One Howl of a Party

My parents and sisters hosted a super fun, amazing Halloween party for the Liljenquist and Clark grandkids on Friday night. I couldn't believe the extent of planning and preparation that went into the festivities; it was a riot! Thanks for all of your hard work, Mom, Dad, Angela, and Jennifer. The kids loved it and so did the grown ups. First, the kids had a costume parade so we parents could have a few photo ops.

Here's Rex as a "Sons of Anarchy" motorcycle club member. He had lots of wicked tatts and a killer hot pink mohawk.

Next, we have Amber as Cinderella and Karli as Taylor Swift. I made Karli's dress as a copy from Taylor Swift's performance on the MTV Music Awards (Karli's favorite thing to watch on T.V.). Neither girl could stop checking herself out in the mirrors...hilarious!

Here are Amber, Libby, Karli, Gracie, Cooper, Colton, and Rex before the party. They all looked so darling in their costumes!

After the costume parade, the kids played all sorts of fun games like "Skeleton Scavenger Hunt", "Ghost Catcher", and "Monster Freeze Dance". It was a hoot to see the drama and character that all the kids brought to the event, and they seemed to have a blast. We finished things off by eating my mom's yummy taco soup with Fritos, drinking "Dragon Blood Punch", and eating eyeball crackers. We had a grand time!

Fun With the Cousins

In addition to bonding due to similar sicknesses, Amber and Karli had a lot of fun with their Clark cousins last week. First, they dressed up Roofus with a cute, ric-rac leash and a big, rhinestone flower for her collar.

They also gave her a new "blanket", meaning a blue and white gingham napkin.

They all loved snuggling with their new quilts courtesy of Grandma Clark. Jaxon, Karli, Libby, and Rex seemed to get along particularly well. It was great to see my kids having so much fun with their cute cousins!

The Few, The Proud, The Adorable

Amber's cheer team is doing a competition routine with a military theme. I invited my brother-in-law Dave, who is a Marine recently home from deployment in Iraq, to come to Amber's class and teach the girls a few military moves. He kindly obliged and the girls were so excited! They kept asking me questions like, "Is he a real soldier?" "Does he have a real uniform?!" "Has he been in a real battle?" Dave was great with the girls and taught them some key skills for their routine.

About face.

Marching.

Standing at attention.

The girls were all thrilled and amazed to have a real Marine teach their class. Thanks, Dave, for making the day so special for all these cute little gals. We are proud of you and appreciate the sacrifices you, Maren, and Libby make for our country and for the freedom of people everywhere. Hoo-rah!

Not Even in the Movies

We had our annual fall gathering of Clark family members last week and it really was a riotous, chaotic, blast. Sadly, though, with 19 people under one roof, it was so fun, in fact, that we managed to have one wrist broken, three faces with lots of road rash, two cases of strep throat, four cases of possible H1N1 flu, and 18 cases of the 24-hour stomach flu complete with vomiting in buckets and endless diarrhea. Now that makes for a fun vacation!

I couldn't believe how fast the stomach bug ravaged its way through the whole family. It started with one baby on Saturday night, and by Sunday at noon four more kids had thrown up. From there it just got worse, and finally by Wednesday night, everyone had their turn of stomach cramps, body aches, fevers, sleepless nights, and the whole bit.

Needless to say, the washing machine was working constantly for ten days, literally with no break between loads of soiled sheets, blankets, kids' clothes, bathroom rugs, etc. I'm glad to have everyone on the mend now, and so sad that people who traveled all the way across the country to hang out in Utah had to spend their time off dealing with sickness of all sorts. Hopefully everyone had a good time despite the health issues and we're excited for next time when we'll all get together wearing surgical masks and anti-contamination suits.

