Me from A to Z

My sis-in-law Evaly tagged me to do this survey...so here ya go! :)

Available or not: Married
Best friend: Brad and Tori
Cake or pie: That chocolate cake from Maggiano's ANY day!
Drink of choice: Water
Essential items used daily: Moisturizer and Lip gloss
Favorite color: Baby Blue and Red (not necessarily together though)
Gummy bears or worms: Worms
Hometown: Spring, TX
Indulgence: Frozen Chocolate chips - I especially love the mint chocolate chips
January or February: I guess January...since that's when we celebrate Jakob's birthday
Kids and names: 2, Jakob and Joshua a.k.a. "Joshy"
Life is incomplete without: Laughter and Love
Marriage date: December 29, 2001
Number of siblings: 5 - Sonya, Heather, Joe, James & John
Oranges or apples: Oranges - definitely! (They are SOOOO good here in California!)
Phobias or fears: Spiders
Quote (favorite): Don't know if it's my favorite, but it's one I'm trying to live by..."Never put off till tomorrow that which you can do today." (not sure who said it)
Reason to Smile: Jakob's unsolicited "I love yous" and Joshy's crazy faces
Season: Fall - cool/crisp but sunny weather is my absolute favorite!
Tag 3 people: Jennifer B. -- don't know anyone else with a blog either!
Unkown fact about me: I have a collection of menus - over 75
Vegetables you don't like: PEAS!
W: There was no "w" category. I guess whoever made this up needs to review those ABCs :)
X-rays: left wrist twice, neck twice, upper back once, lower back twice, knee once
Your favorite food: anything chocolate or anything spicy - I mean clears out your sinuses spicy!
Zodiac sign: Aries

It's like an orange on a toothpick!

Yesterday at church, Jakob's forehead was itching. So, to relieve that itch, he thought it logical to rub his forehead back and forth on the seat in our pew. At the time, I didn't think anything of it until he looked up at me and said, "Mom, my head hurts!" I went to touch it and realized he had given himself a rugburn or SEATburn on his head! Of course as my finger got closer to his head, he said, "No don't touch it! It hurts when people touch it!" (He tends to say that phrase a lot - 'It hurts when people touch it' - and it makes me laugh every time.) So, his poor little head is hurting from the rugburn, and then when Sacrament Meeting was over, we were standing in the foyer right next to the doors, and then Jakob jumped up and hit his head on the door handle. (Owie number 2...) This one made him scream and cry...and I felt sorry for him but also found it hard not to laugh at the irony of it. So, then I took him to Primary and sat with him for a few minutes to make sure he was OK and then I left. After church when I went to pick him up from his Primary class, his teacher informed me that during Sharing Time they had gone outside, and on their way back in, Jakob bonked his head on the phone box in the hallway. Owie #3. Poor Jakob! His noggin sure when through a lot yesterday!

I accomplished something!

Well, even though I felt pretty hopless and unmotivated earlier today about cleaning my house, I am proud of what I did do. I cleaned the floors and the kitchen...and boy what a difference just that made! I even made a dent in the huge pile of stuff/paper/mail/etc. on my counter top! Now I just need to go through what's left tomorrow. When Brad came home he said, "The house looks great!" I said, "Well, it doesn't even feel like I did that much..." And he said, "well, it looks like you did a lot!" That made me feel good...to know that he even noticed is nice! I don't know if the chaos and disorganization affects him the same way it does me...mostly because he's not here as much as I am b/c of work. Anyway, I feel like there is light at the end of the tunnel and plan to work on my bedroom tomorrow! :) YAY! It IS possible to get some cleaning done when you have 3 little kids running around! (my two boys + the little boy I babysit)

House of Chaos

Ever since we got home from our trip to Utah for Christmas, our house has been in utter CHAOS. There are a number of reasons it is like this...but whatever the reasons, it doesn't change anything. Laundry seems more never-ending than usual, paper and clutter are piling up so high on my counter that i'm afraid it's all going to fall off and hurt someone. We moved the toys upstairs thinking that would help keep it clean downstairs, yet the toys always seem to migrate back downstairs. So there are cars, knights, snakes, trains, etc. all over the place -- oh yeah and LEGOS. don't even get me started. Ok, now my bedroom is so messed up it is embarrassing. I just am totally lacking the energy, motivation, or whatever it is that is required to fix this problem. Yesterday we got a flyer for a local charity that will be picking up donations in 2 weeks. This has somewhat spurred me into action -- well actually is has just gotten me thinking. We need to simplify. So, that involves a lot of time sorting through all the craziness and just purging it all. We have so much that we don't use and it is just taking up space and adding to stress in my life. So, wish me luck in the coming week and half so I can have my donations ready for the pick up! Oh yeah, on top of all this stuff that I need to do, I now have a cold. Full on, runny nose, sneezing, stuffy head, watery eyes, sore throat. SHEESH! I just hope my kids don't get it too. Or Brad. That would be really bad timing for him...he's SO busy with work, he can't afford to get sick. Well, Jakob keeps yelling for me to come down stairs, so I guess my "free time" is up. Just had to vent about this stuff...i am NOT complaining...please don't feel sorry for me. If anything, it's my fault that the house is out of control! I take full responsibility for it. So now I will work on making it a better place to be. TGIF!

Happy Feet

If you've seen the movie "Happy Feet" -- you know, the one with the penguins -- then you will get a kick out of this. Long before we even saw the movie, we started saying "happy feet, happy feet" to Joshy and he'd start bouncing up and down, kind of like running in place. (Picture an 18 month old running in place...) So, then we saw the movie, and it was uncanny how alike Joshy's "happy feet" were with the penguin Mumbles. So, it's official, Joshy is "happy feet." Yesterday during the half-time show of the Super Bowl, Jakob and Josh were both running around and dancing to the music (Prince - Let's Go Crazy) and then Josh started his "happy feet" and then running in circles, stopping (almost toppling over with dizziness) and squatting down and then jumping up, only to continue running in circles again. This was HILARIOUS and I wish I had video taped it! (I will next time, I promise!)

Well, today I was teaching Joshy "happy" and "sad" by making happy and sad faces. So, I'd smile and say in happy voice, "Happy!" and then frown and stick out my bottom lip and say "sad." The first time I made the sad face, he looked like he would cry...it was so cute! Then I switched right back to "happy" and he thought that was the funniest thing! So we went back and forth with this for a little while and then moved on to other things. Tonight at dinner, I was trying to get him to show Brad his happy face and sad face. So he was very excited to smile and say "happy!" and then very quietly, and somberly he'd frown and say, "sad." It was adorable. That kid cracks me up! Not only does he have happy feet, he has a happy face to go along with them!

I am of worth

Ever have one of those days/weeks/months/years where you just feel crappy and that what you do doesn't even matter? Well, I've been having those thoughts/feelings for the past few days...and then today my LDS Gem message arrives and renews my spirit to try harder to do good. As a parent, I can relate to how it feels to have your children bring you joy, and pain. Knowing that I can bring joy, and not wanting to cause tears or disappointment is buoying me up today. Maybe this simple but sweet quote will do the same for any of you who read this.

Elder M. Russell Ballard on the Lord's Concern for Us:

"We are children of God. Each one of us is precious to the point of bringing the Lord God Almighty to a fulness of joy if we are faithful, or to tears if we are not."

("The Atonement and the Value of One Soul," Ensign, May 2004,87)