Working Woman

What you are looking at is Katelyn's most recent obsession, as well as her motive for helping out around the house. After spotting this doll in a catalog, she's got her heart and mind set of saving up her money until she has enough to buy it herself.

"Honey, this doll costs $100," I said, pointing to the price.

"Well, then I will have to save up for a long time," she replied, determined.

I must say, this newest fixation is working to my advantage. Upon waking up each morning, Katelyn immediately makes her bed, puts her clothes away, empties the dishwasher, and inquires of any other chores she could do to earn some extra money. She is also thinking ahead and calculating the total of her weekly allowance for the next 6 months, as well as pinpointing other monumental days which she might be the recipient of some cash (Valentines? St. Patrick's Day? Easter? Birthday?)

She was elated at her payoff from the tooth fairy last week, after losing her very first tooth. Ka-Ching! I've noticed her wiggling furiously at the remaining teeth in her mouth, obviously hoping to quicken their removal so that she can cash them in and add to her savings.

While my boring adult brain is having difficulty with the concept of a doll whose clothing costs more than my own, it's nice to see Katelyn work for something she wants, and to be excited about earning something on her own. This girl is determined and she's darn good at saving money. She'll yank every last tooth out of her mouth if she has to, and scrub and polish for full allowance until she's got that hundred bucks in her piggy bank. In the mean time, my toilets have never been so sparkly.

Toddlers and Tiaras

What is cuter than a little girl dressed up like a princess? How about 200 little girls dressed up like princesses? Today I took Emily to the princess bash at Utah Sate with my sil Brooke and little Bayla. It was probably one of the sweetest things I've ever seen. It was princess heaven, with scads of little girls dressed up in gowns and crowns.

We were greeted by Tiana, who oddly enough was a pasty white caucasian brunette. I prayed that Emily wouldn't ask her why her skin wasn't "chocolatey". Would it have been racially offensive if the gal had caked on some heavy bronzer to pass as an African American princess? I dunno... Just a thought.

The girls got to get autographs of each princess, and do games, activities, and crafts and win prizes. Not only did they get to meet princesses, but there were a few princes were wandering around the ballroom as well. One dapperly dressed young man approached Emily to ask her name. Emily then asked who he was, to which he replied, "I'm a prince!" Emily looked as if she'd been handed a plate of broccoli and told that it was ice cream. Apparently the young men didn't bear strong resemblance to the movie characters. Come to find out, some things are far better in animation.

Pictures are necessary to do this post justice! (I'm sorry once again; I cannot figure out why my posts and pictures are all smooshed together. Forgive.)






I should also mention that some of the mothers got into the spirit of things and dressed up as well. Call me a party pooper if you want. Although I'm afraid if I had gone to the effort of getting "princessed up", I may have caused some of the princes' eyes to wander. And I wouldn't wish to do that. For a couple of reasons.








As you can see, Emily ate her dessert like a proper lady at the tea party with Belle. And this was Bayla, at the end of it all. Could be that the magic was beginning to wear off:) The girls had a lovely time in the company of princesses!

A World of Girls

I get asked on a regular basis if I am going to "try again for a boy". This seems like a perfectly logical question because
a) it is everyone's business, and b) I must somehow be feeling a void by not having a son.

When I was very young, I remember wanting a little sister so badly. So badly, in fact, that I dressed up my little brother Dave in my old dresses and imagined he was a girl. As such, I raised a playmate who partnered me in playing Barbies and Mall Madness. (Those who know Dave don't have a difficult time understanding this.) As I got older, I relished being the only girl. My brothers and I grew up very close, my dad insisted I was his "favorite daughter", and I got oodles of one on one time with my mom. No sisters to have to share her time and attention with.

As much as I loved growing up with brothers, I always wanted a bunch of girls. In my fantasies, I pictured my daughters being the best of friends, dressing up together, painting each other's nails, having tea parties, baking cookies with me, and sharing clothes and secrets about boys as they got older. (You can stop rolling your eyes; I know it's not going to be all rainbows and butterflies during the teenage years.) It's not all rainbows and butterflies now.

