Sometimes It's Really For a Different Reason

I took one of the girls to the Pediatrician for an appointment.  She had an ear infection.  And then we discussed what I had hoped to soon have a reason for her to see the Dr:  acne.  (I know, a lovely topic.  It had to be done.)  Dr. said the best reason to talk to him is so that he could help dispel some of those myths, like eating pizza or chocolate makes break-outs worse, or scrubbing helps make them go away.  He said that, mostly, a lot of it boils down to genetics.

"Gee, thanks, Mom," my darling daughter says. 

Kindly, I say back, "Oh, just wait until you are my age and you will have acne plus the extra fun of wrinkles, like me."

The good Dr. chuckles and says, "Oh, you don't really have any wrinkles."  (I knew I liked him.) :)

And my daughter quips, "Well, that's only because she got Botox."

Nice.  The good Dr. raises his eyebrows and quickly tries to figure out why this housewife in sweats and an old t-shirt would be vain enough to have Botox at the tender age of 36, all the while trying not to give away his shock and curiosity.

"Well,"  I explain, "it's a long story."  (Which, of course, he wouldn't know, as he is our family's pediatrician and not my family doctor.)  "See, they are trying to see if it will help my headaches.  They've tried everything else.  It's different than cosmetic Botox.  Deeper, and all over the head, although, it does have some of the cosmetic benefits, I suppose,"  and I add for good measure, "But it doesn't get rid of acne."

"Hmm, well, I hope it works.  I've never heard of that before."

So, I'm not really sure if he believes my story, but I guess I do look unwrinkled, as he said I didn't have wrinkles before he knew about the Botox.  Thanks, darling daughter, for bringing Botox up, by the way.  I wonder how many other people she has casually mentioned this to?!  No wonder everyone seems to be looking at me closely whenever I see them.  But, probably, they are just checking out my adult acne.

Funnies

The girls are watching Mr. Bean with King.  They are laughing and groaning, which I guess means they like it in a "this is so stupid, it's funny" kind of way.

It's been nice to all be home and enjoy each other the last few days.  We had a nice Christmas with family time in the morning, and a gathering of friends in the evening.  It couldn't have been better.  Family and friends are really what it is all about.  (Besides, of course, Baby Jesus, whom we enjoy talking and reading about each year.  That goes without saying. It's just seems better to think about Him with the family and friends He has blessed us with!)

Speaking of blessings, Wii have been enjoying our Christmas gifts--thanks to generous Santa, family, and friends.  It has been fun to laugh and play together.  Funniest for me--that Sleeping Beauty videotaped King doing the hula hoop game.  So funny.  We laughed and laughed about it.  (I will spare you, and King, by not posting the video.)

Also funny--Sleeping Beauty put some cute little coupons for hugs, extra kisses, kind acts and helpful chores in King's stocking.  He was ooh-ing and aaah-ing for a few minutes Christmas morning.  Until he noticed the expiration date on all of the coupons:  December 24, 2009.  She's a smart one, that girl.

And then--(perhaps slightly more graphic, less kosher, and not for the weak stomached or those lacking a sense of humor)--This morning, Cinderella was bothered with the rule that you must practice piano and do chores before moving on to other fun things.  She was more bugged that others cared that she was bugged and were commenting needlessly about it.  When she told them (yelled at them) to tell them to be quiet, King told her to calm down and stop.

Said she, "They are just bugging the crap out of me!"

Said he, "Well, I hope you wiped."

Yep, no shortage of funnies around this place.  Or toilet paper, thank goodness.

Merry Christmas!

Hope you all have a peaceful Christmas as we celebrate the birth of our Savior.  I am so grateful for His birth, His life, His sacrifice, His love, and His church.  I owe Him everything.  Have a Merry Christmas!
  

 6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.

  7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.

  8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.

  9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.

  10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.

  11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

  12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

  13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

  14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

Luke 2:6-14 

This is a Good One

“Even when you feel the truth of [the] capacity and kindness of the Lord to deliver you in your trials, it may still test your courage and strength to endure. The Prophet Joseph Smith cried out in agony in a dungeon:

“ ‘O God, where are thou? And where is the pavilion that covereth thy hiding place?’(D&C 121:1–2). . . .

“The Lord’s reply has helped me and can encourage us all in times of darkness. Here it is:

‘My son, peace be unto thy soul; thine adversity and thine afflictions shall be but a small moment; And then, if thou endure it well, God shall exalt thee on high; thou shalt triumph over all thy foes’ (D&C 121:7–8).”

 

Henry B. Eyring, “Adversity,” Ensign, May 2009, 24–25

Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la-la-LA

" 'Tis the season to be jolly", and that is my goal this next week.  I had a sit-down with the girls.  Basically, it went like this:

"I love, love, love having you at home with me and not in school.  Let's make sugar cookies, and candy, and popcorn, and cards, sleep in, watch movies, play games, and do crafts.  I will try my very, very best to have some fun and be patient, even if I feel yucky, but you have to try to do something, too."

"I knew it," said one.

"Of course," moaned another.

"Prob'ly clean up stuff," said the other, with an eye roll for my added pleasure.

"Well, cleaning would be good.  But, really, I want you to get along.  Please ignore the sarcastic comments and the jabbing.  Please don't yell and be loud and fight.  Be pleasant and loving and get along. And don't fight."

"Fine," said one.

"Whatever," said another.
 
"She won't," mumbled the other. 

"Yes, I will!  You won't!" said one. 

"I will too!" said another.

"Whatever!" said the other. 

"Just leave me alone!," said (yelled) one.

Well, you get the point.  It could be a long, jolly week.

Report

(If you care.  And if you don't, I don't mind.  Skip this post.)

Botox was weird.  And way more poking than I thought.  It wasn't that bad, but sticking a big needle into my skull where for about 10 straight days I've felt like someone was stabbing me with a knife was not so fun.  That was the worst.  It is supposed to really start working in 4-14 days, and peak at 6 weeks, and diminish by 12.  I look the same. (Dang.) :)  But he said about the time that my forehead feels tight and my forehead frown lines look a tiny less prominent (yay), that will be when I should notice the most head improvement. We're hoping the working soon part will break my headache cycle enough that my daily meds can keep more pain away, and that it may last longer than 12 weeks.  We'll see.  I'm tired.  It was a long day and I, of course, have a bad headache and now 27 or something tender injection sites all over my head.  And I'm paranoid about touching my face because he said if I move the unsettled bubbles of Botox too close to the nerves on my outer eye, my eye will sag.  Creepy.  That's supposed to be a non-issue after a few hours though, and no sagging yet.  At least in my eyes...my post-nursing chest is a different....never mind. 

We went to Cheesecake Factory, after, to nurse my wounds.  The cheesecake helped.  Yum.

