Gratitude Post #40!!

1-I am grateful that I have written 40 gratitude posts. I was honestly excited when I wrote my 2nd gratitude post. 40 sure feels like a lot. I am proud of myself for writing them even when I didn't feel like it. I am (mostly) happy with what I've written. Some posts seem repetitive and some seem like silly things to be grateful for...but I am grateful for the way I feel when I write down what I'm grateful for. Especially when I have to dig deep.

2-I am grateful for blog comments. My friend Desiree makes my day (repeatedly, I might add) by leaving me comments! Not that she is the only one who has left comments...but she leaves them a lot. :) I am grateful for all of my commenters and readers. Even though I do this for myself, I love knowing that someone else enjoyed it too. Now don't go feeling like you have to leave a comment...it's ok to be a blog stalker, I do it too...but I just really love when someone goes out of their way to leave a comment. :)

3-I am grateful for my relationship with Chris. Today at church we had a lesson on positive communication. We got a 4 page outline of things to work on. Chris and I giggled at some of it and joked about being able to check it off our list. We have a pretty awesome relationship. Now it may not be perfect, but I think it's pretty darn close. We have great communication, we generally have similar opinions and views on most everything and we just plain get along and enjoy each other. Once upon a time we did Amway together. We got teased about it and we were really terrible about the selling/recruiting part. However, there was another side to it that most people didn't see...it involved taking relationship courses, going to motivational seminars (that didn't just include business related motivation, but whole life motivation), reading books about being successful in all areas of your life (especially in relationships), and learning to work together in all areas of life (business and personal). We really became best friends. We really learned to help each other. We really spent a lot of money and hardly made any in return. But, it was a darn good investment! :) Now, don't be alarmed. I know we have to continually work at it. But we are good at that too. (Not to brag or anything...) We go somewhere once a year without kids. We go somewhere once a year with kids. We try to go on a date once a week. Sometimes our dates are awesome. Sometimes we get take out and rent a movie. Sometimes we just stay up late and watch t.v. Sometimes we take one or two of the kids with us. Sometimes we take friends or family with us. But, all that matters is that we're good at making time for each other. Which is hard to do with so many kids who are busy too...but it's also easier to do now that we have kids old enough to babysit! Such a happy day when that happened!

Gratitude Post #39

1-I am grateful that parents were invited to the 3rd grade "Grandparents program" at Mason's school. I loved it so much I can't even tell you. My Mase warms my heart like you wouldn't believe. Watching him sing and dance totally made my day! I checked him out and took him to lunch after (with Chris and his parents too) and it was so fun listening to the random things he said. He is such a funny kid.

2- I am grateful for the awesome king size bed I found on KSL. I am also grateful that my Dad let us borrow his truck to pick it up. I'm also super grateful that it fit in the truck! I was a little worried!

3-I am grateful that I was able to resell some furniture that I bought and changed my mind about. I'm sure it made Chris happy that I unloaded a piece of furniture. :)

Ultra Gratitude (#38)

 Wanna know what I'm REEEAAALLLYYY grateful for?...

 

...ok, I'll show you...

 



Gratitude Post #37

1-I am grateful for my friend Vandee. We have been friends for 10 years. (According to my math anyways...) I am so happy we got to have lunch today. I am so grateful she is still my friend after a decade! I am grateful that I got to know her in the first place. I just love her. :) I am also grateful for visiting teaching. Some of my longest lasting friendships have come from visiting teaching. I was Vandee's VT all those years ago and then we ended up signing our kids up for preschool together and have been friends ever since. She is still my friend even though I picked at my face really bad last night and I look like I have chicken pox. :) Oh, and she is also my only friend that has consistently remembered my birthday for all of the years I have known her. I kinda think my birthday is a big deal. I kinda get my feelings hurt every year when no one remembers. Vandee has never let me down. I will always love her for that. And I hope I have never forgotten her birthday. Some years I'm better at birthday's than others...

2-I am grateful for Taylor's baseball game last night. He played so well and it was so fun to watch his confidence grow. I got so many compliments on what a great kid he is. The umpire even congratulated him on a great catch he made. I love watching my kids succeed and watching their confidence grow. Confidence is so important. Not to be confused with arrogance. :)

3-I am grateful for my new friend Erin. She paints furniture and sells it on the facebook yardsale. We have a connection. She has great taste and talent, I like to buy every single thing she posts. Ha ha ha. My whole house will be furnished with Erin originals by the time I'm done. It might be a problem..

Gratitude Post #36

1-I am grateful for Kristen Olsen. Her comment on my facebook post about Mason's fall fair story warmed my heart. For real. Seriously, how kind of her to take the time to write a comment directed to Mason when she doesn't even know him. I want to be like her when I grow up! :)

2-I am grateful that it's soup weather! And breadstick weather! And that my breadsticks turned out so good tonight! :)

3- I am grateful for the freaking amazing things I've found on the Herriman yardsale facebook page! Even though I am getting teased relentlessly by my friends AND family, I have furnished several rooms in my house for super cheap! I can't wait for my house to be done!!!!

