I'm all blogged out.

Oh how I love this boy

One morning at 4 am this little boy woke me up by yelling "Mom", over and over. I go into his room and he says, "I scared." So I pick him up to comfort him. Then he says, "I hungy, I'na Faffle with Keme (whip cream)." So we go into the kitchen to get a snack and he says, "I'na watcha show." At this point in my sleepy state I realize I've been played big time so I take him back to bed. I climb back into my bed and I hear Preston yell, "Daddy." Freaking hilarious. BTW Stephen was out of town and did not get him out of bed but it was so funny that he knew all the things to say to get him where he wanted to go. Preston has been counting without me explicitly helping him. I count all the time through out the day with the kids over various things but I haven't sat down with him like I did Katelyn so it really surprises me. The other day he pointed to his shirt and said, "orange," and it was orange. He does this with several colors which also surprises me. He is the cutest little puppy and will get on all fours and fetch whatever his sister throws. He still loves to hug and kiss and cuddle which I am loving. He has truly been a blessing in our home and I am so grateful that he is my son. And he is so handsome! Oh those eyes melt my heart!

Seesters

Tawsha Ellen Stanford

Kind, loving, beautiful, wife, mother of two, daughter of God, follower of Christ, she gives freely of herself and her time, she is a wonderful decorator and keeps her home clean, she loves children (even other people's. I know AMAZING!) She doesn't judge others, she easily forgives, she listens with an open heart, she makes you laugh, she loves to dance, she doesn't boast, she is honest, she is very outgoing, she loves to go and do fun things, she is amazing and I am so glad that she is my friend! Love you Taco!

Katelyn Riley

I remember being pregnant with this little girl and I was overjoyed. I remember being 20 years old and not being able to get pregnant with this girl and I thought my life was over(ha ha, hindsight is 20/20). I had a laparascopic surgery and was pregnant within a week. This little girl is so smart, and so very sassy. She is in preschool now and loving it, and I am loving my time with Preston. Anyone that has been around her knows that she can throw fits with the best of them, we are working on it, and she is getting better. This girl talks about Jesus all the time and how she misses him. She is sensitive to other's feelings and will cry when I cry. She loves her little brother and is learning how to get him to trade toys by offering him another one so she can have the one she wants. She will sing at the top of her lungs in any public place and I just laugh. I love her to pieces and am so grateful heavenly father sent her to our home.

This Guy

This guy loves me unconditionally. This guy is so handsome and when he kisses me, I still get chills. This guy works so hard to provide for his family. This guy likes to go on dates with me and opens the door for me when we go out. This guy has never called me a mean name and he fights fair. This guy loves his kids so much. This guy comes home from work and will get down on his hands and knees and bark like a dog to amuse his children. This guy has the strongest testimony of the Gospel. This guy loves his his parents and siblings and enjoys spending time with them. This guy is super smart, graduated with honors with a double major and then went on to do something totally unrelated to his degree, computers!! This guy loves to cheer on the BSU Broncos, in football and basketball. This guy will pause his shows at night time and take time to listen to me talk about the most random stuff, it's like a sleepover with your best friend every night! This guy is the guy of my dreams and I love him more today than yesterday and cannot wait for what the future holds. I love this guy!

Disney World

This is what I thought our vacation would be like....This is what it actually was like... But seriously...Stephen had a business meeting in Orlando and we were lucky enough to be able to join him and his family. We had a great time. You'd think it would be really easy to keep a 4 year old and a 2 year old happy in the "Happiest place on earth" but then you remember their ages. They are tired, hot, hungry, and don't want to stand in line for 40 minutes. We pumped them full of ice cream bars and cotton candy and it all worked ot.

Cheating

Yesterday's Dr. Phil was about dreams and why we have them. It got me to thinking about my reoccurring dream and why I am having it. Since we have been married I have been having these dreams that Stephen cheats on me. I have them about once every 2 weeks. The first one when I found out I tried to call his dad and tell on him and I was absolutely devastated. I have tried to consciously make progress in my dreams (while I am unconscious) to solve the dream so I can quit having them. Well I still have them but now when he tells me he's cheated and he's leaving me, I am prepared. I know exactly what I am going to do. I know that I'll go to school at nights and see if he'll pay me instead of day care to watch the kids during the day. I know how our things are going to be divided and everything else. It's really quite sad. Sometimes I wake up and I am a little jealous and hurt. But I have gotten to the point where I don't get angry at Stephen anymore, and I am so thankful that it was just a dream. I think I am watching way too many talk shows that are implanting my mind with the thoughts that this could happen to me. I watched Oprah the other day and got some good ideas on cheaters. Ha. Because of that show I totally thought Stephen was cheating on me...Stephen has been working nights and the other night I woke up and went to look in the garage and his car wasn't there. There was some laundry on top of the dryer and I thought in my sleepy state that he came home, rummaged through the clothes to find a different outfit, and then left again to meet his lover. I was so distraught, my dreams had finally come true. I then realized that the clothes were the kids' sweaters from the car that I forgot to put away. When Stephen walked through the door, I burst into tears apologizing for feeling this way when he hadn't done ANYTHING to cause suspicion. So to Dr. Phil analyze myself...I think the underlying issue is that I feel unworthy. I had a pretty hard childhood growing up and yet I always knew that I would have a good marriage and adult life. I am so very thankful for all the blessings I have. I am just unsure as to why I have such a good life. Most of the time, like 95% of the time I don't worry about things and I just enjoy my life. But then about 5% of the time I am waiting for something bad to happen. It's weird but sometimes I think it would be a relief if he did cheat because it would show that I was right all along and I am not worthy of love. I am a big believer that you make your life turn out how it does and I do not want to cause bad things in my life to happen by having these bad thoughts. I know these issues stem from my dad leaving my mom and even though I was just a baby it absolutely does still affect me not growing up with a father in the home. Yet because of growing up without a father in the home I am so very thankful for Stephen and that my children will have a father. What a difference it makes! It's kind of funny too because I feel like Stephen showed me what unconditional love is and by him loving me that way I was able to finally find out just how awesome I am and in turn love myself. So I don't know why I am having these dreams but I am getting tired of having them. I think I will take a break from the talk shows for a while and kiss my husband more.