Cinnamon, the Beautiful Pirate Temptress

You may remember that we took our kids to watch the pirate battle in front of Treasure Island Casino in Vegas last March. Little did we know, the show had been entirely re-vamped to be very suggestive...oops! Unfortunately, between the cannon balls and gunfire, Amber caught on to the plot of the show (pirates searching for literal booty...nice) and really took a liking to the star, Cinnamon, with "Sin" for a nickname.
From that moment, she has been obsessed with Sin, the pirate girl, and had a pirate birthday party, found a pirate costume, showed off all her scandalous dance moves, etc. When she heard we were going back to Las Vegas, she immediately packed her pirate dress, had me put in her pirate earrings, and sprinkled every conversation with references to Sin and how excited she was to be going back. Amber asked me if I had Sin's phone number so she could call her to tell her she'd be there watching, and she even thought for a minute that Sin might let Amber climb up on her ship and slide down the rope. Aaaagh! This is my four-year-old speaking!
The minute she awoke on Saturday, Amber jumped into her pirate dress and couldn't be convinced to wear anything else. The events of the day were such that we couldn't stick around in Vegas long enough to see the show (oh, darn...I was crushed) and poor Amber was heartbroken. She sobbed with the most sad cry for almost 20 minutes as we left the city, and was comforted only by being told that we'd definitely come back for her to see the show some other time. I guess when a person has a stripper for a role model, they're bound to be let down in some way or another...he he!

Saints, Sinners, and Almost Winners

We loaded up our car and took off for St. George to spend a day playing with Jen and her family and to watch Adam run the Ragnar Relay Las Vegas with my crazy runnin' family. We had a wonderful weekend; here's the rundown:

Friday morning, we all took showers in the "cool shower" at the condo. Amber loves it because it has a shower head that's connected to a hose, so she can spray everything from floor to ceiling inside the shower enclosure. Then, Adam packed up his running gear and we drove him to meet the caravan of runners who were crammed like sardines into two Suburbans to make their way to Overton to start the race.

We cruised over to Jen and Jimmy's cute house for a day full of fun and yummy food. The kids had a wonderful time playing together, I had a blast hanging out with my sis, and we culminated the day's activities with a trip to Red Lobster for dinner. Once the kids were tucked in, I took full advantage of the peace and quiet by painting my toenails and fingernails (a rare occurrence) with my favorite fall color. I finished watching "21" and went to bed early. It was pretty great, even though I did have to share the bed with Rex. That's never fun!

"Picnic Panic" was one of the many activities all the cousins enjoyed.

We woke up bright and early on Saturday, showered, ate, and I loaded up the kids so we could watch Adam cross the finish line with his team. We made it safely and the kids slept from Mesquite to Vegas. That was a nice drive! We ate a yummy lunch with Adam and Amy's family at Islands (hamburgers on whole-wheat buns...delish!) and quickly drove across the street to the finish line. After parking and weaving our way through the Red Rock Casino, we waited patiently for the last runner to approach. The kids had fun playing in the sand, and I loved watching all the teams finish the race. Some had outlandish costumes in which they traveled the entire 178 miles, and some of the runners' body shapes and sized amazed me.

Adam's darling sister, Amy, ran the race with him and they both were on the fast team...he he. I am so excited to run in a Ragnar Relay!

Here we have Utah Fold 'Em racing to the finish line. I was proud of Adam, Amy, Marianne, my mom, and my friends who took third place in their division. The other team, Utah Hold 'Em, took fifth, and I was also proud of my dad and Angela who ran with them.

They all posed with their cool medals and showed off their sweat stains accumulated in the 24-hour trek completed sans showers. Despite the craziness, I can't wait to have the baby and get into tip-top shape so I can run with Adam in the next race.

Grandma's Project

Whenever the cousins come over for a visit, they all want to have a sleepover on Grandma and Grandpa's floor. There is generally a dispute over blankets...who will share with whom, who gets which quilt, etc. Grandma Clark had a brilliant idea to make each grandchild a quilt that stays at her house. That way, everyone has their own cozy blanket at the ready when the urge to sleep over strikes. She has been working super hard to make 20 quilts, and each one is darling! She's carefully analyzed the personalities of each grandchild and hunted for flannel to match; both the front and back of every single quilt is adorable and perfectly suited to its recipient. Grandma Clark is great at making everything fun and exciting, and my girls can hardly wait to cuddle up in their new quilts. Thanks, Grandma!

