what's shakin' bacon

So far this week---

DONE: All laundry

arrange cub scout meeting

solve a building problem we encountered
get tires rotated and slow leak fixed

state safety inspection

car registration

parent teacher conference

call phone company to install phone line

teach Preslie to ride a 2-wheeler! (see video clip)

TO DO:

train new cub scout committee

Finish weening the baby by Friday

clean apartment again and again

Primary presidency meeting

Have a 1 year old b-day

call Questar for gas hook up

plus the usual:

keep family fed, dressed, bathed, on time, and happy

reading & homework

scriptures and prayers

re-load all kitchen drawers and dishwasher hourly

mail, bills

errands for the builders

try and have a marriage.... seriously it feels like I haven't hung out with my husband for forever! He went hunting last Thurs-Sunday, then went straight to work and working on the house or go to scouts. We finally broke away for a few minutes together tonight and it helped me. I need a buddy in all this madness and he is IT. Here is a pic of him tucking in his shirt after I told him he'd better watch out or he'd sunburn his butt crack from bending over so much.

His uncle Kirk is the other guy in the picture. Kirk and his son Coy have been framing since last Thursday but have been away from their home for a couple weeks now. It must be so hard on them to have to sleep on a cot and have NOTHING to do after work except watch scribbly TV or wander around our HAPPENING town. We appreciate them so much and hope to get the framing done and roof on so they can go home to their family.

personal revelation

I don't get it. Preslie was never attached to a binky or her bottle as a baby, nothing. And then boom, when she was around 2 she stared sucking her finger. Dax and I wanted to put the kibosh on that right away so we went and got the stuff you paint on their fingernail that tastes yucky. We read the ingredients to make sure it was safe: Cayenne pepper and citric acid. Cool. We painted it on Preslie's index finger and a minute later she popped the finger in her mouth, pulled it back out and said, "Mmm. Spicey Oranges!"

We've tried band-aids, hot sauce, rewards. Nothing was permanent enough. Then suddenly she is 5 and losing her teeth. We really drilled it into her that she needed to stop before her permanent teeth were in. Well, now she's 6 and their in and she's still sucking her finger.

Then one day at the grocery store check stand, I notice the cashier's crazy fake fingernails and I got an idea! Trying to explain it over the phone to the local salon receptionist was another thing.

"You want to get ONE nail done?"

"Yes"

"HOW old is she?"

"Six"

"Ok, hold on......."

I don't care that she or anyone else, including my husband, think I am nuts because I think it's going to work. So after the salon thing didn't pan out, I rang a friend in my ward that does her own nails and explained the sitch to her. She too, thought I was wacko but was more than accommodating, and did Preslie's nail this afternoon...

And guess what? It's TOTALLY WORKING!

General Relief Society Meeting

Have lots of good stuff on my brain right now cause I just got back from the Relief Society general broadcast from my church. From the second Julie B. Beck began her remarks, I felt inspired and uplifted. I know her words are for me! Many things she addressed had to do with some of my concerns:

I am concerned about keeping strong relationships with my children and helping them be able to recognize and stand up for truth.

Sister Beck outlined 3 purposes of Relief Society. Number 2 was strengthen families and homes. She said, "Our homes should be their [our children's] refuge from the daily evil they encounter."

I am concerned about not being close to my family. I want desperately to live close to my parents or my sisters so I can that love and support whenever I want or need it.

Sister Beck told of when her mother moved to another country and before she left, Julie asked her mom "But who will be my mother?" To which her mom replied, "Relief Society will be your mother." This gave me comfort to realize that this organization does precisely what a mother does. Takes care of you when your sick or when you have babies, strengthens your testimony of Jesus Christ, and brings the family together. Sounds like a Mother to me!

President Dieder F. Uchtdorf said that everyone has burdens and things they are concerned with and we need to focus on the things that we've accomplished and who we really are instead of what we are lacking. I loved the angle he took on how we can have God's happiness--by creating and compassion. I think I have the desire and ability to create and to give compassion so it was neat to think that I acquired these attributes from my Father in Heaven.

Another idea that struck me was in one of the hymns:

"Who am I to judge another when I walk imperfectly?
In the quiet heart is hidden sorrow that the eye can't see."

How wrong I've been to talk or think badly of people around me that (in my mind) are doing the wrong thing. Everyone has sorrow and serious concerns, like President Uchtdorf said, and I really do think that most people are doing the best they can with what they've been given. I have been given SO much and I need to try and do the best with what I have and not compare myself to what others think or do. That does not work.

So great to hear our church leaders with no interruptions! I left my kids with a babysitter (Mack for the first time) and it was worth every penny.

