Dave and the Jensen Girls

December so far....

2011-12-20T15:04:00.000-08:00

Even though I despise winter, I have been enjoying December. We have had some great weekends. We went to Salt Lake one night to visit Dave's grandma Jane and after catching up with her we bundled the girls up an took them to see the lights at temple square. We had to park so far away but it was actually a lot of fun walking through the city at night. The whole thing started way past the girls' bedtime, but they were having SO MUCH FUN. Winter ain't so bad with long underwear, warm gloves and a fleece hat on. We saw some great singers from Syracuse High singing Christmas carols and Sasha really loved their show. That will be a yearly thing from here on out. It was just a great night.

A few weeks ago we took the girls on a great hike, again we were totally bundled up, but we got up out of the inversion and enjoyed a nice day of sun. We went prety high up the mountain and the girls got to do their favorite outdoor activity at the top, THROWING ROCKS!!! Rock throwing entertains these kids for hours!
Last weekend was so cold, but we had a lot of old bread in the kitchen so we went to Beus Pond to feed the ducks (and the maniac aggressive geese). As we got out of the car, the geese charged us. The children were terrified (okay I was terrified as well). We fed them anyway and Dave got bit on the legs a few times. An old woman was taking nature photos in the background, and good thing she was or I think we would have been eating Christmas goose for dinner. Dave sort of wanted revenge for all those bites. It was funny to watch.

Today was great. Aunt Leslie sent a HUGE package for the girls. We found the giant box on the porch and quickly brought it in and opened it. All the girls saw was TONS of the huge bubble wrap. They were instantly in heaven they both grabbed giant sections of it and ran to the living room to play. I took the actual gift out of the box and put it under the tree. They still haven't even noticed or asked about it. I think they believe their aunt sent them bubble wrap and they are so thrilled about it. After Lyla went down for a much needed nap, Sasha and I transformed the bod into the "Sashabot". Good times as always.

And last but not least, I have taken my crafting to a new low....
I wanted to take a great white elephant gift to a party and I thought I should make something this year. I walked into the fabric store, and I stumbled upon a clearance remnant of some flesh colored fleece and my brain automatically went to the gutter..... So I went with it and here's what I made. I won the white elephant gift contest and was asked by a friend to make her one for a party she was attending. I don't think the world is ready for this, but it was SO FUNNY!!!

You have to admit a ball-sack purse is sort of funny, right?

Halloween

2011-11-23T08:07:00.000-08:00

I am a schedule person and strangly enough, the introduction of kindergarten has left me little time for doing the things I love, like writing this blog. If I have a couple of hours with one child, I like to go to a store or shower and appy mascara. One kid means almost NO SCREAMING sounds coming out of Lyla and I just want to enjoy every second of life when my children aren't trying to harm one another.
AND.......Pintrest. I should never have logged onto that website in the first place. I was warned of it's addictiveness, and I went anyway. I am VERY addicted to it and I think I love it more than Facebook, and everyone knows I'm not ashamed to say that I love Facebook. So yes, I am wasting LOTS of time on Pintrest and I've even caught Dave on Pintrest. It's that good.

So Halloween here was a blast. We had Sasha dressed as Tinkerbell and Lyla dressed as, you guessed it, TINKERBELL! It was just fine with me. I had to think once and sew twice. Easy peazy. They looked so cute and they had super cute Tink hair and I was so happy with the results, as were they. Lyla did her first real trick or treating and she loved it. At the second house, she tried to give her first piece of candy to the lady at the door in exchange for the new piece. She thought it was some sort of "trading" instead of the mass collection of candy that it really is. She had fun despite the fact that she could not actually eat a single piece of candy she collected. When the girls got back, we took all the peanut candy out of their bags (it was half the candy!)and gave it away to the ten million kids who knocked on our door. We had an insane amount of trick or treaters this year. It was fun though and the kids are already making plans for next year.

I'm still Alive!

2011-10-13T08:19:00.000-07:00

Summer, plus distractions seems to equal ZERO blogging. Well I'm back! Here's the update. Sasha started Kindergarten and she loves it! She goes to half day kindergarten and the schedule sort of sucks. I personally didn't love school when I was a kid and I feel bad that Sasha has to go to school all day, everyday for the next 12 years, so I'm FINE with half day school for now. If you ever wonder why I didn't go on to Med school, my hatred of "school prison" is the reason. I like to do what I please most of the time. Of course I keep this information quite when speaking to Sasha...

This is her picture from the first day of school. She got to walk to school with cousin Anabel and her hairdo took a little long, so we didn't get the classic front porch shot. I will absolutely pat myself on the back for her ADORABLE dress which I made specifically for this grand occasion. She looked top notch! Here's a better shot of this adorable T-shirt dress. I got this gorgeous yellow trim from my grammy Bonnie's basement, so I bet it is totally from the 60's or 70's. She gave me a bag FULL of laces and trims and to me this is such a treasure. I can't get enough of ric rac, lace and ribbon! I get a bit to excited about that stuff.

So she's in school now and I guess this means my dreaded enemy winter is coming. I know that I live in Utah and it snows here, but now that I realize that the sun is my best friend, I just get so sad about Mr. Sun hiding behind the clouds for months. It's a bad situation for sure. We are trying to make the best of it though.....we bought a snowmobile and we're still looking for one more. Hopefully, this will make it a little better. Buying the boat last year, changed my life forever. I found out that we are very much "Boat people". We went to Pineview Dam nearly every single weekend and it turned out to be some serious quality family time......not to mention major Tan Time. I loved every second of it. Though it took months for her to warm up to it, Lyla finally found her love for walking on sand. I can only imagine how much more fun she has now that she has recovered from sand paraplegia. She threw all her toys off of the blanket and I just told her SHE had to walk off of the blanket to get them herself. She struggled for sometime with this sad reality, but ultimately she did it and life has been great ever since.

I love these girls SO MUCH!!!! I feel like I hit the kid jackpot. They are so cute and so funny. No lack of personality with these two!
There is one other reason that I have not updated this blog in so long. We have discovered a few new songs that require A LOT of dancing. We have gone dance party crazy at this house. LMFAO is the name of the group and they have two songs that we just can't get enough of. "Party Rock Anthem" (the name says it all) and "I'm Sexy and I Know it" is the other one. I feel that club dancing is the best medicine of all for a rotten mood, so we make sure to blast these songs several times a day and just shake our butts. The kids love it and I hope this part of their upbringing really puts a lifelong stamp in their memories of me. I'm not the best and certainly not the worst, but I definetly like to have fun. I can't handle a shortage of that....EVER.

I Want to Live on Vacation

2011-08-23T07:26:00.000-07:00

Coronado was AWESOME! It just doesn't get much better than that. The weather was perfect every single day. We lived in the pool at the rental house and when we weren't in the pool (or soaking up the California sun next to it) we were at the beach. In hind sight, I wish we would have spent even more time at the beach, but you have to make some schedule adjustments if you want Lyla to take a nice nap and be happy.
We did go to one theme park, Legoland, and it was fun but VERY hot and really crowded. The Lego city display was so cool, but a day at Lagoon would be just as exciting for me, so we probably should have saved our money and gone to the beach. That is what I hate about theme parks. If I'm paying like $60 a person to come into your hot, crowded theme park, I think the least you can do is comp my parking. I'll be forced by the sun to buy a $3 water and maybe one $5 Gatorade, so do you really NEED my $12 just to park the rental mini van in your lot? It is just too much for me. Oh and I better not forget one crucial detail about said mini van........it broke down on the I-5 freeway. Better still, it broke down on the left hand side of the freeway, right next to the fast lane. This piece of shit Chrysler just turned off for no reason at all. It was sort of terrifying, but since it eventually started back up and no one died crossing 5 lanes of busy freeway, it ended up being sort of funny. Like the adventure before the theme park. The rest of the way there and back we had to stay in the slow lane just in case the van said "NO MORE" again.

The trip was also great because the kids and I spent some time with Dave. We rarely see him and it was just nice to spend some time together. And since we were staying with family, after the kids went to bed, we went on walks or went night swimming and that was so fun (especially our 5 mile walk/run to the other side of the island). It was just perfect and I so wish I lived there. If I win the lotto, you know where to find me....

