Happy Thanksgiving

We had a GREAT Thanksgiving. We hope you all did too.

While I was baking, R. got the kids ready. E.R. came into the kitchen to tell me, quite triumphantly, that Dad had let him do his own hair. A few minutes later he came back with a self-made tag taped to the front of his shirt using a dozen pieces of tape. His tag read: "I can fix my hair".

This started a flurry of tag making--one for each of us.

Dad's read: "Dad is a vairy good frend"
Mine read: "Mom can be hlepfull"
A.M's read: "A.M. is vairy cutdt (cute)"

He didn't stop with us. Labels began to appear all around the house.









Signs are everywhere--on fixtures, shoes, windows, stairs, etc. My favorite is the computer marked "cunpwoder". While E.R. was busy making sure we knew the contents of our house and using all the tape, I made this:

And it turned out just about perfect!

We had dinner with our new friends the Wilcoxes. We were, however, just about dis-invited to Thanksgiving dinner because the Wilcoxes are BYU fans and did not appreciate how we weaved a bit of gloating into our Sacrament Meeting talks last Sunday. (The rivalry is alive and well, even in NY.)

We had a wonderful time. We have so much to be grateful for this year, and every year. We have incredible kids, a great family whom we missed, and fantastic friends both near and far. We are so blessed! We love you and wish you a warm and happy holiday!

Wonder Update

The night before Thanksgiving, I cut a bunch of the white bread E.R. thinks is so amazing into cubes for stuffing, and left them on the counter to dry out. The next morning, R. went off to play football with some guys in the ward while I snuggled in bed with a book. My mom called and I kinda forgot about the kids.

Without a responsible parent to get them breakfast, they decided to fend for themselves. I came down to find nearly all my stuffing cubes gobbled up! They really do like white bread--they're even willing to eat it dry and tasteless.

Wonder Wonder

The other day E.R. asked why we don't eat white bread. I explained that wheat bread is a little better for you. (Actually, I prefer the taste of wheat bread; and since I'm the one buyin' it...) "Well, Steven at school eats white bread and it's good for him." He argued.

I wanted to try a wheat/white bread mix in the Thanksgiving stuffing, so I purchased some white bread. E.R. was literally overjoyed. You've thought I'd brought home a puppy.

Earlier this afternoon E.R. turned to his dad and said, "We got white bread, Dad. Do you know what white bread is?"

Without waiting for his answer, E.R. pulled a piece of bread out of the bag, "See, this is white bread. Because it's white in the middle. See. See."

"As opposed to wheat bread that's brown in the middle?" R. asked.

Pleased he'd been able to teach R. a thing or two, he answered excitedly, "Yah! That's right, Dad!"
So, Happy Thanksgiving to all of you, no matter what kind of bread you've used in your stuffing!

Precocious. Huh?

When E.R. was a toddler Grandma B. called him "precocious". I tried to smile and agree thinking she'd just criticized my child. And for what? I didn't know. He wasn't doing anything particularly obnoxious at the time.

Later, I looked the word up in the dictionary. "Precocious" means "bright"--something, apparently, I am not. Despite his mother's less than stellar aptitudes, E.R. has lived up to Grandma B.'s assessment.

He loves school. Last week he woke up vomiting. I told him he would need to stay home from school. He broke down into sobs. He was sure he'd miss a fun project if he stayed home, he said.

He loves to write notes to family and friends. Most of these letters consist of some sort of paper creation. I have snipets of paper all over my house as he cuts and pastes his latest projects. Lately, he's taken to making Ben 10 watches--remarkable copies, really. We've each, generously, received many prototypes. I went to bed the other night thinking there was something strange about my pajama sleeve only to discover I hadn't removed his latest model. Shhh...Santa found a real Ben 10 watch on Amazon.

He's also extremely loving and a great big brother. He left a lot of friends behind when we moved. Friends he misses very much. He doesn't seem to mind letting A.M. fill in the gaps, even though she's only two.

I get too impatient too often with him. I'm writing this to remind myself how great I've got it when I feel myself losing my cool. I really love this kid!

Dad's Back

R. is home again. Thank goodness! His business trips in the past have never really bothered me. This one did. It was long, and I feel a little uncomfortable not knowing very many people yet. My imagination sometimes runs wild, and it doesn't help that it starts getting dark at 4:30. Thanks to all of you who talked to me and kept my mind occupied on more pleasant things.

Don't worry, all that foolishness quickly melted away with one of these delightful Japanese treats! E.R., A.M. and I were so excited R. did not disappoint and had one for each of us in his luggage. (Even though you can buy them at Wal-mart in the Asian section. They just aren't the same!)

