It's Wii Cool!

I started using the Wii Fit as part of my weight loss plan. Despite the fact that it is an onry and rude trainer, it is a lot of fun. It hardly feels like exercise. That's a good thing for me. It determines your "actual" age based on your balance skills and weight. I happen to score at 60 years old right now. Although, I will argue the validity of the test due to the fact that I have scoliosis and am unbalanced because of this. After my balance test the machine asked me, "Do you trip when you walk?" He/she--uh Wii--is so smart. How does he know that? Whatever works is fine for me. I'm dreaming of a cruise...

Therapy...Root Canal that is

I just got back from the dentist. It was so awesome! I love getting root canals. I wish they were like Christmas and would come every year. Did I just say that? It must be the meds talking. I did have a really good dentist, though. He had big shoes to fill as my only dentist has been Ron. (Except for the wisdom teeth Terri pulled.)

Fit or Fat?

Our family (my parents and siblings) are having a fitness competition. I am so excited about it. I have been wanting to lose weight and this is just an extra push. My brother is sponsoring a cruise and monetary awards to those that meet their goals. I am going to try to lose 40 pounds. Today, I started out great. This weekend I tried to eat up all of my chocolate stashes so that they wouldn't tempt me. Unfortunately, I realized I have way too many. Which also indicates that maybe I do have a problem. I had plain M&M's in the pantry. Peanut M&M's in the kids cupboard--disguised as "potty treats." I also have a bag of dark chocolate Dove bars in the garage. Did I mention the bag of Cheetos in another cupboard. So I'm ditching all of the junk. Fortunately, my kids are health nuts and love grapes as much as chocolate.

My in-laws have Wii Fit. I've heard great things about it. So I am going to include that as part of my fitness. I am excited to give it a try. I really want to go on a cruise in October!

Six Days without blogging...Wow!

Wow! That's a first for me. I guess I must be really busy because I love to blog. I always have--just in the old days it was journaling and not everyone could read it. I have been wanting to put some pictures up, but have experienced some technical difficulties so I just think I'll catch up on what's been happening the last week.

Lane has cut 4 teeth in the last 3 weeks. He got his bottom two teeth at about 5 months. I was afraid he was going to have a full mouth like Porter. He didn't start until 3 weeks ago and then he's gone crazy! He is growing by the day and I love watching every minute of it. He is so sweet and joyful. He does have a bit of a temper when he gets ticked. He is now sleeping through the night--kind of. He goes to bed at 7 and wakes up at 4 a.m. He will eat and go right back to sleep for a couple more hours. I consider myself to be getting a pretty long leg of sleep in there so I can't complain. I think his waking time coincides with Brant getting up at 4 a.m.

Madison and Porter are a happy little twosome these days. Grandma and Grandpa have been putting a garden in the back yard. They are right there with them. They love the outdoors. Grandma Smith helped them plant pansies and they were so proud of them. Madi and Porter play non-stop. Madison is still very motherly and mimics me in my "mom voice." She gets her hands on her hips and purses her lips. Aaahh or ugh! I'm not sure which to say at the reflection of yourself in a "Mini-me." Her favorite copycat phrase is to come into a room where were at; put her hands on her hips; then say, "What's going on in here?" It's a question loaded with the intonation that someone is doing something they shouldn't be doing.

Grandpa John Hibbard came to visit for a couple of days last week. We picked him up from the airport and took the kids to the mall while Brant was still at work. It was a lot of effort! I don't know how anyone makes regular trips to the mall with three kids. They are actually pretty good and listen at an okay level. They're potty-trained, which is nice, but sometimes I just want to put a diaper on them when we go out.

The twins are in that phase where they're not always tired enough to take a nap, but they get too tired and cranky at the end of the day when they don't have one.

They are learning the days of the week. They know them by "Family Night," "Pizza Day," "Park Day," and "Church Day." They sure get excited over the littlest things. It makes me try to be more grateful for the simple things. They love going out with Dad. Porter always goes up to Brant and says, "Dad, I want to play with you."

Brant taught Lane a mean little trick--to pinch his feeding orifice after he is done nursing. It's not nice. And, with Brant's laughter and encouragement, he continues to do it throughout the day. As if to signal he's done.

I made a mistake

Last night Lane woke up crying about this time--1 in the morning. I felt bad for him so I fed him and put him back to bed. You're not supposed to do that. You know, give in to your kids. Now I'm paying for it. He woke up again tonight and he's been crying for about 40 minutes now. They (the researchers) claim that if you give in you just taught them that there is a possibility that you will pick them up. So, I'm waiting him out tonight. It's totally my fault. Why do they do that to you? It's so hard not to give kids everything they want. I guess it's a good lesson for me to learn.

I Want That!

