We interrupt this busy life for....

You'll NEVER believe it!!! I, the last person on earth who hasn't joined the "Twilight Frenzy," attempted to go see the Twilight movie! I say, "attempted" because AS we were standing in line for tickets, the box office gal put the "sold out" sticker on our movie time! Oh well, what d'ya do? I don't know what I'm missing out on (so I've been told) anyway! I did find it a tad bit surprising that even after 5 weeks in theatres, it's still selling out, BUT AGAIN, I know NOTHING! But, then when you take into consideration that just among the group I was with (my Sisters-in-Law & Mother-in-law) it was going to be the 2nd time seeing it for three of them and the 3rd time seeing it for one of them. Then I guess I can start to understand the deal with it selling out - it's mostly repeat customers (and a single ignorant one like myself!)

So, I will say that this experience drummed up just enough curiosity that I decided to open my copy of Twilight that I got for my birthday 3 1/2 months ago. (AND the fact that a couple of people have taken me aside and chided me for NOT YET partaking of Ryan's gift and the negative effects that could have on him - Oh the guilt!) Well, on the first day, I read one page! It was actually the PREFACE and it didn't even take up the whole page. The next day, I got to page 22. On the third day, I finally finished the 1st chapter. So, as you can see, I'm making great time! Y'all were done with 1+ BOOKS in this amount of time!
I am told I should have time now, since Ryan, Haylee & Katelyn are all away staying at cousins' houses. And, as of 10:00 this morning, Kyle is STILL asleep and Miss "B" is down for a nap! BUT, (ya gotta know that's coming!) We were seriously GONE every day for this last week and EVERYTHING has gone to pot! That neglect was very, very bad on my household! The laundry...oh, the laundry - but I can't even get into my Laundry room and concentrate on working since it's been overtaken by every one's snow boots, pants, gloves & coats! (We've found out that they don't dry out in a cold, drafty garage!) Then, there's the general "disaster" state of most rooms in my home. The clutter, clutter, clutter! Aaugh!



Not to mention we're out of milk & bread, the bills & checkbook are sure to be in disarray, and we probably have overdue library books after this kind of inattention! My new 2009 calendar is still blank and I don't know how I'm supposed to breathe without my life written in it. I hope the mail man doesn't return all our mail due to the box not being emptied! Plus, I've got a brand new church calling that I need to sit down and figure out....and I haven't blogged for about a couple of weeks (that was my aversion to starting this whole thing, remember?)...yadda, yadda, yadda...

So, do I have a major problem if I can't "ignore" all that stuff that is screaming at me (it's seriously screaming!) and sit down and read the world's favorite book?

You Lookin' at Me?!?

Oftentimes, when talking to Brookelle, we all shower her with all kinds of gushy words of affection & compliments (all in the high, falsetto voice tone, of course!)

Overheard lately at the Brenchley home:
Ryan: "You're just the cutest, little thing!"

Kyle: "It's soo fun having a baby around!"

Katelyn: "WE HAVE A BABY - It's BETTER now!"

Mom: "I just LOVE you SO much!"

Haylee: "Mom! Hurry! Come take a picture! Brookelle is doing the PERFECT picture!"

Dad: "You're just so KISSABLE -- almost as kissable as your mother!" (Oh, but that's another subject.) :)

Kyle: "You're so precious."

Ryan: "What was it like without Brookelle? I just don't want to imagine it."

Katelyn: "Let me give you a hug!" (repeat 4X)

Haylee: "I'm so glad we had Brookelle!"

Mom: "You've gotta be my CUTEST baby ever!" (No offense to child #1 - 4, but I think it might be true, OR maybe I just can't remember!)

AND THEN the conversation STOPPER...

Dad: "We better keep on having them if they're just getting cuter & cuter!!"

If that were the case, then one of YOU lucky contestants would be raising All My Children since I'd be in the LOONY BIN, for sure! :) (It's very likely I should be there already!)

I must speak a Foreign Language!

If I were to say, "Get in the car," what would you think that meant? Is it extremely hard to interpret? Is it so easily misunderstood? Could it have several different meanings?

For example, would you think it meant:

"Go play football in the driveway?" *
"Start a snowball fight?"
"Run over to the neighbor's house to play?"
"Talk to the kids you see outside?"
"Shovel the walks?"
"Get pop out of the fridge in the garage & hide while you drink it?"
"Lay down in the back cargo area of the Suburban & don't answer when called?"
"Keep reading your book inside?"
"Stay in your bedroom doing who knows what?"
"Get your scooter out then leave it RIGHT behind the car to get run over?"
"It's time to go get 'lost' in the bathroom...for a while?"
"Call someone on the phone?"
"Shoot some hoops?"
"Torture your brother & sister on the front lawn?"

* Family's interpretations have NOT been changed!

OR...Would you think it meant, "GET IN THE CAR?" (What a novel idea!!)

OK. Thank you. The end.

Random Question of the Week

Where's a good place to get watch batteries??

The last place I got one was Fred Meyer Jewelers and they charged about $15 (& couldn't get to me right away.) Well, I have about 4+ dead watches lying around now, (my own little "watch cemetary") and that'll cost me an arm & a leg if I go there again to get them all working!!

I could get a NEW watch for that amount!

There's got to be a less expensive place to get them replaced! Share your secrets with me, please!

OR is it old fashioned altogether to have a watch still and should I just be looking at my cell phone instead to tell time? (If I could ever find it in the "black hole" - my purse!)

NOW SHOWING...

We have a small collection of Christmas movies that we get out just once a year. As one of our Family Christmas traditions, we watch these together the month leading up to Christmas.