Gratitude Post #35

1-I am grateful for the way these posts make me feel. I didn't know I had 35 of them in me. :)

2-I am grateful for the change of seasons. Even if it means HOURS of work switching all of my kids' closets (and bins in some cases...we don't all have closets here) :) from summer to winter clothes. I am also super grateful that my awesome husband did, in fact, listen to me and left the bins of winter clothes at the front of our storage unit. I couldn't see them and I doubted his listening skills...but he went to the storage unit with me and pulled them out of exactly where he remembered putting them...right near the front. :) Phew. I was starting to panic thinking I had to buy dozens of pairs of pants. I should also mention that I am super grateful for hand-me-downs. I love pulling buckets of clothes out every time the seasons change. :)

3-I am grateful for my parents. They took my 4 little kids to my neice's birthday party in Logan for the better part of the day yesterday. I didn't go because I couldn't spend one more day in the car. I feel like I am living out of my car most days. It was so nice having the whole day to get some stuff done. My list of things to do was getting longer and longer (as I am not home all that often to cross anything off of said list). So, on the "day of rest" I worked my tail off. All of my kids have winter clothes washed, organized and ready to go...even though the 10 day forecast goes into October and it says it will still be 80 degrees. :) I organized hundreds of pictures that I need to scrapbook now...hopefully I'll get around to those before we move into our new house.

Gratitude Post #34

1-I am grateful for my kids. Even the naughty grounded ones. The funny part about it is that, knowing my kids as well as I do, I grounded them from cousins. :) They were SO miserable yesterday not being able to call Jake, Bridger and Addee! It was pure torture. They thought it was SO unfair and painful. I told them it was SUPPOSED TO BE painful. So, next time I threaten to ground them I'm betting they'll listen. However, it was SUCH a nice day! They were also grounded from video games so they played outside and played board games ALL DAY LONG. It was blissful...all 6 of my kids getting along and entertaining themselves without technology and all. Maybe we should do it more often...

2-I am grateful that I was able to pick up not one, but two tables yesterday! One from the Herriman yard sale page and one from Home Goods...both of which I have mentioned my gratitude for. :) I am in love with them! I can't wait to have a house to put them in!! Speaking of houses...Chris and I went by our house yesterday and climbed in the basement windows to take a tour of our finished foundation. We even went down to the deep dark parts (where we found a GIANT spider...which I am NOT grateful for). We are getting so excited for our house to be done! Framing materials have been delivered to our lot and should be going up this week! I can hardly stand it!
3-I am grateful for a big, strong husband. If it weren't for him I'd be trapped in my deep, dark basement with a giant spider as we speak. Yeah, he had to pull me out of the window well because it was too deep for me to climb out of. How embarrassing! I am grateful that he didn't even tease me about it. I fully expected him to. :)

Gratitude Post #33

1-I am grateful that I am writing this post as I don't actually feel very grateful at the moment. I'm hoping that by forcing myself to write it I'll actually FEEL grateful. The last 32 posts have helped me feel more grateful so I think it might be working...

2-I am grateful that we were able to get together with some friends tonight. It was so much fun. We love the Coombs and how much we have in common with them. It's a shame that our kids were ridiculously naughty tonight and kind of ruined it for me...but I had fun nonetheless. They had a zipline at the park and Amy and I laughed like little kids pushing each other on it. We will be laughing about it for 50 years. :)

3-I am grateful for tough love. Well, not really...but in a strange way I am a little bit. My kids are getting some tough love tonight and it's sort of painful. It's good for them, right? If they didn't get tough love then surely they would turn out to be criminals. They have to learn that it's not ok to throw tantrums (at 10 years old no less), to make people feel bad (at 12 and 13 years old especially), to be mean to your siblings and/or your parents, to tattle (just to get someone in trouble when the one tattling is doing naughty things too), and to just plain get attention in all the wrong ways. I keep telling myself that they'll learn something from being punished, but I really think I'm just punishing myself. Sometimes being a parent isn't all that fun. However, I am still extremely grateful for the opportunity to be a crappy mother. It's better than not being one at all, right? I'll keep telling myself that anyways...

