Shortness Of Breath/ New Job

 Mike is a co-master of his own life. With the guidance of Heavenly Father he took control of our families financial situation and got himself a part time job ALONG with his full time job. I know before I get any emails or comments about how horrible I am to allow my husband to work 2 jobs while I stay home with our kids. But honestly it doesn't matter because we prayed about it and this is what we're suppose to do.

 Mike was hired as a part time graveyard custodian/production crew worker for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. So basically he cleans the buildings on Temple Square. And he
also helps fixes things, cleans the statues, helps with setting up things for events, and etc. He's still learning all his responsibilities.

He knows that it will be difficult for alittle bit. He'll still work the warehouse job in the morning. Then come home and nap for 3 hours. Then go to Temple Square and work 4 hours. Then come home and nap another 3 hours before starting this all over again. Saturday and Sundays he'll sleep. And that's all. 6 broken up hours of sleep 5 days a week.

And how will he do this?
Alot of Mountain Dew, prayers, and Heavenly Father. God wanted him there for a reason so Mike's counting on God to get him through this.
I pray that the managers see how amazing of a worker he is and will offer him a full time position so he could quit his warehouse job. But we need to not only have faith in God but also in God's timing.

And as for me....... I could hardly ever get my husband to help clean our house. He hates cleaning bathrooms. He hates things that are sticky, smelly, dried up, puked on, colored on, stained, etc. So to see his eyes light up when he's telling me about vomit control during events at the conference center- it's absolutely amazing. He's so excite to go to work. He's happy that God bless him directly  with this job.

(He interviewed once before with the church and asked as he left if the recruiters prayed over each person who interviewed. And the manager said that most departments do. So the man who interviewed prayed about Mike and was prompted to offer him a job. How amazing!) 

Working for the church is something he's wanted for a very long time. So I'm going to support him every single way I can. If buying him 10 Mountain Dew's is what's going to help then I will. If driving him to and from work is something that will help then I will do it. If leaving with our 2 noisy toddlers every Saturday is going to ensure that he gets some good sleep then we'll be using our zoo pass alot more.

And if anyone asks what motivated him to do this? He'll say this...

Mike entered this race since it looks like fun. But when he seen this video something changed in him. I seen it. His eyes were wide open. The manner in his facial features changed. Something inside of him sparked.
Like he woke up. So right now things might be difficult but he wants success. He wants to get out from under these student loans. He wants to save for our house. He wants to get on the right road for the career he wants. All from a video. It goes to show that God speaks to us from all forms.

Halloween Party

Mike's sister and her husband threw a great Halloween party. There was tons of food. (however I still packed Cati and I some paleo pizza) Some yummy root beer ( i think homemade). Tons of family we haven't really seen in a while. And a few games for all the kids. Plus tons of candy. 

So I'm just keepsaking this party with photos. From both my mother-in-laws and mine. 

 Mason in his wolf jacket.

 Princess Ducati

 The only picture I got with baby A looking right at me. :-)

 Dinner time with the cousins

 Mason-he's such a goof!

 Mike with baby A. (not her name but don't want to blog her name since she's not my kid)

 Baby A showing me her feet for the photo. Love it!

 Playing Halloween bingo.

 Grandma helping Ducati.

 Cousins playing bingo

 Great photo of where Lily cut her own hair. *sigh- that girl!

 Cati eating her prize Dum-Dum

 Blurry picture of Mason. But love the smile on Grandma's face.

Where's Carmen Sandiego and Waldo? In the garage cuddling. :-)

 Hailey enjoying herself

 Spin around. Now tape the hat on the witch.

 Lily spinning herself.

 Watch out Little Red the wolf is right behind you.

 Ballerina, Waldo, and Princess

 Everyone had such a great time.

 Aunt J and Uncle S.

 Aunt D, Mike's sister, with her baby A. Such a cute monster outfit.

 My brother-in-laws.

 kitty cousins

 Not sure if it's a good idea to have Death lurking behind grandma. But it's funny! :-)

 Aunt D trying to organize all the kids for game time.

Halloween Family photo. We're looking at someone else's camera when grandma snapped this picture. So no one is looking at her camera. But oh well... it was a great party! :-)

While driving home Mike and I ask our kids what their favorite part of an activity is so tonight Hailey beat us to the punch and asked everyone what their favorite part was
Ducati- making Aunt D happy
Lily- the scary costume that a guy was wearing
Mason- the games
Hailey- the goodie bag
Me- the homemade root beer
Mike- getting pictures done with me since he got to cuddle me alot. Awww!

FHE: Snack

For Family Home Evening we have our board with every one's name and which part they are responsible for. But lately I've been noticing a little trend. 

I have snack. every.single.time.

Oh no. Not by choice. Not because it was my turn. It's because I'm a push over. I will be the first to admit it. When I see  (insert name)  having a busy day or just needing some help I will usually jump and help. Or others might call it "rescuing" this person. 

