Year of the Yoga!

I read somewhere that 90% of people break their New Year's Resolutions before Valentine's Day....

so does it increase my chances if I don't start my resolution until after Valentine's Day?

I decided I wasn't going to do a huge list this year like last year (not that it wasn't right for last year). This year I am taking a more simplified approach.

My word for 2009 is going to be ~Balance~ and I am going to work on this in the literal and figurative sense.

This is going to be the year of the Yoga! I have wanted to experiment with this for some time now, since it goes hand in hand with the meditation/relaxation exersizes I love to do. My goal is to set aside a few minutes each day to meditate and breathe. I need this! I am going to involve the kids in this goal, we used to do this together and they loved it. But we stopped taking the time.

As has been the case before, I was procrastinating writing this post so that I would not be accountable, but not anymore. I need to balance things things that occupy my time better.
Burning in my mind is something that I heard at education week last year. I don't know the speakers name because she wouldn't let us take notes, but she was talking about the kinds of evil that enters our lives. She said that most of us will never really be tempted to starting drinking alcohol, take drugs, or murder someone etc. But the evil that does enter our lives is being too busy. Sounds pretty harmless right? Yeah it did to me too, but she talked about running around being "too busy" all the time and doing too much (including not saying no) to really focus on what is most important. That really stuck with me and is the basis for this year's goal. Balance.

New Years Resolution Update

I set a whole bunch of goals in 2008. This year I don't think I will set that many. It was a good year though, I really do feel like I accomplished a lot. I think this was mainly due to being pregnant and wanting to get so much done before the baby came.

Here goes my evaluation of how I did...

Goal #1

Be more productive with my mind--Read one book per quarter -

I more than filled my quota for the year, thanks to the Twilight series and the pregnancy. Here's the books I haven't yet reported on...

Belly Laughs,

I have wanted to read this for some time, pretty crude (I had to skip a few parts), and not as funny as I had hoped, but I'm still glad that I read it. Someone has to write about this stuff no holds barred.

HypnoBirthing,

This one was awesome!

Mind over Labor,

This one I needed to re-read because it is awesome too.

I am a Mother,

A must read for any mother!!! An inspiring, easy read.

The Naked Truth,

A very interesting and eye opening true story.

Goal Number 2
Take care of myself--Wash my face every night

Did not do so hot on this one. My face cleared up with the pregnancy so I slacked.

Goal Number 3

Learn something new--Learn 10 key - I have been practicing with the 10 Key Tutor, and since I get to practice this regularly with my job, I was able to practice a lot.

Goal Number 4
Grow closer to God--Take an institute class-done-we took a wonderful Parables class full of kids half our age that made us feel really old.

Goal Number 5
Gain a talent--Learn to knit or crochet-well back in January my friend Leah did teach me how to crochet, can't say I did much with it though.

Goal Number 6
Family History--Compile Jasmine's baby book -almost done, still need to put a few pictures in. And in my defense, I did complete Shayden's book (pathetic I know) before I started on this one.

Goal Number 7
Slow down--Take up meditating again - good thing I was practicing for labor--done! Will definitely expand on this next year though.

Goal Number 8
Increase family together time--Buy a board game and play it: Not a board game but as a family we got obsessed with Family Frenzy. It's a fun card game, and Jasmine beats us all the time so it's good for super young kids too!

Goal Number 9
Improve physical fitness--Work out consistently--Thanks to my co-workers for creating the "exercise guild" at work. I did consistently work out about 20 min 3 times per week, until the baby came. Not a lot but something.

My son the reading machine.

So I have to post about this because it is so dear to my heart.


As a kid I had this love affair with reading that I can't quite describe. It was my escape, and I loved reading anything I could get my hands on. I wanted to be spunky like Ramona and whimsical like Anne of Green Gables.

I have always known that I wanted to raise good readers. I didn't really know how to go about that though, and I think I went a bit overboard with Shayden. I started WAY early, paranoid that he would get to kindergarten and not know how to read yet! Okay, now I know that this was nutty-first-time-mom-thinking.


So he got to Kindergarten and he could read better than anyone in his class but then switched to a much harder school where he was more middle of the road. Fine. I mean he didn't really love it, and that was my goal. It wasn't second nature so it was still really hard work. He would read for 10-15 min and then let out a sigh of exhaustion because it tired him out. Then he started saying that he loved to read, which was a good sign, but I still saw no major interest change.