Oh, and P.S. I am super grateful for Mason's amazing teacher! He had a fall fair at school yesterday. Every 3rd grader had to bring something to display. The only rule was "no live animals." Most kids baked something, grew something in their garden or made a craft. Well, my Mason isn't "most kids". He wrote a story and drew a picture to go with it. He got really upset that no one stopped to read his story. There were a hundred displays to look at and not a lot of time. Everyone just walked by and glanced at his paper. By the time I got there he was on the verge of tears. His teacher overheard us talking and said, "Mason, you know what we should do? We should mount in on construction paper and hang it in the hallway. I bet kids would love to stop and read it on their way to recess." He quite liked that idea and his paper is still at the school. He asked me to "take a picture and post it on facebook so everyone can read it." I did just that. Later that night he saw all of the comments on his picture and he said, "Good thing you posted that and everyone read it." I just love him so much. I am so happy he's not like "most kids". Life would be so boring that way. I am also grateful for my friends who said they would love to read it! Especially the ones who know, understand and love Mase. You better believe when that paper comes home from school I'm typing it up and posting it for everyone to read. :)

Gratitude Post #32

1-I am grateful for field trips. It's such a nice break from the normal routine. It's really more of a playdate for me than my kids, I'll be honest. It was lovely catching up with old friends at the park this morning during Sophey's preschool field trip. I love things out of the ordinary in my day...good things out of the ordinary that is. :)

2-I am grateful for lunch with friends. For a lot of the same reasons as #1, but I also reeeeaaaallllyyyyy hate making lunch for myself. I love going to lunch and having someone else make me something yummy. I love going out to lunch even more than going out to dinner. Mostly because I don't mind making dinner (or anything really) for more than just myself. But, making lunch for myself is boring and slightly painful. Plus, lunch dates are really the only way I stay connected with old friends...or the outside world for that matter...and I went to lunch with some pretty great ladies today. I am super grateful for that.

3-I am grateful that my lunch with friends today led to shopping at Home Goods. Sort of ungrateful that I spent so much money (that I have yet to tell Chris about)...but super grateful that I found the most amazing thing(s)!! I am also grateful that Home Goods has "paid hold". I was in Chris' little car and there was no way that the most amazing entry table and chair would fit in it. So, they let me pay for it and they'll hold it for up to a week until I can go back with my bigger car. I AM SO EXCITED!!!! I have been searching for the perfect little entry table and couldn't find what I was looking for. I walked into Home Goods and it was sitting right there!! I asked about it and the lady told me they got 2 this morning and the other one sold right away. I didn't dare take my chances and just leave it there. :) Hopefully this "paid hold" thing isn't just a scam. It had better be there when I go pick it up or I might just cry. The chair I'm not completely in love with, but it looked so cute with the table that I couldn't resist. I am also grateful that Home Goods has a great return policy. The chair may or may not be coming home with me...

Gratitude Post #31

1-I am grateful for clean laundry. I do a lot of it for sure. I love when my laundry baskets are empty and my closets and drawers are full of clean clothes! I am also grateful for clean bedding! Doesn't it feel so good to climb into bed with freshly washed sheets?

2-I am grateful to feel like I've got my groove back. I honestly don't mind living with my parents...but it's hard not having my own space and my own routine. My groove seems to come and go and right now it is so back! Yesterday I cleaned, organized and de-junked all of my kids' rooms and the toy room. I found all of the missing dvd's and video games. I seperated our crap from my Mom's crap. I washed all of our bedding and made everyone's beds. (When their rooms get totally trashed it's hard to justify climbing over the mess to make their beds.) :) I found missing clothes and toys and lots of garbage. :) I know it will only last a day or two, but I'm grateful to feel like less of a slob. I also made it to Smith's and Sam's this week. After not grocery shopping in quite a while, it felt really good.

3-I am grateful that our house is making progress. Even if it's only little bits at a time. We moved into my parents house May 19th. We hoped to be in our new house by now. But, we also knew it would likely take longer than we planned. We have been here exactly 4 months. We hoped to be here 4, maybe 5 months at the most. We will probably be here for another 2. It is reassuring every time I drive by my house and see someone working on it. We are going to our storage unit on Saturday to dig out our winter clothes. I tried to leave them at the front of our storage unit because I was afraid we'd need them before we moved in. Somehow they didn't get left at the front. They are somewhere near the front, but we're going to have to do some digging. :)

Gratitude Post #28 & 29 & 30

1-I am grateful that only 2 people read my blog. Ha ha. I have slacked over the last couple of EXHAUSTING days. No one complained because no one knew. :)

2-I am grateful for the kind comments I get on my blog. And for those I get in person too. Although I mostly do this for myself, it's nice to know someone else likes it too. :)

3-I am grateful for the phone call I got from Chris' Mom tonight. It was nice because I mostly feel like I annoy her. But, tonight we had a really nice conversation and I think she really does like me. Ha ha ha.

4-I am grateful for pay day. I love when Chris gets paid! I fill our cars up with gas, I stock up on groceries and I love it. I love having a full tank and a full fridge and pantry! Even if it makes for a pretty empty checking account, it's such a great feeling!

5-I am grateful for antibacterial hand soap. More mouse poop=setting more mouse traps=more dead mice in my Mother's kitchen=LOTS of hand washing!!

6-I am grateful for sleep! I rolled out of bed at 10:30 Sunday morning and it felt so good! I have been SO tired lately!

