My Sister is a Saint

We traveled to Western Washington to visit my family for Thanksgiving. My sister LeAnn and her husband Russ offered to house our huge family in their small two bedroom townhome for three days and nights. They don't have any kids yet and are not used to the noise six kids can make. I'm sure we drove them absolutely bonkers, but they were very gracious hosts anyway.

The Arrival: When we arrived in the Seattle area Wednesday night, we all got together at Chuck E. Cheese's to eat dinner and let the kids burn off all of their pent up energy after sitting in the car for 6 hours. The kids were calm and ready for bed by the time we got back to LeAnn's that night. I can't say that the the rest of the time in her home was as peaceful.

The Dinner: LeAnn also offered to host Thanksgiving dinner at her home. We were excited to have my mom, her husband Mitch, and my little sis Sheraden, and Joe's sister Julie. My mom made a tasty turkey and stuffing, Julie made some delish rolls, LeAnn baked not one, not two, but THREE mouth watering apple pies, and I made the potatoes and "other stuff".

clockwise from left: Hans, Austin, my sis Sheraden, Jennabee (Joseph and Grant not pictured)

clockwise from left: Mitch, me, Julie, Joe, Russ, LeAnn, Mom

Black Friday: Thanksgiving night, Julie took ALL of my kids (except the baby) to her house for a sleepover and kept them with her the following morning which gave us a chance to shop. Our shopping trip was not typical Black Friday shopping. Joe and I slept in until eight or nine, met up with my mom, and satisfied my thrift-store addiction. We went to four thrift stores and I found lots of great stuff for my sewing projects, eccentric gifts, and adorable Laura Ashley dresses for the girls for a dollar each. I was thrilled.

Saying Goodbye: We left my sister's house Saturday morning, travelled to Marysville for a brief visit with some friends, then stopped at my mom's for one last goodbye before heading home.

Thanks LeAnn, Mom, and Julie for making our trip a fabulous one. I can't wait to do it all again!

The Fun Never Ends

It seems like when I have a ton of stuff to blog about, I have the least amount of time to actually sit down and write about it.


These past three weeks we have:

• Sent yet another member of our family to the ER which resulted in a full blown hospital stay. This time it was Hans with a horrible side ache that made him vomit over and over. They ended up finding out that his left kidney was not draining into his bladder very well. He will be seeing the urologist next week to have some tests run and hopefully a diagnosis will follow.
  
• Had a family reunion of sorts when Joe and his seven siblings (and parents) were all in town at the same time. It was 4 days of out of control fun for all of us. The kids especially loved it when Uncle Darren gave them tractor rides.

• Celebrated our 11th wedding anniversary.
  
  


• Threw a "friends" party for the twins' 10th birthday.
  

• Went out to a restaurant with my sister LeAnn (visiting from the Seattle area) on Saturday night to celebrate the twins' birthday and my 30th birthday. Joe told the boys he would give them $5 each if they stood up on their seats and started dancing when the servers came to sing happy birthday. Here is the video to prove that they actually did it:
  
  
  
  
  


• And if that wasn't party enough, we celebrated the birthdays again on Sunday night with Joe's family. You may have noticed all the scrapes on Joseph's face. Before church he tried to use his new slip and slide boogie board on the concrete patio and biffed it big time.
  

• Potty trained Jennabee! I just did what I normally do and waited until she was ready. She only had a couple of accidents and now tells me everytime she has to go. It's nice to only have one in diapers.

AND...Now that we own a house we have been having fun doing whatever we want to it:

• We pulled up the existing carpet in our house which we were going to replace with wood laminate, only to find cork floor tiles underneath. We LOVE them and are going to refinish them and keep them.

• Joe took a saw to the wall going into the kitchen and cut it out to open it up. It looks great, now we just have to figure out how to make it look finished.

• We painted one bathroom and primed another.
  
• Joe installed two ceiling fans, and five new light fixtures.
  
• We put in faux wood blinds in several windows.

In Loving Memory...

Memories from My Younger Years:

• Kisses. When I was a toddler he always tried to get me to give him kisses when I was sitting on his lap. I remember trying to get away from those scratchy mustache kisses.


• Funny Man. When Grandma asked "Who let the fly in the house?" he always responded with "Craig did it!". Craig was a cousin my age who Grandpa lovingly blamed for everything, sometimes when Craig wasn't even there.


• Floaties, Floaties, everywhere. Grandpa and Grandma had a pool in their backyard. They had so many grandkids coming over to swim that they had a whole wall full of arm floats to choose from. I had yearly birthday parties at their pool, I almost drowned in their pool, and I learned to swim in their pool. Those were good times I will never forget.


• Fairness. Whenever we had donuts, Grandpa always cut them into fourths. He wanted to make sure that everybody got to sample every flavor.


• Lectures. Grandpa trained us at a tender age to listen to his lectures. I always pretended to be bored by them but inside I really loved them.


• Messy Eating. Grandpa always spilled food on himself. I actually believed him when he told me his tie was his bib.

