Funny Kid Quotes

I've been storing up a few cute quotes for you.....

- Lauren blessing the food: "Please bless this food that it will healthen and strengthen our bodies"

- Braiden's prayer: "Please bless Dad to have a good day at work, also that we can have a good day at school, and bless Mom....(pause)....with whatever she does at home"

- Ethan's New Lagoon-A-Beach lingo: "Put on my sunscream so I can take my tuba on the crazy river"

- New lyrics to the song "Secrets": Instead of "I'm gonna give all my secrets away", it is now, according to Ethan, "I'm gonna give all my sisters away!"

- Ethan in the car: "I'm going to put my drink in the drink folder"

Hilarious!!! I love my kiddos!

And To Think, I Didn't Even Have To Bribe Her To Say It!!

Lauren told me today that she and all of her friends think I'm the coolest mom around....

Let me repeat that, in case you weren't paying attention:

I'M THE COOLEST MOM AROUND!!

Wow....I mean, who'da thunk it? (That's cool talk, in case you didn't know!)

Of course, that will almost definitely change by tomorrow, but I'll take it today!!!

Does It Sing Or Sew?

My Singer sewing machine was out on the table today when Braiden became very interested in the name.

"Why is it a 'Singer' and not a 'Sewer'?"

I Am The Savings Queen!!

Braiden asked me why we don't keep Dr. Pepper constantly stocked at our house. I told him because it isn't always on sale at the store.

After rolling his eyes, he said, "everything has to be on sale in your world."

That's right, Sweetie, and don't forget it!!

My, Aren't You Mature?

Today, we went to lunch at McDonalds (Ry, Katie, and I have higher standards and went through the In-And-Out drive through beforehand). Once the boys were finished with their meal, we told them they could go play on the playground for a bit.

"No," Braiden casually said, "I'm too old for that."

Well, allrightythen...

And Low-Fat Too!!

We had a winter storm come through tonight, so the family hunkered down and watched the movie Elf to start off the holidays. As the closing credits were scrolling up the screen, Braiden proudly announced,

"That movie was gluten-free!!"

We were all pretty much speechless until an uncontrollable fit of laughter overtook us....

Where did this kid come from??

Well, For That I'll Wipe It Off!

Ethan as he was watching me put on my lipstick: "Mom, are you putting on make-up?"

Me, thinking I might get a compliment: "Yes, Honey. Why?"

Ethan showing obvious disappointment: "Awww! I wanted you to kiss me!"

Girls Really Aren't That Bad After All!

Ethan talking to Dad:

"Dad, I don't like girls....but I'll still marry one when I grow up."

It's A Major Award!!

The other day, when my kids were complaining about something I had done, I explained to them that I was merely trying diligently to win the Meanest Mom In The World Award. The response I recieved was that I had a good shot at achieving my goal....

SWEET!!

I love winning!!!

Uh, To Clean Pipes, Maybe?

This morning I was in the kitchen doing the dishes when I heard Braiden proudly say,

"Hey Mom, I know why they call these things 'Pipe Cleaners'"

"Oh really? Why?" I asked him.

(Short pause)

"Ummm, actually I don't have any idea"

It was very hard to keep a straight face!  I love that kid!

Ummm, We Don't Eat Our Grandmas!

Typically on Sundays, we head to one or the other of the Grandma's houses for dinner.  But I was a little surprised at Katie's question to me after church today.  It went something like this:

"Mom, are going to eat Grandma over at dinner's house today?"

Wow, Katie!  I had no idea you wanted to eat your grandma.  I guess it's a really good thing she was in Wisconsin this week....

I've Never Heard Of That Flavor!

We went to Dairy Queen for lunch today and the kids get a treat with their meals. When we went to turn in Ethan's treat coupon at the counter, he asked for a Dilly Bar. The guy asked him what flavor he wanted, so.... 

"Tell him Cherry," I told Ethan.

"Tom and Jerry," he said to the guy.

Hmmmm, what flavor is that?

We all got a good chuckle out of that one.

Spring Break!

I haven't really mentioned much about my schooling on this blog except to say that it keeps me really busy and stressed out. However, in the spirit of documenting things I want to remember, I will go into a little more detail.

