Ugly as Sin

Here's a funny story for you. I was home doing some of my normal, everyday chores and someone knocked on the door. I was in my stay-at-home-and-clean clothes and a pair of tennis shoes. I answered the door and it was a man (we'll call him "David" to protect his identity). I invited him in -- don't worry, I know him so don't be scared that I'm inviting strangers into my house -- and we visit for a couple of minutes. He asks how the kids are doing, how Ben likes the ward basketball team, and then hands me a sheet of paper. We talk about it for a minute and I'm starting to wonder how long he's going to stay and chat. Then he says, "Hey, nice shoes. I have a pair like that. You know, the kind that are ugly as sin but really comfortable so you can't bring yourself to throw them away. I wear them at home all the time, but my wife won't let me wear them out in public." I look down at my shoes. I agreed and he left. I agreed because I didn't want to embarrass him by contradicting him, but these were pretty new shoes and I wear them in public all the time! I actually thought they were kinda cute! Maybe I should take him shopping with me next time. Here's a picture of the "ugly as sin" shoes. Give me your honest opinion. Should I be embarrassed that I wore these in public? Do I need to keep these as "house shoes"?

Cupcakes

As bribery for something -- I can't remember now what it was -- I told the kids we could make and decorate cupcakes. They were pretty excited, but then when I told them we could change the color of the frosting and use a "special toy" to put the frosting on, that stepped it up a notch. Nicole mostly just ate the sprinkles.


On another note, Tyler has a really funny face that he makes when someone has asked him a question and he has to think about the answer. It's been nearly impossible to capture on film, but this is as close as we could get. It makes us laugh every single time. We both find ourselves asking him questions just to make him do the face. Kids are cheap entertainment.

Sharing can be fun

You might think that since I have a boy and a girl, they wouldn't want to play with each other's toys. Nicole likes her dolls, Tyler likes his trains. Yeah, maybe in another life, but here and now, they always seem to want to play with the same thing. I find myself resolving these domestic disputes all day long. I was thrilled to death to see my kids actually sharing something! Thank goodness my camera was nearby; Ben might not have believed me without proof!

Playing Dress Up

Nicole loves to dress up. This is a new development in our house. I always wanted her to do the princess thing, but she's sort of stuck in a "Dora the Explorer" mode and there isn't a lot of dress up in that. Here's a few cute pictures of her playing dress up from the last couple of days.

Do Not Read This Book!

I love the musical Wicked. I saw it in Chicago and thought it was clever and funny and wonderful. For those of you who don't know, it is the story of the Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz and her side of the story. I got the soundtrack for Christmas and listen to it while I iron -- it makes the task less tedious. I was walking through Barnes and Noble and saw the novel Wicked and thought it would be fun to get the whole story instead of what they can fit into a song. It's more than 500 pages and I love long books, especially when it's a great story and I can't put it down. I was so excited! It had a slow start but some books are just like that. I thought for sure if I just stuck with it, it would get good. I WAS WRONG! A friend even warned me that it wasn't any good. I should have listened to her! (Sorry Rena, next time I'll listen.) The only thing even recognizable from the musical is the names of the characters! Their interaction with each other, their fates, and the plot lines aren't even close. The story in the musical is wonderful, the story in the book is dark and depressing. If you want to know what the differences are, ask me, I'll tell you. Don't waste time reading this book. It is a huge waste of time and I wish I hadn't read it. I would still highly recommend the musical though.

Maternity pants are so unflattering

No one believes me when I tell them that my body freaked out on me. It's like it just thought, "oh, I remember pregnancy, it seems like I'm supposed to look like this..." BOOM! I started showing at about 6 weeks. Not cool. I'm 26 weeks and look more like 36 weeks. I am already uncomfortable and sick of my maternity clothes. I went to the doctor today and Tyler asked me if we had any more pictures of the baby. I told him no and he said that he wanted to take a picture of the baby with his camera. That's why this picture looks funny, it's from the perspective of a 3 year old. :-) No wonder he gets intimidated. I'm huge from that angle! Anyway, just wanted to show our progress and tell you all how grateful I am that April is coming soon. The idea of having 3 kids scares me more than I can say, but I am so incredibly grateful for each of them. They teach me patience every day. :-)

