Pretty Puppies

I think Lily is finally becoming okay with Penny's existence at our house. As long as its cold outside she will gladly snuggle with Penny on the dog bed.


All right, maybe "gladly" is a little strong. She tolerates Penny's body heat. She won't willingly go onto the bed if Penny is already curled up there, but she will not move if Penny curls up on her.

Snowflake and Strawberry

Snowflake Icicle and Strawberry Labybug (the names the girls picked)

My Aunt LVH asked me for pictures of the fairy dolls I made. Rhayn thought her fairy needed a sparkly face and put lip gloss on her face. Lip gloss is greasy and so her face has some weird color to it. Its also gathering dirt. We tried to wash some of it off, but that wasn't good either.

Here are some of the things that Santa brought them to put into the Forest Fairy Home. As well as the fabric lovingly donated by a good friend of ours.

The Forest Fairy Home in all its glory, with the owl Santa gave her, in its nest on the top.

thick slices

silence fills the air.

its so thick you could
probably
slice in neatly
into chunks.
its not the nice
silence that calmly fills
and relaxes me.
no...
this silence
is full of something
that i can't explain.
something that
consumes me.
i wish there was
an air freshener
that sent joy
into the air.
a candle one could burn
that would soothe
the soul.
instead,
i try to ignore it
and wait for the
air to clear
to get back
to feeling
normal again.

Christmas 2009

Although Christmas this year came and went so fast it feels like a blur, we all agreed that this year was the best Christmas ever.

Rhayn kept telling us how great the day was. Gwennie was so pleased to give us all gifts that she had wrapped from her own arsenal of toys. (I finally had to take away the wrapping paper as she kept wrapping her horses and putting them under and in the tree in the days leading up to Christmas.)


Will was glad to be home, and we were all more than pleased to have him here. His presence at all of our traditional gatherings has made them so much better. He even participated in games at my aunt's house. (Where we all missed Hairball, but understood that having a week old baby does give you an excuse to go home early.)


I look back at last year, and wonder how I even functioned through the depression that filled me. I was unable to cope with hardly any of the issues thrown my way. While this year, for the most part, everything has rolled off my back. I wasn't even plagued by Christmas Day depression. (Usually after the gifts are opened I feel this major let down.)

This year, sure I am sad that its all over, but I am still just pleased that Will is home. (He might say otherwise.) I am dealing with a little bit of depression, but honestly nothing like last year. I think that must have been my lowest point the entire year.


We went easy on the gifts this year, but still managed to have an enjoyable Christmas with very few (if any) of those gifts that you immediately want to regift. All in all, it was one of those Christmases that we will always remember with fondness.

A Christmas Dorse!

Will informed me that I need to explain this "dorse" a little. We didn't just find this lovely picture on the internet, this was my girls' first photo shop lesson. The face is our own dear, sweet Penelope Ann McDigger. Will and the girls photoshopped the picture. I love it, the expression on her face, like running in the ocean is the best thing ever... it makes me giggle every time I see it.

Happy Christmas Eve, All!

Gwennie and Madder cheesing it up.

Last night we went to see the LDS Temple lights, an annual tradition for us. Will and I planned badly* and ended up not eating before hand. But we were such a large party that wait times were long at restaurants. I hadn't eaten enough beforehand and I was starving and grumpy.

Trying to get a good picture, my camera was nearly out of batteries and the flash took forever. Don't really know what Rhayn is doing in this picture.

Will and I decided to split ways with the rest of my family and go eat at a certain middle eastern restaurant we all love. This ended up being fortuitous because one of the women he had worked with in Iraq was home visiting her family (who own that restaurant) and he was able to talk to her and practice his Arabic, which he loves.

أجمل التهاني بمناسبة الميلاد

*Will informed me that he had no part in the planning of the trip last night. Apparently it was all my bad planning. Whoops.

Lacking in the sleep department

Last night I could not fall asleep. Seriously, I tried reading and watching a movie, but round about midnight I was still laying in bed, wide awake. I finally slipped peacefully into dreamland to be awoken at 3 am by a dog who needed to potty. I couldn't fall right back to asleep after that, either. It took me an hour and ten minutes to finally drift off.

