Oh, The Boy!

While I have been trying my hand at gardening, Porter has been trying out digging.

He likes it.

I tried buying him his own little plastic shovel and bucket, but he kept throwing that down and grabbing my trowel and running off with it. Then I bought him a small metal trowel of his own and that seemed to appease him. Until he saw the big ole shovel I brought out to dig up a stubborn (ugly) plant.

It was love at first sight.

I could not keep him away from it.

So I found this nifty plastic shovel at the dollar store, and he now packs it around with him everywhere. It was decided that for the safety of all it should be left outside (while it is plastic, it still hurts when you are hit with it, step on it, trip over it, or have it shoved into your face).

Don't you love how you buy your kids all of those expensive toys that are especially created to boost your kids intelligence and are proven to attract their attention?

And a $1 shovel does it.

Back to the Village

We went back to Gardner's Village yesterday, and it was the perfect weather! Not only did we get to do some shopping, but Piper fell in love!

His name is Sparky and he gave Piper her first ever pony ride. She has been waiting anxiously for the day that she would be able to ride a horse, and while Sparky isn't exactly Black Beauty, he was close enough for her!

Porter just watched his sister, a little upset that he couldn't join in on the fun.

Adi opted out of the animal fun and decided to hit afew shops with Her Aunt Whit and Nana.

This little Village is so cool- not just for the eclectic stores there, but it also has Archibalds (a nice, sit-down restaraunt inside an old mill silo),a cute lil' bakery (with the biggest cinnamon rolls I have ever seen), even cuter brick paths and bridges, but there were also ducks roaming around that the girlies got to feed (I was too afraid to take the impetuous young Porter out of his stroller for fear he would charge head-first into the pond).

If any of our AZ friends or family ever make it up to visit us (hint, hint) we will have to visit this place!

Has Anyone Seen My Cell Phone?

Seriuosly- I have lost my phone in the black hole that often appears inside my home before, but usually just for a little while. My my phone has been missing for a total of four days now, and I have begun to worry. So, if you have tried to reach me or are trying to reach me, I am not upset with you or purposely not answering your call. I am lost.

Anywho, even without these technological gadgets that seem to make our world go 'round, we have been enjoying ourselves. We went to Gardner Historic Village yesterday for lunch, then sent the men home so us girlies could do a little shopping. Unfortunately we were rained out. Gardner Village is a collection of old-fashioned homes with little stores inside each of them, so running inbetween the homes in the rain got pretty old pretty fast.

We went home, but we plan on venturing back today!

Busy, Busy

We have been doing so much lately- and I've been squeazing in as much reading in every little free moment I've found! I have finished reading all about Odd now, so I can catch my readers up on our humble little life:

Piper got her ears repearced... she didn't cry at all, not even a flinch!

Did a lil' baking.

Played at McD's for a bit.

Did a lil' mine-exploring with Papa.

And, best of all, have been hanging out with Aunt Whit and Uncle Chris (who just came up from good ole AZ)!

Oh, and learning a few new dance moves!

Where Have I Been?

Reading.

I am now done and waiting for the next one in the sequel.

Here are some webisodes I found on YouTube... if you are a fellow Odd Thomas fan, you'll love them (the first one is a little slow, but keep watching, it gets good). If not, maybe you'll become one:

#1
#2

#3

#4

A Lil' Shopping

Here

Here

Ahhh... Sunshine, Finally!

The girls celebrated the newly-arrived heat by running through the sprinklers. Porter screamed everytime the water hit him, so he focused on some gardening that he'd been meaning to do

And I took pictures!

I also tried to record Porter doing some of his new "tricks": what does a puppy say, waving goodbye, that kind of stuff. I couldn't get him to cooperate, but as soon as I asked where his favorite person in this whole world is, he instantly reacted:

A Deep Conversation on the Way to Kohls

I would like to introduce you to Snowball. He is my daughters poor gender-confused comfort object. My mother-in-law made it (yep, I said "made it") for Adi-Baby for her 4th birthday, and she has been in love with him since. He started off a bright-white color, but has now faded to a dingy grayish one. I've had to sew his head back on, and originally he was a she. Adi decided that Snowball would make a better boy, but she continues to dress him in her own pink clothes and put her flowers and clips in his hair.

(This kit is from Britt-ish Designs)

Just don't ask because I couldn't tell you why.

Anywho, yesterday my mom cut the girls each a beautiful tulip from her garden, and they were treasures to them. They were cradling them in their arms like babies.

Piper: Mom, will my flower die?
Me: Yes, sweetheart.
Adi: I want my flower to live forever.
Me: Honey, that can't happen.
Adi: Why not?
Me: Because everything has to die.
**Yup, I stepped right into it**
Tears well up in Adi's eyes and her lower lips starts shaking.
Adi: Even me?
Uh-Oh
Me: Well, yes. But we all get to go and live in Heaven with Heavenly Father.
Piper: And Grandpa Buckway because his brain bled (my mom had explained the circumstances of my grandfather's death to her).
Me: Yeah... and Nanny!
Adi (fat tears are rolling down her face): And Daddy?
Me: Daddy will be there too, but he won't go for a long time!
Adi: I don't want to go to Heaven!
Piper: It's ok Adi, Nana and me will be there too.
Louder sobs from the poor little girl.
Me: But you aren't going to go for a long, long time!
More sobs.
Me: Nae, why are you so upset? Heaven is a wonderful, beautiful place!
Adi: Because Daddy said that I can't take Snowball with me to Heaven!!!
Piper: It's ok Adi, I'll take care of him!


