Penguins, Toga, and Back into the Swing

August 21, 2011

Back into the Swing of Things

School started on Wednesday this week. Everybody is now fully back into the swing of things and the school year routines (booo!) But everyone seems to like their classes and their teachers so here is for hoping it will be an amazing year!!

“Your children don’t need to attend seminary when you think that Satan is no longer going to try to tempt them.” (Todd Murdock)

The early mornings have been the hard part. Seminary also started this week. I love the above quote the seminary teacher shared this week in our meeting.

Penguins

Before school started, Alayna and I went on a Mommy/Daughter date to see “Mr. Popper’s Penguins”. We LOVED it! So very cute. We decided since everyone else got to see tons of movies over the summer (Harry Potter, X-men, etc) and we didn’t, we deserved a fun day out. We had a great time!

Budget FHE and Murphy’s Law?

We had a very fun FHE on Monday about our budget. Bob even made a PowerPoint that totally rocked! We discussed what we can each do to save money. We need a savings as kids start going into college.

Well right after that meeting all these things happened.

1. Alayna lost 3 library books!! How is that possible? I have scoured this house from top to bottom. If you know me, you know I am organized and there is no place for those books to hide. So, I have decided some dumb book fairy came one night and STOLE them! So, now we have to pay for them.

2. Marisa was on her way to violin lessons, when she went on this narrow street and scraped against a car because the car coming the other way was too close and was going to hit her. I’m proud of her display of integrity as she left a note on the ladies car. We got a call back and the estimate was $1000!!! Really? For a literal scrape?? Idiots! Thank the heavens for car insurance right?

3. Kayla was in a panic because she couldn’t find her soft cover seminary scriptures. So, I ordered her new ones and the 1^st day of seminary she found the seminary teacher had hers. Good thing Tyler can use it next year right?

4. You don’t want to know how much school supplies and school registration cost. Ugh. It never ends.

Me days

The absolute best part of this week is what I like to call “ME” days. Meaning I actually had time just for me!

On Wednesday I went clothes shopping. I didn’t find everything I was looking for but I found another pair of jeans that fit. Go me! Then I went and did something that has been on my bucket list since I was a teenager. I actually went in to have my makeup done and get a makeup lesson!!! I know it sounds strange but it’s something I have always wanted to do. You should have seen the face of the lady who did it. You could basically read “How is this lady 40 and she has no clue how to do her own makeup??” on her face. Well, I sucked up my pride and did it anyway. Finally I have makeup that is “my colors” and now I actually know how to put it on. So, yeah me! Then, I went out to lunch with Bob at the HuHot Mongolian Grill. Then I took the kids out for ice cream to celebrate our new year at school. We also had to go to Wal-Mart to get a “manly” lunch bag because apparently when you are a boy in 8^th grade, the Disney Princess or Tinker bell lunchboxes just aren’t cool. What?! Such a great fun day!

On Thursday, I kicked butt. I had this huge list of things I’ve been wanting to do and accomplished the entire thing. I even got to….paint my fingernails and toenails. Even put a top coat on! So exciting!! Again, go me!

On Friday, I deep cleaned the house. I even got to scrub the kitchen floor with a sponge and toothbrush. Yes, an actual toothbrush. It’s been needing to be done for years but I never have time. I have also been putting each kid’s awards and certificates they have earned throughout their lifetime into a 3 ring binder with page protectors. Yes, I am that awesome.

Spaghetti Sauce, Homemade Granola Bars, and Canned Lettuce

We got an awesome food vacuum sealer, our new favorite toy and way to save money (we hope). We have started vacuuming our leftovers in jars and so far it works like a charm. On leftover night everyone just opens the jar of what they want and it’s fresh!

I heard about canning or vacuum sealing your lettuce in jars so we decided to try that too. It just keeps it fresher longer than it would sitting at the bottom of your fridge, not for long term canning.

Our garden is doing great and we had enough to do canned spaghetti sauce this weekend. We also wanted to try and make homemade granola bars and seal them as part of our money saving budget plan. Sometimes we totally rock!

(My “Hart” tomato!)

TOGA

The girls went to the bog back to school dance at the high school. It’s called Toga but basically you and your friends dress up with a theme, like a costume party. I guess one of their friends chose nerds, so that’s what they went with. I think they make super cute nerds, right?

Salsa, Swim lessons, and Some fun

Salsa, Swim lessons, and Some fun

Salsa-ness!

Whoo hoo for salsa season! Hot salsa cooking on the stove is one of my favorite things. We had the whole family helping (except Marisa who was at work escorting a giant honeybee around…not kidding) and we made 7 jars of awesomeness!

Swimming

Alayna finished swim lessons and di so awesome! I even got a picture of her diving off the diving board! She can do all kinds of swimming strokes now and loves to be in the water. My favorite part was sitting and soaking up the sun reading good books. Now THAT is what summer should be!

(That’s Alayna diving off the board in the blue suit)

(Alayna in the center swimming with her teacher)

(Practicing being a lifeguard)

Some fun

Nature walk for YW this week:

Making Jello Beans:

A project of painting a desk (all Tylers idea and when they were done they looked like Avatars!):

Making homemade tacos:

(and she passed drivers ed!!)

Writing a novel about evil clouds:

"If there were no schools to take the children away from home part of the time, the insane asylums would be filled with mothers."— Edgar W. Howe

Thank heavens school starts this week. The natives are restless. They start school on Wednesday and seminary Thursday. Crazy! They will be busy and I will be free as a bird. No more children literally wrestling over the “Hunger Games”, no more kids chasing each other around the house and knocking the mattress off my bed, no more “Im bored but I don’t want to do any chores”, no more midnight trips to walmart to buy “Mockingjay” because some people won’t share. Bring it on!