Scott gave me a Priesthood Blessing beforehand.  I feel at peace about whatever happens.  I know that I am not the one in charge here, and I'm okay with that.  Sure, there are hard and painful days, but I am very blessed.  So many other people I know are dealing with much harder things.  I love the reassurance of the Lord's love, direction and blessing in my life that I receive constantly.  I really don't know what I'd do without it.

Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

     

It's On

I now have an appointment for Botox treatment for my migraines.  Thursday morning.  We haven't heard from our insurance company yet on whether they will cover the cost, but are going ahead with it.  If they do eventually approve our appeal, then they will pay retrospectively, and if they don't, then I have the most generous, nicest, fabulous, super-duper friend who has offered to help us with the exorbitant cost.  (I have an inkling of a suspicion that she is tired of hearing me complain, and since she can afford it, she's going to see if this will shut me up. :)  I'm joking.  She's really just the best friend ever, who knows this has been the longest, most tiring year, and wants me to get through all of the treatment options I have to see if it will work.  Isn't she the best?)

So, if you see me on Friday and I look surprised to see you or seem like I'm staring wide-eyed, it's really not that, it's because of the Botox.  Wish me luck!--And a little prayer might be good, too.  It would be nice if this very last treatment they can think to try for me would actually work.  Very, very nice.

Bathroom Art by Snow White

Yes, we're waiting for representatives of The Met or The Louvre to contact us in the very near future.

Drab

*

*This sweater is unlike any I actually own, and the picture was found here.   

When I unpacked my winter sweaters a few weeks ago, I decided I might need a little bit of color variety.  The sweaters I have for the winter are: black, gray, brown, red, black, charcoal, green, brown, charcoal, brown and brown.  Yeah, nice variety, huh?  And I won't even tell you that half of them are turtlenecks.  So, when I was out running errands the other day, I was determined to find something to perk up my wardrobe.

I found a super cute tan sweater.  

Informed

So, they know.

They asked me about it after school yesterday.  I was relileved, as King's idea was to tell them Christmas morning.  Are you kidding me?  I told the girls that King had decided they needed to know and was thinking of a way to tell them Christmas morning.  These were there feelings on his idea:

"What?  That would have been horrible!"

"That is the worst idea ever!"

Yep.  That's what I thought.

(Love that guy to pieces, in case this post makes you think otherwise.)

Brain Freeze

The past few days have been rough.  There were some nice things, like my friend bringing me dinner, meeting friends for a doughnut, and peppermint ice cream.  For the rest, let's just say, "If you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything at all."

So, yesterday I finally got around to running some errands.  And I am so bugged thrilled I picked yesterday, because it was freezing, windy, raining, sleeting, hailing, snowing, blizzarding the whole time I was out.  I think the highlight may have been when the gusting wind took my debit card from my hand when buying gas and made me chase it across the parking lot.  However, it was also fun when I ran into Target and six (I am not kidding--six!) people were conveniently standing right in front of the door smoking, so I had to push my way through them to get out of the sleet.  So I got to wash my coat when I got home, too.

But, the very best part for sure was going to the doctor.  (You know, because I haven't done much of that this year at all.)  I saw the allergist to get refills on my allergy medications.  So, actually pretty harmless, really.  The nurse was asking what medications I take daily, and for me, the list was surprisingly short.

"Well, just my allergy medicine now and then just Lamasil."

"Lamisil?" she asked.

"Yes, a seizure medicine to try to help my migraines."

"What is it?"

"Lamisil.  L-A-M-I-S-wait, no, not S, it's C, or..."

"Is it called Lamictal?"

"Oh, yes!" I remembered, "That's what it's called."

"I thought so, because, Lamisil is for foot fungus.  I didn't think that would help your headaches much," she laughed.

I laughed, but then wondered if I should try it.  You never know.  I've tried everything else.

She actually laughed for a while.  A really long time.  I think maybe her husband and kids heard about me last night.

   

Scaring the Visitors

First a little background: In our church, worthy young men and women serve full-time missions for 18 months to 2 years. We, as members in the communities where they serve, take turns feeding them their evening meals. This helps them to focus on sharing the Gospel, rather than spending time preparing meals, and helps with their budget, as their missions are voluntary and self-funded. It also helps having these valiant servants in our home to share spiritual messages with us, and to learn from their examples. I imagine their mothers back home are grateful they are being fed things more nutritious than ramen and pork and beans, too.

So, we had signed up for the missionaries to have lunch with us this afternoon (Saturday). We have church meetings this evening, and chose to feed them lunch instead. That is all very well and good, except things didn't go the way we had planned.

I woke up feeling lousy today (surprise, surprise) and asked King to take Snow White shoe shopping. Since we have meetings later tonight, and Snow White dances at our local Cultural Center this evening, I knew I had to limit what I could accomplish today. So, he decided to take Sleeping Beauty on her daddy-daughter date a little earlier than they had planned, and come back to get Snow White to shoe shop. I started some laundry and went back to bed.

About 20 minutes later the doorbell rang. And, I'm sure you know who it was, but I was puzzled. And half asleep. And I hadn't showered since Thursday. I opened the door to four fresh-faced and hungry missionaries.

"Oh, hi!" I said, "We completely forgot you were coming! I'm so sorry! And King just left with one of the girls. I've been sick the last couple of days and completely spaced it. Oh, goodness." Or some completely nonsensical blubbering like that for a few minutes. (Remember-I was half asleep.)

They were very nice. "Oh, that's fine. Don't worry about it. Is there anything we can do to help you?" And, when assured that there was nothing they could do to help, they went cheerfully on their way. I closed the door and then realized that the least I could have done was give them some cookies Cinderella had made this morning, or some money to buy pizza. Duh.

Now, I am sure they will get over the fact that their lunch appointment was canceled. There's always canned soup or macaroni and cheese. But, what I'm not sure they'll get over is seeing me half asleep, with no bra, in my pajamas, no make-up, ugly glasses, greasy hair, and ghastly breath. I'm pretty sure all of them vowed then and there to never be married after their missions. Yikes. Poor guys. I'm sure they are super excited we signed up to feed them Christmas dinner. (Remind me to actually take a shower that day, would you?)

To Get You in the Holiday Spirit

We can't help it. The girls think this is just hilarious. I guess it's not really Christmas until we transform ourselves into elves.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

It's O.K.

The problem with having a chronic condition, and having a few good days in a row, is that inevitably, the feeling okay comes crashing down around you and being miserable seems that much more miserable when you get a glimpse of how it is to function somewhat normally.

