Carson

Yesterday after I got out of the shower, I heard Layla screaming at my locked door, which, as it happens in my house, is not uncommon during my shower-time (can someone please explain this? my kids will be playing happily and nicely, I'll sneak away to shower for 3 minutes, and one or both will be screaming by the time I turn off the water. go figure). I dressed quickly and opened the door, and she was already mid-tattle, "Hawsey (Carson) was pullin' on meeeeeee." Me: (eyes rolling in my brain; I've heard that one before) "Aw nuts, honey. Let's have a hug and kiss it better." Then, from the depths of Carson's closed-door bedroom, I hear a little voice through Layla's sobs, "Don't worry, mommy. I alweddy put myself in Time Out." I had to laugh.

It turns out that we're all lucky no one was seriously hurt; Carson told me later that he was indeed pulling on Layla--pulled her so much that they both fell all the way down the stairs. Good grief.

Oh, and for FHE the other night, we read the scripture story about Ammon for our lesson. Carson's eyes were predictably wide and bewildered when we got to the arms-chopping part, although we tried to emphasize other, more pertinent, parts of the story (protection, obedience, etc.). But he couldn't get over it. "I NEED a new side (sword) to fight duh bad guys! My plastic pirate side is not shaip enough AT ALL." Well, we actually probably don't need to worry about fighting bad guys with swords. "But what if duh bad guys come in duh house?" Hmm, I don't know of any bad guys, but if you see one, maybe a better thing to do would be to run away or something. [editor's note: this conversation was getting more and more befuddled, and we were sincerely trying to cut it short and get back to the topic at hand, but to no avail.] "But I can't run berry fast! Dey would catch me!" Well, just remember that Heavenly Father will protect you, and--"I could ride my bike instead! I'm the FASTEST EBBER on my bike, so I would be SO FAST dat dey couldn't catch me. Duh bad guys don't have bikes!" (kind of laughing) I guess that's true. You don't see too many bad guys pedaling bikes. "Yeah, dey just have to run, so I'll be SUUUUPER fast."

Ah, the lessons of the scriptures.

it's gonna be a bright (bright) bright (bright) sunshiney day

okay, so there are very few moments in my life when that song is more appreciated than annoying (things can only get so bright before my squinting eyes start to cramp up and my head aches...), but today is a great day. sunshine outside. rice krispie treats for the taking inside. and carson dressed himself today in distressed jeans and a long-sleeved t-rex t-shirt underneath his church blazer. it reminds me of ryan seacrest, actually, and we HAVE been watching a little american idol...hmm...

paul felt a little earthquake out at work today (about 40-50 miles away from home). supposedly it originated in nevada. it's the first earthquake he's ever been in. he called to see if i felt anything here--i didn't, did anyone who lives around here feel it? still. and to think those homeowners insurance people laughed and tried to talk us out of paying extra for earthquake insurance (they seriously did, and we seriously didn't listen to them. "we do live on a fault line, after all," says my sweetheart).

we discussed "freakonomics" at my book club today. interesting book with interesting ideas, but i'm not buying them all. stuff to think about, but i don't think it changed my life, other than to alleviate any guilt i might feel about sticking the kids in front of the tv all day.... (just kidding, joyce & mom...)

carson's been out riding his bike like a maniac the past few days. it's great! i kinda forgot what exercise is like. the other day, he did a 1+ mile loop, but those last two blocks were killer. "my legs are soooo sooooooy (sore), mommy. i can hiedly even move dem!" it's all about conditioning, my boy; keep those muscles moving, and they'll get stronger. (says the lady who starts panting if i run up the stairs too fast.)

layla seems older and older these days. she has 80-year-old-woman mannerisms trapped inside an almost-2-year-old body. and we get a kick out of her, paul especially. she can make him laugh so hard. now there's one girl who can get anything--ANYTHING--out of her old man with a smile and a cheesy "puh-leeeeeease, daddy-o!" cute thing.

t minus 25 days...

...until our st. patty's day "celtic night" show! i'm excited and nervous and all that. i think layla will be a little disappointed when it's all over, though. she loves seeing me put on my black tights and asking, "mommy doe-ing to dance? i doe to dance, too?" then she dances around the house anyway.

you should all come: ellen eccles theater, saturday march 15 or monday march 17 (st patty's day). it's a fun show for the whole family (at least, from my backstage vantage point, it seems fun?). and to add to your entertainment, i'll be 4 months pregnant...

good times.

some pics, just because

okay, this is the last of them for today. the pic below is of layla in her new shirt from poppi & gramma sally, brought over from europe. paul and i agree (as unbiased parties, of course) that she looks absolutely scrumptious in it. our own little lollipop. (thanks again, mom & dad!)




the next pic is of carson's new hairdo. i had to wet down his hair the other day to comb it out, and i'd combed it all forward before parting it when he glanced up in the mirror at himself. "mom, leave it like this! i LIKE my hair in my eyes!" my friend and i were talking about how funny it is that even young kids start to decide what "looks good" on them when, in reality, it can be pretty ridiculous.




then, i start to wonder about how many people are waiting for ME to discover that i'm getting a little too old for braids and ribbons in my own hair...

Stamping

so, carson and layla are REALLY into stamps these days. in fact, that was their #1 choice of reward upon reaching their first star on the "nice board." (thanks for the idea, emily; you're a maternal genius.)

i think layla's either very advanced for her age (knowing that an actual fingerprint profile is needed for all 10 fingers, not just the thumbs), or it's back to the drawing board as far as item identification goes ("okay, honey, one more time: this is your finger, this is the stamp. the stamp goes in the ink...ohp, uh, okay, that's actually your finger again, but whatever. potato, potahto..."). but just look at how cute. stamp away, my love.

carson spent quite awhile this afternoon upstairs by himself (a rare feat; the kid is determined to be "scared" of anything if he's even remotely alone) stamping away. to my amazement, he came down a few minutes ago, proudly bearing the fruits of his labors, with the announcement that he had also wiped clean all the stamps and put them all away in their boxes. (whose kid ARE you? can i see your 10-fingerprint ID, please? oh, wait, that's just layla...)

i love being a mom.

holy snow, batman.

lately, i've become quite literally grateful for "a roof over my head." i only hope it can hold out a few months longer until this stuff melts...hopefully slowly enough to avoid a serious floodage of the basement.

The 14 days of Valentines

Have you ever started something that you later think was a little ambitious and that, in all reality, you should've down-scaled the dream a bit before embarking on its achievement? Yeah, me too. I thought that, instead of one Day of Love this month, I'd try to make it a little more meaningful and do the 14 Days of Valentines for my sweetheart. (I'm fairly anti-Valentines Day for many reasons that won't be discussed here...but it all began with BYU's Valentines Day edition of the Daily Universe...but Valentines MONTH, now, that has potential.)

How I love Paul.

But how I kind of wish I had stuck with the one-day end-all celebratory experience that seems to work just fine for the rest of the world. 14 days is a lot! And I have 9 more to go. I'm actually having fun hiding the little notes and treats and stuff in places that he doesn't suspect and at different times of the day. Sadly, though, my creativity is already waning; last night (the 4th day of Valentines, mind you...we're not even into double digits here, folks), I handed him a note declaring that day's "treat" to be a post-FHE trip to Charlie's with the kids for four milkshakes. Because I hadn't really thought ahead. Oh, and he paid for them. Sheesh.

What a good sport I married. Love him.