60 Random things you did not know you wanted to know about me

Saw this on Carrie's blog and thought I would copy. I actually really love things like this

1. What is in the back seat of your car right now? 1 car seat, a booster seat and some books

2. When was the last time you threw up? this morning. I got a bug today

3. What's your favorite curse word? it is a german swear word

4. Name 3 people you made smile today. Noah, Kersten and maybe my mom. Sofia smiles at everyone but me

5. What were you doing at 8 am this morning? sleeping with my babe, praying that Noah would sleep longer

6. What were you doing 30 minutes ago? feeding my babe and watching Noah and Kersten play

7. What will you be doing 3 hours from now? Hopefully I will be in bed

8. Have you been to a strip club? No, but the doc's that delivered Sofia teased that they would be at the one on the corner when she was born. Luckily they were not

9. What is the last thing you said aloud? "If the baby starts crying, just call me. You promised to play with your boy."

10. What is the best ice cream flavor? anything with Carmel

11. What was the last thing you had to drink? Water

12. What are you wearing right now? black yoga pants, coral long sleeved v-neck and white socks

13. What was the last thing you ate? Starburst jelly beans

14. Have you bought any new clothing items this week? Last week I bought 2 shirts

15. When was the last time you ran? I ran around my house today chasing my son

16. What's the last sporting event you watched? can't remember

18. Who is the last person you emailed? long list with info for baby blessing

19. Ever go camping? Planning to a lot this summer

20. Do you have a tan? Not so much.

24. Do you drink your soda from a straw? If it's in a cup at a restaurant.

25. What did your last IM say? Can't remember it was to Ben and Shaunelle

26. Are you someone's best friend? I hope so

27. What are you doing tomorrow? Going to Costco and Target if I can do it.

28. Where is your mom right now? At home with Al

29. Look to your left, what do you see? Filing cabinet, lamp, wrapping paper, tv and scrapbook table

30. What color is your watch? silver and light pink

31. What do you think of when you think of Australia? Kangaroos, cool hats and accents

32. Would you consider plastic surgery? Honestly, when I am done breast feeding I want a boob lift and a tummy tuck sounds so good right now.

33. What is your birthstone? Topaz

34. Do you go in a fast food place or just hit the drive thru? Generally, it's the drive thru with kids. On saturdays we try to go in and make it a fun treat

35. How many kids do you want? I have 2 and I am done

36. Do have a dog? No, it would kill me and make me sick

37. Last person you talked to on the phone? Kersten

38. Have you met anyone famous? Local celebrities, but not national

39. Any plans today? well, I am going to put Noah to bed, feed my babe and maybe finish the book I am making

40. How many states have you lived in? 1

41. Ever go to college? Finished

42. Where are you right now? at our computer desk in the basement

43. Biggest annoyance in your life right now? not being physically able to do all that I want and need to, including exercise, cleaning and fun

44. Last song listened to? Grace Kelly by Mika

46. Are you allergic to anything? anything with fur or feathers and slightly to bananas

47. Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time? Right now my black tennis shoes

48. Are you jealous of anyone? Lots of people for one reason or another

50. Is anyone jealous of you? No clue what they would be jealous of, unless of my beautiful children and dreamy husband

51. What time is it? 8:02pm

52. Do any of your friends have children? Most

53. Do you eat healthy? I have spurts, but I'd say generally not, although I eat better than I used to.

54. What do you usually do during the day? Cook, clean, tidy, nurse, feed, judge, defend, console, comfort, discipline, guide, teach, eat, drink, read,

55. Do you hate anyone right now? No, have some strong dislike feelings for some behaviors

56. Do you use the word "hello" daily? It's how I answer the phone

58. How old will you be turning on your next birthday? 32

59. Have you ever been to Six Flags? Sadly No

60. How did you get one of your scars? When I was 3, my dad got home from a trip and I ran towards him into the door of a big dump truck and had blood gushing from my left eye. I still have a scar from the stitches.

Shoes

So in LOVE with these sweet shoes. I should have thrown on the red leg warmers to match. Will do this soon for sure. This is for you Mara. You have impeccible taste and style. I so want to emulate you in this. All pics were fuzzy. Someday I will have a better camera.

Isn't she sweet and squishy. I love how my sister Amy just sat there forever because she was happy. I have great and wonderful friends and people in my life.

Grateful Sunday 2-24-08

Speech Therapy-Finally we are getting somewhere with getting Noah some of the help he really needs. It is just beginning and it is a long road ahead of us but it has begun.

Energy - I have almost kept up the dishes this week and have pick up my front room on a regular basis this week. I also had dinner ready or almost ready twice this week when Kerst got home. These are HUGE accomplishments for me right now.I can see that someday I will be able to keep up with it all to some degree. And it feels good. I might just be getting use to the no sleep who knows.

