Where we're at...currently

Well, things have moved fast for us in this whole buying a new home business, but I guess not quite fast enough for me. We supposedly maybe would be signing to close 2 weeks ago on Wednesday, but no. Instead, because the silly Title company wouldn't provide title (yah, I know, unheard of, right?) they got fired and a new title company was hired. They had to redo most everything so it was all in the new title company's name, so once again we've been given a day possibly to close. I am not holding my breath for Monday to sign though! Plus, after that, we have to give them 3 days to get everything recorded before we get our keys, so once again, I am playing the part of a very impatient mother who is trying to get her home and kids ready to move.

One of the reasons I am so ancy is because everyone has told me NOT to potty train Ty until we move, which we didn't plan on, but she has decided she would do it on her own. Since yesterday she'll announce she has to go, run to the bathroom, strip, and go on the potty. She thinks it's hilarious, I think it's wonderful. However, I don't want to deal with this right now. (I know, I am a very bad mom!) She isn't 100% consistent, which, why should she be, nobody taught her! I am afraid to put her in panties and have to deal with that whole "mess."

Another reason is I need my new washing machine. Ours doesn't wash anymore, just soaks the clothes in dirty water. Gross huh? Yah, I am needing that new washing machine! (I'm also using it as an excuse to not do laundry!)

Ok, so there is a quick update. I'll let you know when and if we actually ever close. Pray for us!

I would cry too!

I spent a portion of my day today with my sweet Ty Ty in the Urgent Care. Don't worry- she's fine, or will be within a few weeks. I basically blame myself, although I DO know that kids are kids and accidents happen. I wasn't paying much attention to her this morning (which once again proves to have bad outcomes!) and was trying to get some contract work scheduled for our new home. Since the kids were being so loud, I deemed it an "important" phone call and locked myself in my room so I could hear and understand my phone call. About 10 minutes later, I heard Tyli fall in the kitchen and start screaming. I immediatly hung up (the conversation wasn't going anywhere!) and ran out to find Tyli clutching her hand in a puddle of water she had dispensed from the fridge. Right next to her I found a 5 lb. weight plate (for lifting weights). I assessed everything and found she was favoring her hand a lot. My first exam turned up nothing- no blood- everything looked almost normal. She continued to scream and asked for a "big bandaid" and her daddy, so after about 5 minutes I looked again and her fingers were all starting to bruise and had swelled. I made the decision to take her in. (*By the way, I have to add here that I am SO grateful to have in-laws that live close by and that took my boys without hesitation. THANKS!!)

Ty and I headed off to Urgent Care where my little darling acted as if nothing was wrong. She was being really cute and VERY cooperative (aka: she was totally doped up on Tylenol!) and had all the nurses and even the doctor wrapped around her crushed fingers! Well, after 3 x-rays which she was PHENOMENAL for, the Dr. came in to show me all the little hairline fractures throughout her 3 middle fingers. They went ahead and splinted 2 of them together but they didn't have a wider splint so they gave me an extra one and a roll of the gauze/tape stuff to splint the other one if needed. Tyli was so excited to have "pink" (flesh colored) tape on. (They almost did blue, but she insisted on "pink!")

Once we were at the Clarks' to pick up my boys, I decided to go ahead and splint the other finger. It was fine, but didn't align all three broken fingers correctly so when we got to Cauley's track meet, I stopped the trainer and asked him if he had a wider splint to get all 3 fingers. He and another trainer came out with a splint that fits all 4 fingers, so that was good news. However, Tyli wouldn't keep it on. It was real easy to just slide off her little hand so after a while I held her down and taped the splint, wrapping it around her whole hand (around the thumb, down by the wrist) and since then it has stayed on! I wasn't home so I didn't have any Tylenol to keep in her system and I could definitely tell it was hurting her. She trys to use it, whimpers, and looks at it so sadly. As soon as I had some dinner in her, I gave her some Tylenol, which I hope is good enough for now. I hate seeing my babies in pain! I sure hope she gets better quickly!

Update.

Hi. I am so behind once again with this blogging thing! I am not going to promise any catching up soon as I have been busy with life and quite frankly don't have time to do it quite yet. I just wanted to give everyone an update on our house. We get to close next Wednesday! YAY!! It is Cauley's (and Dallin's) Spring Break, so aside from the morning Track practices, he'll be home to help clean and fix anything that needs done. We haven't decided for sure when we'll move over there, but I now know it'll be by the end of this month! It feels like everything is going so incredibly fast for us! It's been an emotional roller coaster, but I am now excited to go get things ready, like getting a black fridge to match our other kitchen appliances, clean the house, decorate, and so on!

