The Drapers

Home Alone

2011-10-17T17:31:00.000-07:00

What can happen in 2 weeks your husband is gone... I get sick (I'm pretty sure it was food poisoning), get to go to a great leadership training meeting, go to parent teacher conference (good marks for Josh...working hard on socializing with kids & he doesn't really like his speech therapist...I guess he gives her the evil eye), Josh colors on our carpet with a highlighter, forget to avoid I-35 & the construction mess, James screams the whole way home, Josh throws up at school (he is not sick-must be upset stomach-but he must stay home anyway because of school rules)

Gardner Ward 2011 Craft Day

2011-09-16T14:35:00.000-07:00

Details:
Craft Sign up & money due by: Sept 25

Craft Day Info:
Oct 22
9am-1pm
Conestoga Club House (1199 E Santa Fe St Gardner)
We will have lunch at 12pm (signups will come around closer to craft day)
Please bring glue guns & glue sticks, scissors, fabric, old rag and any other colors not listed that you may want for your crafts

Headbands & Rosettes

- Free - Limit 3 per person
**If you have fabric you are willing to donate for headbands, please bring it and place in box by headband samples

Quiet Book-

$5 with cover
$3 without

Watch-Bracelet-

$5.50 watch face
$4.50 for each double-stranded watchband (colors available: black, white, silver, brown & multicolors)- **if you have your own beads, bring them & just get a watch face

PVC Pipe Mirrors-spray paint colors available: black, white, brown & silver

$3 for small
$7 for large (not shown in picture 1st picture)

Glitter Trees- $15 for set of three (colors available: red, blue, green, silver, white,gold, ice blue, ice green, purple)

Christmas Subway Art (shown with glitter trees) - printout ONLY-does not include frame

$6 for 16 by 20 in
$4 for 11 by 14 in
$3 for 8 by 10in

Ornament- $2 each-(includes clear ball, red beads & vinyl lettering "JOY")

Ready For School

2011-07-29T15:11:00.000-07:00

Josh and I are ready for him to go back to school. He is excited to have the same teacher this year, Mrs. Sara. School has really helped him. This summer I have tried to keep him entertained and learning but I'm not very good at it. We have gone swimming, played with James, Jazzercised, read books, & played video games. We even have had preschool once a week with one of Josh's friends. We would rotate each week and teach by topic using the library's 6 by 6 packets. By the end of the summer, we will also finish reading Charlie & the Chocolate Factory & to celebrate, we will have a Wonka party and watch the movie that I checked out from my parents. I finally updated our pictures of Josh that his preschool teacher gave us so here are some of the cute ones in celebration of school starting again.

Shoes

2011-07-29T11:09:00.000-07:00

I have been very slowly reorganizing my house. Basically when we moved in, I was still living with apartment mentality. The old ways of my organizing did not really accommodate my growing family and bigger house so that just equalled my clutter taking over. I have been throwing out, throwing things in the basement & organizing the rest. So far I love the way my towel closet looks & my entry way closet (although it could use some nails to hang the broom). Yesterday I started on our bedroom. Its going to take some time & money for it to get to what I want it to look like, but I started the process. In going through some of our closet, I realized that since I have been married (8 years in Aug), I have never bought myself a pair of shoes. I have gotten 2 pairs from my birthday from my mother-in-law & I got one pair from a hand-me down from my sister but I have not bought a single pair myself. Some of my shoes are looking pretty sad now. At least if I buy a pricey pair of shoes, I won't feel bad right. I make my shoes last so it will be worth the price for a good pair. Now in my head I can at least think of at least 7 pairs of shoes we have bought for Jason since we have been married...I thought girls were the ones that bought the shoes.

Photo Opp of My Boys!

2011-05-23T21:42:00.002-07:00

So Mom was bored & the kids humored me by letting me take photos of course they wouldn't both have smiles on in the same photo...

Happy 4th Birthday Josh

2011-05-23T21:42:00.001-07:00

Josh Celebrated his 4th Birthday this year. When asked how old he was, he said 100.

Here he is opening his gifts...he got clothes, a puzzle, bubbles & a soccer ball.

We went to Chuck-e-Cheeses to celebrate & ride the rides.
I talked to Josh about making a turtle cake a month before his birthday and he really wanted it for his birthday. I thought he forgot about it so I got lazy & thought I could just get by with frosting & sprinkles on cupcakes. The first thing he says when he woke up on his Birthday was..."Where's my turtle cake"... So off to the store I went to get green food coloring and I was able to make his turtle cake and bring it into his preschool class during snack time. He really liked it and all the kids thought they were cool.

The Wonderful World of James in Video

2011-05-23T19:15:00.000-07:00

So Here is a video of my dear James..it took me a while to get it loaded. I only could get one to work. If I get the other ones to work, I will add them...(this has been sitting since May and now it is almost August)

1. Was going to capture him eating his first baby Cheetos but he had problems & kept dropping them so it wasn't very camera worthy until I guess he got bored and started doing this... (May 10,2011)

2. I wanted to capture my happy boy. He only cries over wanting milk, tiredness, now teething & if he gets stuck while rolling around. Most of the time he is very friendly & happy. Mom can usually get him to laugh (dad gets jealous of the smiles I get.). (May 16, 2011)

3. Pic-a-Boo is his favorite game. Although I get scared that he will play it when I'm not around li

So I must have thought I recorded this, but I never did. One clip it looked like I was going to but then Josh got in trouble and so the recorder got turned off. Oh, well to late now.

4. He started laughing at himself in the mirror (May 11, 2011)

Potty Training Woes

2011-04-20T15:18:00.000-07:00

So I'm still potty training Josh. Bought another box of pull ups :( Don't know what to do with the boy. In public now, he loves to pee. 3 hour church went 4 times. Thought it was a fluke because he had a lot to drink before church. Today got a call from the teacher saying he peed 4 times while at school which is about 3 hours. At Costco, we peed when we got there and half way through he was like "my peepee is coming" really loud. So then I felt like a bad mother saying no you don't need to pee. You need to hold it till we get home. He still wouldn't drop it and was being loud so I lied and said that the toilets were broken and we would have to pee at home. We are now at home. Guess who doesn't NEED to pee. At home he never pees that much. I think he just does it because he is bored or something. At least he doesn't have accidents that way, but I never know when he really needs to go. Poop on the other hand is horrible. He will hold that in and keep getting little poops on his pants until he decides he can't hold it in anymore...usually all of this is done in the underwear...hence why we have pull ups. He doesn't care if it is a pull up or underwear. I do. He also likes to poop outside. Maybe I need to redecorate the bathroom with a tree and some grass. He can tell me where we need to poop but just doesn't DO it where he knows he should...the toilet

Budgeting

2011-03-13T08:17:00.000-07:00

So Jason & I have never been very good on a budget. It seems like we talk about and then I feel like I'm the only one striving to be frugal as I order a water and the chicken when we go out and he gets a coke and a steak and other things like that...I then get frustrated he gets frustrated and its not happy times. Our try at budgeting this time is looking bright. We are using mint.com. It will email you weekly on how you are doing with the budget or if you go over it lets you know. For Jason that is really good since I'm the one that does finances and he can't see it all the time. We are also taking a look at all our bills-phone, internet, and insurance & making sure we are getting good deals. Our goal is to save a little each month-right that's the whole point of budgeting. It is pretty tight budget with not a lot of extra, but most of our "extra" money comes at the end of the year with his bonus. I'm excited, hopefully we can get better at living by a budget. I'm having a pretty hard time with food prices rising, Jason on a diet, diapers & formula and the list goes on. I thought this would be easy for me and hard for him. I think it might be harder on me :)

More Josh Funnies & James Update

2011-01-19T08:44:00.000-08:00

Josh-

Went to GM & GP Guernsey's house. Everyone else was talking so I was the only one to witness such a manly comment. Josh goes mommy, points to the TV and says "look mommy its smaller". Their TV is a good size. I would classify it as big...it is just not as big a daddy's TV but the furniture set up is the same so it is easy to compare and see that it is smaller. :)
He is way into video games. It is so much fun to hear him explain what happened in the video game. He gets so excited and uses his arms to tell you what happened. Sometimes it takes me a couple of minutes to realize we are talking about video games and then it makes sense what he is saying.
We are back to watching Scooby Doo and in doing so I remember how tender Josh's heart is as he starts crying at "intense" parts. Then as we have watched a couple, I have talked to him about why he is crying, it has become quite clear that he is the son of an engineer. He cries not because the characters are in trouble or it's scary...he cries because buildings or bridges are being broken.

James -

He smiles
He coos
He spits up a lot
Right now he sounds awful-congested & coughing-I wish he could blow his nose-the nose sucker just can't get it all.
He loves working out aka mom moving his legs & feet

James William Draper

2010-11-13T13:28:00.001-08:00

Little James... He loves his fingers

Before James

The Boys meet for the 1st time

Mom & James snuggling

Dad & James Hanging Out watching Bond, James Bond

He is finally here! James William was born Nov 4, 2010. He was 8lbs 9oz & 20in long. It was a little scary for me since he was breech & they decided it was in the best interest of everyone to do a C-section at my Wednesday appointment. So then we set up a C-section for the next day. Good bye chipotle burritos, A1, sauce & fondue cravings. Hello he is finally going to be here. It happened all so quickly. I'm still not sure what to think of it all & I'm still recovering. I think the worst part of the whole C-section thing is not being able to function for so long because you are recovering from surgery. Holding your baby is even hard sometimes.

My thoughts on my C-section... I really loved the anesthesiologist. He had a nice soothing voice (reminded me of a loving bishop voice) He helped calm me down and talk me through everything. There was also a nurse in training there. she was cool. When they were giving me my epidural, I was leaning into the nurse so they could poke me. I was so nervous on verge of tears and she took my hand. At first I thought it was Jason until I realized it was the nurse in training (they let Jason in after the epidural). That was really nice of her & I really needed it. Poor girl though, she had to leave because she was getting nausua during the procedure. So overall the C-section was ok. It was great to see & hear my baby cry, but I really couldn't hold him for awhile. When we got back to the room, my spinal had worn off & they didn't have my pain killers to run through the epidural line yet. I was in pain so until that died down, I really didn't have a desire to hold him.

Recovery - The worst part was the day after the c-section (Jason went home to sleep & be with Josh), I had a totally sucky nurse and guess what I got her again the next day. She just wasn't very punctual ...15-30 min after I push the freaking button. I was in tears. Good thing I wasn't dying, but she was starving my baby since I couldn't get up to feed him...don't get me started on her. She tried making it up the next day. Still her bedside manner sucked. So after being all emotionally ticked about being neglected then we go through a roller coaster about our son's kidney's heart & at one point his liver & all of this after a sono was done & after my doctor said everything was fine. I guess the doctor on call from my pediatrian's office didn't know there was a sono of Jamse & only saw the sono of him when he was inside of me which showed water around his kidneys. She ordered x-ray and thought the heart looked big and so did the liver so they took another one and had a specialist come in. The specialist seemed very competent that everything was ok & now I know which pediatrician in the practice I will never go to. I don't tell it very well, but it was almost like this pediatrician was on a witch hunt to find something wrong.

On the flip side. I loved my night shift nurses. They are the best. I had one 2 nights in a row. That was cool. She took really cute picture of James. So far, it has been super nice to have my mom, sister in law, & mother in law close by. They have been a big help with Josh & help around my house as I recover. I'm also greatful for all the meals church friends brought by. Recovery after a c-section is a lot harder because you can't funtion like normal...you can't walk very well, lift anything, or drive. You hurt & you are tired all the time on top of it all. Next time I hear someone is having a C-section, I'm going to help them out as much as possible. Especially if they don't have family near by.

