boot camp month 2

I started a boot camp class last month, when my friends Jessie and Julie talked me into it. I love the workout(as hard as it is), but I hate the diet. Tonight I had mahi with spinach salad. Yummm, not. I really don't get excited to eat anymore. Last week I told the whole class I had lost 15 pounds. I was so excited to be losing the weight so fast. In disbelief, I weighed myself again when I got out of the shower. Apparently your scale on the bath mat makes you lighter than you really are. I was so embarrassed. Half the class hated me and the other half wanted to know what I was doing. I just decided it would probably motivate everyone more to not tell them the truth. But seeing how my friends will probably be reading the blog soon, my little secret will be out. So far, I've lost like 5 pounds, which is better than nothing, I promise to keep everyone posted on my new life. My goal is to lose 20 pounds by Levi's birthday.

The kids are getting so smart. They teach me new things everyday. Layla wanted to watch only the weather tonight when we got home from gymnastics. She's been learning about the weather at school. Avery just started mini kittens today. I brought a new leotard into the gym to have her try on and she dropped her pants in front of the entire class. It was so cute to see her so excited to be in her own class. She's so grown up. Harley is probably the funniest kid I have ever met. I'm always nervous when we get around our friends and family. You never know what that kid might say. He's turning 4 this month and every sunday at church he wants the primary to sing to him. Either he's a visitor or it's his birthday. James and I lay in bed every night talking about how much fun the kids are and how lucky we are to have them. I wonder sometimes what Levi's personality would be like. I have a feeling he's the polar opposite of Harley which would mean he would get less timeouts and not as much soap in his mouth.

New Year's Resolution

1. Get organized (list includes, meal planning, shelves cleaned off, etc.)
2. Lose weight (start new diet and ruin it by 5:00)
3. Read my scriptures, say my prayers (every night)
4. Make more entries on the blog (I thought that Sunday would be a good day to wrap up the week, me trying to be organized.)
I just got home from work tonight. Usually, it's around 10 on Tuesdays, that I end up walking in the door, which I actually prefer as compared to chopping up my work days into little segments like when I was working after I had Layla. James informed me that Avery has gotten serious about potty training herself. He said he handed her a pull-up and told her to change into her jammies and she is doing it. It's pretty amazing that the Avery is two and is potty trained and dressing herself. Harley still can't get dressed on his own. James claims it is because he has a huge head and it's too hard to pull his shirts on and off.
Layla called me today at work to ask if she could have Presley over to do homework with her after school. I thought it was hillarious that 1. she could actually call me 2. that she was using the homework as an excuse to have friends over. She thinks she's a teenager or something and she's 5.
Harley's ride to school had to call and inform me of what Harley had said to him so that he would not forget. Apparently Harley was having a conversation with Chris (Shea's dad) on the way to preschool and after about the 4th or 5th question, Harley mumbled something from the back seat that goes something like this,"This is why I like it when Jessie takes me to school. She doesn't ask me any questions". Who says that?
Everyday I come home from work, if the kids are awake, I get a huge freakout homecoming. I love it. Avery always says"Mommy, miss you" and gives me a huge kiss, mouth open of course. She is our only child that loves to cuddle, kinda like one of those lap dogs that quietly follows you around. She wants you to hold her all the time and I don't really mind cause she weighs about 18 pounds. Lately I can't get enough of her. She's at such a fun age where everything she does is cute. Who can resist those dimples?
This past weekend, James took the ym to brianhead and I thought it would be a good weekend for me to get out of town with the kids. We surprised nanna and flew her to California to spend time with her grandkids and get some sun. It was a really fun weekend of swimming, Disneyland and the beach. The weather was perfect and I never had to put the kids in time out. I just decided to let them plan where and when that weekend and it worked out great. I thought it was pretty funny that when I asked Harley if he wanted to go to Disneyland, he responded,"Do they have a swimming pool?" I guess they missed being in the pool all the time. I definitly have some Vegas kids.

Happy Halloween!

I got James talked into another trip to Disneyland, again. We got the kids up at 5 to get to the park by 9 and drove home all in one day. Kevin, Jill and Annie came along for driving support. It was fun to spend the day with them. The kids dressed up in their costumes that I finally got finished. Layla was too cool, the first half of the day, to put on her costume. But after the 20th compliment Harley and Avery received, she had to make her costume change to get some of her own attention. It took us a whole month to talk Harley into the idea of Tin Man. He really wanted to be Buzz Lightyear, but I thought that would have been way too adventurous of a project for me. Maybe next year, we'll do that one. Layla was the first one to bring up the costume idea. She wanted to be a cute witch and when her old Dorothy costume didn't fit Avery, I decided to go with Glinda, and throw Harley into the Tin Man idea.

