Court of Honor

Last night Don took Cody and Connor to a Court of Honor at the church. I stayed home with Caleb and Cayden and missed out on all the fun. Connor earned and received his Tenderfoot rank and Cody earned and received his On My Honor award and 3 merit badges. He really only needs to do his swimming merit badge before he is ready to do his Eagle project. I have been trying to get him to do that forever. He does not want to do it but it's either that or biking or hiking which are definitely not on his top 10 list of things he enjoys. Any suggestions on how to motivate a teenager? They held the Court of Honor in the chapel so Don could not take pictures.

Week in Review-mostly for my benefit.

Singing in the Rain




Peach jam and syrup

Tomatoes

Cayden getting molds done of his mouth.

He was much happier at the beginning of the appointment.

So this week Don was on vacation after being gone for the previous 2 weeks. Don came in from Montana Saturday night. We really had intentions of getting alot done but alas it is Saturday and this week has flown so fast. Sunday was a marathon of meetings. Not only did we attend the 3 hour block but then at 5pm we had an hour and half parenting class that our ward is holding and then another hour and half fireside for parents about the Strength of Youth handbook.
Monday, after doing homeschool with Connor for a few hours in the morning I bottled 8 quarts of tomatoes and then we got ready and did our best to have FHE. It was an unqualified disaster. Funny-that thought was roaming around in my head all that day. It must have been a foreshadow of things to come. The crappy thing is that Don and I really had a good home evening planned. Not the kind that you just throw together right before it was time to start but really planned with treats even. We actually sent the kids to bed around 7:30 because it was so bad. I did have a good chat with Cayden in his bed where he proceeded to tell me about his day-that continued every night this week. I think that his love language might be quality time-that was our assignment from the parenting class-to find out our kid's love languages. It also rained in Logandale Monday. I could not tell you when the last time that happened was. Cayden had a good time playing with my umbrella.
Tuesday-Don and I ran into Vegas to return his rental car to the airport and stopped off at Ruby Tuesday for a lovely lunch. We were home in time to pick up Cody and then we went home andI made 5 batches of peach jam. Tuesday night was Back to School night at the elementary school.
Wednesday-I can't remember much except Connor had karate and we drove them and went to Inside Scoop for a quick treat while we waited for them to be done. The karate they are taking is called Tang So Doh and it is a little pricey but the other option would be to go to Mesquite twice a week and have to add gas and food to the bill.
Thursday-Cayden had an ortho appointment in St. George. He had x-rays and molds made so that he can get a palette expander. His mouth is really narrow-partly because he started sucking his thumg when he was 2 months old. It is a little early for Cayden to get braces but if he gets this expander and some top braces now and has them for about a year it will help with future treatments because there will be room made for his adult teeth to come in. After the appointment we drove to Beaver and met my mom and Larry to switch cars. Our Suburban was finally fixed on Tuesday and my parents were nice enought to meet us in Beaver and give us our car and take the rental back to Provo. It was a really long day but Cayden was such a good boy and we got Sonic drinks which always is a bonus. The bad news was the we spent over $500 in gas in the last 2 weeks and that is not even driving the Suvurvan to Vegas. AAARRRGGGHHH!
Friday-The morning flew and we went to pick up Cody at 11:30. They get out early on Fridays-even earlier when there is a pep assembly which he does not care to go to. Don and Connor spent the afternoon working out in the bakyard mowing the lawn and cleaning it up. They also unloaded some firewood someone gave us into the back yard. Don, Connor and Caleb went to the Pirate football game last night and Cody, Cayden and I stayed home. My allergies were awful yesterday and I had to break down and take some Benadryl so that I could see. I am not quite sure what I am so allergic too but it was bad yesterday. I spent the evening making digital scrabook pages, Cody was scoping out colleges on the internet and Cayden was keeping company with Winnie the Pooh.
Saturday-Today was Warrior football. This is the middle school team that Don helps coach. This is not just one team though but 3 teams. 6th grade, 7th grade and 8th grade-Don helps coach the 8th grade team but of course he loves football so much that he feels the need to be up there as much as he can. I went up there toward the end of the first game and let Caleb and Cayden stay up there while I ran to the store. Connor went early with Don and was the water boy for all the games. That kid loves football as much as his dad. It was hot as blue blazes today-welcome to September in Logandale-those poor boys out there in the football pads and helmets when it is so miserable. I feel bad for them but they must love to play or they would not be out there playing. I helped out with the concession stand a little bit mostly though to have a place in the shade. We were all pretty worn out by the end of the day. The week goes by so much faster when Don is home. Unfortunately next week will probably drag because he has to go to Oklahoma unless it is under water like Houston.

