Life Wright Now

A week of Halloween Fun!

2010-11-05T21:47:00.000-07:00

I guess it all started with making Halloween necklaces with cousin Natalie.

And then we picked out pumpkins.

My Dad has always really enjoyed carving pumpkins and I guess it has rubbed off on all of us. It is now tradition to have a big pumpkin carving family night. It is a part of Halloween I really look forward to.

Vaughn had a pumpkin carving contest at work so he went all out this year insisting on this idea he had to carve Phineas and Ferb (Disney cartoon characters from Macie and Rens favorite show) and then Macie couldn't imagine leaving out Agent P.

Macie wanted to be a witch. And when I saw this hat I just knew that this was the costume for her.
(This is her "Scary" face)

Then we were off to a cousin party hosted by the Grover kids.

Eliza and her kids planned so many fun activities! We had a great time!

The cutest by far was the donut eating contest!

I just laughed and laughed! Macie and Rex were so cute. They just kept at it for like two whole minutes until they got it in their mouths. (Noah shoved it in with his hand right after this shot.)

If you ask Renzo what he was for Halloween he says "bones"

More scary faces from the kids as we got ready for trunker-treating. We were so excited that Renzo let us paint his face. Macie got a little scared of him right at first and he was walking around saying " no spooky" " I no spooky" .

Renzo was shy at first but he got the hang of it . And then he thought it was pretty awesome that people would just put candy in his bucket. He kept saying "oh, mine" and shaking his head up and down.

My sisters both went all out in the costume department this year. Vaughn and I felt a little

un-fun. I guess next year we will try to get in the spirit a bit more.

Tour of our new place

2010-09-16T23:22:00.000-07:00

Ya well I know we have been here for three months and I should have done this long ago but i figure some of you will appreciate it and the rest of you have been here so you can skip it :)
I tried to take a picture of each room from two angles that almost all of it can be see. This is the front room. The one room where there are no toys and it is always ready for visitors. (well most of the time.)

Here is where we spend all of our time. The living/dining room and the kitchen.

We have three bedrooms downstairs. We painted these rooms before we moved in and I really love them. Macie's room is a little bright for some people but I love it. I just have to throw in that I made both of their quilts (with help from my mom and her sewing machine) and I am really kind of proud of myself cuz I really don't care for sewing but this was a lot of fun.

The kids both have these really cute window seats in their rooms which have quickly become favorite play spots.

Macie saw me taking pictures of her room and she asked if she could be in one and do a "pose". This is what she came up with and I thought it was pretty funny. So enjoy :)

Here is the downstairs master bedroom.

And the master bath. I guess I forgot to take a picture of the other hall bath but it is done in the same style just smaller.

So this is the stairwell back by the kitchen that leads to the back yard and upstairs to my classroom and the "master suite".The top of the stairs opens up right into the classroom. The door straight ahead is a powder bathroom and the door to the right is the "master". This balcony is over the backyard off of the classroom. Its big enough for a couple of chairs if we ever want to sit up there and watch all of our neighbors swim in their pools. :) So the "master suite" has turned into our "everything else room". I have my scrapbook corner and Vaughn has an office corner. The treadmill, beanbag chair and a whole bunch of other crap is up there too. I finally got rid of the last boxes but that does not mean ever thing has a home yet. I think I just sort of got burnt out after getting the downstairs together and the school that I just kind of try not to think about what a wreck this last room is.

The bathroom off of the master up here is huge! There is a walk in shower, a spot for a huge tub and two huge walk in closets set up his-n-hers style on either side of the room. It is a bit dated but with time and some work it will be pretty awesome one day. For now I just throw stuff in there.

So that's it. We really really love this house. It has had just enough done to it that we aren't overwhelmed but there is still stuff to do and both Vaughn and I enjoy a good house project. And the neighborhood is GREAT. Lots of kids and young families. I think it was for sure the right fit for us.

All About October

2009-11-05T15:02:00.000-08:00

Geeze October just flew by! And I am pretty sure I will be saying the same thing about November soon. Here is a little bit of what we have been up to:

We visited the happiest place on earth!

And hung out with lots of friends....

