Quick Question

Do you love your mattress? If so, please let us know which one you have and why you like it. We bought a rather spendy mattress less than a year ago and we loved it for about a month. Now it is a terrible double canoe bed that we just hate. We wake up every morning with aches and pains...please help!

Polar Express

This last Friday night we took the family up to Williams, AZ for a ride on the Polar Express. We had such a great time. We caravaned with the Thomas's up to Williams (about 30 miles west of Flagstaff) and checked into the hotel. After a buffet dinner we went back to our rooms to get the kids changed into their PJ's for the train ride. We were on the 6:30 train headed for the North Pole. They gave us hot chocolate and cookies and then read the book "Polar Express" to us during the ride. When we got to the "North Pole" we could see the facade of houses and trees all lit up outside with Santa and one of his elves waving at us. On the ride back to the train depot, we all sang Christmas carols and then Santa himself came into our train car. He gave each child a bell and we could all hear them ringing. Case was so excited because Santa remembered him from last year and commented on how much he had grown. When we got back to the train station, we went and saw Mrs. Claus and then wrote a letter to Santa and did a few crafts. The kids then got to pick out a small souvenir in the gift shop (it was included in the package) and then we were off to bed. When we got up we went to the buffet breakfast and then went to see the trains in the light. Then we were on our way home...the kids had so much fun. I would highly recommend this experience to anyone with small children.



















The kids looked so adorable for church on Sunday that we had to take pictures...don't you agree?

Yuck!

It all started early Monday morning...I woke up and licked my lip...oh crap a cold sore. I hate them so much! I ran to the bathroom to get my medicine. It goes away so much quicker if you treat it quickly. It is huge, ugly and a bit painful, but then things got much worse.
I started feeling a little sick to my stomach. I showered and got ready for the day, but just felt terrible. I had planned to run some errands, but by 9:30, I realized that I was not going anywhere. I sucked it up enough to go and get Case from school at 11:30, but shortly after I got home...the stomach flu struck. My poor kids had to fend for themselves and watched a bit too much TV that afternoon as I was good for nothing. Luckily Wes got home a bit early and just took over...I went to bed. Tuesday morning I still felt awful, so Wes was wonderful once again and did not go into work until 12:30. He totally picked up the house, did most of the laundry and even picked up Case from school...he won major hubby points that day. By the time he left for work, I felt much better and was able to function normally again.
Tuesday afternoon I noticed that my nose started to run...and then my whole head was congested with a bit of a sore throat...could it be a head cold? I felt yucky that night but slept well. This morning I was feeling better, but just a bit stuffy. I was able to get some needed errands run and I feel good now, with just a slight cough and that annoying nose drip.
I have never had so many different things in just a few days. Has anyone else? I do whine a bit when I don't feel well, but I am no hypochondriac. I'm trying to remember if I did something terribly wrong over the weekend and am being punished. I'm a little afraid to go to bed tonight to see what is in store for tomorrow. My friend just called to let me know her son has the chicken pox...I did have them when I was four, but at this rate I wouldn't be surprised.

Summing Up November

The last week of November was a great time.

On Thanksgiving Eve, my sister and her whole family flew in from Chicago and SLC. They were here because my brother in law Mike's parents were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary. Lucky for us, they stayed at our home. They did spend a lot of fun times with his family, but I still got to see them mucho. They are among my very favorite people so happy was I.

Thanksgiving started off very early. Wes, Mike and my nephew Parker running the 5K at the Turkey Trot in Peoria. It was quite a ways away and very early so I elected to stay home with the kids. Thank you Shari for going with them and taking pictures. Wes did great, especially since he had not done any training whatsoever. He still finished near the top.

We had Thanksgiving dinner at Wes's parents home. It was great to only cook half of the food and spend time with more of my favorite people. Good food and good friends/family...it can't get better than that.

The most excitement was on that Friday night. My brother from Tucson stopped by with his family. Then my sister and her family came home after a fun night with my brother in laws family. A few minutes later my Mom and Paul came in after flying back from Hawaii. All of us were in the house at one time. I don't think we have ever had that many people in our house before. It was a bit loud and crazy but so great to have us all together.