On a different topic, we still need to find renters for our home here in PC. If anybody knows anyone who is looking to rent a 3 bedroom, 2 bath home for $750/month, PLEASE let me know! We're hoping to have renters starting in April. Thanks!

As Promised...

Many of you are asking where our new house is. Is it in the neighborhood? Sadly, no. It is just south of us- you know, in PC South. (All 45 seconds away!) Anyways, today was our inspection, allowing us to go over and take pics for me to post. My kids had a grand time running all around the house, and Dallin had the best time of all, as I gave him free run of the camera. He found out how to turn it to take videos, and let me tell you, it is one of the funniest things I've seen in a long time! The kid rooms have mirrors on their closets and at the end before my camera ran out of memory space, he decided to video himself dancing by using the mirror! I'll try and see if this video will post, but if not, take my word- it's hilarious!

Anyways, this house is twice the size of the one we're in now, and beautiful! I am so much anticipating the end of next month when we're supposed to close! Now if only we could find renters...

My big kitchen area- that is wide open into the family room!

The bay window where my table is going to be! (The door is to my pantry)

Looking up my stairs from the Family room. You can also see the living room and entry way.

Hard to Top!

I love reading every one's Valentine posts- well, usually I do. This time I find myself thinking "nope, not as good as mine!" (how judgemental of me- sorry!) Cauley usually doesn't do big things for Valentine's day, the day he calls the Pagan holiday. This year, however, he topped the cake and bought me a NEW HOUSE!!! (In case you missed it, Cauley got me a new house for Valentine's day!!!) I guess we could actually say I got him a NEW HOUSE!!! for Valentine's Day too because I too looked, prayed, and signed papers. Wow! Can you believe I'll actually have a house to put all our stuff in? (It's twice the size as the one we're in now!) I'll post pictures as soon as I get over and get some taken!
We are now looking for renters for this 3 bedroom home, so if anyone knows anyone who's looking to rent in this area, please give me a call. It looks like we'll close on this house sometime in March. yay for us!

What's up?

Everyone keeps asking me what we have been up to lately and I am so bad for not posting more, but I just wanted to tell everyone we are all doing great!

Tyli is sneaky and into EVERYTHING! She is just so curious. Also, she is so independent it kills me. My boys were never this bad! "TyTy do it!" Also, and I really hate to admit this, but I have a very vain daughter. "TyTy is so pretty. TyTy is beautiful!" Yes, my friends, that is what you hear around this house several times a day! She is so stinking cute though that we love her to death! We are trying to be consistant to break her of some annoying habits, like climbing, getting into things that aren't hers, taking things away from other children- you know, the typical 2 year old stuff. Her binki is now gone! (We always take that away at 2 years and have yet to have a problem with it!) Hurray! The only disadvantage, if you can call it that, is now she won't sleep on her bed for some reason. She pulls everything off the bed to the floor, turns on the light, and sleeps next to the door. Odd- that's the best way to describe her. She just had her 2 year appointment and now she is 38 in. tall, 30 lbs, and her head is still very big as it has been since birth. (I can't remember the measurements- head size doesn't mean anything to me!)

McKade is still himself. Even though he is very much considered a "featherweight," he is eating me out of house and home. Seriously, for those of you who haven't seen him eat, believe me! He eats WAY more than I do. The good part is that he isn't consistent. Last week he went through 2 loafs of bread by himself in 2 days. (Jennifer, I know you've probably got something to say about that, but seriously!) Not only the bread, but a little more than 1/2 jar of pb and jam! At lunch one other day he ate 3 (rally 2 1/2 because there were some on the floor) packages of Ramen noddles. (I was out of bread- go figure!) Then, today, he won't eat hardly anything. This will probably go on for a week. He is so little thought that I sit and watch in wonder as to where all the food goes. He is getting taller, but sheesh! He plays with his trucks, cars, and tractors every day. He loves to talk about them, making up stories as to what they are doing. I guess I could say he has a great imagination- or another odd child.

