I Need Your Vote... and a Power Nap at 8:15 P.M.

First of all, I am requesting a favor from my readers.  My in-laws (the Dilleys) have been chosen as 1 out of 9 finalists to receive a home makeover worth $20,000 from Home Depot.  They could really use the help in updating their home.  Please take the time to read their story and cast your vote here: Vote for the Dilleys and click on the Gift for Good . I would also appreciate it if you would share the link with others.  Thank you all in advance!

Last night, my 3 year-old son went to sleep at 8:15 pm.  I was thrilled, as he had been staying up until midnight.  My 8 week-old stayed up til after 1 am on Monday night.  I was looking forward to a good night's sleep.  Not a great night's sleep, but at least a good night's sleep.  Fast forward to 9:30 pm, I was watching the end of the Duke vs Ohio State Basketball massacre.  I hear the pitter-patter of my son's feet running down the hallway.  I almost cried, not seriously, but I thought about it.

I tried to convince him to go back to sleep upon his arrival in the family room.  I told him he was really tired.  I told him he really had to go to sleep.  I offered him bribes.  He wasn't falling for any of my tricks.  I might have had a little more luck if there wasn't a computer turned on, which he took control of quickly.  At 10 pm, I wanted to watch "Chopped" on the Food Network.  I am a huge fan of that show... I started watching it after the birth of my 8 week-old.  I ended up watching "Wow Wow Wubbzy."   I hoped that would put him to sleep.  That was on for an hour.  I hoped to watch the next episode of "Chopped" at 11 pm.  Instead, I watched "Nihao Kai-lan,"  then I watched "Little Bill."  I completely missed both episodes of "Chopped," and he was still awake.  Oh, I forgot to mention that my baby was awake by this time too.

I switched the channel to the "Late Show with Craig Ferguson."  I never watch that, but I was hoping it would bore my 3 year-old to sleep.  Nope... at 12:30 pm, I switched to "Storage Wars."  I enjoy this show as well.  He was asleep by 12:45 am.  My baby had fallen to sleep a little after midnight.  I believe I managed to fall to sleep a little after 1 am. 

My 3 year-old woke up around 8:40 this morning.  I am not sure if this means he will be going to sleep early tonight because he will be so tired after not getting enough sleep.  Trust me, I didn't wake him up, I fully planned to sleep til at least 10 am after waking up to get my older children off to school.  I have no problem falling back to sleep these days.  I think I will be scared if he does go to sleep any earlier than 9 pm. 

I am not sure how I will sleep tonight.  We have a high wind watch, sustained winds of 45-60 mph with gusts up to 75 mph for tonight.  We have a huge pine tree right outside my apartment.  With the winds howling tonight, I will hope to get some sleep, but it isn't too promising to get a good night sleep.  So, in the end, pray for the tree to stay intact.

I did get to spend quality time with my 3 year-old last night when everyone else was sleeping, so that is the bright side. Life is good! :)

Christmas Lights at Temple Square

On Friday night, the Christmas lights at Temple Square were officially turned on for the season.  My sister told me on Friday night and I said we should go.  Fast forward about 24 hours, we were on our way to Salt Lake City.  It took a little while to get everyone ready and excited for the trip, but we did.  My sister first treated us to dinner at JB's restaurant.  I managed to eat something that didn't agree with me, but I didn't let that get in the way of a good time.

I bundled up my baby girl.  She was in her outfit, the thing I zip her in to and then put her in the car seat, and a blanket, with a little knit cap on.  I wanted to be sure she didn't get to cold.  It was in the low 30s, so it was quite frigid out there.  The rest of us had on coats, except me, who thought that it would be warm enough with a jacket on.  I was just an little wrong!

As we were walking from our van to see the Christmas lights, my youngest son kept saying, "Are we going to see the Chris-A-Mis lights?"  I thought it was really cute how he was saying it.  He definitely got a chuckle out of me.  I assured him that we were going to see them. Once we got back with his Aunt, he didn't want to hold anyone's hand except for hers.  We made it quite clear that there were too many people and that he had to hold our hands so he wouldn't get lost.  I held the baby the whole time we walked around the Square.  I wanted to be sure she was wrapped appropriately.

There were thousands of people on Temple Square.  It is quite the attraction at Christmas time.  They make it so beautiful.  I think it is beautiful without the Christmas lights, but the Christmas lights make it even more beautiful.  It is fun to hear the ooooh's and aaaaaaah's of the children when they see the lights.  It is almost like the Fourth of July!

My computer went to the computer doctor over a week ago. It needed to get warranty work on the DVD player.  Since the warranty ran out yesterday, I thought I should get it done!   I am still waiting for it to get back.  When it does get back, I will be able to post some pictures that we took on this trip to Salt Lake City.  Until then, you just have to take my word for it that they sure know how to decorate Temple Square. 

On another note, my 7 year-old daughter, my sister and I had our hair done yesterday.  It turned out well for all of us.  My sister got more cut than she anticipated, but in the end, it was a good cut.  I got weighed yesterday morning and lost 1.4 pounds for a total of 10 pounds.  I am super happy about that!

Thoughts on Black Friday

Today I am thankful that I didn't go out to get any of the Black Friday Sales.  I never woke up intentionally to get  the deal, or stayed up all night, but if for some reason I was awake at a horrible time of the morning and it could help me get a good deal, I would head out. 

I remember getting pushed and bumped though when I was 37 weeks pregnant with my 3 year-old son.  I didn't like that.  I decided then that I would not go out on Black Friday until after 10 am, when most of the crowds have died down.  I have not left the house today, to be honest, I don't plan to leave it.  I can never remember anyone pepper spraying or robbing someone else when I was out there.  There are certainly crazy people in the world, and I am thankful that I have not encountered them.  I will be honest, I would like it to stay that way. 

