D.B.A. Debra Lea

Joy . . .

2010-05-24T08:26:00.005-06:00

These are my gooses,

my sweetpeas,

my love punkins,

my life.

I am so in love with being a mom to these four kids of mine.

It's pure and absolute joy.

Even with the diaper changing and the sleepless nights.

and the never-ending laundry pile.

a simple request...

2010-05-22T12:30:00.002-06:00

I love my Nicole.

Last night as she was saying her personal prayers she said, "And please bless Andrew to sleep through the night so Mom and Dad can get the sleep they need."

I about cried.

How thoughtful and observant.

(or maybe its just that I've been extra ornery this past 2 months because of lack of sleep?)

in either case,
Seriously love that almost ten year old of mine.

Debra Lea... the anti-blogger . . .

2009-11-18T03:11:00.004-07:00

I guess its official.

I am now claiming to be an anti-blogger, not because I hate blogs. Nope. Not at all. I'm still reading all those great blogs out there.... but I've been refusing to post a comment.

And then there's the little thing about me not writing a new post for what, 4 months?! What is up with that? ;)

-sigh-

Why, may you ask, am I not posting or commenting like the best of 'em?

It may or may not have something to do with this little person inside of me. Oh and puking my brains out and snacking on IV fluid for the last 5 months. YUM.

It may or may not have something to do with how mean I've been for months because of previously mentioned condition, hey low blood sugar does that to me.

And if I'm ornery then you know what that means. My comments are all grumpy sounding and let's not even talk about all of the posts I've started and just gave up because my words just reeked of disagreeable rumbles.

Oh and it may have a lot to do with how guilty I am for not sending out thank you cards for all of the wonderful people surrounding me that have made me smile while I'm mourning and moaning and groaning and being a hermit.

See I told you I'm no fun when I'm feeling ill.

An anti-blogger. Yep. Sounds about right.

A farewell . . . .

2009-08-30T09:17:00.006-06:00

It's been a month since my brother's funeral.

I've reflected on the past.

I think about the days ahead.

And I sometimes cry,

a lot.

Man I miss him!

What an amazing man my brother Mark was. Always serving others, making lives wonderful and spoiling my kids with bubble gum and other sweet delights.

Mark had such a zest for life-whether it was taking my kids to the zoo or picking up another niece or nephew for a football game; he loved creating memories and making people feel special. He was always thinking of ways to get others to laugh and enjoy life as well. . . like the great water fight of '09. I don't think any of my family will forget when Mark brought out a whole load of water guns and balloons and handed them out to all of our kids (during a service project at my house, mind you). Oh the look on the kids' faces when they got the grown ups soaking wet... priceless.

That was one of my last memories with Mark.

As I look back, I am so angry with myself that I didn't see his pain. His sadness. How could I just let Mark suffer like he did? I didn't even know, I didn't choose to know the extent of what he was going through. I looked at how happy he made everybody and assumed that things were okay. Stupid assumption.

During the five days that we searched for him and especially the days and weeks since, I've tried to figure out how I could be so selfish, when I had such an amazing example of selfLESSness right in front of me.

Mark Spencer Richards 1983~2009 Born Jan 19, 1983, passed into Heavenly Father's arms on July 24, 2009. Mark Richards was a Son, Brother, Uncle, Friend, Husband, and Daddy. He was well dressed, a champion wrestler, always tried to better himself and others, generous with his time and money, and took care of everyone around him. He will be sorely missed by all who knew him. Married Brianna Nicole Roper August 10, 2002 in Taylorsville, Utah. Survived by Brianna Richards, daughter of Mel and Lori Roper, his wife and love of his life and his son Carter. Parents, Mike and Myrna Richards, brothers and sisters, Eldon (Cami); David; Laura (Aaron); Debra (Greg); Danny (Allie); Boyd (Rachel). Preceded in death by his sister Rachelle.

Mark, I love you so much. You have been such a great example in my life and I'm so proud to call you my brother. I'm so grateful for all the many memories that I have with you and I will hold onto them forever and ever.

I'll never forget the time that an RC Willey's delivery man showed up at my door, after my back surgery, with a new King size bed... although it was supposed to be from an anonymous donor, I got the delivery man to tell me who it was from. Thank you.

And remember that time when everyone was getting together for a Memorial Day celebration and my financial situation was such that I couldn't even afford the gas from Spanish Fork to Salt Lake? Thank you again for watching out for me and sending me some money to make the trip. Again, you tried to be anonymous, but seriously...I know your handwriting better than you think. ;)

Then there was when Greg and I were newlyweds and you came to stay with us a couple of times. It made me smile that you were so excited to see junk food in my pantry. Growing up we rarely had any and if we did it would disappear in a flash. But what do you expect from a big family like ours?

I even look at our childhood with fondness. All of the teasing and torment that we dished out to each other . . . I'm sorry and I hope you know that I love you for those years. I love to think back and laugh at how easily you could get my goat.

Oh Mark, I'm going to miss you so much. Thank you for being such a wonderful part of my life.

I look forward to seeing you again.

I love you.

your sis,

Debra Lea

What's in a name? . . .

2009-06-29T00:06:00.002-06:00

It's Lea. My middle name is Lea.

It rhymes with catastrophe

and anchovy.

and banchee.

and whigmaleerie.

I just thought you ought to know. ... . just in case I decide to become really good at something and get all famous and stuff.

you're welcome.

Greg and Debra plus 8 . . .

2009-06-04T01:13:00.006-06:00

I've always wanted a big family, I guess its because I came from one? Well I had a chance to practice being a mom of a gigantic family with some nieces and nephews....

Picture it...

my THREE

+ 5 cousins.

A warm Vegas sun.

and a swim pool.

and, oh yeah - 4 t-ball games, volleyball practice, basketball practice, gymnastics, Speech, pre-school, YW/YM, activity days, a youth dance, family pictures, a school carnival etc. etc. for 12 days. And a car that would seat 5, for the latter half of the trip anyway.

Talk about a blast.

Is that the right word for it?

I think so.

I should have been a judge...

2009-05-13T00:37:00.006-06:00

I'm a little judgmental.

okay.

maybe I'm A LOT judgemental.

But I don't do it on purpose....most of the time.

Usually I'm just sailing along, doing my own thing and then out of no where ...WHAMo --a thought pops into my head and I'm left thinking, "Gosh Debra Lea, that was a pretty crazy thing to think about that situation/ person/ animal etc. etc. etc."

And then there's the times that I'm purposefully judgmental.
Yep, I actually do that sometimes.
Embarrassing, I know.
Take the other day, for example. I was running around crazily with my mile long to-do list and time was of the essence. After running through Costco like a mad woman, I was hopping into my ultra cool mini van where I noticed that the man parked next to me was lighting up a cigarette....with his two young kids in the back seat. This just happens to be one of my BIGGEST peeves ever. All kind of less than complimentary thoughts were running through my mind about this man and I was judging him with the harshest of my judgments with only knowing this one thing about him. He must be an all around terrible man, right? I continued thinking this until we both were backing up at the same time, me in my rushed sour scowl and him in his careful, watchful, courteous smile. There was an awkward brief moment when both of us were edging our way out and motioning the other to go and in the end he, of course, let me back up out of my stall first. I was so grateful yet so embarrassed for my thoughts.

This experience really got me thinking.

What if all of us wore our struggles out there, for the whole world to see, to judge. And people only saw our mistakes and judged us before they saw the good in us?

Is it the good or the bad, the hardships or the triumphs that really define us? Its all of the above of course. Then why oh why do I do the whole judging thing without having the whole story?!

Just some food for thought.

Kaydee turns six . . .

2009-05-07T17:21:00.006-06:00

I love birthdays. No, I mean I really love birthdays and Kaydee's was definitely not an exception. Can she really be 6? It seems like just yesterday I was posting of her fifth birthday celebrations.

-sigh-

Kaydee's favorites of the big day (in her words):

putting my shoes in the volcano
getting some WEBKINZ
eating pancakes and bacon in bed
walking through the jungle
eating the spotted dinosaur cake
playing heavy heavy hang over
getting the didj
all the friends that came to my dino party
passing out treats at school

We had a great and exhausting day. Lots of fun and friends and a major sugar overload. Most of the sugar came from the cake... that took a little bit longer to make than expected and an angelic next door neighbor that offered to help me because she just "happened to want to cook a bundt cake" out of her own ingredients at 10:00 at night. I don't even know how to begin thanking someone for that kind of sweetness. Seriously love that Michelle neighbor of mine.

All in all, the cake took over six hours to create. If it wasn't for the stinkin' face caving in at the last minute it would have taken a little over four and look a ton better. grrr.
Let's just say that you did not want to be present in the Debra Lea household when I was putting the final touches on the triceratops face. Insane ball of emotional stress wacko-ism might just be a tad bit too nice of adjective to describe my loveliness at that precise moment. Thank goodness that my dear Greg didn't mind *cough* one bit that I was barking orders at him to save my triceratops face. You would have thought I was doing plastic surgery on a celebrity for how panicked I sounded. I finally stopped fussing with the cake when Greg reminded me (again) that the kids would love it regardless, however they probably would not like me still in my pajamas.

As for the birthday party, Kaydee chose the theme : Dinosaurs. and Boy did we have fun with that one. I wish the pictures that were taken could show the energetic atmosphere and excitement of the kids. You gotta love the pictures though since the reason we got any was because I randomly handed the camera to someone and told them to take a picture. I especially love all of the glowing windows in the background... We had such a great time and I think we could sum it up as a great success.

Kaydee, I sure love you. You surprise me everyday with your sweetness and your humor. I absolutely LOVE it when you give me that super cute grin in the morning and ask for your snuggles. You've grown up so much this year, going to Kindergarten and all. You've learned how to read and add numbers, how to play with others and let your imagination entertain. You've created some beautiful art pieces that would impress even the most fussy of the art critics. I hope that you continue to cultivate this amazing personality of yours because I am continually awed by it. Our family wouldn't be the same without you. I love you. Happy Birthday my sweet six year old!

did you miss me?...

2009-05-04T22:18:00.005-06:00

Yes. That's right. I was on a blogging hiatus.

And ya wanna know what's even better, I don't even have a great excuse for it either.

Laziness? yes.

pure lack of motivation? you betcha.

Enjoying a little life without so much throbbing in my head? yep.

Not to worry. I'll catch you all up on my ultra fabulous life. Someday.

Maybe even soon.

potato bug . . .

2009-05-04T16:45:00.003-06:00

Tater Bugs.

I'm usually not opposed to those roly poly buggeroos. They're harmless, right? It's only when my dear daughter decides to accidentally drop one down my dress during Family Home Evening that the nightmares start--for everybody. Just be glad that you weren't present for the event.

There I was, like a good little mom, innocently sitting there on the couch-- listening to the wonderful lesson that Greg had put together about seeds and faith etc. etc. and Nanners was playing with her new pet, the potato bug. This potato bug was not a nice potato bug, you could see it in his eyes and I could tell before Natalie made her sister's Easter bucket his home that he meant to disrupt our family home evening. Seriously, I just know these things. And sometimes I just make these things up after the fact because its my story and I can do that.

Anyways. Nanners brought the bug over to me for examination and somehow during the process lost the bug...in my dress. Notice I didn't say on, but IN as in INSIDE my dress. This is where it gets interesting. I kind of freaked out, as reverently as I could because it was during family home evening after all-- I jumped up, danced around a lot and even unbuttoned a couple buttons on my dress. I have to admit, I was a little proud of myself because I didn't let the yelping or squealing start until 5 minutes after the ordeal began. I did all of this while my little family just watched in amusement. Especially Greg. At least I was contributing to family night, right?

