I think Audrey has been tagged...

...although it's hard to say, because I don't know how many Audrey's there are out there.

Seven Things About Audrey.

1. She LOVES books. I just took them out of time-out yesterday. They have been in her closet, because I got tired of them being strewn about and being stepped on. So, after they were out yesterday, she spent almost an hour just looking at books. One of her favorite books is the photo album of events from our lives since she was born. (I don't scrapbook. Just be happy the pictures are in photo pages).

2. She LOVES to swing. She'll hold my hand and pull me towards the park by our house. She walks to the swings and can sit there for quite a while. It's only recently she's decided the slides are worth a notice and some time.

3. She is a great eater. She eats almost everything I make! It's been such a relief after Richard who didn't take well to table food and still refuses at least half of the dinners I make. She'll eat vegetables, which is a novelty.

4. She is already determined to do a lot of things by herself. She has to get in the car herself, feed herself, have a turn to brush her teeth, etc.

5. She is a big helper. She'll help me put dishes away and set the table. She'll clean up toys. She puts my shoes away. She tries to sweep. She'll help me put laundry in the dryer and then take it out when it's done.

6. She loves "pretty hair" and is really pretty cooperative with getting her hair fixed. She'll try to spray her hair with water and with hairspray. She has even tried to put the barretts in her hair.

7. She loves to give kisses and hugs and will give almost any time you ask. She'll always cry "Daddy" with excitement when Scott comes home and will give him a hug if she's not already strapped down for dinner. She loves to blow kisses. She is very affectionate.

I'm all alone...

Scott went on a scout camp this weekend. He left after lunch and won't be back until Saturday afternoon. I'm hoping it will be before I have to go to work, but he wasn't sure if he would be. Just me and the kiddos. All day long. Very little adult conversation. I'm not even motivated to make a real dinner. Richard wouldn't eat it anyway and Audrey is only 75% likely to eat it. Oh, well. He was home all alone a week ago. We all have our time.

Questions

I have often watched how other people act towards other people and wonder "Are you serious? Do you realize how inconsiderate you're being? Are you really that rude? Or are you just oblivious to common courtesy?" I am not referring to crimes or anything blatantly obvious. I am referring to every day interactions between seemingly nice people. My sister told me about some of the ways people behave towards her husband who is in charge of reserving their church meetinghouse. I found out today about someone who broke something and just said, "Sorry!" He made no offer to fix it or buy the parts to fix it (it would cost less than $10).
I just hope that I am aware of those circumstances and haven't had any (or at least many since I am far from perfect) people think that about me. If I have done that towards you, I apologize. Call me on it! I'd rather not look back and be embarrassed at my lack of manners.

Early excitement

Ok, I know this is probably premature, but Scott and I are both really excited about the possibilities. Audrey went in the potty twice yesterday! Today she sat on the potty for about 10 minutes and only got off because I had things I wanted to do other than sit and watch her. She got really mad that I made her get off the potty. So, will we get her potty trained soon? Only time will tell, but she seemed really proud of herself. It would be wonderful to have only one in diapers!!

Vacation!

I know, I know. The four people who read this are SO disappointed that I haven't written in a while. You've been waiting in eager anticipation of my stimulating writing and thought provoking comments. I just know it!




The kids and I got back from vacation a couple of days ago and it was wonderful! My mom was fabulous and helped me drive to the Sacramento area. I never could have made the trip on my own, and Scott is too busy with his job and thesis to take the time off. The kids were amazingly happy on the long 11-12 hour drive. Audrey even survived only being out of her carseat for about 30 minute on the way out and 5 minutes on the way back.





We stayed with my brother and his family and my sister and her family. My mom and I switched which house we stayed at so no one felt neglected. I loved staying up late talking to my siblings and in-laws. We went to a dance recital, a carnival, and the zoo. The kids also played with a pool and squirt guns outside. We went to a park for a while. Other than that, we just hung out and let the kids play!