I took the twins to Walmart today while Lane was taking a nap. (Grandma watched him.) We were having a leisurely stroll up and down aisles. Madison kept saying, "I want that! I want that!" I kept telling her no. Finally, I said, "Madison, I don't know if you are aware of it or not, but you cannot have everything you want." No comment from her.

I continued, "Did you already know you cannot have everything that you want or did you just find out?"

Quietly and disappointed she said, "I just found out."

Cute kids don't always equal cute pictures

I was going to take some cute pictures of the kids outside today. I thought it would be fun to get all three of the dressed and have a group shot. I started with Madison--doing her hair and getting her outfit on. I even put a little makeup on to cover up her bruise. She looked so cute. (BTW Bobbi--thanks for the super cute haircut you gave her.) I got Porter dressed next and then Lane. Shortly after we all went downstairs. Porter was hiding in a corner eating a bag of Nacho Cheese Doritos.

The orange stain was all over his face, hands, and clean shirt. I was so mad. So I decided to take pictures of Madison. I threw Porter's shirt in the wash. Since I had Lane dressed I thought I would take pictures of them individually. While I was taking pictures of Madison, Lane crawled over to a dirt pile. When I found him, he had it in his hair, mouth, shirt, shorts, and socks. One shoe was off. I finally resigned to take these few shots of the twins after Porter's shirt was dry.

Madi falls down the stairs...or was she pushed?

I was in the kids room cleaning, when I heard this thump, thump, bang--breath-held scream. Porter and Madison had been playing on the stairs with their matchbox cars. I rushed to help her. Her nose was just barely bleeding and she was crying so hard she almost couldn't breathe. She managed to say she wanted her blankie and she wanted to lay in Daddy's bed. (I guess it's not my bed.) After I FINALLY got her calmed down I asked how she fell. I suggested, "Did you slip on one of the cars?" She said, "No, Porter pushed me!" I said, "Just a minute. Let me go talk to Porter."

Porter was now at the bottom of the stairs playing quietly. I said, "Porter, did you push Madison down the stairs?" He said, "Yes." I could not believe it. At least he hasn't started lying about his what he does. I guess they were fighting over a car and he pushed her away. So hopefully he doesn't have a serial killer mind and didn't do it on purpose like someone he is related to.

When I pushed Dona it was totally HER fault. She's the one that stuck her bum in the air while she was leaning over the bunk bed. ANYONE would have had a hard time resisting the temptation to push Dona off the bed. Despite my own wretched past, Porter got in trouble--or "way bad trouble" as he says.

More St. George pics

These are a little late. I've had some trouble with my camera card. The twins had so much fun with Sam. They are still talking about him. Porter really liked having a boy around.

7 blissful hours of sleep

Lane slept through the night again--10 hours. Porter would not go to sleep last night so I did not get to go to bed until 10 p.m. However, for 7 uninterrupted hours of sleep I will not complain. It feels so good.

Say Goodbye to Sleep Deprivation

I've been sleep training Lane for the last four nights. Last night was the first night he slept for 10 hours without waking up. Aaahh! Heaven! I am one of the biggest "need my sleep" people you can meet. Of course, when my eight hours is up I'm done. I don't oversleep or sleep all day. (I know Mom--when I was a teenager--that was different.)

Lane slept great last night. But did I? No. Madison, who is such a large icon in the universe that even the Sun looks at her, decided to fall out of bed while she was sleeping. Unfortunately, they sleep in a room with wood flooring. There was a loud clunk followed by a scream of terror and shrill crying. She is still cursed with my lack of coordination and falling out of bed just goes with the territory. Brant actually got up with her and put her back in bed. So, I'm not sure if she was terrified she was going to fall out of bed or what. But, she woke up 3 different times and came and crawled into bed with me. At 2 a.m. she was sitting up in my bed, playing with her favorite blanket, talking in her high-pitched little voice. I was afraid she was going to wake Lane up--and he was sleeping so well. I sent her back to bed.

I am greatly looking forward to tonight and hope that I will get my first full night's sleep in over 9 months.

Baby Bling

If you have a little girl or know someone who does--these bracelets are adorable. Not to mention handmade with sterling silver. At $6.99 per bracelet you can't beat the price anywhere. ($2.50 plus shipping and handling.) I bought some of these for Madison when she was a baby and they were very cute. I also ordered a matching set with one for her and one for me. I gave one Mother/daughter set to my sister-in-law when she had her first baby girl. She loved them! Unfortunately, I paid $15 per bracelet! Just wanted to pass on this cute little site. Visit: http://www.babyblingbykim.blogspot.com/

Just stuff

Sometimes there is not anything significant to write. Only small, unimportant things that will be reminders of the days when my children were young.