Josh Funnies

2010-10-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

If he sees adults out of context. He gives them weird looks and runs away or total ignores them...Example: my friend from church (who Josh has seen at our house several times) is a substitute teacher and she was his sub for gym. The gym teacher also is the crossing guard at the start of the day. She waves and says good morning he turns and runs the other way and I have to talk him into going into the school building. During gym, he just ignored her. Another example we were at the grocery store. He sees one of the paras from his classroom. Gives her a shy smile and runs down the isle in the opposite direction
Cooking time in preschool, they brought in an old fashion popcorn cooker. They were trying to get the kids to say what we do 1st, 2nd last. Josh blurts out put it in the microwave. We don't even eat very much microwave popcorn :)

Super Saturday Crafts

2010-08-30T09:36:00.000-07:00

Overview of Crafts

Placemat Bag

You buy 1 placemat that will suit you for a bag and 48 in of ribbon or webby for handles

no cost

Paper baskets

Necklace or bracelet

(with contrasting beads) pink, black, white, tan

Kids Temple Board

(pink, purple, blue or green)

Chad Hawkins Picture of Temple 11x13-list of temples with order form

Table Overview

Left: Board with Silver Temple "Where Families become forever"

Temples available: all UT temples, SanDiego, Spokane, & Idaho Falls)

Right: Family Proclamation Board

Tile Necklace (mixed papers or bring your own) - no chain included

Left: Tshirt with flower embellishment

Right: Baked Potato Bag (various material to choose from on SS)

Tshirt with flower embellishment, sizes Child or Adult in small, medium, & Large)

(Colors-red, white, black, pink, purple, green, blue)

You may bring your own tshirt

2short sleeve of 1 long sleeve ( we will cut them up)

Left: Christmas Stocking

Right: O Holy Night Brick & color choices

Christmas Stocking

O Holy Night Brick with or without light

Color options for O Holy Night Craft (sorry not very picture)

Clothespins with buttons (Christmas, child, baby, birthday) (hang cards, banners, etc, or use as a decoration) 7 per kit

Vacation 2010

2010-08-24T16:14:00.000-07:00

We took a vacation this summer and travelled by car through the openness of KS, the mountains of CO to the oh more mountains of UT. When people ask what did family's do before we had DVD players in cars...Josh's answer would be stickers. That kept him busy for most of the drive. Our first stop on our adventure was Salina. Time to eat. We ate at this little diner not one to write home about but we did meet Floyd. This very friendly guy talking to people at the restaurant. He gave Josh (his parents) a couple of dollars for ice cream. He was quite the character. We went and spent it at Braums. Yummy ice cream.

The next Stop was Denver, CO. We had fun just hanging out and relaxing at the hotel. One day we went to the aquarium, a park, and shopping. The next day we went to the children's museum and the park.

Then we moved on to Vail, CO where we just enjoyed the mountain air at a park. Do you see a trend starting. Josh loves outside.

The next day we arrived in UT and made camp at my brother's house where we did numerous and exciting things such as:

Hung out at the Guernsey's House
Eat breadsticks and Pizza Factory (twice, yummy)
Played the Wii every morning (good thing Calvin knows how to turn it on for Josh)
I read a book, Jason got hooked on watching Burn Notice and playing plants vs Zombies, and Josh loved the Wii-both Uncle Quentin and Uncle Brandon have one
Went to a park
Visited GM & GP Draper
Visited Uncle Brandon
Aunt Heather came & visited us
Ate at my favorite Brazilian restaurant Taconos
Went to Salt Lake City: Saw the LDS conference center (It has the best waterfall ever if you ask Josh), Listened to a tabernacle organ concert (I was impressed that Josh sat still for 30 minutes and for the most part listened. He did have to tell me when the lights changed color), and Looked at the Salt Lake Temple
Entered IKEA for the first time. I wish we had one close by & wish that Josh didn't have a melt down about sharing the elevator with people.

Adjusting to School

2010-04-21T15:34:00.000-07:00

Well Josh is liking school. I hear he plays well with the other kids and he is getting adjusted to the school setting and participation more. He looks like such a small guy compared to those in his class. I guess it is because most of them are 4 and Josh isn't even 3 yet. After school he used to bolt for the exits and ask for the park ten times so it was hard to talk to his teacher. I guess his attention span was all used up. Now after school, he wants to go to the music room or the gym. He points to them and says, this way. I told him we couldn't and we needed to go home and he told me no. He gave up and said it was ok to go to the store though so we went to the store instead.

I Wasn't Going To Be That Mom

2010-04-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

I was so excited for Josh to start school today. We packed his backpack last night, we got up early this morning, and we were ready to go. You would think it was my first day of school I was so excited. So after we got there, we walked to his new classroom with his teacher and hung up his bag and picked out a toy. I told him goodbye and he said bye bye and was going to leave with me so of course there was that "separation upset." No big deal right...he does it a Jazzercise and church nursery and he is fine in less then 2 minutes, but then it hit me he is going to school and getting so big. Yes I got a little teary eyed. This is the first time I'm leaving him with someone unrelated to him where I won't be in the same building. Big steps for mom. I didn't think I was "that type of mom" that gets all emotional about things like this. Maybe I will blame it on hormones. Anyway I'm fine now. After dropping him off, I went to babysit Jazzercise today and it really felt like I forgot him at home... Although today was definitely the day where, he was better off at school than in that Jazzercise room. There was a newer kid/baby that cried half the time. After Jazzercise babysitting, I came home to a nice message from Josh's teacher, that he was doing great and he was fine a few minutes after I left. Well I better go get something done before it is time to pick him up.

A Jewel of Thought

2010-04-05T21:25:00.000-07:00

So I must not have too many Jewels of Thought since I haven't been writing. Life is pretty normal at the moment. As far as my job goes, I'm back on cruise mode of regular payroll stuff. Every now and again I get weird W2 questions or requests to resend it, but those are not hard to deal with and should stop by the 15th. In September I get an increase in work load since a coworker is going to be having a baby. I'm excited that I get to do some of my old jobs like bank reconciliation. Ok so I'm weird, I really enjoy doing that. There is just a joy I get when everything matches up or you solve the problem of why they don't match up. I will probably do some new things too that she will train me before she leaves. I will probably go into the office more just to get things done quicker so I will have to figure out what to do with Josh. Most of the time, I'm sure GM will take him, but depending on how often I need/want to go in I might have someone in either Gardner or Lawrence look after him. My boss said I could do most at home, but then I feel bad for Josh if I'm not giving him time.

In Josh news, he will be graduating infant toddlers when he turns 3. We will miss the weekly visits of Mrs. Nadene. He has made so much progress and I have learned a lot on techniques I can use to help him. He communicates his wants and needs very well now. We are working on expanding his vocab now. His articulation could be better, but that will come as he learns more words and I understand him and that is all the counts at the moment. In May, Josh will be going to Madison elementary 2 times a week to work on his speech and he may qualify later for more of a preschool environment. He is growing up so quickly. I am so proud of him.

In Jen news, I just had a Bday. Celebrated by eating Chipotle and making a cake with Josh. Both were yummy. I got an IPod case and I don't know the name of it, but a media center type hard drive device so that we can digitally put our movies on it and scroll to the one we want to watch. I'm excited. It will be so nice, especially with Josh's shows. They are getting so scratched up that some of them we can't watch any more. I had a nice relaxing Bday. Things I'm looking forward to...fence, vacation in Aug to UT, family reunion at my brother's new house, 4th of July, Josh going to school, Josh's 3rd Bday, 3rd book in Hunger Games Series

Josh Points of interest

2010-02-24T09:58:00.000-08:00

Josh went through mom's diaper bag, had fun with desitine, came upstairs to ask me to open some candy he found in my bag. He got in trouble and I kept asking him do we go through mom's bag? He kept answering yes. I then realized I was asking him the wrong question and he was just telling the truth...yes we went through mom's bag...so I changed my question into 2...Did you go through mom's bag? YES. Are you suppose to go through mom's bag? NO. What a smart kid.
Loves Elmo now. He is starting to drag the elmo doll around
Lives off of CoCo Milk, Gogurt, white cheese (string cheese), and bread (he won't eat PB&J, he just wants the bread)
Helps himself to things in the fridge, but has to open the freezer first in order to open the fridge.
Everytime he sees the pilsbury dough boy he makes the hehe sound.
Loves to bake with mom
Sees a public bathroom and grabs his diaper and says ew, pee popo in toliet. Sometimes he pees but most of the time he just wants to sit on it and flush.
Prayer time- closes his eyes and says mama where are you?
Prayer time- Daddy saying prayer, Josh starts playing with daddy's head, I tell Josh to fold his arms, he tells me to close my eyes.
Plays world of warcraft...asks to play by saying more ooze (one of the things in the game). He has his own character. He is pretty good now at turning his guy around once he runs into a wall.
Computer Genius: knows when the mouse is turned off & will flip it over & turn it on. Can exit programs by moving the mouse and clicking on the X in the corner
Loves to take Orange baths
Still pushes people if they are in his playing space. The other day, he tried pushing a bigger kid...didn't work so much.
Goes to Jazzercise with mom and has to have his dance time afterwards. I have now trained him to dance one song and then we leave without a tantrum.

Growing Up

2009-10-02T12:03:00.000-07:00

My Cutie Pie

Josh's New Room

More new Room!

Well in the past couple of months a lot has happened. In Josh news he is talking a lot more. I probably say that in every post though. He knows his alphabet and his letters pretty well. Sometimes he amazes me and counts all the way to 20. He likes pointing at everyone license plates to tell me the letters and numbers. At Target or Walmart he will count out the numbers of the check outs or when leaving stops on the curb to say the letters printed there such as no parking or fire lane. Even though he is a slow talker the speech therapist said that it is advanced for him to know his letters already so I feel good about that. As far as words go right now my favorites are library and jazzercise. They just sound cute when he says them. The phrase "ride rides" is a bad word in our home. It something Josh does with GM at the mall and he asks for it at least once a day. It just gets annoying because the answer is always no unless GM is coming to take him there. At the end of September I finished painting his new bedroom...I did it all by myself I would like to add... and we got Josh his new toddler bed. The migration was pretty easy. The next day he even put himself down for his own nap. I was amazed. I am still yet amazed that he does not come out of his room until I come and get him or I yell where are you and then he comes out. I have the perfect child. In other family news, Jason is almost done with his thesis...professor says this will be his last semester. It will be nice to say we are finally out of college! and no longer have to pay tuition! As far as my life goes I jazzercise pretty regularly and work is going alright (not stressing about the end of the year yet). I finished my new room for Josh project, but now have to clean up the pile of junk that came from closets that I moved to the unused dining room. I am the queen of clutter and junk. It just seems to appear around me. Lately I have gotten into reading and/or listening to books. Finished Austenland (corny cute & predictable), Hunger Games (loved) , Catching Fire (loved), Twilight series (again-still loved), and 3 books in a series that Suzanne Collins wrote (its more of probably Junior high level book but I like her style of writing). Some of my other hobbies have suffered. I haven't done scrapbooking or cross stitching or played games on the computer (I play WorldOfWarcraft) in awhile.

The Nightly Check

2009-08-18T22:56:00.000-07:00

I have started a check list for myself for each day of the week. It lists what room I will focus on cleaning that day and personal goals like going to Jazzercise or reading my scriptures. There is also a check box each day for the nightly check (the downstairs is free of clutter before bed). My goodness. It works. My house has been clean since Saturday. It is such a nice feeling to wake up to a clean house. Josh does try hard to make it dirty for me, but if you stay on top of things its not that hard. Today was the day for the kitchen. It was already pretty clean. I swept and wiped off counters so then I had time to tackle the refrigerator and the left over experiments that were growing in there from dinners past. I gave it a good wipe down and I feel very accomplished for the day. The rest of they day I watched Cars (Josh's new favorite movie), colored, read The Big Hungry Bear several times, bounced a bouncy ball around the house, and during nap time started working (payroll). It was hard to sit down and get to work, but if I want fun money then I guess I must.

Anyway new things in Josh's life: We leave our shoes by the door. He likes to try them on and walk around in them saying shoe. My favorite shoe he tries on are my sandal like high heals. My new favorite word of the day from Josh is cocoa. I started calling chocolate milk...cocoa milk. I thought it would be easier to say (he doesn't try saying chocolate). Well he says cocoa. It just comes out sounding very demonic because he can't quite get the "Co" sound..it gets caught in his throat. So if you want a laugh and he is around make sure you ask him to say cocoa milk.

NO!

2009-08-14T11:42:00.000-07:00

So Josh is progressing rather well. He babbles a lot now. He loves counting steps (sometimes he will wait and cry if necessary in order for me to hold his hand & count the stairs with him...two is usually the only one I can make out him saying) and picking out letters(sounds) in the alphabet. He is really good at trying to repeat words you say. My favorite phrases are "Where are you?" & "What's that?" My favorite words are (because he says them so cute) Jesus & Papa. The one word I am beginning to hate is the word No. He has mastered that one this week. It began as a cute game with matching shapes. He would try to match the star with the circle & then would say no because they didn't match. That progressed into telling mom what he won't do. Mama says Yes! The other night I was trying to get him to eat manicotti. He only had to take one bite to try it. I took a bite & said Mmmm Mommy likes manicotti. Dad took a bite and I said Mmmmm daddy likes manicotti. Does Joshua like manicotti...without taking a bite he firmly said No! I then proceeded to shove it down his throat. No just joking. I cracked up laughing and he didn't get a treat after dinner because he didn't eat any manicotti. Another common use of the word no. He will come up to me and say poopoo. I will ask did you poop? He promply says no and walks away. I thought communication was suppose to make things easier. One more cute thing about Josh. We are a family that likes to have some fun traditions just to make life a little more enjoyable. When we used to go to church in Ottawa, we had the tradition of every time we cross this one bike trail we would make the sound thud thud. (my dad did it when he was drawing us the map on how to get to the church). When we changed to the Paola building, we had to come up with a new tradition so we came up with saying weee as we go around the one roundabout on the way to church. Josh has caught on so every time we go in a roundabout (not just on the way to church) he goes weee. It's the little things in life which make you smile that makes all the hard things in life worth it.