I Love My "Grill"

Today the electrician came to upgrade our electrical box. For a good portion of the day we were without power. Without Dora the Explorer to occupy A.M. while I checked on all your blogs, she and I spent the day entertaining each other. By mid afternoon we'd blown through play dough, dollies and Hi-Ho Cheerio; so we sang silly songs while snuggled under blankets because, man, it got cold!

The thing I love about this 2-year-old is her creative vocabulary. She says things with such confidence; and when corrected, she looks at me as if I'm the one saying everything wrong. Some of my favorite A.M. words:

"laugha-bet" = alphabet
"toad-a-wee" = totally

"Mom, this is toad-a wee, toad-a-wee, toad-a-wee yummy!" That's when I know I hit the mark with dinner--3 "toad-a-wees"

"squish-squeeze treats" = rice krispy treats
"grill" = girl
"clickly" = quickly

And my personal favorite:

"sh#@!" = ship

Lately, this word is used quite frequently because she is toad-a-wee, toad-a-wee into Buzz Lightyear (as shown in the picture) and is constantly wandering around the house looking for his sh#@!

I had fun today A.M.!

Hot Chocolate in Shades

We woke up to our first real snowfall of the season. The photo was taken standing on our back deck. I told you we live in the woods. There's actually a layer of leaves under that snow that I should have raked this weekend. Oh well.

I think A.M. is already missing the warm, summer weather because this is how she ate her breakfast this morning.

A Holiday Worth Celebrating

Did you know there is something to be celebrated every single day of the year? Today is "Loosen Up, Lighten Up" day. Seriously!

I'm earnestly trying to celebrate because lightening up is something I normally struggle to do. I'm not going to be getting after E.R. for talking to me in his uncommonly loud voice when I'm standing right beside him. A.M. pees in her panties--so what! (Actually, we're accident free today! Yeah!) It's not even bothering me that R. ripped the walls off the family room, is leaving for Japan tomorrow morning, and going to be gone for a week. See, I'm loose.

What a great holiday. So far I'm having a fabulous day. Honestly! Plus, I'm thrilled to learn my birthday falls on "A Room of Your Own" day. What luck! I can't wait to tell R.!

To find holidays you'd like to celebrate look HERE. In fact, mark your FHE calendars--I've just learned Monday the 24th is "Celebrate Your Unique Talent" day. Now, that's a day not to be missed either!

Ziploc Omelets

Who doesn't love an omelet? Not me!

There are actually two things I don't love about omelets. First, my well-intentioned omelets never turn out the way I plan. They always have a great beginning and give every impression of ending up perfect. Then comes the flip where things go terribly wrong and I end up with fancy scrambled eggs. Still good, but not an omelet in every sense of the word. Secondly, made-to-order omelets must be cooked in shifts.

With these two grievances in mind, I received an email forward from R.s sister showing a fun and easy way to make omelets. Perhaps you've received this email. Well, tried it. Liked it. Have repeated it since. Thought I'd share:In a quart-size freezer Ziploc bag, combine 2 eggs (no more than 2 per bag) with favorite omelet ingredients. Shake 'em, squish 'em and mix 'em well. Get all the air out; then seal. Use multiple bags to make custom omelets for each family member just the way they like 'em!

(I could lie and say this picture was taken at breakfast and that's why my kids are in their pajamas. But in reality it was dinnertime. A.M. is still potty training--jammies are easier to pull down. E.R. stayed home sick from school. You know, on second thought, perhaps I should not have had him helping with dinner after all. Whoops.)Place bags in a large pot of rolling, boiling water. Our 4 bags cooked just fine in a medium-size soup pot. Let boil 15 minutes. (As the bags heat up, they get a bit floppy. Don't let them touch the sides of the pan or burner directly.)Open the bags and roll the omelets onto plates. No fuss, no mess--not bad! The kids can help too. Plus, one of us isn't still hungrily waiting for their omelet to cook.

Score One for the Team!

A.M.'s Potty Training Tally (day one):
Panties = 3
Potty = 5!!!

A decisive victory by any mother's standard.

A.M.'s been pretty accepting of the whole "big girl" potty idea as long as I don't slip up and call her panties (pronounced "pan-TEES" with a strong emphasis on the "TEE") anything but that. Underwear, pants, etc. will not due!

The best part of potty training--I didn't get out of my pajamas until 4pm. (Why bother when I'm planning on dealing with pee all day long.)

The worst part of potty training--everything else!

Primary Program

Today was the Primary program in Sacrament Meeting. I thought I would feel so content just sitting in the congregation instead of being the one responsible. I actually felt a little sad. When the Primary children sang their first song, I naturally started singing with them until I realized I was the only one on our pew. I miss the kids in our old ward.

