up to my elbows in apples

Today is the best smelling day of the year at my house. The smell of cooked apples is wafting through my house, and I'm reminded once again about the good part of Fall. We're making applesauce. And by "we" I mean, me, with two kids underfoot complaining about this and that. Last year when I did this I had two friends with me, both of whom have since moved away. This was much more fun with them! And as a bonus, they helped clean up the mess when we were done. Something tells me I'm not going to get the same treatment today.

Though I do get an occasional reprieve at the strainer.

I'm using Aconi apples, which makes the applesauce pink!

I looked all over for that strainer (it only gets used once a year) and finally found it in the cupboard where wedding gifts and miscellaneous kitchen accessories go to die. I found all sorts of stuff in there that I forgot I had. A fondue pot!! A perfect pancake maker! A sandwich maker!! (which actually got a lot of use during those first few years of marriage. I guess now I don't feel so good about serving hot pb&j for dinner) Some ceramic oven dish that I don't know how to use! Several chip & dip serving platters!!* And a bib that must have long ago fallen through the drawer above it that says "I ate my first enchilada at the Red Iguana"!! Perhaps I should clear it out and use the space for storage? Maybe there's some lost soul out there struggling to make the perfect pancake (besides me, I mean) that would benefit from me donating that pan. Something to consider, for sure.

And here's how the Ty-guy looked this morning as he took on the brave job of swatting bees in the backyard. Twisted shorts because he put them on himself, green rain boots, a fly swatter, and kid sized gardening gloves to complete the outfit.

Back to work I suppose.

p.s. it's "wear a hat to school" day.

*disclaimer: If you gave me any of these gifts for my wedding, don't be offended. They've all been used, I swear. Also, good memory you've got there!

Wordless(ish) Wednesday

Oh yeah, did I ever show you the 400 and some odd soccer balls Jeremy and I inflated for the soccer season? It beats coaching!

Monday mash-up

Yesterday while on a walk (after a particularly huge dinner-STEAK!) Alexis looked at me and said, "Mom! You are getting a baby in your tummy!!" I told her, no, there's no baby, I just ate a lot of food. To which she replied, "yeah, a lot of french fries" and rolled her eyes at me. In my defense, I have not been eating a lot of french fries. In fact I couldn't even tell you the last time I had french fries. But I'll make no comment about all the other junk I have been eating.

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Somehow life has gotten busy. My definition of busy is probably not your definition of busy. I'm a slow paced person who likes to relax, but there are lots of you out there who make yourselves busier because you don't like to relax. Bravo for you, you'll get more done in a year than I'll get done in a lifetime, but I like my way. Anyway, between school, homework, soccer, work, and church callings, most of our nights last week were spent running around like mad people. I'm hoping this week will be different. All I have written on my calendar for today is "Smith's--use coupon". We'll see if I can manage that. Oh, and I really should vacuum.

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Because life got busy I kind of checked out for a few days. Do you do that? Please tell me I'm not the only one. I did the bare minimum of what I had to do and then wasted a lot of time watching old episodes of Veronica Mars (LOVE that show) on the computer. And I picked my split ends a lot, and I was grumpy and mean, and went to bed late. Then a certain husband said to me, "have you noticed how all your bad habits come out all at once?" Because I love him, and because he's right, I did let him live. But I likely will not forget. And I'm back on track today anyway.

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Tomorrow is fall equinox, people. Do you know what fall means to me? APPLES! Oh the good tasting apples you can get from an orchard! They soothe me as we transition from wonderful weather to the impending doom of snow.

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Also, what good is it being a kid if you can't play in the rain?

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I got up early today, and was reminded of why I haven't been doing it. Somehow Tyler knows when I'm awake and figures he should be too. He got up at 6:45, which is early for him and way too early for me to be around him. I told him it was still nighttime, and he stayed in his room quietly singing to himself until just now (7:30). But now he's sitting on the ground crying and hitting my leg because he wants his pants on, that he peed all over. There's no reasoning with him, and I can tell it's going to be a long day.

Go Lizards!

