Annual Year End Video

James and I have been in Utah for several days now. Brian flies in tonight and tomorrow morning our official Christmas 2011 adventure begins in Idaho.

I know unless you're family, and sometimes not even then, that videos posted on blogs don't get watched much, but for all those Candrian fans out there, my lovely and talented sister made our annual year end video review again and did a stellar job as usual.

The Richman clan didn't go on any extravagant European vacations like the rest of my family did, so our part in the video is less than exciting. . . maybe next year. Okay, probably not. Maybe in like five.

Annual Year End Video

James and I have been in Utah for several days now. Brian flies in tonight and tomorrow morning our official Christmas 2011 adventure begins in Idaho.

I know unless you're family, and sometimes not even then, that videos posted on blogs don't get watched much, but for all those Candrian fans out there, my lovely and talented sister made our annual year end video review again and did a stellar job as usual.

The Richman clan didn't go on any extravagant European vacations like the rest of my family did, so our part in the video is less than exciting. . . maybe next year. Okay, probably not. Maybe in like five.

Dance, Dance

 (Yep, I totally stole both these things from Amy's blog)

Over Thanksgiving, my entire family was together for the first time in nearly a year and a half. Of course, to celebrate the occasion, my good mother insisted we have family photos taken.

To get the two little guys to smile, we all did our best to entertain them, only little Jamers ended up entertaining us instead. Check out his dance moves. I sure do love this boy.

I broke the binky?

We did it.

I vowed to get James off his binky by the time he turned two and I did (of course Brian made me be the bad guy). I was so terrified of it for so long but I knew it had to be done so I finally bit the bullet. All I can say is, as with all transitions in this kid's life, it wasn't all rainbows and daisies, but it wasn't the nightmare I suspected it would be either.

Naps were rough for awhile but less than a month later and we are back on track for the most part. Hallelujah!

Oddly enough, the week "the binky broke" was "Put down the Pacifier" week at Sesame Street. Just thought I'd share that tidbit.

And for anyone who is curious, this is the method we used.

Happy Birthday So Much to You!

Our little rascal turns TWO-years-old tomorrow. Man, how time flies.

While we were in Utah my mom spoiled him with a birthday party complete with a truck cake and presents from his aunts (we were sorry Uncle Rob had to go back to Sweden so soon, but so glad his Aunt Lorena and cousins got to stay).

One of my favorite things James says these days is "Thank you so much to you!" We love this kid more than we could ever articulate. Most people say things like "I can't believe our baby is two." But, I can definitely believe it. I feel like James been part of our lives forever and can hardly comprehend what life was like without him.

Thank you, Jamers, for providing so much joy and happiness to our lives. You are one loved kid.

Kids these days . . .

This little pipsqueak has a hard time sitting still. That's a major understatement even. While I certainly know that I survived my childhood without such luxuries, I'm sure glad we've got an iPad to keep this little guy entertained.  Without it, I don't think we'd be able to go out to eat for at least 10 more years (Brian has issues getting a babysitter . . . tell me about it, I know). It worked like a charm tonight. He was up and down and crawling all over the place until we pulled this baby out. He didn't make a peep and barely moved a muscle the rest of the night. Lovely.

Fall Randomness

I know just posting pictures of your kids and "what we've been up to" posts are totally boring and no one really gives a hoot, but here I go anyway.

James' grandma sent him a backpack for his upcoming trip to Utah. James loves the thing and carries it around all over and likes to tote his blocks around in it. This isn't the best picture of it or him, but whatever . . .

He's really in to wearing his Dad's (okay, anyone else's) shoes and hats. Most mornings consist of him wandering to our shoe pile in the hallway (every time I clean that up it always comes back) and then to his dad's hats in the bedroom. By the end of the day we've got shoes and hats all over the house.

Earlier last month, we visited a pumpkin "patch" with some of our favorite Knoxville people. It wasn't much of a pumpkin patch, but James loved the animals, the friends, running outside, oh, and the goldfish I bribed him with to stay happy.

 

Today after Brian got home from work, I heard them laughing in James' room. I walked in to find them laying on the floor with their heads under the crib and James' toy tools in hand. Apparently they were pretending they were working on a car. Boys will be boys. It made me smile.

A minute later, Brian's 5 a.m. start day caught up with him and he was using James as a pillow to sleep. James didn't mind one bit and kept carrying on fixing the "car."

One of James favorite things to play with these days is baking products. His very favorite is flour. I usually have to hide it from him, because as you can see, he loves to make messes by dumping one cup of flour into a bowl and then back and forth again and again and again . . .

