Our Clean Sweep!

I have this fettish about placing things in rooms only when they are used in that room and it makes sense with the way we live our lives. This results in misfit items that get heaped out of sight and out of mind, until one day you decide you want that room. So when that day came I opened the door and found this......

How many words can you use to describe this depressing scene? I can think of a few.

So day after day I planned on tackling this eyesore. I had a vision, a new computer desk and a comfortable place to sit that also doubles as an extra guest sleeping area, a.k.a. the futon. The room was so overwhelming though, that day after day I opened the door only to shut it again and sigh, with all the intent to work on it the next day. Then one night I went crazy and Kelby and I tackled that disaster together. Here is what happened.....

A curtain to hide the open closet. The one place in our house that Kelby and I are allowed to get cluttery is the top shelf of the little bookcase there. My stuff on the left and Kelby's on the right.

Our lovely new organized desk. I love it! I also love tax returns that made this possible.

Now I absolutely love this space! Amazing what a little purging can do for a home. A trip to the DI, recycle, and a rather full garbage can later we had space for a new desk and futon. Thanks for all your help Kelby!!!

Happy Easter 2010

Yay! Happy Easter! Here is what we did....

Our baskets! Our baskets! Some genius left mini-transformers in them, and an age appropriate building set for each boy. Taylor got legos and Ian got Trio. You'll notice there is no grass in the baskets this year. If you hit the archives you'll see that last year there was Easter grass everywhere and we didn't want to repeat that incident. They didn't even notice. We are just doing our little part to help the environment.

Hunting, hunting, hunting. There was snow this year so all the eggs were conveniently located inside. We didn't go to any Easter Egg hunts on Saturday because it was then that the snow came tumbling down. What is it with me, Kelby, Easter, and snow? Will we forever be consigned to an Easter winter wonderland?

Happy with their loot. My crazy kids are a little different than most kids I know. They don't really care about the candy inside, they just like the excitement of the hunt. Afterward you will find them not opening up the eggs, but rehiding them for each other to recreate the morning's event.

So I wanted to make Easter a bit more than Easter bunnies, baskets, and eggs. I thought and thought and finally I came up with this crazy idea. I set up the table for six and when we all sat down I had Ian count the plates. Then I asked Taylor to tell me why I would be crazy enough to set the table for 6 when there were only 4 of us. That smart boy knew all the answers! He knows that because of the Resurrection that we will all be together again. What a kid. He puts me in awe sometimes.

This is our cute little fam. A little expressionless, but you will have to forgive us. I keep this out as a little reminder of us. We are more than four. Sometimes when I meet people they say, "Oh, you only have two?" I always cringe, but this little set up keeps me happy and I remember what we really are.

This is how Kelby watches General Conference. He says he is awake, what do you think? I just have to tease him because this happens every year. Of course, I never do it. Yep, right.

Waiting to go to Grandma & Grandpa Western's. Might as well harrass your brother since we still have time.

Waiting some more..... We love Ian. He is always good to make us laugh.

So to finish off our Easter fun I packed up the boys, then grabbed my friend Jodee and her baby, and we all set off to Utah. We stayed at my mom's house where we left my boys on Monday and hit Park City for some timely shopping. I'm not gloating or anything, but I got 10 shirts, 6 pairs of pants, and 2 pairs of shorts for the boys all for $120. I kill myself! Love it! The boys loved their day with Grandma too. In fact on Monday morning Taylor said he just wanted me to leave so he could be alone with Grandma. I love you too, Taylor.

Sunday Dinner- Always an Exciting Affair!

Oh our little Ian. Why fight it so hard? Just take a nap. You know, we really did lay him down this afternoon because we as the genius parents that we are, (yes, that would be Kelby & I), forsaw just such an event, but he refused to close his eyes. Crazy kid. He did eat all his strawberries, his roll, a french fry, and one piece of steak so at least he won't wake up in the middle of the night hungry. At least Taylor stayed awake.

After the flash he repositioned himself so I took another picture to capture his face. Believe it or not this is the first time we experienced a sleeping child at the dinner table. I like to chalk it up to our exuberant and exciting demeanors.

I do have to disclose that Kelby woke Ian and I made him leave him be so that Ian would fall back asleep and I could take a pic. The poor kid new we were laughing at him and he just barely managed to muster a whimper of, "You guys!" To which we recommended that he just go back to sleep and he responded, "I said no!" I love sleepy contentious 3 year olds, they are almost better than a 2 year old.

