Life with the Brudfam

Reminder

Because it is Halloween and my kids have been consuming more candy than usual,  I want to take the time to remind to my kids to brush their teeth at least twice a day...

or else

you will get cavities.  And then one day (like when you're in your mid-30's) those cavities might need a root canal.  And when you get a root canal, you have to have lots of shots.  And when you have lots of shots and half of your face is super numb, you look super special, like this:

    

See, doesn't that make you want to go brush your teeth right now?  Get outta here and go brush!

A day in the life at the Brudfam house

Freckles was home today, not feeling well.  Sickness is rotating thru our family.  I have been feeling nauseated the last two days (no, I am NOT pregnant. I would love to be! And not for lack of trying; rather for lack of necessary female organs, like a uterus or ovaries!).  Drama Queen and Freckles have been fighting a cold, and Drama Queen came home early from school yesterday.  

I had to run downtown to the Apple Store to pick up some software (Adobe Creative Suite 4--hooray!) and so I dragged my little sick one with me.

 

We snapped a photo or two of us outside in the beautiful weather.  Utah is rarely this warm at the end of October.  My car read 70 degrees this afternoon.  Love it!

Then we went home and crashed on the couch.  Well, I crashed on the couch, and Freckles apparently played with my iphone and snapped some pics of herself (with me sleeping in the background).  She cracks me up.

   

After our "nap," I ran carpools for an hour and then a few errands.  And when I got home, my darling friend (and lucky me, next-door neighbor!) Julie, brought over a homemade chicken pot pie for us.  She is so thoughtful!  I was going to order pizza for dinner.  This was a lot better than pizza, let me tell you.  Julie is always bringing over goodies and treats and baked goods.  And she is a fabulous cook too.  Thanks, Julie!

I gave Freckles and Blue Eyes their baths, and afterwards, they ran around naked like two wild banshees.  Crazy girls.  They were wrestling naked. So I threatened to take a picture.  That made them stop.  They didn't want any naked pictures showing up on the blog.

We gathered the family together for prayers and scripture study, and the whole time we were reading, Blue Eyes was crying on the floor, reminding me of what a horrible mother I am.  She must be tired (because it certainly has nothing to do with me being a bad mom).  I always blame all my children's not-so-pleasant behavior on a lack of sleep.  It set a really nice tone for scripture study.  We were reading about the Nephites building perimeters around their cities to protect themselves from the Lamanites.  I built a little protective wall around myself and ignored her antics the entire time.

Now, gratefully, they are in bed, and hopefully will be asleep soon.  And tomorrow is a new day.  And they will be happy, and sweet and adorable.  Because they will have gotten a good night's sleep.  So if they are cranky, they won't have anything excuses...  Bless their sweet little hearts (and mine!).

Family Night

Today I've been feeling a bit under the weather.

So to calm my quesy stomach, I made chicken noodle soup with homemade noodles for dinner.  mmmmm good. I'll post the recipe tomorrow.  It's a keeper.

Afterwards, we played a very long round of CLUE. I can't stress enough the word long.  In the end, it was Ms. Scarlet (that tramp!).  And it just so happens that I won, thank you very much.  

   

Poor Drama Queen had too much homework, and couldn't join us.  Darn those teachers--don't they know it's family night?

A Woman's Touch

My Mom and I spent the day at my brother's cleaning, organizing and decorating this week.  He is suddenly (or maybe not so suddenly) single again, and we thought his rental needed a woman's touch. It is a old house in Provo, with charming archways and curb appeal.  And some not-so-charming details too...like old peeling linoleum in the kitchen and walls that haven't been painted in a while.  So we kicked into gear and tried to freshen it up and make it a place where he will feel at home, and his kids too, on the weekends that he has them.

We had fun organizing his stuff, filling the bookcases, and just generally tidying up the place a bit, just in time for his weekend with his kids.  

My sister, Colette also came over to help.  She was the master paper organizer and got a good start on getting his filing system in order.  We had fun laughing and hanging out together.

We hope that this is a fresh new start for him.  We love him and admire his strength and courage in the midst of a difficult situation.  He has continually amazed me with his faith and determination.  Even though he is my little brother, I look up to him so much!

I came across this quote, from President Thomas S. Monson the other day, and it reminded me how blessed we are to have an eternal and loving Heavenly Father to turn to in times of trial...

"Mortality is a period of testing, a time to prove ourselves worthy to return to the presence of our Heavenly Father. In order to be tested, we must sometimes face challenges and difficulties. At times there appears to be no light at the tunnel’s end—no dawn to break the night’s darkness. We feel surrounded by the pain of broken hearts, the disappointment of shattered dreams, and the despair of vanished hopes. We join in uttering the biblical plea “Is there no balm in Gilead?” We are inclined to view our own personal misfortunes through the distorted prism of pessimism. We feel abandoned, heartbroken, alone. If you find yourself in such a situation, I plead with you to turn to our Heavenly Father in faith. He will lift you and guide you. He will not always take your afflictions from you, but He will comfort and lead you with love through whatever storm you face."

--Thomas S. Monson

lunch date

I had a fabulous lunch on Monday, with two of my very favorite people in the world...