7-I am grateful for the fun day Katey and I had together on Saturday! We went to lunch and shopping with 2 of her little cousins and their moms. She is quite pleasant these days and we had a great time together! It was so refreshing...even if she still rolled her eyes at everything I thought was cute! :)

8-I am grateful for my new doctor. Even though I was sad when my new insurance forced me to change...I had a great experience there today. It's nice to have options close to home...which Herriman DID NOT have when we moved out this way over 11 years ago. We're also getting a Cafe Rio soon! My how things have changed!

9-I am grateful for colors! When I die, please wear bright colors to my funeral. The brightest you have. Thank you in advance. :)

Gratitude Post #27

1-I am grateful that Chris made it home safe! I am getting used to him travelling but I still hate him being gone. I am always so grateful when he comes home. :) I am also grateful that the kids still get super excited when he comes home too! They love him so much!

2-I am grateful for the Herriman yard sale page on facebook. Lame, I know. But, I have found some really awesome things for pretty great prices lately! I am doing some Christmas shopping, some furniture shopping and also selling some things to pay for all of this shopping. What a great invention! :)

3-I am grateful for friendship. I love friends who have my back. I love having their backs in return. Sometimes it's hard to tell friends things they don't want to hear, but I know they would do the same for me. I hope this friend of mine knows that I have her back and I hope she finds all of the happiness in the world!! Even if the road to it is bumpy. I'll still have her back. :)

Gratitude Post #26

1-I am grateful for the individual relationships I have with my kids. Last night I got after Ry and Tay for being sassy and rude. I believe I called them jerks. Which was very appropriate. Today they were totally different. Ryan asked to go with me to pick up some pizza, which wasn't unusual...until he turned off the radio and just started opening up to me. Not anything major, but he talked for 20 minutes about school. If you know Ryan's story about school so far this year, you know he has a lot to talk about. The trouble is that he hasn't told me anything about school. At all. Every time I ask about school he just gets ornery with me. But, he even told Chris over the phone tonight that he is really liking it and has made a bunch of friends. I am so happy that he is happy, and that he likes school, and that he decided to start talking again. :) Taylor also changed his attitude today and warmed back up to me after being cold and rude. He talked about his frustrations with his baseball team and missing his friends from his old school and not having a lot of friends at his new school. As much as I hate hearing that they're unhappy, I love when they talk to me. Especially because they are 12 and 13. I hope they keep talking to me for years to come. :) I am also grateful that Katey is warming up to me after being cold to me for years. And that is NOT an exaggeration! I think this move has been really good for everyone. I don't know why my kids are JUST NOW realizing that I'm not that bad. Ha ha. Maybe it's because of my gratitude posts. Maybe it is making me a better, nicer mother. Perhaps I'll keep doing them as an experiment. :) Oh, and I should probably also mention how much I loved it when Mase would hold my hand during his fieldtrip. Whenever he got nervous he would reach out and grab my hand. I loved it more than I can express. I love that my kids are not outgrowing me. Isn't that every mother's deepest fear?

2-I am grateful that Chris is coming home tomorrow. I'm grateful for my relationship with him. He is the best. He may not be perfect, but he is the perfect person for me. I'm really lucky. :) I'm also grateful that he doesn't get mad. I bought a lot of crap from an online yard sale today. He doesn't know yet. Hopefully he won't mind because I can't return it. I'm sure he'll be as thrilled as I am! Ha ha. And just FYI, I am not trying to suck up to him. He doesn't read my blog. I don't think he even knows I started blogging again...perhaps I should tell him...

3-I'm grateful that I found a new scrapbook store. I feel kind of lost without Robert's. But I found a new store that carries a lot of the same things Robert's did. They even have the binders I have been searching for. Not in every color I need, but the lady said they were placing an order for all of the colors they could get in the next few weeks. Here's hoping they can get navy, sage, light pink and lavendar. Because I already got hunter green and country blue. My cute shelves full of books just won't look the same with mismatched binders. :)

Gratitude Post #25

1-I am grateful that I'm not white trash. For real. Mase and I went to the State Fair for his 3rd grade field trip today. At times I felt like the only non-white trash person there. Besides his teacher and maybe 3 other moms on the field trip I think I actually was. It would suck to be born into it. My brother says they're "breedin' 'em for failure." Sad, but true. I am also grateful that I didn't lose any kids in my group. I swear there were so many predators/pedophiles lurking around waiting for little field trip kids to get lost. That place gives me the creeps. Carnies and all.

2-I am grateful that Mase and I got to visit his old early intervention preschool teacher today. He rode the bus to Bluffdale for e.i. preschool and had the best teacher ever. Turns out she's still there! :) We stopped by to see her after his field trip and she totally remembered us. She is amazing! Mase absolutely loved seeing her and his old classroom. He told me it was the best part of his day. :) I am so super grateful for early intervention. It did wonders for Mason! I am so proud of him. It was fun visiting and reminiscing about the good old days...and talking about how far he's come.

