Cold benefits

I have had the world's worst cold for the past few days, but I have found a few perks that have come with it. I can't smell anything, so I have been able to empty the kitchen trash can, I was able to spend some time in the garage with the kittens without even thinking about the stench, and the kids were running in and out of the house last week in the beautiful weather and I couldn't smell their sweaty little bodies. So nice! I have also decided that coughing is probably a more effective abdominal exercise than crunches. If you cough long enough you can definitely work up a sweat. =)

I think I am on the mend, and I am certainly happy about that. I slept much better last night (oh, that's another side effect -- it felt like I was in training for a newborn since I was waking up so much in the middle of the night with my coughing), and today I actually have been able to smell a few things. I'm not so sure I really want my sense of smell back, but I'll be very happy to be rid of the cough.

Through a child's eyes

It's always interesting to get a glimpse into how my kids see things. The other day Nikki was telling me she was cold, so I told her to put some socks on. She said, "No mom, my feet aren't cold, my body is cold." It dawned on me that she must think I'm crazy for all the thousands of times I've told her to put socks on when she is complaining about her arms or legs or something else being cold. To me, putting socks on would keep all of your body warmer, but that really wouldn't make sense to her unless I had explained it. It makes me wonder about what else I say to them that I think is clear but causes them to think I've lost my mind.

Egg Hunt

On Saturday, Nate hid a ton of plastic eggs all over the yard. The girls had a great time going to find them, and it was actually a really fun hunt because it was just the two of them. They each headed in different directions of the yard and ended up with buckets full of eggs. Last night JW & Alli came over with their kids, and they all wanted to hide and hunt eggs around the house. That was much harder with more kids in a smaller space. Lots of tears and "I didn't get as many eggs!" Fun times with children!

Easter Bunny

The Littles have the coolest Easter Bunny. He leaves clues around, and everyone has to go on a treasure hunt to find the present he brought them. It was always so much fun to do at their house that we asked our Easter Bunny to do the same for us. Hannah and Nikki love it. I think our bunny needs a little more practice coming up with good clues, but I think we have at least a couple more years until they figure out that our bunny has a really hard time finding clever things to say that rhyme.

We had our Easter Bunny come Saturday morning, so that our Sunday would be smoother and more focused on what Easter is about. I was sleeping on the couch when the girls woke up in the morning, and I heard them head to their baskets on the table. While Nikki wanted to dig right in, Hannah said, "No, let's wait for Mom and Dad." That kind of patience definitely had to be rewarded by going ahead and getting up.

Nikki finding her clues ...

Hannah hasn't decided yet that reading is fun, but she didn't even hesitate to try reading her clues.

She thought the Easter bunny was really silly for sticking her last clue in the dryer. She got a pretty good laugh over that one. He had also put one in the freezer, and one of their boiled, dyed eggs accompanied each clue, which meant that egg got frozen and cracked. Silly Easter Bunny, eggs go in the fridge not the freezer!

It was a great morning!

Dyeing Easter Eggs

It's a Boy!

It's official. Nate has believed it from the beginning, but the ultrasound today confirmed that we are having a boy. It's a new idea to think of having a son, but I am excited. Nikki, on the other hand, may just have to wait to meet the sweet little one before she likes the idea. I wish I had a picture of her face when I told the girls. Alli kept them for me during my appointment and when I got back Emma, Lexi, Hannah, and Nikki had all voted on whether it would be a boy or girl, and they wanted to know the verdict. Nikki's face was stricken like having a boy was a terrible disease. It was pretty hard not to laugh. Emma was really excited and so I think that helped Nikki temper her response a little bit. Now it will be fun to tell Nate when he gets home from work.

Kittens?!

Can you believe that Pearl had kittens last night? Nate told me about 2 weeks ago that he thought she was pregnant, and I said no maybe she's just overeating. But about a week ago I couldn't deny it any longer. We knew she would have them soon because it has been forever since she left our yard. And then it was only the first week that we had her in the garage that she ran around the neighborhood. Nate was pretty grossed out last night by all the mess, and the poor guy was the one who had to take care of the one that didn't live. I tried to go out there but I felt sick from the smell even trying to breathe through my shirt. At least we get to have our baby in a hospital and have the nurses worry about the mess. I left a message this morning with the lady who gave us Pearl, so I guess by this evening we'll know the fate of these poor cats. There is no way we can have four cats around while trying to sell our house. What a pickle we got ourselves into -- no, it was my idea so I got us into it.

Joys of Motherhood

Last Saturday we had a stake women's conference at church, and our Stake President's wife spoke about the joys of motherhood. She said that sometimes we all want/need to be told we're doing a great job, and that she feels like Heavenly Father sends us these small moments of joy in our mothering that let us know we're doing the job we should. She shared several examples that showed what she was talking about and had everyone laughing and crying. It was a really great talk, and I've been thinking about those moments where I have felt that in my own life. It's actually hard to remember a lot of them because I haven't written many down. I know the feeling well, but it's hard to think of specific instances. But I have thought of a couple of them.

One night, maybe it was just before Christmas, Hannah and I were going out together. We were trying to decided what we wanted to get for someone at the store, and she said, "I just love giving things to other people to make them happy. It just makes me feel so joyful." That was a moment where my heart surged with joy, and I thought that maybe I have been doing something right.