And, I did have a few good days in a row, but the last couple? Not so much. And today, when I woke up with a splitting headache, and nausea, and feeling like I could stay in bed all day, what I really needed was a good laugh. Which didn't really happen when I started going through the mountain of graded school papers that the girls left me to look at. There were too many not-so-good grades, of which, had I felt better, (and helped them study for spelling tests, and looked over assignments) would have been so much better. Nothing like a bit of guilt piled on when you are feeling lousy to help you feel that much worse. However, when I read one of the papers a little more thoroughly to understand the poor grade, I got the laugh I needed.

For spelling, Sleeping Beauty was to write sentences to demonstrate her understanding of the words. She had finished this assignment at home Tuesday night, but Wednesday afternoon, I found it on her bedroom floor. Whoops. So, she had redone the paper at school Wednesday morning before she could go to recces. She told me she hurried and got done so she didn't miss any recces time. And, let me tell you, she hurried. Hence, the poor grade. Here is a sampling:

Fragrance is a good smell.

Excellence is a good thing.

Decency is an important thing.

Truancy is bad.

Be obedient.

That is buoyant.

Obedience is fantastic!

They found evidence.

Have frequency.

Inconvenience is O.K.

That last one is my favorite. It's O.K. Not good, important, bad, or fantastic. Just O.K.

I assure you, this is evidence of work done quickly to avoid the inconvenience of missing recces, and it certainly has the fragrance of work lacking decency, but I find the frequency of the truancy of thought, and lack of obedience to the family rule "Do your best" quite fantastic-ally funny and buoyant.

Heaven in a Cup

I have officially decided that most of my meals in December will consist of Dairy Queen's Blizzard of the month: The Candy Cane Chill. Divine.

Although, since winter has descended fully in these parts, I may add some variety and go with peppermint hot chocolate on occasion.

(If you do decide to click on that link to see that lovely shake, I strongly encourage you to not click on the little button at the bottom that says nutrition calculator. Yikes. Guess there will be cause to purchase new pants by January...)

Two Things

1. You know the whole "Melts in your mouth, but not in your hands" thing? Yeah, well they never said anything about what it does in the clothes dryer. But, not to worry, I can tell you. Melts. All over everything. So, avoid that, is my advice.2. Took the girls to the dentist this morning. And they said, "Uh...your appointment is tomorrow." Nice. Explain that to the school..."Well, she wasn't in school this morning so we could go to the dentist. But really, we're actually going to the dentist tomorrow, so she'll miss class again tomorrow, too. Sorry. My fault. (Yes, I'm a big fat dork, and now everyone in the school knows it.)"

Oh, and what do the girls think? Here's what one thinks, "Aw, man! You mean, I brushed my teeth good for nothin'?!"

Yes, except you're supposed to do that EVERY MORNING!

Sheesh.

(Un?) Believable

I can't believe it's December! How did that happen? But, more importantly, how is this school year almost half over? The biggest problem I have with this is that my babies will be in Middle School in less than a year! How did this happen? It seems like just yesterday they got on that Kindergarten bus for the first time. But, I suppose that's what everyone says.

However, there is still proof that my two babies are young at heart. You know that jolly old elf that makes his appearance the end of December? Yep, that guy. They totally believe. And have mentioned the fact that if I don't want to buy them a present, they know who to ask for it.

And you know that little fairy that collects teeth for her castle in the sky? Yep, her too.

So, the question is--how unbelievably gullible do I let these girls be? Is it worse to let them commit social suicide in the fifth grade and the mention the tooth fairy forgetting to visit (again), or do I dash all of their dreams and let them know the truth?

Of course, it's always possible that I'm the gullible one and they've got the whole thing figured out, but they are letting me believe I've still got two little girls instead of big kids headed for middle school way too soon. You never know.

Things That Tickled Me This Weekend

1. My girls making homemade pie crust all by themselves. And helping a lot in making the filling for those pies. I'm pretty sure I bought crust until I got brave about five years ago and started making my own. They are definitely ahead of the game on this one.

2. When Cinderella said, "I think I will have only pie for every meal until it is all gone." A girl after my own heart.

3. Eating Thanksgiving dinner with good friends and my little family...and pie with many friends at the church. I think there were eleven pies there. Variety is the spice of life. Yum.

4. Sleeping Beauty limiting her Thanksgiving meal to three items: Mashed Potatoes, Green Bean Casserole, and Rolls. Silly girl. She wouldn't touch a turkey with a ten foot pole.

5. Hearing Snow White say, "I'm turning into being like Aunt Emily. I need hairspray in my hair when I have a ponytail now." She loves Emily so much, I don't dare break it to her that this is sort of an adolescent thing that everyone eventually does.

6. Snuggling a newborn baby for not one, but two lucky evenings. So cute. So tiny. Mmmmmm.

7. Eating a delicious bagel with great company way too early in the morning when out Black Friday shopping. (We decided to sleep in three hours after the first store we wanted to go to opened--which turned out to be a mistake. But, we had a delightful time anyway.)

8. Being at Kohls when all of the power in the town went out was pretty exciting, too.

9. The kids getting on the bus this morning to return to school. Yes, I adore having them home with me, but a reprieve from the elevated decibels in the house will be a welcome thing. They have two switches, "High volume disagreeing" and "High volume squeeling with glee" and I have two switches, "Mild headache" and "Pounding headache". Sometimes our switches don't really mesh for long periods of time.

10. Falling asleep on the couch listening to my girls sing Christmas music, and waking up to a tree that was up, decorated, and twinkling lights strung all over the room. The girls went for a "natural look" this year, which included only one kind of ornament on the tree and a mass of lights in the room that sort of makes it look like a rainbow got sick in there. Not my usual fare, but I guess if I take a nap during the work, I can't really complain.

11. Watching the girls make up dances to Christmas CDs that have been put away for eleven months. (It reminded me of making up dances and plays with my cousins when I was a girl. It's a blessing to have my girls be close to the same age, especially since we live far away from cousins.) Unfortunately, they deemed all of their dances "not ready for performance" so the show was put off until further notice.

12. (I can't think of anything else, but I don't like odd numbers. It took a lot of constraint to not erase one of these to make it an even ten. So I settled for adding a twelve. But can't think of anything to say. So then I just typed this nonsense because I really don't like odd numbers.)
(....Yes, I have had my medication this morning....Why do you ask?)

It's a Good Feeling

Last night was one of those nights where you feel like you are awake all night. I know I slept some, but every two hours I woke and tossed and turned for at least 30 minutes. Annoying. And I had a song that kept running through my head. Considering the fact that I have three teen/pre-teen daughters living in my house, it's usually a Taylor Swift or Hannah Montana song. But, this time, it was a song from my childhood.

It's such a good feeling
to know you're alive.
It's such a happy feeling:
You're growing inside.
And when you wake up ready to say,
"I think I'll make a snappy new day."
It's such a good feeling,
a very good feeling,
The feeling you know that we're friends.

