Summer Lovin'

Okay, I know, I know. I have had several requests for an update on the blog. It was such an insane summer that it flew by, without me blogging. And I am paying for it with all of the comments of why haven't you updated? So how 'bout a synopsis? That I was I can catch everyone up and you people can stop bugging me...fair enough?

May-Grandma was finishing moving in. That was an incredibly exciting time. We are so grateful and feel very blessed to have her here and part of our little home. There were boxes everywhere and her shredder was going non-stop. But we managed to get through it and we didn't kill each other. It has been a very smooth transition, and we are all loving it. The kids really enjoy having an extra ear to bend, especially when they are mad at us. Grandma is a fantastic ally for the kids (and a wonderful help to me).

We have enjoyed having her dog too. Missy is a nut (we think she needs therapy), and although the cats have not made the adjustment, the rest of us have\. We could do without the licking and the foot fetish the dog has, but overall, we have become quite a happy little family.

As the end of the school year approached, it was time for the dance festival. It is a favorite time of year for us, and as usual LOADS of fun. The dance festival is great way for me to see how much they have grown and changed this year.

Baylees' class did the mexican hat dance. Unforetunately the night before, she cracked her elbow and was in a sling. So in a move of desperation, her partner would grab the sleeve of her jacket to spin around with since he couldn't touch her arm. It about pushed him over the edge...but they all made it through.

Noahs' class did a chinese ribbon dance. Those poor boys, you can tell they really had to struggle through it. I think they would have been content just skipping the whole thing, too bad their PE grade depended on the dance.

Savannahs' class did an awesome recreation of an early pioneer dance. It was really cute, and the girls tried really hard to get it right...the boys, not so much. But overall it turned out fantastic.

Every year at the end of the festival, all of the students (all 180 of them) get on the field and do the electric slide. It is a great way to finish off the fun and everyone loves it.

Okay, so that pretty much raps up the big events for May...and onto June.

June-School officially ended. Yay. We were so excited for summer. It was time and we were ready.

We kind of took it easy in June. Getting ready for the company we were going to have in July. We spent most of our time at the pool and just sleeping in and being lazy. The kids were kind of bummed at the rule for summer that you didn't get to play until chores were done. The first few days were pretty funny, since nobody got anything done until about 4 or 5.

But we also got to have Baylees' birthday party. We have usually done something small for her birthday, but this year she wanted a PARTY. So we invited 11 little girls for a late night (I wasn't ready for a slumber party of that magnitude). We had pizza, movies, popcorn and candy. And at the very end, when they were completely full of sugar...we had dancing. They had a blast. But I discovered that most of Baylees' friends are posers, just like her. So trying to get any spontaneous pictures was impossible. So I went for the traditional group photo.

And then July rolled around and things got REALLY crazy. My sister was getting married on July 5. My cousin and her family was staying with us (which is a wonderful tradition that we love). We had a houseful, especially when my aunt and other cousin would come over. We had a wonderful time.

Unforetunately as they were showing up, we found out that Noah had contracted another serious staph infection due to his eczema and wasn't allowed in water and we had to be extremely careful to keep him away from everyone until the antibiotics kicked in.

So on the 4th of July we all spent the day at my parents house for some water fun, and Felix took Noah out and about for some Father/son time since he wasn't allowed to do any of the activities. It all worked out, but we missed having Noah around for the fun.

The wedding was down in Manti and it was an absolutely gorgeous day. It was great to see family and friends that we haven't seen for a while. And it is always wonderful to be reminded of the promised made when I got married. Karey and Shawn were absolutely spectacular and it was a wonderful, beautiful day.

So July, just kind happened from there. We kept enjoying what we were doing and having a grand time. But at the end of the month, Noahs' staph infection was back with a vengeance and he was very ill. He was banned from all water sports and pretty much the outside world because we were concerned about what he could catch. It was a bummer. And because I am who I am, if Noah couldn't go in the water, neither would I. Which pretty much ended things for Caleb, Baylee and I too.

As Noahs' illness spread into August, and we were doing everything we could to keep him out of the hospital and get ready for school...it was wild.