Slowly But Surely

2009-08-03T13:38:00.000-07:00

Well the room swap is well on its way. It got slowed down by family stuff, but it is now up a running again. All of the desks are now in one room. Jason just has to finish organizing the computers so I can have the shelf back for all the books that are on my desk. Josh gets a little confused with the swap. Jason will say do you want to play computer, he gets excited and runs to the old computer room, but its not there. He will then go into a lengthy explaination or speech about something...probably would translate into something like where did the computer go? Then we show him where it went. It's kind of fun. I hope to have everything organized in the computer room by the end of this week so maybe next week I can paint Josh's new room! I hope he will like his new room.

Geared Up To Rearrange

2009-07-22T12:25:00.000-07:00

So I am done working for the month! I was getting geared up for cleaning the 2 offices so that Jason can start moving desks around so that I can reorganize my house I'm so excited. I'm even going to paint, but I have hit a snag today. I am just too tired. I think I may take a nap with Josh today. Oh well there is always tommorrow. I figured I needed to get on the computer while Jason was at work. He never lets me use the new MacBook Pro. He is always on it. Our laptop died so we bought another one, but he crossed over to the dark side and decided to get a Mac & not a PC. For all the "discussions" I have had to sit through Jason saying how PCs are so great, I thought it was funny that we have now bought a mac. I think Itunes & Iphone helped in his conversion. I do like the programs for pictures & video clips that come with it though. I'm still getting used to the setup. Anyway life is good & I'm looking forward to reorganizing my house.

Terrible Twoes

2009-07-07T10:27:00.000-07:00

So Josh has hit the Terrible 2s now. His head banging has come back when he is mad. It is so agrivating. He has also mastered opening doors & can play with the bolt lock. On the upside he talks a lot more. Still a lot of giberish but they are sounds. He repeated his first prayer (dad says 2nd...he did it without me) and it was so precious. Josh also sat through his 2nd fireworks show for 4th of July. He was a bit cranky but I think he enjoyed it once it started. In house news, I'm all geared up about moving our rooms around. I want to combine my work room with our office room and then I can have fun making Josh a toddler room. I want to paint and have a lot of fun, the only problem is Jason says he doesn't have time to move computers & the desks right now. I guess that is fine as long as he is busy working on his thesis. I instead fill my time with Josh, work, Jazzercise & Harry Potter at the moment (I'm rereading the books). Funny story the other day...I was babysitting at Jazzercise and a 4 year old asked if I had a baby in my tummy. I died laughing on the inside. 1. I'm not pregnant. 2. No one would think I look pregnant. 3. I know his mom is not pregnant so it was just weird that it came up.

Photo Friday - a little early

2009-05-14T12:07:00.000-07:00

Josh loves helping with the dishes. It gets kind a wet so that's why he does dishes in just a diaper.

He even helps mop up the extra water he pours on the floor.

Happy Birthday Josh. He wasn't real happy. He did enjoy stabbing his cake with a fork and biting it off. He did better on his real Bday when we were in Salina visiting David. He actually blew out a candle & his cousins helped him with the other.

Josh now eats oreo cookies by opening them up and eating the cream out & leaving the rest of the cookie. Grandma Draper always makes sure he has oreos (one time I had 3 oreo cookie packages in my cupboard...I did not buy any of them)
More Cheese Please...He is so cheesy. He just finished beating up a Royals balloon of a kid in a baseball uniform.

PS as I'm writing this I can here birds below me. We have birds living in every crany of our house. I want to kill birds. I hate them. I need to look into hiring someone to clean out all the nests and put up guards on all of our vents. Again I hate birds.

Catching up with Me

2009-05-09T18:16:00.000-07:00

Wow it's been a whole month...Here is how everything is going:

Me: Work is settling in to routine twice a month. The middle of the year is always nice for payroll. I have a sudden urge to redecorate, reorganize & rearrange the house. I think it sprung up from garage saling. After looking at everyone elses junk, I want to go through mine. As far as craftiness goes. I'm refocusing on making a magnetic quiet book for Josh. I have 2 pages done. One with farm animals & one with shapes and it kept him happy & busy for most of sacrament meeting. It was so nice so I want to create some more pages. It's nothing spectacular, but Josh likes it. I'm also starting Jazzercise classes that some of the gals from church go to. My body is sore. I'm so out of shape.

Jason: Excited that seminary is almost over...one more day. He is waiting for his professor to review his thesis before he can do revisions & write a 10 page conclusion & then he will be done...fingers crossed, it will be soon.

Josh: Is now 2. He is getting so big. He loves going to the park. Swinging is still his most favorite thing to do, but I have been able to convince him that slides are fun too. Mrs. Nadine comes over once a week on Friday and we have speech/talking class. He has made baby steps since starting. He now sometimes moos at cows, a mouse goes EEE, he can sign more, open, please, & eat real well. On his own he picked up oval from baby einstein shows. I think his "sessions" have been more helpful to me than to him since he is still really shy when Nadine comes. It's so exciting when he picks up something new. You just want to pick him up and hug him and twirl him around. The other day we met a 2 year old at the park with her grandpa and she talked as much as Josh. I know you are not suppose to compare kids, but I felt really good that Josh isn't the only 2 year old that only has a 5 word vocabulary to say.

Conference Weekend

2009-04-06T07:05:00.000-07:00

I love conference weekend. It always seems to be a nice relaxing weekend where you get to sit around in your PJs, listen to Conference, and enjoy your new birthday gifts. That is what we did Saturday morning. During the 2nd half we ran errands as a family that was fun. That usually doesn't happen. Both my boys needed new clothes. As far as my Bday went it was good despite the gloomy weather. My mom brought me lunch which was a nice treat...I had to work on my Bday & with the roofers parked in my driveway. I couldn't leave the house Wed-Fri last week. Jason's mom stopped by later to wish me a happy Bday and Jason brought home dinner so I didn't have to cook.

Sunday was much like Saturday besides the bird incident. A pretty big black bird decided to get stuck in our dryer vent. Jason turned on the dryer for a few seconds and hit the wall but that didn't scare him out so we had to take apart the washer/dryer hook ups to get him out. Still he wouldn't come so Jason got the vacuum and was able to suck him out momentarily. The bird was definitely scared now and he ended up scaring Jason so the laundry basket and blanket didn't work and the bird ended up flying into our house. He flew around tapping on the windows trying to get out. So we opened the front door and the back door. This provided a nice jet stream through our house. The bird caught wind of it and flew right out the front door. Until we get a cover for the dryer vent our laundry room will stay taken apart. It's pretty scary having a scared bird flap around your house. It's not like he is going to peck your eyes out but he just gets so frantic that its unsettling.

Oh and by the way, we are now a geeky WOW (World of Warcraft computer game) family. We have 2 accounts so we can play with each other online and then Josh likes to sit on Jason's lap and watch. Getting the 2nd account was my Bday gift. I really enjoy it. This weekend I wasted way too much time on that game, but it was fun.

Spring Break

2009-03-16T21:57:00.001-07:00

I guess I'm on spring break too! Even though I have to work tommorrow. Jason is at a convention in TX at the moment and I just don't go to bed when he is not around. I clean and mess around on the computer till midnight. There are no seminary kids to wake me in the morning or should I say wake Josh who wakes me up. I did do a little spring cleaning today and I must say my garage looks fabulous! I keep going out there to look at it because it is so nice and clean. It was difficult to do because of all the dead bugs/spiders, but I got rid of them. Josh enjoyed the day in the garage too. He was covered in dirt when we were done. In other Josh news, he qualifies for Johnson County's Toddler Program for speech since he is not catching on that words are cool. It was funny when they came to evaluate him, he didn't say anything at all. Not even babbling. He did laugh a little and flirt like he always does, but didn't really talk. I was like he does say stuff although the next couple of days I realized how quiet he is in the middle of the day. Mornings & evenings he does make noise I swear. Maybe he knows that we need help learning words so he was extra quiet to make sure we qualified. Anywho, Josh needs to learn to use his words. Daddy, Uh-oh, Again aren't going to cut it any longer...he should have 50 words by now and forming sentences. It will be nice to have someone come to the house and show me how to help encourage him to speak and help us set goals.

Ode to Our Builder, Martins Inc.

2009-03-10T14:42:00.000-07:00

Here is my endorsement for Martins Inc. If you are going to build a house in Gardner, KS (or Olathe area), then you need to build with Martins, Inc. They stand by their work and they are quick to repair things that are covered on your year warranty. I have just been very impressed by them and it has made my new house buying experience very nice...so drum roll please.....We are getting a new roof !!! I'm not sure if they ever figured out why our roof keeps blowing off. Granted it is windy, but it is ridiculous how often we loose shingles. The manufacturer came out and took samples of the roof and the builder was talking with them and the roofing company and the builder called today to say that we will be getting a new roof. It is such a relief that we won't have to take any action to get the problem fixed. Exspecially now that we have lived in our house for a year and I think we have had our roof repaired about 6 times and we are currently missing shingles. Such a relief. Yea to a new roof & Ode to the Builder who takes care of us!

Ding Dong the Binki's Gone & TP Go Down the Hole

2009-02-25T13:40:00.000-08:00

So last weekend we went to GM & GP Drapers house to get our taxes done. Josh ended up getting cranky and needing a nap. GM got all bent out of shape because he was unhappy at her house. Heaven forbid he is unhappy at GM house. We didn't bring a binki to comfort him and GM wouldn't have that so she went to the store & bought him a gerber nuk...she didn't realize that she bought him the rubber one that was brownish color rather than the silicon? one that is clear so he wouldn't take it. I about died laughing. Anyway after this incident, Jason & I decided that Josh is too old and shouldn't be relying on a binki so they have mysteriously disappeared. Josh every now and then points to the drawer where they used to stay during non-sleep times and we both look at the empty drawer. So sad. He is doing just fine without it.

So on to my next story. Last week Josh had his first toilet experience....this is how it was.

Just about 2 rolls of TP. He found an extra one under the cabinet. You can see it there on the floor.

Yesterday he had another experience which I didn't photograph. I was fuming mad. This time it was in the master bathroom & he flushed...probably several times. There was water all the way to the sinks. Tell me why again do they put carpet in bathrooms. I guess I should learn my lesson of double checking to make sure all bathroom doors are closed. Maybe he is just messing with my head and he can open doors. Just not when I'm around.

Picture Post

2009-02-09T20:42:00.000-08:00

So I just downloaded our resent pictures to the computer & I thought I would share...

Mom should not where wool sweaters in the winter. It just does nothing good for the hair.

Here is Josh when he was sick & running a fever. We spent most of the day watching Baby Einstein & eating oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. He is such a cutie.

I forgot that I took pictures of this. This is the incident of me trying to get him ready for bed & he ran off to daddy & Josh tried taking off his own diaper...see here.

So I was trying to get a picture of me & Josh. Josh wasn't in the picture taking mood.

I thought I would showcase my home at Christmas time.

FHE-Getting Organized

2009-02-09T20:18:00.000-08:00

We had a traditional & short FHE this week. Usually our FHEs are not really planned out, we just sort of count what we do together as FHE, but not this week. We had an opening prayer and then we watched one clip of the childrens Book of Mormon stories DVD that we got from Christmas for the lesson. It was about a minute and half long. We learned Lehi was a prophet and that is about all Josh would sit through. For activity, we colored and practiced not eating the crayons. We also finished our FHE board (almost...it was sad because I thought I had the things to hang it up on the wall, but I guess we don't so it is not on the wall yet, but will be tommorrow. I think it looks fabulous if I do say so myself and yes we will be having 3 more children so that our FHE board will be complete. Our FHE ended with the song I love mommy, she loves me...I don't know what the title of it is, but Josh like to hum that one.

Procrastination & Family Update

2009-01-23T11:06:00.000-08:00

So the boy is asleep and I have a lot of work that I have to get done before Tuesday & I am not motivated to do anything. I just want to curl up in my bed and watch a good chick flick. Instead I'm surfing the net and updating my blog. I'm jealous of everyone elses blogs & I want mine to look cute too. I guess by being on the computer, I'm close to my work. I will be so glad when Jan 31st hits. Q4 reports will be done & W2s will be out the door and I can almost return to work 30 hours a month (almost because I will still have annual reports due by end of Feb). Then I can relax and focus on my dirty house.

Other family news...FHE on Monday will consist of going to a townhall meeting and protesting a rezoning of the land 2 or 3 house plots of land away from us. Prieb who owns the land wants to rezone it from single family homes to apartments. We were leagally suppose to be notified, but we weren't. Our neighbor went door to door letting our neighborhood all know. She is one of the only ones that got contacted (it's right next door to her). So we have all banded together and since there is not very many of us we also are letting the near by neighborhoods know. I hope we win. Only time will tell. That is going to suck big time if it passes.