Summer Vacation

2011-07-20T14:22:00.000-07:00

The awesome summer vacation that I have been dreaming about since winter is finally here! I just can't wait to see the real ocean on the real beach and soak up that California sunshine! I am packing way light, but it's still time consuming and I feel like I am the most easily distracted person on the planet. I have seriously spent half the day on the phone and the other half right here on the good old laptop. It's been fun while I'm letting it get the best of me, but everytime I look away, my children are destroying any packing progress I've made. Lyla DOES NOT understand the words "don't touch". I don't even care though. I am so glad all the waiting is over and it's time to cash in on the dreams of summer vacation! Hopefully Lyla will drop the paraplegic freakshow act and finally WALK in the SAND!

Go Go Going!

2011-07-02T07:36:00.000-07:00

What a summer already. I feel like fun plans materialize out of no where this summer. A day with nothing planned, ends up being filled with good times. I've taken the girls to the playground so many times at this point, that two year old Lyla has No Fear and she yells at me to stop there when we are passing it in the car. We have gone boating every weekend and that has been a real game changer around here. Yes, Lyla still hates the sand and won't touch the water ( in her defense Pineview water is sort of nasty), but she loves chilling out on her beach blanket, flipping sand around with her shovel. Every now and again she says, "I Lyla boat, go fast", followed quickly by "I go home". She don't know what she wants! Sasha on the other hand could spend the entire day just playing on the beach. She loves to sit on pops lap and "drive" the boat, she is constantly on the look out for waves to jump. It makes me so happy to be filling her young life with such fun memories. I am a sun loving lady and my tan is going to reach Pauly D. status by August. I know I'm not supposed to want to get my tan on....but I still love it.
Sasha took her first trip to Lagoon the other day and she had so much fun. Even though I have my mothers dizzy genes, I took a Dramamine and enjoyed some rides too. My best friend Russie has an adorable daughter, Addison , that is 19 days younger than Sasha. So that makes a trip to Lagoon that much more fun. Russie and I took on the old, white, rickety roller coaster and it didn't collapse, so it was a fun ride. I seriously felt 12 years old at the top of the first hill. Good times for sure. Sasha is fearless by the way. She was 2 inches to short for the roller coaster, but she was begging to ride it. Next year for sure.....

Some of the pictures below are of totally random stuff we've been doing (These are for you Leslie). Sasha's first ballet recital was adorable. She had so much fun being on stage and grandma Linda and grandpa Dennie brought her the most gorgeous bouquet of roses to give to her after her performance. Other shots are from Antelope island in the center of the Great Salt Lake. We totally went there at the worst time of the year. We got eaten alive by "no see" bugs within minutes of exiting the car. Sasha cried about it on the way home and she kept saying, "I am so sorry I ever made us come here! I just want to take a bath and go to bed!" It was funny, but we did see a buffalo very close up.... like 4 feet from the car.

Pre-show

Just left of Sasha is her big girl partner Grace. She is my cousin Joel's daughter and she is a beautiful ballerina. She was the star of the rest of the show. It was amazing watching her on those pointe shoes! She is an inspiration for Sasha.

Lyla put on a show too, off to the side of the stage....

too cute!

This is not zoomed in. It was that close.

The bug attack was getting more intense....

Sasha's drawing of our family. I am the child sized person to the left of the giant. I like that my hair is huge and I am the same size as my 4 year old. I was so sad that she drew this on the chalk board, because i would have framed it!

Apple Pine

2011-06-16T15:44:00.000-07:00

Things are going pretty well with Lyla. Her diet is not "normal" for a kid her age, but we've made our own normal and it's great. She loves to eat cans of new potatoes with some salt, pepper and olive oil. She also loves to have chicken mixed in with the potatoes and it really is a delicious meal. It is called "kickin and tato" by a hungry Lyla. She has also rediscovered her love of pineapple. Today she threw a mini temper tantrum in her room and the whole time she was screaming "apple pine pwease! ME EAT APPLE PINE PWEEEEEASE!". I got the impression that she wanted some pineapple and she doesn't care what it's really called. So she calms down and eventually makes her way to the kitchen. I serve her the pineapple at the kitchen table and Sasha approached the table to see what Lyla was eating. This enraged Lyla! In the cutest baby talk you've ever heard, she puts her arm out and yells "Get Away now! ME LYLA APPLE PINE! Get away!" I can't help but laugh. Who takes their pineapple that seriously? Adorable!

Worth the Wait

2011-06-06T10:26:00.000-07:00

So, it took forever to get here, but summer is worth the wait. We had the most gorgeous, hot day yesterday. It was a great Sunday for us. We took the boat out of course and for the first time in so long, we were in swimsuits, soaking up the sun. We drove up to Pineview and before we launched the boat, the kids and I get in the boat with all our gear. So far this year, there has been to line to wait in before you launch your boat, but yesterday, there was a short line. It wasn't a problem for us, because Dave had no clue that the trucks lined up next to the ramp were actually waiting their turn.......so Dave just drove around them and started backing the truck up. He couldn't hear a word I was saying so I just shut my mouth and played dumb. I think some folks got a little pissed off, but since Dave doesn't pay much attention to other people, I don't think it bothered him a bit. I was laughing to hard to be mortified! We got the boat in the water really fast, and we were off! The water level was so insanely high so we decided we better drive around and scout out some beach. We have never done this before so we just found a spot that looked nice and beached the boat. Sasha was in heaven because sand and water is totally her thing. She grabbed her beach toys and she was loving every second of it........Lyla, not so much. Turns out that Lyla HATES having her feet touch both sand AND water. She cried hysterically when we tried to stand her up on the beach. Even with Crocs on, she just could not handle it. Luckily we had her little collapsible chair (soccer sideline chair) with us, so we set that up and she stopped crying. We handed her a shovel and she sat there like a happy little paraplegic! Her upper body is beach friendly, it's just her lower half that need to be left out of the equation. A couple of times her chair tipped a bit forward and (GASP!) her feet made contact with the sand, and she just lost it every time. It was so funny! So we were all set up in our spot, enjoying the day when the water cops pulled up. Turns out, you can't just park where ever you like. Our boat was like 20 feet away from a boat friendly zone. So we had to pack up all our shit and move the boat over. This was also funny, because there were buoys right there that read something to the effect of "no motor boats", but oblivious as we are, we just didn't see them. We moved to the safe zone and the beach was even nicer over there. We had such a great day and I can't wait to do it all again. In fact, I just bought Lyla some rain boots at Walmart and I think this might solve some of her beach issues!

Thankful

2011-05-17T06:57:00.001-07:00

My life is good. My life is simple. Is there a basic need that isn't met? No, I have everything I could possibly need and so much more. I have never had to wonder where I will find food, or worry about getting clean water. I have never been without a home, or a car, or a safety net of support. So I'll say it again. My life is good. I am surrounded by the people I love and what more can you ask for. I wake up every day (sometimes VERY early, but who cares) to the faces of the husband I lucked out in finding and the little girls I was blessed with. I realize there will be a time in my life when my children live on their own and I won't be able to see them every single day or get this wave of their love and hugs crashing down on me throughout the day. It makes me sad to think this way of life is ever changing and evolving. I don't want to ever be without these little, happy, giddy, silly kids, but they will grow up, and their own worlds will bloom from the seeds planted here. I love them and I am so grateful that this is the life I've chosen for myself. Thank you Sasha Jane and Lyla Kay! You bring me more joy than I ever new was possible.

