Natalie

Natalie is my tender soul. She is cheerful and happy and strives so hard to do the right thing. She loves to cuddle and will always help someone else. But, and this is a big but, when she is in a bad mood look out!!! A few weeks ago she woke up in a very foul mood because I did not stay in her room all night when she assumed I would. She was yelling at me and would not listen at all. I told her I would not have it and walked off (You can't argue with her when she is beside herself). She comes downstairs a few minutes later and says how sorry she is for the argument, I tell her sorry for the misunderstanding. Later that day I go to make a phone call. We have voicemail so it beeps when you have a message. I didn't remember the phone ringing so I was puzzled. I call into the voice mail and I hear. "ummm, mom this is your daughter, you know Natalie. I'm really sorry about fighting with you and I want to come down and cuddle with you if that is ok., well bye. I love you" Yep, she called into the voice mail and left me a message. Sweet girl, I didn't even know she knew our phone number that well. Just one of the perks I get being a mom.

New sites added...

So, as I was stalking other blogs the other day I cam across some very funny ones. I do not know these people but I do think that if we ever met we would all get along just fine. Some have questionable language so be aware.
I also need to post a word of warning about blog stalking. I was meandering through blog after blog when I should have been mowing my lawn. I stumble upon one that says something about explicit content and should not be viewed by anyone under 18. I decide I'm over 18 and I'm really not a prude at all. I can handle this. Afterall it's just a blog and my filters didn't catch it as a no-no, how bad could it be actually?
OMG, I am so a prude and staying that way. That stuff should be rated gazillion X. My eyes are still burning and I am in total shock. I call up my dear husband at work and he says "that will teach you, guess you won't be blog stalking anymore. Is the lawn mowed?"
Well, I'm still blog stalking but I will pay attention to those warnings, they are there for a reason!!! Curiousity killed the cat comes to my mind.
That was Wed. it is now Sat. and my lawn is still not mowed. Bob is home today so maybe he'll go do it. I'm in shock still how can I possibly be able to mow?

What did he just say?

Last night as we are putting the kids to bed I ask Jake to tell Bob something about the cat. I personally did not think it was that big of a deal but he did NOT want to tell Bob. Of course Bob asks why he won't tell him and out of my sweet 5 year old's mouth comes "because I am lazy, like mommy" What?? Like Mommy? See if I ever give him an extra scoop of ice cream again!! I just might be too lazy.

Get paid to Blog??? NO WAY!!!

I first heard this at book club the other night. I haven't lived under a rock I know people get paid to blog. For instance, Perez Hilton, but he's big time gossip so I thought that was the type of people who get paid to write about their lives. Sooo, when I found out that regular housewives who have mommy blogs also get paid to run advertising I was AMAZED!!! Not just that, but this one woman can get 10,000 a MONTH. Yes, a month. WOW!! I'm sure it's a dream job for all of us bloggers and I'm not naive enough to think that I can do it but it sure is fun to dream!!!
So, I started thinking "Laurel, what type of things could be advertised on your blog?" I do talk to myself in the third person alot, I am a geek as stated before. Here is a short list of those things that could be advertised on my blog.

1. Axe spray of course
2. Spongebob Shows
3. Happy pills a.k.a. Prozac
4. Gymboree because I'm always shopping there
5. Spanx underwear because I should be wearing them
6. FOOD-I love food I won't be picky on those advertisements
7. Cherry pitters.
8. Duct tape----this is multipurpose:

• Wrap up your kids so you know where they are
• Tape the mouth of your incessant talker for a few minutes of peace
• Wrapping presents-My mom actually did this one year!! See why I am such a geek?
• Close the holes around your house
• Fix anything with duct tape-glasses, hoses you name it I'm sure duct tape can be used.

I'm sure there's others. I'll have to update later. But, if everyone 0nly paid 100/month that's 800!!! KACHING. To some that may not seem like alot but that's 800 more then I have now. I'd be able to pay someone to carry around my bags at the boutique. . BTW. I did go to that one ladies site and it's ok. My friends and I are better.
I LOVE TO DREAM!!

