Pick a Little, Talk a Little,

So "here's the pick a lot, talk a little more!" part.
we had a great Thanksgiving yesterday. The missionaries ended up calling and needing a place to eat at, and I love having sister missionaries. We had plenty of food. We started the day with Macy's parade, onion tears, and a lot of sugary muchies! I had everything planned, and it worked out on time great...except for the turkey. It was kind of a mess. The turkey timer popped before it was done...I'd put too much chicken stock in the pan, not basted it enough, and cooked it at a too high temperature at first drying the top. The popper area wasn't even cooked either.... hmm. I think next time I'll stick to the time idea, not the turkey popper. Most of the turkey cooked though and we were all alright. However, the leftovers were scanty because I was just a little hesitant. The sweet potato pie was great and the first thing Chloe and I dug into. The jello was good, the green bean casserole was a little mushy because I'd been hasty and cooked it the night before. And the apple pie tasted a little fermented. Tossed it. We finished the leftovers tonight of everything but one plastic baggie of turkey. Definitely less than last year, but overall still cheaper than eating out for 6. I felt bad that our little G couldn't taste anything. He slept through the whole thing after being fussy all morning and afternon. After dinner we played thanksgiving Bingo, phoned family, and got the kids tucked in around 10.

And todays plan? The Christmas decorations. What did we get done? The tree. Half of the tree. But, I cannot complain because we were in Bullhead, a warmer region, buying something I've wanted for... I think at least 8 years! *drumroll* ..... A KITCHENAID MIXER!
Ok. I'm very spoiled by my hubby. spoiled rotten, maybe -but, I love it! I told him this morning in a joking way, "I want to be treated like a goddess today!" And he said, "You got it!" What a sweetheart. From the time he woke up to the time he fell asleep with little G on the couch recliner, he was helping me and pampering me. What a day! I had only mentioned this morning right when I'd woken up, "Maybe I could get an early only Christmas present? Well, never mind. It's really..... nevermind. And you know what? He said, "What...do you want a mixer?" So, we got it! I'll have pictures soon. I'm just too tired right now. I feel so loved! Chloe and Eva said, "That's like the machine Ms. Laura had." I am so excited. This thing is better than a Kirby vaccum. It even has an attachment that can grind grain, one that can strain and blend up apples and other soft fruits for baby food, and soooo much more. I know this is a standard in so many homes, but I've finally got my kitchen gadget!! woooohooo!!
now for Brians gift... he's already gotten what I was going to get him, so I'll have to do some serious thinking... there's always the backup, white shirt, tie and socks.. maybe even a new wallet? lol. (I think my dad had like 30 ties by the time we were 18, and lots of white shirts. He always seemed so appreciate though and would wear it the very next Sunday-which was good because my sisters and I would wait like hawks until we saw it on him. I love my daddy!)

What am I thankful for?
- the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the peace I have regardless of world crap going on
- my family, especially the addition of our little 'homie G'
- my husbands job b/c they're becoming rare out there!!
- sunshine and fall weather combined!
- friends to have a ''complaining'' session with, to help keep kids in line
- loving mom and dad
- blogs! to keep me from harassing people
- fleece
- sparkles
-the ability to touch, feel, and taste the 'things' of the seasons!

That's my ten I thought of off hand... off to bed!

My finger....

What Finger Are You?

You Are a Pinky

You are fiercely independent, and possibly downright weird. A great communicator, you can get along with almost anyone. You are kind and sympathetic. You support all your friends - and love them for who they are. You get along well with: The Ring Finger Stay away from: The Thumb I find this very funny because my sister is a thumb. We get along just fine though. hm.

Once Upon a Time...