Drama Queen, The Guy and I went to Macaroni Grill for a little pasta.  Drama Queen was lucky to have a day off of middle school while the elementary had school.  So I got her all to myself for the day.  After lunch, we hit the mall for a new pair of skinny jeans & sweater.

Tagged

My sweet friend and neighbor, Julie, tagged me.  

I didn't mind answering these fun questions about "The Guy"...

1.) What is your husband's name? Jeff 

2.) How long have you been married? 16 years full of lots of laughter, trials, fun, adventures, cooperation, commitment, and love.  Sounds cheesy, I know, but it's true.  I adore him.  And I happen to know he adores me too.

3.) How long did you date? 1 1/2 years

4.) How old is he? My hunk of a hubby is 39 years young.

5.) Who eats sweets? He eats more ice cream (late at night in bed: Haagen Daz Vanilla Swiss Almond); I eat more daily treats and sweets.

6.) Who said I Love you first? I'm pretty sure I said it first.  But he kissed me first...see #18.

7.) Who is taller? He is, which leads to a funny story  He comes from a family of short Swiss people.  His dad is 5'6" and his mom was 5'1".  He was always the shortest & scrawniest kid in class in elementary school.  Every night he would get on his knees and pray to Heavenly Father that he would one day grow up to be 6 feet tall.  Guess how tall he is?  6 feet. See, prayers are heard and answered! 

8.) Who can sing best? Neither of us is too good, but I would say that I can carry a tune better than he can.

9.) Who is smarter? That's if-y--sometimes him, sometimes me. 

10.) Who does the laundry? When we got married, Jeff was the master launderer.   I ruined a few of his shirts and he had to show me how to really sort laundry.  But I am now the laundress--bring on the stains and I'll get them out.  But when the piles of clean laundry are strewn all over our bed at the end of the day, he always helps me fold it and put it away.  

11.) Who pays the bills? He pays the bills.  It causes me anxiety.

12.) Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? I do.

14.) Who mows the lawn? I am happy to say, he does.  And he does a darn fine job of it too.

15.) Who cooks dinner? I cook dinner. And he makes breakfast every single day!!!  But if he is in charge of dinner, it means pizza or Cafe Rio.

16.) Who drives? Definitely Jeff.  I give him directions, though, so we don't get lost.

17.) Who is the first to admit they are wrong? We are both pretty good at it.  

18.) Who kissed who first? He won't admit it, but he totally kissed me first.

19.) Who asked who out first? Neither of us.  It started with a kiss (after hanging out as a group), and just progressed.  

20.) Who wears the pants? It depends on what we're talking about.  But generally we make decisions together.  However, I often care more about things than he does, so it may appear that I do.  But I don't, right Jeff?

Ok, now I am supposed to tag a few people...Let's see...

how about Brenda and Chanda and Erica.  Have fun!

Saturday is a special day

Saturday was a special day because I got to hang out my my lifelong friend Megen.  She lives in Vernal, so I don't get to see her as often as I'd like to.

We met in Provo and she brought her 3-week old baby, Jamie, who happens to be the most adorable little fella.  Seriously I fell in love with him.

See what I mean?  adorable.

We went and saw The Secret Life of Bees.  Loved it.  Loved the book more, but loved it. (I can't really think of any movies that are better than the book, though.)

After we walked over to HogiYogi for some fro-yo, and then sat and chatted under a tree on the grass. It was a beautiful and sunny fall day.  Perfect for catching up and giggling like two school girls.

 

I had trouble getting my head in the photo, so Meg had to take control of the camera.  And now that I look at these pics, I realize I look like a freakish fly with those sunglasses on.  

Family Movie Night

Since the kids are out of school, we had family movie night on a Thursday and we just watched Penelope.  It was darling.  I wasn't sure what to expect, but I ended up falling in love with it.  And bonus, the kids liked it too.

Genius idea...

If you've never read Danyelle's blog, you should. She has oodles of creativity & energy as the mother of 4 young children + one on the way. Her Etsy shop is fabulous, and she throws the most amazing parties. And I have been the recipient of her thoughtfulness (and craftiness)--lucky me!

And she has a genius idea for Christmas.  Check it out here, but it is a great idea to SIMPLIFY your Christmas shopping and spending, and making Christmas more meaningful for your kids.  I am definitely following her lead this year.

Out of Small & Simple Things

I love this quote:

"In the meridian of time, among other things, the gave a touch here, a kind word there, food (both real and spiritual) to the hungry, advice and counsel to those in need. He gave prayers with the frightened, kindness to the passed-over, respect and affection for the children, loving care for those who are burdened. “And thus we see that by small means the Lord can bring about 

great things."

--Stephen A. West

Sometimes it feels like the things we do don't make a difference.  I especially feel that way in my role as a mother. Are the things I am doing (or trying to do) a waste of time?  Are my kids even paying attention?  Does it really matter that we have family dinner together every night?  Is it worth it to continue having family scripture study when they fight with one another while we are trying to read? And I often feel as if I neglect my responsibility to help others, and serve those around me.   It reminds me of what Sister Elaine S. Dalton said it General Conference this October:

"Never underestimate YOUR potential for righteous influence."

We can make a difference.  It is the small things, that when put together, make great things.  And particularly, I believe women have the ability to spread love and care and cheer to those around us, and inside our homes.  

This is a little pep talk for myself, at the end of a long day that left me feeling a bit discouraged.