So this week Mason was in charge of snack. Monday morning he says to me, "Mom what are we having for FHE snack?" (clue #1 of me being a push over)

I tell him, "Son, you're in charge of snack. Did you pick a recipe?"

Mason says, " I'll have what you cook." (clue #2 that I am a push over)

So to help out 1 small bit I picked up a box of GF cake mix and left it on the stove. After school he came home and asked if I was going to make it. (clue #3 and last straw)

I explained to not just Mason but also Hailey that I am their mother. And as their mother I am blessed to teach and guide my children. I'm blessed to teach them life skills. I'm blessed to watch them grow. I am blessed to help and serve them. But I am not blessed to be their servant. I am to teach then let go so they can learn themselves. 

I told Mason to read the box directions and if he had any questions to come ask me while I sat at the counter reading my latest parenting magazine. ( haha....parenting magazine.) 

 After a few minutes of Mason fumbling around in the kitchen Hailey stepped in and showed him where certain things were. She told me she learned from Cake Boss. Wow- I got completely overlooked tonight. :-)

But after 30 minutes of prep and another 20 minutes of baking Mason made 8 yummy chocolate GF cupcakes. Afterwards I sat down with him and explained that the things Mike and I have taught him so far like laundry, cooking, home repairs, checking car oil, etc are things he'll need to know as he becomes an adult. I explained that when he goes on his mission he'll need to cook. He'll need to know how to clean his room, clothes, home, and himself properly. I explained that when he's looking for a bride he'll need to know how to cook for her. Then things started to click with him. I wasn't being mean. I was being helpful. I was watching him. I was ready to help if need be BUT not without him trying first. So I not only taught another valuable life lesson I also got out of snack duty.

And on a side note the cupcakes he made were really moist and delicious. He didn't soften the butter when he mixed it all the ingredients together  So when he put the batter into the muffin in there was chunks of butter in each muffin. But when the muffins were done they were so soft. Maybe he's on to something. I'll have to try it myself next time I bake :-)

Primary Lesson: Serving

I love being a Primary teacher.
I love that I can be silly and my class loves it.
I love the random things my class will say. (my fave so far, "I keep the sabbath day holy by not coming to church naked.")
I love that I'm teaching children about Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
I love just love it all.

But teaching a lesson can be difficult sometimes. This week's lesson is on serving. Easy, right?

No.

Whenever I mention the word service I get the usual response...
"Do dishes for my mom"
"Do dishes for my dad"
"Clean my room"

All very good things but I'm not one to think inside the box.
So with Halloween approaching Mike helped me take this lesson to the next step.

When explaining the story about Jesus washing his Apostles feet I knew I was losing them. So I stopped and we played this game. Mike made a bean bag game for me to take. After each kid threw the bean bags into the plastic pumpkin they picked a popsicle stick from my "Halloween" jar. And on each stick their was a name written.

Mom, dad, sister, brother, teacher, God, friend, neighbor, and home.

When a kid picked one out they then had to share a memory of how and when they served this person. It really helped them get out of the usual answers and ponder when they served their sister.
We heard some sweet stories. We also heard some funny stories about sharing markers that they stole earlier in the say. Another day; another lesson. :-)

After our game announced a class challenge. I wrapped bite size snickers up in some scrapbook paper and gave each child one. The look in their eyes... it was as if they hit the jackpot.
But I told them to not open it. And went into my enrichment activity.

I explained that service is a wonderful act. That helping someone is wonderful. But also giving can bring a wonderful feeling. I gave examples like giving food/clothes to homeless people. Or giving a meal to someone in need. Then I explained that sometimes service can be hard. Like sharing with your sister when you don't really want to....or giving someone a candy that you want to eat.
That's when it all changed.
I challenged all my kids to do an act of service today. To give this candy to someone who they feel needs it. It could be their parents, siblings, or someone in the hall. And if they did this challenge  I promised that they would feel happy by doing that. That service brings a sort of happy feeling in their hearts that they could get no where else. ( <--- sort of my testimony sharing time)

After everyone promised to try to serve I handed out my Halloween gift/treat. Nothing says Christ like pumpkin pencils, bat straws, and marshmallow sticks.

But the joy I experienced after class is describable. Even though the halls were extremely crowded I seen each child from my class hand their candy to either their sister, mother, or father. One little boy gave his to me. Which was very sweet. I admit I felt happy :-)
Then he seen his mom and asked for it back. hahaha....I love being a Primary teacher.

Free Theater Night

Our luck has been changing lately. Mike won 2 tickets to tonight's rehearsal showing of The Lion in Winter. 

photo source

A couple of months ago I entered Mike and I into Utah's Free Theater Night lottery. You pick 6-7 theater shows you would like to see and then it's all a matter of luck. I didn't win any which is OK. But Mike won 2 events. But sadly I didn't open our email in time to confirm the first shows tickets. Thankfully I seen this one so I was able to claim these tickets.