Jason also just got told that the big project he was working on at B&V is being shut down so he could loose his job or get relocated to another section in B&V (out of nuclear division to another division). Hopefully the later. They do see value in Jason (he has received a couple of raises that aren't the normal inflation one & in his last review he recieved the highest rating you can get & not very many people get that one) so I'm quite confident they will keep him.

New Year 2009

2009-01-03T12:56:00.000-08:00

A review of 2008...I'm in the middle of posting pictures on facebook so if you are interested you can look at all the cute pictures of Josh from 08. Big things in our lives that happened in 08 Readers Digest version. PS no one is getting a Christmas Card update of our lives...just didn't happen this year.

Moved into our first house - it's been fun...only complaint is the roof.
Went on a Family vacation to SD...Jason biked, we enjoyed the scenery, went to bear country, watched movies, shopped, saw Mt Rushmore
Josh got teeth, learned to crawl, learned to walk, learned some sign language, and says a few words, loves Elvis & Beethoven and likes to help mom with the laundry.
Jason got an out of the blue raise at work so they must like him, he teaches seminary, he is still working on his thesis...He has the conclusion & the appendix left. He enjoys going to the gym and doing a spinning class with some of his friends at work.
Jen quit her job at Neosystems, had the summer as a full time homemaker, accepted a job at EMR working from home. At church I am the primary secretary. I'm at the moment obsessed with oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, solitare on my new IPod and I really like rubber stamps.

So after reviewing my goals form last year and seeing what I did and did not accomplish...here are my goals for 2009

Personal: Read 6 books a year, scrapbook one page a month, read scriptures daily, try 1 new recipe a month, keep house clean, send out a Christmas Letter
Family: Have FHE weekly, read scriptures as a family, make sure Jason & I have date night, Temple trip monthly, go on a family vacation even if it isn't far, throw a party for Jason once he finishes his thesis (he will finish it this year)
Work: Try to get along with the whole accounting department, try not to be so stressed about work-get through Feb 29th (W2 will be done), try to keep house clean - maybe come up with a schedule.

The Joys of Josh

2008-12-19T09:05:00.000-08:00

I thought it would be fun to remember all the cute things Josh has done & is doing....

He named his stuffed animal dog Aaawww. Every time he saw the dog he would say aaawww and bite (kiss) the dogs nose.
For the longest time he would just roll everywhere. That can be quite amusing.
He has extra senses & could instantly zero in on the fact that we didn't have the child proofing on under the TV and he would roll/crawl/run (still hasn't grown out of it) as quickly as possible to open & close the cupboard.
He used to know when to do his mouth during the song head, shoulders, knees & toes. I'm sad that he doesn't do this anymore.
While eating he always puts a long piece in his mouth the hard way...vertical.
If you ask him to wave, he brings his arm up half way & drops it...it's the funniest wave.
Recent Story: Dad was in the kid bathroom taking care of business & I was trying to get Josh ready for bed. Josh is a daddy's boy when dad comes home. I get Josh undressed to the point where he needs to step out of his pants when he escapes & runs down the hall to the bathroom where dad is. So then Josh bangs on the door with his pants at his ankles & starts pulling off his diaper. I about died laughing. I'm not sure if this is yes I want to be potty trained or I want a bath.
He loves to be chased around the house or he will chase you
He likes to bonk heads with people.
He definitely takes after dad when it comes to the computer...he loves the computer. Oh and the best thing about the Iphone...the bubbles (a game where you touch the screen & bubbles appear & you can pop them). I think it is funny that Josh stops what he is doing when an Iphone commercial comes on & watches it...Jason does the same thing.
He used to take things out of the trash to tell you what he wanted to eat. Granola bar wrappers or apple chips bag. Now he is just into throwing everything away. I have to go through the trash to make sure we are not throwing away toys.
He likes to push chairs around the house...GM&GP Guernsey's house is the best. Those chairs have wheels.
Binki games are always fun. He is such a tease with offering you the binki and then taking it back. Sometimes I put it in my mouth & he takes it away from me. I will "cry" like a baby and then he will stick it back in. Then he laughs and he will take it away again, I cry, & he will give it back until he decides that he is done sharing.
He plays the I don't want to get out of bed game. He will stand up & want me to pick him up. I will go try and he will sit down & snuggle up to his blankey. I will pretend to walk away and he will stand back up. We do this 4-5 times before he is done playing the game.
If you tell him to swim in the bath tub, he will lean back and do the back float in the tub. I think he likes it when his ears go under water. I never fill it up very high for that reason & because he is a splasher. (the shower curtain in a splash guard)

Some fun things we are working on is Santa says Ho Ho Ho & Doggie says Ruff Ruff. He usually just repeats the sounds after I do it. He will also sing you the first 6 notes of his bedtime song sometimes if you ask him. He does the wheels on the bus in his own language, but he wipes his eyes for the babys on the buss and makes the shhh sound for the mommys on the bus. I think he is at the verge of exploding with words...maybe I should let him know that would be a great Christmas gift for mommy.

Stuck in the Daily Poo

2008-12-04T09:37:00.000-08:00

WARNING: lots of complaining ahead.....I feel sluggish and tired and stuck in the daily rut. I don't know what it is or how to get out of it. Yesterday was a full day of work & Josh. Most of work I got done the night before, but there was an extra thing they asked me to do...I did...then they didn't want it done...already submitted to the bank...it's kind of hard to undo after that even though I tried. I feel bad, although I shouldn't...they really should make up their minds...anyway that was hard to balance because it was after nap time...thank you Wall-E(Josh really liked the 1st 40 min of that show) and Ginger for help. Now lets talk about before nap time...for the past couple of days Josh will only drink milk & eat fruit = yucky slimey poo = messy all over pants...I ended up changing him in the bath tub after trying to take off his pants & getting it all over his legs & feet. After a good rinse under the facet, I scrubbed him down well. Now lets warp to later...Jason is home...dinner time. Josh will not taste anything. He needs to eat something. I don't want to go through another poo mess. We end up force feeding him some mashed potatoes. I just wanted him to taste some. He could reject later after he tried it. Well he showed us. He wouldn't swallow & then he started gagging on it until he vomited the contents of his stomach all over himself. Wonderful day. So here I am...work at the moment is not fulfilling/fun...not to mention I starting to worry about W2/end of the year returns that I have to do. I'm such a worry wart. At home Josh likes to see how far he can go with my patients. Plus the doctor has me half way worried that he is not talking yet...Although I'm not so sure I like my new doctor. And finally Jason is never home...work, thesis, gym, & seminary seems to be his life at the moment. So the next question how do I get out of this rut...Christmas music, a good house cleaning, or a day off...I don't know maybe I will try all 3.

Catching Up

2008-10-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

So I've been busy for awhile. Here is the update on my so called life.

Work-Things have been going great. I've spent a little more time then I would like, but I'm having to do some clean up to get back on track. Not to mention I had to do 3rd Quarter reports for all of the states that EMR has employees in...which is a lot.

Family-We are pumped about preparedness & food storage again & want to start collecting & preparing. Josh is getting big. He is going to be a dragon for Halloween this year. I had to go on a shopping spree the other day to get him warm clothes that fit. Jason is still doing seminary. I help out every onece & awhile.

Fun Things in Life-My car broke down at Walmart. Mom had to come rescue Josh & I. With Josh screaming in the car while we transfered groceries & tried jumping the car. 2 different guys came and helped us with the car. The first guy actually helped us jump the car. After that I was going to call a tow truck adn the second guy came back & tried to help so I let him try to tightening things which didn't help...verdict is in this morning from the mechanics...its the starter. My car the money eater.

New Moon by Stephenie Meyer

2008-09-24T09:30:00.000-07:00

Ok so I went out and bought the book Monday night. I finished it last night. I tell you that is why I like books CD. I can function & read at the same time. Today I'm catching up on personal, household, wifely, and motherly duties. Anyway, the book was great. It wasn't all happy, gushy romance with action thrown in like the first. This one had more friendship and dealing/not dealing with what life throws at you. I cried for probably 1/6th of the book. I knew it ended up happy in the end because there are 2 other books, but I am such a cry baby. I just felt awful what Bella was going through. I didn't really like how Jacob was treated in the end too. Poor guy.

The Missing Bling

2008-09-22T10:32:00.000-07:00

Ok...so I will admit it now. My wedding ring was lost for about a week. I realized 2 Sundays ago after I gave Josh a bath that I wanted to put it back on. I swear I took it off that morning when I took a shower, but when I went to retrieve it, it wasn't there. I checked all the places I usually put it if I'm taking a shower, putting on lotion or cooking, but could not find it. I swear I put in on the bathroom sink so being the kind husband he is, Jason checked the pipes under the sink for me but discovered nothing. I decided today that looking in the places I thought it would be 10 times was not working so I decided to give the house a good clean. With a prayer in my heart, I started the laundry and then went to the first room I was going to tackle...the living room. While Josh sat content eating breakfast & watching his show, I picked up all the toys & vacuumed. Then I started the nit picky cleaning...organizing his toy buckets and vacuuming up the crumbs in the couch. It was the couch monster's fault my ring was missing. There it was wedged in the crack between the side of the couch and the arm rail. It was only exposed after I took off all the cushions. What a relief. Don't ask me how or when it got there. Yes, Jessica I too believe in gnomes. So does this mean I don't have to clean the rest of the house now since I found the ring?

I have this urge to go buy the book New Moon so I can read it. The waiting list at the library is about a month. I read the 1st chapter of it online and now I want more. Bella just got a paper cut..yummy blood for vampires and Edward is trying to hold off some of the vampires in his family that are not as practiced restraining themselves. Although if they did get her Bella would be happy as long as they didn't suck enough blood to kill her...she wants to become a vampire so she can live happily ever after with Edward. Edward on the other hand doesn't want her to become the monster that he is...I want more vampires!

Twilight By Stephenie Meyer

2008-09-21T15:19:00.000-07:00

So I gulped down Twilight this weekend. Mmmm...good romance book with some action. I love Bella & Edward's sarcastic love relationship. The push/pull of those type of relationships is what keeps me interested in romance novels. I'm also a bit of a sci-fi girl so the whole vampire thing draws me in too. I'm now on the waiting list for the other books/books on CD. I like to listen to them. I give the book 5 out of 5. It made my heart flutter and I want Bella & Edwards relationship to work out. I was told it was better than Harry Potter, but I think the 2 series are apples and oranges.

Wonder Women

2008-09-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

So today was a very awesome day. It all began the same as it usually does...arise at 8am, get ready for the day, pick up Josh from the crib and breakfast. We played for awhile and we watched a little of price is right. Josh enjoys that show. I think it is all the clapping. Half way into the show, I peer outside and look at our very long, lushes grass. It needs to be mowed. Jason is stressed and I know he doesn't have time so I decided to do it. Josh didn't like it at first and cried while sitting on his bike for half of the back yard. Then he discovered the sprinkler that looks like a tractor and had fun spinning it. In the front yard I had to remove him from getting into the street twice. He enjoyed crawling through the lawn and has grass stains to prove it. After that we had lunch, bath, and he took a nap. I then called into work and was able to talk to IT and get my computer working. So I am now set up at home. I still need to get some things from the office but I now can check email & log into the accounting program. Then I worked out a time with our builder to come check out a leak from one of our windows...Our house loves water. Then I cooked dinner. Jason got home and I was able to go to YW where we talked about Journal keeping and we shared some experiences with each other. I need to do better with my journal keeping for sure. It kind of stopped since we moved. Anyway, the title wonder women was chosen for this entry because, I just feel very fulfilled today. I feel like I could conquer anything that comes my way.

Josh Picture Updates

2008-09-16T13:31:00.000-07:00

So I realized my Blog was not very colorful so I thought I should post some pictures to spice it up because I have not done that in a long time....most are from our SD trip.

Josh in the forest in South Dakota. He was so quiet that he didn't scare the dear :)

Josh really embraced crawling during the SD summer trip as his main source of transportation, leaving rolling in the dust. We believe he even dreamed about it.

The Family...no he wouldn't look at John taking the picture, he wouldn't look at the great monument carved out of stone behind him,and he didn't even look at dad. Josh Loves his Mom

The guys & their kids...well almost. Stewart is adopting one from Quentin.

I will end with one of my favorites taken by Amber Johanson...Josh is 9mo in this picture.