I could just picture Mister Rogers sitting there in his zip-up sweater and red tie, singing to my little girl self as I savored the few minutes that Mom let me watch TV. Mister Rogers liked me. He cared about my learning, and had the best things to show us in the Picture, Picture when Mr. Speedy brought the reels by. I think I really did think he was singing right to me.

As the words kept running through my head during my sleepless night, I couldn't help but think how true they were. It is good to be alive, and I am happy that each day offers me a way to learn and grow on the inside (and tomorrow, probably the outside, too.) :)

I love his word choice, "a snappy new day". One definition of snappy is "crisp, smart, lively, brisk" and that is definitely what most of our days are like around here--lively, full of drama, and learning for everyone. The days seem to blur by as we live this adventure we call ordinary life. And I love it.

Today, on this eve of Thanksgiving, I am ever grateful for family and friends that keep my days snappy and my heart happy. I am blessed to be what I always wanted to be: a mother of the best girls ever. I couldn't ask for anything more. Heavenly Father has truly blessed me with a life full of happy, snappy days. It's a good feeling.

And I'll be back,
when the day is new,
And I'll have more ideas for you.
And you'll have things
you'll want to talk about,
and I will, too.

*Feeling especially nostalgic? Click here to hear Fred Rogers sing to you.

Again

I believe some of my readers (about three) probably would like a little update on the next chapter of my headache saga. (Maybe I should write a book...) ;) We did practically write a book when we compiled a detailed list of all things that I have done since 2003 related to migraines. I gathered records from physicians, and it was a headache, to use a painfully familiar expression. (But at least they only charged me $20 instead of $80 for a copy of MY records.)

We submitted our official appeal to the insurance so they will re-think their decision not to cover Botox treatment. King gathered more information on studies done on patients with migraines improving with Botox treatment, and information on Medicare coverage of the procedure. Many insurance companies follow Medicare's coverage patterns, and luckily, our state is one of the few that does cover it. This may help our case.

I saw my headache specialist early in the week--basically to document more of my medical history. When they first submitted the Botox plan to the insurance, it was before I'd tried the second round of IV's and two new medications ago. Not to mention my strict non-gluten non-dairy diet. They are thinking this will also help our case. So, they have re-submitted the request to approve Botox again, with more numbers of his patients' outcomes with the treatment. We're hoping to know within the next couple of weeks. We'll see. The manager of our University's benefits office is working with us to help push it along. Not being ones to have $2,000 lying around for use in experimental treatments, and having spent more than that this year on different unsuccessful treatments, we're praying they decide to approve it quickly--before the end of the year. We kind of feel like I need to try this end-of-the-line treatment after coming along this far, and would really, really like to let the insurance pick up most of the tab.

In the meantime, I started on another new medication. (Please don't ask me how excited I am to do this again, I don't like to use swear words.) It is another seizure medication that is tolerated well by lucky people like me who are sensitive to medications. Honestly, I've had a few relatively good days since I began on it, if I ignore the insomnia and constant nausea. Oh, and the one episode of driving home from a place I go all the time and not remembering where I was. The goal is to find a well tolerated medication that will help decrease the severity and frequency of headaches once the Botox helps to stop this two year " headache cycle" my body is stuck in.

So, that's the deal. If you have any further questions, you may contact my publicist. :)

Learning from the Master

A couple of weeks ago, King and I were privileged enough to attend Young Women in Excellence. (If you have no idea what this is, click here to learn about this wonderful part of the Personal Progress Program the young ladies in our church participate in.) It was great to see what all of the girls in our ward have been working on this year. King and the other men sang a great song, and I cried like a baby when it was my two minute turn to talk about the growth and change we've seen in Cinderella this past year.

This year, Cinderella decided to focus on the value of Knowledge. She had experiences that helped her learn and grow in knowledge of her Savior, the Gospel and the Word of God, her role as a divine daughter of God, as well as a variety of service opportunities, and developing skills involving fun things that interest her. For her ten hour project, she chose this: "Working with your mother, grandmother, or a sister in your ward or branch, master a home arts skill she teaches you."

She decided to learn how to sew. Lucky for her, my sewing machine broke so she got to learn from two ladies in our ward, who have the capability to help her master this skill. (Learning from me would have put her so far under master, she'd be worse off than when she began. Although, I do miss my sewing machine dearly (it's truly dead) and there are some things I've found I really miss sewing. Like the cute Christmas pillowcases I bought fabric for last year, but now cannot sew. Anyway...) Cinderella learned so much. Not only things about sewing, but, through their examples and patient care, even more about being a righteous woman. I'm so grateful these women took time out of their busy lives to help Cinderella!

Cinderella spent about twelve hours with them carefully making a skirt, and a great little Easter bonnet.
(I'm kidding.) It's a bag--

And it's darling. (I keep telling her she can give it to me for Christmas, but I don't think she cares what I think.)

For the next few months, Cinderella has chosen to work on the value of Good Works. Again, she is learning from people who have mastered this value. She has observed many loving women who have, in the last weeks and months, as my health has been precarious, shared their time and talents with our family in preparing meals for us, cleaning our home, helping her and her sisters in organization and with homework, and countless other ways. They have truly blessed and impacted my daughters (and me and King) for eternity. More than they could ever know. How grateful I am for the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and the opportunity it gives my family to associate with people who are living as He would have them live, so that we may learn about God through their shining examples.

Therefore let your light so shine before this people, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father who is in heaven.(3 Nephi 12:16)

Get A Clue

This morning Sleeping Beauty and Snow White woke up sounding like frogs. Or barking cows. Or something that sounds sick. King told them to go back to bed. (I think he was just relieved to not have to drive them to 7:15 AM choir practice.) I told them to get dressed. If they were staying home, they were going to the doctor. I suspected SB had a sinus infection, and, unfortunately, I knew from recent sinus experience how much better she'd feel if she got started on an antibiotic soon. I figured SW was along for the ride, so we'd check her out, too. Likely she would need meds by tomorrow anyway. Might as well go to the doctor only four times this week, instead of five.

So, we went. And the girls are fine. Yes, they have colds. Yes, they are miserable. But, no infections or fevers. I told them they were staying home anyway. No sense in sharing their colds and being at school when they feel miserable.

But I'm starting to think that maybe they don't feel so bad. My first clue: When I told them they could watch a movie once they got their homework done, they decided to play Dance, Dance Revolution instead.

Round Two

Let's try this again, shall we?

Rock Star

When I grow up, I want to be a rock star.