We got everyone ready for school and School started. WAHOO. (Just imagine the happy dance that I am doing right now). Everyone was ready for a schedule and organization...neither of which I supplied this summer.

But right after school started Noah had to have a small surgery to remove some growths that were causing his staph infections. So he was pretty stoked that he got to miss school right away. He wasn't very excited about school...the transition is always hard.

But now that all of the scary stuff is over, we are all starting to fall into our place and get used to the new routine. They still can't play until their chores are done...so on lazy days, we are still spending a lot of time together. I don't know if they like it, and when they are screaming, I don't either. But on lazy days, when everyone is happy, it is truly bliss.

Lesson Learned from Not Blogging All Summer

1. I am incredibly boring when I try to recap the action. Seriously, I would make a lousy sports announcer.

2. When I blog right away, I can really capture the moments so much better.

3. My kids are really lazy...but that doesn't have anything to do with blogging, I just thought I would point out that we have really spent a lot of time together.

4. Blogging is a lot more fun in little pieces.

5. I need to take more pictures, so that my blogs are a little more lively.

I'm A Bubble Blowing Baby

I have recently read, "The Last Lecture"...and for any of you who haven't heard of it or read it yourselves...it is a must read.

As for me, I was incredibly touched. It made me determined to live. Not just be, but LIVE. Enjoy who is around me, what is around me and quite frankly, me. So after finishing the book yesterday, I was in that deep thought place...which depending on the day it can be good or bad. But in this case, it was good.

I was pondering my world and how I could make it better for me and everyone around me, when suddenly I was presented with a three year old and a bottle of bubbles. Okay, whatever...we do bubbles all the time. I opened the bottle, handed it back and said go to it.

After he got tired of blowing, he handed me the bottle and said "Your turn mom." Alright. Whatever you say. So I began blowing, and blowing and blowing. When suddenly I was struck by what a perfect activity bubble blowing really is. And not for kids...ADULTS. This is a perfect ADULT activity. And this is why:

You know when you have a bad day and you simply can't do anything right. Nothing works, nothing is even getting finished because you can't focus worth squat. Well, that would be a perfect day to blow bubbles. What other activity could you possibly do, with instant results, that are PERFECT. With the smallest effort, i.e. dipping a stick into soap, putting it somewhere in the range of your mouth, and pursing your lips and blowing. And out comes the desired results. Instantly. How perfectly gratifying. It took no time...and you got something done, something you wanted, something you expected. AWESOME.

WHAT A SELF ESTEEM BOOST.

But now I need to explain why I am a Bubble Blowing Baby. As I am having my little epiphany over bubbles, the sweet three year old squealing with delight over every bubble he pops, I am given the reason why I WANT to be a Bubble Blowing Baby. I take a quick little breather over the bubbles, (yes, it can be exhausting...I am currently working on building up my stamina) and my sweet boy puts his head on my shoulder and says, "Mom, you blow good bubbles."

I believe I have found my calling in life.

Lessons Learned:

1. You are never too old to play.
2. You are never too old to play with your friends...even if your friends are three years old.
3. Blowing bubbles can be a life affirming activity.
4. Putting a porch on my house was a really good idea.
5. Life is good.

Come On In, The Water Is FINE

Before you read this, I ask one thing. Just one. Very simple...while you read, you must have the tune of "Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head" going in your head. Don't worry. It will all make sense.

And I changed my mind, I am going to ask something else, too. Each of my blogs is posted with absolute honesty, so in the interest of my already fragile psyche....NO MAKING FUN OF ME.

So let us begin.

Some days are better than others. Right? We have all been there. You make the best out of each and every day. However, some days, there is just no place to go with what you got. Especially when what you got shows up at midnight.

Remember, Raindrops keep falling on my head....

Now imagine....a solid, sound, deep sleep. Warm covers, inviting pillow and a 10 year old SCREAMING LIKE A MANIAC. "There is water everywhere in my room and the basement."

I jump out of bed to see what was the matter (is that plagiarism? I love the Night Before Christmas). I roar down the stairs, and I can hear it before I see it...but the kitchen floor is covered with water. I immediately see that it is coming from under the kitchen sink and throw the doors open. And it was like a scene out of a sitcom. A psychotic water line wreaking havoc with all of my cleaning materials. Bummer.