I'm losing it

Okay so my mother in law often talks about how she is worried about her 80 year old mother's memory because she sometimes repeats herself. Well I am 25 and I am losing it!!

-A couple of days ago while I was waiting for my English muffin to cook in the toaster I took out 2 different knifes in a matter of 2 minutes. Yikes!
-I often wash my face twice in the shower and don't realize until the 2nd time that I have already done it (and I take 5 minute showers).
-I forgot to buckle Katelyn up in her car seat a couple of days ago and she was the one to tell me. -Sometimes I tell people things that are private and when they ask me about them, my reply is, "Who told you that?" Um, I did! What the crap!
-And this one is my favorite. Sometimes someone will say something to me (usually Stephen) and then I try and tell him in a story about someone telling me something..that doesn't really make sense but it's him! Like he will tell me something and then I am like, "Oh my gosh someone told me this," and he's like, "Ya that was me." Embarrassing.
-And today I was trying to clean my stove with a certain cleaner and realized I was cleaning it with carpet deodorizer. LOSING IT!! Be afraid, be very afraid!

Katelyn and her Sister

Yes, I wrote that right and you read it right. And no, I am not pregnant. Katelyn has been obsessed now for about a year for having a baby sister. She talks about her constantly and trys to buy things at the store for her, like outfits and shoes. She recently said that her bathroom is hers and her sisters. Often I ask her, "What happens if it's a boy?" One time she replied that she would cry and another time she replied, "Well then just have another one and another one and another one..." Yikes. I told her yesterday that I want her to stay four forever and she replied that she needs to turn 5 to go to kindergarten so she can have a baby sister! Too funny, she is so stinking smart. That was the deal we made by the way. Anyways I was totally not even wanting another child for a very long time and I had a very special experience and now I know that shortly it will be time. I cried for a long time because I felt I wasn't prepared; physically, emotionally, we would have to trade in my beautiful luxury car for a mini van, and I feel like our house is too small. In a matter of weeks I went from feeling like NO WAY to now I am baby hungry. Crazy. I still feel like I am too young to have 3 kids but here are the positives. We own our own home. Stephen has his college completed and a steady job. I can stay home with our children and we can afford it. So age doesn't really matter at this point because we are prepared. Today we all went for a jog as a family. This was Katelyn's comment, "Oh man our family is tired aren't we?" I said yes and then she said, "Just like my baby sister is tired of waiting in heaven." Melts my heart. I love my kids so very much and am so excited to see what the future holds for our little family.

Ah Outlet Stores...

Ok I am a total nerd but I am so excited about these deals that I got from the Carter's outlet store and Osh Kosh. Spent $100 total and got clothes for fall and next summer. Here's the list of the loot.

Katelyn:

-1 hooded sweater

-1 pair of khakis

-2 long sleeve shirts

-1 short sleeve shirt

-2 shorts

-3 pair of socks

Preston:

-2 short sleeve shirts

-2 pair of shorts

-2 pair or jeans

-2 long sleeve shirts

-1 pair of jammies

-2 hooded sweaters

Isn't that crazy? I love it! Went with my good friend Kaysha, and had a really good time. Then we went to Burger King to eat and let the kids play. That was super fun until some little Mexican girl started peeing right above my head, felt something wet on my arm and luckily jumped out of the way. Her parents, bless their little hearts, thought it would be acceptable to just clean the floor with napkins and not bother going up to clean or telling anyone since they don't speak English. They did say sorry for pee landing on me, which was nice. So I told the manager but the line was too long for them to do anything about it for the time. SICK!!! For those of you who are my friend on facebook, about 2 months ago, at a different Burger King, Preston went up dry and came down the slide soaked in some other kids' pee. What the crap? Seriously done with Burger King play places. Still so excited about my deals though!!

Party Time

So I am double hosting a party on August 12th at 1 pm at my house. It will be a Vault Denim jean party and a Jewel Kade jewelry party. Bring your kids and come on over! If you don't live in the area, don't fret, you can still order jewelry! ;) No but seriously check out their website because it is so freaking cute you are going to want some. www.jewelkade.com/sarahfoutz. The jean company doesn't allow you to order or even see their product online, boo. Hope to see a lot of you there. If you don't know where I live, and you want to come, (and I know you), put your email address and I will send you an email. Thanks my ladies!!

Whole body makeover

Okay so my cute cousin Amberly is participating in a fitness challenge. I was going to do it but didn't get my money in time. It has constantly been on my mind though. I am going to do it but I am going to mix it up a bit because I feel I would fail the first week with hers, and my friend Hillary suggested we change it a bit. So here's the deal. With Amberly's you have to send in money, mine you don't. I am not doing this to win anything, I am doing this to develop health habits. No soda for her, (1) 12 oz. can a day for me. No desserts/candy except on Sunday, and I am good with that one. Read your scriptures every day, at least one chapter, again a good one that I need to develop. Have family home evening once a week, also a good one. Don't eat after 7:30 with hers, with mine, I am extending that to 8. And finally exercise 6 days a week with hers and for me that is not realistic since I don't have a treadmill and my gym is 10 miles away with no kids allowed, so I am going to do 4 days a week. Also she has weekly challenges to eat enough fruits and veggies and drink plenty of water. For me, I am just going to try and do that everyday. I already got the water part down, just need to increase the healthy good. So anywho, this is what I am starting today. If you'd like to just join me for fun and make some healthy habits, let's do it! I feel like if you do it for a contest or to win something, after it's over, so are the good things. I am doing this to develop good habits. So there is no one to police you to make sure you're not going to eat a Snickers bar, but if you've been feeling bad about your pooch, let's do it!

