The Wrat Pack

Top Ten

2010-09-13T21:28:00.000-07:00

Jodi's top ten reasons for not updating the blog

10. We went to Seattle to celebrate Chris' 40th birthday. It was awesome. We watched the Mariners lose, ate lots of baseball stadium food, ate lots of yummy Seattle food, did some shopping and even rode on public transportation! That's right folks. You heard it here first. Our kids have now experienced public transportation twice in their lives.

9. We bought a trailer. No more roughing it for us. We are officially old. And we're pansies. The first thing we did was put memory foam on the bed in the aforementioned trailer. Pathetic.

8. We went to Canada for two weeks, pulling the trailer and getting a whopping 9 mpg! Our carbon footprint is so big that it could be referred to as a sink hole. I think there's a bunch of Chilean miners trapped in it.

7. After being gone for two weeks, it took us a month to catch up on everything around here. It's taken us more than a month to straighten out our Verizon bill after roaming internationally for two weeks. Gotta love 'em.

6. Keaton started high school. Wait. What? Actually, it's going really well for him and we've been excited for the opportunities that it brings. He auditioned for the school play today, and is working on getting on the debate team. I've experienced his arguing skills first hand and I can assure you that they are top notch. I'm anticipating him leading his school to the national championships.

5. Carson started fifth grade and football season is in full swing. Two hour practices, five days a week. He loves it, even though he is just about the smallest kid on his team. He doesn't shy away from trying to tackle the bigger kids. He still runs at them full speed, wraps his arms around them, falls down and hangs on to their ankles as they continue to run. The kid's got heart.

4. Jantzen started first grade (can I get an AMEN?). She is almost seven, so she's older than most of her classmates. She likes to stay busy and she is very social so first grade has been a long time coming. She also started gymnastics classes today. It's really hard to sit back and watch without jumping in and correcting the teacher on her technique, but I guess I'll have to get over it. Jantzen loves it.

3. Chris has lost 40 pounds, and is looking better than the day I married him. He works a ton, which is a bummer, but I really appreciate the fact that he takes his role as provider so seriously. I am one lucky girl.

2. I started school too. I'm studying massage therapy three nights a week in Tri-Cities, so my commute is about 45 minutes. None of us are used to me being gone so much and it's been crazy hectic around here, but I'm loving it and hopefully soon I'll be able to pull in some more income so that Chris can work less.

And the number one reason for not updating the blog is........

1. I didn't want to.

Guns vs. Hoses

2010-05-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

Just a quick little post to let you know that we're still alive. That is, if anyone still reads this.

Hello?

Anyone there?

**crickets**

OK, well I guess I'm just talking to myself here, but I wanted to share these pictures of Jantzen's field trip to the.....

wait for it.....

wait for it....

Fire Station!

Yeah, like she hasn't already been there a million times. But it was fun for her to show her daddy off to her kindergarten class. And let's be honest here, I had a great time watching my hunky husband give the tour. I can never get tired of my man in uniform. Well, unless he has more than, like, two days off in a row and he drives me crazy around the house. But maybe if he wore his uniform on those days I wouldn't be so irritable toward him. We'll have to give that a try.

The fire station and the police station are in the same building, called the Hermiston Safety Center (or something like that). So after their tour of the fire station the kids went next door for a tour of the police station. Chris' favorite prank to pull on the police is to tell all of the little kids to ask the police where they keep all of their donuts. What a riot! The kids head into the police station all excited thinking that maybe they're getting donuts, then the cops have to be the "bad guys" and tell them that there aren't any. You 'd think that they would plan ahead and just buy a bunch of donuts to give to the kids so the kids don't hate them. Now I know why people don't like cops very much. It all starts in kindergarten when they don't give donuts to the kids!

Anyways, at the fire station they got the royal treatment since it was Jantzen's class. Everyone got a chance to squirt water at the police cars parked behind the fire station.

heehee

And Chris showed them how he likes to hide in the ambulance when he should be working. "These cots are really pretty comfortable!" He tells the kids. Actually, he gave a very fun and interesting tour of the ambulance, even telling them details about cancer, big needles and drilling things into your bones.

Hopefully there weren't any nightmares that night.

Stairclimbin'

2010-03-30T14:10:00.001-07:00

First of all, let's just get this out of the way. This is our awesome friend Heather. She loves firemen. I do too. We spent all day cooped up with 1500 of them. It was a tough job, but someone had to do it. And we did. We rose to the occasion and did what was necessary. We took one for the team.

We can't wait to do it again. A few weeks ago we went to Seattle for the Scott Firefighter Stair Climb. We stopped in Prosser on the way and picked up Ryan and Heather. We had a blast roaming around Seattle, eating at three different restaurants in a matter of about 6 hours and trying to figure out how to use the trolley system. We are such country bumpkins, at one point the driver came out of his little booth and asked us, "You guys just along for the ride?" Apparently, we were riding in circles.

"No, sir. Just from a small town, that's all." He seemed to understand. Public transportation in Hermiston consists of hitching a ride on the bumper of a watermelon truck.The next day was

THE. BIG. DAY.

Firefighters from all over the country, plus a few from New Zealand, Australia and Germany travel to Seattle to compete in this stairclimb. The proceeds benefit the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and last I heard they were able to raise about $650,000. Thank you to all of our friends and family who opened your wallets for this great cause. Chris and Hermiston Fire as a whole was able to far surpass their fundraising goals. It's great to see that even in this tough economy people are willing to help others in need.

The day started out with a cancer patient sharing her story of survival and how she was helped and inspired by this event. Then the first group of firefighters was escorted to the starting line by the "Pipes and Drums". I'm not sure what the history is between firefighters and bagpipes, but there is a definite connection there and they love it. There is something eerie to me about the sound of bagpipes, especially when they were taking them to begin one of the toughest physical challenges of their lives. Here is Chris getting psyched up to go. I have participated in several running races, including two half marathons, and I understand the feeling of dread, excitement, apprehension, nervousness, adrenaline and let's-just-get-this-overwith-ness. He had several hours to wait until his turn, which made it hard. Too much time to fret over it isn't good.
They have to be all suited up in their turnout gear as if they were actually going into a fire. Boots, turnouts, helmet, gloves--the works. Oh yeah, and one minor thing...an airpack. Oh no, they don't get to suck regular air at will while they're climbing 69 flights of stairs and carrying 50 pounds of gear. They have to suck it through an SCBA. At the 40th floor they can change bottles for a fresh supply of air, but after that they're on their own. One guy in our group ran out of air about 5 flights before he got to the top. The funeral is next week.

Just kidding!

But you believed me for a second, didn't you?

This is Chris going through the doorway of dread that will lead him to the stairs.

69 flights of them! All of the guys from Hermiston Fire were doing this for the first time and when they were finished they all said, "That was the hardest !#$%& thing I've ever done!" Well, except for Chris. He said, "That was the hardest gosh darn diggety dad gum thing I've ever done!" Well, at least that's our story and we're sticking to it. Here's all of the guys from Hermiston Fire, with the tower in the background. Yeah, it's tall. Chris finished in 23 minutes, 52 seconds. He can't wait to do it again next year. It was an awesome experience.

Oh, one more thing...
There. That's better.

2010-03-30T13:30:00.000-07:00

**This just in...Dana's foster daughters aren't supposed to have their pictures up in public places, so sadly I had to take them down from this post. But trust me when I tell you that they are sooo cute and I took some really great pictures of them. If/when the adoption happens I will gladly post hundreds of pictures of those cuties.**
So MAYBE this post is slow in coming. And MAYBE it happened like a month and a half ago. And MAYBE I'm a total slacker. But MAYBE we just had too much excitement in our lives in February and I didn't want to overload you with it all at once. I'm spoon feeding you to prevent convulsions of happiness.

You're welcome. (This is Jantzen and Alexis, who I will tell you about in a minute. Just hold your horses.)

So someone (and I won't mention any names) that we call mom/grandma turned the ripe old age of 60! Oh, heck. That's not ripe. That's down right rotten!

I'm totally cracking myself up here.

Anyways, (almost) all of us kids/grand kids met in Portland to go to a Globetrotters game together to celebrate the occasion.
I've always wanted to go to a Globetrotters game and I was pretty excited about it. But when we got there we discovered that the real show was watching the kids playing together and sharing treats with each other. They all got along so well and were just so stinking sweet!

Clearly, Grandma was in heaven with one toddler on each leg. If only she had one more leg, she could fit them all on her lap at once. My kids have been around for 14, 10 and 6 years now. Then grandma had a little dry spell and didn't get any more grand kids for awhile. But (almost) two years ago, Jena and Nick contributed Jace to grandma's happy land. That was nice, because it took a little pressure off of me. (Thanks guys!) Then last summer Dana was given two sweet foster daughters, Aubrie (on grandma's lap)and Alexis (pictured at top). Now grandma's land is super happy and all the pressure is off of me. I'm loving it. We're crossing our fingers SUPER hard that these girls will be able to stay in our family forever. They are so darling! Dana is an awesome mommy and such a natural at it. Plus, she bought a minivan and I'm pretty sure all sales are final. tee hee
Chris is no dummy. He knows that the way to a toddler's heart is through food. He showed up with a couple of bags of popcorn and all was right with the toddler world.

Do you think they like each other? Yeah, me neither.

Mt. Bachelor, how I love thee.

2010-02-23T21:14:00.000-08:00

For President's Day weekend we stayed at Sunriver with the Billingsley crew and had a BLAST!! We used to make this trip every year but for some reason we missed the last couple of years. I don't know what we were thinking because we love this mountain and always have such a great time there. It's a great family friendly resort with plenty of easy runs for the kids. But what we found this year was that the kids have gotten so good at skiing that they don't really need the easy runs anymore. Some of us parents even had a hard time keeping up with our kids.

All weekend long we were amazed and pleasantly surprised at how much easier it is getting to take our kids skiing. It used to be an all day struggle trying to keep their mittens on their hands, their hats on their heads, their jackets zipped up, their skis un-crossed and smiles on their faces. Just as soon as we would accomplish that they would have to go to the bathroom. So we would trek to the lodge in our ski boots, strip them down, take them potty, try not to drop mittens in the toilet, put a fake smile on our faces and go outside to start all over again. We would take one run on the bunny hill, holding them up all the way down until our thigh muscles literally caught on fire (It's true! I have the burn holes in my ski pants to prove it!) then they would be hungry. So off to the lodge we would go again.

I know that this doesn't make skiing sound fun. But when you're teaching your kids to ski it's a different kind of fun. If you understand that your hard work will someday pay off, you will do it happily because when your whole family can hop on the ski lift and ski together it is all worth it. Words can't describe how much fun it is. Have you ever had an experience that you wish you could just bottle up and save? Where you're thinking, "I should record this so I can live it over and over." But you're having too much fun to get your camera out, plus a camera just can't do it justice anyways.

On our third day of skiing Jantzen (the youngest in our crew) was doing really well on skis and we felt like she was ready to branch out a little and try some runs other than Marshmallow and Dilly Dally Alley. If you don't know what those runs are like, let's just let the names speak for themselves. They are beginner runs and mom and dad were getting a little bored with them. So everyone headed out together to take a few runs on the other side of the mountain. Over there we found sunshine and beautiful views but no crowds. We were in heaven! It was so fun to ski with everyone together and listen to the kids' "Woo hoo" and "Woop woop" as they skied down.

Later that day Keaton took me to the summit (pictured below) and proceeded to "own me" all the way down. It's awesome to see him skiing so well, but it's a tough pill to swallow when I can't keep up with him. I still remember when he was three and Chris and I put him on tiny little skis and would push him back and forth between us while he put his hands on his knees.

Dang you Keaton anyway! Could you at least PRETEND to not be so good?
Anywhooo...that was our weekend and we've been talking about it ever since. We have vowed to not miss another year and if we do, then we're gonna punish ourselves with...with...with...well, I don't know. But we won't go easy on ourselves and it won't be pretty.

The many faces of Keaton

2010-02-23T21:01:00.000-08:00

Not too proud to be a dork and pose with his mom's sunglasses in public. Friendly, happy-go-lucky pose at Multnomah Falls.
Down right intimidating!

Keaton is turning out to be such a fine young man. He is always willing to help around the house and I can always count on him to babysit for me when I need him.

He has such a great sense of humor, and sometimes he says things that are so funny I can't believe he made them up on his own. (I wish I had written them down!)

He recently was chosen to be in student leadership and that's been pretty exciting for him. He'll have the opportunity to travel to Eugene for a leadership conference this spring. Do you think it would be uncool to tag along?

I'm just wondering.

Better Than Wheaties

2010-02-23T17:40:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen!

Please allow me to introduce Mrs. Thurman's 4th grade Breakfast of Champions recipient...

Carson Wrathall!Carson was honored to be chosen again (he also won in 1st grade) this year. To be honest, I really don't know why they call it the "Breakfast of Champions" because there is no breakfast to be had. It's probably another victim of budget cuts, because there used to be food, once upon a time. But it is a big honor regardless of the missing food!

There was an assembly at school and each student had their moment of fame, where the principal read a statement from their teacher telling why they were chosen. Carson's teacher wrote that he is nice to everyone, looks out for others, gets along with everybody and has a real enthusiasm for learning.

WOW!

And here's a funny little thing about that day that I would like to add, just for future embarrassment. Carson LOVES the Oregon Ducks and found it very important to have his Ducks jersey on for the assembly. The night before, he pulled it out of his dirty clothes hamper and asked me if I could have it clean by morning. I told him that I couldn't get it done in time and that maybe he could choose a different Duck shirt. I didn't notice it until I got to school for the assembly, but he pulled the precious jersey out of the laundry and wore it dirty!

Way to go, Carson! We're proud of you, even if you do wear dirty shirts to school!

Teeth and Tumbling

2010-02-23T17:17:00.000-08:00

It's always bittersweet when my kids start losing their teeth. It's exciting to watch them grow and learn and experience new things, but it's sad to say goodbye to those baby teeth that fit so well into their mouths. The gigantic looking adult teeth are always kinda funny looking for the first few years.

How 'bout that hillbilly smile?

Jantzen had a really hard time saying goodbye to this tooth, because she was too scared to pull it. It hung there for dear life until I finally put my foot down and forced her to let me pull it. She could hardly talk, let alone eat. And let's face it. This girl can't afford to miss too many meals.
See the food on her face? I made her lick it off.

Every calorie counts, right?

Guess what else?!?

Mmm hmmm, that's right.

The girl is in tumbling classes!

Oh yeah, gonna carry on the legacy of her mother.
She loves it.

And would I be bragging if I said that she's the one the other moms always use as an example?

OK then, I'm bragging.

It's pretty awesome to hear the other moms saying to their kids, "Do it like Jantzen does."

Yes, I'm pretty proud...To say the least.
Thanks to some Wrathall genes, I think she may grow up to be small enough, too!
(Heaven knows I didn't bring any petite genes to the table!)

Notice her ribs in the picture? I told you she couldn't afford to miss any meals, and I wasn't kidding!

I told you so...

2010-01-27T21:05:00.000-08:00

I warned you in my last post that it would probably be two months until my next post. Well, I almost made it. But SOMEBODY (Hi Kyla!) likes to harass me about not updating my blog. So here you go.

Alrightie now. Let's see what we can talk about. Well, we had Christmas. Yessirree we sure did. It was a wonderful day of relaxing, picking up scraps of wrapping paper, eating, picking up scraps of wrapping paper, napping, picking up scraps of wrapping paper, staying in our pajamas all day and picking up scraps of wrapping paper. Overall, it was a wonderful day. Before Christmas, Chris went AWOL for a day and snuck in to Best Buy and bought me something he shouldn't have. (A camera) and now I feel like a stupidhead because I don't know how to use it. But I'm having fun learning and I'll probably torture you with my attempts at photography. That is, IF I ever update my blog again.

Take this, for instance. Last night was a skate night for the kids' elementary school. (A fundraiser. Yippee! I just LOVE fundraisers!) I don't know how this picture happened and I know that there's no skill displayed in this picture, but I think it's cool. There were kids skating all around, but for some reason the only kids that really showed up were Carson and his friend Ryan. Everyone else looks like one of those ghosts in the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, only blurry.

Here's Jantzen and her friend Morgan taking a breather. It was their first time skating and they did a great job. They reminded me of Bambi trying to walk for the first time, with their legs going in all different directions but there were no tears. Even after numerous collisions between the floor and their rear ends, they still had smiles from ear to ear. The skating rink is right around the corner from our house, so I think there may be more trips there in our future. It was fun for all of us.

And here's my double experiment. I was trying out the KitchenAid I got for Christmas AND messing with the aperture on my camera. How's that for some serious excitement? I know, I know. You may just have to walk away from my blog for a few minutes and calm yourself down. It's okay. Go ahead. I'll be here waiting when you're ready to come back.

More double experiments going on! I probably should have warned you. Homemade pasta with bad aperture experiments. A bit much? Probably.

Okay. I gotta get to bed now. Sorry for the lame post. I promise to update again soon with some real substance. Oh, who am I kidding. I'll see you in a couple of months.

Trips to Santa's lap

2009-12-07T22:04:00.000-08:00

That's right, folks. Twice in one day.

Uh huh.

Noddin' my head like, "YEAH."

Movin' my hips like, "YEAH."

Oh wait, where was I?

I think I got carried away with my celebration.

I'm such an awesome blogger.

Now don't be surprised if it's another TWO months before I post again.

But.....

I almost forgot to mention our ward Christmas party that was last Friday night.

First on the agenda was the FOOD!

We have two bona fide CHEFS in our ward (mother and daughter) so any ward function is

a)guaranteed to have good food

b) guaranteed to draw a crowd because of the food

c)guaranteed to TOTALLY ROCK because I love food!

Second on the agenda was the visit from Santa. It's traditional for Santa to come at the end of the evening, sit on the stage and listen to all the kids' wishes for Christmas. He then gives them a bag of goodies and sends them on their way.

Apparently, Keaton doesn't feel like he's too old for this tradition because he gladly stood in line to sit on Santa's lap.

