10 Commandments

We had the missionaries over tonight for dinner and afterward they taught us a little hand game to help remember the 10 Commandments. When we got to 5 you hold up all your fingers to represent your family for Honor thy parents. And then for six you hold up your sixth finger for a gun for Thou shalt not kill. So Drew did this and we heard a shooting noise, saw a finger go down and than "ha ha got sissy". So basically he killed off his sister. I don't think he got the point but anyway it was a fun activity and really does help to remember those precious Commandments.

Caught Red Handed

In a few hours when Drew gets home from his Grandma's house this sort of thing will no longer be acceptable



I have often thought to myself over the last few days "what was I complaing about with only having 1 kid?" But the less busy I am the lazier I find myself getting. If that makes sense. When I am busy I am more motivated to do things. Anyway we really did miss Drew and are ready for him to come home!

Trips!

We took a trip to Utah and "HI-Daho" to visit some family and for Justin to run the hardest half marathon in the Northwest. And I am happy to report that Justin did great. We had a lot of fun visiting my family. Drew got to play with cousins, we ate a lot, and laughed a lot. Also when we stopped back in Utah on our way home Drew didnt think he should go home just yet and apparently neither did his Grandma. So he stayed! She is going to bring him home on Thursday. I was a little nervous about that but I think he is having a blast and not missing us a bit. I do have to say it is really quiet around here, but I will be ready for the noise pretty soon.

Over the River and through the Woods.....

So Drew spoke to his Grandma on the phone about a week ago and she mentioned the forbidden! That we were going to her house in a week. So for the entire day(not exaggerating) Drew cried wanting to go to his Grandma's house. At our wits end Justin decided to make a chart counting down the days until we left and Drew could put a sticker on each day. Well at first it didn't work he wanted to put all the stickers on and than go. But eventually he got the idea and really has enjoyed putting stickers on his chart first thing every morning. And I mean First thing. We were at the library last week for story time and at the end the librarian said "OK I will see everyone next Wednesday for story time" and Drew shouts out "Nope I will be at my Grandma's house next Wednesday". Little does he know we wont even be at his Grandma's for 24 hours because we are just stopping over on our way to Idaho. But as soon as we get to his Mimi's house I think he will get over it.

The Girls

It isn't very often there is a picture taken of Elle and I so for the record I thought I would post one. I can't get enough of that face. Oh, Elle is pretty cute too! hehe!

SOO Sad!

This is what Justin has to go through every morning when he leaves for work. Elle is such a Daddy's girl you would think the world was coming to an end! She could care less when I go anywhere, Lucky me!

Hip Hip Hooray!

I have been working with Drew the last couple of weeks on writing his name and I am pleased to announce he can finally do it! Good Job Drew I am so proud of you. Love you. Next we will work on doing it in cursive! Right!

Petland

This is about as close to getting a pet as we will get. There is a Pet store here in town that is really good about letting Drew "pick" a puppy to play with so we go quite often. Elle is terrified and squeals really loud. But it is a fun thing to do on a boring day!

Caution: Weirdo Ahead

So Elle has definitely shown her personality the last couple of weeks. She is really "eccentric" as Justin calls her. She loves to wear my bracelets, Drew's hats, hoods, and Drew's Jackets. If we take them off she very adamantly brings them back to us to put it back on. She's a weird one. (As my Dad would say) Although pretty weird we think it is pretty cute. I can only imagine how it will get worse as she gets older.

A Little Sacraligious?

I'd like to bear my testimony,
that I know the Target is true,
And it really helps me all the time,
and I feel really good when I go there...
and I can go to any Target in the country--
and feel right at home because it's the same everywhere you go...........


Is it just me, or is Target like a religion? If it is (and I'm pretty sure it must be), I am a Targetian. Over the years I have gone to my mecca on a very regular basis and paid homage--lots and lots of homage. The great thing is I am not alone. There is a nation-wide sisterhood. (Unfortunately as a result there is a nationwide, disapproving brotherhood.) We walk in the automatic door and smell the smell of popcorn and pretzels and new, cute merchandise and we feel the poop-feeling that often accompanies the thrill of possibility. What's not to love?! Now, there are times in our lives when we are in a position to pay more homage, and there are times when we are poor. In my other religion, the amount of money you make is not so much tied to salvation (whew). But somehow as a poor Targetian I feel punished--my once happy religion feels more like a dangerous addiction (you know, like Ben & Jerry's or Cold Stone). One day I stood in front of some cute post-it notes for 20 minutes, trying to figure out how it could be that I really didn't need to buy them.
Good Me: I can't spend money on cute post-it notes!
Naughty Me: But they are sooooo cute!
A.D.D. Me: Ooh, those ones have polka dots!

Does this worry anyone else?
On another recent occasion a friend and I were engaged in a fascinating conversation...or so she thought.
Friend: Blah blah blah blah Target blah blah blah....
Me: Target? Did you say Target? Are we going to Target?
Friend: No, I said, "...it was like a moving target." Did you even hear a word I said?
Me: I heard you say Target.
I'm hoping that maybe with the support of the fellowship of the sisterhood of the Red and White, I can find a healthy way to live...until I can afford my addiction, er, religion--"club dues" again. (It's frightening how well I can distort--I mean, justify.)
Had I the energy, I would go into great detail about the "Great and Abominable" other way of life...we all know the store I mean--the one you vow never to go to again every time you enter the parking lot or while wiping down the filthy cart. The one that's so cheap they don't have to be nice to you. We will stop there not only because I am incurring judgement and wrath by sounding so snooty, but also...yeah, that's mostly why we'll stop there.
I just want to leave one final thought, if I could. I understand that money cannot buy happiness...but it can be the means of great joy. Amen.

Congrats Paige!

Just want to announce that Paige participated in her first road race last weekend. It was the Anthem Day's 5k. I am so proud of her for sticking with her goal to get into running. She has come a long way since the beginning of the year and it's fun to see her continue to improve and accomplish her goals. So congratulations again Paige, I love you and look forward to being with you as you continue to succeed.

As far as a report on the weekend goes; I forgot to bring a camera (doh!) so I don't have any pictures to share so you'll have to use your imagination. The cause of my forgetting the camera is partially due to the fact that we left the house in a huge hurry. We were on the fence about whether or not we would get a hotel for the night before or just wake up early and drive down. At about 4:00 I got a good deal on priceline for a room, so we hurried and got our stuff together and were leaving the house at like 4:15. We stopped at In-n-out (of course) for dinner then checked into the hotel. The hotel was ok, but dirty. Paige first noticed the lack of cleanliness when she gave Elle a bath and noticed some body hair (aka pubes) from a previous guest floating in the water with her. Then, after Drew and Elle had been playing around the room for a while, we were surprised to find that their feet and clothes were black.

The next morning we had Paige's race and Drew had his first fishing experience. The park in Anthem is stocked with fish and Drew got a Spongebob Squarepants fishing rod. It didn't have bait or even a hook but he had a great time casting and reeling it in. The weather was beautiful again (Sunny and 80's with a slight breeze). Overall I think we had a good time.