Count Your Blessings

On Labor Day weekend we went to Provo to go the BYU game. Cody gets out early on Friday and so we picked him up and then picked up Caleb and Cayden. I spent the morning cleaning and packing so that we could leave in the early afternoon. We are still not driving at night because of the car wreck so we hurry and leave to get where were going before dark. We stopped in Mesquite for Del Taco and E 85 gas for $3.29 a gallon. We made it all the way to Provo and did not even stop once for a potty break. Eerrily reminiscent of the night of the car wreck but this time all was well. Saturday morning Don went out to get a haircut with Caleb and he said that the car was having trouble starting. When he got back from the haircut he took the car down to the dealer and they said that they could not tell what was wrong with it but that it was doing exactly what Don said it was. Of course it was Saturday afternoon and the A team was not working and Monday was a holiday so they could not even figure out what the problem was until Tuesday. And as our luck would have it the car rental places had closed by the time the dealer figured out that they could not fix it. We were car-less all weekend other than using my mother's Expedition. (thanks mom!) Cody really wanted and needed to get home so that he would not get too far behind at school. Cody is taking 2 math classes and they are both Honors. He has a total of 6 Honors classes and Encore choir so he is really busy and he wants to do well. So Don and him and Connor flew home Monday afternoon. Connor wanted to fly home and stay at grandma and grandpa's house. Don flew back up Tuesday and brought me a few necessities-warm clothes and a few other items and then he flew out to Montana on Wednesday morning. I found out Tuesday morning that the problem with the car was the fuel pump-excuse me but this is a brand new car- and there is no fuel pump any where to be found in the country. OK what a pile of crap that is but what can I do? So my car is sitting at the dealer in Provo waiting for the fuel pump which is on a national back order and who knows how long that will take to get it in. In an attempt to be a glass half full kind of person-I know quite a stretch for me-here are the blessings associated with this major pain.
1. The car made it to Provo with no problems.
2. We were in Provo and were able to take it right to the dealer.
3. Don was around when the car decided to be stupid-he usually is gone somewhere when **** flies.
4. The car is under warranty so I won't have to pay for anything.
5. They gave me a rental car which happens to be a Suburban-only because I told them that I needed something like what was in the shop. I don't have to pay for this either.
6. The car decided to have an issue in Provo and not on the way home on Monday and potentially strand us in Beaver.
7. BYU won the game and I as I gave my ticket to my brother in law, I got to go shopping with my sisters.
8. An extra day to sleep in, not exercise-darn it I left my workout wear in Nevada-and eat crappy fast food.
9. Taco Amigo makes fresh peach shakes but only for a limited time and I got one.
10. This Suburban got better gas mileage than my Suburban-Don says probably because of the different tires. We have really wide ones on our Suburban and I guess that makes it get less MPG.
So Don left for Montana Wednesday and Caleb and Cayden and I drove home after a produce run in Provo. I got 2 cases of peaches, 2 cases of tomatoes and 2 cases of corn on the cob for $96. Because I had the big Suburban and only 2 kids I was able to get about 100 lbs of produce in the car. We cruised to the tunes of Mamma Mia and with the helpfulness of Sonic Dr. Pepper. I spent the evening tonight blanching and cutting corn off the cob for freezing-I think that I ate 4 pieces while I was working. Tomorrow is peach freezer jam, bottled peaches and maybe bottles of tomatoes or if I am feeling really industrious-spaghetti sauce. I would not bet the farm on the spaghetti sauce though.

It is Official

We are old and Cody is a real teenager! I took him to Mesquite yesterday to get his driving permit. We waited for 30 minutes for our number to be called and then he had to take the written test on the computer and then we had to wait again (I love the DMV and their efficiency!) Then we had to fill out paper work and take his picture and wait. He passed the test on the first try which I guess is really good because alot of kids fail the first time. I asked him if wanted to drive and he said no that he would wait until we got to Logandale. Mesquite was too big! Crazy kid-try Vegas!! He has to have the permit for 6 months, take Drivers Ed and have 50 hours of driving time logged. Also he has to get his Eagle as per our family policy since he was 12. He is excited! We are too (sort of). Don said that he sprouted 7 gray hairs just when Cody called him to tell him that he passed the test and got the permit. I better go and take my arthritis meds and see where I can rent a walker.

Nuthouse-How May I Help You?

Do you know what time it is? The sun has not even peaked over the Mesa!









