"In the jungles of 'kiddom', the mind shifts gears rapidly...."

Camdon's bunny-sitting for the neighbors while they're at the Fiesta Bowl. Everyday he goes over and feeds and waters the rabbit. Today he invited Carter to tag along to see the cute little bunny. I hadn't anticipated that this would cause sever sadness over the loss of our own rabbit a year ago....

By the time they got back, Carter was sobbing a rather dramatic scenario about missing peanut. I did all the things a good mom does: I listened...I told him I knew how he felt......I said I was sorry....and then I asked whether he wanted oreos or licorice. The tears immediately stopped and he said: "oohh, I'll take both!"

Problem solved.

"Snowflakes are one of nature's most fragile things,

but just look what they can do when they stick together...."

We drove over to Eastern Idaho Christmas day. Justin's brother, Travis, was home from Seattle with his family and we really wanted to see them. Travis holds a special place in everyone's heart. And I mean everyone. Anyway, we all went up to Teton valley the day after Christmas to see Great Grandma Kay and spend the day on the farm.

There wasn't nearly this much snow, but I wanted to show you how peaceful this place is. For Justin, the nostalgia of the farm is immeasurable. And after nearly 14 years of marriage, it's become a special place for me as well.

Here's the view on a clear day....

Yep, those are the Grand Tetons. And, yeah, it's hard for us to spend a day here and not want to move back home.

The hill at the top makes for perfect sledding.....

If we up and disappear one day.......you'll know where we went!

"I was born for the storm, and a calm does not suit me." --Andrew Jackson

A friend of mine recently asked why I never blog anymore. I told her I guess I'd run out of things to blog about. She laughed and said: "You're raising three boys...there's ALWAYS something to blog about." I suppose she was right. And I suppose I agree with our 7th president. A calm really doesn't suite us.

Carter got his head stuck in the barstool the other night during dinner. I tried to get him out, but couldn't. Luckily Justin arrived home from work in time to save the day. He had to take the thing apart, and it was hard keeping everyone from laughing (which only made Carter's screaming worse), but as I was telling Carter to "just stay calm" I realized that will probably never happen. Not around here anyway.

"Go Get Mom!"

Before I tell you this story I have to set the stage. Last week I had a HORRIBLE week! I have been juggling a lot of balls this semester and I knew eventually one would drop, but I was wrong. Three dropped. All in the same week. Allow me to explain:

As a member of the Stake primary presidency, our biggest responsibility is the monthly stake baptisms. It's not always possible for the entire presidency to attend every month so we make assignments and go from there. December was my assigned month to attend. Saturday came and I headed to work early as I had two new hire orientations to do. They went a little long and by the time I got home, Justin and Jamon had already left for the BSU game. Camdon was home alone with Carter who was running a fever. I quickly got things under control and settled down for a nice afternoon with my boys. Completely forgetting about the 4 o'clock baptisms I had been assigned to attend. I didn't even realize what I had done until Sunday morning. I woke up with a start as I realized I had completely dropped the ball.

Then on Tuesday as I sat down at the computer to take an online exam for World Geography, I was denied access. I couldn't figure out why it wasn't letting me on. Just the night before I had opened the exam, answered the few that I knew off the top of my head, and then bid the test adieu until Tuesday afternoon when I had the house to myself for a few hours to take the rest of it. As it turned out the test closed at 12 P.M. I looked at that probably five times throughout the week and every time I told myself I had until midnight Tuesday night. No people. 12 P.M. means noon, not midnight. That's why I couldn't get access to the test. It had closed and I scored a zero out of a hundred. I had the second highest grade in the class up until then. And of course, my "A" dropped down to a "C". I was absolutely devastated at what I had done. So strike two for me that week. Screwed up at church. Screwed up at school.

THEN ( I know the mind reels that there could be more!) I got to work Thursday night and was informed that the GM was disappointed in the way the training was going. The people weren't doing what they were supposed to, and as the CDT (glorified "know-it-all") this was my fault. So, I was screwing up at work as well. Apparently I'm super busy doing nothing at all. I was having a fairly large pity party. Until Saturday.

It snowed all day Saturday and the kids spent most of the day outside enjoying the winter weather. All summer long the boys spent hours building a BMX track in the empty lot across the street. As you can imagine, all the snow was making for a great sledding track. That's where they spent their day. At one point Jamon hollered to the neighbor kid to toss him down a sled. The kid threw it and the sled hit Jamon right in the face between his nose and mouth. I happened to be outside in our garage and heard the scream. I was already on my way when I heard Jamon yell: "Go get mom!" I was to him in seconds.