Twilight

If you have not read this book yet you need to do it NOW. This is one of the better books I have ever read. The writer spins such a good story that I truly felt I was in the book. I only read it because I saw it everywhere and I was out of my regular reads. I thought I might like this book but I did not know that I would fall completely in love with it and be so preoccupied with the new books. These books began a vampire obssession I now have. I have all these characters in my head and how I believe they should look. I also have been on fansites and have looked at pictures of other actors who those fans think would make good actors for the characters in the movie. Which comes out later this year. So, then I may be biased here but I didn't like the trailer I saw on Saturday. The trailer did not send shivers down my spine like the book did. It did not leave me yearning for more. I did not get all giggly with butterflies in my tummy in anticipaiton. I barely recognized Bella or Edward. Now I don't even know if I really want to go see the movie. It may ruin my vision of those beloved characters. I will read the new book that comes out in August but the movie is still up in the air. I hate how Hollywood comes in sometimes and just totally ruins a good thing. Maybe I'm wrong about the movie, guess I'll have to wait until December to see it and make my final judgement. I really do hope I am wrong. The books were way to good to see made into some cheesy typical Hollywood movie.

Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull....

Saturday we went to a screening for IMFT (Bob's work) for the new Indiana Jones movie. Bob got the tickets from work and they included a pop and popcorn for every ticket. So, we arrive and it is SUPER busy, the place is packed with IMFT employees. We find our seats with the popcorn already boxed on the seats. Before the movie starts we are told to look on the bottom of our popcorn boxes and if there is a star we have won a prize. Yeah, we won!! Or Jake won. He was so excited. Out of about 300 people only 30 got a prize. I need to start taking my camera everywhere so I can get pictures of these things when they happen. We did get a picture once we got home. Here are the kids and Jakes prize of an Indiana Jones Mr. Potato Head. The movie wasn't too bad but Hey, we got a potato head out of it.

A tale of two cherry pitters

A long, long time ago (just a few years actually) I wanted to make a real cherry pie. I bought alot of cherries got them home and started to make the pie. Whoops, I forgot you need to pit fresh cherries. SO, I begin pitting them and it is not fun. A good friend of mine then told me she has a cherry pitter and thankfully let me use it. What a wonderful thing that cherry pitter. I finished my pies and returned that cherry pitter regretfully. Since then , about 4 years, Bob has been looking for the same type of cherry pitter. There are alot of them out there but we wanted the one that our friend had because it was simple and yet efficient. So, 4 years of searching every store we go into that has any type of kitchen utensils. Then yesterday, VOILA (insert music) we found THE CHERRY PITTER. YEAH!!! If you know Bob we had to buy 2, just in case one breaks and we can never find them again. We bring our treasured cherry pitters home, Bob starts opening them and I hear "AHHHH, get me a rag".

Yes Bob cut himself opening our cherry pitters. Jabbed himself between the thumb and first finger. (sidenote:Bob never cuts himself-EVER) I go look at his hand and it's pretty deep and gushing blood. Really gushing. He needs to go to the ER. HE thinks he can just put some liquid band aid crap on it and be fine. Except it is still gushing and his fingers are tingling. He concedes that he needs to go to the ER. Bob says he will only stay if it isn't busy, he's not waiting around to tell him he's fine. I know the whole way he was praying for a major disaster to avert his ER trip. We get there and Guess what. NO LINES. We were the ONLY ones there. Bob is stuck.

He's taken to the back they look at his hand and tell him that he barely missed anything substantial and then give him 3 stitches. The kids got him a sucker for being a good boy.

Bob never does these things, he still reminds me to be careful opening things with a pocket knife. Guess who is going to be reminded from now on. I even had to sign his admittance slip to the ER. It was awesome!!! Not that he got hurt but that HE was the one to make a mistake and not me. We have been married for almost 14 years and this is one of a handful of mistakes. I relish in them because they rarely happen. Poor guy.

