Award Time

I was nominated for this award awhile ago, and have been mulling over my responses, being no closer than when nominated, here we go:

Kimberly so graciously nominated me along with 6 other people for this award. Kimberly and I are linked forever through marriage, lucky me! I have always loved her sense of adventure, and it is still three kids later. I admire her approach to life with unique circumstances and ability to always look forward. I cannot get enough of her kids and cannot wait to be plant my lips all over them as soon as I can. Something special, to me, is the way she allows others to get a glimpse of her world through photographs. I love the moments and personalities she catches, she does an amazing job! She is truly inspiring.

So this award comes with strings attached: I need to tell 7 interesting things about myself (why this has taken me so long) and then nominate 7 others for this award. Here it goes:

1. Though you might not know it by the sheer number of kids and the fact that this is my 5th pregnancy in almost exactly 7 years I really dislike (since Grant always tells me hate is such a strong word) being pregnant. I probably should have 5 more kids since I am an easy patient, but I have hit my max!

2. I was so shy in high school it was painful! My older sister had a boyfriend that knew someone who liked me, but I was too embarrassed to find out who it was (I probably also had a hard time thinking anyone could like me.) I decided to try and break out of my shell and ran for an easy position in student senate, and lost...yeah, I was not meant to be "popular."

3. I was months away from turning 18 and going off to college when I got my first kiss. My best guy friend Craig Young scared me to death about kissing, so I was not about to go there. My first kiss was someone I barely knew, and he took me by surprise (thank goodness or I may never have done it.) I have never looked back :-)

4. I love to dance. I love loud music, a strong beat and working up a sweat. I miss dance clubs, and create our own little one in the car sometimes. I always wished I had been able to do ballet or tap. Though I have been told I have the body for that type of dance, I do not have the grace. So now Lady Gaga feeds my dying addiction.

5. I do not like my handwriting. I tried for years to make it "cute" but it never worked, so I fell back to my neat typewriter style that I have today. I always look at other's handwriting (i.e. Christi and Annie) and wish I had something cool like them.

6. I love food. I am sure being married to Grant has aided in this obsession, but I think I always have. I especially love a good steak. Growing up we were allowed to pick what we got for dinner on out b-day, and I recall often asking for steak. Mmmmm, my mouth is watering right now just typing about it.

7. There are so many things I want to do better (as I am sure everyone feels similar.) A few on my list are: photography, sewing, typing (I stink at it!) speaking (yes I am vain I want to sound smarter), be a better shot, be more athletic just to list a few. Maybe someday I will have time to work on some of these things.

Now on to my nominees:

Chanel is the most amazing older sister and girl could ask to have. She is also one of the most amazing mothers I know. I learn so much from her and rely on her advice and example soooo much. She has a spunk, energy and drive that amazes me. I love her ability to be honest and open, loving and protective. Chanel is truly a best friend.

Chelsey is another incredible sister I have been blessed to have. We may have fought like grandy grandmas growing up, but we are as close as can be now. She has a capacity to love and be patient that most people would envy. She is no question the fun aunt and has my back no matter what. She definitely has the creative eye and expresses it so well.

Mikael another seester whom I admire and love. She has the best sense of humor, she always keeps me rolling. She is so smart, so beautiful, so giving and oh so fashionable. We have only lived in the same house for about 8 years of our lives, but that has not taken away from how close we are. I love being with her and hearing about all her adventures.

Christi is the only true blond in our family, and I am referring to hair color. I am so lucky she married my brother. She never ceases to amaze me with her music and athletic talents. Her strength and composure in times of trial are amazing. She makes me laugh, and I love when she laughs at herself (I wish I was more like that.) I am so lucky to live right behind her and be able to be so close!

Stephanie has a laughter that is infectious. I love to watch her make my brother Andrew laugh, and who am I kidding, I love to laugh with her. She is a person that I just want to be around. She is a strong person and I admire her ability to be a military wife. She is also very musically talented and very creative. She has a love and conviction of the gospel that I admire. She gives it her all and is an incredible example to me.