This morning, he found the flour, chocolate pudding mix and cinnamon sticks and had at it. When he first started his "baking" projects, my first thought was to freak out, but then I caved because you're only little once and he's just so happy playing with it (and it actually occupies him for more than 5 minutes, which is rare for this kid) that I don't mind cleaning up the mess.

James is pointing at the oven here because I had just put some pumpkins in to cook and they were making a weird whistling sound. It kinda scared me, too, James. Don't worry.

Speaking of pumpkins, I made these scrumptious pumpkin cookies today (with browned butter/caramel frosting, I might add) for a church/service project thing and I have to say, they were some of the tastiest pumpkin treats I've made in awhile.

Oh, and we really do put pants on our kid. He just prefers to be naked and usually kicks them off himself.

Happy Halloween

First of all, this was Brian's idea--an act of his crazy spontaneity. We didn't even dress up for our ward Trunk or Treat earlier this week. The reason? I just plain dislike Halloween. If I could do away with one holiday, this would be it. I don't like the spooky (or trying to be cutesy) decor; the eerie side of the holiday totally creeps me out. I don't even like the costumes. I guess I'm just boring like that.  I remember being relieved when I was told I was too old to dress up anymore (how old was that? 11? 12?). But, I do think it's really sad that kids can't wear costumes to school these days. That's just pushing all these new age school restrictions too far.

Anyway, James was our little dinosaur this year.  Gosh how I love this kid (even though he has been refusing naps since we took his binky away last week and that has made for some very cranky moments).

Well . . .

I guess we're going to have to get used to things of a more girly nature around here because come March James is going to have a little sister.

This just proves I have horrible intuition (or does that mean no intution at all?). I always thought I'd have all boys. Now what?

30

I'm a day late, but a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Brian yesterday. I'm glad I'm a few months older so I can assure him that 30 isn't so bad afterall (not that he believes me).

I don't know what we'd do with out this guy. We sure do love him and appreciate everything he does for us (including spending all day painting our fence a couple weeks ago). 

Parenting Is Scary/Hard Sometimes

 

 (Driving his Grandpa Richman's boat in Park City this summer.)

Despite being a mom now for almost two years, I am still struggling to figure out my own parenting style and wondering if one truly ever gets the hang of this parenting thing.

Growing up, did you ever imagine the type of parent you'd be? Most of the time, my glimpses into my future occupation came in fleeting moments when one of my parents did something I hated and I vowed "I will never do that when I'm a mom!"(Including subjecting to making my teenagers drive a mini-van to high school. The thought of ever owning a mini-van still makes me shudder. But then again, how lucky were we that we at least had something to drive? Thanks, Mom and Dad for that.)

But other than that, until I got older and realized my parents did a really good job with their kids and I wanted to have the same results, I never gave it much thought. I mean, we're not perfect, but we all turned out okay. And isn't getting your kids to turn out mostly normal half the battle?

As I got older and thought more about what kind of parent I did and didn't want to be, I always thought I'd be the strictest mom any kid ever crossed because all the parents I knew who let their kids run free with nary a responsibility, and who gave them everything they wanted turned out totally messed up not the kind of kids I wanted mine to be.

And, in some things I am quite strict. Naps and bedtime are rigorously enforced. I get upset if my kid is in bed 10 minutes late. And I start to panic just a little if nap time is delayed for any reason. In my book, sleep and proper bed/nap times are just as important to a child's well being as proper nutrition, among other things (which is ironic coming from me, as you'll see in a moment).

Manners. I always knew I didn't want to have rude ungrateful children. Growing up, stopping for an ice cream cone at McDonald's was the biggest treat in the world. I don't want my kids to ever feel like something like that isn't a big deal. The real lessons in that will probably come later, but for now I'm working on the small things. James learned to say "please" right after he started talking and "thank you" came a little later. It makes me smile to hear him telling us "Thank you SOOOO much!" after giving him something or doing something for him. Usually I have to remind him, but today all on his own he said "Excuse me!" when we walked past someone in a crowded aisle at Target. Brian says as soon as he realizes that he is being polite and those are the nice things to say, he'll rebel and stop. But I don't think so. I think (er, hope) he gets it.

So with a few things, I am strict. With others, not so much.