.....got rained on....

and went to the beach.

We dressed up...

And trick -or-treated

We made messes (which we are getting really good at)....

And learned to climb....(boy are we proud of ourselves)

I guess you could say we wore ourselves out!!!

I swear this picture is not staged. She truly fell asleep at the table doing a puzzle. Whats funnier is that I was sitting at the table with her. I just realized that she was quiet and I looked up from what I was doing and ran for the camera.

Boxes and Bare Walls

2009-09-21T12:54:00.000-07:00

I feel like this has been my life for the past few weeks. Moving is a lot of work! In our case its been a little bit weird since I kind of had to decide what I "needed" and what I could "store" for a while.

We have been in the Condo for a week now and things are calming down. We had a few "bumps"the first week. First our phone got wired to the wrong condo so for a few days the guy upstairs was getting our calls. Then our fridge broke, but luckily our maintenance guy responds quicker than cox does.

There are definite ups and downs to "condo" living that I have realized over the last week.

A few of the ups include:

*the whole place takes about a fourth of the time to clean as the house did

*Courtney lives around the corner

*all the bills are cheaper (this was our #1 reason for going this route)

A few of the downs

* walking from the car to the condo with groceries and two kids

* walking to and from the car with laundry (I still have to do it at the house)

* super small kitchen with no counter space

* I could go on but I have promised Vaughn that I will try to be more positive about the situation :)

Its going to be fine. We have been talking a lot this week about how it feels a little bit simpler here. Kind of just "back to basics". You don't really realize how much stuff you acquire over time and how much of it you can really live without until you are forced to go through it. I am sure a lot of you can relate, with all the moving that has been going on lately.

So we are here for at least six months and then it just depends on how fast we find a house. I am still doing my preschool from the house and I think it should work out just fine. Macie and Ren have adjusted really well and for that I am truly grateful.

Toddler or Spider Monkey....you decide

2009-08-11T13:27:00.000-07:00

So the other day I was down the hall and I hear Ren yelling in his "help me" voice. This is pretty common lately since this kid has no fear and has developed a love for getting himself into or onto things that he cannot get out of.

I round the corner and this is what I see....

So of course I ran to get the camera. He is always so proud of himself ,with the big "look at me smile", that I just have to laugh.

I don't even know how he got the stool over behind the couch. I am guessing he had some help from a certain big sister but she says "I didn't even do it mom".

Kathleen is full of stories about Vaughn climbing all kinds of things. They including a street light pole and the refrigerator, just to name a couple. So I guess this is just a case of "like father like son".

(I am not looking forward to the first run to the emergency room....but I can see it coming.)

Anyone for a trade??

2009-07-13T22:07:00.000-07:00

So here is the deal. Ren has made the turn into full toddler mode and that causes a bit of a problem for me and my preschool.

I am looking for someone who would be interested in a "trade". Her child gets to come to preschool and she would take Ren away from the preschool. I would really like someone who has another young child at home so that Ren has someone to play with. It would be Tuesday and Thursday from 9am till noon starting in August. So if any of you ladies out there know of someone who you trust that maybe would like to have her 2 1/2 - 4 year old in preschool but maybe cant really afford it, would you please send her my way.

I added a link to my preschool blog on my sidebar incase you want to know more.

Thanks!!

The Seven Year Itch

2009-07-01T14:52:00.000-07:00

I have this vivid memory of going visiting teaching with this lady from the first ward that Vaughn and i were in right after we got married. We had probably been married for about six months and I thought things were going great. I was telling this woman how great things were and I remember that she seemed really surprised to hear that. Then she went on to tell me how I should enjoy it while it lasts cuz it was only a matter of time before the fun wore off. She went in to this long story about how once you throw a couple of kids and a mortgage into the mix then I would know what real life was like and it would not be pretty. She kept saying things like "give it seven years" and "year seven is when it started for me". The conversation totally freaked me out back then and its kind of always been with me. Then Vaughn was talking to some girls at his office a few weeks ago about our upcoming anniversary and he was super surprised to find out that three of the girls he works with were divorced or separated during year seven of their marriage.