Richard and Audrey seemed to love the zoo. Audrey is old enough to actually see the animals and get excited. Richard knew the names of quite a few as well. It was a small zoo, so we were probably done in 1.5-2 hours, but that's about their attention span anyway. They also like the carnival. It was extremely hot (100 or so) outside, which made it less fun for me, but the kids didn't seem to mind. They rode a pony, went to a petting zoo, and played silly little games like ring toss, penny toss, basketball toss, etc. Audrey got in on the action and would even throw the prize she'd "won" (they automatically get a prize for trying) as soon as I gave it to her.

as you can see, Audrey isn't too thilled about the pony ride. This is the best picture I could get while trying to hold on to her.

Though I was without Scott for help, I didn't ever get too overwhelmed. My sister, sister-in-law, and mom were great to make sure I could take a nap when Richard took a nap. My kids are very well entertained by their cousins, so I just get to sit back and visit until one of them needs help or discipline.



My brother and I bonded over running. I can't run very fast due to a few factors. However, my brother was great and went my speed. He never made comments about maybe I could run faster or ran faster than me so I was struggling to keep up. We'd run about 4 miles each time we went. It was fun to have the time with just him to talk about whatever. His 9-year-old son was even able to keep up with us! What does that say about me?! It was a fun experience. I'm hoping to get better at running in a few months. In the meantime, I fear I'll get no better. Then, we'll conquer the Costco run!

Happy Mother's Day! (a day late...)

I just wanted to take the time to say how wonderful I think my Mom is! She's been such an example of selfless service, kindness, dedication to the gospel, love, etc. She taught me how to cook, clean, organize my time, prioritize, and work hard. She taught me the importance of making time for your children no matter their age. She has not had children at home for a few years and yet so much of her time is still spent serving her children and making things easier for them. She took ME and my family (so I didn't have to cook) out to dinner on Saturday night for Mother's Day and then gave me earrings! My dad gave me a bouquet of 2 dozen roses and a gift certificate for chocolate! I love you Mom!

Writing

I bought this preschool book to do with Richard, because I remember doing Sesame Street magazine learning stuff with my Mom when I was little. I figured it would be good Mommy/Richard bonding time. Richard really seems to like it! He's asked every day now if we can do the book. He really likes the mazes. He's interested in learning how to write. I mainly think it's because he sees me write my name so often at the store and he wants to learn to write his name. Of course, he's a little young to have the coordination to do really well, but he's trying! While we do that, I also am trying to help him learn what sound each letter makes. He likes doing it, so I am hoping I'm being helpful. Part of the problem is I'm still not sure what handed he is. He keeps changing which hand he holds the pencil in. I think he's left-handed but I'm just not sure. Oh, well. I'm sure it will take a couple of years still to develop the coordination to write.

As you can see from the pictures, he is definitely still needs a lot of practice, but he's trying! The identifiable letters are when I held the pencil with him

movement...

is the coolest thing to finally feel! It makes things so much more real!

work

I had a horrible night at work on Saturday! We were short-staffed by 3 nurses. I had one patient, we'll call him 17, that as a rule, based on the equipment he was on, is supposed to be a nurse's only a patient. Originally, the plan was to give patient 16 to the charge nurse. I guess the charge nurse decided that was beyond his ability and made the decision to give this patient to me so I had two patients. I was really upset! I was so busy that night and hardly had a chance to relax, and I saw the charge nurse relaxing quite a bit! He definitely could have handled patient 16! There were too many times I'd come out of patient 16's room to hear something beeping in patient 17's room. It's not exactly good to have care delayed like that for someone in such critical condition! At least the night wasn't boring...

Big baby

One of my favorite people in the world just had a baby last night! Well, his wife did. Yea for them! I heard through the grapevine (since they are way too busy to personally tell me) that the baby was over 9 lbs. I am in awe of those women that have the strength to push out a baby that big! It was even her first! I felt like I would explode from the pain with Audrey, and she was 6 lb 1 oz and my second. So, I know nothin'! They even had the ability to wait until the baby was born to know if it was a boy or a girl. Congratulations to them!

Pet Peeve

I am not a big fan of rebates that come in the form of a credit card. They charge you fees if you don't use if fast enough. They won't automatically deduct the balance like a gift card. You have to KNOW the balance and then tell the cashier "please charge 1.24 to this card" or whatever. Or, you have to happen to make a purchase of exactly the right amount. So, I have since lost a couple bucks due to this hassle. So, yet another way they get money from us. Grrr!