My kid ate chocolate pudding for breakfast one day last week. Yep. Chocolate pudding. We ran out of yogurt and that was the next closest thing on a morning when he was being particularly picky and I wasn't in the mood to fight him. I don't eat a lot of junk food but I'm far from the world's healthiest eater. I think people who eat organic food are weird and I'm so not the type of person who thinks a plain old apple or orange qualify as a real snack. Needless to say, it has been an adjustment for me remembering that I need to implement fresh produce into my young sons diet because he needs them and if he doesn't like them right now, that's fine. I'll keep trying and maybe someday he'll thank me. And then maybe one day he'll be good enough not to let his own kids have chocolate pudding for breakfast.

I once read that rebellious and disobedient kids are a product of parents who disagree with their parenting styles and who often show contradicting methods in plain view of their children. This thought has always terrified me. So when Brian lets James do something I just told him he couldn't do, I freak out a little (or vise versa). And when I tell James no to something or I say "If you do that one more time . . . " and then I do nothing about that one more time because I'm just being lazy or too tired to fight it, I later get mad at myself and try to do better the next time. Sometimes it's hard though.

I always said my kid would never be one of those toddlers with a binky. This subject makes me tired just thinking about it. I'll save that for another day . . . obviously I failed big time here. The kid would take his binky over nourishment any day (I tested this theory once. It's true).

So, I'm not perfect and probably never will be. James may have great verbal skills but on days in nursery when he won't sit at the table coloring or eating snacks with the other kids, or like yesterday (which seemed like the longest day in history) when all he would do was cling to me and whine and whine (I also never wanted whiny kids--how to make that stop!?!) and I wonder what I've done wrong, I just have to remind myself that kids have bad days sometimes. And until I figure out this parenting thing and what my genuine parenting style is, I'm going to have bad days, too.

Are there any things you once said you would/wouldn't do and have now found that you've changed? Any tips for those bad/crazy days? :)

James being James

 

Last night was kind of rainy, so Brian and I took James to the play area at the mall. He went down the slide over and over again and would tilt his head up and lean back every time he went down (to go faster, maybe?). He made friends with a darling little girl who he tries to catch going down the slide at the end here.

I still don't get how he can love social settings like this and yet hate nursery so much. Explain that to me, James. It also kills me how tall he's getting. I just want him to stay my little boy longer.

Friday, Friday

More random musings . . .

Still addicted to Facebook Scrabble and Pinterest, which is not a good thing if you are trying to spend less time on the computer.

I'm in the middle of re-reading the Little House series. So far, my favorite is still Little House in the Big Woods. It makes it seem like there is something magical about living in that time period. Although really I am so so so so so so (infinitely) thankful that I don't have to butcher my own meat, sow my own wheat, make my own clothes, only get one piece of candy twice a year, sit still without saying a word on Sundays, and live in that sexist of a culture altogether (a woman's work just never ended, I swear).

In Knoxville, there is a train track around every corner. You can't escape them. Needless to say, our house is less than half a mile from one (if that). I definitely don't notice the train whistles as much as I used to, but good grief, the one that goes by at 11:15 every night sounds like a haunted train. It makes me shudder every time I hear it thanks to this Stephen King movie that I've been traumatized by since Andrea and I accidentally watched it when we were 12.

Elder Eyring's conference talk gave me the rejuvination to get more on the ball with my reading of the Book of Mormon. Lately, I haven't been as good as I used to be and I have no excuse. Last night I started completely over, including reading the testimonies of the witnesses, etc.

I'm going home to Utah for Thanksgiving (just bought my ticket today). It will be the first time I've been home for Thanksgiving in nine years and the first time my entire family will be together in almost a year and a half. I'm mostly excited to get to know my darling nephew better and to watch he and James play together. I'm jealous every time a family member goes to Sweden and comes back sharing the cutest stories in the world of him.

I'm almost 17 weeks. I feel so much better these days. In fact, sometimes an entire day will go by where I forget I'm pregnant. I'm still wearing my regular clothes and I don't think I've entirely "popped" just yet. In fact, sometimes I swear I was bigger a few weeks ago. Am I shrinking? Is that even possible?

I don't know what it is, but the second I found out I was pregnant I started sleeping horribly. I can't fall asleep as easy and I wake up several times a night to go to the bathroom. I don't remember having to go this much this early on with James, but it just plain stinks. I also can't get through the day unless I try and have a little nap when James does. I'm a horrible napper, so most of the time this doesn't work, but at least laying down with my eyes closed for a few minutes helps.

We keep asking James if he's going to have a brother or a sister. This is his usual response: "I don't want a brother. I don't want a sister! Sisters make me angry." Okay then, what do you want? "I want a dog!" Reminds me of my brother . . . 