-Exercise 4 days a week, at least a half an hour
-No eating after 8 pm
-Read scriptures every day
-No candy/desserts
-Drink plenty of water
-Eat fruits and veggies daily
-(1) 12 oz soda day if you need it like me ;) That is a serious decrease for me

This is a 12 week challenge! Today is my first day and I am excited!

My Hair Journey

This picture was taken in Maui in November of last year. This was when I decided to grow my hair out with the help and opinions of others. My hair was in an A-line so it was a lot shorter in the back.

This picture was taken about 2 weeks ago. As you can see it has grown quite a bit and I can actually put it in a pony tail. Six years ago I grew my hair out almost this long for my wedding and cut it shortly after. Prior to that my hair was this long in 8th grade. I am really enjoying it and can't wait until it's even longer! I haven't even been tempted to cut it. Hopefully someday, I can be sexy. My theory on that is girls with short hair are generally pretty cute and to have short hair, you have to have an outgoing personality. You don't see many shy girls with short hair. But I can't think of a lot of women that I would categorize as "sexy" with short hair, besides Hallie Berry. But women with long beautiful hair often get categorized as sexy. Some of them don't even have cute faces but that doesn't seem to matter. So hopefully someday, I can be sexy. How's that for a random rant? :)

Prayer

After an exhausting day of shopping at Costco, cleaning my home, cooking for my family, and mowing the lawn...I gave the kids a bath, and rushed through the bedtime routine.

Read two books- check
Brush teeth- check
Say prayers- check

Sometimes prayers with little children can be so hectic and you wonder why you even bother. Tonight as I said a quick Amen, I opened my eyes and my sweet little Preston had his arms folded and then popped them open and said a joyful "Amen". My heart is full of love and gratitude. I guess they actually are listening.

Father's Day

My cute step sisters gave me this idea for Father's Day 3 years ago and I continued my little traditon. Stephen and the grandpa's got some custom made cards, luggage tags with pictures of the kids on them and t-shirts and hats that say "Worlds greatest bla bla bla." Hee hee. I was not really a good wife yesterday, Stephen doesn't eat breakfast so I couldn't do that, and I didn't make one meal. Oops. But I did mow the lawn for him on Saturday so hopefully that counts for something. He is such a great father and my children and I are so blessed to have him. I am so thankful that they will be able to grow up with a Father figure in the home who can give them the unconditional love that they need and rear them in righteousness. We are truly blessed.

Candy Anyone?

Okay anyone that has been to my house has seen my dirty little secret. I am addicted to sugar, among other things. I don't think I can go to a grocery store or gas station without buying something. So here is a picture of my stash. I eat a little every day and I quite enjoy it. I justify it by saying if I didn't have it then I would be buying and eating a whole candy bar and this way I am just getting my little fix. Baa haa. Oh and this is not including the Costco sized Rice Krispie treats, Gushers, and Fruit by the Foot. Yikes.

Coeur d'Alene

Got to go on a business trip with my man, with no kids. Here were some of the fun things we did.

-Dinner cruise around the lake (lasted 3 freaking hours, but it was fun)
-Room service
-Got to work out every day at the little gym there
-Read a whole book, cover to cover in less than 3 hours with no interruptions. I was starting to think I was slowing down at reading, turns out I can do it without interruptions. :)
-Sunday Brunch buffet with a chocolate fountain (and everything to dip in it), creme brulee, cheese cake... it was simply amazing.
-Company dinner at a 5 star restaurant. We ordered sirloins which we had to ask to be well done rather than just "pan seared"...I think I would much rather just have a steak, baked potato, and salad for $10 from Texas Roadhouse. Too fancy for my blood.
-The weather was kind of bad so we just stayed in the room. Turns out there are a lot of fun things you can do there...
-Went swimming several times with Stephen. This is my favorite part of the whole trip. When you are married for 6 years it seems like when you have time to talk its just about bills and the children, right? Well I was afraid that our trip was going to be consumed with this. Turns out we do have a lot in common! Ha. Anyways, Stephen was adorable in the pool and we played a lot of childish games. I am not going to list my very favorite things because I want to keep them private, they are memories I hope I cherish for a long time. It was just so nice to not worry about anything besides being with one another. Almost like we were dating again. I think we need one of these trips every single year to reconnect with each other. By the time we left, I was madly "in love" with him.

Camping

(Yes there are children in there)

Katelyn has turned several spaces in our house into "camping". There is our walk-in closet, burrowed in Stephen's clothes, and behind our couch under a table. I have been wanting to get her a tent for a very long time. I was trying to wait until her birthday which is in August, but I got too excited and finally convinced Stephen. I have been doing a lot of shopping around because I am cheap. I found this baby for $20 on walmart.com and it comes with a "pack pack" and flashlight. Katelyn got in and was so excited and just sat there. Preston got in and immediately started rough housing. So now when they get in, it tips every which way and because our living room is small, they run into furniture. About every 5 minutes we have to console one of them from getting an owie. I love it--Stephen not so much.

Deep thoughts by K-Dawg

So I am constantly trying to think of funny things to say on facebook and today I had too many so I am doing a post. And I know some of these are not funny...

-It's humorous to me now that I posted pictures of my ankle looking like that because it looks 10x worse. Bruises everywhere. Good news is I manned up and I can walk on it now.

