Great Sale!!

Is it so tacky to promote my business on my family blog? I promise the only reason I am posting this is because I just previewed the sale items and they are some of mine, my customers, and my kids favorites and they STEEPLY discounted for the holidays. I truly want my friends and family to get the best deal possible!!

Go to this website to preview the Usborne Black Friday Sale Items and see for yourself why I had to share!! http://www.ubah.com/ecommerce/BlackFriday.asp?sid=H2748

Anyway the sale starts at 11 pm on Thanksgiving and goes until 8 pm Monday night. I highly recommend the Dinosaur Excavation kid kit, Volcanoes kid kit, See Inside Your Body, Knights and Armor, Trucks Stencil Book, That's Not My Snowman... I guess I'll stop... I really do love them all. If you need help/recommendations you can call me or email me.

Happy Thanksgiving and Happy Christmas Shopping!!

Good Boy/Bad Boy

The other day Will was watching me make dinner (and it was something he approved of... spaghetti and rolls) and just as I was finishing up he started jumping up and down and said, "Good job Mommy! You a good boy, mama! You a good boy! Good job!"

Yesterday, Will ate almost an entire package of gum so I secretly hid the last pieces last night. Well, this morning when he saw the empty package he looked at me and shouted, "You ate my gum. You a bad boy mama! Bad boy!" Then, he we walked into the bathroom to take a bath muttering the whole time, "Mommy a bad boy! Mommy a bad boy!"

I KNOW it is inappropriate to label a child "good boy/bad boy" even when they do something terribly naughty... but I can't help but think I've messed up and done that a couple of times... He heard it somewhere... right? At any rate, it is true, that I am sometimes "good" and sometimes "bad"... and so is he!

So Many People to Thank!!

Hilary Clinton wrote a book called, "It take a Village to Raise a Child." Well, today it definitely took a family to take care of me and my children. For some CRAZY reason I scheduled three Usborne events in one day, but it's November... the craziness that only comes once a year... and there are a lot of people that want to buy books and get them for free right now. $$Yeah!$$ I am home now. I survived it and am pleased with the results. So I MUST thank the people who made it possible:

Kathy: For dropping off table cloths at my house at 6:30 am this morning (all of mine were with some of my books at a boutique in Spring City); and watching my kids all day after being in hours of Scout meetings.
Dana: My kids told me they played at your house for awhile.... I haven't sorted it all out yet. :)
Stacie: For helping me set up at another boutique. We didn't know what we were getting into, but ended up having to carry a HEAVY table and four boxes of books up two flights of stairs. Yikes!! Also for helping me decorate it, including using her fabric to cover overturned boxes (since all my book racks were also in Spring City), and taking it down. That booth turned out DARN CUTE!! Especially since we threw it together with Kathy and Stacie's stuff. I took a picture with my phone. I'll see if Jer can help me load it later.
Mom, Levi, and Kiersten: For watching my kids while Kathy was in her early morning Scout meeting and helping me carry that heavy table and the four boxes of books DOWN the stairs after the boutique was over.
Bobbi and Andrea: For providing racks, tables, and/or time at a booth.
And MOST of all JEREMY: For helping me restock in Spring City last night; for getting the kids ready and taken care of this morning; for feeding them dinner; then driving to Spring City to take down and pack up my booth (no small task... 6 boxes, three tables, three racks, etc.) after a long day on the farm; and for doing it all without a word of complaint because he knows that it is important to me and our family. Also, for not complaining that next week (when we should be celebrating our anniversary) I have two home shows and a two-day booth at the Utah Chocolate Show. I lucked out when I married him!!

I feel so blessed. Thank you all!!

Our Little Detailer

Yesterday, I was moving some seats in our van around and noticed that we had accumulated a lot of books, toys, candy/McDonalds wrappers, paper and crayons, etc. in there. So, I said to Katie, "Why don't you clean out the van?" The rest of the conversation follows...

K: No.

J: Yes.

K: I have an idea. Why don't we have a contest and whoever holds their breath the longest wins. If I hold my breath the longest I don't have to clean out the van. If you hold your breath the longest I do have to clean out the van.

J: Okay.

I won and to my great surprise after Katie asked for a rematch, and I turned her down, she went outside and started working on the van. About 30 minutes later I was even more surprised to hear vacuum sounds coming from the garage. Our next door neighbor is a car detailer (he does a GREAT job, by the way) and my kids have seen him in his driveway cleaning peoples' cars. I guess that is how she knew what to do... because when I investigated she had the junk cleaned out, the mats out and already vacuumed, and was folding the seats flat to vacuum the whole floor. I was so impressed I had to take a picture to document it the moment. Our van was AMAZINGLY clean when she was finished.

Just when I think I'm expecting too much of a 5 year old... she proves me wrong.