But when he sat on Santa's lap, he did the most believable imitation of a toddler who's scared of Santa and is trying not to cry. I was laughing my head off, but Santa totally bought in to it and was really worried!

So funny.

It kinda reminds me of the time about three years ago when he laid down on the floor and did "the worm" over to Santa.

Thanks, Keaton. You were the highlight of my evening. You were even better than the food.

2009-12-07T13:10:00.000-08:00

Hellooooooooooooooo everybody! I'm baaaaaack.

Finally!

Ummmm, yeah. I just realized that it's been over a month since I last blogged.

And it's been almost two months since this happened. So here's the report on my half marathon. Heather and I went to Vancouver the day before the race and took some classes to learn about chi running and about stretching and strengthening exercises for runners. That was very informative and fun. It was raining really hard that day and we, being desert dwellers, were kind of freaking out about running in that type of weather. But the next day was dry and a perfect temperature for running.

The race didn't go so well for us, neither of us were feeling too stellar, but we muddled through it and we survived. I have no plans of running another half marathon, but would love to do some shorter races. We applied to run in the Hood to Coast, but that race is so popular, that it's very hard to get in. We didn't. We have hopes of running it in 2011, though. We'll see what happens.

In November Chris got to go on a "guys trip" to Playa del Carmen, Mexico with his dad, brothers (Spencer and Robbie) and his brother-in-law (Brian). They had a lot of fun hanging out without any women telling them what to do. Chris tells me that he would have preferred to stay home and rake leaves with me, but I'm pretty sure that's just my consolation prize to make me feel better about not getting to go.

Actually, I'm positive about that.

You can't look at this picture and believe that he'd rather rake leaves!

Dear Chris,

If you're going to lie to me, please try to make it believable. Maybe tell me that you rode to the moon with Elvis or something. That's something I can believe!

Love,

Jodi
P.S. I'm sorry that your baby brothers can grow more facial hair than you.

P.P.S. Please tell me that you don't wear a speedo like they do.

Shine like the top of the Chrysler Building!

2009-11-01T20:56:00.001-08:00

I'm feeling like orphan Annie today. Why? Let me explain. The last two months have been crazy, frantic, knock your socks off busy. Now all of that is over. Woot! Woot! I'm finding myself with a little bit of time on my hands, and I'm faced with a decision of what to do with it. So as I was pondering this dilemma this morning I had a nice conversation with myself. It went something like this:

Me: "What should I do this week? I don't have any Scentsy parties until Saturday. I don't have to clean anyone else's houses this week. Chris is out of town. I don't have to do sharing time next Sunday. I should definitely do something productive with my time."

Me: "Well, it's time to get back in to running. You've given yourself two weeks off, you know."

Me: "I know. I will definitely run this week. But that's not going to take all of my time."

Me: "Soooo, what else ya gonna do?"

Me: "First the windows, then the floors. That way if I drip..."

So there you have it, folks. The exciting life of a mom/wife. I find myself in an exciting situation and I choose to clean. I will do some deep cleaning, some leaf raking, some running and some reading. Because, um yeah, I totally treated myself to a trip to the library. Easily pleased? I think so.

Family pictures, baby!

2009-10-26T15:28:00.000-07:00

We had these pictures taken a couple of weeks ago by our friend Shara, and I think she did a great job! It was fun to capture some candid shots of the kids goofing off and showing their normal everyday turkey liver goof ball behavior. We were terrible subjects and if I had it to do over again I would definitely change some things like:

1. Making sure the kids don't have gum in their mouths

2. Making sure my boys don't wear the same color (I realized one of them had grabbed the wrong shirt when we were in the car on the way there!)

3. Making sure the kids don't have writing on their hands

4. Making sure the kids don't have stamps on their hands

5. Losing 10 pounds

6. Leaving my sweet little poochy woochy at home

Despite all of these mistakes we made, Shara managed to pull off some great pictures.

Amazing!

Thanks Shara!

2009-10-12T10:20:00.000-07:00

Today's post is brought to you by the number 6, the number 13, the number 14 and the letter z.

6 days until my half marathon.
13 days until the last football game and the last soccer game
14 days until the Primary program is over

ZZZZ Is what I'm going to do after that.

Well, one can hope.

Summer Fling

2009-10-02T22:32:00.000-07:00

Dear summer,
Where have you gone? You left in such a hurry. I thought we had something really special, butI guess I was wrong. You snuck out this morning before I woke up. I thought maybe you had gone out to get some donuts, but you still haven't returned. I should have known, what with your warm, beautiful sunsets and the way you made my garden grow. You were too good to be true. You were just a fling.
But we were so good together! The warmth, the brightness, the flip flops! Well, fine. I don't need you anyways. I've got jackets, you know. And blankets and hot cocoa. I even have a snuggy. That's right. A SNUGGY! Those are my true friends. They're always there for me.
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
But if you ever decide to come back, I'll be here.

Touchdown Video

2009-09-14T21:13:00.000-07:00

We've had some requests for this video, so here you go. Carson is #5 on the Cardinals (red) team.

2009-09-14T20:35:00.000-07:00

Surprise!

I'm back already.

Don't get used to it.

I wouldn't want you to get spoiled.

I hate spoiled people.

Anyways..... Blogger is being stupid and not letting me position my pictures in the order I want so this is going to be all out of order.

I don't like things that are out of order. It makes me all...all...dumb feeling.

Anyways... (again) Carson had his football jamboree on Saturday. They played five mini games, and it was so fun! I think it was extra fun because Carson played running back about half the time and scored eight touchdowns! In this league they have a rule that kids over 90 pounds can't run with the ball so all the little squirts like Carson get to do it.

We did have to give him the talk tonight about humility. We reminded him that if it weren't for his teammates blocking all the other guys for him he wouldn't have been able to score at all or even gain any yards. In fact, he probably would have had a ride in his dad's ambulance if it weren't for his team. So hopefully that helps. We'll be watching closely. It probably doesn't help that his parents are so dang proud of him.

We gave ourselves the humility talk too.

Somehow this face isn't very intimidating, is it? You're looking at 68 pounds of....

my little bookie boo. (Someday he'll kill me for putting his nickname on here, but for now I think I'm safe. Please refer to the part where I tell you he's only 68 pounds.)

Also on Saturday we had Jantzen's first soccer game. She had a blast! It was kinda funny because I had to tell her she couldn't just go in the game whenever she wanted. The coach took her out for a couple of minutes and told her to rest. She took a drink and then said, "I'm ready to play some more." Then took off running onto the field! Too funny.
This is her celebration after her team scored.

Next up we have...(drumroll please) the first day of school!

**imagine me running in circles and screaming for joy**

I love school.

This is Jantzen and her friend Lilly in their kindergarten classroom. So cute! She loves school just as much as I do.

Keaton and Carson wouldn't let me take pictures of them in the classroom. Something about not being cool, blah blah blah.

So here's our token first-day-of-school-on-the-front-porch picture.

And I guess that's about it for now.

Ten-four good buddy.

Over and out.

Livin' it, not talkin' about it

2009-09-10T21:35:00.000-07:00

That's right folks, I'm a terrible blogger and I've let you all down...again. But here's the deal. We're so busy living life that we (I) don't have time to talk about it. So this little journal of our life is...well...ummm...sucky.
Here's a quick rundown of the latest:
#1 School started. Yaaaaaaaaaaaahoooooooooooooooo!
#2 Did I mention school started?
#3 That's right....school started.
#4 Soccer started for Jantzen
#5 Football started for Carson
#6 Keaton is helping me keep everything together. He's becoming a great cook.
#7 I'm running....a lot. About 25 miles per week. Half marathon is in a month and a half.
#8 Primary is keeping me busy. Program coming up in a month and a half.
#9 Chris is now training for a half marathon coming up in a month and a half.
#10 Jantzen and I have birthdays coming up in a month and a half.
#11 I'm going to need some serious therapy in...a month and a half.
#12 Or maybe you should just shoot me in a month and a half.
#13 But there's hope because soccer ends in a month and a half.
#14 And football ends in a month and a half.
#15 Please don't expect very many posts for the next...............

MONTH AND A HALF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-21T20:23:00.000-07:00

We're still alive. The end.

Just kidding! You didn't think I'd let you off that easy, did you?

Nope, I'm going to make you read every last thing about what we've been doing. So sit back, relax and listen up.

We took another trip to Utah. Are you surprised? Didn't think so. We're looking into having a subway installed between our house and Heber City. With all the gas we use driving there, we figure it might be cost effective.

I had my Scentsy Convention in Salt Lake City and Chris had his 20th class reunion all at the same time, so we couldn't resist the opportunity to go kill three birds with one stone. Scentsy, the reunion and catching up with the Wrathall family.

This is the only picture I took of the convention. I know it doesn't look like a convention...it looks like I took my 5 year old daughter out clubbing! But Scentsy had a party to celebrate their 5th anniversary and all the families were invited. It was called Cirque de Berserque and they had all sorts of performers doing cool stunts and entertaining our kids. Jantzen tried really hard to resist the dance floor, but in the end she gave in and danced her little pants off. This is at Mirror Lake, where Keaton caught an albino trout and earned his fishing merit badge. It was so pretty up there! We packed a picnic and spent the day relaxing by the water.
It was so nice.

This is at Provo Falls on the way up to Mirror Lake. So pretty!

I'm such a sucker for these hand in hand daddy/daughter pictures.

I also like to try to take nice family pictures for those Christmas cards I never send out.

But Carson....

apparently....

doesn't.

Photoshop, anyone?

Check out this cool slip-n-slide! We borrowed it from some friends to use at a church activity for the kids that I'm in charge of. It's actually from an old billboard. Well, I got it home and decided that it just wouldn't be right if we left it folded up in the car. A good Primary President would test the product before she turned a bunch of kids loose on it, right? So I hope the Snells don't mind, but we had a blast on it! I love this kind of fun. No batteries, no remote controls, and no sitting around looking at a screen.

We had to use a little dish soap to make it extra slippery.

Now we'll just sit and watch for the grass to die from a Palmolive overdose.

Duct tape fixes all problems.

2009-07-29T13:13:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been doing a lot of running in preparation for another half marathon. Why do I do this to myself? Well, it's hard to put it into words, but I guess I must like it! It's interesting because while I'm running all I can think about is being done. But when I'm not running, I spend a lot of time thinking about it. Although it may seem mundane, every run is a new experience. If you ask me how my run went, I'll always have something to say. Wanna know what I have to say about yesterday's run? Too bad. I'm gonna tell you anyways.
Yesterday was my long run. I do one long run every week, usually on Tuesdays. All the other days are between 3 and 5 miles, a track workout (400m repeats) or a stretch/strengthen workout. But yesterday was my first 7 mile run since last year. So I was a little bit nervous, but not too bad. I just take it one mile at a time.
I got up at 6 am so I could run before it got hot. (Note to self: that was NOT early enough!) I was out the door just before 7 am and by the time I could see the big sign at the hospital it read 79 degrees. By the time I actually got to the sign it was 80. I rounded the corner and within about a quarter of a mile there was another one of those reader board signs. It read 81. Holy cow! It wasn't even 7:30 yet! I know 81 degrees doesn't sound that hot, but keep in mind that there is NO SHADE in this town, the sun was beating down on me and I was running! Needless to say, I lost over two pounds during that run, and it all came out my pores.
That run was so brutal. Definitely the worst one I've ever had. I even have battle wounds. A blood blister on my foot and, well, um, um...Let's just say that the new sports bra has a seam that rubs! Too much information, I know. Forget you ever read that.
So in conclusion, here's what I learned:
*I need to find a cool shady spot to run. I may resort to running circles around my maple tree.
*Duct tape works for preventing blisters. Now that I've had two blisters in the same spot, I will definitely be putting some on before my runs.
*3 for $10 sports bras are not a good deal.
*I may try using duct tape instead of the bra next time.

To the 4th of July and beyond!!!

2009-07-07T15:17:00.000-07:00

Oh my stinking heck!

We have had so much fun lately that I don't even know where to start.

It's been one party after another here at the Wrathall household. This is a picture from Keaton's birthday party. His birthday was actually in March, but since our house was totally torn apart in March we postponed it until June, when our house was only partially torn apart. Partial is so much better than total.

Then a couple of days later we had Carson's birthday party. His birthday is in December, but since it's so close to Christmas he always has his party in June. Don't you love how we celebrate our kids' birthdays at random? That's the thing about being parents. You can do whatever you want!

Next up we have our encounter with a snake on our front porch. Remember the sign on our front door that says, "Thou Shalt Remove Thy Shoes"? Well, he didn't. And this is what we do to those who don't obey. He is still in the freezer and he gives me a heart attack every time I try to sneak and get some ice cream.

I scream for ice cream!

Sorry, I just couldn't let that one pass.

Party number three is Daniel's going away party. We managed to pull off a surprise, which is always fun. I can't believe the year is already gone, and we put him on a plane yesterday to head back to Germany.

Goodbye Daniel! We'll miss you!

Don't forget to put schlupfer on your po!

So once all the parties were over it was time for a little trip.

We camped one night at Maryhill State Park in the Columbia River Gorge. That was fun until the sprinklers came on at midnight and then stayed on, hitting our tent every sixty seconds for the next three hours.

The next day we hiked the Eagle Creek trail to Punchbowl Falls and took a dip in the frigid waters. That was SO fun! There were a couple of cliffs to jump off of and the boys all did it several times.

Eagle Creek is one of our favorite places on earth. We go there almost every year and we never seem to get tired of it.

It's gorgeous!

And of course, we had to take a "more bars in more places" shot. Because we were about to lose our tallest bar.

For some reason, Jantzen wasn't excited about taking this picture.

She had a frown and she wasn't afraid to use it.

Then as if all of that stuff wasn't enough fun, we met up with my mom and sisters and headed to the beach for the Fourth of July. We got there early in the afternoon and just hung out all day playing in the water and the sand and the cooler full of food. Some of us ate more sand than food.

But I won't mention any names...

Jace!

Some of us ate more food than sand...

Me!!!

Some of us had weird battles on a log suspended over a fire. Some of us played with fire.All in all it was a great time.

Amen!

2009-06-14T19:14:00.000-07:00

Hellooooooo out there! Anyone still here? So sorry about the long absence, but we've been busy around here, OK? Can you give a girl a break? Please????

Last night my sister, Dana started to totally harass me about not posting for so long. So in return I'm posting this picture of her.
Hi Dana! Don't be shy. Nobody likes it when you hide from the camera.

OK. Now that we've got that out of the way let's get serious. First of all, let's travel back in time to the beginning of May when Carson and Jantzen had their track championships and this mob of family descended on my house to experience their last meet of the year.

As you can see, the weather was terrible and we didn't have any fun at all.

Carson fell flat on his face in the long jump,

Jantzen became camera shy like her aunt Dana,

And Keaton's tongue became stuck in the "out" position.

But don't worry. Everything was all better when we ate lunch at our favorite pizza joint afterward. Then things got even better that night when Chris and the kids cooked a delicious dinner for us with chocolate dipped strawberries and key lime cheesecake for dessert. Food always makes everything better.

(Oh, yeah. The results. Carson placed second in the 1500 with a time of 6:05. That puts him 4th in state and 16th in the nation. Jantzen....well, she's probably going to be a dancer, not a track star.)

Then a couple of weeks later we had some more visitors. These ones came from really far away.

Meet Thomas, (you already know Daniel), Tina and Tobias Waller from Germany!
When people come from really far away, there's nothing more to do than to...

teach them how to be rednecks!

Good job, billy bob!

In Germany, it's very difficult and expensive to own a gun, so this was a rare opportunity for them to go postal on some clay pigeons. We don't have very much to offer for entertainment in this little town, but I think this was pretty fun for them.

After our redneck experience we had to redeem ourselves by going to a museum. That was cool, too. But the coolest part was dinner afterwards at Hamley's Steak House. It's a really old western style restaurant, store and art gallery (See? ART! We're not really rednecks!) We got to watch them making saddles and other leather works there.The food was sooooo good. I'm still dreaming about that 4,000 calorie dinner I ate that night. Do I talk about food too much?

Anyways, the next weekend was Daniel's high school graduation...

And Jantzen's preschool graduation!

Hooray for both of them!

And hooray for me because I will NEVER have to drive my kids to school again! Well, unless the weather is really bad, then I might find it in my heart to give the poor little runts a ride. But not those little elementary school kiddos, because there is no better parking spot at that school than right in my driveway. Can I get an amen?

Grab a tissue

2009-05-21T21:50:00.000-07:00

I have had this picture sitting in my email for a year now. It was taken by a friend, then sent to me. I didn't know she had taken it. Every once in a while I'll revisit it. I'm not sure why it intrigues me so. It kind of haunts me.

We were at a track meet and I can't remember why, but I had put her in time out. I'm sure it was something terrible. For some reason, I feel like such a mean mom when I look at this picture. Is it because it was cold and windy and her hair is flying all over the place? But then I think, "No, she deserved a time out whether it was cold and windy or not."

But OH, how this tears at the heart strings!

I have another picture sitting in my email that haunts me, too. It's a picture of Chris and me at the mud baths in Costa Rica. But I think the reason that one haunts me is because I was in my bathing suit.

Yeah, that's definitely it.

Slave Driver

2009-05-16T21:02:00.000-07:00

I'm not one to toot my own horn, but...

Wait. Yes I am. TOOT! TOOT!

Today the kids and I totally rocked. We've gotten a little behind lately on the yard work and general upkeep of the house because we've been spending so much time on the kitchen.

Which, by the way, has a tile back splash now, thanks to me! Just ignore that missing tile back in the corner. It's just a minor detail. I'm willing to look past it and I think you should be too. Thank you.

Now I promise not to torture you with any more pictures of the kitchen.