For the first time ever, I attempted to do some grocery shopping without putting James in the cart. He was in total heaven. I thought he'd be a little rascal and run off and I'd end up putting him in the cart kicking and screaming anyway, but he didn't do half bad. He got distracted a few times with a display of giant stuffed animals, and aside from walking along the cart with a huge smile on his face throwing random things in while saying "We need this and we need this and we need THIS!" I had to be sneaky and take those random items (like Powerade, salad dressings, a 2 lb bag of cheese, etc.) out while he wasn't looking. Otherwise he'd act confused/offended/annoyed, go back to the exact same items and put them back in the cart again.

I helped co-host a party for a bunch of ladies in my neighborhood last night. I've been nervous about it for weeks. I don't know the ladies in my neighborhood well, aside from the 70 +-year-old women who live next door to me, they're all fairly well-off and in our current tight-wad state it's kind of intimidating. Plus, I know people around here think Mormons are evil. So, I was nervous about going. Of course, I always overreact. I had a really good time and hopefully made some new friends. Yesterday, while pulling together some last minute things, the other girl hosting asked if she thought we had enough wine for the party. I told her I had no idea and for a second I thought she was going to ask me to stop by the liquor store (to which I would have then had to explain to her that I don't drink and I really wouldn't even know what to get, etc.), which made me realize that in my 30-year existence I have never, not once, been asked to drink or asked to buy it, etc. Is that weird? That makes me sound so sheltered, but I guess I've just been really conscious about staying out of those situations altogether or at least friends/co-workers have just known not to ask. I'm okay with that.

Earlier this week, along with a few other women, I spoke to our Relief Society about ways to save money. I kind of felt like a hypocrite. Since mid-summer when my hormones shifted drastically, I have barely even looked at a coupon. I was so averse to so many foods that just looking at a coupon or reading the grocery ads made me gag. Seriously. It was the weirdest thing. Even now, I have a sort of hard time looking at them. Needless to say, I haven't been saving as much money as I used to, at least not at the grocery store. I need to get back in gear though because I hate spending more money than I need to.

Thanks to Pinterest, I discovered a cleaning schedule I think will work for me, as well as a "40-days to decluttering your home" type list that I have already started. Once a day you're given a different drawer or closet to go through. So far, I've decluttered the front of our fridge and the laundry room. Today I am going to tackle our gift wrapping closet (yes, we have one of those--it's an oddly shaped closet that nothing else will fit in). I know that's only a few places, but it feels good to even get a little bit done.

Most little boys James' age love Thomas the Train. I hate Thomas the Train. The first time I watched the show I thought "Wow, that train is so obnoxious." Then I watched it once more and it was even worse. So, as mean as it is, we do not watch Thomas at our house. Ever. Because I cannot handle it. However, we went to TJMaxx to pick up a baby present today and there had to be a whole display of Thomas toys that James couldn't get enough of. He proudly exclaimed "Look, mommy, Thomas!!!" (Like it was a long lost friend.) Then I felt like a bad mom. So now I'm trying to convince myself that it's for his own good. Same with Barney. I just can't do it.

I love fall. Everyone says that this time of year, I know. But I really do love it more than any other time of year. Yesterday I bought two pie pumpkins to experiment cooking with. We have 2 cans of pumpkin sitting in our food storage but I just couldn't help myself.

Thanks to Pinterest, I've started doing some craft projects. I still refuse to call myself a crafter because I feel so silly and out of place doing projects like that. Plus, I don't own a sewing machine or a hot glue gun, so I think that disqualifies me on the spot for being referred to as an official "crafter." But, it's kind of fun to make something out of nothing. It made me realize that even though I never thought I would become one of those so not me Mormon moms who craft and stay at home with the kids all day, sometimes things just change. Although every time I watch Fox News I feel a twinge of homesickness, I wouldn't trade Jamers for anything. I used to hate grassroots campaigning, walking door to door, handing out flyers, etc., but since I've been away from it long enough, it kind of sounds fun now and as soon as someone from a certain campaign emails me back on whether there is an office in Knoxville yet, I am going to start volunteering. I wonder how James will feel about coming with me.

Back Home

Last weekend, James and I took the quickest trip of our lives (less than 48 hours) and flew to D.C. As we were finally landing at DCA (I hate layovers!), I turned to James and said without thinking "We're home!!!" Because I truly felt like I was. 

And then I got choked up. I kinda got attached when I lived there. I know it better and feel more comfortable there than I do my present living environment. And I know happiness doesn't have a zip code, but man was I happy there. If only I could convince Brian that he could be happy there, too . . .

 See? Even James is happy there!