Not really. But, it's fun to pretend. So, I entered a giveaway for Band Hero on 5MinutesforMom. Click on the button below to see all about the giveaways they are doing this month. Maybe you'll win something. If you do, yes, I do accept cash as a token of gratitude for pointing you that way. :)

Battle of the Budget

Our power company, (which we now know the name of, thank you very much) is kind enough to give us a "budget plan" whereby they charge us a set amount each month, so that we can budget easier, and don't end up paying extra in July, when it costs a fortune to cool the place, or in January, when we have to heat it. It worked well, until our last "anniversary" month, when our budgeted amount rose twenty dollars. Some of it was "fuel surcharges" that the company now charges us, but we were pretty sure some of it was due to our frivolous want to have light after dark or want to not see our breath while inside our house on a frigid day.

So, we made a deal with the girls: If they would be more careful about turning off their lights, and not touch their thermostats in their rooms, so that our budget amount remains the same, we will go out for ice cream AND give them each five dollars. If the amount goes down, they get ten dollars. Good plan, right?

Well, it seemed like a good idea. But, now, we have three intense light monitors. Heaven forbid I walk out of the pantry with full hands and cannot turn off the light immediately! Three girls will yell, "Mom, turn off the light!"

And when my bedroom feels a little warm to the girls, I get a lecture about conservation and the benefits of socks and sweaters in warding off a chill.

Oh, and forget about accidentally leaving my cell phone charger plugged into the wall. That is a major offense.

Today, I looked at our bill, and was relieved to see that our balance was + $464. Phew. Until I read a little further, where it says, "After careful review of your account at your six-month anniversary, your budget amount will be increased $10." What?!

Now I can't decide if I should tell the girls or not. On one hand, I could tell them, they'll be disappointed and feel like their work over the last six months was wasted, and give up. But, there is always the chance that if I tell them, they'll double their efforts, and I will have to start reading in the dark. Or be expected to wear my hat and gloves in the house. And, frankly, I'm already too cold to think about turning down the heat. I think it will be best to keep quiet for a while. At least until around mid-March.

Things Overheard At My House Today

"It's Saturday, I'm supposed to have a break today."

"That's not my (fill in the blank), it's hers."

"Why do I have to clean it? I don't even use the bathroom." (Yikes.)

"Well, I don't know how my stuff got here."

"Why do I have to do that chore? I don't want that one!"

"Tell her to mind her own business. She's not even cleaning her part of the bathroom."

"Tell them to come and get their junk out of the Living Room. I'm supposed to clean it."

"Don't touch my stuff!!"

I would go on, but then all of my childless readers might never have children, and I can't be held responsible for that. Now, back to my slave-driving...

What to Give?

When do you start your Christmas shopping? I like to start early. I may not be finished by this time of year, but usually I know what I'm getting, and I'm figuring out the cheapest way to get it. This year, I'm behind. Way behind. The girls have no real requests, and are kind of outgrowing the toy thing. The problem with grown-up kids, is their toys get more complicated, and more expensive, and start with "i", as in iPod, iPhone, or iMostExpensiveThingYouCanThinkOf. (Sadly, these are dreams that, for my children, will not come true this year--King firmly believes that the longer that we can keep earbuds out of our girls' ears, the longer we'll know what's going on in their lives. And I think he may be on to something.)

What I'm stuck on right now is a gift for the girls' elementary school teacher. This is the information the girls have given me: He likes to travel, he just got married, his favorite color is orange, and his favorite animal is a giraffe. Oh, and he is hilarious and nice. So, any great ideas? We don't usually spend a lot of money, as I prefer to actually give of my time and help the teacher out with things instead, BUT I've kind of (really, really) stunk at that this year, so I need some good ideas. And please don't say a cute teacher mug with hot chocolate. I still have some of those from when I was a teacher. :)

Also, is it bad that this week of 60 degree weather in November is lulling me into thinking that winter may never come? I think I'm going to be sad in a couple of weeks. Or frozen.

The Lights are On, But Sometimes No One is Home

The other day, King and I were both home in the morning. I had just stumbled out of bed, and was beginning my day by attacking the mountain of laundry that was attempting to push it's way out of the laundry room and into the dining area. King was working from home, on the computer. The power flickered off. Then on. Then off. And stayed off.

After a while, King decided that maybe he should call the power company. Since the computer, the washing machine, the dishwasher, the TV, and the radio were all on when the power went off, he thought it would be a good idea to let the company know that maybe it was our fault for draining all of our old home's resources at once. Or something. Or at least find out when we could continue our tasks. (I think he was really nervous one of our children would get lost in the laundry beast if I didn't get back to my climbing...) At any rate, he sat down with the phone book and the cell phone, and set out to contact them.

Only, he didn't really know who 'them' was.

"Hey, dear," he says to me, "What is our power company called?"

"Uh, I don't know. It's on the statements....Oh, but they're all emailed to me. Paperless. Or I could look on the online billing, if the power would come on..."

So, he names them all from the Yellow Pages. And I pick one. And he calls them. And they were very nice, but they were our gas company, and not our power company, and they didn't know why our power was out. (Duh.)

So, he tries another. And another. And, the third time is the charm. They knew us, and they knew why our power was out. There was an accident, and the power would be restored just as soon as they could get to it. It should only be a few hours.

I was sitting there thinking, 'How in the world do I not know who I pay loads of money to so that my lights and computer will turn on?!' In my defense, (and I know it's a weak one) the bill is paid automatically every month. I never write the name or do much more than check that the money was sent. And, our company is a subsidiary of the larger company in the phone book that I had never heard of. So, maybe it's okay that I am so lame?

Maybe. But probably not.

At least I'm not the one that made the phone calls to random power companies just for fun. That would have been really lame.

(Love ya, dearest!) :)

Busy Veterans Day

Today is Veterans Day. I cannot believe it has been a year since the last one. That was a crazy day. Today will be a busy day, too.

For lunch, I will be joining Cinderella. It's not very often your Middle School-er asks you to come have lunch with her. And, even though I know it's mostly because if I am there, she can go to the book fair sale, I'm excited to join her. I've promised to buy her The Hunger Games, so I hope they have a copy left.

Sleeping Beauty and Snow White are participating in the Veterans Day program at their school. They are singing with the choir, and with their fifth grade class, and SW has the same solo she did last year, the Marine Corps song. They are excited, and I look forward to being there with them. It's always an impressive program, and their (former) teacher, Mrs. S, works so hard on it. She's fabulous. It is a nice way to remember all those who have and are serving us by serving their country. Thanks Veterans!!

Then, tonight is Young Women in Excellence. I get to take a couple of minutes to talk about the work Cinderella has done this year on her Personal Progress, and, while it's nice to be given a couple of minutes to brag about my daughter, it's very hard to sum up in a couple of minutes what a wonderful girl she is. She has worked very hard this year, and has passed off one of her values, and is well on her way to pass off a second. She has some great YW leaders and loves being in the Young Women Program.