Kelby-Closer to 40 Than Ever Before

Happy Birthday Daddy! Here are the boys displaying the birthday cards they made for their Dad. Of course they wanted to use the biiggg paper so that when you fold up the card it is as big as a regular sheet of paper. So what did they draw inside you wonder? NOTHING!!! Nope, they were all markered out by the time they finished the front of the card. What a waste. Don't tell my Dad, he won't be able to sleep if he knows.

Someday our kids will handle birthdays with more restraint and I'll feel sad because they will have grown up on us. As it stands now they can hardly contain their excitement whether it is their birthday or someone elses. If you ever need help unwrapping your gifts just send for our boys and you will be waist deep in shredded wrapping paper in no time. Here Kelby torments them while he slowly reads all his birthday cards before digging into gifts.

The boys helped Kelby unwrap a movie and a t-shirt from my Mom & Dad, and a new tie. Such a dad gift, and yes, I thought of it all by myself. In my defence he really did need a new one. I had a great gift all picked out, purchased, and then when it was delivered it was broken. BROKEN!!! I was beside myself. How could this be? Somehow fate smiled on the new delivery because just as we were finishing up our family festivites, (with the let down of a tie), the UPS guy pulled up with a replacement. Kelby loved his snow shoes and he even got to use them the next day. Thanks Nick for taking him out!

Later we had the Hubbards, (Nick and Jodee), and the Crapos, (Shad & Cassie), come over for some dessert and we hung out until the little kids couldn't take it anymore, and my house was absolutley trashed. I guess that is what happens when you ignore that many kids. It was worth it!

The Snow at Our House

This is a low snow fall year for our area, but we don't mind the lack of it. The temperatures are lower than they were in Cleveland, but we don't really notice since there really isn't any humidity to speak of here. The humidity in Cleveland made the winter bitingly cold! When it is about zero here I think it is around 19 degrees. I am a bit confused and muddled over the lack of humidity, but in time I'll figure it out and be fully acclimated to our new surroundings.

One of the signs we pass as we cross the border into Fremont County says, "No snowmobiling on plowed roads." I questioned the need for such a sign when I saw it over the summer, but when winter rolled around and I learned the definition of a plowed road on this side of Idaho I can now see the need for just such a sign. Thus the reason for the snow tires on the van, and by the way I LOVE THEM!!! I should of had those babies in Cleveland. There were days when I just didn't go out because I knew the van wouldn't make it, but no more! I love you studded tires!

What would the snow be without a loader? Boring! I love our Cleveland sand toys because they double as Idaho snow toys. Very efficient use if you ask me.
Ian likes to climb to the top of all of our snow mountains we create when shoveling the driveway. He is the king of the mountain. The funniest part is when he falls and slides in a great snowy heap all the way to the bottom with his feet in the air. I love it.

We have had to explain to the neighbors that I love to shovel and that is why I shovel most of the time, and Kelby does not. I don't know how to explain it, I just like to do it and so I do. Kelby has stopped trying to argue with me on this point and he has learned to sit back and enjoy the break he gets because of my crazy fettish.

So Lucky!

I am the luckiest mom ever, need I say more?

Hanging with My Sis and Her Fam

My sister Susan and her husband Aaron came out to Salt Lake to check up on her Mother-in-law who hasn't been feeling well lately. During the first part of the week I took our boys down to Salt Lake to see them there, and then we lucked out because at the end of their stay they came up to Idaho to see Aaron's brother Don and then to stay with us!

This is my neice Madeline, (A.K.A Missy). Isn't she cute? She is such a sassy one, but despite what her mom says and what I hear over the phone, I thought she was rather polite. My favorite thing she did while we were in Salt Lake at my mom's house was to tell me how dirty my van is. I know it needs vaccuumed and the windows are shameful, but at least I don't have trash and yesterdays lunch all over! From the expression on her face you would have thought I'd asked her to bask in a bucket of slime instead of to please sit in the back in her carseat. I should have her dad detail my van the way he does theirs. Now that would be driving in style!
Here are Sue & Aaron's 3 oldest, and mine and Kelby's kiddos all together. What better way to spend the day than with your cousins? It was nice to have snow for their kids since they live in San Antonio now and can only get it when visiting family.

I'm so glad I got to visit with my sister Sue. The last time I was in the same room with her was in the ICU at Univeristy Hospitals in Cleveland, OH. I didn't even get to really see her, I just heard her voice and I couldn't figure out for the life of me why I could hear Kelby and Sue talking to each other when I knew full well that Sue was in Texas. Turns out I was tied into an ICU bed and she had flown out to see her poor sister just in case she didn't make it. So as you can tell I made it and I am so grateful I had this opportunity to see her again and to be alive while doing it. Kind of an emotional meeting for me. Love you Sue! Of course, we have no pictures of us, but doesn't the one of our kids count?