I am really lucky and blessed to be able to say that i feel like Vaughn and I kind of breezed through our first few years of married life. I will admit that the last couple of years we have had our fair share of challenges. But i feel like we have made the best of the hand we have been dealt and we have done our best to get through our challenges together and not against each other.

So it has been a little bit of a joke with us lately that our luck is about to run out and we must be in for a rocky year. I guess that's why we decided to get in a little "us time". We bought annual passes to Disneyland this year because we went earlier in the year with Vaughn's sister Eliza and her family and plan on going later in the year with some of my family. So we figured why not try to sneak in one more weekend since we already had the tickets.

It was great!! No strollers, no tired whining kids. We got to walk around holding hands and actually rode rides together instead of taking turns staying with the kids. The best part was eating at the restaurant in the pirates ride (I cant think of the name). I have always wanted to eat there!!! Vaughn would want me to add that the other best part was sleeping in till 9am because neither one of us can remember the last time we did that.

I will admit that I am a wimp and every little while I would sigh and say "Macie would love this" or "Ren would love this". Vaughn would roll his eyes and say "whatever....they can come next time" but I know he missed them a few times too. We had a really great time and are glad to have the chance to reconnect and be ready for another great year and hopefully seven more great years.

BBQ for the Birthday Boy

2009-06-15T22:13:00.000-07:00

My little man is ONE!!! We had a BBQ with some family and friends to celebrate. I like to do first birthdays kind of on the big side. I feel like its a celebration for the parents just as much as the kid. Its a "we made it through the first year" party. My very favorite part is the cake. I don't no why I just really think it is the cutest thing to watch. And since Ren eats like he has a hollow leg, I knew he would love this tradition. Courtney and I worked really hard on this cake and I think it turned out pretty darn good. (Its a basketball in case you cant tell.) A couple weeks ago I asked Macie what kind of birthday Ren should have and she said a" boy basketball one" with out hesitating, so thats what we went with. She is kind of obsessed with birthdays right now. So she was super excited to have a party for Ren. It turned out to be a really nice day for June which I was really grateful for because the only place big enough for all the people we invited was the back yard. And I was really worried about everyone sweating their brains out and having no fun. But it turned out to be really great.

Four Year old Favorite's

2009-05-13T14:55:00.000-07:00

Q and A with Macie Hazel Wright:

What is your favorite thing to do at school?

Play and snack

Who is your favorite teacher? Miss Kindra

Why? cuz that's you mom, your my teacher too

Who is your best friend? My best friend Natalie

Why? Courtney always brings her to play at my room

What is your favorite food? Peanut Butter

What is your favorite book? the one that ren is silly

What is your favorite treat? lollipops

What do you like to do? family walks with Jojo and Grannie

Where do you like to go? Courtney's house to swim

Who is your favorite animal? lamb and scat

What do you like to wear? Ballerina swimming suits

Who do you love?

my mommy ...and i love to hug my baby brother

Where does dad work? At KB home and at the airport

What does he do there? I always watch movies there and say hi to his friends

What do you like about grandmas house?

It looks fantastic

What games do you like?

play tug of war with Jojo

Whats your favorite color? brown..... like chocolate mmmm yummy

Whats your favorite movie? Scary movies

Why? cuz they are so scary that I don't like them I just like lamb movies

This little girl sure is hilarious and I love her TONS! She is turning into such a little lady and a definite girly girl but I wouldn't have it any other way.

All Dressed Up For Easter

2009-04-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

Macie is such a Girlie Girl right now. She refuses to wear anything but dresses. She wants to be a princess all the time so for Easter I couldn't resist making her happy.

And my Renzo is just such a cutie! I just love his little personality. I really got lucky with this little guy!

These two are getting to be such good little friends! I really love to see them play together.