I LOVE my world with 3 girls. I love everything about having girls. The dolls, the dress-ups, the clothes, the shoes, doing their hair, baking with them, doing crafts with them, their sweetness (as well as their sass), their sensitive spirits, and getting to relive my childhood through them. I love watching them interact with each other, especially the way Katelyn and Emily coddle Claire. When they fight, it gives me a headache. When they snuggle up with each other, it gives me joy. I hope they'll always be close with each other and with me. And as much as it pains me to see them grow up so fast, I'm also excited for the fun we're going to have as they get even older.

I've got what I always wanted. And I love my world of girls.

Naughty and Nice

Taking the girls out to breakfast for stuffed cinnamon french toast at Kneaders = NICE
The words I was thinking when I smacked my head on the table while reaching down for a dropped binky = NAUGHTY
Fixing the girls some delicious, healthy tacos for dinner = NICE
Feeding myself a half gallon of peppermint ice cream and a bag of cinnamon bears for dinner = NAUGHTY
Whipped up a batch of homemade caramels to give to my neighbors = NICE
Decided to eat half the batch instead of giving them to neighbors = NAUGHTY
The girls behavior while attempting to get some oh so sweet pics of them in their Sunday Christmas dresses = NAUGHTY
The next ten minutes of peace I'll be getting while the girls are in time out = VERY NICE

I Miss Blogging

I really do. It's a relaxing outlet for me. I just feel like lately I've been in a blogging rut. The writing juices just haven't been flowing. Whenever I've logged onto my blog to write a post, I end up staring at the computer screen with no outcome. But I feel the need to update, so here's a quick catch-up:

We visited Santa at the mall. It's the first year Emily's dared talk to him. While sitting on his knee, she requested binoculars and a gun. I got quite the look from Santa, and I was just as surprised as he was at my 4 year old's plea for a firearm.

Claire is crawling all over and into everything. And she loves to bath.

Lately Emily has been afraid of turning into a black person. ??? Don't ask, I have no idea. She repeatedly declares that she doesn't want her skin to turn "chocolatey". She has also commented on the African American cashier at Target, saying to her, "I'm looking at your chocolate skin..." Oh, dear. I promise we are not a racist family.

We are all missing outdoor time and park outings. I've forgotten how creative we have to get with things to do inside the house to keep busy and entertained.

We turned off our cable (I have issues with Comcast). This means I no longer hear the sound of sports announcers coming out of the television. Sweet bliss.

I am very tired of hearing myself "SHHHHHH" at my oldest two when Claire is sleeping. They are loud.

Katelyn has a couple of admirers in her kindergarten class. While I think it's cute, Eric may be starting to get a few gray hairs over it.

Every morning the girls look for "silver dust" by the fireplace. Silver dust is a sign that Jingle the elf bear has come during the night and is hiding somewhere in the house with a surprise. Katelyn and Emily love looking for Jingle. I think it's more fun for me than it is for them.

Male Blindness

I swear that all men are born with it. I don't know how many times as a child that I remember my mom asking my dad to get something for her (like from the storage room, while she was cooking in the kitchen), only to have my dad return from a thorough search to declare that there was no more of *item*. Mom would then make a trip to the storage room and return triumphantly 15 seconds later with *item* that we were apparently out of. All the time.

Today we were getting ready for a little getaway with the girls and I asked Eric if he remembered to pack the ipad for the car. He wandered around the house for 10 minutes, unable to locate the device. I then did my duty as a woman with working eyeballs and stepped in to help. (A bit put out from having just packed every other possible trip item by myself.) "Under the couch?" I suggested, as I walked into the living room.

"I already looked there!" Eric called from the next room.

"That means absolutely nothing," I muttered.

"What'd ya say?"

"Nothing!" I called back.

I shoved my head down to the carpet to peer under the sofa, and immediately spotted the vanished ipad.

I made a bit of a show of toting it out to the car. The look on Eric's face was priceless. "Where did you find that?" He asked.

"Where do you think?" I smirked.

What I like to think was a look of awe and admiration swept over his face. "But I lifted UP the entire couch and didn't see it!" He exclaimed.

About a dozen smart aleck remarks ran through my brain, all of which I restrained from speaking. I mustn't boast my super phenomenal power, that being that I am a woman/mother who is the only one in my household with the ability to SEE and FIND stuff. Sort of like that whistle that only dogs can hear.

So This Is Me

Emily made a comment to me the other day that really helped put my self image into perspective.

"Oh, mom," she said, in very patronizing tone. "You're not a real woman. You're just a mom."

Such is my life.