I am currently working on my Associate Degree. I will finish after I complete this semester and a math class over the summer (whew! almost done!). It has taken me quite a long time to complete this task, but for good reasons. I have already discussed them in this post, so I won't go into details here; just know that I'm so glad that I'm finally reaching one of my goals when it comes to education. It has been a long road, and I am appreciating every step.

The classes I am enrolled in right now are my electives that I needed to finish up. I am taking World History (1300 AD to the present), and Intro. to Acting. I needed a Creative Arts credit, and acting sounded fun. Theatre has always fascinated me, but I've always been too scared to participate. Denise has been in several community plays and I would love to do that someday as well. I was talking with my little sister, Kaylee about what classes I was taking and she got so excited about taking acting as well. We decided it wouldn't be as scary if we took it together. She is 15 years younger than I am, and we haven't spent much time in the same house. She was two when I moved away to college and was four when I got married. She is only six years older than Katie!! So, when we had the opportunity to take a class together, we took it. It has been fun hanging out with her at Weber, working on our assignments together, and texting each other about what is due for class. The class is fun and we have even done a two person scene together. I think my fear of getting in front of people is lessening a bit, and I'm so glad to have her in there with me!

My History class is quite the experience. I have it once a week for almost three hours on Thursday nights. When I come home, I always have great stories to tell Ryan, and most of them don't have anything to do with World History. My professor is hilarious, but not necessarily in a good way.

I have described him to people as a cross between the teacher in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off", Napoleon Dynamite, and the dad on "My Big Fat Greek Wedding". Quite the combo, huh? Let me explain each one. Ben Stein plays the teacher in "Ferris" and is hilarious with his monotone voice..."Bueller? Bueller?" My professor only has one tone as well, and quite frankly, it's hard to listen to him for almost three hours at a time!!

He reminds me of Napoleon Dynamite because he has glasses, curly hair (though not as long and wild) and he sounds like him when he talks about how smart he is: "I could pretty much be teaching anywhere I want because I know so much about Ancient Greece. I'm the only one who has written a book on this particular aspect of Ancient Greece and all of the Universities think I'm pretty great." It is so funny to listen to him brag about himself.

He is just like the dad in "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" because he is always explaining how great Greece was in the days of Plato, Socrates and Aristotle. He firmly believes that everything that has happened in modern history can be traced back to these three geniuses. He may be right to a point, but he is so obsessed with anything ancient Greek, that it gets a little extreme and annoying.

I hope I haven't painted too bad of picture of him. He is really smart and nice, but just a little socially challenged maybe. One class, toward the beginning of the course, he dismissed us all an hour early because the clock on the wall was wrong. No one corrected him (can you blame us?) and later he sent us an email about how he "was erroneously under the impression that it was 8:15 instead of 7:15". Hilarious!

Another incident this last week was classic as well. It was time for our midterm, and he discussed in class what would be on the test. We had been studying the Enlightenment thinkers, as well as the rise in industrialization and its effects on the world economy, etc. He explained that he wanted dates, names, and facts on these topics and we would also have to write an essay. I studied really hard and felt like I really knew my stuff. However, when I went into take the written test, it was all about ancient Greece. What!?! I know he's obsessed with Greece, but that's not what our class is focused on. Where does he get off on forcing Greek stuff down our throats? I kept checking to see if I was taking the wrong test, but couldn't see anything wrong except the questions. I came out of the test very angry and frustrated. I went home and drafted an email to him explaining that frustration. Thankfully, Ryan toned it down a bit and "sweetened it up". I sent if off and didn't sleep well that night. I received a reply from him the next morning asking me if I might have taken the wrong test. He also teaches an Ancient History class that I wasn't aware of (he made it sound, in his Napoleon way, like he only taught classes at BYU except for this one). I then felt desperately stupid! How could I have not figured out that it was the wrong midterm? How could I think he would do that to us? Was I the only one this happened to, or did others take the wrong test too? I was feeling very frustrated with myself the whole day. When I got to class that night, he asked how everyone felt about the midterm. Several people felt that they had studied the wrong stuff and didn't know we had to know anything about ancient civilizations. My professor realized that several of us had taken the wrong midterm, yet I was the only who had questioned it! My professor apologized profusely and gave us another week to retake the right test. Ugh! Two midterms in a week. He's quite the teacher!! On a side note, we jokingly asked him to grade our first midterm because we guessed our way through the whole thing...he didn't grade it all the way, but said our answers were quite funny. Just for the record, I did get an A on the REAL midterm!

