Where Do I Sign Up?

My new favorite show on TV (as of yesterday) is The Baby Borrowers. I like the premise of it: giving teens a real taste of what it is to be a parent by letting them take care of someone else's baby (under video supervision of the parent and in the physical presence of a licensed nanny. The parents are allowed to step in for a minute or two here-and-there to give advice, and the nanny is only allowed to interfere in an actual emergency). Some of it is far from reality, for instance the girls got to "experience" being pregnant by wearing a preggy belly around. But the belly itself isn't half of the experience. What about the swollen limbs and face, the heartburn, the fatigue, the crazy hormones (a couple girls actually exhibited symptoms of the hormonal mood swings, but I think it was more Pampered Teenager and less Hormonal Wreck), getting kicked from the inside (sometimes really hard) and oh, so many other things that go with being pregnant? What about all that?

I remember some kids at my school had to carry around a sack of sugar for a week, to simulate what it would be like to have a baby while still in high school. They had to take it everywhere they went, because theoretically a high school-er wouldn't be able to afford a babysitter, and their parents would be at work or otherwise unavailable. Most of the kids treated it pretty lightly, because, in reality, it was just a sack of sugar.

This Baby Borrower thing, though. It intrigues me so much. As I watched the opening interviews with the teens, I had to chuckle at how easy they thought having a kid would be. Honestly, I didn't think it would be as hard as it is either, but I knew there would be more to it than just loving your kid (more on this in a bit). There would be all the stuff you have to do to take care of a kid, then add to that keeping up a household; rent, food, health insurance, clothing, diapers. It all ads up. Another unrealistic thing about the show; NBC is providing lodging for these teens as well as setting them up with a job, so they don't really have to deal with all that.

I'm really amazed at the responses on NBC's website. So many people are saying this show is awful and abusive to the babies and the separation from their parents is going to cause long term mental issues. Really? So parents are never allowed to be separated from their kids? Three days away from Mom and Dad for a 6 month old baby is going to ruin the rest of her life? No more vacations for me, I guess. I hope it's not too late... Maybe the damage has already been done, and my kids are taking it out on me by smearing poop on the walls at nap time. Sheesh.

Anyway, I won't go into that part of it anymore because I think it's bullpucky* and I'd rather focus more on why I think this show is great. Someone on one of the blogs mentioned the lack of bonding and love the teens have for the babies (they're only with the baby for three days before they move on to toddlers). I think this is not such a bad thing for this show. These teens, like most people, predict that they'll have a bond with their kids, which they probably will, and in reality that bond is what makes being a parent worth it. On the show, however, the teens see only the hard work side--the side they probably underestimated before--and hopefully it will help them realize they need to have a few things in order (like a good job, and a solid relationship; most of the couples are on pretty rocky ground and think having a baby will "fix" things between them) before they go bringing a life into this world that they aren't ready to take care of.

I would totally let my kids go on the show (well, Drew and Owen anyway; I'm a little more protective of Samantha--that's probably what will cause her mental issues: not that I was gone but that I was around too much). It's all in the name of science, right? If it'll give some teens a chance to re-examine their priorities...

And I'll be honest. I could use a break.

*Thank you Jack Black; now that I know I'm not the only person who uses that word I'm no longer afraid to use it publicly.

Bedtime Schmedtime

I haven't been running lately. My running partner was on vacation last week and apparently I don't have enough motivation to go by myself.

Since I haven't been getting up at 7 a.m. this week*, I've been staying up a couple hours later. The night before last I stayed up til 2 a.m. reading. Then I watched a little TV. I've been fascinated by the medical mystery shows on Discovery Channel lately. There was a lady who had a 200 lb tumor. This lady normally weighed about 120 pounds. It took 18 hours of surgery to remove it. It was incredible. So of course I had to watch it.

I woke up at 9:30 yesterday morning, which is too early when you stay up til 2:30. Normally I do great with 7 hours of sleep, but it requires going to bed before midnight. All day long I was dragging and tired and couldn't get myself to do more than fold some laundry. Didn't put it away.

