I won! I won! I won!

I'm so excited!! I just won my friend Tiffany's giveaway! Tiffany and I met when we were all newlyweds up at BYU-Idaho living in the University Courtyard Closets. Oh! Sorry, I mean Apartments.

Tiffany is so awesome and has always been my biggest supporter as I try to change my lifestyle and get healthy. It doesn't matter how many times I give up and then start over. She gets it because she's been there. She knows how hard it is to take control of your health and get it into gear. And she passionate about helping others to do the same thing. So she and her sister, Heather, have started a blog, Be Well, to help the rest of us in being healthy.

They give away advice and tips, recipes, encouragement, and AWESOME workout videos by Lindsay Brin. Lindsay focuses specifically on helping moms to get into shape. I have five of her dvds (and love them) already and just won another one from Tiff. You guys really HAVE to check her out. She's giving away another dvd right now that I'm hoping to win!!

He has what?!

Remember this post? Well, today we've had a repeat. No, not of mono. Just another random and completely unexpected diagnosis here.

Monday night we hung out with some neighbor friends for FHE. We fed the missionaries, ate yummy food (seriously, Candace made homemade onion rings and burgers that were TO DIE FOR!), and let the kids go wild.

At the end of the night Jack was getting a little tired and cuddly. It was late, so it didn't phase me. When we got home I put him right in to bed (clothes on and all) and he was out like a light. I noticed he was a little warm, but still wasn't too worried.

I took his temperature the next morning. It was 100.1 degrees. Definitely a fever, but not too high. I gave him a little motrin and the fever broke. He laid around and slept a lot yesterday, but I kept giving him motrin and just watched him closely, meanwhile enjoying the snuggle time I was getting. :)

This morning his fever was lower (99 degrees) but he had a rash. Boo. I was on the phone with a neighbor when I noticed it. She mentioned that chicken pox were going around. Yuck. But my kids were vaccinated. ?? Maybe Jack is one of the like 5% who get it anyway. I called my mom and she suggested it my just be roseola. Either way, I knew there was nothing the doctor would do so I just decided to keep an eye on him and take him in if things got worse.

Then I looked online at information on both Chicken Pox and Roseola and Jack's symptoms didn't really match either one, so I called the doctor's office to ask what they thought. They said that a few fever and rash involved illnesses had been going around and suggested I bring Jack in.

Do I need to give you three guesses again? Or shall I just tell you what he's got this time?

Scarlet Fever.

Honestly. Wasn't it eradicated ages ago along with polio and the plague?! Apparently not. Because Jack's got it. Poor kid.

Luckily we went in and he's now on the antibiotics needed to help his little body fight it. I'm keeping Payson home from school this week so that we don't spread it. So the three of us will be holed up all week watching movies, playing games, and hopefully NOT sharing this lovely disease with each other. Pray that Jack is the only one who gets it!! (Especially because it is MUCH worse in adults.) :(

For now I'm just going to enjoy all the cuddles I can from this usually super active little guy of mine. :)

Am I a bad mother?

I believe without a doubt that the answer to this question is NO. A very, very, very firm no. I am no where near perfect. I makes millions of mistakes with my kids a day. I'm positive that I am screwing them up irreparably. I think we all do this to our children. :) But I'm doing the best I can. And when I know I'm failing, I try something new and do better. I believe that even on my worst day I am a good mother.

Why am I telling you all this? Because today, someone called the cops on my parenting. Seriously. This may be another controversial topic. But I'm posting it not only because I genuinely want the opinions of women that I respect, but also because I really do believe that you will validate me.

Early this afternoon I ran to the grocery store with the kids. Just inside the automatic glass doors is a redbox machine. I was returning a couple of movies. I parked in the very first parking space in the center of the lot, just in front of the doors. My windows were rolled down. My kids were buckled into their carseat and booster. I turned off the car and ran in to return the movie.

***GASP*** YES! I left the kids in the car. I was in the store for 1, MAYBE 2 minutes. I could see and hear my children the entire time.