-I have been occasionally taking hydrocodine for pain and after today I cannot justify it anymore, Dang I am going to miss it.

-Haven't been able to drive since I sprained my ankle, did a practice drive all the way to Quik Wok in Kuna today. Never ate there before and never had the desire until that one day in Garden Valley, when my pregnant sister in law had a craving. Since there are not a lot of options there we found ourselves at the good ol' Crouch Merc. She was craving Potstickers, and of course there weren't any so we went home with microwave Chinese food and egg rolls. Sick you say? I say delicious. I went back the next day and bought more and ever since I have been craving this food. Oh the really funny part about that story is that we went on her little moped scooter. With our ear muffs and snow gloves.
"We're really doing it Harry." We had to start it like 20x because it kept dying, but it sure was the highlight of our night.

-So anywho, I got the food and was sitting there and was so thankful I got it to go because I could not stop moaning! Now that is sick. Since when did chow mein bring me so much pleasure?

-Preston thinks it's hilarious when you tell him no. He seriously laughs and does it again. Stephen lightly spanked him several times today and he still kept doing it. We are in trouble.

-Speaking of trouble..Katelyn has decided my crutches look like guns and "killed" all of us last night, ironically right before family prayer. Then she turned the crutch on her and said, "Now I am going to blow myself." What the crap? Definitely did not get that from one of my shows, and we do not let her pretend they are guns now. Freak.

-I have this friend that posts things on her blog that most would be afraid to say. Everyone always commends her on her honesty and how its refreshing. I find that when I try to do serious posts, I get the least amount of comments. I guess I am not very good about being honest or people are not very good about talking about awkward things.

-Since my cousin past away, I have tried to appreciate life more. I have tried to hug my children more and enjoy little moments that I normally wouldn't.

-A lot of my friends are struggling right now, all for different reasons. I am really thankful for all of their friendships and it saddens me to see others hurt. I also am walking on egg shells waiting for my turn for life to turn upside down. So thankful that things are going so well for me right now though.

-On that same note, I find myself worrying entirely too much about other people's problems. I do need to feel bad for them and do what I can to help, and then move on. I keep worrying about things that are out of my control.

-This year I have made it a goal to actually follow through with things. Like instead of just saying, "We should get together," I actually want to do it. I have initiated several things with people and the ball is in their court, should I reach out again? Don't want to appear desperate, just don't want to be a flaky friend.

-Had a pregnancy scare and am so thankful that I am NOT pregnant. I want this year to be one where I don't have to share my body with another human being. Just me. I am getting excited to see what next year brings though...

-Stephen and I are able to go on a little vaca without children coming up. I am super excited and I know I will miss my kids. Also Stephen will be in meetings for a good portion of the day, so I guess I will bring a good book and plan on sleeping in. Ahhh, can't wait.

-My good friend Sabrina is in town and tomorrow we are going to have a girls night out. I know I had one in April but that feels like so long ago.

-Got to go to a Sugarland concert recently and I LOVE them. I didn't really that much before I went but this girl is so stinking cute and you can totally feel her awesome personality from your seat. I can't get enough! Had a good friend go with me too, can't beat that! You know who you are!!!

Not that cool

So last minute I decided to take my kids to their cousin's birthday party. It was being held at a place called Jumping Jungle. When I left I told Stephen this was a bad idea because it was so close to their bedtime. My lovely step sister Anna challenged me to a race through an inflatable obstacle course. This is not the one, just an idea for those who haven't seen one before. So of course I took her up on her offer because I am still so cool, right? Wrong. Towards the end there was this steep part where you have to climb up these tiny steps. The wall was about 6-7 feet high. Anna and I kept falling and laughing, until I fell and landed on my ankle and heard a POP noise.

Long story short, we went to the ER, got Xrays, and a shot of morphine (which didn't really help). Didn't break it, but sprained it bad. Didn't realize it was bruised until tonight.

It is really swollen, hurts super bad and I am on crutches now. Good times. Because it is my driving foot I am also unable to drive for a while. Anna was such a doll and took me to the ER and didn't laugh at me while I cried my eyes out. Stephen and his dad came to the rescue too. I am blessed with such great family.

Lindy

http://www.deseretnews.com/article/700033763/Colorado-woman-killed-in-crash-near-Tremonton.html

My 2nd cousin was killed yesterday in a car crash. Let me first say that I am not writing this because I need any one's sympathy. I am fine. I actually was not really that close to her, which now makes me pretty sad that I didn't take the time to get to know her. It's been a while since someone I am related to has past away. I didn't think it bothered me that bad and then last night I just was bawling, I felt like I couldn't breath. It scares me because when I think of death for me, I think I will be old. And that is not necessarily true. My cousin was 23 and had 3 children under the age of 4. I can't get the image out of my head of them being in the car still and being so afraid with no one to comfort them. It literally breaks my heart. I think what hits so close to home is that she is a young mother like me. Life is so fragile, and this has taught me to make the most of it. I am so thankful to be alive and to have my immediate family members living, what a great blessing that is. I think that sometimes the LDS people over simplify death. When someone dies we say, "Oh well they are in a better place." Yes that thought is comforting but it will probably be another 70 years before her children will get to see her. In the meantime her husband will be a single dad with three small children who will have to grow up without a mother. That is really sad. I think a lot of people also think that when something like this happens it was meant to be. I don't think God works that way. I think that we are all supposed to die and there are different ways for that to happen. I don't think he took her intentionally, I think he doesn't intervene that closely with our lives. But I don't really know, those are just my thoughts. Anyways, I hope that everyone who reads this can be a little more thankful for their current situation and not take advantage of the ones you love. Thanks for reading.