Anyway, the National Book Festival was taking place the weekend we were there (partly why we went) and I've only missed it once in the last six years. I just love this festival. My goal (very long-term) is to speak as an author there. Some day . . .

Anyone who has ever seen PBS Kids is probably familiar with "Steve Songs." Some of the songs are annoying and others are quite catchy ("line, line, circle, circle," anyone?). We happened to stumble across THE Steve singing said songs and Jamers was in heaven dancing along. 

 Oh, and this guy, too. We're kind of familiar with him at our house.

And then there was family time, another main reason we made the quick trip. Not only does my sister live in D.C., but my parents would be visiting as well. Jamers had a grand old time soaking up attention from his grandparents and aunt. 

D.C., we'll be back. Soon, I hope. Next time we'll take a direct flight, though.

Random Thoughts, Part II

In no particular order . . .

Random Thought #1:

Being pregnant is expensive--aside from the obvious reasons of having to buy all that baby stuff. Over the last few months, either absolutely nothing sounded good to me or only very specific things (the thought of anything other than what I wanted made me sick) that I had to go out of my way to buy.

Like crab cakes. Not cheap, but sorry, I wanted them. And they were worth it.

A very specific bagel sandwich that I normally would only splurge on once every so often. I had it several times.

Specific chips I usually only buy on sale I had to have no matter the price. Then James ate half the bag and I had to go buy more.

And Cheese curds. Oh, the cheese curds. I had to drive 30 minutes to get them and I cringed when I saw the price. But I'd wanted them for weeks and I'd driven 30 minutes. So naturally I had to get them. Luckily, the first trimester has passed and my food cravings are more or less tamed. That also means the cheese curds are just sitting in the fridge because they don't seem all that appealing any more. So, if anyone wants some cheese curds, just let me know . . .

Random Thought #2:

It really bothers me when people put periods outside of quotes at the end of a sentence. Come on, it's a simple rule that we all learned in school. For example, I love the book "Anne of Green Gables". The period is supposed to go inside the quotes (like so, "Anne of Green Gables.")! Book titles are also, technically, supposed to be italicized and not in quotes, but that is another matter entirely. Now I'm not a perfect writer/speaker/anything else. Proper comma placement is my downfall, (see?) but the period outside the quotes thing is something easy to remember. It especially gets to me when it comes from a professional blogger. I know anyone can blog these days, but still . . .

Random Thought #3:

I'm not complaining about being pregnant because I realize there are loads of people out there who would like to be and can't for a whole slew of reasons. I am eternally grateful. Yet, I wish there was a way to avoid the awkward stage I am in now. People only know I'm pregnant if I tell them--or maybe not, because what's with people who comment "I was wondering!" after you tell them the news. Really? You were? That's not exactly what I want to hear. So I guess I should rephrase that. For the most part, people only know I'm pregnant if I tell them. But I'm starting to get that full lunch look--that totally unflattering roundness in my belly that just makes me look like I've been taking really bad care of myself lately. Not that I'm anxious for the feet/hand swelling and maternity clothing to kick in, but I guess what I'm wishing is that you could go straight from week 6 to week 20 and skip the awkward in between stages. Or that maybe the father could take care of those weeks and then I'd gladly take over after that.

Random Thought #4:

I've been thinking about potty training James for awhile now. My goal was always to do it before he turned two. Any one have any tips on potty training boys? I've already started a very slow process with him, as in for the past few months I take him in "there" at least twice a day and at night before bed when I know he has to go. But aside from that, how do you teach a kid to actually tell you when they gotta go? He has no problems telling me after, but never before. While I don't buy into the whole "he's not ready" thinking some parents have, I do know it will be hard work.  But, of course, working at it is what I'm unsure of. If anyone has any tips on how to get it done, please send them my way!

So, in my new Pinterest fascination, I came across this Toddler "Busy Bag" swap. Ten or 20 (or however many people are interested) come up with a "busy bag" idea (my favorites are highlighted below) and make 10-20 (or however many) of them up in a giant ziploc bag. Then all the women get together one day and swap them. So you immediately get a bunch of fun bags of things to keep your toddler busy for awhile. How awesome is that? I know there aren't enough people in Knoxville who have toddlers, so if anyone else out there is interested, let me know. Perhaps we could do some kind of mailing swap? Or maybe it's just a good Enrichment activity idea. If enough people are interested, I can try and get something going.

Any takers?

Here's the website and more/re-posted info that explains it better than I just did:

http://therigneys.wordpress.com/2011/08/26/toddler-busy-bag-swap/

Toddler “busy bag” swap!