Well anyhoo, all that behind stuff is a thing of the past because check out all that we accomplished today:

Mowed, edged and weed eated (or is it weed ate?) (or weed eatered?) the lawn
Bathed the poor, stinky dog
Washed the Yukon
Went to Home Depot to replace the weed eater
Finished planting the garden
Folded a bunch of laundry
Worked on stripping and sanding the railing to the stairs
Went back to Home Depot because the stripper wouldn't spray. That sounds bad.
Pulled weeds
Sprayed weeds
Swept up a TON of helicopters from our maple tree
Finished grouting the tile
Finished drying out the flood in the basement (don't ask)
Okay, I'll tell you...The stupid flipping flapping ding dang walla walla bing bang water softener overflowed the other day! (I feel better now.)
Cooked a REAL dinner
Vacuumed
Daniel took a ride on a plane:

AAAAAAND we found this:
Can you tell what it is? If you guessed alien from Mars, you're right! No seriously, folks. It's a partially developed bird in an egg. How cool is that? The kids will take turns taking it to school, then Keaton has placed "Dibs" on dissecting it. He also wants to dissect our old weed eater and Chris' cell phone that went through the wash. What a scientist!

Oh, yeah. There's one more thing I did today.

I updated our blog.

Playing catch up on some recent activities

2009-05-06T19:52:00.000-07:00

Jantzen had a field trip to a goat farm. She is a true natural with animals. She was in heaven. The only thing she really wasn't interested in was milking the goats and tasting the milk. Those little goats were very patient with her. She carried them around for quite a long time.

And Chris had a "guys day" at Mt. Hood Meadows with his brother Spencer and brother-in-law Brian.

I'm not sure, but I think they were in heaven too. Most of our skiing consists of taking Jantzen down the easiest runs and taking the boys on the intermediate runs. So it's always a treat for Chris to have some time to go on the harder runs. Although we love skiing with the kids, it's exhausting to help them get their gear on, pack the food, carry all the skis to the lodge, buy the tickets, and get everyone on the lifts. This day consisted of none of that hogwash. It was men, snow and skis. That's all.

I'm not sure exactly what this picture is, but isn't it cool? I love when I find little treasures like this on the camera.

Apparently it was a very warm day. But as you can see, my husband kept his jacket on just like his mommy, oops, I mean wifey told him to do.

It was also a day when Jennifer and I would call every phone number for Mt. Hood trying to get a human being. Why? Because our dear husbands didn't check in with us all day long, that's why! And out of the three phones those guys had up there, none of them seemed to be working. And it's not like them to not check in with us. And it would have been just like them to hike somewhere out of bounds and get hurt dropping off some insane cliff. And...And...And... We were worried! But don't you worry. We had the nice fellas at Mt. Hood check the entire parking lot for their cars, just so we could know if they made it off the mountain. Their cars were gone, so we stopped worrying and started cursing their names. It turns out all of their phone batteries died. They knew they had a problem when that happened. According to reports, when they realized what had happened they said something to the effect of, "Oh man, we're screwed!" Because they knew that they had little wifeys at home that would worry about them, then once the worry was gone the rage would come out. I can't speak for Jennifer, but Chris did the dishes that night when he got home. Bad boy! Bad, bad boy! You're grounded. And did you brush your teeth yet? Make sure you get all the sugar bugs off. Then go clean your room.

The "Too Much" Chronicles

2009-05-04T20:29:00.000-07:00

I don't know why, but I have this urge to talk about the things we have too much of. I guess I find it kind of amusing how we seem to accumulate way too much of certain things, but can never have enough of other things.

Chapstick. Hello? Ten. Ten different chapsticks in the house for a family of five. I'm sure Daniel has some too but I wasn't going to go picking through his room just so I could count them. And the boys each keep one at school. So really it's twelve, that I could find. I'm sure there are a couple behind the dryer.

Oh, wouldn't my dentist be proud of me now. Actually, no. Because most of these are from him. (Hi Greg. I do floss. Really, I do!)

And now for a couple of things we can never have enough of...Can you say C E R E A L ?

What's the deal with cereal, anyways. It's so expensive and it leaves me feeling hungry an hour later. So why do I buy it? Because I'm a lazy, terrible mom, that's why. I've already made a rule that it can only be eaten for breakfast. If I didn't do that, we would go through two boxes a day. I'm thinking about only allowing it on school days, too. On the weekends I usually cook breakfast, but the kids choose cereal over my home cooking! Maybe they're trying to tell me something.

On to our next item...graham crackers. Seriously, folks. Dipped in milk, yum! I have loved this treat since I was a kid. And don't get me started on graham crackers with cream cheese frosting. I can feel my rear end getting bigger just thinking about it.

So there you have it. That's what's on my mind tonight. Don't know why. More to come when I get a chance. I know you can't wait.

2009-05-03T20:24:00.000-07:00

Soooo, what's been going on with us lately? Let's see....
Daniel finished up with the spring musical, Pirates of Penzance, a couple of weeks ago. It was a really cute play and he did a great job! Now he has more time to focus on other things like friends, girls, prom and graduation. His family will be here from Germany at the end of this month to visit and watch his graduation. We can't wait to meet them.
Keaton is still doing tennis and is making big improvements. He won the last two matches and he's got two more this week. Then he'll be done. His serve is improving a lot and he's really enjoying it.
Carson and Jantzen are still doing track. Their last meet is this Saturday. I like this track program, but it's always nice when it's over. That frees up two nights a week for other things like...
Presidency meetings! Yep, that's right folks. You're talking to the new Primary president here. For those of you that might not know what that means, it means I DON'T HAVE A LIFE ANYMORE! Just kidding... Kind of. It means that I oversee the children's organization at church. So I make sure that we have teachers on Sundays, nursery workers, and music leaders. I also make sure that the cub scout program is staffed and running smoothly. We also put on quarterly activities for the kids and a yearly program that includes all the kids and is performed during church. There are tons of other things I have to deal with, but that's the basic idea. So I'm pretty busy with that. Not to mention taking care of four kids, running my Scentsy business, training for another half marathon and finishing up this gosh-darned-diggety-doggety-blasted kitchen! (Which, by the way, is so close I can taste it!)
Chris' life consists of going to work, then coming home and working on the kitchen. Yesterday we worked together to put in some of the flooring then he worked the rest of the day putting in the dishwasher. He worked until almost 10 last night! Needless to say, things did not go smoothly, but after four trips to Home Depot and several hours of him laying on the kitchen floor with his head under the dishwasher, he got the thing hooked up and working. Yeah Chris! Thank you so much!
Two weeks ago Chris and I started a little challenge. It's called The Biggest Loser-Wrathall Edition. You see, we both gained a bit of weight this winter and we've been starting most days out by looking in the mirror, groaning and saying something like, "I've gotta get my butt into gear." Or, "Who's that fat person in the mirror?" So for six weeks we're trying to lose weight, and at the end the winner gets $100 to spend on whatever they want. Well, Keaton got wind of our little game and he wanted to join us. Nothing motivates that boy like money. So we decided to let him in. So far here are the standings:
1st place-Chris 8 pounds
2nd place-Keaton 6 pounds
3rd place-Jodi 1 stinking stupid measly pound!
I have a feeling I'm not going to be the biggest loser!
Whose idea was this anyways? Oh, nevermind.
So there you have it. As always, we're pretty busy. And it doesn't seem to be getting any better. So when I don't update my blog for awhile, you understand, right? Right?
Thanks.

2009-05-03T20:09:00.000-07:00

Ode to my New Dishwasher

Dishwasher, oh dishwasher
How I missed you so.
You were gone for two long months.
I thought you would never return
But now you are back in my loving arms
And I shall never live without you again
Absence made the heart grow fonder
Fonder, fonder, fonder

You work so hard while I sleep
or play or wander through the aisles of Walmart
And you never complain about the work
Scrubbing, washing, working so hard while I'm away
So I can have a clean surprise when I open the door

I wish my kids were more like you.

2009-04-21T21:23:00.000-07:00

I just came across these pictures from Christmas. They were on a camera we don't use very often. I got a kick out of them.Every Christmas Eve we give the kids new pajamas. We call them their "magic pajamas" because they make Santa come. Here they are modeling them.

Aaaaaaand....I'm not sure what they're doing here.

2009-04-14T21:23:00.000-07:00

Carson and Jantzen had their first track meet of the year last week.Apparently, there was some "down time" in which Jantzen could practice warming her ears with her legs.

Check out her smile! You can even see it through the blurry picture.This is Carson running the 1500. He loves this event, but I'm not sure why. I can't figure out if he loves the winning part or the actual running part. As Carson would put it, he "owned" this race. The next kid was almost a minute behind him and he beat his personal best to finish in 6:25. I love this picture because it shows his friend, Parker cheering him on. His friends would run around the inside of the track and try to run along side so they could help encourage him. Carson is so lucky to have a good group of friends at church and at school. On Sunday he and Nick kept laying their heads in each other's laps and then stroking each others hair. Weird, I know but I think they just did it so I would laugh while I was trying to lead the music. It worked.

Anyways...

Keaton wasn't too excited about going to his little brother and sister's track meet but I reminded him of how they came to his tennis match to support him and that he should return the favor. To that he replied, "Tell them they don't need to come to any more of my tennis matches." Very funny, Keaton.

And because I know you haven't heard enough ramblings about our kitchen...

What do you know? It's still not done! A million dollars goes to the person who can guess what's missing.

But seriously, folks I can't complain about not having a dishwasher or a complete backsplash. Mostly because I'm the one doing the tile on the backsplash so complaining to myself gets me nowhere. I'm afraid there might be retaliation if I file a complaint, anyways. Plus, after living for a month with nothing but a microwave, this is small beans! Washing dishes by hand is a pain, but I've definitely lived through worse!

I'm really happy with the way things are turning out. Chris and I were talking tonight about all the yard work that needs to be done, and how we can't afford to do it now because of all the money we spent on the kitchen. But we decided it's okay. We'll just camp out in our kitchen all summer and try not to look at the yard.

Beware...Lots of pictures

2009-04-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

Well, we're back safe and sound from our trip to Utah. I'll give a quick update of what's been going on. It's all out of order and disorganized, but I'm really short on time because I have a Scentsy booth at the home and garden show in Pendleton this weekend and I need to go to bed! Plus, I rented Twilight...

Well, usually the highlight of our trip is the skiing, and this day was no exception. I was sick the whole week and didn't ski at all, but the boys had a ski day with Grandpa Tom and Uncle Spencer on Monday. The six person chair lift is so cool because they were all able to ride it together. You can't understand the coolness of that until you've skied with family. It's just so much fun to sit on the lift together and relive the run you just took. Maybe even laugh at your Uncle Spencer for skiing into a tree! Then top it off with a five dollar hot cocoa and some ten dollar fries and the day is complete.

I love these pictures because it shows the craziness of the family I married into. This is at Robbie's indoor soccer game that we went to after celebrating Grandpa Tom and Grandma Fay's 40th anniversary.

It's pretty much impossible to get a normal picture with these guys!

Next up we have Keaton's 13th birthday. Yes, you heard it right folks. Keaton is 13! An official teenager. We're so glad he doesn't act like a typical teenager. He's such a good kid, I mean guy, and we're lucky to have him in our family. For his birthday he wanted nothing more than to go play paintball, so that's what we did. Here he is joining us in singing Happy Birthday to himself.

We also went to a Utah Jazz game against the Houston Rockets. What a blast! It was our first NBA game.
This was our kids' first experience on public transportation so I had to be a dorky tourist and take a picture. What can I say? We're hicks!

Fay, Jennifer, McKenzie and I went to the Young Women General Broadcast on Saturday night at the LDS Conference Center. Wow! That place is huge and beautiful! The meeting was great and I really enjoyed the talks. This was my first time seeing the prophet in person, and it was such a neat experience. I'm so glad I went.

Then to top it off we came home to.....

Countertops!
Yip yippee yippito! Now I can start to put things back together. It has been so nice to be able to unpack some boxes and now when I need a fork, I find it in a kitchen drawer, not in a box in the living room. Words cannot describe how much better I feel about life now. Those who know me know that I do NOT like disorganization and chaos!
Nevermind the fact that I don't have an oven, a dishwasher or running water in the kitchen yet. Because what I DO have is a stove and a microwave convection oven. And although I don't really LOVE doing the dishes in the laundry room sink, we're making progress toward normalcy and I'm loving it!

Then today was Keaton's first tennis match. (Note to self: learn how the scoring works before the next match. I had no idea what was going on. Duh!)
It was so windy and cold that I had a really hard time paying attention (So did Jantzen!). And I couldn't manage to pull my cold butt off the bleachers to take a better picture than this one, so you'll have to believe me when I tell you that that IS Keaton in the black pants and camo jacket. I actually kinda like this picture because there's so much going on in it. Keaton playing tennis, Carson rooting for his big brother, Jantzen being Jantzen, her hair telling the story of the windy day and the dark clouds in the background. I know it won't win any photography awards or anything, but I still think it's kinda cool.

Oh happy day!

2009-03-19T17:56:00.001-07:00

Monday we had a very special visitor...

(Cue the singing angels)And we've had very special visitors every day since Monday because we chickened out on installing the cabinets ourselves and hired some very talented guys to do it for us.

(Yes, that's my breakfast cooking)

And it's a darn good thing because it turns out that our walls, ceiling and floors are "like the rolling hills of Kentucky", as our installer put it, and I'm sure we would have said a few swear words, messed it up beyond all repair and then took a torch to the whole kitchen.

We are paying the installers by the hour and it has been taking a REALLY long time, due to the hill situation. Chris and I did a little bit of mental math and we started to get really sweaty. Especially when the owner of the company said, "This has been one of the most challenging jobs we've been on in a long time." In my mind I was starting to see dollar bills fly out the window, but later he said that this has been really a good training experience for his helper and that he would just charge us a flat rate. What a nice guy!

So now we are off to Utah for spring break and when we get home the countertops and sink should be installed. Then we will be VERY CLOSE to a normal life again.

There is a faint glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

2009-03-14T19:37:00.000-07:00

Well, you can't tell from this picture, but A LOT of work has been done this week on our kitchen. Since my last post we have done some more electrical work, finished hanging sheet rock, taped all the seams and textured the walls and ceiling. We also scraped up the old linoleum floors and took the old carpet out of the dining room. Today the kids and I primed and painted the walls and ceiling. Whew! I am tired just remembering all the work that's been happening.
So now we are getting to the exciting part... putting everything back together. It's funny how you grow to be thankful for the little things when you've gone without everything. Right now I am so excited to have my pantry back come Monday. There's a possibility that we will get more pieces installed on that day but I dare not get my hopes up.
We are really tired of eating frozen food. It just doesn't satisfy the appetite that we have when we've been working all day. And I'm starting to feel kind of crummy from all the processed foods. Don't get me wrong-I'm not some organic eating health nut, but I'm used to home cooked meals and gosh darn it, I MISS THEM! Our friends Jake and Karen were kind enough to have us over for dinner one night this week so that was a really nice break from our pathetic food we've been eating here.
Friday we're leaving for Utah to spend spring break with Grandpa Tom and Grandma Fay. Grandma Fay is the queen of home cooked meals. It will be such a treat for us. Can't wait to come and eat all your food, Fay! hehe
Keaton has decided to go out for tennis this year. In the past he's always done track, but he thought he'd try something new. So far he's enjoying it and coming home tired and sore. Their first match is March 30 and I'm excited to be involved in something new.
Carson had his last basketball game today. His team went undefeated (again). I think the closest game they played was 6 to 24. One of the games was won 0 to 34. That poor team! I felt so sorry for them, I kept wishing our team would just let them have a basket or two. I think it's just a matter of time until the city puts an end to this team Carson always plays on.

Right after spring break is when the track season starts and Jantzen is finally old enough to do it this year. Yippee! She's so excited to finally be able to do what her brothers have been doing every spring. I'm dreading the three hour track meets in the cold and wind, but I guess that's just the way it goes. Until I save enough money to move to Hawaii I guess I'll just have to get used to it.

Here's a few cute pictures from the last week:

Nice safety glasses, huh?

Jantzen LOVES to help clean the bathroom. It probably won't last long enough for her to actually get good at it.

Poor Kamber, she endures so much humilitation!

Welcome to my world, Part 9,765,251

2009-03-06T22:30:00.000-08:00

Progress IS being made. I repeat. Progress IS being made!

Despite a couple of minor setbacks, (like electricity running through Chris body a few times), we are making pretty good time on our little project. Check it out:

We have almost finished putting up the sheet rock. All of the old cabinets are out except for the island. I am clinging to the island for dear life because it is a great place to put all our tools while we're working. Well at least that's what I'm telling Chris. Really it's because it holds my ONLY accessible dishes. Without them we would be eating cereal out of a toolbox. I would be slicing apples with a utility knife and and then serving them up on a piece of sandpaper.

Oh yeah, and just when I thought there was nothing more I could possibly lose, Chris found one more thing to take apart...the railing above the stairs.
Nobody has fallen yet, but I know it will probably happen eventually. And I have a feeling it's gonna be me.

Welcome to my world--Part 2

2009-03-05T08:08:00.001-08:00

First let's refresh our memories. I'm gonna go back in time to the good ole' days when I could cook whenever I wanted. "What's that you say child? You'd like a sandwich? No problem. I'll have one whipped up for you in 30 seconds or less."

Now we'll fast forward to Monday, the day my world came crashing down on me. The day I lost my oven and my upper cabinets.Notice how we're still smiling here because we haven't...
Done this yet!Did I mention that I lost my ceiling on Monday too? Oh, yeah and lighting. When I lost my ceiling I also lost about 30 degrees in the kitchen and gained a nice breeze which caused a constant rain of insulation on us.
Yesterday things got better...and worse. I got my ceiling back, but I lost my stove, sink, lower cabinets, drinking water from the fridge, walls and ...MY SANITY! All I have left in the world is a fridge and a microwave. Has anyone ever tried to cook a Papa Murphy's pizza in the microwave? Just wondering.

2009-03-01T09:29:00.000-08:00

Look me in the eyes and tell me this is not the cutest Scentsy warmer you've ever seen.

And for my music lovers, I had this one made just for you.

Yeah, that's the kind of PULL I have with this company...

Welcome to my world...

2009-02-28T08:39:00.000-08:00

And would someone PLEASE save me?