Mothers Day Weekend

2011-05-10T07:19:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to be a mom. Like my own mother, I knew from an early age that the main thing I wanted from life was to be a mom. I always knew that I wanted kids and though it can be so challenging, it is by far the most rewarding thing I have ever been a part of. Sasha and Lyla are the center of my universe and I am so thankful to have them. I have learned so many very important life lessons through the trial and errors of motherhood. I treasure these early years of their lives and I am trying to just slow it all down and really absorb and appreciate them. I can't even begin to explain how thankful I am that I get to be a stay at home mom to them. My relationship with my kids is very tightly woven and I know it's the way it is BECAUSE we are with each other so much of the time. I've got the whole rest of my life for myself. These are the kid years, and they are flying by to quickly for my taste. So, yes, I had a great mothers day.
Saturday was jam packed but really a lot of fun. We started the day with Sasha's soccer game and she scored 4 of her teams 5 goals. That is a dream scenario for a family of sore loser, poor sports. So the day started off just right. Dave missed the game because he had to stay home and wait for the Comcast guy to come fix our home phone and Internet connection. We didn't have either service for 3 days and I was going nuts. My mom was over here one of those days and she didn't understand why I NEEDED the internet so badly. It is crazy how dependant I am on the internet. I need this wi-fi to keep me connected to the outside world. Soccer practice, hair appointments and my news source are all done via the internet. I remember being 18 and hearing about this mystical thing called the "web" and wondering why anyone would ever need such a thing? I honestly thought only nerds would use it.......long story short, I am a nerd!
After soccer, we took the boat out for the first time for the season. Pineview is so close and we just bought a launching pass so we can put the boat in for free the rest of the year. The water is obviously still insanely cold, so we just stayed in the boat and went FAST! We stopped in the middle of the reservoir and ate lunch while Sasha attempted to fish for the first time. She was a bit disappointed that she wasn't able to catch a fish in the ten minutes that she fished. But fishing is boring compared to speeding across a glass like body of water, so away we went. After boating, Sasha and I hit up my friend Jessica's house for her daughter Shiloh's 1st birthday party. Sasha was really having her dream day! I was exhausted, but we had a really low key, stay at home mothers day, so all and all it was great weekend. I am dressed in jeans, a fleece jacket and my warmest slippers today because Utah isn't on board with summer quite yet, but Dave tells me the weather is going to be gorgeous on the weekend so hopefully we can do it all again!

April in Crap-tah, or rather Utah...

2011-04-26T13:16:00.000-07:00

April in Utah is no bueno:(

I really liked snow and all that comes with it when I was younger. At least I think I did.... I still have that ridiculous snowflake tattoo that makes me think I liked it. (yes, I regret getting it and my husband loves to make fun of me for having it. Maybe my kids will think tattoos are totally lame because mom has one and that might stop them from going down that path....) Back to the point though, snow was awesome when I had a seasons pass to go snowboarding and no kids to worry about while I was doing it. But now, I am just so freaking over the snow. I need to move out of Utah and just save myself a lifetime of complaining about it. I can deal with the cold in December and January, but by February, I am secretly hoping that global warming will really begin and I'll get to wear shorts and flip flops by March. WRONG!

Easter was sort of nice at least. I was wearing a coat and my kids Easter dresses where covered up with jackets and accessorized with leggings, t-shirts and boots. At least it wasn't snowing or pouring rain.

Dear summer, I miss you, I love you, let's run away together!

Love,

Stefanie

My girls like the snow still

Sasha's egg allergy has some serious perks! Instead of coloring smelly Easter eggs, we frosted egg-less Sugar cookies! and mom ate most of them:(

Here they are sorting through all the goodies that the Easter Bunny brought!

The indoor hunt begins!

Sasha models the Easter Sundress I made for her. Lyla has a matching dress, but she was already napping when I remembered to take some pictures.

An Odd Thursday

2011-04-14T13:47:00.000-07:00

Dave came home early today. No, we aren't doing anything fun or exciting, but the Comcast cable dude is here installing cable and ridding us of our satellite dish. I like Dave to be here when these random dudes come over to the house. This one was no exception. He looks nice enough, but he did the ONE THING YOU DO NOT DO, he walked into the house with filthy work boots and just walks all over the place. Dave and I nearly had twinner panic attacks. He came in, got the lay of the land and dirtied the floors, then he went back out to his truck. I let Dave know that something had to be done and sure enough he was on it. BUT, crisis averted, he smartened up when he came back in and took off the mud covered boots. I know that isn't really all that dramatic, but I don't like CSI style footprints all over these dark wood floors... Who would? Lyla is sick today and that is the only real problem we have today. She has a fever of 103.5 and I don't know exactly what I'm supposed to do. Every time the kids are sick I feel like I am supposed to have all the answers, but I don't. We just switched to a new, super crappy insurance plan and we don't even have the ID cards yet..... they are in the mail. I didn't want the extra drama of that situation at the Dr.s office and I also didn't want to pay the Doctor $100 to tell me that my kid has a fever, cause I already know! I hope she gets better quick cause it's weird seeing color in her hot little cheeks.

Lyla's Birthday In pictures

2011-03-21T09:15:00.000-07:00

Sasha insisted that they wear matching outfits for Lyla's Birthday!

PRECIOUS!!!!!!

Craptastic toy on the left. Quality toy on the right. But doesn't the crappy toy look like fun?

Opening her book. Look closely at Dave's mangled toes that my sister painted in the recovery room after his surgery! Good one Stacie! Oh for hell sakes, here you go.....

Sorry this is so gross!

My baby girl turned Two and though she had a lovely birthday morning, it was stressful on me. I had bought her some presents a while ago because a certain store was having a massive sale and I couldn't NOT buy toys there. Unfortunately, when I assembled some of these toys the night before her birthday, I was not exactly thrilled with the quality. I got her car contraption that had a straight hill and a spiral hill and she loved it, except that every time she looked at it too hard, it fell apart. I had also bought her this little mechanical kitten that was supposed to meow and walk around. But thanks to China's eye for quality detail, the battery compartment did not easily accommodate batteries and wasn't really wired for the possibility that an angry mom would find a way to shove batteries into said compartment. So basically, the kitten did nothing but stand there with it's creepy hot pink tongue sticking out. Needless to say I felt like a massive failure and I needed to right these wrongs ASAP! I was very glad I had a lovely little princess book for her that didn't need batteries, nor super glue to stay intact. But never the less, the kid needed a present rescue.
I dropped Sasha off at school and high tailed it to Walmart. There I found an awesome car racing set (on sale no less) and a super cute, high quality puppy. I bought them in a flash and we were bound for home. The new toys were a hit! Sasha was thrilled to see the addition of even more toys when she got home from school. She then asked me why I didn't like the freaky kitten and I explained that it was a piece of Chinese garbage. About two minutes later, Sasha had miraculously brought the freak kitten to life and so now we have two small mechanical pets (thank you dander allergies!) running around the house.
Of course it wouldn't be a proper two year old birthday without one of these surprises........ the $3.00 Princess book I'd bought her turned out to be her FAVORITE gift of all. She carries it around non stop and nearly has it memorized. Also, Sasha made toilet paper roll binoculars at school that day and Lyla could not get enough of those either. Go figure!

Things that make me happy!

2011-03-21T07:37:00.000-07:00

SUNSHINE- I absolutely require sunshine on my face for a happy life.

Home time with my goofy little family- weekend time is best!

Sewing- I have really started to love making cute things for my girls to wear. My sewing machine broke last week and I cried real tears. Thankfully the know it all at Jo-Anns knew how to fix it.

Skating- I got to skate at a kids birthday party over the weekend, and it just reinforced my overwhelming love for skating and all the wonders of the roller rink. If I had been choosing the music, it would have been even better. I have skated my entire life (in the grocery store, in my parents unfinished basement to my Tiffany and Wham records, my own Classic skating birthday parties, my parents driveway, the streets of Ogden with my adolescent bestie Nik Wright and the list goes on and on).

Big Hair- I won't apologize and I won't force it on others, but I feel happiest when my hair if very FULL! I was meant to go to beauty school and learn the proper techniques for creating large hair. It was worth every penny. Peggy Bundy makes me smile. Flat hair is my KRYPTONITE!!!!

Loud happy dance music- Bieber is awesome, Jock Jams from the 90's are top notch, Shakira gets me going, Michael Jackson is undeniable and I just have to dance when i hear good music.

A Good deal- I am VERY FRUGAL and I am overwhelmed with joy when I get something awesome for cheap! I lose sleep if I pay full price. I don't like dealing with full price, buyers remorse. I love living a champagne lifestyle on a beer budget and frugality makes it a reality. It is an addiction, but Dave doesn't want me to recover from it.

Lunch with girlfriends- I love seeing my friends and it doesn't happen often enough. At my core i am still a high school social butterfly and I need that girly chit chat. A little truthful gossip is also nice.

This is new to the list but very important.... In and Out Burger- Dave and I recently stopped at the Centerville location and waited patiently (and neither of us has any patience at all) to see what all the hype was about. Oh my stars it was delicious. The prices were very reasonable too which made the experience even better. If I lived super close to that place, I would become obese very rapidly.

