The Have You Ever Meme

Have you ever cried yourself to sleep? Many times.
Have you ever been in a play? lol yeah, I was Jane in Mary Poppins in 3rd grade.
Have you ever lied to spare someone’s feelings? Yes.
Have you ever told a truth that you knew would hurt? Yes.
Have you ever been arrested? Nope.
Have you ever danced the night away? Many, many times.
Have you ever gone skinny-dipping? Yes
Have you ever broken someone’s heart? I don’t know. I’ve hurt someone I loved before, not sure if he was heartbroken.
Have you ever been in a fistfight? Not of my choosing, but yes.
Have you ever been on TV? Nope.
Have you ever kissed a stranger? No.
Have you ever walked the Golden Gate Bridge? Yes. :)
Have you ever done a striptease? I am so not telling. >.<
Have you ever sung karaoke in public? Yeah :p
Have you ever been elected for anything? Vice Pres. of the Hole in the Wall (the school store) in 8th grade.
Have you ever won a competition? Yeah, our willowtree swim team won all of our meets for something like12 years in a row. Oh, I won a dance competition at the youth center too.
Have you ever slept under the stars? Yes.
Have you ever been thoroughly kissed? Mmmm yes.
Have you ever hugged a tree? lol no.
Have you ever seen the Northern Lights? Yep.

Today

Today my 3 youngest kiddos and I are still sick. LV seems to be almost over his ear infection - Elijah is still struggling with his. He's been so cuddly, so I've stayed right with him - keeping an eye on his low grade fever and letting him nap in my arms as much as possible.

Today (well, way early this morning) a few of us Omega Co'ers finished the quest that opens Nightbane in Kara. With only him & Illhoof left to finish it's fun to think we're almost done with the whole thing . We got a look at Nalorakk in Zul Aman too, so we're moving along. Of course, I don't always think to get screenshots, but I did get one the first time we downed Netherspite. :) Today was day 1 of week 2 of my elementary kiddos being off track. Not sure how I missed mention of this last week, but yeah. Week 2 of 3. :)

Big news here in Utah today, yesterday Gordon B. Hinckley died at the age of 97. A much loved and truly amazing man, no matter who you are or what you believe in his example was immense. He lived and served with such passion and joy.

“If you are complaining about life, it is because you are thinking only about yourself." Gordon B. Hinckley
"There is nothing that dulls a personality so much as a negative outlook." Gordon B. Hinckley

It's a girl thing

So last night Kirsten & I waited until all of the little-boy hands were asleep, then in not-so-great lighting we tackled a project we've been wanting to do. We painted a lantern she was given for her birthday from her Aunt Beth & Uncle Brian. She had waited patiently for months for the perfect time. (When I could help and the boys wouldn't get into it.)
For our first time watercoloring the lantern wasn't the easiest medium, but it was so much fun. For all of you girls I do suggest this little project from target. Or even just buy a paper lantern & some watercolors and have at it. That's what had come in the box anyway and you won't have to wait to run out for batteries like we have to. lol

...and it's falling again

This will give you an idea of how deep the snow was in our backyard yesterday. It was still falling at that point & today looks much the same.

danger baby

Twice yesterday a hungry little Elijah decided to pull a chair over to get a waffle out of the freezer, then pulled it over to where the toaster is before getting caught. >< He was really speedy about it - I followed him up the second time (at 4 am) and he was climbing onto the chair at the toaster in no time at all. Needless to say, we now make sure to keep our toaster unplugged when not in use, and he and daddy had a little talk.

He also pulled quite the all-nighter. He & I went to bed at 9 am. :p
I tried everything to get him to lay down last night - but in the end we watched his favorite movies a couple of times each (Gogo Lightning McQueen!) and colored a whole bunch in our blankets in front of the tv. At 3 or so I gave up on the idea of him falling asleep cuddling down here so I tried taking him up to bed, and he kept climbing back out and heading downstairs. It was just crazy - he wasn't acting tired at all. We filled a coloring book and a half & I can probably now quote 2 geo trax episodes & Cars off by heart.

Oh, and he and LV have shared this latest little cold with me. When I finally did get some sleep I woke up all sniffley. :p

a conversation about cleaning.

Kirsten: "Mom, I can tell which rooms you cleaned."
Me: "How can you tell?"
Kirsten: "They sparkle."
Me: "I'm just more thorough."
Kirsten: "That's what I said - you keep going til it sparkles."

