Princess for the Day

layla turned 2 yesterday. see how grown up she is? (sippy and everything)


her only demands, nay, royal decrees, were that we eat dinner at panda express (???) and have a ladybug birt-day cake (again, ???) for her birthday. as you can see from the photo evidence below, both were smashing successes. oh, except for the cake's lameness. she's 2 and is cursed with a lazy, albeit loving, mother.


we spent the day picnicing with friends (started out at the park, but the wind was bitter cold, so we turned it into an inside-picnic festival in our basement), looking at chicks freshly hatched from eggs (carson even put his brave face on and held one, even though it tickled!), playing playing playing, and giving in to her every whim. well, ALMOST every whim. like, she picked out (and i purchased) pink frosting, a bag of cheetos, salt water taffy, and juice boxes at the store. but she still had to take a nap and wasn't allowed to eat her candy jewelry 2 minutes before bedtime. i know. i'm an ogre.



and, i know this post is all about layla, but let me just say this: carson was an all-star big brother for the day. seriously. he helped me wrap her presents and make and decorate her cake, he got excited with and for her when she got stuff and attention, he kept secrets about her presents (calling her bike "duh SEEcret bike present" whenever she was around...nice) and picked out some barretts (sp?) and "chapstick" just for her, he showed her where the bike was hidden (under the blankets in paul's and my room) but wouldn't let her see it, he loudly and proudly announced to anyone and everyone that it was layla's birthday, he decorated the cake with 2 pink candles all by himself, he helped her open presents only when she needed it and sat patiently while she picked off one shred of wrapping at a time...the list goes on. way to go, carson!!

oh, and we spent this morning taking very good care of the babies (notice lays' stellar post-party hair) with some new baby accessories:


we love layla so much. probably too much, sometimes. she's hilarious, opinionated, smart, fun-loving, sweet, adorable, wild, chatty, and tender. last night before falling asleep, paul and i were talking about our "princess of the day." paul laughed. "of the day? yeah right. you know she's been princess--no, queen--around here for two years now." true.

pics

goin' out. i've resigned myself to not caring what my kids choose to wear...and this is the result. it was warm on this day (about 45 degrees), but carson was taking no chances. and layla...well...i don't know what to say. each item was carefully hand-picked, so there's art in there somewhere.


these are some pics of our traditional saturday morning dancing (a must-do before chores). paul sprained his ankle playing b-ball, so he was exempt from dancing but not from wearing a pure gold super-dad cape. by the way, nearly every dancing session at our house (and there are many) requires a rousing rendition of "ring around the rosy," hence the all falling down.



happy easter, everybody. i hope yours was splendid. ours was. all 800 pounds of sugary delight of it.


so, after several minutes of silence last night, i called up to ask carson what he was doing (he was upstairs, i was downstairs glued to american idol, sitting under the shiny reflection of my "mother of the year" plaque, of course). "oh, i'm dust making my hands all wet." but i didn't hear running water, so i told him to come downstairs for a minute. on his way down the stairs, he informed me, "don't worry, mom. i was dust covering dem in gasoline." (my heart about stopped when i heard that. where in the WORLD is he getting gasoline?!?! then i realized he meant vaseline. not sure that that's much better...)

have you ever tried to wash off an entire jar of vaseline from a kid's hands and face as well as a bathroom vanity/sink/faucet? if not, you're missing out. it's barrels of fun. except, replace the words "barrels of fun" with "completely impossible." he woke up with super-soft cheeks and hands this morning, though!

new favorite numbers

"the 150s," because that's the measure of my wee-est one's heartbeat. a glorious sound.

(also glorious is a checkup that lasts--from check-in to re-scheduling--12 minutes. i kid you not. maybe i should get myself some questions to ask my doctor, but everything seems to be going fine...minus the higher-than-expected weight gain thus far. *sighhhhhh*)

Tagged

Kathy tagged me to list 7 random fact about myself. Good grief.

1-My feet are weird: I hardly have any toenail at all on my pinkie toe, my 2nd toe can be bent to look EXACTLY like an elephant's leg, and I have about 18 layers of hard, dead calloused skin on my big toes and heels. Sounds pretty, I know.

2-I can fall asleep pretty much anytime, anywhere. It's a blessing and a curse.

3-I sing alto but have a range of about 5 notes. Paul's a tenor, and his range is much better than mine but probably includes my 5 notes. With young kids who sing ultra-soprano, this makes for some interesting family singalongs...

4-I don't really enjoy trying new things; I'm pretty comfortable in my life bubble. But once I actually DO try something, I usually enjoy it. It's just the unknown that repels me, I think. You'd think, at 28, I'd be more mature.

5-I have an embarrassingly low tolerance for frightening things and get scared very easily. I've hyperventilated during a movie one time because of this (I think it was Lady in White...is that right, college friends?). Even the predictable climaxes in Disney movies make me a little uneasy, although I try to act brave for my kids.

6-I used to chew gum nonstop; the same piece would sometimes last me for days (I'd keep it on my bedpost through the night...literally. Ew). Since being pregnant with Carson, I max out at about 10 minutes of gum-chewing. I kind of miss the good ol' days.

