Whodunnit?

Someone's been playing with Mommy's camera!

From this picture I can determine that the guilty party has a finger, and that it wasn't Savanna. Also, that my house is messy.

 They apparently like Legos -

 An even bigger clue -

Any Guesses?

I've decided that the punishment will be to post a potentially embarrassing picture of the offender in the very near future.  Stay tuned...

Tubby Time!

Swing Set Debacle

We bought a new swing set a couple of months ago and since Randall was really busy with home healths, I decided to put it together myself.  How hard can it be, right?  I thought I was following the directions really well, but after about 4 hours of work, it ended up looking like this -

 

Can you see what's wrong with this picture?  Apparently I missed the part where it said there was a left/center/right top leg holder thingy and of course, ALL THREE of them were in the wrong place.  So much for my wonderful surprise for my husband!  Unfortunately, since he worked late that day (and for the rest of the week), he wasn't going to be able to fix it any time soon.  I'm not exactly the most patient person in the world, so I called my hero -

 All better! 

Grandpa Bob came over and fixed it in about 7 1/2 minutes.  What would we do without him?  Our kids have LOVED their new swingset and I love that I don't have to wonder how many injuries my kids will sustain when our old piece of junk wooden swingset finally crumbled to the ground. 

Our Song

For our anniversary I compiled a collection of songs (a "mixed tape" if you will) that all remind me of Randall.  I have always connected moments in time with songs.  As Trisha Yearwood says: "The song remembers when."  I love how every time I hear the Judds I think of Julia, or Mick Jagger I think of Marie (who can dance EXACTLY like him, by the way), or Leah with  Faith Hill's "This Kiss", Lindsey's probaby going to hate hers, but they are "Total Eclipse of the Heart" and "Shameless".   All my college roommates are Dixie Chicks and TLC...
I have a song for each of my kids as well.

Carter - "The Reason" by Hoobastank

This song became really popular when Carter was just starting to talk.  Apparently they played it a lot on the radio, because I didn't even have the CD.  One day it came on while we were running errands and he just started singing it in the back seat of the car.  It was SO cute, I couldn't help but internalize the words of the song and will always connect them to my Carter-Cutie.  The words aren't totally perfect (I've never done anything particularly horrible to Carter, and I'm not going anywhere), but still somewhat apply to my relationship with him.  I do want to become a better person for him, and all of my kids.

The Reason

I'm not a perfect person
There's many things I wish I didn't do
But I continue learning
I never meant to do those things to you
And so I have to say before I go
That I just want you to know
I've found a reason for me
To change who I used to be
A reason to start over new
and the reason is you
I'm sorry that I hurt you
It's something I must live with everyday
And all the pain I put you through
I wish that I could take it all away
And be the one who catches all your tears
Thats why I need you to hear
I've found a reason for me
To change who I used to be
A reason to start over new
and the reason is You

I've found a reason to show

A side of me you didn't know

A reason for all that I do
And the reason is you

Lydia - "In My Daughter's Eyes" by Martina Mcbride
This became Lydia's song before she was even born.  They played it on the radio A LOT during my pregnancy with her.  I was obviously a bit stressed-out and emotional at the time, but I totally connected with what she was singing.  EVERY WORD in that song is exactly how I feel about my sweet Lyddies.  I still tear up to this day every time I hear it.

In My Daughter's Eyes
In my daughter's eyes,
I am a hero,
I am strong and wise,
And I know no fear,
But the truth is plain to see,
She was sent to rescue me,
I see who I want to be,
In my daughter's eyes
In my daughter's eyes,
Everyone is equal,Darkness turns to light,
And the world is at peace,

This miracle god gave to me,
Gives me strength when I am weak,
I find reason to believe,
In my daughter's eyes
And when she wraps her hand around my finger,
How it puts a smile in my heart,
Everything becomes a little clearer,
I realize what life is all about,
It's hanging on when your heart has had enough,
It's giving more when you feel like giving up,
I've seen the light,
It's in my daughter's eyes
In my daughter's eyes,
I can see the future,
A reflection of who I am and what will be,
And though she'll grow and someday leave,
Maybe raise a family,
When I'm gone I hope you see,
How happy she made me,
For I'll be there,
In my daughter's eyes. 

Meleah - "Blessed" by Martina Mcbride
So apparently Martina just gets me.  This song was popular when Meleah was born, and once again captured how I was feeling at the time PERFECTLY.  I'm SO BLESSED to have my little Elly Jelly.