I want this to be really fun, but this year I had to make some rules to ensure that. (& avoid some problems we've had in past years!) Merely picking out which movie to watch was becoming a source of contention with the kids. THEY FIGHT OVER IT! I think it is completely, absolutely ridiculous! ALL the movies are good - we'll get to them all eventually! But, it's become enough of a problem that I laid down the law:

1. We wrote down the titles of all the movies on pieces of paper and put them in a "Christmas pail."


2. We will take turns, starting with the youngest, to draw a movie title out of the pail - and that IS the one we are watching that night - NO QUESTIONS ASKED! PERIOD!


3. IF there is any whining, crying, or complaining about the choice, you're outta there!


4. There will be seating assignments! YEP, another reason the kids have found to gripe, murmur, fuss, pout, etc. So, Matt & I only are on the Love Seat (isn't that what those are for? NOT Mom & Dad AND 2+ kids hanging around our necks, stepping on our stomachs, "accidentally" kicking us in the head, and all the while blocking our view of the movie?) Ryan, Haylee, & Kyle on the couch - in that order - the boys CANNOT be by each other. Katelyn on the little Winnie the Pooh chair next to everyone else. Brookelle in her crib asleep!
   

Last night we watched "Home Alone 2: Lost in New York."

We forget about the details of the movies until we watch them again and so we're able to enjoy it over & over. We'll sit there laughing and going, "This is such a great movie!"

Allow me to indulge in some of my favorite lines:

"Hey, hey, easy on the fluids pal. The rubber sheets are packed."

"Has anybody seen my sunblock?" "What's the point in going to Florida if you're going to put on sunblock?"

"Do you know how the TV works, sir?" "I'm 10-years-old. TV is my life."

"Would it bother anyone if I worked on my cannonballs?" (at a Spa type pool.)

"And there's plenty more where that came from." (after giving the Bellman a stick of gum for a "tip.") Then later with the same Bellman..."I'm sorry. You wanted a tip?" "That won't be necessary, I still have some tip leftover." (he takes his chewed up gum out of his mouth & shows him.)

"Two scoops , Sir?" "Two? Make it 3 - I'm not driving."

When Kevin uses the remote control to play movie lines for the staff who chased him into his room..."You been smooching with everybody! Snuffy, Al, Leo, little Mo with the gimpy leg, Cheeks, Bony Bob, Cliff..." (And one of the hotel staff in the room has a name tag that says,"Cliff.")

"As a matter of fact, this has happened before. It's become sort of a McCallister family travel tradition." "Funnily enough, we never lose our luggage."

"What kind of idiots do you have working here?" "The finest in New York."

"Don't you know a kid always wins against two idiots?"

"It's a nice night for a neck injury."

"You know, Herbert Hoover once stayed here on this floor." "The vacuum guy?" "No, the, uh, President."

"My grandfather says if my head wasn't screwed on, I'd leave it on the school bus."

"You just have to wear an outfit that doesn't have pigeon poop on it."

"You better not wreck my trip, your dad's paying good money for it." "Oh, wouldn't wanna spoil your fun, Mr. Cheap Skate!"

[as the others look at their motel in disgust] "Didn't look this bad on our honeymoon."

[staring at the Rockefeller Center tree] "I know I don't deserve a Christmas, even if I did do a good deed. I don't want any presents. Instead, I want to take back every mean thing I ever said to my family. Even if they don't take back the things they said to me. I don't care. I love all of them... Including Buzz. I know it isn't possible to see them all. Could I just see my mother? I'll never want another thing as long as I live if I can just see my mother. I know I won't see her tonight, but promise me I can see her again. Sometime. Any time. Even if it's just once and only for a couple minutes. I just need to tell her I'm sorry."

Do any of you wanna see it now?!? :)

The movies next up on the docket?...

• Home Alone 1


• A Christmas Story


• Christmas with the Kranks


• The Santa Clause


• Miracle on 34th Street


• The Polar Express


• Christmas Vacation (the edited version recorded off TV)


• While You were Sleeping


• Elf


• Sleepless in Seattle

What are your favorite Christmas movies?

Kids Say the Darndest Things - November Edition

Taken from the sidebar...

Haylee told me they voted for President at school. Since I hadn't ever talked to her about the election/candidates, I was interested...
Me: "Who did you vote for?"
Haylee: "The guy with the white hair."
Me: "Why?"
Haylee: "Well, You know the guy with the black face & black hair...If a Mom has a baby in her tummy, he'll come to your house at night when you're asleep and kill the baby!"
Me: Speechless! staring at her with a "What the...?" look.
Haylee: "He WILL, I'm serious!" 11/08

SUCKER!!

I got Katelyn's pictures back and there's a story to go with them....
I went to Target Portrait Studios with a coupon. It was good for a FREE 8 X 10 and then $3.99/sheet. I planned on getting some 5 x 7s, 3 1/2 x 5s, and wallets for a total of $11.97, right?!?
After they took some pictures of Katelyn...

They said, "Would you like to be in some pictures with her?"
I said, "Oh, no! I don't look good, today."

They said, "How about just your arm?"

I said, "I'm not wearing a nice shirt."

They said, "Just roll up your sleeve."

And we took a few pictures together. And they were CUTE!

I also had Brookelle with me...

They said, "Would you like to have some together with the baby?"

I said, "Oh, no! I literally whisked her from her crib, sleeping, to come here. She's not ready!"

They said, "Babies are always adorable!"

I said, "I don't want her picture taken in this outfit."

They said, "It's very cute with just a diaper on. We have a diaper cover in black or white. Which one do you want?"

What I didn't say, "She's got poop leaking out her diaper & I left the diaper bag in the car!"

I said, "Do you have a bow for her hair?" I didn't have a chance to put one on."

They said, "No...BUT, she's got enough hair, she'll look great without one."

And so the two girls took some pictures together. And they were CUTE! (I'm not sure if poop got on their black diaper cover or not. Hey! They wanted me to do it!)