I did enjoy seeing E.R.'s face when he gave his part instead of the back of his head like last year. He did a great job. That kid does not hesitate in the slightest when speaking in front of anyone. I wish his excitement for talking translated into a desire to sing. I think he managed to chime in on the last song, and that was about it. Instead we were the proud parents of the waving, yawning boy who occasionally wowed the congregation by balancing on one foot.

If E.R.'s talents weren't enough to impress our new ward, I'm sure once combined with A.M.'s uncanny knack for shrieking "Stop it!" over and over right at the most reverent part of the Sacrament prayer is enough to win them over.

Job Well Done!

Well, in less than a week, I've successfully managed to eat the majority of my kid's Halloween candy. With current issues such as childhood obesity, I tell myself I'm doing it for their own good; but we all know that's not true. (Disclaimer: the hand in the photo is not mine--it may as well be.)

No Stalking Allowed!

You may have noticed I've changed a few things. For those of you who are our family and friends, you are welcome to, hopefully, enjoy this blog; which is why I didn't want to restrict access. For those I don't know, I figure important information is on a need to know basis. Why the sudden paranoia? Well, I saw this:

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=148&sid=4699330

I'm not trying to be ridiculous here, I just figured it couldn't hurt to keep things a little more anonymous. "Nelson" is a common enough last name. (If that really is our last name. :)) As for our first names, my smart and sexy husband will be referred to as R., our son is E.R., and our daughter is A.M. I hope you won't be too annoyed to keep reading! Lots of love, M.

*Spoiler Alert*...I Voted For...

I voted--thanks to a GPS otherwise I would never have found the place. Oh, how I miss a good grid system!

So have you ever seen a voting booth like this? Well, I hadn't. I felt like a bit of a moron for having to have the thing explained, but the ACME method of pushing various levers to cast my vote was way beyond me.

Boy, we really do live in a small town!

Daylight Savings and Moral Cleanliness?

So we're always late to church. Always. We were late when it was just the two of us and blamed it on late nights studying. We were late when we had babies and blamed it them. We were late when church was at 9am and blamed it on being too early. But, we were late when church started at 1pm too.

We decided to turn a new leaf with this move. Didn't happen. Until yesterday...

The morning started out as usual--the kids were extra slow, I couldn't find anything I wanted to wear, etc. We piled in the car knowing we would, yet again, be our usual five minutes late. Halfway to the church, I mentioned how embarrassed I am over our tardiness (knowing full well it's often my fault). R. groaned and said, "Well, you're in luck, we're early." Yep, we forgot to turn our clocks back.

Speaking of church...I'm the YW adviser for the beehives (12/13-year-olds). We have a good group of girls making the calling quite fun. Last week I introduced the lesson to the girls by telling them it was a very important topic and I was particularly excited to be teaching it.

Before I could even share the topic, one of the more clever girls said in mock disgust, "I sure hope it's not about the law of chastity. We already had that one. Talk about awkward!" I assured her I would be shaking in my boots if that were the topic so they were safe for another week.

Our House is Haunted!

I'll be honest, this new house of ours is a little scary. It mainly has to do with the fact that most of the rooms do not have adequate lighting. (A predicament we're correcting in the next couple of weeks.) This problem is compounded by the fact that I am a scardy cat! But after last night you won't blame me.

I stayed up later than R. Being alone, I found myself turning out the lights, running like a bandit up the stairs and climbing safely into our bed. I left our door open so that we could hear the kids in the night.

At 4 am. I was awakened by our door slowly, slowly creaking shut.

I laid in bed, heart pounding, wondering what to do--should I wake R. or should I open the door and accept my fate. I decided to man-up and check it out myself.

The low-lit hall was empty. A.M.'s and E.R.'s doors were open. (They had been shut when I went to bed.) A.M.'s room--empty.

It was in E.R.'s room where I found my ghost--sitting there looking at books in the dark while her brother lay sleeping, undisturbed. Curse the day A.M. learned to open her bedroom door!

So as it turns out, there was nothing to be afraid of--well, except, that is, for the frightening deposit my little banshee left in her diaper. I should have woke R. up after all!

Halloween

What a great day! The weather was fabulous. (Earlier in the week it had snowed, so we were worried.) R. took half the day off. E.R. had a school party and costume parade. We carved pumpkins and ate scones for dinner. Then came, of course, trick or treating.

The kids were just as excited to hand candy out at our door as they were to go out themselves. At the first doorbell E.R. exclaimed, "It's our first customer!"

We live on a small, secluded street and one might think it's not so great for trick or treating. On the contrary, the kids were given fistfuls of candy. After just a few houses their bags were full and we could call it a night. A.M. scored most of all. Her skunk costume was a HUGE hit. She really was cute. And E.R. made a great Optimus Prime. There was even a classmate dressed up as Bumblebee.

The only crisis of the night--one petrified 5-year-old after going through the haunted house at the ward party.