What are you doing New Year's Eve??

I'm planning a big party...assuming I can stop coughing long enough to invite anyone. :)

It doesn't matter how sick I am. This song will always make me smile. And this version of this song makes me super duper happy!!

I'm guessing my neighbors hate me right now.

I can't sleep. I'm up hacking my freaking brains out. I can't stop coughing for the life of me. Pretty sure the neighbors can hear me. Somehow my kids are sleeping through it, which is sort of a miracle.

I got sick the week before Christmas. I was plastered to the couch for a few days. It was pretty bad. Congestion, chest pain, coughing, sore and swollen throat. Miserable. I finally got up and took myself to the doctor. Who told me that I had a cold and there was nothing he could do. Grrrrr.

And I'm breastfeeding. Which means there's not much I can take. And what I've taken isn't working. So I'm up at almost one in the morning typing a whiney blog post about it.

Now I'm going to go back to watching crap tv (because there's nothing good on at one in the morning) and coughing because there's nothing more to say or do about it. :(

See Mother, Funny Funny Mother

We have a book of Christmas stories to count down to Christmas. I made it one year at a Relief Society activity. On December 1st we replace our usual bedtime stories with the stories from this Christmas book. Some stories explain Christmas traditions and symbols, some speak of the true meaning of Christmas, and others are simple, silly anecdotes.

I forget the stories every year until I'm reading them again. It's fun to feel like you're reading a new story every year. The following is one of my very favorites in the book. Mostly because of it's accuracy. This is exactly how I feel just before Christmas. :)

See Mother, Funny Funny Mother

Author Unknown

See Mother laugh. Mother is happy.

Mother is happy about Christmas.

Mother has many plans. Mother has many plans for Christmas.

Mother is organized. Mother smiles all the time.

Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother smile. Mother is happy.

The shopping is all done. See the children watch TV.

Watch, children, watch.

See the children change their minds.

See them ask for different toys.

Look, look. Mother is not smiling.

Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother sew.

Mother will make dresses.

Mother will make robes.

Mother will make shirts.

See Mother put the zipper in wrong.

See mother sew the dress on the wrong side.

See Mother cut the skirt too short.

See Mother put the material away until January.

Loo, look. See Mother take a tranquilizer.

Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother buy raisins and nuts.

See Mother buy candied pineapple and powdered sugar.

See Mother buy flour and dates and spices,

And pecans and brown sugar and bananas.

Look, look. Mother is mixing everything together,

See the children press out cookies.

See the flour on their elbows.

See the cookies burn. See the cake fall.

See the children pull taffy. See Mother pull her hair.

See Mother clean the kitchen with the garden hose.

Funny, funny Mother.

See Mother. See Mother wrap presents.

See Mother look for the end of the scotch tape roll.

See Mother bite her fingernails. See Mother go.

See Mother go to the store 12 times in one hour.

Go Mother go. See Mother go faster. Run Mother run.

See Mother trim the tree.

See Mother have a party.

See Mother make popcorn.

See Mother wash the walls.

See Mother scrub the rug.

See Mother tear up the organized plan.

See Mother forget gift for Uncle Harold.

See Mother get hives.

Go Mother go.

See the faraway look in Mother's eyes.

Mother has become disorganized.

Mother has become disoriented.

Funny, funny Mother.

It is finally Christmas morning.

See the happy family.

See Father smile. Father is happy.

Smile Father smile.

Father loves fruit cake.

Father loves Christmas pudding.

Father loves all the new neckties.

Look, look. See the happy children.

See the children's toys.

Santa was very good to the children.

The children will remember this Christmas.

See Mother. Mother is slumped in a chair.

Mother is crying uncontrollably.

Mother does not look well.

Mother has ugly dark circles under her bloodshot eyes.

Everyone helps Mother to her bed.

See Mother sleep quietly under heavy sedation.

See Mother smile.

Funny, funny Mother.

Grrrrr.

I woke up this morning and realized I my favorite water bottle out in the car. I sip on water from my bottle all day long. So I asked Jason to run out and grab it for me. Because he's the nicest husband in the world.

When he brought my water bottle back in he also let me know that someone had stolen some things from out car. Rude! But kind of our fault. We got home from running errands last night and parked the car in our uncovered spot (we usually park in the covered spot) and left the car unlocked because I planned on running back out for some things without children after I'd fed the baby. And then I got tired and decided those things could wait until morning. We forgot about the car and left it unlocked. Oops!