The kids played out in the backyard for most of the morning today. They love that grass. Lane thinks he's as big as they are, he just can't walk. He's trying to. He stands on his own alot and has a little cart he pushes around. I think he looks like a little old man with a walker. It helps him walk.

Madison has turned into a little prima donna. I don't know where she gets that from. I am going to give credit to her Aunt Kim. It is definitely not from me. Bobbi gave her the cutest little haircut and I think it has gone to her head. Literally. She wants her hair fixed even more now than before. She is disappointed that she can't wear ponytails, but I told her it would grow fast and soon she can have her ponytails back.

On Sunday, she was dressed in a very trendy little pink number that Aunt Vicki bought. She had knee high socks and little miniature black shoes with a small heel on them. She had a hot pink head band to match the dress. I tell you--she was prancing. Into Sacrament meeting she walked down the aisle like she was the Bride. She smiled and waved at people--who are complete strangers to her. When we took her to nursery, she announced "Hi!" with her arms wide open as if to say, "I'm here!" I am really surprised. I thought she would be more introverted. The other day she said, "Mom! The sun is looking at me. Tell it to stop looking at me!" Oh that I had the power. At least she thinks I have that power.

Porter, on the other hand, has surprised me too. I thought he would be the one who was the life of the party. He's very quiet and observant. He doesn't say much. He does like to play with his Dad alot. He loves his Dad so much. He is always asking when Dad is going to be home. He is still very cuddly. Sometimes when he is acting up I realize that I haven't spent "holding" time with him. He's the one that always asks if I'll sleep in his bed. I think his love language is definitely physical. Mine is not, so I have to remind myself to give him that attention. He is also very fond of his little brother. I didn't realize something until Vicki was here. She pointed out some of his behaviour saying it was similiar to Jaden and Sam's relationship. She said Jaden acted jealous of Sam and would be purposely mean to him. I have tried to curb that by telling Porter how much Lane looks up to him and wants to be like him. I have asked for his help with Lane alot. He has done much better, but still has that little mean streak sometimes.

We TRIED to make sugar cookies last night for Family Home Evening. It was such a mess. Our mixer broke and I thought I could mix by hand. The cookies tasted doughy and were not good. I threw them out. Probably for the best anyway. Porter and Madison love to help bake. I try not to get too exasperated with them. They're just having fun and living their life to the fullest. I would do well to do the same.

Aaahhh...getting back into the swing of things

I guess you could call it that. You know how they say there are 20 top stressors in life? I usually have two or three of those going at one time. The move has been a big one. Getting back from St. George was okay. I had so much fun hanging out with my sisters. There's six of us. Thank goodness there weren't more. They all came to St. George to be with me. I was taking out my endowment at the St. George temple. It was an amazing experience. Vicki came the farthest--clear from Alaska. It was so much fun to get to be with her. Sometimes I wish we could re-live just one day from our teenage/college years. We always had fun together.

I have so much more I should write, but don't really have the time. I have started putting myself on a "time budget." I am allocating certain time blocks for different projects. I am way over the cleaning portion of my day. But I just can't stop. I want everything clean. I know I have this problem of "over-cleaning" and I don't get to the other important things in my life. I guess I will have to work on it.

And my favorite little baby

I could watch this little boy all day. He is absolutely adorable and has the sweetest personality to match. He usually falls asleep holding onto something. He loves cars and will push them around forever. He follows Porter and Madison around and doesn't realize he is not as big as they are. It has been fun to fall asleep with a baby. Not a luxury you have with twins. I just adore him. He is a fun little caboose.

MGM Lion Habitat

Brant and I decided to start doing an "outing" once a month for Family Night on Mondays. Our first one was to the Lion Habitat at the MGM. They love the Lion King so we thought it would be fun to show them real lions. All day they were so excited about going when Dad got home. They were really worried about the Lions hurting them so I told them Dad would make sure they were safe. They had a blast, but I think the anticipation was more exciting than the actual event.

Grandpa's fish

This is a common scene as the kids love to watch Grandpa Smith's fish eat. Lane is attracted to the lights and also watches the fish. Madison picked out her outfit. I can't be blamed for that. Porter also picked out his favorite outfit--which is to take off what I put on him. Lane pooped on his pants so his were missing. I try. I really do.

Someone called the Fire Department

This is an interesting little side note to the housing crisis. In Vegas there are so many empty homes due to many factors: foreclosures, abandoned, can't rent in the market, owners live in a different state, etc. For one reason or another, the house directly across from us is supposed to be unoccupied. It's not for rent or sale. It's simple empty. Apparently, (according to all of the neighbors who are very friendly) a squatter has been living there. No one is very happy about it.

He's been kicked out a couple of times, but keeps coming back. They (the friendly neighbors) suspect he is doing crack in the house.