New rocking chairs

So I am terrible at projects that take longer than an hour to make. I bought these wood rocking chairs from Michaels and bought 2 cans of spray paint. I thought I would just spray them and be done. My sweet Mother-in-law informed me that I need to spray, dry, sand, wipe, and repeat about 8 times. We went through 2 cans of spray paint and a couple of season changes. And that's where she lost me. I think she got tired of these just sitting in her garage because she finished them for me!! Yay! The kids love them. Yesterday we read books in them and sorry for the picture overload but I just think their facial expressions are the greatest.

Thankful

Written on May 5th...

I just got done watching a video from a friend's blog and bawled my eyes out. I am literally sitting here with tears and snot running down my face. I also got really teary eyed reading Amberly's blog. I feel like such a fool. The people that made an offer on our house backed out due to not being able to get financing. I have been up and down with my emotions on not moving, and I have been a little sad about it. After watching this video I just thought how petty and stupid I have been. One of the biggest reasons why I am upset is because I am embarrassed that I told everyone we are moving and now we are not. I feel like I lied although I didn't. This woman was burned all over in a plane crash and is not embarrassed about that! So why am I? I am not very patient person and this has been a learning lesson for me. I kind of feel like it's humbled me a bit too. I am just so thankful to have such a wonderful family. I have the most handsome, supportive husband that a girl could ask for. I have two wonderful children who have vibrant, spunky personalities and they love me to death. (On a side note, Katelyn was having a hard time going to Primary on Sunday and lovingly told me, "I freaking hate Primary." Nice.) Preston runs up to me all the time and hugs me, and now when I ask him if he wants to go to bed he replies NO and shakes his head. I love them both so very much and am so thankful that Heavenly Father entrusted me in their care and that he sent them to me and not to someone else. I just recently reconnected with an old friend on facebook who is now in the Peace Corp and is living in the Philippines. I was a little embarrassed to tell her that I don't have a college degree and I am "just a stay at home mom". That is ridiculous. I love being a mom!! I wouldn't change my life for anything, so why am I embarrassed to say that? I am so thankful that I already own a beautiful house. We were able to buy it when I was 20 and Stephen was 21, and it hasn't foreclosed! That is a blessing that we can afford it and we can save. I am thankful that we can continue to save even more in anticipation for moving sometime in the future. I am so thankful for my new found friends in the Kuna 8th Ward. I feel so close to these women and their friendship came just at the right time, so I am glad that I get to still be in their group. I am thankful for my Savior and the love that he has for me. I know that he is aware of me. I may not have the strongest testimony in all aspects of the church, but I have a very strong testimony of God and Jesus Christ, and for that I am thankful.

New Adventure

This last week and a half has just been crazy!! We found out probably 3 weeks ago that our friends put their house up for sale and it sold quickly and that got us inspired to see if anything would happen with ours. So I called a real estate agent and she said there is no way we could get what we owe for it and we would have to pay too much money to get out. So I was pretty bummed because word on the street is things are only going to get worse before they get better. Then I was talking to my good friend Miss Kami and her husband Steve does real estate on the side. He suggested that we just put the market on the house for 10 days and see if anything happens. Due to the tax credit ending he thought people waiting on short sales would be interested in making a deal in time. So we put it on the market for exactly what we owe (114,900) and expected the worse. It got shown 3 times, and Monday morning (4 days later) we had a full offer and the people are willing to pay their own closing costs! This is seriously a miracle! Houses with our square footage because of short sales and foreclosures are going for $109,000. Actually the highest closing price was 111. We have to be out by June 20th. Until then we will be frantically looking for a place to live and counting our blessings that we get to upgrade. Right now in this area you can get a really nice house for pretty cheap. We will be staying within 5-10 miles of Stephen's work so will live in Meridian/Kuna area still. We are so excited and a little nervous. I told Stephen that when we get ready to sell our new home we are going to be in for it. It reminds me of giving birth. With Katelyn my water broke so I just went to the hospital and they admitted me. With Preston I had 2 false alarms because I had no idea what it felt like to actually be in labor. This was just too easy. We are going to miss our cute little house. Katelyn goes back and forth on wanting to move, I think once she sees the new house she will be thrilled. So the above pictures are our of our first home on Escondido street, she will be missed, but I am freaking excited to get our new home!!

My Birthday

I got so spoiled for my birthday this year. I was able to go to lunch with my Dad and step-Mom Rochelle at Applebees. I went to lunch with my Mom at a little Mexican restaurant here in Kuna. I got to go spend the day at Wahooz with Stephen playing laser tag, miniature golf, and go cart racing. He even let me win 3x playing the basketball game and he bought me some cotton candy. My cute little neighbor boys share my birthday and they chose to go there too, so we had a lot of fun together. They turned 9 by the way and I turned 25, and we chose the same place, yikes. I wanted a Princess and the Frog birthday cake because I am immature so Stephen picked up this beauty for me, it was delicious. I got some super cool jeans, some perfume, and a bike trailer/jogging stroller. Tonight I am going to a girls night out and we are going to dinner and a movie. I planned it on my birthday week but didn't really tell people it's for my birthday, but in my head it's totally for my birthday. And next week I am going ice skating with my favorite cousin, I am super excited for that. Thanks for all the cards and wishes on facebook. I have really felt the love. You guys are all the best.

Out of the mouth of babes

Katelyn has been quite the back seat driver. She tells me when we are going too fast, too slow, points out stop signs and anything else she can think of to help. When being prodded to go faster I explained to her that if I go too fast the police officer will pull us over and give me a ticket, which means I will have to pay him money. I know this is a lot of information to give a 3 year old but when she constantly asks why after every statement you make, she gets a lot of information.
So she was saying how if the police officer pulls us over and is mean to me that she will kill him. Yikes. I said, "No, we don't kill people. If he pulls us over we will say, thank you for giving us a ticket and we will not speed anymore." Katelyn starts grinning and says, "Okay, let's do that tomorrow!" Yesterday she was being very good at noticing when I only had one hand on the wheel and would frantically say, "Two hands mom! We're going to crash!!"

