so she didn't have to stop at all.

So I left Livi in the house, while she watched me through the screen door, and took this video.

Yup, in a matter of 15 minutes, Emma went from training wheels to this:

She fell just as the battery ran out. She got back up and laughed and continued to ride for another hour. So I'm thinking that this it was a better place to learn after all, because she had to learn to navigate turns, slow down and stop all at the same time. Now I feel so bad that I didn't just do this at the beginning of the summer. Emma is such a rockstar!!

Halloween 2008

We had a fun Halloween party with Jeremy's family last night. We dressed up as McCain and Palin, but I was definitely out-done by Maddison, who also dressed up as Palin , but added a gun and baby as accessories. Clever girl.

The kids all picked out their own costumes. Emma picked out Olivia's costume because she "likes cheerleaders and Daddy likes Broncos".

We decorated cookies, hit the pinata, and Landon got another round of cake and presents. Lucky kid!

We feel so fortunate to be part of this family. Without them, we wouldn't have any family that we see on a regular basis. Even though his Aunts and Uncles all have grown children, they go through a lot of effort to make sure the 'little kids' have activities to do, and they spoil them like their own.

CrAzY gIrLs!!

My Google Reader was full this morning of the blog titles: "HSM3". I'm not surprised to see that Mom's everywhere took their kids to High School Musical 3 last night, because every one of them were at the same theater as us. Amy and I took our girls (along with the rest of the South West Valley) to see the movie on opening night. When HSM 1 and 2 were released, Emma was still too young to get into the whole pre-teen phenomenon, so this entire ordeal was pretty new to me. We rented HSM 1 a few months ago and HSM 2 just last week so we would be prepared for the movie release.

It was cute to see all the Tweens giggling and excited to see the movie. I was excited just to spend some quality time with Emma and to share in her enthusiasm. Throughout the movie she kept asking me if they were going to kiss on the lips. In addition to her constant questioning about them making out, she also repeated everything they said..it's seriously like sitting next to a parrot.

There were two things I couldn't stop obsessing about throughout the entire movie:

1) Why are Troy's pants hanging so low? Seriously, is this the new style? They are so skin tight that I don't understand how dances in them. Can he even bend his knees? I really hate this new trend. I decided, however, if I embrace it for myself, I could be a size 2, because I wouldn't have to worry about them fitting over my giant ass. Back in High School, we would've called this style "Gansta", but in honor of 2008, I'm renaming it "Joe the Plumber". Seriously Dude...Pull your pants up.

2) Okay, I couldn't think of the second thing...now I can't stop thinking about Troy. This kid is supposed to be in High School...yet he looks like this...
Yea...if this is how guys looked in High School, I would've enjoyed it a lot more!

Anyway, the kids had fun, and that's all that matters!

Show 'n' Tell

The other day Livi spilled my Diet Coke that was sitting on my nightstand. Before saturating my carpet, it splashed onto my sheets and bed skirt. After mourning the loss of the last Diet Coke in the fridge, (you know exactly what I'm talking about) I quickly attended to the carpet and then threw the sheets in the wash. Then I examined the bed skirt, which was covered in brown spots. After I took the bed skirt off, I spot-cleaned it and returned it back on within a matter of minutes. After seeing how easy it was, I wanted to share this tip, hoping it might make your lives a little easier. As I mentioned in my last post, I'm going to make this a more regular topic, thus beginning my segment called "Show 'n' Tell".

Bed skirts can be tricky business. If you have a heavy bed, it sometimes takes two people to get it on and off. Then it slides around when you put the mattress back on. I got sick of this little routine so when I got my new bedroom set, I decided to try something different.

Velcro Baby.

Attach one side of Velcro to the bottom of your bed frame with a little hot glue and the matching side to the individual bed skirt pieces. Then when the bed skirt needs removing, it's as simple as ripping it off. I didn't get the before picture because I wanted to get to the stain quickly, but here is what it looks like when it's unattached.

The Velcro is attached underneath the wood frame.
Notice the lovely stain on the carpet. Work in progress.

Then I washed it with water and a little bit of soap. This is a metallic silk material, so it can't tolerate anything but hand-washing. I laid it flat to dry for a few minutes while I hit up the carpet stain again.