First Day on The Job

2008-09-16T13:11:00.001-07:00

Well today is my first official day of work and I really can't work. My computer (company computer) won't talk to the network properly. The IT guy thinks it is something to do with the wireless router because they have had problems with that in the past and considering Jason hooked it up without the router & it worked I believe he is right. The only problem is I can't work from where it manually plugs in...that's why we have wireless. I guess we have to change the IP address somehow. Our FHE last night was Jason drawing a picture & explaining how IP addresses work and how it is like a telephone number and each of the computers are like extentions. Jason still didn't understand what exactly had to be changed so hopefully the email the IT guy sent back will help him tonight so I can access what I need. In the meantime Ginger will still be doing payroll for this time around since I'm not up to speed yet. So this morning I went to the library and tried to go shopping for a baby shower gift...Josh wasn't in the mood so I bought nothing and I still have to go back to get something. I just can't pick out something cute when he is screaming. We also looked at halloween costumes...I was thinking a pumpkin but I don't know. None of the costumes jumped out as cute! Buy me! So in summary I accomplished nothing today besides driving around and emailing people.

Back in the Saddle Again

2008-09-13T10:29:00.000-07:00

So I'm working again. Thursday I went out to Lawrence for my drug screen & signed all the forms that I need. I am now an employee of EMR, Inc after working with/for them through other companies for 4.5 years. It was fun to see everyone again. There are a couple of people who are no longer there that I miss, but it was still good see everyone else. Beverly seems to be enjoying my old office since it is in the "accounting wing" and everyone was happy to see me back. I now have most everything I need to process the payroll this coming week. It will be a little rocky this first go around. I have my computer..laptop which I requested so if I come into the office I can use my own computer...but they didn't have a mouse for it & the touch pad is driving me insane and they still need to finish setting up my microsoft applications & give me a log in for the accounting program. Other than that I can pick up where I left off, but I can do it from the comfy chair of my own home. Just for the icing on the cake. After this payroll....I get to do the quarterly reports!!! Yea! That will actually be good so that I can get it back to how I like it organized. Anyway I am pumped. I hope it doesn't add extra stress to our lives. I hope it gives me the extra flare and drive that I seem to be lacking lately.

Random Bullets about Me

2008-08-29T07:01:00.000-07:00

Seminary has taught me, I'm not a morning person...sorry Jason for not being much help
Baby Einstein gives me 30 more minutes of me time
I'm a paper pusher, maybe that's why I like working in an office
Playgroup at the park-I go to talk to other mom's but I find myself focusing more on Josh & making sure he is having fun rather than talking to with the other moms. Might as well go to the park alone.
I will finish later...bbfv baby einstein has ended....

Baby Steps

2008-08-22T05:44:00.000-07:00

In Josh news, we have been walking him back and forth between Jason & I. He can basically walk across our living room with no problems just as long as he is walking towards someone he loves. He is so cute. Sometimes on his way to dad he will fall down and he will crawl back to me start again...redo. Sometimes he also gets distracted by the sippy cup on the couch or the cookie on the floor that he looses site of his goal mom/dad and he veers off course to the object (which we encourage of course just as long as after his break, he continues practicing). So he can walk end of story...but if you try to walk with him and wiggle your finger out of his strong grip, then he plops down and gets mad at you. He just likes to hold hands.

In other Josh news, he is practicing to be an Olympic diver. I gave him a 8.3 on his last dive into the bath tub. He scored high because he did it with a smile and a little laughter, but there were some deductions because he missed the rubber ducky and he was still wearing his shirt and diaper...he got away from me while I was getting him ready to hop in the bath.

News on the home front. We have successfully completed one week of seminary or should I say Jason has. I'm still struggling with waking up early, but that has been a life long struggle. I cooked pancakes for everyone this morning. That was fun. I also got a call from work. They want me to do payroll again...I could work from home. There are pros & cons floating around in my head, but I think I'm going to do it...am I crazy? I enjoy the association with people at work, I enjoy keeping up on my skills, and the extra money would be fun money...fence, TV, computer, new car fund, food storage...ok they are all fun. This would be the only time I could do it...once child 2 comes along, I wouldn't have time. I know it sounds a little selfish but I do miss working.

Early Bird Catches the Worm

2008-08-18T04:44:00.001-07:00

So I'm waiting for seminary to end. I should be sleeping, but I told Jason I would try to get up & go to bed with him so that we are on the same schedule. I'm not a morning person. Yea seminary in our house in our front room...our front room looks like a class room. Talk about sacrifice and compromising with your spouce. The only thing left now is we have a chair problem. The chairs that our ward gave us are nasty & rusty...they have been out in a shed. I don't want them to ruin my carpet. So my problem of the day is fixing that...fun. We have some ideas I will let you know how it turns out.

Discovery of TP

2008-08-06T08:37:00.000-07:00

So I usually close the bathroom door and let Josh crawl around upstairs. Opps forgot to close it. Next thing I see is Josh crawling down the hall with lots of toilet paper trailing off his hand. It was quite funny. As far as food goes, Josh's favorite meat- hot dogs, favorite fruit - dried apples, favorite snack - gold fishies or animal crackers, favorite vege - I'm working on this one...I've run into the age old question of how do you get your kids to eat veges...do french fries count as a vegetable? He also loves pizza, cottage cheese, string cheese, apple sauce and grilled cheese sandwiches. As far as special snacks go, he like chocolate milk shakes, ice cream, and brownies. These snacks he will scream at you if his bites are not given in a timely manner. He is not very patient at times. Well I have stuff I need to do before nap time ends.

PS I finished another book...The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman. Finally finished the series. This book was long and lost my interest at times. I didn't like the way it ended. I guess the final religious point the book made was good so I will share that. We need to concentrate on what we do in this life in the here & now to build up the kingdom of heaven in our own lives. Yea I've now read 4 books. Next book I want to read is Twilight...it's the next Harry Potter. Everyone is crazy about that book it seems. Sad thing is there is a waiting list at the library...I'm 14th in line for the CD and 200 and some for the book. That can't be right but that is what my hold says.

THE SUBTLE KNIFE by Philip Pullman

2008-07-15T13:55:00.000-07:00

I love books on CD. It makes reading such a breeze. I read this book because I have to know what happens to Lyra. This is the 2nd of a 3 book series. The only reason I'm reading it is to finish the story. There is way too much religious stuff in this book series for me. This one introduces a new character- Will who is connected to Lyra's mission. Will gets a knife that can cut into different worlds. Meanwhile there is a war brewing. Something like the war in heaven...supposedly Lyra is Eve. Whatever... Again I would not recommend this book just reading it because I'm curious to know how it ends

THE GOLDEN COMPASS by Philip Pullman

2008-07-11T08:39:00.000-07:00

So there are 12 months in a year. We are on month 7. I had a goal to read 1 book a month...I have now read 2....

So I read The Golden Compass because it is a fantasy type novel and I like those sorts of books and I saw the movie and wanted to know what happens next (there are 3 books). So I read the first book and it was alright. It followed the movie pretty well except it ended in a different spot and the movie left out all the hooky parts (thank goodness) about theology and the story relating to Adam and Eve and the original sin. blah blah blah. That chapter was kind of weird... The rest of the book was cute. I like the make believe idea of people having little pets that they are connected to them. It's like having a best friend who never leaves your side and you can read minds. It was not my favorite fantasy book, but I now know part of the story so I'm going to have to read...listen (ok so I cheat library has books on tape) to the rest of the series.

Also since the author puts religion into this book here is the one religious thing I thought to take from the book. Although I'm pretty sure he didn't imply this but who knows. As I typed this maybe he did. There are these armored bears in the story & Lyra learns that they can't be tricked, but there is this bear that a town tricked and they took away his armor and he became a servant to the town because he was nothing without his armor...it was like his soul. Anyway they ended up tricking him when he was drinking spirits. So she came to the conclusion that you could trick and armored bear when he was trying to be something he was not. (Armored bears don't drink...that is a human thing:) So in my words, You are a human being, a man, having potential to become like God and Satan can only trick you when you are trying to be something you are not (anything that is not like God) so when he does trick you he takes away your soul and you become a servant to him or to whatever he tricked you with. Deep thoughts I know.

Stair Stepping toward the IPhone

2008-07-11T08:20:00.000-07:00

So yes Jason is finally going to get the IPhone. He was going to get it today but they ran out by the time he got to the front of the line. He called me to tell me that he is now on a waiting list. I was sad for him because he was soooo excited last night. During this 3 minutes conversation on the phone that we had, Josh was crawling around downstairs (I was in the living room). After hanging up, I called his name. He was being too quiet. I come to find him upstairs in his bathroom. So he managed to crawl all the way up by himself and not fall. I was a little freaked out and excited for him at the same time. I guess I need to start putting the gate at the bottom of the stairs now. We had been working on stairs, but after 3 he gives up and slides back down. I guess he just climbed over that obsticle and now he is a mountain climber. Josh is fast & Mom's learning curve is a little slow

Sleeping Beauty, The Mom behind the Baby & Tale of the Bloody Thumb

2008-06-24T09:35:00.000-07:00

I have 3 stories to Tell: ....

SLEEPING BEAUTY: Yea. Finally Heather is home for the summer. It is so exciting to see her again. Just to sit around and have sister talk is so much fun. I'm jealous of Jessica because she gets to see her all the time. So she spent the night at my place on Sunday and boy she likes to sleep in. I got her up at 11. Sure she is one hour behind but she slept through.....Josh, me doing laundry, vacuuming, the garbage truck, the roofer on the roof fixing it, and the builders next door. I'm amazed that she slept through all of it. It also made me feel really productive that I got a bunch done while she was sleeping.

THE MOM BEHIND THE BABY: I'm having identity issues...kind of. So yesterday Brandon got home. It just annoys me to death how Jason's parents act around Josh. I'm grateful and happy that they love Josh sooo much but they almost express it in ways that make me feel like I don't matter. For instants Brandon gets home. I made it a point that I wanted to be the one holding Josh when Brandon steps off the plane I had to keep telling Jason's dad that I would hold him. They just expect that if they are in the room with Josh that they automatically get to hold him. So Brandon is here. Everyone is saying hi. It's my turn I'm about to say hi/give hugs and Jason's dad cuts me off and says this is Josh...my line after I say my hellos. I know I'm probably just PMSing, but this is just one instants and it's just starting to annoy me. Every time we see them, they don't say hi Jen how are you doing. It is hi Josh as they disappear with my baby. Sometimes if they come over to my house. I just feel awkward as the play with Josh. It's almost like I'm not even there. I think should I go work on something or continue my show I was watching, but then I think that would be rude. I'm glad they love him so much, but I wish they would do it in a way that doesn't make me feel bad/invisible or pounce on my motherhood privileges such as introducing my son.

TALE OF THE BLOODY THUMB: I had my first child & blood experience today. I don't do well with blood. I was in the scrapbooking room doing a little scrapbooking. Josh was on the floor playing. He started playing with the air intake thing by the door. I kept looking up to make sure he doesn't venture out in the hall and head for the stairs. We were both having fun until the next time I look up and there is blood all over the door. It was like a horror film. I guess he had cut his thumb on one of the tops of the screws or on the vent somehow (I'm still not quite sure how he did it I could not find anything sharp) and then was finger painting with his blood. It was really hard dealing with it because it was a gusher and he would not sit still. I don't think he was bothered by it in the least bit though. After putting a band aid on one thumb. He started putting it in his mouth so I put a band aid on the other so he would have 2 to play with. Hopefully it will stay on. He's sleeping now and I just finished cleaning the blood off my carpet & walls.

Ker Splat or Should I Say Plop or Thud

2008-06-20T06:22:00.000-07:00

I am not a nice person in the morning. I'm tired, not coherent, and I try to sleep through any disturbances. Jason usually has to nudge me to go get Josh if he is crying in the middle of the night so this is written through the details I got from Jason....The story begins somewhere between 6:30-7:00 am, somewhere in between the snoozes of Jason's alarm. Jason thought he heard a thud. He shrugged it off. Did he really hear it? It may have been the builders if they got to the neighborhood early. So Jason decides to get up and start getting ready for the day. Then he hears the distinct boinking noise that the door stoppers make when "someone" plays with them. Perplexed and confused he walks over to Josh's room and discovers Josh happily playing on the floor with the door stopper. So congratulations to Josh he now will pull up on things on his own! Shame on Mom & Dad for not making sure his crib mattress was low enough. The last question/thought that lingers in my mind is what happened to the tears. He rolled off our bed once and he cried about it. The drop from his crib would have been higher. It kind of scares me that he didn't cry. Maybe it was his new found freedom that overshot any pain. Motherhood...You can only be so active in your child's life. Teaching him, protecting him, loving him and caring for his needs-the Mother part. The Hood is for all those times you don't have control. You put the hood over your eyes and pray as the child learns on their own and pray that God is watching and that they will be alright.

Traveling with Elvis

2008-06-16T10:22:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our Summer 2008 Vacation. We went to the black hills of South Dakota with my family (Mom, Dad, John's Family & Quentin's Family) and friends (Kristin Brown & Lloyd Finlinson & his wife and a couple they know). It was a lot of fun...so here is how it went down.

