Somewhere pigs are flying and Hades just got a little frosty

I did something yesterday that I honestly thought that I would never do. Maybe it was the high from my fun weekend or maybe just the motherly instinct to do whatever we think is best for our kids. Either way it was extremely atypical. We bought Joseph a puppy for his birthday. I have been anti-pet ever since we got married and Ben has agreed. We thought that kids were enough on their own and adding pets was, well, CRAZY. They are stinky and needy and expensive. So why would we want a pet? Until the night before last night we didn't...ever. But we were talking about what Joseph wanted for his Birthday and a dog came up. It was the weirdest thing, Ben and I got kind of into it and started talking about it and looking at dogs online. Then it hit me how good a dog would be for him. For all the normal reasons like teaching responsibility and compassion for other living things, but this went further. Joseph struggles socially, he is likable, but he doesn't always understand social situations and how to get involved. So he places the love that should be given to friends onto stuffed animals. Although there is nothing wrong with this, we really wanted him to have a more reciprocal relationship. I honestly think this experience was largely due to the spirit. Trust me, this is not something Ben or I would have willingly done on our own.

Although I have had moments of "What was I thinking" and "Why did I agree to this" I have to admit that our little Shivers is adorable. And for a puppy quite easy (so far). He hardly makes any sound, he is very calm but still playful and lovable. There have been a few accidents in the house, which I will never be OK with, but I am not freaking out like you might expect me to in that situation.

Most importantly Joseph is loving having a dog. I know that he has only had him for a day and some of this enthusiasm is bound to wear off, but I really think having Shivers is going to do a lot for Joseph.

So here he is our little eskipoo chihuahua...Shivers

If you are really interested you can see a couple video here.

In a word... AWESOME!

This week end has been so fun and so busy. It started with a Friday night showing of Twilight with some friends. Although the movie was disappointing the company was great and a girls night out is always fun.

But two girls nights out in a row is better. Saturday night was the real event...the much anticipated Coldplay concert. And as my title states it was AWESOME! We had terrible seats. By terrible I mean the only way they could have been worse is if we were in the row behind us, which was the last row in the arena. And there was a weird techno opening band that lasted way too long. Even with these less than perfect circumstances I loved the concert.

The music was, of course, amazing. I was worried that I would be disapointed seeing them live. Some bands just aren't the same live. And I have heard less than stellar things about the accoustics in the ESA. I was not disapointed in anyway. I left loving them even more than I did when I got there, which I didn't think was possible. Chris Martin (singer) was personable, very funny and gracious. I felt like I could have gone up to him and had a real conversation.

At one point they left the stage to play in the middle of the audience. Oh how I wished I had sprung for the better seats! They played right next to the fans, I even saw them shaking hands and giving high fives. How awesome is that.

So basicly I loved it. The friends I went with got into it and although there were a couple that just went for the fun of a concert they left huge fans...I'm glad I could do my part!

But none of this could have happened without my awesome husband who supported me in my girls weekend with very little complaint. He was even left to deal with the kids during the BYU/Utah game, which I know was a bit of a sacrifice to divide his attention. Anyway I have the best husband, thanks Hun.

Sew Cute

For some reason the game marbles is cool in school again. So much so that it is difficult to find any in Sandy. Joseph and Lillie really wanted some marbles so they could learn to play and take them to school to play with friends. After 3 stores we finally found some. I bought a set for each of us (excluding Van) so we could all learn how to play. Of course Ben already new how to play and killed us all, so we had to ban him from playing until Joseph, Lillie and I got better.

Anyway, we could have used the mesh bags they came in or baggies to store them in, but I decided to get out the sewing machine and get a little creative. Here is the result...

I think they turned out pretty cute. And No your eyes are not deceiving you those are drawstrings you see. As you can tell I am pretty proud of these silly little bags. I know I am easily amused and impressed with myself. The buttons are just a creative way to tell who's is who's w/o writing our names on the bags.