And I walked out of there spending $53.20! That's a 444% increase above projected budget!

Needless to say, the next time one of our kids was due for pictures, I sent Matt. He took detailed notes of what I wanted and walked out of there spending $11.97!

TRAINED!

Ever since having children, we've had to figure out how to handle middle-of-the-night awakenings together. For obvious reasons, Matt can't do a thing for a hungry baby during this time, so we came up with this plan: I get up with our babies EVERY time until they're weaned AND THEN Matt gets up with them from then on -- for the rest of their lives!! For any of you out there who are thinking that doesn't seem fair must have had better sleeping babies than mine or can't remember those "baby nights!" Believe me...Matt's total # of times will never equal my total #.

Anyway, along those same lines, our children have always been early risers who think they have to come into their parent's room first thing and wake them up/let them know their awake by tapping on the mattress next to our face. They usually ask for "pink milk" and for help turning on a show ~ or nothing! FOR YEARS I have been trying to teach them that it is NOT good manners to wake people up! I also try to teach them that it's not time to wake up until the sun is shining - well, that backfires on me in the summer! But, until they learned that lesson, I also have trained them to go to Dad's side of the bed in the early morning (and leave me alone!) They have got down the "going to Dad's side" part, but were still struggling with the "leave me alone" part (like when he's not there or won't wake up or they're LOUD & come in multiple times.) I continued to reiterate the lesson of "good manners" each time. Needless to say, Matt always obliges them (to avoid the "weeping & wailing & gnashing of teeth"), but he hates it. (They have no reason to stop if he keeps giving them what they want!)

Well, this morning was a momentous one...

Matt had left VERY early to go to the temple, so when Katelyn came in, of course, she found his side of the bed empty. I vaguely remember a voice saying (to herself), "Where is he?" I think I might have groggily replied, "He's at the temple." And then I went back into my slumber and heard nothing more. Later on, I felt a presence and I opened my eyes and saw Haylee on Matt's side looking at the vacated spot, but she thought I was still asleep. She never said anything and turned to leave. I don't know how much later, but eventually I woke up at a normal time. When I went out into the rest of our house, I found the boys & the baby still asleep and Haylee was entertaining herself, but I couldn't find Katelyn. I looked in every room - TWICE! I asked Haylee and she said she hadn't seen her at all since waking up. I finally went out to the garage and there was Katelyn sitting in our stroller with a blanket. I asked her what she was doing. She said she was waiting for Dad to get home. I guess she knew it wasn't important enough to wake me up for nothing!

And then I realized...those girls are finally TRAINED! YES!! Neither one of them tried to wake me up because they have LEARNED that would be rude (and it wasn't officially morning, yet!) It only took YEARS, but we made it!

Not pictured: Me doing the "victory dance" now!

Now if I can only train the kids to clean up after themselves! :)

Ryan just can't stop smiling!

After "the game", Ryan's 1st words were, "I AM SO PUTTING THIS ON THE BLOG!"

And, so here goes Ryan...

UTAH 48, "the team down south" 24

I'll make it easy for you Cougars. I'll make your comments for you, I KNOW what you'll say:

• "It was a TOTAL fluke!"


• "The officiating was sooo poor!"


• "Max Hall had an Off-Game!" (But he's still up for Heisman.)


• "Dennis Pitta was injured!"


• "The weather was a factor!".....Oh wait, we're having record high temps for November.


• "We just wanted a piece of the BCS check!"

But, could the REAL reason be that the Cougars just aren't "living right?!!" :)

BY RYAN

WOW! I surprised myself!

I was reading a TAG post on my SIL, Mandy's, blog and there was a category where you had to write, "8 Things that happened yesterday." Seriously, my first thought was, "I'm glad I don't have to answer that one - I didn't do anything yesterday! I for sure wouldn't have 8 things to say."

This is where Matt gets the idea that I'm a bit of an "extremist." He thinks I use words like, "Never," "Always," "Nobody," "Nothing," "All," "Every," etc. too freely ~ do y'all notice that about me, too? He "always" tries to tell me that what I say when I use those type of words is really not true "at all."

So, I started to reflect on WHY I responded so "extreme" to that TAG question. Well...it's because yesterday I didn't shower. I put on clean underwear and got dressed, but no shower. I also took a nap. My three oldest kids were at school, Katelyn went to a friend's for 4 1/2 hours, and it was Brookelle's nap time -- I just couldn't pass up this perfect opportunity. How often do my lucky stars align that way?!? So, because of those two incidences, I'd jumped to the conclusion that I didn't accomplish "anything." Well, Matt's right - it wasn't completely true - because upon further examination, this is how yesterday actually all went down...(Humor me, allow me to work this out - it's therapy!)

1. Up at 6:45am
2. Fed the baby, changed the baby, held the baby, put the baby to sleep...REPEAT 5X
3. Drove the Jr. High carpool
4. Read scriptures & had Family Prayer w/ kids (Matt had to go into work early again!)
5. Walked my Elementary School kids to school
6. Went out w/ friends to "Birthday Brunch" for Shawnette
7. Made 15 Freezer Meals for hours
8. Taught Ryan how to call & order Pizza (see #7)
9. Ate Dominos Pizza for dinner ~ ya gotta love "Two for Tuesday!" :)
10. Washed a load of WHITES (or else I wouldn't have clean ones for tomorrow - and wonder if I didn't shower again?)
11. Performed "surgery" on my thumbnail that started ripping way too low
12. Read a bedtime story to Katelyn - Trouble in the Barkers' Class by Tomie DePaola
13. Helped Haylee read a "real" book - Bears in the Night by Stan & Jan Berenstain
14. Instructed Kyle on how to put together a "Pioneer" costume for the 4th grade performance/assembly he was in the next day and where to find all the stuff.
15. Spent time with My Man! (Matt)
16. Went to sleep a little after Midnight

So, it turns out...what I initially thought was "Nothing" was really a whole lot of "Everything!" I hit "all" the important things in my life: Time with each member of my family, spiritual needs, taking care of myself, Friends, and household chores. (notice that one was listed last!)

