My son is a soap addict

No, not soap operas (thank goodness)—liquid soap that abounds in every household. He especially loves to rub it in his hair, and does this at every house we visit. We have tried lots of things to get him to stop: stern talking-to, time outs, putting the soap up high (this never works because one of us eventually leaves it down after washing our hands), and I even let him do his own hair in the bath so he will have some satisfaction.

Kevin actually puts a lot of different things in his hair besides soap. He rubs lotion in all the time. He has also put diaper rash cream, shampoo and conditioner (while NOT in the bath), and once Elmer’s glue. After the glue, John and I both talked to him very seriously, saying “You never put ANYthing in your hair unless you’re in the bath! NOTHING!!” That was about a month ago, and he has been really good since then, even leaving the soap alone.

Until yesterday.

He was supposed to be taking a nap, when Garrett and I heard a THUMP and then he was crying. Garrett said, “He must have fallen out of bed!” and we rushed upstairs. But no, his bedroom door was open—he wasn’t in there. Another thump and more crying. . .from the bathroom? He usually is really good and doesn’t come out of his room after I put him to bed, so this was surprising. I opened the bathroom door and he was right behind it, slipping and sliding and falling with several more thumps as I opened the door. Why was he slipping and falling? You guessed it: soap all over the floor. An entire dispenser full of liquid soap that morning was now empty and all over the floor. No wait, it was also all over the counters, coated on some bath toys, and finger painted on the wall. I stood there in shock for a second, then said “Kevin, why did you do that??” He was still crying and tried to compose himself enough to say “I didn’t put in my hair!” I started laughing. At least he had enough self control to leave it out of his hair. I tried to be serious again, “But you put it all over the sinks, and the floor, and the toys, and the wall.” He was pretty calm by now. “And the door, Mom.” I looked at the door. Finger painted with soap as well. I *almost* wish it had been something colored so I could take a picture, because it would have been spectacular.

Well, my bathroom is cleaner than it has been in awhile. Smells good too--like soap.

Road trip report

(from Lajuana)

I think I have sufficiently recovered from the road trip to now post some pictures and report on our travels. We drove through the night to get to Austin about lunch time, and checked into a hotel that was absolutely disgusting. It looked nothing like it's cheery pictures on the internet. Here is a picture of part of the bathroom ceiling that was covered in mold.


Needless to say we didn't stay there, but found a nicer place just a few blocks away. We spent the first few days with two of John's brothers and kids. We saw some sights in Austin and played games and went swimming. We went to the botanical gardens where Hannah was attacked by a giant scorpion. The kids had fun, but the heat and walking definitely tired them out.









We were so lucky that the Cluffs attend church in Austin, so we crashed their ward and then went home with them. They have a great house, and they welcomed us with open arms. Erin even encouraged me to do my laundry there, which helped a TON so I had much less to do when I got home. They have a trampoline that Kevin and Jared loved to jump on, and the dads took the kids to the park while we made Sunday dinner. It was so nice to be with them again, and the kids played so nicely together--it was amazing. Thanks so much, Cluff family!

We left Monday morning to go visit with John's dad for the day, then we went out to stay with my sister in Tyler, which I think is the prettiest place in Texas. We went to the (free!) rose gardens and also went swimming with my niece and nephew who are teenagers. My sister has a kitty that Hannah was obsessed with--she spent hours with it. It almost makes me ready to get a cat. Almost.







The drive home seemed twice as long as our drive there, even though it was actually a few hours shorter. I got a speeding ticket at 4 am, for going 76 mph on an interstate with nobody else around, how annoying is that?! The kids all traveled well in the van thanks to the dvd player and 8 borrowed dvd's from the library. Kevin is finally old enough that he will watch shows and movies for at least part of the time, and that is a wonderful attribute for children during a road trip! Though the trip was great, it was so wonderful to walk in our door, home at last. Kevin asks every day whose house we are going to today, and when I say we're just staying here, he says "I wanna go to the Club house" which I finally figured out means Cluff's house. It's going to be a long summer.

Garden Time

Most of you might not know but we have an interest in having a green thumb. Like that distinction? We had a small garden a while back when we lived in Oregon but apartment life in Utah kept us away from growing much. We played with the notion of a community garden plot but with school and life being so busy we busted on that idea. Last year when we moved into our house we were already set with a preexisting garden on the side of the house. Luckily Denise (Lajuana's sister whom we share the house with) has two green thumbs and got us going. She also is leading the way this year and we benefit from all her work but we also have been learning and helping along the way to get our thumbs in the mix. Below is a picture of what it looked like.



You might notice the plastic green fence around it. That was put up in an attempt to keep those darn bunnies out from eating our strawberries. It worked a bit but in places the bunnies eat holes through it. We started imagining these viscous hungry rabbits as brilliant foes who always were one step in front of us. They eat our strawberries so then we put up the green fence. Then they started eating our blackberries so we put up chicken wire around that. So then the rabbits eat a hole in our green fence and eat stuff anyway. By the end of last summer came we had a grip on keeping them out.