Then something happened. I have no idea what, but around the middle of the last summer, his interest level shot up like a rocket. I have never seen anything like it, suddenly he was reading every waking moment and I mean every waking moment. All he wanted to do is read and read and read some more! And this is how it has been. He was tearing though the magic treehouse and a-z mystery books finishing one per day and then he wanted to read Harry Potter. He finished the first one last fall. He also has started the Boxcar children books, which I loved as a kid. His motto is "I read anything that comes in my way!".

He asks to read for his free time, he has a hard time putting books down at bedtime, I can't keep up with it. Going to the library has turned into this awesome treat like never before. Now he is asking how old he needs to be to walk to the library by himself. He said he would stay there all day. I hope he doesn't run out of steam and let it go all together after a while.

It's cool because Jasmine is modeling his behavior and she is probably learning to read in a more healthy pattern because instead of my cramming her with the letters, she is developing a love for this wonderful habit by watching him. I have also found myself wanting to read more because of his example.

I love that he loves this!

I love my job(s)!

On the verge of going on Maternity Leave, I had to write a tribute to my 2 wonderful jobs that allow me to work like 30 hours per week but still "feel" like a stay at home mom somehow.

You see my job with Jetblue Airways is awesome because I get to work from home. This means that I don't have to scrape the snow off my car, I can wake up literally 7 min before my shift starts, and I work in my pj's while I blog-without worrying about someone watching over my shoulder. But the best part about it is that it also allows me and my family to see places like this for absolutely free:

But there is not a lot of personal interaction at that job. That's when my Early Head Start job comes in. I get to go one day a week and work in an office with a bunch of fun and crazy gals. I have worked with a bunch of catty and gossipy women before, and I think it is a miracle that this group is not like that. We all get along so well! It is hard to get anything done when I go in because Thursday is like party day there. I also love this job because I get to keep up on my social work skills. Plus I get to go to tons of trainings on working with kids 0-3 which helps me keep up on my mom skills!

I can take my kids to the office sometimes (then I really can't get much done!):

I get to take them to fun places like this:

And I get to act like a kid again!
So this is the group of gals that decided to tell me we had a mandatory "Risk Management" meeting this week and when I showed up yelled "SURPRISE" and threw me the awesomest baby shower ever! They went all out and it was so much fun.

There were even cute little planes and "clouds" hanging from the ceiling.

Can you tell I was shocked by this hilarious picture?The airplane cake was awesome!We played silly and fun games and laughed a lot!

Especially this game where we fed each other baby food! It was so gross but so funny to see it all over each other's faces!It was so fun just to talk and laugh, much better than a "risk management" meeting. Thank you ladies for such a great night!!! It was very memorable!

Major "Ketchup" to do

I have some major blogging catchup to do. I don't know if it is just the routine that we are back in for school that has made me a lazy or if it is some sort of writer's block that has got a hold of me, but I have not been keepin' up.

Part of it is that not much has been going on. It feels so good to be back in a routine. I have been able to spend lot's of one on one time with Jasmine while Shay is at school and have been taking her to storytime, dance class and playdates with her friends. Plus she is in preschool 3 days a week which she loves. So I have found myself with alone time several times per week! It has been so heavenly, and it is going to be weird because with the new baby, right off the bat we will have time alone together periodically.

I pick up Shay and his friend from school everyday and then they have a little list (darn those lists I love!) that they go through, with their routine, and they have really fallen into it with ease.

We were having a really hard time with math homework, it was taking forever, but one thing that I have tried has been working. He gets 30 min of computer time per day to begin with and then I time him while doing his math. I actually let him choose how long it will take him, and he has been very reasonable. Then if he completes it under the time, he adds that to his computer time, over it subtracts from the time. He is happy to do these math problems. It has worked really well to get him on track and the other day he actually said to me "you're right mom, I am a math whiz!". I have always told him that, but lately he hasn't believed me.

The other thing that has been occupying my time, as previously mentioned, is that I am NESTING! I know it is kind of late, but as soon as school started I got this major bug to complete projects. I have this feeling like life as I know it is going to end in a few weeks (wait, am I going through a major life change or something?) and that I better get my home in order.