My Kind of Tailgate Fare

A few Saturdays ago, Adam surprised me by bringing home a gorgeous filet of salmon from the grocery store. Generally, he hates fish, but my brother introduced us to potlach cedar-grilled salmon last year and we are addicted. I was so excited to have a delicious lunch of salmon, grilled zucchini, roasted new potatoes, juicy tomatoes fresh from our neighbor's garden (she brought me a whole bag...yum!), and Diet Pepsi while we watched college football all day. It doesn't get much better than that.

It's a Chopper, Baby

Rex's hair has always been out-of-control; even his first hair cut at three weeks old couldn't tame the craziness. This morning, Adam and I had taken all we could bear and decided to get a jump on his Halloween ensemble by giving little Rexy a killer mohawk. He held very still and looks uber cool.

Rex loves to reach up and feel his spikes, and he gets a kick out of seeing his reflection in the mirror. We can't wait to see Coop's mohawk!

Miss Independent

Amber got to go to St. George with Adam earlier this week. It was her first trip without the other kids and I get the feeling she was livin' it up. Whenever I'd call to talk to her, she'd say, "Mom, I'm fine. I love you. BYE!" I'm glad she was able to spend some quality time with Adam and also with Jen, Merrick, McKay, and Olivia (thanks for watching her during meetings!).

They ate at lots of yummy places, hiked at Dixie rock, swam every day at the condo, and had a blast at Fiesta Fun Center. She's already asking when she can go back. It's so nice to know she missed me...he he.

Look how brave she is!

While hiking, Amber was Dora and assigned the roles of Boots and Swiper to Grandpa and Adam, respectively. She had a grand time leading them all over the place on an exploration.

Amber found a perfect stage and made Adam and Grandpa be the "yellers" in the audience while she performed. I love the attitude!

Isn't she a cutie?! I can't believe how quickly she's growing up.

Baptized by Water and by Fire

As most moms of small children know, cell phones have a short and miserable life in our clutches. I first realized this universal law when Amber was two years old and my prized phone fell out of my pocket and into the tub while bathing the girls. Since I'm too cheap to buy a phone that costs more than $25, I quickly rescued my SIM card and plugged it into a twenty-dollar GoPhone from Walmart.
Adam was kind enough to give me his used Razr when he was eligible for a new, free phone, and that one met its fate one night when it fell into the toilet (yet another bathing-of-the-children incident). You can bet I wasn't going to use that phone again, and luckily I was eligible (finally) for a free phone. I was thrilled to get the updated version of the first phone I had baptized; it's a great model by Sony-Ericsson and it's so green and cute!
Last Thursday as we prepared for cheer class, I repeatedly asked Amber to refrain from filling the bathroom sinks with water. As I picked up the laundry from the bathroom floor, my phone flew out of the pocket of my sweatshirt and right into the full sink. It sank before I could grab it and the malfunctions began immediately.
I quickly removed the battery and SIM card and put the phone in a bowl full of dry rice. 24 hours later, I could receive calls on it, but couldn't use the "back" button. After a few days, it was as good as new and I was so relieved.
Can you imagine my horror when last night, as I washed my hands, my phone jumped out of my sweatshirt pocket and right into the sink again?! What is it with me and phones in bathrooms? I never actually use my phone in the bathroom, so why am I cursed to have it leap from its protected surroundings and into any body of open water?
Panic mode struck as I hurried to disassemble the phone. I remembered that my sister-in-law told me how her sister's Blackberry took a dive in the pool and was resuscitated by a stint in a warm oven. I was so skeptical, but honestly, what did I have to lose at that point? I heated the oven to 200 degrees, made a nice and comfy bed from a cake pan lined with paper towels, and tucked the poor, water-logged body of my favorite phone into its place. I turned off the oven, threw it in, and hoped for the best.
Success! My phone works like a charm, all the buttons have their original functions, and all that's left of the water is a few droplets under the screen. Thank the heavens!