This year I have a plan to beat them! I installed a retaining wall with a chicken wire fence that goes over a 18 inches underground. I also expanded the garden from 10'X10' to 10'X22'. It now encompasses the blackberries. We planted last weekend some corn, strawberries, squash, green beans, tomatoes, and the existing blackberries. We also planted in another location pumpkins and zucchini without a fence because we've heard bunnies won't eat them but I'm afraid ours might just to spite me! Below are the pictures of the new garden.







With any hope we'll have some good veggies this summer! If the bunnies do manage to hop the fence and eat the food maybe they'll get to fat to hop out and in the end we'll have a bunny pin rather than a garden! Either way I'm going to out smart those persistent bunnies!

--- John

I'm it, I guess

Well, I've never been tagged before and I've been trying to ignore it. But since it was my old boss who tagged me, I've had a nagging feeling that I better do it soon or she'll fire me for handing in late reports. Hee hee. Love you Jan!

3 Joys:
1. Being with my family, whether it’s chatting with John while he builds a retaining wall, helping Garrett with homework, reading with Hannah, or playing cars with Kevin, I enjoy my family. This extends of course to my siblings and parents, I especially love playing games with my siblings or just sitting around talking because they are hilarious.
2. Good chocolate. Preferably with nuts and/or caramel. Most of you know I’m a chocolate snob. For Mother’s Day, the primary had each of their children give their mom a huge Hershey bar. So now I have two huge waxy “chocolate” bars that I plan on using for my cub scouts to make s’mores. THEY are NOT chocolate snobs.
3. Reading a good book straight through with minimal interruptions. When I had the flu, I read two books and barely saw my family while John took two days off work and took care of everyone and everything. It was kind of nice, even though I felt horrible. All I did was read and sleep--better than a vacation.

3 Fears:
1. Melanoma returning. It was pretty scary, though I tried to not think about how bad it could have been.
2. My kids getting seriously injured or seriously ill.
3. Being misunderstood. Things I say come out wrong all the time, and I’m sure I’ve offended a million people. I am also very oblivious to things around me and might do things to make people mad. A young female driver got right in front of me, slowed way down, and when I passed her, she gave me the finger! I have no idea why, but I must have done something to annoy her as I was driving, mentally making a grocery list, handing out snacks, and finding a toy that fell under the seat. She totally misunderstood my cluelessness as malice toward her. This was a simple example, but in general I hate that feeling of knowing I did/said something wrong, and may have hurt someone’s feelings (of course in this case she hurt MY feelings by giving me the finger!)

3 Goals:
1. Teach my kids a little Spanish this summer. I have been putting it off long enough, and John has been bugging me to do it since Garrett was an infant.
2. Lose some weight. Isn’t that always my goal? In conjunction with that, I would like to be able to ride my bike up around the “prairie preserve” and back without dying. I did it last summer, but am woefully out of shape again.
3. Keep sane during all our planned road trips this summer. Yes, even with gas at $4/gallon, John is insisting on fulfilling all our travel plans.

3 Current Obsessions:
1. Lost. I love it, but try not to get too crazy about it. It’s the only tv show I watch, so I feel I’m entitled to obsess a little.
2. Reading. I’ve been seeing what everyone else is reading on Goodreads, and go read it myself. I hardly ever post what I'm reading though.
3. Healthier (but tasty) cooking. Just to remind everyone, I have to cook several specialty meals for dinner because everyone’s dietary needs usually cannot coexist harmoniously: vegetarian (John), dairy-free (Kevin), diabetic (my sister), and that EVERYONE likes or at least tolerates. I know many of you are saying “I wouldn’t do that, I would make one thing and they would have to eat it.” So think of five staple meals in your home and try to tweak them to keep everyone in MY house healthy. Pasta? Has to be whole grain (for Denise) and that can’t be her main dish, so I have to also have a meat on the side. Pizza? No cheese for Kevin. Indian food? My kids and Denise don’t like it. Tacos? With beans and cheese for John, beans, meat and cheese for G&H, beans and meat for Kevin, and as a salad for me (I don’t really like tortillas) and Denise. Do you see what I’m getting at? I can rarely make one thing and put it on the table for everyone, and even if I do find something, someONE won’t like it very much (i.e. Stir fry with tofu--Denise and kids hate it and I don’t like it much either).

3 Random/Surprising Facts about Myself:
1. I am the ninth of ten children, and yes my mom is an angel. My sister that we live with is the second. We have very different personalities, but sound almost exactly alike on the phone.
2. I’m not a good housekeeper. I love cooking, baking, and of course eating what I make, but I absolutely hate every other household chore (except laundry, strangely enough). Dirty dishes are my arch-enemy. Bathroom cleaning is my nightmare.
3. I love to be alone. Maybe it’s from trying to escape my big family, maybe it’s just my inborn personality, but I love being on my own with only me to take care of. When I went to college, I chafed under the constant presence of my roommate. I loved it when she had to leave for class before me and I had the room to myself. When I was on my mission, having a constant companion was something I struggled with for the first few months (I did eventually come to terms with it and actually enjoyed my companions). I was excited and happy to be on my own when I started teaching, I had a little apartment that was mine, all mine and I loved it, even though I didn’t have any furniture or a tv. I was never too scared or nervous about being alone. Now, of course, I’m used to sharing a room, a bed, a house, and I miss John if he is gone. But I sure do love my alone time.