I love how snuggly Nikki is in the mornings when she first wakes up. She reminds me of myself in that it is really hard for her to get going. So, while she normally gives great hugs in the morning, one day last week while she was snuggling up with me she got the sweetest smile on her face. And I just felt so much love for her and was so grateful to have her as my daughter. It was a great reminder that I love being a mother and this really is the most important role I can fill.

Well, that's a couple that I can remember off the top of my head. I'm going to start taking better notice and recording them in my journal more often, so I'll be able to remember them.

I tagged Nate, too.

Nate thought being tagged was such a girl thing that I made him do it, too. And although he says I can't make him do anything, here are his answers.

5 Things I was doing 10 years ago:
1. On a mission in Argentina
2. What else am I going to do besides be on a mission?

5 Things On My To-Do List
1. Finish filling out our will.
2. Taxes
3. March madness
4. March madness
5. work

5 Snacks I enjoy
1. Nachos
2. Nestle Crunch bars
3. Oranges
4. Carrot sticks
5. Hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows (he tried to say yogurt, but this is more truthful)

5 Places I've lived
1. Pleasant Grove, UT
2. Argentina
3. Chesapeake, VA
4. Sumter, SC
5. Pikeville, NC

What I Would do if I became a billionaire:
1.Primary answers: pay my tithing, etc.
2. Invest the rest and live off the interest
3. Buy a house with cash
4. Give
5. Travel

5 Bad habits
1. This is a tough one.
2. Indecisiveness.
3. Working too much.
4. Watching too much sports.
5. Biting my wife's nose when I lose to her in games. (i.e. -- too competitive)

5 Jobs I've had
1. Janitor
2. Built Kitchen-champ blenders/mixers/wheat grinders
3. GIS Technician
4. GIS Project Manager
5. GIS Specialist

People don't know about me...
Hmm... I fell off my bike and hit my head on the road when I was 7 and got three stitches in my lip. Then, on the same street, when I was 17 I flew off the back of a car and hit my head again. This time I ended up in a coma for 2 days and in the hospital for 2 weeks. But the doctor told my mom that I was smart enough that I could afford to lose those few brain cells that were damaged. So, if you wonder why I'm slow to catch jokes and things, now you know. =)

I thought he did pretty good!

Tagged

So I don't know how many Susan's Brigette knows, but I'm going to pretend that she meant me when she wrote my name on her blog. =) This was fun to think about.

5 Things I Was Doing 10 Years Ago
1. I was a senior in high school.
2. I had only been out of my turtle-shell backbrace (which I had to wear following my back surgery) for a couple of months.
3. I was probably skipping (or sluffing as they said in Utah) AP English.
4. I was annoying Jim with my piano practicing. Hopefully he's forgiven me. =)
5. And I was excited about heading to BYU in the fall.

5 Things On My To-Do List
1. Put away the laundry Nate folded last night.
2. Cut the grass -- just with the riding lawn mower, I actually have a good excuse to let Nate push the ditches this year. =)
3. Finish a chapter in my History book.
4. Clean the house, as always.
5. Practice my flute for a song I'll be playing at church on Saturday. Yikes!

5 Snacks I Enjoy
Oh, there are so many!
1. Chips and salsa
2. Oranges
3. Graham crackers and milk
4. Peanuts (I used to love it when Granddaddy would roast them on a cookie sheet and serve them hot.)
5. Oreo milkshakes

5 Places I've Lived
1. Edenton, NC (and now Pikeville)
2. Orem & Provo, UT
3. Rincon, GA
4. Chesapeake, VA
5. Sumter, SC

What I Would Do if I Became a Billionaire
1. Pay Tithing and donate lots to the Church's humanitarian aid and Perpetual Education Fund
2. Have fun figuring out who could use some anonymous help and just what would be the best to do for them, because it's not always just getting money that's good for people.
3. Watch my compound interest grow and grow.
4. Travel with Nate to lots of places, especially to Switzerland and Paris. I'm sure he'd want to go to Argentina, which would be neat to see.
5. Enjoy not worrying about gas prices.

5 Bad Habits
1. Napping in the afternoons.
2. Leaving my shoes wherever I am when I take them off.
3. Misplacing my car keys.
4. Neglecting just about everything when I get into a good book.
5. I don't brush my hair. =) On our first date, I don't remember what the conversation was about, but Nate made some comment about hair and looked at me and said "You brush your hair don't you" like every normal person would do that. I think he was pretty shocked when I said that actually I don't. It would be worse if I did.

5 Jobs I've Had
1. Working in the greenhouses
2. EFY counselor
3. data entry for library card catalogues
4. Softlines at Wal-Mart
5. Mother

People don't know about me ...
When I get up from a laying down position I always use the log roll. I had to do that after my back surgery, and I still do it today. I have to roll over onto my side like a log, keeping my legs and body in line, and then push up to a sitting position before I can stand up. Bet you were really interested in knowing that! Also, most of the foods I don't like aren't really because of the taste. I have a hard time with weird food textures. I couldn't tell you what a mushroom tastes like, but I know they feel gross. The same goes for coconut. I like the taste of that, but I don't like how it feels when I bite it. Raw tomatoes are disgusting because of their feel, too - both firm and slimy together. Except I did try some collard greens at Nell's at Christmas, and I think the biggest problem there was the aftertaste. I won't be trying those again any time soon. Everything else was wonderful, though, Nell! So, there you have it.

And I tag Kellee, Kristen, and Alli (but I don't think Alli will do it :-}).