She's Royalty

Emily got to dress up as a princess to go to her friend's birthday party. Oh boy, she felt so very fancy!







I don't know what the deal is with my text and pictures getting scrunched together. Here are the 3 stinker sisters together. Claire has obviously been welcomed into their club. And Emily pulled my boots out of my closet and thought they'd be a good look for playing computer games on the bed.

Something New and Exciting...

Eric's new website... I must say it looks awesome.

Click here. to check it out.

Call Me Pathetic

While getting supplies at Zurcher's party store, two teenage boys walked up beside me and began sifting through the balloon bins. It took very little time for me to detect that they were on a quest to woo young ladies into going to a high school dance.

"Okay dude, help me think of all the letters I need balloons for," one said to the other.

His buddy put on his thinking cap. "Well, you need one for H... O..., M..." the boy trailed off. Then silence. The two of them stared at each other vaguely.

"E ?" I suggested.

"Oh yeah, thanks," said one. Counting slowly with his fingers, he went on. "Then you'll need a C... O... M...." More silence. Their eyes shifted blankly at the air.

"I," I urged.

They smiled gratefully and and were able to piece together the final letters N and G on their own. Well done.

"Grab ten balloons," said one. "Then I can get them to Kristy's house." My keen senses led me to the conclusion that Kristy was going to be the recipient of the Homecoming dance proposal.

I couldn't resist. "I heard that she's going to say 'no' if you asked her," I said casually.

The two boys turned and looked at me with mixed expressions of shock and concern.

"Really?" said the kid.

I shrugged my shoulders. "That's what I heard."

The two boys looked questioningly at one another, and hesitated to select any more balloons from the bins. I hadn't actually planned on them believing me, but for some reason they seemed to put stock in my gossip. Perhaps it had to do with the fact that I initially came across as an all-knowing genius. After all, a woman who knows how to spell the word "Homecoming" must be extremely intelligent.

I'm not quite so mean that I would let this go too far. Of course I set the record straight that I was only joking, and the boy with the Kristy crush breathed a sigh of relief. As I exited the store, I shook my head and told myself I need more adult interaction. Messing with high schooler's heads should not be this amusing to me.

Par-Tay

My big girl is now six! To celebrate, we had a Strawberry Shortcake bash and invited some girlies over to party hardy. (You could say that I "suggested" the Strawberry Shortcake theme, since I am such a big fan.) Luckily, Katelyn is too. Here's a few pictures from the event.




Birthday Girl


Lil Sis of the Birthday Girl


The Favors- Hair bows on a candy stick


The Project- The party guests made these necklaces


The Decor- Tissue pom poms


And the goodies- Cupcakes, of course.

Happy Birthday, Miss K! But I forbid you from having more birthdays. You need to stop growing.

Ready Or Not...

Here she goes! Miss K is ready to take on the world of kindy-garten! Is her mother ready? Yes, you could say that I am. Little Radar is old for her age. She's been at home with us for a good stretch. While she and Emily are joint at the hip, and she is a big help with Claire, it is just time to move on to bigger and better things. That's not to say that I'm 100% jumping for joy. While I'm not experiencing much separation anxiety (kindergarten is only 2 hours and 45 minutes long- no big deal), my apprehension is more related to what kinds of things she'll pick up on at school. (I worked in public schools before I had Katelyn, and I heard some pretty rude and crude things spout out of kindergarten mouths.)

I don't remember much from my own kindergarten years. I mean, YEAR. I really didn't have to repeat kindergarten. Promise. I remember one girl taunted me for wearing the same outfit 3 days in a row (it was my fave- a rockin purple jumper.) I recall a toe-head boy named Seth, who would sneak over and whisper naughty words in my ear during graham cracker and milk time. There was a red-headed girl named Anna, who periodically wet her pants. There was Mark, who constantly had his finger up his nose, and who also wanted to be my boyfriend. (Just my luck to attract the nose miner.) I went to great lengths to keep my distance from Mark. I would creep into the classroom early to make sure that my teacher had not put my chair next to Mark's. If she had, I would relocate my seat, preferably next to my crush, Bevin. I even attempted to deter Mark's pursuit of me by writing him a direct letter, expressing my feelings. My exact words were:

"Dear Mark, I hope you move away so I don't have to be by you." No mixed signals there, right?

