Me vs. Me

So I know it has been a really long time since I posted, but I thought this was funny. We were at the park this afternoon and Princess and Mr. Man were swinging. As we were leaving Mr. Man jumped off the swing- which he was very proud of. He asked me and his dad if we had seen, then the following conversation ensued:

Mr. Man Me to Princess: Did you see me jump off the swing?

Princess Me to Mr. Man: No

Mr. Man Me: Did you see me jump off the swing?
(No response from Princess)

Mr. Man Me: Did you see me jump off the swing?
(No response from Princess)

Real Me: Mr. Man, that's awesome that you jumped off the swing!

Mr. Man Me: Did you see me jump off the swing?
(No response from Princess)

Real Me: Princess, will you please answer your brother?

Princess Me: I DID ANSWER HIM! He just wasn't listening or he didn't hear me!

Mr. Man Me: Well, you were talking softly or not speaking clearly because I couldn't hear you!

Real Me to husband: Sigh Sigh Sigh


The sad thing is, yes, they are saying things that I have said. It was basically: one of mom's arguments vs. another one of mom's arguments. Obviously, neither are very effective!

You know they're excited...

This year the kids went to bed at about 8pm on Christmas Eve. Mr. Man and Noodle went to sleep super-fast. Princess stayed up for a long time- about 10pm. Before Mr. D and I hit the sack at midnight we said we were set up pretty well for the morning- Mr. Man and Noodle rarely wake up before 7 or 7:30 and Princess will be so tired from staying up late that we didn't need to worry about them waking up before us and going out to the tree.
Boy, were we wrong.
At 3:30am we heard Mr. Man running down the hall yelling "Santa got here, Santa got here!" He proceeded to wake up Princess, shaking her awake and yelling "Santa got here, he left presents!" That, of course, woke up Noodle as well.
So, there we were ALL awake at 3:30 in the morning. Needless to say, Mr. D and I were absolutely NOT getting up at that hour. So we spent the next hour helping everyone go back to sleep....
We ended up waking up around 7 or 7:30. What a night!

Christ-centered Christmas

This year I made a goal to finish all my Christmas shopping before the month of December. Last year I spent what felt like the entire month shopping, returning and wrapping. I did not enjoy it and I did not want to repeat that. It just didn't feel like Christmas. I am happy to report that I did indeed meet my goal.
However, today in sacrament meeting a sister in our ward bore her testimony of the increased blessing of the Spirit because she had been reading the Book of Mormon more. I realized then that what I was missing last year and what I am looking for this year is just that- a focus on the Savior and an increase of the Spirit in my home and life. I do think that having my shopping done is worthy and certainly can make it easier for me to feel that Spirit, but in itself will not bring about the feeling I am looking for. I need to fill my time that I have made with things that are of real importance.
What will bring about that feeling is an increase on my part of studying the scriptures, living more like the Savior and making His birth, life, death, and resurrection the focus of my Christmas season. It is the simple suggestion that I have heard so often, but I think hit home to me a little more fully today.

Here is a video I found on the lds.org website that I thought was very good about a Christ-centered Christmas.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PxKas2Mcjg4&feature=player_embedded

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving this year. Some friends of ours came over and we enjoyed a gigantic feast and lots of fun. Here is the final menu for this year, some from us, some from our friends:

Apple Cider Brined Turkey
Savory Herb Gravy
Mashed Potatoes (a whopping 12lbs!)
Brown Sugar Glazed Sweet Potatoes
Stuffing (my own concoction from a few recipes)
Fruit Salad with fresh fruit and real whipped cream
Matt and Mandy's Famous Spinach Salad (From the Friend magazine)
Cranberry Jello Salad
Rolls
Relish Tray
Calico Cabbage Salad
Cheesy Potatoes
Green Bean Casserole
Mexican Corn


Pies:
Cheesecake
Brownies
Ginger Apple Cranberry
2 Pumpkin (from our own garden pumpkins)
Old Fashioned Apple
Cherry
Pecan
Honey Rhubarb
Coconut Cream
Chocolate Cream
Pear Streusel

We obviously are still eating leftovers and we have put a few of the pies in the freezer for a later date. Brett hurt his back on Thursday- so he sat and did all the peeling and prepping while I did the leg work. It worked out well and we ended up eating near the time we said (Okay, so it was 45 minutes late, but for me- that is pretty good for Thanksgiving). We had a fun time talking and semi-playing games afterward. It was a good day. We hope everyone else had a great holiday as well!

Our Half Marathon

Back in October, Mr. D and I ran a half- marathon together. We had been training all summer and it was an awesome, exhilarating experience to run the race together. It was Brett's first race of any length ever, and my second half-marathon. I am so proud of him! I was not having my greatest run and he kept me going the whole time. We finished in 1 hour 51 minutes. (About an 8.5 minute mile, I think)

The kids also got to run in a kids race, Princess and Mr.Man ran about 1/2 to 3/4 of a mile and Noodle did the toddler race which was about two blocks. They all got medals and were incredible excited to have run their first "race."

Hamburger Helper

I made Hamburger Helper for the first time in my life last night. I was feeling pretty disgusted-
Number 1- it has hamburger in it (I loathe hamburger and maybe buy it 2 times a year)
Number 2. - let's face it, Hamburger Helper is a box meal... need I say more?

So here's the funny part. I cooked it up, (it was the Crunchy Mexican kind) and it made the whole house smell like fake tacos. The kids ran up the stairs and started commenting on how GOOD the house smelled. I was still trying to fathom that I was actually cooking this for dinner. Anyway, I served it up, held my breath and took a bite. It wasn't all that bad, a little bit soupy taco-y taste with fake cheese sauce.

The kids loved it. LOVED IT. The both told me that it was either number 2 or number 3 on their list of favorite foods. I mean this is right after homemade pot pie (for Princess) and pancakes and waffles for Mr. Man. They said they could eat it all the time. Ugh. Even Mr. D came home and said "Wow honey, the house smells great! What did you cook for dinner?" Needless to say, there weren't any leftovers.

So my question is: Should I be hurt or happy that they loved it so much?

Getting Back to Life

We went to my parents house this weekend, and somehow it seems when we do anything out of the ordinary or spontaneous, I have a hard time picking back up life. So, this week we have gotten off to a slow start. I am happy to say, however, that we have accomplished much in the way of homeschooling this week and I even canned some habanero jelly. I will be happy with my accomplishments and hopefully be back on track for next week.
I think there may be a lesson in this for me about advance preparation- if I didn't always fly by the seat of my pants, then I maybe could pick up a little easier!

On another note, I feel like I have been doing better at letting things go and not being so stressed out. I changed the schedule for the kids homeschooling, and I think that works better, too. I wish I could say I don't get angry or frustrated anymore, but I am working on it- and things are definitely better than they have been. (HeHe- My sisters may have something different to say, they hear more than enough of my rantings!)

I have a few makeup posts with pics- hopefully I will get them in soon!