We thought about renting out a room...

Sadly, I had to kick our roommate out, seeing as how I didn't get a deposit or signed contract.

Long story short, as I was pulling into the drive from dropping of Jaxen at school I noticed a bird hovering by the side of our laundry room. After I got out of the van it abruptly flew away. I went over to investigate. I saw a hole but thought, nah, that goes right into the laundry room right? It wouldn't want to build in there..but the "evidence" was overwhelming.

Evidence

The hole










Curious, I go and check. I move over some blankets stored plastic covers to take look at where the hole would be. What do you know?! Lo and behold there is the "starts" of a nest. I guess the blankets stacked made a cozy wall and the nest wasn't directly visable.















I wanted to take a picture of the bird, but it when it came back a little later to keep building it looked a little bothered that I had closed up the hole, and didn't stay long for a photo shot. It was a pretty bird, black with green hues.

Just Kickin' It

Today was Jaxen and Ember's first soccer game. Granted, our team doesn't have a coach and we haven't practiced, but why not? We got a phone call late yesterday afternoon to tell us about the game. Ember didn't play much by choice, she preferred to be attached to my leg the whole game. Maybe after a few practices she might be a little more inclined to want to play. Jaxen did really good at getting in front of the ball. I guess I hadn't thought about how 3-5 year olds would play. I think they spent more time throwing the ball in and kicking it in because it was always going out of bounds.

They looked so cute. There were a couple of crying spells on the other team and a little boy that is quite the aggressor on our team. The boy kicked in...to himself. He threw in...to himself. Who said there is no I in team?

When all was said and done...we won! It was a score of 1 to 0. It came down to the second half of the game.



Jaxen and Ember in their soccer uniforms.

Jaxen and Ember showing off their kicks!

The right way to clean a spatula!

The ward BBQ was a bunch of fun. I managed to get a few good pictures in. Minus the sore jaw from face planting into the grass, it was good times! It was nice to lounge around and talk to everyone. It seems like the weeks fly by and the only time I get to talk to some people is in between classes on Sunday.

This is, of course, the only right way to clean a spatula.

Who needs a cup?! Not me!

My boys! I really like the way this picture came out. I should of had Shaun take one of me and Ember with her "Cholobird" hair style, as my SIL so eloquently calls it. Good times.

How much do you love me?

I woke Ember up from her nap and as we lay there, this is the conversation.

M: (playfully) Do you love me?
E: Yeah.
M: How much? A little or alot?
E: Alot.
M: How much is alot?
E: (without hesitation) 25 cents...or maybe 5.

I asked Jaxen the same question to be fair. Hopefully I am worth more than a quarter to one of my children.

M: Do you love me?
J: Yeah.
M: How much? A little or alot?
J: Alot!
M: How much is alot?
J: A jillion.

Hmm, survey time...ask you kids the same question and tell me what they say!

Which one?! I can't decide...so... I choose all of them!

As we got home today I tell Ember to take off her shoes. She comes back into the living room at running speed and jumps on my lap. I happen to look down and notice her socks for the first time today. Hmm, that's weird. I start peeling off layers...of socks. She had 3 socks on her right foot, all different colors and styles, of course, and 2 socks on her left foot. No two socks are the same.

Apparently, the multiple sock fashion statement is back...it originally hit when I was in fourth grade. (Come on, you know you did it!) I remember being one of the only girls who wasn't allowed to wear two pairs of socks to school. *frown*

So, I have to wash them all. The top layer receiving the dirt from the trampoline outing, and the bottom layer receiving the stench from her sweaty feet. I wonder why they are sweaty?! The middle sock on the right foot might as well join it's friends in the washer. There is a sock hop in the washer, come one come all. Evidently new socks (she just got new ones) are so tempting that choosing just one pair was too difficult a task for her three year old mind to wrap around.

My little priesthood holder in training

Yesterday Ember decided to give Owen the customary knock on the head with whatever she had in her hand...this time it was a water bottle. (Sisterly love) So, as I am brushing Jaxen's teeth, I hear Owen start to cry. I walk in, look at her, guilty face with that beautiful little smile. Not going to work on me little girl. I ask her what she did. Nothing, of course, was the reply. For some reason I don't buy that! I put her in time out and pick up Owen. I take him with me into the bathroom and set him down so he can watch me brush Jaxen's teeth. I notice a little red spot on Owen's head.

Ember is still crying in time out. I go to talk to her and ask her what she did that wasn't nice. You know the routine. I let her out and make my way back into the bathroom to find Jaxen leaning over Owen with is hands on his forehead.

I asked him what he is doing. He looks up and takes a minute to think of what I want to hear. I repeated, what are you doing? I'm not mad. He then says I was saying a prayer for Owen.

It was the neatest thing to see. For that brief moment, I pictured him as a young man with the Priesthood. It makes me feel good knowing that he knows where to turn for help and is so readily open to it. He didn't even have to "think" about it.

I hate to love you...

I know, who would have thought that I was involved with anyone else but my husband? I have a love/hate relationship with ... the Girl Scouts.

I swear one time a year they come outta the woodwork selling cookies in front of almost every store. This year they have branched out from the usual Walmart and Fry's locations and opened up shop in front of Blockbuster. For those of you ASU Alumni, you can find at least one or two troops in the depths of campus. You also find out co-workers have children you didn't know about, when they bring in that form.

No, it's not like the good 'ol days where you walked door to door and annoy every person in your neighborhood with your little speech about the cookies. I know there was a reason we were selling those things? You sent the order form in for cookies and made the special deliveries upon their arrival. Now, you skip right to the chase, buy a ton up front and sell them in front of stores. I swear some of these girls have to be ditching school to sell them. I have even seen just the parents out selling them. Go Parent Scouts.

Girl Scout Promise
On my honor, I will try
To serve as many cookies as I can To serve God and my country
To feed help people at all times,
And to sell as many over priced, but oh-so-delicious cookies as I can live by the Girl Scout Law.

I sat pondering last night the cost of these oh-so-delicious cookies. They are now $4 a box. One of my favorites, the Samoas, contain 15 cookies in that beautiful purple box. My friends, that is .27 cents a cookie! What?! I give my kids tickets (reward system) that are worth .25 cents. Shaun was nice enough to give Jaxen and Ember one of his cookies last night (the peanut butter ones).

*Clearing throat* That will not be happening with my cookies. I love my kids, but these cookies are expensive and I am selfish, at least when it comes to these. I even ration them out to myself! At least I bought a box of Thin Mints, a true value at .11 cents a cookie. Yum.

I can rant all I want...but I will always buy Girl Scout cookies. Why? Because I was a Girl Scout myself (I was even a Daisy and a Brownie...do they still do that?). Plus those darn little Scouts are so cute in their little green vests. My mom was my troop leader, not sure what possessed her to sign up for that, but I am grateful she did. I know she has a box somewhere in her attic full of my little blue Daisy vest, my brownie sash, and my girl scout uniform complete with all the badges you could ask for. I even took school pictures in my brownie uniform.

Ahh those were the good old days. I might, however, have to draw the line when they hit $5 a box. *sigh* Then again, it is a once a year tradition...just might have to limit the number of boxes I buy. *frown*