School’s Back In (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: Papa Murphy’s got rid of their classic cheese bread. This might not be news to you because apparently it happened a year or more ago. But for me? Who hasn't had Papa Murphy's for quite a while? This is new and devastating information. 

I don't understand. 

Fact#2: My kids didn’t read at all this summer. I had such good intentions. I was going to reward them for reading. I was going to read to them. We were going to start the year on benchmark (my kids are behind in reading). 

And yet... 

Fact #3: Nicky is supposed to head to Puerto Rico tomorrow, but Tropical Storm Erin is a-brewing. I’m interested to see if his travel is affected. I’m not at all worried about it in terms of Nicky’s safety (should I be?)

Update: the plane made it to Puerto Rico, so as long as Nicky was on it, he’s there now! (He does not currently have a phone. He will be issued one in PR now that he’s there. We are excited to hear from him, but we have no idea when that will be. In the meantime, I continue to not feel worried about him. Curious… but not worried).

Fact #4: A few things I don’t like about the school year:

Friend drama

Managing children’s anxiety and daily breakdowns

Keeping up on school communication (especially during years when I have three schools to keep track of)

School dances

Drop off and pick up traffic

Not being able to go to work at 5 a.m.

Fact #5: A few things I like about the school year:

Built-in friend encounters, reading, and exercise

Having a schedule and a routine and not so much downtime

A bit more alone time for me - even just a little time in the car between drop offs and pick ups is so nice

Being able to start and finish a small task without interruptions every two minutes

Going to the store without my kids

After school activities that keep the kids busy

The weather starts to cool down (but gosh darn it, not for a while still - it was so hot today!)

Fewer messes around the house (in theory)

Fact #6: First day photos:

Eva - 5th

Zoe - 7th

Daisy - 10th

Fact #7: Last weekend Scotty and I went camping all by ourselves! I don’t think we’ve ever been camping, just the two of us. It was amazing. All we did was play games, take naps, eat food, and go back and forth from the outhouse. 

It was exactly what we needed. 

This is the only photo I took:

Fact #8: I don’t understand why people don’t take their photos out of their picture frames before donating them to the thrift store.

Fact #9: I fell asleep while writing this blog post… two nights in a row

Fact #10: How I celebrated the first day of school:

Scrubbed my shower

Shampooed the living room couch

Went to the thrift store (bought some books and a shirt for Zoe)

Picked up my prescription eye drops (that don’t help)

Went to the car wash

Met Christie at Cafe Rio for lunch and talked for 2.5 hours. Almost died on a shifty Cafe Rio toilet seat.

It’s Summer Break (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: A couple of weeks ago I found this doll at the thrift store, and gave her a makeover. 

Before

After

Then I took her for a drive and handed her off to Addie, and said, "Here! Find somewhere to put this for your mom!"

Buckle up, Babe

A little while later, Addie sent me this photo:

Patiently waiting in the closet

Anyway, her name is Odessa, and I love her very much.

Fact #2: Last week I had to go to a neurologist and have an EMG. They were addressing my neuropathy and trying to see if they could determine a cause. As with everything else in my life, they didn’t have any answers. I’ve had two different rounds of labs done and now the EMG. I have another round of labs ordered, but I’m not feeling hopeful that we’ll find any solutions. I think I might just hurt for the rest of my life. 

I got to wear these fancy hospital shorts:

Disposable shorts

Fact #3: A couple of weekends ago I got to visit with my sister from California and my friend Shannon from Idaho!

Liz & Britt

Britt & Shannon (aka: Brown Gravy)

Fact #4: Last week, Lala and I went to a VIP event for her work. We got to tour the homes from the reality show Rock the Block (full disclosure: I’ve never even heard of it). It was pretty fun, and we got to eat some yummy food and bring home some swag bags. 

Our weird washed out photo (the backdrop was black!)

Fact #5: The night before graduation, Scotty helped me put out a yard sign that said “Class of 2025.” He was so proud when it got to this point, and he sat out in the yard waving to all the neighbors for a while.

Fact #6: This year in school, Nicky took AP Ceramics. It was very different from the other AP classes he has taken because he had to create a portfolio rather than take a final test. I’m excited to see what he scores. He wasn’t going to do it, but his ceramics instructor basically said, “You’re doing this!” 

(I love a good “teacher made me do it because he saw my potential even though I resisted” success story). 

Nicky created some pretty cool pieces over the years. He ended up taking pottery classes every year of high school. He had one pot, in particular, that won a few awards and was displayed in a museum. 

Some of Nicky’s work

Fact #7: Summer weather is upon us! 

Slip n sliding’

Fact #8: Daisy made cinnamon rolls without my help! I’ve waited my whole life for this!

Fact #9: Other important people who graduated with Nicky:

My Briana Whitney:

And my Addie

Fact #10: Zoe got her hard cast on today (it’s been a week since she broke her arm). This is the first broken bone we’ve had in the family. Can you believe that?