It was so great to see so much of our family over the holiday. I guess that is what it is all about. I am looking forward to all of the fun activities in December.

Case the Bike Rider

Wes took the training wheels off of Case's bike last Saturday. We were worried because Saturday bike riding did not go well. But with a little work, he is now riding his bike. He and Wes even road all the way to Walgreens and back. Way to go Case...we are so proud of you!

Twilight - Pure Craziness

Wow am I tired, but as they say, there is no rest for the wicked.
Last night was the opening night (or should I say very early this morning) was the opening of the Twilight movie. I had planned to go and see it with some of my friends, but our schedules didn't match during normal hours, so we decided to go to the opening midnight showing. It was insane.
Christy and I pulled up to the theatre around 8:00 and we had planned to go get dinner and then watch the line to see how it was going. When we pulled up, the line was already wrapping around the theatre. Yikes! We found out that they were playing the midnight movie in eight theatres. When we met up with everyone else, we decided to go and get take-out from the food court and eat in line. It was fun just hanging out and chatting and they let us into the theatre around 9:30 where we just chatted and waited among many women and teenagers and a few males sprinkled throughout.
The movie finally started and I loved it. Of course there are many things that I could nit pick about, but over all I'd give it a thumbs up. I would recommend reading the book first, because I think you will get a lot more out of the movie and the characters.
I made it home at 3:00...I didn't do to bad for an old lady. Now it is back to reality. Thanks ladies for such a fun night/morning!

Lately...

Case had his last basketball game this last Saturday. We all went to cheer him on including Grandma Verna. He is really improving and I am tempted to sign him up for the next one, but he wants to do soccer next. I know that soccer is already going on right now, so I need to look for the next league. Any suggestions?

After the game Wes took the kids home and did yard work...what a Dad and Hubby. Verna and I went to check out a few of our favorite furniture and decorator stores. So fun, but it is crazy to see all of Christmas decorations taking over the stores already. I guess it is coming up soon, but it just hit me.

Tuesday was Veterans day and Brittany's birthday....Happy Birthday Britt! Case did not have school and his friend Tyler was off too. Since it is so hard for us to get together with such different school schedules, we took advantage of it and went to the zoo. Thanks Kelly for bringing us in on your membership. We had such fun. We started off looking at all of the Stingray's and Sharks but we were all a little to chicken to touch them. Then off to see the other animals and it was our lucky day. The weather was beautiful and all of the animals were out and showing off. On the way there, I asked Madison what animal she wanted to see. She responded that she wanted to see the "pink one". I laughed at the time, but after seeing the Baboon's bums and the Flamingo's, I guess she did see the pink ones. We finished it off with a ride on the carosel and the kid's loved it. It was a bit crowded but luckly we got there early and missed a lot of the crowds. The best part was that both kids fell asleep on the way home and I got to have about an hour to myself. Yippee!

Wes came home a bit early from work and we went shopping for clothes for the kids. The weather is getting a bit cooler and their selection of pants and long sleeved shirts were pretty sparce. We found some deals and they should be able to make it to atleast Christmas.

Overall, a great day except for the massive migrane I got in the evening. But, thanks to my wonderful husband I went to bed around 7:00 and he took care of everything else. Thanks Buddy!

I Voted Today

I am proud to say that I voted today. I almost talked myself out of it many times. I figured the lines would be so long and taking two kids with me sounded terrible. Then I thought that was it really worth it and does my one little vote even count? But, when we walked to the voting place...right at the church south of my neighborhood...it felt really good to fill out my ballot. I feel very strongly about some of the issues and I would feel bad if they didn't go the way I wanted them to and I didn't vote. As far as the presidential candidates, I voted for the lesser of the two evils. I'm not the biggest fan of either, but one of them I think is in bed with Satan himself. I hope everyone got out and voted today no matter your opinion it is important.