Then, when bedtime rolled around, I got a sudden burst of energy. "I should clean the kitchen. And the bathroom. And mop the floor," I thought. So I did it. It took almost three hours, so once again I got to bed after 2 a.m. Turns out bedtime is a great time to clean. It's nice and cool, and there are no little interruptions like, "Mom! I peed on the floor!" or "I'm feeding Vito!" (This involves getting a cup of dog food out of the cupboard, dumping half of it on floor on the way over, then dumping it into his dish. But usually they miss the food dish and it ends up in the water dish.)

It was really nice to get everything done with no interruptions, and even though 9:30 came way too early this morning, it was really really nice to wake up to a clean kitchen!

*I actually have been waking up at 7 every morning, just because I've gotten used to it, but I usually think, "Unnnnnggggg. No runnnnnn," and go right back to sleep.

Weekend

We've had a good weekend. Friday we drove down south to attend a friend's wedding luncheon and ring ceremony. He's the friend who introduced me to David (his name is also David. His bride's name is Marcy). I was thrilled when we got his announcement in the mail because he's dated a lot of crazy girls and has wanted to get married for a long time and he finally found that special someone who treats him well and isn't weird. She's in fact very nice and really pretty, and all-around sweet. Drew and Owen were of course excited for the trip, even though they had no clue who David and Marcy were. At random intervals of the trip Drew would exclaim, "I'm so excited to see Marvid and Carcy!" Close enough.

The ring ceremony was something new to me, that I thought was cute and sweet. Dave and Marcy were married in the Mount Timpanogos LDS temple, and a lot of their relatives weren't able to attend. So before the luncheon, they had a guy give a little talk about marriage, then they each read the inscriptions on their rings. They had gotten each others' rings inscribed in Hungarian, which Dave was able to translate (he served a mission in Hungary). Dave had inscribed on Marcy's band something like, "I'll love you forever," and she had inscribed on his, "Love you lots, Stallion!" They exchanged rings and kissed, then we all went inside the reception hall to eat.

Drew and Owen's favorite part of the trip was when we went to Cousin Heidi's house. They got to get out of the car and run around for a few hours and play with all the second cousins. They're still talking about riding the tractor on the driveway (a Little Tikes tractor), and playing in the dirt (the sandbox). It would have been even more fun (for me anyway) if Owen hadn't decided to change his own poopy diaper on the living room floor. It got in his hair, but luckily not on the carpet. And I think everyone (except him) wishes he hadn't dumped sand in the bubble jug and then dumped the bubbles all over the lawn. *sigh.* Next time we visit we'll bring you some bubbles, Heidi!

Samantha had a good time, too. She got to play with little Katie, who is really close in age, for a few minutes. They smiled at each other and swapped pacifiers and poked each other in the eyes. It was cute to watch.

I wish we'd had more time at Heidi's. We decided to drive back to Pocatello that night (only a three hour drive), thinking we'd go camping somewhere on Saturday. But when Saturday rolled around we were so tired. We slept in, which was a mistake because it gave Drew and Owen all kinds of time to totally thrash their room. We were greeted with Balmex and Coppertone all over the place. It smelled like a rash at the beach. It created tons of laundry to do and lots of furniture walls and other general stuff to de-grease. While I was in what's-up-with-these-messes-they're-driving-me-crazy mode, I got my kitchen and living room cleaned. Tomorrow I'll have to clean the main-floor bathroom, which the boys have also been thrashing. Why are they such Destructos? Will they ever grow out of it? A faint hope that they will is all that keeps me going sometimes.

This is somewhat off the subject, but something that I think about often, especially while I'm cleaning up the likes of yesterday's mess. I feel like I'm really hard on my kids sometimes. I'm super stern, and I scold them and yell at them when they're misbehaving. I sometimes even swat their behinds when they tell me "No" after I ask them to do something.