After more than 10 minutes of searching on myself and in the couch I had to cry defeat. The roly poly monster had won the right to give me the heebie jeebies for the rest of my life, or at least the rest of the day. I swore I could feel him crawling all over me. Ewww.

Over two hours later, I was running around the house doing my usual Sunday frenzy of activity when Greg gave me a love pat on my bottom. Yep. You read that last sentence right. I wouldn't have written it if it wasn't very pertinent to my story, I promise. As Greg patted my bottom he felt an unusual lump on my bum and wouldn't you know it... it was the mr. Potato bug himself. Alive and doing well. The perv.

I have therefore outlawed Mr. roly poly and all of his relatives from entering the Debra Lea homestead. You think that's a little too harsh? YOU try having a potato bug crawling around your skivvies for a couple of hours and then we'll talk.

gottcha. . .

2009-04-14T09:26:00.004-06:00

uh, No mom .... I did not get into your beautiful teal eye liner without asking and that is not why I am hiding behind the couch....

enchanting? . . .

2009-04-11T01:54:00.004-06:00

The other day I got a compliment. Well, I think it was a compliment. I was told that I reminded someone of Giselle off of Enchanted. . . . hmmm.

And just so you can see the resemblance....
I'm pretty sure I look like her twin... I'm just sayin'.

;)
In all honesty, I'm not sure why I reminded this person of Giselle or if they meant it as a compliment at all. But if they did, it might not have been anything to do with my almost exact facial replica of the character, and everything to do with how I walk with my arms out in mid-air all of the time. Or maybe my clothes look like they are made out of old drapes. Or it could be that my house looks like its been cleaned by a bunch of rats and other vermin. (I really hope its not this one) Or that I have a blissful outlook on life, etc. etc. The possibilities to this compliment are endless.

So thank you.
Really.
You sure put a smile on this girl's face.

Let your voice be heard . . . .

2009-04-08T21:30:00.008-06:00

I'm deeply troubled by some information that I received tonight and because I believe that the wonderful people that read my blog believe the same way that I do I'm pleading for you to stand with me on this issue. Read fast, because there is just a small window of time to do something about it.

Here's the deal:

In layman's terms--Right now, the doctors and other medical staff in our country have the ability to refuse to perform a procedure that they feel morally or ethically opposed to. They don't have to do it and they can't be punished for not doing it. However.....Our new president, along with his administration, are repealing this policy. The new policy would require all doctors and all medical staff to perform any procedure that is asked of them, including (but not limited to) abortions.

This new policy is just asking for trouble. If its put in place, there will be major consequences for those doctors and facilities that refuse to do procedures. Or these doctors and nurses--who've spent thousands of dollars learning what they know and becoming who they are and saving the people they've saved--can simply leave their profession?

Do you see what I'm saying here folks. They can follow the demands of the administration or leave the profession. This does not sound like freedom to me. And, oh yeah... what about the whole Hippocratic Oath thing? You know "Above all, do no harm". I STRONGLY feel that each doctor and medical professional should decide for themselves which procedure they will do based on their own ethics and morals.

This is a terrible new policy.

Lucky for us, there is about 24 more hours that you can put in your opinion about this issue. (the petition expires at midnight of April 9, 2009)

Go here to find out more

or go to the link below to add your name to the petition.

http://www.freedom2care.org/action/message/patient

I believe in our country. I believe in our freedoms.

Please spread the word!

uplifting...

2009-04-05T13:31:00.004-06:00

Oh how I love General Conference! I've looked forward to this weekend for months now. Listening to all of the amazing and uplifting talks yesterday and today, however, I started to feel a little self-conscious. Maybe guilty is a better word? I think my sweetheart summed my feelings up perfectly when he said, "I hope other people enjoyed our General Conference"

Did anyone else feel that way.....or are our suspicions correct? Were all the talks written just for Greg and I?

Seriously, I swear they were. :)

I am so grateful for these inspired men and women and their dedication to our Father in Heaven and Savior. My life is so blessed because of these choice people.

I feel uplifted.

Happiness just might have a price tag . . .

2009-04-03T22:03:00.005-06:00

Today I'm smiling.

And its even real.

and bright.

Actually... I'm way past smiling. I'm giddy.

I just found out that there is finally a generic for the crazy expensive medication that I have to take. Do you know what that means?! I'm saving $220 a month.

I can barely contain my joy.

In fact, I kind of look like this:
except I don't have 'istockphoto' written on me.

Oh happy day!!

Don't be such a cry baby . . .

2009-03-31T22:04:00.006-06:00

It's a very rare occasion to see tears streaming down my husband's face. In fact, in the nine and a half years we've been blissfully married I've only known him to cry a handful of times. So when I observed my husband's eyes starting to glisten the other night, I knew it had to be blog worthy.

He was watching this:

That's right. He only cries when he finds something so unbelievably funny that he can't help himself. You can only witness this event under the right circumstances though, i.e. when he is sleep deprived and its really late at night, or when he's had a little bit too much root beer to drink. Okay, I might be lying about the latter example...

Other clips that made his beautiful brown eyes overflow?

Pure Luck: Who could forget this gem? From about a minute into the show and all the way through it, Greg is happily watching. However when Martin Short gets stung by a bee....

Galaxy Quest: The part where the Alien monster gets transported inside out. Gets him every time.

Top 100 Most Outrageous Moments of all-time: These beauties are so funny and since we have the episode recorded, we've watched it a lot. The best times are when Greg lets the tears flow in anticipation of his favorite clips.

Am I sad that I've never seen my dear husband shed a tear out of emotion? Nah, I love this feature of my eternal companion and besides, tears with laughter are so much more fun to watch.

When life gives you lemons . . .

2009-03-20T19:46:00.011-06:00

It all started when Greg came home with a ton of these lip puckering sensations. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
I was so excited because, you see, these are no ordinary lemons. Oh no...... they're special. They're a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange and they're amazing to cook with.

The problem lied with the amount of the lemons that Greg brought home. Over 2 dozen. I like lemons as much as the next girl but there was no way that we were going to be able to use 2 dozen before they spoiled.

And then I had an idea.

We were going to challenge our neighbors to a cooking competition.

Yes, that's right. A cooking competition like nothing that you've ever seen. It was going to be fun, a little courageous and well, downright silly. We called it the "I can't believe it's not Iron Chef" competition.

It turned out awesome.

Some highlights:

secret ingredients: Meyer lemons, Ricotta cheese, Zucchini and LUCKY CHARMS.
The opposing team used all of the secret ingredients in their dessert. I'm not kidding. And it got a thumbs up from the judges.
The kids were amazing judges, they would not be bribed.
My kids were introduced to new foods.
Costumes. What would a cooking competition be without stellar dress-ups?
um, the fantastic food... but that was probably a given.
Staying up way past our bedtimes. On a school night.
Memories to last a lifetime.

The only drawback for the day was the migraine that hit the morning of the competition. 3 hours of physical therapy got me through the worst of it though and all we had to do was change our menu, start the competition a little later and omit the prizes. Next time baby, it'll go as smooth as honey.

The ironic thing? Greg bought the lemons for a purpose... they were for a fabulously authentic Italian dessert that he had been dreaming about making for months. You guessed it. He didn't even get to make the dessert. Maybe he should buy more lemons next time? ;)

Families Can Be Together Forever . . .

2009-03-20T19:27:00.010-06:00

We took our family to the Draper Temple open house March 9, 2009. It was one of the most loverly experiences of my entire life. I'm pretty sure my favorite part of this whole experience was preparing my family for what they were going to see and re-briefing what the temple is all about and sharing my testimony with them about Eternal Families. These conversations also led me into reminding my kids to be reverent inside the temple, I guess I drilled this reverence reminder inside their sweet little heads so much, in fact, that when we were walking through the temple's halls and going up and down the stairs, Natalie kept shushing everyone around her and walking on tip toe. Oh I love that three year old of mine!

And then there was the weather issue. Brrrr. and I repeat. BRRRR!!! It was such a wet, cold, snowy day. We were so glad to get onto that nice heated 'red' bus to take us to the temple and then bring us back again.

The inside of the Draper temple was breathtaking. Seriously. I loved all of the murals and my girls loved the Celestial room. They were all pretty convinced that they needed a chandelier like the one in the Celestial room to hang in their bedroom... could you imagine? I'm pretty sure it would take up their whole room.

Lastly, we enjoyed refreshment. You gotta love that, right? Well, we sure did. Probably a little too much.

I am so grateful for the amazing opportunity of seeing inside this temple with my family before it was dedicated. I pray that all my children will make the choice to come back to the temple when they are older so they can enjoy the tranquility and beauty and strength that can be found within its walls. I am ever so grateful for the covenants that I've made and the blessings that I've received because of our Father's Holy House. I love the temple.

Carpool . . .

2009-03-11T22:08:00.003-06:00

I carpool with the best of ladies. Seriously. I am so lucky to be part of their child taxiing group... 'cept I think that they may be ready to trade me in soon. Especially after the stunt I pulled the other day.

Imagine, if you will, this little scenario...

My turn was coming up to drive the kids in the morning, which means not only having the kids up and at 'em, ready, fed and out the door at 7:40 am but myself as well. No promblemo, right? Ya, if it wasn't for my horrid headaches and lack of sleep. Since my friend knows of my situation, and being the ultra sweetypants that she is, days before it's my turn to drive in the mornings she pleads and begs for the privilege to do it instead. She asks at least a dozen times and every time I tell her, "no, I can totally handle it."

Fast forward to the first day that I'm supposed to drive for the week...

8 minutes before school starts, there's a knock at the door. and then another.

I'm dead asleep-- as is everyone else in the Debra Lea household, the knocking continues and I semi- wake up, look at the clock and tell Kaydee to tell the neighbors to "go ahead without us."

Then the realization runs through my body. I'M supposed to drive. I jump out of bed but am so dizzy from the meds and waking up from such a deep sleep that my body is teetering all over the place. I try to grasp on anything to keep my body upright all the while trying to explain to a just waking up Greg that he needs to drive the carpool today. I look out the window to see the confused fifth grade neighbor tell her mother that we told her to go ahead. I grimace from embarrassment and scramble around frantically to try to find my cell phone. By then my other friend (the one that offered over and over...) has already pulled around the corner to do my duty.

-sigh-

Then I can't remember my friend's cell phone number (the one that is now driving the kids to school) to explain and apologize. So I call my next door neighbor friend and tearfully apologize and explain the whole situation to her. I explain that I'm nuts. That plus not falling asleep until past 4 a.m. for a week, a dandy of a headache + a prescription that I rarely choose to take, but I took the night before= a really crazy Debra Lea-- that's barely standing.

I'm really crying now.

I tell her how our other friend asked me over and over if she could drive but that I thought I could handle it. and This is how I handle it. Then I burst into laughter. Uncontrollable laughter. which is apparently contagious because my friend was laughing just as hard as I. -whew- because I tell you what, if she weren't, this whole situation could have been REALLY embarrassing.

and then she brought me dinner that night.
I couldn't ask for better carpooling friends. or friends period.

some whoppers . . .

2009-03-11T01:05:00.006-06:00

Two whoppers in one day, why I tell ya...

#1 In the other room there's a little bit of a scuffle between Kaydee and Natalie. Seconds later Natalie comes running out to tell us that Kaydee has done THE most serious offense... she stuck her tongue out at her. I know, bad huh.
Kaydee is in close pursuit to defend herself, "No I didn't."
Upon further questioning, she said, "I was just stretching my tongue. I stretch my tongue when it itches. see. Like this."