When I left, after I was around the block I was pulled over. Someone had called the police and reported me for leaving the kids. The officer explained what had happened and informed me that he wanted to make me aware of child safety.

I explained to them that I could see and hear the kids, they were in their seats, I was in there for 2 minutes or less, etc. He asked the children's ages. I told him 5 and almost 3. He said he had seen 3 year olds wander in parking lots before. I explained that my son was buckled into his 5 point harness carseat belt and couldn't get out. He said that I could brush this off but that if I did it again it was likely someone would call again and that I would be talked to again. Legally he couldn't do anything but talk to me. He was just doing his job. I stood my ground.

Personally, I don't believe I was even remotely endangering my kids. And this is not the first or last time I have done this. When I run in to pay for gas, when I drop something off at a friend's house, etc. Maybe you think I'm wrong. I strongly disagree.

Let me add that I do understand where this caller is coming from. I understand that it is not safe to leave children unattended in car. Heat, strangers, wandering, etc are all dangers. But I was making sure none of those things were factors. I could see the kids, they were buckled in, and the windows were down. (Besides, it's April and where I live we get SNOW in JUNE.)

I have seen children left in cars and been concerned before. But if I was concerned enough to do anything I have waited and watched. Generally a parent shows up within a minute or two and I don't worry about it and go on with my own business. If this caller had done that there wouldn't have been a problem. You see, the police officer didn't even have time to get to the store. And we live in a TINY town. This is the only grocery store. He didn't have far to go. He had to track me down and check my plates.

Anyway, you get my point. So what do you think? Am I just flat out wrong? And be honest. It really won't hurt my feelings if you disagree.

A year without diapers...

Is that really going to be my life? A whole year with NO diapers?

Sure I'm sad about not having some cute tiny little newborn diapers to change in just a few months. But if I'm going to be looking on the bright side of things, this is definitely a plus!

I've been thinking for quite a while now that Jack is pretty much ready to take the potty training plunge. I just didn't want to overwhelm myself and no time ever seemed like a good time. But this morning, completely out of the blue, I couldn't think of any reason NOT to start. So I asked Jack about it and he was in.

It started out great, which made me nervous. He was going in the potty every time, but I was the one reminding him to go. And of course the second I got distracted with something he had two accidents (thankfully both easy-clean-up-number-ones), one right after the other.

So we had a little chat and I kept reminding him to tell me when he needed to go and all of the sudden he was! And he keeps telling me! Number one, number two, he has made it every time! This is insane to me!

So tonight, as promised, we are heading to the store to pick out a toy or treat. And we'll do the same thing tomorrow night. And probably every night this week just to be sure he really gets it.

Of course, you never know. I could be getting ahead of myself here. But I really do think he's got it! Do you know what this means? It seriously means I'll have ZERO kids in diapers for around a year! A few months to heal and nine months of pregnancy. That's a year even if we get pregnant right away! In about 4 months I'll have no kids in diapers, a child in school all day, and Jack will be in preschool twice a week for a few hours. No kids in diapers and FIVE WHOLE HOURS to myself with no kid related interruptions!

Wow. My life is changing fast. Maybe too fast. I'm not going to slow down the diaper thing, but do I really have to send my firstborn off to school so soon?

My Very First Surgery EVER!!

Well, if you're reading this you most likely have read this and this and all of the other posts about my December miscarriage. So I'll try to stick to new information. Like I had mentioned before, the tissue they found that was causing the bleeding was leftover from the miscarriage in December, not a new miscarriage. The doctor prescribed those crappy meds that made me cramp like you wouldn't believe for an entire week and then I had my follow up appointment.

The good news: The meds were working!

The bad news: There was still tissue.

So I had the choice. I could do another round of meds and hope that removed more tissue, and hopefully all of it. Or I could just have the D&C surgery and get it overwith. I discussed pros and cons with my doctor VERY thoroughly. I think he may have been annoyed with me. :) And Jason and I had had a few conversations about our options prior to my appointment, so I knew how he felt about the situation.

