"My New Recipe" and Other Cuteness

One day this month while we were driving from here to there, N~ asked if we could "listen to that song My New Recipe". After a few minutes of confusion, I realized he was talking about a song from the You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown musical soundtrack. Its real name is "My New Philosophy". :) We had a good laugh together.

Last week he lost another tooth. He told me that I wasn't allowed to pull it out like last time, because he didn't want it to bleed. Of course, at this point the tooth was hanging by a thread, and he was having a hard time eating and brushing his teeth. But being the good mom that I am, I agreed not to pull it out. After school on Thursday I noticed it was missing, and he said, "Oh yeah! I was playing with it today and it just went 'pop!' And it didn't hurt at all, mom!"

B~ got new glasses this weekend. After the school nurse suggested I take him to an eye doctor for a more thorough exam, he was pretty sure he'd look like a nerd if he had to get glasses. I tried to convince him otherwise, but it wasn't until he started noticing on his own that all his "cool" friends at school had glasses, that he decided it might be okay. We got him a great looking frame that compliments his face, and when he put them on for the first time yesterday he said, "Wow! Everything is so clear! I can see the TV now!" Yes, that's very important. We got the glasses so he could see the TV. Priorities.

Doesn't B~ look intelligent?

Notice the gap in N~'s bottom teeth?

The Infamous "25 Things"

Yeah, so I caved. I've gotten tagged so many times on Facebook with this whole "25 Things You May Not Know About Me" stuff, that I finally decided to join the club. Here goes...

1. I have a strange attraction to the number 5. I'm the 5th in my family, I wear size 5 shoes, I'm 5 feet tall, my birthday both adds up to (the 23rd ... 2 + 3) and subtracts to (1972 ... 7-2) equal the number 5 --- there's more, I'm just too tired, and you're probably bored by now.

2. I whistle when I'm happy, blush at inappropriate times, and giggle when someone tells me a tragic story about themselves.

3. I started playing the flute when I was in the 4th grade and sometimes I still play -- but just in church.

4. I took piano lessons most of my life and never learned theory until I was in my mid-30's.

5. My 10-year-old knows more music theory than I do.

6. My 7-year-old pretends he sleep-walks and climbs into bed with me. I pretend I don't like it.

7. Someday I want to dance to "The Best Thing For You (Would Be Me)" by Nat King Cole and "Everything" by Michael Buble at my wedding.

8. I hate watching TV, but I'm inexplicably addicted to the old series "Charmed". (Thanks a lot, Rach.)

9. I once told my mom that my little brother climbed up the laddice on our back porch to get onto the roof. He got in trouble. But it was really me who did it. I still feel guilty for that.

10. I grew up thinking every family should go girl/boy/girl/boy/girl/boy/girl and couldn't understand what was wrong with everyone else's family!

11. My favorite thing to do on a weekend is curl up in my jammies and a blanket and devour a whole bowl of air-popped popcorn (with real butter and salt) in front of a chick flick.

12. My brothers and sisters and I found a recipe on the box of Cheerios when we were kids called "Hot Buttered O's". It's made by saute-ing a bowl of cheerios in butter on the stove. We ate it for breakfast as often as we could. I still eat them.

13. My first kiss was when I was 12 years old. I'm going to lock my kids up when they turn 12!

14. And since we're on the topic.... I want to end up with a guy who can make my brain go to mush when he kisses me. It's happened only once in my life. (Thank you "S" for showing me it was possible!)

15. When I'm alone I listen to musical theater soundtracks in my car and imagine I'm playing the lead role while I sing along.

16. I think Hugh Jackman should dedicate a song to me before I die.

17. I was a missionary for my church for 18 months when I was 21 years old. I got to meet thousands of people from hundreds of countries that I didn't even know existed. And it all happened on a small 10-acre plot of ground named "Temple Square" in Salt Lake City.

18. I've only been outside of the United States once in my life. I spent Thanksgiving weekend on a beach in a border town in Mexico when I lived in Tucson, AZ.

19. I have a passport. I hope to use it someday.

20. I'm a succor for compliments. Flattery will get you almost anywhere with me!

21. While on said beach in Mexico, in the middle of the night, I used a diaper so I wouldn't have to find a bush. I was 8 months pregnant with my second child. (Those little wonders sure can hold their own!)

22. I cry at least twice a week -- and usually it's not because I'm sad.

23. I secretly jumped for joy when my 10-year-old told me that he had a girlfriend.

24. I eat home-made oatmeal chocolate chip cookie dough when the kids aren't looking.

25. I run a preschool and a school-age after school program. I tell everyone that I miss being a teacher, but really, I like being the boss better!

Guitar Hero

Thanks to my cousin (or perhaps his wife), I now have the greatest picture of my 93-yr-old grandmother I will ever own. ROCK ON GRAMMA!

Thank you Jo Jo

Yesterday I went to the bank with a great big smile planted on my mug. In fact, it appeared there Wednesday night and it's still there! Here's why...

In December of 2005 I received a cashier's check for a LARGE amount of money. I didn't believe it was even real. I took it to the bank and they confirmed it was a real check. I was baffled. It came with a typed letter stating: "This is a real cashier's check from someone who loves you. Merry Christmas! Love, Jo Jo the Elf". I felt confused, but grateful, nonetheless.

In December of 2006 I opened another envelope with the same typed letter and another cashier's check for the same amount of money. I was shocked! I couldn't believe how lucky I was to be the receiver of so much! This time I knew it was a real check and immediately I went to the bank.