Yesterday she was noticing how beautiful the clouds were and she said, "Oh look at the sun shinning over there! Is Jesus coming down? I really want to see him!" I replied that he probably wouldn't come down until she was an old lady. "Oh like you mom?" I always tell people that I feel like I am 40 (even though tomorrow I will be 25!!) Now do you get it?

On another note we have been having some contention in our home with our little sassy molassy not minding or listening. It appears as though she likes it when we yell. We don't. We've been trying a little experiment to bring peace into our home. We are reading scriptures. It's been promised that it will bring peace and even though we've only been doing it less than a week...it's working and it's wonderful! Who would have thought?! :)

Easter Dresses and having an older sister...

Since Conference was during Easter weekend, we got dressed up the week before. Katelyn had her hair curled like mine and wore her hat that Grandma Mary bought for her last year and a sweater from Grandpa Mike and Grandma Rochelle.

She really wanted her bear to be in the picture. Ha ha.Okay I am sorry, maybe I am a bad mom but this just cracks me up. Preston walked out of Katelyn's room wearing this today. I was going to originally just post this but then found the cute Easter pictures too. It's just a coincidence that it is the same hat.Just for kicks I had him pose next to a baby stroller. Watch in 20 years Oprah is going to say that I either made him gay or encouraged it. Whatever! He's just expressing his femine side. I have no doubt that he will turn out normal, it's because of that reason I can laugh about it. Come on, it's funny! We have a video of him playing basketball that I promise will be coming soon. It's funny too!

Easter Weekend

On Friday I went to the mall with my good friend Tara from high school. I had no idea the Easter Bunny comes to visit, the kids really enjoyed themselves and I had a good time too. This picture cracks me up because in reality the bunny is waiving, but it looks like he is shooing Preston away.

Katelyn was with me when I purchased everything that went in her Easter basket. But she still thinks it came from the Easter bunny which is fantastic, I know this won't last. The kids got a few pieces of candy, new tooth brushes, and Katelyn received "Princess and the Frog" I love that movie!!

We have had 2 FHE's about the real meaning of Easter. The first one had pictures and stories from the Gospel picture kit and a booklet to color. Then the next one, the night before Easter we had her watch a clip of the resurrection. She was so distraught that people would do that to Jesus. She was almost in tears with sympathy for him. That made me feel like we are doing something right. Then later I heard her tell her cousin Jayla, "Did you know a long time ago Jesus died on the cross. But he's alive now!!" Kids are the greatest.

I did watch Conference on Sunday morning and I did enjoy the talks. I have felt a lot of pressure (put on myself) about being the foundation for my children's' testimonies. I feel like I didn't really have a strong base, got married when I was 19, and now I am the base. It is intimidating at times. I hope that I can raise my children in love and righteousness and with a love for mankind. I also hope that they appreciate me when they get older. I want them to remember the good times. I am trying so hard to be a good mother.

We went to my Dad's house for a wonderful Easter dinner and Easter egg hunt. We had a fabulous time. I forgot my camera, sorry. On the way home Katelyn started complaining that her stomach hurt. Fast forward 30 minutes, Katelyn is in bed and I am reading her book. She sits up and starts puking everywhere. We changed her bedding, gave her a bath, and then an hour later we did all of it again. Yesterday all my laundry was done, then suddenly I had 4 loads to do. Well I got them all folded and put away! I also vacuumed, swept and mopped all my floors, cleaned the bathrooms, and did the dishes. I keep up on my chores so to do all of these things, it doesn't take long. I also gave the kids a bath. All of this before 10:30 am, I am exhausted now. I am grateful that Katelyn feels better now, she is in good spirits. Preston is napping and I think I might join him on the couch for 20 minutes. Take care.

Things

-I am thinking of getting this sewing machine. The Brother one that I bought from Costco quit working and I tried calling them for a company to fix it and they told me to just return it. So I get to start all over, which is good and bad. This one is a Singer, let me know if you have any good or bad opinions.
http://www.sewingmachinesplus.com/singer-7463-sewing-machine.php?gclid=CNiOkMGR46ACFRQhnAodWG1PDQ

-This story is a prime example of my little sassy girl. Today I was cleaning the tub and she wanted to help but decided the only way she could was if she stripped down and got into the tub. Half way through she got out, dried off, and I found her laying naked on my couch.

Mom: "Katelyn, you need to get dressed, I don't want your butt on my couch, that's gross."

Fast forward a half an hour, I was showered and was sitting in front of the mirror doing my make up. Don't ask why, but I always get ready in the buff. Only I am not so buff and the views aren't too great, that's besides the point.

Katelyn walks in..."Mom, why are you naked? I don't like your butt on my carpet, it's really gross."

TOUCHE'. I had to laugh about that and had to share, sorry if I offended anyone. Hey at least there are no pictures with that story! Eh?!

-I almost scared Preston for life. Good thing Dad stepped in to save the day. I was at Target and saw washable swim diapers. What a great idea, I think to myself. Well the girl ones were little panties and the boy ones were like a swim suit. I already bought him a swim suit, I just needed the panties. So I brought home these pink panties with flowers on him to go UNDER his swim suit. Stephen insisted that his son will not wear those and so I will be taking them back to the store.

And the good times keep on rolling....