3-I am grateful for my Mom helping me with my little kids today. It's hard not having my own house to have someone come and babysit at...and it's hard not living by friends that I can take my kids to. I try not to take advantage of her but sometimes I don't have a choice. She is really great to help me out when I'm in a bind. I'm glad she did too, I would have been so sad not to go with Mase today! He really did great and would have been fine without me, but there were some major issues with people popping balloons by him and I was glad I was there to calm him down. He is more terrified of popping balloons than he is of fireworks. Generally I think he is so "normal" but all you have to do is pop a balloon or light a firework within miles of him and he'll give you a nice little reminder that he still struggles sometimes.

4-I'm grateful for Mason's teacher. She is amazing. I will be really sad when we move and she's not his teacher anymore. I got to see her interact with the kids on the field trip today and I learned that she really is just as fantastic as I thought. Apparently they had a loud assembly at school a few weeks ago and she let Mason go read in the library because she could tell it was bothering him. This was when she barely knew him. I love sending him to school knowing he'll be in good hands. Especially because kids are mean. Some kids were making fun of him on the bus when he was crying about the balloon popping. It broke my heart. I'm sure that will get worse before it gets better. Luckily he doesn't notice things like that. But I noticed. And it made me sad.

Gratitude Post #24

1-I am grateful for Chris. He left for Texas this morning. I miss him terribly when he's gone. I also miss having his help. He is such a great guy. He is always bathing the kids, feeding the kids, helping me tuck them all in, etc. I hate when he's gone. I'm grateful that he misses me too. (Or so he says anyways.) :) It's nice to get a phone call from him every night. Even if the kids are interrupting the entire time we're on the phone. Sounds about right I suppose.

2-I am grateful that we were invited to a Court of Honor in our old ward tonight. Ryan had a stack of merit badges he needed to get. It was fun to see everyone! The best part was walking down the hall of the church and seeing Mason's baptism picture hanging on the wall. I will post it on here eventually, but it's only on my phone (and facebook) for now. It seriously did my heart good to see his smiling face on the wall. I hope everyone who walks by it every Sunday misses us. :)

3-I am grateful for my friend Holli. She has been a great friend to me for a while now. She has helped me out so many times when I've been in a bind. She had twin babies 3 weeks ago today. She lives around the corner from Sophey's preschool so she lets me hang out with her and hold her babies Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9-11:30. :) It saves me from having to drive back and forth and/or from having to kill time in between. Even though I said I would to do it to help her, we usually just sit on the couch and chat. We have some great conversations though and I love having somewhere to go.

Gratitude Post #23

1-I am grateful for Mason. He melts my heart. He can also frustrate me to no end. But mostly he just melts my heart. :) He is so dang smart. I would love to spend a day inside his brain, just knowing what he's thinking and seeing the world from his perspective. He is such a great kid...stubborn as can be...but a really great kid. I love when he tells me random facts about anything from the Olympics to sports to t.v. shows. He kind of knows everything. The best ever is when he tells Chuck Norris jokes. Especially the ones he makes up. :)

2-I am grateful for my brother Kevin. It has been so fun to see how happy he is lately! He got remarried to a pretty terrific lady a few short months ago, but it feels like she's been part of our family forever. I am grateful for Laurie and the great addition she is to our family. She was helping Katey and her cousins with their tumbling over the weekend and she made some new best friends out of it. :) What a good sport. P.S. Kevin Webber is funny. Just FYI.

3-I am grateful for Hayden. He is such a sweet, funny little boy! I missed him when he was at school today. It's awfully quiet around here without him. I love when he curls up on the couch next to me. He is so tiny and such a good little snuggler. I bet his kindergarten teacher just loves him. I know I do.

Gratitude Post #22

1-I am grateful for my belief that families can be together forever. This morning I got a call from an old friend. Their little brother was killed in a car accident in Vegas over the weekend. They were looking for another friend's phone number (who just happens to live down there) because they desperately needed help with their kids while they were at the hospital. It is nice to have some peace and comfort in a situation like this. It is also nice to have those lasting friendships and be able to call for help when you really need it. What a sad day, but what a comforting feeling to know that you can see your loved ones again!

2-I am grateful for memories. Not any in particular, just memories in general. I have this fear of forgetting everything so I take way too many pictures, I have way too many scrapbooks and I write way too much in too many journals. :) I don't want to forget anything! I am guilty of over-documenting (I think I made up a new word) every thing that happens around here. However, the fear of losing someone (or just losing my own mind) keeps me from getting behind on any of it. I am grateful for the stacks of journals and scrapbooks I have worked on for so long. They are my most prized possesions.

