Rub-a-dub-dub, Baby-in-the-sink

Carter loves baths! Just snapped these cute ones while he was smiling.

Hold still!

How do you get six arms to stop flailing about? How do you get three mouths to stop chattering long enough for a smile? How do you get three sets of eyes to look at one object for more than two seconds? And why is that not humanly possible?!

(sorry for the blurry picture; it proves my point!)

Single family dwelling snow unit for rent

This newly constructed snowcastle is a cozy nook for any outdoors advocate! Low ceilings and natural air conditioning makes this tavern a very eco-friendly space. The price is very negotiable for its nearly 6 square feet of chilly spaciousness. Amenities include free air conditioning, natural light during the day, all the refreshing ice one would need, and a Christmas doormat outside the front door. (the aforementioned doormat is currently buried, but will be dug out upon signing of new lease) Please direct all inquires to the wonderful and fabulous on-site owners. The roof can also be the top of a nice little sledding hill at no extra charge.




This previous tenant enjoyed her brief and nice stay. Ta-da! (Her reason for leaving was that she was cold. Umph!)

Brrrrr!

What I see from my house. Snow and more snow.

As of two hours ago...

Officially SNOWED IN! These pictures are 2 hours old and it's been snowing like crazy and we need to go shovel more, but this is what is happening in Moscow.

Snowdays this week: 3
(University of Idaho classes cancelled too! Now THAT'S HUGE!)
Snowdays this month: 6 (all in the last 2 weeks)

Total inches overnight: 8
Total inches in our yard: 24-30 and more is expected this week

(Did I mention that it's STILL SNOWING?!)

It's big and fat snow, it sticks to everything and soaks everything it touches! It was knee-deep just on the sidewalk of freshly fallen snow, by the time that Ryan got done shoveling our walk, he had to re-shovel it again! This is so crazy, places are closed. Not just schools, but stores too! You know it's bad when U of I even shuts down. Well, good thing we have a good stash of hot chocolate and plenty of movies from China to watch today!

The news have mentioned that even Spokane has spent its budget of $2 Million dollars of Snow Removal. Thousands of overtime hours have accrued. All of the snowplows that Moscow owns are out and about; all hours of the day and night. This is just incredible. And to think, I need to go grocery shopping. You know that feeling of driving through McCall and when you're driving down a road and the snowbanks on either side of your car are as tall as your windows? Well, that's what it pretty much feels like! It's officially UNSAFE to be driving around out there! It's NUTS!




Ryan's pants were wet up to his thighs because of the deep snow.

Dawson

Dawson was playing with his ear and I stuck the camera in his face and before he had a chance to react, this is the expression I got. He's such a sweetheart!

Ready, set, go...almost

"Okay! Here I go, any minute now, I'll start crawling....I've gotten so close before, but this is it, I just know it! I'm going to do it!"

"Uhhh, I'm stuck! I can't move!"

"And this leg won't cooperate! It's not moving in the right direction!"


"Oh nevermind. I'll just sit here instead!"

Good reminder

"A house does not have to be perfect to be a home of joy, a child does not have to behave perfectly to love and be loved, and every moment of life does not have to be perfect to be of value. Too often, I realize, we fail to see the glorious reality of the simple joy that abounds in the seemingly mundane routine of day-to-day living. Instead, we tend to idolize the past, idealize the future, and devalue the present.... What better way to show our appreciation to Heavenly Father for what we have than to embrace our lives, albeit 'ordinary' and 'unexciting,' with joy?"
--Winnie Dalley; Ensign, March 1998, page 59


Throughout the daily grind of loads of dishes (by hand, of course) and the mounds of laundry (that is clean, at least!) this is a nice reminder that my kids are loved and can feel they're loved even when Mom is going nuts. It is hard, sometimes, to find the daily JOY in slaving over a hot stove every day, but when your hard work is recognized and appreciated....the little things in life make it worth it. The perspective changes and you can the big picture. These are just ramblings of a crazy woman; but somehow I feel as if a lot of others understand what I'm talking about! It's nice to know that through the lonliness, we're all in it together.

Snowday....again!

Snowdays so far this week: 2
Snowdays so far this month: 5

Snowfall last night: 5 inches
Snowfall in our yard: 1 1/2 FEET and growing

**PLEASE NOTE: IT'S STILL SNOWING!!**

I haven't ever seen this much snow! This is crazy! It's still snowing and the pictures really don't do justice. It goes up to my knees and in some parts, it's deeper than Carter is tall!