Tonight as B was putting the girls into bed, after a hectic evening and many 'discussions' with our kids, this is the story he put them to bed with.
"Once upon a time there were two little girls. They were so very beautiful. They were so smart because they earned their money and saved it in their piggy banks and left the money in them, in mom and dads room. And they were gonna have sweet dreams. One was going to dream about Meg and ponies and the other was, uh, unicorns. Rainbow colored unicorns. And they were so excited to have their dreams that they went to sleep right away and were so very quiet..." That was all I could hear, but I bet the rest of it was just as good. Can you tell we talked about money and saving?
While I was listening I was snuggling a cozy little baby boy. I thought about how grateful I am for my family, my husband, and how lucky we are to have such healthy wonderful children. I thought about how glad I am that I'm sealed to Brian for eternity- a blessing sometimes forgotten ;0). I thought about our home, and our adventures here in Kingman, and all the fun we've not even had yet. I look forward to those times. And then I thought about Thanksgiving, and all the things I have been given on this earth. I feel rich with love- sometimes more than others it's bursting from our houses 'seams' out here, and I love that feeling!
In my Relief Society meeting tonight the president brought up a few scriptures about peace. The Lord says he brings peace unto the righteous not as the world gives us, but his own kind of peace. Christ is the Prince of Peace, not the author of chaos. If we are doing what we should: food storage, saving money, getting out of debt, obeying the good 'ol 10 commandments, we should be able to feel at peace. And it's true. Here's my story before I go to bed...
"Once there was a family who lived in a city called Kingman. They were a wonderfully happy and righteous family. They were so smart, they followed the prophets' teachings and showed their love for each other very much. One gave the other massages after a long day, another worked for the family all day to provide, another cooked the meals and cared for the children, another wiped tears away and gave a shoulder to cry on... and yet another, though very very small gave the others an opportunity to remember what simple things we should appreciate. We felt so fufilled in our lives, that we showed love not just to ourselves, but to others as well. And this brought them a peacefull feeling in their hearts for the rest of thier lives."
Goodnight.

A Wonderful Thing!

For Family Home Evening, we decided to purchase a pre-made gingrebread house that came with all the trimmings and use it for our centerpiece this week and the upcoming weeks. (as long as it lasts-which may not be long with these sneaky fingers) The girls loved decorating it, and the variety of things they did amazed me! Chloe's favorite thing was the gumdrops, although she found that they didn't taste as good as they looked. Eva's favorite thing was putting on the icing.. But I think they both loooved those little balls. That was the first thing to use and the first thing gone. Eva even hid under the table to sneak a few (it's nonstop with these hooligans! This morning it was a half a bag of peanut butter m&m's) Ya.... They have a sweet tooth on 'em alright!

I loved how we had to all work together on this masterpiece. I'm trying to do a lot of teamwork things for us right now. Obviously B wasn't really into the whole thing. He enjoyed watching me try to not be anal retentive about the house not looking like the four different types of houses on the box (which even came with step by step directions...how rare is that?) , and the girls become slowly covered with crusty white icing. Eva will still deny that she snuck anything...

TA DA! Here is the masterpiece at the finale. I don't think it will last long. Chloe keeps asking if we can eat it when it's dry. It's hard to tell little kids to not eat these colorful fun looking candies. Notice we made it like our Rossford House as much as we could... The Green painted triangle shaped top section, B drew a crack in the wall on the opposite side, and I even drew our broken gutters. Oh! We don't miss that house at all! It was a good house to start off in, but it's definitely a 'starter home' for us. Our hope is to someday- ok, MY hope is to someday have a house near fam and seasons, and a house away from snow and extreme cold.

No it's not Halloween anymore...but,

Chloe was down to the last bits of her birthday gifted makeup tray and having run out of the lip gloss, she decided to use the eyeshadow creme as a lipgloss, and a blush, and.... well - face paint practically.... Although after taking this picture watching her apply more makeup, I mentioned "Chloe, be careful ok? It's not meant to be all over your face-paint, yaknow?" (in the most gentle voice I could do) and she immediately got a wet hand towel and started wiping it off with a frown.
" Why are you cleaning it off? You look so serious.... and sad."
" Because you said you don't like it, and it's not supposed to be like paint."
*DOH*
We talked about no matter what our faces look like or what makeup we have in the drawer, the prettiest things on their faces is their smile. I just hope they believe me. I know I didn't believe my parents growing up- they were obligated to tell me I was beautiful.

And Eva only just having turned 3 has not been allowed to apply her own makeup. I was leaning on Chloe's, um, discretion to apply makeup sparingly. Chloe was pretty proud of her creation and her own face...
They certainly looked like some Barbie dolls or somethin', eh?

A 'footnote' and a Visit from my Gpop!

An addition to my prior post- these are the socks... soooo cute and soo tiny!! Thanks again!

A loving visit from Grandpa Great and Auntie C was all I needed on Thursday to make my day get better. They were the ones that live out in Mohave Valley, where my contractions were picking up with Gabriel. We talked about food storage, his upoming Elk adventure, and Gabriels blessing coming up (which I'm toootaly pysched about!). I shared some more applesauce with them too as they left. They really liked it-- I hope I can make it just like this next year. The girls were so excited to have them finally come to our house for a little while.

WATCH OUT STEELERS!

The Girls and their moment with the sports star, Gabriel - defensive linebacker for the Kansas City Chiefs!!! They even wore the second bib to keep their clothes clean... I let them help post this and yes, they have done their own makeup...

