I've Been Tagged by Lindsey Hall...3 days ago...sorry Linds!

Rules:
1. List person (s) who tagged you
2. Mention rules on my blog
3. Tell about 6 unspectacular Quirks of yours
4. Tag 6 fellow bloggers

Here I go....

1. I usually have 3 or 4 opened jars of pickles in my refrigerater....not sure why

2. I need clean counter tops to function well throughout the day. It helps me sleep better too!

3. Before I leave on any vacation, I HAVE to have a sparkling clean basement before I go. This goes for under my porch as well. Brenda knows this all to well!

4. I love having polished toes for Sundays...even if I wear closed toe shoes!

5. I'm obsessed with clean toilets

6. I always make sure the main floor doors are shut before I go on an errand(s). Who cares if it's for only 10 min.!


I NEED HELP.....I KNOW THIS!


I now Tag: Brenda, Becky, Jill, Michelle Yost, Marinda and Amy....come on girls, let's hear it!

Family Came to Town!

Last night my aunt Karen and cousin Julie and her two daughters McKenzie and Marissa came for a fast visit from Idaho. I was so happy to see them and visit with them. I tried to be the best Hostess ever, so I served them warm, straight from the oven cinnomon rolls and orange rolls for breakfast. I figured maybe I'd show them who owns the kitchen and scrambled some eggs! :) After breakfast we ran along and did a little shopping. That was fun....of course! I'm proud to say that no damage was done for me. I'm doing better at just saying NO! Karen and Julie then went to visit my other cousin Sean in (let's just say...."Draper") for a while. It was alot of fun hanging out with the girls while they were gone. These girls are so adorable. Kenz is 13 and Rissa is 11. I LOVE them! Later this evening they took off and headed back to Idaho. It was fast but well worth the few hours that they were here. I'm looking forward to hopefully seeing then in November for Madi's baptism. Yep, you read that right, Madi will be baptized on Nov. 1! My baby is getting big....how can I stop time? How! How! How! With Super Saturday coming up and Madi's baptism my mind is overflowing with that. I feel busy. Tonight Ty and Madi went to the Utes game. GO UTES! I love it when my family comes for visits. It's fun for me to see everyone and catch up. Thanks for visiting Karen, Julie, Kenzi and Rissa....please come again!

This Song Lately....

I'm not sure really why I love this song...but I do. It gets my mind going and I keep thinking about these 3 great women everytime I hear it. Woman #1 at this time is trying to move forward with her life after the lose of her child. Woman #2 is struggling to fight for her own life after a horrible accident. Woman #3 is struggling to find her purpose here on earth. These women are mothers, wives and daughters. They are beautiful. I pray for them everyday. I hope they continue to fight. I hope they ALWAYS know how much they are loved.

CUTE AS EVER HEADBANDS....AND GIRL!

My super creative friend Amelia just started handmaking these headbands....how cute are they! They are so light that you can't even feel them on your head. They just tie in the back. I wore the cream one with print on Friday day and night and forgot I had it on....I LOVE THAT! Madi wore the one with polka dots on Saturday. The browm and blue one looked adorable on Madi at church today...still wearing it in pictures. She can't wait to wear the candy corn one Oct. 1. I'm now in search for the Utes fabric so Amelia can make one for Madi and I. She has so much fabric to choose from. Madi and I are having a blast with these! If you're not sold by looking at my pictures then you have to stop by her house to take a second look! Thanks Amelia....Madi and I heart your headbands!

Fun Day...and Dancing with MH Drill

Today was just another busy morning of getting the kids ready for school. Jacob got grounded from the Wii this morning because he chose not to listen to me when I asked him to get his 1 shoe on and to put his backpack on. He was too busy playing the Wii to listen to me. He was pretty upset with me but....tough! After I dropped off the kids Owie and I went on a couple of errands and then ran over to Amelia's house to pick up some CUTE AS EVER headbands that she made. I bought 6 for Madi and I to share. We love them! She is so creative....I love it! In the morning I will post a picture of what they look like. They look darling on Miss Madi. After school today Jacob went over to his friend JJ's house to play. He was a little nervous about going but I kind of pushed him to go. I knew he'd be fine. I'm not sure what the experts would say about that, but in all honesty it's what works best for Jacob. When it was time to pick him up he was sad to see me and quickly said to me that he "loves this place!" He asked me later this afternoon if he could go to JJ's house on Saturday. I'm glad he had a great time and wants to go back! As soon as we got home I made the boys their lunch and started my cleaning. My goal today was to clean the upstairs bathrooms and laundry room floor. HURRAY that's done! Tonight we went over to the Murray High Football game to watch Madi perform with the Drill Team. She did such a great job. I love watching my Madi dance. I'm really sad about how dark the pictures turned out. They looked fine on the camera..dang it! I'm off to bed, so here are some pictures for all to enjoy...