Shop 'til you Drop (or 'til the baby lets you know she's HAD IT!)

I just got back from our Annual Park City Shopping Trip, a.k.a. "The Lakeland Ward Reunion." This is a group of friends I met 12 years ago from where I used to live. At that time, Ryan was only 9 months old and he was my only child. The rest of us had one or none or REALLY YOUNG children way back then, but our families & children have all grown through the years (we now have a combined 58+ children and a couple of them are GRANDMAS!) it's been fun to stay in contact all these years. In fact, only one person in this group is still living in our old neighborhood - all the rest of us have moved other places.

We start out on Friday morning at 10:00 when the Outlet stores open and we don't come home until Saturday evening! We stay at two condos that are next door to each other, but don't sleep much! We shop (duh!), go out to eat together, do a "Show & Tell" the first night...then we all go out shopping the next day and buy what everyone else bought that we loved! For the real DIE HARDS who can stay awake, they end the weekend with dinner & a movie in Layton (I rarely make it that far!)

While in Park City, we usually always go to Ruby Tuesdays and get this big back room...Here we are...(clockwise from the bottom left) Tera, Mandy, Robyn, Jamie, Kayelani, Jenny, Kay, Lauri, Kylie, Diane, Julene, Melanie, Cindy (w/ baby Lindsey) & Me (baby Brookelle was cut out of the photo!). We missed Tish, Kim & Julie this year.

Brookelle REALLY was very good considering what I was putting her through - she got to know her stroller VERY well and I appreciated all the other "Mommies" there to help me. But the interruptions to her eating and sleeping schedule took it's toll and she let me know about it at times...usually while I was half-dressed in the fitting room and couldn't escape quickly! Then she would finally "conk out!"

I always save my birthday money from Sept. and spend it here - Thanks Mom & Dad Fowers & Brenchley. I also get a start on Christmas. Well, I did manage to fill my trunk up. Just one problem...where should I put my stroller now? I even would say I "held back" a little bit more than usual thanks to the Economy being the way it is & all! :)

Thanks to my SIL, Nicole, for giving me a "Friends & Family" discount for GAP/Old Navy/Banana Republic, I got some great DEALS there and I used multiple coupons practically every else too, of course!

Here are some of the favorite purchases:

• Bath & Body Works Anti-bacterial soaps 5/$10 - Have you tried Freshwater cucumber? I like it!
• Black dress boots (that can zip up over my calf! a small miracle!) $27.09 - I really thought about getting some brown ones, too, in a different style, but I talked myself out of it thinking it was a "frivolous purchase" (blame that on the Economy, also!)
• A Pizza Stone $6.38
• A silicone scraper thingy (for pan/pizza stone/counter/griddle) $0.99
• Two LONG white "under shirts" (for when one's in the wash) to cure my "problem" mentioned in my prior blog post! $3.50/each
• A butterfly Halloween costume for next year $4.58
• Some things for Christmas that I can't mention by name because my kids read my blog $3-5
• Matt's (& the other husband's) favorite: A "Special Item" from Rue 21 - another part of our annual tradition :) - to compensate for any "pain & suffering" they may have experienced in our absence $0.99
• Not included in my trunk this year: Wrapping paper - The Paper Factory closed since I was there last. DANG! They had good stuff & I always stocked up!
• Matching dresses off the Clearance rack for all three of my girls - what are the chances that they had EVERY single one of the sizes I needed? They're thrilled to be "triplets!" $5.75-6.39

Now I need to RECOVER - Yah, right - like that's gonna happen!

Random Question of the Week

What time do you get ready for the day?

This is seeming to be a problem for me a lot lately...

You see, I start out getting ready for the day in the bathroom each morning, but if (more like when) I get interupted, I leave the bathroom before I'm done and then I forget that I never finished and I go on with things...Thus, abandoning the "getting ready" task.

Most often, it's minor like I didn't get to blow dry & brush my hair all the way out, so it's all funky & not very cute. Leaving the pick stuck in my hair is a common occurance, too. Sometimes, I go places wearing slippers or those big, thick, fluffy socks by mistake. And then I realize (when I happen to look down) that not only do I not match, but they're buldging out of any shoe opening AND I look absolutely DORKY! Those are bad, but it doesn't stop there! Oh No! It doesn't. I also don't get my make-up on at times - that in itself isn't that big of a deal, but it's when I start, then don't finish. You see, my very first step in applying my make-up is using this cover stick -- that happens to be green! (It's suppose to be good on red splotchy areas and/or blemishes.) So, I dot this on random areas of my face and then...you guessed it... leave the bathroom and that's as far as I get. Later in the day, I'll be talking to someone and I think to myself, "They sure are looking at my forehead/chin/nose a lot (& weird)." And, it's not until I happen to walk by a mirror that I see all the green dots! It'd be nice if someone in my family would tell me about this, but I guess they're used to it and think it's suppose to be like that?!? I think my least favorite side effect of my problem is this one...On occasion, I can be out and I look down and see a white shirt on my body and I think, "Huh? I thought I wore a red shirt today!" Then it all comes back to me...I must've made another premature exit from the bathroom that morning! The white shirt is my first shirt I put on and the outer shirt must still be at home! The problem with this?? This first shirt is SUPPOSE to be an "under shirt" - NOT meant to be worn alone. No, No, No! It is too short (especially on my post-baby body). It's use is to provide coverage & a "pop" of color up top ONLY, like with a V-neck. So, needless to say, it doesn't cover my stomach all the way and looks horrid if worn alone (with everything hanging out.) Again, when I see THAT in a mirror (when it's too late. of course) I run through my mind how many people actually saw me like that - always too many!