So, I must sign off and actually take a shower. Yes, it is only 11:00 in the morning. I start moving early on some days. :)

A Plea to the (Un)Helpers Everywhere

I would just like to say that if you work in a medical office, you should try to be helpful. Just try.

If, for instance, someone wants their medical information for insurance purposes, maybe you should give it to them. Even if your "unwritten" policy is to not "re-release" records released to you from another doctor. If that doctor now RESIDES IN INDIA, and his office is NO LONGER OPEN, maybe you ought to think about just releasing that information. Don't try to be helpful and suggest that the patient contact the office that IS NOT OPEN, and the doctor that LIVES IN INDIA, to get said records. Try to be helpful and just use the copy machine already. Or let the patient do it. She knows how to work a copy machine. And it is her information anyway, right?

All this is hypothetical, of course. I'm sure if you really do work in a medical office, you are way more helpful than the people that work in my chronically unhelpful office. This is the last straw. I will have a new Primary Physician by tomorrow.

On a happier note, it is going to be seventy degrees here, and since my Vitamin D was a little low on the medical information they would release to me, I think I will go lie naked in the sun.

(Just kidding. Erase your mind of horrible image. Sorry about that.)

But it will be warm. And I am happy about that.

What's Up

I apologize for my scarcity in the blog arena this past week--we've had a few busy days. And, when I have busy days, I have to use my "good" hours wisely. Blogging just hasn't been in the cards lately.

We had a fun, crazy Halloween, almost like this one, but with a mouse, a witch, and a marathon runner. I can assure you they were cute, but cannot show you, as King reconfigured the computer that was painfully slow, and we haven't put the pictures back on yet.

I was really, really good at doing my diet through October. Really, I never cheated. There was absolutely no difference in the frequency or severity of my headaches, so I slowly introduced new things. Still the same. So, the diet is over. The good news: I now know it's not food that is doing this to me. Also, I lost five pounds, which we all know pretty much means that the only difference is that my bra is looser. But, it still was nice to knock off a bit of that irritating medication-induced weight gain.

Also, yesterday I found out that my insurance denied Botox for treating my incessant migraines. They won't pay for it. Now, we have the fortunate opportunity to start an appeal process and maybe even file civil action. Yee-haw!! Won't that be fun?

Today I went on a field trip with the twinners. We went to the Art Museum and the Archeology Department at the University. Very informative and the kids had a good time. I managed to survive the chaos of lunch in the atrium, but will now head off to take a nap so I can make it to our evening activities.

Here's hoping it's not another week before I get to blogging again. I'm sure I have more to tell you, but I can't really think of any of it now...

Elbow Room

I think it would be great fun to have a twin. It's like having a built-in best friend with you all the time. Someone who knows you almost as much as you know yourself. And someone who knows you better than your mom. That's what my twins claim, and they just might be right. Sleeping Beauty is forever changing the food she likes, and I think Snow White is the only one that can remember what her preferences are in a certain week. I'm not sure if it's telepathy, or some secret signal they've got figured out, but it sure is cute.

SB and SW go through phases where they are nearly attached at the hip. They are going through one of those phases lately. I snapped these pictures of them working on their homework together a couple of weeks ago. I don't know how they could concentrate or have enough room to work, but they manage. I figure they will outgrow it sometime, and I'll have to remind them how much they could get done with an extra appendage. They'll be mothers one day, and I'm pretty sure it will be reassuring to know that mothering a newborn is not their first time doing things with someone attached to their hip.

Dressing on the Side

I love pajama day at school. No fighting about clothes. No worrying if clothes are wrinkled. No fuss. No guilt that you let your kids go to sleep in the clothes they will wear to school the next day. (Not that I've ever done that or anything. Because that would just be lazy and irresponsible. Wouldn't it? Who cares if it cuts down on laundry and lets you sleep in a few minutes longer? It's just gross. And totally uncivilized. And one of those things that becomes insignificant when your standard of living is measured by good migraine and bad migraine days. That's what I've heard, anyway.)

*clears throat*

Breakfast in Bed

Last weekend, King and I celebrated our 16th wedding anniversary. I planned to write a long post about how wonderful King is, but, unfortunately he had planned a weekend away for us, so I ran out of time. But, with that little bit of information, now you know he is fabulous, so I won't write that post. How about one that shows you where we went?

King and I began our weekend at the temple. It was wonderful. (If you have no idea why we would do this, watch this short video here or here.) We then had a leisurely dinner where we did not discuss algebra, school lunch menus, the importance of showering for personal hygiene, or why brushing your teeth thoroughly while wearing thousands of dollars of metal gear is a very good idea. It was fabulous.

Then, King had arranged for us to stay at a charming Victorian Bed and Breakfast. (My parents would have loved it. And Aunt Della.) It was a nice, relaxing stay. A fun little place. We did a bit of shopping the next morning, and made it home in time to watch the BYU game (of course). And, thanks to our good friends Connie and Brad, we came home to a spotless house and cheerful children. Can't beat that!

Incognito

--adjective
1. having one's identity concealed, as under an assumed name, esp. to avoid formal attentions.

Sometimes I wish I were a little more incognito. Sure, there are a handful of you that have no idea what my real name is. But, most of you know me. And, sometimes, I wish you didn't.

...That came out wrong. I am very glad I know you. It is an honor to know you and to be your friend. In fact, you must be pretty special if I directed you to this place where I write my deep, dark secrets (oooooh, creepy). Unless, of course, you just found me through someone else's blog, in which case you really are not invited, so why are you here? (I'm kidding, of course. You are welcome to stay.)

But, what I really mean is that sometimes it might be nice if I had not told anyone in my family that I keep this blog. Then I could write what I really think about my family without anyone knowing or caring. Maybe things like: when I grow up I want to be able to play the piano like my brother-in-law(not you, Mike) or love to cook like my aunt Denise (yes, you , Denise). And no one would care. But, now, since I typed that and I know that Mike can read this blog, and Denise does read this blog, I worry that Mike will be offended that I don't want to play like him (mostly because he can't play the piano), and that Denise might be offended that I didn't expound on the abundance of her cooking skills and delicious dishes, or that maybe any other aunt of mine will wonder why I did not mention her delicious pasta salad or hot dog casserole recipe. And then it just seems easier to leave family out of it. Which is hard, because they are all a part of me.

Then other times, I wish that I did not tell anyone that I ever have daily or weekly contact with that I have this blog. Because then I could tell you all about the time that I went to church and felt so lousy that I did not want to talk to anyone and this is the day that everyone decided to talk to me. And, why can't people just leave me alone? (I don't think this really happened. But it could have. Maybe it did. Probably not.) But then, I now think that everyone who read that will second guess themselves when they go to talk to me at church next time, because, what if I am as grouchy as I was that week last month (if that ever happened) and I just want them to leave me alone instead of talk to me or even look at me? (I won't be. So, don't worry. Just go about your normal church business.) But, now they wonder. See?