It's a well known fact that most parents think their children are the greatest kids ever created. I'm no exception to that rule, and I find them highly entertaining. However, I also recognize that not everyone feels the same way about my kids. So while I mainly write about my kids on this blog, I TRY to not gush too much or show you boring videos that only parents and grandparents appreciate. But I will tell you this. If you've never witnessed a soccer game involving four and five year olds, you need to get yourself to one. Find a relative or look one up in your town and go watch--just don't be creepy about it! Because they are hilarious, whether you know the kids playing in them or not.

There's beauty in it for several reasons.
1. There is no such thing as teamwork. It's every man for himself, until the end when your team gathers to cheer for the other.
2. Kids that age still don't have the longest attention spans. And most of them are playing only because their parents signed them up for it. Their disinterest makes it even more entertaining.
3. None of them fit into their uniforms. None of them. And those little shin guards are beyond cute.
4. The coach asks the team, literally every minute, which goal they are going for.
5. Rules are followed only sometimes.
6. The parents aren't crazy competitive and yelling mean things at each other (at least not in my experience).
7. You clap whenever anyone makes a goal, even if they aren't on your team. Even if your child made a goal for the other team. Whatever, you always clap.

At a game a few weeks ago my dad set up his camera and got some really great shots. And remember, while I know watching a live game would be entertaining for everyone, I know looking at 20 different shots of Alexis playing soccer is not as entertaining. So I've narrowed them down, just for you. But please know, it was hard! In case you don't know, she's the shorty with the really blond hair, in a green uniform.

Here she is kicking the ball into her team--who all happen to be behind her. Details.
Here she's defeating all three of her teammates to try and make a goal. Nary an opposing team member in sight.
Ah! There they are! Note the ginormous uniforms. We use safety pins to keep her shorts from falling off.
If you click on this one you can see it bigger and see why I like it. The tongue is always out when she's concentrating. She gets that from me! Also, she looks like she's about to take flight.

Moral of the story: sign your kids up for soccer!

tiger

I have been in my own little world lately, a world that doesn't involve much computer time. That's a good thing I guess, but mostly because I've been sucked in a good book, potty training (I haven't changed a diaper since Monday!) and trying to finish some sewing projects--one of which keeps me up at night with excitement! I'm a little dorky that way. I've got two quilts under construction, and then I've got a whole lot of bags to make. But I wanted to share pictures of a blanket I just finished for a good friend who had a baby (4 months ago--I'm a little behind). This new baby carries the middle name of Tiger, which presented an opportunity that could not be passed up!



By the time I finish a project I usually hate it, or doubt if anyone will like it, but now that a week has passed, I like it all over again! I kind of made it up as I went along because planning ahead takes more work, and it's just not how I operate. When I saw the fabrics an idea formed in my mind, I came home and drew it out on my graph paper (maybe I'm more than a little dorky) but then I kept changing the measurements as I went along--fortunately I had just enough fabric. I don't know if I'll ever sew with Minky again, but I found that it works great for the binding!

This afternoon while Tyler was napping and Jeremy was at meetings, I spent awhile cutting out pieces for my next quilt, and Alexis sat at the table keeping herself quietly entertained. I let her have at my scraps, and I'm impressed with her ingenuity. She cut and glued, tied and taped and made little outfits for her barbies. She did it all by herself, and kept at it until she was pleased with the product. What a clever girl!

Wordless Wednesday

to the top

We had it planned for months, Jeremy, my dad and I. We looked forward to it all summer, anticipated it, and prepared for it.

September 2nd was the day we'd climb to the top. My dad had done it once before, Jeremy and I had never. That morning came, we rose early (ish) and drove to the trail head. Within the first mile I was wondering if I'd make it, but by the second mile I felt great. Time and time again I received another wind--another burst of energy. I think it probably took 30 of them to get me from top to bottom.

In the basin, with the peak behind us

It was fun on the way up. Strenuous only in parts, and the anticipation of the top of Mt. Timpanogos kept us moving forward and lighthearted. The weather couldn't have been more perfect--cloudy and cool until the afternoon when the sun finally came out. We saw a few moose, but not enough mountain goats. We made it to the saddle, with 400 feet elevation gain left to climb to the peak. From the saddle to the peak was by far the hardest part, but when you're that close you can't quit (even though we saw a large group of people who did). 5 hours and 10 minutes after we started we were at the peak and the view was spectacular (even if it was hazy)!