Trashy evening TV- What a wonderful way to end the day (and this post). Dave and I both share this mini obsession so it's not a bad thing. He and I love to take in some Bachelor, Jersey Shore, America's Next Top Model, Survivor, Project Runway and some good old fashioned Office episodes after the kids go to bed. A light snack and some quality TV time really ends the day nicely. I will flat out admit that sometimes when I am having a dramatic day with two emotional kids, the promise of watching a new Dancing with the Stars is what gets me through it. Ain't that the truth, in fact, that is EXACTLY what I'm looking forward to tonight.

Very last, but certainly not least....Little girls in pigtails (more specifically, my little kids in pigtails)- I think this picture says it all.

Lyla turns 2!

2011-02-23T13:51:00.001-08:00

Happy with her silky on her head

wearing her signature "pretty".

My sweet baby girl is growing up and I love it and hate it all at the same time. It is so cute watching her slowly start showing me who she is, but I LOVE that she still looks like a baby. She sings, she dances, she demands, she flirts, she throws tantrums, she hugs, she kisses and she ultimately melts our hearts. I love my sweet "poosh"! Happy Birthday darling baby girl, life would not be right without you in it!
Some of her FAVORITE things:
Princess anything (shoes, dresses, movies, songs, books, figurines, coloring books, anything.....
Justin Bieber videos and his songs when we are in the car, she demands it by name!
Sasha! She wakes up in the morning and immediately asks me where her big sister is.
She loves to copy her sister and do all the same big kid things like brushing her own teeth and sitting on the potty, even though she never actually pees on the potty.
"pretty's" aka tutu's. She must have on a "pretty"at least 4 hours of every day.
High heels! She clip-clops all over the house in her heels and she is devastated when they are removed.
She loves to wear hair accessories and she loves to continually take them out and then beg to have them put back in her hair again.
Painting.....she paints off and on ALL DAY EVER SINGLE DAY. Girl loves to paint!
Cliff brand Strawberry fruit twists. These are her favorite because they are the only fruit snacks that she can eat because all the ingredients are on her safe list.
Silky and Binky combination. She has to have these two items to sleep and to be calmed down. We don't leave the house without a silk and a bink...EVER!

Bieber Movie!

2011-02-12T15:16:00.000-08:00

We were counting down to the movie release for almost two full weeks and yesterday it finally hit the theaters! It was awesome to say the least. I wish it would have been a little longer with even more concert footage, but we LOVED it! We took my niece Anabel and she had to get out of school early to come to the early show with me and Sasha. I think she loved it too, though she doesn't get quite as giddy as I do. We all officially have Bieber fever and if you don't want to become a "Belieber" then don't see the movie. The kid is amazing.
The movie was in 3D and I must admit that this was actually my FIRST time seeing a 3D movie EVER! It was sort of cool, but I did feel a little weird after the movie. I think I prefer seeing non 3D much better. I come from a dizzy mother and the apple didn't fall far from the tree. I get a really motions sick, really easily.... so I should have known better, but I don't think they are playing it in regular theaters yet. The point is this: it's a 5 star flick and I hope he puts out a new album soon because we the Jensen girls (and Dave too if we are being honest) are obsessed with the Biebs!

New Dress!

2011-02-10T08:42:00.000-08:00

I had to throw this one in. This is the #1 reason that I love having a laptop. Lyla will sit at the kitchen table and watch endless Justin Bieber videos. This also helps to distract her while I try to feed her.

Poor Lyla gets stuck with a gypsy, scrap skirt, her signature heels, a headband and the sweats she wore to bed. She actually wears something similar to this most days, but when we go out, I do take the time to properly dress her, except I will admit I swapped the heels for Uggs and she did wear this ensemble to Wal-mart, and she did look better than most everyone else in the store.

I love making "dress up dresses" but I decided it's time to cross over into the world of real clothes. I found some cute fabric at Jo-Anns that I couldn't walk away from and I had a 50% off coupon, so I bought it. I understand basic construction of clothes, so I said what the hell and tried making a cute dress for Sasha. I think it turned out so cute! It was VERY easy and now I have a better idea of what I'm doing. I made this one a little bit too big, but the fabric cost me $4.00, so it was a cheap lesson to learn. Sasha loves the dress and was thrilled to wear it to school. I am so happy she likes it and I can't wait to make another one!

I wanted to take 1 picture of her in it before we left for school, but in typical Sasha fashion, 1 picture turned into a 20 shot photo shoot. She goes into "Gisele better watch her back" mode and it is so fun to watch her model. It's different pose for every frame and she likes to switch backgrounds frequently. Very cute.

The Source of All My Stress

2011-02-01T17:33:00.000-08:00

Eat something Lyla! Please eat something! I approach every single mealtime with those two sentences replaying over and over in my head. Eat something Lyla! Please just eat something! Lyla's condition is know as Food Protein Induced Entercolitis Syndrome (FPIES for short). FPIES is my waking nightmare. There is no real medical testing that can be done to let me know what exact foods she can't have. It is all trial and ERROR! Her reaction to "bad" foods is exactly the same, every time. Two hours after eating the offender, she will throw up every five minutes for a few hours........even when there is nothing left in her tiny belly. I can only hold her and try to comfort her, even though I can see that she is in so much pain. It is horrible to say the absolute least. I want to expand her diet and find new foods she can tolerate, but every time I put something new in her mouth, I have to wait and hope and pray that she won't react. It is causing so much anxiety. She is lucky enough to have a short list of safe foods, most of which she would only in a pureed baby food form. She still (at nearly two years old) really struggles with new food textures. Sometimes just putting something new on her tongue will produce gagging for no real reason. She is NOT adventurous about trying new things, so it's very difficult to get her to even TRY eating squash that isn't in baby food form, or a green bean that isn't in baby food form. The newest problem I'm trying to deal with, is the fact that she is starting to reject most baby food. What am I supposed to feed her if she won't eat the main thing I KNOW is safe for her? I understand that she is probably completely sick of all the things I've been relying on for the last year, but there is no other choice right now. I will probably be dealing with this for at least another year. I say "probably" because NO ONE KNOWS how long this could go on. There aren't enough people with FPIES for my doctor to even know. I am so thankful for the Internet, without which, I would really not have any idea what was going on with her. I was lucky enough to find a fantastic support group of other moms whose children also have FPIES. If I didn't have their help and advice, I would be so lost. It is also nice to talk to another mother who understands how awful and defeating this can be. It is horrible to watch your baby lose weight. Two weeks ago, Lyla reacted to something and we went through the vomiting cycle. Then the following week she got the flu and that killed her tiny appetite. Dave and I put her in the tub the other night and we were both horrified to see almost a six pack on our baby. She has NO fat and no reserve of it at all. She looks gaunt and I am so hurt because we can't seem to "fix" it. This is what is taking over my life. I just worry about it all the time. Where can I add calories to her diet? I was adding olive oil to her baby food, but now she won't hardly even eat the baby food. Sorry to be so depressing, but this is THE PROBLEM of my life. Everything else is tiny and easy to deal with, except this. I am the mom and I feel completely responsible for Lyla. I wonder "why" all the time. Why does she have this? What did I do wrong? When will it go away? When can I stop worrying about what is going in her mouth? When will it be normal? WHY WHY WHY???? The worst part about FPIES is the general lack of knowledge about it. Her pediatrician hardly knows anything about it. Lucky for us, her allergist knew what this was. It is so rare and "new". Where did it come from? WHY WHY WHY?

Christmas Pictures

2011-02-01T15:41:00.002-08:00

Candyland is an essential gift that EVERY 4 year old must own. It's simple to play and she loves it!

Santa sure thought these fancy Dora shoes would make Lyla so happy..... Unfortunatly, once she stood up and discovered these are FLATS she quickly kicked them off and hasn't shown any interest in them since. Heels Santa, only HEELS!

They both LOVE the Barbie Guitar because it plays "Girls Just Want to Have Fun" by "Sloppy Lauper" a.k.a Cyndi Lauper. They love it so much that it is currently in toy prison right now (the cupboard above the fridge where mom can't even reach it) because the sight of it has caused to many fights! It's going to be lot's of fun when it gets paroled!