#2 My kids have a hard time going to bed. Surprised? Don't be. This is almost a nightly ritual. Sometimes the trouble starts even before we say the three dreaded words: "time for bed". This night was no different and Natalie was being the ultimate stinkeroo. She was playing 'you can't catch me' like the best of 'em all the while taunting her daddy and avoiding her bed at all costs. Adorable right? Ya, not so much at the end of the day. So instead of Greg loosing his cool, he grabbed the ultimate anti-bedtime nonsense weapon ..... the froggy sprayer >>>>>

He gave her a brief squirt to the forehead and in an instant her bottom lip started to quiver. She put her hands to the sides of her face and then let out the most broken heart sob a little three year old can make. When she was able to catch her breath, in between sobs, she said, "I don't want to be a froggy!"

It took me another ten minutes to calm her down and convince her that even though we use the sprayer for our frogs, the water inside it would not turn her into one.

Sorry frogs, I'm sure Natty didn't mean to offend. She loves you, she just doesn't want to be you.

playtime creativity . . .

2009-03-07T10:48:00.003-07:00

Nicole, my dear sweet 8 year old.

I love you so much and I'm just not sure how to say this so I'm just going to be brutally honest. The housing market .... well, Um... its just really stinks right now. So if you want some advice from your mother, (which I know you do) next time you and your adorable friend get together, you might rethink the profession that you role play--REAL EsTATE agent just might not be the best option right now.

luvs ya,
mom

CREATE . . .

2009-03-05T17:36:00.007-07:00

Wait! Stop and Hold your horses. Before you read this post you need to turn off the music on the side of my blog. Seriously. If you don't this post just will NOT be a pleasant experience. Believe me on this one.

Along with everything else that made my birthday absolutely wonderfuls, my good friend Jessica told me about this video clip on good ol' youtube, and then she sent me the link because she's one of those friends that really makes my life great. (thanks)

I hope you enjoy this clip as much as I did. Its thought provoking, inspiring and I just love President Uchtdorf. Its a dandy for sure.

Betcha can't guess what's going to be on my new 'to do' list from now on . . .

29 is definitely the new 63 . . .

2009-03-05T17:29:00.007-07:00

First and foremost I just have to say that my eternal companion absolutely rocks. and I love him. Even if he hacks into my blog and pleas for comments . . . . Love you babe.

So I turned the ripe old age of 29 yesterday yet I feel much, much older right now. At least my body does. -sigh- I'm falling apart and I'm getting wrinkly... shouldn't that start happening when I'm in my sixties? I'm not saying sixty is old by any means, its just by then I'm sure to have grandkids and then I could at least justify falling apart a little bit better. Oh well--stiff upper lip, right?

Now more about my simply amazing birthday.
Not only did Greg break into my computer and put up an extra cheesy picture of me, he and the fam gave me breakfast in bed along with the best gift ever (see above). These lovely shoes have been sitting in my closet for almost two months now just waiting for my birthday morning so I can enjoy their eco-friendliness and I'm not sure that's even a word.

I'm Seriously excited about these beauties though-- not only because the color puts a smile on my face but more importantly they're so stinkin' comfortable (see I told you I'm getting old).

The rest of my birthday was spent taming a wicked bad headache, answering phone calls, greeting unexpected visitors at my door, smiling everytime I got a comment on my blog and feeling majorly popular because of facebook. I even got to go to 2 hours of physical therapy. um, Yay?

After physical therapy, I went to my in-law's where they had put together my all time favorite dinner in a 'to go' box so I could just take it home to eat it with my family. Isn't that just the best present ever? And then upon arriving home, I found Greg doing the finishing touches on the home made cake that he and the girls made. He even made the delicious lemony orange frosting from scratch. I know, I'm spoiled.

and Just for the record... there are, in fact, 29 candles on the cake. I wasn't, however, able to blow all of them out. maybe next year.

It was such a great birthday.

If it was pain free, it would have been the perfect.

and yes, I'm fully aware of the appearance of myself, my kids and my house in the last picture. Its as real as it gets. paper plates, pouts and all. gotta love it.

Happy Birthday Debra!!!!!

2009-03-04T08:29:00.008-07:00

Hello, this is Greg, husband of the birthday girl taking over her blog. In an amazingly melodic voice, Happy Birthday to you . . . . Hey everyone it's Debra's Birthday!
Please wish her the best Birthday! She's really been through it lately and deserves a great year ahead. Post or give her a call if you like.
I love you Debra!
your hubby.

itty bitty ball . . .

2009-03-03T16:46:00.005-07:00

I witnessed one of the most adorable sites yesterday and it came in the form of about 50 three and four year olds running laps in a big gymnasium, doing stretches, jumping jacks, and push ups. You see, they were getting ready to learn the basic fundamentals of T-ball. Next time it will be basketball, then football and so on. The best part? My Natty was one of these itty bitty athletes and she didn't even mind that I was one of the only moms running onto the gym floor to get a good picture of her sportiness.

Its probably needless to say, but Natalie had a ball. ;)

Patriotic duty . . .

2009-03-03T12:48:00.004-07:00

On President's day, to my little girls' delight, we found a flag in our front yard. And whenever you see a flag in our yard and you are under 5 years old apparently you have two choices: To say our beloved country's Pledge of Allegiance or to belt out the Star Spangled Banner. The morning of Feb. 16th it was the Pledge, no matter that it was absolutely freezing outside and it was before most sane people were up when there wasn't work or school ('cept the ones that had to set up the flags).

I see a future President in our midst for sure.

Storytelling . . .

2009-03-03T09:38:00.007-07:00

We love stories in the Debra Lea home. We love to read 'em and tell 'em and most of all we LOVE to listen to them. So when this years Storytelling Competition came up in the girls school of course I coaxed them into trying out. And guess what, they both did a fantastic job and they both made it to grade level.

Nicole did so great retelling the story "Up Up Down" by Robert Munsch and just between you and me, I think it pretty suspicious that the book she picked got to say that mom and dad are dirty rascals, hmmm.....

And Kaydee also did a fabulous job doing "Silly Sally" by Audrey Wood. I was especially proud with how well she did with all the 's' and 'sh' sounds. They're tough and she did them beautifully.

Um, Ouch . . .

2009-02-24T09:27:00.003-07:00

More than five months of pain have finally brought me to a point in my life that I thought I'd never venture. I'm taking advice AND I'm allowing people to help me. -Sigh- What will ever become of me? So if you have a suggestion on how to get rid of these delightful migraines and more than enjoyable headaches, now's your chance to let it all out because yes, I'm that desperate. So far I've tried everything from high density vibrations, different medications, massage, hiding under a blanket etc, etc. .

And now I'm onto physical therapy.

Physical Therapy just might be the cure that I've been searching for. And just to make sure I'm doing things right, I'm seeing two different physical therapists because again, I'm that desperate... I just don't think I was fully prepared for the joys that come along with the therapy. Here are just a few of the examples:

Even after telling the therapist that I really enjoy having my head attached to my neck he sometimes seems determined to not let that happen.
Bursting out in full belly laughter because of the uncontrollable muscle spasms that occur when hooked up to the electrical stimulation machine.
When the P.T. says, "you'll feel a little pop" what he is really trying to say is "this is going to feel like I'm breaking 34 bones in your back, sorry"
My nerves don't like being bothered with electrical shocks followed by iced spray. I bet yours wouldn't either. Trust me on this one.

After seeing three different P.T.s, all three of 'em agree on one thing though... I'm messed up-- in a major way. Nice, just what any woman wants to hear.

Now just a couple more months of this bliss and I just might feel better.

lolli lollipop . . .

2009-02-16T12:57:00.005-07:00

Sometimes one lollipop just won't do . . .

I heart hair . . . .

2009-02-16T09:57:00.005-07:00

Let me tell you a sad story. You might want to get a kleenex handy.

I have three beautiful girls and I love them a whole bunch, probably more than I could ever explain. I was so excited to have three girls too because besides all of the dancing and twirling, the giggles (and lets be honest, the drama) that come with having girls, I had dreams of never leaving the house without my girls' hair perfectly smoothed and styled. Then I woke up.

Getting my girls' hair all dolled up in my house takes more coaxing, fighting, and bribing than eating vegetables at meal time. I'm lucky to get their hair done on Sundays let alone decent for the rest of the week. Sad, I know. Actually, I find it more than sad... sometimes its just enough to bring me to tears or to my grumpy mom mode (neither one is fun for any of the family.)

Now for the happy ending to my sad story...

Kaydee gave me a gift the week of Valentine's. She consented to let me do her hair extra fancy for her kindergarten Valentine's Party. Go ahead, just imagine my delight. AND she was practically smiling the whole time I was styling it into a heart. It was a good day.

What, you think I came up with this most adorable hair-do on my own? Nope, I'm just not that creative, especially with the lack of practice that I get. ;) I got the idea here, which actually was a link off of my friend's blog (thanks Melissa). Just givin' credit where credits due.

Valentine's is for Stake . . .

2009-02-14T23:13:00.004-07:00

I got the most romantical gift from Greg this Valentine's and since I know its what every girl dreams about I had to share... he gave me some exquisitely marbled rib eye steak that he's going to cook himself. Does he know me or what? I am so stinkin' excited!

And then this evening we went to the stake dance. Yep, you read right. We went to our Stake's Sweetheart Dance and we even recruited our friends the Algers to come with us. I haven't been to a stake dance since I was 15 maybe 16 and this one outdid them all. Live band, gourmet desserts, chocolate fountains, cheese fondue, floor shows, a hot date.... We seriously had a grand time. I felt like I was back in highschool. Where are the picture's you ask? Hey I got the Algers to come to the dance, what more do you want?:)

None of this could have happened if it wasn't for our awesome babysitters though... thanks again Nortons. We are pretty much forever in your debt.

Happy Valentine's y'all!

random thoughts . . . .

2009-02-14T22:34:00.003-07:00

Its 10:41 Valentines night. My kids are still awake, I know this because my three year old keeps sneaking into the kitchen to grab handfuls of conversation hearts to share with the sisters. I hear giggles and then Greg saying something about the lack of privacy he gets when he has to use the little boys room.

Sigh--I love my life so much.

But then the squabbling starts again... too much sugar, too much fun, and WAY past bedtime. Such a hot and cold day. Such angelic children at times and then such, um not angelic children.

Sigh--can parenthood really be this tough?!

Angee, angee, Angee . . .

2009-02-11T00:14:00.003-07:00

My dear friend, that shall remain nameless... tagged me. I love being tagged. Seriously. ;)

8 favorite T.v shows:
1. House
2. Psych
3. Monk
4. Lost
5. 24
6. How It's Made
7. HGTV--practically everything on it
8. King of Queens

8 Things I did yesterday:
1. Had an epiphany about what I want to do for my 30th birthday celebrations
2. discussed my prescription options/problems with the nurse
3. fell asleep on the couch--twice
4. helped Kaydee with her Storytelling competition selection
5. Had a nice long bath
6. made 4 pb and j sandwiches
7. worked with Nicole on her homework
8. watched Jungle Book with Natalie

8 Things I look forward to:
1. Date nights
2. my cabinets being painted
3. springtime
4. being healthy
5. snuggling up with a good book
6. people commenting on my blog
7. fitting into my my favorite pair of jeans
8. being out of debt

8 Favorite Restaurants:
1. Gloria's Little Italy (not that I've written two posts about it or anything...)
2. Ruby River Steakhouse
3. Little America's Breakfast buffet
4. Tucano's
5. Chili's
6. Olive Garden
7. JCW's
8. Cafe Rio

8 Things on my wish list:
1. a finished basement
2. a family Cruise
3. new gas stove
4. a deck
5. braces (again)/veneers/mouthwork
6. new running shoes
7. a CHI flat iron
8. an amazing singing voice

8 people I tag:
1. Stephanie A.
2. Jay
3. Andrea
4. Jessica (cuz I know she'll be starting a blog any day now...)
5. Katy O
6. Caron
7. Melissa B
8. Marissa

A day for Love . . .