Then I attached it back to the frame



...and Voila! Or for those not fluent in French...Ta-Da!

Everyone Needs a Change

I've been doing a lot more blog reading rather than writing lately. I'm actually kind of bored of my own blog; it's the Gemini in me, I suppose. I just need to spice this bad boy up, just for my own sanity. While my kids are in fact the cutest kids in the world (I know you thought yours were, so sorry you had to find out this way), I'm kind of tired of blogging about only them.

If you are like me, you are a busy woman (or man, for the 2 dudes that read this). As much as you would like to call or see your friends regularly, it's not always possible. So for me, blogs are a great way to watch your kids grow up and keep up with your lives. My favorite posts are the tagging posts where I get to know a little more about you...things I would have never known otherwise.

However, the blogs I love to read the most are those with household ideas, tips for saving time & money, parenting tips, and so on. Recently, I heard of a great way to put your kids in time out when they are fighting with one another. I thought, "Why am I just hearing about this now? Why didn't someone mention this to me before?" While I love seeing that your baby puked on your bed, I would also like to know what tips you might have on cleaning it up.

So with that said, I will still post pictures of my kids and the crazy things they do and say [you can enter your sigh of relief here], but mostly just the significant events. I'm going to start adding some things that I find interesting and helpful, and I hope you will too. I'm not crafty, so you won't see instructions on how to make a magazine holder, however, I will tell you where to buy one (and at the cheapest price). I'm also not into cooking, so there will be no recipes. However, I am quite the bargain hunter, organizer, and professional web surfer. I'm also always trying to learn more about health & fitness , parenting, and photography. Hopefully there will be something in there that might interest you. If not, well, too bad, it's my blog and I'll do what I want ;)

P-A-R-TAY

We went to the Mayan the night of Landon's birthday. It's a great place to eat when you have a toddler that screams and runs around a lot. We enjoyed our time as a family, but had to cut it a little short to get him to his soccer game. I still can't believe I have an 8 year old!


Then the big day came on Saturday when Landon had his party with his friends. We went to Bounce U and I've never seen so many kids in one place. They were all so well behaved and we had absolutely no problems with any of the kids. It was great and definitely the least stressed I've ever been hosting a birthday party for my kids.

In Landon's words...Good times, Good times.

The Human Body

Jeremy and I just got back from the Body Worlds Exhibit. I'm kind of a freak when it comes to learning about the human body. I've read all the "You" books written by Dr. Roizen and Dr. Oz and I love watching Discovery Health. I would have loved to be a doctor if I didn't have to go to school...I hate school. Anyway, I was really excited to hear that Jeremy was interested in seeing the exhibit as well. A big shout out to my bestie Char for taking the kidlets tonight so we could go out.

If this is something that fascinates you, I highly recommend it. They are real human bodies that were donated to be preserved and used for this purpose. They don't look mangled or gross. In fact, they look like wax sculptures. It was awesome. Last month I read a news article about a Junior High that was planning on a field trip to this exhibit, but canceled it for fear that it may be inappropriate for young kids. Perhaps for elementary ages, but for Junior High, I couldn't disagree more. I don't think I would've taken Emma, but mostly because she would be bored. However, we were both wishing Landon was there with us. He would've learned so much and enjoyed it a lot. There was the cutest girl, maybe six years old, that had a little note pad and would sit next to the bodies and take notes. I wonder what she wrote? It's disappointing that those kids missed the chance to see something so rare and unique that would encourage them to learn. But hey, they got to go to the Zoo instead.

So totally off topic... Emma just walked by my room, heading for the basement. She's a sleepwalker. Anyone have kids that do this? It's so freaky. I digress...

Anyway, I'm always amazed with how intricate our bodies are and how much we take them for granted. I think that's why I like learning about it, because it's a good reminder to stay healthy, exercise, and eat well. If you are a smoker, you will seriously stop smoking when you see those lungs. If you eat high fat foods, you will think twice after seeing the arteries and enlarged hearts.
With that said, afterwards we went to Hard Rock and had the greasiest burgers and nachos. What can I say, all that talk about fat food made me hungry!