In the interest of full discloure I am showing some pictures that I would never show because my kitchen is THAT UGLY. But you have to be able to compare the before and after pictures to appreciate the results.

This is our future fireplace. Gorgeous, huh? For some reason I'm having trouble visualizing what it's gonna look like when it's done. Can't figure out why. At this point I just want it hooked up so I can WARM MY TOES on it! I don't care what it looks like anymore. This industrial look is starting to grow on me.

But nevermind the fireplace. Because we're going to have to abandon that project for now in favor of a different one.

Say goodbye to the kitchen. Our new cabinets will be in on March 16 so it's time to start demolition. If anyone wants cabinets for their garage let me know. I'll be placing an ad on Craigs List soon. And yes, that IS a tent in my living room. It's just how we roll these days. I'll be sleeping in it for 40 years to increase my spirituality.

See how the lovely ceiling drops DOWN in the kitchen? It's further evidence that this house was definitely built in the 1980's. But we're taking the ceiling out. Can't wait to be able to see the attic right from my kitchen! And to hang sheet rock, tape, mud, sand, mud, sand, mud, sand and then texture. It's gonna be a blast.

See these red shelves? This is my catch-all area of the house. (Yes, two people DO need to own 5 pairs of sunglasses!) But I think I've come up with a solution to make everything more organized and pretty looking. So stay tuned. When this project is done in the year 2027 I will show you what we did. And if I still have my sanity we shall rejoice together.

We're home, we're safe, we're alive

2009-02-21T07:48:00.000-08:00

(Name that movie for a chance to win....nothing)

OK. So I realize it's been awhile since I've reported on our doings and happenings. But believe me, it's not because there are no doings and happenings. So let's begin.
We continue to make microscopic progress on the installation of our new fireplace. I would show you pictures, but I don't have the camera with me.
Chris, Keaton and the camera are at the Klondike Derby this weekend. For those of you who don't know what that is, you're not alone. I don't know either. I think secretely they're spending the weekend at Hooter's. Just kidding. It's a Boy Scout camp out in the snow. Wonder why I'm not there? I don't. I can't imagine anything more miserable. But hopefully they're having fun and we'll share pictures sometime in the next year or so.
Carson started his basketball season a couple of weeks ago. So Saturday mornings are spent watching practice and games. I love the program he's in because they practice for 45 minutes then play a 45 minute game and then we're done for the week. No mid-week practices or anything. And they're nice enough to schedule team pictures during practice too. This program must be run by a mom! And she's a woman after my own heart. I have recently realized that Carson is a runt. I knew he was a little bit small for his age, but I look out on the basketball court and he's the smallest one out there. But it doesn't stop him. He still does great and his football team as well as his basketball team (same group of kids) is undefeated so far.
Daniel finally got his cast off this week and now only has to wear a removable brace for about another week. He was so excited to give his arm and hand a good scrub and to take a shower without a plastic bag on his arm. He also really missed playing his guitar and cello. We can hear him strumming away for hours at a time downstairs. He also is going to be in the spring musical at the high school, "The Pirates of Penzance." Did I spell that right? Probably not. Anyways, he's really enjoying it.
Jantzen is still loving preschool and especially loved her Valentines day party. She spent many hours admiring all of her little valentines and memorized which kid gave her which card. It was amazing, considering that she has about 20 kids in her class. We kept quizzing her just for fun. She's such a sweetie and such a turkey. She is so excited to read and usually at bedtime she wants to repeat everything I read to her so that she can pretend she's reading. She's sounding out simple words and is working on memorizing all her story books so that she can "read" them. This girl has some seriously crazy memorization skills and one day I'll figure out what to do with them.
This is really starting to feel like one of those Christmas letters where you go through the family one person at a time and highlight their year. But...oh well, no excuses. I'm lame and I know it.
Chris has just had eight days off of work and I'm not sure what he did. Just kidding! He's been working on the fireplace, but since he's learning as he goes, we've run into lots of delays. We've spent a week waiting for some vent pipe to come in and he couldn't really do anything on it until that was here. So my feet are still cold and we have a huge hole in our ceiling but life's good. We're gearing up for a big kitchen remodel and I'm excited but dreading it. I know that nothing will go as planned and everything will be more difficult and expensive than we thought. I'm not being a pessimist, it's just the reality. I've lived through remodels before and that's just the way it goes. But when it's done it will be so worth it.
I just returned from Boise last night. I was at Scentsy Director Boot Camp and it was so amazing! I learned so much and met tons of great people. I love this company I'm working with and the growing potential is so huge. It's already growing at a rate of about 400%, even when the rest of the economy is tanking. The company is totally debt free and the owners are amazingly humble and down to earth. The product sells itself, all I do is share it with people. I was talking to the owner, Orville Thompson, and he told me that people who have been Scentsy Consultants for four or more years are consistently making $200,000 per year or more. Of course it takes work. You can't just sign up then do nothing. But it's not that hard, either. Believe me. I don't work that hard! So here's my pitch to you. If you hate your job or don't make enough money, give it some thought. It's only $99 to get started and you can easily make that back at your first party. In less than one year my team grew from one person to 20 people and I'm making money off of other people's work. How great is that? At that rate, I'll be paying off my house a lot sooner than 30 years from now. And I've met tons of great people and made lots of new friends. It's definitely been a win-win.
In other news about me, I've signed up for another half-marathon and so will soon be torturing you with details about my grueling runs. This year I talked my good friend Heather into doing it with me and I know it's gonna be so fun. It is, after all, the Girlfriend's Half Marathon. We'll definitely be shopping for matching running outfits to wear on the big day. Pink, of course. If there's anyone else out there crazy enough to join us, let me know.
Well, I think that's about all the news and weather in the Wrathall household. Thanks for reading all the way to the end. Your eyes are probably tired by now.

We did it!

2009-02-07T11:59:00.000-08:00

I'd like to thank my agent, my manager and most of all my fans. I couldn't have done it without you. I really appreciate your devotion and willingness to participate in our dog adoption rituals. I knew they would work!

The puppy went to a nice retired couple who live on nine acres with other dogs, cats, chickens and horses. But their world was somehow empty without a little lap dog to sleep at the foot of their bed. So I'm sure that he will have a wonderful life there, and now I can continue my life, free of doggie messes and midnight yelping. Yes!

There are some tears being shed by Jantzen but I think a trip to Dairy Queen should take care of those.

Cross your fingers!

2009-02-04T17:30:00.000-08:00

Someone is coming over tomorrow to look at the pup! Oh, please please please let them take him home.

Over the last week, I've started to become a little bit...how do I say this... attached to the little bugger and I am now finding it very difficult to drop him off at the animal shelter. But if I know he's going to a good home, I will gladly say goodbye to him.

I have been thinking long and hard about what I can do to make sure this dog finds a home tomorrow and I've come up with a plan. But I'll need help from all of you.

Are you with me?

I can't HEAR you!

I said ARE YOU WITH ME???

I thought so.

We need to do something to make the Dog Adoption Gods smile down on us. We need to show that we're serious. It may feel a little funny, but just know that you're not the only person doing this tonight. There is strength in numbers. We can do this!

Everyone please join me in a good luck bark, scratch, and rock eating ritual tonight. We will all need to act like dogs and howl at the moon. Our yards will become our bathrooms. We will chase laser lights and tennis balls. A little bit of yelping in our sleep can't hurt. And let's throw in a little bit of drinking from the toilet just for good measure.

Thanks everyone. I knew I could count on you.

No takers, huh?

2009-02-02T13:58:00.000-08:00

Well, if no one is gonna take this puppy, then I guess I'll just have to throw a fit and start tearing the bricks off my walls.

I'm starting to feel better already.

But seriously, this is getting really messy. Aaawww, look! Someone already found a new use for this empty corner.Stay tuned for more updates of the stray puppy and the crazy parents who decided to rip their kitchen and fireplace apart.

Guess what?!?

2009-01-30T09:50:00.000-08:00

Chris picked up a stray dog yesterday. He's really cute. And he needs a home. HINT HINT. You can name him whatever you want. You don't have to keep the names we've given him:

Charlie

Buddy

Stinky Lou Who

Nugget

Mango

Dog

Harold

Kamber likes him OK, but would rather reign supreme without a little ankle biter around. He has threatened her status as number one furry thing around here. PLEEEEEASE will you take him? He's really nice and sweet and cuddly and cute and small and lovable and soft and fun and yellow and four-legged and funny and he eats rocks. Did I mention that he's cute? Did I mention that he needs a home? Over and out.

Ode to my mom's bed

2009-01-22T07:30:00.000-08:00

Bed, bed, sweet sweet bed
How I love you so
Your memory foam and super soft sheets
Caressed me all night long
How I was sad when the alarm went off
I didn't want to leave you...ever
No, no, it wasn't more sleep I needed
I just wanted some quality time with you
Lying awake, feeling your warmth
You are my knight in shining armor
I still think of you daily
In fact, I can't take my mind off you
Let's get married.

The best things...

2009-01-18T22:28:00.000-08:00

For Christmas Keaton had a grand idea. He said, "You know how they say that the best things in life are free? Well, I'm gonna give you one of those kinds of gifts for Christmas." And he was pretty tickled with himself because he inherited the "frugal" gene from me and he was pretty excited about all the money he was gonna save. I was pretty excited because I think Keaton knows me pretty well and what I really needed was this:

YES! YES! YES!

My day was wonderful. I watched some shows that I had been trying to get around to watching for awhile. I took a nap. I read a WHOLE book. And when Jantzen came whining to me about this or that I said, "Go tell your mom." Keaton was wonderful. He took care of all sibling arguments, helped Chris with dinner and read stories at bedtime. It was like Mother's Day in January. Thank you Keaton! You're awesome!

In case you're wondering what the fine print at the bottom says, here it is:

This coupon is not valid in Washington, California and Maine. This offer excludes massages, being ordered around and the authority to eat downstairs.

Keaton-you're not just awesome, you're funny too.

Can we PLEASE take a normal picture?

2009-01-18T21:20:00.000-08:00

Daniel's birthday,

Take one.

Daniel's birthday,

Take two.

Daniel's birthday,
Take three.

Okay, good enough.

Daniel UN-redeems himself at Mt. Hood Meadows

2009-01-04T20:43:00.000-08:00

Stay tuned until the end to see how...

Oh! The suspense. It's just too much fun!

The day started out early. I'm talking about 5:00 early. But to a skier, it's worth it. The kids don't even complain. I wake them with a pat on the shoulder and a "Wanna go skiing?" and they bounce out of bed. It continued on with an exceptionally long and slippery drive to Mt. Hood. We figured it would be a quiet day at the resort because one of the roads leading there was closed due to a mudslide. But EVERYONE and their dog decided to drive around and use OUR ROAD to get there. (The nerve!) So Portland traffic was found on a beautiful and winding road between Hood River and Mt. Hood. Next we have a parking spot in a land so far, far away that they put you on buses to take you to the lodge, where you stand in line for 15 minutes so that you can happily give them hundreds of dollars for a ride on their fancy little chairs which are suspended from cables high up in the air.

But then you remember how happy everyone is when they're bundled up in several layers with long skinny things attached to their feet and a funny little square tag attached to their jackets.

And you realize that they have graciously replaced the *!#%^ rope tow with a blessed "Magic Carpet" which is ....

wait for it....

wait for it...

COVERED so as to keep you out of the falling snow while you ride it! Hooray! And it's so easy to ride that Jantzen could do it all by herself and she could do her ten million laps on the bunny hill whilst I stood by and took pictures.

This is inside the tunnel. Does it look Star Trek-ish to you?

Notice the hands on the hips. She is so tickled with herself and her new ability to ski without using that harness you see attached to her. This girl had a permanent smile all day. And the red snowsuit? It has survived three kids now. Don't tell her that her brothers wore it. I know I'm already living on borrowed time because it's not pink.

This video is posted purely for the enjoyment of my mom, because grandmas just don't think this stuff is boring. Here you go, mom. As per your request.

And now for the end of the story, the moment you've been waiting for.

Yes, it's broken.

And the pictures don't really do it justice. It's uglier in person. Unless you're Daniel's parents. (Hi Tina and Thomas!) Then it's fine. No bruising, swelling or pain. Don't worry! He'll be good as new in 4-6 weeks and the doctor said that he can still go snowboarding with the cast on. That way maybe he can break the other hand. Aren't you so glad you sent him to America? He's getting the full American experience, including an up close look at the health care system. I apologize in advance for your upcoming doctor bills.

Daniel Redeems himself at the Wrathall family ski resort

2008-12-21T18:17:00.000-08:00

We had another try at our homemade ski run. It was much more successful this time.

We also found another way to amuse ourselves, thanks to our beloved family dog, Kamber. You may want to turn the music off so that you can get the full effect of Carson's screams. By the way, that's a dog biscuit that he's throwing.

Don't worry. No animals were harmed in the making of this movie.

2008-12-19T17:15:00.000-08:00

Even the snowmen are cold! Lately we have had some crazy weather! For the first time in my life (that I can remember), we will be having a white Christmas. In the past week we have had about a foot or more of snow, and school was cancelled three days this week. Crazy!
I took this picture last Sunday, when we had about 4 inches of snow. That was monumental for us, so I forced the kids to brave the cold for a snapshot.

Little did I know that there was so much more to come. Since then we have had temperatures down below zero and tons more snow.

t

This is the view from our front porch a few days ago. I wasn't willing to go too far from the warmth of the fireplace.

But today we built a big ramp in the front yard.

We had visions of riding it all the way down the front yard, but it wasn't as successful as we'd hoped.

On Sunday we also went to Daniel's Christmas concert in Echo. I thoroughly enjoyed the music, and it was extra fun because the "Weather outside was frightful." That makes all things Christmas just that much more fun.

They played the music from the Nutcracker, which Jantzen loved. She had heard the songs on an educational website that she plays on called starfall.com. She didn't realize that the music was from a ballet.

So now Christmas is in full swing. We finished our shopping yesterday, the kids are out of school and all that's left to do is to start eating until we gain the mandatory 10 pounds. Wish us luck.

Another Christmas Tree Post

2008-12-13T17:03:00.000-08:00

So I was thinking about posting pictures of our Christmas Tree Decorating evening and I thought, "Every blogger in the world is probably doing a post like this." Why? Is it because we only do it once a year? Well, we clean the gutters once a year and you don't see any posts detailing THAT activity, do you? I clean my blinds once a year and you haven't heard about that! How about winterizing the boat? Nope. Well, I guess Christmas is sorta special, and Christmas trees are pretty to look at.

Except mine.

Some parents feel guilty because they don't let their kids help decorate the tree. Or if they do, they end up rearranging the ornaments after the kids go to bed.

Let's just say that I don't have that guilt.

I really don't care about it. What is WRONG with me? We went to a parking lot where Boy Scouts were selling trees. Let's just say that they weren't the prettiest trees I've ever seen. And the shortest one was about 20 feet tall. So we chopped one in half, took the top and away we went with our Charlie Brown tree.

When people come over it seems as though they are trying not to look directly at it, kinda like you do with the sun. We have a very eclectic collection of ornaments from kindergarten projects, cub scout projects and the like. (Notice the one-eyed snowman?) But I don't care anymore.

Does this mean I am older and wiser now?

Or just lazy?

Wait. Don't answer that.

The Frying Pan Rap

2008-12-10T14:08:00.000-08:00

So that you can join in the fun, when you see the words "bang, bang", bang your head on the kitchen counter, OK?

My name is Jodi and I'm here to say
I bought a new frying pan the other day.
The box, it said Cuisinart
So I thought it would be better than Wal-Mart

I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I HATE MY PAN! (BANG, BANG)

But every time I try to cook
The pan it has a very bad look.
The food , it sticks and it makes a mess
One might think that I paid less

I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I HATE MY PAN! (BANG, BANG)

So everyday I soak it in water
And soap and vinegar and baking soda
But now my arm is starting to ache
Because I scrape and scrape and scrape

I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I HATE MY PAN! (BANG, BANG)

And now it's time for me to get a life
One might think I'm a desperate housewife
If about my pan I write a rap
Well, it really is CRAP!

I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I hate my pan (clap, clap)
I HATE MY PAN! (BANG, BANG)

Mmmm. Something smells GOOD!

2008-12-08T19:09:00.000-08:00

Scentsyland!!!

The happiest place on earth!

Okay, maybe that's an exaggeration, but my Scentsyland is a great place to be because I just got promoted to director! What does that mean, you might ask? Well, I don't really know for sure, but I do know that Scentsy is paying for Christmas this year! And that makes me happy. Really happy.Last Wednesday Jantzen was sick so she and I decided to just hang out in our pajamas. Things here have been very busy (see above pictures), so it was a welcome break. I knew that UPS would be bringing this very LARGE shipment that day, but they usually don't come until about 2:30. I think you can see where this is going. Yes, UPS was here at 1 o'clock, I was in my pajamas, and there was not ONE, but TWO good looking brown-clad guys on my front doorstep. They probably thought that I'm some lazy housewife that sits in her pajamas eating bonbons all day. Next time they drive past my house you can bet I'll be in the front yard doing push ups or something to try and redeem myself.

Moving on...

This is our nephew Jace. We got to see him and smooch on him at Thanksgiving. The good thing in my family is that babies come along only every 4 years or so, so there's plenty of attention for each of them. We had so many cameras pointing at him, I think he probably thinks he's a movie star. But the funny thing is...

Whenever you press the shutter button he goes to this "deer in headlights" look.

See? We were trying to capture a smile, but as soon as we would snap the picture, the smile would disappear. Maybe Jantzen could give him some lessons.

Or maybe not.

Thursday was Carson's Christmas program at school. Jantzen (obviously) was not excited about it. This year they decided to hold it at Carson's school rather than the much BIGGER (and better suited for 3,886,048,127,459 parents, grandparents and neighbors) high school. But this was actually good news for us. Because the third graders sang first. Then we went home. Then we went back 30 minutes later for the grand finale. Carson was none the wiser. But I think he suspected something because he kept quizzing us on which songs he sang, and in what order. "Mom, which song did we clap our hands and stomp our feet on? Did you see me in the kick line?"" We passed with flying colors. Oh, the benefits of living next to the school!