2009-02-08T11:59:00.011-07:00

I'm not sure if its because Valentine's is just around the corner or if its just because she's just one of the cutest 3 1/2 year olds that you'll ever know but we've heard the 'L' word quite a bit out of Natalie's mouth today. I guess Natalie is just full of that loving feeling.

I first heard it when Natalie was deciding on which game she wanted to play before church. She spotted this loverly game and instantly had her heart set on it... the only problem? She's not exactly the owner of it. Her 5 year old sister is. dun dun dun.... I guess she was ready to do whatever it took to gain the privilege of playing with the ladybugs because although she asked nicely she was in the defensive stance and was ready to beg and whine if needed. Kaydee easily said yes which not only pleased her to pieces but surprised me a bit that

a. my 3 year old asked so nicely the first time and

2. my 5 year old didn't even flinch before she said yes

Two minutes later I hear in the sweetest three year old voice, "I love you Kaydee."

Greg got an "I love you" for making breakfast and I got one for making her hair look like a princess and another one just because I was snuggling with her on the couch.

And then we celebrated one of my greatest friend's birthdays. And as in years past, we were invited to the big family celebration--even though we're not even family. Ya, I know... it makes us feel special. As I was running around in the kitchen making the cakes (and Natalie was setting up the Ladybug game) she must have been contemplating quite a bit what I was doing.

She asked in a slow (not so normal for her), very drawn out way: "It's Jack's --Mom's --birthday?"

Me (after I realized she was talking to me and I put her words together) : "Yes. It's Jessica's birthday party today"

Natalie : "I love Jack's Mom's birthday"

a couple of seconds later

"I love Jack's Mom"

about 20 seconds later

"and She loves me"

Me (grinning and trying not to giggle) : "yes, yes she does."

February at last . . . .

2009-02-07T01:18:00.009-07:00

Holy cannoli this was the week for birthdays. Some of my mostest favorite people in the world have their birthdays the first week of February and it makes me so happy that they are part of my life.

Seriously, do you think I could get this awesome on my own? No way. It took a lot of time, love and fun from other awesome friends and family to mold me into who I am today. So really, if you hate my stinkin' guts, I guess you can blame them.... ;)

So Happy Happy Birthday to Chantelle, Jay, Jessica, Jeanette, and Brianna and anyone else I forgot. I love you all.

In other news, my brother's okay and whew, it was a close one.

Let me preface (the rest of this post is for posterity sake):

You ever have a sibling that you just don't get along with? Well my bro Mark used to be him. I laugh at it now cause he is seriously one of the greatest guys I know, but growing up....um, well--we didn't exactly get along. I had buttons and A LOT of them and Mark liked to push every single one of 'em and of course I pushed his just as much. It wasn't until after I was out of the house and married that I really was able to see how AMAZING this brother of mine truly is. And I love him too.

Fast forward to Monday, Feb. 2, 2009--early morning. Mark went to bed feeling quite ill. By 6:00 a.m. he was totally unresponsive to Brianna's attempts to waking him up. My fabulous sis-in-law even threw a cup of water in his face--not even a flinch. She called 911 and the paramedics rushed him to the hospital to find out that he had a lethal dose of his prescription medication in him. They started counteracting the drug immediately. He had to stay in the ICU for a couple of days as the prescription drug left his body.

He had taken his new prescription and it wasn't explained very well to him... something to do with delayed release vs. what he was used to from previous prescriptions.

The really scary part? The doctors told us that even an hour later it would've been too late.

Did I already say that I love my brother? I don't think I say it enough...

Welcome back Mr. Carrot . . .

2009-01-31T12:41:00.007-07:00

One great thing that came to pass from the awful bleak smoggy weather that we *ahem* enjoyed last week?.... we found our snowman's nose. It had been lost for months under the frozen tundra that we lovingly call our front yard. But not anymore... not with the nasty inversion and then the rain (yes, rain in January) that we were surprised with.

Hooray for mr. Carrot and welcome back... we've missed being able to make incredible snowmen buddies with you. We've had tears, and even tantrums when one by one we found your friends... Mr. Hat blown into the neighbor's yard, miss scarlet the scarf half frozen in a bank of snow on the side of the road, the coal black eyes a week after; but your bright shade of pumpkin was no where to be found. I even had my suspicions that a neighbors dog had mistaken you as a chew toy... Now months later after a depressing month of gray, your smiling face-can I even say that?- shows up on our icy grass and we're glad. Again Welcome back, please forgive that we left you out in the elements for so long. We would have looked harder--- but it was so stinkin' cold. I knew you would understand.

If heaven tastes this good, count me in . . .

2009-01-28T11:05:00.005-07:00

Holy moly... I just tasted a little bit of heaven this morning and it came in the form of a pummelo. I've never even heard of this crazy citrus fruit before but Costco had some and you know what that means....

It's not as sour as a grapefruit put it'll definitely make you pucker a little more than those little clementine oranges. And if you ask me its pure bliss.

So now I'm wondering... what else have I been missing out on?! Seriously if you know about other foods I'm missing out on you better fess up now. or in nicer terms... would you please leave me a comment of some of your favorite fruits and veggies, cheeses, breads, meats or whatever. I'm in an experimenting type of mood so please please share.

Lady in Red . . . .

2009-01-22T08:59:00.002-07:00

Have I told everyone how absolutely amazing my husband is lately, oh yeah, in my last post. Well he did it again. (you can insert a certain Britney Spears song here if you would like--or not)

Guess what showed up on my doorstep yesterday... the one and only RED PUFFER COAT. and if your confused about my excitement, go here. Thanks to all of you dear souls that thought about offering yours to me, but I will no longer be needing it because I am the way proud owner of my very own. And its delicious and warm. and I love it and I especially love the man that gave it to me.

spoiled in the kitchen . . .

2009-01-20T23:42:00.008-07:00

It all started off when I got a BOSCH for my first Christmas with my hubbaruusky a.k.a. Greg.

Being the wonderful man that he is, he surprised me with this amazing machine just because he knew how much I loved the one I grew up with. Seriously, what new bride gets the Cadillac of all mixers just a few short months after kissing over the alter? Me, that's who :)

Then came various tools and gizmos that I've picked up throughout the years.... um there's a lot of them. Did you know they make a tool for practically everything that you have to do in the kitchen. Yep. Its true and I have lots of em. Even duplicates or triplicates of some. What---you think having 5 top of the line silicone spatulas is a bit too much, Na. especially when they're heat resistant up to 650 degrees Fahrenheit.

After a couple of years came my pots and pans that I absolutely adore. Not only are they lifetime guaranteed... I got them for 60% off, so I gave myself permission.

Now the reason for the blog entry..... are you ready?

We got ourselves a dandy of a machine that performs over 50 different culinary jobs with ease- and can easily replace 10 kitchen appliances. I even read so on their website :) We bought a Vita-mix machine, except ours didn't come with the fruit and ice. Bummer.

The best part about having my own Vita-mix machine? I don't have to push and shove at the demonstration table to get a sample of the heavenly goodness that can be made with this hefty device. Not that I would really push and shove, or trip and punch for that matter.... but seriously have you tasted the goods that come out of this machine? Yum.

Oh yea, and we've been eating healthier too.

I seriously think a vita-mix jubilee needs to be planned in the Debra Lea household in the near future. good food, games, friends. Now that would be a fun night.

While you were sleeping . . . .

2009-01-15T03:07:00.000-07:00

"Early to bed, and early to rise,
makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise."
--- Benjamin Franklin, 1758

You see, sleeping is good for you. I just wish someone would let my body in on the secret. Here it is, 3:07 am and I am still wide awake. 5th night in a row that I've been up at least this late. I would scream if my head wasn't throbbing so bad.

Yes, you've got it. This is one of my whiny posts again, hey it's my blog...Sometimes a girl's just gotta whine.

But before I grump too badly, with all of the extra time on my hands I've been able to do a couple things like make these:

and read most of this:

and think about cleaning and organizing my house. But not actually doing it, cuz that would wake up my kids and because of other excuses like that. All of this while most normal people are catching their zzzz's.

Here's where the whining comes in. Since my Migraine stopped I've had horrible headaches. They're constant. Sometimes they're really bad and sometimes I just hide under a blanket and cry because the pain hurts so bad. Everyday I have them. Everyday except on Dec. 1 which was such an amazing event because I seriously had no pain in my body until 7:00pm. What a blessed day.

I'm so tired of all of the throbbing pain in my head and lately behind my eyes, but I am especially sick and tired of :

being such a grouch around my husband-sorry hon
having such a short patience meter for my kids-I'm trying to be better
not being able to concentrate on anything for more than a short span of time
not being able to sleep and always being drained of energy
exercise being an after thought
living on Motrin, (seriously how much is too much to take?)

There you have it. I'm done complaining for today.

Next quest? Finding some nice soothing lullabies . . .
Sweet Dreams

p.s. The tooth fairy did come . . . .

2009-01-14T22:18:00.005-07:00

So I realize that I failed to post about the incredible happening that took place in the debra lea household on Christmas Eve. The Tooth fairy did in fact come at the same time as Santa Claus and I guess they had quite a conversation. The result? Kaydee got a letter>>>>>

and since this is such a horrible picture of the letter because its in pencil (apparently she couldn't find a pen that late at night) I'll type what the tooth fairy wrote . It says:

Dear Kaydee,

I met Santa! Thanks to you I was able to talk to him about eating too many cookies on Christmas Eve, it's bad for his teeth. He promised to carry around a toothbrush from now on.
Love,
The Tooth Fairy

and then she left a dollar bill.

Such a happy day Christmas morning was. The note was found and thrilled about way before any of the presents were even open. Well I guess not way before...since the note was on the coffee table and the presents were mere feet away from it, but still. It put a smile on all of our faces first.

Thank you tooth fairy.

The wisdom of my 3 year old . . .

2009-01-08T18:11:00.006-07:00

Natalie has an answer for everything, even if she doesn't.

Tonight, since my homemaking skills were exhausted on taking down the last of Christmas and playing Webkinz (hey. don't start...) I was just too stinkin' tired to make my starving family dinner. Boy am I glad that I live within a mile's radius of a jillion restaurants. (No I am not exaggerating, if you are wondering, I've counted them and they are all on speed dial. OK . . . I'm kind of kidding about the speed dial thing.)

Because we are nice parents, Greg and I decided to give our kids three choices of where to gets our nutrition tonight. Kaydee and Nicole answered right away with an appropriate answer. Natalie, on the other hand, didn't say a thing. I asked her again...

Natalie, where would you like to eat tonight?

"Um...... (long pause) . . . . I'm Belle." said in her most sing songy princess voice and with an expression on her face like that answer should be totally sufficient to the question asked.

Hmmm.... if only I could get away with that answer with all of my really hard questions.

Debra, did you get your Visiting Teaching done yet?

I'm Belle

Mom, are you sure we are not lost?
I'm Belle

Ma'am could I please see your license and registration?
Don't worry officer, I'm Belle.

I know. Not so cute when I do it right? Maybe if I could learn to do the head bob and batting of the eye lashes like Natalie does . . .

Christmas 2008 part ii . . . .

2009-01-07T18:52:00.014-07:00

Caution . . .

only proceed reading this post if you want to read about our most amazing December happenings mingled with a bunch of photos. Ok, really this super long post is for posterity reasons and it really will be very long and somewhat like every other blog post you've read about Christmas and December 'cept with our lovely faces in the pictures. Ready?