There is no sale big enough to cause me to want to harm another person.  There is no sale big enough to cause me to want to be harmed.  I will continue to watch my television that is not plasma or HD, and I will enjoy it.  My children will continue to own a Nintendo 64, we will not be updating that console anytime soon.  I do not own a Droid phone or the latest Tablet computer.   I don't see the point in replacing any of these things... they still work, why spend money to replace it?!

I am thankful for my children who understand that we don't need the most updated technology.  I am thankful that they understand the difference between needs and wants.  Yes, they do get things they want sometimes, but I make sure that they always have the things they need.  Life is good.  We have a roof over our head, my husband has a good job, we have a healthy family.  I can't ask for much more than that!

My 8 Year-Old is Thankful...

Today is my son's turn to say what he is thankful for.   I am going to quote him, since he doesn't want to type it out.

"My family, video games.  I am thankful for technology.  Linc (somebody from Legend of Zelda)." 

I asked him if there was anything else, he said nope.

So, that is his list for the day.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

My 7 Year-Old is Thankful For...

Today it is my 7 year-old daughter's turn to state what she is thankful for.  I am going to let her write it in her own words, so here she goes...

my sister, my brothers, my roommate, music, movies, TV, victorious, pool, art, dolphins, sea animals, land animals, animals, family, friends, sun, moon, stars, school, world, fun, spelling, books, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, sports, computers, printer, money, phone, Universe, writing, crayons, markers, paint, mail, New Years Eve, thanksgiving, circus, pens, cotton candy, teddy bears, blankets, beds, home, sky, clouds, cribs, water, soda, key board, games.

My 3 Year-Old is Thankful...

This morning I asked my 3 year-old what he is thankful for.  He said nothing.  I told my sister that would make a wonderful blog...  She then re-worded the question for my 3 year-old.  She asked him what he is happy for.  He started a list.

1. His big brother
2. His big brother playing DS with him
3. His baby sister
4. His big sister
5. His Aunt Brenda
6. His Mommy
7. His Daddy
8. Going to school
9. His bed
10. Eating and drinking
11. Mario games
12. and his family and friends in NY.

This is a pretty good list for a 3 year-old I think.  I was proud of him for being able to think of things that he is happy for.  I am sure they are not in any specific order.

I am thankful that he is a good, healthy little boy.  I am thankful for the sense of humor that he already demonstrates.  He reminds me a lot of his Uncle Jim.  I can see that he will be a lot like him as he gets older, which will make him a good man.  He has a sparkle in his eyes that I miss when he gets sick.  He is a hard little guy to punish because he will look at me with a big smile on his face and ask for one more chance.  I am thankful that he enjoys having books read to him.  I am thankful that he enjoys being with the family.

Giving Thanks

With Thanksgiving Day right around the corner, I can't help but think of all I am thankful for.  This has been quite the crazy year, to say the least.  We decided to move to Nevada and rented a Penske truck with the destination near Reno.  We would drop the Penske truck off there after we unloaded it into the house that we were planning to rent.  The day we picked up the Penske truck, we found out that the house we were going to rent was not going to work out.  They wanted 6 months of rent, up front, because neither Keith nor I, had a job lined up.  That would have about equaled the amount of a down payment to buy a house.

At this time, I knew I was pregnant.  I had given birth to my first two children in Ogden UT.  I knew that I loved the midwife that I had seen during those pregnancies.  I had wanted her to deliver all my children, but my third was born in NY.  That was fine, I had a wonderful doctor there.  If I were still in NY, I would have had him deliver my fourth baby as well.  I think he is the best OB/GYN in the area.  So, when the house didn't work out, I told my husband that we might as well move back to UT, so my midwife could deliver this baby as well.  So, the day that we were leaving, we decided that our final destination would be UT instead of NV.

We loaded up our children and off we went.  My 3 year-old rode with my husband and I, my 7 year-old (6 at the time) rode with my sister, and my 8 year-old rode with his Grandpa.  This was pretty much for the duration of the trip.  I had purchased a Nintendo DS for each of them, so they would have something to do on their trip.  That made the trip much better for all of us.

Upon arrival in UT, we stayed with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law.  They were kind enough to let us stay for a few days while we found and secured a place to stay.  We found a place quickly, because I knew that my father would be leaving in a few days, and I didn't want him to worry about where we would live.  The night before Dad left, I was in tears.  I knew that it would be a while before I would see him again.

I found a job quickly and started working with a wonderful bunch of women (and a man).  They quickly became good friends of mine.  It made my life better to have met them.  It was an extra bonus to be able to make some money while my husband looked for work.  I had initially planned to only work until he found a job, but I enjoyed going to work and the people I worked with.  I worked until 9 days before I had my baby. My sister now works there in my place.  I was blessed with a supervisor that understood when I wasn't feeling well, and tried to make me comfortable even during the worst time of my Pemphigoid Gestationis.  She is a wonderful woman and I am blessed to have her as a friend.

I am thankful today that we have a place to live and my husband has a job.  I am thankful that I was able to have my daughter here in UT, I am not sure I would have been diagnosed correctly if I had still been in NY.  I was misdiagnosed when I was pregnant with my 3 year-old, since it is such a rare condition.  I am thankful that my children attend a good school and have good teachers.  I am thankful that my 3 year-old was able to start preschool.  He loves it!  I am thankful for the friends that I have made here. I am thankful for a healthy family.  I am thankful that my husband found some money today that he had thought he lost on our move. The only thing that I miss is my friends and family in NY.  If I could move them all here, this would be the perfect place to live.