A few new additions

We have a few new fun things that I wanted to share. Due to a broken top oven (which we have already fixed once since we moved in) we needed a get a new double wall oven. I was oh so disappointed. We got rid of our circa 1990's white monstrosity, and in true form I did not take a before picture, and replaced in with this...

Of course this trade was not without incident, besides the monstrous cost of a double wall oven, when it was delivered we realized that the new oven was about 8 inches shorter than the old oven. After discussing our options we decided the best option was to add a drawer under the oven to fill in the gap...again bummer! It just so happens that we have 3 drawers in our garage that fit perfectly. We aren't sure why, because they couldn't fit any where else in our Kitchen but the whole where the oven is. We think that the old owners had intended to put drawers here with a single wall oven, then decided on the double oven, but were not sure. Anyway, my handy husband spent the afternoon installing the new drawer and re-installing the new oven. Oh how I love having a handy husband! I love the new oven and the new drawer. Way to go hun!

Our other addition is a new dinning room table and chairs. We have owned our old table for most of our marriage (10 years). It has been a good table and served us well, but it was time to say good bye. The great thing about this table besides the price, thank you IKEA (I know my parents are laughing right now) is that it has two leaves so it can seat 6-12 people...how awesome is that! No more card table extension for big family dinners!


Oh and we got new stools for the counter...It almost feels like a new kitchen. Now if the fridge, microwave, dishwasher and cook top would just break down so we can finish the rest of the kitchen...oh and the counter tops and the floor...

Only a matter of time

It happened, I wasn't sure if it would but it did. It happened with the other two and now it is Van's turn...he likes T.V. and is asking for a certain show. Joseph's favorite was Toy Story (we watched that movie everyday for 2 years). Lillie just loved anything, she still does, I am so glad she is in school so I don't have to say no to T.V. all day long.

Van's favorite? Well it is Mickey Mouse Club House. A twist on a classic. I am so glad it is something that I can actually stand having on. When Joseph was a baby I decided that I would only let him and now the other two watch things that I could watch with them and that was appropriate of course. So that automatically eliminated Barney, Teletubbies and now wonder pets...oh how I hate baby talk. Why, oh why would you make a show for kids that encourages baby talk? Sorry that is something that all of the a fore mentioned shows have in common. Anyway my kids have of course see all of these shows despite my efforts...I have learned it is ok to leave the room, and as annoying as many of these shows are they are better than so much of the crap that is out there for kids.

So back to the point Van asked for something this morning. At first I thought he was asking me to sing "bringing home a baby bumble bee" his favorite song. But no that was not it, so after some clever mommy detective work (asking everything I could think of and then waiting for a clue, in this case a point to the T.V.) I figured out that he wanted to watch Mickey Mouse Club House. As much as I hate just sitting him down in front of the T.V. it is nice to know that it is an option for entertainment when needed. Like all new moms I promised myself never to use T.V. as a babysitter...oh how naive I was. Sometimes T.V. is a great babysitter...plus it gave me time for this awesome post!

Too much of a good thing...

Well maybe not too much but just enough for sure. October was a crazy busy and fun month. We had something Halloween related at least once a week. Here is the run down of how our month went:

• It started with a traditional Halloween dinner party and movie night with old high school/college friends.
• Gardner Village to see the Witches
  
• Our big adult Halloween party
• FHE w/ friends to carve pumpkins
  
• Trunk or treat with the grandparents
• The kids Halloween party
• The school Halloween festival
• And finally the big event Halloween itself

Not to mention dentist appointments, photo shoots, volunteering at the school, art classes for the kids, doctors appointments birthday parties etc. I love Halloween and all that comes with it, but by the time Halloween actually got here I was ready to be finished with Halloween for the year. Here are a few picture highlights...

Just in case you need a hint, Joseph was a bear, Lillie was a witch and Van was a dragon.