He's fine now. He got the meaty part of his hand so it's still painful but he didn't get anything too detrimental to his life. He does however have to cancel golfing for Monday. I am still going to make those cherry pies but it will be me opening the other package. I can't trust him to be careful with a pocket knife. HAHAHAHA.

P.S. (can you add a P.S. in a blog post?) Bob wanted me to add that even though his blood got on our kitchen floor and some on our walls he did NOT get any blood on his brand new yellow shirt. NOT ONE DROP OF BLOOD. Ok. I told you. Feel better honey?

Giggle, giggle, giggle

From an email this morning. Cracks me up.

The attached picture explains why men should not be allowed to play with their kid's toys....

Bob is upset because he didn't have the idea. Kid at heart no matter what age.

It's raining, it's pouring, the old man is snoring...

I LOVE RAIN. Seriously, I love curling up with a good book with my windows slightly open a cool breeze blowing through and the delicious smell of rain. When I was little we had this old house that had a semi wrap around porch. We had one of those outdoor swings and I'd take pillows, blankets, and books out there to enjoy the showers. I'm sure my mom hated me taking all those things outside. But it is a great memory for me and I still love to sit on the porch and enjoy the rain.
Nothing can beat a nice rainfall except maybe a nice thunderstorm. I love those too. I was scared of them until I was 13 but now I almost crave them. While in Idaho we maybe had 3 thunderstorms in 10 years!!! We get more here in Utah and I love it. I guess I was meant to live here in Utah. I love the smell and the sound of a nice thunderstorm. The rains just seems to remind me to snuggle up and slow down. Sometimes life takes over and you forget to enjoy the little things that make it worth living.
Jake and I are snuggling but instead of a good book I have my blogs. And yes, there is an old man snoring. My husband got called into work last night after a power outage and came home at 6:30 this morning. He is upstairs snoring. I need to get some more work done but it's going to wait for awhile. I need to enjoy this rain and just regroup.

Husband Tag

1. What is his name? Robert Michael Harness Jr., We just call him Bob or Dad
2. Who eats more? We are both really good at eating.
3. Who said I love you first? He did. The first week we met. But since he was still in the Navy we didn't want to be too serious. He still had 3 more years we thought. Then early outs came and he was out the next year.
4. Who is taller? Bob by 4 inches. I don't really like my arm candy to be shorter then me
5. Who is smarter? I think we are about equal but he is better with technology and how to fix just about anything and I'm much better at health related things and how to deal with people.
6. Who is more sensitive? I am but when he gets sensitive it can last for days!!!
7. Who does the laundry? I do because he doesn't fold things right. When he helps though I don't complain.
8. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? He does.
9. Who pays the bills? I do, I'm really good at spending his money.
10. Who cooks more? I cook more now but he use to. He is an amazing cook and I make him cook alot on the weekends.
11. What meals do you cook together? I like to watch him cook and taste things. We cook alot together. When I cook he just automatically takes over. It use to make me mad but I don't remember why. When he cooks Iusually do a dessert and salad. I'm pretty good at those.
12. Who is more stubborn? He says I am but I'm sticking to him being more stubborn. It's a tie.
13. Who is the first to admit they are wrong? Me, But when he admits he's wrong we advertise it FOREVER!!!!!
14. Who is more clean? Me, he thinks I need to relax my standards.
15. Who has more siblings? Me, I have 3 little sisters
16. Who wears the pants in the relationship? I do but we let him think he does. Seriously, I think we are about equal on that one too. He's good at his stuff and I'm good at mine we refer to eachother when we need the others expertise.
17. What do you like to do together? Bob and I do tons of stuff together. Games, walks, vacations, cook, sit on the computer. He's my best friend and when He's not there I look for him to share things with or get his opinion.
18. Who eats more sweets? Me, although he is getting to be worse. He use to NEVER eat sweets when we first got married.
19. Guilty pleasures? Ummm, I don't think I can say that out loud. LOL
20. How did you meet? At a gradutaion party. Bob and I had plenty of opportunities through our lives to meet but never did until that night. It was all in God's grand plan.
21. Who asked who out first? We just started dating. He was still in the Navy and asked me not to date anyone too seriously.
22. Who kissed who first? I think I kissed him first. It's been 16 years and a lot of kisses since then.
23. Who proposed? He did in our first apartment with flowers and balloons.We were so broke but some of the best days of our marriage.
24. His best features? His humor, he makes me laugh. He'd say his hair but I kind of like the whole package. His smile is pretty darn cute too.
25. What is his greatest quality? He likes a challenge. He never gives up and he always tries for more. He has given us a great life. He works hard and still can make me feel like a queen.