So in I go, with my hands in front of me to protect me from the violent stream of water that is intent on ruining every thing it can in the shortest amount of time. With a little wrestling (imagine me wrangling a spaghetti noodle), I manage to get it under control and shut off all of the water.

As Savannah went to get towels, I went to survey the damage in the basement. I walk down the stairs this time, because the sound of rushing water is so loud. I almost didn't go because at that point, I didn't really want to know. But my curiousity got the best of me....and that was dumb.

Raindrops keep falling on my head.....

And the beautiful rushing waterfall coming out of the vent in the playroom was truly a sight to behold. So I run to Savannahs room and survey the beautiful sounds of the rain dripping from her ceiling...lovely. Next job...get the bowls...lots and lots of bowls.

The first thing we do is try the wet/dry vac. It sucks...and not in the funny vacuum joke kind of way...it was useless. You would think with an inch of water on the floor it couldn't miss...but it did. So we do the best damage control we possibly could. I go upstairs, dejected, depressed and torqued out of my mind. And then...the A-HA moment hits. WooHoo.

I grab my carpet cleaner and begin soaking up several gallons of water. It was pure genius. By the time I was done, the carpet was simply damp, not soaked. YAY. We have done everything possible, we wait for the playroom to stop dripping and head to bed.

Morning has broken (okay, so I am really pushing it with the whole music thing, but oh well). And I go to survey the damage. Still a nightmare...what a surprise.

So I begin making phonecalls. And can I just say, we had the best contractor do our addition, and he was the first person I called. He was more than willing to get someone out immediately to get the wet ceiling down so we wouldn't get mold, mildew and all of the horrible things that make your house unlivable.

It took a couple of hours to get furniture moved and things covered, but the end result is quite fetching. A gaping whole in the ceiling that makes the owner of the room scream when she comes home from school is what every home needs.

And then there was the pulled back carpet, with the mega fans, the toys moved every where so I can get to the wet spot (giant wet spot). It was like a dinosaur used my playroom like a litter box, know what I mean?

So while we were having the fun of the aftermath, I get a plumber out here. (It happened to be our contractors son). Who by the way, kindly pointed out that it was my fault from when I replaced the water line, and it took him 10 minutes to fix. Now, this is where my fragile ego comes back into play...it was my fault. Okay? Are you happy? I said it. I am not saying anymore. And the bright spot, was that he didn't charge me. Thank goodness.

While it was an incredibly wild ride, especially for the middle of the night...we were very, very, very lucky. It isn't nearly as bad as it could be....cuz it could have been bad.

As per blogs past....

Lessons Learned.

1. I am NOT a plumber.
2. I love my carpet cleaner...it is a magical toy.
3. Savannah does NOT like getting rained on in the middle of the night.
4. Everything material can be fixed.
5. Oh yeah, I am NOT a plumber.

You can stop singing Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head now.

Diet Coke 'Sploding

Many of you know that we are unorthodox parents. Mostly because we are nothing but giant kids ourselves. So for Noahs 8th Birthday we had a 'Mythbusters' party of sorts.

For anyone not familiar with Mythbusters, it is a show on the Discovery Channel where they find all sorts of myths, stories and urban legends and debunk them through 'scientific discovery' which usually ends with something being blown up. WE LOVE THAT SHOW. One of our favorite episodes is the one where they figure out how to get the biggest bang out of Mentos and Diet Coke. (Again, for anyone who doesn't know, when you put Mentos in Diet Coke, it is like carbonation on steroids.)

So we invited 5 of Noah's friends, his sisters (because they too love to blow up Diet Coke) and his little brother (we always need comic relief), and let the Diet Coke explosions begin.

With some careful planning, lining up of Diet coke bottles, and instructions, we were ready to get started. Although all of the kids wanted to set them off all at the same time, we had to nix that (we had 2 hours to kill), and we only had 17 bottles of Diet Coke.

While as a family we have set off Diet Coke bottles many times, we were surprised that some of the kids had never heard of the wonderful world of psycho-carbonation. It was an adventure to be sure. And our guests couldn't believe that they got to 'blow stuff up' at a birthday party.