Medicene- I really don't know what people did before medicene. Sometimes other things just don't work or work well. I am so grateful to live in a time where they do have things to help us out.I think Sofia's new dose of medicene is working. She has more happy hours in the day than she did. Nights are still a struggle, there really is a "Witching" hour with her when the sun goes down.

Warmth before the Storm- We have a storm coming soon, but this morning outside was so delicious. It was so warm and the sun was shining. We opened up all the windows to air out the house and have new air. We all went outside for awhile and just basked in the sun. Now it is grey and dreary but it was nice to see the sun a bit and have hope for nicer weather.

Dedicated Home Teachers - Just before Christmas we got assigned new home teachers. They have been so diligent in coming every month. It really is so nice to have them be dedicated and come to our home. It also helps remind us to be better at our callings also.

Sofia Stats

On Tuesday Feb 19th, Sofia had her two month appt with the doc. She is not quite two months yet, they did it anyway so we did not have to come in twice. She is growing right on. She is one alert little girl. When she is awake, she is looking and taking everything in. She has to be in the know about what is going on. Already she wants to be in the middle of everything. As you can see she has the cutest hair and usually with babes that have hair they get male pattern baldness in reverse. In other words they get a stripe on the back of their head with no hair. Well my baby girl has a very strong neck and is always looking around and has been doing this since she was 2 weeks old. Hopefully we are getting this fussiness and crying figured out. They doubled her reflux medicene and it seems to have helped a lot. 2 nights ago she slept 7 hours between feedings. So I know she can do it, we just need to get her to do that consistently. I love this pic of her for many reasons. First of all I see her miserable like this a lot. And isn't she still so cute and beautiful. Second she has a hat on, I Loved hats with Noah but with Sofia I think she has such cute hair I have not used them as much. She looks almost like an entirely different baby. My friend Alicia gave me this darling outfit and it fits her perfectly right now.

Here are her stats.
weight 10 lbs 3 oz in the 50%
Length 22 1/4 inches in the 40 %
Head Circumference 38 cm in the 40%

January/February Real Simple Interview

What is the secret to a good marriage? Since I am an expert authority on this subject I would say.... a huge sense of humor, you have to laugh everyday. And good communication, Kersten from the beginning of us has really emphasized this

What's your favorite product and why? my tape gun, I love using it to make books or scrapbook pages. It is very satisfying to have the speed and the strength of the tape.

What celebrity crushes did you have as a teenager? My first crush was Neil Patrick Harris, aka "Doogie Howser MD" and then I moved onto having a poster of Luke Perry and of Mel Gibson from the movie Forever Young

What did you want to be when you were little? I always wanted to be a mom above everything else. But sometimes a dancer, a childlife therapist or a teacher

What's the one thing you'll never understand? Why we continue to make the same mistakes or behaviors over and over again when we know the outcome

What's the craziest thing you ever did for love? Got married.

What scares you? Failure

What's your favorite possession? My scrapbooks and journals.

Something I've been struggling with lately is. . . feeling like myself. I think between the lack of sleep, the screaming baby and just doing what is necessary in the day it zaps all my energy and there is not much left. I am doing tons better than even a week ago, It just takes time.

Baby Announcement

Here is the sweetest most beautiful baby girl. She really is just so perfect. But I am her mom and have the right to say so.

This is the family photo we sent out in some of the announcements. Right before these pics I was feeding Sofia in front of a blowing heater to keep her warm. It really messed up my hair. It makes me laugh to think about it.

What my Name Supposedly Means

What Laurie Means

You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow. You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily. Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is. You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection. You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive. You have the classic "Type A" personality. You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way. And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life. You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it. You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something. You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense. You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun. You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing. You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long. You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start. You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone. You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together. At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.

What's Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

I thought this was interesting. Some of it is true and some totally off. I am not a type A personality but I am charming (and humble) and I do work hard not to rock the boat. I want to be as lucky as it says I should be and in some way I am. Hmmm. Interesting

Grateful Sunday 2-17-08

I have kind of been slack in my grateful sunday posts. I think it is a combination of things, lack of sleep, lack of time and being grateful for the same things and just being grateful for making it through another day. So here are some grateful things from this week

Valentine Surprises- On Valentines day Kersten called and said to make myself glamorous and be ready by 7 and not to worry he already got a babysitter. We had decided for Valentines day to not worry about anything big and just hang out with our kids and maybe rent a movie for after Noah goes to bed. He ended up taking me to Tuscany Restaurant. I had never been there and a buddy at work offered him the reservation. It was fun to go out to a really nice dinner. I cannot remember the last time we did that. I go the Spinach Ravoli and he got the Salmon. I think I will dream about there bread. Kersten worries that I will crave it. It was really delicious. Kersten's parents and grandparents LOVED having the kids. Noah is so easy to watch and they got to fuss and hold Sofia to their hearts content. It was a fantastic night.