Why didn't someone tell me?

They probably didn't want me to feel bad by bringing it to my attention that my shirt doesn't fit! Well, that's not the worst problem -TELL ME!

Anyway...what time do all you normal people get ready?

The "New" Katelyn

Last month when I posted photos of Katelyn's "self-hair cutting" tactics, I asked y'all to give me your critiques...only ONE of you guessed correctly on which side was cut! 75% of you could not even tell and 16% guessed the wrong side altogether! (F.Y.I. it was her LEFT side.) So, because of that, I went ahead and waited the extra month to cut her hair until I got her 4-yr. old photo taken. (After all, ya can't call it a "4-yr. old" picture if she's not officially 4-yrs. old! - does this mean I'm OCD or something? Probably!)
I took her to get her pictures the day after her birthday and then the next day, I took her to get her hair cut to the length she cut it on the one side. Now, watch...just because I'm so "efficient" (for a change) something will probably go wrong with her photos and they'll call us back in to "retake" them! Please, NO!

Here's Katelyn in her photo "get-up." (The "before" picture.)

And, here's Katelyn admiring her new look! (The "after" picture.)

When we were driving home from getting her haircut, I kept looking in the rear view mirror at her. At one point I exclaimed, "Oh my word! Who's that girl in my back seat?!?" She answered, "It's your daughter, MOM! I'm the 'New' Katelyn!"

Moments when it's OK to say, "Oh crap!"

Go ahead, leave a comment...I know you want to!

More and more cute at 4!

HAPPY 4th BIRTHDAY, KATELYN!!!

Ever since Katelyn was little, little, I've always said to her,

"You're Simply Adorable!"

Last night during Family Night when we were talking about & celebrating HER, I asked Katelyn what I always say and I prompted her by starting out, "You're....." and she finished it, "Simply Adorable!" Of course, everyone there started to laugh and she loudly proclaimed, "I AM!"

YES, SHE IS!

WE LOVE YOU, KATELYN!!!

Katelyn is having her first birthday party today...I asked her what she wanted and she said, "A Princess Party!" (surprise, surprise!) I asked what we should do to make it a "Princess Party." She said she wanted doughnuts with pink icing & sprinkles and to play the Princess Memory matching game.

Period. That's it. That's the whole party!!

*I'm sure my SIL Nicole, "the party maniac," would be appalled with this "party!" :)* Well, I thought that was pretty kind of her to go so easy on me since I can't accomplish much these days, but I also knew her plans needed a little "help." So, I took the liberty of adding a few more activities, food, & details to her party....and because of that, I'm not gonna have time to sweep the kitchen floor, put the stacks of folded laundry away, or clean bedrooms...but 3 & 4 yr. old girls shouldn't mind, right?!

Just please don't let their mothers notice any of it when they bring them! :0

**I've made my "Gratitude List" this week (on the sidebar) all about Katelyn, if you want to know more.**

Look out, Angelina Jolie....

I got this new product. It's called, "Plumping Lip Glaze."

"Hmmmm!" I thought, "Kind of interesting. Does it really work?" "Do I want it to work?"

Well, let me at least try it out....

There's two parts to the tube and two steps in the application.

1) One side is clear and when I put it on...my lips get a tingling feeling - almost stinging/burning. (this must be inducing the "plumping?!")

2) The other side only appears to me to add color & shine.

But, YOU be the judge - did anything happen?!?

BEFORE

AFTER
Are y'all thinking, "She has got to be NUTS!" (to put this close-up of me on here)...or maybe I just have a "healthy self-esteem?" **My inspiration is my cousin, Valerie, I figure if she could post a close-up photo of her "eyelash break-off trauma" about a month ago, I could do this! :)** I don't know...I actually first had the photos on the medium size and it was WAY too horrifying!!

You're Welcome! I'm sparing you with only the small size.

Kids Say the Darndest Things - October Edition

Taken from the sidebar...

We were driving in the car on a street that is by our friends' house...
Katelyn: "Hey! We're in Emily's village!" 10/08

Katelyn: "I'm watching the Prophets!"
At first I didn't know what she was talking about and then I realized it was 11AM and all the PBS "kid shows" were over and the BYU devotional had come on. 10/08

I told Katelyn she would be a Grandma someday. She was shocked at this info - she half-whined, half-screamed, "I don't want to be a Grandma when I grow up, I want to be a children FOREVER!" 10/08

Katelyn definitely likes to be called, "Katelyn" and not any shortened version of her name...
Me: "Can we call you, "Katie?"
Her: "No, Katelyn!"
Me: "How about, "Kate?"
Her: "It's Katelyn!"
Me: "What can we call you besides, "Katelyn?"
Her: "Katelyn Brenchley!" 10/08

She's getting SO big!

I heard this at least 10 times at church on Sunday. Everytime someone stopped to talk to me, that's what they said! I know she is - and IT'S SAD! With my first, I wanted him to hurry and get big cuz I thought, "This is so hard when they're babies!" Now, I'm more in the "let them stay little" attitude! (Just as long as they sleep through the night, take good naps, and don't cry all the time- even when you're not holding them!) She weighs 14 lbs. 7 ozs. and is 25 1/2 inches long...in our Dr's words, "She is tall & skinny!" WOW! How would that be?!? :)

Anyway, Brookelle is now 5 months old - and she is THE Rock Star at our house, let me tell ya!! Even though I've been through this age & stage four times before, I'm still amused by it!

She can frequently be found:

• In her crib in the morning/after a nap soaking wet and with poop covering half her body, clothes, blankets, and bed sheets. (well, maybe I'm not so amused at this one!)


