January Book Club

Last Tuesday (17th) we met at Collette's house for our January Book discussion and to celebrate Jenn's December birthday.

We combined efforts to provide a scrumptious birthday dinner for all of us. Michelle brought her homemade grape juice, Jana brought fabulous rolls, I brought a salad, and Amy made Martha Stewart's beef stew (Collette made dessert).

It was so good!

Jenn's family had just returned from a 10 day vacation at Disney-world so she was kind enough to bring us all some souvenirs.

Amy gave us a little lesson on The Red Headed Hostess' scripture marking and journal methods because she has been using them and loves it! Michelle and I were particularly riveted because we have been planning on doing this too.

We discussed this month's book (don't judge it by the cheesy cover) and all really liked it.

Ah dessert!

Apparently I didn't take a picture of Jenn opening her $100 Mall Gift Card, but that's what we gave her.

It was a good night, but I really can't take staying up until 11:40! I had already stayed up until midnight the night before in order to finish the book (my fault), but then to stay up late a 2nd night in the row did me in. I was out of sorts the rest of the week and really struggled at work. I just can't do that. We're starting our gatherings earlier (6:30) but they're still going late, so I'm going to have to give myself a curfew. This makes me feel old, but when I end up feeling terrible it affects a lot of people so I need to be smart about it. 

**Have you read this book?

How much sleep do you need each night?**

Comment Window Tidbit: I feel good, I feel great, I feel wonderful...

Oh So Early, But Oh So Fun

It was rather handy that I didn't sleep at all on Wednesday night because it made getting up to get ready for our annual outing to the balloon launch in Provo easier than usual. I was in the shower at 4:45am! That is just wrong.


Part of the allure of the balloon launch is our breakfast of McDonald's hash browns, biscuits and orange drink. Sure we could get this breakfast any time, but the fact that Randy and Landon walk over to McDonald's to get it and that we eat while the balloons are filling just makes it that much better.

I love this photo Michelle took.

Somehow Eva was cold, though the morning was strangely warm, and Max offered to share his blanket with her. I thought this made a very cute scene of these 14 and 4 year old siblings.


We love having a practically hands-on view of the balloons filling up. We were situated right next to Smokey the Bear and found it amusing to see him without his nose inflated, it filled up last.


Look at the time on Randy's watch! I am so NOT the early riser that I couldn't believe we'd already been there almost an hour and it was only 7:20am. Wow.


I love seeing the sun come up from behind the mountains like this. It's transforms everything in such a short amount of time.

Whitney had the coziest set up of all.

Eva had some issues that morning. She didn't like the sound of the balloons filling or the smell (though none of us could smell anything, even me with my super sniffer). She was tired and wanted to go home and go back to bed (what the?). Michelle was able to distract her at various times, but Eva kept coming back to her disgruntled state. It was kind of funny. (Photo by Michelle.)

Someone was handing out these Frisbees/halos, which made for a good time.

Here is Lucas playing the Devil rather than the angel.

Frisbee fun.

Photo by Michelle.

Max was chasing Whitney with the Frisbee halo and she was running and hiding like her life depended on it. We didn't know why, but it was funny to watch.


Landon and Lucas both had unruly hair that caused much cringing for Michelle and I, but they still make a cute couple of friends.

I love this picture of Michelle and the kids taking a self-portrait.

It turned out that the balloons didn't end up taking off because the weather report said a storm would be blowing in during the next hour. It looked sunny and beautiful to us, but Mother Nature is a fickle mistress and we wouldn't want any balloonists to be blown far away from home.

**Have you been to a balloon launch?
What would you order for breakfast from McDonald's?
Have you ever showered at 4:45am?
Do you have any traditions like this?**

A Plague Upon My House

Last night I DID NOT SLEEP except for some possible dozing on the couch between 3 and 4 AM. What is up with my universe? I've had 2.5 weeks of rough nights with choppy sleep, but last night was the worst so far. I'm a wreck. How can this be when I am so fond of the cozy? I'm now taking Ambien donations and am accepting offers for someone to club me over the head.