The day after Disneyland was Halloween and we were invited to Patty's party. It was so fun to see Austin dressed up as Scarecrow and another one dressed as Dorothy. Our trick or treating party was complete.

I now appreciate the trips my mom and dad would take with us kids in 24 hrs. I'm pretty sure it was out of necessity, as was ours. I was so tired, I spent the whole next day recovering. I'm not exactly sure if it was worth it. The kids had a good time, though. It's just my thing to try and cram a thousand activities into one weekend.

Some alone time...

So, James is getting ready for another bar exam and I'm pretending to be single for a few weeks.  We went to dinner the other night for his birthday at the Country Club in the Wynn.  I had been waiting a couple of months to tell him about the cruise and I could hardly believe I had kept it a secret the whole time.  As we arrived, I had the concierge place the laniard my mom had made, into the menu.  As soon as we got our menus, James looked up at the waiter and said, "What's this?".  The waiter then replied, "I don't know!", needless to say, it was a huge letdown.  I love surprises and James isn't very good with them.  I think that by the time we get off the ship, he'll be really excited about it.  Anyway, he and the kids are flying up to Utah tomorrow afternoon and I have about a thousand things on my list for when the kids are gone.  James is worried I'm going to be hugely disappointed.  Here's my list...

1.  pack up all the kids clothes that are too small now.  It's driving me crazy that their closets are full of nothing to wear.

2.  paint almost the entire downstairs ...  I picked out a new couch and got all excited for a new color.

3.  install child locks on every single cabinet I have in the house.  I'm worried I might lose it on one kid in particular if he gets into my clorox spray again.

4.  buy new pillows and recover the rocking chair.  See number 3 for reference

5.  Donate shoes and clothes I don't need anymore.  Maybe migrate over to James closet, too.

6.  Get rid of Harley's old room and move my sewing back in.  Since Levi's not gonna need a room anymore, I need to make better use of the space.  I know it sounds kinda insensitive, but I don't know how else to say it.

7.  Clean carpets.  I love the smell of the house after the carpets are all done.

8.  Go to all of the classes at the gym I like.

9.  Get James' desk organized.

10.  I scheduled a haircut, manicure, pedicure, tooth cleaning, doctor's appointment, visiting teaching appointment, invited all of my friends and family over for hair appointments, etc.  

Happy 30th Aunt Lori

Tuesday night was Layla's 3rd dance recital.  I'm not sure which part of the day she enjoyed more; hair and make-up or dancing.  She couldn't wait to get ready with Presley.  It was so fun to have the dressing room all to ourselves.  Presley and Layla sat on the counter while Bracken and I made the final touches.  

Layla danced to Mickey Motion and Happy Feet.  Harley and Avery danced in the aisle to just about every other dance in the show.  

Then, of course, Preston had to steal the show with the boys number, followed by a proposal to Melanie.  I guess she's on his buddy list now.  

Lettin' it Pour

James is in bed asleep and every time I walk in, he asks as if he's wide awake "Do you need help in there?". I need help.  Oh, yes,  do I NEED help.  The last time I entered a new blog,  was a little after I was just finding out that I was carrying another baby.  The baby that has changed my whole life completely.  The tears most definitely will never stop coming tonight and the only thing I can think of doing is write.  

A year ago, I was helping decorate for a lunch at my church with my friend Jodie.  My friend, Stephanie, had lost her baby.  Who would have known that one year later, I would be living that same nightmare.  The nightmare that seems like one long day.  I remember how horrible I felt for her and what a wreck I was.  I couldn't handle walking into the chapel and seeing a picture of the most beautiful little girl in her high chair, completely covered in her lunch.  I thought of how I would feel if I had lost my Avery, who was a few months younger.  My heart ached so badly for her parents who were dealing with this tragedy and loss of such a sweet little girl.  The funeral was one I would never forget.  Stephanie and John gave the most inspiring talks I had ever heard.  They made me want to be a better mom to my kids.  I was so jealous of their strength and their testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ.   

Their experience, I felt most definitely helped prepare me for what was about to happen in my life.

Potty Training

So, James decided this weekend to start potty training again (maybe the 3rd time)with Harley. I'm now almost 5 months pregnant and I desperately want him to want to be potty trained. He did really good on Saturday with only one accident outside helping Dad trench the yard for more grass. So, today I decided to let him wear the "big boy pants" to church. HUGE MISTAKE! I checked on him every 10 minutes, made him sit on the toilet, begging him to just go, and nothing. I'm thinking to myself, "Just let Harley make it through church without crapping his pants". His daily ritual usually happens during nursery. Long story short, the kids and I ended up home from church early today. So, I'm going to wait another few months and forget about today and keep changing his disgusting diapers. I guess there's worse things in life than 3 kids in diapers.