Ethan's most amazing ride to date!!

Today Cindy and I (being Joel, of course) decided we should make Ethan's 10 month video. Ethan loves his bike...but he doesn't know how to ride. Some simple cleverness from Cindy and we had our video. We had way too much fun taking this 10 second video. Enjoy!!

Extreme Bedroom Makeover

Okay, well it was extreme for me. Do you ever feel like it's hard enough to keep your house looking presentable, so then your bedroom just becomes the dumping ground for everything that has no place? That's what our bedroom felt like. We rarely display our bedroom, even when guests come over, so it was easily overlooked. But I finally felt like it was time to have a "grown-up" bedroom, with matching furniture and all.

So here is the before pic:Okay, that's not really our bedroom. I never took a before picture, but I totally should have. This picture comes close to the feeling of our old room. Just take away the messy clothes on the floor, but leave the clutter. Take away the matching headboard and dresser and put in no headboard, and a broken cluttery dresser. And that was our bedroom. Very sad.

So you can imagine how excited I was when we finally could go to IKEA (I've been planning to for months) and buy our bedroom set! We didn't buy the entire set. We had gotten the headboard on KSL, so we bought new dressers and nightstands from IKEA. Add a few lamps and a bedspread from IKEA and a couple knick-knacks from other places and Voila! Our room looks just like page 166 in the IKEA catalog.
It is such a more calm space now. I actually enjoy being in my room. Hooray!

Just when I felt like I had gotten the last space in this house organized and the way I want it, our ceiling leaks and makes a huge bubble. The plumbing in this place is a joke. So Joel got to cut a big hole in the ceiling:

And now it looks like this:

He promises it will be done by next week. I actually believe him, because he only cut the hole less than a week ago, and is nearly finished. Here's to hoping!

Cindy is in no way affiliated with IKEA stores or any of its subsidiaries.
She simply likes the cheap prices and the tiny couches! (although she doesn't own one)

time for a post

I don't really have too much to say on this post, but I thought these pictures were cute. Cassidy got this Cinderella dress from Santa and she loves it. She wears it every day.

This is the BEFORE picture, before Ethan's first real hair cut (from a stylist). My friend cuts hair and she came over to cut his hair. Notice the hair going over the ear. It was time.
Joel also needed a hair cut badly, so she cut his hair, as well.

The double before shot:The during shot:Okay, so I forgot to take the 'immediately after' photo because he was so sad and tired, but look what I can do with his hair now: I love it!!!

(Before when I would try to spike his hair, he looked like a Who from Who-ville!)

There is no "after" shot of Joel. What a bad wife I am! But really, we all know what his hair cut looks like every time, right? I'll post a wedding pic and you'll see his hair cut. Don't think I think it's bad. I love his hair! He's a stud.

Cassidy loves apples. So much so that she steals them, and then this is what we find:

(little tiny niblets missing from the apple)

There was one day last week that I could not get any hot water upstairs for the life of me, so Baby Ethan ended up taking his bath in the sink. Very cute, but holy cow. I had to wipe down the entire main floor; that kid splashed a good 10 foot radius each direction!

Santa also brought Cassidy a shiny red trike for Christmas. She has had a hard time learning to ride, so Joel came up with the brilliant chalk idea to teach her to steer. She picked it up really quickly! Check it out:

He budged!

He budged! I looked over the other day, and I saw Baby Ethan budge towards a toy. So I grabbed his bike and backed it up and shot this video. Within seconds, he was a scootin' baby!

He scoots all over now.

A Dancing Success!

Cassidy had her first dance performance and she didn't even cry! I was SO nervous that she would run off stage crying. But she sure proved me wrong! It was ADORABLE. I have never been so happy to be her mother. She's the cutest!

Cassidy and Jilly:Lexi and Cassidy:ballerina pose:

Isn't she to die for?

Wow, I've posted a lot lately.

This is what happens when you do Christmas pictures yourself

This is what happens when you try and do Christmas pictures by yourself:

(Cassidy is pulling on his ear)Our brilliant curtain idea came crashing down, quite literally.and yet we did it anyway all for one or two pretty good shots:
In case you're thinking, "Oh, that doesn't look too bad..." it's because we deleted the worst pictures (crying babies) before I thought to put them on the blog.

But I thought our Santa adventure was quite the success. Baby Ethan sat on Santa's lap first, to show big sis that it's not so bad. Then she climbed on hesitatingly, forced a smile for the photo, and then climbed off graciously. And with tears welling up in her eyes, she recited, "I need a pwincess dwess, a bike and toys," all by herself! We had talked about seeing Santa for SO long and kept reminding her that she would NOT cry. I was VERY proud of her!

She points out Santas all the time now (half the time it's just a guy with a beard) and gets excited. It's just his lap that is scary to her. She really does love the idea of him and is very excited for this Christmas!

We were too impatient for Santa to bring Cassidy a bike, so we got her this used one FREE! She loves to ride it, even in the freezing cold:

Don't worry; Santa still might bring her a shiny red trike. We just have to wait and see!