Frusterated

I have realized that I am cranky lately and I don't like it at all. I do not like to fight and I do not like to argue, I especially do not like to raise my voice. I feel like sometimes I have to with Katelyn. She doesn't listen to me, if I reprimand her she says it right back to me in her sassy little voice. I am constantly telling her that I am the mother and she needs to treat me with respect. I am just frustrated.

Today we went to Costco and she was fighting with Preston in the double cart. Anyways there was this sweet old couple sitting next to us that felt the need to comment on every action my kids performed. "Oh she's going to drop that drink. Oh look at him wiggle, he's going to fall. Oh he just spit out his pizza." Thank you for the play by play. Then the little old lady asked me how I handled Preston at home. I replied that I have a high chair at home and he can run around freely so it's easy. Then she said mockingly that I need to have another baby. Give me a freaking break. Can't you tell by the look on my face that I am having a bad day, and I am on the brink of tears? I do want more children some day but honestly I don't know how people do it. Both of my children have very strong personalities, which can be good and bad. It's time to get serious and dive into the books I have purchased for ideas. Today I am trying not saying anything when she sass's me, just quietly taking her hand and putting her in time out. We'll see how it goes. Thanks for letting me vent.

Updates

This morning Katelyn said, "Take a picture with me and all my junk stuff. Oh wait, let me do my mermaid tail." Ha ha. She is so freaking awesome. So like 4 days ago we were having the hardest time with her. She was throwing fits like crazy and we were both at the end of our ropes. Then yesterday and today she has been a perfect angel. She went to dance class all by herself and didn't throw a fit which hasn't happened in months. She is such a spit fire but man I love her. Oh Stephen taught her about boobs so now she randomly brings them up. Today she pointed to her Cinderella Barbie and was like, "Look at her boobs." She asked when hers were going to get big and I told her when she is 20. Then she asked if they were going to get huge like a giant. Yikes, new subject please!

This picture is what Preston is made of. When he is sleepy, he carries around his binkie and his blanky and he is the sweetest little boy. Eventually I will wean him but he's not even a year and a half and he is my baby. He has recently said bath, roll, and grandpa, all in the right contexts. He is starting to watch tv shows which is awesome for a slacker mom like me. He will sit on the couch or lay on my bed and watch Barney. It allows me to do necessary things, like I don't know, shower!

I am so excited about these next 3 pictures. We have lived at our house for 5 years now and for 5 years I have wanted new light fixtures. We previously had nasty gold ones that were way out dated. The first picture is the new fixtures in the bedrooms and the hall.

This is our new chandelier for our kitchen. It's simple, but I love it. You can't tell from the picture but these fixtures are black with an antiqued brown showing through. I heart them, and the fact that it was only $60. Katelyn said she wants one like this in her room. Hee hee.

This is the new fixture in our entry way. I love doing home improvements. Next is our ceiling fan in the living room. It makes me feel like we have a whole new house, which helps when I get a little stir crazy.

I am so grateful to be married to such a talented and intelligent man! He is a white collar worker that can do a blue collar job too! This fixture was especially hard to do and I am so grateful that he didn't give up. Thanks honey for making our home beautiful!!

Jason Aldean Concert

My in-laws really love me and gave me some tickets to the Jason Aldean concert at the Taco Bell Arena. At first I only had 2 tickets, then 4, then last minute I found out I could have 6! I had the hardest time finding people to go last minute, but I got some seriously awesome girls to go and we had the greatest time ever!!!!! Luke Bryan, the opening act, I liked him more than Jason Alean. He would shake his tush on the stage like nothing else. We danced like retards and had the greatest time. I did this crazy dance move and Luke Bryan pointed at me and did my dance move!!! I am not even kidding you! It was the coolest thing ever!

Okay so I did not wear a cowboy hat. This nasty group of old cowboy men were sitting in front of us and kept staring at our super awesome dance moves. So one of them hands his hat to Carolyn and tells her to put it on my head! Sick huh? But I just went with it. I am pretty sure that I contracted lice from it.

Carolyn, Krista, Kaysha, and Kendra.

Carolyn took our picture and before she did I said, "Hey it's the KKK." I was the only one who thought that was funny.

Kaysha has been my good friend for 8 years now. We have had our ups and downs and now we both have 2 children and are stay at home moms. It's super fun.

Happy Birthday

(This picture was taken the night before we got married.)

Happy Birthday to my brown eyed boy!! I love you more today than yesterday. Thanks for 7 great years together and here is to forever. You truly are my best friend. And if I knew how to upload music on our blog, I would put the Bob Dylan fast version of "May You Stay Forever Young." Thanks for being such an awesome father and a great husband. I love you more than life itself. To quote Tom Cruise, "You complete me." Baaa haa, Love you lots!!

Little Ruffer

For those of you that have the pleasure of knowing my Grandpa and Grandma Fowler, I just love them. They are from Alabama and they are hilarious. I think they have dated since grade school or something ridiculous like that, and they are still so in love. I went up to Garden Valley a couple of days ago with the kids for a little break. Katelyn relayed a story to Stephen and you'll get the punch line later, it's pretty darn funny.

Katelyn: "Um Daddy when I was in Garden Valley, my Grandpa called me a little ruffer. And then my Grandma said, Ben don't call her that, she's a sweet little girl. And then my Grandpa said, I know, she's a sweet little ruffer."

I laughed and laughed when I heard this. My grandpa calls people little heifers. He always says, "In our family that's a term of endearment." Sorry I just thought that was too funny.

On another note, Preston said Grandpa while we were there. It was so stinking cute. I keep thinking he is still a baby because to me he is, and I am not planning on having another one for a while. Anywho, he throws his food all the time and I just pick it up. Well yesterday he threw it and Stephen disciplined him by firmly telling him no, and patting his hands. Preston pulled out the biggest cutest frowny face I have ever seen in my entire life. It made me want to laugh and cry. He handed Stephen his hot dogs. This proves that he can actually understand us and needs to be told no more, by me. Oh my baby is growing up.