Our Christmas traditions always start off with the making of a gingerbread house. No, I do not home make it....it takes all I have to just get the kit together with a smile on my face.

and if you are wondering where the picture is of the finished product, well, um . . . I forgot to take one.

Later in the month, an absolutely amazing program was put on by Nicole's 3rd grade class. Christmas Around the World was the theme and they practiced for weeks. It was perfect in every way. The pictures however . . . could someone please teach me how to take a decent picture under those fluorescent lights?! Seriously. ugh.

Next were family Christmas parties and celebrations which included lots of singing, new push bells, Nicole wanting to be a lamb for the Nativity, good food, a new couch for my mom and dad, etc. etc.

Christmas morning was splendid and as you can see, I got the before shots... just not the after. We got a ton of video footage though, so all hope is not lost and if you really want to see us all sleepy eyed and smiley we'll invite you over for some good ol' family home videos. I'll even pop some popcorn.

On Nicole's, Kaydee's, and Natalie's list were things like a Nintendo D.S., Ipods, cupcake maker, Tumbles (the dog), a real dog, a train etc. which I talked Santa out of giving to them. The children had a great Christmas though and didn't even miss the above list, mostly. From Santa they each received a scooter and a movie plus Nicole a didj, Kaydee-ponyville, and Nanners-pollypockets. Splendid.

Christmas break was spent with family and friends-- and Greg working ridiculous hours (18-20 hour days...even on Christmas eve) and getting so little sleep that he is still catching up from it all.

Highlights from the break that I didn't take a picture of:

Game night with our great friends, the Norton's on Christmas Day night. I seriously think we should make it a new tradition.
watching old classic movies while wrapping presents
Wii night with the Clegg's... six hours of screaming, dancing, and rocking out. Fabulous.
Gaining a bagillion pounds from all of the delicious food I devoured.
Snow fort making and hot cocoa.
Last minute Brunch with good friends.
Learning the game "oh Heck!"--my new love
Relaxing.

New Year's Eve was spent at my Sista's. Family, food, games, wii... doesn't get much better than that. and What's New Year's without truely getting into the true spirit of it?... Nothing I tell ya, so we celebrated which in our case apparently means dressing up in our best attire and make a TON of noise. Love it.

So that pretty much wraps up our December.

Whew...

That was a long post....

Thanks for being a trooper and reading every last word that I had to say about our totally terrific December happenings. Even if you didn't.

Christmas 2008 part 1. . .

2009-01-04T17:22:00.010-07:00

Kids and Christmas just go together, especially in my house. I guess I shouldn't say especially... I'm sure anyone with kids could claim that their home holds the title of loving Christmas the most.

But secretly, just between you and I.... the Debra Lea household is the one that REALLY loves Christmas time the mostest. ;)

Here are a few glimpses of my favorite sights around our home this Christmas time complete with an advent calendar from Greg's childhood. (His mom even made all of the little ornaments that go with it, I know, she's amazing.)

But my ABSOLUTE favorite thing about this Christmas season. was this:

This little nativity was set up on our entry table and many a time I would walk by it to find the members of the set in a different arrangement. Who, might you ask, would be so precious as to line up the nativity attendees to meet the Christ child? Or encircle them around Him, as in awe? Why my dear Kaydee of course. This sight pulled at my heartstrings I tell ya. Oh I love how her mind works.

And I love how children can remind me about the most important part of Christmas. See, kids and Christmas just go together.

The red coats are coming . . .

2008-12-30T23:34:00.011-07:00

The red coats are coming, or at least they were. My girls all have the cutest red puffer coats, yes all three of them. And all though I already have a red peacoat, I really wanted a red puffer coat. That's right. I'm one of those matchy matchy types.

So can you imagine the excitement that I had when I found this little number on GAP's website >>>>>
and for only $49.99! (which is half off)
Believe me, there was a bunch of whooyahs and jumping ups and downs. I put it in my cart, got distracted with the "free shipping if you add something from Piperlime to your order" and by the time I got back to checking out to the adored object>>>>>>

OUT OF STOCK!

and since I am neither a XS or an XXL, I am extra out of luck. UGH.

Stinks doesn't it?

So if you are reading this and you were one of the lucky ones to get my dream coat in my favorite color, I would be more than happy to take it off your hands. I need it in a Medium.

Welcome to the World of Webkinz . . . .

2008-12-29T09:59:00.004-07:00

I don't know what hold Costco has on me, but its an extreme one. If they carry something, I figure it must be something that I need and so I get it. Well this time it was all about the Webkinz. Costco had the webkinz packaged by the twos and were selling them at a heck of a good deal. So what do I do? I lead my kids down the aisle and let them show me which ones they can't live without. Bad idea.

Remember the part about Costco packaging the webkinz in bundles of two? They're brilliant. Out of the, oh I don't know--hundreds of packages that we looked through, not one of the packages contained a webkinz duo that was wanted by more than one of my daughters. The result of course was me buying three bundles. Bright side? Birthday presents bought and paid for.

Without further ado, please welcome the newest members of our family:

I must admit that I am lovin' the webkinz thing for many reasons. My kids are no longer begging for a dog is among the top of the list. And I can use precious Webkinz play time as ultimate bribing power to get chores done, I seriously got my girls to clean up all of the toys in the basement for 20 minutes each of playtime. To learn more, click here

Now for the confession....
I think I am addicted to Webkinz. There has got to be a help group for moms like me who innocently start helping their kids out on Webkinz web sight and then find themselves playing the games, or decorating their kid's pet's room and find themselves, hours later, still playing. Both Nicole and Kaydee have caught me TWICE playing on their webkinz without asking. Embarrassing, I know.

oh and hun, my birthday is coming up in just a few short months . . . . that Panda sure is cute . . .

More teeth . . .

2008-12-17T22:13:00.004-07:00

We are losing teeth left and right in the Debra Lea household. It must be something in the water.

Nicole just lost one of her not so smallish teeth which means she is closer to growing up than I previously suspected AND she did not want the tooth fairy to wait until the 24th of Dec. (a.k.a. Christmas Eve) to bring her the long awaited crisp dollar bill that she worked so hard on earning.

Oh the differences of kids. One wants to lose her tooth the minute it becomes loose, the other wants it to take a month. One wants the tooth fairy to come right away, the other wants her to take her time. One is begging me to take her to the store right now . . . .

Gloria's Little Italy revisited . . .

2008-12-13T10:38:00.004-07:00

Remember this post? It was just me raving about my favorite little Italian restaurant in Provo that serves the post amazing food known to man.

Well, drum roll please....

Its opening its new doors at it's NEW location on MONDAY December 15th.

What is the new location you ask? I'm happy to oblige:
its right on the
corner of Center and University Avenue in Provo.
North East side.

anyone need a night out?

update . . .

2008-12-13T10:24:00.002-07:00

This just in . . .

The Tooth Fairy did indeed come last night, but she didn't take the tooth. She left a shiny quarter which we think means that our plan worked.

She'll be back for Christmas Eve!!

Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy . . . .

2008-12-12T22:34:00.004-07:00

Don't worry, I rated this post:

E for everyone. No need to run the little ones out of the room before you devour this post because its not what you think.

nope.

Its about how my extremely adorable Kaydee lost another one of her extremely adorable teeth. It had been loose for days, no more like weeks but she refused to pull it out. You see, she had this incredible idea that if she waited to lose her tooth until Christmas Eve, the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus would come to our house the same night and they might even run into each other and then she would be the reason why the Tooth Fairy and Santa Claus would finally meet!

Quite an amazing plan if you ask me, there's just one huge problem with it-- she has me for a mother. Me, a.k.a. the overly paranoid mother that kept a way too close eye on the ever loosening tooth and was sure if it stayed in her droll little mouth one more night she would swallow it whole.

Needless to say, Kaydee lost her tooth tonight. It wasn't all that bad. The other two girls and I cheered Kaydee on for a good two hours past normal bedtime to get the duty done. The new plan? We put the tooth in a bag with a request for the Tooth Fairy:

"Dear Tooth Fairy, Please don't come to take my tooth until December 24th.
Thank you, Kaydee"

We wrote 'Dec. 24th' instead of Christmas Eve in the request on purpose in hopes that the Tooth Fairy won't remember that they are one in the same dates, that way she will be totally surprised to see Santa when she comes. Cross your fingers. I hope our plan works.

Stay tuned ....

Todays blog post was brought to you by the letter . . . .

2008-12-12T11:22:00.007-07:00

I don't know what started Natalie's fascination with the letter W, but she is obsessed with it. She is constantly climbing onto my lap while I am at my computer just to reach over and tap on the "W" key. She finds it in books or on bill boards, product labels, in stores, etc. etc.

I just don't get it.

W is not even in her name.

Maybe that just it. Maybe "W" is just so intriguing to her because of its anonymity. Maybe she will use it as her pen name when she becomes a famous author or her signature when she is in her artistic stage. Better yet, maybe, just maybe it will be worn on her super hero cape--in various shades of yellow of course-- and "W" will be the only way people won't assume it is actually my Natalie...because its not even part of her name. And so when she saves all those people in need, she will be able to do it with out revealing her true identity.

ya, that has got to be it.

I guess I had an infatuation with the letters 'g' and 'y' once. It was when I was learning cursive. but that was just for a couple of months and for obvious reasons. I turned out normal, right?

I love my man. . . .

2008-12-10T22:47:00.003-07:00

Greg just told me that I'm pretty.
and That just made my night.

g'night.

Good news . . .

2008-12-08T18:04:00.005-07:00

Just for the record...

I absolutely love it when teachers take time out of their extremely busy schedules to let parents know of the positive things that their kids are doing.Today I was one of those lucky parents.
Today Nicole's teacher stopped what he was doing just to tell me how amazing my daughter has been doing lately and what a good kid she is.

Way to go Nicole!

its not practical but its sure cute . . .

2008-12-08T17:31:00.006-07:00

This is Natalie's dream car and I bet you can't guess why. I don't think it has much to do with it's adorable curved shape or the big round headlights. Although it might.
I think it has everything to do with the bright shade of SUNSHINE it comes in.

Natalie spotted this lil' beauty in a parking lot today and she was positive that we no longer needed our yucky pearly blue van anymore. The dual tvs, sun shades, or swivel and go seats weren't even competition when she compared it with beeing seen in something like as cool as the VW bug.

When I broke the news to her that sadly, we were not going to get that car, she responded with:

"But Mom, it's my favorite color."

Please help me be strong when she's 16.

and she plays soccer too . . .

2008-12-06T09:17:00.003-07:00

I'm playing soccer.
I know.... I totally agree.... I think there must be something majorly wrong with me to start up a new sport at my age.

After playing my first two games I have been reminded or totally convinced of a couple of things:

I am not as young as I think I am
I can talk myself out of throwing up
I bruise way too easily
Competitiveness is my nature. I enjoy slamming into the other team WAY too much and I am willing to sacrifice my body or breath in order to block that ball.
I need both of my eyes to work harmoniously to play soccer.
It's embarrassing when you kick the air and not the ball.

Oh Katy!

2008-12-01T13:48:00.003-07:00

This post is for my good friend Katy O.

I just wanted to say that I am Oh so grateful for the gift that you and Ellie gave Natalie last year. Even though I get to hear the dang thing go off every three seconds, I will NEVER tire of hearing it's joyful tune. Argh!

Thank you.

Nanners . . . .