Get Right Up In Her Face

While at Kangaroo Zoo, Rex experienced the not-so-fun phenomenon of sharing playspace with much older, rowdier boys. He left the infants' jumping area in a heartbroken huff, and on his way out was greeted by an adorable girl of about two and a half. I thought she was going to Rex to offer him some consolation, but instead she put a hand on each of his shoulders and shoved him to the ground. Rex couldn't believe anyone would do such a thing, and he sat on the ground and sobbed. A few seconds later, though, he stood up, put his nose an inch from the girl's, clenched both fists, and screamed as loud as he could. His hands shook and his eyes blazed with rage. I was so proud of him for 1) standing up for himself and 2) letting that little girl have a piece of his mind without inflicting physical pain. It was just awful for me to have to get up and tell Rex and the little girl to be nice, because inside I was thinking, "That's what you get, you little brat!" Aren't I terrible? Bottom line: don't mess with Rex...or his mama.

The Funnest Day

Today we were busy, but it was good business that kept us hopping. We woke up early and got ready for Karli's cheer class. The girls all did a wonderful job and things went fairly well even though I lost my magnificent assistant and desperately feared teaching the class by myself. They're learning a routine for competition season and they are adorable! Karli balanced in her headstand all by herself and only threw one major fit...isn't it sad that one fit at class is an accomplishment?
Next, we came home to eat a yummy lunch of sandwiches and tomato soup in sippy cups. That's right, even I had my soup in a hot pink sippy cup to promote cleanliness at the table among my children. I felt so weird, but Karli got a big kick out of it. Plus, anything to save a mess is worth a little shame on my part!
Then Karli and I headed to my 28-week checkup. I only gained two pounds over the past month (YAY!) and got to set my induction date for December 17th (even bigger YAY!). Nurse Hailey and Nurse Deana were super nice to Karli (as usual...they are the best!); she got two Ariel stickers, paper and a pen, a special assignment from Deana to hug me every day, and she even got to press the button on the Doppler to measure baby's heartbeat. I scheduled all of my appointments up to my delivery date, and they are all printed out on a long strip of paper like a grocery receipt. This means I now have my own count-down chain just like those that elementary school kids make. Only 11 weeks left!
Upon our return, we got a call from Leslie with news that we were invited to Kinzie's birthday dinner, so we packed up and left for Winger's. Rex and Karli wolfed down their "baby hot dogs" and fries, and I got to enjoy a whole plateful of sticky fingers. Leslie wrangled Rex during dinner and my meal was fairly peaceful. It was grand.
After dinner we all ended up at Kangaroo Zoo. To my delight, Karli was 100% more brave than she was at our last visit; she went on all the slides and even climbed the tallest tower all by herself. Rex had a blast, too, and when it was time to go home, I had to pry both of them out of the building. As I buckled Karli in her seat, she happily exclaimed, "Mom...this was the FUNNEST day!" I have to agree...it was pretty great.

Girl Party...Plus Rex

Adam took Amber to Saint George with him for business meetings this week, so Karli, Rex, and I are hanging out and having fun. Last night, we went for a walk to wear off some of the pent-up energy that seems to be constantly brimming from Rex's little body. Karli rode her Dora tricycle all the way to my parents' house and back (okay, okay...it's not far!), and she was so proud to go faster than Rex and me. Then, Angela, Marianne, and Kinzie came over for a "Hannah Montana: The Movie" and, according to Karli, "apple caramel" party. We used pre-made caramel and dipped some yummy Fuji apples; it was both simple and delicious. The best part about the whole evening: the morning after. Both kids are still asleep and it's well past their usual 7:00 a.m. wake-up time. I love it! Hopefully I'll be able to get a few projects finished before I have to go back to caring for three kids, one of whom is an early riser and likes to spread the joy of awaking before 7:00 a.m.

Here's to a Better Week

The last ten days or so have been full of not-so-fun moments and particularly hard for me to handle, so I'm really excited that yesterday was the beginning of a new week. To kick start our self-determined week of fun, we made tin foil dinners last night with Mette and Hanna. The weather was perfect (just cool enough for a sweatshirt, but warm enough to eat outside), the food was yummy, and the girls played together in such a sweet, adorable way.

More good news: I'm officially in my last trimester. Woo hoo! If I had my way, I'd make the human gestational period six months long. I'm so sick of being pregnant and can't wait to get my body into some kind of acceptable shape again.

Even more good news: I'm almost caught up on my mountainous pile of laundry and the kitchen floor will actually get mopped today. Dinner is in the crock pot and I'm excited to go teach my darling little team of Dazzle cheerleaders (they're awesome!).