Let's talk about S...

SODA! You naughty. It is seriously getting to be so expensive. I tried to find coupons online and couldn't, can't find them on the box anymore, so I decided to write Diet Coke a little love note. Here is my actual email to them, I will let you know if it produces any results.

Dear Diet Coke,

I love you so very much. Especially with Lime. You are my favorite. I am just not sure if I can afford to drink you anymore. Everywhere I go, it's almost $5 for a 12 pack. I have kept my eye out for coupons on your cute little box but I haven't been seeing them. Any suggestions on where to find coupons so that you and I can continue our little love affair?

Sincerely yours,
Kendra Nicolaysen

My Birthday

So for those who know me pretty well, I love my birthday. I celebrate it as long as I can. I think of what I am going to get the day after my birthday for the next year. This year is a big one because I am going to be 25!! That sounds so old, although I feel like I am 40. My dream birthday party would have ponies, cotton candy machine, a jump house, and a bbq. Pretty much like a fair but for my birthday with all my friends and family. It's really not realistic or mature for me to have a birthday like that in my old age, someday I might just go for it, it will probably end of being one of my kid's birthdays. Anywho, this year I've got it all planned out. And these are all going to happen on different days to drag it out as long as I possibly can. :)

I am going to go ice skating with my favorite cousin Krista. We are going to hold hands and dance and pretend that we are retarded for majority of the time.

I am going to go to Wahzoo with Stephen and spend the day playing lazer tag, miniature golf, and racing go carts.

I want to go to the YMCA with my mom and brother Jordan, and my brother Jake and his cute wife and kids. I haven't cleared that one yet though. Or any of the following.

I want to go to lunch with my Dad and Step-mom Rochelle.

I think it would be super fun to go bowling with the Nicolaysen Clan.

I would love to get my girlfriends together and go to lunch or dinner.

Basically I just want to spend time with the people that I love and I find it easy to get them to hang out with me by pulling the birthday card. And I freaking love my birthday.

And if I have enough money, I would LOVE to go on a HOT AIR BALLOON RIDE!!! They are about $250 bucks though. Just don't know if it's worth it or not.

So my birthday is on April 14th, we've got a long way to go. Stephen's birthday is March 16th. We may get to sneak away to a hotel for the night. I try to do big stuff for his birthday but he's not really into all that stuff.

Anywho, these are just my random thoughts and an excuse to blog. Thanks for listening!

Funny to me stories

Okay so you'll have to excuse me. I am weaning myself from Tylenol PM. So instead of just crashing when Preston just woke me up, I laid in bed chuckling to myself about how semi-funny I am. So here's two stories that I think are pretty funny. Keep in mind it's 6 am, thanks.

Okay so some of you 8th warders might remember this one. About 2.5 years ago I went to an Enrichment activity at some one's house. It was outdoors and they had a trampoline. So already my mind was thinking of how I could be super cool and do a back flip in front of all these ladies, because then of course they would think I was super cool. So we played this guessing game and I said that I could do a back flip, they guessed it was me who said it but didn't ask me to do it. What? My plan failed miserably. Well before we all left some sweet sister mentioned that I never did my back flip. So I ran over there as fast at my legs could carry me. I didn't get enough air and ended up doing a back flip, then a backward summer salt, then hit my back on the bar and fell on the ground. Boy was I cool! I sucked in my tears all the way until my car and didn't try it again...until YESTERDAY! Let me rewind a bit now to when I was younger. We always wanted my mom to jump on the tramp with us and every time she would, she would pee her pants a bit and go into the house. Disgusting right? Well considering I am an old lady now, I did it too! And it wasn't disgusting, it was hilarious! I am supposed to be in my prime, and here I am once again thinking I am super cool doing a back flip, and I pee my pants! But to quote Billy Madison, "You ain't cool, unless you pee your pants." That makes me feel much better, thanks Billy!!

Story Number 2: This one isn't that funny but again, it's 6 am, so to me it is. I have been taking out the trash our whole marriage. Does it bother me? Not at all. I am actually a little freak about it. About every 2 days I go around and empty all the little trashes even if there is hardly anything in them. I have read books where women think that if their husband doesn't empty the trash they take it to mean he doesn't love them. Well that's just crazy. I don't empty it because I love Stephen (although I do, very much) I do it because it is full and it needs it. It's a common sense thing for me. So anywho, we missed trash day last week and have had even extra this week. I was seriously stressing about fitting it all into the trash can so we could clear it out. The garbage was full and I had bags on top of it too. Well Stephen went out there yesterday and came back in two minutes, I was expecting bad news, but he fit it all. Here is the funny part. He said that he thinks the wrong person has been doing the trash. I know that was supposed to be a dis, but I took it as a compliment. As President of this operation, I took it upon myself to fire the crappy worker, and hire the good one! Thanks honey for volunteering! You rock!

Little Miss Sassy Frass

After chasing Katelyn with a camera and getting terrible pictures, see below. She finally decided she did want to look cute on the blog. Haa.

I have been dying to get Katelyn's hair cut in an a line. So I cleverly convinced her that she wanted to get her hair cut like mine. She was pissed while getting it cut. In the car she said, "I telled you that I wanted YOU to cut my hair like yours! UGH." She wants me to cut it like her's now. Baa haa. If she ever kept a bow or rubber band in, then that could be a possibility. She has been such a stinker bug lately. She is constantly defying authority and pushing the limits. Sometimes I want to spank her or pull my hair. I have been pulling her close and hugging her and that seems to work the best. Who would have thought? :) I love my little sassy frass so much even when she is a stinky bug.