So Mom and I are obsessed with DI. I think the rest of family enjoys it too but we were a little crazy over Thanksgiving weekend. We spent and hour and a half at the American Fork DI on Saturday and got a bunch of fun stuff and stocking stuffers for our little cheap gift exchange at Christmas. Then on Monday we went to the Provo DI. We got started at 1pm. I thought we would maybe spend an hour there. Lo and behold Carly slept for 2.5 hours (this NEVER happens) and then she woke to be nursed. After I nursed her, after being at DI for about 3 hours a cart comes out and there was an old looking Kitchenaid. What?! So I said, "Mom go snatch that Kitchenaid" since I was holding Carly. She was a little too slow so I went over there and tried to get it. It was too heavy but some guy eventually helped me and then my mom took over and got it from him.
We tried it out. It did not work. Then a seasoned DIer came over and started fiddling with the plug and then it did work! Oooh! It was $35. So I took it home so delighted by the find! Mom cleaned it all up and we researched it online. It is a K45 vintage model. Basically the first of its kind. I'm betting its about 50 years old. Then after she cleaned it up I plugged it in and it did not work! What the heck! I was really sad. My dad then got to work on it all day and going back and forth to the The Mending Shed in town and they have lots of parts and accessories for it. During the cleaning process I have unscrewed the two things on the side to clean around the screws. Apparently that was a key reason for why it wasn't working. My dad replaced the plug because it seemed that the plug was faulty. And the Mending Shed guy said that the part I took out needed to be put in just the right way or else it would not turn on the machine. Wow. Who would have thought. So it works and I made cookie dough and I'm so thankful that my dad did all that work on the machine! I have a Kitchenaid! I'm so happy. I have been oogling over kitchenaids and bosch mixers for a while now and thought I could never afford one until later in my life!
So as I posted on Facebook before, this is my Christmas present from Perry. So yay! I now have two vintage appliances: The kitchenaid mixer and the juicer. But after researching kitchenaid they didn't miss a beat in the capabilities of the machine. They thought of everything from a grain grinder to an ice cream maker. I doubt I'll buy those attachments but if my juicer dies someday I will consider the attachments.
Voila!
Plus I thought I would add some pictures of Grant at Vangogh to Playdoh this month.
In the nativity parade shaking bells and sporting the reindeer antlers.
So Carly is now 4 months today! Crazy. I can't say that time has flown by because it really has felt like 4 months from all the struggles of fatigue and her resisting naps and so on. She has lovely chunky cheeks and legs. So cute! Grant never had chunky anything.
I have also read a number of books. My favorite is "Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Baby" by Marc Weissbluth, M.D. His methods are great because he caters to everyone and wants everyone to feel comfortable from cry it out method people to nurse to sleep people. Anyway, it has really helped Carly go to sleep much easier. It is no longer a battle and a stressful situation at every nap. Soon she should consolidate her naps but at this point she takes about 4-5 naps a day, each 45 min long.
The main reason for this post that Carly has reached one of her milestones. She has rolled over from her stomach to her back, about 3 times in a row and all caught on camera. She has yet to do it for Perry but at least I got it recorded. Also Grant was slightly jealous of her camera attention so I asked him to roll over for me too and I recorded it. Silly boy!
So I had been in choir since I can remember probably starting in Kindergarten or 1st grade. Then I was in the elite choir at Shasta High School called Madrigals and for the choir lover in a person it is a dream come true and a once in a lifetime experience! Then I tried out for the elite choir at Shasta College and got in but I wasn't crazy about being a lower alto part. I'm usually a higher alto. Anyway, it was kind of immature of me but quit and carried on my life with out choir. I continued to enjoy singing at home and hymns at church. When I was pregnant with Grant I was in my 7th month, teaching preschool during my undergrad degree. About 2 weeks before Christmas my voice just disappeared as far as singing went. I had no range. I could sing about 3 notes before my voice would crack and refuse to go higher. So this was quite devastating because I had a decent voice before and no voice now, and quite the humbling experience I might add. I could sing well effortlessly before and now struggled to sing on pitch at all knowing I couldn't make my voice do what it used to, It was so frustrating and now I could relate to those people who can't sing well and maybe understand how they feel. After 2 and a half years since then my voice has slowly worked its way back to my original range and it has gotten easier to sing like I used to sing well with ease. I'm not completely there yet though. I have now made a big decision that I never thought would feel like a big decision but I joined our ward's choir. I went last week and it was so fun when I went! I have hopes that going to choir every week will help strengthen my vocal chords back to my original voice. It made me happy to sing and harmonize and I felt the joy of singing that I have missed for these years since I quit choir. I love to sing!
So after working for a dermatologist when I was in college I learned that to get rid of a wart all you need is some "dust off", a funnel, and a bandaid. So you just turn the dust off upside down, center the funnel over the wart and spray the liquid nitrogin on it and let that effect it for 10 seconds. Then you cover with a bandaid until the blister heals. So we did this for Perry's wart he has been annoyed with since he had some scar tissue that turned into a wart on his face. So it didn't go as clean and easy as I planned lol. Perry numbed the area first, then held the funnel to his face while lying his head on the ottomon. Then I put the dust off (upside down) on the wart and I assumed it would all dissipate quickly like its supposed to. Well I guess there's not as much oxygen in the funnel and the liquid didn't dissipate. So the liquid was on his skin way longer than 10 seconds. Not knowing what to do I spilled some on my hand and Perry's from coming out of the funnel, then I decided to go grab a towel and then I poured it out on the towel and it evaporated immediately. But then the funnel was stuck to his face lol. I put my fingers close to where the face met the funnel and eventually it warmed up enough to come off his face. He had the funnel sized lump on that spot and put a bandaid on it. Within a day it had become a blister and we will see in about a week if the wart is gone. If not round two and hopefully by then it will be gone. Anyway, lovely story huh? I found it quite entertaining. It makes me laugh when I think about it.