The next door neighbor (of the empty house) decided to call the fire department. He reported that he saw smoke coming from the garage. Firemen are allowed to kick in or go into a home without a warrant. It's a matter of safety. Whereas, police officers are not. The fireman were able to go into the house--though no smoke was apparent by the time they arrived. Upon finding the man and realizing he was no supposed to be living there, they contained him by having him lie face down on the front lawn.

We witnessed everything from the upstairs window of the kids room. During the lull--of the fire men waiting for the police officers a friendly fireman (pictured above) waved the kids down for a tour and free hats. Porter and Madison had a great time going through the fire truck and looking at all of the flashing lights.

Fun in the Back yard

I cannot believe the difference a great backyard makes. The kids have had so much fun being in the backyard. They absolutely love the grass. Even Lane likes to hang out back there. He's stayed out for a couple of hours without getting tired of it. Another great advantage you can't see from the pictures--I have windows that look out to the backyard from every room in the house so I can easily keep an eye on them.

Brant and Porter

This was on Sunday when we were getting ready for church. Brant dressed Porter and was putting his shoes in. They look so cute in their suits and ties.

Back to Blogging

I have been so busy settling in I haven't had much time to blog. A lot has happened in the past week. Thank goodness for cameras so that I can remember everything we did. Here comes a whole lotta postin'!

Settling In

Anyone who has moved knows what it's like to get settled in. Things are starting to come together. The kids absolutely love this new house and I can't get them out of the backyard. It's very nice. Grass everywhere. There are trees that will provide lots of shade in the summer time. Yesterday, all three of them spent about 3-4 hours playing outside. Madison and Porter ate their lunch and a snack in their "picnic" area. They put down a blanket and sat on it to eat. Lane crawled all over. Since it is grass, it's very soft and he likes it.

I bought a pink comforter for Madison's bed. Now she has one. She was using sheets and her favorite blankie. (Yes, she still won't let go of the one my Mom bought before she was born.)

Madison is getting into lip smackers. She carries her pink cotton candy around with her all day. She is very girlie. She insists on picking out her own clothes and getting her ponytails in before we go down for breakfast. She is always moving her head, looking at herself in the mirror when I try to do her hair. I always say, "Madison, hold still! You're driving me nuts!" Today, downstairs she started shaking her head and said, "Look Mom, I'm driving you nuts!" Apparently, she associates the head moving with the saying.

Our new ward

We went to our new ward yesterday. I love that no matter what ward you go to in the church, it feels the same. Brant has promised me that we would get to church early EVERY Sunday. It is a little pet peeve...okay, MAJOR pet peeve of mine to be on time. By the way, I follow this mantra: when you're early you're on time; when you're on time you're late; and when you're late you're lost. We were sitting in the pews at four minutes til. It makes me so happy. I don't know why. It is just a major pleaser for me to be to church on time.

I have also tried this experiment many times over the years. Whenever I am needing answers or help I always pray that I will find an answer in the church meetings. It works every time. Yesterday, I thought about what would be helpful and prayed that Brant would feel the Spirit and his testimony would grow. No sooner had the thought left my mind, than I felt a prompting that I would need to bear my testimony today. Because of all of the people that would speak, Brant would listen to me.

I thought, "No. I don't think you understood my request. I wanted You to do something---not me. I can't get up in front of all these people. I am new in this ward. I don't know anyone."

Again I felt, "It was your request, this is what you need to do." BTW, I just paraphase what I think I am hearing. These are not the real words. I assume you all know that. This reminds of the time I prayed for wisdom and humility. Be careful what you pray for. The Lord will not give it to you, you have to work for it.

Needless to say I was the second person at the pew. I didn't want to wait the whole meeting hyperventilating. Lane started screaming so loud while I was speaking (because he wanted me) that Brant had to get up and leave the meeting. It was a great way for Lane to introduce our family to the ward. Fortunately, the twins sat quietly on the pew listening to me speak. When I went to sit down, they yelled, "Here she comes! She's coming back!" I received applause from them. Then Porter announced, "I have to pee!"

I ran into Brant outside the sacrament meeting when I was taking the twins to the bathroom. While I traded kids with him, he said, "You'll have to tell me what you said, cause I didn't get to hear anything."

I thought to myself, "Great plan Heavenly Father. He didn't even hear me. You made me do that for this!" I kept saying, "I'm sure there is a greater purpose." After the meeting, we were literally mobbed by the people coming up to introduce themselves to us. It was wonderful. Lots of the men went up to Brant and talked to him. I thought, "Wow! Maybe it wasn't what I had to say that was as important as letting people know we were new." I don't know why we have to do some things, but I do believe in the promptings of the Spirit.