I walked him home, got him out of his bloody clothes, and went about the business of tending to his needs. As he was lying in bed with tears in his eyes he said "Thanks mom. I love you."

At that moment I realized something. He didn't yell "Go get Dad!" He didn't yell "Go get Tammi!" (our neighbor who lives next door. She's a nurse.) He didn't yell "Go get J.D.!" (our other neighbor who is a dentist and was outside and saw the whole thing.) No. He yelled "Go get mom!" And I was there. Within seconds.

It was then that I realized that no matter where else I screwed up this week, where it mattered the most, I DIDN'T drop the ball. I play a lot of roles, but the role of "mom" is the one I'm most proud of. I don't think it was a coincidence that I happened to be outside when Jamon got hit. I think Heavenly Father knew I needed to be reminded of the good work I was doing. The really important work of being a mom.

Since you all asked.....

"The President will now accept questions..."

"How's the crusty foot?"

No longer crusty, thanks. Totally healed, accept for the fact that it seems to be cold all of the time. It's frustrating but nothing a sock can't fix. Next?

"How's school going?"

All I have to say is this: Only two weeks left!! I have hated every minute of this semester. There's a reason I never took economics the first time around. I have an 87 right now, so it's possible to still squeak out an "A". We'll see. Next?

"How did the Praxis go and why did you have to go clear to Twin Falls to take it?"

The test is only offered a few times a year at only a few locations. You register with ETS, which is out of Ohio or something. I didn't get registered in time to secure a seat at Boise State, so I had to go to the next closest place...Twin. I don't get the results for another three weeks, but I feel like both went well. Next?

"How's Justin's job?"

Well. He has one. They decided not to do anything drastic just yet. We'll see how the next few months go. Obviously no raises or bonuses this year. I take that back. The bonus is that we get to still have a job. We are grateful for that! Next?

"How are the boys?"

Perfect. Next?

"Are you or are you not going home for Thanksgiving?"

Yes. We will leave early Thursday morning and stay through Sunday. I can't wait to go home and see my family! Next and final question?

"Did Justin SERIOUSLY just get put back in as Executive Secretary?"

Yes. We can't believe it either. He had only been released for 6 months. Same position under the same Bishop. Oh well, what do you do? I have enjoyed having him home on Sunday mornings while it lasted. I told the Bishop we wanted a raise. He laughed and said: "oh you'll get it alright!" Even though we were kidding, I know this to be true. We felt/saw extra blessings come into our lives the first time around and I'm sure this time will be no different.

This concludes our press conference this afternoon. Thank you for your questions. We love that you love us and our concerned for our welfare. We love you too!

"We'll watch for you..."

I got Justin season tickets to BSU games years and years ago for his birthday. He hasn't missed a home game in like five years. The tradition is that whoever doesn't get to go with dad stays home with me and we watch on TV. We always say: "We'll watch for ya"...as if going to the game automatically gets you on TV. Trust me, it doesn't. We've never seen him on TV for any game. Ever.

Well, Camdon has figured out that if you have an ESPN sign, your chances of getting on TV are better. I'd dare say that's probably true. Tonight Justin and the boys are in Utah for the BSU game. They've made a sign and:

"I'll be watching for them!"

I love this kid.

Something reeks of hypocrisy...

The only pencil sharpener we have in the house is one of these little beauties.....

Yes, I splurged on the $.99 and got the good kind. You don't even have to hold it over the garbage can or anything! You just empty it when it's full. Sounds easy enough except that sometimes the stupid thing comes apart in the middle of a sharpening and shavings fall all over the floor. This is exactly what happened to me the other day. Carter and I were just about to start his homework when I dumped the load.

I mumbled something that sounded like: "Grrr", got the vacuum, cleaned the mess, and returned to the business at hand. Carter was watching the whole thing and as I walked away he said to himself (or no one...he was just making an observation):

"That happened to me once only I got in trouble. Mom yelled that I was going too fast and I need to focus. She's lucky she's the mom and no one will yell at her. Oh I know. I'll drive her to Idaho Falls so her mom can yell at her there. Oh wait, I don't drive."

And then he finished his homework.

I love this kid.