Life is Crazy, Life is Good

As stated above, the last few weeks have been crazy but good.
My Mom came in town and helped me with a project for nursery. I don't have a picture of it, but it turned out so cute. I will have to get a picture and post it. We made cute little bees for every child and one poster with flowers all over it and one poster with a beehive on it. The kids come and get their bee off of the flower poster upon coming in and then put it on the beehive poster inside the room. Their are velcro circles on both of the posters and on the back of the bees. It is supposed to make the kids excited to come to nursery...we will see if it helps. I really like being in nursery, it is such a change from any other calling that I have had. It is a bit crazy in there right now, but it will be much more calm when we lose eight kids in January to the Sunbeems. Before she left Mom took me for a little shopping spree for my birthday. Thanks Mom!
After Mom and Paul left, I inherited three extra kids for a week. Their parents went out of town and I volunteered to have them stay with us. A few days before they came, I thought to myself, "What was I thinking...I must have been insane". But it turned out wonderful. The kids were great and I had a lot of fun. It was nice to have some older kids around, I got to go to the grocery store by myself one day. (Who knew that would be such a luxury?) And the girls love to play Phase 10. I hope they come over soon, so we can play again. I was a bit tired by the end of the week and I decided that we will definitely not have five kids, but all in all it was a great week.
My birthday was that week, but we just skipped it. We just had too much going on and I am fine with that. Wes was great and got me a nice gift and made me a cake...it was yummy! We did go out to dinner with Wes's parents after the kids left and that was nice. Wes's Mom and I share a birthday and it is always so fun to celebrate with her. Happy Birthday Verna!
I love Halloween! We had our ward "Trunk or Treat" last night and it was so much fun. Case was a pirate and Madison was a ladybug. Good fun, good friends, good food and a lot of candy to take home. What else can you ask for? Here are a few pics of the kids in their costumes. You can notice that I finally got Madison's hair cut...so cute in a little bob. It was getting so straggly and now it will grow out nicely.























I thought these pics were cute of Wes and the kids looking at stuff on the computer...what a good Daddy!

Catching Up

I know, I know, it has been forever...We have done a lot over the last two months but, I have not been blogging. So, I think I will try to cover the highlights with mostly pictures and few words.

In August, Wes and I flew to Spokane WA and drove to Couer d Alene ID for one night and then to Glacier National Park in Montana for three nights. We had a great time enjoying the beauty of the area and spending time alone for a few days . A special thank you to Mom and Paul for watching the kids for us while we were gone.

Also in August we celebrated Wes's birthday. Happy belated to the best hubby and daddy! We all love you.

On September 11, Madison turned two. It is so amazing to see our feisty little blond girl grow up so fast.

I put it off for a long time, but I finally decided to read the "Twilight" series. I read all four books in a week and a half. Thank you Christy for lending me your books. This was fun for me, but it left Wes to be a single dad for quite a few nights. One night Madison came out and daddy had painted her toes bright red...it was so shocking to see her nails painted, because we had never done this before. What a fun dad! The bright red was a little much for my little girl, so a few days later we went to the store and got her some girly pink and painted her nails again.

Case continues to love school. Some of the moms from his class and I decided to take the kids to Peter Piper Pizza after school one day. They had tons of fun, but it reminded me why we do not do that too often. Here is Case and his school friends having fun.

Last but not least...after almost three years, I was released last Sunday as the Relief Society President of our ward. I will miss a lot of the things involved with the calling, but I also know that it was time for a change and that Christy will do a much better job than I did. I am now the ward Nursery Leader and I could not be more excited. I have already been on the internet looking for different ideas to help the adorable young kids in our ward.
I know that I missed a lot, but this is what I had pictures of. I will try to be more on the ball with updating the blog especially with the holiday season approaching. Yippee!