So, after all that, I REALLY needed Spring Break to come! Hallelujah! It was so nice to just concentrate on being a mom for the week. I took each kid out for their own special lunch during the week, caught up on some sleep, and I cleaned my office, and I mean CLEANED: I bought all new file folders and went through all my files and paperwork, and cleaned out my desk and office closet...it was so wonderful to be able to take the time to do all of that! For the last half of the week, we went down to St. George for a law conference. Ryan booked us a huge four bedroom condo and we played all weekend long. We left on Thursday night, so Katie stayed behind with my Mom Janis so she could go to school on Friday. It was end of term, and she is so focused on her grades, so how could we say no? My dad, sister and brother were going to come down on Saturday morning, so she would just come down with them (we certainly had plenty of room for all of them).

Mom Nancy was spending the weekend in Cali, so we didn't get to see her, but she is coming up next weekend, so we occupied ourselves in other ways.  We spent a lot of time swimming.  We did this while Ryan was in his meetings.  I have mentioned this before, but my kids LOVE swimming and they always get along the whole time.  Maybe that's where the term "they got along just swimmingly" came from!  It makes me want to build a pool in my backyard and send them out there whenever there is contention.

When Ry was finished with his meetings, we would head out on various adventures.  Friday, we drove up Snow Canyon.  The closest we've ever been was to Tuacahn theater, but there is much more out there.  It was a beautiful drive and we enjoyed a couple of small hikes.  The weather was gorgeous (especially compared to home), just a little breezy, so we took advantage of it.  We love being outdoors and being together.  I'm so glad that my kids love to go hiking and experience nature!

Here are the kids at the Petrified Sand Dunes...

Oh no! It looks like Lauren and Braiden almost fell in the pond...

On Saturday, we were disappointed to learn that none of my family was going to come down as originally planned.  We were really missing Katie, but she had a great time with Grandma and I think they needed and appreciated their one-on-one time together.  So, just the five of us headed to Zion National Park for the afternoon.  What a beautiful place!! 

We hiked up to Emerald Ponds.  It was one we hadn't hiked before and it was beautiful.  It took us about two hours round trip, but it was worth it.  There are several waterfalls and we also saw many deer, some just a few feet away.  Pretty neat.  By the way, as a fair warning to all of you...in the following pictures you will see my very white legs that haven't seen sunlight in months!

Cute Quote:

Ethan: Dad, take a picture of me being silly

Cute Quote

Braiden: What's over here? Oh, it looks like that way leads to certain death

Cute Quote

Braiden: I think I am about done with nature for the day!

Cute Quote

Ethan: Mom, let me wear your sunglasses...whoa! Everyone looks so brown!

After we were "done with nature", we headed to Pirate Island for pizza with some of our friends from the firm. The kids had a blast and the adults got to visit. Good times. So, it turned out to be a very fun and relaxing trip.  A much needed Spring Break.  Now, I just need to survive the rest of the semester!

Different Tastes In Music?

Tonight, we went to dinner as a family at Cracker Barrel. It is one of the few reasonably priced restaurants that all of the kids can agree on. While walking out, there was a very twangy, hoe-down song blaring loudly. Ryan and I discussed whether or not it sounded like the Oakridge Boys. That discussion prompted a rousing rendition of "Elvira".

"High-O Silver, Away!!"

From the back of the car, there came a firm, "I think that's about enough of that" from Braiden.

We all laughed and laughed. I guess we all have different tastes in music.

Rhyming Is Great

Happy New Year, Everyone!! We are taking it easy today...just chillin' and playing video games, and this is what I overheard:

Ethan--"Dad, you're the good guy, right?"

Braiden--"Ethan, but 'Dad' rhymes with 'bad'!"