Various relatives say things like, "They're not really misbehaving, they're just exploring" (makes me wonder if the people saying this forgot that they ever had kids). And I can see that in certain cases, like the first time Drew plucked a leaf off my friend's houseplant, for example. He just wanted to see what it was and that was fine, but then I told him, "Drew, we don't pick leaves off of plants. We leave them on so the plant can grow and so we can enjoy it." I dragged him away, but soon he walked back over and plucked another leaf. Probably my explanation was too long and wordy and didn't register in his brain. So I said, "Drew. No. No more leaves off that plant." And once again pulled him away. The next time he looked at me and as I glared at him, saying, "Don't do it..." he smirked his little rebel smirk and plucked another leaf. This is when I swat his behind and sit him in the corner (if we'd been at my house, I'd put him in his room) because that is what I consider misbehavior, rebellion, obstinacy, whatever. He knows what I expect and he does the opposite.

I guess the inner dilemma I face every day is, should I be letting things slide more often? I get tired of saying "no" all the time. I've tried other tactics like distraction, telling them what they actually can do, time out, yelling, sending them to their room, all kinds of stuff. It feels like we're getting nowhere and I sometimes feel like maybe they just don't understand. But then I think, by the time they do understand, maybe it will be too late to train them and discipline them, so I should just keep going on this track and hope the lessons eventually sink in.

I don't really have any conclusions to draw from all of this. I just mull this stuff over in my mind so many times a day (like, every time a kid goes to his room for throwing a toy, biting a sibling, putting a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a cup of water and dumping said cup on the floor, et al). Here's my inspiration for the day: "...never be weary of good works, but [be] meek and lowly in heart; for such shall find rest to their souls" (Alma 37:34).

A Few Things...

Results are in! I now have proof that I ran the Teton Dam 5K. I got 73rd place out of everyone, guys and gals, and 41 out of just the ladies. There were 100+ ladies, and about 175 people total. Are 5Ks not considered manly anymore? Actually, in every event there were a lot more ladies than men. I don't know what that says about anything, it's just an observation.

Second item of business:

Happy Birthday to my favorite Mike-brother! 30 years old today!

Here Mike and I are just chillin' circa 1982.

Here Mike and his beautiful little girl, Rowan, are just chillin' circa a couple months ago.

Also, Happy Birthday to my favorite Naomi-niece. 5 years old!

I was on my mission when Naomi was born and I got an email with her pictures in it. It was one of the best days ever. I showed her to all my friends who all agreed she was the prettiest baby they'd ever seen! And she's even prettier now!

Nine Months Old!

Yesterday was the nine month mark for Samantha. We went to her check up and learned that she is healthy and doing well (I guess I already knew that), even though she's small for her age. Our pediatrician doesn't make a big deal out of it, though, as long as her growth is on a steady uphill curve. She weighs 16.5 pounds and is 27 inches long. You'd think she weighs more, to look at those cheeks of hers.

She's still not crawling, but she's at least interested in getting around. She tries to crawl and ends up sliding backward. Her poor knees are always red and splotchy now. She does roll really well, and can get where she wants by that method.

She likes to "chat," and tells elaborate stories involving "mum mum mum," "dad dad dad" and "bub bub bub." She also likes to play with her big brothers; I think she'll probably grow up liking cars, planes and trains just like they do.

When I put her down for naps she likes to snuggle with her blanket and suck her thumb; not unlike Linus, but a lot cuter, in my humble Mom-ish opinion. Today she surprised me when I went to get her from her nap. She was sitting up playing with her baby doll and eating her blanket. I've never seen her get into sitting position on her own before.

I think Samantha looks a lot like I did when I was her age. I think it's the mouth and eyes. Okay, it's the cheeks, too. I can't find the picture of myself to prove it; I'll have to see what I can find in my mom's old photo albums...

Spanking?

This is an email I got from my Grandma. Rather than forward it on, I thought I'd post it here.

Most of America’s populace think it improper to spank children, so I have tried other methods to control my kids when they have one of 'those moments.'

One that I found effective is for me to just take the child for a car ride and talk. Some say it's the vibration from the car, others say it's the time away from any distractions such as TV, Video Games, Computer, IPod, etc.

Either way, my kids usually calm down and stop misbehaving after our car ride together.

I've included a photo below of one of my sessions with my son, in case you would like to use the technique.