Friday was the PAX (Program for Academic Exchange) Christmas party. We spent about 30 minutes lost in West Richland, but we survived the big city and were treated to a middle school Calypso band. They were so awesome! They ALMOST inspired me to start fundraising for one in Hermiston. Then I remembered how much I hate fundraisers. And how I sneak anything with the word "Fundraiser" into the garbage before my kids see them. But anyways, all the exchange students were given a chance to try the steel drums. The rest of us were jealous.

Daniel, being the music dude that he is seemed to really enjoy it.

And after their time was up the real band played one more song. I don't know the name of it, but it goes like this: Duh da da da da da da duh da da da da da. Oh, forget it. It inspired an international kick line.

Hey, I never said they were the Rockettes!
Here's all the exchange students in the area that are here with PAX. All of them except for us live in the Tri-Cities, which is a bummer. But once in a while they get together for things like... A Crispy Kreme fundraiser this weekend!
I will not eat any donuts.
I will not eat any donuts.
I will not eat any donuts.
Deep breath.

New subject, please.
Saturday we went to the Irrigon skate park. For a town so small that they don't even have a McDonald's, they sure do have a cool skate park.

It was a gorgeous day, a balmy 50 degrees.Which means that we could stay outside for more than two minutes.It was a LARGE time had by all.

Does that mean anything?

Or is that just rodeo talk?

2008-12-01T15:37:00.000-08:00

It's kind of hard to feel like you have anything exciting to say after you've blogged about such exciting things as jungle zip lines, surfing and deep sea fishing. But I thought I'd make an attempt at SOMETHING. But beware this may be kind of gross and a tad bit on the mundane side.
Wednesday was the day that we planned on going to my sister, Dana's house for Thanksgiving. Tuesday night was the night when my children started puking. Last time we tried to go to Vancouver (only a month ago!) they did the same. Do you think there's some sort of conspiracy here? Luckily, it turned out to be a very short lived illness and by Wednesday afternoon we decided that we were well enough to hit the road. But first we had to hit McDonald's because we were hungry. And to be sure that Carson would have plenty of food in his stomach to hurl in the back of the car as soon as we were stuck in Portland traffic. Aahhh, good times. Good times. But those McDonald's cups did come in handy at that blessed moment of upchucking. He and Daniel happened to be sitting in the third seat of our car, which is approximately 3 miles from where I was sitting in the front seat. So I could do nothing except pass cups, napkins and water bottles to our nurse, er, Daniel. I bet when he decided to come to America he didn't envision holding McDonald's cups for a puking child, did he? But he was great and luckily he isn't a sympathetic puker. That could have been bad. After it was all over, he put the lid on and passed the cups up front. Eeeew! Something about the warmth of those cups still haunts me.
End of story. You can all breathe a sigh of relief now. You survived the gross. Now it's time for the mundane.
You know how you sometimes write about the funny things your kids do? Well, I'm gonna do that now. Except it's about my husband. (Hi honey! Please don't kill me.)
So I got a little behind on the laundry and Chris found himself with no -uhem- underclothes to wear yesterday. So we gathered up some laundry and put it in the washer. But we decided not to start it yet because we were all trying to shower for church. Later on, he put the clothes in the dryer and then took what he needed to wear when they were done. Last night we decided to fold our Everest of Laundry, and when we were almost done I noticed a sock with a little bit of food stuck to the bottom of it. So I started to inspect all the other clothes and guess what...We had just folded a bunch of clothes that had been dried, but not washed. Doh!
Another fine example of the craziness that takes place behind these four walls. Sometimes I wonder why God thought I could handle three kids.

Surfing Day

2008-11-23T12:09:00.000-08:00

Yes, you read it right. This old mama is a surfer girl. We rented a car, which included a free pet gecko on the ceiling, and drove to Tamarindo for a day of surfing. Rich and Dawn came with us, but said that they'd just watch us. They had never tried surfing and didn't think they were interested. But by the time we got there we had talked them in to giving it a try. So we all signed up for lessons, rented surfboards and headed to the beach.But before I could surf I had to try some coconut milk.Hey Chris! Take my picture with my surfboard!

Come on, Jodi! Show some spunk. Do something funny.

Ummm. Okay!

Surfing was awesome!! Dawn and I both got up on our first try, but after that I couldn't get up for awhile. Finally our surf teacher, Fau, told me to just relax. That turned out to be good advice because after that I had no problems. That was such a good workout that we were all so tired and sore by the end of the day. We were wishing we had saved our massages for surfing day. And by the way, Rich and Dawn are talking about buying their own surfboards now because it TOTALLY ROCKED!

That night we had reservations for The Italian Restaurant so we hurried home, did a 5 minute glam-up and went to dinner with salt water and sand in our ears and belly buttons. Shortly after dinner Chris started to feel really sick. We had a very long night that night and learned something...Don't drink the water!

2008-11-19T20:13:00.000-08:00

This day was the long awaited fishing trip with Rich and Dawn. We had to get up early to meet our boat on the beach at 6am. Can you believe how gorgeous the view is at that hour? I normally don't think anything is gorgeous at 6 am, but this deserves an exception, don't you think? Oh, and yeah, it was already warm out too.

We had rented the boat for five hours and REALLY wanted to catch some fish. So right away there was a little bit of tension in the air. You can tell just by looking at this picture. These are two really tense guys. No fun going on here.

This is a mahi mahi. We hooked into this guy fairly quickly. And I use the term we very, very loosely here. I had no idea how this was going to work, but apparently our job was to sit and watch while the captain drove and the first mate worked his butt off changing out hooks and baits and things on all the fishing poles. Then when they get a fish on we, the overpaying tourists, have the privilege of reeling it in. It kind of reminds me of taking a four year old fishing. But don't get me wrong. We had a blast. And we probably wouldn't have caught anything if we had been trying to do it all ourselves. Especially since we've never fished for mahi mahi or wahoo.

After we caught the mahi mahi it was time to focus on some other types of fish. Rich was really hoping to get a wahoo. So we fished and fished and fished until our time was almost up. We were getting bored and hungry. But we all agreed that a bored and hungry day in Costa Rica is still better than a day at work. Now the tension was really starting to build because Rich hadn't had a chance to reel anything in yet, and Chris and I were feeling guilty about it. The captain was looking stressed and the first mate was changing lures constantly in an effort to hook a fish for us. Then all of a sudden, we had one! The captain could tell us what kind it was before we could even see it. "It's a wahoo!" The boat came to life and Dawn and I drew our cameras out faster than an old western cowboy. "Wahoo! Rich got a fish!"

We took the fish back to our hotel and they cooked it up for us that night. It was so good! And this is coming from a non-fish eater. So you KNOW it must have been good.

But before dinner, we had some massages scheduled at those huts I mentioned earlier. Chris was a little nervous because he had never had one before so I assured him that he would be covered the whole time with a sheet. OOPS! Apparently in Costa Rica it's customary to use only a beach towel to cover you. It was a bit... how should I put this? breezy.

After bearing it all to the massage therapists I was feeling extra care free, so I let Dawn talk me into Meringue lessons at the pool. See that guy and girl in blue and yellow? Their job is to make fools out of the American tourists. Job well done, guys. Job well done. I'm sure they have lots of good laughs in their break room.

Day 2

2008-11-18T07:35:00.000-08:00

So after our zombie day it was time to get to work. There is so much to do there and we needed to figure out how much we could actually fit into this week. So we visited the tour office at our resort and did some research. The tours that we were interested in were surfing, rafting, deep sea fishing and a volcano/waterslide/jungle tour/horseback riding excursion. We hung out at the pool and did some asking around to find out what was best. In the end, we decided that we didn't want to mortgage the house in order to afford all these trips so we cut out rafting, since we already get to do that every year. We asked the tour dude if he could find someone to share the boat with us for deep sea fishing to save a little money there, too. He ended up finding a couple from Boston, Dawn and Rich, that were looking for fishing partners too, so we went to meet with them and make our plans. We really hit it off with them and ended up spending most of our week with them. For the remainder of that day, we took a shuttle into a little town called Playa del Coco for some shopping and exploring. It was kind of a cool place with shops selling jewelry, pottery and woodworks lining the street. You'll have to trust me on this one because I didn't take any pictures of the town, but this is the beach. Yeah, it was warm there.

While we were waiting in the hotel lobby for our shuttle we had some time to hone my wicked photography skills. And my subject was OH-SO-COOPERATIVE!
The next day was awesome! We took a tour through the jungle on zip lines. We even saw a toucan and a family of monkeys. So cute!

This Costa Rican jungle gangster was a little scary, though.

And this little wild pig was trying to get into the girls dressing room. Dirty old pig!

After the zip lines it was time for the world's longest waterslide. Or so they say, anyways. Again, no pictures here because it's kind of hard to take pictures when you're riding a waterslide. But take my word for it. It was long! It takes about 8 minutes to hike to the top of it, then about 1 1/2 minutes to ride it down.

Next on the agenda was horseback riding up to the hot springs. All the horses in our group insisted on walking VERY close together. We decided they must be Asian horses that are used to being crammed into small spaces.

When we got up there, we sat in a steam room, smeared hot volcanic mud all over our bodies and then let it dry in the sun. Then we washed it off and plunged into the hot springs. We started off with the hot ones, then slowly made our way into colder and colder ones.

After that we hopped on our bus for the ride back to our hotel. This little guy lives in a small town and loves to chase dogs. Someone kept him as a pet then turned him loose. So he's partly domesticated and might actually think he's a dog. We think he's cute.

This is the view on the way down. Someone on our bus had to stop to go potty, so we hopped out for some pictures. Hooray for small bladders!

We're baaaack!

2008-11-16T20:42:00.000-08:00

OH. MY. GOSH. Costa Rica was like so totally rockin' dude!

We had so much fun, I don't know where to start. So I made a plan and I'm gonna stick to it gosh darn it. I'll post a little bit each day for the next several days. That way you won't get too bored and I won't be sitting here all night typing out all the nitty gritty details that you don't care about. But I probably won't get to go back there for a long time so I have to record every little cotton pickin' thing so that I can relive this vacation over and over. Bear with me.

I guess I'll start with this
picture of our pet gecko. He lived in the light fixture on our balcony. See his bulging belly? He eats all the bugs that go in there. I think he's pretty smart.

And this is a howler monkey that was near the beach at our hotel. I hear they're pretty harmless, but when they start howling you'll feel like you're in Jurassic Park or something.We had a long and miserable overnight flight down there and arrived in Costa Rica at 7 am. So our first day there was spent mostly sleeping, lounging by the pool and doing this:

We were at an all-inclusive resort, so it didn't take long for us to find the food. And it was good. And Jodi was happy. And she looked like a pig. A very tired pig. But a happy tired pig. And it was good. Did I tell you that it was good?

We wandered down this path and found the beach. On the way to the beach we saw these little huts where people could get massages. We took note of those huts and promised ourselves that we would definitely need to visit that sacred place.

Our resort had four restaurants. At one they served Oriental food. It was called The Oriental. At another one they served Italian food. It was called The Italian. The third restaurant was a buffet. It was called The Buffet. Now hang in here with me. I know this is getting confusing. Maybe I should make a chart so that you can keep all of this straight. Now here's the kicker. The fourth one was called The Snack Bar, but it wasn't just snacks! It was meals! So confusing, I know. All the guests were outraged because they couldn't figure out where to get the food they wanted. A cryin' shame, I tell ya. A cryin' shame.

So back to the subject of food. (This subject may be visited several times over the course of the next few days.) That night we ate at The Oriental. We had Mexican food there. HAHAHA! Oh, I can't fool you. We had....Oriental food there! But we were too sleepy to enjoy it. I think we were in bed and asleep by 8 o'clock. Party on!

2008-11-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

I know this is a little delayed, but I wanted to get this posted TODAY because TOMORROW is a BIG DAY! Yes, it is finally here. We will leave our life, home and children behind in exchange for sun, sand, snorkeling, surfing, sunbathing, deep sea fishing, and all you can eat food. Although I am excited beyond belief, I know for sure that I'll be ready to come home to my rugrats when the time comes. And if not, we'll purchase some property down there (probably a cardboard shack) and relocate the whole family. Who needs jobs, anyways?

But anyhoo... On to other things...

I've got a question.

What ever happened to NICE Halloween costumes?

Even Jantzen traded in her princess costume for a witch. This year's collection of masks were very disturbing to her, and I'm amazed she would even sit on the porch with these monsters. I guess it's just that my boys are getting older and it's not cool to dress up as an elephant anymore. Go figure.

***ALSO***

These are some pictures from a couple of weeks ago when Jantzen's preschool was talking about fire safety. Chris surprised her with the fire truck out in front of her school. I love these pictures.

Each kid got a turn to spray water from the hose.

Then they climbed in the truck to check everything out.

You might think that she would be bored with the fire trucks because she can climb on them any day, but she was just as excited as the rest of the kids.

Oh, and one more thing. I wanted to come up with something cute to put on my front door asking people to take their shoes off. I wanted it to be fun yet stern. How do you think I did? So far I've gotten a lot of chuckles, but also some commandment breakers.

Obviously, they can't relate to my affliction of having white carpet.

2008-10-29T16:48:00.000-07:00

I guess it's time for an update on what we've been doing, lest you think we've fallen off the end of the earth.

First we have a follow-up on our girls night at the ballet. We had so much fun! Jantzen sat so still through the whole show, which lasted almost three hours. There were lots of little girls about her age there, all dressed up for a night out with their mommies. I was really impressed with all of these little girls and how well they behaved. We will definitely be going to more of these events when they come to Hermiston.

Next we have her birthday. I promise I DO HAVE other children besides Jantzen, but she's had a lot of excitement lately. We had a small party with a couple of friends and our family. I came to a new conclusion on her birthday. Kids love their birthdays! She was such a chatterbox all day long, and kept asking me jokingly, "How many sleeps until my birthday, mom?" When I would tell her none she would say, "RIGHT! THAT IS CORRECT!" And she would get all school teacher-ish on me, looking down her nose at me. It was pretty darn cute.

Last Friday was Carson's annual field trip to the corn maze and pumpkin patch. They go on this field trip EVERY YEAR, and somehow the kids never get tired of it. Carson and his buddies, Parker and Nick were so excited that they just couldn't stand still! They were determined to be the first group to make it through the maze, so we ran the whole way. I was really thankful for all the running I've done lately because that maze is kind of long. Especially when you take as many wrong turns as we did!
After the maze, we took a hay ride to the "pumpkin patch". And I use that term VERY loosely. Check it out:

Yes, they truck them in and spread them out on the ground for the kids to find. Hilarious, huh? But the kids didn't seem to care. They had a blast.

13.1 Miles

2008-10-20T16:35:00.000-07:00

Yep, I did it. And I'm still alive! It was an awesome experience. 1000 women poised at the starting line, ready to do something amazing. The energy was so incredible, that it carried me for two hours and twenty minutes to the finish line. I wish I had pictures of that part, but my camera weighs like THREE WHOLE OUNCES and I wasn't about to carry it the whole way. So you'll have to settle for some before and after pictures.

See these feet? They are getting ready to do something they've never done before. They thought they never could. But they worked hard, got sweaty and often endured pain so that they could carry their owner where she wanted to go. Thank you, feet! You deserve some new running shoes. And a replacement pair for the other ones I left in the hotel. I liked this picture because it shows the chip that they use to record your time on my left foot AND my early birthday present on the right foot. The technology that's available to runners these days is amazing. And I like it. I also like this picture because someday I might develop cankles and I'll enjoy looking back at the good ole' days when you could see bones and things there.

This next one is gonna take a lot of humility to post. Because it's the dreaded after picture. Not only that, but it's a self portrait. So it's pretty terrible. But I was alone in the hotel and what's a girl to do? I had to document this experience. So brace yourselves. Here it is.

Notice the little white dots in my hairline? No, it didn't snow, although it was cold. That's salt. Like from sweat. EEEWWW! Now would someone please send me the "MOST CRAZIEST AND HUMBLE PERSON WHO POSTS A TERRIBLE SELF-PORTRAIT OF THEMSELF AWARD?" I'm pretty sure I deserve it. Well, except for that saying about how as soon as you say you're humble, you're not humble. And the fact that I'm TOTALLY BRAGGING about running this race. But I am pretty proud of myself. In case you couldn't tell. I think I was a bit delirious at the moment, too.

This next picture is of me (on the right) with the three other women that I went with. I can't say that I ran with them because we run at different paces, so we split off and ran separately. It was good to just be able to zone out with my ipod and not worry about anyone else.

All in all it was a fabulous, amazing, inspiring, awesome, wonderful, terrific, and cool experience. And I just might do it again.

Plea, leap, pirouette and run

2008-10-16T12:32:00.000-07:00

Tonight the Eugene Ballet Company is coming to OUR little town to perform Swan Lake! Amazingly, none of the boys were interested in going so it's just Jantzen and me. A girls night out! We rarely get any sort of arts or culture here so I have to jump on these opportunities when they come. The last time we experienced anything like this was when we went to the harp concert in Utah last March. Yes, it's been that long. Well, unless you count the boys playing guitar hero on the Wii.
I've only got three more days until my big half-marathon and I'm SO NERVOUS!! I'm excited for it to finally be here so that I can quit worrying about it. I missed my 10 mile run last weekend because of some back problems so I'm feeling a little under prepared. But I just have to remind myself that it's not the end of the world if I don't do well. Like what's gonna happen? Will I not make it to the Olympics or something? Please, I know the IOC will be busting down my door come 2012, begging me to compete. And I'll just turn my nose up at them and tell them that the Olympics are so BELOW me. I need some real competition here.

2008-10-12T20:04:00.000-07:00

Where to start??? Well, how about where we left off last week. Apples. We have so many apples we don't know what to do with them all. We have made applesauce, apple crisp, apple pancakes, apple scampi, apple gumbo, chicken fried apples, apple alfredo, apple burgers, apple foo young, apple burritos and curried apples. Just kidding on most of those. But we did make these. The kids didn't have school on Friday so I conned them into helping me.
I'm hoping to make lots more, but we'll see if time permits.