There was an outdoor bathroom, which kindergarteners had been forbidden to go. We were told by the third graders that someone's hand had been cut off in that bathroom, and that it was still there. On show and tell day, I had forgotten to bring an object beginning with the letter J. So I ran down the hallway and found my big brother Jake's classroom, pulled him out of class and drug him down to my kindergarten room. He was less than pleased to be used as my show-and-tell for Letter J Day, especially when I shared with the class that Jake and I had sleepovers together sometimes, because he was afraid of the dark.

And then there was the student teacher named Ms. Henderson, who wore too much eye shadow. Did I say I don't remember much about my kindergarten year? I take that back. Anyway, now that I have made this post all about me, here's to wishing Katelyn a great year of kindergarten!

The Lingerie Department

When we were last in Logan, I had to make a trip to Cache Valley Mall to purchase a foundation garment. (Or as you less eloquent folk might call it, a bra.) Trust me, there are about a hundred other things that I would rather shop for. I had Katelyn in tow, but I figured the trip would be quick and that she could stand a few minutes in the lingerie department. I knew exactly what I was looking for, but was having a hard time locating it. To make our way to the back wall, Katelyn and I wove in and out of aisles of animal print underwear and skimpy nighties. It didn't take me long to decide that I may have made a mistake by allowing her to accompany me. I noticed her glancing wide eyed at a table filled with bright, lacy undies, and contemplating a neglige clad mannequin. I tried to make haste.

After a minute of me sifting through a rack of unmentionables, Katelyn pipes up, "Hey Mom, what's this for?"

I turned around to find that Katelyn had put her arms through the leg holes of a polka thong, and had it hanging around her shoulders.

"Umm, why don't you come with me into the dressing room?" I suggested.

She followed me into a room, filled with hangers of enormous brasiers that one could easily use to float the River Kwai. Little Radar took notice of the oversized garments. Then, shifting her eyes back to the two items I had brought in, she shrugged her shoulders and stated, "Well, I guess you wear a small size." She was smiling at me.

I sighed. "In any other department, that would be a good thing," I mumbled.

I made my boring purchase, wishing I could have rather spent the money the fabulous handbag I'd spotted across the hallway. Then again, the adventure with Katelyn might have been well worth the expense.

My First Prom

I went stag. Joe Campbell, a late dear friend of our family, used to take pictures for the high school dances. When I was 8 years old, he and his wife, Debbie, invited me to go with them to the Mountain Crest prom while Joe took snapshots of the couples. I was thrilled. I remember being in awe at all of the fancy dresses and hairdos. I remember snickering at couples who were smooching while they waited in line to be photographed. But most of all, I remember very much looking forward to seeing a particular high school male. (I guess you could say I've always had a thing for older men.)

We'll call him Tom. I thought Tom was the most handsome fellow in my ward. I wanted to look my best for him. Such an occasion called for a slathering of strawberry Lipsmackers and my most ravishing outfit. Every girl knows the way to a man's heart is through white laced knee socks. Joe snapped this picture of me looking most alluring. As you gaze at this photo, I believe the words you are looking for are "timeless elegance".

I decided to sneak into the gymnasium to try to catch a glimpse of Tom. I spotted him across the dance floor with his date. Okay, I STARED at him for quite some time. It was almost more than my 8-year-old jealous heart could take. Some of Tom's friends noticed me stalking him and pointed him in my direction. Tom smiled and walked towards me with his date. A slow song started, and Tom asked me for a dance. I tried to decline his offer out of embarrassment, but he insisted, and my yearning for romance won over. Tom was quite tall, so he got down on his knees, took my hands, and twirled me on the floor for a minute or two. I don't remember exactly what was going through my mind. There is probably a good chance I was telling myself that his date was no match for my charm.

What a magical night. No girl ever forgets her first prom.

And Now There Are 3...

For the last 6 months or so, I've had a vague sense that I have 3 children. Time to get some photos to acknowledge this. The girls had a photo shoot last night at the Lion House. My cousin, the VERY TALENTED Kelly Brown, was kind enough to spend an evening with us taking these pics. Kelly is amazing photographer, crafter, sewer, scrap booker, florist, etc.... There is nothing she can't do. You can see her creative segments on Studio 5, and check out her website simplykellyb.blogspot.com Thanks, Kell!
Enjoy these updated photos of our Sweet Trio!