At eight weeks before my due date I started with a list of projects for each week. It has been great and so far I have accomplished some pretty big tasks like organizing my closet, the kids' closets, the coat closet and the bathroom cupboards. I created a better system for all my paperwork and got rid of SO MUCH CRAP! Last week I started tackling photos, yes the millions of pictures that are not sorted and realized that one of my new years resolutions is to create a baby book for Jasmine so I am on my way to complete that. But incidentally, I realized that Shayden's wasn't even completed so I just finished that one. This week I tackle the dungeon which is my office. Can I tell you how good this feels? Everywhere but in my back!

Pregnancy Update

Today I am 35 weeks along, and there are 35 days until my due date!

I went to the Doctor (well midwife) yesterday and I have gained about 25 pounds, and my belly is about 35 centimeters which is right on for 35 weeks. Right on for her, but I feel huge! I have grown so much in the last few weeks it is crazy. The only good thing is that, (and I admit this at the risk of jinxing myself) I have not had the water retention problem of the past...at least not yet. I wish I wish I knew how to use a scanner because I just ran into a picture of of my feet at the end of Shayden's pregnancy. Oh my goodness, just imagine two big burritos side by side and no sign of ankles anywhere! It was bad, with both pregnancies, my face seriously resembled the size and shape of a pumpkin. Hey, maybe since it happens to be pumpkin season this time around, nature just thought that would too cruel of a joke. :) Either way I am happy to have my relatively normal shaped face (which is already round) this late in the game.
I did find this picture of me toward the end of Jasmine's pregnancy. I think my hairdo only compounded the problem:

I shouldn't say that is the only good thing. This pregnancy has not been hard compared to so many others around me, you know who you are...so I can't complain too much...but I will a little. What is with this back pain? It is like my constant companion, whether dull and just kind of sitting there, or sudden sharp spasms that cause me to make embarrassing jerking motions in front of people. My friend actually pointed out the other day that I was waddling! And you know what? It feels good to waddle sometimes! I think I have been trying to do too much lately since I am TOTALLY nesting, and that only aggravates the problem.

Other than that let's see...I had a really great talk with my midwife and she seems right on board with what I want/need in labor, and I was truly impressed with the hospital tour that we took. It is the brand new hospital here (well about 5 years old?) and I have only heard bad things about it. That it is the epitome of a hospital. The last thing I need is a production line birth, where they are moving me along a conveyor belt, while I go through childbirth, one of the most important and sacred events of my life. My midwife said she didn't even think they had a jacuzzi which would have been tragic for me but not the case, almost all of the labor and delivery "suites" have a jacuzzi or at least a tub. That was a relief! One room even has a birthing bar, not that I will use it but I thought that was cool. I talked to the main nurse lady and she was so reassuring that they work with women who want labor in a million different ways and told me I could fax my birth plan and they will put it in my file and I can just ask that it be pulled out when I get there. It was a huge relief because obviously I don't want to progress in labor at home only to get the hospital with a bunch of fears and concerns and have to take a bunch of steps back.


Anyway, this is much longer than anticipated, most of these long and boring reflection posts go in my pregnancy blog, so sorry.

But one last thing, I mentioned that I needed a pillow early on in my pregnancy and I found the perfect one, it has been awesome. It's huge and I love it, it has helped tons. It wraps around my whole body. Jonas, on the other hand, has a different take on it. Here are some of his comments on it (and I edited them a bit):
Note from Jonas: That pillow has robbed me of my wife. She loves cuddling with it more than me. Whaaaaa!!!! I hate that stupid pillow. Sure it's more comfortable than me.....So what I'm a tiny bit wider than the pillow. BUT I'M CHOCOLATE!!!! It's just not fair!!!!!! From this day forward, I will protest ALL PILLOWS that rob men of their wives. It's Sick and Wrong!!! That's how I feel about that!!!!
**Sorry Jonas, I promise that I won't sleep with it forever! But I have talked to a lot of women who still sleep with one after pregnancy, so beware...:)

Baby Stuff

Okay there is still so much more to document for May but I thought I should update everyone on the pregnancy stuff.

Thank you for all of your well wishes in the comments, they make me so happy and I love reading them! I am so excited that so many more people are blogging now!! yeah!