So, I sometimes wish I was anonymous to all. Incognito. Invisible. In disguise. But then, I would have about one blog reader. (Which may not be so bad if I write posts like this, right?)

A Repeat of The Luncheon

Today I woke up without a headache. Miracle of miracles. Of course, I have one now, but just waking up without one can make the day seem so much better. So, since I was feeling not-so-bad, I actually checked the calendar to see if there was anything I should be doing. And there is: "Make dessert for teacher luncheon". So now I've been worrying about what to make for the last four hours. It should be the perfect dessert because the teachers work so hard, and we so appreciate them. Now, hours later, and feeling not-so-great, I'm wondering why I do things like this. I could have made some boring brownies four times by now. I do stuff like this to myself all of the time. As evidence, here is my post from almost exactly one year ago today-----(At least I had the sense to not be in charge this time!)-----

The Luncheon

I'm such a dork. Not that this is news to 98% of you reading this blog. To the other 2%, I'm sorry to disappoint you. You should have read my other posts, and then you'd already know.

Today was Parent/Teacher Conference day, which is a day I generally enjoy. I like being told that my girls are wonderful, obedient, delightful, caring, smart students. It sort of makes me feel like I've done something right, which I don't usually think when I am at home with their fighting and talking back. I don't think that makes me a dork, though. Everyone likes to be told they are great. If you don't think so, then you are a dork. :)

Because it was P/T Conference, and because I am an upstanding member of the PTO, I agreed (foolishly) to be in charge of the Teacher Luncheon. I was told to plan for about thirty. I called many willing and cheerful volunteers to bring food. Then, yesterday, I found out that there would only be twenty teachers there. No problem. Too much food is better than not enough food, right? That's what I told my sister on the phone this morning.

After setting up the teacher's lounge, I ran home to make a little cheerful sign to put by the centerpiece on the luncheon table. I spent way too long on it. Not because it was fancy or long, but, because I couldn't figure out if 'You are what makes our school the best!' or 'You are what make our school the best!' was the proper way to say my measly message. It depends on how one views the word you. Is it 'you' as a whole, or each one of 'you'? I really worried for so long about it--and all for teachers who say things like 'Your homework needs done before you color your pumpkin picture.' Really. (Not my kids' teachers this year--but they've had some.) And they don't know that it is horrible grammar, because they grew up here and everyone says it.

Well, I finally went with the suggestion of my computer and said 'make', but not after way too much thought over something that was probably not even noticed in their ravenous romp through the food line. I felt like a bigger dork when my sister called and said, "Well, if you had just said 'You make our school the best!' then it would have been a non-issue." Yes, true. I'd like to blame my brain freeze on my horrible headache, but the truth is, things like this happen way too often. I'm just a dork.

Apparently, though, I'm not the only one. You see, it's a good thing that I planned for thirty people, because half of the people who were very willing to bring food, either forgot, or had terrible P/T conferences and decided against contributing. And, imagine my horror when one of the desserts someone brought was a package of dollar store fake Oreos. Yes, teachers, we appreciate you enough to give you disgusting cookies and signs with questionable grammar. I do hope that they realize that my position on the PTO is a voluntary one. Regardless, they might decide that the PTO 'needs reorganized.'

(Not So) Fabulous Pictures

Has it really been almost a week since I last posted? Wow. I guess it's been a pretty rough week around here. Not really anything out of the ordinary--just had some bad headache days. Hmm...what else?

Snow White has been home sick with a fever for two days. She woke me up in the night because she was worried that if she has the Swine Flu she ought to tell me. :) I have no idea if she has it, but she is running a fever and has a cough and cold. It's pretty mild. We're just hoping no one else gets it. I'm afraid it may be just a matter of time, though.

Saturday I "fell off the wagon", so to speak. I took Excedrin, and it had been a really long time since I had any. Is it really falling off the wagon if you plan on jumping off? Maybe not. I decided ahead to take some medicine so that I could make it to a corn maze/hayride church activity with my family. We had a good time, and could have had some really fabulous pictures, had I remembered the camera. Grrrr--I hate when I do that. This time the activity was with a bunch of college-aged kids, so I didn't even have a fellow parent friend or a nice 4th grade teacher to back me up. Trust me, though--the leaves were gorgeous, and the girls were adorable.

The Excedrin was able to take the edge off so that I could have some fun, and it was nice to be out of the house doing something with the family and not wishing I were in a dark room instead. The girls loved the hayride, and getting lost in the corn maze was pretty great, too. The S'mores and hot chocolate were their favorite things. I can't think of anything better to do on a balmy (ha-it was 40 degrees!) fall evening. It was perfect, (except for it being like winter outside).

Also this week, the girls spent a considerable amount of time doing a picture-by-picture movie that included this picture:King wouldn't help them set the movie to music, as hit-and-runs are against the law. I guess I'm glad that he cared more about the law and principle than their creative processes. I'm not sure if it was bad judgment or a really bad migraine that made me think the picture video they created was pretty darn funny. Good thing King is here to keep us all in check. What would we do without that guy?

I Just Love Shopping

I went shopping with Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty for a few minutes last night. Well, it was supposed to be for a few minutes. It took forever. And we didn't even buy anything.

Somehow, I have no idea how to even guess what an acceptable hoodie looks like. Aren't they all pretty much the same? I would find one that looked exactly like what Cinderella would like, and she found something wrong with it. Something wrong with every. single. one. at the mall. What was wrong with them? Well...

• too blue
• sleeves too puffy
• too biggish
• sleeves too tight
• sleeves too long
• too gray
• not blue enough
• too short
• ugly zipper
• too girly
• weird zipper pull thing
• looks like a boy
• too soft
• looks too shiny
• hood is huge
• just really ugly

I had no idea they were really all that different. And I have no idea how we will ever find one that is acceptable. The good news is she needs shoes, too. Can't wait to see how that trip goes.

On a totally different note, don't you think it would be fun to spend a few hours with my darling girls? Call me if you'd like to take them somewhere. Maybe the mall or Payless Shoes or something? It could be really fun for you. First come, first serve. Better move quickly. :)

What Did They Say?

Snow White and Sleeping Beauty were telling me all about their field trip to the zoo. They told me about going into a building and hearing a racket in the other room.

"The parents were all in there, but we couldn't see them yet, we could just hear them being so loud," said Sleeping Beauty.

"Yeah, one of them was singing, 'La,la la, la, LAA' really loud," said Snow White.