Mack - ELEVEN months

The countdown to ONE is getting shorter. 6 days to be exact. What complete joy we get from this little boy! Nine-24 months is my favorite age span for a baby. I don't know WHY I love it when they are mobile and completely into EVERYTHING. I think I love this age because they start to become a real person. Not just a eating, pooping blob anymore. So what if attending church is a nightmare/joke. I've just started LEAVING the videos on the floor. Mack apparently thinks that is where they go. Same with the dish towels and the measuring cups. Although I don't leave those on the floor. Because we use those in clean up and eating, that's why. Having this baby around is A-OK.

the man

Sure hope he had a good day. He worked, then came home and worked on the house, we had dinner, two cakes, opened his gifts, then he went to scouts and worked. That chocolate cake is KILLER delicious. Some of Hunter's piece fell on the floor and in two seconds, the baby had crawled through it and tracked it all over the whole kitchen.

I am so grateful for Dax in my life. I love his perspective. He keeps me grounded when I get caught up in crazy ideas; he lifts me up when I think my troubles are too hard. He keeps things real but also knows how to have fun. I love him with all my heart.

big firsts and lasts

Today is the last day of Dax's twenties. He will turn 30 tomorrow! I am not sad for him because I've decided that having a birthday marks another year of success and accomplishment in life. Plus, he is the hottest and most successful and fun 30 year old around. I love that guy!

Today Mack took his first steps! I wondered if he'd walk before he was one. I should not have doubted. My other 2 kids also walked a week or so before their 1st birthday. Fun.

day 3 of framing

The first pictures of the kids are for Beaner (Dax's mom) because I know she is lonely at home without her husband cause he's here building our house, and she is sad cause she can't be here to see her grandkids. So here Beaner-enjoy these photos of the kiddos.

The weather was hot or cold or sunny or rainy or overcast or rainbowy...it could not make up its mind.

Our framers are MACHINES. They are Awesome.

Everyone wore out today...

by request

Since I've been cooking like mad the past few days and mentioned food in my posts, some have asked about recipes. Our bbq pork sandwiches are EASY and SO good. One of our fave meals. McCormick sells a package mix that we LOVE. It is on the aisle with all their mixes for fajitas and gravy and meat seasonings, etc. It is about $1.50 or more for the packet.





An easier way to go is use your own bbq sauce. Season a chunk of pork (even pork chops will work) with salt and pepper and put it in the crock pot. Dump your favorite barbeque sauce over it (Ours is Famous Daves Rich & Sassy) and cook on high. Before you want to serve it, take the pork out and shred it with 2 forks. Put it back into the crock pot and dump a little more bbq sauce back in for extra flavor and stir. Serve on buns with a slice of cheese. YUM.



Peach Pie

I use Betty Crocker's recipe for my crust and filling.

Click for pastry. Remember to double it because this is a two-crust pie. Rolling it out on a floured cloth or dishtowel is the best way i've found so it doesn't stick to the counter. Use a dishtowel that is made of flat fabric, not terry cloth. Pie crusts are tricky for me; I've shed real tears over trying to make them. Practice has definitely paid off, though, cause I'm getting better.

Click for filling. I think it needs more peaches than it calls for.

Before I bake it, I pull out a long piece of foil and cut it in half long way and bunch both pieces around the pie crust edge so it doesn't brown too much.

being framed

whew. these are fast framers. the pace is exhausting, but exciting. Here is a run down of the past 2 days of framing...

laying out the boards

perimeter

walls up

framer in training

glad I could run the saw at least once. MAN, I want to help build so bad but I have more than my hands full with keeping the baby from chewing rebar and rocks or falling into the giant hole.





Dax caught this aerial view while flying to count buffalo this morning.

My boys are back and forth from the job site with me all day long. They are good sports.

The boys helped me make killer choco chip cookies tonight and we had them before and after we fed everyone burgers. I didn't snap any pics of the floor. It is almost built and then they frame the main floor.

happy floors

It excites me so much to see things progressing on the house! After I got Preslie out to the bus stop this morning, I made a peach pie (with an infant climbing up my legs), then showered and got ready and took the boys up to the job site. The pump truck that pumped the concrete was just cool. I love our concrete guys. They are so nice! And I know it isn't because we are paying them many thousands of dollars (he he). No, they are super cool. They had lots of helpers today. One guy seemed happy to be alive as he was singing a song from his native country of Mexico. I love that Mexican music. It makes you dance whether you feel like it or not. But of course I always feel like it and Mack was happy to oblige. But we soon got tired and hungry so we made a wise decision to hit China Star cafe and I regained my strength with a tasty chicken fajita. Now THAT'S what I call chinese food.