First order of business--eat lunch.
Second--rest my back.


When I laid down here I don't think I realized how close to the edge I was, so when I sat up after a few minutes and saw this:


I panicked a little.

Jeremy, me, my dad at the top

After resting awhile we headed back down, which is a whole other challenge. Jeremy wanted to slide down the snowfield, and I didn't. But I also didn't want to hear for the rest of my life, "I would have slid down that if it weren't for Lisa". So we did, only there wasn't enough snow to slide down the first part, so we kind of skied down the rocks. Then Jeremy slid down, while my dad and I intended to slowly walk down. However I slipped, and ended up sliding down much of the way, and eventually my dad did too. Here's a tip if you are going to do that: take gloves and a big stick for control. I found a stick as I was sliding down so I grabbed it and stuck it in the snow to slow myself down and then I enjoyed it a whole lot more (I guess I have control issues). And oh boy were our butts cold!

The hike down took longer than I thought it would and by about the eighth hour of the whole experience I was ready to be done, but I still had two or three more hours ahead of me. At that point I had developed four blisters and my big toes had turned white, I think from being shoved to the front of my boot for all the downhill part. My dad was excited about my blisters though because it meant he got to use his 1st aid kit! So there's the positive!

Overall I'm glad I did it, and give me a week and I'd probably say I'd do it again someday, but I can't say that today--I'm still living with the side effects. The day after the hike I did absolutely nothing (nothing more than I had to anyway) because it was beyond painful to move my legs. My calves felt balled up, my knees were sore, my quads were tight, I still had blisters, and the bottom of my feet were very tender The day after that it was still painful to move and I was just super super grouchy (though that may have been for other reasons). And today, the third day after the hike it finally doesn't hurt to move my legs too much, but now I have to play catch up for all the things I didn't do the last three days.

Now Jeremy's talking about hiking to King's Peak, to which I said, "I'll sit that one out thank you very much".

a ramble, with no pictures

Guys. I cannot wrap my mind around the fact that Alexis goes to school EVERY DAY (well, Mon-Fri)! EVERY DAY! Maybe it's because everything she's ever done (dance, soccer, gymnastics, preschool) has always been once a week, or at most, twice a week. This school stuff seems too good to be true. I know I'm not the only mom that's felt like this, right? I'll tell you though, I do miss her. More than missing her actual physical presence, I miss what life used to be like 5 short days ago. All of a sudden she's got a whole other world that I know very little about. Does that seem fair to anyone else? It doesn't seem fair to me! And a schedule! I'd forgotten what it was like to live by a schedule. But it's been so good for all of us. She's been playing nicer with Tyler, she asks more questions (wait...is that a good thing?), I have more patience, she has more patience, and she is actually washing her hands after going to the bathroom without me even reminding her! Don't ask me how that's related to school, I'll just take it.

Hmm, I don't know where this blog post is going. I was going to talk about the weekend, but now I'm not so sure I have much to say about it. Oh, except this. Saturday was an almost perfect day. The only bad part about it was that Jeremy had to work for a few hours in the morning. But Alexis had a soccer game, which was fun. Then both kids and I napped which meant Jeremy got some quiet, and then we did something Alexis had been begging us to do. Once upon a time several months ago we went geocaching. Do you know what that is? I'm not going to explain it, so read this wikipedia article if you are interested. Anyway, Jeremy had a GPS that he got from work (somebody left it in a car and never ever claimed it--this is also how we've acquired half the movies we own), and thought geocaching sounded interesting. The one we went to first was incredibly easy because it was for kids and it had a box of toys, so the kids left an item and took a new-to-them item out of the box. Anyway, Alexis wanted to do that again on Saturday, so Jeremy looked up some local caches and we took off after naps to find them. Turns out these were not for kids, and were harder, but it was still so fun! I think it's a great family activity, so if you have a GPS go try it. If you don't, look in the lost and found box everywhere you go and maybe you'll get lucky! However, at times I had flashbacks to when I was a teenager and my mom and dad would make us pick blackberries off the side of busy roads, which of course embarrassed me. So maybe if you have sensitive teenagers, don't go geocaching. Sorry mom and dad, I was a dumb teenager!