The show was great. Lots of drama. Sort of like a soap opera set in 1183. So very interesting to watch to the point I was talking to Mike that it needs a sequel. I know....I'm a movie person:-)
But tonight was such a wonderful evening. A nice change of pace from Redbox. :-)

Get Air

One of our parenting goals is to go on more kid dates. So tonight I had planned to go out with Mason to the Utah Symphony.  Something new to expose him too. Something cultured and educational. In hopes that he'll love it the way I do. But this morning I got a silly ol'fever that I couldn't break. So instead of canceling on Mason Mike happily stepped in and took Mason out on a guys night. They went to Get Air! 

 Get Air is a local indoor trampoline park. Pretty much there's trampolines from wall to wall.

 I've been seeing deals for this place on KSL a lot and with a coupon code I was able to pick up 2 1 hour jump passes for about $7 (retail $20).

As I can see with my son's big o'smile he had a blast. They were flipping and jumping off of everything. Mike showed off his crazy tramp skills to all the pre-teen boys. I'm glad Mason had alot of fun. I know.... what was I thinking....the sympathy. This mom will have to re-think her son dates from now on. :-)

"It's Christmas Time!"
First snow falls seem to make people forget all over holidays :-)

Color Date

I have been wanting to do a Color Run for so long now. Doesn't it look like so much fun?

You run (or walk to enjoy the fun alittle longer) and the staff throws Holi powder at you. Which is just dyed corn starch. So after the run you look like this young lady. All smiles :-)

But things just never worked out in my favor when these runs have come around. Either we didn't have the money for registration or Mike worked, or no sitter. So I decided to take matters into my own hands.

While the girls were playing at a friends house I set up a quick date for Mike and I.
First I needed to take a short drive to an Indian gift shop. They sell these bags of Holi powder for $2 a bag.

Next I told Mike to dress in his most crummiest clothes (since this stuff does somewhat stain). BUT he had to wear a white shirt. He was alittle confused but he gladly followed instruction. I packed a little snack for our date and drove up the nearest canyon. 

We hiked until I could find the most perfect spot. Flat ground, trees to provide some cover, and secluded. Then I informed Mike of what we were doing. He was alittle confused on what

 "A Color Date" 

was until I pulled these bags out of my sack. 

 We were both pretty excite. Here's us BEFORE

 While....

 After....

 You can see my hand print on his shirt. At least I think it's my hand print :-)
 That's OK because I got him good. His entire neck was red. haha :)

 And you can see which color he used the most of.

We had so much fun. Afterwards we had a little snack then enjoyed the hike back to our car. It was pretty fun to see all the other hikers just smile when they seen us coming. 

I think I am addicted to these powders. We had so much fun! We want to plan a family "Color" date sometime soon. Yeah for messy dates! :-) ♥

Sight word ball

Our latest home school lesson- Word Ball!

 I seen this idea on Pinterest and decided to make one. We had a beach ball somewhere in our garage and I had a book from the library with 100 sight words. It's for kindergarten kids but hey...it's never too early to teach kids to read. So I wrote 16 words on the ball with a sharpie. And for our lesson we played catch. 

Well alittle more than that. After we caught the ball we read and say aloud the word that's facing us. Lily pretty much has mastered these words with an exception to Cat and Ducati. She get's those  2 mixed up. But lowly I'll add more words to our word ball until she got's all 100 words.
But it's been a nice change of pace not having to do worksheets. :-) 

Grandpa's visit

Mike's dad, Brent, made a visit to Utah for a long weekend. When our kids heard that he was coming they were all so excited. These visits come around once a year but when they do all our kids want to do is play, play, and play with him.
 It was too bad we couldn't spend more time with him while he was here. Between Mike working 2 days, Mason and his debate watching homework, and fixing a pool- but we're not complaining. We enjoyed every minute of it. :-)

As you can see from the photos...

 

  

 Hailey coming in to set these boys straight.

 After playing in their homemade park Grandpa treated us to Chuck E. Cheese. Super fun! Our kids were too focused on the singing mouse to look at me long enough to smile.

 After filling up everyone was very eager to play.

 Mason sort of went off on his own. Pre-teen independence :-)
Hailey kept going between Mike, me and Grandpa so mostly Cati and Lily are photographed since they had to stay with me since I was holding their tokens.

A witness to Ducati's creative thinking. (Laying on the bowling game)

 Lily playing against another little 3 year old. It was so most cutest air hockey game I've ever seen.

 But even though most of our time together we were just playing around calling eachother ,"Poopie Apple pie face" (inside joke :-)......) we also went to Bountiful Temple together. How amazing it is to spend time with family in the house of the Lord. Such a great visit. We all can't wait until his next visit.