2008-11-02T18:51:00.008-07:00

There are so many reasons I love my Nanners and I think after you read the following, you'll be in agreement when I say that she is one of the cutest three year olds ever.

example one:
Being three, Natalie can be, um, lets say curious. She is constantly testing boundaries or experimenting or getting into things or. . . etc. Whenever she gets caught, I hear, "Sorry mom, I won't do it again." in her sweet sing song voice. Awe, that would be just so darn cute if she actually meant it. :)

Example 2:
Natalie was helping herself to some tortilla chips.
Greg: Natalie that's too much.
natalie: I want three much chips!

example 3:
We were having rice with our dinner the other night and Natalie kept asking for a taste. "Mom, I want a taste", she would say while she was pointing to her dinner plate. I was ultimately confused by what she was asking until she jumped up from the table, opened the fridge and pulled out the Worcestershire Sauce. Ooooh, she wants some Soy Sauce. I got the soy sauce out and put some on her rice. Her reply?
"tastee!"

Example FOUR:
Her favorite color is yellow. and has been for years.

ex. 5:
She says things like 'gee thanks mom'
or
how 'bout...
preceding anything that she is trying to change my mind on.... like last night at bedtime it was
"how 'bout (pause for dramatic emphasis) five more books"

example six: (my favorite)
I took Natalie and Kaydee to the Halloween parade at the elementary. During one of the longer dryspells between grades she was getting a little restless so I skimmed through the pictures from the parade for her. I showed her the picture of the principal and said look Natty, a wizard.
"No, It's Jesus."
hmmm. well there you go.

and for my next trick . . . .

2008-11-02T18:49:00.002-07:00

Last night, while Greg and I were watching a movie we kept hearing a THUMP thump on the wall. Greg went to investigate. What he found was Kaydee unsuccessfully trying to climb the wall--in her sleep. Oh Kaydee.

The best part was when we told Kaydee this morning about her acrobatic attempts during the night. She laughed and laughed until she was practically rolling on the floor.

daddy daughter shindig . . .

2008-10-29T13:24:00.003-06:00

Nicole took Greg on a date.
Not just an ordinary date, mind you, but an extraordinary superb one with her activity days' group of chums. Nicole looked absolutely adorable as a 'fair maiden' and Greg looked stunning as . . . well. . . as himself.

While they were gone, I was lucky enough to play Princess Memory with these beauties and enjoy their silliness over dinner. I'm such a blessed mama!

Nicole couldn't contain her excitement when they came home. They bobbed for apples, had pillowsack races, did something with music and numbers and most especially had a ton of fun. Not only did she surprise us with pumpkin pie and cookies, she shared her stash of goodies and prizes. That's my girl.

some normalcy . . .

2008-10-29T07:24:00.002-06:00

Life is getting back to normal.

I think that is a good thing?

I am no longer fighting migraines...just really bad headaches--and the urge to scream. and my kids are trying to get used to the idea that I'm their mom again.

Life is good.

The birthday boy . . .

2008-10-23T08:46:00.006-06:00

It was Greg's birthday, two days ago. Do you want to know how I celebrated?

I slept in until 10:40 am . . . . Greg got up early, woke Nicole up and got her ready for school, made breakfast, filled her lunch box, and drove her to school.

I ate a pancake . . . . Greg made the pancakes and oatmeal, did the breakfast dishes and got Kaydee ready for school.

I drew Natalie a couple of pictures . . . . Greg tried to get some work done, but had to take over drawing the pictures so I could lay down.

I took a 3 hour nap . . . . Greg played with Natalie and got her to take a nap, worked until Nicole came home, started her on her homework and picked up Kaydee from school.

I vacuumed the rug . . . . Greg ran to the post office to send off my package.

I ate a delicious dinner . . . . that Greg's mom made. While Greg helped the girls at the table with their plates and food. Then did the dishes.

I laid on the couch . . . . Greg got the kids ready for bed, then went to Costco to get some grocery essentials.

I put my kiddos to bed . . . . Greg went to Walgreens --twice. and waited nearly two hours to pick up yet another prescription for me.

I reacted to the new medicine . . . . Greg held me, trying to make it all better.

Happy Birthday my love.
I'm sorry.

That's not exciting . . .

2008-10-19T12:38:00.006-06:00

Kaydee loves surprises.

and if you mix a surprise with her being the only one to know about it, Kaydee squeals with joy. Often times to get her to do things we bribe her with such things as telling her about a surprise that only she can know about, for at least the time being anyway. Today was no different.

Kaydee was in the tub before church and needed her hair washed...but there were very strong emotions against such an event. She was liking the tub too much to wash her hair and get ready for church. Greg, bless his heart, was trying to finish with his lesson preparations and get the girls ready all the while I am lazily lying in bed still. Since Kaydee was being less than agreeable and they were in a hurry, he decided to pull out the big guns... he had a secret surprise that was in the backyard that he had bought last night. She washed her hair right away.

When Kaydee got out of the tub she was allowed to go see the surprise. She ran to the back door and returned to Greg a few moments later with a dusgusted look on her face.

"That's just a BBQ dad, that's not really an exciting surprise."

pause

"But if it was a trampoline it would be..."

Greg and I thought it was a supberb surprise. -sigh-

an update: after lots of drugs and an MRI on my brain I've now decided that my migraine has now been downgraded to a major headache with nausea, sound sensitivety and loopeyness...which is much better than a migraine. I guess.

migraines suck . . . .

2008-10-15T21:46:00.012-06:00

is the number of days I've had this migraine.

is the number of times they had to poke me at the urgent care to get an IV in me. I'm a hard stick. that was 5 days ago

is the number of times that I cried today.

Is the number of days left to prepare my sacrament meeting talk.
No, I'm not kidding.

I need this pain gone.

and another thing . . .

2008-10-09T22:15:00.003-06:00

If anyone has any good ideas on how to cure a migraine . . . please please PLEASE let me know.

Six days of them are more than I can handle.
So far the following have not worked:

Exedrin Extra Strength
Advil Migraine
Motrin
Ice Pack on my neck
Code Red Mountain Dew
Hiding under two blankets, wearing sunglasses and plugging my ears.
Making my kids whisper and tiptoe around me

Just keep jumpin . . . .

2008-10-09T20:29:00.007-06:00

We went Jumpin'.

We had a ton of fun.

Thank goodness for friends' birthdays and Monday night discounts :)

and yes, I know... I have no pictures of us actually jumping.
But at least I remembered to take pictures before everyone drove off, right?

Gloria's . . . oh and a girl's night out

2008-10-07T10:22:00.003-06:00

If you ever find yourself in downtown Provo, you should definitely make it a point to visit Gloria's Little Italy. I am in love with this little gem of a restaurant. It seriously has the best Italian food ever made and their authentic Gelato is heaven and worth every penny.

Gloria's Little Italy is so good, in fact, that when I took some of my chums out to eat the other night I overrode their decision on where to go-- even after I told them that I was NOT going to decide this time. Ya, I'm that kind of friend. Hopefully they forgave me? Especially after how awesome the waiter was and how incredible the food tasted . . .

Other than the bossy driver (me) the girl's night out was awesome. I had tons of fun catching up and chatting with the amazing ladies that I am lucky enough to call friends. One of the highlights? When Kehaulani admitted that she had a nap before we left . . . she knows how late I like to keep her up talking. :)

and I forgot to take pictures. grrr.

my brother got married . . .

2008-10-02T08:16:00.011-06:00

My brother got himself sealed to the most darling girl ever. I am so extremely excited to have Rachel Nellie join the family.

The Blessed day's re-cap:

Even at 5:12 am..... yes, 5:12 am! I could tell it was going to be a beautiful September day. 5:12 am was supposed to be when I was finishing up my girls hair to be picture ready for the day. However, 5:12 am was the time I got out of bed panicked because I had slept in. I can't even imagine what time Rachel got up to get ready for her 7:00 am wedding at the Salt Lake Temple.

6:54am was the time that Greg dropped my girls and me off on the North side of Temple Square so he could park the car. The girls and I then proceeded to RUN down the street and around the corner to find the entrance to the temple, let me tell you doing this in 3" high heels and herding 3 little girls is no small feat. I dropped the girls off with their cousins in the 'youth room' in the Temple's waiting room, had the nice temple worker look and scan my recommend and SPEED WALKED as reverently as I could to take off my shoes and entered the room where my youngest brother would be sealed to his bride for all time and eternity--with just minutes to spare. But not to worry... my sister was running just as behind and she and her husband walked in about five minutes after me. Her lame excuse? One of her kids threw up. I thought my sleeping in was such a better reason to be late ;)

Greg came hurrying in right after Boyd and Rachel (The groom and bride) walked in. My husband, the hero for parking the car, looked so handsome rushing in like that. Oh how I love that man!

The sealing was absolutely wonderful. I got teary eyed like I always do when I feel the LOVE that our Father in Heaven has for us.

Afterward, I retrieved my kids from the waiting room and headed outside for pictures.

I seriously think Natalie thought the photo session was for her.

(this picture brought to you by my brother Dave making silly faces behind the picture taker)

And in between the pictures, I made paper super frogs...... A LOT of paper super frogs.

11:00am came around and it was time for the chow. The food was set, we were just waiting for everyone to show. We waited,

and waited

and w a i t e d

and had a blast doing it. The kids ran around, played with the napkins (hopefully their own), and eyed the dessert table. and we chatted.

We had rolls and salad and whipped jello salad and baked potatoes and the most amazing ham-- I was told the ham cooked for 14 hours wrapped in spices and 7 layers of aluminum foil. It was delish! Oh and the desserts.... YUM!

And for those that were wondering if Greg actually had fun at the Wedding Breakfast . . .

He SURE did!

The reception was just as lovely. It was so fun to see relatives and ol' neighbors and friends. Rachel's parents yard looked fabulous and the weather couldn't have been better. The food fantastic. I even got blamed for decorating my brother's car. As for pictures, I was a slacker.... do you blame me? I was up at 5:12am.

Oh and Boyd . . . . if you are reading this . . . .
I didn't touch your car ;)

May all of your Christmas' be white . . .

2008-09-30T11:08:00.003-06:00

I'm listening to CHRISTMAS MUSiC right this very second.

My Miss Kaydee put it on for me and it is SUPER LOUD.

Confession: I'm loving it!

Tra la la la la . . .

2008-09-25T01:14:00.005-06:00

I am the Primary Chorister for my ward. Ya, I know . . . I was a little more than surprised when I received the calling myself because I am completely tone deaf and I can't carry a tune to save my life. I am having a ton of fun with it though.

I know you all are just itching to help me. I need ideas. I want to know what you remember from your primary days, activities that your primary chorister did to teach songs or keep reverence during singing time. Any and all ideas are welcome.

I'll even start the juices flowing for you because I am just that nice...

Greg's primary chorister used to put a big slab of red lipstick on her lips and if she saw anyone not singing she would kiss the child on the cheek. Ha, I know that wouldn't fly anymore, but it got the kids singing.

Prepared....

2008-09-24T16:06:00.002-06:00

Who would have ever thought that FOOD STORAGE would make someone giddy? I have seriously had a perma-grin on my face for the last couple of days while I've been filling up my basement with food storage. Gosh, with Macey's case lot sale, the Church's dry pack cannery and some food I bottled myself, I have a great start on what my family needs in case of an emergency. I am especially proud of the food that I canned myself. :)

And to top it all off I have a date with my hubby on Oct. 10th to do cleanup at the wet pack cannery which allows me to buy some MORE food storage. It doesn't get much better than that. (Oh, and thanks babe for agreeing to such an event)

Only at the Fair . . .

2008-09-16T14:27:00.008-06:00

I love the fair! I love the animals, the ice cream, the prize winning handmade items, the rides but I especially love all of the crazy people that I get to watch . . . and yes, I realize someone is probably saying the same thing about me.