After geocaching was over we picked up some food and came home to watch "Meet the Robinson's" (see above paragraph if you wonder where we got that movie) while having a picnic on the living room floor. It was a perfect family day!

Unfortunately ever since then Tyler has been a bit monstrous, mostly because he seems to think sleeping is overrated. I wish I agreed.

And tomorrow is September--for once I am welcoming it. But here's something weird. During the summer I hang most of my laundry out on the line to dry, because, why not? It saves a bit on electricity I'm sure (I haven't done the math), but it is more work. As I was realizing that it'll get cold before I know it, I got sad about not being able to hang my laundry on the line anymore. Someone please explain this to me, because I thought about it and thought about it, and it doesn't make any sense.

First I have to set the timer during a load of wash to make sure I add the fabric softener at the right time. Then I have to load a basket full of wet clothes, which is heavy and carry it to the backyard, and while I'm out there fight off about 100 wasps. Then I have to bend down over and over again to pick up more clothes and clothespins. And then I have to take all those clothespins off later, drop them in the bucket, just to pick them up again when the next load is ready. And on top of it all my clothes usually are a little crunchy. Yet, I'm going to miss it because for some reason I really and truly enjoy hanging my clothes on the line. Someone PLEASE explain that to me.

Alright, clearly I'm rambling. I need to go shower and go to bed, because all too soon it'll be 6:30 a.m., Jeremy will be waking me up and I'll be cursing him in my head.

the big day

Do you hear that?



Listen closely?



Try again...



THAT is the sound of silence! Alexis started kindergarten today, and Tyler is napping, so my house is so quiet it's eerie. Alexis didn't do preschool last year, so it's been a long while since I've had this kind of quiet time to myself consistently (at least I hope it'll be consistent--as long as Ty-guy keeps napping)! What will I do with my time? I could nap! I could sew! I could watch TV! I can do anything I want within the walls of my home! Oh, the possibilities!
We've been waiting for this day for awhile, but today I started to panic. What if I haven't taught her enough? What if she picks her nose? What if she doesn't wash her hands after she uses the bathroom? What if she doesn't say please and thank-you? What if she's that kid that is always telling the teacher all sorts of random unrelated stuff (she will be)? What if she's rude, or doesn't listen? What if she cries and whines? Seriously, what have I been doing these last five years? And why did I think cramming all those instructions into her head this morning would do any good. It won't. I just need to remind myself that she is a good kid, she does listen to others, and she has more kindness in her little body than most people do in their big old bodies. So I should stop worrying already! I know she looks so relaxed in this picture, but she was a little nervous. She hadn't told me that until lunch today, but I could see it in her demeanor. I think it's good to be a little nervous, it'll keep her subdued and alert. So we had a chat and I told her everything I knew about how her day would go (which wasn't much), and she seemed a little better. By the time she was lined up with her class she seemed relaxed and ready to go.
And I've yet to cry...today. I cried last night as I watched her sit on a chair, so reverently under her dad's hands, while he gave her a father's blessing, with the power of the Priesthood. Her little eyelids, fluttering as she tried to keep them closed, was more sweetness than my heart could take and I cried, just a little bit. But thinking about it now is bringing back the tears, so lets talk about something funny.

Have you ever watched a little kid try to blow up a balloon? It's pretty funny.

Did I mention that along the walk to school Alexis picked TWO dandelions for her teacher? I hope that teacher is ready for Alexis.
p.s. yes, she got a haircut!

fun v. funny

A few weeks ago I went out to dinner with two friends, and we started discussing how some people are fun, and some people are funny. Let me tell you, I am not a fun person. I'm way to cautious for that--I consider all possible end results before acting. I am not spontaneous, I don't enjoy dancing much, and I think way too often before speaking. Therefore I do not act silly, stupid, or crazy, which generally makes a person fun. Also, because I'm so cautious I have no embarrassing moments that I can recall. See? Not necessarily fun.

But, I *can* be funny--if I'm comfortable enough, and in a group that is not too large. And I'm okay with that. If I could choose, I'd choose to be funny over fun. Mostly because I make myself laugh more than I make anyone else laugh, so at least I keep myself entertained.

What about you?

WOULD YOU RATHER...
be fun
OR
be funny?