What a mess! I have vowed that for now on when we are in the car, I am going to turn the radio WAY up and not enter into any conversations with the kids!

Porter and His Tacos

Nothing will bring a smile to your face faster than watching Porter enjoy a meal. Take a look and let's see if you can keep a straight face...

Things have changed just a little since then, huh?

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words...

(Taken at our local library- Porter was home with Daddy!)

Tagged!

My Lil' Sis tagged me... sorry it took me so long to do this Whit!

THE RULES:Answer these 15 questions about yourself on your blog. List: 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 random surprising facts. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

JOYS
1)Adison
2)Piper
3)Porter
(Did you really expect anything else?)

FEARS
1)Running out of gas on the freeway
2)Losing one of my kiddies
3)One of the kids pulling over a big pot of boiling water on their heads (thanks goes to Whi for this one- she showed me some pretty graphic pics from her nursing book)

GOALS
1)Raising three respectful, compassionate children
2)Take some photography classes
3)Make it back to AZ to visit sometime...

OBSESSIONS/COLLECTIONS
1)I collect digi scrapping kits- and I have only used about half of the ones I have bought!
2)I obsess about buying my children's clothes- as soon as the stores start putting out fall clothes (even though it is stil July), I start panicking about buying next season's clothes
3)Oh, I love collecting books! More than half of my books are in storage right now and I feel like I am missing a part of myself :(

RANDOM SURPRISING FACTS
1)I HATE dusting... I don't know why since it is probably the easiest of all the chores I do. But, for some reason- uggg! Luckily, I have given that responsibility to my children now that they are old enough to do chores.
2)I own about 25 pairs of shoes, but I only use about 3 pair of them. It's not that I don't like the rest of them, I just don't use them.
3)I prefer to stay in my jammies all day. They are so comfy! But I have to force myself to dress because if I don't, the girls think that they don't have to either.

I now bequeth this Tag onto: Lindy, Ayami (by the way, sorry I never did yours!), Amber, Joy and Ali. I'll be watching for your answers!

Mothers

Anyone else ever feel a little guilty on Mother's Day? Like maybe I don't deserve it? It doesn't help that during sacrament, the bishopric praised women and mothers. I am not in any way suggesting that they shouldn't- we deserve our props. The problem is that as they listed all of these wonderful attributes of women in their lives or women the general authorities have spoken of and I started to feel... well, just a tiny bit inadequate. I don't have the bottomless patience that the bishop's wife has. I don't have a Pollyanna-outlook where I can find the good in every horrible situation that comes along (I usually lean towards the opposite reaction). I don't sing beautifully, bake wonderful cakes and treats everyday for my family. I'm not always a perfect example to my children, and I even yell sometimes.

I was feeling pretty down today when we left church. We got home, ate lunch, and then I went upstairs to put my girlies to bed, all the while feeling darn bad. As I hugged Piper, she wrapped her little arms so tight around my neck and whispered into my ear, "Mommy, I love you more than you know."

Then Adi told me that I was the best Mommy ever.

And Porter gave me a snot-kiss.

I may not be the perfect mother that all of us aim to be, but maybe I'm not doing such a bad job after all.

At least the munchkins don't think so.

Mother's Day ROCKS!

OK, so I got celebrate Mom's Day a little early this year. On Thursday, after a walk to the park where my girlies collected the little-cup full of "flowers" to give to me, I got home and had those beautiful tulips waiting for me... awwww!

There are two shockers about this fact: 1)OP actually heard all of my reminders about the big day coming up and 2)He actually preordered something. I am not insulting my husband, he is just simply a procrastinator. He is the man at Walmart 5pm Christmas Eve, or the guy who stops by Walmart on his way home from work on Valentines Day and brings me the tiny box of Winnie-the-Pooh chocolates. Yep, it has happened.

Anywho, the suprises kept a'comin: Last night he got home, handed me a wad of money and told me to go spend all of it on myself. I went to Target (I know, I know, big spender huh?) and got myself a dress, two pair of shorts, four shirts and a pair of PJ's. I'm happy!

The best part of the gifts are the fact that they represent that I am actually loved and appreciated. We all know how difficult it gets to do our Motherly and Housely Duties with a smile on our face while feeeling like we aren't actually doing anything that anyone will notice (unless, of course, we stop doing them).

Orrin Porter, you ROCK!!! And Happy Mother's Day to all fellow bloggers and Mommies out there! Now, if only I get to sleep in tomarrow....

Ok, ok,

I won't be selfish. But a girl can dream, can't she?