Dallin is starting to drive us crazy. My parents got my family a Wii for Christmas and that is pretty much all Dallin does lately. Ok, so we don't let him play all the time (not even every day.) but he talks non-stop about playing it. I am about to accidentally "loose" it, but that would be something too obvious to lose. Other than the Wii, he is playing soccer right now. He's had 3 games and is starting to figure it out finally. He has a fun little team and we love yelling and cheering for all the kids. Saturday Dallin scored his first goal of the season. He was so excited he had to run over and ask if that meant he got extra time to play the Wii. The little stinker! He is doing well in school and is really liking the morning class. I don't think he likes to get up that early though. Why is it my kids never slept in until one of them started school?

Cauley is doing good. He is working hard getting ready for this upcoming Track season. He is also working a little extra and taking tickets for the boys home basketball games once a week. Oh yah, he's also taking 2 classes right now too. With his calling, school, and work, he is definitely staying busy!

I am also staying busy. My cub scout calling is starting to drown me (or so it feels like!) but should get better after Pack meeting, our Blue and Gold Banquet in less than a month, and Pine Wood Derby the following week. I just remind myself to take a deep breath every time I think about it. Actually, it really isn't bad. I have wonderful leaders who help a lot, it's just a lot to think about. I had one Saturday training earlier this month and I am so excited for the big POW WOW training this coming Saturday! On top of Cub Scouts, my primary calling has been fun. I feel like I am finally starting to love it. I just really don't like conducting, as I haven't had a very successful time getting through without messing up somehow. I really love serving with the sisters that I do and feel blessed to have this calling and to get to know more people in the ward. We have the most wonderful kids in our primary! Seriously, we had our "8 is great" tonight and I was so impressed with all 16 kids in our ward who turn 8 this year- they're amazing! I feel so blessed to be around them every Sunday.
That's basically what I've been up to. Notice I didn't say "I've been busy doing housework or laundry?" I haven't. Please don't come by my house- it's disgusting! That is my goal for tomorrow- clean this place up and do all 14 loads of laundry!

1-800-222-1222

This is Tyli's Christmas/birthday dress. It's really cute except you can't see the polka dots very well.

Have you ever had one of those moments where a child of yours may be in dire medical attention or possibly in need of an ambulance, or in a "demanding need" of a bandaid? I don't like those situations too well. Last week this happened to me and I panicked- hard core!

Tyli, my climber, was up on our kitchen counter when I walked into the kitchen from folding laundry in my room. I placed her back on the floor, but the paused, as I couldn't figure out how in the world she got up there as no props were around and no cupboard door left open for a boost up on a shelf. After inquiring McKade, I found out that she just "climbed like Spiderman." "Rats!" I thought as I walked back to my room to finish folding the never-ending pile of laundry. "Now she'll always be up there."

A few minutes later I noticed that Tyli's singing had once again stopped. It was too quiet so I went back to the kitchen to investigate. This time she wasn't on the counter. I found her on my kitchen rug, covered in a bottle of Children's Dimatap DM ( which she would have had to climb back up on the counter to get!) as she was pouring what was left of the bottle into a little medicine cup that was oozing over onto her pants and all over my rug. I panicked! How much had she drank? Is she going to die? How did she get into the child-proof bottle? Should I call 911? Is she going to be ok? What is the number to Poison Control? Is she going to die?

While I was panicking my phone rang. Oh, good. It was someone with a sensible head! "Hi, Lisanne? WHAT'S THE NUMBER FOR POISON CONTROL!!!!????" (I sure hope I didn't scare you, Lisanne!) After she very calmly found the number for me, I started to assess the situation a little more clearly. Although her pants and my rug were COVERED in the purple gooey stuff, her shirt had not a drop. Hmmm. This child has yet to drink a cup of the Sacrament water and not drizzle most of it's contents down the front of herself and the person sitting next to her. The bottle she had dumped out was only about 1/3 of the way full, but it looked as if all of it's contents were all over her pants and my rug. Had she even got any into her mouth? And how did she do it without dropping a single droplet on her shirt or face? Hmmm.