Precious Moments

I hate to sound too braggy about my kids...but, I am their biggest fan. So, just to keep from sounding too proud, Case is sneaky and does naughty things behind your back and Madi can be so bossy and demanding (and not in a nice way). But, they are wonderful and here is just something cute I have noticed about each of them lately...
Case is my pleaser...he wants everyone to like the things that he likes and do them exactly the same. For example: we give our kids Flintstones Vitamins every morning. I pour a whole bunch of them into my hand so they can pick which one they want. Case always makes Madison pick first, because he wants to pick the same color that she does. If he does not see which one she picked, he will ask me and then pick the same one. I just think that is cute.
Madison loves routine...ever since school started, we have been on more of a routine. We try to get the kids in bed early so Case can be rested for school. Last night we told the kids that it was time for bed and started shuffling them off toward their rooms. Madi looks up at us and says "prayer time". We had forgotten to say family prayer before bed. I am so grateful that she keeps us in check.
Wes is a good game player...yes, I decided to say something nice about Wes too. He and I played a game of Triominoes while we were up at the cabin over the weekend and he beat me by a long way. I love to play games and usually win, but I got whomped. Then yesterday the Candyland game came out and after many games, he is undefeated. Not only that, but Case always came in second. My gaming ego is a little down, but I am thinking of suggesting a game of Monopoly tonight.

Random Thoughts

I haven't blogged in a while because I have not had anything big or specific to blog about, so here are just a few random things that I have thought about lately.
Almost done with two weeks of school ... Case loves school and I do too. I was a little nervous about having Case go to school everyday. But I think that because it is half day it works great. He loves school and has never had a day that he did not want to go. We have had wonderful reports from his teacher so I could not be happier. Madi and I get a little time together in the mornings to play or run errands and life is good.
I am wanting to sign Case up for some type of Basketball Clinic or league. Does anyone have any suggestions? We are hoping that someday he will play for the Suns and Wes can retire in style.
I love a clean house. This will make Wes roll his eyes because I have a tendency to have clutter lying around. But we had a showing on our house today so I totally cleaned the house spotless. It is nice to look around and see that everything is clean. Usually I look around and see what needs to be cleaned. Wish us luck on selling our home...we are past ready!
We are headed up to Overgaard tomorrow to take all of the furnishings up to the cabin. It has actually been quite a job getting everything together and I will be happy to have it finished and ready for people to stay there. We are looking forward to sharing it with our friends.
I love www.craigslist.com. Have you ever bought anything off of it? I love getting a bargain and you really can using this sight. I have become a bit addicted to it. Looking at what people are giving away for free is really quite funny.
I'm going to do it...start reading Twilight. I have not started the series, but have been convinced that I need to. Thank you Christy for lending me book one and I'm sure once I start I will be begging you for book two.
Well, that is it for now. I think my kids are making a mess in the other room while I am preoccupied on the computer. And like I said, I just cleaned it. CIAO

First Day of School

Today was Case's first day of school for 2008. It is a little bitter sweet...It will be nice to have some one on one time with Madi...but I miss him when he is gone. Wes is going to be taking him to school each day on his way to work...which is an extra bonus for me! Case has the same teacher as last year (Yeah!), but he now goes everyday half day instead of just two days a week. He loves his teacher and came home telling me they learned about upper and lower case and the sound "a" makes when you say apple. I love that he likes to learn and he just loves school. Luckily I will be able to volunteer in his class this year. Madi is doing so much better with other people and I can do some baby swapping in order to volunteer. We are looking forward to a great school year!

Here are some pics of Case before he went off to school...oh and of course Madison too.

I made a cake to celebrate...if you can't tell, it is supposed to look like a book.

Happy 40th Shari

What a fun little adventure I have just returned from. About a month ago, my brother in law Michael and I came up with a plan to surprise my sister Shari for her 40th birthday. I flew in to Chicago last Thursday and Mike picked me up from the airport and brought me back to their home in Naperville. My sister was was on her way home from a hiking adventure with two of her kids and a few other families. They had some really bad weather on their way back and so when she got home she was a little flustered. I was at their house waiting with a big red bow around my neck. She came in to put her purse down and looked right at me and didn't say anything. I asked her what was for dinner and she didn't answer. The rest of the family was just cracking up. She had her back to me and finally turned around and screamed. It was hysterical and a great surprise.