At first it was hard to choose the surgery. Mostly because I've never had surgery before. I don't take meds when I don't need to, so why would I CHOOSE to have an unnecessary surgery? And I was nervous. Because I've never had surgery, who knew how my body would react to anesthesia? And what about infection after the fact? And what if the doctor (heaven forbid!) made some kind of a mistake and I lost all fertility?!

But the truth is, I had tried medication originally. It worked...a little. So we tried medication again. And again, it worked...a little. It was clear my body needed some help letting go here. And if we were to try again, I would have to keep coming back into the doctor weekly to ensure I wasn't contracting any infection or other complications.

I just wanted to get this overwith. And Jason had recently given me a priesthood blessing that made me feel so comfortable with my decision. So the doctor said, "I can squeeze you in at seven!" And I said, "Great!"

That was about 12 hours away and Jason was out of town for work, so I called him and told him to get home ASAP. I made arrangements for the kids in the morning (because I had to be to the hospital for admitting and bloodwork EARLY). And I attempted to get to bed early.

HA! That last part was a joke. Of course I was nervous. I finally crashed at some point and then got up early to shower and get ready. Jason gave me another blessing and we got the kids up and off to a neighbor friend's house. (Anyone willing to take their friends' children that early in the morning is a SAINT! Thanks, Jamie!!)

Then we headed to the hospital. Admitting was easy. Then they gave me a room and a gown and then we waited.

(These pictures were taken on Jason's phone by Jason. They are horrible quality and tiny. Sorry!)

The bed. As if you couldn't figure that out.

Hanging out in my sexy gown that made me look seven times bigger than I actually am.

Playing on the puter to kill time.

Cute hubby. He really is the best thing in the world. You have no idea how jealous you should be.

Then the nurse came in and asked me to pee. What? I wasn't allowed to eat or drink anything since the day before so I was dry as a desert. No pee for them. So instead she drew blood and put in my IV. I can not tell you how much I hate needles. I can tolerate blood draws for a few seconds, but IV's are torture! And this nurse was NOT gentle! OUCH!!

Then came the super fun tights and leg squisher things! The nurse brought in the tightest stocking-like things ever and helped me get them on, then wrapped these fun things around each leg. Apparently to keep the blood circulating to avoid blood clots and such. They were sexy. I'm telling you, Jason had never wanted me more.

Then we waited some more. Because they had hooked me up to fluids I was finally able to pee. Which was really fun to do in that gown and the leg things using my one non-IV'ed hand. Ha ha ha ha! It was so entertaining. When I was finished, the nurses actually applauded me for finally making a "pee pee". Seriously.

After talking to the doctor and anesthesiologist, they came in to give me some meds to "relax" me and then rolled me down to the OR. As we were wheeling down the hallway I felt so weird! Totally conscious, but WEIRD! In the OR I remember the nurse having me put on my hair net thing and talking to me for a minute. They put some antibiotics in my IV which I remember burned through my arm and wrist for a minute. And then I woke up in a recovery room with two nurses above me.

It was so weird! I was still waiting for them to put me under and I was already waking back up. I was groggy and tired, but not in any pain. Within about an hour of waking up they had had me pee, again, and got my prescriptions and discharge papers and helped me dress and we were on our way home. We picked up the kids and I curled up on the couch with instructions to keep my legs elevated for a few days.

I spent the first day feeling weird from the anesthesia. Yesterday I walked around more, but still felt strange. I haven't needed more than a ibuprofen here or there for the pain. Which really has been more discomfort than pain. The worst part is the antibiotics I have to take twice a day all week. They make me so sick. I hate them with a passion. But I'd rather not get any infection, so I'm taking them. Ugh.

Today I feel pretty much the same as yesterday. Tired. Sick from the meds. A little weak. If I walk around too much I get light headed and dizzy. But it's really been so much easier than I expected. If I ever miscarry again (heaven forbid!) I'm having the D&C right away. Physically it would have been so much easier than all this waiting and all these pills and cramping and blah blah blah. I'm in less pain now than I was before surgery and I've already stopped bleeding. Why didn't I do this to begin with?!