Annie (who has a private blog) is another sister-in-law with which I am blessed. She is also very talented musically and artistically (thank all you sil's for making us Webb girls look so bad). Her most amazing creation to date is their son Eli (any hints on how to get that hair, I only have 1 1/2 months left) Annie is always so kind and thoughtful. I love that she relishes the moments even when they are gone because those moments did not always come easy.

Janae is a dear friend that sees way to much of me. We were meant to be friends before we even knew each other. She is an amazing mother who never ceases to amaze me with all that she does for her family, both immediate and extended. I love her confidence and willingness to try anything. I should never call her, because it is never a short conversation. Thank goodness for good friends!

So I could not just narrow it down to 7, and am going to cheat and add two more:

Britney and I were kind of thrown together. We were in YM's together, visiting teacher partners and became running buddies. Thank goodness we get along so well. I have to admit it was weird at first being friends with someone that has the same name but in our family she is known as Britney Nygren, and our family loves her! We have so much in common with perspective on life that she just gets me. She is extremely thoughtful and terribly talented creatively.

Kristy is newest addition to my list of amazing friends. I love to sit and talk with her, hear her story and see the strength and courage she has. She is an amazing wife and has such a talent to make things beautiful. Did I mention I cannot get enough of her goodies! Those sugar cookies are dangerous! I love her honesty and fun loving personality. I am lucky to have her as a friend.

Well, there you have. Can you tell I have a lot of cool people in my life. Maybe that is the most interesting thing about me! Now it is your turn. Here is what you do:

-Thank the person who nominated you for this award.
-Copy the award & place it on your blog.
-Link to the person who nominated you for this award.
-Tell us 7 interesting things about yourself.
-Nominate 7 bloggers.
-Post links to the 7 blogs you nominate.

Full Moon

This afternoon was warm, really warm compared to how it has been. I told the kids to play in the front yard for a bit (they love to throw rocks.) I walked out to check on them and saw my neighbor out and started to talk to him. I went over to the wall separating our houses. At one point I look back to find Asher on the other corner of the house with his pants down to his ankles...mooning anyone passerby on the street. I asked him what he was doing and he said, "I went to the bathroom," with a tone in his voice and look on his face of DUH. I told him to pull up his pants right then. Seriously, was he raised in a barn? I have no clue where he even came up the the idea that it was okay to do that? Thank goodness it was a neighbor that just laughed and did not make me feel embarrassed for the hooligan I am raising! Oh Asher, you keep me on my toes.

The good, the bad, and the ugly

The Good:
We took Mique's Binky way on Monday and she has done fabulous. I always dread it, even though we have done it three times before. We learned the hard way that the sooner it is taken away the better, so about 18 months is the mark. I waited til spring break so Mique did not keep James up with school the next day. The first night it took her about an hour to go to sleep (not crying the whole time thank goodness.) Also thank goodness for Grant, I would have caved if he was not there to help. I think that sad cry out of kids evokes a different emotion in mothers than fathers. With his help she fell asleep and slept through the night. The second night only took about 20 minutes. The third night about 5, and down to last night which she did not even cry at all. I am proud of Mique and glad it is gone.

The Bad:
It has been a bummer spring break because every single kid is sick. It is mostly a cold with a relentless cough. I even got a mild version of the cold. So, we have been mostly house bound and did not really get to do anything super fun. We will make up for it this summer!

The Ugly:
Asher ended up with a nasty ear infection and on antibiotics. He is doing much better now, we are just waiting to see if Mique is in the the same predicament. It is hard because she can only say ouie, but we are not sure what it means. She is sick and crabby, so it makes for long days. I am ready for everyone to be healthy!

A little comeptition

Yesterday we took the kids to the park. At one point Caleb wanted to try the monkey bars, but was freaking out a little. Grant helped him across (doing most of the work.) After that he did not want to do them again. Later Jamison jumped up to give it a whirl. I spotted her, but she did all the work by herself. I was so proud of her. I turned around to Grant, who was playing catch with Caleb) and told him about Jamison praising her. I saw a glint in Caleb's eye and told Grant, "I could see the wheels turning in that kids head." He threw the ball back to Grant and said, " I want to try." Grant and I laughed at him as he ran to the bars and moved across the whole thing by himself without even having a spot. That kid, he is so easily motivated, and the great thing is Jamison does not see it as a threat and could care less. I love this about each kid and their placement in the family. P.S. I think Caleb gets that bone from his father!