• Sucking her thumb for comfort - interestingly enough, this just started and she hasn't picked one hand - she does both! (Siri, you might not think this is amusing ;))

Grunting at/"Talking back" loudly to the Relief Society Instructor during her lesson.

Grabbing her feet and pulling them to her mouth - yuummm! (Have YOU tried doing this lately? I have - it's a very difficult trick!)

Playing in her Supersaucer - or more like she's sitting in it, but all her bros & sisters are playing with it in front of her!

Doing "baby push-ups" (as the kids have named it.)

Watching Mom like a hawk whenever she's in the room with a look that says, "Don't you dare think about leaving this place without feeding me first!"

Flirting with anyone who'll talk/give attention to her.

Farting/exploding noisily without inhibitions in any [quiet] public place to her little heart's content - I just always pray, "Please don't let them think it's ME!" (but she's a good excuse if it is! heehee!)

Funny how it all starts and ends with poop at this age!

Your Opinion, Please...

With Halloween just ONE WEEK away, here's one for y'all....

HOW OLD DO YOU THINK KIDS SHOULD BE WHEN THEY STOP TRICK OR TREATING?

We've all had some kids come to our house before and thought to ourself, "Aren't you too big to be doing this!" (Or am I the only one?) So, I know that "big kids" probably shouldn't trick or treat anymore, but I don't want THAT answer, I want to KNOW, "what age is a "big kid?" I know it's all about the CANDY, CANDY, CANDY!! (At least it is for ME) thus these "big kids" were still doing it!
"Why do you care?" you wonder. (this subject is being heavily debated these days amongst Ryan, Matt, & myself!) "Harmless!" "What's the big deal?" you say. Well, let me tell you....I still remember one Halloween as a young girl trick or treating with my pillow case and had been working hard all evening for my LOOT. And then, this mean "Big Kid" came running full speed behind me and SNATCHED my pillow case right out of my hand before I even knew he was there and took off with it! ALL THAT TIME & WORK down the drain!! I seriously was so sad to lose all my candy - I was the child who counted down the days until Halloween and got GIDDY thinking about all the candy - some kids do that with their Birthday or Christmas - not me - it was Halloween. (We did NOT have candy in my house growing up!)

Well, this story from long ago does have a happy ending. From out of NO WHERE, my family's Home Teacher, Max Fillmore, came driving up on those "Big Kids" and scolded/yelled at them out his window about their rotten behavior and commanded them to, "STOP!" He then got out of his car and yanked the "stolen goods" back from them, told them to "get outta here," and returned the pillow case to a traumatized, yet VERY GRATEFUL little girl (Me!) Now, THAT'S what I call a "Good Home Teacher!" To this day, he is STILL one of my heroes!! :) After that, we cut our evening short because I was "spooked" - DANG! I only filled my pillow case halfway instead of completely full as had been my plan at the time!

ANYWHOO...Give me a number - What age?!

What's for Dinner? -- SOLVED.

It's that dreaded time of the day...around 5:00PM - I refer to it as "the witching hour" since everyone is acting so lovely (HA!), and one of the kids comes up to me and asks,

"What's for dinner?"

And I'm like, "Oh Crap! I knew I was forgetting something today...and I just figured it out!" :0
The night before I was induced to have Brookelle, I stayed up until 2 or 3 in the morning (can't sleep anyway, right?) and made a bunch of meals and froze them since I knew dinner-after-baby is next to impossible. That got us through the first month or so, but ever since then...different story! Can you say, "Pancakes, Cup-o-Noodles, or NOTHING?!" (much to Haylee's delight!)
Well, thanks to my SIL, Mandy, she organized a little freezer meal exchange which FORCED me to do it again! GRANTED it took me ALL DAY LONG today with all the interruptions - I hope no one needs underwear tomorrow, no important homework is due, or we don't have any unexpected guests cuz nothing else got done today! In fact, I just happened to look at myself in the mirror on the way to Ryan's Band Concert tonight (5:30PM) and I saw I'd never put make-up on today AND we had to eat at Wendy's since there was no room in the kitchen or time to make dinner tonight!

BUT......Just LOOK at the "fruits of my labor!" It's a beautiful thing - a freezer stacked with 18 meals!! "If ye are prepared, Ye shall not fear." (No more dreaded 5 o' clock questions!)

And look what I left for Matt to clean up -- LUCKY DOG, HIM!! ;)

*That's another one of our "prenups" - I don't do dishes - HE DOES! IF he ever learns to cook, maybe this clause could be renegotiated! :)

Sorry, Haylee....the pancake days are GONE for now!

NINE is FINE!

HAPPY 9TH BIRTHDAY, KYLE !!!

Kyle did one of those "All About Me" booklets at school, so for his "Birthday Post" I thought I'd share my favorites so we could get to know him better...I didn't edit any spelling or words - that's part of the entertainment!

My full name is: Kyle Logan Brenchley

My nickname is: Kover (ya know, as in that UTAH JAZZ hottie!? - we haven't really been calling him this, but apparently he'd like us to start!)

My address is: Glovers land ("Land" - "Lane" - same diff, right?!?)

My pets are: none

The person I admire most is: Parnets because: They take care of me.

The thing I like the most about myself is: I have my own room.

I am happy when: get what I want.

The things I do best are: play soccer and baseball.

The person I would like to be the most like is: Manny Ramearaz because: I love baseball and he play's baseballl in the MLB.

The things I enjoy doing best are: playing baseball & soccer. (Do ya see a pattern here?!?)

I like to take trips to: Hawii (like there's been so many -- try ONE!)

If I could have three wishes, they would be:

1. 1,000,0000,00000,000000,0000000 wish

2. My own Airplane

3. 3,000,0000,00000 dollars

Sometimes I worry about: wind

Something I wish I could do is: get all money.

