a blended life

We came home today from spending Thanksgiving with my parents and siblings (minus Aly, who couldn't come and I'm still sad about it). It was a great time but I left my camera there, so I can't officially blog until I get it back. grrrr. Fact: I ALWAYS leave something at my parent's house, no matter how hard I try not to. Fact: how could I post about a holiday and a birthday without the appropriate visual aides? I guess this is better, since I need to spend tonight preparing for a spanish lesson and watching Planet Earth (Brian's gift to me. I love it!).

A small bit of what went on with us this week: Brian and I went to the Twilight movie-the second movie we've gone to this year. I had a pretty low expectation of it, since I knew the budget was smallish and movies are never as good as the books. The special effects were laughable but overall I really liked it. I'm glad we went-we needed to get out. And who can pass up the chance to wait in line for 45 minutes in freezing weather? Leah is sure that any malady can be fixed with her 'pony suit' and a cup of hot chocolate. She is doing okay, but if she's tired, sick, hungry, or frustrated, there's a meltdown of epic porportions. She reached a developmental milestone that shocked both of us. When I pickd her up from preschool, she asked "What did you and Hannah did when I was at pretty school?" Translation-what were you doing while I was in school? I was so impressed! It's such an abstract thought. I made gingerbread house pieces at my parent's la...

Mahatma Gandhi, as you know, walked barefoot most of the time, which produced an impressive set of calluses on his feet. He also ate very little, which made him rather frail and with his odd diet, he suffered from bad breath. This made him what? A super callused fragile mystic hexed by halitosis.

I'm stoked! Brian and I now have tickets for a Friday matinee of the Twilight movie. I don't know who's more excited-him or me. Guys can get into the Twilight series, too.

My day involved 5 hours of church. Here's a brief synopsis: -Get girls ready and out the door by 7:50 am to help Brian with the Ward Choir. Car won't start, so we walked in 20 degree Logan weather and showed up late. -No one showed up for choir, so Brian went home to get me my asthma medicine (cold weather + exercise=bad lung issues). I tooled around on the organ waiting for church to sart, with both girls pounding away on either side of me. -Spent most of the first hour (sacrament meeting) in the hallway with Hannah hollering about her bottle and Leah getting cozy with a strange man because she liked his crayons. Wait--that sounded creepy and it wasn't. -Rushed girls to Primary and nursery so I could teach Spanish sunday school, grabbing chalk and napkins on the way. -Taught a VERY rusty and slightly humiliating lesson about pre-earth life and a bit about the creation. Napkins were used for the cinnamon rolls I made as an object lesson. Rolls good. Spanish bad. One good t...

I got back from Mapleton a few days ago, but haven't blogged for two reasons: 1)I haven't stopped moving in two days 2)The stupid internet won't upload my stupid pictures. ARGH We went down to meet my grandpa's future wife, who's from Colorado. Then we stayed for a few days to chill out and be with Karina. (and the other folks who live in that house) Hannah was a bit out of sorts and spent most of her time doing this: Sometimes you just need Grandma... And sometimes you just need your honey.... And sometimes you just need Rockband II for XBox, but the computer wouldn't let me post those pictures. Try to picture my brother Jacob with overgrown facial hair, spinning a guitar around and nearly killing the t.v. And can I take a moment to say that the t.v. is a bit of a monstrosity. I had a good time but we all really missed Brian, who knows just what Leah needs when she doesn't feel good, or just how to hold Hannah when she's being a pill, or just how to s...

I'm currently at my parent's house right now, miles away from Logan and Brian. The girls and I came down to meet my grandpa's fiancee and decided to stay a few extra days. I dont' have a whole lot to say--I'm not in the mood write about the 'escalator incident'--and it will be better to hear about this small little visit with pictures. Everything is better with pictures. It's always nice to get away, but we miss Brian and will be seeing him Wednesday.

So much stuff happens in the course of a day, but by the time the girls are asleep I am so tired and frazzled that I don't feel like writing anything. So I'm going to put down a few highlights of the past two days in a very boring list format. That why I don't have to think creatively.Did I spell that right? *Yesterday Hannah fell asleep in the car for about a minute (no joke). The best part was that she started talking in her sleep "kitty...kitty..." It was so cute and funny! *The girls and I celebrated Dia de los Muertos by having rice and beans for dinner and walking through the cemetary. These things aren't unusual for us (there is a cemetary across the street) but I wanted to acknowledge the Mexican holiday since I'm supposed to be relearning Spanish. De nuevo. *Today I hosted a rotating preschool group at my house. Five four year old for two hours. I learned a few things about the experience: Leah is quite smart and knew more than anyone el...

I don't claim to be strictly Democrat or Republican-I like to study both sides and choose the best candidate. My ballot reflects a combo of both parties. I feel good today, because the one I chose when I voted this morning is winning...and can I just say that voting in Utah is a little dull since it's VERY Republican, which is fine, but it makes for a slightly dull election. As my sister puts it, "Living in a red state makes me blue." This is all the political I will allow myself to get-I leave the politics to Brian, who has way more interest than I do. It must 'stink' to have the initials 'B.O.' (get it? eh?) But we won't hold that against him.

Daylight savings + a family with perpetual sleep issues = ugly

Somehow we survived Halloween and even enjoyed it! (don't tell anyone) Leah had a party at preschool, so we made some treat bags for her take. Once she understood what we were doing and why, she sat down on the floor by us and said "Thank you, mom and dad." It was so sincere and precious-and a very mature response for a four year old! Brian ended up at the doctor and found out that everything from the throat and up is infected and he'd better not be outside taking his daughters trick or treating. Fabulous. It's been our tradition for a while to get Papa Murphy's jack o lantern pizza on Halloween. It's nice to not have to worry about dinner once a year. I promise the girls didn't pose for the pictures-they were taken au natural. The fuzzy strawberry and poofy kitty were a hit at every house...and they were quite adorable, if I do say so myself. The neighborhood we trick or treated in was a bit of a dud, but the girls (and Brian, who disobeyed the doctor...