The Jessie doll is a big hit! She has a pull string that makes her say cute phrases that my daughters can't get enough of.

This Michael Jackson game is too hard for Sasha, but she very much enjoys making me do all the dancing. This game is proving to be very entertaining for 32 year olds....

Dave took lots of pictures of Lyla's tiny little neck. He loves the sight of her pencil neck with her fuzzy, baby bird hair. I have to admit that it's sort of adorable.

Sasha wasn't exactly thrilled with Dads gift of a nerf gun, until she shot it a few times, then it was sort of a favorite.

NO SICK DAYS ALLOWED....EVER!

2011-01-27T08:15:00.000-08:00

Being sick is awful. Having sick children is awful. Having a sick (read temporary quadriplegic) husband is awful. But having all of us sick at once is just to much to deal with. I genuinely didn't know that becoming a mother meant that I was no longer allowed to have a sick day. I would guess the job description would look something like this:
The requirements for motherhood are as follows
1. You don't need more than 3 total hours of sleep at night. Especially if the other people at your house are sick.
2. You must read minds. You need to anticipate vomit, thirst, and the limits of the human bladder.
3. You are at the VERY bottom of the totem pole. Your personal hygiene, hunger, thirst, rest and mental stability are not relevant in this job.
4. If you can't handle being the hostess, the waitress, the cook, the busser and the dishwasher, don't even bother applying.
5. Though you don't have a degree in medicine or pharmacology, you are expected to be completely proficient in both. Everyone else is counting on you.
6. You need to know where every single thing in your house is located. If you are changing a diaper upstairs, you need to be able to yell the EXACT location of the fruit snacks in the pantry and the exact coordinates of "that one blanket". If you can't close your eyes and identify the precise location of at least 5 binkies in you house, you fail.
7. Give up now! You don't stand a chance. You are hired!

Sasha Says the Darndest Things 2

2011-01-19T16:56:00.000-08:00

Sasha: Can I swear when I grow up?

Me: Sure

Sasha: Well I'm not going to swear all the time, but can i swear at my husband when he doesn't do what I say?

Me: Of course

This next one happened shortly after we baked egg-less cupcakes that she LOVES.

Sasha: Has anyone ever eaten cupcakes for breakfast?

Me: No!

Sasha: So we can't eat cupcakes for breakfast, but muffins are okay?

I Really Screwed That Up

2011-01-19T14:38:00.000-08:00

Sasha (like any red blooded American kid) LOVES going to Birthday parties. It seems like all the parents of her classmates love to have friend parties for their kids. Dave and I are not this way, so it's nice that all these other people do it so that we don't have to. Well, as these things often go, she gets an invitation about once a month or every 6 weeks or so. I rarely tell her about them until the day before because I get tired of her pestering me about how many hours/ minutes she has to wait until party time. Oh, and if the party is at the Treehouse, we don't go because I secretly believe that place is the "RSV house" because Sasha picked up a nasty case of RSV (a horrible cold that makes asthma even worse) last time we went there.... Okay, let me get to the point. Missing a birthday party is at the very top of Sasha's worst nightmare list! Sooooooooo, we went to my cousins wedding shower last weekend and the plan was to rush home after the shower, pick up Dave and Lyla and then head to Layton for a birthday party that was starting at 5:30. Sasha and I got back to the house at 5:25, grabbed the other two Jensen's and hauled ass toward Layton for the party. I wasn't exactly sure of the precise party location, but I had the address and I was almost certain I knew where we were going. We are driving fast and I'm using every trick up my sleeve to make up some time so we aren't going to be super late. I have Dave grab the invitation so I can double check the address, it's nearly 6:00 at this point. I read the address and also notice that the party started at 5:00, NOT 5:30. So now I am freaking out because I am officially LOST in West Layton and the kid gym that the party is at is no where in sight. I am starting to see that we are nearly going to miss the party because it ends at 6:30. Dave is now suggesting that we turn around and go home and I am thinking of the HELL I will have to pay if Sasha doesn't get to at least hand the party girl her present. I finally call the girls mom and she tells me very specifically where I should be heading and now I at least have a clue as to where I am going. Meanwhile, I am mentally slapping myself in the brain for not map questing the party location ahead of time. We finally get to the kid gym at 6:10. All the kids had been doing gymnastic stuff and climbing and playing on the equipment until the very second we arrived. The gym owners were ushering all the kids out of the play area for cake time. For most kids, cake time would be the best time to get there, but not for my egg allergic child. She just watched the kids eat their cake and looked at me with the saddest face I have ever seen. I asked the gym owner if she could just run out and get in some play time since should couldn't eat cake and I was so miserably late getting there. Sasha is now sobbing hysterically and the owner politely tells me NO! I offer to pay the regular fee for Sasha to just get five minutes of play time and again she says NO! Other kids are randomly playing on the equipment and she is very focused on my child telling her NO! Then this idiot woman hands me the price sheet and class schedule and suggests that I might bring my daughter back some other time (I am mentally screaming obscenities at this woman while I am also mentally kicking her and pulling her hair out "Jersey Shore" style)..... but I say "Um, no thanks". The place is called My Gym and it is located near Famous Dave's in Layton. Don't go there, it stinks and the owner is my new worst enemy.
Drama aside, I felt pretty low after that one. The birthday girl is the adorable, sweet daughter of one of Sasha's teachers and Sasha really loves this girl. I love her mom and I see her 5 days a week. I was mortified that Sasha missed the party because of MY mistakes. I was also feeling so stupid that I had to call her in the middle of her daughters birthday party to ask for directions. I have learned my lesson for sure. I will plan ahead next time.

Fashion Show

2011-01-18T16:39:00.000-08:00

Not long ago, my niece Anabel came over to play and by the end of the afternoon I was ushered upstairs to watch their FASHION SHOW! We have an extensive collection of dress ups that I have had a lot of fun making and a bunch of other great dresses that are hand me downs and birthday gifts. They had all their "looks"ready in Sasha's room and I was asked to cue the music and take photos from the end of the runway. I'm so glad I did. They had a "pet" to go with all the looks and they even had hair accessories changes. They were very creative and I loved that they came up with such a fun idea and executed it perfectly. I can't wait to see their next collection at their fall show!

The Biebs!

2011-01-10T13:00:00.000-08:00

That is Justin Bieber for anyone who isn't in the know. We here at the house of Jensen L-O-V-E the Biebs! It is so nice to love music that is clean for the kiddies and is impossible not to dance to. Lyla isn't even two yet and she can sing along to her favorite songs (and you best believe she let's us know what songs are her favorite). Sasha loves it too, which is nice because it's not sad, emo music like all the stuff that is normally her favorite. It's good clean fun for everyone and even Dave is on board with this one.

Sasha is a little bit "obsessed" and this is fine with me because it totally reminds me of my childhood when I was obsessed with The New Kids on the Block. It was so fun to love something THAT much. Me and my cousin Jill would watch the NKOTB concerts on the video and we would have long discussions about which band members we planned on marrying, I chose Jordan Knight and she picked Jordans shy brother John Knight. We felt almost sad for Danny because we thought no one in the world would ever choose him....... It was just good times all around. In fact just the other day Sasha and I had a great conversation about marriage. She told me she thought she wanted to marry her friend Sam. After I explained that marrying second cousins is sort of frowned upon, she suddenly stopped me and told me "oh nevermind, I remember now that I'm gonna marry Justin Beaver (she almost refuses to say Bieber)". Then she started asking me how old Justin would be when she was 21, and if I was certain that he wasn't already married. Then she asked if she could get married when she is a teenager and of course I told her no... Then she asked if twelve was a good age. You get the point, she is non stop entertainment. I hope she get's her wish. I would love to welcome the Biebs into the family!

Baby with a Microphone

2011-01-10T09:42:00.000-08:00

Here is a recipe for a fantastic morning: Dress Lyla inl something she loves such as a dress or tutu. Turn on some of her favorite tunes (Bieber, Sarah Barielis, music from Tangled), and give her a microphone. Now sit back and watch her perform. She loves to sing and dance and smile and laugh and ultimately make me smile. I love to watch my kids act like themselves, when they aren't fighting, crying, whining and throwing massive temper tantrums.... It seems like the few hours when Sasha is at school are the best for watching Lyla be herself. She absolutely loves to be with Sasha, but when big sister is out of the house, Lyla just does what comes naturally to her and I love to watch her. She is a happy, curious little girl who loves nothing more than singing and dancing. I love this kid! It is so great having two kids who are so different from one another. I never get tired of watching Lyla explore her world.