3-I am grateful for the internet...specifically being able to order pictures online...and to be able to do a google search for snapfish coupons! I saved a fortune tonight with a 50% off + free shipping code! I have hundreds of pictures being shipped to me as we speak...which means I have HOURS of scrapbooking to catch up on...but I am looking forward to it! (Especially since my kiddos went back on track today...which I am also grateful for!)

Gratitude Post #20 & 21

1-I am grateful for the priesthood. Pretty sure I've already said that here, but I just wanted to say it again. :) Yesterday Taylor got ordained as a deacon. The cute bishop in my parents' ward asked him to share his testimony with his class afterwards. It was so cute. He is such a good boy and I am so proud of him. I am so grateful to have such awesome boys that can hold the priesthood!

2-I am grateful for insurance. Which is not really what I want to say, but I am grateful to have it. Even if our new insurance just kicked me out of all of the places I love! We can't go to IHC doctors or hospitals. We can't go to our dentistst! Luckily my kids can still go to their awesome pediatrician! I am SUPER grateful for that! But I am super bummed they can't go to their pediatric dentist that I absolutely love!! My dentist and primary care doc aren't a big deal but I am heartbroken that I can't go to my favorite OB/GYN anymore! Not to mention I had an appt. scheduled with him today that I have to cancel...which was supposed to be a pre-op for an ablasion that I was SUPER excited to have next week! I have to cancel both. And find a new OB/GYN. Which I super triple hate. Blah. But this is supposed to be a gratitude post. So, I am grateful to have insurance at least. And good, cheap insurance at that. And I am super grateful for Chris' new job! It is going to be amazing for us, which will outweigh my disappointment with the insurance. Eventually. :)

3-I am grateful for naps. I NEVER take naps. I would like to take naps more often but it just doesn't happen. Yesterday I took a 3 hour nap. I feel like a new person. I have been SO tired lately and felt like I still hadn't recovered from my trip...or camping...or Taylor's birthday...or my kids being off track and bored for 3 weeks. On Saturday I struggled to keep my eyes open all day long. Then I had to be up extra early on Sunday. By Sunday afternoon I was exhausted beyond belief. So, when Sophey invited me to lay on her bed and watch a movie with her I couldn't resist. We both crashed. It felt great. :) I should probably mention that Sophey's bed is really my bed that we brought to my parents for the girls to sleep on. It was heavenly.

4-I am grateful for my calling. Even if it's weird that we've been living with my parents for 3 months and the bishop knows that we'll be moving out in the next 2 months and they decided to give us callings yesterday. I was worried it would be nursery (which I normally wouldn't mind, but we JUST got Sophey going without crying AGAIN). I was relieved that it was teaching primary with Chris. It is actually a super fun calling (unless you get left in there for 3-4 years...then it's not so fun). I love being in primary once in a while to check on my kids and see how naughty they are! :) It's also weird that they don't want us to start teaching for a few weeks. By the time we start teaching our little sunbeam class, we'll be getting ready to move. Seems like a lot of change for those little kiddos, but oh well.

5-I am grateful for mouse traps. Not the game. The actual inhumane mouse traps. We had 2 mice in my parents house over the weekend and we caught them both this morning. Sneaky little buggers! Which leads me to my next point...

6-I am grateful for Clorox wipes. The thought of mice being in my living space totally freaks me out! I know of a guy my age that just recently died from the Hanta Virus! I will be Cloroxing everything in sight for the next month. :)

Gratitude Post #19

1-I am grateful for homemade Cafe Rio. My sister-in-law Brooke sent me some recipes a while ago. Rice, beans, shredded pork, cilantro dressing...some of the best recipes ever. I have made them religiously ever since. I made a big batch yesterday and we have eaten it several times since. It always makes me happy. I mean, it's a lot of work to make it all...but it's so worth not having to cook for days afterwards! :)

2-I am grateful for Spaghetti Factory! I love it. I even had my birthday party there in 5th grade. I'm also grateful it's just far enough away that we only go there for special occasions, but close enough that we can. We went there for lunch today for Taylor's birthday. Mizithra cheese and browned butter have a special place in my heart. So does Taylor. Only he could drag his birthday out for 3 weeks. He might have learned that from me, but I'm not sure. *wink*

3-I am grateful for late start Fridays. I know working parents hate it, but it is my saving grace. I don't really do mornings. Getting up at 6:45 a.m. with Ry is killing me. I love to sleep. A lot. And I hate waking up to an alarm. A lot. So, getting up early Sunday thru Thursday is hard for me. But the jr. high starts 2 hours later on Fridays! Which means I set my alarm for 8:45, not 6:45! Which you probably think is pathetic...the fact that I have to set my alarm to make sure I'm up by 8:45...but my other kids are off track...so I would sleep all day if I didn't set my alarm...so there. I love sleeping in. I hardly ever get to anymore. And I love it. Did I mention that? :)