I found out on March 6th that we are going to have another baby! I was so excited but of course I had to keep it under raps. I am almost 18 weeks along now (in 2 days) which means that I get to find out the gender on June 18th! It's nice not to have to worry about that so much though, since I already have one of each. It was so hard to keep things quiet that I started a little private blog where I have been able to write all I want about the wierd transformations and things that happen with pregnancy. It's been nice to have a place to vent.


We announced it to the family on my birthday weekend. We had the kids show up to family dinner wearing these t-shirts that I made since my due date is Nov 8th so close to Thanksgiving!

So I have the whole entire hot summer to look forward to, and then some, another first for me.
I was kind of nauseous at the beginning which has never ever happened to me (please don't shoot me) but now I am all better and enjoying life with a growing belly. It's been fun to feel the baby move so much sooner this time, probably just because I know what to look for.

What else?
We'll all see how we handle three kids instead of two, it will probably turn our lives upside down!! Especially after reading Jen's post about her crazy day with three kids!

oh and one more thing. a funny story because this one has to go in the books.

When we told the kids what was happening, Shayden was so excited. He is so much older now so he really get's it, or whatever. He had SOOOO many questions, night and day, he was full of questions and comments about the baby. Well one random day out of the blue he says:

"Mom, I can't wait to be there when they CUT the baby out of your tummy. I know JUST the TOOL they are going to use!"

Wow. What do you say to that? It was wrong on so many levels. Apparently we need to sort out the fact that he will not be there when the baby is born and exactly how this whole process works.

So I said "Well that's one way to have a baby but it's kind of hard that way, it is major surgery so it takes a long time to recover, etc." I had his attention. I went on, "The way that I had you and Jasmine is a little bit different than that....[pause]....and one of these days I am going to explain that to you!"

The end. And luckily he left it at that.

~My 100~

I started this list forever ago and then forgot about it. Here it finally is. Sorry it is so long. I think it will be fun to read a long time from now. I hate to tag people but you should try this it is pretty fun to think of so many things! So here goes...

1. I enjoy my birthday very much but ironically I share it with my mom, who hates getting older

2. I repressed most of my childhood
3. I did a state report on Louisiana when I was in the 5th grade and then I married someone from there.
4. I have a degree in Social Work and even though it is just an SSW, I consider myself a "Social Worker"
5. I could write a book with all of the romantic things my husband has done for me, and someday I might.
6. One of my worst fears is getting the forehead “scowl” wrinkle
7. I truly believe I couldn't eat enough ice cream but I am trying to set limits on my portions
8. I cry at the wrong times, and I cry often

9. I love to cross things off a to-do list
10. I love the smell of ajax and irish spring soap
11. Yard sales are one of my favorite things in the world
12. I enjoy using big words
13. My marriage is the most difficult and most wonderfully rewarding thing in my life all at the same time.

14. I recently found a hair coming out of my chin! what is that?

15. I love to read and wish I made it more of a priority
16. My idea of labor is quite different than most, for me it’s a process of hard work that I get to experience and then feel elated at the reward at the end.
17. It is impossible for me to sneeze once
18. I sleep so hard that it scares my husband
19. I have a problem with thinking about or touching my clavicle, it used to be both of them, now it is just the left one.
20. Seeing any kind of skin disorder or rash, makes me cringe so bad
21. I am the youngest child in my family. And that explains a lot.
22. I love a bargain so much that I sometimes buy things I don’t need because they are such a “great deal”.
23. I seem to remember only random odd things and very important memories are gone if I don't write them down.
24. My sister is one of my best friends

25. I have lived in Guatemala, Houston, Washington D.C., Salt Lake City, Logan, UT and Rexburg ID.
26. I wish I had more "tangible" talents like playing the piano, or being a great singer
27. The fact is, I really can't sing well, but ironically I sing with my kids A LOT
28. When I am around someone a lot, I start to develop their mannerisms
29. I wish I knew my U.S. and world history better
30. A clean home is one of the most relaxing things for me
31. I started wearing glasses for the first time in the 8th grade. I lost them within a month.
32. I am forever indebted to my sister in law Cat for taking me to get my eyebrows waxed
33. You see, I have savage eyebrows
34. I want to live outside of Utah but have mixed feelings as to whether I want my kids to grow up the teen years somewhere else.
35. I actually like public speaking, sometimes love it
36. I don't remember my dreams
37. I have callous' on my feet
38. I think holidays should be celebrated in a BIG way
39. It's hard to have such a unique name but I have grown to love it
40. I speak spanish, not extremely well, but I do
41. I have a love affair with wild flowers