I hung up the phone and immediately called poison control. (The number is really easy, for those who don't know it. I really do have it memorized, but being in the moment, I forgot it! 1-800-222-1222) The lady who answered was very nice and listened and calmed me down. She asked how old she was, and when I told her that she just turned 2, she told me to look around her mouth for any signs of the medicine. I told her of my assessment, and she said I was probably correct and that that we'd know more within 30-45 minutes. "If she drank any at all, she'll be asleep within the hour." Good- except bad- her naptime is in 30 minutes. The nice lady told me she'd call back in an hour to check on Tyli, which she did. Poison Control also called 2 more times, making sure Tyli seemed normal. I stayed busy, going to Costco, my mother-in-law's, and feeding her to help her not want a nap. The good news- she never fell asleep. The bad news- she didn't get a nap that day. (For those of you who know my little Ty, she can be REALLY awnry with no nap!) The final conclusion is that she probably didn't drink any (thank goodness!) and that she is a very curious 2 year old! (And a great climber!) (And that my kitchen rug is now purple instead of tan.) My goal this week is to move all medicine probably to a lock box somewhere in the house, as I don't want this to happen again!

"I'll be a Sunbeam for Him!"

This is the best picture I could find of McKade as he is very camera shy and usually won't let us take any pictures of him at all! The best one I got of him today has both hands and arms wrapped around his little face, trying to hide from me.
Today was a big day for my little "monkey" McKade! He is now officially a Sunbeam! We talked it up for about 3 months now (He is NOT a big person who likes to deal with change!) and since the primary activity of "Meeting the Teachers" yesterday, he was so excited to be in primary now. He has a great teacher this year so that will help a lot. I could see the nervousness in his eyes (I conducted in primary today) but he did great. He even sang all of the songs. He probably thinks his mom is the ditsiest person ever as I had no clue what I was doing while conducting today and pretty much messed up everything (backward, out of order, forgetting things) but overall I think he had a good experience. We asked him if he liked primary when we were driving home and his response was this."No! My teacher didn't bring us any food!" I believe that is a typical Clark family answer as that is exactly what Dallin said after his first day and I can guarentee that's what Tyli will say too!

Back to life.....

The drive home went really well. We made excellent time, which made up for our drive to Idaho. McKade didn't feel to well coming home which continued for the next few days. He had a cold. Then Tyli got it. Her fever broke Friday morning, leaving behind a nice rash all over her body. This always happens with her so I'm used to it. Later that day she fell asleep in the car 5 minutes from our home. She woke up being brought into the house and I could tell she wasn't feeling well at all! After a few hours, we cancelled our plans for the night and I took her into the dr. She has another bad ear infection, the "start of" pink eye, and Roseolla- which the dr. explained as the rash that appears after a high fever breaks. (I always thought it was something worse than that, but I guess I am wrong.) She got the disgusting antibiotics that no kids ever will take to get rid of the ear infection and "pink eye", but the next morning she had no symptom of the pink eye, so I am wondering if she just has a goober that was mistaken for pink eye. She has been a gem ever since. (I am being VERY sarcastic!)

My baby turned 2!!

The big birthday girl blowing out her candles

Enjoying her store-bought cupcake's frosting- hey I totally ran out of time with her birthday being the day after Christmas! I made her crown because she always wants one of my preschooler's.

Grandpa Ruth "helping" Tyli bowl

Dallin and Colton showing off their bowling shoes

Brooklynn "posing" for the camera- she wanted me to take somewhere around 25 pictures of her and each time she would run down to me to "see it". I erased every other one except for this one- they all looked exactly the same! (Brooks is 9 days younger than Ty.)

Can you believe Ty is 2? (You would if you've been around her lately, sheesh!) My mom decided that for Tyli's birthday party she would take us all bowling. After dinner we went to the Idaho State SUB to bowl. The older boys, Carson, Dallin, and Colton took on the girls, Tyli and Brooklynn on one lane while Cauley, Jeni, my mom and I went at it one another. My dad "helped" the younger ones out by pushing the ball for them, even though they thought they were doing it by themselves. McKade didn't want to bowl at first, as he sometimes has a hard time trying new things. At the 7th frame, however, he decided it might be fun so he jumped in. We let him do it by himself the first time, but after waiting 15 minutes for the ball the ball to get to the other end, my dad decided that he needed help to get his bowling ball down the lane for the rest of their game. Us adults didn't do too hot, so I won't post our scores.