Proud Wife

Grant had a triathlon this weekend in American Fork Utah. I love to watch him compete and am always proud of him. But, this weekend brought out an even stronger sense of pride. About 3-4 weeks ago Grant's knee started giving him problems. His I.T. band was causing him excruciating pain. It inhibited his ability to walk normal without extreme pain. He babied it and by last Saturday was able to run two miles without too much trouble. He figured he could easily gut out another mile. Then Monday night he started feeling sick. By Tues he was definitely getting something. Wednesday he went to Urgent care, found out he had Strep and started on antibiotics. He stayed home from work for the first time ever. he was not able to train at all, he was just trying to get a little strength back. Friday we headed to Utah with swollen glands, aches and an unsure knee....but he was determined to race. The swim and bike went as smooth as they could considering his health and only being on antibiotics for 3 days...but about 100 yards into the run his knee "exploded" as he says. He had to walk a lot of the 5K, but pushed through it and did it. He ran in the last little bit and was in more pain than I think I have ever seen him. He was frustrated...I felt so bad for him but was so proud of him and grateful for the things he exhibited that day. He put his mind to something and did it even though circumstances were far from perfect. He never gave up...he pushed through to the end. Even though it was painful, disappointing and frustrating, he did it! I think it is such an awesome example for our kids, that even if you are not winning, or things do not turn out like you had hoped, you NEVER give up! Needless to say, I will never forget this race and the reminder of how amazing my husband is!

Gibberish

When Chelsey and I were littler (height and weight) we wanted so bad to speak another language. So, we decided to make up our own language. We started with a piece of paper and wrote down hundreds of made up words: letters in different combinations. Then we went back and attached a real word to it. I cannot remember how many pages there were by the end. We spent countless hours studying our language. We could talk to each other, and only the two of us knew what we were talking about. (Such good memories!) Well, one of the kids did something the other week that reminded me of this. Asher has gotten into this stage where he likes to make up words, just putting all kinds of sounds together. One day he settled on his choice word for the day. That was what he decided he was going to call people. I heard it once or twice vaguely, but it did not take long for me to realize his word (which he thought was made up) was actually a real word. I had to sit him down and tell him that it was not nice and not to call other people that. After a few days and I went to tell Grant about it and could not remember what the word was. Then the other day I remembered. Asher's made up word that he was calling everyone was......bigot. Yep, my little 3 year old boy was calling everyone in sight a bigot. I am laughing now as I am writing it. Oh gibberish!

On our way to the biggest loser

Grant hates reality shows, always has. He shakes his head at my desire to watch project runway and America's next top model (I have to admit sometimes I shake my head at myself...but I do love to watch people create, whether clothes or photos). He refuses to watch American Idol...mostly cause he cannot handle the bad singing, he get embarrassed for the people that so clearly should be embarrassed for themselves and are not. I do get him to watch Amazing race as we see all the cool places around the world and decide if it were us, who would do which challenge. This year we are hooked, on the biggest loser that is. The only reason it came about is because Koli was someone he knew from high school and church. We are rooting him on. (Though, have to to admit we have to turn our heads away several times during an episode.) We have had a funny little tradition come of watching this on Tuesday nights. It is our night that we must, no questions asked, eat something unhealthy (i.e. ice cream, Swedish fish, hot tamales) while we sit on our tushes watching people work their tails off and eat healthy. Yep that is us, Grant and Brittani working our way towards this biggest loser...all the while watching it.

Determined

Jamison is one determined little girl. When she walked in the door after school she as in tears. She did not feel good. I put her on the couch and let her watch TV, which she is never allowed to do until homework is done, but it was very obvious she was hurting. She laid around all afternoon weepy and asking for her Dad. When it was almost time for dinner We decided to pull out her homework. At one point she was getting frustrated and still so obviously did not feel well. I told her to put her homework aside and we would do it later, or IF she did go to school the next day I would write a note to her teacher telling her James did not feel well and we will send her homework the next day. I gave Jamison the easiest out...but she was not having it. She would not stop until it was done, and she completed it. My determined little girl, that will get you very far in life...I am very proud of you!