Lyla's favorite things: Her silky, her binky, tutu's,talking on anything that resembles a phone, Gerber fruit snacks, Sasha,"helping" mom out, Curious George, drinking through a straw, pop songs, doll stollers, canned peas, pink boots, kissing her dolls, pretending to do her hair and make-up, unloading drawers (especially bathroom drawers), snuggling with mom after her nap, announcing that she's peed, pooped or farted (even if she hasn't done any of them), walking through a store, running naked before a bath, and of course playing peek-a-boo!

Not a bad life...

The New Years Resolution

2011-01-03T13:28:00.001-08:00

And no, it has nothing to do with losing weight (if you want to be fat, the winter months are the best time to do that if that's your thing.) This year, I want to change myself for the better and the only way to do that is to gain some self control. Often times I feel like a frustrated 2 year old in my mind. I don't get my way (example :kids don't behave, husband doesn't read my mind, car in front of me drives slow, TIVO doesn't record the Bachelor, etc......) and instead of dealing with it quickly and getting over it, I freak out and let it ruin my life. The misbehaving kid thing is the worst of course because it happens on a daily basis because neither of my children are robots from the planet Perfect.... So everyday at some point, one or both children will have a meltdown (or twelve) and then I do the exact same thing right back at them. I yell or whine or pout or whatever comes to my mind first, but it never helps the situation and it's childish. I just do what a toddler would do.... wait for an emotion to hit me and go with to the fullest. There is no thought process, I just react and it gets me no where. Until today......

At lunch today, Sasha decided that we should go get ice cream at the Farr's Yogurt store. Believe me, this idea sounded great to me, but it wasn't in the cards today and Sasha had hardly touched her lunch. I told her is wasn't happening today and I watched in horror as the slow, steady meltdown began. She was sort of huffing and puffing at first. Then she started pulling strange, angry faces at me, and then she attempted to push the issue, in hopes that I would just give in.....I didn't. By the time we got to the car, she was losing it big time! As we started driving toward home, the screaming and seat kicking grew more intense. This is normally the time that I would turn around and scream at her about how bad this behavior is, but I didn't, instead I turned on the music to a great mellow song I love and just started singing to my hearts content. Sasha was super pissed at this point, but I was keeping my cool and it felt GREAT! I didn't so much as bat an eyelash in her direction and by darn it was working, I was staying CALM (and any mother in the universe knows how hard that is when they are kicking the back of your seat). When we got home, I quietly got myself and Lyla out of the car, shut the garage and went inside, ignoring the screaming kid entirely. It took a little while, but eventually she came in and came searching for Lyla and I. I calmly asked her to walk herself to her room and close the door behind her. I told her to stay there until she was done. You won't believe what happened......she did what I said and 5 minutes later she emerged from her room completely back to normal. It was strange, it was unexpected and it was AMAZING. I didn't raise my voice even one little bit and the problem solved it's self.

This resolution is going to be so hard for me, but I am going to make a huge effort to control my emotions the way an adult is supposed to. Today was such a promising start, I hope this is a sign of good things to come. I hope Dave doesn't read this, because he will totally laugh at me for even thinking this is slightly possible. Wish me luck!

Impromptu Photo Shoot

2010-12-09T14:01:00.000-08:00

OH my LORD! It's Christmas card time and it went pretty well this year. I always stress about the picture in the card. We NEVER get family pictures taken and so that eliminates the "family pic" option from the equation. I take tons of pictures of my girls, but they usually include some forbidden things like: dried baby food all over Lyla's face, Huge unsightly binky in Lyla's mouth, filthy post recess clothes on Sasha, or the notorious backdrop of a toy strewn pig sty living room. So obviously some effort has to be thrown into a mini-at home photo shoot. I have everything I need: great camera, adorable models. Yet somehow, it always seems like it's gonna be a pain in the butt to get them BOTH dressed appropriately and BOTH in the model mood. But today I accidentally struck gold! I dressed Sasha for school and she let me know how pleased she was with her outfit by telling me that she "looks SOOOOO fashionable". Luckily I have the semi-twinner complex that leads me to buy "twinner" outfits for them on a regular basis (I CAN NOT HELP IT!!!!!) So......as soon as Sasha was outfitted, it was a no brainer guessing what Lyla would wear...... her version of the exact same dress. I was grabbing their coats to head out the door for school when I realized that they looked PERFECT for a Christmas card photo shoot. We were already running late, so whats another 10 minutes? I grabbed the good camera and hit the front porch. What came next was magic. Sasha LOVES to model. She just strikes all sorts of poses and WORKS IT . Tyra Banks would die for her. It was insanely wonderful because Lyla tries to do everything Sasha does and so she too was posing like crazy. It was hysterically funny and I was glad I had a camera to capture it all. So cute! And to top it all off....... I already uploaded the photos to the Walgreens website (that's right, I am cheap and practical and thrilled that they will print my cards TODAY, for a price that won't keep me up at night) and I accomplished something today!

Sasha Says the Darndest Things

2010-12-08T10:21:00.000-08:00

I wake up a few days ago and walk into the kitchen. Sasha is eating a muffin at the counter. I ask her if she'd like a cup of milk and this is what came next:
Sasha: "Dry Christmas trees are a serious fire hazard".
Me: "That's right, but ours is fake so it shouldn't be a problem".
Sasha: "But it feels real dry mom".

I'm folding laundry upstairs while the girls are playing. I ask Sasha to put her socks in her sock drawer and she complies. She comes back and I ask her to put her freshly, folded pants in her pants drawer and she says, "Well this is BULLSHIT".....

Sasha wakes up barfing at 4:oo in the morning. She gets it all out like a champ, and we get her all cleaned up. I tell her she needs to try to go back to sleep until morning and this is what she tells me, "You"re turnal mom, but I'm not turnal, so that means I can be awake at night." Thank you Dora and Diego for teaching my daughter about "nocturnal" animals and their special way of life....

Movie Day with my Daughter

2010-12-05T09:10:00.001-08:00

Just took Sasha to see Tangled (at the recommendation of my sister and Anabel) and we absolutely LOVED it! The movie was adorable and funny and very entertaining for kid and grownups alike. The very best part of it for me though, was watching my daughter watch the movie. Seeing her joyous face, lit up my the screen with her huge smile. She has only been to a few movies in the theater (she's only four after all), but I love that she fully appreciates the whole "experience" of going to the big theater. We don't do it often, so she really looks at a trip to the movie theater as something super special that is to be savored. The vast screen, the loud speakers, the rocking chairs, the crowds of people and of course the feature presentation, she just eats up every bit of it. It is just a fun thing to do with her and it gives me a glimpse at what the next stage of being a mom might bring. I love hanging out with my girls, and it's so great to think that these daughters of mine will hopefully be my little companions until the day I die. I love having them be so young and innocent, but it is going to great to watch them grow and learn and continue showing me who they are. They are such individuals already and it's fun to watch their personalities blossom right before my eyes. I so look forward to all the movie dates that lie ahead with these darling girls.

Crystal & Lee - "Falling Slowly" in American Idol Top 4

2010-11-17T17:53:00.000-08:00

Lyla's FAVORITE song!

Beauty Shop

2010-11-16T14:10:00.000-08:00

With a salon next to the entryway, you best believe some hair do's are happening in this house quite often...... but today the hair do'er was none other than the loveliest four year old in the world, SASHA! I was beautified for nearly and hour (and I must say it was HEAVEN). The results speak for themselves. Gorgeous work my darling dearest!

Now that is some serious accessorizing!

And she's quite the photographer too!

The one with the heavy hand!

Jessie costume!