7-Um...running out of ideas. I use a 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner because it saves time, even though my hair really probably needs to be conditioned appropriately.

Joll. I tag: Tyrelle, Marty, and Mark and/or Ali M. Sorry guys.

update

so, not to be anticlimatic, but i have neither photos nor video footage (yet) of the dance performance. i'm sure that, somehow, you'll all survive.

things went well. i mean, we had a GREAT time performing, and very few tomatoes were thrown and expletives yelled, so we can chalk that up to a wildly successful show, right?

there were the few minor yet inevitable mishaps, of course:
- a sticky spot on the stage that caught you off guard when you're trying to move your foot fast to get all the trebles/taps in. it was exciting to try to dodge that spot of stage in the middle of dances.
- a live band that sounded awesome and did great, minus one song where they randomly accidentally left out a 32-count stanza of music in the middle of the song, leaving the dancers confused, befuddled, and looking a little strange in their formation. but whatever. the show must go on.
- forgetting a step or two here and there but managing to cover it up quickly and without major consequences.
- a mildly embarrassing "is she pregnant or is she just chubby?" belly poking out of all my form-fitting dresses. (heh...answer: "c, both of the above.")

but, all in all, it was deliciously fun. especially since i, for some strange reason, felt no nervousness or whatever but just excitement, adrenaline, and good old-fashioned happiness.

i love to irish dance. it rules. but for now i can focus on bigger and better things in life. you know, the REALLY important stuff like: play-doh time, homemade dinners, and family movie nights on fridays with paul and/or the kids (dance practices have taken up every friday night for months).

top o' the morning to ye

so this morning when carson realized it was st. patrick's day, he ran to his room to put on some green. the thing about my kids is, they think EVERY LAST INCH of a person must be covered in green. he was mad that he didn't have any green shorts and hated my suggestion that, actually, he could wear whatever shorts he wanted and just put on a shirt with a little green on it. so we found some hunter green pants. he randomly has some green socks, too, so that was a lifesaver. but the two green shirts he has have little pics of tanks or airplanes or something on the front, and he did NOT think that would fly. somehow we got through the crisis.

and layla looks...colorful. she's wearing rainbow tights with a small stripe of green included, a neon green skirt, a greenish plaid shirt, covered by an aqua hoodie (her choice). wow. just call us leprechaun central around here.

anyone planning an all-green dinner or something? i'm looking for an easy tradition to start but am coming up with nothing but stomach-churning ways to make a green meal. like the time my mom turned hot dogs green, but they weren't really green, they were more like...never mind. too gross. and green milk and pancakes and mashed potatoes. something about all that just doesn't, i dunno, fill my pot o' gold.

p.s. because you all care, i called paul at work and asked if he remembered to wear green today. (apparently last year he was the only one who wore green to work, and i think the other engineers made fun of his nerdiness...i don't know about you, but all sorts of images of taunting pots and kettles and the word "black" come to mind...) he SAID he didn't remember (i'm doubtful), but he reassured me that there's a little green on his socks. all i know is his children will be less than impressed. either that or worried, to some degree, for his salvation.

guess what's been on my mind?

starts tomorrow. ahhhh!!!

wanted: mary poppins jr.

WANTED: a mary poppins-type someone to come finish my laundry (started 3 days ago and still on my couch), do the dishes, wash bathrooms daily, decide on this month's menu, grocery shop for said menu, melt the snow in our backyard, clean the grime out of our kitchen floor grout, wash and vacuum our vehicles, paint the upstairs, build a deck, and replace our windows with energy-efficient numbers. two children will answer to "jane" and "michael" if absolutely necessary (and if fruit snacks bribes are involved).
QUALIFICATIONS: must be able to snap fingers.
WAGES: many stars on your crown in heaven.
INQUIRE WITHIN.

just because

layla has been begging for some "new sades" lately, and i finally remembered to get some for her. she loves them. she actually loves anything that makes her feel "fancy."

oh, funny (kind of related) story: the other morning, we had to wake the kids up pretty early to get to paul's b-ball game in time. carson came out to the kitchen where paul and i were eating breakfast, and he was so grumpy from being woken up, and squinting (the light was on). "it's so bright, toooooooo bright!!!!! i need my shades." so he proceeded to wear his shades around the house while we dressed him, got him out to the car, and drove to the game (about 50 minutes away). don't worry--the sun wasn't even up for a good part of that.



i wore the strawberry dress you see above when i was layla's age. except i was a LOT chunkier and a bit shorter than she is, so it fit me a little different (her diaper makes a debut every time she bends over to pick up her baby). but still. a little stroll down memory lane. and that polyester will last until HER daughter's ready to wear it...

p.s. i promise her hair looks cute sometimes. you wouldn't think it to see these pics, but i actually do do it on occasion.