Thanks Uncle Jeremy!! Little Gabriel is now a Kansas City Chiefs fan, for sure!! lol. Notice the socks were even matching... along with this cute ensemble were two coordinating bibs... how FUN!!! Gabriel just has to watch out for those Steelers!! hahaha. Gosh I looove those baby blues!!
The perfect present for Gabriel--why? Because B and I are such rarely involved with sports-of any kind, that this exposure from Gabe's uncles might prove to be the only exposure he gets! A joke, that might be more truth than fiction, but B & I will give it the old college try. After all, the sports are all the same, pretty much, right? ;0) I've prepurchased a game for him for Christmas that is called Dunk and Cheer. It's a manly game of coordination... Grrrrr!

One month old 'Little Squeaker!"

I like the serenity he gives off in this pic

True baby... sleeping, sleeping, sleeping

My little boy in the 'hood'

This is full body pic so you can see how long he's getting... at least I think he's getting long.
He smiles when he's gassy, and you can tell he's got dimples like crazy. He flips from his belly to his back and rolls back and forth from side to side. He's got eyes like his daddy- what a hunk-a-munka! He lets me sleep at night for 2-3 hours right now and has just gotten used to sleeping in his bassinet (I brought it out to the main room where the noise is - he's actually slept through me vacuuming right under him in the swing and through my girls' tantrums.) We call him squeaker because he makes lots of squeaks here and there... it's really cute!
Eva's definitely starting to feel the 'middle kid pinch' - I could use any suggestions at all. Time with her alone, and she doesn't know what to do and just misses her sister. She's really needing to feel successful at something though....

Watch Out Primary Presidency

I was cleaning the kitchen and came into the living room hearing this "I believe the gospel...", etc. Chloe was using her hairdryer as a voice amplifier (it echos) and Eva was taking turns helping Chloe know what to say and then giving the talk herself from the scriptures. I watched for a little bit, grabbed my camera as Chloe said, "Before you leave make sure you give your paper to Sis. Alvey (in the Primary Presidency)." This was right after they were wanting me to pretend to be Sis. Corbett. (they're old primary chorister and now Primary President I think) I had to chuckle because sometimes I wonder if she's paying attention in there. I guess I know she's at least paying attention at the end.

Thinking Thoughts....

First thought - 'Who's line is that, anyways?'
Ok. So I wonder where kids learn things... by darn- I think my kids actually pay attention to me more than I do myself sometimes! Yesterday, Eva was telling me, "Gabe's just like, chillin' out." And if you know how her voice is just so teeny still, it's crazy hearing that from those lips. Then she says- which she's said before, but the combination of the two sayings has caused me to pause- "I was like freakin' out. Just freakin' out." Wow. Do I say that? Sometimes I think that they watch early 90's flicks all day to learn the lingo but I think they just listen to me. They are my socialization during 90% of the day-and they sure do get told to just "chill out" and to stop "freaking out" - but hearing it back makes me laugh soooo very hard.

Second thought- 'Talk before you act'
Find out the reason kids do crazy things before you jump to conclusions. I think I know all sometimes, because don't we all- but tonight as I 'assigned' Brian to go discipline the girls for shutting their bedroom door (that's a BIG no-no in our house) he walked in and I heard
B -"Who shut the door?"
Chloe- "I was just trying to be brave like you and mommy"
Frog in mouth moment. Dang.
Brian came out smiling ear to ear and bragging that he had gotten a huge smile and hug from Chloe. Sometimes I think he actually realizes just how much Chloe looks up to him - as her knight in shining armor kind of guy. Which brings me to a third thought:

Third Thought- 'It's scary raising these girls. It's scary raising boys... Parenting is risky business'.
If B compliments Chloe on something, she runs to tell me. It doesn't matter if I had just said the same thing. Daddy has now said it, and THAT is what counts. It warms my heart, but kinda stings at the same time to know that she doesn't look at me like that. I know it will bite me in the butt when she's a teen. I did the same thing when I was a teen. *whince* I see now how much B can have an impact on her self esteem, and it's scary because guys don't realize this will pattern her thoughts when she goes out to look for her "other half". But we can give all the self esteem in the world to her, and some idiot out there can undo it all of a sudden. I had a wonderful father, who I looked to for A LOT- might even say I wanted to be the apple of his eye. All to have an idiot take my esteem and crush it. B still deals with my 'baggage', should I say- poor guy. It's scary having little girls. I pray that they will listen to the prophets and be strong enough - strong enough for everything and that my boy will be strong enough to guide and protect his own family someday. We know it will only get rougher out there for our kids.