The kids' teachers all received at least one apple this week. Their grades haven't improved like we were hoping, though. I guess we'll have to go back to old fashioned homework.

In other news, we had the Richland Invitational meet on Saturday. And by "we" I mean Daniel.

You can't tell from this picture, but it was stinkin' cold! The wind was blowing which didn't help. I thought it was really cruel of the race officials to call the runners to the starting line 20 minutes before they started the race. So the kids stripped down to their running clothes and then they had to stand there and try to stay warm.

But eventually the gun went off and the race started.

I don't know anyone in this picture. I just thought it was cool.

Oh, the excitement of the race!

I know this guy, though.

He ran a really good race and improved his time by about a minute and a half.

And this is him with some of the members of his team. Go Bulldogs! Oh, and by the way....Those bulldogs won. Both the boys and the girls. Did I mention...

GO BULLDOGS!!!

You're welcome for the favor

2008-10-09T20:51:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, doesn't that sound better? I couldn't stand those Beach Boys any longer. (Sorry mom. I know you love them, but I've had enough!)

Trains, football and apples

2008-10-05T18:22:00.000-07:00

Well, another week has gone by in the Wrathall household. First up, we have a girls trip to Hinkle Yard to see the train station. The boys weren't interested in this, even when I mentioned free hot dogs and soda. Go figure. So Jantzen and I went with our friends to go check the place out. I found it so fascinating and was a little embarrassed at how many pictures I took.

This is Jantzen and her friends standing next to a battery that they use in the locomotives. HUGE, huh? Notice the supermodel in front. Too funny.

We got to go inside and see where the driver sits. Jantzen accidentally bumped some sort of alarm which gave her mom a little bit of a heart attack.

This is the girls in front of some sort of supersized locomotive that never gets used because it keeps jumping the tracks. Probably a good idea to put this one away.

Moving right along to our next item of business...We have Carson's first football game of the year. We love this football program that he plays in. He gets the same coach every year, which is also his basketball coach in the winter and his track coach in the spring. The kids love him and he does a great job with them. We also love it because it's so simple. Every Saturday at noon the teams practice for 45 minutes then immediately after that they play their game. Then we're done for the week. Well, except for the extra practice that Coach Dave holds just because the kids want to. And he is nice enough to do it next door to our house at the school. So I can cook dinner and check in on practice all at the same time. Gotta love it. We've lived in this house for 2 1/2 years and have never been on a team that practices at this school. I think I'll start demanding it. It's just too convenient.

And for our final event of the week we have apples.

Lots of them.

It was definitely a group effort.But it was a lot faster than picking blueberries.

It was nice having a TALL exchange student on hand to reach the apples.

We finished in about 20 minutes, which is good because everyone was still in a good mood.

No time for any whining to start.

We had warm applesauce with our breakfast this morning. Then for lunch we had apple pie. Yes, apple pie for lunch. I'm a terrible mom. But right now the kids are loving me. Tomorrow we'll start eating healthy again. And everyone gets an apple in their lunch.

I love the fall harvest.

Run, Forrest, Run!

2008-09-27T21:49:00.000-07:00

Today was the Hermiston Education Foundation Fun Run, and the kids and I all participated in some way or another. (Chris had to work) At first, some of them were not too excited about it, but I talked them into it and they were all glad that they decided to go. We had so much fun!

Carson ran the 5K and kept pace with me. After every mile, they had tables full of trinkets for the kids. Daniel has been sick this week so he didn't run, but he helped out at one of the trinket tables and served as our paparazzi as we went by. Thanks Daniel!

Keaton is such an awesome big brother to Jantzen. He walked it with her, and carried her a little bit of the way, too. I think I've said this before, but Jantzen is so lucky to have him for a big brother. He is so good to her. At an age where kids are starting to become "too good" for their families, Keaton shows no signs of that. They had a great time together, and when I passed them Jantzen was so excited to show me all her little toys that I had to check them out real quick. My apologies to the other people who were captured in this shot. I'm sure they wouldn't mind my posting this, based on how sweet Keaton and Jantzen look.Here's me, running with Cathy. She's the one responsible for getting me mixed up with this whole half-marathon idea. Then she had the nerve to leave me in the last little bit and beat me by about 30 seconds to take first place.

Chris was able to take an ambulance and leave work for a little bit with Dan, whose wife was also running in the race. They were at the finish line when we got there. I was glad to see them because I thought I might need a shock with the defibrillator and some oxygen.

We can't wait to do it again next year!

Lurkers, Show Yourself!

2008-09-26T07:25:00.000-07:00

I know that I've been guilty of lurking on several blogs. But somehow now that I have my own blog, I find myself wondering who comes here. So today things are going to change. That's right. It's the dawn of a new day. Today is the first day of the rest of our lives! I will vow to lurk no more if you will too. So show yourself. In other words, leave a comment. You can say something as simple as "I was here." Or just type your name. Who knows? I may be lurking on your blog too. And wouldn't that be funny?
I don't know why I'm so curious about this. I guess if I knew that my great great aunt was reading, I would probably dress my kids in the hideous clothes she sends and post pictures of them on here for her to see. Just kidding. I don't have a great great aunt that sends clothes. But you know what Imean, don't you? I'll see you in the comment section.

Toilet Paper Graffiti

2008-09-23T20:44:00.000-07:00

As our friends prepare to move to Portland they have been going through their things and doing what every American does before they move...They get rid of everything! And so because their house is only a block away and Keaton and Carson consider it their second home, they have run home begging me to buy various things. Last week things got really ugly around here when they decided they REALLY wanted one of their hamsters. The funny thing is, they never really wanted one until that day, and then all of a sudden, they wanted it BAD! The dinner conversation was a pretty heated discussion:

Me-- "Hamsters are for kids whose parents won't let them have a dog."

Them--"No, they're not!"

Me-- "You don't take care of the dog you have."

Them--"Yes, we do!"

Me-- "Hamsters stink."

Them--"No, they don't!"

And so it went. On and on and on and on. Voices were raised. Tears were shed. Doors were slammed. And signs were hung. Wait. Huh?

Allow me to explain. When Keaton was in second or third grade, they stopped having a salad bar at school. This occurred at a time when the kids happened to be learning about health and nutrition. They were outraged that such a terrible decision was made without their consent. So they did the only thing they knew how to do. They made signs and hung them all over the school. "BRING BACK THE SALAD BAR!" was pasted on every classroom door and everywhere in between. And guess what...It worked.

So when Keaton REALLY wanted something and he didn't know what else to do to get his way, he drew upon that earlier experience. Never mind that he can't spell hamster. This is genius!

On my bedroom door

In the front entry

On the ceiling above my bed.

On my bathroom door

Yes, this IS the back of the toilet seat. This is getting a bit personal.

And my personal favorite...On the toilet paper.

Each and every square.

And, oh yeah, he still lost.

Let 'er Buck!

2008-09-14T19:12:00.000-07:00

On Friday we were able to take the kids out of school for the Pendleton Round Up, er, doctor's appointments, I mean. Yeah, that's it. Doctor's appointments! Man, those were some fun doctor's appointments. I think we'll do it again next year!

Something about a man holding hands with his little girl makes my heart melt. Aren't they cute?

Daniel had a cross country meet in Monmouth so we brought Peter along to use up our extra ticket. Everyone had a great time!
This is the Indian Village that is set up next to the rodeo. The native Americans in the area stay there all week.
I always love the rodeo clowns. This one was pretty funny. Except when he did an imitation of an olympic gymnast. That hurt my feelings. haha
Some dude on a horse. I don't think the horse liked it too much. He kept trying to buck him off.
The bull riding was awesome. I think it's so funny to see how angry they get and how they throw their hind legs around. They put up this PVC fence during the bull riding. I don't know why they think it would keep the guys safe out on the field. This bull rammed it with his head and sent it flying. It was so funny to see all the guys scatter.After the bull riding, everyone starts to get up to leave, thinking that the show is over. But it's not! In my opinion, they saved the best for last...The wild cow milking! I had never seen this before, but what a kick in the pants! First they realease several cows onto the field. They also realease several men onto the field. They are in teams of two- one man on foot and one man on a horse with a lasso. First, the man on the horse catches a cow, then the man on foot tries to milk it. You can see in the picture the two men being dragged across the field by the cow. If you look really close, you can see the trail in the grass of how far they have already been dragged. The funny thing is that that's just a small portion of the round trip they took around the field. One guy was dragged around by his foot when he got it stuck in the rope.

I can't figure out if this event is real or if it's just for laughs. They definitely accomplished the laughing part.

Eight

2008-09-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

Today I ran EIGHT MILES!! Nuff said.

Surfs Up!!

2008-09-12T21:05:00.000-07:00

Notice any changes? Tonight my friend Heather educated me in the fine art of cutting and pasting. Not like kindergartners do...like people with actual computer skills do. I really can't believe I've gone all these years without knowing how to do this. It's quite embarrassing, actually. But anyways, I have some exciting news to share and I wanted to roll it out with a little bit of fanfare, so now I can! Drumroll please....
For our 15th wedding anniversary in November Chris and I will be celebrating in the sunny and beautiful land of Costa Rica! And because I'm not too humble to boast, I'm posting the link to the resort that we'll be staying at.
Go to http://www.occidentalhotels.com/grand/Papagayo.asp
I'll be expecting all of you to visit the website and drool all over your keyboards, OK? Oh, and sorry about the Beach Boys music. I just couldn't resist. And the tropical surfer background, too. And I'm apologizing in advance for the countdown thingie that I'm hoping to post, too. (If I can figure out how) By the time we actually leave for this trip you are all gonna hate me and will probably vow to never ever visit my blog again. But I feel like I can brag about this one because we rarely get to take trips like this. Like once every 15 years. If we did this every year and were torturing you with the details I could see how that could be nauseating. But I think you can handle it once every 15 years, can't you? And be happy for us?? OK, thanks I appreciate that. Cuz we're going anyways.

Curious??

2008-09-11T09:33:00.000-07:00

Many people have been asking me how things are going with our new oldest son, Daniel. I realize that I haven't really posted much about our new adventures of having a high schooler. (Insert excuses of being busy here) So here we go.

This is one of our few pictures of him. It was taken on the Deschutes River in August. We had planned a day trip for some more rafting, just knowing that the weather would be nice and HOT at the end of August. But wouldn't you know it-we had this weird cold front move in and it was windy and 70. That is way too cold to be sitting on a raft in a cold river. But the guys toughed it out and had a good time anyways. The kids and I were happy to drive the shuttle and take pictures from the road. But anyways, I'm getting away from my original subject matter.

Daniel is a very nice boy, and gets along well with the kids. They anxiously await his arrival every evening after cross country practice. His english is very good, and we don't have any problems communicating with him. He is always happy to go along wherever we are going and to do whatever we are doing.

I think he is somewhat of a novelty at school. In a small town like Hermiston, you don't get much exposure to other cultures. When we went to get him registered before school started, I noticed a lot of people looking at him, and he got the royal treatment when scheduling all the classes he needed. He told us last night that when he was walking down the hall yesterday he smiled at some girls and one of them was so busy staring at him that she walked into a garbage can! How embarassing for her, but we got a good laugh out of it.

This picture is from the Hermiston Invite last week.

Carson, Jantzen and I helped out and were able to watch the races from where we were. Daniel did really well, and said that he passed about 12 people. Lots of the kids who run cross country do it all year in preparation for the season. But Daniel doesn't have many opportunities for athletics in Germany so he is at a disadvantage in that respect. But he is doing really well and is improving very quickly. Naturally, I love to hear about his workouts and races because I'm involved in the same thing right now. I could never come close to competing with these kids. I'd probably be the one coming in last that everyone feels sorry for.

All in all, everything is going along quite nicely. It really has been a fun experience for our family. I would definitely recommend hosting an exchange student to anyone who has an extra bedroom and a little extra food in their pantry.

Preschool Rocks!

2008-09-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the blessed first day of preschool. Jantzen was so excited, and had been counting sleeps for a long time in anticipation of the first day.

Notice the backpack hanging almost to her knees!

On Tuesday she and I took a shopping trip to Tri-Cities to get her a few things for school. She needed some comfortable stretchy pants because at her preschool they do gymnastics also. We always have trouble buying her pants because she is so skinny and small for her age. (I know, she'll be a perfect gymnast! The next Shawn Johnson!) The 3T fit in the waist, but was a little too short. The 4T was a little big in the waist, and also a little too long. The girl is almost 5! Shouldn't she be wearing a size that corresponds to her age?? But I opted for the 4T in hopes that it would shrink. Why am I telling you this boring jibber jabber about her pants? Well, partly because it's a major dilemma in my life, partly because I don't really have a life, and partly because these are some seriously SPECIAL PANTS! You see, yesterday when I told her to go get dressed she ran to her room, so excited to wear her new clothes. For the first time in her life she actually did what I told her to do. I went in to check on her a few minutes later and caught her standing in front of her mirror, admiring herself. And then she said something that I'm not proud of. Something that may be an ominous sign of things to come. Something that totally blew me away. She said, "I look so good in these pants. These pants are going to make me popular." Please send help.

2008-08-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

Oh, man! I'm a blogging slacker! It's not that I don't have anything to write about. It's just that, well, um, nevermind the excuses. They're boring anyways.
So the best news is that SCHOOL STARTED THIS WEEK!!!!! I used to complain that we had to start before Labor Day, but now I'm wondering...What was I thinking? This totally rocks! All the boys head out at about 8 and then it's peace and quiet around here. Well, except for Jantzie. But she'll be starting preschool in "six sleeps." I had forgotten what it was like to clean a room and have it stay that way for more than 15 minutes. I could swear I did the dishes at least 20 times a day during the summer. And nevermind how many times I wiped the counters. My dishrag wringing calluses were getting really big, I tell ya!
Ever since Daniel arrived the kids have been extra... well...let's just say...energetic. They love having a big brother to wrestle with and to exchange wedgies and titty twisters with several times a minute. (Is that how you spell titty? Now that's a word I've never put in writing.) Anyways, they're worried that they'll get "man-boob cancer" from all of this, but apparently not worried enough, because they haven't stopped.
We were lucky enough to have visits from Grandma Shanna and Grandma Fay in the last couple of weeks. The kids always love to show them what they've been up to. Mostly all at once within the first two minutes of their arrival, but hey what can I say? They're excited!
Things with my Scentsy business are really taking off. The booth I had at the fair turned out to be very beneficial, and now I just have to figure out how to fit it all into my already full schedule. All of a sudden I have a kid in preschool, a kid in elementary school, a kid in middle school and a kid in high school. Whew! This is gonna be hard to keep up on! My calendar looks like graffiti on the side of a bridge with everything trying to squish into the boxes. Tonight at dinner Chris asked if maybe I'd like to have a palm pilot or something (maybe because I triple booked myself for two separate days next week), but my first thought was that it would just take too much time to use. I rather like my old fashioned squish it into the boxes on the calendar method. Besides that, I think I'd rather have one of those rockin' nike plus things that works with your ipod to tell you how far you've run, how fast, and whether your butt is still jiggling like it did three months ago when you first started running regularly. OK, just joking on that last one. And speaking of running, I'm still doing it. I'm not sure if I'd say that I'm enjoying it or not, but I like that I'm about 10 pounds lighter while still eating whatever I want. In the past I've heard runners talk about how good they feel afterward, how they grow to like the pain, how it's not really that hard to run far, etc.. And I've always rolled my eyes and thought that they are just some weird breed from Neptune or something. But I'm getting to where I feel like that too. I started running for the first time just shortly after Jantzen was born, and I was so proud when I could run a mile without stopping. In all my years of playing sports growing up, running was always really hard for me. But now four miles is considered a short run, and I don't even bother bringing water with me. A while back I bought some of those energy cube things with electrolytes and stuff in them for my long runs. And it's funny that I haven't used them yet because I don't think I've had any long runs yet. Three years ago I would have thought seven miles was a long run! It's amazing how your perspective changes when you set your sights on 13.1 miles rather than the 3.1 I would always run in races. Anyways, I guess what I'm saying is that it's true what those crazy runners say. You just gotta get out and try it.
And oh, yeah, Chris is going to be gone all next week for HAZMAT training in Portland. But don't worry. He'll be home for a whole week before he leaves again for more of the same. Now would someone please spill some chlorine or gasoline or acid somewhere so that he can put all this knowledge to use? Then at least we would feel like these FOUR WEEKS of training in Portland are not wasted. Thank you very much

Catch up. Or is it ketchup? Whatever. Let's call it an update, OK?

2008-08-15T08:20:00.000-07:00

On my last post I mentioned that our life might be a tornado, and judging by how far behind I am in my blogging I'd say that's true. But things are starting to calm down a bit and so now I'll try to get updated before any kids wake up screaming for breakfast. Soooo, where did we leave off? Oh yeah, RAFTING!!! As always this is one of our favorite weeks of the year. We met up with the Brodericks, Royers, Savages and Petersons for some rip roarin' good times. We have the women's favorite tradition of breakfast cooked by the men. No cereal and pop tarts here. We're talking hash browns, gravy, eggs, pancakes, bacon, sausage and fresh fruit every morning. We wouldn't want to get hungry on the river, right?

After we have clogged all arteries and packed on some pounds it's time to get serious about some fun. It's a little crazy figuring out who's going and who's staying in camp and who's driving and who's picking everyone up at the pull out and who's cleaning up breakfast and who's watching the little kids and who's gonna put on the pink tank top and act like a girl. Wait. What? Oh, Jake's got that last one covered. Thanks Jake! That was funny. We can always count on you for some laughs. And some dancing to Hannah Montana/High School Musical/Camp Rock music.
Getting ready to start our journey down the river.

Poor Jantzie, she looks like an orphan with all that messy hair. But actually it doesn't seem like she really cares.