P.S. 4 of my kids go back "on track" on Monday. I'm sure there will be a gratitude post about that. Minus the part about not getting to sleep in on late start Fridays anymore. I'll be up at 8 either way. Which is still better than 6:45. :)

Gratitude Post #18

1-I'm grateful Ryan was sick yesterday. Weird, right? Well, he texted me from school in the morning saying he had a stomach ache. I'm not sure if it was "check out worthy", but I went and got him anyways. He went with me to take Sophey to her first day of dance and was so cute to her! Then, he went with me to the grocery store where he talked me into buying a ridiculous amount of donuts. After that, he convinced me to hit the Wendy's drive thru for 2 cheeseburgers. Sounds to me like he was pretty sick indeed. :) I don't care. I have been missing him and I have been so worried about him. I loved spending the morning with him! Plus, I love that Ry and Tay have texting on their phones now (Ry has had a phone for a while but we just put texting on it and Tay just got a new phone for his birthday). I love when they send me random texts, it seriously makes my day. :)

2-I'm grateful that I get to stay home. Even when some days I'd rather not be here. :) I love being able to take my kids to dance and baseball and everywhere else. I would hate to have to pay someone else to do it for me. Also, it feels so good when my kids call and ask me to come and get them and I can just say "yes". I don't have to say, "I'll come and get you on my lunch break" or "let me ask my boss." I know not everyone can (or wants to) do that, but I am super grateful that I can!

3- I am grateful that Katey has a new friend! Moving was probably the hardest on her and she asked me multiple times a day to drive her out to play with her old friends. On the first day of school this cute little girl befriended her and they have been glued together since. It is so nice that she only lives 5 minutes away and her Mom is willing to do at least half of the driving. :) They go everywhere together and have so much fun! It will be sad for them when we move! I am grateful for Katey and for the amazing kid she is turning into. I feel like she finally "turned a corner" and is more helpful and happy and less selfish and grumpy lately. It is so nice! It's hard not having a sister close to her age (until recently she told me Sophey doesn't count because she's too young), I can totally relate to that...but I feel like she's finding her place now.

Gratitude Post #17

1-I am grateful for fall. Yes, I know it is still hot outside...but you can't deny that the weather is cooling off a bit. There is a fall breeze blowing, even when it's 80+ degrees outside. You know what that means???? Fall recipes. I love food. I love it most in the fall. I have several cans of pumpkin just waiting to be opened! I can hardly stand it!! I saw a sign at Kneader's saying "Pumpkin bread is here" and I got a little misty eyed! Fall also means I get a break from birthdays for a while. We have a birthday in January, February, March, May, June, July, August and September around here. I always love Sept. 2nd because that is Taylor's birthday. It also means the end of "birthday season" and the start of fall in my book! Here comes those 10 pounds I've been wanting to gain back. *sigh

2-I am grateful for exercise. Which is funny because I've been REALLY bad about it lately. I didn't have time for it before, during or after my trip. Which means I haven't been on my elliptical in 3-4 weeks. Blah. Have I mentioned how much I love to eat?? Well, I do. A lot. Which means I have had to learn to love exercising. I didn't think it was possible actually...but it turns out that as much as I hate actual exercise, I love the way it makes me feel. It is very empowering to push yourself beyond your limits...even if it is just so you can eat an extra treat (or two or three or twelve) that day. :)

3-I am grateful for baseball. I love watching my boys play baseball! Basketball is great too, but there's just something about being at the ballpark with filthy children, chatting up old friends, getting treats from the snack shack, with a gentle breeze blowing and the sun going down...ah, I just love it. I really loved running into one of  my favorite people there last night and having a chance to chat for a minute. Seriously, so great.

4-I am grateful for dance. Sophey starts her first ballet/tap class today! I am so excited to watch her dance! :) I love watching Katey dance too! It seriously does my heart good to have some dance mixed in with all of that baseball! I love that my kids have opportunities to do such fun things with some great coaches/teachers! They are turning into such great kids and it is so fun to watch them do the things they love (or hate in some cases). Ha ha ha.

Gratitude Post #16

1-I am grateful for my friend Desiree. She inspired me to do these gratitude posts in the first place. She also inspires me to be a better person.

2-I am grateful for holiday weekends. Not necessarily the ones that involve Mondays, it only throws off my entire week...but still, I am grateful for a day off.

3-I am grateful for my siblings who like me. It's ok that they all don't. I understand. However, it was really fun to hang out with my little brother and his wife last night! P.S. The new Batman is freaking awesome AND Los Cucos is super yummy. Just FYI.