Consequently my body aches this morning. I am thinking of taking a hot soaky bath after I feed Rhayn breakfast (well she can actually feed herself, the joys of an 8 year old!) but she isn't awake yet. I am trying to decide if this inability to sleep is due to Christmas looming on the horizon or something else. Most likely its Christmas and my fear of getting pregnant this month. I mean, it wouldn't be the end of the world, but I really REALLY REALLY don't want to get pregnant this month. I don't want to be due around Gwennie's birthday. I am obsessing about it. I think it might be a little bit of a mental tactic to keep my mind off of Christmas, but I have no proof. It is a ridiculous thing to worry about, we have been, um, active for years without getting pregnant, so why worry so much this month? I think its mainly because I have never wanted so badly to NOT fall pregnant. No, I take that back, I did not want to be pregnant while he was gone, at least not to have the baby while he was gone. It scared me more then. Plus, even though I wanted the option, I wasn't ready for it then. I am now, but just not this month.

Its been an hour and a half since I started this post. Kids and self are fed, bath was taken, and I feel a little better. I think I need a nap or coffee though. A nap while watching Christmas movies? Yes, please.

Making gifts at our house.

Good morning world.

I am trying to feel festive this week. Its been so warm lately that it doesn't feel like winter or Christmas. Hopefully the temperature drop they are talking about will help me feel more festive.

Today is the first official day of winter, its also the winter solstice, Longest Night. I love celebrating the change of the seasons. Today we are planning on making paper snowflakes to celebrate. We will also string popcorn to put in the trees for our local pigeons and doves (sure, there are other birds but pigeons and doves are bullies.)

I am really excited about all of the things that we have to give the girls! We made some of the gifts this year, well I always make gifts, but even Will got in on it this year. He is awesome.

This is one of the items Rhayn had asked for, along with the winter fairy. I made the fairy, sure its not exactly the same as the one in the catalog, but I know she will love it. I also made Gwennie the summer fairy. (She really just wanted the unicorn. Rhayn wanted to make one for her, but we ran out of time.)

Will sanding the top level.

Yesterday, Will asked Rhayn to design her fairy forest home. She drew pictures and then she and I made a footprint for it that he used to cut out the base and the top level (using leftover wood we had in the garage.) Then we used branches from our mesquite tree trimming for the supports. Of course, Rhayn helped a little to make it, and she is really looking forward to opening her fairy.

Fairy Forest Home

My heart swells with love and pride when I think that I could have spent $100 on this, and sure it would have been easier, but really? She is going to love this home so much more, because she helped make it, and she was able to watch it being built.

Fairy Forest Home.

After he made the fairy forest home, he cut the rest of the wood into smaller pieces. The girls and I will sand those and they will be blocks for Gwennie. I'll post pictures of those when they are done, so you can see.

***Updated!***These still need to be finished off with fine grit sandpaper, but that may need to wait until they have dried out.

Welcome to the World.

Little one.
Congrats to Hairball on her new little girl. (She already has two boys.)

Most Wanted- Polly the Pirate

This criminal loves geocaching and will often be found driving on back roads slowly looking for small containers. She has been known to have children with her on these trips to hunt for the treasures. Her main accomplice is her husband, an older man, who is just sneaky enough to avoid having his photo taken. They have over a thousand finds and are in constant competition with her sister. She also tortures her husband with Christmas music starting on Thanksgiving day. She has an eclectic sense of fashion. Her children refuse to turn her in because they all love her so much and have been known to harbor her.
If you see Polly the Pirate, please call the Yuma Territorial Prison.

*This picture was taken exactly one year ago on our trip home from San Diego. We stopped at the Yuma Territorial Prison. They had this mirror that had been used to take mug shots of criminals.

My Dream Car

Do you remember those 1994 ads for the Dodge Neon? The ones that just said "HI"? I loved that car. I wanted that car. I had never before been swayed by an ad so completely. For years I longed to have a Dodge Neon. I longed for one in a sporty purple or maybe even orange. I liked the brightly colored cars, as long as they weren't red. I did not want a red car.

In 1999, I bought my first car. An ugly red Plymouth Horizon, the cheaper version of the Dodge Omni. I can't remember what year that car was (and '89 I think) but it got me around for a while. Will was terrified of it the few times I drove him around in it. You see it shuddered like you wouldn't believe. It leaked oil, too. But I loved that little car. I nicknamed her "the Whore". I know, really nice. I stopped driving her sometime after I had Rhayn.