Feeling Down....and Up

2009-04-11T21:21:00.000-07:00

I have been feeling really down lately. It just seems like life is really hard right now. Everyone is going through something and in most cases more than one something. I am not sure if this is mostly due to the state of the world in general or if its just part of growing up and dealing with grown-up things. But its hard and its just been really getting to me. This is mostly because I tend to worry about things and people that I have absolutely no control over. But I cant help it. I just want everyone to be healthy, happy and have no problems. I mean is that really so much to ask? :)

So......I was really excited when my sister Breanna came up with a plan that involved both of my sisters, a weekend visit to see my best friend from high school and a session of conference. A full weekend of girl talk, giggling and reminiscing. We had tons of fun! It was great to see Aimee and meet her two little cuties! And Conference was....well...AMAZING. I really needed a lift and it provided exactly that. We were able to attend the second session on Saturday so we were there for all the sustaining. There was something truly amazing about being able to raise my arm and show my love for our prophet while he sat only feet away.

I got one more boost tonight as we were able to attend a double convert baptism in our ward. A few weeks ago we were able to have these to sweet young ladies in our home while they were taught by the Missionaries and that was truly a treat. Its been years since I have been able to sit in on a discussion and I forgot what an amazing spirit the Elders carry with them. Its been a blessing to get to know Jocelyn and Becky and be a part of their journey and new life. There was such an amazing spirit there with us tonight. It has made me excited to look for someone else to listen to the missionaries just so that we could have them in our home again.

I am grateful for this last week and the ups I have experienced. The downs are easier to handle when I know there are ups just around the corner. I am also grateful to be part of a church that has so many ups around every corner. They are always there for the taking if we just choose to partake.

Thing 1 & Thing 2

2009-03-26T14:11:00.000-07:00

Vaughn went to Orlando on business earlier this week and he just couldn't resist bringing these back for the kids. After baths last night Macie wanted to have a photo shoot. She is really into taking pictures lately but will only let me take them if she can take some too. She cracks me up up because she totally imitates what I do. She was saying "Hold still"...."Smile, smile"...."Say cheese"...."Ren, look at Macie"...it was adorable!

Here are some of the ones she took:

Scat and Freinds

2009-03-13T17:19:00.000-07:00

Macie was never a blankie girl. She has always wanted "someone" to sleep with but most of the time any of her dolls or animals would do. She will go through phases and love one more than the others for a week or so but never really much longer than that. That is ...until Scat the cat.

A year and a half ago Courtney gave Macie a bag full of her old Beanie Babies and from that moment on they were all her favorites and all equals. She has barely touched a baby doll since then. She definitely prefers animals and of course small, soft, cuddly ones are best. Then a few weeks ago Courtney let her choose another Beanie from the bin. (Courtney was quite the collector way back when.) Macie looked through all of them and fell in love with Scat. This Kitty has not left her side in two months except for when she goes to church and school. I would catch her rubbing noses and talking in whispers to Scat. She even started talking in a weird little voice that was supposed to be Scat. It was absolutely hilarious!

Well....last Sunday we lost Scat. We took her to Grandma's house but didn't make it home with her. For the first time in her little life Macie had a meltdown at bedtime because she didn't want to sleep without Scat. We have searched everywhere and still no Scat but Macie is handling it well. I am actually really proud of her because after the first night there were no more tears over it.

The other night Macie was at Courtneys house and she was telling Courtney about how Scat was gone so Courtney (being the awesome aunt that she is)let her pick an animal from the bin to replace Scat. She picked a cute little deer. I was a little worried about her getting to attached to the deer and having this whole ordeal over again in a few weeks.

But last night we were at the Hospital visiting Grannie and when we were about to leave, Macie did something so sweet. She said that the deer wanted to stay and cuddle with Grannie and keep her happy. So she tucked the little deer into the covers in Gannie's arm and kissed the deer and kissed Grannie good night. I was really proud of her for realizing that the deer makes her happy so maybe it would make Grannie happy too. I wonder what she thinks about this whole situation but at least she is warming up to Grannie being in the hospital bed and I know that means a lot to Kathleen.

Also, I think from now on we will have a rule about sleeping with different animals so that she doesn't get overly attached to any one animal.

P.S. Macie took these pictures of Scat a few weeks ago cuz she really did love her sooo much.

A loss for words....