Stevie and Madi! Madi LOVES Stevie! Thanks Stevie for teaching Madi the dance...both of you danced great!



You can't tell by the picture but this was some major booty swinging move! I think Ty about had a heart attack!
Ta Da! She said she was feeling really nervous...but we could'nt even tell! Good Job Madi

Busy Day....but TY IS BACK!!!!

This morning was pretty hectic trying to get the kids ready for school. Madi went on a Field Trip so I wanted to make sure she was ready for that adventure. We were out the door around 8:15! We picked up our cute neighbor boy and took him too. I'm still having to get out of the car to walk Jacob to his line. He was the first in line this morning and was very happy about that. Of course I don't mind helping him, but I have to say that the whole walker thing is starting to wear on me a little. I'm looking forward to watching him jump out of the car and head to class himself. But because I was waiting with him, Owen and I were invited to go over to a ladies house to have a playdate for our 3 year olds. I ran home and showered and them went over at 9:30. We stayed for an hour. Owen and 3 maybe 4 other kids now have a play group every Thursday. These ladies are very sweet so I'm looking forward to that. I think this will be great for Owen. He deserves something fun to look forward to other than the places here and there for Madi and Jacob. After our playdate Owie and I ran to the store to pick up ONE item that I needed. I hate those trips to the store. We then picked up Jacob and Avery from school. Just as we were pulling out of the parking lot a cute mom of one of the kids in Jacobs class invited Jacob to go over and play tomorrow along with a couple of other boys from class. I turned and asked Jacob if he wanted to go and he clearly said out loud "Na!" I asked him if he wanted to think about it and he looked at me so seriously and said "No, I'd rather not!" I was a little embaressed. Liz was so sweet about it and said that if he changes his mind he's still welcome to come. Tonight Jacob said he wanted to go. I feel like I should make a treat to break the ice and make a peace offering. This is probably just my anxiety kicking in. She really did'nt care. Funny thing though, while Jacob was passing up this fun opportunity Owen yelled "I'll go!" My boys personalities can be so night and day sometimes. So we ran home to eat lunch and then it was off to a PTA meeting at the school. Thanks Jamie for watching my boys. They love her house and always seem to have a great time there! I came home to clean up the house and wait for my Miss Madi to come home from school. After homework, chores, and piano practice we headed to Malik's soccer game. On the way there I picked up McDonald's for the kids dinner. Brenda and Corey went to Hillarys dinner before the wedding thing of a bop. Not sure the correct fancy name for that. I was glad to be there for Malik and to cheer him on. His team lost...good try though! We came home to see DADDY.... we of course had our usual laugh, tickel and talk moments. I love to hear the kids voices and even Ty's when they first see each other. So sweet. Madi was my hero tonight and put Owen in the shower with her. Whew! Now that the ducklings have had bathes, bedtime stories read and prayers said, their tucked in bed and...IT'S FINALLY JUST TY AND I!!!!

My Ducklings and I

Idaho stole my husband again this week. Ty left on Monday and will be coming home on Thurs. Ya Hoo! I miss him and want him home! The kids miss him too. Our home runs the same when Ty is away, but the silence of him is hard, especially after day 2! This morning started out great. We were right on time and ready to go by 8:15 until Jacob said he could'nt find his flip flop. Owen hid it somewhere! For the love of grapes where did he put it? We still can't find it. He ended up having to wear his old camping shoe. I was so embaressed. Oh well! Jacob is obsessed with letters lately and all he does is tell me what the sounds of each letter makes and then tells me what letter is for what word. Very cute....and proud I am! Owen threw a loaf of bread at me this afternoon for no reason at all. After his "time away" he informed me "I just wanted a sandwich." Honestly child! Jacob came to me telling me he wanted what Owen had. I look up to find Owen looking at me PROUD AS CAN BE with a Twinkie in hand. Owen opened the box himself and threw his chewing he said to me "but I said I could have one!" He really thought that counted as OK!


Madi is really into this book right now. She is an awesome reader...we are so happy for her!Owen's new "scary face" Watch out....he's so frightening!
"Say NO to Wii" Jacob could play for hours on end. He has even started to make invisible hand motions. If I tell him we need to run a couple of errands, he'll quickly ask me if he can play again when we get home!

This is what I want to see! Can you see the difference in him already?

I bought this wreath at Costco today. I think it's pretty cute. The Holidays are coming whether I like it or not so here you have it...I'm ready for November!

Jacob is Star of the Week!