Now, all I need to do is crank up some Black Eyed Peas and prepare for a week that'll be busy and full, except funner!

Amusing Insight

Last night, Amber joined Adam and me in bed because she had a scary dream. After and hour or two, she informed me that if I carried her into her room, wrapped her in her blanket, and gave her a stuffed animal, she would be okay to sleep alone. Gladly, I obliged and was stunned to hear about her dream the next morning. It was creepy, sophisticated, and validly scary. She then went on to explain that she has lots of scary dreams involving talking mud puddles (according to Amber, those puddles are mean and very creepy). She also told us that Gingerbread Man (from Shrek) can hop around even though he doesn't have arm or legs and that he tells other people to sneak into their room to scare her and Karli.

Tonight, both girls started screaming and crying the moment we mentioned bedtime, saying they didn't want the same dream to happen again (Karli was convinced she'd have it, too). They were legitimately freaked out, and I had to build a fence around their bed with their comforter. I've never been a fan of lying by them at bedtime ("Self soothe" is my mantra when it comes to my kids), but I gave in and sat on their floor until they were asleep. Every light in their room is on (that means three), and we said a special prayer for them to be brave. Let's hope it works!

I think the reason I was sympathetic to their plight is that when I was young, I had a recurring dream that I was having a tea party with Hello Kitty and her friends in a logging yard. The men working there were dirty, loud, and scary, and this dream plagued me until I was a teenager. I always thought those mean guys would throw a humongous log at me or try to kidnap my animated friends. It seems so ridiculous now, but I remember how the dream bothered me. I hope that Amber and Karli's ultra-scary dreams don't haunt them more than once, for their sake and mine. After all, bedtime is the sacred hour in our house. I need my sanity!

The Five-Hour Cleaning Lesson

Yesterday was room-cleaning day. At 4:30 p.m., Adam tackled the upstairs bathroom (thank you!), I dug our room out from under three weeks' worth of washed-but-not-folded laundry, two garbage bags full of papers and miscellany, plenty of our kids' toys, etc. Amber and Karli were charged with cleaning their room, which happens weekly, so it wasn't a huge task. They've been cleaning their own room for a year now, so I didn't think it would be a big deal.
When we heard the complaints and could clearly see that nothing was being picked up, we told them they couldn't swim with their cousins until the job was finished. Two hours later, their room was an even bigger mess and they were both crying because they were hungry. We said, "Hurry and clean your room and then you can eat dinner," but that gave them absolutely no motivation. Amber kept lamenting, "We're just little kids and we don't know any better!" (her new favorite excuse for everything) and "It's too hard!" I replied with a kind but stern explanation that they've been cleaning their room for a year and that they were actually big kids (it's a relative term, right?). Still, no progress.
Finally, after Adam and I finished our jobs, fed ourselves and Rex dinner, put him to bed, sat in the hot tub, showered, and I did two more batches of laundry AND a pedicure, and after Amber and Karli had screamed and cried for an hour straight about cleaning their room, Adam and I went in to be available in case they had questions. It was so hard for me not to put the girls to bed and finish the job myself, but Adam reminded me to let them do it and at 9:25 p.m., the room was finally clean.
I'm really looking forward to the day when they realize that whining about tasks only prolongs the misery. I think I was nine or ten years old when the epiphany struck me, so hopefully we only have seven more years of these ridiculous events!