42. I consider myself a hairy person
43. I live a very compartmentalized life
44. I like to use social work terms like that
45. I have my dad's feet, not great when you are a girl, thanks to my brother for pointing that out to me.
46. I have to have a set time set aside for each task--I struggle with not regretting too much.
47. In high school I used to be able to talk on the phone for hours, now I can barely stand a few minutes-but email me.
48. I love party planning and I want to own a reception center some day, I wanted to be a wedding planner but I don't think I have the sense of style, so instead I will own the place where it will all happen so that I can be close to the planning.
49. I love to set goals and love even more to achieve them
50. I want my kids to grow up to be good people

51. I have a small obsession with my kids having good manners
52. I have no sense of style, I rely on others for this
53. I LOVE being pregnant and I find that oddly wonderful
54. I am pregnant right now! yes, this is an announcement
55. I put my foot in my mouth all the time
56. I feel like I am always in a hurry and I still get to places late
57. I am not a creative person by nature but if you give me ideas, I can tweek them and make something really great
58. I have no idea how to accessorize so I wear very little jewelry
59. I would like to learn how to hypnotize myself
60. Friendship is very important to me 61. I avoid conversations about natural vs. medicated labor
62. I look up everything on the internet-largely because of #57
63. I want to be a doula some day
64. I wear my hair up too much

65. I still talk to all of my close friends from high school and a couple of them are still some of my best friends...I think that is kind of cool. 66. When I set my mind to something I will usually accomplish it
67. I wish I had taken debate in High School
68. I loved going to girls camp even though I don't enjoy camping
69. Someday I want to write a book, about what? I have no idea
70. I brainstorm "ideas" for business' all the time
71. There was a time in my life when I did enjoy country music. I don't think I will go through that phase again.
72. I secretly love to shop thrift stores
73. I talk too loud
74. There are movies that I could watch over and over again and never get sick of them. I put them in to cheer me up, for example steel magnolias and the wedding planner.
75. I am allergic to cats

76. Central Park is literally heaven on earth for me
77. I hate pity and will avoid it at all costs
78. I am facinated by the diversity of this country and dream of living in different parts of it all the time
79. I am pro-peeps
80. I love to say things for shock value
81. I am definitely more liberal than conservative
82. I have a strong testimony of Jesus Christ as my Savior
83. I think the luckiest thing that has ever happened to me is to have been born on my mom's birthday (and my due date no less!)
84. I think of letters to people in my head all the time, most of which I never send
85. I want to visit Africa and the Amazon jungle someday, so many other places too, but those are the top 2
86. I am a selective perfectionist
87. I love the library
88. I am a morning person-and I am not afraid to say it!
89. My husband and I managed a shelter for victims of domestic violence for 3 years--we lived there.
90. I love pretty much anything with lemon and salt
91. I have a really bad temper and I hate it
92. I have lived in this city for so many years and I still get lost all the time
93. I want to get lasik surgery someday
94. I have a fear of becoming blind like my grandfather was
95. NYC-I want to live there so badly, but I can't so I will visit as often as I can.
96. After getting married, we went on a month long honeymoon to Florida.
97. I love knowing all of the kid activities going on in my city and taking my kids to all of them
98. I talk in my sleep, apparently mostly in Spanish
99. As a kid we used to drive from the states all the way to Guatemala
100. My kids call me a silly mom all the time. I am silly, and kind of quirky too.

One Thing that is Green

I have been thinking for some time about the overuse of those pesky plastic shopping bags that you get at Walmart etc. It annoys me that baggers feel they need to put each item in it's own bag practically. At any given time you can find a huge ball of them under my sink. And although I recycle them now, and try to reuse them whenever possible, it is still a problem. Did you know that the average american uses between 300-700 of them per year? That's like 14 million trees per year, not to mention the oil that it takes to produce them. The other day I was buying some little thing (I don't remember what) and I told the bagger that a bag was not neccessary. She either didn't hear or didn't believe me, I don't know which, and she bagged it anyway. I went as far as to give her the bag back and asked her to please reuse it. I mean, I could totally carry this one item in my hand, it was not going to fall and break into a million pieces. Well I may have offended her because she looked at me with such a bewildered look.
I learned on the plane on Tuesday that Wild Oats is banning the use of plastic bags altogether and that IKEA is next. San Francisco banned them 1 year ago in the whole city.