2010-11-12T09:44:00.000-08:00

Sasha is obsessed with all things "TOY STORY". Who can blame her right? The movies are great and the characters are so adorable we just want to collect them all (and I swear we have at this point). Sasha has known for quite some time that she wanted to be Jessie the cowgirl for Halloween and I'm glad she gave me a lot of notice, because I really dragged my feet when it came to making this costume. I had no clue how to make chaps. I normally go to google image when I'm confused about how to make something and I usually find a good picture to copy from, but you really don't want to google the word "chaps" because 98% of your results will be naked dudes in chaps! Oh well, I got through it and I am proud to say this costume kicks ass! She loves it and we can add it to our ever growing box of dress up clothes.

Lyla is noticeable absent from the costume post for one reason and one reason only. I figured out that 1 year olds don't usually wear strange things unless they themselves have chosen them. I bought Sasha a really cute karate girl costume when she was one and she HATED it with a passion and consequently, did not ever wear it. I tried putting the karate girl costume on Lyla, and the results were very much the same as the first incident with Sasha. LESSON LEARNED!

Lyla wears one of our many giant tutu's on a daily basis, so we decided to be "super original" and let Lyla be some sort of ballerina princess.... It was easy because she wore the outfit that she wears at home every single day. Presto magico, Halloween costume done!

SEA SWIRL!

2010-10-18T09:23:00.000-07:00

We finally did it! After years and years of thinking about it, we finally bought a boat. This guy down the street from us put his out in the driveway with a for sale sign on it and Dave and I just couldn't resist. Dave went down to look at it and this boat from 1987 was is perfect condition and the guys garage was immaculate (which is always a good sign), so we went up to Pine view to test drive it and we bought it. We took the girls out on Saturday and Sunday last weekend and it was great. The sunnier of the two days was Saturday and you could not have wiped the grin off of my face. The whole family had fun, but I was so happy that we all got to be together having that much fun. This thing is older, but make no mistake, it is fast! We can't wait to go again, but I think we might have to wait until spring. I double dread winter this year!

Busy Month!

2010-09-30T08:19:00.000-07:00

I love September in good old Utah! You never know if it's going to be summer or fall and either way, you can usually keep the windows open all day and enjoy the breeze. The best part about this time of year is that you can take the kids outside to play and it's not blazing hot. Lately we go out and let Sasha do her mini soccer practice sessions in the yard. We use two buckets in place of a goal net and she is really improving so I guess it works. Her soccer games have been so much fun for us. Since she is the oldest kid in our family, this is the first time we've had a child playing organized sports and I absolutely LOVE it! First off, she looks so freaking cute in her soccer uniform, but the best part is that she is really aggressive. Her team is terrific! They are all focused and ball hungry and it's just a great oppurtunity for each of these little girls to hone their skills. Sasha loves everything about it, the games, the girls and of course her great coach Scott! I'm very glad we signed her up to play.

This is my girl on her way down the field to score her first goal of the season!

The pre-game fashion show!

This is seconds after her first goal. She was THRILLED!

Speaking of aggressive, little Lyla is getting there fast! She just hit 19 months old and life for the little sister is filled with hitting, jumping, throwing, climbing and yelling loud bits of gibberish! She is letting it all out these days. Her vocabulary is slowly and steadily building everyday. Her favorite word is "Happy". She opens her favorite book (Brown Bear Brown Bear What Do You See?) to a picture filled with happy children and she yells "Happy" over and over again. It is adorable to hear her sweet voice. She's with me all day long so of course she says mama 10 million times a day, but she loves to look out the window and call for her papa. I guess she suspects that Dave just goes outside all day, because she can't look out a window without yelling "papa" or "Daddy".

She is also a major music lover! The Falling Slowly duet from last season of American Idol is her FAVORITE! She get's a real serious look on her face and tries to sing along. She loves Neutron Star Collision by Muse and Tonights Gonna Be a Good Night by the Black Eyed Peas. The list goes on and on, and it even includes kid music, like anything from The Little Mermaid. But all the Ariel songs "belong" to Sasha, so it's not even worth singing those because Sasha will ask me to re-start the song and let her sing alone in her Ariel voice! The best thing about car time is the music for sure. We go NOWHERE in silence. The children demand loud music!

These girls of mine are adorable. They are a challenge half of the time, but i am so glad that I had two girls in a row because these sisters are so tight with each other. They hold hands in the car and the jogger stroller (I do realize that Sasha is WAY TO BIG to be in the jogger). Lyla runs to Sasha's room as soon as she get's up in the morning. Sasha loves to hug her and just try to take care of her in general. It really warms my heart to see their bond. Sasha would have such a void in her life if it weren't for Lyla. I love these girls more than words can express!

Lyla always tests the baby dolls bottle before feeding it to her!

She ALWAYS needs her shoes!

Cuddle time on the couch!

Pictures of life at our house

2010-09-01T09:17:00.001-07:00

Heels, always with the heels...

First Day of School!

2010-09-01T08:44:00.000-07:00

Sasha went back to preschool today and we were both SUPER excited! I am having alone time at the house again, thanks to Lyla's lingering morning nap (though I know I only have a few weeks left until she only takes an afternoon nap). I am literally writing this post in SILENCE (minus the barking of the brain dead dogs next door). Quiet like this is just priceless. I can think! I will appreciate these next few weeks and then I'll move directly into mourning the loss of Lyla's early nap as she transitions into one measly afternoon nap...

Back to the first day of school story... Sasha woke up super pumped to go back to school. She LOVES her teachers and she seems excited to see her friends from last year and meet new ones. At back to school night, we encountered a new problem that I was not in any way prepared for..."mean girls". Now, I realize these are only preschool girls and it can't be that bad, but Sasha was snubbed by two girls and it DEVASTATED her. Something went down on the playground that evening that really hurt her feelings.... I don't know if she just thinks that these two girls don't like her, or if they really said something mean to her, but she just really got her feeling hurt by the entire situation. She cried about it later that night and still couldn't get over it the next day. I tried to give her some good advice on how to deal with this stuff, but I don't know if I'm the best one to consult on these matters. My advice sounds something like this, "If these girls are rude to you, forget about them and be friends with other kids instead. Just ignore the ones who don't like you and play with the nice kids." In my life I usually go with the mantra that if you don't like me, that's your problem and you should go deal with it somewhere else. This idea works great in the adult world, because I don't have to be around those people on a daily basis, but I don't think it translates into the school scenario. In fact I'm sure it doesn't because I told Sasha all this and she said, "But I want THOSE girls to want to be friends with me". Let me just say that this statement was like a sword to a mothers heart! OUCH!!!!! I see my daughter as cute, funny, smart, charming and so LIKABLE and I just can't imagine someone being mean to her, so if and when it happens, I just don't know what I can do about it. Sadly, my thinking goes something like this: if you don't like Sasha, there is something super wrong with YOU. Since I'm her mother, I'm just gonna stick with that train of thought (because it is the truth).

Sad as it is, I imagine that this will be a constant theme in the life of a girl, it just hurts a lot more when that girl is your daughter. I am fairly certain that this thing with the preschool age mean girls will blow over and they will be sharing the playground slide soon, but it was an unfortunate reminder that every stage of my kids lives will bring a new set of problems that I will need to help them with. The hard work doesn't end with a drawer full of big girl panties and the extinction of diapers...it only just begins.

UPDATE: The first day went great, No DRAMA to speak of. Sasha was literally right next to the supposed trouble girl went I went to pick her up. They were on the slide together and Sasha had no sob stories to tell about it. Mini crisis averted!