Friday, we had a nice time doing girly things. It started with breakfast in bed for Shari...a Thompson and Lyons tradition. We got pedicures...Mike included. Went out to lunch and did some shopping at a great sidewalk sale in downtown Naperville. Fun Fun Fun!

Saturday we ran a few errands and played games and then that night Michael took us out to a very nice Italian restaurant called Rosebud. Their was a surprise party for Shari at a friends house and many of their friends were there.

Sunday was a lazy morning and then church and then a few hours later it was off to the airport. What a fun time I had and thank you to Mike for making it possible. A special thanks to Wes and Verna for taking care of the kids in my absence.

Everyone loves Shari and I know why...she is the best person I know...Happy Birthday to my wonderful sister and BFF...Shari!

Favorites of the 4th

We just had a wonderful 4th of July weekend. I forgot my camera, so sorry there will be no pictures. I thought that I would just share my favorite parts.

• It's my Mother's birthday on the 4th. Happy Birthday Mom!
• Driving for 3 hours to the mountains with only one CD - Josh Groban's Christmas CD.
• Seeing my niece Courtney...I love you Snort!
• Beautiful weather including rain...Yippee!
• Show Low Parade
• Show Low fireworks
• Wimbledon
• Taylor Rodeo...who knew it would be so fun?
• Taylor fireworks. (you can't beat two nights of fireworks!)
• Walking to Pico nursery
• Eating on the front porch
• Taking a nap
• Playing Mexican Train
• Spending time with family
• Steak, corn on the cob and potato salad
• Feeling pride in our country. God Bless America!

I am sure that I am missing something, but overall we had a great time...I hope you all did too. Happy birthday Mom and the USA. I love you both! (If I get any donated pics, I will add them later)

Madi News

About a month ago I introduced the "little potty" to Madison. She always tells me right when she is "going" by saying..."Mommy Eeew" and pointing to her diaper. That day she would sit on the potty for short periods of time, but I didn't want her running around diaper free so I kept having to take her diaper off and on. She actually peed in the potty that day and was so proud of herself. She exclaimed "I did it!" I was pretty proud too.
But today, we talked about the potty again. She told me that she wanted to go potty, so I took her into the bathroom, took off her diaper, sat her on the potty and she POOPED! Can you believe it at almost 22 months old she pooped on the potty. Again...I am very proud. We are going out of town tomorrow, so I am not sure if it will last, but it would be a happy miracle to have her potty trained before 2yrs old. Here's hoping!
I thought about posting a picture, but that would just be gross!

Growing Up

The kids are growing up so fast. Sometimes I just can't stand it.
Case gave his first talk in primary today. The topic was temples.
Here it is:
The temple is a beautiful place.
When I am older, I will go to the temple.
I will receive special blessings and make promises.
After I go to the temple for myself, I will go for people who have died.
I will help them receive their temple blessings.
Someday I will be married in the temple.
The temple is a blessing for my family and me.
That was it, short and simple. We went over it multiple times throughout the week, and he pretty much had it memorized. He just needed a little help with the beginning of each sentence and then he knew what to say. He spoke loud and clear and did a great job! Way to go Case!
It is great to see the kids grow up and start something new or achieve something.

We Love to Read

It will be very rare for me to post twice in one day, but I could not help it today.

We love to read books. Multiple time throughout the day the kids go and pick out books to read and we read them all together. These are some of my favorite times of the day.

While I was looking up stuff on the computer, I decided that I better check in on the kids because they were being too quiet. How happy was I when I looked into our family room and saw this site. Case reading a book to Madison. I don't take as much time as I would like to read for myself, but I hope I instill a love of reading for my kids.

Case Quotes

Case just cracks us up. He says the funniest things. Lately it has been during his night time prayers. Here are a few of them just from this last few days.
During Prayer: "Please bless Mommy not to take me to the Doctor anymore."
During Prayer: "I am thankful for Mommy making us the best dinner in all the land."
Coming into our room in the middle of the night: "Can I sleep with you? I am just not used to my bed anymore."
I will add more quotes as they come...he just makes me laugh.