the missing link

i'm pretty sure layla was a primate in her former life, either that or she's preparing to be one in her next. what you see here is one of her favorite pastimes these days--trying to find and picking at any lint between her toes. she'll do this several times a day. it's so sick. but that's actually not the worst part. paul and i must be ever vigilant to (a) wear shoes & socks ourselves, or (b) hide our feet from her, because she somehow feels it's her duty to take care of this task for the rest of us. not only is it gross, but it tickles.

snow tunnel

these were from some saturday last month. the kids (i'm including paul in that generalization) had a great time. you may or may not notice my bread pans out in the fort portion of the tunnel...carson wanted them for building an igloo, and he was slightly disappointed that transparent blocks of ice didn't immediately ensue, like on tv. he got over it pretty fast, though.

my dad used to help us kids build massive snow structures when it snowed (once every 8 years, it seemed like). like life-size trains. and we'd use up bottles of food coloring to make them even more real-life. snow is so great!

dear michelle,

[editor's note: this is an email written to paul's little sister who's teaching english in the ukraine. i didn't want to re-type the info to be blog-worthy, so here it is, in its virtually unedited glory.]

dear michelle,

please oh please don't hate me. i'm so sorry i've been neglecting you for the past few weeks!!! things have been crazy around here, but that's no excuse.

i loved reading your last email. other than being sick, it sounds like you're doing great. oh, 'cept for the stinking cockroaches. ugh. seriously. ewwwwww. with my latest house-cleaning skills and motivation (or lack thereof) lately, i'm sure my kitchen is just inches away from being invaded by some nasty creature as well. good thing they can't get through the snow easily...

carson was kind of picking at his hind-end the other day, and i told him that's gross, we don't need to touch our bum. his hands kind of moved a little to the side, and he started grabbing a cheek in each hand. "what are dese, mom?" um, your bum. "no, DIS [moving hands back to the middle of his bum here] is my bum." oh, true. well, those are your bum cheeks, then. "my BUM CHEEKS?!?!?! ahahahahahaaahahahahaha..." he thought it was hilarious. i tried to add something about how they're actually called gluteus maximus so he would maybe focus on that rather than proclaiming his newfound knowledge about the "other" body cheeks, but to my chagrin, he busted out a lecture to katrina all about bum cheeks a short while later.

layla's into hitting things and people when she's frustrated. and gesturing like she's going to hit. great. actually, she's so hilarious most of the time, paul and i can hardly stand it. she loves her toy dolls and dotes on them something fierce. like, she can't even stay in her chair at dinner or anytime during the day, because she's CONSTANTLY putting her baby down for a nap, then hearing her wake up and going to get her, then rocking her, then unwrapping her, then reading to her, then wrapping her back up, then then then... she takes her job very seriously. it's rather sweet. borderline annoying, though, because she thinks those stinking dolls are way more important than anything, and she gets ticked if, say, i'm showering while her baby happens to come unwrapped and needs immediate attention.

speaking of, that baby logan of tonya & jeremy's is one cute little dude. and he's got some sweet hair to boot. you're going to love him.

katrina and i made a late-night arby's run the other night for paul and jordan. don't worry--the old fred meyer bass-pumping weekend truck gang has migrated slightly north to the arby's parking lot. we got whistled at, "hey ladies, where you going?" ew. i would've been 100% grossed out, except one of the guys was seriously carrying a bat and kind of swinging it around, so i was probably more like 85% grossed out, 15% afraid for my life. k & i have never been to arby's, so i actually asked the check-out lady "what's good here?" i know, so lame, but i really didn't know. i think she thought we were weird. we all scarfed down arby's uponst returning home, and us girls felt a little sick. slash, really sick. probably will be the last time an arby's commercial calls...

we got to miss stake conference for joshua's baby blessing yesterday. (yes, that's a happy thing, with two toddlers who can barely eke through a sacrament meeting--half as long as stk conf--unscathed.) john did a really good job, and josh looked just about edible in a cute white sweater onesie-type thing. he is seriously so beautiful. we missed you.

we're back to basic cable around here and are missing out on some serious jazz games. nuts. it's probably for the best, though.

welp, this was a random email. i don't really lead an exotic life like you do. it's sunshiney today, and warm (almost 50!!) so the kids and i are going jogging this afternoon. other than that, i have to work a little bit on the computer and figure out what's for dinner. life is good. love you!

brittney

lasagna & chocolate cake

i don't know of a tastier food than lasagna. seriously, i don't. and i don't know of a more worthy way of feeling fuller-than-full-and-sick-to-your-stomach than by topping it off with paul's DIVINE chocolate cake (thanks, brooke, for sharing some of that with us so many years ago...my thighs have not been the same since). that's all. the simple pleasures. like sporting a spiderman bandaid on a prominent finger wound because we ran out of flesh-colored "adult" bandaids. and sneaking a pack of fruit snacks to eat without sharing even one because they're just so delish. like solving the sudoku in pen. and going jogging on a sunshiney and glorious afternoon. and being a teensy but noticeable bit sore the next day from said jogging. and getting many out-of-the-blue hugs and kisses from those little ones i'd be hard-pressed to live without (heh...MOST of the time). ahh happiness.