pink pokey ball

The pink pokey ball...so pink, so pokey, so rolly. The ultimate in baby stimulation and entertainment.

What shoes are you going to wear with that?

Preslie at age 20 months playing in my shoes


Preslie at age 4, riding a scooter in plastic heels

Little Babe has always been fond of shoes. But lately, she is insane. She has layed out her outfit for school (or church) the night before for about 2 weeks now and always tries to match her shoes with it. She begged me to let her wear her plastic Cinderella dress-up shoes to her Kindergarten post-test. I let her. I figured it wasn't regular school, so it was fine. On Saturday while we were in WJ, my dad and I stopped at a neighbor's yard sale and I found her some darling pink cowgirl boots for $2 (I will post a pic later) which she loves. She has begged me to wear flip-flops to school for a month even though her teacher has asked parents not to do that, because all her friends wear flip-flops to school. I feel like I have a mini-teen on my hands. Oh, and how about the little meltdown she had the other day when we wouldn't buy her some silver sandals at Payless? Today, she came into the room carrying a pile of my shoes and said to me, "These are all the shoes that I think are cute." (see pic at left) She wanted to wear her pink sparkly dress up shoes to pack meeting tonight because they matched her pink sparkly shirt so well. The best is that everyday when I get dressed and I am ready to take her to school, she always asks me, "What shoes are you going to wear with that?"

I've never...

taken my kids to Disneyland.

smoked, drank alcohol (knowingly), or done drugs.

broken a bone.

had new couches.

eaten an entire bag of Circus Peanuts. (Oh wait, I have.)

owned a house.

played high school sports.

had a student loan (neither has my husband).

had a C-section.

been bungee jumping.

seen the movie "Top Gun".

not dressed up on Halloween.

shot a deer.

earned a 4.0 GPA.

taken my children to daycare.

driven a bus.

served an L.D.S. mission.

dated a guy that turned out to be gay. Oh wait, I have. Twice.

earned a bachelor's degree.

given blood.

carried a balance on a credit card.

love the park

We took Grandma's convertible (with the top down, of course) to the park on this 85 degree Saturday. Love seeing Mack smile in the swing. Love running down the grassy hill with Preslie and Hunter. Love the park.

A B C-ya!

Only 6 days of school left...1st grade, here I come!

TEETHING

This baby is up, this baby is down

He wants to be held, or to sit on the ground

Sometimes he's ornery and sometimes he's sweet

He acts like he's hungry but simply won't eat

He kicks his legs and arches his back

We run around all day to please little Mack

He once allowed dad to hold him without a fight

But he made sure his mama was still in his sight

He's getting so strong, and wants to start crawling

But he dives into furniture and then begins bawling

Between the sore gums and bruises on his head

Everyone here is glad he's in bed!

picnic at the park

Such a warm and beautiful day
So we went to the park to eat and play
Sure hope Spring is here to stay...

this and that

Never fails... You get something cute for yourself then your best friend tries it on and it
looks tons better on them...



We are having fun, crazy days lately. Spring is finally here. Friday, Dax and Hunter had Fathers and Sons. Hunter wore his back pack filled with his camping essentials for a good hour before it was time to go. Preslie and I took Mack on a girls night out to JBs and then to Redbox for a Hannah Montana movie. They were out so we went to 2 other video stores before we settled on Barbie Fairytopia: The Magic of the Rainbow. She does not make a good bed partner. Between her kicking, the high temp, and the power being off all night, sleep came second to shoving Preslie over, sweating, and worrying about our frozen food.

We enjoyed a few good funnies the past few days. One afternoon, Hunter calls to me from the bathroom, "Mom, I could use a little help in here!" I turn into the bathroom walking toward him, arms outstretched and legs straight in a Frankenstein fashion...
Hunter: "What are you doing?" (My kids are so not affected by my attempts to be funny)
Me: "I'm crazy, huh."
Hunter: "No. You're beautiful."

Another cute conversation between Hunter and me...
Me: "Did you know when you were in heaven, you chose to come to our family? Thank you so much for coming to our family."
Hunter: "Don't thank me, thank Heavenly Father. He's the one who sent me."

I will totally thank Him, buddy.

The kids and I made a big trip into Vernal. You'd think it was so far away for how seldom we go there. Gas prices have me totally grounded to town. While we were there we had a conversation went something like this...
Me: I'm thirsty. Let's go to 7-Eleven and get some drinks.
Preslie: I'm getting a Slurpee.
Hunter: I like Slurpees but I don't feel like one today.
Me: Well, you can get a different drink, like juice or something.
Hunter: They don't have juice there.
Me: 7-Eleven does have juice. They have all kinds of drinks and candy, just like every other gas station.
Preslie: 7-Eleven is a gas station?

That cracked me up because I don't know anyone who frequents 7-Eleven for anything but Slurpees. I mean, who buys gas there?

such a joy

I am in love with this little baby. He gets more personality every day. He's completely attached to me. If someone else holds him, even Dax, he just looks at me the whole time. If I ever leave him with Dax (which is hardly ever) or even if I am in a different room, this baby will lean and steer Dax like a horse so he can look for me. It is nice to be loved, but I know that it is because I feed him. That's ok, I am still glad he loves to be around me. It is kind of annoying when I do need/want to go anywhere without Mack, that after a while he will not accept his dad. But the one thing Dax has going for him is that Mack jabbers "dah dah dah dah" all the time and it makes Dax happy.