In December of 2007 I started to wonder if I could be so lucky. I would go to the mail box with anticipation, but never felt sad when it wasn't there. I knew it would be too prideful to hope for a third year in a row. And then one day, there it was. I opened the envelope not believing I could be so blessed for the third year in a row. When I saw the typed letter with the same exact words, I began to cry. No, I bawled like a baby.

Last month I had a huge monitary disappointment. A program for struggling early childhood educators (called CARES - Comprehensive Approaches to Raising Educational Standards) exists to provide money for teachers to enrich their education. This year I qualified for the highest amount of money. All year I have been taking the required administration courses at the local colleges and actively participating in the local chapter of NAEYC (National Association for the Education of Young Children). But because of a glitch in the system (and possibly the economic crisis), CARES decided not to award me any money this year. I was very disappointed and frankly a little worried about how I would make ends meet this year. But when I prayed about it, I felt reassurance that things would work out. I couldn't figure it out on paper how that would be possible, but in my heart I knew it was true.

Two days ago when I got an envelope from the same bank as the previous 3 years, I opened it without thinking. The typed letter sat in one hand, the check in the other for several moments before it dawned on me that for the FOURTH year in a row I was to be on the receiving end of so much charity. Now that my boys are old enough to appreciate what money really means, I decided to let them in on the gift. I walked into their room with a great big grin on my face and showed them the check. (My eldest knew right away what it was; I had to explain the numbers to my youngest.) High fives and hugs went all the way around. And then my youngest said, "Mommy, does this mean Santa can come this year afterall?" Through my happy tears I told him that Santa would have come anyway, even if the money hadn't come this year. But that thanks to our annonymous benefactor, we won't have to worry as much.

The thing is, both my kids know who Santa really is (but we like to pretend anyway). I guess that's why my youngest felt so worried. He remembered that I had told them the money we were expecting from CARES didn't come this year, and that we'd have to be extra careful with how much we spend for a while. Translation: fewer trips to MacDonalds, and no more Blockbuster movies for a while. This actually made my youngest cry at first, but we had a good talk about being more frugal, and I thought he felt better afterward. I never actually said anything about a smaller Christmas (that I can recall, at least), so this made his response to the money all the more touching for me.

My eldest's response: "Can we split the money equally between the three of us?" *grin*

So thank you Jo Jo the Elf. Whoever you are.

For Goodness Snakes

Hopefully I'm not going to get sued for using this title for my post since it's the name of the company I used for my son's birthday party today. Here are some of the pictures I took. I didn't ever have the guts to actually hold one of these little gems, but even the most timid child eventually had a snake around his neck by the end of their visit.

What I love about Christmas

I love Christmas more than any other time of the year. And that includes my birthday!

I love the cold weather (what do I know about "cold" -- I live in the bay area!)
I love the shopping (although this year I'm not doing much of that -- and I say that every year)
I love Christmas In The Park and the outdoor ice skating rink in downtown San Jose
I love getting Christmas cards
I love choosing, buying, and putting up the Christmas Tree
I love decorating the house with Nativity Scenes and lights and snow globes
I love watching old Christmas movies in my pj's with a big bowl of buttered air-popped popcorn in my lap
I love sipping hot cocoa with marshmallows and whipped cream
I love drinking egg nog (with milk, of course)
I love singing Christmas carols
I love listening to Christmas music -- especially the old classics and the one my sister wrote
I love opening presents
I love watching my kids open presents
I love the words: "is that ALL?" after the presents are all opened
I love the crumpled up wrapping paper strewn all over the floor
I love the smell of real pine needles
I love the baking and the eating of Christmas dinner and Christmas treats
I love eating home-made Chex party mix and my dad's "grog"
I love playing games with my family until all hours of the night at mom's house
I love watching my sisters-in-law knit together while the siblings play the games
I love seeing out-of-town friends and family
I love the way the kids at school look when they hand me a Christmas card or present
I love time off work -- although this year there will be fewer days :(
I love walking out of my mom's house late at night and breathing the crisp, cool Sunnyvale air that reminds me of this time of year
I love believing in Santa, if only for one night every year
I love surprises in my stocking at mom's house
I love hearing the church choir and the Primary children sing Christmas hymns at church
I love church the Sunday after Christmas when everyone in the congregation has the chance to share their favorite hymn, scripture, or testimony
I love sharing Christmas memories with my brothers and sisters, and even breaking out all those old Christmas morning videos dad took every year while we were kids
I love wearing sweaters and funny-looking toe socks
I love retelling the story of the birth of our Savior
I love the First Presidency Christmas Devotional
I love the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert
I love looking for the "pickle" in mom's Christmas tree
I love the excitement that surrounds this time of year and wish it would last just a bit longer

What do you love?

Missing Church

I hate missing church. I can honestly say that I have been to church consistently for most of my life. I will make every effort to attend at least Sacrament Meeting, no matter where I am. I'm not boasting. I just absolutely love to go. I love the people, the lessons, the feeling, the choir, the bishop, the RS president... everything. When I miss church my whole week suffers.

Two weeks ago I was sick. It was the pits. I had just enough energy to drive my kids to church and then back home again. I slept nearly all day. When I was awake I was dizzy. I'm not very good at being sick. I'm a miserable person to be around. And I missed church. The week following was tough, but I got through it. And I was very happy to be back at church last Sunday.

Yesterday I picked my kids up from the airport after their trip to their dad's for Thanksgiving. My eldest looked like he was about to faint. His symptoms were similar to what I had been through two weeks ago. The only difference is that he also had a fever.

Today is his birthday. And he spent it in bed with a sore throat and a fever. And we both missed church. Poor kid - what a yucky birthday!

Well, at least I've got the General Conference cd's now. Maybe the two of us can listen to a session together. Hey! I might have to miss work tomorrow! Darn.