So yesterday was the first day of school. I thought that the days and nights and days and nights of utter insanity would be a thing to relegate to the back of the closet ready and waiting to be pulled out again next June. Most mothers are in glorious bliss reveling in the knowledge that their houses will stay relatively clean. The sounds of muddy little feet going pitter patter across their freshly mopped floor will be strangely silent. The fridge door, the outside door,the bedroom door, the cupboard door and the bathroom door will now only get their turns at being slammed in the wee hours of the morning and the late hours of the afternoon. "Not me" and "he did it" will have to find somewhere else to play. 11pm scripture and prayer will have to reschedule their flights for 8am and 8pm. Lights will mysteriously stay off and the TV will have to accept that it's power to turn brains into mush will just have to wait. All of this comes with the yearly return of the pods of massive yellow rockets tearing through my neighborhood-at least 6 of them a day. The site of backpacks and lunch boxes littering my counters and ahhh, the ever pervasive scent of "Eu de boy" lingering in my hallways, and wafting in from the bedrooms. So why am I not in glorious bliss you may wonder. Well, let me tell you. The shackles of the summer have fallen away for most mommies but the shackles of high school and homeschooling have taken their place here. Cody has decided to take 9 classes-yes count them 9 classes instead of the 8 he could and all but 3 are honors classes. He joined the Encore choir and the teacher has to move between the high school and the middle school and so has decided that Encore will be at the unearthly hour of 6am. Never mind that seminary pushed their start time back to 6:15 and even Chamber Orchestra only starts at 6:10. Poor Cody! (Poor mommy too!) Yesterday we were all dragging by the end of the day. I had dinner made by 4:55 and home evening was promptly at 7:00pm shortly followed by scripture, prayer and bedtime. I almost wanted to cry when at 9:30pm when I SHOULD have crashed headfirst into dream land I could not go to sleep. I think it was almost 11 before I was officially asleep. The alarm started screaming at 5:15 and I begrudgingly rolled off the bed and onto the floor to plead for some energy. A huge blessing though when(Cody) had to be there at 6 and the friend said that he did not care and that he would come earlier even though he did not have to be there until 6:10. Mykle Lee you are an angel! I was extremely angry with the teacher of Encore for having to be different than every one else-still am a little miffed but less so now because Cody has a ride at least for now. Caleb started his last year and Cayden started his first year at Grant M Bowler Elementary. I was pretty nervous about Cayden because he has been at a different school for the last 3 years but his teacher this year is awesome and he is doing very good. Mommy just has to cut the apron stings even though it is hard. Caleb and Cayden had a great first day even though the a/c was not working AGAIN in Caleb's classroom (metal sweatbox). Yesterday they actually went outside to sit in the shade because it was cooler outside than inside. Has anyone been in Logandale at the end of August? I think it was 106 yesterday. Today they went inside to the resource room and the cafeteria because it got so hot in the afternoon. Poor kids! I have not been thrilled about the things that have transpired in the last few weeks since we decided to postpone the move to Texas but it will all work out and I am waiting patiently (insert eyeball rolling). Don has the job in Texas and actually left Sunday night for meetings on Monday. He will have to be gone more because of the large area that he covers and because it is farther away but at least when he is home- he is home, except for the occasional golf outing with his boss. Ahhh Vegas in the winter where the grass is green. Connor was supposed to go the middle school but as many parents will attest that is not such a good thing. Especially for Connor who has challenges. We decided to homeschool him this year to help him with his diabetes, and helping him get caught up hopefully. I homeschooled Cody in 7th grade and we (me and the mouse in my pocket) are giving this a try with Connor. Anyone who knows my children will ackowledge the vast ocean of difference between them. Cody can learn just with books and movies. Connor needs to be doing something. There in lies the problem. There are numerous online schools and DVD programs available, of which worked just fine for Cody but Connor needs more to keep his attention. So now my childhood dream (nightmare?) of becoming a teacher is a reality although I don't have to have a degree for this one. I really wanted to become a teacher all my life until I had kids. I really admire moms who can teach other's kids all day and then come home and not strangle their own. I think I would be on the evening news the first day of school. So we (me and the mouse in my pocket) are creating our own curriculum for Connor. My inate sense of scheduling and lists and organization may have to be filed away for future use which really is going to be hard for me. Do they have a pill for OCD and perfectitis? This week we are just trying to see what will work. I am hunting on the internet, in bookstores, the library and picking people's brains -not to mention doing alot of praying to make this work. Don's mother, and his sister have willingly volunteered to help me. Dena is going to help him with science and Dottie is going to work with him on history and geography. Dottie's neighbor Joan who has homeschooled lots of her kids and is amazing will tutor Connor in math 2 days a week and a fabulous piano teacher who does not take may kids will teach him piano. I feel much better this afternoon partly because I took a nap and partly because Connor went to tutoring and science to day so I was able to start on my now-that-the- kids-are-back-in-school list and actually check some things off. Don is in Dallas until tomorrow. My new mantra is "whatever"-and I must find the book on the Power of Postive Thinking or else find a good therapist. Any suggestions, condolences, well wishes, good vibes, e-hugs, and monetary donations can be sent to my PO Box. This will be a good expericene.This will be a good experience! THIS WILL BE A GOOD EXPERIENCE!!!!! Do Bon-Bons freeze well?
(The mouse in my pocket refers to the fact that when I say we it should mean me and Don but since he is unavailable for consultation-we is me and the mouse in my pocket. Sort of an inside joke if you don't get it)