Blessed
I  get kissed by the sun
Each morning
Put my feet on a hardwood floor
I get to hear my children laughing
Down the hall through the
Bedroom door
Sometimes I sit on my
Front porch swing
Just soaking up the day
I think to myself, I think to myself
This world is a beautiful place

[Chorus]
I have been blessed
And I feel like I've found my way
I thank God for all I've been given
At the end of every day
I have been blessed
With so much more than I deserve
To be here with the ones
That love me
To love them so much it hurts
I have been blessed
Across a crowded room
I know you know what I'm thinking
By the way I look at you
And when we're lying in the quiet
And no words have to be said
I think to myself, I think to myself
This love is a beautiful gift
[Chorus]
When I'm singing my kids to sleep
When I feel you holding me
I know
[Chorus]

Cameron - "Bad" by Michael Jackson

So I'll eventually change his, since it's obviously not as heart-felt as the others.  I'll admit, I do like the song, but it's not exactly what I usually go for when it comes to my songs for my kids.  However, Cameron LOVES this song.  It's the first song I ever heard him sing when there's no music playing.  And there's seriously nothing funnier than hearing him run around the house singing "I'm bad, I'm bad, you know it, you know!"  I'm hoping someday we'll come across another song that has more of a connection with the lyrics, but I think it will have to be somewhat rock-and-roll-esque if Cameron's going to be on board. 

(I'm not including the lyrics, because they're not what make me think of Cameron, although he can be bad sometimes...)

Savanna - "You Are So Beautiful" by Joe Cocker

Savanna's is a little different because her song wasn't recently released, or particular popular a the time of her birth, but it was seriously STUCK in my head for months after she was born.  It was just meant to be our song I guess.  I think it's because she is "so beautiful to me." She's "everything I've hoped for," and "everything I need."  Love my Savanna Baby! 

You Are So Beautiful
You are so beautiful
To me
You are so beautiful
To me
Can't you see
You're everything I hope for
You're everything I need
You are so beautiful to me
You are so beautiful to me
You are so beautiful
To me
Can't you see
You're everything I hope for
You're every, everything I need
You are so beautiful to me

Randall's CD ended up being over 50 songs, and I could have added more!  Anything Van Halen, Journey, Michael Buble, Styx, Eagles, Metallica S & M, Bee-Gees, (I know, it's a seriously weird compilation)... Our original "song" was "Finally Found the Love of a Lifetime" by Firehouse, along with a few other 80's rock ballads and random love songs we put on our wedding video.  On our wedding day we danced to my Uncle Kelly singing "I love the Way You Love Me" by John Michael Montgomery, and it's kinda held the forefront since then.  However, we have TONS of songs that have somehow or another become memorable over the years.  I'm so glad that I can remember fun times with my honey randomly throughout the day just by listening to the radio.

I Love the Way You Love Me
I like the feel of your name on my lips
And I like the sound of your sweet gentle kiss
The way that your fingers run through my hair
And how your scent lingers even when your not there
And I like the way your eyes dance when you laugh
And how you enjoy your two hour bath (shower)
And how you convinced me to dance in the rain
With everyone watching like we were insane
But I love the way you love me
Strong and wild
Slow and easy
Heart and soul
So completely
I love the way you love me

I like to imitate old Jerry Lee
And watch you roll your eyes when I'm slightly off key
And I like the innocent way that you cry
At sappy old movies you've seen hundreds of times
But I love the way you love me
Strong and wild
Slow and easy
Heart and soul
So completely
I love the way you love me\
And I could list a million things
I love to like about you
But they all come down to one reason
I could never live without you
I love the way you love me
Strong and wild
Slow and easy
Heart and soul
So completely
I love the way you love me
Oh baby I love the way you love me

Palmer Party

Our good friends the Palmers went to to Southern Utah/Vegas for Bre's Birthday last week, so we got to watch their kids for a few days.  We had so much fun, and my kids are constantly asking when their next sleepover will be.  They played so well together, and I had lots of cuddle time with my two little one-year-old girls.  Most of our time was spent playing video games, and running around the back yard, but we also
went to the park -

 When did my kids get too old to go DOWN the slide?

went to church - 

 Our adorable little blue-eyed  babies

We were too afraid to take all of them the entire time, so Randall took our kids to sacrament meeting, and I brought the Palmers with me for Primary. 

I tried to get a picture of everyone after church, but as you can see...the kids were tired and hungry.  We also realized while taking this picture that Cameron was missing.   He was still at church!  Apparently it's not a good idea to take two different cars when you're trying to keep track of 9 kids.  Needless to say, that was the end of the photo shoot.  Randall ran to the church to pick up our son, who was having a good-old time eating candy with the bishopric. 

and had Birthday Cake with Breana -

It's crazy that our house can feel empty even though we have 5 kids running around!  I miss our little friends, and I can't wait to point out to Randall that we survived with 9 kids.  Maybe we CAN handle more than six... ;)

I'm A Believer!

