Winter Poem

Here is Sophia's Winter Poem that she wrote this afternoon.

Snow falls on the ground

No sunshine in the winter

Oh no what happened to the sunshine

Winter snow is so cold and white

So bright

What is Real?

A real picture of me!

I can't tell these days. Facebook and blogs are fun because you get to catch up with all kinds of people. People from different friendship "pools". Close friends, family members, distant friends, people you know from high school, college friends, ward friends, parents of your kids' friends, your parents' friends, people you may not even know, etc. You get the point. So what do I usually post? Usually pretty neutral status updates, good pictures, generic comments. I wouldn't want to reveal too much, right? We all get to choose how we present ourselves to the FB and blog world. I admit I often take pictures just so I can post them on Facebook or on my nearly non-existent blog.

The other day I was wondering what would happen if I was totally honest with my status or comments to other people's statuses (is that a word?) You know what I mean. What if you were totally honest? What if you typed what you were actually thinking all of the time? Of course society would fall apart. People at work think I am upbeat all of the time. If they only knew. Actually I am pretty upbeat most of the time but I have my moments. I had some yesterday.

I felt sad and left out from a 3rd grade boys basketball situation. Sounds silly but I was feeling sorry for myself (and Quinton even though he is clueless about the whole situation). Then I started thinking about feeling like this before. I must insert here that I know I have nothing to complain about. We are very fortunate and blessed. Our kids have relatively few problems (besides Penn's throwing and throwing up issues!) But back to the feeling sorry for myself... I started thinking about how we have only been "BOO'd" once since we moved in. My kids see the signs on the doors in the neighborhood stating that that house has been officially "BOO'd" and remember when we were "BOO'd" and never say what I am thinking, "why doesn't anyone BOO us?". Then I think about how I never went to any high school or college formals. No one ever asked. At the time it was mostly no big deal but a little bit of a bummer. Then there was the Libery Belle try-out disasters. I was also rarely asked out on dates. No big deal now, right? Thank goodness I had a thick skin and some confidence. Then I think about how I don't have many close friends outside of work, family, and friends from college and growing up. I must not be very good at making new friends. I know I am not. It is my own fault. I put up a wall. I don't chat much with the other moms at the bus stop. I don't go on walks with them. We don't hang out with many other couples other than Brady's friends from growing up. Don't worry, today was a new day and to be honest it is hard to conjure those feelings to even write this. I am over it.

So there is my honesty rant. I wish sometimes other people were more honest. I wish I was more honest too (to a point). It is hard to write from the heart when you are worried about who is reading what and who may be offended or think less of you. I need to realize that people aren't perfect and what they (and I) project to the world is not always 100% to be believed.

Don't get me started on reality TV either. I am totally into Super Nanny and Clean House and you know my opinions of Jon & Kate and the Duggars. But can we trust what we see?

Man, what is my problem? I promise next time I will post about all the fun the kids and I have and how organized and creative I am! Well not totally but I promise no more boo hoo....

Disclaimer: Most of you reading this are pretty honest so don't take offense. I mean Lysa posted pictures of her house in a state of disarray (subjective). I am not that brave! Way to go Lysa! You have always told it like it is (unlike me).

Boring Blog Update

The kids hanging out at the bar (which is really just he half wall room divider) chilling out eating frozen lemonade.

Is that what my Blog turned into? Me updating people on fund raising? B O R I N G ! ! By the way, I did spend $90 on frozen cookies so my kids could at least get the lowest prize. Lame, I know.

Quinton starts Running Club this morning. I am proud of him and hopes he likes it. Sophia wanted to do it too but you have to at least be a 3rd grader. I guess I am living vicariously through my kids to a point. I wish I had participated more in school activities and sports.

Speaking of running. I finally got my little running computer up and going. It is really complicated. There is a heart rate monitor that you wear around your chest, a foot pod which goes on your shoe and a wrist computer which looks like a watch. I had to go run on the treadmill at the rec center to calibrate the footpod. I don'tknow if I have ever calibrated anything before. Now I have to figure out what I am keeping track of in the first place. I just want to know how far I am going. Maybe driving the route with the car is easier.

Anyway, I have lots to do this morning so I better go...

Penn now knows that he gets a bath in the sink if he throws up in the kitchen. Nice face!

4th Week of School. I am trying to take a picture each week to see how fast they change!

The Fundraising Update

So, I finally emailed the fundraising coordinator at our school. Depending on how much our school sells we get 40%-50% of the $15/cookie order. Not as bad as I thought-still a rip off if you ask me. Tomorrow the orders are due and my kids will each have one order (from us). Bummer. Quinton's best friend actually sold 15 so I guess he gets to go on the limo ride. I will have to ask him mom about who bought all the cookies! Anyway, the coordinator said she wasn't there for the assembly and that her kids also came hope pumped up for the limo ride but alas they won't get to go either. Hmmm. That's it, no fight, no call to the news, no limo ride!

Let Me Eat Cake!

So I finally bought one of those chocolate bundt cakes from Costco about 10 days ago for Brady's Mom's birthday. I had always wanted to get one but really couldn't justify just buying a cake. It was really really good. So, yesterday I was at Costco buying Penn's weekly supply of Silk and what the heck, I got a chocolate cake too.