So the toddler party was a hit I think. The children immediately started jumping from square to square for the cake walk so we did that one first. Then we did some pumpkin bowling into different monster faced bottles. Then the kids pinned the face on the pumpkin, ate food, decorated a cupcake, and then ran around like crazy high on sugar. They were bouncing off the walls. It was great. I think they really enjoyed themselves. They played with bubbles and glow sticks, which were prizes for the game. I got some dry ice at smiths and that was fun, had spooky hands (carrots) poking out of the dip, and hot dog mummies. My sister in law brought some pumpkin shaped cheese slices and my other friend brought the little juice boxes of punch. I love halloween and themed parties! Next year it will be even spookier.
This year Perry and I rented Dark Shadow as our Halloween themed movie to watch. Then on Halloween day my sister in law came over and we made hand and footed painted bats and played out side a lot. I also made the kids some apple marshmallow mouths. Then in the evening we went to our ward Halloween party and chili/cornbread dinner and met up with Gator and her family to trick or treat a bit. It was fun! Then on Friday I hit up the clearance at Wal-mart and got a couple things for next year. It was definitely a fun month! Here are some pictures of trick'r'treating:
If you can't tell we are Little Mario, Big Mario, Luigi, and Princess Peach.
The studly Marios.
The whole trick or treating gang minus the cousin's parents.
My little darling is 3 months old and her eyes are as blue as ever still. High hopes there! She is battling infant eczema and I have now discovered through on line research that maybe I should bathe her every day rather than every 3 days. We are lotioning her up twice a day and her cradle cap is still there. I learned that cradle cap is also a form of eczema however the methods I have heard and used for it are not things I would do to normal skin eczema. Anyway, she still consistently sleeps at least 6 hours a night and then some after nursing. She also only takes about 30 min naps like 5-6 times a day. I wish she would sleep longer. My efforts to extend her naps have been futile and NEVER work. So I give up. She will figure it out eventually and then once she is 6 months I will do more intense sleep training and she will be more developmentally able to fall asleep after the 30 minute wake up cycle during naps. She should be able to sleep 1.5 to 2 hours per nap. I really hope she figures it out soon. She is a joy in our home, smiling, cooing, almost laughing, focusing intently on her delightful toys. It is great fun.
I recently reinjured my back so things are a bit more challenging and I don't have as much stamina with helping Carly fall asleep in her bed but I just need to figure out a good exercise that will strengthen and not strain my back. I strained it while running and I'm pretty sure the first time around I strained it while running too. Lame. Maybe yoga would be better. I will have to see what other people think.
But anyway, I have made it through the newborn phase and she is officially just a normal little infant lol. Love her!
Pictures courtesy of Grant and I:
Oh and a little tidbit about Grant, he is getting really good at taking pictures. It is really funny. He can point and shoot well and he takes pictures of everything. He got really excited and showed me all his pictures like of the refrigerator and stuff lol. Also its probably the only time there are going to be pictures of me ever doing my day to day life during my years of having kids, you know because I'm the only one who is usually taking pictures.
This is my second voting season in which I am eligible to vote. It is kind of empowering, because back when I was in school friends and other students would debate and argue which presidential candidate was better and I thought it was really dumb because none of them could vote anyway. Plus both candidates are usually not all bad and they each have great points. That is why the nation is so divided in half when it comes to the race.
I remember a couple distinct times when it was voting season. I don't remember the first two youngest numbers. But I do remember when I was 8 there was a fun little craft on a cereal box that you used a plate, some crayons, and string to hang your own propaganda sign to "Vote for Clinton". I wonder what my parents thought. I don't know which one they voted for. I find it interesting though that children can be exploited through cereal boxes during a presidential campaign. I really enjoyed my craft.
Then I remember when I was 12 and I was actually in the middle of performing Annie Jr. at Harmony Middle School. It was the end of voting day and I was doing a quick costume change and the television was on to see where the polls stood. It was all very confusing at that time who I should want to win because everyone seemed so concerned about that.
When I was 16 is when I remember the above memory when my friends were all debating over which candidate was better and me not caring because we couldn't vote anyway and the issues were somewhat confusing to me anyway.
When I was 18 I registered to vote, then when I was 20 it was my first year to vote and I lived in Idaho and I was a newlywed. I remember shamefully not really knowing much about each candidate. This year I have made a point to watch all the debates and to be an informed voter. It has been a great feeling to be political yet never overbearing on anyone. I am excited to go on a little walk with my children to Orem High School to vote and to show my son that it is fun and exciting to Vote when you are able. I hope my children will learn the significance of voting for who and what you believe in to help better our country! I will encourage my children to be more informed than me. I hope all of you prayerfully consider the candidates and to VOTE! Yay!