Soooo, I guess Dad is not a good guy, but fortunately only while playing Star Wars.

Does that mean I'm "Tom"???

So...I Guess He's Not A Tree Hugger?

I gave Ethan a great big hug today and then...

Ethan--"I don't like hugs, they make me too hot!"

Mom--"I'm sad that you don't like hugs."

Ethan--"yeah, and I don't like trees either."

This Ain't Your Average Road Trip

The following post contains the ramblings of our recent trip to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This will be a looooong post, because well, it was a long road trip. Just warning you now, before we even begin.

My sister, Jessica moved to Wisconsin two years ago when her husband, John began dental school. We miss them and their two kids a lot. They come out for visits at least twice a year, but we decided it was time to venture out their way. When I say venture, I really mean drive...yeah, we are nuts.

We wanted to drive for several reasons. First of all, flying six people to Milwaukee is a very expensive proposition which usually includes at least one long layover...ummm, I don't think so. Second, most of us had not seen most of that part of the country, so we wanted to experience it from the ground. And finally, we wanted to give our kids fuel for all the therapy they are going to need someday just for the basic fact that they belong to us. I mean really, who in their right mind drives four kids halfway across the country!!?!?

We chose the week of the UEA holiday so the kids wouldn't miss too much school. We were all very excited to see the family, but not so much about driving. But I have to take a moment here to say that getting ready for any kind of trip is not very enjoyable for me, but especially one where we are gone for so long and we are driving. The house has to be "vacationized" which includes straightening everything, cleaning out the fridge, removing all perishable foods and garbage, completely finishing laundry, and having a clean kitchen. These are the bare minimums because I HATE coming home to chaos. Plus, you have to clean out the car, then fill it back up with all of the CRAP we have to take with us.

I got each of the kids their own over-the-seat-put-all-of-your-stuff-in-and-don't-leave-it-anywhere-else-in-the-car organizers. They loved packing and organizing all of the activities that I bought them which included sticker books, travel games, magnet boards, learning activities, and play sets. We packed plenty of movies, of course, and the girls had their iPods. But let's not forget the snacks. The snack box was easily accessible and we had two coolers--one for Sunday meals and one for drinks and snacks. Whew!! We were finally ready to go!

For the first day and a half this is what we did:

Pretty exciting, huh? But the kids were SO good! Everyone stayed entertained for the most part and no one got car sick!! Yahoo! Throughout the trip, the kids said some pretty funny things, I started teasing them that they were going to be quoted on my blog. Here is the first of many:

CUTE QUOTE

DAD -- There's a prong horn over there

BRAIDEN -- What's a prong horn?

DAD -- Antelope

BRAIDEN -- Where's the cantaloupe?

We stayed in Omaha so we could visit the Winter Quarters visitors center. It was neat to see, especially having just experienced Trek. The kids liked it and the missionary was very impressed with how much the girls knew about the gospel and church history. The kids even got to pull a real handcart and realized how hard it really was.

It's amazing to think that we traveled the entire pioneer trail from Winter Quarters (Florence, Nebraska) to Salt Lake -- which took the pioneers months by wagon, handcart, and foot -- in just a day and a half. And, instead of grueling extreme hot and cold temperatures, illness, lack of food, etc., we arrived in relatively comfortable travel, including air conditioning, gas station stops, and movies. It's a lot to think about and to be grateful for!!!

We also walked around the cemetery and the temple grounds. There is a lot of history there. So many pioneers died that first winter before crossing the plains. It was a peaceful way to spend the morning.

After our little break, we were back in the car. And, after another full day of driving, we finally made it to Wisconsin! The drive was not as bad as everyone kept telling us. Nebraska was nothing but farmland, just as I thought, but it wasn't ugly or boring. The farms were pretty and I enjoyed the rolling hills (I assumed it would be flat like Kansas). All in all, not a bad drive, but we were thrilled to finally be there!

CUTE QUOTE

BRAIDEN -- I spy with my little eye something blue.....oh yeah, and it rhymes with BUNGLASSES!!

CUTE QUOTE

KATIE -- Nebraska is the Cornhusker State and all they have is football!