Things I've Done

This idea came for Curt and Colleen Hall's blog. The things in bold are things I've already done. The things in italics I will do within the next six months. Things in blue I will never do. :)

To participate just copy and paste in your own blog, and mark all of the things you have done. Happy discoveries!

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped... I am terrified of heights!!
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice ... going to Italy in April!!
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person... again, I'm going to Italy in April!!

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant... what a great idea!
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person... I'm so excited to go to Italy in April
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies... but I've bought plenty :)
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check...oops!
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem... one of the highlights of my life!
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life... I've had to perform the heimlich 3 times on my children.
90. Sat on a jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby... definitely THE highlight of my life.
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit... we are in a class action now... something with our insurance company.
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee

William Henrie Joseph Cox

Happy Birthday Willy!!

We celebrated Will's 2nd Birthday by going to the Halloween Carnival at the Elementary School. Later that afternoon, Stacie and both of his Grandma's presented him with presents perfect for a little William, he told me he needed to go pee and poop in the potty (AND HE DID!!), we watched the BYU game, and Katie and I got REALLY sick.

But this post is about WILLIAM...

Will is pure delight. He makes us laugh so much! He is also very sweet. Whenever anyone is upset he runs up to them and says, "I sorry!" and gives them a hug. In fact, when Matthew and I wer throwing up yesterday (sorry for the gross detail), Will would come up to us and pat our heads and say, "Sorry, Momma" or "Sorry, Matthew" and try to comfort us. Of course, when Matthew threw up on my bedroom floor he ran around the room giggling and squealing, "EWW!! Gross!"

The other morning Will woke up and started hollering, "Daddy come get me out! Daaadyyy! I want out..." So when Jeremy went and got him out of his crib he looked at him seriously and said, "Finally, Daddy! Finally!" Every morning (without fail) he asks Jer, "Goin to the farm dad? I go with you to the farm? I ride back hoe and feed cows?"

Ashton has been a big influence on Will and so he also loves books,vehicles, digging and riding his bike. He loves to push around cars, trucks, and especially diggers. He loves to be read to (especially books involving things with wheels and farms). We had to get some Usborne bath books because Will kept taking books into the bath tub with him. The other day he was reading a farm book and pointed to some animals and said, "Animalths... "(he has an adorable lisp). Then he looked at me very serously he says, "I scared of animalths." Now whenever we ask him what he is afraid of he says, "I scared of animalths." And he IS.

Will is a junk food junkie! This morning he spilled syrup all over the kitchen trying to drink it from the bottle and just a few minutes ago he said to me, "I need candy in my mouth, please." He is currently eating smarties.

I asked the kids their favorite thing about Willy. Ashton said, "He listens to me." (Read: "I can boss him around.") Matthew said, "He always likes to play with me." Will does LOVE to play with his siblings. His favorite time of day is when we go pick Katie up from school. But, Kathryn summed it up best when she said, "I don't know... is is so cute. I love everything about him!"

Happy 2nd Birthday William. WE LOVE YOU!!

Halloween

Halloween, one of Matthew's favorite days of the year, was a success this year. For the first time in several years, no one was sick, hurt or on oxygen.

Matthew said he was sick of being a superhero and decided to be a wizard this year. Of course, before Halloween was over he asked if he could be Iron Man next year.

Kathryn chose a "little devil" costume. There has definitely been a time or two this week when I thought that was a pretty accurate outfit. Of course, there have also been times when I thought an angel costume would be more appropriate. :-)

A month or so ago, Ashton declared that he was going to be a troll for Halloween and even went so far as to ask my mom to make him a costume. Then when we went costume shopping, he picked out a really cute vampire costume. On the way home from the store he said, "Mom, let's take this vampire costume back. I'm going to be a troll and Grandma's making me a troll costume." Over the next couple of weeks, we tried to talk him into being a vampire, but it didn't work and my mom ended making him this cute troll costume a day or two before Halloween. Thanks Grandma!

Will was a dinosaur. After I got him dressed in his costume I held him up to the mirror to see what he thought. He got wide eyes turned to me and said, "I scare me!!"

We enjoyed watching the kids march down Main Street in the Halloween parade and had a lot of fun at the Chili and breadstick cook-off/ trunk or treating at the church.

I think I have about two creative ideas per year and one of my alloted creative inspirations happened while the kids and I were getting ready to decorate the trunk for trunk or treating. Jeremy had a great idea of having Katie make ghosts out of tissues and we could hang those from the open hood of our van. But while we were taking stuff out of the trunk (still there after a booth last week) I saw some Navy blue plastic table clothes, remembered a black cat Katie had made in kindergarten and the inspiration flowed. I think the end result (below) was pretty darn cute (especially for me.)