This is our crowd taking off. We actually had 2 rafts and 3 kayaks, but I guess I missed the others when I took the picture. See? Nice and calm, nothing to worry about. Just a walk in the park.

Now check this out! We're heading down Oak Springs, the biggest rapid, and we're gonna hit it just right, meaning that we're all gonna have to change our underpants after this. HEHE!

Hold on! Are we gonna tip over?

No way! But the boat filled with water and we all screamed for our mommies.

We took some "redneck showers", too. First you jump in...

Then you soap up and jump in again!

There's this great little cliff right by our camp that provided entertainment while we weren't on the rafts. We all jumped in except for Jantzen. She thought hard about it. She had her life jacket on and was standing on the edge looking down, but in the end she couldn't bring herself to do it. The fact that she even thought about it makes me proud. I don't want her to be too prissy, you know? Anyways, we had so much fun and can't wait to do it again. Good thing we only have to wait until Thursday. We're totally addicted, and yes, we're going again.

And now onto other things...

Keaton went to Boy Scout Camp and earned 5 merit badges!

I didn't know this, but apparently they have one in bodybuilding now. Keaton and cousin Blake both got that one.

Also...

Our exchange student from Germany arrived.

As you can see, Jantzen was very excited. Everything is going great with him. He is a very nice boy and he tolerates our craziness quite well. I mean, he hasn't gone running for the nearest airport yet, anyways. It's been hot here, about 95-100 degrees. He says it feels like Spain. I guess I'll just have to trust him on that one.

Our life is a tornado

2008-08-04T19:55:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've posted. We've been crazy busy, and it doesn't look like it'll be changing for at least another week. It all started last Tuesday. We were just about to head out the door for our annual camping/rafting trip on the Deschutes, when we got a phone call from PAX, the company that is working with our exchange student. It seems that the authorities in Sierra Leone don't want to let their students come to our country, so they denied all of their visas. Things are not looking good right now for Alimamy's trip to the United States. But PAX wanted to know if we would be willing to take a different student on a temporary basis in the meantime. Hmmm. This is all just a little bit too much to digest at once. So we darted off on our trip with the promise of "We'll think about it." (We had a great time, by the way. I'll post pictures and details later this week.)
We arrived home on Saturday afternoon, unpacked, did a million loads of laundry, took some serious showers then began packing bags for Keaton and Chris to go to boy scout camp the following day. We also made the phone call saying that we would host the other student. Today was the set-up day at the county fair where I have a booth for my Scentsy business. Carson and Jantzen went to Krista's (see previous paragraph where I mention that Keaton, my prime babysitter, has gone to scout camp) and I spent a good portion of the day at the fairgrounds. Then we went grocery shopping because I was feeling like Old Mother Hubbard. I received an email stating that Daniel, our 15 year old German student would be here Friday. FRIDAY! So I begin cleaning the house that has been sorely neglected for the last ten days. I'm about half way done. I'm supposed to run 5 miles today. It's not gonna happen.
Tomorrow looks worse. Would someone please put their feet up and relax for me? Let me know how it feels.

Iron Chef

2008-07-25T17:38:00.000-07:00

I have always maintained that if I could afford to hire any kind of help around the house it would be a chef. Not a maid, chauffeur, gardener or nanny. Yes, I would rather clean toilets than cook. Sometimes I don't really mind it. If I have all the ingredients, time and ideas in the world. But I never have those things. I would much rather be accomplishing something that would have a lasting effect. Not something that will fill our bellies for a few hours and then be gone. But for the most part, I try to cook decent meals for my family. I rarely buy anything ready-made from the freezer aisle or those "just add water" meals.

LAST NIGHT MY DREAM BEGAN TO COME TRUE.

I had started making dinner when I realized that it was time to go pick Carson up from Cub Scouts. I gave Keaton the option of going to pick his brother up or staying home and cooking dinner. He chose to go get Carson. Then he remembered that he's only 12 and can't drive yet. So then he chose to cook. Here's what happened. We were having fettuccine alfredo (not from a jar...see paragraph above), caesar salad and french bread. I had started boiling the water for the noodles, melted the butter for the alfredo sauce and turned the oven on to heat the bread. That's it. I gave him some quick oral instructions and took off. By the time I got home, everything was done and put on the table, which he had also set. We walked in, sat down and ate. It was glorious! And he enjoys cooking, too. His wife is gonna be one lucky girl. I realize that this isn't the most complicated meal ever, but I think that's pretty darn good for a 12 year old boy! I know some adults who don't cook like that.

Cliche Summer

2008-07-17T20:21:00.001-07:00

Today the kids were playing outside enjoying summer, and it made me have a flashback to my childhood. Jantzen and her friend were in their swimming suits, eating otter pops in preparation for running through the sprinkler.

To me that is just the perfect thing to do on a summer day. I remember wearing my swimming suit all day long, not even caring who saw me in it. I would be happy to go to the store in it, and so is Jantzen. Aah, the good ole' days.

The boys were down the street selling juice to passers by.

(Notice Carson in THE SHIRT again?)

They started out in front of our house in the shade of our big maple tree. But soon they realized that the stop sign provided them with a captive audience. So they moved in front of our neighbor's house. Before too long, she had provided them with an umbrella for shade, and even bought some juice from them. What great neighbors we have! I didn't think that this pursuit would last too long, but they had a steady stream of customers and made $20 in just a few hours. They can't wait to do it again tomorrow. My boys have been known to be quite the entrepreneurs around here. Last year they sold our surplus of tomatoes from the garden. They have been door to door selling rocks and old matchbox cars. They have held bike washes in our driveway. And once, when Keaton was about 5 or 6 he went door to door selling stickers that came in some junk mail. They have no problems using their cute little sister to gain customers. They just bring her along whenever they're selling stuff. It works like magic.

This is the stuff that summer is made of. Yeah, vacations are fun. Who wouldn't want to take a trip to some amusement park or go camping in the mountains? But I really like this day to day stuff too. The times when you don't know what day it is. You have no thoughts of homework, teachers or grades. You look at your calendar and the day is totally blank. Yeah, summer totally rocks.

The Getaway

2008-07-15T12:09:00.000-07:00

Chris had another class in Portland last Friday so we did what we did the last time. We took the whole family and called it a vacation! I love when we can get these (almost) all expense paid trips, courtesy of you, the taxpayer. Gotta love the federal government. Don't worry, I paid my taxes this year too. First we went to the zoo with my mom and sisters. I can't believe how much the zoo has changed since the last time I was there. It took us all day to go through it. The weather was perfect and we had a great time. Here's a picture of Carson trying to feed his cousin, Jace. He loves to hold him and take care of him. He'll be a great dad someday.

Here's a picture of the elusive Messy Hair Jantzen. We saw her just after feeding time, when her mouth was still blue. The zoo keepers say that she is very cute, but she knows it and that creates a problem for the other zoo animals. She uses her blond hair and blue eyes to get away with all sorts of things. The zoo keepers are contemplating keeping her separate from the other animals until she is 18. Then they will turn her loose, hold their breath and hope for the best.Here is a picture of Messy Hair Jantzen's family. Some of them made their mouths blue, too. They are a little weird, but they always have fun together.

Here are some pictures from our trip to the Ape Caves on Mt. St. Helens with Jen and Brian and company. It was nice and cool in there, about 40 degrees. We hiked in about 3/4 mile to the end, then proceeded to take pictures in the total darkness. And I do mean TOTAL DARKNESS! This is black like you've never experienced before. You keep thinking that your eyes will adjust and be able to see something, but it's just too dark! We were a little nervous because the batteries on our head lamps started to die but we made it out.

This is where you have to crawl on your hands and knees to get to the very end. I stayed out of there, thank you very much. From left is Brenley, Cole, Keaton, Carson, Chris, Brian, Brenley and Blake. I'd like to tell you where Jennifer and Jantzen were, but like I said earlier it was pretty dark in there. I couldn't even tell who was in my viewfinder until after I took the picture.

This is right outside the caves.

On the way home we saw a U-Pick Blueberries sign. This is one of my favorite things about summer. I love all the fresh fruits, vegetables and especially berries. We normally buy about 6 flats of blueberries in the summer, then freeze them for use throughout the year. This year we ran out in March. It's been a long four months without blueberries! This is our work crew with their buckets ready for some serious picking. We probably ate almost as much as we picked.

This is me, one seriously happy berry lovin' mama! The only thing that made me happier was when we made blueberry cobbler that night in the dutch oven. Mmmm.

The kids organized a guitar hero tournament that night while we waited for the dessert. I think it was rigged. I played against Keaton and lost in a matter of about 5 seconds. They should have paired me up with someone more equal to my ability, like maybe a turkey.

Chris and Brian have way better skills than their wives. I think they secretly practice while they're at work or something.

We also spent a day at Seaside. On the way there, Chris and I were talking about how long it had been since we went to the beach. The statistics are pretty sad. I was pregnant with Jantzen the last time we were there, and she is now almost five! The first time she saw the ocean was when she was three and we went on a cruise to the Bahamas. So she saw the Atlantic before the Pacific. And my mom (hi mom!) had the honors of showing her the Pacific for the first time a few weeks ago when they were with her for "Mom's sanity week." Yes, we are terrible at going to the beach. But keep in mind that it is at least four hours away. So that redeems us a little bit, doesn't it?

Here's Carson flying a kite. He LOVED this, and did it for most of the time that we were there.

Keaton and Blake digging a hole. What is it with boys and digging? They could do this for hours. Maybe even days. I think they would dig to China if they could.

This is the elusive Jantzen, trying to run away again. We learned that she thrives in a coastal habitat, dining on saltwater taffy and ice cream.

We rented the car of the future. Not only does it take care of the problem with high gas prices, but also helps with the obesity epidemic. This was a bicycle for 11, and it was so much fun! We powered up a little hill, then cruised down screaming the whole way. We got a lot of stares, mostly because Chris was zig zagging the whole way down. They required that the driver have an actual driver's license, but I think maybe they should have done a psychological evaluation too! We went on more than one sidewalk, and I haven't laughed that hard in awhile. I'm in the market for a five seater. Let me know if you see any.

The Tile Girl Has Struck Again!

2008-07-05T19:45:00.000-07:00

It's a bird. It's a plane. It's tile girl! And she has grout stuck permanently beneath her fingernails.

A few weeks back I wrote about how I was going to replace these tiles while the kids were at Grandma's. I didn't finish it before they came home, but I got a good start. And a few days ago I actually finished the job. It took a lot of blood, sweat and tears. Well, maybe not the blood. Or the tears. But I did sweat. But that probably has more to do with the 105 degree weather we've been having. Anyways, I'm VERY PROUD to say that I did this ALL. BY. MYSELF. Just in case you're wondering why Chris didn't do this, well, I wouldn't let him. I like to do projects around the house and I just wanted to know if I could do it. And now I have the pride of knowing that I did! And I learned how to use a new tool, the wet saw. And if you've never used one, here's a hint. Wear grubby clothes because it sprays yucky water at you. But enough with my meaningless chatter. On with the pictures!

You may remember my "before" picture.

And here's the finished product. TA DA!

And the best part about it is that it was all free! Well, kind of. It was all done with leftovers from our bathroom remodel project that we did last year. So yes, it does match our bathroom. But that bathroom is a long walk from our front door. And if you're a good enough friend to travel that deep into Wrathall territory then you know me well enough to know that I love a good bargain! And the fact that I recycled this stuff makes me twice as happy.

Cabbage Patch Duty

2008-07-03T21:14:00.000-07:00

Tonight we had the rare occasion of having a baby in the house. I was babysitting for my friend, Michelle and the baby was kinda fussy at first. Being a girl, of course Jantzen loves babies. Carson also loves babies and puppies and other cuddly things that you wouldn't expect from an eight year old boy. So this was a bit of a novelty for us. At first they would shake all sorts of toys in front of her when she cried. But then I thought that maybe that was why she was crying in the first place. So I shooed them away and put her in her walker by the patio door so that she could watch the dog pant and drool on the glass. Well, she still decided to cry after awhile. Carson realized that if he did the cabbage patch in front of her she would stop. It worked every time. As soon as he would stop she would start crying again. So he was put on official "Cabbage Patch Duty". It was so cute because when we were eating dinner Jantzen would feed him while he was dancing. It became a real team effort. Good thing we weren't eating something like spaghetti.

(Yes, I do see what he is wearing. I swore I'd never let my kids dress like that, but he LOVES this shirt. It's from two soccer seasons ago. He had it signed by cousins, aunts, uncles, grandparents, parents and even the dog. Then when all the ink started to fade from so many washings he traced over them again. When I put the laundry away I always put it in the bottom of his drawer but it somehow floats to the top at least twice a week. Oh well, choose your battles, right?)

Anywho, back to our original story...
After awhile Jantzen joined in on Cabbage Patch Duty

Then Keaton decided to throw in some running man just for good measure. And probably because he saw that I had the camera out and he never likes to miss an opportunity to ham it up. Yes, we're a bunch of fruit cakes. I hope the baby recovers from all our craziness. She may need counseling someday.

Summer is here!

2008-07-03T13:22:00.000-07:00

The days that we all look forward to... 100 degree weather, flowers dying, high gas prices and huge electric bills from the air conditioning. Nevertheless, this is my favorite time of year. I love when I can wake up and ask myself, "What do I want to do today?" And then do it. Well, okay, I guess my life isn't THAT perfect, but sometimes I get to do that, if what I want to do includes grocery shopping, cooking and cleaning.

This morning the kids and I got up early for some good ole family exercise. They rode their bikes and I jogged to the school, then we all (except for Jantzen) took four laps around the track and headed home. It was great! I had been trying to figure out a way that we could all exercise together with our different abilities and fitness levels. My normal distance of 3-4 miles is too far for the kids to run. But if they bike along side me while I run it's too slow for them to get a good workout. So this works out good. The high school is about 1.5 miles from home, and the bike ride serves as a good warm up for them. If the kids get too tired on the run then they can just sit out a couple of laps. We can all run our own pace, which for Carson is WAY faster than the rest of us. There is also a water fountain and a bathroom there. What more could a mother want? I'm looking forward to doing this some more this summer and watching their progress as well as mine. I'm REALLY looking forward to the time when Jantzen can ride her bike all the way home without me pushing her. (It's slightly uphill).

In other news...

Carson and Jantzen started swimming lessons this week. They really like it and Jantzen especially looks forward to it each day.

Mr. Cheesy Grin, er I mean Carson almost always has a smile on his face. People are constantly commenting to me about his perma-smile. They loved to watch him in track because he would be smiling all through his events. The only time he stopped smiling was during the 1500 because in his mind that is SERIOUS business. But I think he was smiling when he sprinted to the finish. I was always asked if I had to pick lots of bugs out of his teeth.

My sister Kyla complained that there are no pictures of me on here and well, she's right. I always seem to be the one behind the camera. So Jantzen took this picture of me the other day at the pool. I know it's not the greatest, but I don't really lead a very glamorous life. And Kyla if you're reading this, I think it counts for ten pictures since I was in my swimming suit! Now don't ask again!

He's Alive!

2008-06-28T13:22:00.000-07:00

Well, our pioneer came home today. He's tired and DIRTY, but doing well. He was one of the lucky few who didn't get any blisters on his feet. This picture of him is right after they finished. They were in the sun the whole time with no shade, but they finished at this park where there was three things they hadn't seen in four days: grass, trees and shade. They were so happy to be done! I went up to help them with their celebration. They had several different games and activities, but I have to say that the one I did was the most popular. I worked at the bath house where everyone could have their hair washed and the girls had their hair braided. When we got there and started setting up people gathered around and practically drooled at the sight of shampoo, even the men. One woman cried for joy when she heard that we were going to wash her hair. It's amazing the things we take for granted every day, but when it's taken away for awhile you come to really realize how lucky we are! They were arranged into "families" for the week with a ma and pa and about 8 kids. Keaton's parents were some really neat people from Umatilla, and he said that everyone got along really well. It was weird for me to hear him calling other people "mom" and "dad". I accused him of cheating on us. HAHA. We are supposed to hear a full report tomorrow of everything that took place. I don't know if you can tell, but his lips were VERY chapped. Why didn't I pack lip balm for him? Duh! So I let him use some of mine, then took it home with me. He still had 24 hours until he would come home. Hello McFly! What kind of mother am I?

Just so you can gain a full appreciation of how dirty he was, I've taken some close-ups of his clothing.

Yeah, I'm sure you really wanted to see that! But I was just so amazed at how dirty all these kids were! Keaton went straight to the shower when he got home.

Keaton's trek

2008-06-24T14:01:00.001-07:00

This morning Keaton left for the trek. For those of you that don't know, it is a reenactment of the trek that the Mormon pioneers made across the plains in search of a safe place to live. They faced persecution and hardship and many people died. Lots of them didn't have animals to pull their carts so they used handcarts, meaning the people pulled them themselves. This is what Keaton is doing this week. It is for kids age 12 to 18, and Keaton turned twelve in March, so he was very excited to be included in it. Each person had to fit all their belongings (other than their sleeping bag) in a 5 gallon bucket. We were very surprised to find that he fit everything in easily and still had room to spare. So we threw an extra shirt in there and called it good. Here he is this morning dressed in costume and ready to go. Just one last look through the fridge is all he needed.

Then he did a quick scan of the horizon and he was off! What a goofball.

Please remember him (and all the other kids) in your prayers this week. They are walking 34 miles and it's supposed to reach 94 degrees by Friday. I almost feel like I shouldn't use my air conditioning in solidarity for them. Almost.

To the Top!