By the Rigneys

This post could also be properly entitled: My Winter Survival Kit!

This past week, I hosted a Toddler “Busy Bag” Swap in my home for a group of my friends after deciding that I needed a little help keeping my toddler busy when we are snowed-in this winter (not to mention for the times when I will be busy caring for his new little brother!).

I assigned each woman a different toddler activity (or they could come up with their own idea) to replicate 20 times (storing each activity in a gallon-sized Ziploc bag).  We all met over dessert and then swapped our activities with one another.  I thoroughly enjoyed watching each mom carry a huge bag filled with 20 different activities to their car!  I plan to keep Sam’s “Busy Bag” stashed away until the wintertime and then slowly introduce one activity at a time.

Each activity needed to meet the following criteria:

• Self-contained.  This way, you can just grab a bag and GO! (without having to add a number of supplies to the bag in order to make it useful.)

• Transportable.  Yes, they will definitely be used at home, but I want to be able to grab a few bags to take to a restaurant, a waiting room, plane trips, car rides, etc.

• Convenient.  None of the bags will have supplies that require major set-up or clean-up: (no paint, watercolors, liquids, sand, dirt, etc.)

• Inexpensive. I didn’t want anyone spending too much money on this project!

• Easy to Make: I didn’t want anyone spending hours and hours and hours making their activity.

• Re-usable. I want these activities to last a while so that our other children can use them in the future.  Therefore, I avoided activities where you would have to buy new supplies to re-stock the bag.  This is why lamination is important for some of the activities.

I’ve posted pictures of the activities we swapped along with the corresponding links to give you a more detailed explanation of each activity.  I am sharing this here in case you are interested in coordinating a swap for you and your friends.  I already know of another group at our church planning a swap very soon, so hopefully these links could be of some help!

Mini Reversible Felt Board

“I Spy” Fish

Pasta Sorting and Stringing

Pony Beads and Pipe Cleaners

Matching Color Shades

Foam Shape Puzzles

Build-Your-Own Felt Pizza

Button Snake

Matching/Memory Game

Homemade Organic Playdough

Button Matching Game

Color Matching Wheel

Lacing Cards

Popsicle Stick Puzzles

Homemade Number Boards

Animal Counting Cards

Number Wheel

Pushing Puff Balls

Next Year

For everyone who figured out the last post, here's more info:

March 19, 2012 

We find out next month if it's a boy or girl.

9/11

I posted this two years ago and my sentiments are the same as they were then. Except now I can't believe it's really been 10 years. I almost can't remember what life was like pre-9/11. I've lived in a post-9/11 world most of my adult life and it's sad my children will never know what life was like before all that evil changed our country (although all the new security measures don't bother me at all--in fact, I'm glad they are there). Five years ago I was working on President Bush's speeches leading up to the 5th anniversary of 9/11. They were some of the hardest working weeks of my life (I remember leaving work at midnight and having to be back at 6 the next morning). Back then, I couldn't believe it had really been five years. Time goes by so fast. I hope even 20 years from now that America won't forget to keep their faith in God, in times of crises or otherwise. I can't say it any better than President Monson . . .

"If there is a spiritual lesson to be learned from our experience of that fateful day, it may be that we owe to God the same faithfulness that He gives to us. We should strive for steadiness, and for a commitment to God that does not ebb and flow with the years or the crises of our lives. It should not require tragedy for us to remember Him, and we should not be compelled to humility before giving Him our faith and trust. We too should be with Him in every season." -Thomas S. Monson

................................

It's hard to believe it has been 8 years. I have a lot of love in my heart for this great country of mine. I have so much admiration for the men and women who work to protect it. As cheesy as it sounds, the song "Proud to be an American" still gives me goosebumps every time I hear it. I pray that the leaders of our nation keep the policies in place that have kept us safe since that dreadful day 8 years ago.

Last year President Bush invited former White House staffers back to the White House for the remembrance ceremony. I knew it would be my last time at the White House before a new president took over, so I met up with my good friend Millie and we waited on the South Lawn together and reminisced about old times (we've been through a lot of craziness together). Obviously, I was not invited back this year. I'm okay with that.

(Can you see me in this picture? Hint: I'm to the back right of Mrs. Cheney in the black suit holding a white paper.)

A Few of My Favorite Things

Things I'm digging these days . . .

Chocolate covered banana chips from Fresh Market. YUM!

Cherry Lifesavers. Okay, so I've liked these forever but lifesavers are nearly impossible to find anymore (you can find them at Michaels craft store, oddly enough).