Memories from My Teenage Years

When Grandpa retired, he and Grandma moved away from Southern California to the island of Kaui, Hawaii. When I was thirteen, my cousin Stacey and I got to visit them there for a whole month. These are the things I remember about my time with Grandpa:

• The Gadget King. Grandpa had gadgets and gizmos for EVERYTHING. Even though he liked things that made life easier, he still liked to teach his grandkids the virtue of hard work. We earned our keep in Hawaii by doing all of the dishes by hand and picking up avacados or mangoes that had fallen from the trees in the backyard.


• Sweet and Tender. Grandpa always made me feel beautiful and special. Remember when I revealed my Hawaiian fro to the blogging world? During that visit, I remember telling my grandpa how much I wished my hair could be straight and "normal". He always responded that he thought curly hair was the prettiest and that he loved my hair and he didn't want me to change a thing.


• Great faith. When I was little, Grandpa was a member of the stake presidency in our stake in California. When he moved to Hawaii he was probably thinking he was going to get to live the easy life. Soon after moving there, he was called to be the Stake President of the island of Kaui and worked hard to be a good leader there. He bore his testimony to us often, with conviction. I always felt that he knew what he testified of was true.


• Calmness. There was a man in Hawaii from a different faith who was always calling or coming over to Grandpa's house to convince him that Mormonism was wrong. Grandpa had several visits with this man, during which he NOT ONCE got angry or lost his compusure. He always had a gentle tone while speaking with him. Rather than trying to argue or convince the man, it always seemed that Grandpa was trying to teach him as a friend would. I always thought that was the way the Savior would handle the situation.


• Patience. During our month long visit in Hawaii, my cousin Stacey and I constantly begged Grandpa to let us try to drive his car. He stalled by making us go through a "defensive driver" training course. This meant that as he drove, we had to look for any approaching cars or intersections and try to anticipate what might happen as we passed them. Finally towards the end of our stay, Grandpa finally let us try to drive in the empty church parking lot. When it was my turn I thought I put the car in reverse, but it was actually in drive. When I pushed the gas, we jolted forward and I slammed on the brake just before running into the church building. Grandpa could have yelled or got upset with me but he was cool as a cucumber (although he looked a little sweaty after that).

Grandpa, I always knew that you loved me. Your attempts to get me to give you kisses as I sat on your lap as a toddler; The day you insisted that I could never look like a boy even though I was trying to prove to you otherwise; and the tender way you dealt with my insecurities as an awkward young teenager; those were all personal moments in my life when I knew without a doubt that my grandpa loved me. I love you too and I can't wait until we meet again!

California

The top three things I missed about California:

1. Cactus Cooler (Soda). This pineapple orange concoction tastes so good and I can't figure out why it's only available in three states.

2. In 'n Out (Burger Joint). I grew up with these burgers and french fries made from fresh cut potatoes. Eating them again was pure comfort food.

3. Family. I was born and raised in Southern Cali until I was thirteen. All of my cousins on my dad's side and my mom's side sarted out in California as well, and most of them have stayed there. It was so much fun seeing a lot of them again.

The top three things I DIDN'T miss about California:

1. Smog. I was in so many places that should have had fantastic views, but instead all I saw was a hazy gray blur.

2. Traffic. (no explanation needed)

3. Signs written in foreign languages. As long as I'm in America I should be able to read store signs without a translator.

That being said, I had a great trip. Ada was fantastic on the airplane. She only excercised her lungs once for a few minutes before the plane even started moving. The flight attendant walked her up and down the aisle once before she zonked out and she slept the rest of the time.

We arrived late Friday night and my dad and little sis LeAnn were waiting at the airport to pick me up. On Saturday I went with my dad's wife, Melanie, to pick up my other little sis, Lauren, at one airport, while my dad and LeAnn went to pick up my brother, Kevin, who was flying all the way from Australia, from another airport. Saturday night my siblings and I went to dinner with all of our available cousins.

On Sunday, my sisters and I made breakfast in bed for my dad for Father's Day, we all went to church together, and then headed out to my dad's new house to check it out. It's absolutely beautiful. They will be moving in next month. When we arrived back at his current home, my Grandma, aunt, uncle, and cousins from Saint George were there waiting. Melanie put on a huge spread for all of us, so we ate until we were stuffed and stayed up late chatting about Grandpa and catching up.

A picture of me with my sisters

Monday was the day of my Grandpa's funeral. He actually didn't want a formal funeral, so we just had a short graveside service for family and a few friends. Each of his children shared some memories and remarks and the grave was dedicated. Then we went to visit some other family members' graves before heading to my Uncle John's neck of the woods where we feasted on ham and funeral potatoes and visited at his house until late. My cousin Necie from my mom's side lived near so she came over for a little while and I was happy to get to see her too. Rodney, Lindy, and Tim, I'll catch you next time!

All the cousins (who were able to make it) together again

Tuesday morning I said goodbye to my family and headed home. I was a little jealous that Lauren went to Disneyland that day with my cousin, but I need not have been. The flight into town was so turbulent, it was more thrilling than any roller coaster I've been on. Ada loved every minute of it, laughing her head off everytime the plane dipped and rolled.