Three things I wish I could change in the world are:

1. Make more stastes

2. Make more people to be free

3. Make the world a bertter place

The thing I like best about my family is: its big.

I like it best in my family when we: on vacaitson.

My favorite room at home is: My room because: I sleep in it and play in it.

Three things I like best about my school are:

1. Lunch

2. Math

3. Recces

*notice he didn't put spelling! :)

I like teachers who are: don't give homework.

I don't like teachers who: give homework

The thing I like best about the classrooms is: my desk.

So, here's a question for all you school teachers (Michelle?) out there...when do they learn place values or the correct place to put commas "," in the numbers? Those were some pretty interesting figures, eh?!?

A lot of these were surprises to me!! I would've filled out the paper differently, so it's a good thing that his teacher had HIM do it! It was fun to learn some new things! :)

**I did "This week's Gratitude List" on the sidebar about Kyle, too, if ya wanna check it out.

WE LOVE YOU KYLE !!!

Am I not interesting anymore?

I normally DON'T do tags because it requires me to think too much, and we wouldn't want to do that now, would we?!?
BUT, I was talking to my friend the other morning on our walk and she made the comment that she really likes reading blogs of people without kids or maybe only one kid...because they still do and say interesting things! She said everyone else's blogs JUST talk about their kids' first steps/potty issues/extreme cuteness, etc. So, in an effort to NOT become "everyone else" - I will try responding to these adult-ish tags!

FIRST ONE:
ONE-WORD TAG BLAST! (tagged by Brenda)
The rules are that you have to answer these questions with only a one-word answer.
I rarely only have one word to say, so wish me luck - I'll probably break the rules, I HAVE to expound, ya know!!

1. Where is your cell phone? purse? dryer? kitchen counter? stroller? I'd have to call it to find out for sure!
2. Your significant other? Matt
3. Your hair? Thick
4. Your mother? "Lu Lu"
5. Your father? "Wit"
6. Your favorite thing? sandals
7. Your dream last night? No clue!
8 Your favorite drink? Diet Cherry Vanilla Dr. Pepper (from the fountain)
9. Your dream/goal? 10 consecutive hours of UNINTERUPTED sleep
10. The room you’re in? Kitchen
11. Your hobby? Blogging? Nursing? - does that count?
12. Your fear? Intruders, black widows, sharks, rattlesnakes, aligators -- ALL very realistic, huh?!?
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? At the store without any children
14. What you’re not? rich
15. Muffins? Big Costco ones
16. One of your wish list items? Husband didn't work so many extra hours.
17. Where you grew up? Illinois, California & finally Bountiful, Utah
18. The last thing you did? Finances/Budget
19. What are you wearing? Baby spit up
20. Favorite gadget? Computer?
!21. Your pets? not allowed!
22. Your computer? neccessary!
23.Your mood? "all-business"
24. Missing someone? All our friends who moved this year -- Backman's, Bos', Page's...
25.Your car? invincible
26. Something you’re not wearing? earrings
27. Favorite store? I'm not LOYAL to just ONE - Kohl's, Costco, Yours, Mine & Ours, Target, Chico's, Mervyn's, The Children's Place, Bath & Body Works...
28. Like someone? Thomas S. Monson
29. Your favorite color? red
30. When is the last time you laughed? Today, when I was in the car and I heard Katelyn from the back seat singing to the radio, "This one's for the girls who've ever had a broken heart..." I didn't even know she knew lyrics!
31. Last time you cried? About a week & a half ago - at Mandy's Dad's funeral

SECOND ONE:
7 THINGS TAG (tagged by Michelle)

7 things I can do:

• I can bargain shop.
• I can make homemade rolls/bread.
• I can sing, "I am a Child of God" in Japanese to my babies.
• I can do Math - lucky for Ryan!
• I can tan easily.
• I can animatedly read Children's Storybooks.
• I can name off all the 50 United States in alphabetical order.

7 things I can't do:

• I can't whistle.
• I can't talk "Reality Shows" with you - I don't watch any of them!
• I can't understand/learn how to play Chess - unlucky for Ryan!
• I can't resist kissing a baby - again & again!
• I can't ever get caught up on my scrapbooking.
• I can't eat "wild game" meat - it's completely psychological.
• I can't "bounce back" QUICKLY from having a baby.

7 things that first attracted me to Matt:

• When he said, "I'll call you." - HE DID!!
• He did his Home Teaching.
• He was smart/a good student (on a 4-yr. College scholarship).
• He actually attended Stake Conference while at College! - I spotted him there.
• He held my hand going up/down those icy/snowy HILLS at Utah State.
• He's Optimistic.
• He had braces, long hair, drove a Camaro, & went to Viewmont!! Ha ha!...that was practically a "deal breaker!" (especially w/ my family.)

7 things I say most often:

• "Good Evening! Thank you for calling JetBlue, my name is Suzanne, how may I help you?"
• "Hurry!" - (it doesn't work)
• "Be Careful/Watch out!"
• "The [insert kitchen counter/couch/entry way, etc.] is NOT a dumping spot!"
• "Hi _____________! [insert family's nicknames]
• "SSHH/Be Quiet!" - (also, doesn't work)
• "What was that terrible noise?!?"

