Long May She Wave

I get a little introspective this time of year, being around Independence Day and all. I was once accused of being un-American and perhaps un-Patriotic because of my love for Germany and the German people after serving my mission there. I have to tell you that it stung a little (okay, a lot) but it has made me think about my feelings about being an American. I LOVE THIS COUNTRY. I am grateful for my freedom and for being governed in a democratic republic, even if we have crazy politicians who don't always handle things in the way I think they should be handled. (At least they have the freedom to mess up and we have the freedom to vote to change our leadership or not - there's something to be said for everyone have a choice, just ask anyone who survived a communist regime or dictatorship!) Did you know that I get misty eyed every time the flag goes by? (Yes, I was crying a little behind my sunglasses at the parade on Sunday.) Or that I cannot make it through singing the Star Spangled Banner without choking up? It's true! And why you might ask? Because I know for sure the God Blessed America. No other country in the world was established by such wonderful God-fearing men as ours. Seriously, can you even utter the phrase "God Bless America" and not feel a twinge inside? So, I love this country. I consider myself tremendously patriotic, not in a left wing or right wing or any other wing way. Just in a middle-of-the-road, middle America,from the peaks to the plains, from sea to shining sea, from the North to the South kind of way. Isn't that what makes America great?

Floating out in Cyberspace

So guess what... I got a comment on my last posting about the ramen noodles. I'm not sure who you are, Lauren, but you've got me thinking. I didn't protect my blog or any of that because it's mostly to keep family up to date and I thought to myself, "Who in the wide world is going to stumble upon me in all of cyberspace??". Well, guess what, apparently it happens! Somebody is reading what I wrote and LIKING it. So weird. I mean, I'm the first to admit that I adore cyberstalking my friends and family plus random blogs that I have stumbled upon to fuel my obsessions. (Sewing anyone?) It feels great and strange all at the same time. Who knew??

Someday it will be funny....

So yesterday I was blissfully taking care of things around the house. I cooked lunch for my children - ramen noodles (you're impressed, I know) and gave them a bunch of grapes. I stepped out of the room to make a phone call. I heard the children laughing but that's fairly normal. They spend lots of time trying to make each other laugh (don't know whose children they are =o). I came back in the room to check on them to find the worst possible mess EVER. I'm not kidding!! They had gotten into a food fight and there were ramen noodles everywhere - all over the table, the chairs, the floor... they even managed to throw them into the living room and the hallway! Seriously, it was like 200 square feet covered in ramen!!! Obviously the older two were the culprits because the baby was covered from head to toe in noodles and then they had capped it all off by dumping the crumbs from the Cheese Nips box over her head! They tarred and feathered her - food fight style! (It occurred to me as I was washing the Cheese Nips out of Sarah's hair that I really should have taken a picture. ) I forced Paige and Porter to crawl around and pick up the noodles. Today I will get out the trusty vacuum cleaner to get the rest. (Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad in a normal dining room but we have carpet right now so there is no quick sweeping up of the mess. You have to let things dry out so you don't gum up the vacuum....ugg.) I did take a couple pictures of the room but they don't do it justice. To all those who read this, go ahead and laugh. Just wait a while to ask me about it unless you wanna see my best grumpy mom look, k?

Rain Rain Go Away

It's supposed to be summer here. That's what the calendar tells me. So far we've just had lots of rain and cold. As I sit here, we should be getting rid of day 3 of swimming lessons but it's a downpour outside and I just can't bear to make my sweet little girl put a swimsuit on and go out in the that rainy cold world!

We branded yesterday. It was a wee bit late. Some of the calves were GINORMOUS! We managed to get through it without anybody getting severely injured. There were a few interesting moments thanks to Uncle Mike and Tanner - hooray for the Perrys =o). Aunt Crystal did manage to get sunburned. As of last night she said only her face hurt. (Wonder how she's feeling today.... hee hee.) How 'bout closer to Mother's Day next year??

OH YEAH... suppose I should update you on the housing situation! We actually live somewhere! We found a little house to rent right in the bustling metropolis of Fairfield. It is smaller than our other house was but it works. It has three bedrooms, one small bathroom (as La Neige put it "That's the smallest full size bathroom I've ever seen!!") and a large fenced yard. It is really close to church and the school, which will be perfect this fall, and we have been able to walk to the park and post office and library so far. If the weather ever cooperates, we'll be walking everywhere! It is dated but clean. The landlords are very friendly and are very willing to let us make improvements to the place. I've already installed new flooring in the entryway. I hope to do a little painting in the bathroom and maybe in the living room if I can ever figure out what color goes with nasty '70s goldish orangish brown carpet.

We are still ironing out details to break ground on our new house. There is lots of red tape involved. (Are you really that surprised?) If Adam didn't have to work, things would move more quickly but as it is he has to handle everything on his days off amongst all the other million things he always has to do. I'm not complaining. We are making slow progress. At least I don't have to fight red tape with three kids tagging along - that would be sooo fun.