Mother's Day 2008

Loved all the "Happy Mother's Day"s and hugs from my kids today. And a big huge thank you to my hero, Dax, who not only made breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but took the baby for a drive so I could shut my eyes for a bit. I love you four with all my heart!

In my 6 years as a Mother, I am constantly analyzing and evaluating my role. I have come to know that Motherhood has the most specialized yet most wide ranging job requirements of any other job I know of. And their are no real classes that are required before you become a Mother, it is all on-the-job training and comes with the steepest learning curve I've ever encountered.

Besides loving, caring, nurturing, and providing the basic life-sustaining needs to their children, Mothers are:

Creative- how many different fun ways have we come up with to get our kids to take a bite of food, put on their clothes, clean up their toys, or do their chores?

Physically Fit- Moms can hold their babies for hours on end (longer than dad can) chase and catch a straying toddler in a store, in sacrament meeting, or before they run into the street. We play tag, give underdogs and piggy back rides, carry sleeping children from the car to their beds, and dance with our children. We are constantly "lifting, twisting, and bending."

Teachers- Moms teach the obvious things...walking, using a spoon, and using the toilet. They also teach their kids to dress themselves, sweep the floor, organize their toys, brush their teeth, make their bed, and manage money. They teach their kids table manners, counting, colors, letters, numbers. They teach of God and Jesus Christ and Their Plan for us. They teach by example how to live, to make good choices, to treat other people, to serve, to be positive, and most of all to love.

Mediators- I now know through blogging that other people's kids really do fight with each other and throw tantrums and all that fun stuff. Helping our children (or ourselves) reconcile differences is something moms do every day.

Mathmeticians- Brand A Diapers cost 21.99 and have 108 diapers in the box. Brand B diapers cost $16.99 and have 92 diapers in the box. Brand B is clearly the better deal!

Cooks- it doesn't matter how gourmet she thinks she is, Mom is the first person kids go to when they are hungry.

Moms are excellent at:

Meeting Deadlines- who can build a book report display by next Tuesday, bake 3 dozen cookies for pack meeting tomorrow night, prepare an FHE lesson by tonight, and get a child fed and out the door for school on time with all their necessary signed papers and library books in 10 minutes? A mom, that's who!

Multi-tasking- Moms can give spelling tests, saute onions, and shovel baby food all at the same time!

Mommies do a LOT, obviously. But the coolest thing is that they care so much about what they do and who they do it for, that they are willing to do it for no monetary compensation, and many times minimal recognition (thank goodness for Mother's Day and wonderful, encouraging husbands). Moms have to be tough to stand up and show the world that children and families are the most important thing there ever was. And they do it with class, grace, and a dang tasty batch of chocolate chip cookies.

To all the Mothers out there (especially my own): I salute you!

it's reunion season: Calling all McDermotts!

Ok, maybe not this McDermott. Although, if Dylan McDermott really wants to come to the reunion, I won't stop him. But he better bring something awesome to the potluck dinner on Saturday night!

The annual McDermott Reunion is approaching!

June 13, 14 & 15 @ Willow Flat. Can't wait to see everyone there!

Enjoy some pics from previous reunions...

I need a nap.

814 miles

Just got back from a great trip. Lots of miles covered. Lots of family seen. Dax's brother (Matt) and his wife (Abbey) graduated from USU on Saturday so we made quite a trip of it. Friday eve, we met Dax's folks in Bountiful. Got up early Saturday and made it to a much needed haircut appointment in Logan with the only person I've ever found who could handle my wild mane. And believe me, I've been to MANY hair stylists. This was our first trip back to Logan as a family since we moved and we enjoyed it a lot. We took advantage of the nice shopping opportunities there and loved sharing Matt and Abbey's special day with them. They have worked hard and we loved being able to celebrate this huge accomplishment with them! We are so thrilled and excited for them to start a whole new adventure.


While I was that close, I took the kids up to Idaho to see my sister and her family. One funny moment was when I sat Mack up to eat and here comes one of the boys and climbs in the high chair next to Mack. Then the other boy comes and climbs onto the chair I was sitting on and leans on my back to try and get a better look at the food I was serving. These boys love to eat! They kept staring at me with their big brown eyes and signing that they wanted to eat. So cute! Preslie and Hunter just love being at their cousins' house and I love to see them make connections with them. I don't have cousins my age so I really want my kids to have these relationships. We had a wonderful visit and it was hard to leave. I have really missed my family lately. It is hard to only see some of my siblings 1 or 2 times per year. I especially miss my sisters because they are my best friends and have beautiful children that grow up too much between visits. Ok- how cute of a dad is this to paint his little girl's fingernails? Love this family!



Monday night I drove back to Bountiful to see Dax before he left for Southern Utah with his parents for the week to hunt turkeys with his dad. Tuesday morning, I took the kids to see my mom for a couple hours, and then it was home again, home again, jiggety jig. I had pack meeting that night and I made it just in time.

Had to add both of these pics of my kids with Dax's cute parents. Hunter is mid-sneeze in the first one and I thought it was funny. I meant to get a pic of my mom with my kids, but it was such a fast and furious visit, I forgot. Very important to do this. I don't have more than a couple pics of me with my grandparents and I wish I did.

Super fun weekend. Will be back blogging in a few days after I do all my mountains of laundry and put away the mountains of stuff I brought in from the car. :-)