She will have the cast for three weeks. She’s having a hard time with it and is losing patience over everything she can’t do. 

I’m still here (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: I don’t know how to blog anymore. I try every few days, and it doesn’t work!

Fact #2: This was Zoe’s great idea…

Her logic is, why put someone’s actual name on a bracelet when it might change?

Fact #3: Speaking of Zoe, she worked hard all morning on April Fools to prank the family. 

Fact #4: This wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be:

Fact #5:

Crock Pots.

And I love buying them from the thrift store. I will never turn away a good Crock Pot. 

Fact #6: Yesterday I took Daisy to the eye doctor, and there was a mini Jesus hidden in the room (it’s a TikTok trend).

Then today at the orthopedic specialists office, we found another Jesus.

I decided to leave Him a friend.

Fact #7: Why were we at the orthopedic specialists? Because Nicky injured his calf. We initially went to the ER, and then after a few days, it was starting to get more painful so we followed up with the specialist.

He will be in a boot for two weeks and has to miss the rest of tennis season.

He’s pretty devastated.

But I took him to Costco and bought him a cheesecake to help lift his spirits. 

Fact #8: We went and saw the Minecraft movie, and I realized Jack Black and I have the same hair.

Fact #9: Other devastating things… on Monday, Nicky was supposed to go skydiving. We had been at the skydiving place for about three hours. He was all harnessed up and set to take off in 20 minutes when they called the other plane down because of wind. We waited an hour and a half or so, and then they called it off entirely. It was so sad.

Fact #10: My kids are currently on spring break. Our big plans have mostly consisted of doctor appointments. 

It’s Already Mid-February (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: I often wonder how many people have to look at me everyday on Facebook as a “people you may know.”

Fact #2: It just dawned on me the other day that since I come from a blended family, I have siblings who don’t know each other. Like… my brother Brock has no idea that I have a sister named Liz, and he could see her walking down the street and have no idea they share a sibling. 

Fact #3: Speaking of Brock and Liz… Brock cut his hair this week, and Liz got married.

Fact #4: I’ve had a lot of things not go right lately, and I really need a win. Can I have a win this week? Just a little somethin’ somethin’ to hold me over for a while? I’ll be waiting and manifesting, Universe. Feel free to jump in.

Fact #5: Over the weekend, Nicky went to Sweethearts with his first girlfriend (four years later).

Their little fling lasted about three months in 8th grade. They had an awkward year after that, but they recovered and have been good friends ever since (Read more about their romance here). 

Fact #6: I chaperoned the dance and didn’t tell Nicky I would be there. Here’s his reaction when he found out I was there:

Fact #7: I’ve been trying so hard to get back into reading. It’s been about a year since I lost my reading umph. I hope someday I enjoy it again, but for now, I’m still having a hard time reading. I just want that part of me back, so that’s why I can’t just let it be!

Fact #8: Parenting is kicking my butt right now. 

Fact #9: Things I did at 3:00 this morning when I was wide awake:

• Made photo collages
• Composed a text message to the theatre teacher with my recommendation for the musical for next year
• Cast the entire musical for next year (but did not include my casting in the aforementioned text message because you don’t tell the theatre teacher what to do, but she did tell me to let her know if any musicals crossed my mind because sometimes someone will bring up one that she hadn’t thought of)
• Had a belly ache (the smoked meats from our Super Bowl party left me feeling like a flock of charred animals attempting to escape a wildfire crawled into my stomach and died there)
• Ruminated over all the things that are troubling my heart
• Googled some shit
• Tracked some packages
• Worked on this blog post 

Fact #10: Daisy got her drivers permit last week. We’ve really dragged our feet in teaching this girl how to drive (she’s been eligible for her permit for five months already). Now that she has it, we have taken her out driving exactly zero time. 

Chick-Fil-A Doesn’t Open Until 6:30 (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: You know what makes me feel lonely sometimes? Liking something that I have no one to talk to about (see recent post about Miranda Hart whilst acknowledging that you have no idea who Miranda Hart is). I don’t say that to sound sad or picked on. I’m just being factual. I have some interests and passions that not a lot of people share. So when I find a nerdy, lil person I can talk to about The Things, I am just so darn happy. A couple of weeks ago I got to talk to another human being about one of my TV shows, and I’m still on a high from it because it is such a rare occurrence. 

Fact #2: Nicky was ordained an Elder on Sunday. It threw me for a loop because I was planning on this happening after he graduated. He informed me on Friday, which I guess I’m grateful for because it wouldn’t be unlike him to tell me Sunday morning. 

Fact #3: We are just about ready to turn in his mission papers. We decided to get him a passport before we submit them, so as soon as that’s done, we’re good to go. 

 

Fact #4: I don’t miss having babies and toddlers. Sometimes I feel guilty because I feel like I’m supposed to miss it, but by golly, I don’t. When I see pictures of my kids as toddlers, I think they’re cute (awwww), but I’m not sad at all. This sentiment is amplified whenever I see another mother using a stroller or car seat.