Anyway, it seems like a great ward. It is older than our other ward. There is only ONE (instead of three) nurseries. There are not very many babies around. And it has been established for a long time. One woman told me that she was so glad to have a new family move in as it does not happen very often. Our other ward constantly had people coming and going. I really did enjoy the people in the old ward, but know there will be great people in this ward too. BTW, we have a local celebrity in our ward. Kendall Tenney from News 3 attends.

To the middle part of the move now

We are at that part of the move where we have gotten most of the stuff out of the old house and we are working on cleaning it. Today, (hopefully) is the last day we will have to go to the old house. Then...it will be working on getting things put away and organized in the new house. Please, please, please whatever powers that be...don't make me move for at least another two years!

Signing off

We're moving today. Actually, we're finishing our move today. My brother-in-laws were supposed to move to trailer loads to the house yesterday. My 5 p.m. They had only finished one. I am grateful for their help, but they are so freakin' slow. I had EVERYTHING packed and had to unpack things so that we could stay here for another night. I was so frustrated. I finally calmed myself down by saying, "Hey, you could be traveling across the plains in a covered wagon. That would be worse." It'll be a couple of days before we get internet hooked up.

Who are you going to be little boy?

I am so in love with my kids. I guess every mother is. I just love watching them grow and change and develop the personalities every other day. Sometimes it seems Madison is on a roll and sometimes Porter. Lately, Porter has been "coming out." He cracks me up. He is all boy. He loves his bats, balls, swords, guns, and knives. But he also has such a sweet side to him. Madison spilled chips all over the pantry this morning. I told her she had to clean it up before she could eat her snack. Porter said, "I will do it." Madison was quick to relinquish the task to him. Since he was being so sweet I offered to help him. He said, "No Mom. I will do it." He cleaned it all up.
Yesterday in nursery he kept cracking me up. One of the little boys mentioned that he was wearing underwear now. Another chimed in and said, "I wear underwear too." Not to be out-done, Porter dropped his pants and announced, "I wear boxers!" I hurried to get his pants back on. I didn't want him to start a chain reaction.
While I was giving the lesson, we were talking about how Heavenly Father and Jesus love each of them. I also asked who else loved them? Brant was whispering, "Your Daddy loves you." After we settled them down from saying "Daddy loves me!" I asked "Who else loves you?" I prompted them to say, "Your Moms love you." Which had to be said over Brant's new whisper which was, "Nobody else loves you." They all started chiming, "My mommy loves me!" Porter stood up, pointed his finger at me and yelled, "And you are my Mudder!"
A couple of days ago he got into trouble for something. I don't even remember what it was. I told him he was not supposed to do that and not to do it again. He said, "Okay." Then he walked to the wall and put himself in timeout.
This morning all of the kids were outside playing. He said he wanted to go outside. I said, "You can go play with your cousins and your sister." He said, "They are my best friends!" I said, "Who is your best friend? Is Jantzen?" He said, "Yeah, Jantzen is my best friend. And Aundra is my best friend. Madison is my best friend too. All of them are my best friends." I said, "Am I your best friend too?" He said, "No. You are my Mom."

Is he the next American Idol or the President?

I have been an avid--okay, avid is a little strong. How about an "interested in politics person" for most of my life. During my college years, when I was the Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper, we greatly prided ourselves on our political savvy. Debate, issues, and political standing were the basis for your political stance--back then.

Life has changed since I was in college. Sitcoms have been replaced by reality shows. There is a new era in the Information Age. The internet has made everything about everyone instantly available. People Twitter, Facebook, Skype, and Blog. My space was the part of the room you shared with our sister that was yours. All of those words had no meaning in the 1990's. It's a fascinating phenomenon. Our level of communication and ability to access information so quickly has created a new era.

I reference all of this because it impacted our last political race in a great way. Obama's campaign team tapped into all of the social marketing. They were everywhere. They were actually brilliant in getting his message out. I don't particularly care for Howard Stern's crewdness, but I do like something that he did. He interviewed (his show) people on the street who were voting for Obama. They knew nothing about his policies. This video footage will blow your mind. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b5p3OB6roAg They were asking Obama supporters about his policies. They posed John McCain's policies as Obama's and people were totally supporting the policy because they believed it was Obama's. People were voting for the celebrity that Obama was hyped up to be.

One of John Grisham's recent books, The Appeal http://www.jgrisham.com/the-appeal/, made an interesting speculation into the electoral process. Had it not been published before this election, you might have thought it was about a man like Obama. Very scary.

But this week, the political arena has turned Washington into a Circus. All of the publicity was reminiscient of Princess Diana's wedding. Which we know was a false fairy tale. People were in tears over Obama getting put into office--it was like the girls from the 60's screaming over The Beatles. People were booing George Bush. Why? You don't have to like George Bush to show the man some respect.

