It's a Jungle around here

Friday there was no school and I was determined to get things back under control in the house. Our weeks have been busy and I haven't been feeling well and end up using all my cleaning energy and motivation on getting the preschool cleaned and set up each week. So the rest of the house has suffered. I started out upstairs doing some much needed laundry and teaching the kids how to properly do the chores on their list. By the time I made it down stairs the kids had built a 'jungle'. A jungle made out of every chair, every blanket, every pillow, and every stuffed animal in the house! I couldn't even get into the family room without climbing over chairs. They were so proud of their creation that I just let it go.

Tired of trying to get things cleaned up I decided to take a break to read my YW lesson that I was to teach on Sunday. I open it up and what is the topic....Homemaking!!! I almost wanted to cry, I was already feeling very inadequate at my housekeeping skills and feeling like each day we are in survival mode. I read the lesson and did feel guilty as I read things like the spirit can't preside in a chaotic messy house and the importance of keeping things clean and orderly. But as I read more about making your home a place where your family can escape from the evils of the world I felt peace and comfort. In the middle of my messy room with 8 loads of laundry left to fold and the entire downstairs torn apart and the kids playing loudly, I felt the spirit.

I learned there is a difference between homemaking and housekeeping, and although both are important one can take precedence over the other and Heavenly Father will not think less of you.

Flashback Friday

Valentine's Day 2002

I haven't done a flashback Friday for a long time. So I thought I would rewind exactly 10 years ago when Andy and I celebrated our first Valentine's Day! It was actually the night before Valentine's Day because I had other plans for the actual day. And the wonderful and smart person Andy is, he said nothing about me spending Valentine's Day with someone else and instead swooped in the night before with rose petals, roses, and chocolates. Before he left that night he left his mark by changing the rose petals to say I love you. We were engaged 2 months later.

Silly Sock day at preschool

For the letter S today the kids wore silly socks, Sophie borrowed a pair of Maddie's toe socks. They were cracking me up because her toes are to little to fit so it just looked like she had big crazy toes sticking out in every direction. Sophie thought it was great and hilarious!

WWCC Basketball game

Tonight we went and watched the basketball game up at the college. The kids love watching the Mustang mascot and playing on the bleachers.

Andy's face shows how far Wyoming was beating the opposing team! I think we won by 50 points.

Sophie kept missing the mascot when he would come by and she really wanted to give him five

a very blurry picture but at the end of the game Maddie took her down to get her high five-

Pee Wee Wrestling Tournament

This weekend Grandma Jann and Grandpa Boyd came out to attend Garen's wrestling tournament. We got to go to dinner with them Friday night. Saturday morning Sophie got to attend a fun Princess party while the rest of us headed to Garen's tournament.

Garen was a little timid at first and was lacking what Andy and I call "the eye of the tiger". But we were so proud that he was able to face some of his social fears and go out and wrestle in front of a couple hundred people. He ended up getting 2nd place in his weight division and he got a medal!

Okay, in the video, Garen wrestling the blonde kid while he is crying is kind of sad, but apparently very common in kids wrestling. They don't stop the match and most dads are just telling their kid to suck it up. It is even a little bit sadder that you can hear Garen's mom yelling "pin him!" "get on top of him!" while this little boy cries-what can I say, I'm a little competitive. Also I figured if Garen pinned the kid quickly the match would be over and the other kid wouldn't have to suffer through it anymore. This is one of the reasons Andy tells me to be quiet during sporting events-I don't think I am capable of doing that.

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Anti-bullying Poster Winner...

During Anti-bullying week at school Maddie wanted to enter the poster contest. A few days later she came running home after school telling us that she won best poster of the whole 3rd grade! I have to admit I was a little shocked but very proud of her. They displayed her poster in the White Mountain Mall and she gets to have her picture in the newspaper with the superintendent.

IT'S A....

BOY!!!

Garen was very happy about the news of a baby brother. Garen likes all things in life to be symmetrical and now we will have 3 girls and 3 boys in the family which sits well with him. We are so excited for another little boy due June 14th. Garen thinks we should name him Thugmire.

Grandpa's Birthday

Grandpa Bruce on his mission

Grandpa on his birthday. Is he not the cutest 99 year old you have ever seen!?