I read this on the Chico bag site:

"Plastic bags don't biodegrade, they photo-degrade--breaking down into small toxic bits contaminating soil and waterways and entering the food-chain when mistaken for zooplankton or jellyfish." I didn't know that.


Jetblue's Earth day promotion (with the givaway bags) is called "One Thing that's Green". The premise is that each person can surely do one more thing to help preserve our wonderful earth. I remember thinking as a teen, how lame it looked to carry a reusable shopping bag into the store, but now that will be me. I am going to make a committment to try to use reusable bags as much as possible. The nice thing is that they compact down so little and they have a clip to hang on to your belt loop. So I am just going to keep a few in my car so that I am ready to go.
And that will be my one green thing. What's yours?

The Namesake

I finally finished reading the book that I had started before I got so engrossed in the Twilight series. I had heard raves about it and my friend said that she loved the movie, but I have to say it wasn't my favorite. I loved learning more about the Indian culture and the author did an excellent job of describing the process of assimilation into a new culture, the ups and downs, but overall it was such a sad story. I guess I just wanted a happy ending.

l

My first missionary experience

About 3 months ago the missionaries approached us and asked to do a little lesson in our home. They said that they were meeting with all the leaders of the auxiliaries to teach a lesson on the Restoration and to find out if we knew of anyone in the area who could be taught. At this time Jonas had started teaching the young men in our ward and he told them of a boy that had been to a few activities and had wonderful questions about the gospel. We gave them that name and one other, and they were on their way. A month of so later, we got a visit from new missionaries now, who were wondering about this family. They asked if we would still be willing to help teach this boy, Jesus, if he was interested. We said yes of course, and that we could have the discussions at our home if they wanted. Well, that got the ball rolling into the first missionary experience that I have ever had. I truly had no idea what I was getting myself into. I have prayed for an experience like this and I am so grateful that I was finally able to go through this wonderful process.


Turns out that Jesus' mom Cristina also wanted the discussions! The only problem is that she only speaks Spanish and Jesus does not want to go to a Spanish speaking branch, so the only option was for me to translate everything. This has been such a trial for me as my Spanish is fine, but not excellent, and then translation is another story. It is very difficult to do. But I really have felt the spirit of the Lord helping me as I do this. There was one particular Sunday that was really special. It was fast Sunday and people were bearing their testimonies and I just felt like everything said was just what she needed to hear and it was so easy to translate, like the words just flowed out of my mouth with ease. It was hard to contain the tears and after a while I stopped trying.



Jonas was right about Jesus. From the beginning he amazed us with his desire to learn. He is at a difficult age (11) and I hope he can get through the trials of peer pressure and bad influences, etc. At the very first meeting, he told us that he loved his mom so much and all his life he just wanted to make her happy. How sweet is that? Well as time went on it became apparent that he was doing that very thing, because if it wasn't for him, we may not have found his mother. And now she has the tools to be happy forever.



So it has been a pretty amazing couple of months as we have all seen the light that has started to burn more brightly within them, what a wonderful thing to be a part of. Yesterday was the Baptism, and it was such a spiritual experience. Jesus' cousin Andrea was also able to be baptized with them as she turned 8 last year. I was able to give the talk on Baptism and translate for the rest of the time. It was wonderful.

Fuzell Shoes

Shayden's invention for first grade. This was our first really big project this year. It was kind of a headache thinking of what to invent but we both came up with this idea together.

One of the mom's that was there said that he got up to show the class when it was his turn and he said "Presenting, Fuzell shoes, by Shayden...!" so loudly and with conviction. That didn't surprise me at all as Shayden does everything with a lot of passion. He is a very clever little boy and he does surprise me with his wit and smarts all the time. I am so proud to be his mom.

Many hidden blogging worlds

Yesterday I came across an entire blogging community devoted to punctuation blunders and such. I was laughing so hard at some of this stuff that I had to share:

Found this on PAN, from afroswede’s flickrstream


Curious Signs posted this
and check out this other goodie here.

Quotation marks posted this one
what exactly does Government inspected mean?