2008-06-24T13:25:00.000-07:00

On Sunday my mom finally decided to give the kids back to me. I think they had finally worn her out. Either that or they ate all her food. Probably both. Along with other things that she won't tell me about for fear that I would actually PUNISH them for what they did. (How could I dare?) So after church I drove to Multnomah Falls to meet them. That's about halfway between her house and ours and it makes a good meeting place. We used to have a tradition of hiking to the top every summer, but we haven't done it in a few years. We always seem to be in such a hurry when we're traveling that we don't want to stop. But I thought that this would be a good time for the kids to spend some energy before getting back into the car for the 2 1/2 hour drive home. They did so well with little to no complaining. It's only about a mile, but it is uphill the whole way with several switchbacks. Jantzen was really excited to get home to be reunited with our dog so she wasn't too excited about taking the time to hike, but I stashed a few candy bars in my backpack and told her that people who don't whine get candy at the top. It worked like a charm, and no, I'm not above bribery. She ended up loving it in the end, which is usually how it goes with my kids. They don't want to try something new but when they do they're always glad that they did. Such has been the case with snowskiing, innertubing, roller coasters and now hiking.

Carson and Jantzen wanted me to take their picture with their candy bars. I guess they really loved them?!

This is our "more bars in more places" picture. Cute, huh?It was a race against the clock because the sun was going down, but we made it just in time. This picture was taken at the top, just as the sun was going behind the mountains. I love the way the colors look. We hurried down and got to the car at 9:30. Then we made the long trip home, arriving home at about midnight. I'm still wondering why the lines on the road were so wavy.

Big Five

2008-06-21T18:11:00.000-07:00

Big Five Sporting Goods opened in our small town today! We are growing slowly but surely. Big Five isn't my favorite sporting goods store, but it's a step in the right direction. I can't tell you how excited we are to be able to buy shoes in this town! In the past if we needed running shoes or cleats we had to drive 45 minutes to Tri-Cities. WOOOHOOO!!!
In other "FIVE NEWS"...
With my half marathon coming up in four months, it's time to get serious about adding miles to my training regimen. I've gotten pretty comfortable with my usual 4.3 and for some reason 5 seemed like so much more to me. But I'm happy to report that I survived it this morning. It wasn't pretty, though. With the weather getting warmer it's getting harder. And it probably doesn't help that I haven't been cooking balanced meals for the past week since the kids have been gone. I think I've had popcorn for dinner twice and graham crackers once. Terrible, huh? So I guess it could be said that kids keep their parents healthy in some ways. I guess it makes up for all the gray hair they're giving me.

OHMYGOSHTHISISTHECUTESTTHINGEVER!!

2008-06-17T16:04:00.000-07:00

***Two posts in one day? Did I mention that my kids are gone? ***

Last Saturday was Jantzen's dance recital. She was in the "baby ballet" class, meaning that these girls are way too young to really learn much, but the dance studio is happy to take our money and try anyways. We all know it's really for the moms. She's been taking this class since last September, and they began practicing their dance for the recital on the very first day of class. So you'd think that they would have it down pretty good. But they didn't. And that's what made them so irresistably CUTE!

Here they are backstage before the big performance. Mine is the cute one. You know, the one all the way on the right. She looked forward to this day for a long time and "counted sleeps" for the last ten days. Mostly because she got to dress up like a fairy thingy and wear an obscene amount of make up.

Isn't she cute? (If I do say so myself.) I am working on getting a video posted, so check back. You won't be sorry!

Gone Baby, Gone!

2008-06-17T15:07:00.001-07:00

What's gone? You might ask...

The hair on my legs? No.

The weeds in my garden? No.

The little blades of grass on the floor of my car? No.

The pile of dirty laundry? No.

The five-years-old applesauce in my freezer? No.

SO WHAT'S GONE? MY KIDS!

Yes, folks that's right. I loaded them into a minivan with a strange man. Okay, only a little bit strange. But I didn't notice any guns, duct tape or rope in the car. So I figured it was okay. We said our goodbyes, then they drove off to Grandma Shanna's for the week. YAHOOOOO! Now I know that it may sound like I don't love my kids. But that's not true. I LOVE my kids. What I don't love is cooking for them, cleaning up after them, buying groceries for them and breaking up the incessant fights betweent them. This is my one week per year to rest, rejuvenate, eat popcorn for dinner and do some sort of project on the house. I think my project this year will be replacing these tiles:

I know, there's nothing wrong with them. They're beautiful the way they are. Well, that's what their mom tells them. But I'm not too crazy about the fact that some of them broke off and ran away. Then there's the paint they got all over themselves. I just turned my back for ONE SECOND and they had gotten it everywhere. I tell ya. Tiles these days are terrible. When I was a kid we didn't act like that. Well, I suppose I'd better go. I've got some serious popcorn popping to do.

Beautiful Dreamer

2008-06-13T13:13:00.000-07:00

Twas the night before cub scout day camp
And all through the house
Not a creature was stirring
Not even the mom who had to volunteer the next day

The lunches were packed and the sunscreen set out
In hopes that the sun would actually show its face
The dog was asleep at the top of the stairs
How do I know this?
Well, she snores.

Then what to my sleepy ears did I hear?
It was "Beautiful Dreamer", some old fashioned song that my mom chose for my doorbell chimes
Now, I'm not usually scared when my hubby's away
But this was different, I sure can say
It was one in the morning and I don't know how to shoot a gun
So I grabbed the next best weapon...my phone.
I tiptoed to Jantzen's room to check
If I could see anything, but no. AW Heck!
I stood and watched and waited and waited
Disturbances in the night I decided I hated
So what did I do, you must want to know
Back to bed I quickly did go.

School's Out! Yeah! (I think)

2008-06-06T11:01:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was the last day of school. Woohoo for the kids! Already I have the brain melt that happens during the summer. You know, where you forget what day it is and you can't seem to remember to take the kids to where they need to go? Keaton got out of school at 12:30 yesterday. At 3 he was supposed to have a guitar rehearsal for his upcoming performance. We totally forgot about it, and went to the movies instead. Two and a half hours!! That's all it took me to become a total summer flake. But I must be totally honest. This condition began last week. Because we forgot his guitar lesson last Friday, too. Yeah, his guitar teacher is LOVING me right now. Now if you'll excuse me while I go buy him something.

What's wrong with this picture?

2008-05-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

OK, so I'm driving down the road today in the Yukon, running a bunch of errands, when I spot a Shell station selling gas for $3.94. I thought, "That has to be a mistake! They can't sell gas for $3.94!" I flipped that car around so fast and filled 'er up. It cost me $103 and she wasn't even empty. Huh?

Random ramblings

2008-05-23T08:58:00.000-07:00

OK, so it's been awhile. I've been busy. Let's start by going back to last week. On Sunday (Mother's Day) Chris had to leave for Portland for a haz mat class. On Wednesday morning, Keaton left for his field trip to the coast. After school that day, Carson, Jantzen and I packed up and headed down to Portland to enjoy the free hotel. It worked out perfectly, because there happened to be a crazy heat wave while we were there, and the pool just happened to be outside. We met up with Dana and Jennifer to experience IKEA for the very first time. That was fun, but one hour of child care is NOT ENOUGH TIME to go through that store. The kids found that they could fit inside the lockers and I was tempted to lock them in so I could finish my shopping. But no. When it came right down to it, I couldn't bring myself to do it.

Cousin Cole came to the hotel to swim with us after IKEA. I'm not sure why the kids chose the hot tub over the pool when it was 95 degrees outside, but whatever.

While in Portland we also BOUGHT A CAR!

On Friday afternoon, we met Keaton's bus in Troutdale, put him in the car and headed to Springfield to see our new nephew/cousin, Jace.

On Sunday was his blessing, and like the angel that he is, he slept through the whole thing. On Monday we packed up and came home. Gas prices are so crazy high that I don't know when we'll ever get to leave the house again. We spent so much money on gas, I can't even bring myself to total it up.

In other news...

We had a spider day on Wednesday. I think it began when Chris picked his shorts up off the floor and put them on, just like he does every morning. It didn't take too long for him to feel a little tickle "down there". Needless to say, all clothes were off and the spider was dead in about two seconds flat! (I'm sure he loves that I'm sharing this.)

Then, when Carson was leaving for school he discovered something in the garage. You see, back in the fall I found this most amazing and huge spider that I had ever seen. So I did what any good mother would do. I captured it in the kids' bug catcher thingy. This spider was so fat, that it looked like its abdomen would burst. Carson took it to school for show and tell. Other teachers were asking to show it in their classrooms. It was quite a big deal at the school. And even for a while after, teachers would ask how she was doing. Not too long later, she made a nest inside the bug catcher then died. We set the cage on a shelf in the garage and promptly forgot about it. Until Wednesday. We had a scene that brought back memories of the movie "Arachnophobia". There were webs all around the cage and the shelves that it was sitting on. And suspended in those webs were hundreds of tiny little spiders. EEWWWWW!!!!! We had a spider holocaust with the bug spray.

On Thursday I had a body composition test. While I won't share the results, I am relieved to know that I am within normal range for my age. I'd still like to lose some weight, but maybe I'm not as fat as I think. I'll have another test done right before I run the half-marathon in October to see what all the running is doing for me.

Well, that about covers it for the last couple of weeks. I'll be back in a month or so. haha

The things she says

2008-04-29T16:18:00.001-07:00

"Jesus died on the crosswalk for us because He loves us."
.................................................
Jantzen and I went to the hair salon where I have my hair done and Krista also does massage. Jantzen was wandering around and discovered Krista's massage room with her massage table in it. Then she says to Krista, "Is that where you sleep?" Krista tells her, "No, that's where I give massages." Then Jantzen says, "Oh, cuz when I saw that bed I was like, is that where she sleeps? I was like that."
...............................................
My mommy had my brothers and me. Babies come out of the mama's bum.
...............................................
"Mommy, will you watch Princess Diarrheas with me?"

Magic Treehouse

2008-04-29T15:53:00.000-07:00

(Sorry about the sideways picture. I'm new to this blogging thing.)

Have you ever read those children's books called Magic Treehouse? The brother and sister climb into their treehouse and are magically transported to places all over the world. I think we have one in our back yard. Carson realized this weekend that he could climb our maple tree, and he thinks it is the best thing ever. Keaton helps lift Jantzen up into the tree, and it becomes this magical place where Carson and Jantzen actually get along! On Sunday after church, they packed themselves a lunch of PBJ's and whoknowswhatelse. They put it into a bucket then pulled it up into the tree with a rope. Then they sat there for about an hour feasting together. It was so sweet. If they had been sitting at the table together eating they would most definitely be fighting, but not in the tree house! Hooray for trees! I'm an official "tree hugger" now.

What was I thinking?

2008-04-22T10:29:00.000-07:00

(Panting)Yep, that knot in my stomach was a sign. (Breathe, breathe) That was the hardest run I've ever ran! When I got there, they very casually mentioned that we'd be running up the biggest hill in Hermiston during this, the first run I've done in months. I so wanted to start walking. If I had been alone, I would have hitchhiked home. But I guess that good ole' pride kept me going. All I have to say is that the chocolate at the end of that race better be good! I'm going back to bed now.

Running...hmmm

2008-04-22T08:20:00.000-07:00

I realize that it's only been 11 days since I posted about not ever running again. But there's this new yoga and fitness studio in town that I went to check out yesterday. They didn't have any yoga classes that would fit into my schedule right now, but they do have this running group that's training for a half marathon in October. She made it sound like so much fun! It's called the Girlfriends Half Marathon, and it's only for women. If you think you're crazy enough to do it too, here's the linkwww.nwpersonaltraining.com/subs/events/event_details.php?event_id=18 There's chocolate and massages at the end. What more could a woman want?? I'm thinking that if I'm running with friends it will be easier. So wish me luck. I'm leaving right now for my first run, and I have a bit of a knot in my stomach. Do you think that's a sign?

Spring Break

2008-04-20T16:53:00.000-07:00

I know it's kind of delayed, but I still need to post about our trip to Utah for Spring Break. We stayed with Grandpa Tom and Grandma Fay in Heber City. It was so much fun, and a much needed break from work for Chris. We arrived there on Friday evening and immediately enjoyed some of Tom and Fay's home cookin' and barbecuin'. That's always good. On Saturday we went to Costco in Provo to get some discount lift tickets and even had a Marie Osmond sighting! Then we went back and shoveled snow enough for the kids to ski down the little hill at the park next door.

Sunday was Easter. We went to church in the morning, then came home and cooked and cooked and cooked for the 20 or so guests that were coming for dinner. After dinner everyone under the age of 40 piled into the van to drive up the hill behind Grandma and Grandpa's house. This is prime territory for longboarding.** We took a couple of trips down with no problems or injuries. Then one of Uncle Robbie's friends from Wyoming went. It didn't take too long for him to get going way too fast and wipe out. His shirt was torn up and so were a few patches of skin. It was pretty ugly. Chris had to whip out his paramedic skills. We would have taken him to the ER for stitches, but as Chris put it, "There's no skin left to stitch." Gross.
**I realize that this was not an acceptable Sabbath Day activity, but being closer to 40 than most of the other participants, I didn't want to be the party pooper. Consider the lesson learned!**

This is our victim before. (In the Midtown shirt) He does have a bit of a scared look on his face, don't you think? Maybe deep down he knew what was coming.

This is our victim after. He was pretty much hating life. He almost ended up "driving the porcelain bus."

Monday we went skiing at Deer Valley. It was way too crowded, but the weather was gorgeous. We all came home with at least a portion of our faces sunburned. I think we were the only ones on the mountain who brought a sack lunch. We got a few weird looks, but oh well! We saved ourselves tons of money by brown-bagging it.

The rest of the week consisted of skiing at The Canyons and hanging out with the fam. The men and boys had a day of snowmobiling which they loved.

One day Chris and Spencer went skiing with no women or children so that they could do whatever boys do on a mountain. I think they almost died.

Fay and I took the kids to Utah Olympic Park where they just happened to be having the U.S. Championships going on for the aerials. That was way cool. We also checked out the ski museums there and the kids got to hold the olympic torch.

On Saturday, our last day, we went to Temple Square. We watched the Joseph Smith movie, which I was afraid the kids would be bored with, but they loved it. It was way good. We didn't have time to walk around the grounds which was a total bummer, but it was fun anyways.

We then went to BYU where Chris' cousin from Canada, Jasmine, had a harp concert. We don't get much culture in this hick town where we live, so I was really excited to experience this. I wasn't disappointed. These girls (and one boy) were so amazing! They even made a hokey song like "Yankee Doodle" sound sublime. There were a few soloists who were phenomenal, Elizabeth Smart being one of them. (Remember her? Kidnapped, missing for a long time, then found in Utah) The boys were bored after a bit, but held it together. Jantzen was mesmerized, and informed us that she wants a harp for her birthday. ($30,000 anyone?) Jasmine was awesome to let Jantzen try to play her harp after the concert was over. She was in heaven.

Sunday morning we woke up to about 6 inches of new snow, which we had hoped for all week but never got. But alas, we had to leave for home. So we packed it all up in the snow and took off.
Buggers!

It was a week of sun, snow, fun and way too much good food. (Four pounds worth!) But all good things must come to an end.

Frank discussions

2008-04-15T15:09:00.000-07:00

*WARNING---We try to be very open with our children about human anatomy, which sometimes ends up with very funny results. If you are offended by this kind of talk, please stop reading here. Because I just HAVE to record this story so that I can remember it. It would be a shame to not be able to relate this to future boyfriends.

The other day, my mom, Jantzen and I were sitting in the living room reading a book that mom had brought to share with the kids. This book was given to her as a gift a couple of years ago, and she had never actually read it. But it was about animals, and so she thought it would be fun for the kids. Apparently, it was given as a joke because it only took a few pages for mom to realize it was all about animal sexuality. And the word "penis" slipped out. Jantzen repeated the word a couple of times, and then the conversation went like this:
Me: Jantzen, do you know what a penis is?
Jantzen: Yeah, it's our balls.
Me: Well, not exactly, but it's a boy's private part. Girls don't have a penis.
Jantzen: Then what do I have?
Me: (regretting I ever started this conversation) You have a vagina. (My most unfavorite word EVER!)
Jantzen: A vagina? I love that word! Vagina vagina vagina vagina vagina vagina vagina! (Then to the tune of some unknown song) Vagina vagina vagina vagina vagina! (Then her tongue gets twisted and it starts to sound different) Bagima bagima bagima bagima bagima bagima
Mom (trying anything to make her stop): Ooh, that sounds like pajama! Pajama pajama pajama
Jantzen: No it doesn't! Bagima bagima bagima bagima!
Me: Aunt Jemima! Aunt Jemima! Aunt Jemima!
Jantzen: Bagima bagima bagima.

Wow, that girl just can't be deterred.

Blown Away

2008-04-10T21:37:00.000-07:00

Today I went to Tri-Cities to go to Costco while Chris stayed home with Jantzen. Man, I love that place! Why does everything look so irresistible there? Like rhododendron bushes. At Wal-mart I would have walked right by them and not even noticed. But at Costco, well I bought as many as I thought I could fit in my car. Good thing I had the small car. Tonight the boys had a track meet. They were very excited because Grandma Shanna arrived here today in time to come with us. Unfortunately, like so many spring days here, the wind blew the whole time we were there. We were so cold! Finally, when we were waiting for them to start the 100 meter race that Keaton was going to run in, he said, "Let's just go home. It's too cold." None of us argued. So we came home and ate ice cream. Go figure.
This weekend we will be having company for Keaton's ordination to the priesthood. Tomorrow, Chris' parents and his sister will be here. Then on Saturday his other sister and her four kids will be here. We are looking forward to spending time with everyone, especially because the weather is supposed to be sunny and 80! I am so ready for nice weather. We're planning on hanging out at the park and doing lots of barbecuing. Yum!

Day 1

2008-04-09T17:11:00.000-07:00

Well, here I am. It's 2008 and I've finally joined the ranks of bloggers all over the world. I've been thinking about doing this for awhile, but never really got around to it. You see, I feel like my life is just one big blur and I don't remember details very well at all. I can't tell you how many times a friend has told me something one of my kids has said or done, and I have no memory of it whatsoever! So this is my attempt at some sort of journal. A souped up scrapbook, if you will. I realized a couple of years ago that I just don't like scrapbooking. It stresses me out, trying to keep up with everything and I just don't have time for it. I have also come to the same realization about running, which is another topic for another day. But anywho, hopefully I will get some photos posted, maybe some videos too. And I'll tell you all about our crazy family and the wild adventures we go on.