Joe and the kids were waiting for me at the airport with a big sign and candy. As great as my trip was, I was so HAPPY to be home. I came home wanting to shower my husband and kids with love. Going to a funeral reminds you that each day with your loved ones might be your last.

Spring Trip

This past weekend we drove over to the west side of the state to visit my family. We went to Chuck E. Cheese's on Saturday for lunch, and my sister LeAnn and her husband Russ came along to share in the crazy fun.

Saturday night we were treated to an authentic Albanian meal when we went to visit some Albanian friends who live in Marysville. Our kids had tons of fun together and the food was SO good. I haven't eaten like that since we left Albania.

Sunday my sis and her hubby came over to my Mom's house for dinner and afterwards we had fun playing couples ping-pong and Boggle. Well, at least I had fun playing Boggle. Nobody likes to play with me because I always WIN!!! Can you tell I'm competitive?

Monday morning before we left, my mom and I went out and got pedicures. It was fun to sit, relax, and talk for a while.

Thanks, Mom, for letting us stay at your house and a BIG thanks to Sheraden (my 9 year old sister) for letting Jennabee stay attached to her hip the entire time.

My mom bought these cute shirts for the Jennabee and Ada.

Blessing Day

Last Sunday, Ada was blessed at church. It was so nice to have my dad and stepmom come since they live in Southern California and we don't get to see them very often. My stepmom made the beautiful blessing dress that Ada is wearing in the picture. And of course Joe's parents, brother, and sister live in the same town we do, so they were able to be a part of her special day too. You would think she had been blessed with sleep because every night since then she has averaged 8 hours! It's been wonderful.

We stayed up late and played RISK with my dad. Joe tried to wipe my dad off the board with his legions of armies, but thanks to my dad's lucky rolling of the dice, he dwindled Joe's forces enough for me to take them both out on the next turn and I WON!

This picture was taken towards the beginning of the game, when we were all still being nice to each other.

In Honor of Her...

I've started a new family history blog. I've had some special experiences this past year and a half as I've gotten into family history work and decided a blog would be a great place to journal them. My first post is in honor of the ancestor who got me excited about family history. Today marks the 102nd anniversary of her death. You can click here to view the blog. http://turning-hearts.blogspot.com/

Catch Up

I've heard my mother-in-law say that pregnancy really feels like 10 months by the time you deal with all the intense changes you go through the month after you give birth. This "tenth month" has taken it's toll on me, hence the big break from blogging. One thing that was especially horriffic for me this time was my "after cramps". Someone told me that they get worse with each child and my experiences have convinced me this is true. With the twins, I don't remember feeling any cramps. When Hans came, Ibuprofen kept everything under control. That didn't cut it with Austin and Jennabee, so the doc prescribed Hydrocodone which easily got me through the pain. This time Hydrocodone didn't even make a dent! I seriously felt like the pain was as bad as labor everytime I nursed the baby. Tears streamed down my face and I tried (unsuccesfully) not to writhe around and cry out loud. After about a week and a half of torture the cramps became less intense and I was able to nurse without dread. I hope this admission hasn't scared anyone from having more kids!

Now to catch up with a few things.

The week between Christmas and New Years brought two visitors to our home. My little sis, Lauren, who was in Iraq, made it back to the states and was able to come and visit us for a couple days. Now she's stationed at an Army base in Georgia where she is going to train and teach new Army nurses. My dad was also able to come up from Southern California and visit us for a couple days. Their visits overlapped so it was fun to have both of them here at the same time. Lauren left Friday, my dad left Saturday, and Sunday night I was in labor and heading to the hospital! They just missed getting to see Ada.


My mom was able to come and spend a few days with us after the baby came. It was great having her here to help with the kids, the house, and cooking. We were sorry to see her go!


Luckily my mom got to be here for Hans' birthday which was on the thirteenth. Instead of sticking seven candles in a cake, I stuck them in a Hostess mini pie (a special request from Hans). That was cool with me because I honestly didn't feel up to making a cake, so it was mini pies all around. He was happy to get some "new" toys just as his Christmas toys started getting "old", but his coolest present was the newt he got from his dad. A newt is a little lizard like creature that likes to live both in and out of water. So he was water in his cage and a cat statue (we couldn't find a rock with all the snow outside) which allows him to sit outside of the water when he wants to. He eats nasty little worms that I have vowed never to touch. I guess that means Mom won't be feeding this pet!

Pies for everyone!

The newt

Wonderful Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving with Joe's family here in town. There were seventeen of us for turkey dinner. We had a great day, the kids spent the night, Grandma told the Thanksgiving story, we played football in the snow, ate great turkey and pie, had a fun song/poem time, and enjoyed dancing.



Joe's mom compiled a video of our "Turkey Ho-Down". We danced and danced after our Thanksgiving meal to burn off all those calories. Everything started out pretty mild, but ended up rather wild. Enjoy!