A Fun Little Filly

One of the most exciting new acquaintances that we have aquired since moving to Utah has been Lady Di. We meet her through my Aunt Leanne- she is a beautiful mare who, at the time we first met, was big pregnant with her first little colt. On Cinco De Mayo, Leanne gave us a call and told us that if we wanted to see a newborn filly, we were welcome to come over. The girls were so excited, especially Piper who has a fascination with all animals and most recently has fallen in love with horses.

The girls brought apples and carrots to feed the new mama (we all know that food is the best gift after giving birth), and Piper wanted to ride the little filly.

Adi was too afraid to feed Lady, but Pipes got right up there and gave her the carrots. Then they both got to pet the baby, but only for a minute because Lady was a little nervous about them being by her. Porter didn't care for the horses, but he loved Sadie the black lab and even Adi pet her for a minute.

But who was the biggest chicken of the day? ME, hands down! I decided to show Adi that feeding a horse wasn't scary at all. While holding Porter, I broke a carrott into pieces and offered out my hand. Lady came over and, to be honest, I got scared because she came over faster than I expected. I started backing up quickly and, imagine this, Lady kept coming forward. It didn't help that Porter was screaming. I finally realized that she was following the carrots, so I dropped them and ran out of the fence. Well, let's just say that everyone had a good ole laugh at my expense. How embarrasing!

Depsite my little chicken experience, it was so much fun and Piper keeps asking how long she has to wait before she can ride Lady...

This is kinda embarrasing...

and while I am embarrased to post twice in one week about Stephenie Meyer's books, I just finished reading her new release, The Host. That's right. It came out yesterday and I read the entire 619 page book in a little over 24 hours. Nerd, yes. But skim-reader, never! I might have ignored my children a bit (we had a movie day where the kids watched cartoons and I read), and my "chores" a little bit more, but I am now finished!

GET THIS BOOK! It was wonderful... different than most anything I've read (only Stephenie Meyer could make a love triangle in a science-fiction book about body snatching aliens). But surprising, new and still gave me the little butterflies that Twilight gives me!

Now my ignored children will not go to sleep, so I must go give them some attention!

A Ride in Ole' Blue

We went on a grand adventure Saturday... all the way to Bluffdale to have my big bro check the emmisions on OP's "new" car. This may not sound like a big deal to most of you, but I did leave out the part where we all squeezed into a 1989 Subaru Legacy (coincidentally, this same make & model was my very first car when I was 16- it was totaled) that sounds like it is going to take flight when you go over 50 mph. Seriously. We barely fit all the carseats in, and the poor girls were being terrorized by their baby brother the entire time.

I didn't realize how spoiled I was- the fact that I had to turn around and unlock the car door manually really threw me, and having to crank the window down, and there was no tint. None. Well, let's just say that I just wanted back inside my cosy Envoy.

I had a pretty dim outlook on the whole thing, or at least I did till we stopped to fill Ole' Blue up. $25 filled up the entire tank. $25!! It got 29.63 miles per gallon- my Envoy gets around 16-17 mpg!

Well, we girls dropped the boys off at home so we could go out and have a little fun of our own. When Orrin got out he asked if he should switch around the carseats. I looked at him like he was crazy. "Why the heck would I want you to do that?" I asked him. The less money I spend on gas, the more I can spend at Target!

Oh, and this is for you Whit:

Porter has started dancing to music, any music when it comes on. The boy can groove! Unfortunately, the little bum hides from my camera, so as soon as he sees it come out, he stops. But, at least I caught a couple of seconds!

Be Still My Beating Heart...

I just watched this... and I can't even stand waiting for this movie to come out! I may be a nerd who likes to read teen novels, but if you have ever read the Twilight Books, you gotta know what I'm talking about.





If you don't speak Bella-and-Edward-ish, Twilight (and the other two follow-up books) is a novel written by Stephanie Meyer (who was chosen as one of TIMES 100 most influential people of 2008)about the love between a vampire and a human. Sounds a little geeky and trite, but it is good and oh-so very addicting! Emily, I heard that you are the newest member of the Twilight Club and Meghann, trust me, read these books (if you haven't already). Whitney- you're graduating on a couple of weeks and you will no longer have any excuses to not read them!





Can you tell how much I love these books?

Only in Utah

does the day start off looking like this:

and end up looking like this:

There were kids playing outside without jackets, and the next-door-neighbor was mowing his lawn. This place is crazy!

Oh, as for the little game yesterday, everyone was right (or at least the three people who left their answer in the comments). Adi was first, Pipes second. I was really impressed with Meghann, since she has only met Adi and that was only about one minute in the airport four years ago! But like she said, it really struck me how much their little personalities have stayed the same: Adi always so serious, so worrisome, and Piper so carefree and living-in-the-moment...

My guess with Porter, judging by his personality now, is that he'll end up a linebacker who hugs the people whom he tackles better. Just a guess...


*I scrapped this page a while ago, back when I was first starting, but I love the quote- it really just fits the girlies!