Noah was so cute and asked me to be his valentine at home. Lilly was his valentine at school. His teacher at school made plaster molds of their hands at school to give to their parents. I am a sentimental fool and absolutely LOVE things like that. He kept giving me kisses and hugs all day.

My Mom- I have said this a million times before, but I really could not survive without my mom right now. She came and hung out on thursday with me and saved my sanity by vacumming for me (something I am NOT allowed to do). I am so glad she is my mom.

Dairy Products- I have gone off milk to see if Sofia will be happier. She might be allergic to the milk protein. I started tuesday having nothing with milk in it and cheated on thursday at dinner. I realized that milk is my comfort food. I drink a glass of milk whenever I am low, sad or just a bit hungry. Noah and I have rituals with a glass of milk and crackers, cookies etc. I eat ice cream a ton and have yogurt for breakfast. And most of my fast meals for dinner involve cheese. So this has been a struggle. I will keep trying just to see if it makes her happier. I struggle with food already. This is a great challenge. She has an appt on tues. I love milk and miss it greatly.

Answers to Prayers- I don't have to look very hard to see the answers to so many prayers in my life. I know the Lord is mindful of me and my family and is putting things in our path to help us grow and to better our lives.

Happy Love Day!

Can life get better than this. These are the people that I love best. Happy Valentine's to my loves

Goodbye Fish, Hello Fish

Sadly, on Saturday February 9, Our Ernie Fish passed away. I was at a bridal shower for Angie C* when Noah called to tell me. "Ernie fish died". He then asked to talk to Lena (who gave him the fish) and she asked if he was sick and he promptly responded "No, he Died." When I got home and hugged my boy goodnight he talked a lot about Ernie. The reason I knew he was talking about him was I kept hearing Ernie and Jesus. Kersten explained to me that he had talked to him about how our bodies have a spirit and when we die our spirit goes back to Heavenly Father and Jesus and our body stays here. So he had no problem flushing him down the toilet. At church on Sunday, during sacrament meeting he kept looking at his Jesus book and pointing to Jesus, nodding and saying 'Ernie fish".

As part of Family Night on monday, we invited Nik and Lena to come with us to get a new fish. Noah was very excited. He wanted another blue fish. It could not have any red or other colors on it. He and Lena went and discovered all the other fish. Our fish adventure was successful. We have a new fish, who is all blue. It has bigger fins and is quite beautiful. He has named him BRUCE FISH. After a certain superhero that he loves. He likes his new home, Noah explained that it was Ernie Fish' old house and now is his. It was so fun to have Nik and Lena with us. We love our new fish.

Thoughts Whirling in my Head

Pic taken Jan 29, day before she went into the hosp. Noah has a rash on his lips from his runny nose.

I have been writing new posts in my head all week. So it seems like I have posted a lot on here and the reality is that none of the imaginative, creative and witty thoughts I have in my head have actually made it onto the page. I doubt this post will even come close to the brilliance that swirls in my head day and night (now). But I will at least touch on some of the things going on in there. This might get a bit long winded.

Sofia is doing so very well. She is breathing fantastically. We do not take her out of the house much. I think I have taken her to pick Noah up at Preschool and to the store when I am absolutely desperate for something. I am getting a bit stir crazy. Luckily, my husband gives me opportunities to go out and also we have people that want to be with our kids so badly that they kick me out to be with them. Thanks you guys. I believe the hospital has ruined my baby. She was so cute and peaceful before she got sick. Now she screams all the time. I think it is mostly Reflux and gas. Noah had it so I have done this. I have to remind myself of that. We started her on Zantac on friday and are praying that is helps. If not I think her mother will go to the looney bin soon for lack of sleep. She did make her first real smile and it was at Daddy. He came home from work last friday and picked her up and called her princess. She looked right at him and grinned. It totally slayed him. She already has him wrapped around her little finger.

Noah is really the most joyful boy. He has a real girlfriend at school. Her name is Lilly. I noticed that she would follow him around and she would always talk about him with her parents when they would pick her up. But when I asked Noah about her he would shrug. Since he started going more regularly since the baby, he talks all the time about Lilly. Kerst asked him if she is his girlfriend and he said "Uh Huh" and then he asked if he kisses her and he responded in the positive. He keeps showing me her in his class picture with a glint in his eye. He already loves girls, We are so in trouble with this boy. His other thing he does all the time right now is if you say something like "I am so glad we went to Target today" for example. He always says "EEe, Who" as in Me too. Lately it is said so passionately and with sass and feeling that it always makes me laugh.