Well, there you have it. Does anything surprise anyone? I'm a pretty open book, so I think everyone knows all this about me. Let's hear the comments. . .anyone just like me or opposite from me? What do you think about all this John? Are you sad that I secretly like you to be gone? Just kidding, you know I love you near me.

I tag specifically: Ardis, Andrea, and those who have not answered Jan's tag yet. And generally, whoever wants to answer these questions. It was kind of fun.

Spring in Wisconsin

Our great friends in WI come and visit us...well lets be honest...us and the Chicago LDS Temple, often and we have not made the journey up there until last weekend. Our visit was great and we had a blast playing the Wii and talking. One of the highlights was going to a marsh land area. We went on a trail and saw all kinds of wild life preparing for the spring. It was a bit cool, low 60 and cloudy, but great for walking around.

We really enjoyed our vacation. WI is very pretty if you have never been there; rolling hills, tons of green farm land but broken up with large trees and rivers, wind mills, cows, and great natural parks. I'd recommend you check it out if you never have! And if you need some great friends that are so nice and welcoming...we know the perfect couple!

--- John

Spring time is here!

Spring time brings about many wonderful changes. After the horrid winter, this spring is nothing less than a miracle! Last fall we planted some bulbs in the hope that spring would come again and this time with flowers. Another fear we had is the bunnies! I did not know this but the Chicagoland area is plagued with a huge overpopulation of wild bunny rabbits. Last year we found a family living under our wood deck. They are everywhere! The eat flowers and young bushes, and as we found out last year... our blackberries, strawberries, and pretty much any new or budding flower.

This year we had a plan of attack against the bunnies, chicken wire! We fenced off the garden and put a fence underground so they would not eat the bulbs we planted. A few weeks ago the tulips started to come up and the bunnies kept eating them down to the ground. We have heard all of the advice possible, including putting human hair on the ground. Eventually the bunnies got full, I can only imagine, and left our flowers alone and they came up in power.



To top off the flower burst is our flowering trees! Our two front trees are a wonderful pink and our side tree is white! The smells are powerful and so sweet! Our house is not the only, the whole city and area is just popping colors and flowering smells. The only thing close to this is when we lived in Oregon and the spring was just awesome too. To say the least I'm very surprised at how nice it is here and how spring just makes everything new again!

To add to the spring time fun we had two visitors come by on Saturday morning. The kids loved watching them for a long time. A boy and a girl duck. They ended up walking off to some other houses and then most likely to one of the two nearby ponds in our development. I hope you guys all have a wonderful spring and take time to smell the flowers!!!

Shiny happy people

Most of you have not seen Kevin for about a year or longer, and that was when he was still the strong, silent type. He now talks a lot, and he is so funny. We are constantly laughing at what he comes up with. We read from the Book of Mormon every night, everybody just reads one verse. When it's Kevin's turn, I usually say a few words and he repeats the last word I said. For example:
Me: And it came to pass. . .(pause)
Kevin: Pass.
etc.

Several weeks ago, for some reason, he started to say "shiny" in front of everything.
Me: And it came to pass. . .
Kevin: Shiny pass.
Much laughter from the other children (and me).
After we settle down a little. . .Me: that Alma. . .
Kevin: Shiny Elmo (he can't say Alma, and this leads to even more laughter, this is usually when John breaks down and starts laughing too).

We're not really sure why he started this, though it might be because John bought a "new" car and Kevin started off by calling it Dad's shiny new car. Maybe he thinks everything should be shiny and new. So. . .we tried kind of ignoring it for a long time, but the kids of course would still bust up laughing, sometimes John and I too. Finally we decided to crack down on it. Now this is the usual result:

Me: And Alma said unto the people
K: shiny people (this almost breaks me as I think of the song, but I am strong and don't laugh)
Me: Just people
K: What kind of people?
Me: Just say people.
K: What kind of people?
Me: Just regular people.
K: Really people?
Me: Yes. . . "people of the city"
K: Shiny city
Me: Just city.
K: Shiny city
Me: Just say city.
K: What kind of city?
Me: *reaching the end of my rope and about to burst out laughing* Just a regular city.
K: Really city? Or shiny city?

By this time usually John is snickering quietly behind his hand, and the kids are of course giggling, and how can I hold it together with all that? So we all laugh and then just continue letting him say shiny before everything. I guess we'll just let him say it and ignore him again. I don't really care that he says it, it makes scripture time more interesting because we all wonder what will be shiny today.