And if you missed the fair this year, seriously you should be sad. Here's some highlights . . .

enjoy!

Be a hero . . .

2008-09-11T11:42:00.004-06:00

It's here, it's here, it's finally here!! I got my bone-marrow tissue-typing kit today. And thank you NASCAR for making it FREE to be tested. I'm super excited about this kit because I could be someone's hero someday and even save their life. How often can you do that?

Here's the scoop.... My good friend Zack has Leukemia and chemo just hasn't done enough to kill off the cancer cells. Soooo, Zack needs a bone marrow transplant and that's why I've been looking at becoming a bone marrow donor. Of course it's pretty unlikely that I will be a match for Zack, but I could be a match for someone else in need and so can YOU. :)

Please please please go to www.marrow.org and see how you can be a donor and if you do it before Sept. 22, NASCAR is picking up the bill making it FREE for anyone that wants to be tested.

You could save a life!

Pray for Drew . . .

2008-09-10T16:13:00.003-06:00

As many of you know my good friend, Jacque, has an eight year old son that was diagnosed with bone cancer in May of 2007. On Friday he has his 6 month post chemo. scans to see if his remains cancer free. . . However, after more than a years fight to save his leg he will be having surgery next Thursday, September 18 (rotationplasty) which is a partial amputation. They are hopeful that this is the best option for Drew considering what he has been through and looking forward to his future.

Their family is setting aside this upcoming Sunday, September 14, to have a fast and pray in behalf of Drew. They are hoping his surgery will be a success with minimal to no complications. They would like to invite friends and family who would be willing, to fast with them.

If you would like to learn more about this amazing boy and everything he has been through, please click on "Drew" in my friends list.

Coco . . . .

2008-09-05T10:14:00.004-06:00

I love my Coco and since I didn't spotlight her for her birthday, I'm giving the lowdown right here and right now. :)

Nicole (a.k.a. Coco) is such a wonderful big sis. Her sisters ADORE her (most of the time) and she takes such great care of 'em.

I seriously can't believe how grown up she is getting. She's learning multiplication, reading real chapter books and playing kickball and foursquare. Unloading dishes and cleaning her room are no match for her abilities.

One thing that I LOVE about Nicole is her laugh. It is so contagious! When she gets into a silly mood, you better watch out cuz you will be rolling on the floor in no time. I also love that she lets me call her Coco, which is a nickname she picked up from Kaydee. When Kaydee was just a little tot, she was having a hard time saying Nicole's full name, so she improvised and came up with Co Co, adorable if you ask me. ;)

A little about Nicole:

Favorite Movie: Freaky Friday (the old version)

Favorite TV show: George of the Jungle

Favorite Song: "Who Said" by Hanna Montana

Favorite Book: A to Z Mysteries

Favorite Dessert: donuts with sprinkles

Favorite Food: broccoli casserole

Favorite Sport: soccer

What Nicole wants to be when she grows up: An ice cream girl (She's had this goal since we visited the BYU creamery when she was three)

Dream Vacation: Disneyworld!

Two minutes Kaydee . . .

2008-09-04T16:27:00.004-06:00

Natalie came running into the family room very disgruntled saying "Mom, look at my bott'm. . . . Kaydee wrote on it!"

"Kaydee wrote on it?"

"Yes, Kaydee in trouble!"

I looked at her bottom and sure enough, there was some letters on it and they were most definitely in Kaydee's best kindergarten handwriting.

Me, trying my hardest to keep the laughter inside, said "Oh no." Which was apparently not enough of a response for Natalie because she then yelled down the hall to Kaydee and said, "Two minutes Kaydee, TWO MINUTES!"

I guess to a three year old, time out is the worst punishment there is.

The best visit . . .

2008-08-30T10:45:00.011-06:00

We had the bestest visit in the world from our friends Katy O. and Ellie. We LOVE these girls! I made them come all the way up to our house to hang out and they were so awesome to not even complain about the distance :)

Natalie has been missing Ellie terribly lately and they had such a great time together. I mean, do you blame them? What's better than dressing up like princesses and eating my gourmet cooking (mac & cheese and blueberries)? We then proceeded outside and got soaking wet during the best water fight ever.

I loved catching up with Katy O. and being able to enjoy some adult conversation. And I can't wait till she is out of school and moves up here to live by us . . . . . . . ;)

Ellie is standing uphill from Natalie, she seriously is not that much taller than Natty, at least not that I'm ready to admit.

Isn't Ellie just the cutest girl that you have ever seen. I could just eat her up!

I love Park City! . . .

2008-08-26T10:14:00.010-06:00

Every year we spend a week up in Park City and it is always such a BLAST! I seriously love that place. It has so much to offer, even when you're up there during a stormy week.

This year we arrived on Natalie's birthday, which should be a perfect time of year to spend in Park City because its about 10 degrees cooler than the usually hot August weather that we get in Utah... For whatever reason, the skies decided to rain and cloud over almost the whole time, oh well.

Whenever there was a glimpse of sun, we jumped into the pool and hot tubs. And whenever it was raining we played ping pong, did crafts, played games, watched movies, shopped, exercised, ate, and slept. FUN.

Our really great friends, the Nortons, joined in on the fun for the last couple of days of our vaycay. MONK, games, junk food, shopping, swimming, biking, and sleep deprivation... we seriously had a FANTASTIC time with them and I have one measly picture to show for it. sad.

Birthdays . . .

2008-08-24T21:31:00.005-06:00

It's been a couple of weeks since my girls' birthdays and I am finally blogging about it, lame huh.

First off, the cakes... I live for birthday cake makin'. I am no professional by any sense of the word but its fun to see how happy it makes my girls.

Natalie was set on a Belle birthday cake. Actually, every time anyone would ask her what she wanted for her birthday her answer was one of two things, a Belle cake and Ellie (her bff) to call her and sing Happy Birthday. Natalie was SO excited when she saw the finished result. Yay!

Nicole's cake on the other hand, is a different story entirely. Nicole really wanted a colorful Strawberry Shortcake cake made with fondant. The problem? I have NO idea how to work with the stuff and during a move is NOT the best time to learn. I talked to her about our little dilemma... talked is probably too kind of a word, it was more of a plea and I was finally able to convince her that I needed another option on what to make. She then decided on a number eight cake with a Kim Possible figurine. As you can see in the picture above that she got her number eight...without the figurine. I looked everywhere for something that would work and came up with nothin'. Poor Nicole, she sure was a great sport about it though and was pretty pleased about her cake.

The actual days of their birthdays were pretty low key. We were still doing the moving thing on Nicole's birthday and we left for Park City on Natalie's. We did most of the celebrating after Nicole's baptism with family and friends.

talent. . . .

2008-08-20T21:44:00.003-06:00

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

Yes....we are that talented.

Reserve us now for your next birthday party.

Llamas in pajamas....

2008-08-19T20:12:00.003-06:00

Natalie (3) informed me today that llamas wear pajamas.....PRINCESS pajamas.
I seriously had no idea.

Nicole's Baptism...

2008-08-10T18:23:00.014-06:00

Nicole was baptized Aug. 2, 2008. I still can't believe that I have an eight year old. The day was fabulous which was amazing to me. You see, about 20 hours before the occasion my house was still in a
disastrous moving frenzy

and
I still had all of the food to prepare
and
two birthday cakes to make and decorate.
Add some grocery shopping, kids baths, regular meals and housework and some neighborhood kids in the mix, I was a little more than frazzled. Just ask the friends and family that dropped by during the whirlwind. My kids could surely feel the stress too and showed me by tantrums, tears, and uncooperative actions.
I pulled another all-nighter (the fourth one that week) and just prayed that my efforts would be enough. and miraculously they were.
The morning couldn't have run better. There was a wonderful PEACE that came into our home which is such a testimony to me that my daughter's decision of being baptized was what our Heavenly Father wanted her to do. My kids woke up happy and didn't even complain about getting their hair done.... well at least they didn't complain too much. ;) Greg and I finished unpacking the necessary boxes and put the rest in a corner of our basement. We finished the rest of the to-do list just minutes before we were supposed to leave for the stake center.

We arrived at the stake center about twenty minutes before Nicole's baptism in order for Greg and Nicole to change into their baptismal clothing. She was so excited. Since she was the only one getting baptized in our ward, she was able to have family and friends do the program which included her grandmas giving the talks, a friend playing a piano piece, Aunt Allie and her sister singing, Aunt Laura playing the piano, Uncle Boyd and Uncle Mark directing the music and Grandpa V. and a future Aunt Rachel saying the prayers.

When I wrapped Nicole in her towel after she was baptized she said,
"That was neat. I want to do it again." :)

I am so proud of my Nicole!!

I bought Kaydee these shoes a couple of days before the baptism so she wouldn't feel left out on Nicole's big day. I admit that it was a kind of bribe because I knew that if she had something special that day she would be more cooperative with getting ready. Think what you will, but it worked like a charm. ;)

Memories...

2008-07-25T05:08:00.002-06:00

I stop reading people's blogs for a week and look what I miss... a bunch of my friends' posting "memories" to their blogs. The comments were so much fun to read and it was so great to remember things that I can't help but join in on the fun.

1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory that you and I have together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see what memories people have of you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses.

really great day....

2008-07-24T23:39:00.004-06:00

Yesterday was a great day for two reasons.

First.... I FOUND MY CAMERA!! Wahoo! I guess when I said I'd torn my house apart and looked EVERYWHERE, I missed a spot.... I found it in Natty's room, in her closet wedged between the bookshelf and the wall. Ya, I know. I should have looked there first. I'm not sure how it got there, but I think the last photos taken can speak for themselves...

Aren't they just the cutest? I am so glad that Greg and my prediction was wrong. Um, how did my good friend put it? Aw, yes... my faith in humanity is restored.

and second... I have the best neighbors ever!!!

*Sorry, I'm going to be a little long winded here because I don't want to forget a thing.*

For those that don't know, we are moving. We sold our home in Feb. and have been renting a house ever since while we looked for a home to buy. We searched and searched. We fell in love with the ward/ area that we were living and we wanted to stay so much that we even tried unsuccessfully to buy the not so desirable house that we were renting. A little discouraged, we went on our Sunday walk where we ran into a member of the bishopric. We asked if he knew of anyone in the ward that was selling or even thinking of selling their house. He named off a few and then told us of a house that was for sale last year but the family took it off the market for what ever reason. After the walk, Greg asked me to go talk to the family. There was no way that I would do it, but I told him I would go with him, if he would talk to them. We walked over to their house and explained who we were and told them that we were looking in the area and had heard that they had tried to sell their house last year. They told us that they actually sold their house in a matter of weeks last year but decided not to sell it and had to give back the earnest money and everything. They told us that they would be living here for at least a couple of years. Bummer for us. A couple of weeks later, we get a knock at the door and it was Ting Ting, the owner of the house. She told us that they had decided to sell their house and wondered if we would like to buy it. YES!!! We walked through and knew it was the place for us and the best part was that it was just a stone's throw from where we were renting. We closed on the home July 11, 2008.

Back to the greatest neighbors on earth....

Since we are moving just a couple of houses away, Greg and I decided it would be easiest to move one room at a time and then move all of the big stuff on Saturday. I started moving things over little by little while Greg was working and my sister-in-law had my kids. Somehow during this process I got the crazy idea to move over my girls' trundle bed all by myself. Silly me, always over-estimating my strength. I got the trundle across the street and onto my porch but there was no way that I could get the trundle through the door and down the hall all by myself. Since Greg was working still, I had no other choice than to ask a neighbor for help. Within seconds I had my next door neighbors, Trent and Michelle, helping with the trundle. They asked (well, begged is probably more accurate) me if they could help me with more. No, I just need to take apart the rest of the bed....which resulted in Michelle grabbing her tools and helping me take the bed apart and moving it to the new place. Greg got home during this process and I told them that Greg and I would be okay for a bit but could probably use their help later that evening to move our crazy heavy mattress.