You can never appreciate the shade of a tree unless you sweat in the sun.-- Author Unknown

It’s so sad because it’s August now and we spent the week getting ready for school…

●We organized all the school supplies and went shopping to get everyone what they needed on their lists.

●For the 1^st time ever we took advantage of the tax-free shopping days to do all of our clothes shopping. It would help tremendously if the kids would just stop growing.

●Alayna has her last week of swimming lessons. I will try to get pictures on Friday.

●Tyler was chosen to be part of the MYFI group this year, so he helps the incoming 6^th graders through orientation and the 1^st day of school. He started his training for that this week.

●Kayla finishes up Drivers Ed this week. She even drove to Sam’s and no one died, so she is being successful!

●Our garden produce is starting to arrive. We have been making bruschetta and starting to can tomatoes. We are doing salsa next Saturday.

●Marisa has been reading Hunger Games. We plan to go to the movie for Kayla’s Sweet 16 if any of you want to go? Tyler and Kayla have been reading more Harry Potter and I am reading a new book called “Gone”.

(The sand temple)

(Sand church)

●Alayna has been busy this week learning how to latchhook which she loves and created a “sand world” in the sandbox that includes Mount Everest.

**Best news of the whole week is that my wedding album arrived and I LOVE it!!! I made it into a hard cover and as professional as I could make it and I am super pleased with the results.

I also got ALL the negatives that were put on cds, into files by year so I can start working on those blog books. Yes, I am obsessed. I found some REALLY old pics so some people were lucky recipients of ones I found of them. I even found my old glamour shots!  Yes, you are allowed to laugh!

Oh my GOSH!! She did it AGAIN!?!?

Oh my GOSH!! She did it AGAIN!?!?

Are you kidding me?? What almost 9 year old decides to cut her own flipping hair A-G-A-I-N?! So, here’s the story….

We all got haircuts this week. (See cute hair below)

Alayna really wanted to try out bangs so she could be cool. Anyway, they kept getting in her way. Late last night she raced in my room claiming she needed a bath and slammed the door. When she came out a while later, I asked if she had an accident or something and she said, “Mom, would you, um, hate me, if I, um, cut my hair?” What???? I race over and this is what I find…

Really?? Really?? Ever heard of a “hair clip” or “head band”?? Dude! Then she asked, as she was crying, if she could cut off the bottom of her hair and glue it back onto the bad part. Really?? Again, didn’t we go through this EXACT scenario when you were like 3? For the Love of Pete!

Why my “Domestic-Ness” should never see the light of day

Ok, so I decided now that my recipes are organized, I shall try a full week of new recipes and be the Mom OF Awesomeness!! (You should hear an echo when you say that!) So, I will say my intentions were genuine and honorable, but I basically suck.

On the very 1^st day of experiment week, my dishwasher broke!!! What the?? So, I have been doing dishes nonstop. I have a new appreciation for my sister who has 3 kids and hasn’t had a dishwasher for 10 years! I would have bought stock in the paper plates company, that’s for sure.

For the 1^st night, I made zucchini boats. We have zucchini coming out of our ears! The kids were actually very excited because they looked very cool. However, when they tasted them, from the looks on their faces you would thought I had presented Barf Boats instead. I was SO proud of them for trying anyway and being honest in their opinions.

We also made 12 mini loaves of zucchini bread!

Day 2: I tried a new sweet and sour chicken recipe with pineapples, cranberry sauce and orange juice. Sounds good right? Well, I think the cider vinegar ruined it because it tasted like “vinegar poop”. Again, hoorah to the kids for trying it. Boo to me for picking out a loser recipe.

Day 3: Success! I tried a cheesy/cracker chicken recipe. No one died or barfed and I got a “wow, this actually tastes good”. Yeah for me! Not sure I will make it again but who knows.

Day 4: My 1^st time making macaroni and cheese from scratch. Yep! You heard me- scratch! And I thought it was great, so did Bob and Marisa. The others only exclaimed, “MOM! You do NOT put onions in Mac and cheese! That is gross!”

Day 5: Asian Salmon. Finally a HIT! This was very yummy and everyone ate it.

Next week the kids are up on dinner duty. Each kid is assigned a night and gets to make or create whatever they would like, since I will be, like, “otherwise occupied”. Here’s to another week of fun meals?

Busy, Busy, Busy

●Alayna did Linn-Mar volleyball camp this week and loved it. She even tied for the 1^st place “Hustle Award” one day and she received the 2^nd place overall “Hustle Award” which she worked very hard for. Way to go, Alayna!!

●Every day this week, despite the HIDEOUS heat, we either went to the track or played tennis. I’m pretty sure I lost a few pounds of just pure sweat! Im grateful for my workout buddy, Marisa!

●Marisa and Kayla have been having fun with friends.

●Kayla started drivers ed. Her teacher is really odd and she is bored to tears but its all something we have to suffer through right?

●Marisa got accepted to compete in the Miss Iowa Teen pageant. Whoohoo! She just applied for fun and isn’t actually going to do it, but we were excited anyway. Yale wants her to apply to their school too. Cool!

●”Falling Skies” is my new favorite show! Just sayin….

●I LOVE being a mom full time and not working. It feels amazing. I would be so happy If I never had to work again. Even with the bad meals and all!