"Why were they all in there, in that room? Where?" I asked.

"Who knows? That's just where they were, in this one building. I have no idea why they were all in just one room. We could hear them right when we stepped in," explained Sleeping Beauty.

"Hmm, weird. Were your chaperons with you, or were they in that room?" I wondered.

"One was in the loud room, and I think one was by me. Or maybe they were both in there. I don't know. We all just kind of went in there. It was so loud. You wouldn't believe all the crazy stuff they were saying, Mom!" said SW.

"Like what?" I ask. At this point I'm thinking, 'When was this? Why would all of the parents be in one room, instead of with the kids? What in the world were they doing? What was happening? Strange.'

Sleeping Beauty tried to remember, "One of them was singing really loud, 'Lalalalalala', and another one was saying, 'What you got there?' super loud, and I can't remember what all of them were saying. It was too loud to tell."

And I'm thinking, 'I guess sleeping on a cement floor could do strange things to you...but singing? What?'"Well, why were all of the parents in a different room from you? Was it before breakfast, or what?" I wondered.

"What?" exclaimed Snow White, "Not parents, Mom......Parrots. There was a room full of parrots singing and talking. Sheesh, Mom!"

Oh, well, okay. That does make a bit more sense.

Rock-A-Bye

Steph, over at Diapers and Divinity, is hosting a poetry contest of sorts this week. Well, actually last week. I meant to write this post about five days ago; it just hasn't been that kind of week. So, I suppose you probably have a few hours to enter, but you can definitely vote next week when Steph picks the finalists. I was lucky enough to win this fabulous button with a previous entry, which I explained a little here.I suppose I will let it sit on my sidebar for a while, since there are not that many chances for me to bask in glory. :)

Anyway, since the contest this time is for a lullaby, and my girls have outgrown lullabies, I decided to set to "Rock-a-bye Baby" the words I say nearly every night to my girls. (If the singing has desirable effects, I am making 'practice your piano' and 'do your homework' verses.)

Rock-a-bye, ladies,
It’s time to stop
Whispering and giggling;
This is your last shot.
If I hear you later,
The other shoe falls,
And you’ll sleep in the pantry-
Cement floor and all!

Adventures in the Rain

I picked Snow White and Sleeping Beauty up at school today. They were exhausted, hungry, wound up, and talking non-stop. And, you would have been,too, if you had, in the past two days, walked about eight miles (in the rain), visited a museum, a stadium, and an historic downtown, slept at the zoo on industrial carpeted cement floor(in the dolphin dome building, no less!), with one hundred other nine- and ten-year-olds. (Okay, so really it's the teachers who were truly exhausted. Bless their souls!)

I was sad to not go this year. When Cinderella went on the same field trip two years ago, I joined the other out-of-their-minds chaperons and slept for roughly seven minutes at the zoo. And, I had a great time. Truly. The kids were great, the trip was fun, and I loved watching Cinderella learn and have so much fun with her friends. This year, I knew that I just could not make it without intravenous Excedrin, so I opted to stay home and send the girls with competent, undrugged chaperons and our old digital camera.

They had a fabulous time. They told me all about it; who said what and where their favorite things were. Their favorite animals to visit were the sharks they could pet. They didn't have to tell me, though, I just knew. Probably because I'm their mom, and I just know that kind of stuff. Oh, and this sort of tipped me off:Roughly 18% of their pictures were of the sharks. And five more were of the signs in the shark room. They also enjoyed the "cute sleeping polar bear who was the cutest thing ever" (they went on like that for a minute, but I'll spare you) and the penguins, as well as other interesting museum exhibits. Snow White even snapped a few "just rainy day pictures."
I am so glad they had a great time. And, equally glad that no one floated away or drowned in the torrential rain.

It was strange and quiet here with just Cinderella, King, and me. We went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse, just to do something different with Cinderella. (And, different it was--have you ever tried to eat out on a gluten-free diet? We'll just say it was interesting, and different. Not bad. Just slow and unseasoned, which was fine, considering it wasn't brown rice and broccoli. I was very happy. Anyway, I'm off on a tangent. Now where were we?...) By this afternoon, I think even Cinderella was happy to have her sisters back with us. I think they were glad to be home, too. So glad, that it took almost an hour after they got home for them to find something to argue about. And if that wasn't a blessing that made the whole trip worth it, I don't know what is. Maybe we should send them somewhere else to sleep once a week...

Wordless Wednesday: Twins

Meeting our friends' twins: Snow White with Twin A and Sleeping Beauty with Twin B. Adorable. Sweet. Tiny. Yummy.

Can't Quite Recall

Book Group was at my house last night. Gratefully, I have a fabulous friend who helped me get my house visitor ready so that I could take a nap in the afternoon and actually make it to the Book Group. Which, of course, was kind of important, since it was at my house. I think, though, that my nap should have been a little bit longer...

We were discussing the book we had read, which was about a village in England that isolated themselves during the Plague of 1665. I commented that it sort of reminded me of the creepy movie that was about a village where they didn't want anyone to leave the village, so they had this way to keep people in the village. But, I couldn't remember the name of the movie, about this village.

That's when K said, "Uh, do you mean the movie, The Village?"

Um, yeah. That's what I mean. It has such a tricky name to recall, I don't know how anyone would remember. Duh. :) I'm going with the whole "traumatized by discovering I have a teenager now" excuse, since I was feeling pretty fine at the time. There has to be some logical excuse. Perhaps going off the memory drug that didn't help my headaches and made me crazy should be reconsidered...

Spy Tips #357 and #358

IF you are eating mostly brown rice and you get tired of seasoning it only with salt and maybe a little herbs and butter and IF you decide to go with some brown sugar and cinnamon on your rice for your breakfast, I am telling you now, you should probably not use some of the rice that you steamed at the same time you steamed broccoli. Broccoli and brown sugar really do not mix.

I just thought you should know.

Also, IF you use body wash to wash your hair, it does not really work the same as shampoo. Ask Snow White. I am sure she would be happy to tell you all about it. (Okay, so happy is stretching it, but the extra shower she got is testament enough, I think.)

So, now you know.

It's Official

I am officially the mom of a teenager, and thereby, know absolutely nothing--including how to pick out clothes for myself and my daughters, what to say when tears are flowing, and when it is appropriate to ask how one's day was or ignore one's very existence. The good news is, I hear this is temporary. In about seven to nine years, I will become mostly human again. That's nice.

Cinderella had a great celebration day. She was absolutely thrilled with each and every gift. (Thanks to all!) And, I'm guessing the turkey dinner she requested went over well since she decided she was so full after dinner, she needed to have her ice cream cake the next day.

{Happy Birthday Cinderella! We love you more than words and are so grateful you are a part of our family.}