So we made it and received a warm welcome. Jessica's house was very cute and the kids were all very excited to see each other. We quickly started planning out our schedule. We knew we wanted to see Lake Michigan, but the rest was wide open. We decided to go to the museum on Monday, the Zoo on Tuesday, and the lake on Wednesday. We couldn't wait for the fun to begin!

The museum was a lot of fun. We saw many displays of ancient civilizations, dinosaurs, and animals. We watched a hilarious movie about dinosaurs that we all giggled over. They also had a butterfly garden which I think the kids liked the best.

They had these cultural scenes where music was playing from that particular area. The kids loved the music and danced really silly.

After the museum, we drove to Uncle John's dental school at Marquette University. During our visit, he introduced us to the "Tooth Fairy".

Really??!!? That's the Tooth Fairy? Why any kid would want THAT thing to come into their house and snoop around for loose teeth is beyond me! Talk about freaky!! But the kids weren't freaked out--they actually really liked her.

The next day was Braiden's birthday. When we realized that we were going to celebrate Braiden's birthday in Milwaukee, we were excited. Braiden chose to go to the zoo for his special day. Milwaukee has a great zoo and because it was a weekday, we had the whole place pretty much to ourselves.

Some of the highlights were the bears....

And the penguins....

It was a beautiful fall day and we enjoyed it very much. We even got to take some monkeys home with us!

That night, for Braiden's birthday dinner, we found out about a "spy" restaurant. It sounded fun, so off we went. It is in an alleyway in downtown Milwaukee and it is disguised as an exporting company. We knew right away that this was going to be an adventure!

When we walked in, there was a tiny entryway with a lady sitting there. She asked us for the password, which we didn't have. So we had to perform a task to enter. She knew it was Braiden's birthday, so we had to sing to him and he had to do the chicken dance. It was so funny! When we completed the task, the fireplace opened up to reveal a passageway. At the end of the passage was a dead end. But another wall opened and we were finally inside the restaurant. It was then that we found out that the whole restaurant had been watching us on TV screens singing and doing the chicken dance. They all laughed and clapped for us!

While we were waiting for our food, there was lots to do and places to explore. There were spy posters everywhere (mostly Bond movie posters) and secret passage ways. You could hide in the girls bathroom and spy on people in the hallway. We also discovered a passage way that led to the outside and you couldn't come back in except through the front door. We ran back in the restaurant before the door closed on us.

Our birthday boy enjoying his dinner...

We went back to Jessica's for a quick birthday party. My little boy is seven now! I can't believe how fast the time has flown by. But I don't have time to be nostalgic, that is for another post. Right now we just need to keep moving on with the rest of the trip! But first, HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Braiden!!

On our final day in Wisconsin, we went to see Lake Michigan. We visited a really neat nature preserve. The kids got to get their wiggles out, we saw a few wild turkeys, went hiking on the trails and enjoyed an absolutely beautiful fall day!

We climbed this big tower and enjoyed spectacular views of the lake.

Then we walked down to the beach.

Yet another beach that the kids loved to play at. And to think that we have never taken them to the beach in California! Guess we need to put that on our list.

Here are some more pictures (nice one of me sporting the double chin!)

It was sad to think that our visit to Milwaukee was over! We had had so much fun and played so hard. Now it was time to hit the road and sit and sit and sit. We reluctantly said goodbye and headed West, but this time we drove up through Minnesota and South Dakota. We had two very long travel days and the weather was terrible. I actually thought the wind might tip us over a time or two. We stopped in Sioux Falls, South Dakota and stopped to look at the falls. Well, everyone did but me because I was too cold to get out of the car, but Ryan got a picture of the kids.

That day, I discovered I left my swimming suit at Jessica's. Knowing that we were planning on swimming in the hotel the next night, we stopped at the local mall to find me a suit. It was raining pretty hard when we all got out of the car. Suddenly, Katie tripped on something and fell face first right into the biggest puddle in the whole parking lot. She wasn't hurt, but she was drenched from head to toe! We ended up getting her some new clothes along with my new suit. After the initial shock wore off, we told her that years from now she would think the whole experience was pretty funny. She finally laughed with us and we teased her about it the rest of the trip.