Friday- We left and traveled to Dave's house. We visited with them and Jason was able to catch up with Jacob, but sad to say we didn't have time for marble works. Flying planes though was just as fun.

Saturday-This was a travel day and thanks to Elvis, we didn't have any melt downs. Josh is such a trooper. I still do not understand the link between Elvis and Josh, but I do not question it since Elvis keeps Josh happy and quiet. We stayed the night in a hotel and Josh got his first taste of swimming. He didn't really like it even when dad took him around for a swim. Now we have issues with bath time. I put him in, he stands up and tries to get out. We have ruined the enjoyable bath time by scaring him with the swimming pool. At least now I know with the proper motivation, he can pull himself up into the standing position without a problem. On Saturday we also checked out Cabelas (Jason forgot his biking shoes & I later found out I needed a coat...it was cold) and ate at this yummy steak place.

Sunday-Yet another travel day. We arrived at our cabin in the late afternoon after meeting up with Quentin & his family. The rest of this day was eating & talking...a true vacation.

Monday-Our first adventure was Mt Rushmore. This was my first trip there that it was more to me than faces on the side of the mountain. I was able to enjoy learning some of the history behind it. My mom was also nice enough to keep Josh occupied so I could enjoy it a little more. On the way home, we got the call that my Grandpa Guernsey had passed away. That was hard, but I had already prepared myself for it and done most of my crying. Jason & I couldn't go to the funeral (it was the following Saturday) due to financial reasons & his job. Plus sometimes its easier for me not to go to the funeral...emotionally draining for me. This way I can just think to myself that it will just be a while longer before we go visit him...in heaven.

Tuesday-So the schedule changed to biking today & tomorrow so the guys went biking & the gals stayed and talked, slept, sewed, and tended to the kids. Later, after the guys got back, the gals went shopping while the dad's watched the kids. Wait a minute are we on vacation? This sounds like a regular day.

Wednesday-Yet another biking day. Jason decided to join the guys later on the Michelson Trail. He went to a gold mine and toured it and then hopped on the trail with the rest of the biker guys. The gals on the other hand squished into one minivan. Jessica & Liz in front, followed by Jessica's kids (Jaquelyn & Calvin) , followed by me squashed between the two car seats of Josh & Andrew. We drove around Custer State park in search for buffalo. We were able to see buffalo and more wildlife. We even got to see as Calvin calls them gummy guys (army guys). They were doing a training session in the park. Wednesday was a long day for me after our wildlife hunt we were meeting the guys at this buffet that we found out later is only open for dinners on the weekends so. We have been driving around all day without naps. Both Andrew and Josh cried/screamed the whole way home. I cried when i got home. That was mom torture therapy.

Thursday- Thursday morning we parted ways with Quentin's family & my parents as they traveled to California for my grandpa's funeral. Jason & I were left with the duty of driving the van back to Kansas. I told Jason he was driving because I don't like having bikes on the back and we were heavy and it freaks me out going over bumps because sometimes it would scrape because we were riding so low. The fun of today was going to wind cave. Cave's are so fascinating to me. I would love to come one day and take the hard tour where you are actually caving & not walking on a paved path. Josh loved the cave so much that half way through he was asleep. Andrew was in a back pack on John's shoulders. I got a kick out of hearing him say duck every time John told him to duck. After that, we were going to see crazy horse, but we opted out because it kept raining. Instead we ate out and came back and watched a movie.

Friday- It's all about the bears. We went to bear country today. It's like a drive through zoo. It's expensive..$15 per head, but fun. We saw elks, reindeer, wolves, buffalo, bears, and other animals. It reminded me of Jurassic park without the dinosaurs. I think I liked being in a minivan because you are up higher and so you are farther away. I think I would get freaked out if I was in a car and a bear came up beside it. At the end you get out of your car and look at the different pens they have with the baby animals. The baby bears were so adorable as they played with each other and climbed up the tree. When we got home we packed up the cars and ate left overs and finished our Bourne movie marathon. Those are good movies.

Saturday-We got checked out and drove to Dave's House and yes we listened to Elvis for at least half the drive and we got Braum's ice cream on the way...yum. We stayed the night and Sunday morning we drove the rest of the way back home. It felt good to be sleeping in my own bed.

Pictures to follow....

Rain is Falling All Around

2008-06-04T10:17:00.000-07:00

If you would like to sing along page 241 childrens song book....

Rain is falling all around, through my house-top to sites unfound.
Rain is falling through my pane, down the wall and to the drain.

So with new houses comes new house problems. We finally have all our shingles and I believe with the warm weather they have adhered to the top of the house, but we are still getting water through the roof. Somewhere between Josh's room and the 3rd car garage. We called the roofing people again on Monday and they are backed up a week and half....Justin our builder called today and they are coming tommorrow or the next day depending on the weather. Go Justin.

Also our basement was leaking which Justin came out today and hopefully fixed. It was leaking in 3 spots. 1-was around the sliding glass door...all the water went down to the basement (thankgoodness). Aparently the workers put this tar stuff on and then the caulking which they aren't suppose to because it doesn't adhere to the windows. 2- was the window in the basement. They didn't seal it on the outside. 3-was a leak down the side of the basement. They didn't solve this one. It had everything it was suppose to have. They thought since there was a lot of flooding that is the cause?? Whatever I will be calling them again when it leaks again. The main problems are fixed for now though before we go on our trip.

We also had the main plumming line fixed today. There was a very small leak. Thank goodness I don't work anymore so I can be home to have everything fixed.

The verdict is in. My house loves water.

More Time?

2008-05-23T10:06:00.000-07:00

So I thought that becoming a full time mom would allow me more time to do things around the house and run errands that I need to do. I guess not. Since Josh & I are home all the time it seems like things get messed up more, new projects always arrise before old projects are complete, and I seem to get side tracked doing fun things for me like blogging while Josh is asleep. Either that or I just don't have the energy to clean the house after going around in the house helping Josh to walk. (He like to walk around holding my hands). Anyway, life is settling in a little. Dave & Heather came out for a week, starting on mother's day. It was nice seeing them again. We went to the petting zoo and fed the goats, looked at the bunnies, chickens, cows and other animals. Josh's favorite part of the day was swinging and taking a nap while Jacob mined for gold. Last weekend Jason & I went to Lawrence for one of my old co workers graduataion party. That was fun to see Ginger & some other EMR employees. Part of me still misses work. After talking with Heather, she says that goes away after the 2nd child. After the party we stopped by Erin's house and chatted for a bit. Last Monday was Jason's Bday. To celebrate, I made him a dinner he requested and bought some yummy cheese cake. He will be getting a gym membership for his Bday gift to the gym that all his coworker go to. Last night we went over to Kimberlee & Aaron's house for dinner. They are a couple in our ward that has a girl that is a couple months older than Josh, and Aaron loves flying as much as Jason does. It was a fun night and I'm glad I got to meet/socialize with more people in our ward. I found out that our ward has play groups, quilting group and a book group. I guess the relief society doesn't do a very good job of letting new people know about these. I'm a little disappointed that all the summer playgroups are at parks since Josh is not walking yet all he really does is swing at a park, but maybe that will change in a month or 2.

Closing a Chapter

2008-05-10T06:11:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was hard on me. I closed a chapter in my life. The day started out crazy. Jason left for work with the boy to drop off. I was going to finish getting ready for work...makeup & breakfast but then I realized that there was a diaper bag on the table. So I basically packed up and left since I had to go the opposite direction to drop off the diaper bag. I was an hour late to work. At work, I tried to get everything done and I of course didn't, but I guess that is someone else's job now. I organized my desk so that someone else could hopefully pick up where I left off. I just know it won't get done though since the client is in the midst of taking their accounting back in house...they gave their notice last Friday...and my coworkers/boss barely have time to do their jobs. Oh well not my job now. So I was the last one to leave the office today and I was packing all my personal belongings and it hit me and I started crying. Getting this job was a trial for me and an answer to a prayer. I have met wonderful people who have touched my life that I may never see again. I probably won't work again until my children are grown and maybe not even after that. Looking back at the path I have gone down and how much I have grown because of this job and all the good memories just makes me want to cry and smile at the same time. It was hard taking off my name plate on my door. I remember that I started in a storage room where people didn't even know I was there unless they were filing something. I then moved to a cubicle, then to a better cubicle, and then to an office with my name on the door. Well I guess I'm now moving home and you can't get better than that. Josh's favorite book at the moment is Goodnight Moon. So I will end this post with...Goodnight Neosystems, Goodnight EMR, Goodnight work, Goodnight commuting in the Car. Goodnight taxes. Goodnight faxes and Good night all my wonderful coworkers and friends.

Roof

2008-05-08T14:20:00.000-07:00

So I slacked a little today and started playing WOW (World of Warcraft) again while Josh was sleeping in the morning. I hear this thud while playing and thought they were working on the houses next to ours. So I looked out the window out back and no one is there. I hear another thud and it sounds like it is coming from Josh's room. Fear struck me and I thought that he had pulled himself up & out of his crib & had fallen out. I rushed to his room to find a peaceful baby in bed & I hear another thud...It's on my roof. I looked out the window & saw some guys and a truck. Yea they are fixing our roof again! I didn't even have to call this time. That was on my list of things to do today. Hopefully it will be the last time the have to fix our roof. I swear our house is situated in a wind tunnel sometimes. I did get to explore Gardner a little bit. Josh & I went walking on a trail and found a cool park to go swing at. This other little boy kept staring at Josh and then he told his mom that Josh wasn't wearing pants and that he was in his underwear. I about died laughing. Josh was wearing shorts. I have enjoyed my 2 days of mommyhood. I will be going back to work on Friday, but that should be my last day. :) Yea!!

Garage Sale Success!

2008-05-03T10:23:00.000-07:00

Today was the big Gardner garage sale day. We drove around neighborhoods looking for an exersaucer. That was the main item on my list. Those things run about 100 bucks and Josh loved the one at Wesley's house. So we saw a few, but they looked small, dirty, or they didn't have things to play with on them. I got real good at spotting them. There was one that I spotted. It looked good from the car, but when I went into the garage and got a closer look, I realized it was still being used by the happy baby sitting in it and not for sale. Just when I thought we wouldn't find one, we drove by a house and there was a cute one that looked really nice. I was so excited! I love garage saling (if that is a word), but usually I'm very picky and don't find anything so this was the icing on the cake for me. Happy Late Bday Josh.

Weekly Recap

2008-05-01T08:16:00.001-07:00

So Josh's B-day party went well. I was a little concerned because my parents were 30 minutes late and the later it gets the crankier the boy gets. I understand why they were late though...they found out on Monday that they will be housing missionaries. They were going to move in Wednesday, but that is the day my parents were leaving for CA to go see Grandpa Guernsey who is practically on his death bed. (which I have not talked about on my blog. I guess I don't handle death too well.) Anyway so they moved in on Tuesday...my mom had 1 day notice. She knew they were considering her house, but didn't think they would actually use it since my sister comes home in June. So back to the party. Josh didn't know what to think about his cake. He poked it and then started pealing off frosting and throwing it on the floor. Jason was like "not the response I thought he would have". After we all stopped watching him and focused on eating our cake. He got the hang of it and started putting it in his mouth. The present opening was not as fun Christmas. He cried through most of it which was funny. After GM got is bottle the right temperature, the gift opening was a lot happier. Josh came out with a book, a sippy cup, some keys, lots of clothes to mommy's happiness, and yet another bike. Josh is going to be the popular kid on the block. We have 3 cars & a Tonka truck. I need to have a play group over.

Things I'm looking forward to...The Office tonight. I love that show. Go Toby. This weekend Gardner is having a city wide garage sale. I'm excited. Josh & I are going to go around town if it is nice outside. I love going to garage sales even if I'm not a big spender. It is just fun. Since Josh is an earlier riser, he can get me out of bed for the good stuff before it sells. Also this weekend is the father/son camp out and of course it is suppose to rain on Friday. It would be nice if father would take son but father made up this potty training rule. I think it would be easier to camp with a son in diapers. You wouldn't have to hear about having to go to an out house. Anyway...Here are some B-day pictures for all to enjoy.

So Here is my Jessica knock off smash cake. I think it turned out rather cute.

Here is the rest of the cake.......
Joshua was very polite about it and not too messy to himself...my chair and my floor and different story.

He is a little more messy....

He liked using a fork. The start of good manners. :)

Happy Bday Josh!!!

2008-04-28T13:16:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Josh is 1 today!!! He must know that it is his birthday because he is being really grumpy...maybe he knows he can get away with it today because it is his Bday. It's either that or he could be teething again. So tonight we are having family over for Josh's Bday. I'm making a cake & I'm going to make a smash cake for Josh to get all over himself. It will be cute because I'm stealing ideas from my sister in law, the expert cake decorator. What is Josh getting for his Bday you ask....well his big gift is his forward facing car seat but he is also getting clothes and he got a little toy. Gangi got him this magnet letter electronic toy, GD got him a car & GG & GGD have wrapped gifts that will be revealed tonight. I'm pretty sure they are both clothes but I don't know. He really needs some new cute clothes though...I realized he was wearing 9mo pants today....they were a little short.