After our trek out in the snow for bowling, we went back to my parent's house for cake and ice cream- and presents. Ty actually blew out her own candles this year and then enjoyed her frosting off her cupcake and her ice cream. (My daughter won't eat bread in any form! The only exception is my Bishop's wife's cornbread, which she'll eat a ton of! She won't even eat cake!) Then came her presents, which she probably just thought was a hang over from Christmas. She enjoyed everything, which who wouldn't at 2 years of age? She especially loves the new baby stroller Grandma and Grandpa gave her for her new baby Santa brought her (that is pink- you have to say that or she'll say it for you.) I think she had a wonderful birthday- she says no, but that seems to be her choice of word for everything lately!

Lets rewind, shall we?

I know all of my pictures are way out of order, but at least they are there!

I know, long time, no post once again. I didn't even take advantage of my parent's computer and post pictures as promised. Sorry. You have probably guessed by now that we are home- back into the decent temperatures once agin, although I must say, I am still freezing! (The only time I'm not freezing is from June-November when I am in deed roasting!) A lot has happened between last post and now, but I'll only fill you in on a few fun things. First of all, the snow. By now you may know that I don't care too much for it other than looking at it, but holy cow! Cauley and I both agree we got over 2 feet- yes my friends, 2 FEET of snow while we were at my parent's house! That is not official, but it's pretty close to what we (and yes, that means I actually went outside and helped too- pictures and a video to prove it!) shoveled while we were in Idaho. It was lovely, as long as we didn't have to go out in it. (which we did.)

Christmas Eve is always fun for the Ruth family. We always go over to my Grandma's house (Grandma Ruth) and have a BIG party. It may not seem like a lot of people for those reading this, but when you add all the young kids into the mix, it can be hectic. I actually think things went rather smoothly this year! Dallin got to be Joseph for the annual Nativity story reinactment thing, but he wouldn't open his mouth to talk. Afterward, instead of the Christmas elf, who usually leaves new jammies or Christmas socks or slippers for everyone, Santa came and joined us! It was hilarious, and I have to say, this "Santa's Helper" really livened things up! He brought everyone a santa hat and candy. Then it was time to head home to get the little ones ready for bed.

Christmas morning was nice. Cauley and I pretty much had to wake up the kids to open presants. We opened our family stuff up down stairs in my mom's basement where we stay and then headed upstairs for more presants. It's a tradition since we've been married for us to have cinamon rolls, orange rolls, and donuts for breakfast on Christmas. This year my dad bought those huge donuts for Cauley and Luke (Jeni's husband) which were supprising delicious for how big they were!

This is where I am going to end, as Tyli's birthday is the day after Christmas so you will have probably already read about that.

A great reminder!

I stole this from my friend, Kira's blog. What a great reminder!

This Christmas, mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. Write a letter. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love and then speak it again.Pres. Howard W. Hunter, Dec. 1994

Oh, Baby, I am COLD!!!!!

Well, we made it. It was one of the longest car rides ever- 18 1/2 hours actually, but we are here. Flagstaff had a lot of snow, Knab, UT had even more, but the rodes were ok which was a big blessing. We did have consistent fog from Paige to Knab, but it wasn't horrible. We made excellent time until we got to Provo where we got stuck behind our first wreck. A truck and trailer had jack-knifed up onto the median wall. Then we moved well through the Valley until we came upon what we later found out was multiple wrecks that stretched on for about 6 miles. After spending an hour on the freeway stuck in the traffic, we were diverted off the freeway about 3 miles East for another 2 hours of going 5 miles an hour or less. (Mostly we just sat not moving at all.) No fun- not at all!! However, I do have to say that our children were AWESOME! No, whining, fighting, or crying- the entire ride! We did make an extra "pit stop" in Tremonton, UT once we got moving on the freeway after the big wreck because the kids hadn't been to the bathroom in over 6 hours, but we didn't mind. I think we all needed a break from the car for a few minutes. Anyways, instead of pulling into my parent's house at 5:30. we got here at 8:30.

The coldest we've seen so far is 3 degrees- near Flagstaff. It's a toasty 23 outside right now, and guess what- we woke up to TONS of snow! School has been cancelled in all local areas, and many people are staying inside today. My dad said there was at least 12 inches in the roads- only about 8 inches on top of things. Cauley pulled into my dad's parking spot in the driveway while my dad's at work so when the snow plow comes by we don't get buried.I am so happy to have a white Christmas! It is really beautiful outside. I am even happier that we don't have to stay here forever- I only love to look at the snow! Cauley and my boys went sledding at 8:00 this morning and had a great time. We learned yesterday that Tyli doesn't care for the snow so much so she stayed here with me in the nice, warm, dry house. We have to beg Dallin to come in- he could play in the freezing white stuff for forever. I wonder how much more we'll get before we head home- the forecast is for snow showers through next Sunday!