Ronald Reagan, who BTW still holds the record for the most people watching an inauguration, followed the presidency of Jimmy Carter. Reagan took office when unemployment was at an all-time high; inflation was through the roof; and the economy was in shambles. He did not once name-call or put-down Jimmy Carter. Why? Because he had character. Something lacking with a lot of the Obama followers.

One element that the American people have failed to realize is that no President can put into action any of his policies without the support of Congress and the Senate. It is with this thought in mind, that we should change our thinking and behavior. Politics should not be war. The other side should not be destroyed. Though some of us may have a hard time understanding why our opponents believe the way they do, we need to be respectful of all diversity. It doesn't mean we agree or that we like their policies. It means we cannot progress unless we can find a way to work together. While the Americans are fighting over who is going to "win" our enemies are laughing; watching us tear each other apart. We cannot succeed and become a great nation without learning to work together. Our political stage in America is in a sad state. Not because of Democrats or Republicans, but because we fight like children in the school yard. It's time for everyone to start getting along and co-existing in an interdependent forum.

We all want good healthcare; we all want good jobs; we all want opportunities; we all want fair pricing. Aren't we bright enough as a nation to figure out how to meet our objectives and compromise? Anyone who is married does this every day. My husband and I don't agree on everything, but we figure out a way to make both of us happy. Sometimes I give a little and sometimes he does. That's the way you work together with other people. Let's put America first and reach for the stars...and stripes.

Lane's first haircut

I have called Lane my "man-baby" more than once. He has such big hands and seems to grow so fast. He has also had a lot of hair. The twins got their first haircut on December 18, 2007. They were almost a year and half old. Lane's hair was starting to...no, it WAS growing over and past his ears. He in only 8 months old! I tried trimming it with scissors, but could not get him to hold still. I finally used the clippers just so I could get it trimmed a little. I got enough to save--more than what I got for Porter and Madison.

Reflections

I spent a half hour last night talking to a life long friend of mine who has recently experienced the loss of a pregnancy. It was so heartbreaking. She is a very strong person and definitely does not let her challenges get her down. I know she feels the pain, but she moves on and still puts a lot of faith in the Lord.
She has had a very difficult time getting pregnant. Her first child came after the result of lots of invitro-fertilization. She finally had a baby that is about 10 months older than the twins. She started invitro again and was so excited to call and tell me she was pregnant with twins. I was so happy for her I cried while I was she was telling me. It was so a joyous occassion. We felt like all of her suffering was finally going to pay off. She was nervous about having twins, but expressed so much gratitude to the Lord for letting her be able to have two more babies.
During the first trimester, she lost one of the babies. But, it didn't get her down. She was again grateful to still be pregnant. While going in for a routine ultrasound, the doctor had the devastating misfortune to inform her and her husband that the baby no longer had a heartbeat. They scheduled a "delivery" and she had to go into deliver the baby.
I know we each have our trials. I know that we have to develop our faith and strengthen our testimonies. She inspires me to work harder in my own life, to love more, and to appreciate each day. I know she will be rewarded and blessed for her faithfulness and strength. My prayers and heart are with her.

He's got a new attitude

Lane is enjoying the new found freedom that crawling has brought to his life. He loves to discover new rooms. Fortunately, he doesn't have the problem most babies have of putting everything in their mouth. Some things make it to his mouth, but he's not too bad. He does not like going down for naps, which is a change. He used to be so good about going to sleep when he couldn't move and just layed there. Now that he can get up, he wants to get out of his crib. If anyone is in the room he will not go sleep (unless he's really, really tired). He wants to play and get out and talk. He has started to show a little bit of a temper. Only when something makes him mad. Overall, he is still very, very happy.
Every Sunday at church he starts a game with the people behind us. It's always someone different. He smiles and giggles and flirts until he gets their attention. Then he tilts his head to one side. He continues to tease them doing this, until they do it. It never fails. About ten minutes into the meeting there is a grown adult behind us tipping their head to the side. Once he gets them to do it, he laughs and moves onto something else.

More Oatmeal, please!

Porter's favorite food has now become a favorite over his vegetables. Actually, it's a close tie, but Oatmeal is definitely fighting for first place. He wants oatmeal all of the time. Plain, no sugar, honey, or milk. He likes it straight. My healthy little man. I hope he keeps this up.

It's getting hot in here

Poor little Madison has had a horrible fever the past couple of days. Her little cheeks were burning bright red. I took her temperature last night and it was at 105. Fortunately, with a little aspirin it comes down. Last night she was whimpering so Brant went to her aid. She was scared because she said her bed was going to tip over. Her equilibrium and her shakes from chills were causing her to believe this. She wanted Daddy to lay down with her so her bed wouldn't tip over. He stayed with her until 4 in the morning. He said that was when she finally fell asleep without tossing and turning. It is so sad to see them sick. I am thankful my children have been blessed with such good health. I feel for those parents who struggle with their children's health challenges.