Well, last night Brady informed me that he was making a rule about chocolate cake from Costco. It is okay to get it for an occasion but not just because we want cake. Hmmm. This coming from the man who made us drive all around Grand Junction looking for a certain flavor of Ben and Jerry's ice cream for his nightly fix (he is over it now by the way).

Brady is not really into treats like I am. That is probably a good thing. When I was pregnant with Penn I would get hungry at night in bed. He would say, "just go to sleep, it will be better". Well, I only gained 15 pounds with Penn so I guess that was good advice.

Also, I will probably get over the cake with this go round and not feel the need to get it again....I better go see if I still like it!

Penn liked it too and it didn't even make him throw up even

though it contains whey. Yeah!

Yes, a blog post from Beth

Here is a picture to accompany my post. It is unrelated...

I am the first to admit that I am not very good at blogging. It is probably the perfectionist side of me (small side). I just feel like I can't "post" until I really have something to say or show. So last night as Brady and I were getting all riled up about school fund raising I decided that I could do a blog post about my frustrations. A warning, this is unorganized and rushed.

I am all for raising money for the school and understand that it is necessary. This year our school is raising money to buy more technology (smart boards anyone?) beautify the grounds outside the mobile trailer classrooms (yes they are staying) and to create an outdoor science lab (cool!). We have fun at the school carnival, spaghetti dinners, bingo nights, etc. Selling boxes of frozen cookies for $15 a pop? Not so into that.

Allow me to rant for a moment. I don't even mind selling (buying) cookies. Heck I bought 4 boxes last year and they were pretty good. The problem I have is that they worked the kids into a frenzy about selling, selling, selling. The kids came home totally excited about a limo ride to lunch. What?! Evidently if they sell 15 "units" (translate $225 worth of frozen cookies) they earn a limo ride to lunch. They had an assembly to explain the fund raising and the kids went wild when they told them that they could earn a limo ride to lunch (I'm picturing an elementary school version of the car episode on Oprah).

Brady and I are wondering how much of the $15 "unit" actually goes back to the school. Our neighborhood is full of elementary school students all selling cookies. I'm not sure how we will sell 30 boxes so my kids can ride in the limo. We want to ask how much of the cookie sale actually goes to the school, write a check for 15 times that amount and see if our kids can get the limo ride that way.

Maybe I am a grouch (well I know I am), maybe I am depriving my kids of important (selling) skills, but I am not a fan of adults trying to sell me stuff that I don't need and I am not a fan of kids selling expensive cookies either (isn't obesity a problem people?). It might be different if it was $1 candy bars or if the kids weren't manipulated using methods usually reserved for time-share sales people.

How much does it cost to rent a limo for lunch anyway?

All I can say is that this fundraising company is probably getting rich off of our school. Plus, they didn't even explain the logistics of the limo ride. For real, are they going to come to the school and take the kids to McDonald's in a limo? That is what the kids think. They are already planning where to go and who gets to get in first etc.

I'll send my email to the fundraising coordinator and let you know....no, I'm not calling the news.

PS: Let me know if you would like to purchase a box of frozen, pre-formed cookies, they actually are pretty good and easy to bake! (no, this is not some reverse psychology method of me selling the most amount of cookies by pretending that I hate it, I still hate it!)

Chinese Eyes...

Chinese eyes are watching you....that is what this picture reminds me of (sing it to Hall & Oates).  Brady came up with that little ditty which is pretty funny.  The story that goes along is that we were at a missionary homecoming open house for a kid in his parents' ward.  We were getting ready to leave and a little girl says to Brady, "your Mom has Chinese eyes".  Hmm, I'm thinking how did she know that Gombs (Brady's Mom) was his Mom as she was at the party but not with us.  Then I was thinking hmmm, Gombs doesn't have Chinese eyes.  Then it all came together--she was talking about me.  Pretty funny!  I believe the more PC term is "almond shaped" which is fine with me because I L O V E almonds.  

Anyway, I haven't posted forever because I feel like I never have anything of substance to say.

I thought about doing a whole post in the style of writing a letter like Meri does her Facebook status.  For example...

Dear Beth,

Please post something, I am lame.

Love,

Your Blog

or

Dear Oatmeal Cookies,

Did I cut my cholesterol by eating 2 dozen of you in one day?

Love,

Beth 

One more random story.  Tonight Quinton spotted what he thought was a Queen Ant on the back patio.  He was freaked out because it was huge and had wings.  I don't know if there are such things as Queen Ants but he seemed to know what he was talking about.  Brady trapped it in a bug catcher tube and left it out there.  Quinton is certain that the rest of the ants are going to be mad that we captured their queen.  He thinks they will attack as soon as they see us.  He is really freaked out.  So, then I thought it might be kind of funny (but also kind of cruel and I'm not going to do it) to write a note and leave it on the bedroom door that says:

Dear Quinton,

You took our queen and now you must pay.  We ants are vengeful creatures.  You better watch out.

The Ants

Dear Beth,

You have avoided me too long.  Stop blogging this instant.

From,

The email and document you said you would send tonight