An Ode to My Oldest

Today is Landon's Birthday. Eight years ago he was born at 3:29 pm and weighed 8lbs 8oz. He was a happy baby and smiled for everyone. He slept through the night at 10 months old, walked at 15 months, and potty trained at 3 1/2. He has always done things in his own time.

I am so proud to call him my son. Last Sunday he woke up early and quietly came in my room and asked if he could go downstairs. An hour later, the girls and I woke up and he was cleaning the kitchen. Before that, he cleaned the basement. He said he just wanted to do something nice for me.

That is the core of Landon. He is generous, kind and thoughtful. He has always been very sensitive and aware of other people's feelings. Ever since he was a toddler, he was always drawn to the child that was hurt or crying and would try to console them. He's not competitive, he's not jealous, and he doesn't have an angry bone in his body.

He's also a complete germ-phobe. He won't drink or eat anything that anyone has previously touched. Today he locked his sister in the bathroom until she washed her hands, after he caught her picking her nose.

As of this month, he wants to be an Army Soldier. When I told him he would have to go to war, he said he would just tell the guy in charge that he wants to stay in America. I told him it wasn't his choice, it was the President's choice. He then changed his mind and decided to be the President instead. He also wants to be a Scientist so he can cure cancer. What kind of a kid is thinking of things like curing cancer at eight years old? That's my Landon. Always wanting to help.
Recently, I read through the letters I wrote to Landon when I was pregnant with him. I've got to admit, even though I love all my kids equally, reading those letters reminded me how special the first baby is. Everything is so new and exciting, and you just can't ever anticipate the love you are going to have for that child. Here is a little bit of a letter I wrote the day we found out he was a boy, on May 30th, 2000:

"...We are going to name you Landon James Palmer. We think it will convey confidence and success; everything we know you will be. It's so amazing that I haven’t met you yet, but I love you more than life itself. I know I've only been carrying you for 5 months, but I've been dreaming of you my entire life. Thank you my little angel for the opportunity of being your mom."

Happy Birthday my little BIG angel.

I love you!

The Birds and the Bees

A couple of years ago, out of no where, Landon and I had this conversation...
Landon: Mom, I know what sex is.
Mom: Okay, what is it?
Landon: It's Love.
Mom: [sigh of relief] Yes son, that's right. Where did you hear that?
Landon: Dad told me.

Fast Forward to last night:
Landon: I know that sex is more than just hugging and kissing.
Mom: [deep breath] Oh yea, what is it then? [hold breath]
Landon: Naked hugging and kissing.
Mom: Where did you hear that?
Landon: The Simpsons
Mom: D'oh!

This Morning's Rant

Not so good things today:
-Stock market just opened at a five year record low, 40% lower than just one year ago today
-Afghanistan is more dangerous today than it was last year
- As I write this, the dow is down 663 points
- Jeremy is going out of town for the third weekend
- It's gonna snow this weekend
- The President is going to attempt to speak taking up precious air time...is it November 4th yet?

Good things today:
-Waking up to singing kids
-A clean house
-Oil prices are down to the lowest it's been in a year
-Looking forward to a 3-day weekend...no school Monday!!
-Friends coming over tonight
-Spending all day with Livi- Updated at 1:40...turns out this wasn't actually a good thing today ;)
-Mmmm, my sheets smell downy fresh

On a side note, according to Forbes Magazine, Warren Buffett made $8 BILLION dollars from August 29th-Oct 1st...um, yea, that's 34 days. Why isn't he running for president or at least a government consultant?

It's Time to Wig Out!!

I have a friend who has been battling with Alopecia for a while now, but only recently lost all of her hair. She is one of the most beautiful women I know, both inside and out. She's had such a great attitude about her circumstances, and I really admire her for how she's handled everything in such a positive way.

A few nights ago, she welcomed in her new look with a Wig Out party. It was so fun and such a creative idea.

Foreshadowing

Fall is so bitter-sweet for me. I love the crisp air, the perfect weather, and the changing leaves. However, it's also a reminder that winter is coming. Knowing there were only a few more days to see all the fall colors, I took the kids to the canyon right after school. They were still in their uniforms, but hey, a real girl can hike in a dress!

The colors were so bright and amazing. Wouldn't it be cool to be able to paint something like that?



