Valentines Day + Colbie Caillat + American Idol = Better Week

After such a negative post last week I need to come up with something much more positive to start out this week. (Thanks for all your support BTW). I felt like I had plenty of opportunies this week to redeem myself to my family, and I took them. The week started out with Preschool with Tucker at our house. We had lots of fun learning about plants, playing with glue and crayons. Thursday was the marathon Valentine's Day. After a crazy snow storm the night before, we had a short preschool in the morning, sent off the kids 2 hrs. later to school, sent treats with Blythe & Micah for their class parties and went and put on a great class party for Hayden's class (Room Mom, Bonus Points :) When the kids got home I had cupcakes for them and gave them each a little Valentine. I made my favorite Chicken Shish-Kabobs for dinner had Key Lime Pie for desert. (Trent and I had already celebrated our V-Day earlier.) Friday I got to go to the Colbie Caillet concert & Jasons Deli with my way cool SIL Cheryl. That is a whole other post in itself. Saturday I spent most of the day helping Trent get all our work vans and our Honda's safety & emissions done. Then we went to Best Buy and I bought the American Idol PS2 game with my Valentines $ Trent gave me. That game is so much fun. For all my family who remembers how much fun we had with Sing Star, this is even more fun. I've already been crowned American Idol twice and now my kids won't play with me. I also kept the yelling down to a bare minimum, watched less T.V., started a new book, went to the temple with a good friend, and took care of sick kids. Trent also put on another BIG account. So, I guess you can say I had a much better week. Let's pray for a repeat!

I Feel Like a Bad Mom This Week...

This week I have felt like a bad mom, maybe because I have been. Sunday Tucker killed the 3 goldfish we bought him the day before. He kept asking "If I kill these fish will you buy me a big fish?" I couldn't seem to get it through to him that if he would just take care of the fish he had now he might have big fish later. He kept wanting to hold them and "pet" them. I was getting so fustrated I just gave up and let him do whatever. The result...

That's not even everything. When I was driving to pick up Hayden at school yesterday I didn't have Tucker buckled in his car seat and he fell out of his seat and shoved a cap of a pin up the roof of his mouth. Blood. Bad Mom!

Side Note & Pic:

He looks so cute in this "missionary suit" he likes to wear (thanks Uncle Sam.)

Blythe had the worst week of her life and I feel totally responsible. Tuesday she had her thumbsucking appliance put in. We have been trying for years to break her of this habit and I have had no sucess at all. I felt that at 6 yeas old and in Kindregarten now, she had to be broken of the habit. After everything I looked into and researched, this appliance seemed the only real solution. She has been miserable this week and on the way home from the dentist she was already saying she didn't want to go to school because she "sounded like a dork." For the first few days she had to get used to talking with the appliance in her mouth. Today she sounds fine, but I felt so bad. When she's looking at you, you can't even tell she has it in. It's been 5 days and she hasn't sucked her thumb, she couldn't even if she wanted to anyway. She hates it though and asks all the time when she gets to have it out. Hopefully in a couple months we'll feel confident enough that she has broken the habit. I hope I have done the right thing. To make me an even worse Mom I told her I wouldn't talk about it on my blog. Bad Mom!

That's not even everything. I forgot about her Parent/Teacher conf. this week. What kind of Mom forgets about her kids PTC? For the record though she's doing great. She's at the highest level of reading they can actually give a kindergardner without invalidating 1st grade, whatever that means. But I can't even take credit for that. She's a smarty pants.

Hayden's science fair project was due Friday and after weeks of working on it he finally decided Thurs. to sit and write his written report. After complaining to me about how he didn't "understand" or didn't "know what to do" I finally lost it with him and yelled at him LOUD. I was so tired of him and the science project that I had done a lot of already. I sent him to bed early and then proceeded to feel like a horrible mother, which I was. The next morning I begged for his forgiveness and made a renewed commitment to not raise my voice like that again (for the hundreth time.)

Next week is Valentines week and I am hoping to show my family more love and patience. I get to redeem myself a little. I'm doing Hayden's class party and sending treats with the other kids for there parties. That makes up for it a little, right? I'm also going to try really hard not to watch T.V. until me kids are done with there projects for the evening or in bed. I am realizing how irritated I get when they are talking to me or asking questions while I am watching T.V. I had to say that out loud so I would actually try and do it. Okay, I'm finished now.

Why I Love California

As my loyal readers know I went back to California a week ago. It was so nice to get out of this weather we have been experiencing here in Utah, I like to call HELL (sorry for my offensive language.) I took a few pictures of some of my favorite things about Cali.

I love personalized license plates in California. When we lived there we had a couple, and as corney as they are I love them. I love trying to figure out the creative ones.

I love In-N-Out! I actually had to take a Sunday lunch brake to get my fix (bad girl.) We have a wannabe place here in Utah called Chadders, not as good.

There is nothing like having family around and what better way to be together than Family Birthday parties. This is the hardest thing for me about being in Utah. Evee, my cute niece turned 2 while we were visiting. Good times!

There's no place like Home. This picture that my Mom painted of Sherod has hung in our garage for probably 17 years. It put a smile on my face when I saw it again. What a face.

Bakersfield has some really good places to eat, and I tried to eat at as many as I could, explaining the extra weight I have put on. Elephant Bar is one of my Favs. Before I took this picture my kids were hanging form the elephants tusks. I swear I can't take those kids anywhere. Even my Mom was hiding her face.

I love that all the streets have names and that I know where they all are. That's home for you.

There are some things that I don't miss at all.

This was our old house we lived in Bakersfield. Driving by it while I was there made me so grateful for our beautiful home here in Utah. We were very blessed to move here when we did and be able to build the home we have. I love our house. Trent misses our Bakersfield trees :( The one in the front has a heart carved in it with T.B. + A.B. How sweet is that?

Unknown Fact: The city flower in Bakersfield is the tumbleweed. There were a couple days of very windy weather where you had to dodge tumbleweeds on the back roads. I took this picture on the way out to my Moms. Notice the tumbleweeds in the middle of the road and along the fence line.

I have to say as much as I love California I am happy we are here in Utah. The only thing that would make it perfect is if I had some of MY family here. Living in Bakersfield my whole life with family around the corner, it has been an adjustment (for me, not for Trent.) But we have made some very good friends here, and after all...This Is Home.

Father-in-Laws Silver Beaver Award

(SIL Cheryl, MIL,FIL, Me, SIL Amy)

While I was in California I had the privlidge to attend my FIL's award ceremony and presentation of the Silver Beaver Boy Scouts of America Service Award. He was well deserving of this award. He has spent hundreds of hours on Camp Kern, a Boy Scout camp up in Hunnington Lake, CA. Congratulations Dad!

President Hinckley

I took this picture from my sisters blog, I love it. I have been so touched by everyones tributes and thoughts about President Hinckley on there blogs. He was a special prophet to me also and he will be very missed. I am happy for him and sad for us. Brigg was bummed that he died on his birthday. He was the only prophet my children have had and I know he will always have a special meaning to them. I hope we can all remember his teachings and apply them to our lives the best we can. I look forward to the announcement of the new prophet and gaining a testimony of his calling as Prophet of the Church.