Our house this morning. Can you find it underneath all the snow?!
Ryan's standing behind one of the snowcaves in our yard. It's so tall it goes up to his chest, but he's not standing directly behind it. It's so big that it fits both himself AND Ryanna inside!

My handsome and hardworking handyman! He shovels a few times a day to keep the snow off the sidewalk. Isn't he cute?
This is a cool shot: Ryan put the camera on the sidewalk and snapped it. It looks like a canyon!

Melt my heart...

Look closely! See TWO LITTLE TEETH peeking out?
This is what I woke up to find: Carter turned sideways in his bed, his blanekts all askew, one sock off and a somewhat confused look on his face!
Look at those goregous EYELASHES!
Messy boy eating his food

Crazy week...

Okay, this is what I have been up to lately. I have had every intention of posting on my blog and sharing great insights on my life, but however, this has been put on hold! Here's what's been happening:
1) Below freezing temperatures make life interesting taking Ryanna to school; making our van doors FREEZE together and not able to open.
2) Dawson has had the "Poops-n-Pukes" virus; forcing me to do three times the amount of laundry over the last week.
3) Slipped on some ice picking up Ryanna from school, hurting my back and spending a wild night in the Emergency Room. (Thanks for the fun and ride, Nicky!)

There's the highlights of my week, after things calm down, I'll post more fun stuff! And more fun pictures....so check back soon!

Tag! I'm IT!

Thanks Becca, for tagging me! I love it when that happens. It's taking me a couple days to think of my answers and here it goes!

Here are SEVEN random facts about me:

1) One of my life's dreams is to attend an ERASURE concert! My favorite group in the whole wide world!

2) I HATE socks. I wear flip flops year 'round except for in the snow and even when I wear snowboots, I have to be reminded to wear socks. Unless the sockies are super soft and in fun colors, I won't wear them!

3) I slept on the track at Ricks College when I was going to school there! My roommates and I only lived a block down from the track and one night we decided how fun it would be. We threw a mattress from the third floor of our apartment complex, hauled it over the fence to the track, and went to sleep. I'm sure we were quite a sight to the early-morning joggers! (It was summertime and wasn't chilly at night)

4) I experienced the "Disappearing Twin Syndrome" last year when I was pregnant with Carter. One had attached itself to the other; endangering the pregnancy. Through miracles and lots of prayers, ONE beautiful boy was added to our family! (which is completely fine by me...imagine me with twins?!)

5) I was 6 or 7 and I got the legendary "crown" in the original Nintento Super Mario Brothers. It means I got infinite lives, until you pushed the power button. I have NEVER been able to do that since.

6) I competed in and was awarded the title of "Miss Congeniality" in the Miss Meridian Scholarship program in 1998.

7) I can't make Pineapple Upsidedown Cake; however, it makes a nice soup. (I was 10 years old)

Four people I tag: Mom, Aimee, Ashley and Katrina.

The Bride and Groom

The new Mr. and Mrs. Lloyd! Welcome to the club, sis! So happy and proud of you for finding your Prince Charming and making good choices. What a stunning couple you two make, good luck at school and with the wonderful start to your life together! (pictures taken December 22nd, 2007)

December in Boise

I spent the ENTIRE month of December in Boise! Here's what I did:
1) Tended my friend's awesome kids for the first week so she could go visit Daytona.
2) Played games and spent time with my in-law's playing Guitar Hero III. (I need more practice before I give up my day job!)
3) Spent a couple weeks with my parents that flew into Boise from Shanghai.
4) My sister, Ashley, married Donny three days before Christmas. (I helped a little with the wedding stuff...)
5) Spent way too much money at Kohl's and Costa Vida with my mom and sisters.
6) Spent a couple weeks with my other sister, Aimee, who moved down to Vegas to teach school.
7) Bought Old Navy kid's socks for 37 cents a pair (major clearance!)
8) Finally read the TWILIGHT SERIES by Stephenie Meyer---Hayley, can you believe it?! I LOVED THEM!

I spent so much time there, but I still didn't do all that I wanted to get done! I had more people to see and visit. I didn't have a car or a phone most of the time I was there, so it was hard to move around. It's a good thing that we had our Chinese Santa this year and that he was able to find us in Boise!

Christmas synonyms

See if you can figure out what each of these phrases are! Each one is a common Christmas saying or song.

1) Move hitherward the entire assembly of those whoare loyal in their belief.