I've heard many people say that they find great deals on sites like KSL and craigslist, but I just didn't get it.  Every time I looked, people were trying to sell 12 year old stuff for $50 less than I could buy it new.  (Granted, I'm pretty good at finding deals.)  If you add in drive time, and the stress of fitting it into our car, it just wasn't worth it.  However, my horrible oven FINALLY kicked the bucket a couple of months ago and now... I BELIEVE -

I picked up this beauty for $375!  (Please don't tell me if you've found a better deal, because then I'll have to figure out a way that mine's somehow better , and if I can't do that then I'll lose sleep, and probably end up in therapy...it's ridiculous!)  I had to get cleaning tips from the lady I bought it from because it was SPOTLESS! (She used rubbing alcohol, BTW)  I totally would have believed her if she had said that it had never been used.  We've been having fun making pizza, cookies, etc.  Love it!  I'll be visiting KSL a lot more frequently now that I know there actually are great deals to be found.  (Randall will be so THRILLED!) ;)

Second Honeymoon

Randall and I had a long argument discussion about what we should do for our 10th anniversary.  We wanted to do something AMAZING since it's a big anniversary, so we discussed several options.  Randall's been wanting to do a road trip to Oregon (where he served his mission) for a long time.  I also would love to go there, but it think it sounds like a fun trip to take the kids on. I also noticed that round- trip tickets to New York were only $200, and I've always wanted to go there...

We even considered doing a repeat of our Honeymoon. On our honeymoon we stayed at the Anniversary Inn for two nights (the Hayloft room and the Swiss Family Robinson room), then we drove to California and went to Magic Mountain for the first day. We stayed on the Queen Mary the next night (Randall's favorite) then proceeded down to San Diego for a few days. I lost my temple recommend on our wedding day (found it months later in my WINTER coat pocket), but fortunately the temple worker called my bishop so that we could do a session at the San Diego temple while we were there. I'm SO GLAD it worked out, because the temple is SO BEAUTIFUL inside and out. We also explored the old mormon batallion historical sites.  We proceeded to Vegas and stayed at the Excalibur for the first night, then a hotel close to our reception the following night.  I LOVED our honeymoon, but we just went to southern California last year, and again, that's a doable trip with the kiddos...

Well, after calculating how much each trip would cost, we decided that if we're going to spend a lot of money anyway, we might as well gooooo - to Hawaii!  I spent HOURS planning out every detail of our trip.  What day we were going to Pearl Harbor, where we'd go snorkeling, what are the best restaurants on Oahu... I searched for the best possible deals on hotels and airfare, and when I was about to reserve our plane tickets I got a HORRIBLE feeling.  I seriously felt SO homesick, even though I was at home.  It was really weird, but I realized that I just CAN'T leave my babies for that long when they're this little.  The older ones I wouldn't worry about as much.  As a matter of fact, when I asked Carter where we should go,  first he said: "Someplace romantic," then he followed that up with:  "Wherever will take the LONGEST."  He was totally excited for his sleepovers.  I knew the little ones would be fine too, I just could NOT make myself buy those tickets!  I sheepishly approached Randall and told him my feelings.  At this point he just threw his hands in the air and said, "Whatever you want, honey."

I figured that 3 nights away from my kids was probably the max I could do right now, and I couldn't see going to any of the places we discussed for less than a week.  Not to mention that the main thing I want to do at this point of my life is SLEEP, and if I went someplace awesome, I'd feel guilty napping instead of going out and seeing the sights.  Therefore, I we decided a "staycation" would work best for us.  We've stayed at the Anniversary Inn and the Alaskan Inn lots of times throughout our marriage.  I LOVE them because they have huge jetted tubs, and they bring breakfast to your room in the morning. (Seriously, why don't more hotels do this?)  We decided to stay at the Anniversary Inn for 2 nights, and the Alaskan Inn for the third night.  Our actual anniversary was my favorite day of the "trip."  We did a session at the Salt Lake Temple (where we were sealed), ate lunch at the Garden, watched the Joseph Smith Movie, then stayed in the same room that we stayed in on our wedding night.  It was SO NICE to walk around the temple and remember our wedding day.  The weather was gorgeous this year, which is how I thought it would be for our wedding, but oh well...

Don't we look EXACTLY the same as we did ten 10 years ago? ;)

 

(At The Garden Restaurant.  Randall's kicking himself for not moving that chair.)

Our cabin at the Alaskan Inn. 

The next day we slept in (HOORAY!), went to a movie, had dinner at the Oaks Restaurant in Ogden Canyon, then checked into the Alaskan Inn.  I wish I would have taken some pictures at The Oaks, because we sat out on the patio by the river while we ate our dinner.  It was really beautiful, and a fun little place to go.  Our "staycation" may not have been as AMAZING as Hawaii, but it was exactly what we needed right now.  We WILL go to Hawaii someday...maybe our 15th...17th...only time will tell!