I tag Celia, Theresa-you're close enough to married, and Liz-now is the time to start a blog.

Kid chat Gone wild!!

If you had to choose between having spots or stripes which would you choose and why?

If you could have 8 of any of the following which would you choose and why? Ear, eye, mouth, or nose. (They didn't mention arms but that would be my first pick for sure!)

This series of books is one of my favorites to read with the kids. I just ordered some for keeps, usually we just borrow from libraries. They are great conversation starters and gives you a whole new look into your child's mind. Even my pre-teen will start talking and somedays that is my biggest chore. It's easy enough for the youngest kids to participate too.

I read in a magazine once that a family read something like this each Sunday and then recorded the answers in a family journal. All the family members said that it was fun looking back and seeing what they use to think about. I have never actually got around to writing them down but we still read some of the questions.

My Salary as a mother

Job title
Annual salary
Child Day Care Worker
$20,259
Teacher
$44,824
Taxi Driver
$27,346
Facilities Manager
$73,239
Short-order Cook
$27,477
Laundry Attendant
$17,917
Janitor
$22,440
Counselor
$27,638
CEO
$545,268
Administrative Assistant III
$37,143
Accounting Clerk III
$34,842
Licensed Practical Nurse
$38,111
Plumber I
$33,155
Automotive Mechanic I
$30,725
Cake Decorator
$21,340


I know this is a day late but I wanted to get it on my blog anyway. This is what a typical stay at home mom should get paid. If you are a working mom you should get paid this plus your salary from the other job. WOW!! Somedays I can sit around and spend that money in my mind, it's very easy if you know what you're doing. One of my favorite writers has a book series where moms in the future get paid as professional moms. I think we need to look into that.
Don't get me wrong most days I'm happy with just a thanks or of my own accomplishments and Yes I did choose to do this job. But other days I just want that paycheck and a 10 minute uninterrupted break!! I'd like to shampoo and condition my hair at the same time without someone "needing" me "RIGHT NOW". I'd also like to shave both legs at once, I think my husband would too. I want to eat a candy bar without having to share. Somedays I just want more "atta girls" then I get and maybe the paycheck won't compensate for it but I could try. I like shopping my own personal air(head) mall.
On the other hand, I get to be the one to share the candy bar with those kids with one leg shaved and most likely conditioner still stuck in my hair. The kisses and hugs are good, seeing my kids grow into young caring adults is good. Being able to adjust my schedule is priceless to me. I don't really like working for other people I didn't either marry or give birth to. This motherhood thing may not be my first career choice but it truly is the best job I've ever had. Even if I don't get that $1,001,724 paycheck.
And to any of the working moms I know. YOU ALL TOTALLY ROCK because it's hard enough for me just to do this one job let alone a second one.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GREYSON

12 years ago today I became a mom to one of the most intelligent, funny, curious, and nice boys a mother could ever want. I was going to do the same thing I did for Jake's birthday but I decided to go a different route after looking at a friend's blog. (Thanks for the idea Amberlie)

Things to remember about Greyson.

• He was born in Idaho at 9 lbs 2 oz and has been growing fast ever since.


• He has one of the best smiles I know of but doesn't always like to show it.


• He loves dinosaurs and dragons.
  
• He has always been funny but may not always shows it.


• He is so very smart. But he won't brag about it.


• He has played with Legos, Rescue heroes, blocks, cars and even dolls.


• He is the most dedicated friend.