Fact #5: Twice recently, my friends have said to me, “I know you’re not a hugger, but…” and then they’ve hugged me. It’s true, I’m not much of a hugger, but I’m not opposed to hugs - I’m just not the initiator. I’ve wondered, though, how my friends came to the conclusion that I’m “not a hugger.” Was it through observation and lack of hugs for years on end? Or did I declare it at some point? I don’t recall. 

Fact #6: One of my friends (not one of the aforementioned huggers but a different one) hugged me the other day and then told me I held on longer than usual. So maybe there is a little untapped hugger in me. But now I’m overanalyzing the situation because I didn’t intentionally hold her longer, and the fact that it was noticeable makes me wonder what in the world I was doing. 

Fact #7: It is currently 4:00 in the morning, and I’m wide awake. This has been my routine for about two months straight. I wish Smith’s was open because cheese is on sale (today is the last day), and I’d like to stock up. I feel like that would be a great way to be productive right now as opposed to laying in bed in my underwear writing weird paragraphs to share on the internet. 

Fact #8: My blood pressure has been normal for the last week, and I don’t even know what to do. Look at me walking around not almost having a heart attack! Who am I?

Fact #9: I had jury summons today, and the case got resolved yesterday, so I’m off the hook! I am so happy! I’m going to absolutely live it up over the next two years of ineligibility. YOU CAN’T TOUCH THIS!

Fact #10: For the past few weeks I’ve been doing mom and me journals with Zoe and Eva, and they are loving it. I got them two different ones for variety. It has been a fun activity that they have really loved. One night Zoe was having a meltdown (her meltdowns are pretty rough sometimes and last hours) and I was able to reset her by asking her to do her turn in the journal. Nothing has ever reset Zoe before. Such a relief! 

Today is the Day (and ten other random facts)

Fact #1: My kids (finally) go back to school today after the Longest Winter Break of All Time. We’ve taken on a whole new schedule and lifestyle in the time the kids have been out of school. I don’t remember how to do the routine. I don’t remember how to feed my family non-party food that I have to buy and prepare myself. I don’t remember what day it is. I don’t remember how to go to work during normal hours (I went in at 5:30 am during the break). 

Fact #2: Speaking of party food, even though the holidays have come and gone, we are still partying pretty hard over here. Our family has so many December and January birthdays that we can’t even think about rest until February. Over the weekend we had a combined birthday celebration for me (Jan 1), my brother-in-law (Jan 3), and my father-in law (Jan 4). The next day we had Nicky’s birthday party. His birthday was December 27, but we put off his birthday party for a bit because we were booked with Christmas events, other people’s birthdays, and a niece leaving on a mission. I wanted to do something at least a little bit special for his 18th so we had an open house and encouraged people to dress like Nicky. 

Sadly, I got very few pictures. 

Fact #3: On Saturday, during the hustle and bustle of getting ready for parties, someone drifted into my lane and sideswiped  my van. Everyone was fine. Her car was fine. My van’s damage was minimal and only cosmetic (fortunately), but it was a bit inconvenient. I’m not sure, but I think the girl might have initially tried to run. I chased her down, and she pulled over. 

The door is dented, but the scuffs all came out.

Fact #4: Puzzles we did over winter break:

Fact #5: I wish we’d had more time for puzzles and games. On Christmas Day I wanted to play Ark Nova so bad, but in the afternoon, Scotty got slammed with a head cold. He was pretty sick for about 4-5 days. Alas, there was never Ark Nova. 

Fact #6: We hoped to get Daisy’s learner’s permit over the break, and that never happened. After my car accident over the weekend, she’s taking a big step back in any desire to drive. But we did get Nicky’s dental and medical checkups done for his mission paperwork, so at least we have something checked off our to do list. 

Fact #7: I have been engaging in a wonderful journey of collecting all of my free birthday food and gifts. Stay tuned at the end of the month for a thorough rundown. In the meantime, here is a teaser:

Fact #8: 

Me: Go put the HAPPY BIRTHDAY sign out in the yard for the party.

My kids:

Fact #9: I have jury duty next week. This is the 8th time in my life I’ve been summoned for jury duty. Something is wrong with the system. Why is it that I can’t win BINGO to save my life, but I can get called up for jury duty the second I’m eligible?

Fact #10: I am solidly one of those people who get the bug right after Christmas to throw out everything we own and declutter the entire house. I have taken three car loads of stuff to the DI. It feels so refreshing! This is such a funny phenomenon, but I am definitely among the January purgers. My mentality right now is “if it makes me feel any amount of stress to own it, use it, or store it, I want it gone!” I’m doing this with “stuff” but also with food. I’ve gone through all of our food and thrown out everything that I feel stressed out about trying to use up. 

I love getting rid of stuff! Wish I could get rid of my jury summons… (I’m contemplating paying the $1,000 fine and taking the night in jail).