On our way to Rapid City, we drove through Badlands National Park. Now, if you have ever been to Bryce Canyon NP, it looks similar to that, only Badlands lacks color. It should be named Blandlands if you ask me. I wasn't extremely impressed, but again, I was FREEZING and the wind was brutal. We only stayed for a very short time. If you ask me, the best part of Badlands NP was watching all of the Prarie dogs bobbing their heads up and down!

Ethan and I trying to stay warm, but still looking cool in our matching Disneyland jackets and sunglasses...

Our hotel in Rapid City had a waterslide at the pool. The kids thought this was the best thing ever and we spend the night having a wonderful time. It may not look like much, but the slide was pretty fast. It occured to me that night, that our family gets along so well when we take them swimming. It is complete and peaceful bliss the whole time, every time. It was the perfect ending to a very long two days.

I know it's hard to see, and even harder to prove, but this next picture is me flying down the slide. Katie couldn't take the picture fast enough, but I promise it's me. I had a blast!

CUTE QUOTE (after washing his hands with the hotel soap)

BRAIDEN -- What's that smell? It smells like cookies....but mostly soap.

The next morning, we were off to Mount Rushmore. It was neat and we all enjoyed it. The weather was cool, but dry. We were so glad the rain and the wind had stopped and we could experience this neat monument.

My big noggin is covering up Teddy and Abe...oops! I didn't have the heart to ask the sweet old man taking our picture to try again.

But we all know that my head really does belong up there as indicated in this next picture...but there's that horrible double chin again!!

There was a nice walking trail that allowed us to experience the monument from different angles and vantage points. We had a brief discussion with the kids before proceeding that the trails were put there for a reason and we were to stay on the trails at all times and to not disturb the nature around us. The kids all nodded in agreement and then....

CUTE QUOTE (to a nice young gentleman who just wanted to get a picture from on top of a large rock)

ETHAN -- Stay on the trail, DUDE!!!

CUTE QUOTE (after viewing the monument from the vantage point in the following picture)

ETHAN -- Whoa! Two heads fell off!!

Right next to the visitor's center were two beautiful mountain goats grazing. There were people all around and they were perfectly content to stay right there! I guess Critter Watch '09 was back in full swing!

After Mount Rushmore, we went to Jewel Cave. Again, maybe I'm just partial to all things Utah, but compared to Timpanogos Cave, this was just a big hole underground. There weren't even that many "jewels" which were really calcium crystals. But still, it was interesting to see.

Outside, they had a cement block where you could see if you could fit in the tight spaces you typically find in caves. All of the kids made it through, of course....

Ryan, not so much. His shoulders were too broad. And here we thought his true calling in life was to be a cave explorer. I guess it's back to the office for you, Honey.

The drive home through the Black Hills was absolutely stunning. I had no idea that there were mountains this pretty in South Dakota (sorry to think that, Grandpa!). We drove on the Needles Highway and saw some spectacular fall foilage and beautiful rocky mountains. We even drove through several VERY small tunnels blown out of the granite.

It was so nice to get out of the car and spend a few hours enjoying nature. What a beautiful world we live in! I was so glad we could discover a new part of the country together.

CUTE QUOTE

LAUREN -- I keep losing my glasses!

MOM -- Honey, they are on your face!

LAUREN -- Oh yeah! Thanks, Mom

I mentioned Critter Watch '09 being back in full swing. We had had a pretty successful Critter Watch up in Jackson and Yellowstone in September, but that doesn't compare to how many wildlife we saw outside the Black Hills coming home. Buffalo, Pronghorn (aka Canteloupe), elk and deer were EVERYWHERE! It was so cool!

We finally made it home safe and sound. It was kind of brutal getting thrown back into the real world of work, school, laundry, and taxi service after such a fun trip. I am grateful for this blog, because it allows me to capture these memories before they are forgotten. I learned a lot about my family on this trip, but the most important lesson was that we have good times and not so good times, but through it all, I love spending time with them more than anything.

Our trip to Milwaukee recap:

3198 miles

Ten days, nine nights

Seven states (Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and South Dakota)

Five hotels

Little bit of fighting

Lots of laughing

Tons of memories