My Little Stinker

So, Collin long ago reached the age where I couldn't just put him in his bouncy seat and expect him to be happy for 20min., kicking his leg. It was time to forget my {to do} list and get him to some play groups during the week. With the weather being so nice, we've spent many a day at the park, just outside, on walks or playing in the grass. I know I already posted pictures of this day at the park, but then Megan emailed me the ones she took with her snazzy camera, so I had to add them on! Here we are enjoying a nice ride down the slide....

But then I remembered my incredible fear of heights and panicked on the second go around. Or, I just saw a kid at the base about to be pummled by my giant feet. Everyone thought my reaction was so hilarious and wanted me to post it. Ha. ha. I look ridiculous, but oh well. Here ya are! :)

I really liked this one though. Yea for Megan and her mad photography skills. :)

Just this past week was Megan's birthday, so we got together for a lunch celebration. (With the best deli sandwiches I've ever had. Seriously. I know it's weird to dwell on it, but really, I will probably be on my death bed thinking about how delish they were. So props to Crescent :)

I love this picture of us all together, but then I have to laugh. We look like some weird {girl family} all posed for our yearly family picture. I think I'll have to frame it and put it on our {mantle}.

They have a great sandbox in their backyard that I plopped Collin into, noting a real, metal hand shovel that I didn't want him to get a hold of. Well, an hour later and I notice him sucking on the end of it. I watch for a while, then determine that it's not sharp enough to cut him, and too big to go down his throat. He's already eaten handfuls of sand, so what's wrong with a shovel sucker? Camille nudged me to make sure I knew he had it and I shrugged and said, eh? He's happy. I never thought I'd be this way. Having a boy has sure relaxed my germaphobiness. (That's a word, right?)

We had a little play group outing at my house last week, which turned out fun. Minus the chilens that kept running away and into the neighbors yard. This no- fenced- in- backyard thing really has its downsides.

Collin has learned a few new tricks lately. Including shooting hoops with Dad. No, he's not walking yet. I've quit holding my breath. He did suddenly stand up on his own in the middle of the room without holding onto anything. He would balance for 10 sec. at the most, then fall down. He got tired of that trick fast though and hasn't indulged our begging to repeat it at all.

He's still our little ham though. Such a cheeser. We've gotten a few comments from people that have noticed what a clown he is. He just loves attention and smiles. Check out those clenching skills.

It's not always smiles around here though. He ran a fever on Tues and Wed. and then woke up on Thursday with super goopy eyes and no appetite. I took him to the doctor who said he just had a cold that may have spread to his eyes and prescribed an antibiotic drop just in case. But he woke up fine on Friday with clear eyes and no temperature. He sure has been cranky though. It seems like all he does is scream/grunt/yell/make noise at me. You would think he was a girl with all the drama that goes into his day. I was in the kitchen when I heard a painful, loud cry come from the living room, so I went in to see if he was hurt or stuck. Nope. He just couldn't reach a toy in his toy box. And he was hoppin' mad. And that's just how things have been going. If Collin doesn't get his way, isn't being held, or getting enough attention, is being kept from digging in the garbage, has an itch, wants a pony, or just doesn't like the look you're giving him... he'll scream at you. Punk. We were running errands on Friday and I turned around to look at him and he was sporting the biggest frowny face. It made me laugh.

Quite often at night, we'll peek in on him before going to bed. The positions he's in will sometimes give us the giggles, but Friday night beat all. Just letting things air out I guess.

Today was not a good day for him. Or me. One more scream, and I was going to cause myself bodily harm. My nerves literally couldn't take it anymore. I escaped to a baby shower, near tears, and took a couple hours to unwind. How do single mothers do it? If Trav wasn't there to rescue me, I don't know what I would have done. I remember growing up, when my mom had reached her breaking point, and she'd take whoever was the baby and just leave. After a little while, we'd look around and realize Mom was gone, and wonder where she'd left to. (We were old enough to be left alone by the way. These aren't child neglect stories) She'd always come back in an hour or two, after she'd nursed her nerves with a McDonald's cone and some quiet time. I totally get that now. Tonight we went for icecream with some friends and it was about Collin's bedtime and he was acting that way. He even managed to push away his sippy cup, knocking it into Trav's glass and spilling a full cup of water all over us and the floor. The Wildings were nice enough to not walk away right there. I think this might be payback for all the times I judged other couples with their {obnoxious, screamy} kids at restaurants. Sometimes, you just can't shut them up! And I guess that's when you leave. I really do love my child. Maybe he's getting molars or something and I should be more sympathetic. Or maybe he's just an attention-demanding, pampered, only child. But if the antidote is a sibling, he's really not making a good case for adding another screamer on the tab. Just sayin.