Zucchini: My garden is abounding in them these days. Needless to say, I've been looking up a lot of zucchini recipes lately. I've tried a few good ones already from my friend's food blog, but if anyone has any other tried and true zucchini recipes, please pass them along!

Cheese Curds: I'm not typically a big cheese person, but cheese curds I love. I'm upset that more stores don't sell them. The only place I've even found them in Tennessee is a Dairy/Cheese Farm 30 minutes away. But, man, they are good.

Suave Professionals Dry Shampoo. I know, I know. Suave? I got a free sample of it a few months ago and have been hooked ever since. It's incredible. Very few products work on my fine hair and it is a fraction of the price of other dry shampoos and actually smells good. Not having to wash my hair every single day has been awesome.

Books. Let me explain. I've been a book worm most of my life but since James came along, the habit went out the window. Now, I'm spending less time on the computer and more time reading. While on vacation, I read six books and since being home I've read six more. I feel like my old self again.

The Help. The movie. It's rare when a movie lives up to the book. This one was just what I pictured when I read the book and I loved every minute of it.

Pinterest. Thanks to my little sister, I am now totally addicted.

Facebook Scrabble. Thanks to my other sister, I am now totally addicted to this, too. 

FoodGawker.com. Holy smokes. So much good looking food. I used to be really good at trying new recipes and have totally slacked off lately. This site has re-inspired me.

Mustela Double Action Stretch-Mark Lotion. It did the trick last time. Not a single stretch mark (that's probably tmi). Praying it works again this time around.

"An Artist Cannot Fail"

I can say with certainty that this little guy is probably not a budding artist. But we did have fun for the five minutes that this activity lasted. And at the very least, my artistic mother should be proud. Here James is right before he started painting all over himself:


If anyone who reads this (does anyone read this!?) has any ideas for other fun activities for young toddlers, please let me know. I feel like the most boring mother ever these days.

On a happier note, Jamers has been a champion sleeper ever since getting back from our vacation. He's been sleeping from 8-8 all night and taking at least 2 hour naps. This morning he slept until 9:15. If only I could be so lucky every day!

My Almost Two-Year-Old

(FYI, for anyone who asked/cares, I updated the last post with the name of the books. I don't think google reader shows updates.)

So James still has a few more months before he turns the big 2 (not until the end of November), but he's such a funny little rugrat that I wanted to share some of the crazy things he says/does.

James is hilarious and he knows it. Anyone who says little kids don't understand sarcasm never met a kid like James. He continues to be a little parrot, repeating absolutely everything we say. He now talks only in full sentences--no more one word commands like "milk"--now it's "I want some milk," which is awesome. He also continues to be Mr. Sassy Pants.

The other day I asked if he was ready for bed and he glared at me and said "What do you think?"

Today he started having a full-on conversation by himself (side note: he loves to play in the car, pretending to drive, which I know is not the ideal place to play). His conversation went something like this:

James: "Mom, I want to go play in car. Let's go drive." Looks up at me and says in a somewhat different tone of voice, "Okay, James, you can drive car." Smiles really big, claps his hands, grabs my hand and says "Okay, let's go!" I laughed for about five minutes over this one.

He's way into sniffing things right now. He must have learned it from watching a dog sniff. It's the only conclusion I can come up with. Instead of giving kisses now, he'll come up to your face and sniff at your nose. He does this with everything: his toy cars, his stuffed animals, pictures in books, etc. It is both weird and endearing.

When he gets confused or isn't sure about how something works he says "What the what?"

Dental families will love this one (that he obviously learned from Brian): Whenever he is brushing his teeth and accidentally flicks some water off the bristles he'll run around yelling "Exposure!!!"

It boggles my mind that for more than half of this kid's life he has been walking, talking and saying "No." Now, in addition to "No" it's "Nope," "I don't think so!" or "Stop it!" He still continues to tell everyone around him (including little old ladies at the grocery store) "NO!" when he is super tired/cranky. I think the "stop it!" bothers me more than the "No" does though.

When we were in Utah, on our way up to Park City, James was extra cranky and didn't want anyone even looking at him. We kept doing it anyway and it was totally frustrating him. Since he didn't quite know how to articulate his message and he knew a simple "No!" wasn't cutting it anymore, he started yelling at us "No eyes! No eyes!" That got the message across, I suppose.

Here he is in my parent's backyard playing in the hippo pool his grandma bought him. He probably could have lived in their backyard while we were there. No humidity and temperatures in the 80s was glorious.