Update for my "Extra Gratitude" post

You can scroll down for the original post if you'd like. All 2 of you that read my blog. :)

We went to visit Chris' Mom at the hospital tonight. She seems to be doing great. It was good to see her in better spirits. They got the pathology report back. It was a softball sized tumor on her adrenal gland. It was laced with cancer INSIDE the tumor. INSIDE being the key word. They believe they removed the entire thing and that there isn't any cancer left inside her body. She isn't planning on any chemo or radiation at this point. She does still need to have the tumor removed from her pituitary gland next month...but we're hoping for the same results then. I dare you to tell me that you don't believe in miracles. Had she not fallen and broken her hip she never would have had a CT scan to find this tumor. It would have continued to grow and the cancer would have spread. Or at least in my opinion it would have. I believe in miracles. And prayer. A lot. It's OK if you don't. Not everyone does. But I'm glad I do. :)

Gratitude Post #15

1-I am grateful for Taylor. He turned 12 at 4:52 this morning. Yup, he missed the deadline for starting school by 4 hours and 52 minutes. Poor kid.

1A-I am grateful that Taylor missed the deadline by 4 hours and 52 minutes. :) It has been good for him to be one of the oldest kids in his class every year. Had he not missed the deadline, I probably would have sent him to school. Ok, let's be honest, I would have for sure sent him to school. When he turned 5 I had a 3 year old and a 1 year old at home. Not to mention a 6 year old who was in 1st grade. I'm glad I didn't have to make that choice.

1B-I am grateful for the kind and tender-hearted, yet confident and outgoing person that he is. Taylor is seriously such a great kid. Everyone loves Taylor, young and old. We have joked forever about how he is a baby magnet. He has been entertaining babies for years. :) He just has those great, likeable qualities that you can't resist. He is super funny and compassionate to name a few. We have a running joke that he is my favorite child. Let's be honest, it's not really a joke...and the other kids don't think it's funny at all. Taylor has kept me entertained while always making me feel loved for the last 12 years and I love him for that. Not a day goes by that I don't get a hug and an "I love you" from that boy. I hope he never outgrows that.

2-I am grateful for a good night's sleep. It's amazing how just 1 night can make you feel like a new person! I slept solid (without ANY interruptions if you can believe that!?) for 9 hours last night. I'd like to repeat the process tonight.

3-I am grateful that there has been some progress on my house! It seemed like it was just sitting there without any changes forever! It has been backfilled and the window wells are in place and full of gravel! Big changes from the last time I saw it! We just need some suspended concrete slabs in place and then we're ready for framing! I can hardly wait for that part! It's officially September now. Time for the builder to quit dragging his feet! We really want to be in our house 2 months from now. Let's get to work! :)

Gratitude Post #14

1-I am grateful for Chris' extended family. They are so much fun! Last night we went up to the Heber campground (I don't know what it's called, it's the cabins where the young women go to girl's camp...)for a family reunion. It was seriously SO much work to pack everything for 8 people to go for less than 24 hours. I was debating if we should even go...considering I haven't officially finished UNpacking from our trip! I had to borrow sleeping bags and mattresses from 2 different friends and my car was so overloaded it looked like we were going for a week! Yesterday I ran to Walmart for some supplies and then baked a few things to take up there and hurried and packed everything so we could go. It was pouring rain all afternoon. Every time I would go outside to load the car the rain would pick up. When it died down I would run out and try again. Then the rain would start pouring again. This happened several times. I ended up backing my car into the opening of the garage so that when I raised the back hatch it blocked most of the rain. Our sleeping bags were wet before we even got there. I debated several times about not going. But I'm so glad I did. I love Chris' family so much. They are so much fun to chat and joke and tell stories with. They even listened to me complain about how much work it was and thanked me for coming in spite of my orneriness. :)

2-I am grateful to be home and so looking forward to sleeping tonight! Katey and her cousin kept everyone in our cabin up SUPER late with their intermittent giggling, wiggling and chatting. Then they were up at 6 a.m. & WOULD NOT shut up and go back to sleep. Add that to the snoring, the noisy air mattress I was on, the noisy air mattress Chris was on in the bunk above me, Sophey's elbow in my back, having to pee for half of the night and being too tired to do anything about it, and the massive thunderstorm...and I'm more tired than you can imagine. My bed is seriously calling my name and it's only 3:30. I am fighting the urge to go to bed now and not wake up til morning.

3-I am grateful that my kids have fun cousins on both sides of our family. If I would have decided not to go my kids never would have forgiven me. They have so much fun with their cousins and have been known to choose hanging out with cousins over hanging out with friends. It's a win/win/win. :) I love hanging out with Chris' Grandma, aunts and cousins...he loves hanging out with his cousins and uncles and each one of our kids has a cousin that they love to be with also! Even though it was so much work and we slept crappy and the weather didn't cooperate much I'm glad we went. It was so fun to watch them together and to create some fun memories!

4-I am grateful for Onstar! I know that's lame, but the phone in my car was the only one that worked up there and I was able to call Chris' sister to make sure she wasn't lost without having to drive down the mountain. I also love the peace of mind knowing I can get emergency help anytime anywhere with it. Totally worth 15 bucks a month in my book.