Kirtland

This past weekend I went to Kirtland, Ohio with our ward's YW, for the Buffalo Stake Youth Conference. It seemed like a lot of people thought I was crazy for volunteering to be a leader at this, but I was excited. I knew I couldn't go to girls camp this summer (we'll be in Cali), so I thought it'd be a good opportunity to {bond} with the girls. My only apprehension was the drive. It's almost three hours away and this may shock you, but I've never driven that far before. *gasp* I hate driving in general, so luckily my dad, husband, or friends have always been the designated drivers on road trips. We've been having problems with our car {rocking} on the freeway and after multiple inspections, getting the tires aligned, balanced, and rotated... the dealer finally found the problem! The lower, rear links were torn up and needed to be replaced. $400 later and 4 hours before needing to leave, the problem finally got fixed! Hooray. I had Trav teach me how to use cruise control (seriously), and I felt ready to roll. Tiff drove with me, along with three girls from my ward. Once we got out of the city, the wind, rain, and semi's were my only concern. I hate semis. I always imagine them tipping over on me. And the wind was so strong, it'd move the car back and forth in the lane. Not a fun feeling. But we still had a fun road trip, singing at the top of our lungs and rocking out to music. We plugged in my Ipod first and Tiff and I busted out LFO's "Summer Girls" song (you know... I like girls that wear Abercrombie and Fitch....) The girls thought we were sooo lame. Then they plugged in their Ipod and we listened to Lady Gaga, Kesha, etc. I still knew about half the songs and could sing along, which made me wonder if I needed to grow up. I felt better when they put on some awful, screamy music and I made them change it, because I couldn't handle it. That's more {adult} like, right? Well, we pulled into the Kirtland Stake Center around 7:45pm and the kids had dinner and a dance. It ended around 11:00pm, then we had to clean up and get our room assignments before heading to the Days Inn. By the time we got to the hotel it was much past my bedtime.

I didn't have much to pack, since we were only staying one night.... so guess who I had room for in my bag? Yup, Teddy Rumpkins. Trav teased me viciously, as did Tiffany. But when I showed the girls my friend, Magaly piped up that she had brought her teddy bear too! Well, that called for a picture.

The hotel wasn't TOO bad, but it wasn't good either! I figured as much, so I brought my own sheets, blanket, and pillow. Another thing Tiff teased me about. Although I know it's just because she was secretly jealous... right Tiff? :) But really, if you've seen the Dateline where they swab hotel glasses, bedspreads, and towels for bacteria, you'd bring your own stuff too. Another fun tidbit about our room.... the bathroom door didn't close. At all. Good thing I was rooming with a friend! :)

I had never been to Kirland before, so everything was new to me. There was about 120 people in our stake there, and we split into groups. My group started at the Kirtland Visitor Center. It's on the land by the Newel K. Whitney store and other historic buildings. These are just pictures of what the area looked like.

Inside the Visitor Center we started the tour with the Reflections of Christ exhibit. It's only here until May 2, so I was really excited to see these pictures again! It was also cool, because I had shown my girls the Reflections of Christ DVD over Easter, so they were familiar with the photos.

Then we watched a movie about the events that took place in Kirtland. That was one of my favorite parts. You could really feel the Spirit and it was a good overview of the importance of this area. Next was the N.K. Whitney Store. Upstairs, we sat in the room that the School of the Prophets met in. The same place that prompted the Word of Wisdom revelation.

This is inside the store.

This is the Whitney's home.

The Sawmill and Ashery.

 Then we went back to the Stake Center for lunch before heading to the RLDS Visitor Center next to the Kirtland temple. They had a gift shop and museum and it was interesting to see and hear their version of events of the restoration of the gospel. They showed us a video and when it was over, the screen went up and they pulled back the curtains, which blinded us all with the light....

Once our eyes adjusted, this is what we saw!

The tour included going inside the temple, but they didn't allow photographs. It's an absolutely massive building, even by today's standards, so I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to build back then. It's so different than temples today are built, so it was interesting to hear about the dedication and how it was used. Next, we visited the Morley Farm, but I didn't take any pictures. We ended with a testimony meeting at the Stake Center that lasted 2 hours!! I thought I'd fall asleep, but it all the testimony's kept my attention, along with trying to keep my slightly, less- than- reverent girls from giggling too loud. It was worse than trying to keep Collin quiet during church! Of course, some kids were a bit awkward or said things that could raise eyebrows, but then so many bore testimonies that really touched me. So many talked about how hard it is to go to school being the only member of the church. They get teased, made fun of, and don't feel like they have friends. Then they come to Youth Conference and finally feel accepted. They feel the Spirit and strengthen their testimonies. I was really impressed with the youth and their courage. I think a lot of people saw this trip as a big sacrifice on my part, but as always, it was much more a blessing for me than a sacrifice. It was an incredible amount of work to plan, so I'm grateful for the stake YW and YM's presidencies and also grateful for Trav, staying home with Collin and letting me do this. It was a wonderful experience.