I sure do love this kid. I'm not sure what we ever did without him.

Nerd Alert

Maybe if anyone ever sends me pictures of our vacation earlier this month, I'll get around to posting about that. But since I'm currently pictureless, I'll write about what a major nerd I am instead (as if most people don't already know).

The last few weeks, I've had a weird urge to re-read some books I used to love from my childhood. This included The Secret Garden, Anne of Green Gables, etc., and also The Little House books. While thinking about the Little House books (which, I am aware, is total nerd-city in and of itself), my memory went back to my early tween days and how after reading all of those books (which stop being entertaining to me when Laura enters adulthood--same with the Anne books--why is that?) I happened upon another series of books that takes place during the same time frame about a group of crazy kids being raised by their single preacher father.

I could only remember bits and pieces of these books but knew that way back when I first read them, I had thought they were hilarious and the grandest things ever written. I willed myself to remember what they were called and my memory failed me terribly. I tried googling my vague references but came up empty handed there, too.

I knew I would go crazy if I couldn't figure out what they were called.

So, I made the only logical decision: that when I went back home to Utah I would go to my old library and find these books because, oddly enough, I could remember exactly where they were located (I lose my car keys constantly but can somehow remember the exact location of a library book I checked out 18 years ago. Obviously my short-term memory needs some work).

Well, after arriving in Utah and telling my mother my plan (hoping she'd remember the names of the books), she convinced me that going back to the library would be a waste of time. During a nearly 20 year time span, libraries do rearrange their shelves, afterall. I conceded that she was right, but still secretly hoped for a trip to that library anyway.

But, before I knew it, my time at home was dwindling to an end and there would be no time to visit the library. Uhg. If I didn't figure it out while I was at home, I knew I never would. And maybe it was just as well.

Lo and behold, a miracle occurred on my last morning there.

I was cleaning out a closet in my old bedroom and popped open a tupperware box with some old school work in it and the very first thing I pulled out was a handwritten book report. But not just any book report. It was a report detailing every book in that very series that I had been wondering about. I now had the name of not only the series, but of every single book in the series. What were the chances?

The really nerdy part? This "book report" was not written for school. Nope. I was so obsessed with these books that I did a write-up on them just for fun. It included character sketches, book summaries, and even a four-star rating system for each of the books.

All I could do was laugh and thank my 12-year-old self for being such a geek. Who knew that 18-years-later this would be just what I was looking for?

After a quick search on Amazon.com, I am now the proud owner of all eight of those books. Were they as interesting/entertaining as they were when I was 12? Well, no, not really. I've read too many books in those 18-years to reconstitute what good literature entails.

But, for a quick read, they do the trick. I've had the books less than six days and I'm currently on book five of the series. So although they aren't quite as riveting as I remembered, they are entertaining enough that I have to keep reading.

I think re-reading old favorites is a must every now and then. I cannot stomach watching a movie more than once, but re-reading an old book is like getting reacquainted with an old friend and I highly recommend it.

If that's not nerdy advice, I don't know what is.

Update: Oops. Totally forgot the most important part! The series is called "The Days of Laura Ingalls Wilder" and is by T.L. Tedrow. If anyone else out there ever read these, I'd love to know! Also, if anyone wants to borrow the books, let me know! :)

Orange

(Some people come up with the most clever blog titles. I'm not one of those people. Even during my BYU days as editor of The Daily Universe, I struggled with those darn titles. That has nothing to do with this post, but is just an explanation of the current lame title and the lack of creativity for all future titles.)

In Knoxville, orange is the color to wear--especially during football season. Those UT Vol's fans are crazy into their orange. In the Candrian family, however, orange is important for a different reason. My dad raised us to be San Francisco Giants fans and he's trying to do the same with his grandsons . . .

My Family Came to See Me

After Brian's family left last month, my family followed shortly behind. James was in a sassy mood with all the visitors, but loved having so many people to play with him. His Grandma bought him a sprinkler ball, took him on a boat tour of Knoxville, built endless domino towers just so he could knock them down, etc. His Grandpa even showed up a few days after everyone and he was definitely in heaven then.



Apparently this is the site of the home of the author of "Secret Garden." Who knew? Good book, by the way. Just in case someone out there is debating reading it.
James is a daddy's boy these days. He can be in a bad mood all day and as soon as Brian gets home from work, he's as happy as can be.
He's also super into giving kisses these days. I dread the day he grows out of it.
Pretty much Jamers favorite person on the planet, besides his dad, is his Aunt Andrea. We're pretty lucky she lives close enough to visit us on a regular basis.