The joy of being Star of the Week means that you get to hold the Flag for the Pledge and bring in a poster with pictures of yourself attached to show the class. Does his teacher not see that his poster is a little off there? Any how, Jacob was very hesitant about holding the flag in front of everyone. He will get to do this everyday for the week....we'll see how this goes! Ty helped him get to his class with walker and all and helped him talk about some of his favorite things. Jacob is far from showy and could care less about holding the flag. Ty said he just kept looking at the ground and had his hand in his mouth. :/

All About JACOB TOLMAN:

Favorite Color: Green and Blue
Favorite Food: Pizza
Favorite Vacation: Disneyland and Sea World
Favorite Place to be with his family: Camping at Fillmore and Potters Pond
Jacob loves to ride his bike, ride his motorcycle, ride with dad on his dirt bike and ride the 4-wheeler with dad and Owen!
Jacob loves to jump in the pool and Splash in the water!
Jacob loves his cousins!
Jacob loves to play in the sand at the beach in California
He loves to celebrate his birthday!
He loves to go boating!
He loves his family and loves to play with Madi and Owen!

I LOVE what you LOVE...you are our little STAR EVERYDAY!

Life's Too Short....Just Laugh!

Around this time is when Owen starts to feel bored...obviously!

Jacob's 1st Day of Kindergarten!

Last night before Jacob went to bed I asked him what he wanted to wear on his first day. He looked at me like "why the crap do I care!" So with that expression I asked him in a different way by showing him all the new shirts I bought him and as I was holding each one up he immediately smiled and said "that one!" So funny. He had a fast breakfast with Madi this morning because I was racing around with my head cut off trying to get both kids ready for school. Total shock for a new girl! I love this picture of him with his adorable cheeser!
The sun was pretty bright...sorry buddy! Thanks for that handsome smile! "Ok, jump in the car and off to school we go!"
This picture was the blame for those bittersweet tears...2 kids in Elementary School! I must face the fact that I'm getting old...Yikes!
Jacob was so great...I could tell he wanted to crawl in a hole a couple of times but he did'nt, he just went with it! Good job dude! We found out that chicks dig walkers. The little girls were so sweet, especially our darling neighbor Avery! I was happy to be there to help my little boy with his walker. Kindergarten is such a joy I tell ya!

Walking in his Classroom...

As soon as we walked in Jacob found his name on the Apple Tree Wall. He was so excited! It's kind of hard to see his name because his hand is covering it. Miss Garrabrandt got some major points for giving him the GREEN apple!
Meet Miss Garrabrandt. This was her first day teaching. She is fresh out of college! Maybe this is not the best shot of her, but we like her anyway. Good job Liz, you did great!
Each parent was to write to their child and tell them how special they are and how proud they are for them. This was a piece of cake for me. You're the BEST!!!
Miss Garrabrandt took individual pictures of the kids and of course I had to take one too!
This is Jacob's friend Tavin that he met in Preschool last year. They did not see each other at all over the summer! As soon as they saw each other they just picked up where they left off. That made me happy for Bubba! I know Jacob will just have the best year thanks to an awesome teacher and fun new friends! Hooray!

Jacob's pick for Lunch...McDonald's!

I think it's always fun to treat my kids to lunch on special days like this. Happy kids deserve Happy Meals! Just out of the blue Jacob told me that he loves Kindergarten...;)!

What the Crap...

I have this thing where I think I can only blog if I have a picture. I'm changing that thought today. I have been up since 4:00 a.m. with this horrible feeling in my neck...hurts when I swallow. A few days ago I had a sore throat and BAD cough...that eventually went away. Then for some reason it would just hurt when I swallowed on both sides of my neck. Thankfully that just lasted for a day. Suddenly this morning the same pain came back but only on one side of my neck. I started wondering if maybe it was thyroids. I got out of bed to Google it and pretty much the Internet is telling me I have Cancer...whatever! I need to call a doctor because I really think it has be some kind of Thyroid issue. So after that lovely answer from the Internet I deciced to catch up on some blogs. I hate to start days off like this....so early in the morning. Nothing is worse to me than hearing my kids wake up and finding myself needing/wanting 20 more minutes. That sounded bad...but it's true. Today will be Jacob's first day of Kindergarden! I have been so upset about whether or not to send him. I hate that he has to go with a broken leg or maybe it's the walker thing....I don't know. I want him to have a fun day without any complications. He is so shy at times and what a way to bring on the attention. I thought about keeping him home for another week because Madi's piano teacher told me too (I know...I'm talking to the piano teacher) but then I figured that might make him feel like the new kid in class. I've never been the new kid in class, so how do I know what that feels like. Someone needs to shake me! So I finally settled my thoughts yesterday after talking to his teacher and she said it would be fine for me to stay with him the entire time. Ty will work from home and keep an eye on Owen. I'm thinking I have it all figured out on how I'm going to send Jacob to school next week but Ty told me last night while I was doing the dishes that Jacob can go on his own! What...more restless nights! On Friday Jacob has a doctors appointment for his leg. They will do another X-ray on it. Hopefully his little leg is healing properly...that would be great news! I'm really anxious to find out more about his Arthritis in his left leg! Jacob also has an eye appointment today which I think I need to cancel. I hav'nt decided that yet. It's most likely he'll need another surgery on his eye at end of this month or next. That won't be happening. Have I explained well enough as to why I have restless night? Good grief.