2009-03-04T15:21:00.000-08:00

I have been avoiding the whole blogging scene for the past few weeks because I am at a loss for words. And I suppose also because I was afraid of the words. I knew that so many of you would be posting beautiful thoughts about Kathleen and the truth is I didn't want to deal with the emotions. I can be strong if I have to be for a while but I have to be strict with where I let my mind go. And the hard thing about this situation is that there are so many unknowns, what ifs and wait and sees, that its hard to not let your mind wonder.

I have spent the last hour reading and crying. I am jealous of how beautifully you all are able express your thoughts and feelings. But I would like to add a few simple thoughts of my own.

When I tell people that I live with my in-laws the response is almost always the same. There is a slight tilt of the head and an "ooh" with a hint of pity in the voice. Followed by "how does that work?". And the truth is it works well. I don't think many people could have our situation and be able to say that, so i am grateful. Most people would think that living with their in-laws was a burden but I think of it as a blessing. I have been able to get to know Lo and Kathleen on a level that would not have been possible under other circumstances.

And now as we sit and worry and wait I am especially grateful for every conversation that I have been able to have with Kathleen over the last year and a half. She is truly an amazing women. I have enjoyed listening to her stories of motherhood, wife hood, and sisterhood and I have come to look to her as an example of what I would like to be one day.

I have also been very touched by what I have seen in the love that exists between Kathleen and Lo. Very often they go to bed much earlier than we do and most of the time all we hear is the buzz of the T.V. in the hours that follow. Every once in a while though HUGE bursts of laughter will come from the room. Sometimes Kathleen will come out to tell us how hilarious she thinks Lo is but most of the time we just here them both laughing. I find it to be absolutely adorable that after all these years they still are happiest just sitting and talking with each other. So many couples grow apart through the years of raising kids that it so refreshing to see a couple so in love with each other even after all the hard years. They give me hope.

I have said to Vaughn many times in the past seven years that I feel like I married up. I feel lucky and blessed everyday that I was a able to join a family as amazing as this one.

We love you Grannie!! Hope you are home with us soon!!

The Microphone

2009-01-26T17:07:00.000-08:00

Macie was ready to be out of Nursery about six months ago and so she transitioned beautifully into going to primary. She has absolutely loved it! She loves being a big kid and she especially loves going to the same place as Grannie for singing time. It was kind of a weird feeling for me to have her go to primary. It just kind of made it real that she is a kid now and not a toddler. When Vaughn and I were talking about this a few weeks ago I mentioned that it would be really exciting and also weird when she gets asked to give a talk or something in primary. Vaughn said he could hardly wait. Well....on Sunday we picked Macie up from her class and she had this big sticker on her front announcing that she had been assigned to give the scripture the following week. PROBLEM....We will be in Disneyland. So I grab her teacher and tell her that Macie wont be able to do it next week. So the teacher rips the sticker off Macie to keep as a reminder. And Macie lost it! She was yelling "no, no, that's so I can talk at the microphone". We tried telling her that we were gong to Disneyland but at that point she was willing to give up Mickey and the Princesses and everything for that chance to talk into the microphone. It was sooo cute! Hopefully its not to long before she gets the chance again to "talk in the microphone".

Tagged

2009-01-20T14:53:00.000-08:00

Ive been tagged. answer with one word...ready...set ..go!

1. Where is your phone? diaper-bag
2. Where is your significant other? work
3.Your hair color? brown
4. Your Mother? kind
5. Your Father? mechanic
6. Your favorite thing? kids
7. Your dream last night? none
8. Your dream/goal? school
9. The room you're in? front
10. Your hobby? scrapbook
11. Your fear? loss
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? secure
13. Where were you last night? restaurant
14. What you're not? loud
15. One of your wish-list items? swing-set
16. Love Someone? many
17. The last thing you ate? granola
18. What are you wearing? sweats
19. Your TV? off
20. Your pet? jojo
21. Your computer? annoying
22. Your mood? content
23. Missing someone? yup
24. Your car? messy
25. Something you're not wearing? shoes
26. Favorite store? HobbyLobby
27. Your Summer? busy
28. Where did you grow up? mesa
29. Your favorite color? blue
30. When was the last time you laughed? today
31. Last time you cried? December
32. Something you crave? cookies
33. Why you blog? family

Now I tag......Nancy and Aimee

Renzo is 7 Months Old

2009-01-09T13:56:00.000-08:00

I think that this is one of my favorite times in the having a baby timeline. Of course there is nothing sweeter than holding your newborn in your arms, but those days are full of a fair amount of hardships too. This time right now when babies are super interactive and playful but are not quite mobile enough to leave a path of disaster is definitely a great time.