Sincerely, Your Friend

Race Day

I ran the Teton Dam 5K yesterday. I did okay. My time was a nine minute improvement from when I ran it two years ago, but I still feel like I could have done better. My overall time was 35 minutes and 10 seconds (or so--I forget exactly what the seconds was, but it was 35 minutes). I didn't get any pictures taken of the race. Hopefully they'll get the results posted on the website so I'll have proof that I was there and ran the race.

I felt ill-prepared for this race. I think that's why I didn't do as well as I'd hoped. The first 1.5+ miles of the race were uphill. Up a steep hill. That also meant that the last half of the race or so was downhill, which was a nice relief for my lungs and muscles, but hard on my toes (I think I need new running shoes. My toes feet kept slipping forward in my shoes and I felt like I was going to get blisters, but I didn't. Phew). Anyway. I hadn't been training on hills. My usual running route involves a short (two city blocks, tops), low-grade uphill climb, then a longer not-too-steep downhill descent. So I think I'm going to start altering my route in hopes of being prepared for all kinds of races. I'd also like to add some distance and speed to my morning runs, too. We'll see how it goes...

David and his friends ran in the relay marathon, each taking four to six miles of the marathon. They increased their time from last year, but I think they still enjoyed themselves. David said his only regret was starting out so fast. He wanted to be in the lead at the beginning because that was where the camera crews were. So he started really haulin'. Another runner caught up with him and David asked him what their pace was. The guy said they were on pace for a 5 1/2 minute mile. David wisely slowed it down. A lot. He averaged 7 minute miles for the first 3 miles, but the fourth mile was uphill and with his fast start, he was too tired to go faster than an eleven minute mile. So he has a few regrets about his race, too.

Drew and Owen had lots of fun riding in our friends' car, cheering on the runners and eating suckers and chips (just what two-year-old boys need, right?). Samantha was pretty well behaved, too, until one of the boys kicked her in the face. She got over it quickly, though. So it turned out to be a really fun weekend.

The only un-fun part of the weekend happened on Friday evening when Abby's mom wrecked on her motorcycle and broke her leg. Last we heard, she was scheduled for surgery on Saturday about the time we were heading home. Our prayers go out for a speedy recovery!

Goodbye, No-Name Car. Hello, Duchess!

I usually name my cars (even if they're not technically mine. Like, my mom's old Plymouth Acclaim was dubbed Bessy). Four years ago, almost exactly, I bought a cute little dark green Toyota Corolla. I never gave it a name. Yesterday we sold it. For 1,100 bucks. I thought it would be worth slightly more than that (even Kelley Blue Book says it is), but it did have a list of problems that the dealership thought depleted the value even further. Just little things like a cracked windshield, a door that doesn't open from the inside, a missing hub cap, 110,000 miles (not much for a Toyota; it could still go another 40,000), some scratches... But it also has brand new rotors, breaks and tires. Anyway. I was a little emotional to see it go (it was my first car after all). But I think most of that emotion stemmed from the excitement of getting our new Chevy Malibu! I still get giddy when I think about it.

We've been looking at getting a new car for over a year now. We toyed with the idea of getting a minivan, but couldn't bring ourselves to do it. We finally found the Malibu, which holds all three car seats, gets better mileage than a minivan (though not quite as much as the Corolla), costs less than a minivan, and is way sleeker (more sleek?). It will do us quite nicely for our trip to Seattle next month.

I haven't actually settled on the name Duchess for the Malibu, but I think it could work, especially with the name of the color: Imperial Metallic Blue. And I didn't even make that up, the folks at Chevrolet did. So I think I'm going to try it out for a few days and see if it sticks.

Here are some pictures of the old and the new:

(Started This Post Monday, Finished It Tuesday)

When are we going to experience the warmth of Summer?! I can't believe how chilly and rainy it's been this year. On the plus side, we haven't had to turn on our sprinkler system this year, so that will save us about 30 bucks a month. On the down side, I've been running in the mornings when it's a little too cool for my tastes. Friday, we ran in the rain. I thought, "Oh, it's not raining too badly. Let's just tough it out." So we ran. We got about half way through our run when it started really coming down. By then it was equal distance home no matter which way we went, so we just kept going. I was soaked from head to toe. My shoes were making a slosh slosh noise when I ran. I had started out the day with a little bit of a cold, and I think it made it worse.