My next few cars were bought by Will at auctions in Prescott. The first was an old police cruiser, a Crown Victoria with the spotlight and everything. My punk-rock self found this car to be awesome. But it was impractical for a mom, as it only had one seat belt in the backseat. We sold that one and bought a Chevy Cavalier at the auction. I drove that car for a few years I think. Then Will's brother offered to sell us a 1998 Plymouth Neon. Sure it was red, and sure it wasn't a Dodge, but it was close enough to that high school dream car that I was excited.

The Neon has been a good vehicle. It has little issues (starter going out, leaks oil), which come with having an older car, but it gets us where we need to go. I mock it often, but really I love that car.

But now we are looking at new vehicles, we have 3 top contenders. Well, I have 1 top contender, Will has 2 that he likes well enough. For me, the Mazda 5 is a winner. It is the most versatile vehicle we have looked at. Will likes the Chevy HHR it fits our needs, and is comfortable inside. We both like the look of the Dodge Caliber (I find it a sexy car for some reason). It also fits our needs.

The thing I like best about the Mazda 5 is that there are 6 seats. Of those 6 seats, 4 fold down and give you a lot of space in the back if you needed it. You can separate the kids into the different rows, too. Its a micro-van, has sliding doors on the sides, which means kids can't open the door and whack the car next to you. The back, even with all 6 seats up could hold our two 50 pound dogs. I am completely sold on it. Since Will isn't quite ready to admit defeat and buy a traditional mini van (our next step I am sure) this would be a perfect interim vehicle.

Its going to be a while before we actually buy a new (to us) car, but it doesn't hurt to look and see what is out there.

How Lovely to be a Woman...

The wait is well worth while. (Video from Bye Bye Birdie with Ann-Margret)

Ha ha. What a lie. How crappy to be a woman. Its a miserable thing most of the time.

My monthly came early this month, two days in fact. It came in full force with a migraine, cramps and a bright red "HELLO!" while at Target (and away from my friendly Diva Cup.) I just went and logged my period start date on MyMonthlyCycles, and noticed that Will and I need to be extra careful this month, unless I want another end of September baby (um, that means you, too daCheese! *wink wink). I know that lots of people have children with birth dates close but I don't like that idea. My parents managed to "get it on" all throughout the year and none of us even share a birth month! (Although my husband and one of my brothers share a birth date.) I liked not sharing even a birth month.

Now I am going to sit on the couch for a litle while before I need to have us out the door for Rhayn's winter concert.

2000

Whew... Instead of procrastinating today, I actually wrote. I wrote over 2000 words in my story (Uping my story to near 8000 words!) Not all in one scene, I am working on a few places of the story, trying to figure out how they all fit together. Writing when a scene pops into my head, figuring that the story will eventually work itself out.

Did I mention that I am writing a story? Hopefully someday it will actually be a full story, with a beginning, a middle and an end. Right now, its a beginning, a little bit of middle and no clue as to the ending. But it feels good to write. Maybe it won't be any good. Maybe I am not the author I think I am. It is cathartic to write for me. That is why I started this blog, because I have always written. I don't do it for you, or for anyone else (most of the time), I write for me. That anyone would want to read it (besides my husband) is just fantastic.

Our weekend

What a weekend.

Man in the tree.

Saturday morning Rhayn went with the local LDS ward to the temple to see the Nativities. I dropped her off at the building at 9:30 (I was one of the first ones there, you see, in my world, if it says drop them off at 9:30 I will arrive a little early, but I forgot about MST- and that whole 15 minutes late thing.) It all worked out fine though. After that, I ran into a store to get eggs and milk then came home.

I figured that since Rhayn was busy, I would take Gwennie to the library. This turned into a big deal for two reasons. One- our car wouldn't start (even though I had driven it to drop Rhayn off earlier and so we took the truck). Two- the library was giving out H1N1 vaccinations in the kids section, and that was the part we wanted to be in. The line wrapped through the audio books (the other area I needed) and around about half of the library. It was a mess.

Rhayn next to a really big branch.

When we got home, Will went out to check the car, and said it sounded like the starter had gone out. We would have to have it towed to a mechanic. I know that the machanic is ridiculously busy on Saturday so we waited until Monday (they also aren't open on Sunday.)

The girls and I were out picking up the back yard as Will stopped working on the patio cover. He and I decided to trim the mesquite weed, um I mean tree, that grows in our back yard. The storm we had last week had not broken it, but we were lucky that it hadn't. Will cut a couple of very large branches out and it suddenly looked rather naked. Together we stripped all the little leaves and new growth off of the branches and put it into the compost.