**What do you do when you can't sleep?**

What Day Is It??

Is anyone else is feeling completely disoriented as to what day it is? I have to keep reminding myself and checking the calendar because I get little waves of panic like I'm supposed to be somewhere or like I'm forgetting something important. I guess that's what happens when our routine is blow to bits like it has been this week.


I'm back to not sleeping well (because I've stayed up too late), not eating well, and have gotten headaches on Christmas Eve and yesterday...not good. It's making me think about making some healthy New Year's Resolutions though, so that may end up being a positive thing.

On Christmas night Randy and I were watching TV and bummed out that we didn't have any good shows on our DVR, then we had this riveting conversation.

Me: "I think we're going to have to put in a DVD."
Randy: "I think I'm just going to go to bed."
Me: "It's 9:30!!?"
Randy: "I know!" (said with an giddy laugh)
Me: What the??


That left me with the house to myself though and it ended up being quite nice. I popped some popcorn, hunkered down under my quilt and watched "It's A Wonderful Life" ala Denise. Can you believe that was only my 2nd time seeing that movie? It's true. I don't know how I didn't grow up watching that at Christmas time, but I didn't. I loved it!


We didn't have plans yesterday other than to dig out from Christmas and restore some order to the house (this was my agenda, no one else's), but I hadn't factored in the possibility of me not being able to sleep Christmas night and staying up til 5:30! I watched TV, I read, I showered at 4:00am but no luck, so I wasn't feeling very great yesterday.

Jared and the kids came over to hang out during the day while Robyn, Lori and my mom went shopping (that is NOT my idea of a good time). Having three more kids in the house meant I wasn't even going to try to clean things up, so I kind of wandered around wishing we had a bigger house. I think now that the kids are all getting bigger their volume and the space they take up have increased and we could really benefit from having a basement with a family room for them to frolic in.


I sent Randy and Jared out to the movies for awhile, they were here for an hour or so before Robyn and Lori came back. We had Cafe Rio take out for dinner then we played Apples to Apples.


We also tried out my two new SingStar games that I got for Christmas (Legends and Country) so that was fun. Olivia and Ashley both wiped out on Robyn.


I thought it was hilarious that Ashley could sleep through being moved around and having her boots put on, but she did.

This morning I had a phone appointment with Betsy that ended up going long (I love it when that happens) so I laughed my guts out for 2.5 hours while talking to her. That's a great way to start the day.

After that I suggested we got to lunch and a movie because I hadn't been out of the house since Christmas Eve and was feeling a little stir crazy.


We ended up going to Pizza Factory for lunch, and then to see "Bolt." We all loved lunch and the movie.

{I have no idea why Whitney is smiling so weird.}

So now it's Saturday night (right?) and I'm back to trying to figuring out what comes next...okay, tomorrow is church--do I have any responsibilities I need to be prepared for?...no--what are we going to have for dinner tomorrow? Hopefully it will start to feel like a Saturday night soon or I may be in trouble.

Happy Birthday Heather!!!

**Are your struggling with what day it is?
Have you been out or are you stir crazy?
How many times have you seen
"It's a Wonderful Life"?
Have you seen Bolt?**

Revolt!

Sleep is eluding me this week. It seems like around midnight rather than turning into a pumpkin, I turn into an epidermal nightmare. Ever since last week's stint as a mosquito buffet it seems that I can't recover. I don't even think it's bites any more, it's as if my skin is staging its very own coup d'etat. It's making me crazy!

**Anyone else NOT sleeping?!**

Trippin the Life Fantastic

Saturday morning we woke up at 5:30am (#$@!) so we could make it to Provo for the balloon festival by 6:30. We've always gotten there around 7:00am in years past and had plenty of time to see the balloons inflate and launch, but thanks to Michelle's experience on Thursday we knew we needed to get there much earlier.