They showed up an hour or so later and started moving things for us. The next thing I know six guys are at my house moving the big stuff as their wives and kids are taking down my decor, gathering up clothes and boxes, grabbing anything they can and taking it over to my new house. Every time I turned around, more people came with their trucks and muscles. I even had a new mom that was just on a walk with her husband, kids, and brand new baby gather up some of the lighter things and put them on her stroller and stroll the stuff to my house. I have never seen anything like it. With all of the help we got at least 2/3 of the house moved and we were able to sleep in our new home last night.

wowser!

camera blues....

2008-07-19T18:42:00.003-06:00

I'm so bummed! I cannot find my camera anywhere! I've torn my house apart and looked EVERYWHERE I can think of but there's no sign of it. And do you want to hear the worst of it... so many great events have happened since its been gone and I have nothing to show for it. Argh!

Greg and my theory is probably very pessimistic, but we think it was taken on Monday when a realator and whoever he brought with him went through the house we are renting. This is the ONLY time I haven't been here when someone walked through and since we are only renting this house, we have no idea which agency the realator was from. -sigh- Have I ever mentioned how much I hate renting.

If anyone can prove me wrong on this matter and find my long lost buddy I would love you forever and ever.

chapstick....

2008-07-07T17:19:00.001-06:00

According to Natalie, you can never have enough chapstick.

cousins and the u.f.o...

2008-07-07T15:16:00.007-06:00

A couple of weeks ago we met up with Scott, Dana, their kids and Greg's parents at Vivian Park. We had such a great time! The weather was perfect and the kids LOVED the water.

Highlights:

Grandpa and his cowboy hat
So much food: sandwiches, chips, granola bars, grapes and drinks
Jessica, Lindsey, and Megan taking turns with Natalie in the stream
Dana's lovely camera and 'photo shoot' with the kids
Grandma soaking her broken foot in the cold stream (we didn't know it was broken at the time...which is a story in itself)
Kaydee vs the stream--notice the change of clothes in the pictures
Lindsey the adventurer. I wish I had pictures-she ventured where no other dared to go.
My beautiful niece Jessica and her cell phone catching her friends up about her week at E.F.Y.
Nicole doing her best liking the ice cold water
An exhausted Braden after his week long basketball camp
Cousins that love to be together (this is where I put my relentless plug in how Scott and Dana should move to Utah..........please?)

and then there was the flying saucer. This thing was a hit. The kids had a grand time throwing it and bending it, sending it down the stream and getting it caught in the trees... Thank goodness for my husband the hero and Lindsey the nimble rescuing the thing over and over again.

the slacker...

2008-07-07T15:06:00.002-06:00

I realize that I've been a big ol' slacker with my blog lately so the next couple of posts will be a re-cap of the last couple of weeks. Enjoy!

The best weekend...

2008-07-03T09:48:00.012-06:00

I had some serious fun last weekend. I went with my good friend Ember to Fish Lake again this year to scrapbook with the funnest people ever AND I remembered my camera. I stayed up WAY too late, ate the most delicious food, laughed myself to tears and drum roll please.... got 12 pages done. I know embarrassing right, especially since some of these amazing girls did 40 to 80 pages -sigh-.

So much thanks to Rochelle, the hostess of the big event. She has got to be the sweetest girl alive. I seriously doubt that she has a mean bone in her body.

Pictured above (left to right): Rochelle, Lisa, Crystal, Audrey, Kristie, Ember, Lisa w/ Rochelle's beautiful baby, Kathy w/ her sweet baby, Tanya, Shasta, Kathy, me, Kathlene, and BellaRose (Rochelle's baby)

Ember and Danielle singing the Parawon theme song... Yes, you read right, Parawon a.k.a. the Mormon mother town south of Provo, has their own theme song. I should have brought my video camera.

above: Crystal and Audrey; Terry and her happy baby; Danielle; Lisa and Rochelle; Terry, Tanya, Shasta, and Kathy, Kristie, Ember and me at the Bowery Haven at Fish Lake

Jack...

2008-06-22T23:13:00.003-06:00

So my Natty has chosen her husband already. I know what you're thinking.... she's a tad bit too young but who says an almost three year old can't pick a husband. She HAS known him her WHOLE life which is longer than I knew Greg before I married him and they usually get along and even share most of the time.

Well, Natalie informed me the other day that the wedding has been moved up a bit....

I was walking to church with her and she was talking about her birthday that's fast approaching. Natty said that she would be three and that she could marry Jack. (oh really...)

She stopped and looked around her, asking me where we were going and I told her we were going to church.

[small pause]

Her reply, "to marry Jack?"

I was trying not to laugh and I so wanted to call Jack's parents right then...but I didn't think it was emergency enough to use the church phone.

Miley Cyrus a.k.a. Hannah Montana...

2008-06-18T10:42:00.004-06:00

Um...I think my kids are just a little excited for the Stadium of Fire this year. And yes, I was one of the softies that bought tickets as a result to my girls' begging-- I just figured the tickets made an excellent birthday present.

The other day we were at our friends home playing games and Nicole came up to me with the above creation. I thought it was so adorable and I couldn't get over how she put who the 'poster' was from, including last name and phone number --which I smudged out in the photo since I am a paranoid mother. ;) I just REALLY hope that Miley gives a good, family oriented show.

Good enough to eat? ....

2008-06-12T22:45:00.004-06:00

Tonight's conversation with my almost three year old

Me : Look Natalie, the moon!

Natty : The moon? I want to eat it. I want to eat it with chips.

my little artist....

2008-06-12T11:22:00.007-06:00

The other day Kaydee drew me an amazing picture:

Natalie wanted it so much so in turn Kaydee asked her if she wanted a picture of her own.
She sure did....

It's moments like this that make me so grateful that I am a mom.

p.s. After seeing this post, Kaydee informed me that Natty's picture said "no Hawaii".
She pointed to the 'ON H Y E' and starting with the "n" read to the left reading 'no' and then pointed to the "h" making the "hu" sound and then to the "y" and "e" saying each letters name.

Brilliant I tell you!

garbage day...

2008-06-10T18:55:00.014-06:00

Garbage day + 51 mph winds
= not a pretty picture

This is the THIRD time that we have had a HUGE wind storm on garbage day since we've moved here. I'm not talking about a little breeze....I'm talking shingle stripping, branch braking, trampoline throwing wind.

Our recycle items blew all over the neighborhood and then after the container was emptied it decided to fly down the street. Picking up garbage is NOT one of my favorite pastimes. argh!

Pixel junk...

2008-06-04T16:21:00.015-06:00

I'm not much of a gamer as far as video games are concerned, but I am totally and utterly addicted to Pixel Junk games. I don't play very often, but seriously I can turn on the PS3 for 'just one game' and then before I know it, its 2am. Sleeping has always been overrated...

It all started with Pixel Junk Racers.
Word for the wise: If you wear glasses, you definitely need to wear them for this game--I found out this little tid bit the not so fun way.

and then there was pixel junk monsters. Such an amazingly fun and challenging game. Greg and I are still stuck on Medium level 4. -ugh-

Everyone is totally invited to come on over
and PLAY.

.

funny Natalie...

2008-05-30T21:50:00.004-06:00

Natalie has been insisting on sleeping at the bottom of Kaydee's trundle bed for a while now, apparently she thinks she is too big for her crib. Well tonight Greg went in to pull out the trundle and Natalie blocked it with her hand and said, "No....can't do it..... its dangerous." Sounds like someone didn't want to go to bed.

Natalie is also loving doing things on her own... especially getting dressed. I couldn't resist getting the bum shot, sorry.

I am so enjoying getting to know her personality.

Carmen Sandiego and other sixth grade memories...

2008-05-29T13:28:00.011-06:00

Tuesday was the 6th grade vs teacher softball game at Nicole's school. Just watching all of the cute 6th graders made me laugh, they did great but it got me thinking... I thought I was so grown up when I was their age. I vividly remember so much from that year. For your reading enjoyment, here are some of the highlights:

I started wearing make-up--I matched my eye-shadow with my outfit
First boyfriend--he gave me roses, teddy bears, chocolates but we rarely spoke to each other.
Carmen Sandiego and Square One (see movie clips below)
Mrs. Powell--the only teacher that I have somewhat disliked in my 16 years of schooling. She wasn't that bad, but oh the stories I can tell about her.
First pair of Girbaud jeans, Esprit bag, and ENUF sweatshirt--man I was stylin'
I was a brat. a snob. --I lost a lot of my true friends because I chose new, not so good friends. Ugh!
The three-way calling slam--such a mean girl thing to do.... I am so embarrassed to admit that I actually did this.
Year around school--not as bad as I thought it would be.
Young Womens
First public performance with my clarinet
California and Disneyland--first family vacation that we went on. I thought it was funny to watch people in their cars slow down to count how many people were in my family (there were 9 of us)

Sixth grade. Ahhhh....those were the days.

I LOVEd "Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego." I so wanted to be a contestant on it. Does anyone else remember this show? In sixth grade, my teacher Mrs. Powell used to have us watch it for Geography. And then for math she would let us watch Square One. Seriously.

To be fair to Mrs. Powell--we did do other things for geography and math...but she had us watch this nearly every day. What 6th grader wouldn't love to spend an hour of school watching t.v.?

Let the games begin...

2008-05-26T22:26:00.013-06:00

We got our game on with the Nortons today and
what a BLAST!!

What's better than stuffing ourselves with BBQ and other scrumptious food on Memorial Day? Following it up with hours of wii entertainment, of course. We had so much fun with our great friends the Norton's today. Here are just a few highlights ...

getting my kids psyched up with face paint and comfy sports gear
teaching my kids the proper forms of taunting and growling (grrrr....)
delicious BBQ ribs and hamburgers
Jessica's potato salad (I so need the recipe for this)
thunderstorm enabling us to stay indoors and not having to do yard work (or retaining walls)
rings with bubble blowing ability
ice cream cones
Wii Olympics and Mario Kart... what a work out!!
lots of laughter

Thanks for the great day!!

Memorial Day...

2008-05-26T10:33:00.004-06:00

Happy Memorial Day! I love this day... no its not because its a day off from work and school but for me it represents family and friends and more importantly freedom. I am soooo grateful for all the brave soldiers that have fought throughout history to ensure freedom in this wonderful country. We are truly blessed. So to all those that have sacrificed their time and especially their lives to serve the U.S. I say thank you.

Five crowns...

2008-05-25T02:02:00.005-06:00

I have a love/hate relationship with the game five crowns. I love it because you don't have to think too hard to play. No thinking=great conversation. BUT I have the worst luck when I play this game. Seriously, every time I play Five Crowns I lose and not just by a little bit. -ugh- I was trying to explain this phenomenon at game night the other night and no one believed me--until we started playing...

ya, I lost again.

oral report....

2008-05-22T11:21:00.007-06:00

Nicole did her first official oral report in school and she did a GREAT job!

(the inspiration for her report....our poison dart frogs)
We didn't bring the mom and dad frogs because their terrarium is so stinkin' heavy with all of the live plants and the waterfall, however we did bring the aquarium with the four baby frogs. The class was so excited, especially when Greg fed the frogs some fruit flies.

I am so proud of all of the hard work and studying she did to prepare for the big day. You wouldn't think a report would make me so sentimental but I can remember doing MY reports in elementary and all I could think of is my little girl is growing up. Wow how time flies.