Cavities and other traumatic events

I thought it was poor parenting. Turns out, Tyler just has teeth that are going to get cavities. The dentist made me feel much better about myself when she said that no matter how well we brush, he's going to get cavities because his teeth have such deep grooves in them. Good news for my parenting skills, bad news for Tyler's teeth. Usually when I go to the dentist and they say I have a cavity, I am shocked and amazed because I can't ever see it. Tyler's was so big, his tooth was hollowed out in the middle and it was a giant black hole. After brushing, I actually had to use my pinky fingernail and scoop food out of it. It was really unpleasant for both of us. We decided to wait until it bothered him before we got it fixed. (Really, we were hoping that it would just fall out before we had to get it fixed, but he's too young to lose teeth.) When we take Tyler in for a cleaning, he screams and thrashes around. I literally have to pin him down and someone has to hold his mouth open. Sometimes he actually throws up because he's crying so hard. When I called the dentist, they said that they couldn't get him in until the middle of February. It is bothering him at this point, so we try a different dentist so that we can get him in sooner. For the days leading up to the appointment (just a consultation) I was sick to my stomach. I hate these dentist visits because we both get so upset. I can't remember the last time I was so anxious about something. Turns out, he loves the new dentist! To keep this post from getting terribly long, they have better toys in the lobby, better prizes for being good, more kid friendly rooms, movies, and Tyler got to play with all of the instruments, the big light, and move his chair up and down "like a rocket". We left and I had to promise him that we could come back in a few days (to get the cavity fixed) or else he was going to throw a fit. I was ecstatic! In the 5 days between the consultation and the dreaded appointment to fill the cavity, I got myself all worked up again. Tyler was totally pumped to go back to the dentist, but I was scared for him. Getting a cavity filled is no fun, especially when you're three. Again, to keep a long story a little shorter, he did great and now he has a "new white tooth" instead of the scary black hole in his mouth. We have another appointment (on my birthday) to do another one. Hopefully I can remember just how well he did so that I don't freak out for the next six weeks! Yay for pediatric dentists!!!

Hilariousness ensues

Kristi and I found this on YouTube the other day, and we both think it is hilarious. If you skip forward to the 35 second mark, that is where it gets funny. I think the announcers reaction is the best part. I also love how the player is dumbfounded by the call. (I would be too, I guess)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=gAMtCCezpfU

This is probably my favorite commercial of all time. Ever since I saw it, the phrases "Frenching" and "Wildflowers and Shame" make me laugh every time.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=4Aj55sgudlc

Hopefully these make you smile, as they do for us. Oh, and if you don't find these as funny as we did, well then shame on you.

Long live YouTube.

Please Indulge Me While I Celebrate My Own Accomplishment That You Don't Care About

FYI, before you read to much, this post is pretty much me describing how proud of myself I am, so don't say I didn't warn you. Well, here goes nothing.

On July 10, 2007, I weighed in at 206 lbs. and was given less than preferred rates on a life insurance policy, as my cholesterol was 10 points too high. Kristi showed me a picture of me at a lake and I was in shock at my appearance. (Granted, nothing like the people on Biggest Loser or anything) I set a goal to weigh 170 lbs. by the end of the year and accomplish that by eating a more healthy diet and exercising more often. I figured the eating part shouldn't be too hard, since I was surviving on Mountain Dew, cookie dough, red meat, and very little else. (Ask Kristi, this is MAYBE a slight exaggeration only)

I started to eat less food, stopped gorging myself when I did eat, and ate foods that wouldn't kill me within 3 days of consumption. The initial weight came off pretty fast, and I figured I would be to my goal in no time. I got under 180 pounds by September or so, and kind of leveled out there. My cholesterol levels went down, and I was able to get re-tested for the insurance, and got the super preferred rate. The holidays soon came, and while I actually did pretty well and gained no weight, I didn't exactly lose any either.

I figured that I should probably start working out to lose the last few pounds. So the week before Christmas, I started working out at a little gym we have in our office building. I got down to 172 pounds, but must admit I did not make my goal of 170 lbs. by Jan 1, 2008.

However, I did make my goal on Jan. 5, 2008. I weighed in at 168.8 pounds. I was excited to say the very least. Kristi I am sure is very sick of me talking about how good I feel (so much more energy!) and how glad I am to be down to pre-mission weight.

I can only hope that I can keep this up and keep the weight off and not revert to old habits. It is amazing to see how easy it is to gorge ourselves in this world we live in. I always find myself thinking things like, "Wow, 1 cookie was good, I bet 6 would be better!" or always going with the 44 oz. Mtn. Dew instead of the 12 oz. (Not gonna lie, that is still my vice. I love me some Mountain Dew. Mmmmmmm)

Kristi has promised that she will join in the fun as soon as she is done being preggers. We currently take turns sitting on our exercise ball at night doing stretches/minor arm weight lifting. I hope I can get her to the gym with me periodically after the baby comes to keep me on the straight and narrow. She looks incredible still, and I am truly not just saying that for her benefit. I honestly don't think she looks like she has gained an ounce (aside from the obvious bump in the tummy region of course) and in fact, I am always trying to get her to eat more to gain more weight! She has been the biggest support to me, and I love how she keeps prodding me along and giving me little digs about some things I eat. I know I may roll my eyes at her and get a little defensive about it, but she helps out more than she knows.

Ultrasound!!

Yay! We had our ultrasound today! It was so much fun to see the baby finally. It was moving all over the place. The tech had a really great shot of the profile, but then the baby decided to get all shy on us and we never saw it again. Here's some of the better pictures that she printed out for us. Oh, by the way, she said everything looks really good and there weren't any concerns.