I will try and post pictures this wee- my parents don't have dial-up internet like us so it will be a lot easier!

Are You Smarter Than a Kindergartener?

My son is a genious! He really is smart. Just like me, he is very interested in Sudoku puzzles. Dallin loves to watch over my shoulder as I work on them, telling me what number he thinks I should put in the next box. He's come a long ways from about a year ago when he would tell me to write a 17 or another number I knew didn't fit. Anyways, I was just about done with another puzzle book the other day and was going through it, making sure I hadn't left any puzzles unsolved when I came across one that Dallin had filled out the top three boxes to. At first glance, I was mad. That was my puzzle book and he had no right to ruin it. After looking at it for a few moments, however, I was intregued. It looked as if he had really answered it correctly- no numbers repeating in each row. Wow, I thought, and quickly set to figuring out the rest of the puzzle. To my utter astonishment, he had indeed filled out the entire top three boxes correctly. Talk about one proud mamma! I called him over as I wanted to see just how his mind went about solving those boxes by himself. "It was easy!" was his reply as he ran off to play before answering my question. I really couldn't believe it! No wonder he is in the gifted program at school! I had to know more so I made him come back and show me how he did it. "Look, Mom. You always do it the hard way. Let me show you a faster way. Do you see this number right here at the top? If you turn to the back of the book, just find that same number. Then, be careful to match each number in the right spot, and you win!" Yep! I have one smart 5 year old!

I'm still here, just taking another break

I am so sorry for those of you who keep asking if everything is ok. I am doing well- just busy. Life seems to get busy really quickly and once I start getting a hand on it, life gets even busier! We have all been well, for the most part. I think my whole family is trying to catch a cold, but so far we've beat it. I thought Dallin had pink eye again when he got home from school yesterday, but either we got the drops in fast enough, or it was just a cold in his eyes because he's got no symptom of it today. Everyone keeps sneezing and coughing sporadically, but you can never tell with my family because we all get allergies really bad about this time of year.

We've had a lot of fun lately as a family. Cauley is done hanging Christmas lights (YAY!!!) and so supposedly he could be getting home before 2:00 p.m., but we haven't seen him till at least 4:00. (which is still a few hours earlier than when he coached football, and about 5-7 hours earlier than when he was hanging lights!) We've been riding bikes, doing crafts, shopping (always nice to have him to help with the kids), playing, and watching Christmas Movies. He even took me out on a date last Saturday for my birthday! (thanks, Steph and Brad for watching our Bambinos!) I have been really busy when he isn't here with laundry, preschool (planning and prepping), dishes, scout stuff, laundry, primary stuff, dishes, trying to get Christmas bought, laundry, getting us ready to go to Idaho, and dishes. I still have TONS to do and probably won't get it all done before I go, but that's ok.

Cub Scouts has kept me really busy lately. I have been planning, planning, and more planning. I helped plan this month's Pack Meeting because our Cub master has been out of town. Then I had to start planning next pack meeting for other reasons. Oh yah, I am also planning the Blue and Gold (banquet) which is in February. Can I just admit in the open that I don't really know what I am doing still! (Help, Susan!) On top of all this we have a bunch of trainings in January that I am trying to get all of the leaders from my ward to get done. I think maybe after February I might be able to breathe again. By the way, didn't I tell you I got released from this calling?:)
Primary has kept me busy too, but not like scouts. I am the counselor over scouts, so that is why I am still doing a lot with the cub scouts. My new calling is just doing little things here and there, which I find is a nice change from being so consumed with scouts!

I never knew that being a mom of older children (ok, mine are still young, but hear me out!) gets more and more tiring! Dallin has me running every which direction right now. I take him to school (for L.E.A.P) at 8 on Wednesdays and Thursdays, pick him up at 9:25, and then he's back at school for afternoon K. until normal time. I feel like I run around all day just for him. That's just for school! I can't even imagine adding an extra curricular activity to that! And, he's just one of my children- what is 4 years going to bring? Lucky for me I was able to get him switched into the morning class next semester so I don't have to go to the school so many times a day.