Now if only she could find a way to make her room sparkle. She might have to remove the layer of clothes, books and toys first. :p

I am

...the one who likes his kisses, even when they taste like pb&j
...a ticklish tickle monster
...the owie-fixer
...a mountain for his trains to climb
...a dance partner
...the one who rubs his little feet (his favorite)
...a hilly road for his little cars :p
...the yaya maker (that's what he calls pb&j sandwiches)
...warmth when he's cold
...cuddles when he's sick
...the sharer of bubbles (pop :p)
...a jungle gym
...a pillow

...Elijah's mommy. :)

A little catching up

I don't remember what happened last Friday, so it must have been a fairly uneventful day. :p
Saturday the kids and I went to Morgan's birthday party. Vern had come home from work feeling sick, so he stayed home in bed.
Sunday Omega Co. finally got Prince down in Kara. Go us!
Monday LV almost missed school because we slept in. He had to walk there alone because Elijah was still sound asleep, but made it there safe & sound, just 1/2 hour late. :p
Today it's snowing & cold outside, so Elijah and I are all snuggled up in my blanket, watching Cars and sharing m&ms. We walked LV to school on time earlier. Go us! :p

happy day :)

So yesterday we had a meeting with an immigration attorney. I can't begin to express how exciting this was. :)
Things look as straightforward as I could have hoped, and I'm so relieved to finally be moving forward with things. I'm so grateful for Nina's willingness to help with this, and excited that before this year is over Brandon could be able to work & I could have the stress and weight lifted. After filling out the wrong forms so many times, to have someone who knows what they're doing preparing the correct ones for me to sign is such a wonderful thing.

We celebrated with a late lunch at Leatherby's which was yum, and I'm thinking that within 6 months or so there could be an even bigger reason to celebrate.

my little one

Koko, baby & Gah are what he calls his older siblings. (We're not quite sure how Brandon became Gah, but that's what Ej calls him.) He loves Elmo, trains, pizza, yogurt and drinking mommy's pop. He sleeps in, stays up late and gives the best cuddles in the world. He'll be 3 in March. I grabbed this quick shot of him when he was getting into the fridge this morning. Mmmm... I love my Elijah.

2008

So on the first day of 2008 I figure one last look at 2007 is in order. It wasn't my best year ever, but I survived it smiling! :) Here's a quick look back at 2007...

8 people who made an impact on you in 2007
These are some of the people who taught me something and those who were there for me through some not-so-fun times.
My fil - Vern Sr., Robin, Carin, Faz (don't know his real name lol), Dixie O., John A., Brandon & Jody.

7 pictures of 2007
6 words that describe your year
challenging, melancholy, growth, emotional, hopeful, introspective

5 favorite blog entries of 2007
Feb 21 2007 Play by Play lol it's just a day in the life of April type post. :)
First from March 21, 2007 I heart Fridays made me smile too.
Let it go & Very very very from April 2007 were kind of typical for this past year.
Sweetness, Say that again & How I see them from May 2007 are about the good things i n life, the things we say & my awesome kiddos.
Distractions & Thanks in June marks the beginning of my trying to share in small ways what I was feeling as my father in law was dealing with his cancer. It's kind of an indicator for the rest of the year.
September entries had lots of fun pictures & there was an entry about old songs titled Musical Memories that made me smile.

Well I guess I'll stop since I was only supposed to list 5 entries. lol I guess I got a little carried away. It's kind of fun to look back sometimes. :)

4 songs you loved in 2007
Only 4 huh, well I'll just go from the top of my head then...
Four in the Morning - Gwen Stefani
Hey There Delilah - Plain white Ts
Over You - Daughtry
Big Girls Don't Cry - Fergie

3 big events of the year
My adorable nephew Isaac was born to Jill and Josh, there were some big family moves (my mom finally got to move out of Toronto - finding happiness in the quiet of Northern Ont., and Brian and Beth moved to AZ for school) but one big event changed everything. I borrowed some of Jill's pictures because sometimes words just aren't enough.We greatly miss our grandpa, dad, friend & mentor.
I love you dad.

2 things you learned this year
I was reminded that I can be strong and that it's the people in life that matter. Everything else is gravy.

1 way you changed this year
Hmmm... I'm not sure on this one. I feel older, possibly wiser and definately more tired. lol
I'm still learning how to make my own happiness & figuring out what it's going to take to do just that. My kiddos are still my reason and the possibilities still seem endless. It'll be fun to see what 2008 has to offer. :)