After the first round the kids started to really get into the 'project'. They were using paper as funnels and trying to figure out how to get as many Mentos into the Diet Coke bottle as possible (because the more Mentos the bigger the show).

We managed to get a few really great spouts going. The only problem we faced with our little experiment was how to get Caleb to stop drinking from the geysers. And from what I understand, because you know they all had to try it, peppermint Mentos and Diet Coke Tastes NASTY.

It looks like they had a good time. And if they didn't, I did. Once all of the Diet Coke and Mentos had been sprayed all over the road, it was time to move on. And we made rainbow colored volcanoes. Sorry folks, no pictures, I was too busy trying not to get food coloring all over myself.

We discovered many wonderful and exciting things in our scientific endeavors.

All in all it was an incredibly fun day, right up Noahs alley (and quite frankly, the rest of ours as well.) So, Happy Birthday Noah...and you thought you wouldn't make it to this birthday.

Lessons Learned

1. Diet Coke and Mentos is one of the best activities EVER.

2. Caffeine, 6 little boys, 2 little girls and a spastic two year old...not a good idea.

3. When making volcanos out of baking soda and vinegar, putting the lid on will NOT make the bottle explode...apparently oxygen is a crucial part of the chemical mix.

4. It takes forever for food coloring to mix up in the vinegar, so if you add it at the end, right before the baking soda, you will get a fascinating rainbow effect in your volcano.

5. When your kid wants to blow up Diet Coke and Mentos for his birthday, let him. WAY FUN.

Pizza Pandemonium

Okay, there won't be very many of these, but this will be a picture-less blog. However, for posterity (as are most of my posts) I had to get this story up.

After spending a week in bed with the flu, and eating various fast food, we decided to round out the week with pizza. Yay, PizzaHut online ordering. We enter in our order, and send it, at which point the pop-up window informs us that it will be delivered in 100 minutes. Yes, that is correct...100 minutes. So I call PizzaHut directly to confirm. Yup, there was a storm, therefore, it will be 100 minutes. And we cancel the order.

Alright Dominoes, your turn. Felix calls this time, and they only have a 40 minute wait. Groovy. We order, we wait.

After 40 minutes, we still have no pizza. At this point we start mulling over whether or not we should call and find out where the pizza is. And gratefully, the doorbell rings. Guess who?

PIZZA HUT. No, I'm not kidding. The poor deliver driver started taking out pizza out, when Felix informed him that we cancelled our order. You should have seen the look of pure dispair on the mans face. He said so far it was the second one that was cancelled that he tried to deliver. So we turned him away, and called Dominoes.

Dominoes was confused by our call because "Weren't you supposed to pick that up?" No, we are lazy people. Delivery...thank you very much. It took, them 10 minutes to find our pizza, but they offered to deliver it right away and give it to us for free. Awesome.

So about 20 minutes later, Dominoes shows up with the pizza. The order is wrong, but it was free, so we took it.

Lessons Learned:

1. If PizzaHut shows up at your door with pizza, buy it. Don't ask questions. Just buy it.
2. When your pizza hasn't shown up in the promised time, call right away. You might have a chance at it still be warm when it finally does arrive.
3. When you have been eating fast food for a week, nothing tastes good, not even free pizza.
4. Teach your children to cook early (even if it is scrambled eggs) so that when you are deathly ill, you don't have to resort to funding the fast food industry.
5. Teach your husband to cook. So that when you are deathly ill, you don't have to resort to funding the fast food industry.

Cat Bathing 101

I know that this is no flaming toilet, but for posterity I had to take pictures and post. Meet Persephone (Goddess of the Underworld), Seph for short. She is the youngest of our three cats, we love her, she loves us, but some days, she falls a few cards short of a full deck, IF ya know what I mean.