Yesterday was a bit rough. I had horrible sinus congestion, and a horrible cough. I didn't run at all, so today when I went running I felt really out of it, having taken three days off. But I only walked twice, for about a hundred yards each time. The big race (okay, so it's not really big, but it's an annual tradition and it's my first race of the year, so I look forward to it the most) is Saturday. I hope I can get two more good runs in before then. I plan on resting Friday to save up some energy.

I'm a little impressed with how well I've been handling the early mornings. I honestly thought I'd last about two days. Today felt especially early, though, after being sick yesterday, and having a rough night, though I apparently slept like a log for most of it.

Owen woke up at 1:30 a.m. just screaming at the top of his lungs. I somehow didn't hear him, but David jumped up out of bed, which did wake me up, so I ran downstairs, too, to see what was going on. I guess Owen had a nightmare but of course he doesn't know what that means, he just knows that he was scared. He wouldn't really tell us what was going on, he just put on his brave face (he really has a specific facial expression that he makes when he's trying not to cry. It involves setting his jaw and wiping his eyes with the backs of his hands. It's so cute), gave me a hug and whispered, "Can you put me back in mine crib?" When he was all tucked in he whispered, "I'd like some water with a lid."

All this commotion woke Drew up. Of course he isn't ashamed to cry, so he cried for himself and for Owen (probably mostly for himself, but there was enough crying to go around). Then he decided that only Mom could hold him, and he didn't want to say goodnight to Dad, and only Mom could tuck him in, and if Dad went near him again he'd cry louder... *sigh*...

Then at about 4:30, our cat decided he wanted to come back in the house. Again, I didn't hear anything until David got up to let the cat in.

When 7:20 rolled around (trust me, people, this is early. For me at least), I didn't hear my alarm clock. David finally nudged me and said, "Your alarm is beeping." By the time I got up to turn it off, it had been going for a full minute.

Today's run went pretty well, except for some congestion and scratchy throat leftover from being sick this weekend. I'm really looking forward to the 5K coming up on Saturday. My goal the last time I ran it was to just run the whole thing. And I did it! I was running really slow, though; my friend Abby was able to walk and keep up with me, that's how slowly I was going. But hey, I tried... So hopefully this year I can work on a better time, even if I have to walk a little bit.

Open Letters

Chick puts open letters on her blog and they're usually really funny or inspiring and sometimes both. I just thought I'd put a few of my recent thoughts in open letter form. If they're neither funny nor inspiring, I'm fine with that. But here they are:

***

Dear Robin (the one with the nests under my deck),

I noticed that you have two nests, and I've seen you sitting in each nest at different times. I've seen one of your eggs. Hope you don't mind. I'll be looking for the other later today. Smart move, not putting all your eggs in one basket.

I just thought I'd let you know how lucky you are that you'll most likely never have to experience your baby birdies pooping in your nest and smearing it all over the wall, and the toys and the books, then ripping up the books to make sure every page is covered. It's pretty wasteful, and I'm certain that little birds just don't waste stuff like that.

Good luck incubating those eggs,

Your Hostess.

***

Dear Woolite,

Thank you. Thank you, thank you for making Pet Stain and Odor Remover. We use it for our kids' messes, because I haven't seen a Kid Stain and Odor Remover at the store. But you know, I bet you could make some money if you made a product like that. We might even pay extra if it removed the kids altogether, at least until they're out of the poop-smearing phase.

Forever a loyal customer,

The Lady Who Bought A House With White Carpet In The Kids' Room.

***

Dear Kids,

Learn to use the toilet! Leave your diapers on at nap time! Stop smearing poop on the walls!

Love you anyway,

Mom.

Some Random Pictures Of Our Week

A couple minutes after I put the boys to bed last night,

I heard Drew up and about playing and talking to Owen

(who was either asleep or ignoring Drew).

When I went upstairs ten minutes later, this is how I found him.