Things to do with a laptop at 12:30 in the morning.

So I finally broke down and bought a new Dell Laptop. It's PINK! The mouse is Pink too. I did this for 2 reasons
1. I like pink-it makes me happy
2. Hopefully it will deter any little people of the male persuasion to play with, on, or around it.
So all the kids are asleep, Don is asleep in his chair out front and I am sitting in my bed with my laptop on a pillow in front of me. I have been here for the last 3 hours telling myself to go to bed but I keep playing with my fun new toy. So far tonight I have been-
1. Making myself numerous to-do lists, schedules and calendars courtesy of Igoogle's list maker and my insane sense of OCD. Not as bad my sister mind you but OCD none the less. See item #8.
2. Playing Literati-ok so not actually playing tonight but logged on and thought about it.
3. Flitting around Itunes and watching music video previews
4. Purchasing and watching 3 of those videos (Sugarland-Stay, Brad Paisley-Waiting on a Woman with Andy Griffith, and Dierks Bently-Settle for a Slowdown.
5. Seriously wanting to purchase some Bon Jovi videos but after watching the previews declined due to adult content.
6. Emailing back and forth with Serena for a while.
7. Looking long and hard for things to do with Connor while homeschooling him. Yes, you read correctly. I am taking on the arduous task of homeschooling a very active, very inattentive 11 year old. Condolences and positive vibes requested. (Also someone may want to open an account so that you can all start donating to my mental breakdown care fund.)
8. Reading Suzanna's blog again and laughing hysterically for numerous reasons.
9. Copying lots of files from my old computer onto a flash drive and loading them onto my new one.
10. Checking the KSL website atleast 1o times.
11. Reading blog postings of those of you who are still posting at 1:00am. (hi mom and tibi)
12. Not reading my scriptures.
13. Draining the battery watching above mentioned videos.
14. Updating my NetFlicks Queue-how do you spell that?
15. Looking at Shelfari for books my sister and sister-in-law have read recently.
16. Installing the flashplayer thingy.
17. Updating the filter system so I can access blogs. (if you want a good free filter go to K9web protection.com)
18. Checking my email-all 3 accounts.
19. Making this ridiculous post.
20. Thinking up all these things that I can do with this new piece of electronic gadgetry so that I can justify having it.

The Sane Train Has Left the Station

After staying in this house all week long and consequently losing my mind and getting more and more depressed-Logandale tends to do that to me-I decided to venture out and I had to take my kids plus 2 of their friends with me. Our delightful adventure started when we could not find Connor's meter. He got mad and tore apart his room and the upstairs looking for it. Of course I got mad at him and that gave me less of desire to go anywhere but I felt that at least in public I would be less inclined to beat him to death-that was strike one. Strike 2-Taking 5 boys to McDonald's. Bad idea-nasty food + loud boys + 108 degrees=not a happy camper. Strike 3-Taking above mentioned boys to the library. Boys and library not a good mix but luckily there were lots of kids there to help increase the volume and distract the library wardens from my loud bunch. Strike 4-Taking all of the kids and myself to the Maverick matchbox for drinks-no hard liquor was available for purchase so Dr. Pepper had to suffice. The woman in line in front of us had $5 worth of beer and her debit card would not work. The guy ran the thing through 4 times before it worked all the while 5 antsy kids are grabbing at displays, trying to convince me to buy more gum and candy and playing with the wet floor sign. Did I mention the $102 it cost to fill up my car or the $653 it cost to renew the registration on that car that I had to pay today. This was not a therapuetic exercise. Almost as fun as taking my kids school shopping or getting a root canal. At least at the dentist they give you drugs and happy gas-when can I schedule an appointment?