Well a couple of weeks ago (you can tell I am trying to catch up from all of the Christmas chaos), the poor kitty had been out playing, when we opened the door, the pathetic little creature was sitting on the porch half, yes half, covered in mud. Here are the theories:

1. She was sitting in the mud (because we don't have a front yard yet), and fell asleep and fell over.

2. She was sitting in the mud (because she heard it was good for her skin), got bored and fell over.

3. She was sitting in the mud (because she had just inhaled a ton of catnip and was high) and just plain fell over.

4. There is no excuse, she fell over.

Anyhoo, it went a bit like this:

We take the dirty little kitty to the bathroom, because after watching her try so hard to get the mud off of herself, we decide she needs a bit of help. Savannah sat in the background telling me what a bad idea she thinks it is to give the cat a bath. My response, DUH, okay, DUH.

I don't know a single person who thinks it is a good idea to give a cat a bath, that is like a death wish, know what I mean.

We put the baby kitty in the water, she did GREAT, for about 10 seconds, then she realized she was wet and started yowling like you have never heard before. It was funny. Because if you look closely at my face (OKAY, not that close...back up people), you can see that I am just waiting for the full on assault and gratitude that Savannah is in the room so she can call 911 after I am slashed to near death.

In order to save my own life, we shorted the process, skip the shampoo call a rinse good and let go and run for our lives. Believe it or not we escape with no injuries.

Don't ask the cat, but she survived. A little worse for the wear, but a little less mud. and that was good for all.

She was torqued for a while, but at the end of the day, she forgave us.

So in case you ever need the help, here are my tips for some good ol' fashioned CAT WASHING!!

CAT WASHING 101

1. If you fill up the tub as much as you can, you don't have to work so hard at rinsing.

2. Unless you are really afraid, don't let your kids in to help, all they do is make fun of you.

3. Soap is optional unless they are STANKY...and I mean STANKY.

4. Believe it or not, cats are very forgiving, after you suck up with cat nip and kitty treats.

5. Finish your yard as quickly as possible, that way when the special needs kitty falls over, they fall on grass, not dirt.

The Carnage of Christmas 2007

Ahhhhhh.....it's over, it's over, it's over!!!!! Don't get me wrong, I love Christmas! I love that everybody is in a giving mood, and people are over all more friendly, smiley and sparkley. But let's be honest boys and girls, there is a reason that Christmas comes down at 8am on December 26th. As with any aspect of life, the law of opposition is in effect. To counteract all of the twinkly, sparkly people, there are those who cut you off, take stuff they want out of your cart and generally will try and kill you to get the last "it" toy of the year. And that is how Christmas is just for the general population. THEN, there are the kids.......

Just like any other Christmas morning, it all starts to peacefully. There they are the gift, wrapped (and sparkly) under the tree, lights twinkling with the wonder of the day...and then THEY show up. So cute, excited and MANIC! The wrapping paper flies in every direction, no care given for the defenseless babies and parents. And if you look very carefully, behind safety goggles of course, you can see the bits of chocolate flying out of their mouths as they squeal in delight. Fortunately, the chaos lasts but a moment. Seriously, it only takes a minutes and it's over. Whew!!!!!! Then everyone, after the initial excitement of opening the packages, takes a closer look, so they can decide whether to thank or berate the parents. It is always a relief when the thanks appears, instead of facing the fears of having to stand in the return line for an eternity.

And with some of the children (who have absolutely no personality whatsoever), you have posing! And others sheer excitement at the gift they never expected to receive! And yet others, offer comic relief at the misunderstanding at what the gift is exactly supposed to do.

Even with the chaos, they are still kind of cute.

So at the close of this blog, what are the lessons learned?

CHRISTMAS 2007 LESSONS

1. It doesn't matter whether you have a small Christmas or a big Christmas, the carboard box is still the favorite toy (for kids of all ages).

2. If you close your eyes, it is all over way too quick. My advice, just hold on tight and enjoy the ride.

3. Chocolate for breakfast (unless you are the mom) is a BAD, BAD, BAD idea.

4. Choosing non-breakable ornaments was a great idea. Too bad the 2 year old took them all off and hid them.

5. Christmas is and will forever be about LOVE.

So from our family to your, regardless of the chaos or peace surrounding your household and the holiday season, MERRY CHRISTMAS, HAPPY NEW YEAR and much love.

The Morgan Family

Felix, Wendy, Savannah, Noah, Baylee and Caleb