Fun in the Sun

A big debate in our little family has been pool or no pool. Wes didn't want one because he was the "pool boy" growing up and does not want to do the maintenance. I have not wanted one because I have a huge fear of someone drowning in our pool. So, we have both been in agreement that there will be no pool for us.

Last summer we decided to put Case in swimming lessons. That was a horrible experience. He was very afraid of the water and would just sit on the side and cry. There were other kids his age that would just jump in with no fear. I figured out that they had pools at home and were used to it. To Case it was something new and scary. That is when we first started warming up to the pool idea.

A few weeks ago, our ward started a water aerobics and "mommy and me" class. We switch off pools of some of the sisters in our ward and do it twice a week. I didn't really want to do it because of my fear of swimsuits, but was talked into it. The first week was when all of Case's medical drama was going on, so I could not go. The next week I tried it. I loved it. I got some much needed exercise and I got to bring Madi in with me for the second part. She definitely has no fear.

Yesterday after water aerobics, most of the ladies were going over to another house for a swim party for the achievement day girls and their families. They tried to talk me into going, but we are about 8 years away from that and I didn't want to crash the party. Well, since we were down to only one car yesterday and I was getting a ride home, I was "told" that I was going. ha ha. (Thanks Christy!) Well, we had a great time! Tammy lent us some life vests for the kids (Thanks Tammy!) and that made all of the difference. Madison went right in, but it took some strong arming to get Case to go in. Once he did, it only took him about 30 seconds to just love it. The life vest made him feel so much more confident and the fear left. By the end of the day, he was jumping in from the side and even went down the slide a few times. Thanks Tammy for helping with him! It was great to spend time in the water and see my kids having so much fun. I had fun too!

Needless to say, I am hooked. We will definitely put in a pool in our next house, if we can ever get this one to sell!

Thank you Izabel for taking these pictures.

Happy Father's Day!

Father's day is always kind of bitter sweet for me.
I have a great Dad whom I love very much, but he passed away 15 1/2 years ago. I think of him every day and miss him very much. I am grateful to know that he loved me very much and that he knew how much I loved him. He was not only my Dad, but my friend. He was funny and laid back, a successful business man and well respected. I could go on and on, but it always makes me tear up and I am not up for that right now. I am sad to think that I may be forgetting some things about him, and want to make sure my kids know what a great man he was. I know he is pulling for me and watching out for me. I love you Daddy!
My Mom remarried about 5 years after my Dad died. Thank you Paul for being such a great companion for my Mom. You are a great husband, father figure and grandfather. We all love you very much!
I am so lucky that my father-in-law is wonderful too. He raised a great son who also loves and respects his Dad. Thank you for all of your great advice and for always making me laugh. You are a great Dad, father-in-law and Grandpa!
Last but not least is my husband Wes. He is the best Dad that I know. He loves out kids so much and loves to spend time with them. When Wes gets home from work it is all about hanging out with Dad. He is much more fun than me, is tons better at discipline and teaches our kids so much. He is a great example to our kids and gives them great experiences. Wes thanks for being the #1 Dad!
Happy Father's Day...I love you all!

Yuck, Yuck, Yuck

Why do I say "yuck"? Well, that is the best way to describe the last week. Case had bleed out #2. He fell back to sleep and I heard him mumbling about a half and hour later and asked him what he was doing. He told me he was talking to Jesus. At first I thought this was so sweet, and then I kinda started to panic so I woke up Wes and asked him to give Case a blessing. Eek.
The next morning when I took him to the doctor , he was mad that we didn't take him to the ER right when it happened. I told him that the doctor on call told us not to, but he was still pretty frustrated with the whole situation and I felt like a terrible mother. So, I had to take Case to get some blood work done which was not a great experience. After that, Case told me that he does not want to ever go to the doctor again and that they hurt him. Again, I felt terrible. Case's blood levels are extremely low and he is borderline anemic. We may have to start him on iron supplements in a few weeks.
Two nights later, Case began throwing up in the middle of the night. I was happy that this time is was regular vomit and not blood. Madison had been sick earlier in the week, so he must have caught that illness. I called his Pediatrician, and they thought that I should bring him in. I did and she noticed how lethargic he was and had me take him to the hospital to get another blood test. Not again! Well, his levels were about the same as before so that was good that they did not go down.
We have not been to any doctors or hospitals for two days, so that is a little blessing. We are hoping to avoid these places for quite a while. We are plugging along and all is well, but we don't want to repeat the last few weeks ever again!