One Month and Counting

2008-04-09T12:04:00.000-07:00

I did it. With mixed emotions, the clock is now ticking down to full time mommyhood...May 15th. Here I come Josh. You will have my full attention.

ROCK CHALK JAYHAWKS!!!! What a nail biter on Monday night, but we made it through and we are the champions!!!!

Rock Chalk Jayhawk KU!!!

2008-04-05T21:48:00.000-07:00

So we beat good old Roy and his boys or in other words we beat North Carolina. It was a good game to watch too! Now we are on to the final match up against Memphis. I watched the game in Lawrence at Erin's house and I made it home safely. KU fans are driving around like lunatics, half drunk, honking horns, and lighting off fireworks. Mass Street is just a hoard of people. (I saw it on the news). Jason is not home yet. I wonder if he will get home before he turns into a pumpkin. After priesthood he went over to Tate's house to watch the 2nd half and now they are watching the 1st half. Maybe it's a guy thing. If I watch the 2nd half & knew the outcome, I wouldn't go back and watch the 1st half. The excitement just wouldn't be there. I figure I would let Jason stay out late and have some fun since he had to watch Andrew & Josh today. I was suppose to watch Andrew, but I had to go into work & work. I worked 40 hours from Tue-Sat. and I feel more behind then ever. Can I just say close the freaking period. I can't do my job very well and not stress out about it until we do. I hate waiting last minute to do everything. I keep missing things and having to go back and fix them. I broke down and shut my door and cried at work on Friday because I was very hormonal and stressed out. Then I scooped myself off the pitty party and went back to work. I kept looking at Josh's picture on my computer and told him I was coming home. Stay at home mom is probably coming a lot faster then I was calculating originally. If we hadn't lost my old boss I would probably continue to work until child number 2, but I don't think it is worth it anymore because I don't enjoy it anymore. so I got off on a not so happy tangent...After work I went out to eat with Erin & Liz. It was fun but the service was slow. We ate at IHOP. How hard is it to cook a pancake. Anyway that's the low down on my Saturday.

In other news, we had real strong winds on Monday. Strong enough for us to watch the sides of the top floor of the house across the street collapse. (they were in the process of building it). Later that night Jason was like we forgot to put the trash out. I just laughed. It would have blown away if we had. We lost a handful of shingles. I have called the roofing guys, but they haven't come out yet. I also called the gutter guys to fix 2 gutters (too long...the final grading & sod are covering them) and they haven't come yet. They better come this week or else I'm calling the builder. On an up note I am getting couches on Monday! Yea! Only a month & half later. They will be here just in time for the Jayhawks to play Memphis.

And for all of you who are wondering what I did for my Bday. I went to work. Yea! Jason & I did go out for steak for dinner and Liz watched the boy for us so I wouldn't have to juggle enjoying myself and making him happey. I did make my traditional cake (yellow cake, chocolate frosting & the round sprinkles, yum!) We have been eating it all week.

Easter 2008

2008-03-26T18:41:00.000-07:00

Easter this year was nice. We were able to bring John with us to church (he was auditing our ward). It was fun to talk with him on our 30 min drive to/from church. Then I spent most of sacrament meeting and Sunday school out in the hall with Josh. Then I went to YW for the last section of meetings. Yep I am now the YW secretary. I didn't last long without a calling. After church I got ready for dinner. For Easter this year, I decided to have both Jason & my family over for dinner in our new home. We made it a potluck. I provided the ham, deviled eggs, the house, and the homemade ice cream ingredients. John & Liz brought the potatoes. Gangi & Papa brought corn. Erin (our friend from Lawrence) brought green beans. On a side note I actually can stomach a little bit of these green beans...yes Quentin I ate green beans. Mom & Dad brought fruit & Dad helped make the ice cream. Finally the Drapers & Chris (their friend from Cincinnati who now lives in UT who is stationed at ?Ft Riley? for training before he is shipped out) provided homemade bread & some cake. It was a very yummy occasion, but not one I will do again in the near future....12 adults + 2 kids is a lot of work to prepare for, set up, and clean up afterwards. Thanks to mom who helped. It was nice to spend Easter with family though. This was Joshua's first Easter. We didn't do any egg hunts, but we each got a gift in our basket. Jason got a HD/digital satellite thing...digital bunny ears. Picture is great! I don't even miss cable. I got a new diaper bag. Josh got a sing a long CD. Josh also got spoiled by the grandparents. GM G got him a book about Easter. Josh thinks it tastes delicious. GM D got him a big bunny and some of his favorite snacks. He is such a Cheetos monster. Gangi got him a Tonka truck.

Sleeping in

2008-03-25T07:06:00.000-07:00

So sad Josh is still asleep....9am, but because of the construction in our neighborhood. I'm wide awake. Yea! Well I got caught up on all my blog reading. I guess I should go prepare for the Andrew invation this afternoon. (I'm watching him today & tommorrow). I don't think my house is ready. So my house is coming together little by little. I will start taking pictures of my completed rooms...that would be the laundry room at the moment. Jason has just been so busy and hasn't been able to help me. We did get grass the other day which was exciting and we have a little bit of landscaping. I'm still waiting on NFM to get our couches. Never buying furniture from them again. It's been over a month now.

Loving a Wash Room

2008-03-13T15:41:00.000-07:00

You may not think there is a big difference between a wash closet and a wash room but let me tell you. Having a wash room is sooooo nice. If I decide I want to do something else and I'm tired of the laundry then I can shut the door and it all stays there. I can have mounds of clean laundry waiting to be folded and I can leave it there. How awesome is that. On the reverse side the mounds of laundry could be sitting on the bed or on the floor somewhere but nope because I have a wash room, its out of site out of mind. The funny thing is I have been folding most of the laundry as it comes out, but it is so cool to have a place where I can fold it. I could also be loving my wash room because of having new appliances and it's my first time using them. I will let you know if laundry is this exciting in a couple of weeks.

I'm basically unpacked. I have the junk that is left that I have to decide what to do with. Now I'm waiting on Jason to finish putting the electronics where the go in the office and living room. He also has to help me hang pictures and he has to hang the blinds that we bought 2 nights ago. Too bad he has to work.

Things I'm waiting on....My new couches from Nebraska Furniture Mart, the phone company to update our phone number so when we call Olathe it won't be long distance, and Jason to help me figure out what is wrong with our dishwasher.

Movin is So Much Fun!

2008-03-09T21:05:00.000-07:00

So we are moved but not unpacked. I hate living out of boxes but I have just been so tired. We had a lot of people helping us move. Elders Quorums are great. It has been nice that Josh spent the weekend at Grandma Drapers (nice not to have to worry about him) and that my mom has helped out a lot with packing and cleaning the new house. I think we have a lot of junk and we will not be moving for awhile.

I've also had to work this weekend which has added extra stress especialy since what I'm trying to do for work is not working out the numbers don't match aaaa! An accountants nightmare. Anyway I guess I will finish it on Monday when I can talk to people and ask why those aren't matching. I just want to get it out of the way so I can just focus on my house and all the boxes laying around.

Today was nerve racking. It was our first Sunday in a new ward. I'm not one that likes to get out of my comfort zone. I didn't even have Josh to hide behind. Babies are such good conversation starters. Meeting new people is scary for me and new names never seem to stick with me. I haven't changed wards in 8 years. Friends have come and gone but I've always had a big group of people that I feel comfortable around some being closer than others. I guess I just feel awkward being in social settings where I don't know people because I clam up.

Anyway it is way past bed time so I will end this post with 2 words that I'm thankful for today.....Jacuzzi Tub

Gas Update

2008-02-28T14:14:00.001-08:00

So the mechanic looked at it and he said it was an O-ring that needed to be changed. He showed me. You just had to turn the key to turn on the lights and gas would go squirting out of it. So basically since I had smelled the gas earilier that means I was driving around town watering my engine with gas all day. Boy I guess I said my prayers that morning. He said usually they will not fail like that one did. He also said it was not safe to drive the car. He can't get the part until tommorrow but he did all the prep work today.

Bad Gas Smells

2008-02-28T10:48:00.000-08:00

So yesterday when I got in my car it smelled kind of funny. I thought maybe it was something we brought into it from our new house. I was at first thinking it smelled a little like someone left a varnish can open. So I did all of my running around with Josh. I did mommy & me group and Costco. Every time I got out of the car I swear it smelled but I couldn't put my finger on it. After Costco though I was sure my car smelled like I just filled up on gas. I drove home and parked in the garage and it was definitely strong and it was gas. Jason walked in the front door and was like what is that gas smell. I didn't even realize it smelled in the house. I guess I was smelling it so much I just got used to it. So I told him about my car. We pushed it out of the garage. We were scared to start it. We called Dave B. over because he pretty good with cars just so we could at least diagnose the problem. We were trying to decide whether or not to drive it to get it fixed or to tow it. They figured out that I guess a cap came off or something and so my car would spit out gas when we start it and drive. Fun. I'm glad I did not blow up on my way home from Costco. So today this mechanic is suppose to come over and fix it. It is a guy that works out of his van. The Church has used him for stuff and Jason & I used him to check out the Nissan when we were thinking about buying it. So hopefully he can fix it. It just scares me that I was dousing my hot engine in gasoline as I was driving yesterday. Fun things just keep happening to my car. Yea! It just needs to hang in there a while longer. I can't afford to by a new car at the moment. Well the good that came out of this was that Jason was able to see Dave and they could talk and Jason went over there to see if he could fix their problem with their TV.

The Walk Through

2008-02-27T08:26:00.000-08:00

So we had our walk through yesterday. Tom & Erin came along and helped us pick out all the flaws in our house. I felt like I was being so picky but hey I'm paying for it. There were a lot of little touch ups to be done. Nothing major. I must say I'm so excited to move in now. It looks so nice. My main annoyance with the house which I found that will be fixed before we move in is the light fixture in the kids bathroom upstairs. It is 4 vanity lights above a mirror that spans over the counter top. They were installed on the top left side of the mirror. So weird and awkward. Hello you center them above the sink. Maybe it stood out to me because I'm a symmetrical person. I don't know Jason didn't seem concerned with it, but our realtor agreed with me (our realtor is a woman maybe it's a man thing). Things about the house that I'm excited about is the tub. We fired it up and I just wanted to jump in. Nice and relaxing. I also liked the fire alarms. They are wired so when one goes off they all go off. Cool if there is a fire downstairs you don't know about and you can get out before smoke comes all the way upstairs. Bad if you are cooking, baby is sleeping and you burn something really bad and you set off the alarm. I like the light fixtures we picked out and the kitchen cabinet color too. So anyway lets all pray for good weather for the rest of the week so they can get all the outside stuff done and we can move in on time.

To Do List For the week

2008-02-25T06:55:00.000-08:00

I'm so excited for this week to start. I have a lot that I want to do. Today I want to start reading a book, write a letter, get some tax paperwork together, mail some stuff and run errands. Tommorrow is our walk through. I haven't actually been in the house yet so I'm excited. That would be cool if we showed up and we had a driveway. Then that night is indian taco night. Yum! Wednesday I am going to go shopping for clothes for Josh and to Costco and it is also mommy & me play date day. That night Jeff is going to do our taxes. Thursday and Friday will be cleaning/more packing days. Then on Saturday we are going to the melting pot! Yum! I can't wait. In other exciting news, Tom Barker is back from Japan, I bought a new couch, and Josh has 2 teeth and he helps me pull him up to sitting position.

To close this post I will post the long awaited picture of my purse...its not exciting. I like having a small bag for my stuff, though now that Josh is getting to the point where I want to have an inbetween purse that is half mine half diaper bag so I don't have to carry 2 bags. I am in the process of looking for this new bag so on short shopping trips I can have a glorified purse that can include one diaper and some snacks so I don't have to bring a huge diaper bag with me in the car.

February Is almost over

2008-02-21T16:53:00.000-08:00

My goodness this week has gone by quickly. One of my new year's resolutions is to read a book each month. I guess I will be cramming it in the last week. Nothing new to report on the home front. I don't think the weather is going to cooperate with pouring concrete and our move in date though considering it snowed today. Josh got to watch me shovel the driveway. Well I guess I better get to work. I have take home work to do that Josh didn't let me work on during the day and it needs to be done by tommorrow at lunch time. I so want to quit my job now. I just want to stop worrying about it and not have any responsiblity and be able to focus on my family. I do have a firm set date though about quitting. I know I am not going to do year end stuff again. Maybe I will quit sometime in the summer. I do have a new boss now so maybe things will settle down again. I think I bored him to death the other day when I was showing him how to do payroll.