On the same day we found out we were having a boy, Grandpa Bruce turned 99. I really wish we could be in Idaho to join in the celebration this weekend!!!

Another Gymnastics Meet

Maddie had another meet on Saturday. She is getting more comfortable with competing and having everyone stare at her while she does her events. She had a lot of fun and came away with a bronze metal-

Happy Preschool moments today

I'm so glad I get to see Garen and Sophie so happy and excited at preschool and that I get to be their teacher!

Cutest Little Gymnast Ever

Trip to the ER

Wednesday night after a long day (zumba, lunch with friends, figure skating, wrestling, dinner, and bedtime) I really wasn't feeling so hot. And out of nowhere my eye site started getting very blurry. Later my whole right hand went numb. After about 10 or 15 minutes of trying to get circulation back in my hand half of my tongue went numb. I kept thinking "I wonder what's going to happen next", and "what if I pass out." The kids were asleep and Andy was at work.

I called my dad and told him I was fine but the right side of me was numb. He told me to go to the hospital immediately and it sounded like signs of a stroke. I reassured him that the feeling in my tongue was coming back and I think I would be fine but he insisted if it really was a minor stroke, another could follow.

I called our family doctor, who also happens to be in our ward. He was so gracious to take my call on his personal cell phone after hours. He calmly said it could be a number of things but agreed I needed to go in and get checked. So I headed to the dreaded Rock Springs ER!

My friend Johana was nice enough to run over and sit at my house with the kids. And the doctors wife Julie was so kind to come pick me up and take me to the ER.

I contacted Andy, and up until I called him I was calm and unafraid. But when I started telling him what was going on I lost it for a few short minutes.

At the ER they quickly got me in and the doctor checked for any signs of drooping or weakness on my right side, they took tons of blood tests. The numbness had gone by the time we got to the hospital so there wasn't a ton they could do. They thought about a CT scan to check for more blood clots in the brain but since the symptoms had passed and my blood pressure and all the blood work were normal they decided against exposing the baby to radiation that was unnecessary.

Andy was able to get a ride in from work and meet me at the hospital, it was nice to have him there. I got to go back home before to long and was so tired I zonked for the night. Apparently it wasn't as easy for Andy to sleep after I had just scared him into thinking I was dying.

It is true there is no way besides a brain scan to be able to tell if a stroke is coming and once my symptoms were gone there was no good way of really knowing what caused the numbing and blurriness.

Thursday I had a migraine all day long but once I got permission to take something a little stronger than Tylenol I started to feel better.

Today, Friday, I feel pretty well back to normal and hope that Wednesday nights craziness was a fluke one time thing and that my right hand will continue to work and that I won't be drooling out of the side of my mouth anytime soon.

And although I reassured my wonderful friends that I am fine and Andy is home they still insisted on bring meals over Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I am very blessed with kind friends and loving family; and I hope to repay the kindness soon.

Helping Daddy Cook

Sophie loves to get on the counter and help/watch everytime someone is cooking

Shaving Cream and Pajama day at preschool

Lunch with the girls

Chanc, Carrol, Giselle, Alisha, and me
During the week I spent with my grandma Dora I did get a chance to meet up with my dear old friends that were in town for Christmas while my sister watched my kids.

Sophie's first day at Gymnastics

Sophie took over Maddie's old leotard today when she started her first class of Gymnastics. She listened so good to her coach and loved it!

Sophie age 3-

Maddie age 4-

Gymnastics Meet in Evanston

On Saturday Andy and Maddie left at 7am to Maddie's Gymnastics meet in Evanston. We didn't want to drag all the kids out that early and I never feel well in the morning so Andy volunteered to take her.

Maddie improved both her vault and floor scores but then fell off both beam and bar which lowered her score. She still got 4th in her age group and had a good time. The meet didn't get over till 1:30 then Andy and Maddie got to go have lunch together.

Andy even took a couple pictures for me-

Top of the Rock Wrestling

When we got a note home about wrestling Garen was super excited and really wanted to try it. I wasn't sure he would really like it once they started, but he loves it. The room is full of about 50 other 5/6 year olds and the coaches yell and blow whistles and make them do push-ups until they are all quiet, but for some reason Garen enjoys it.