Ren wants to crawl so bad! And I am sad to report that he is about there. He has already discovered the belly scoot and is crossing rooms that way but the past few days he is also figuring out the right hand leg motion combination on his knees that move him forward. He can only repeat it two or three times before falling on his belly but I am sure he will have it down within another week or so. And then its all over and he wont be my baby for much longer. :(

This kids favorite thing to do it eat!! Seriously...he is an eating machine. If he sees someone else eating he will start what I call "yelling" until he gets something that he can eat too. This has proven to be very annoying at restaurants. But he must have been blessed with Vaughns metabolism cuz he isn't really chubby anymore. (I really love this weird little food net thing he is chewing on. I put fruit or whatever in it and then he just goes to town chewing and sucking on it to get stuff out. Its great cuz he thinks he is big enough to eat big people stuff but he cant get enough out of it to choke.)

Ren has cut four teeth. The two on the bottom came first and then the top. We are calling him a vampire baby right now because it looks like he has fangs on top. (We probably just have to much Twilight on the brain.) He is trying really hard to cut the middle top two. His gums are swollen and his sleep pattern is bad again so I am really hoping they come soon!

It has been a really great seven months and I am really enjoying watching his little personality start to form. Every time I cuddle him I just try to take it all in and enjoy every minute. He is such a mommas boy! Sometimes I feel like it makes Vaughn sad and so I don't like that but I really do like it all the other times. There is nothing better than being a Mom and I love my kids more than I can put into words.

December Highlights

2008-12-29T20:59:00.000-08:00

December always seems to go by in a hurry but this year seemed to go especially fast.

So I figure better late then never, here is what we have been up to.

Macie has been so much fun this year. It is the first year she really understood what was going on. She loved talking about Santa, singing Christmas carols, looking at lights and just doing everything that makes this season fun. So I was really excited about taking them to see Santa. Every other year Macie has totally freaked out and not wanted anything to do with being even kind of close to Santa (and we have the horrible pictures to prove it). But I was really hoping this year would be different. The pictures prove that is was and of course Ren my super easy going baby wasn't even phased at all by being thrown into to the arms of a large man in a bright red suit.

We took Macie to see her cousin Audrey play the role of a baby mouse in "The Nutcracker". Unfortunately we only made it through the first half. Macie loved watching the kids, toys, and mice dance around but once that was done she was done. So we went out for ice cream and Macie got some time just for her with Mommy and Daddy.

Christmas was great! It really is ten times more fun once you have kids and then even more so when they understand it. The big hits this year were Macie's bike which she refused to ride for about three days but now loves. And Ren got this really cute car that he has loved from the second we put him behind the wheel. (Thanks Mom!!)

Hope you all had a Merry Christmas. And Happy New Year!!

Days Like Today

2008-12-16T13:24:00.000-08:00

I LOVE days like today!
Outside it is cloudy, rainy, wet, dark, cold and wonderful. It is just really hard for me to get into the Christmas spirit when its still so hot outside in the middle of the afternoon. I am just one of those people who think you should be able to at least wear sweaters two weeks before Christmas. So today I am in heaven...it feels like Christmas time.

There is really nothing better than cuddling up with my two little cuties on the couch all wrapped up warm and toasty in a blanket. With the Christmas tree sparkling and the sound of rain falling all around us. Throw in a mug of hot chocolate and that's what I would call a perfect evening.

Tagged....

2008-11-14T14:10:00.000-08:00

I am not sure how interesting this will be but here are 2-7 things you might not know about me.

1. I have a "thing" about cereal. The SECOND the milk touches the bowl I must start eating it as quickly as possible. If the cereal gets soggy, I am DONE. Its actually so bad that if Vaughn pours a bowl of cereal and then starts walking around talking to me with it in his hand I really cant concentrate on what he is saying. I have literally blurted out "aren't you gong to eat that" in the middle of his sentence because i can only think about how his bowl is turning into a soggy mess.