2) Listen, the celestial messengers produce harmonious sounds!

3) Nocturnal time span of unbroken quietness.

4) An emotion excited by the acquisition of the expectation of good given to the terrestrial spere.

5) Embellish the interior passageways.

6) Exalted heavenly beings to whom harkened.

7) Twelve O'clock on a clement night witnessed its arrival.

8) The Christmas preceding all others.

9) Small municipality in Judea southeast of Jerusalem.

10) Diminutive masculine master of skin covered percussive cylinders.

11) Omnipotent Supreme Being who elicits respite to ecstatic distinguished males.

12) Tranquility upon the terrestrial sphere.

13) Obese personificiation fabricated of compressed mounts of minute hydro-crystals.

14) Expectation of arrival to populated area by mythical, masculine, perennial gift-giver.

15) Natal celebration devoid of color.

16) In awe of the nocturnal time span characterized by religosity.

17) Geographic state of fantasy during the season of Mother Nature's dormancy.

18) The first person nominative plural of a triumvirate of far eastern heads of state.

19) Tintinnabulation of undulating pendulums in inverted, metallic, resonant caps.

20) In a distant location the location the existance of an improvised unit of newborn children's slumbering furniture.

21) Proceed forth declaring upon a specific geological alpine formation.

22) Jovial yuletide desired by us for the second person singular or plural.

Round Three

Here's more for your guessing pleasure:

1) How did fifty-grand change its underwear?!
2) The pellet with the poison's in the vessel from the Pessel, the challis from the Palace has the brew that is true!
3) You have been weighed, you have been measured, and you have been found wanting.
4) You know, I have a theory that hieroglyphics are just an ancient comic strip about a character named Sphinxy.
5) I say... that what you say... is what I say.
6) Oh look, medical waste in a glass. No umbrella?
7) Dad, I met a man in Rome, and he's wonderful and brilliant, and we're getting marrrrried!
8) Take her to sea, Mr. Murdoch. Let's stretch her legs.
9) There are a dozen good brood mares in that mob. I'll be back for them... and for whatever else is mine.
10) Dear Dad, you told me an honest man has nothing to fear, so I'm trying hard not to be afraid.

Date Night Ideas

We officially get one or two date nights each month, and I need some good ideas. Some that are fun, creative, low-key, inexpensive and realistic. What have my blogging friends done? What do you all do now with kids and families? The baby tags along, so some ideas we come up with we can't do.

Not to knock my town, but there's no dollar movie, no good thrift shop, no cheap and yet good food. Everything closes at night, even Walmart closes at 10 on the weekends! (maybe it's 9pm--not sure exactly)

My anniversary is coming up in a little while and I want to make it fun and romantic.

Let the ideas begin!

Round Two

Okay contestants, start up your movie lines again....

1) Oh really! And do you in fact have an Associates Degree from Verm Tech?!
2) Curse you, Aqua Scum!
3) Do you have a name along with those rippling pectorals?
4) I eat losers for breakfast.
5) Teenagers...give them an inch, they swim all over you.
6) Hold your horses, everyone! And horses, hold your breath.
7) I'd give her a HA! And a HI-YA! And I'd kick her, sir.
8) Ohhhh, years of Academy Training WASTED!
9) Hey, waiter, I'm in my soup.
10) Now, father, you're living in the past. This is the 14th Century!

My favorite game

I can play this "game" for hours and hours at a time! Since it's a favorite in our family, I thought it would be fun to extend it to all that wants to 'play' it. Here's a list of movie lines, take a few guesses and figure it out. The person with the most correct answers wins! Good luck.

1- We're just ropes on a Goodyear Blimp....

2- Theresa really IS your daughter; ha ha, I'm gettin' good at this!

3- I have nipples, Greg, can you milk me?

4- If I woke up tomorrow morning with my head sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am right now.

5- Eat my bloomers, Blue Boy! (line that follows: "Oh that's real nice coming from a lady of your advanced years.")

6- I don't know if it's Christmas or Cleveland.

7- We call the Monkey 'Jack'.

8- Basically, I'm on my way to Australia.

9- I must love you, I only made it to Eureka Creek.

10- Look at this! I've gone and caught a sniffle!

(I dedicate this post to Becky! Hope that you heal nicely, that your five kids help you out plenty and your out-of-town husband gets back soon to help take care of you! As for the foot surgery part, you're in my thoughts and prayers, get well soon!!)