Since this was the third day of balloons the crowd was definitely lighter (woohoo for us). The M.C. guy said they'd had 25,000 people there the morning of the 4th! It's a good thing we didn't go that morning, crowds are NOT my thing. We had no trouble finding a parking space for our car or for ourselves on the grass.


Notice I opted for the nonshowered, baseball hat look. I didn't realize I looked this ridiculous until seeing this photo. It looks like the hat is 2 sizes too small and is sitting on top of my head, instead of on it. Oh dear, maybe greasy hair would have been a better look.


Getting plain biscuits and hash browns from McDonalds is an integral part of the whole early morning, balloon watching experience. On our way there, Whitney actually verified that we had money because she didn't want to miss out on our traditional breakfast.


The balloons all launched, but then couldn't make it back to try to hit the target on the ground. Apparently wind currents play a key role in the balloon world. Lawn chairs and flip flops play a key role in mine. Ha.


I always enjoy seeing the sun come up from behind the mountains when we're at the balloon launch. It's hard for to get up early, so this is one of the few times a year that I'm awake, coherent and have my camera ready to document such a sight.

We were home by 8:15! Good grief, that's an early morning. Randy went right back to bed, but I had to shower and get presentable for my 9:00 hair appointment. I was so tired that I dozed while the stylist was drying my hair.


I ended up meeting Tasha and Evie at Cafe Rio for a Yadies Yunch right after my appointment. We were there for about 2 hours. Good times.


I came home and decided to clean and do laundry for a couple hours so I could feel like the house was in order, especially because I don't clean on Sundays and we're gone to Seven Peaks on Mondays so that makes for potential chaos around here. I got both bathrooms scrubbed, 3 loads of laundry done, and the house vacuumed, then I could do no more.


I retired to the cozy to read for a bit and ended up falling asleep until the next day! At one point Whitney came in to read "with" me and I was so out of it I said, "My eyes are going googly, you're going to have to read the words." So I was asleep by 7:30 on a Saturday. Am I trippin the life fantastic or what?

Happy Birthday Amy H.!!!

**Do early mornings wreck you for the day?
What's the earliest you've ever
fallen asleep for the night?
What do you get for breakfast at McDonalds?
Is your house clean?**

Perma-Yawn

I was only able to sleep from 12-2am last night and have been up ever since. What is up with the Universe? Granted I was able to finish my Pink Christmas gift finally (hopefully she'll get it by New Year's Day), teacher gifts, and a few more Christmas cards (I'm afraid my mail merge may have left someone out), while watching Daniel Deronda...but no sleep takes its toll on a girl.

This is my foxy self-portrait at 7:00am after being up for 5 hours in the night. I don't know who put those bags under my eyes, I didn't feel a thing. Note to self: Get eyebrows waxed tout de suite!


These are my make-shift sleeping quarters for when I can't stay asleep in our bed. Randy has had a cold for several weeks so he has taken his snoring to a whole other level. It's so loud that it's funny. I really should record it some night because it's not to be believed. Usually I can sleep on the couch with no problem, but I only lasted a fidgety half hour before surrendering to the craft room.

But to rewind a little bit, back to daylight hours from Wednesday. I spent the morning prepping some good mail, making beef stew, talking to Amie on the phone, and doing laundry.

I ended up going to lunch at Cafe Rio with my mom (we never do that), followed by a quick trip to Costco (my 3rd this week). We hit every red light on the way to the school to pick up the kids, plus I just had to drop off my entire box full of Christmas cards and good mail at the drive thru mailboxes, so we ended up being 14 minutes late picking the kids up from school. There were a surprising number of kids still hanging out playing at the school, but I still felt like a schmuck.

Whitney's best friend Madison dropped off this plate of cute treats and this flannel long underwear thing full of candy. Could these things be cuter? Their family is always doing fun things like this and bringing them to us, meanwhile we never do anything like that.