I also am forever indebted to my friend Melissa, who I don't think reads my blog but I need to write it just the same. She has saved me the last almost 7 weeks. My c-section incision clotted and I have had to heal it as an open wound. This means I have to clean and re-pack it daily (my cute husband does that). I think this has been my hardest challenge. I just want to shower normally or be able to carry my babies carseat legally. I keep thinking that when my wound heals then I can decide if I am really crazy or I was overwhelmed with all the changes. You know something has to change when someone asks your son "Does the baby cry a lot/" and his response is "Mom too". I really just don't want to be in constant pain and be vigilant about it anymore. Anyway back to Melissa. She lived across the hall from me when we lived in the condos and is a Wound Care Nurse by profession. She has been invaluable. Even though we have an assigned nurse, she has come out and changed, cared for and helped me with this wound. I know it would not have healed as well without her help and knowledge. It has been so fun to see her so much too. It is not quite to a place where I am finished worrying about it but it is almost better. Thanks Melissa

So here is a very small sample of the posts swirling in my head. I had a minute so I thought I would jot them down.

Random Survey

What is your desktop wallpaper? field of daisies

What is your favorite zoo animal? giraffe, elephant and penguin

What was your favorite toy as a child? my dolls and Barbie

What food do you eat too much of? dessert

What kind of hairstyle do you have? curly, to my shoulders. layered

What was your favorite activity in gym class? talking on the bleachers

What is on the shirt your wearing right now? random leaf pattern

What is the picture nearest to you of? Sofia's baby announcement pic

What kind of salad dressing do you like? Vidalia onion at home and Ranch or thousand Island at restaurants

What's your least favorite food? hmm, still thinking

What do you do on a Sunday night? We visit one of our parents and then put the kids to bed and watch Iron Chef America. then I usually read

If you could only use one condiment on your food for the rest of your life, what would it be? ketchup for sure

What color are your sheets? light blue with penguins on them

How big is your computer display? 17 inch

What pair of shoes do you wear most often? my New Balance tennis shoes

What is your favorite game? Imagine If, Apples to Apples and Mario Party

What is your favorite Thanksgiving food? my grandma's stuffing and mashed-potatoes & gravy

What is your favorite pizza topping? pepperoni

What time do you plan on waking up tomorrow? as late as my kids allow

What is your favorite day of the year? my anniversary

U2 3D

Last Night because of two very nice people, namely Nik, my bro and his wife Lena. Kersten and I stole away in the night to go see U2 3D at the IMAX theatre. Kersten and I both LOVE the band U2. So we were really excited, Nik and Lena saw it a couple of weeks ago and decided then and there they were going to make it happen so that we could see the show. It was totally amazing. We saw them in concert a couple of years ago and in some ways this was a bit better. You could taste the energy of the concert. I wished we could have stood up and danced to the music. The cinematography was incredible. The 3D made you feel so much more in the concert. This sounds so silly but it made me feel young again. Not saying that I am old or anything. Sitting there with my sweetheart listening to U2. He was the one to really get me into them back in high school when we started dating. I had the thought that when we are really old we will be sitting together listening or watching U2 or Dave Matthews thinking this is the way music is suppose to be. Not the new fangled stuff the young kids are listening too. Hah Hah. Just like my Grandparents would listen to Glen Miller and remember.

I don't know what it is about Bono but he is so very sexy to me when he is singing. When the concert started and the music got louder and he started singing. I felt that pull in my gut of "Woah, hot". I commented to Kersten about this and he just laughed at me. I actually have blogged about how hot Bono is when singing in the first month I started blogging. How funny is that. He wore like a half dozen different jackets during the show. I waited in anticipation to see what cool leather jacket he would sport next. I told Kerst I want him to wear a black t-shirt with a leather jacket and slick back his hair. I was teasing of course. It made him laugh so it was worth it. Bono does so much for the world, it is a good rock star crush. One thing I noticed is that all four band members were wearing their wedding rings That made me even like them more. I also now have a smaller crush on The Edge, the guitar player. He is so talented and had a fantastic presence. Kersten and Lena both commented that he is the best, most normal looking of the bunch. They are all looking a bit older also. Especally Adam the bass player and The Edge's arms. We both had the best time and talked about it all night. Loved the music, the movie was completely amazing and really worth it to see. I don't know how much longer it is in the theatres, if you are a U2 fan you HAVE to see it. Thank you again Nik and Lena for spoiling us. We loved it and are indebted to you.

GET OUT AND VOTE!

DID YOU VOTE TODAY? I DID. Go Mitt!

Sweetness

We took pics yesterday for her birth announcement. These are a sample of the sweetness. You will have to wait to se the pic in the announce and the fam pic. Thanks Al and Mom for taking these. We Love them