7 celebrities I admire:

hmmm...I don't know if "admire" is the right word, but if they're mentioned on "Extra", I'm watching:

• Michael Phelps
• Kelly Rippa/Regis Philman
• Felicity Huffman, Eva Longoria, Teri Hatcher & the rest of the Desparate Housewives women & men
• Michael Johnson - darn that Usain Bolt!
• Sarah Palin
• Mary Lou Retton
• Brian Regan

7 favorite foods:

• Salad (Robintinos, Costa Vida, Maddox, & Lone Star all have GOOD ones!)
• Prime Rib
• Baked Potato topped w/ steamed broccoli, cottage cheese & black pepper
• Candy Bars - but NOT 3 Musketeers, Milky Way, Almond Joy, Mounds, Symphony, SKOR, Cadbury, York, Dove, or Nestle Milk Chocolate bar
• Pineapple (only fresh)
• Homemade Hidden Valley Ranch dressing
• Garlic Bread

7 people I tag:

• Jill (the one who made the "interesting" comment) hee hee :)
• Angie
• Beeb
• Heidi
• Mandy W.
• Shawnette
• Kristen

The Dating Game

About 6 months ago, I found out about a product that claimed to get kids to do their chores, get ready for bed, off to school, etc. etc. WITHOUT being reminded (ie: nagging & screaming my head off!) So, OF COURSE, I bought it! It is called, "Children's Miracle Music."

The basics of it are that you get points for each step you accomplish in the designated time - a potential of 12 points/day. When you reach 100 points, you get a "private date" (of your choice) with Mom or Dad - Matt for me, Me for Matt (Yes! we're suppose to do our chores, too!)

Well, we reached a point where everyone had a date coming - so that's what we've been doing this past week!

Matt & Kyle went to good ol' Kaysville Theatre for the $2 movie, "Kung Fu Panda." They got a drink and the REFILLABLE popcorn, even - which Kyle definitely took advantage of that perk!

Then Mom & Katelyn went to ride the "kiddie rides." Ya know, the ones that you see in front of stores sometimes (or in the entrance/exit area) that the kids ALWAYS beg to ride, but ya ALWAYS say, "Not today."? The first place we went did not have a Merry-go-Round like I thought it did, so we rode the ones available there first and then we wandered through the TOY DEPT. of this store and Katelyn was "OOHH"-ing about everything (I've got a lot of good ideas for her birthday, now.) She then found a bike just her size and rode it around the aisles for a while - remember, this is HER idea of a great date! So, then we started to drive to the other place that I KNEW had a Merry-go-Round and when we arrived, I said, "We're here!"... No answer... I turn around, and she's asleep in the back seat! I call her name a couple of times - still asleep. So, we went home - I guess I'm a REAL exciting date, huh?!?

Haylee chose to go to this new Tea House that has come to Farmington. It's in one of these cute pioneer homes on Main St. They have an extensive tea list, but of course, we weren't going to order that, so we had the "Tea 'n' Luncheon" menu instead. Those of you who know Haylee, know she has a VERY LIMITED diet. This presented a challenge when ordering - they had those little "tea sandwiches" - NOT going work! They had a fruit plate, but Haylee only will consider apples and pears - another strike! She LOVES scones & cookies, BUT theirs weren't the "Navajo Fry Bread" or "Oreos" style of these - they were the "English" version - No go! We finally settled on a cheese & cracker plate for her - for $4! The cheese had been cut out into cute flower & leaf shapes. But, wouldn't ya know it, she still found something wrong with it...she ONLY likes orange cheese - not white OR even white & orange speckled, and some of the crackers were "too dark." Despite her not eating much (what an expensive "lunch" for her!), she had a fun time using the baby tongs to get sugar cubes out of the pot and enjoyed all the doilies, napkin holders/rings, & fancy goblets and dressing up in a skirt & blouse!

Can y'all guess what Ryan's gonna do for his "private date?"... Of course, a U of U football game with Matt. He REALLY wanted to go to the game against BYU, but the only way to get [affordable] tickets to that game would be to buy season tickets - and that wasn't gonna happen...so, he'll go to the TCU game - He just has to wait until Nov. 6th!

We've liked doing this because there's not too many opportunities for two people to be ALONE in our home. Also, while we're on our date, they act very mature, obedient, pleasant, no crying/whining, etc, etc. UNLIKE how they often have been acting at home! Just goes to show, they REALLY need 1:1 attention.

Taking Matters into her own Hands

Katelyn USED TO be good when we did her hair, but lately she's been following Haylee's example (screaming with the same intensity as if we were trying to murder her!) About a month ago, Matt was trying to brush her hair and she started carrying on and Matt threatened, "Do you want to cut your hair ALL off?" She answered, "Yes!" What?!? We didn't expect that response - She was suppose to BEG FOR MERCY and PROMISE to be agreeable from that time on...I guess it wasn't a very effective threat. Well, moments later, she walked back into the room and she had a lock of her hair in her hand - Matt HAD asked her if she wanted to cut her hair, right?!? She literally took it as an invitation. She was scolded, but actually this is not the first time this has happened in our home - it's a GIVEN, right?!? I told her that if she still wants her hair cut AFTER her birthday (Nov. 4th), we can do it, BUT I want to get her 4-yr. old picture taken with her long, curly hair FIRST!

I thought we had agreed on this...

So, the other day, her hair was in a ponytail in the morning and then later she came up to me and said, "I don't like ponytails!" I looked at her and she now had a head band in her hair and it was down in the back. I said, "OK!" I didn't think anything of that interaction - she constantly changes her clothes & accessories anyway. BUT THEN, when I went to brush it later, I discovered that she really did not like the ponytail because she had CUT IT OUT! I guess she's really serious about wanting her hair cut! She had pulled on the elastic over to the side where she could reach it before she cut, so now one side goes about to her chin. I asked her where the hair was and she took me to the garbage can and showed me...

Well, remember my Birthday photo plans? I want to keep them, so I tried to pull her hair back and see if you could really tell. It hides it better, but because I KNOW what happened, I can tell - BUT can you? What side do you think got cut? (her left or right?) Can I get away with getting her picture taken anyway with her hair like this? If this photo stumps enough of you - I'm SOO waiting.

UNLESS she gets to those scissors again in the next month!