Baby Ethan Update: He got his second tooth shortly after that first one. He is scooting backwards and always getting stuck under everything: couches, beds, tables, you name it. He now gets mad when you lay him down for naps, which is very unlike him. He still loves his jumperoo, and he thinks that everything Cassidy does is hilarious. Just for fun:

Never been tagged

In all my many five months of blogging I have never been tagged (specifically by name). So thanks Cass, for tagging me. I hope you guys don't die of boredom:

1.Do you like bleu cheese? No way. I'm so picky I don't even like soup.
2. Have you ever smoked? I have never been offered a smoke...but I'm confident I would still say NO.
3. Do you own a gun? Heck no.
4. What flavor Kool-Aid was your favorite? I prefer the watermelon invisible Kool-Aid, and I will explain why: 1. It doesn't stain. 2. It doesn't taste as disgustingly strong. 3. It's fun to trick first-time tasters that it's water (btw, Cass, didn't I trick you once with it?). 4. It's not sticky. OK; that last one was a lie. Of course it's sticky; it's still Kool-Aid!
5. Do you get nervous about doctor appointments? Yep, esp. my kids' appointments when they get shots.
6. What do you think of hot dogs? Turkey Franks are the best.
7. Favorite Christmas movie? the Grinch (with Jim Carrey) by a mile! It's not just my favorite Christmas movie; It is my favorite movie EVER. I make myself resist watching it year-round so it will still be special when December comes. How geeky am I? My class even watched it in French today (en francais, bien sur!)
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? I try and be healthy and have fruit and water. But then 9:00 rolls around and I get hungry and eat whatever's around (at school all I have is granola bars). Did that even answer the question?
9. Can you do push-ups? Yeah-I used to go to "cardio camp" at the gym and our instructor would have us do push-ups by the 50's. It was intense. I went to that class until I was 5 mos. pregnant with Ethan. I was more in shape then than I am now.
10. What's your favorite piece of jewelry? My rings; I feel naked without them.
11. Favorite hobby? Cassidy has nine scrapbooks. Need I say more? And I asked Santa for a Cricut machine.
12. Do you have ADD? No, but all my students seem to.
13. What's one trait you hate about yourself? I hate how I somehow think I have to steal all the attention when I'm in a group. Even when the subject has nothing to do with me; I'm working on it.
14. Middle initial? J.
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment? I'm hungry. I'm tired. I don't want to plan my lessons.
16. Name 3 drinks you regularly drink? milk, juice, water. In that order. (Bad, I know)
17. Current worry? How to survive another half-year teaching. This Christmas break is arriving just in time.
18. Current hate right now? The disrespectful attitude of adolescents towards teachers.
19. Favorite place to be? My bed.
20. How did you ring in the new year? I usually go to the New Year's Party at my sister's house. But Joel ALWAYS works New Years, so it's not my favorite holiday.
21. Where would you like to go? On a Cruise to anywhere.
22. Name 3 people to tag? Sheila, Anna and Ann Elise
23. Do you own slippers? Do Mukluks count? They are the best! (Big woven moccasins that go up the leg)
24. What shirt are you wearing? A white tank-top with a green half-sweater.
25. Do you like sleeping on satin sheets? Sure, but lame question.
26. Can you whistle? Not very well. It takes me a minute just to get out one good toot.
27. Favorite color? Pink, although I don't wear it half as much as I used to.
28. Would you be a pirate? Can I change these questions? Seriously.
29. What songs do you sing in the shower? Right now? Baby, it's cold out side, Let it Snow, Il est ne, le divin enfant...you get the idea. Usually? RESPECT (by Aretha Franklin), all the songs from "Enchanted," kid songs when the kids are awake to keep them entertained, the list goes on...poor Joel has to listen to me.
30. Favorite girl's name? Cassidy and Mia. Joel will never let me name my daughter Mia. (Me a Keeper!)
31. Favorite boy's name? Ethan
32. What's in your pocket right now? no pockets.
33. Last thing that made you laugh? I am laughing right now at Cassidy who is clapping...for no reason at all.
34. What vehicle do you drive? a white Chevy Aveo. It's like a tiny tiny mini-van. My neighbor's little boy said, "Look, Mom, it's a baby van."
35. Worst injury? I fractured a bone in my foot in high-school, but I didn't let it slow me down way bad. I still danced at the dances. In college I broke my wrist rollerblading backwards (not my brightest moment). I had to write left-handed for over a month. It was a rough semester.
36. Do you love where you live? Clearfield is not the most attractive place to live, but I LOVE my friends I have met in the townhomes. There are some jogging trails, but I have to drive to them, which to me defeats the purpose.
37. How many TVs do you have in your house? one and it is in the freezing cold basement, so we have no idea what is going on in the world.
38. Who is your loudest friend? I'm too loud to notice.
39. Do you have any pets? No, but I want to get Cassidy a fish.
40. Does someone have a crush on you? I used to have problems with all males named Travis, but that was a long time ago. I think I'm pretty safe now.
41. Your favorite book? Are you my mother? (a kid book)
42. Do you collect anything? scrapbook supplies.
43. Favorite sports team? the Jazz, I guess.
44. What song do you want played at your funeral? What? I have NO idea. If I had to choose, I guess it would be the Prayer by Josh Groban.