My Sweet Cousin Hayden

Hayden Sean Housel 2/7/1990 ~ 9/11/2009
Hayden Sean Housel was welcomed with open arms into the world on February 7, 1990.On September 11, 2009, our beloved Hayden peacefully returned to his loving Heavenly Father. Hayden was a member of the LDS Church. Hayden attended Bingham High School and graduated from Horizonte before attending Salt Lake Community College.
He excelled at many sports from the time he was a little boy. He played on high school football, golf, and lacrosse teams. He also played on the South Jordan Slammers, a competition baseball team. He loved to snowboard and play the piano as well.
To know Hayden is to love him. He had the biggest heart in the world. He loved his friends and large extended family. He had a special connection with children and babies. They loved his gentle heart and soft touch. Hayden loved the Dallas Cowboys and spent the last weekend of his life attending football games in the new Dallas Cowboys stadium with family members. He also loved the New York Yankees. One of the highlights of his life was a trip with his family to New York to watch the Yankees play. He enjoyed spending time with his family and had a special relationship with his cousins. Hayden also had many special friends who supported him and brought him great joy through his life.
He is survived by his parents, Sean Housel of South Jordan and Mary Ann Rydalch Housel of West Jordan; his brothers, Preston and Hunter Housel and his sister, Isabella, all of West Jordan; his grandparents, Don and Doralee Rydalch of Sugar City, Idaho, and Karen Housel of Murray; and numerous aunts, uncles and cousins. He was preceded in death by his grandfather, Wayne Housel.
Funeral services will be Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009, 11 a.m. at the River LDS 6th Ward, 7350 South 1300 West. A viewing will be held Monday, Sept. 14, 6-8p.m. at Jenkins Soffe South Valley at 1007 West South Jordan Parkway (10600 S) and on Tuesday from 10-10:45 a.m. at the Church.Online condolences at http://www.jenkins-soffe.com/ Hayden, our hearts are broken. We miss you more than you will ever know. We love you and will think of you every day until we can hold you in our arms again.
Hayden was the sweetest boy and I'm so sad to know that he won't be here to play with my kids and talk with me about the musical preferences we shared. I know he's now on an important mission on the other side of the veil, and I'm thankful to know that we will see him again. I'll miss you terribly, dear cousin, but I'll cherish all the fun times we had!

Yumness

I have always had an affinity for black licorice, and my pregnancy hormones magnify it to an unhealthy degree. I can eat a whole bag of Black Vines in one day, so you can imagine my delight when Mette, my friend from Denmark, introduced me to Danish licorice. It's super salty and so yummy. She gave me my very own bag of Haribo Lakrids the other day and I was in heaven! My sister Allison (on a mission in Denmark) also loves it, so here's hoping she'll bring me a massive stockpile when she comes home in March. Gotta love junk food!

Our Trial of the Month

Karli's right eye had been crossing once in a while, so I finally took her to a pediatric ophthalmologist and she was diagnosed with "severe near-sightedness" in that eye. Since the doctor seemed to be very rushed, I didn't catch the scientific name of her condition and was too flustered to ask about it again, but the coating around her optic nerves didn't wear away like it was supposed to and her vision is very bad in the right eye. Hence, she is now in glasses with a super-thick lens and required to wear and eye patch on her left eye "from the moment she wakes up until one hour before bedtime" according to the doctor.
She got her glasses on Monday afternoon, so we put them on her with the patch. She couldn't even see five inches in front of her and was completely frustrated. It broke my heart when I pointed out a butterfly that was resting on a flower. She put her face right up to it and sobbed, "I can see ANYTHING!" I had to fight back my own tears and tell her how great it was for her to be able to exercise her right eye. She seems to be doing better now, and even though we have to fight with her every time she needs a new patch, she's focusing a bit and can see a few things with her right eye.
Karli is supposed to wear "sticky patches" which are like eye-shaped bandages with adhesive all around the edges, but her poor skin gets pulled off every time we remove a patch and is sore, cracked, and irritated. I made her this flannel patch that slides right over her glasses, but I had to throw it away today because she cheats when she wears it.
The eye doctor said that six weeks of faithful patch wearing usually does wonders for kids with this condition, but there's no way to know for sure. We'll either be singing praises of joy in five weeks or gearing up for a long road of patches, tantrums, nagging, and the like.
One thing that has made this awful process bearable is all the great support we're getting from our families and friends. Everyone has been so wonderful, telling Karli how cute she looks with her pirate patches and Dora glasses, buying her fun rewards, encouraging her, etc. We couldn't do it without you!
All in all, though, Karli is a great little trooper and looks so precious in those tiny glasses. She carries around her Sleeping Beauty mirror and checks herself out all the time, which is darling, and we have loads of cool stickers for her to decorate her patches. Amber has been a wonderful helper, too. She takes such good care of Karli and helps her climb, walk, and navigate rough terrain, using her perfect "bossy skills" to ensure that Karli leaves her patches on. I'm proud of both my sweet little girls!