We have a robin building some nests under our upper deck. I think there's only one robin (I don't really know because I can't tell one robin from another, but I've only seen one at a time), building two nests. It's been fun for Drew and Owen to watch the robin come and go. They're very quiet and respectful, saying things like, "Shh. Robin's sleeping." I find it a bit humorous because when I tell them, "Shh. Your dad is sleeping," They yell and shout, "Dad's sleeping!" and refuse to be quiet.

This is what the nest looks like from above. This picture was taken through the spaces between the boards, but my camera is too big so it's a lot of board and not much nest. There aren't any eggs in either nest yet, but I'm looking forward to seeing if any show up. I need to remember to keep the cat inside for a while.

I gave Samantha a tiny piece of Oreo--like, the size of a dime--and this is what she did with it. But it obviously made her happy!

I just had to post a bath picture for future blackmail purposes. They're so cute when they're clean!

Church and Adventures in Shopping Part V

I decided to be brave and take the kids shopping all by myself the other day. I guess I should clarify a few things. I've taken them shopping quite a few times before, on my own even, but it's getting more and more difficult because of increases in kid size and rowdiness. We also decided to stop spending so much money at Wal*Mart and start saving money by shopping at a smaller chain even though they don't take credit card and we'll be losing out on the credit card reward points. The problem with this is the shopping carts at the smaller store are quite shallow, and I can't let a kid ride in the back of it (we had a falling out incident last summer). But I had to go shopping and I had to take the kids because David was at work.

I strapped Samantha into the Snugli, put Drew in the seat of the shopping cart (he's more likely to actually run if left to run free) and held on to Owen's hand. Owen did pretty well helping me push the cart and putting things in it when asked. He didn't try to sneak anything into the cart, but he did grab a fruit roll up and say, "I want to eat this." Don't we all.

After a while, I guess Owen got tired of behaving, so he decided to explore the meat aisle while I selected some ground beef. I grabbed two little one-pound chubs, and put them in my cart. When I turned to grab Owen so we could move onward, I noticed that he had poked a huge hole in a 5 pound pack of the fresh-ground beef. Grr. I put the two chubs back, stuck the holey meat in a bag and put it in my cart. We'll definitely use the meat, but I didn't really want to buy that much, have to divide it up and freeze it. It's just one of those little chores I've never really liked.

We finished getting our groceries without too much further incident. Owen discovered that he just fit underneath the cart so he sat there until we got to the checkout. At that point, he hopped off and walked around looking at magazines and things. Then he went over to the coin counting machines and said, "I need money, Mom!" Don't we all.

Drew decided to be really cute and friendly with the cashier. He laughed and chatted with her, pointing to the groceries and telling her what some of them were. Then he said, "I have a moustache." The cashier just laughed and kept scanning, not knowing how else to respond, I guess. Then Owen came back from the coin counting machine and Drew told the cashier, "This is Owen." The cashier laughed again and said, "Hi, Owen. How are you?" She was a really nice cashier.

Even though we got a lot more meat than we set out for, it was a pretty decent trip and I was really proud of Drew and Owen (and Samantha, too; hardly heard a peep out of her the whole time) for behaving so well.

Today I was on my own at church, too. We found a pew sort of in the middle, which I've discovered is much better at corralling the boys than the chairs at the back where we usually sit. I've been working with the boys on prayers (and being reverent during them) at home. Usually Owen asks to say the prayer, and Drew says, "I don't have to say a prayer." He doesn't even like to fold his arms. Today, though, during the prayer at church, Drew folded his arms quite nicely. He also turned to the guy next to us (who was a visitor and happened to not be folding his arms) and whispered, a couple times, "Fold your arms, please." I hope the guy thought it was funny and not annoying. I was trying so hard not to laugh. I think I snorted a little. During the prayer. Some example, huh?

Today was testimony meeting where people from the congregation are allowed to go to the pulpit and share their feelings and some of their spiritual experiences. It was a really nice meeting, but I think the boys found it rather long. One of my friends got up to share her testimony, and when she was done speaking, Drew yelled quite loudly, "Amen!" Then as we finished singing the closing hymn, he yelled, "We done! Let's go play toys!" That was right before the closing prayer, so once again I find myself feeling rather irreverent during a prayer. But we made it through and the boys got to go play toys at the nursery which is what they look forward to the most. Next to snack time.