Gwennie riding a branch like a horse.

Ready to go in her warm hat.

After that Rhayn had to be at school for the spiral garden festival at her school. I love this, sitting in a dark room filled with the smell of pine and watching as my child reverently walks the spiral with a candle in an apple. I had thought after this event that I had a Christmas party to go to at a friend's house. So the girls came home, and went to bed while I went to her house. Whoops, it was really next weekend. Instead I hung out chatting with her for a while before heading back home. (Luckily she only lives about a mile from me.)

Pressing the cookie cutter firmly.

Sunday morning it was cloudy and chilly. I decided that I needed to finish my Christmas
shopping sans children. I also needed to buy some framing nails for Will's patio cover redo. It was nice to be alone for a while, and when I got home the girls were making sugar cookies with Will (from cookathon dough.) I made the frosting for them and we all enjoyed the fruits of our labor.

Cookie time!

Today I will be finishing up most of my Christmas shopping. Not that I have a lot left to do, but there is a little. I want to give the girls their own sewing baskets, complete with scissors, fabric and glue. You may think it wrong to trust a 4 year old, who has let her sister and one of her friends cut her hair, with scissors but I think if she is given explicit instructions to only cut fabric with them, she will listen. (Okay really its just that I want to believe in her.)

I can't wait to see how excited they are to open the baskets. They have both asked for their own sewing and knitting stuff.

What gift are you most excited about giving this year? Which gift do you think your kids/spouse will most appreciate?

Cycling through the season

The Christmas season is always full of a range of emotions. This year, at least the past few weeks, has been a lot of freaking out on my part. I don't know why, as I am way ahead of where I normally am. I keep losing my temper with the girls, and I feel awful about it.

I need to slow down, to enjoy the season. Most of my shopping is done, and what isn't done is all on a single paper and list. (Should be done in one easy trip to Joanns, if I could ever get out with out a certain munchkin.) This year is better than last year, because Will is home.

This week, I think my big problem is hormonal. I am all set to have my moon on the 19th. Usually the week or two before that are lows for me. I am looking forward to the week after I start. I am usually much happier and pleasant.

I need our house to be more clean, but am I doing it? (Hint, I am on the computer at the moment, so is anything getting clean?) I have sat down to write this post a few times today, but it is just not coming out well, so I am done trying to write it in a flowery way. I think I am just going to publish it and be done.

A Visit with Santa

I took the girls to see Santa today. We didn't even have to stand in line! We walked straight up to him. Gwennie was so excited. She knows (thanks to the Beach Boys) that this "Santa" isn't the "real Santa" that he is really just a helper. But she loved every minute of it. Rhayn was even good.

The "elf" took pictures of Gwennie, then her and her "brother" Rhayn (I know she looks slightly like a boy), and finally just Rhayn.

Nopalitos

I am currently obsessed with nopalitos. What? You don't know what nopales (no PAH les) are? Well let me enlighten you. Nopales are processed prickly pear cactus pads. That is right, cacti, and I eat them. I have yet to try to buy them fresh (they are available at nearly every grocery store and Mexican Mercado around here.) I buy them already processed in jars, Dona Maria is one of the best brands from what I have heard. All I know is that the recipe I am going to share with you, is one of the tastiest salsa/ensaladas I have tried in recent memory. Sure, I love a good salsa verde, and traditional salsa rojo is good, too. But try these out at your next get together, you will not regret it.

Nopalitos

Ingredients:

• 1 15 or 30 ounce jar of nopalitos (like I said, Dona Maria is a good brand)
• 4 or 5 R0ma tomatoes
  
• 4 or so stalks of green onion
  
• nacho slices, these are pickled jalapenos in a jar, they stay good in your refrigerator for a long time. I buy which ever brand is one sale, but be warned that often the jars found in the Hispanic section of the store are spicier, if you want mild go with La Victoria (but not the hot ones shown here) or some other well known brand.
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• Mexican cheese this is a personal choice, or maybe just what is available. I used creme fresca this time, and it was nice how it sort of melted into the nopalitos, but panela is more firm and holds its own in the salsa.

Steps

1. Rinse the nopalitos and make sure there are no spines hiding amongst the pieces. Dice these and put them in a bowl. There may be onion and a chili in with the nopalitos, using these items is at your discretion. I used the onions, but threw out the chili.
   