After the testimony meeting, everyone drove to Cici's pizza for dinner, before heading home. I wanted to get on the road quick, so we booked it to the restaurant and were the first ones there! We snarfed then ran.

 I may have been trying to hurry a little too fast. My cup of soda found its way onto my lap. I seem to have really bad luck with Coke. I think the universe is trying to tell me to quit drinking it. We pulled into Buffalo around 10pm, which isn't too bad at all! I was really proud of myself for completing my first road trip. I know that's sad, but I'm still proud. Tiff helped my nerves out a lot too. Thanks Tiff! As she would say, Go Kirtland 2010! :)

Coupon Newbie

I've just delved into the world of coupons. Clipping coupons was something I had always heard about, but never seen first hand. My mom was never into bargains, sales, or coupons. When she took us school shopping, she didn't search out the cheapest clothes, but rather the store with the comfiest couch. Luckily, for my sister and I, Abercrombie and Fitch had the plush, leather sofa.

So when I met some friends that were avid {couponers}, I was intrigued. But man, it seemed like a lot of work. And it is. But when loans don't cover the summers, and the tax return just isn't what it was last year, it's time to strap down and cut corners. And coupons.

Lucky for me, I had a friend that was ready to save some moo la too. We've spent the past couple of weeks trying to figure out a good {system}. We even went dumpster diving. Yes. Dumpster diving. Not in the yucky, black ones, but the paper recycling ones. I've swallowed my pride many times these past couple weeks whilst calling around trying to figure out how to locate these coupon havens. We went at night, donning grubby clothes and flashlights. Don't forget the mace. These bins aren't always in the rosiest of places. Half the time I fought urges of paranoia (what if there's a hobo hiding behind there!) and the other half, I had to suppress giggles (am I seriously digging through mounds of newspaper and paper trash looking for silly coupons?). Sadly, the dumpster didn't work out in our favor.

Now we're on to a new system and things are finally working out. I spent a couple hours Sunday night, going through all the coupon books, layering the pages, cutting away, organizing them in my binder, then searching this week's ads for correlations. Found some! We're out of batteries and Walgreens had Energizer 4 pack AA batteries on sale for $2.99. Plus, I had 6 coupons for $1 off a pack. I walked out with 6 packs, spending $13, instead of $36! I felt like I was stealing. Seriously, I had to suppress the urge to look over my shoulder as I walked to my car, wondering if the clerk was going to run after me because they made a mistake. And I'll bet some coupon wizards are reading this, thinking, that's not even the best deal..... Well, so far, for me it's amazing!

I just finished up with my shopping for this week and totaled up the savings.... $55, buying everything from diapers, makeup, tampons, and printer ink. I'm pretty excited. I think this might be addicting.

What the Hail?!

Last week, the weather was so nice, you just couldn't stay indoors. So Rach, Megan, Crescent, and I had a little picnic at the park next to the Stake Center and then let the kids do their thing on the toys. Collin loved swinging. I just wish he could walk so he could enjoy the playground more. He wanted to get down so bad, but I knew he'd get trampled so the poor kid had to stay in my arms.

I know it's hard to tell, but the only shorts I could find for Collin to wear are the ones I bought at Target, literally one year ago!! Guess what size they are........... Newborn! No joke. I had to prove it to Trav by showing him the tag. Seriously, Circo, what's your deal? They're a little snug now, but they fit a lot better than they did when he was 6 weeks!

Well, I guess we're not in the clear for weather yet, because after having an 80 degree Easter weekend, we had awful, cold weather this past week. In fact, one morning I suddenly heard the weirdest noise, like someone was banging on the door, except it was coming from the roof and windows. I ran to look outside and saw huge, marble sized hail coming down. I grabbed my video camera and flung open the front door to video tape and was attacked with ice. Collin freaked. I actually thought they might break the glass, they were coming down so hard and fast. Before I knew it, my entry way was littered with frozen nuggets.

Speaking of weather, apparently Arizona is bathing in the heat, because when I opened up Facebook today, I saw these pictures of a party my brother in law went to. It reminded me of the old days, going to ridiculously huge parties where everyone is intent on being the coolest kid there. But more than that, I thought for a second about where in the heck this party WAS! Because there's a billion kids in a backyard and no one in their right mind would agree to letting their kid throw a party like this at their house. So I thought, maybe the parents went out of town and man will they be furious when they find out what happened. Or maybe it's some rich bachelors that let everyone come over or maybe somehow they found an empty house for sale and trespassed.... seriously what else could it be??!!.............. Weeeeeeeell, later on I asked Trav if he had seen the pictures and he said no, so we got online so I could show him. That's when we realized it. It's HIS parent's house!!!! Ahhhhhhhh!!!! I could have died!!! How did I not recognize the backyard?! Hahaha! Now we can't wait to talk to Paula and Wayne and find out how they felt about this. Either they had no idea it would get so big or they are waaaaaaaaay nicer than I thought, because this is madness! Hilarious madness. Upon closer examination of the Facebook "invite", over 500 people were invited. Over My. Dead. Body. I just can't get over it. Can ya tell?! Haha.