2. I love "organization tools". If you open any closet,cabinet,or drawer in my house you will most likely find some sort of basket, bin, or bucket system. Now, I am not saying that I am the most organized person. I definitely have clutter areas in my house (see number 3). I am just always looking for and trying a new way to keep everything in its place and a place for everything.

3. I love to get mail....I hate to deal with mail. I pay almost all our bills on line now but we still get hard copies in the mail. I will toss tons of mail into a huge pile for weeks before I drag myself to the horrible pile and begin the huge chore of sorting out what we need to save and what we need to shred. Every single time I tell myself that this time I will just deal with it as it comes each day but that only seems to last for a day or two.

4. I cant spell. I swear I have some sort of slight dyslexia. If I get in a hurry I will mix up even the simplest words. I have to really think about it when I am writing or typing. I think that is partly why I fell in love with the Montessori approach. I always felt like I got in trouble at school for mixing up "simple" things. But I think I really just needed a different way to look at it. Hopefully now you all aren't scared about me teaching preschool kids to read and write. :)

5. I am a Diet Pepsi addict. Now let me first state that I do drink water and I drink a lot of water. But most days in the afternoon I am able to find 10 or 15 minutes for myself and I love to check my e-mail, read blogs or flip through a scrapbook magazine...or whatever... while sipping on a Pepsi. It is my time to gear up for dinner and whatever the evening holds for us. I look forward to it and I need it. It is my little treat to myself and I really do miss it if I don't get it.(On a side note I have been feeling bad about this lately because when we go to get any fast food anything Macie will be yelling from the back seat "I'll have a diet" or "I want a diet for me mom". Is it wrong to think thats cute and funny?)

Well that is all for me. Now I tag.....Courtney, Nancy and Aimee.

2008-11-04T14:21:00.001-08:00

A week of Halloween fun

2008-11-03T14:50:00.000-08:00

Our ward trunk'er treat was the Saturday before Halloween. Then my Mom had hers on Thursday and so by Friday I was really looking forward to just hanging out at home and passing out candy. We got Macie all dressed up and forced Ren into his costume for the third time and took them to just a few neighbors houses so that Macie didn't feel like she was missing out on anything once kids started knocking on our door. And then we waited............and waited. We got FOUR knocks on the door..... the entire night! Honestly, I was kind of disappointed.

My favorite part of Halloween was actually the pumpkin carving family night that has become a bit of a tradition in my family. We have been getting together the Monday night before Halloween for the past few years and I really have come to look forward to it.

This was Vaughn and Macie's pumpkin. It turned out really great. You could even see it from the street really well.

My Little Man

2008-09-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

The second I found out I was having a boy, I was extreamly excited about one thing..... BABY BOY SUITS!!

I cant even put into words how much I love to put this little suit on him!! Its a good thing we go to church every week so that I have an excuse for this kind of outfit. :)

I cant beleive how big he is getting! On days like this when we dress him up he looks even more "grown up". It acctually kind of makes me sad sometimes - it just all goes by so fast.

My Montessori Dream

2008-09-12T14:08:00.000-07:00

Six years ago when I decided to take the Montessori Teacher training it was mainly because I figured that even if I never worked as a teacher in a classroom at least it would be great information for raising my own children. But as I began to learn more about the Montessori approach and what it was all about I really fell in love with everything about it, including the classroom. Very quickly my plan changed and my goal became having a small classroom in my home.

I feel lucky to have spent a few years at a really great school (Montessori House) with a couple of amazing ladies. And I am truly grateful for the privilege of knowing and learning from Sherie Richardson, and that I was able to be a part of the beautiful school that she has created. I was sad to leave the school but I was sure that I would have my hands full with Ren and transitioning into being a mother of two.