2. Slice the tomatoes in half and scoop out the seeds and juice. Then dice and throw into bowl with the nopalitos.
3. Slice the green onion thinly, almost all the way down to the root and toss into the bowl.
4. Nacho slices also need to be diced, do this carefully because these suckers burn if you get it in your eyes. I used 4 slices, which wasn't spicy enough for me, but you'll have to decide this on your own, also you may use some of the juice from the jar for flavor as well. Toss diced jalapenos in the bowl.
   
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
6. If you are serving this right away (and you can) then place a small amount in a bowl and crumble the cheese into it and stir to combine.
   ---If you are NOT serving it right then, keep the cheese separate until ready to serve because it dissolves and that is just not pretty. Probably tastes ok, but not as pretty.
   

You can store the cheese and nopalitos separately in the refrigerator for a week or so as long as they are separate. I have eaten these every day for about 4 now. They are good. Also, you should go light on the jalapenos because these seem to get spicier as it sits. If you want more spice you can always add more when you add the cheese.

Baby Mamas (Put a Sling On 'Em)

I love this video! I miss the sling, its one of the parts of having a baby I miss the most.

(The video is widescreen and looked weird on my blog, so I have just supplied the link, please click over and show some love for the sling wearin' baby mamas!)

Gloomy Gray

I am in a bad mood, like a "keep away from children because this woman is crazy" kind of mood. I should be happy and enjoying the day, because its cool and drizzly outside. Clouds fill the sky. Normally days like this add to my enjoyment of life. Today? I am glad the earth is getting rain, the desert needed it, but really? Its an inconvenience. I really just want to curl up in bed with a good book, away from the world, and snuggle under some warm covers with a purring kitty near me.

I am sitting here, staring at the computer. I should be cleaning the house, it needs it, but I have words inside that need to come out. Only those words are stuck. I don't even know what they are.

After my month of gratitude (which was a good thing) I feel like I have been hiding my feelings. My life isn't all unicorns and rainbows you know. Well, Gwennie thinks it is. She is so excited to watch Christmas movies all of the time. I am enjoying them, too (she is watching A Year Without a Santa Claus at the moment.)

A Sick Day Without the Telly.

Rhayn is sick. I am keeping her home from school today. Not a big deal right? She can lay on the couch and watch movies while she rests. Normally this would be the case. Not today, she is actually grounded from the tv for a week. (She has lost her radio privileges, too.) It may seem harsh to have her grounded from both, but I am sick of being lied to.

I asked Rhayn to clean the trash out of the back seat of our truck. I was planning on trading vehicles with Will and driving our car so I wanted the girls' stuff out of the back seat. She went out for a few minutes then came back in. "Are you done, Rhayn?" "Yes" "Is the back seat area clean?" "Yes."

I went outside to check, because I have had to resort to that. She had only shoved the trash in the pocket in the back of the seat and under the seats. I had actually pulled all of those same items out from under the seats before I asked her to clean. Which means I knew exactly what was back there, she hadn't even brought one item in to throw away. I called her to come out so that I could show her what she had done wrong. I told her that because she lied to me there would be consequences. Then I walked into the house and discussed it with Will.

We decided to first take away her radio/cd player privileges for one week for not doing the job. Then we would ask her what she thought was a fair consequence for lying. First she said "Not going outside" then "Not playing with Gwennie." Um, yeah right, I am going to ground her from playing with her sister? Ha. Finally she said "The tv, not watching the tv." Perfect.

But today I am struggling with how to make her rest while she is sick without allowing her to watch tv or listen to her cd player (she likes audio books and is currently listening to Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.)

In some ways I think that not allowing her to watch any tv for a week is really good for her, its beneficial, because instead of being able to turn on the tv Monday night, Will played piano with her, teaching her the first line of Good King Wencelas which is her current favorite song to sing. (Last year it was We Three Kings.) She mastered the first line and the second line is basically the same. Then I taught her the third line and she has been playing it over and over. I am not sure how to explain to her to play with more than one finger, but she is doing it and enjoying it.

It isn't even 9:30 and I am struggling with getting her to rest. I think it would have been ok to send her to school, but her cough is really wet and she had a low grade fever every night this week. She says her throat hurts, this morning saying it felt like it was very small and hard for her to swallow. I only hope that she is better, because I feel terrible for her. And I really want to go to Handwork tomorrow (as does Gwennie.)