Trauma and T-Ball

Last night was terrible! We put the kids to bed and about a half an hour later Case started to cry loudly. Wes went in to check on him and there was blood (a lot of blood) all over my bed. (Case has been sleeping with me since the surgery so I can watch him and Wes has been in the guest room) He then spit up blood again in the "potty". Wes called me in to help. We did not know what to do because the doctor had warned me about having a "bleed out" after having his tonsils removed. This is very rare, but can be extremely dangerous and they need to go to the emergency room right away. I wanted Wes to take him to the ER. The bleeding stopped quickly and Case actually fell back to sleep with in minutes. So, Wes called and spoke with the doctor on call. He was very nice and said that Case probably lost one of his scabs while he was sleeping and it bled for a while which upset his stomach and made him spit it up. Because it stopped so fast it was probably not a bleed out and to let him sleep and then wake him up in three hours to check him. Which we did and he is fine, but that was very gross and very scarry! EEK

Today was Case's last day of T-Ball. We were not sure he would be able to play, but he woke up this morning feeling great, so we let him. You really don't exert too much energy in T-Ball, so we figured it was okay. He got a troply and I was the snack mom of the day and brought baseball cookies to celebrate. Congrats to Case! Here are a few pics.

Recommendations

Okay all of you Chandler area folk...I need a recommendation for a good carpet cleaning company. I am also looking for discount tickets to Lego Land. Any suggestions?

Last Week

Well, last week started off fun. Monday was Memorial Day and we had Wes's parents and brother over for a barbecue. My Mom and Paul were on their way back from a graduation trip and so we got to see them for a little bit too. It was a nice day with pretty good food I must say. We sure do enjoy spending time with family.
Wes is starting to feel better and the doctor told him he can eat and do anything he wants. He just needs to ease back into it. He did over do it by trimming trees and bushes in our yard on Satruday. He took a whole load to the dump. He is paying for it now, because his incisions are a bit sore. Our big event of the week was on Thursday when we headed back up to Banner Desert Hospital for Case's adenoids and tonsils to be removed. He really needed it done. On a scale of 1-4 (a 1 is where you can't see the tonsils and a 4 is where they are touching), his were almost a 4. His snoring was terrible and he had sleep appnia. The doctor said it is almost like not sleeping because he was not getting any rest. Case was so brave that I think he did better than me. I faked it pretty well, but it was hard to let him go with the nurse, knowing that they were going to put him under and then afterwards he would be in pain.
When we got to go see him in recovery, he was still a bit doped up. He would answer our questions, but really just stare off at nothing. Then a little boy around 7 or 8 came out and he was just wailing. Case asked..."Why is that boy crying". I was so happy that it was not him. He just did so well. We came home and our biggest challenge is getting him to take his medicine and drink liquids. He likes the antibiotic, but hates the flavor of the tylenol with codine. But a little miracle happened this morning. He got up and asked for something to drink and then a few minutes later asked for his medicine. He took it willingly. He must have figured out how much it makes him feel better. Case should have a sore throat for another week or so and then be back to normal. His is a little swollen and talks a bit funny for now, but that will go away. I don't plan on setting foot in a hospital for a long time now.
I ended the week with teaching Relief Society on Sunday. It is not my favorite thing to do and beside the fact that I left my lesson outline at home, I think it went pretty well. It is true what they say...the teacher definitely learns the most.
Here are a few pics of the kiddos', cute as ever!