Oh by the way, it was a {Hot Rod} party. Ever seen that movie? It screams of immature, ridiculous, teenage {boyness}. My younger brothers are obsessed with it. Hence, the bike riding into the pool on the less than safe ramp. However, I'll admit. I've seen it. But I swore afterward, I'd never waste another 2 hours of my life that way again. Even though, there are some really funny parts. I'll give it that.

Back in the day, this would have been tons of fun. But I'm happy to say it doesn't hold a lick of interest for me now. I actually feel sorry for anyone over 25 that might have been there. I really think life gets much better after this stage of growing up. Even though, back then, I used to feel sorry for adults who had to stay home on the weekends and just watch movies or something with their spouses. How boring! :) Interesting how your opinions change!

For example: THIS, would have had yawns printed all over it! My latest project this week... putting together a new Personal Progress board. We really struggle with getting our girls to do personal progress. So after an evolution of charts, I finally decided we needed one that was CURRENT! Not one that showed what they've already done, but one that shows what they are currently working on. It hangs on the chalkboard in the YW room, and at the beginning of every mutual, they pull out their books (we keep them at the church or else they'll lose them or never bring them) and have us sign off what they've done, then they erase it off the board, pick a new experience and write the new one on the board. Then, they can pull out a printed copy of the goal they picked out of the {value book} (I typed up all the experiences, printed them, cut them, and organized them in a book) and hang in on their mirror at home to remind them of what they chose and what they need to do. It was a bit of work, but I'm really hoping this will work! Just thought I'd share for any of you YW leaders that maybe have a ward situation like mine! :)

EaSteR

At first I was bummed that Easter fell on Conference Sunday, but it actually turned out really nice. With the time difference, Conference started at noon and again at four, so we had the whole morning to lounge in our jammies, eat crepes, and get ready for the dinner tonight. We even snuck in a walk between sessions, since the weather was so beautiful. While we were fixing breakfast, Trav noticed the robins picking worms out of the ground, out our kitchen window. While we were watching, you'll never guess who popped by for a visit. The EaSteR BuNNy! He just hopped right across our view and I busted up laughing, then ran to get the camera. Too late. Oh well. And that little bugger didn't even leave us any baskets. I got several distained looks when people asked if I was putting together Easter baskets and I said no. Collin doesn't even know what Easter is!!!! Why spend money on unncessary candy when I don't have to? Especially when I can't eat it. Plus, my mother in law outdid herself again with another amazing Easter package, complete with candy, outfits for Collin, a DVD, books, and movie passes. Thanks Paula!! So why mess with Easter gifts when Grandma does it best? And as if that wasn't good enough, we also got another package this week from the {Easter bunny} aka, Grandma Sharon..... Kan Jam!!! Saweeeet! Thanks Mom! Totally out of the blue. We've already taken it out back to start practicing. How lucky are we?

That evening we had some friends over to enjoy a big Easter feast. I forgot to get one of everyone eating, so this is the best I could do.... (don't worry, we didn't require chuch dress, these guys had to come straight from giving a blessing)

After we ate, we decorated eggs in the kitchen to get ready for the 2nd Annual Egg Bash!

Competing this year we had El Diablo, KiLLa, El Pollo Loco, The Devilwoman, Lucky Charm and Esmerelda to name a few. We don't make people name their eggs, but inevitably, most do anyway :)

Collin's was {Lucky Charm}, but he destroyed it before it got a chance to roll. My bad for thinking he'd {play nice} with it.

We got him a substitute and it won his first round!

Megan ended up takin' it though! Poor Dave had to pass the trophy on. He was hysterical though, coming down the stairs like a WWF wrestler, growling and flexing, all menacing. Just didn't cut it I guess! We sure are glad we have such great friends to spend these kinds of holidays with. Without them, it would be much lonlier in the Buff. It got kind of crazy with all the kids running around and things going past bedtimes, but crazy is better than boring! :) Thanks for coming everyone!

1 Year/ Easter Pictures

Last Saturday, Collin got his pictures taken and did so well despite waking up with a runny nose and having a short nap! I just got these back today and have had a {perma-grin} ever since! I just want to eat him up! Love them!!!

These chicks are the real deal! Megan rented them for her pictures. Collin kept trying to squeeze them. Poor little guys.

Juttin' out the lip.