I just couldn't let it go...

Here's the answer to my own question:

Q: Why Do Battery Letters Skip from A to C? And Was There Ever a B-Cell Battery?
Written by Mental_FlossPublished September 27, 2006

A: Once upon a time, there used to be a B-cell battery. But just like the second sister on the ABC’s Family Matters, the B-cell battery simply found itself written out of the script.
Here’s what happened. Battery letter designations are based on the size of the battery for common sizes. Hence, A is the smallest, and D is the largest. By that same logic, AA batteries are larger than AAA. Unfortunately for B batteries, however, it wasn’t the size that counted.
The fact is, you never see B batteries around because they just aren’t very useful in America. Essentially, the mid-size battery never caught on in products made for consumers, so stores didn’t carry them, and the cycle just fed itself. The truth of the matter is that B-cells, like artsy directors and good jazz musicians, are really only appreciated in Europe, where they’re used primarily for powering bicycle lamps.

I can't help but ask "why?"

Have you ever wondered why they make AAA, AA, C, and D batteries but no "B" batteries? Why? The triple "A" should just be "A" and then the double "A" would be a "B" battery. That makes SO much more sense. I don't know who comes up with this stuff.

He's just so dang cute!

Lane has such a happy disposition. He makes everyone around him smile with his happy, upbeat personality. I am so thankful for such a sweet little spirit. His smile just makes your day.

Grandpa Hibbard

Brant and Geneva's dad, John, flew in from Phoenix to visit for the day. The kids were so excited to see him. He came bearing lots of really cool gifts. This was his Christmas trip. It was fun to visit and catch up. Unfortunately, he could only stay for the day and flew back this evening.

In Memory

I was so sad to hear the news a couple of days ago that my Aunt Donna was killed in a car crash. She lived a good, long life and had lots of family who truly cherished her. It reminds me to make the most out of every day and love everyone in your life like it is your last day. Then, you will have no regrets. She started a blog this year and talked about how she was going to commit to keeping everyone more connected. That's the second time I have come across a blog who shared those commitments and then experienced a death in the family that same year. Wow! You just can't take anything for granted.

No wonder I haven't lost weight

I have tried to improve my health by exercising for the past four months. Granted I mostly "just" briskly walking for 45 minutes five times a week. Guess how much weight I've lost? Not one stinkin' pound. I've heard all of the sympathizers say, "It could just be muscle. You build muscle when you first start to exercise." Yeah, I must still be building muscle.
I decided to try a green drink as a daily supplement. The first week I felt so much more energy. I'm not usually a person that gets more energy from something like this, so I was happy. Being so excited about the product, I decided to get the cleanse and their pH-Balance test kit. For two days you have to test your urine and your saliva to get a composite pH score. My test is so low, I am almost in the first quadrant which is the worst spot to be in. I barely scored into the second quadrant.
According to their research, too much acid and not enough alkaline will keep you from losing weight no matter how much you work out. Toxins are stored in fat cells and cannot be cleansed without a rebalance. So I am going to continue with the green drink and retest in a month. Of course, I'm adding the cleanse, and I've decided to do the colon cleanse as well. Unfortunately, sugar, meat, and carbohydrates can add to an imbalance as well. So I am cutting back on those as well. I know--duh, don't eat bad food and you'll lose weight. The testing is making me more motivated to not put bad foods in my mouth. I want my pH balance!
BTW, this is the product I am trying: www.pH-ion.com

Moving blues

I wish we could find some place to live for a very long time...I don't want to have to move ever again. It is so hard. I don't even have alot of stuff. So, I feel for those people who have to move who have more stuff and more kids. It makes me want to keep things light, because I know this house we are renting is going to be temporary too. Hopefully, we can at least get two years out of it. The twins will be four by then. And, Lane will be two. That seems hard to imagine. If I don't blog much, it's because I'm packing, cleaning, and tending to kids.

I am strong!

I was moving a desk and Porter wanted to help. I said, "Oh, Porter you are so strong!" He said, "Yeah, I am strong like my Dad!"

Just a thought

It occurred to me that lately I've had a bit of trouble remembering what day of the week it is. I realized that because Brant usually works six days a week, I don't always get a "weekend." I guess no one mentioned to Lane that there are weekends when you get to sleep in. He's up at the same time everyday. I'm up at 4 a.m. starting laundry, cleaning, feeding kids etc. Today, it's the same thing. Lane wakes up at 4 and the twins at 5. I know it sounds early but it's not so bad. Brant gets up at 4 too. The kids go to bed at 7 p.m. and we go to bed at 8 p.m.