Home again to call and get fire insurance for our house because we start framing tomorrow. And thanks to our good credit, we secured a fantastic rate. I got Preslie to dance class and I did some grocery shopping with the soon-to-be weened baby. He is doing well but we have yet to make it longer than four hours. Any suggestions are appreciated. We had a late dinner because of all the busy business going on but it was tasty bbq pork sandwiches made by Dax in the crock pot. Love those things. Kirk and Coy, Dax's uncle and cousin, showed up tonight. I am excited to get to hang out with them for the next week or so while they frame the house. Craig rented the apartment next door to us so the guys have a place to stay while they are framing. He will sleep there too so Hunter won't jump on him in the morning and so he won't have to share one bathroom with 5 other people. It will work out great. He is SUCH a great sport and is doing SO much for us, he should be granted sainthood.

After the kids were in bed, Dax and I made one more peach pie (I want to keep my builders happy), which finished off the last of the peaches we picked at Grandma Nola's over the weekend. We are all tired and happy!

september visit

Always too much on the agenda to realistically accomplish, but we managed to get to a lot of it. There is just not enough time to do all we want/need to do when we are in civilization! The following are highlights from our trip to the S. Lake area...

• shop for dining table and a couch
• cheescake factory lunch
• hugs from mom and dad
• house plan to Trent the electrician
• Lance and Trooper loves
• sleepover at bro and abbeys
• abbey's ultrasound video
• tons of free fresh delicious juicy peaches
• visit cousin Amy, Claus, and kids from Austria
• meet cousin Scott's fiance
• hot fudge cake
• birthday shopping for Dax
• awesome trip to the DI
• see grandma nola
• Bro running with Mack

an hour of panic

I have not been that worried since we lost 2-year-old Hunter at Lagoon a few years ago.

This afternoon, my boys were napping and I was working on the computer when I glanced at the clock...3:16pm. Preslie should have been home since her bus pulls up at 3:08. I walk outside and ask the neighbor boy if he's seen Preslie. No. I ask him to come sit in my house while I go look for her.

I drove in the pouring rain to the elementary school thinking maybe she misunderstood and thought I was going to pick her up today. Not there. I drove back home. Not there. I drove to the bus garage. No one was there, not even an employee of any kind. I recited in my mind what she was wearing today and came home to call the police while each minute my heart felt like it was either stopped or beating so hard, it hurt. The bus garage called me and said she was still on the bus.

I'll be right there.

Preslie tells it better in her words. From her journal:

thuday 11 sept. 2008
today i went to school and I went to the Bus and it was a sub. it did not stop where I get off. all of the kids wer off. and I was the only one. My Mom was so sad. I gave him my number. I was Happy and my Mom too!

So relieved.

Hunting with Hunter

Between the new house and 60 hour work weeks with multiple nights away from home, I have not had the time I would like to spend with the kids. I was talking to Hunter the other day and asked if he would like me to take him to a football game? He said no, and that what he really wanted was for us to go on a "Father and Sons" camp-out. I was hoping for the football game Friday night as I had to work a youth bird hunt on Saturday. I thought about it for a minute, and decided that I would take Hunter with me on the bird hunt. We went out the night before and stayed in a cabin in the Book Cliffs. We lit a lantern, had food, told stories, and slept in sleeping bags.

We worked the bird hunt this morning and I even got Hunter in on the action a little. We built a fort, and played with the birds.



I loved spending time with him and hearing his stories and ideas. He told me about his plans to be a pirate when he grows up (he informed me that he is going to be one of the non-rum-drinking pirates because rum isn't good for humans). He even told me about an alligator that he spotted near the cabin the night before, thankfully it was dead when he spotted it though. We saw a big bull elk, and ate lots of candy. He was really patient with me when I had to work, and was a good helper. I couldn't have had a better time. It was great Hunting with Hunter.

progress

Dax painted tar clear around the outside walls while Craig knocked all the metal thingys off the concrete walls and worked with the plumber to get the rough plumbing done. I attempted to clear away rock and dirt so it wouldn't stick to Dax's tar roller but someone kept driving his truck down into the pit and climbing back out, pushing more dirt and rock down by the walls.

And someone else could NOT stop putting rocks and dirt in his mouth so I gave up and took those someones home. A few hang ups with trying to get power hooked up, but we're moving along...

Hunter's Turn

This little boy has seen his sister start many of her own new adventures and has been so supportive and loving and excited for all she has done. Last night after the kids were in bed, I passed by their bedroom and noticed Hunter still awake. I went in and asked him what he was thinking about.
"Preschool," he said.
This morning he got dressed happily and was thrilled to take his backpack somewhere official. I loved seeing his face as we walked down the red and blue stairs to his new adventure. He found his apple and his cubby for his backpack. His teacher knew his name and snapped our picture. When I picked him up 4 seconds later (it seemed), he ran to me with a hug and told me all about play time and circle time and recess and showed me the new book his teacher gave him. My heart is jumping to see him so happy about something that is just for him. He is such a smart boy and could totally ace kindergarten now. But since he doesn't turn 5 til October, I am more than happy to keep my sweet buddy around another year before sending him off into the world. I just love that darling smile!