Well everything went a lot smoother than I thought. Ren is such a good baby that I found myself looking for something more to do. And I wont lie - I like being able to contribute at least a little bit to our financial situation. :) So a few weeks ago (with a little bit of encouragement from a friend) I decided I didn't need to start my little classroom under perfect dream like circumstances, I just need to start and allow it to grow into my dream. I have been buying things here and there over the years and storing them thinking I would use them someday. So I pulled out all my boxes, bins, and shelves. Then I did some research and found some pretty inexpensive Montessori materials on line and bought only the necessities. The other great thing about Montessori is that lots of the materials can be made by hand. So I spent a week being creative with my computer and laminator, and now I have my very own little classroom! And I absolutely love it!

I put the word out to some family and friends and now I have five children who come to my house on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Its really perfect. I get to be "Miss Kindra" and have the classroom time that I crave but I also get to be home with the two kids I absolutely adore.

Mini Vacation

2008-09-04T14:01:00.000-07:00

A few years ago we agreed to listen to a time share pitch from a company called Interval International. As we walked in Vaughn and I repeated over and over that we were only here for the free gift and we were not buying anything. We walked out with a week every year at Cibola Vista Resort and Spa that can be traded at tons of resorts across the country. Yep, they got to us. For the next two years we referred to this purchase as a big mistake because we spent so much on our monthly payments and yearly fees that we couldn't afford to use the thing.

We have now decided to change that. We took a "mini vacation" last week to finally check out what it is we bought into. It took about an hour to drive out to the resort so it felt kind of out of town but not really which is one reason I am calling it a mini vacation. It took all of the same prep work as a real vacation to pack up two kids and get in the car but then we didn't have to drive so far, which was kind of nice. The rooms are condo style with full kitchens and living rooms so we still cooked most our meals. That meant I still had to do dishes which is the other reason I only consider it a mini vacation. It was really nice though. We didn't plan a bunch of stuff we just slept late, hung out at the pool and watched movies most of the time. It was really nice to just have some time to be together and not have places to be and things to do.

I am really excited to try out trading our week at another resort too. We have a "real" vacation planned for February in California. We were able to find a resort we could trade at that is not to far from Disneyland and Vaughn's sister Eliza and her family are coming with us. And hopefully more of the family will decide (or be able) to come too. The whole reason we got sucked into this time share thing is because of the beautiful picture they painted of what family vacations could be like. I want those memories with my kids and I am really excited that Macie is getting old enough to really be able to enjoy and remember these kind of experiences.

Blessed

2008-08-06T14:24:00.000-07:00

We blessed Ren on Sunday and it was really wonderful. I love the day my babies get blessed. For some reason it makes it all seem real to me. The first few weeks go by in such a rush and blur(what with not sleeping much and all of that). But I feel like blessing him made him a real member of our family. Now that life is finally starting to feel normal again I have had more time to think about how blessed I am to have two amazing children who are perfect in my eyes. And a really amazing husband who is always there for me and for our kids. I love our little family so much and everything feels just as it should be.

LOST

2008-07-10T21:02:00.000-07:00

A few months ago Vaughn and I started feeling a little out of the loop among our family and friends because we couldn't talk about what was happening on LOST - since we didn't watch it. We didn't understand what all the fuss was about but everyone seemed to love it. So when Ren was born and we were stuck at home hanging out with our new bundle of joy (since it is unbearably hot outside) we decided to give LOST a chance.

For the past month we have been totally addicted. We love everything about it! We love all the unanswered questions and the crazy twists and turns. Thank goodness for the Hollywood Video down the street and the invention of the "freedom pass". We are now watching season four on the computer and I am almost sad to know that we are close to done and will have to wait and watch the next season once a week on tv like everyone else.

Baby Ren

2008-06-21T20:31:00.001-07:00

Big Girl Hair Cut

2008-05-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

I have been playing with the idea of cutting Macie's hair for a few weeks now. I am just so tired lately and she is so grumpy when it comes to brushing and tangles. So I asked Tara for some help and because Macie has watched Tara do so many hair cuts she was actually really excited to be the one in the chair. Unfortunately that only lasted for about a minute and then she was done with the whole sitting still thing. We got through it with not many tears and overall I think she did really great and so did Tara. I love the cut and Macie looks so grown up. But the funny part is that I swear she started acting more grown up as soon as the hair came off too. We call it her big girl hair now and I think she really likes the attention she gets about it.