Luckily, the car is old and we don't keep anything terribly valuable in it. They took an adapter cord thingamajiger and our GPS. The GPS was the most expensive thing, but really, we rarely use it anymore. Our stereo is so old it's been going out randomly lately, so had they tried to take it (which they did, but apparently left it behind) we would have laughed that they stole our broken stereo.

We're not too upset over the lost goods. More annoyed that someone felt the need to steal. But hopefully someone is going to have a lovely Christmas with a new to them old GPS and an adapter cord!

Twinners!!

I have never had two children who I could dress the same. Until today!

Lucas's 3-6 month clothes were getting snug and while I was putting some laundry away this morning I found his 6-9 month clothes. I decided to try them on now, assuming they'd be too big still, but they aren't. I immediately put him in the outfit that Jack had put on that morning. SO CUTE!!

I just love my boys. They are so different and so fun! Jack is my wild, energetic, crazy boy. Lucas is calm and peaceful and quiet...most of the time. :) But they are such good brothers already. Jack can make Lucas laugh at almost anything he does. I can see how much Lucas loves his big brother every time he looks at him.

ACK! I just can't get over how much I love my boys!!!!!

Cute Baby, Cute Toes

Lucas fell asleep like this playing on the floor earlier today. Holding his toes. Man, I love that sweet boy!!!

A New Blog

I started another blog. I think this is like the fifth one I've started. Yep. I just went and counted. Fifth blog.

First I had the family blog. Which is really just my space.

Then I added a blog for Payson. I had plans for it that never panned out. I imagined starting a blog for each kid, blogging every great moment in their lives, and then turning it into a book for them every year. Ha! In theory, it was a fun idea. But it's just never going to happen.

Then I started a recipe blog. Which I actually love. I loved sharing recipes. But I just got busy and haven't been posting on for, well, years.

Fourth, I started a blog to document trying to get healthy. But it just stopped working after a while. I got pregnant and miscarried and pregnant and miscarried...well, you know the story. And my health just took a back seat for about 2 years. Sad.

So now I'm doing that again. Another healthy blog. This time for real. I've been posting on it for a little while and am really enjoying having a place to share what I'm doing and what's working for me. That way I can leave this blog for family stuff and no one who doesn't want to hear about all the stuff I'm doing to lose weight has to read about it.

Join me over there! It's my place to be accountable. It's my place to (hopefully) help others in my shoes do what I'm doing. And maybe when others start reading it it will be a great place for me to find encouragement and motivation as well. Hope to see you there!!

Rewards

To keep myself motivated to lose all this weight I am giving myself "rewards" for every ten pounds I lose. The first reward for the first ten pounds was a new workout wardrobe. For hitting twenty pounds down I treated myself to a manicure and a pedicure today.

And it was wonderful!! The last time I had a manicure was....couldn't tell ya. I have no idea when the last time my fingernails were even painted was. And my last pedicure was before Lucas was born. So these were both very much needed!! And they're all sparkly and festive and I feel so pretty!!

A Little Random

Lucas has been rolling from tummy to back for two months, but he has just started rolling from back to tummy in the last week! It doesn't happen too often and I haven't caught it on video quite yet, but it's so fun! And it's super fun to watch how excited the other kids get when they see him on his side ready to roll. :)

Here he is all snuggled up in his cute sock monkey hat. He fell asleep in his seat while we were out running errands so we just left him to sleep in his seat when we got home. He was just too cute sleeping there when we checked on him! Oh I could just eat him!!

I just wasn't feeling Christmas after Thanksgiving. It was weird. I'm usually super anxious to get everything out and start celebrating. But I just wasn't for whatever reason this year. And then I went shopping and got my tree up and decorated. Now Christmas is in full swing!

And I'm loving my tree this year! It makes me smile every time I look at it. We've been listening to lots of the Grinch, Chipmunks Mickey's Twelve Days of Christmas, and Polar Express soundtracks with the tree lit up. The kids love it! And for mom, a little A Very She and Him Christmas, Harry Connick, Jr., the Carpenters, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra. My faves. :)

In other random news, I've lost over 20 pounds recently! I'm actually down almost 50 pounds from my highest weight while pregnant with Lucas. I'm super close to my pre-pregnancy weight, although I have a LOOOOONG ways to go to reach my goal. I'll have to post soon about everything I'm doing. Because it seems to be working really well!! :)

And for now, that is all. I'm going to go play a game with Jack while I snuggle my baby boy. I love playing with my boys. :) Makes me miss my girl and wish she was here to play with us!