Ode to the Best Boss Brad

2008-02-19T18:40:00.000-08:00

So I thought now that I have a new boss to write about that I should close the book on my old boss Brad and write about the top eight reasons why he was the best boss. So here they are not in any particular order.

Socialable & Fun: He was always joking around with everyone in the office and his stories about his weekends, family, or friends were always fun to listen to.
Teaches You: If we were getting bored with what we were doing at work. He would show us how to do more stuff to vary our work a little and keep us interested.
Trusting: I think it was my 3rd week of working and I had the worst week with cars dying and having flat tires. My friend dropped me off and I finished work early. I was just going to stick around and surf the net until she picked me back up, but Brad offered to let me drive his car home and bring it back at the end of the day. He didn't even know my driving record. He let me know before that you could drive awhile after the empty gas light came on because his tank was getting low. Halfway home it came on. I put in $5 of gas...I wasn't getting stranded with his car knowing my week with cars was horrible. I figured it would be thanks for letting me take his car. The next day he asked if I got gas so he gave me $5 even though I told him he didn't have to.
Gratiful/Appreciated employees: About once a month he would take us out to lunch and pay out of his own pocket. I thought that was cool. It let us know on a personal level that he cared and appreciated us.
Got Things Done and Stands By his Decisions: He did his job and went the extra mile to explain accounting stuff to nonaccounting people. Also after he made decisions or he knew he was right, he didn't let people walk all over him and that is what EMR needs in their accounting dept. head.
Flexible: He was very accommidating to my schedule when I was pregnant and needed to leave for appointments or if I was feeling sick.
Went the Extra Mile: I've already said this but it deserves it's own category. He was always adding to his monthly reporting to EMR with extra graphs, charts or commentary of what was happening with their finances. If you needed something he would get it for you or help you get to an answer
Kept Things Running: I didn't realize how much behind the scenes stuff he did until he left.

A Little Bummed...16 days maybe

2008-02-19T18:10:00.000-08:00

So it is up in the air at the moment as of when the builders can pour cement...our front steps and driveway. As of right now it is too cold which may mess up our closing day/move in day and the interest rate we have locked in. :( So lets all pray for spring weather. I've already got most of the house packed up and I'm ready to go. I don't need this! I am so ready to move, get settled and become a full time stay at home mom. In other news, I now have a boss at work. I guess he started last week. He is being trained at the moment how to use the accounting program we use. He is a lot different than Brad (my old boss) so it will be interesting. I haven't had too much interaction with him yet, but I hope he catches on and fits in at EMR and can be an asset to them. I think he will have a hard time filling in Brad's shoes though.

Motherhood

2008-02-01T19:53:00.000-08:00

So when do you magically become a an expert on motherhood? I can now see the first baby is a trial run. After 9 months I have worried about things that don't need to be worried about, I have not worried about things I should be worried about, I have bought things I don't really need, and I have had stupid mom moments that I vowed that I would never do yet it happened and it scared me to pieces. At the end of the day I'm tired and exhausted and don't want to take care of him anymore and I would like some grown up talk so I gratefully hand him over to dad where then he starts laughing and smiling and instinctly I want him back again so weird. On a another note on motherhood this age is awful age because when they are sick they can't tell you where it hurts or if it hurts (Josh doesn't get fussy when he is sick) you just get to guess what is going on by outside signs their body gives off and then you just feel terrible for them and you try your best to make them feel better. I think hugs are not just to make them feel better but it helps mom too. On my last note I hate colds and ear infections and omnicef (I think I spelled it right)

A Game of Tag

2008-01-29T07:52:00.000-08:00

A game of Tag
So I have been tagged by Kate to fill this out and I am bored so why not....

A. The Rules are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player answers about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player tags 5 people, posts their names, and goes to their blogs letting them know they've been tagged. (I am not going to follow this rule...it's kind of like spam and I don't like doing that but I love surveys so I will fill it out)

5 Things I Was Doing 10 Years Ago
1. Living in Olathe
2. Attending Olathe South High School
3. In the school Orchestra
4. Dreaming about cute boys and how my 16th birthday would be
5. Going to church dances they were really fun.

5 Things On My To-Do List Today
1. packing...37 days and I'm already packing
2. wash Josh's bottles
3. Fold laundry and put it away so we can find it tommorrow
4. Spend time with Jason
5. Play WOW but only after a read my scriptures

5 Snacks I Enjoy
1. Yellow cake with chocolate frosting
2. chocolate chip cookies
3. twix
4. popcorn with yummy salt and butter, plain is sometimes good though
5. Donuts

5 Things I'd Do if I Were a Billionaire
1. Buy my home
2. Save money for my children's education & for them to have a good start in life.
3. Donate money to good causes
4. Travel
5. Randomly help friends with it without them knowing

3 Bad Habits
1. Talking to Joshua about something I want Jason to do rather than ask Jason to do it.
2. Worrying about stuff I need to do that isn't done yet
3. Having a migrain and not doing anything about it until it it really bad

5 Jobs I've had (I stretched it out)
1. Babysat for ward members
2. Mowed the lawn for my parents
3. Worked for KU libraries
4. Worked for Beason & Nalley (at the client EMR)
5. Worked for Neosystems Corp (at the client EMR)

5 Things People Probably Don't Know About Me
1. I'm not a morning person. I can be very mean just ask Jason
2. I have implants.....dental implants
3. I'm a cry baby.
4. When I read a book, I zone out of the world until I'm done reading it. It is just so good I have to keep reading until I get to the end. I'm usually worthless until I'm done
5. I love watching movies

Cough, Cough, Achoo!

2008-01-25T07:17:00.000-08:00

So I have decided that Jason is the more concerned parent when it comes to having a sick child. Josh had a low grade fever yesterday and he has this awful cold that comes with a runny nose and icky coughs. His eyes were watery and reddish around them (from rubbing them). Not to mention the poor guy is teething. So Ibuprofen and some extra love should solve the problem. Jason always gets concerned and wants to take him to the doctor. He has his 9 month check up on Monday so I think he will be fine until then. Especially since he doesn't have a fever today. Although the cough is heart wrenching to listen to. I sometimes feel bad because I think it will pass, the body will fight off whatever it is battling and drugs will help along the way, but Jason is concerned and thinks he is on his death bed (maybe a little over exaturated). I just hate going to the doctor and they say he has a cold. Although I do get concerned about ear infections and that cough in the middle of the night. I guess Jason just freaks me out sometimes since he gets so concerned and then it seems like I'm not doing anything about it. I think I get it from my mom and he gets it from his. My mom is pretty laid back and his mom is an overly concerned mom...she just called because she heard that Josh wasn't feeling well. How funny when I am in the middle of writing this blog. Anyway I love Josh.

On other news, I made some really good white chili the other night for the institute chili cook off. I think I'm going to add it to my recipes. Although that is one that I will have to invite people over to eat. It makes a lot.

On House news, The have stained the cabinets in the kitchen (Jason saw them and loves it) and they are in the middle of painting...so that leaves staining the wood floors, carpet, lighting & the outside of the house. Oh my it is almost done!!!

I'm a Bum

2008-01-23T09:26:00.001-08:00

So I had a whole list of things to do today. Not happening. It has been a busy week. I have worked about 40 hours since last wednesday and I'm still not done with payroll tax filing. I just want to quit I'm so drained at the moment. Probably good I have a day off to recharge. Today I get a day with Josh. We need to go grocery shopping and we have a play date/lunch at 1 so we probably should get moving but Josh is sleeping and I'm thinking of joining him. I get to go back to work tommorrow. Fingers crossed I will finish everything that is due on Jan 31st and most of the stuff that is due Feb 28th so I can focus on the new year. It doesn't help that Jason has been working everyday since last Saturday and he has been working overtime. He also has a deadline at the end of the month. We are going to the temple on Saturday. It is so tempting to cancel it and just rest, but we haven't been to the temple since October. Maybe we are so busy because we have plans to go to the temple. Well at least our pocket book will be happy at the end of the month. It will help buy all of the new house stuff. Although I would rather be spending my time with Josh and not at work. I was talking to a coworker the other day and she flat out asked me if I was quitting to be at home after we move. I told I probably would after we are settled and after they have found someone to replace my boss. (I don't want EMR to be up a creek without a paddle) She would love to stay home with her kids if she could.

New Tooth

2008-01-20T15:14:00.000-08:00

Josh has his first tooth!!! Yea for Josh!!!

Moving Sensation

2008-01-15T19:43:00.000-08:00

I have an overwhelming urge to start packing the house. I guess I am ready to start fresh again and want to move in and find a place for everything. It kind of feels like I'm starting to live in a small house. Too much baby stuff I guess. My Christmas tubs are still in the living room because I'm not sure if I can put them back in the boys closet. Other things have encroached on the space they were taking up before Christmas. I just want to be organized again. I'm also getting excited about our house. Jason said they had the entry way and kitchen flooring done and the cabinets were there (not installed) the last time he checked out the house. I'm excited. I think it will make life a little easier on Jason so his commute will be less. It will be easier on babysitting logistics (I can do more swapping with Liz or visit grandparents easier during the day if I need grown up talk or maybe I will have neighbors I can hang out with since most have young families in our subdivision). It will be easier on me...I will be in my castle with a room to myself :) Maybe I will actually get some scrapbooking done if Josh lets me. I'm ready for a change.

"The Christmas Shoes" & "The Christmas Blessing"

2008-01-06T20:36:00.000-08:00

I read "The Christmas Shoes" and "The Christmas Blessing" by Donna Van Liere over Christmas & New Years. They were nice Christmas tear jerkers and easy reading. If you like the Song The Christmas Shoes then you will like the books. It puts a longer story behind the song. I like how the 2 books connect all the characters. The books help to illustrate that things happen for a reason and it is all for our good even if it makes us sad....it is all apart of God's greater plan that we don't always understand, but in the end it will bless our lives and make us happier. It also shows that people bless our lives and we bless theirs in return. These books made me all warm and fuzzy.

Tough Day at Work

2008-01-03T18:44:00.000-08:00

There are days when I just think to myself 'I should just quit my job and then I won't have to worry about it'. Today was one of those days. I dread the transition to a new calendar year every year. This year was worth dreading. First of all we no longer have a boss that knows how to make things run smoothly and can answer or help you find the answer to questions that arise. Second problem IT people don't think ahead so it makes us have to work harder (that one won't be a big problem until I do W2, but I'm already worrying about it). Third problem EMR's Memphis office. These all equal starting payroll at 2:30 on the day I have to submit it to the bank and I couldn't even start then because I had to close out 2007 payroll before I could start on what was due today. I didn't start sooner because we had to wait for Memphis invoices which are suppose to be turned in during the middle of Dec (Billing out Nov Work). After entering those, they had to close out Nov before we could open Jan (you can only have 2 months open at a time). That took longer than usually since our boss is usually the one that does that. Finally we could make a back up of the database and close out AP and payroll. Anyway I have to go back tomorrow and finish up. I just keep telling myself wait until we get settled in the house and then if I want to I can quit. I'm not looking forward to the rest of this month at work, but I have to remind myself I always hate this time of the year and payroll because of taxes and W2s.

New Year

2008-01-02T19:46:00.000-08:00

New Year...New Blog. So I think my xanga site is going to go off line. I like the lay out of this site better and I like how it archives what I write. So what does 2008 bring this year? What will I do to farther my life goals? What changes will occur? Stay tuned and I will fill you in. The start of this year has been fun already. I have been able to spend time with Jason and Josh over the Holidays. We have watched movies, played pick a boo, screamed, rolled around on the floor, played with all the new toys and we have even dabbled in trying new and exciting finger foods. Jason really liked the strawberry flavored stars that just melt in your mouth. We were curious if they really tasted that great. I was able to read some tear jerker Christmas books and watch Jane Eyre. I so want to read that book again. We were also able to get our family picture taken at Sears. I'm so picky with photos they came out all right I guess, but sometimes I think I could do better. I can't believe the Holidays ended so quickly, but I'm excited for the new year and the challenges ahead of me. Here are some of my goals for 2008:

Personal: Read a book once a month, organize my photos, scrapbook more, read scriptures daily, try new recipes, keep house clean, send out a Christmas Letter
Family: Move into new house, have FHE weekly, read scriptures daily, make sure Jason & I have date night, Temple trip monthly, go on a family vacation even if it isn't far
Work: Adjust to new boss whenever I get one (just to note that is one thing I hate about the new year...I lost a really great boss. Still feels weird that he is not there), try not to be so stressed about work, quit once I get all the extras for my house or baby #2 comes (this goal might be for next year or the year after but it is something I'm looking forward to...I'm talking about quitting. I'm definitely not ready for baby #2 yet although holding Ella makes me a little baby hungry. Josh is just so big now.)