I am an aunt again, officially. Nicole's 4th girl, Kinley, was born May 22. She is the tiniest version of the Leiser girls weighing in at 6lb. 11 oz. So far she looks just like all her sisters did at birth but shows inclinations to be a fairer version like Kayla. She's very sweet. Paige is finally old enough to like babies. She got to hold Kinley and you should have seen the look on her face. She was completely enamored. If you know Paige, you can guess at that shy little look of joy she had! It was so sweet. She just stared and stared and told me about all the tiny little fingers, toes, etc. and how soft her skin was. I have to admit it was a pretty sweet moment for me as a mom too. There are more babies on the way in the next year and that is pretty exciting too - thank goodness none of them are mine though!! I'm very content to enjoy everyone else's right now. =o)

Porter is hilarious as always. He has moved on from Spiderman and Batman. Now he is Ironman. Instead of putting the Bat-suit on, he now tells you he's getting "angry eyes" when he's turning into Ironman. He totally does all the motions - shoots fireballs out of his palms, puts the power source in his chest, bends his wrists and stiffens up to 'fly'. It's pretty sweet. We took the fam to Ironman 2. Paige and Porter hated it. Guess Ironman is only awesome when he's Porter. It's funny to hear Paige and Porter incorporate it into their imaginative play. The other day I overheard the following "Oh thank you Ironman" "You're welcome Restaurant Girl" Porter comes and asks for some fabric scraps because "I need some food for the Restaurant Girl!" It's funny and wonderful that they can play together and still be who they want to be. (Hmm... I think there's a life lesson in there somewhere.)

I still need a maid. I feel like I can never get anything done or caught up. Such is life. I have a mound of laundry waiting to be folded, another mound waiting to be washed, and a sink full of dishes. Quite frankly I'd rather sit on the computer or sew or read or something more fun that my household duties. UGG. Guess I really should go try to get something done. Maybe I'll reward myself with a trip to the fabric store this afternoon =o).

Moving!

So did you hear that we're moving?? Yep. It's true. Where are we moving to you ask? Good question. I got no answer right now. We will be officially homeless for the first time ever. It has been a little stressful for me but I think it's gonna be okay. We are keeping our eyes open for a rental and looking at camp trailers. So far the rental situation around here is sketchy. Mostly they are small, dumpy, or expensive and actually most of the time, they are all three! Camp Trailer is not ideal but hey, it's better than sleeping on somebody's couch with my three kids. =o) The plan for now is to put everything into two storage units. We will stay at my mother in law's, at a hotel, and eventually the kids and I will take off for my parents house for a week or two depending on how things work out. Maybe we'll actually be there so long that my mom will be sick of us, though I'm honestly not sure that she's capable of such a thing. Really just pray for us that something works out and that I don't lose my mind in between here and there!!

It's Spring - Almost

Life never slows down around here. Sometimes I wish it would but I have great hope that the lazy days of summer will help out with that! Paige is almost done with her year of preschool. It has been so fun to watch her learn and grow!! She was playing a game on the PBS kids website the other day (pbskids.org) and it was a spelling game that asked the kids to spell words by sound. She nailed every one. She is also hilarious. I do not know how her little brain functions but she comes up with amazing things. For example, the other day she said to me as we were driving home "Mom, I think I'm going to have seven kids when I grow up." I said, "Oh really?" She said, very confidently, "Yep! but if I have more than seven, I'll be like oh my heavens!!" Yesterday, as I was sewing, she came to talk to me and said, "Mom, it would be crazy if I dressed up like a clown and went to school one day. And if everyone laughed at me, I'd be really upset... But that didn't happen so don't worry!" Porter has the wildest imagination. Lately he will tell me that he's turning into Batman and he will take his hands and act like he's putting on the Bat-suit from his head down to his toes. Once he reaches the toes he starts physically acting like he's Batman. It's just too cute. He also loves to be my puppy. He especially loves it if he climbs up on the couch and I say "Bad dog! Get off the couch!" Sarah's language is really blossoming. She says cow and moos. Yesterday she started mooing as soon as we pulled into Grandma's driveway. She adores animals. It makes me sad that we don't have a dog right now because she loves them so much! I am still sewing like crazy. I just can't stop!! I also started learning to knit because I keep running into so many cute patterns that are knitting instead of crocheting. It keeps my mind and hands busy. I really like that!

Wanted: One maid. Willing to work for free....

So I have been on a creating spree. I am learning how to crochet and I LOVE it. It's relaxing, almost mindless and portable. It's almost the perfect hobby. I have made a hat, several pairs of beaded socks, and now I'm working on a bag and another hat. I guess I just have the itch to create! I just made the Easter dresses for my girls too. They turned out darling and they were super easy. I bought the pillowcase dress pattern from macymade on etsy.com for $3, the fabric and ribbon for $10, and little t-shirts to go under them for $3.50. That puts me under $20 for two Easter dresses. I think that's pretty sweet. The only problem I have is that I can't create and clean at the same time. It's times like these when I really wish I had a maid but I can only afford a free one. Any takers?? =o)