Anyway, it's only six and I've been up for too long. My sleep schedule is totally off from meds. Ugh. So I'm going back to sleep. Night!

Recovering

(Flattering picture, no?)

Just recovering from surgery now. It wasn't anywhere near as bad as I had expected. At least not yet (knock on wood). Hopefully the entire recovery will be like this. I'm just really tired and groggy from the anesthesia so far. I'll have to blog all the pretty pictures and what happened that I actually went in for surgery this morning later. I'm honestly so tired I'm shaking just typing this. Night! I'm going to go sleep the rest of the afternoon.

The Office is Complete

I officially completed my little office corner! At least I think it's official. I went ahead and ordered a calendar on etsy. This one. It came super fast. And it's adorable. I wanted to put it together right away, but we were stuck inside all day yesterday. The weather here was AWFUL and the roads were closed due to serious ice. I checked every frame I already owned to see if I could switch anything out, but nothing was the right size. :(

So we watched movies and snuggled all day. I love doing that with my babies. :) And then the second the roads cleared up a little we ran to the Family Dollar to buy a cheapo ugly frame with a cheapo ugly picture in it. And some treats for the kids, of course. Then we hurried home before the roads got yucky again (which they didn't, thank goodness).

As soon as we got home I spent WAY too long disassembling the frame which was stapled and glued like nothing I've ever seen. It literally took my forty minutes to get the glass out of the frame. And in the process I sliced my finger twice (same finger). Ouchy! When that was finally done, I followed the super simple steps to adhere the vinyl calendar to the glass (carefully this time so as not to sever any fingers). Then I spray painted the cheapo ugly frame. A couple of coats. And then a stain over the top and some poly. Once that was dry I nailed a hangy thingy (technical term) on the back of the cheapo ugly frame and hot glued the glass back into the frame. Then I hung it, stood back, and BEAMED!!

It's so perfect! It's exactly what I had pictured here completing this little area. Actually, it's probably better than I had pictured. I love all the color in this little corner, especially with our stark white walls. The only thing I might do differently in this little corner is add a lamp. But it's a pretty small desk because it's a pretty small area and I'm not sure where I could fit a lamp. Although I just had an idea that may make it possible later. You'll just have to wait and see!!

Anyway, enough from me. What do you think?

(Although I still confess that I'm no photographer, this picture looks SO much better than my other computer desk pictures simply because the windows are open and it's day time!!)

Easter/Conference Weekend

Did the Easter Bunny visit your house this weekend? Well, at our house he came a little early. Like Thursday.

You see, the Easter Bunny has always visited our house on the Saturday before Easter Sunday. One day early, but this gives us Saturday to focus on the Easter Bunny and Easter Sunday to celebrate the resurrection of our Savior. We've loved doing it this way to help the kids separate the fun and candy and learn about the true reason will celebrate this holiday.

But this year, the Easter Bunny didn't hide the goodies very well and the kids found them on Thursday. I blew it off and told them some of the things were gifts for someone or something and hoped they'd just forget. Then I could "explain" on Saturday morning. But they kept getting them out every five minutes and asking about them. So Daddy took the kids upstairs and Mommy set things up. Ugh.

The kids were so excited coming down the stairs that we couldn't get a non-blurry picture.

I explained to the kids that the Easter Bunny gets so busy with his deliveries that he sometimes drops things off early and lets moms and dads get it ready Easter morning. I had called the Easter Bunny and let him know that the kids found his stash. He said that it was okay that we celebrate early. They seemed to buy it just fine. Hopefully I haven't ruined Easter forever!!

I tend to go WAY overboard on holidays lately. So I've been focusing on cutting back. I don't want my kids to think they are entitled to lots of STUFF as they grow up. So they each got a coloring book, a video, a new toothbrush and fun shaped floss, and of course they're chocolate bunnies. Then they each had 6 large colorful candy filled eggs hidden around. They had a blast hunting for them and munching on the candy all day. It was nice to not have loads and loads and loads of candy leftover for weeks later. I liked this more minimal Easter.