January pics

These are recent pictures of the kids. Lane is pulling himself up on everything. His crawling has greatly improved. He is going faster and wanting to venture farther away. He pulled himself up on the toilet yesterday. Oh no! Porter and Madison still love going outside even though it is very cold. The twins often join Lane and sit to play with him. They really love their little brother.

It's Moving Time

We found out yesterday, we have to move by the end of the month. The house we are renting is going into foreclosure. Moving is not fun. Unless, there is some sadistic person out there that enjoys it. If you do, please come over. The good news is that we have a house to go to in Summerlin. So it's box-up time. I wish we could have stayed here longer. I was really getting to like the ward. I hate having to meet new people. But, it always works out. This is the longest we have been in one place since the twins have been born. Hopefully, we can stay at the next house for awhile.

Politeness first, please

Porter wanted to play "horsey" with me yesterday. Meaning, I get to be the horse he gets to be the cowboy. I crouched down so he could mount the horse. I said, "You have to talk to the horse and tell 'em what to do." He said, "Okay." I prompted him again, "Say, get up horse." He said, "Get up horse!" I said, "Okay, now what do you want to say." He said, "Thank you, horse."

Smith Family

Everyone on Brant's side got together for Heather's Baby Blessing.

BACK: (l to r) Wayne Smith, Heather Smith, Isabella Rosales, Rhonda Smith, Breanna Mills, Kendall Smith, Nathan Smith.

FRONT: (l to r) Mead Tenney, Cambry Tenney, Gene Mills, Zachary Mills, Melissa Mills, Jantzen Tenney, Brant Hibbard, Porter Hibbard, Liz Hibbard, Madison Hibbard, Geneva Tenney, and Aundra Tenney. Not pictured: Lane Hibbard. (He was sleeping.)

Pics of Lane

Lane loves his Grandpa. He wanted to go to him this morning and kept cuddling with him. It was very cute. He doesn't even do that with me!

Now that he can get around so much, it's a little harder to put him to bed. He stands up, sits up, crawls around. Last night I put him to bed and when I came back to check on him, he had fallen asleep while he was sitting up. He looked like he just folded over and fell asleep.

He can crawl!

Lane finally did it! He just looked at me yesterday afternoon and started crawling to me. He's a little "unsmooth" but he's getting it. He got around all over yesterday. But didn't venture out further than right outside our door. And...oops!...he crawled of the bed this morning. I forgot I am going to have to be more careful with him now.

"There are two naked babies in the upstairs window."

Said a kindly stranger who stopped by our house to let me know. Apparently the troublesome twosome who were supposed to be taking a nap, decided to strip and dance naked in their window sill. I knew I shouldn't have let Grandma and Grandpa take them down to the strip for Christmas. I'm going to have to have talk with those two about dancing naked in Vegas.

Conversations that have to be recorded

Madison has started closing her eyes when she doesn't want us to see her. She was getting in trouble for taking something away from Porter and tried this trick.

ME: Madison, just because you close your eyes doesn't mean we can't see you. Watch. I'm closing my eyes. Can you see me?

MADI: No. I can't see you.
__________________
ME: What sound does a cow make?

PORTER: Mooooo

ME: What sound does a chicken make?

PORTER: Quack, quack (He can't figure out the difference between a chicken and a duck)

ME: What sound does a frog make?

PORTER: Rip it! Rip it! Rip it!

ME: What sound does a Wolf make?

PORTER: Let me in! (From the Three Little Pigs)
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The other day Kendall started wrestling with Brant. Madison stood as tall as she could with her finger pointed at Kendall and said:

Kendall! Don't fight my Dad. You go to time out right now!

He did. She's so in control of everyone.
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I was instructing the twins on cheers and being silly. We were dancing and just having fun. Spontaneously, I say: "Can I get a Whoo-Whoo?" Madison stops dead in her tracks. Turns to me and says, "No, Mom. You can't get a woo-woo."

Glenn Beck's "The Christmas Sweater"

I received this book as a Christmas gift and really enjoyed reading it. I just finished last night. Glenn is a master storyteller as he relates the story of a young boy who struggles with some of life's most difficult trials. It is a great read! I recommend it to everyone. It is based on personal trials from Glenn's childhood. However, he adds fiction to the story as well. My favorite part:

"A-tone-ment," he said, punctuating the word. "It's a chance to fix the unfixable and to start all over again. It begins when you forgive yourself for all you've done wrong and forgive others for all they've done to you. Your mistakes aren't mistakes anymore, they're just things that make you stronger. Atonement is the great redeeming and equalizing force that leads to the fulfillment of all things: every hug you've ever longed for, every Ferris wheel, baseball game, and walk in the snow you've missed. Everyone you've loved and lost. Atonement, Eddie, is heaven on earth."