Tyli is a handful. She's adventurous and has a keen sense of knowing when I haven't had any adventures in a day. She likes to make BIG messes for me to clean up- especially ones that she can eat while making like dumping an entire large package of uncooked spaghetti on my living room floor and jumping on them because they make "crunch" sounds, dumping out a newly opened box of baking soda from Costco (which she LOVES to eat!) all over my kitchen floor and rolling around in it, or climbing onto the bathroom counter so she can get into the medicine cabinet and get the "hidden" toothpaste out to eat. Lucky for me it's beginner toothpaste, but still! Never a dull moment with her around!

McKade is still just as adorable as ever. He has been very bored lately, which leads to whining which I can't stand. He did find exactly what he wants Santa to bring him though- a silver truck with a black trailer carrying a light blue tractor. Why? I think he is a little obsessive about trucks that can pull trailers and he happened to find something with the exact qualifications(colors). He also hasn't stopped talking about this particular truck since he found it. Everytime we go to Walmart, or any store for that matter, he has to go check and make sure they have "his" truck. Today he sat and held onto it for almost 20 minutes- just staring at it! (Like I said- obsessive!)

Well, I hope you understand why I haven't written in forever. I didn't even tell you my schedule for this week alone, how I was gone every night at either a group FHE, presidency meeting, Enrichment, or other, and that my days were even more filled with a dentist appointment, preschool, getting my oil changed in my van, and many more "adventures" that also included the every day stuff like trying to be a good mom and wife. Hopefully when I get to Idaho I can upload some pictures because my parents don't have dial-up like we do and I won't have to wait an hour to publish this post. Maybe... But if you don't hear from me until then, don't worry, we're good.

What a fun birthday!

I have always kinda resented having to share everything my whole life with my identical twin- especially my birthday. It was never sung to just me and for some reason, everyone always had to say Jeni's name first. (probably because she's older? smarter? prettier? WHAT?) Don't get me wrong- I totally love, love, LOVE my sister, but can't a person have a special day for herself? Well, since I moved here almost 5 years ago (In January!), I have always had my birthday as MY day. I must admit, everytime someone sings "Happy Birthday" to me, I still sing Jeni's name in my mind.

Well, yesterday it was my special day again. yay for me! I woke up to the outside of my garage decorated with a sign and balloons (RS people?), ran Dallin to his L.E.A.P. program at school, came home and showered, and went and picked him up. Then I took all the kids to the Q.T. and bought us all a big fountain slushy drink. (an Icee basically) My kids think that they are the best treats ever and that is why we call them Drink Treats. We only get them on real special occasions, so my kids were really loving this! After the Q.T., we ran to the post office (I can't wait until QC gets a new, bigger post office!) and then ran Dallin to Kindergarten. The 2 younger ones and I had fun going shopping at Walmart and they both found presants that they want for Christmas, and then we made some thank-you's we took over to some good friends' houses. Then, for dinner, I took them to Sonic and we got Wacky packs for dinner. (Did you know that every Wednesday night @ Sonic you can get your choice of kids meal which also includes fries or tots, a drink, and a toy for $1.50?) My kids wouldn't stop hugging and kissing me and saying "I love you so much, Mom. Happy Birthday. I am so glad it's your birthday." Cauley even made it home before 8:00 last night which was an added bonus! (He's hanging Christmas lights for people right now- you can read about it on his blog, I think. crazyclarkclan.blogspot.com) Anywyas, I had lots of phone calls from awesome friends, and of course most of the Clark's called and sang to me (Jeff, did you forget? j/k) and that is always fun, and my visiting teachers stopped by with a gift as well as the Relief Society presidency with my birthday sucker. It really was a wonderful day! Saturday we are celebrating more by Cauley hanging more lights on our house and then Steph is watching the kids while we go see Twilight and go out to dinner. I can't wait!

They said it would be a three year calling...

I was so sad last Thursday when Brother Masitis came over and released me as the Cub Scouts Committee Chair. I really asked him to leave so I could cry. When I was called to this position in late July, I was told it would be a three year committment so mentally, I wasn't prepared for his visit. I have really put a lot of time (if you've ever been in cub scouts before, you know what I mean) and effort into that calling, not to meantion I had just got over all the "crazy pshyscho's" who make going to to Roundtable a real treat. It wasn't until our meeting was about over that he extended a new calling as 1st counselor in the Primary to give me an explanation of my release. I may have only said yes because I get to be the counselor over cub scouts, because as crazy as it sounds, I actually love the Cub scout program!