Then we were able to spend Saturday and Sunday listening to conference. I had printed coloring pages and activities from The Friend website and the kids colored and painted and played quietly while we listened. I also spent some of my time listening making some file folder games for the kids. They played them all through conference and now I can't wait to take them to sacrament meeting on Sunday! I'm hoping this will completely change our Sunday experience. :)

I can't even tell you how many times Jason and I looked at each other and said, "Wow! That was a great talk!" or "We need to read and study that one later!" It was such an incredible conference! (As if I expected something less?) I am so sad that it's over. I love sitting quietly with my family, enjoying each other's company, and feeling the spirit as we listen to the music and words from our Prophet and apostles. I wish it were October already! I'm ready for another 8 hours!! :)

Hope you all had a wonderful Easter/Conference weekend!! And I hope you were able to feel His spirit bear testimony to you what this incredible holiday means for us. That He lives and that because of Him we will live again with our Savior, our Father and Mother in Heaven, and with our families for eternity. I just love the knowledge and peace this gospel brings!!

My Office!!

I am having so much fun making things and finding things and revamping things to make my home a little more beautiful. The first room I've been working on is my family room. It is the room in the house where we spend the most time and serves the most functions. It is where I pay bills, work on primary stuff, plan meals, organize schedules, blog. It's where we craft and watch movies and play games and do puzzles. It's where we hang out and listen to music and read. We LIVE in this room. This is also where company generally spends their time. So starting here made sense.

Right now, it's still a HUGE work in progress. We had to get/make a lot of new furniture and stuff for this room. I think I posted before about how we have had a tendency to buy cheap crap to save money. We have finally learned our lesson and were needing to replace a lot of major pieces. Our computer desk was one of those pieces. I think we've had like three desks since we got married nearly 6 years ago. The last one fell apart in less than a year. So I told Jason that I honestly didn't care how much or how little was spent on this piece. I just wanted a solid, quality, functional, and of course pretty piece to serve it's purpose for a long time to come.

Now, you'll have to forgive the lighting because it's night and the lights were on and I'm just not a great photographer. But here is my new computer desk and chair!

Yes, it's yellow. It's really not quite as bright as it looks in the photo. That's the fault of the lighting. But I'm not going to make excuses for it because I LOVE color! I look at these beautiful white rooms in magazine photos and I am in love! But I'm very aware that I could never live that way. Aside from the fact that I would be terrified of kids ruining and staining everything, it just wouldn't be me. I like bright things.

And I adore this blue chair. I love the blue and yellow together. And the design of the back of this chair just makes me happy. PLUS it's comfortable!!

Above the desk I have THIS:

I LOVE this magnet board! I have wanted this magnet board since I saw this ages ago. (I kind of have a girl crush on all of Becca's beautiful creations.) So I finally made one! It's smaller than hers, but I needed it to fit my space and my style and my needs. We bought the magnet board (with a coupon of course!) from Robert's and I made all the fun magnets. The kids absolutely love all the family magnets. Anyway, this helps me to stay organized and it holds some of my very favorite things in perfect view!

So this is my fun little office corner. ALMOST finished. I think I want to find a cute little dry erase calendar to hang on the wall to the left. Another functional/pretty piece. And etsy has a ton of super cute inexpensive ones.

Anyway, I love it more than you could ever know!! It's hard to feel "cozy" in an apartment with all white walls and hideous brown carpet. But little by little we're making it our own.

To Die for Whole Wheat and Honey Pizza Dough Recipe

I'm too lazy to type out the recipe. But it's found here.

It was super quick and easy to make and everyone loved it. It is SUPER filling, so watch your portions! And when I make it again I will probably roll my dough thinner. Ours was about a quarter of an inch thick when rolled out, but when cooked was about half an inch thick. So roll it about as thin as you can get it! If you try it, let me know what you thought and tell me what toppings you tried! I could use more ideas!