• He always has a hug even if it might embarrass him.


• He once peed in my mom's front yard to the dismay of my sisters.


• He has traveled to Oregon, Nebraska, Chicago, Texas and Washington D.C.


• He will hold the door open for women and other girls.


• He has only had his tonsils and adenoids removed.


• He has only had 3 stitches in his life.
  
• He is an awesome reader.


• He has 2 cowlicks in his hair and yet his hair looks good, most of the time.


• He is also a very good writer and I hope he writes more stories.
• He's really good at chess
• His imagination is extraordinary. He thinks of things that no 12 year old should.
  
• He's a good swimmer.


• He has taught me patience and unconditional love.


• He will always chose steak at any restaurant.
  
• He loves chocolate, especially Ghiradelli.


• He only eats vanilla ice cream.


• He is an all around superb boy and I am lucky to have him as my son. I can not wait to see what life has in store for him.

I am posting a few pics. I just couldn't decide which ones. There are so many stories to go with all of them. 12 years is a long time!! I love you Greyson. Hope you have a very Happy Birthday.

Grey as a newborn. Look at those sweet cheeks. Greyson at 6 months. He was actually 30 lbs. I love all those baby rolls.

It's official

I finally made an appointment with an allergy specialist for today. I've been dreading doing this for some time now but after a week of headaches Bob was begging me to go. SO, today I got an appointment and did a skin test. I have allergies. Nothing huge just cedar trees and grass but enough to give me terrible headaches. So, I have immitrex for the headaches and nasonex with zyrtec for the allergies. I go back in 2 weeks to see how the treatment is working. I'm glad to know what is going on but I really do hate taking medicine that will make me tired. BUT knowing why I might be having all these headaches is so much better. I also don't have asthma. I have a hard time breathing because of the allergies that come and go. Maybe I can start getting more accomplished now.

Month long holidays and events for May

I'm sure you have all been wondering what else May brings besides Memorial day. Lucky for you all that I happen to have a calendar that will tell me all of it. So, here are the Month long holidays and events that May will bring us....

• Asian-Pacific-American heritage month
• Better hearing and speech month
• Clean air month
• Get caught reading month
• National asthma and allergy awarness month
• National bike month
• National mental health month
• National physical fitness and sports month
• Skin cancer awareness month.

So many holidays that I really had no idea about. Days of national recognition include....

• Scrapbooking day on the 3rd- I should try to catch up on Grey's from KINDERGARTEN
• My birthday-oh wait, that's actually Cinco de Mayo
• Tulip day on the 13th- Take time to enjoy nature
• International day of families on the 15th- This one actually sounds fun to make a tradition
• Frog jump day on the 19th-let's all jump like frogs for the day. It will put a smile on my face
• Fork debuted in 1630 on the 25th- SO glad for that one, I'd hate eating without a fork
• Finally my favorite, this may not be international but still one of my favorite days for May is the LAST day of school and summer break!!!!!

Enjoy the month.

What is wrong with this picture

It seems that Winter here in Utah just does not want to go away. This morning this is what we saw....





It is just a light dusting but it is MAY 1st for crying out loud!!! Give me spring, I feel like I'm being ripped off. I can't even plant my flowers for fear of frost. YUCK, I want to lay in the hammock and listen to the hummingbirds, I want to tan and have drinks on the deck with Bob after a long day, without coats and blankets. I was being very patient with spring but I can't wait anymore. I WANT IT NOW. Maybe if we all start throwing a fit mother nature will hear us and bring us nice weather. Fit throwing seems to work with my kids.

GIVE ME SPRING!!!

NEW BLOG BACKGROUNDS

They were all so cute I couldn't decide on just one. I'm so ready for summer that I decided on this one. We even got our pool passes today. I can not wait to sit by the pool and watch my kids play and get a tan. I love a tan, I am still an 80's girl afterall. But I do wear sunscreen these days. I have a hard enough time fighting off wrinkles without the sun adding to it. I'll have to update my pages more often to get the other cute backgrounds. I love that site.