I'm It.

OK so I was tagged twice this week by my friend and neighbor Cheryl and my niece Jessica. I'm not ignoring you guys, but honestly I'm having a hard time coming up with stuff folks don't already know! I'm such a blabbermouth I feel like my life is such an open book. But I'll come up with some, however embarrassing they may be. Jess's tag asked for six facts, Cheryl's asked for seven. Here goes...

Seven Little-Known Facts About Katie

1. I wet the bed until I was way too old. I don't even know how old, but like nine. Ha ha saying this made me remember the time my family was on a ski vacation and my sister and I were sharing a bed. I woke in the morning to a wet bed and assumed I'd had an accident. Kristin let everyone else assume it was me. It was years later she admitted it was her and she blamed me! And she's three years older than I am!! What a meanie.

2. I drove a red 1965 Mustang in high school (so did my older brother and sister before me, but I'm the one who wrecked it. Sorry Dad). I also drove a 1978 poop brown and pee yellow Suburban that had more body damage than should be legal. But it was safer to drive up the mountain during the winter.

3. When I lived in New York for a couple of years after college, I met the Duchess of York (she was a client of the PR agency I worked for), I used to see Madonna and Alec Baldwin jogging in Central Park (not together), and I kind of stalked Larry Mullen, Jr. (drummer for U2) up and down Broadway before finally approaching him for an autograph (this was after church on a Sunday and I was carrying my scriptures. He probably thought I was a missionary or something).

4. Speaking of stalking, I was the victim of a real stalker in my early 20s.

5. I once caught a fish that weighed more than me. A 130-pound halibut. This was before I had kids, of course. If I caught that same fish today I wouldn't have quite the same bragging rights.

6. I hate shopping with other people.

7. I'm a shameless fan of The Bachelor/Bachelorette. Never miss an episode (and if I do I catch it on ABC.com).

OK and now I have to tag some of you... You're It!
Wyndi, Emma, Alli, Nicole, Dawn, Carla and Ali. Have fun ladies :)

Craaaaazy Case!

Case had pushed play on Jarad's alarm clock, which currently holds the Queen Greatest Hits CD (yeah, just love waking up to "Fat Bottomed Girls"). So he was getting his groove on to Another One Bites the Dust. At some point the boy learned that in order to dance well, one must make monster faces.






Case is also a huge helper around the house. Really. He's the best at cleaning up after his bath. Puts the toys away every time! He also loves to help set the table for dinner. This is actually Emma's job, but she often gets help from Tess ("I get the 'poons Emma!") and Case. Case has a particular idea about what it means to set the table. In his little world, one must empty all contents of the refrigerator door. This constitutes dinner. While the girls are setting the plates and flatware at each place, Case is loading the table with any condiment you could ever possibly imagine needing. Ketchup, mustard, mayo, lime juice, sesame oil. MMMMMMM! All the while he is happily saying "Dinnertime! Dinnertime!" At least it keeps him occupied during those last harried moments before my gourmet meal hits the table.

Or perhaps he thinks we need all those condiments to mask the taste of my cooking...

Happy Campers

I was uploading pics from Emma's birthday party (stay tuned for those) and found these pictures from our Ward Campout a couple of weekends ago. My lens kept fogging up, so I didn't get many great photos, but these two just look so cute and happy eating their doughnuts in the morning!

Just Peachy

So while I was making peach jam a couple of weeks back, Case and Tess thought it was real fun to make a castle out of the peaches that were still in the box (time to buy them some blocks maybe?). They were just enamored with these darn peaches.

At one point I hear Case say "sorry Mommy, I clean it up!" and ran into the kitchen to get a towel. I noticed this on his bum...



Apparently he wondered what would happen if he were to sit on a peach. This is what happened...



Fast forward to yesterday. More peaches. Tess this time, though. In her bedroom. On the carpet. And I discovered that the kids really like to eat "squishy oranges." Even after they've been sat upon.

A Horrifying Realization

So today is the first day of October break. No school for ten days. Woo hoo? Mmm, not so much. I have been contemplating for a few weeks buying the kids a trampoline. I wanted to do this earlier in the season, not waiting for Christmas, so they could enjoy it for these beautiful months. Not to mention that it would be something so fun and great to do outside while they're home for the break. And hey, a break for me too, right? So I bought one this morning and, with the help of all the kids, got it put together in about 45 minutes. I was totally looking forward to a somewhat easy afternoon getting things done around the house while the kids are entertaining themselves outside.

Ummmm, again, not so much. I feel so bad for my poor neighbors listening to my kids constantly bicker and scream at each other outside! I think each one has come inside screaming AT LEAST once. I finally told them if they aren't bleeding I better not hear screaming. So far so good. It's been at least five minutes.

Uh oh, the door is opening... here they come.

Cute bags, cheaply.

Love it. Looks like this new site will launch 10/15, and we all have a chance (or more, now that I'm posting this link on my blog!) to win a free one.

Check it out!

www.handbagplanet.com

My Baby's Growin' Up!

I haven't had a ton of time lately to sit and ruminate on life (ie blog). But today I would feel awfully ungrateful if I didn't take a minute to ... no I'm not going to bear my testimony (tee hee) ... say HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my awesome Emma. She turns Great 8 today! So in honor of the Great 8, here are (DRUMROLL PLEASE)

EIGHT THINGS I LOVE ABOUT EMMA

1. Her silliness. Granted, when it's ill timed, it can be awfully annoying. But most of the time I love that she doesn't take things too seriously, least of all herself!

2. Her chameleon personality. Emma makes new best friends everywhere she goes. She'd be BFF with Bigfoot (or El Chupacabra if you're a fan of Scooby Doo and the Monster of Mexico) if she met him at the park. I think everyone thinks they are Emma's best friend. And in all honesty, they probably are! And she thinks she's everyone else's best friend too.

3. She's a great big sis and has a "mother heart."

4. I love her Angel Kisses (freckles) and dimples. There's something about Emma's looks that compels complete strangers to approach her and tell her she looks just like Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen. Yikes. I hope she doesn't follow their tracks too closely, but if there was just SOME way to capitalize on it...

5. She wants to be good. She really does WANT to. And most of the time it happens, but I love the desire in her to be a good person.

6. She likes to shake her boo-tay, and is always up for a dance off (she even likes ABBA and (much of) my 80s music!).

7. She appreciates her family -- I'm not talking about Jarad and I and the kids. I'm talking about her grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Ever since she was little, she has felt a close connection to them. Even those who live far away!

8. She has a strong will and is totally sure of herself (ie a know it all like her mama). I know that, while these might be trying personality traits when she's young, if I can help nudge them in a good direction she will be a strong force for good.

So Happy Birthday Little. I love you tons.