The kids had fun collecting leaves, walking sticks and getting fresh air. Livi didn't want to be held or stop for pictures. She wanted to walk and when the terrain got to hard for her to go up, I would try to carry her and she would scream. She just wanted a hand to hold, but insisted she did it all by her self otherwise. It was a great way to spend the afternoon.

Clowns, Cotton Candy, and Silly Hats

Jeremy was in Chicago this weekend, so I took the kids to the circus with some friends. The kids had so much fun. I was so happy (and little surprised) that Livi was really good for the entire three hours.


Although we had taken Landon and Emma once before, it had been long enough for them to forget most of it. I myself was barely entertained, but loved watching the kids' eyes light up with everything they saw. They laughed so hard, it made me laugh too. It was a fun weekend!

Suck it Up

I'm watching Oprah right now. There is a woman that contracted a flesh-eating disease immediately after having her baby. Eventually, they had to remove several internal organs and then her arms AND legs. Did anyone see today's show?

Jeremy and I just went out to dinner and I was complaining about how difficult Livi is and how hard my days have been over the last few weeks. She's getting her molars, she's not sleeping, she's not eating, she throws tantrums, she defies authority, she screams all day...you know...a typical toddler.

Yesterday, when I told Jeremy I wanted to put Livi in daycare and get a job, he replied with "You wanted her, now suck it up". I was a little ticked about his lack of empathy, but after seeing this show, he was absolutely right. (I can only admit to him being right because he rarely reads this blog, and he definitely quit reading the moment I mentioned Oprah's name).

This woman didn't complain once, she just told the surgeons to get on with it so she can begin to recover. She didn't say "why me" or go into a depression. She was strong, patient, confident and a true warrior.

I'm such a baby sometimes. So I have a toddler from hell...she's healthy...all my kids are. I have legs to rock her with and arms to smack her with. I have it so easy! I love that inspiration always comes at the right time.

Thanks Oprah for reminding me to suck it up!

Nick Names

When I was pregnant with my last baby, we kind of assumed it was a boy. I don't know why... wishful thinking maybe. We already had a name picked out and started calling him by his name and telling the kids about their little brother. When we found out we were having a girl, we knew the battle of names would soon begin.

When deciding Emma's name, he wanted her to be named Ava. I didn't really like the name and I just put my foot down with the name Emma, however, I did let him choose her middle name...as long as I liked it. So in trying to decide what to name our newest addition, I had two names on my list. I shared my first choice with Jeremy and he hated it. He then very sincerely told me that he really wanted to name this one, since he basically had no say in Emma's name. I clinched my teeth and tried to smile, and asked him what he wanted to name her. He replied with "Olivia". I told him that I could tell it meant a lot to him, and that I would be willing to concede because I love him so much, yadda yadda yadda. In all reality, I was so excited because this was the second name on my list.

[Side Note: Whenever you get your way, always try to make it seem like it was their idea. They will feel like you really value their opinion, and as an added bonus, you can blame them if it turns out to be a bad idea.]

I digress. Back to the reason I even started this post. I've always had a pet-peeve when naming children. Specifically, when people name their kids something, knowing very well they are going to call him by a nick-name. For example, a parent will say, "We are going to name him Augustus, but we'll call him Gus". I think this should only apply when you are naming them after parent and need to create a nickname to avoid household confusion. Otherwise, just name the kid Gus.

When I chose the name Olivia, I intended to call her Olivia. Then after a few weeks, we would just shorten it to "Liv" or "Livi" in casual conversation. Then we got accustom to calling her that and then she started to respond to it.

Now here is my dilemma. I like the name Olivia much better, but at this point, she only responds to Livi. So do I just go with it or try to change it back? How much confusion will this cause?

For those of you that are intentionally using a nick-name (I forgive you), do they respond to their full names during school roll call or is there a place on forms to write a nick-name so everyone calls them the same thing? Also, how did you determine how to spell the nickname? I didn't even realize it until tonight (which is what prompted this whole thought process) that I spell it Livi and Jeremy spells it Livy. I don't think I've ever seen him write it down before until I found a letter he wrote. If we decide to keep calling her Livi, we need to teach her how to spell it and therefore need to agree on a spelling ourselves. Again, another reason to just stick with Olivia. See why it's my pet-peeve? It causes so much confusion. Please help.