Randy's parents came over for dinner and a Settlers of Catan tutorial. We taught his dad how to play a few years ago and he loved it, but forgot the name of the game so he suggested we play it. It was being pretty fun and was nice to have something to do together. We ended up buying it for them for Christmas because we never have any gift ideas for them. Score.

{It looks like I have a silver tooth!}

So now my morning is free, but I have Whitney's class party to help with, the kids' Christmas concert and then a hair appointment for Landon. I hope I can stay coherent throughout this day. I'm looking forward to the Christmas concert because of the video possibilities. My kids are NOT dynamic performers so it's always funny to see what they do. It's been one year since Whitney's kindergarten "Holly Jolly Christmas" video (it's worth a look if you missed it last year).

**How is your sleeping going?
What did you do for teacher gifts?
Do kid concerts crack you up?
Do you play Settlers of Catan?**

An Unprecedented Day

So after yesterdays wicked PMS and migraine chaser (that's right, lucky me) I finally got in bed around 11:30. I felt a little nauseous (thank you migraine) but it was manageable, so after reading my scriptures and some of my book (September) I went to sleep.


Fast forward to 2:45am when I was cruelly awakened by my bladder ($%#@) I still had a raging migraine complete with a huge knot in my neck (it's always on the right side, what does that mean?) so I caved in and took one of my prescription migraine pills. I got back in bed only to find myself wide awake. What in the world?

I got out of bed at 3:30am and haven't been back yet! I fixed myself a bowl of frosted mini-wheats and then hunkered down at the computer. Inspiration struck with an idea for next week's Book Club Christmas gift exchange and I became a woman possessed. I have never experienced anything like this at all. Usually if I can't sleep I feel exhausted, but mentally awake so I read blogs until my eyes begin to blur. But this was completely different, I felt great because my migraine went away and I got busy.


I can't tell you specifically what I am working on (here's a hint...I'm using felt), but I can tell you that I didn't lose focus (except for bathroom breaks) until 7:13am when I decided to step outside and document the pink sky. The kids got up then so I took care of the morning routine with them, but as soon as they were out the door with Randy at 8:50am I was back in action.

I didn't stop again until 11:30am! The interesting thing is that the house was totally quiet. It's probably because I had been working quietly during the night, so even though I had the house to myself (glorious) I didn't turn on music or watch tv shows online the way I usually do. I was so engrossed in what I was doing that the time flew by and the only company I needed was my thoughts.

{Posing with our tree in a box, ha}

I finally took a shower at 2:00 because I had to brave the post office for real this time (it took 20 minutes!!) and had Activity Days this afternoon. I was disappointed that I had to stop working on my project because I felt like I had a seriously good groove going on, but duty called.


This evening we went to JCW's for dinner and then to Robert's to find our Christmas tree. In the past we have always bought our trees, but even the scrawny ones we get cost $50, so this year is the first time we considered getting a fake tree. The craft store had them on sale for 40% off so we bought a prelit tree for $101.99. Not too shabby. Whitney is offended by it and really wanted to get a real tree, but she was out-voted.


I had bought a smaller fake tree last night for the kids' room, and she had no complaints about that. They are giddy to have this tree in their room and think it's a seriously bright night-light.


We foolishly decided to decorate the tree and some of the house tonight. That really wasn't the best decision considering my extreme lack of sleep, but the kids were so excited and I don't want to let the Christmas season get away from me. Randy and I exchanged looks rather often as the kids knocked themselves out "helping" us during the setting up phase. About midway through I had had enough, but couldn't really stop then.


We were listening to Christmas music (my iPod playlists are fabulous) and discovered that the kids love "I Saw 3 Ships" by Sting. Whitney was dancing to it like she had a choreographed routine going on. They call it "the boat song." Kind of funny.

I should probably go to bed now, but I really want to get back to my project (it's almost done). Who am I?

**Do you ever eat cereal in the middle of the night?
Do you get super focused on projects?
Do you listen to music or the tv while working?
Is your tree real or fake?
Do you have to remind yourself to have fun decorating?**