I've lost my voice! (and my mind)

Please don't call me. It's not that I don't want to talk to you, but I can't. I have never lost my voice like this before, and am barely able to whisper out a NO! to my kids. I think it's Heavenly father's way of telling me I need to speak "softer" to them. As for being sick, I am not. I feel great! I haven't accomplished much because at this point, if a child needs something or I need to communicate with them for any reason, I literally have to go over to them, put their face in my hands, and yell (which comes out barely less audible than a whisper) whatever it is I need. This is occupying all the time in my days. Any suggestions? Most of my kids can't read, so writing it down doesn't help. (Dallin can read a few words, so he's no help either.) It doesn't help either that I am teaching Sharing time on Sunday!

My kids say the funniest things!

Tyli keeps us laughing, ok, I can't lie- ALL my kids keep us laughing! (I used Ty's name because she's the first I'm going to write about!) We could really tell what kind of a football season Cauley had when we listened to TyTy watch football on TV on Saturday. She walked into the room and clapped her hands saying, "Yay, bootball (football). Go Knigh(t)s, go! Oh shoot!" The funniest part was that the game hadn't started- they were just warming up so nothing was happening. As we continued to watch the game, she continued to say "Oh shoot!" at the end of each play.

McKade woke up the other day, and after a few minutes, he said "there's a cricket in my nose!" I didn't get it at first, but after trying to listen to what he was really saying, I heard his little whistling boogie too, and yes, it did sound like a cricket!

My kids like to complain that they are either too hot or cold whenever we get in the car. Dallin likes to roast, while the other two would rather freeze. As we were driving to Costco the other day McKade exclaimed that he was "hot, cold, fuzzy, and cozy!" (I wonder what that feels like!)

Now it's Dallin's turn. I realy should write these down in the little journal I started specifically for these moments, but I don't so right now I am drawing a blank except for this one instance the other day. Someone stuck a flyer through our door for Qwest. Dallin ran over and got it, showed it to me and I told him to put it in the garbage. "But Mom, don't you want to 'get in the loop'?" I'm also getting frusterated because he's learning to spell/read everything. Tonight after dinner I asked Cauley if there was anymore j-u-i-c-e left because Ty was asking for more. "Yah, dad, is there anymore juice left?" The little turkey wasn't even in the room when she asked, so I have no idea where he learned that. Do they teach that kind of reading in the 1st semester of Kindergarten?

Hadley isn't one of my children, but she is one of my preschool kids. This month we are talking about healthy bodies and I asked everyone to show me where their body was. Hadley quickly jumped onto her chair, turned around, grabbed her bum, and, while shaking it, yelled "Here it is!"
Later that same preschool day, we were talking about the Word of Wisdom. Toward the end of our class I asked everyone what we were talking about (just to refresh memories) and Becca raised her hand. When I called on her, she said "It's something like the Word of White Gum?" She was clearly confused- good thing 4 year olds don't need to know what it is called, just what it means.
There have been way too many other hilarious moments at our house, so this is my vow to write things down!

How the...

Yesterday, we were all busy around the house doing various things, when I heard a gigantic THUD in the bathroom. I knew that Dallin had gone in a few moments before and was wondering what he was doing when I heard him crying. Cauley and I both reached the bathroom at the same time to find Dallin lying on the floor holding his forehead crying. We found no marks, and told him to "suck it up!" His explanation as to what happened was he was sitting on the toilet and was trying to take off his pants so he could be "more comfortable" and he fell off the toilet and hit his head. He finished up and was told to go back to his room and finish cleaning it. After about 10 minutes of cleaning/playing with the stuff under his bed, he walked into the kitchen and this is what I found! His eye was almost swollen shut (from hanging upside down off his bed) and was really black and purple! I wish I had taken a picture today, as it is REALLY super black today, but thanks to a loving, caring dad who cleaned his room for him while Dallin iced his eye, the swellings gone down a little. Really, people, his eye is not a pretty site and this picture Cauley took does NOT do justice! I am a mean mom, as every time I, looked at him yesterday, I laughed- out loud. How do you fall off a toilet like that? I'm awaiting the phone call from the school- there's no way they'll take him serious about how he got the nice shiner! (I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't been one of the first on the scene!)