Summer time and the livin is easy

2010-08-03T07:24:00.000-07:00

We are having a low key summer and it occurred to me that I wouldn't want it any other way. Dave has been working WAY to many hours lately, but the girls and I have been enjoying ourselves around the house. Sasha is a Super Mario Bros. champion and a fantastic painter and Lyla has discovered the joys of climbing furniture and a love for walking around the house in shoes (ANY shoes she can get her hands on: hers, Sasha's, mine, princess dress up heels or even Dave's if she's in a pinch). I have been trying my hardest to keep the house on the tidy side, but my children seem to have other plans for it. My awful neighbors are still awful, but instead of being passive aggressive towards them, I have decide to take a new approach and just be "aggressive aggressive" and this is at least making me feel better about the situation.
We did take a fabulous vacation to San Diego with my parents and my aunt Dale. It was the first airplane ride for my kids and aside from Lyla peeing through her diaper and clothes (on both flights) it went so well. Sasha was the first kid I have ever heard on a plane yelling "Woo hoo" on take off. She was so excited for the plane to take off. She kept asking my mom, "When are we going to blast off?". It was a great experience for her. She had to take off her shoes to go through security and her shoes were sent through the x-ray machine and the experience thrilled her. She put them back on her feet and turned to me and said, "This is a great vacation mom. They even washed our shoes!". This delighted attitude made her VERY easy to travel with. The ocean was amazing to her and she asks daily when we will go back to the sea. Dave and I took her to Sea World, and she liked it, but on the way out of there, she told me she was expecting to find sandy beaches and the "sea" at Sea World... not just a few killer whales.
Lyla did well on the trip, but she got a horrible heat rash the first full day there and that meant she needed to stay indoors for the remainder of the vacation. This turned out to be no big deal because my mom and Aunt were able to stay with her at the house during her naps so that Dave and I could take Sasha to the beach. It worked out really well in the end. Dave had so much fun at the beach. The first day he HAD to find himself a boogie board. My husband magically morphs into a child when he steps foot onto a beach. He plays in the sand like a kid and he loves to boogie board. Unfortunately for 6'5" Dave, the grown up boogie boards are outrageously expensive in Coronado, so he had to use a kid size board, but he had a blast with it. He even went so far as to saran wrap it to his suitcase so that he could bring it home with him. I tease him about this non stop because Utah isn't very well known for our waves, but he was just certain this boogie board would come in handy in our garage. He is utterly ridiculous sometimes, but this is why I married the guy. We've been home over a month now and I can't tell you how many times he's used that board (ZERO and I'm sure the next year or two won't up that number at all). All in all, we had such a great time there and I would love to go back again next year if possible. The weather on Coronado is perfect and it's such a quick flight.

Dave and Sasha having a blast in the sand!

Matching swimsuits! I could not resist the urge to have them all matchy, matchy.
Lyla has the longest neck I've ever seen on a short person. We are obsessed with this photo!

Cuddle time!

One of Sasha's many poses. She could hold her own against Naomi Campbell in a posing competition.

Lyla was not such a big fan of the beach....

Work it girl! This shot was taken just moments before she rode on her first amusement park ride!

Sasha's 4th Birthday!

2010-07-07T11:46:00.000-07:00

She has been looking forward to this day for 364 days and finally it is here. Her only requests are as follows:
1. Hello Kitty Bubble Train
2. Big girl Princess Bike
3. Bowling Party

I try my best to be a good mom, so I provided her with all three. This bubble train obviously involves bubbles and I really HATE bubbles, but she had to have it. The elusive bubble train was something she once saw at TJ Maxx. Sasha can normally see a toy at a store, play with it at the store, then put it back when we are leaving. This was not the case with the Hello Kitty train........ After a screaming fit, she attempted to flee the store with the train in hand. I dragged her butt to the car (minus the train) and let her know in no uncertain terms that she would NOT be returning to TJ Maxx for at least the next decade. This whole episode happened months ago and she hasn't stopped talking about the train since, so I went back and luckily they still had the train. She and baby Lyla just opened the train minutes ago and it is so loud and crazy that it made the baby giggle and scream with fear at the same time. We had to take a break from the train so that Lyla could compose herself. It was THAT INTENSE! Sasha is thrilled with the insanity that is the HELLO KITTY TRAIN!
The bowling party took place on Monday, because Dave had work off that day and it was a huge success. Not only did all her cousins come, but she had aunts, uncles and grandparents there too. It was a blast and she wants to have a bowling party every year now (at least that's what she says now).
The bike was another story all together. We went to San Diego recently and the house we stayed at had a small kids bike with training wheels that Sasha got to ride. She loved the experience and decided that she could no longer be seen riding around the neighborhood on a big wheel. I found lots of great bikes on Amazon that I thought Sasha would love, but the handsome tight wad that is my husband let me know that a four year old's bike should not cost a cent over $70... So off to Walmart we went! They had a terrific princess bike (with a hand brake) that would fit the budget and her specifications just fine. I went to the store by myself a few days later to purchase it for her. The morning that we gave her the bike, she loved it, but the front tire kept deflating.... We took it back to Walmart twice that day, once to have it repaired and once to try to replace it. The next day I took it back again and got a brand new bike and I think this one is perfect. No tire trouble what so ever. She loves it and I can tell that she is going to get a lot of use out of it. All and all I'd say this kid had a pretty fantastic birthday and it ain't over yet. I'm taking her to her second theater movie ever, Toy Story 3!

Just Pictures

2010-05-29T08:18:00.001-07:00

I LOVE twinner dresses!

The Birthday ceremony at School!
Sasha is getting ready to celebrate her pretend birthday at school (darn summer birthday).
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She's only 3 Tiger, but you better watch your back because she is coming to take your green jacket! (in the future women will play alongside the men in the Masters)

Enjoying her piggy puppet (thank you Grandpa Billiam and Grandma Connie!)

Yes darling, the crown is still up there...

Who needs a baby doll when you could push around a frozen yogurt cup and spoon?

Nobody puts baby in a corner, except of course the baby herself!

So tender! I'm sure they are watching a music video on the computer.

Finale Season

2010-05-20T07:53:00.000-07:00

Spring is fantastic (if you don't live in the manic depressive weather of Utah). The flowers are blooming, and the grass is trying desperately to green up. It's a lovely time of beginnings in nature, but sadly, it is a time of endings in the wonderful world of Television....... All the terrific shows that entertain my mind at the end of the day are wrapping it up for summer. It saddens me and I just know how dull Thursday will be without the promise of a new episode of Survivor or the Office once the kiddies go to bed. I know what all the haters are saying aloud at this very minute (Why does she love T.V. this much? Doesn't she know it will rot her brain? Why doesn't she read War and Peace during her free time?), and believe me I don't care. Television is a fantastic way to unwind at the end of the day and I am a believer for sure! I am practically getting my masters degree in pop culture and I just can't risk not being in the know. It's been tough enough being the only female in Weber county who doesn't watch Grays Anatomy or The Hills..... So I have been taking it all in, Dancing with the Stars, Survivor, Americas Next Top Model, and even American Idol. They are all going to be over this week and I am just not ready!!!
There will be a new season of the Bachelorette starting, but awful, annoying Ali is going to the bachelorette this season and it's going to be hard to watch her horribleness this entire season. I can't wait until America starts consulting Dave and I about the casting of these shows. I assure you we could improve things considerably. Oh yes, I said it... Dave loves these shows just as much as I do, so they have become one more thing to bond over. We enjoy a little Basketball and some golf, but the super bowl is the only football getting any tube time in this house. It really has been great that he doesn't care about any of that Man programming. Don't get me wrong, I am subjected to some nerdy-ass science shows from time to time, but it's a small price to pay for all the Project Runway he puts up with.
Thank the lord for HBO, cause all their goodies start in JUNE!

Happy Mothers Day

2010-05-07T08:32:00.000-07:00

I love being a mom! I'm not trying to be a cheese ball or say that everyday is easy, but I really do love being the mother of my adorable children. Sometimes I get really complacent and I forget how lucky I am to be where I'm at in my life. I forget how temporary this phase of my life is. Yes, my kids will probably live with me for the next 18 to 25 years, but they will only be little for just a short while. I hope Sasha will always stay sassy and say hilarious things to me everyday, but I just can't be sure. Lyla's drunk walk is slowly turning into a drunk run and before I know it, she will be riding a bike very steady. It's these little tidbits that happen everyday that please me so much. I just want to bottle it and preserve it forever. I want to write down ever silly thing Sasha says and does, but of course I don't, I just use this blog to supplement my memory. I know there are so many things I've already forgotten and it kills me because this entire experience has been the best thing that has and probably ever will happen to me. Again, let me just say that we have intensely challenging days too where I can not wait to put the kids to bed and drown myself in tivo'd reality T.V. bliss...... They happen frequently, but for the most part I love being a mom. There is entertainment in almost any mundane activity with these crazy funny kids. Lyla can hardly take a bath without peeing on the tile floor right before, and Sasha will stop me while reading her a story and say "Hey mom I just need to tell you something really cool right now", which could be followed by almost anything......... Her imagination is endless and it is always bringing a smile to my face, even her occasional swearing makes me laugh so hard though I do try not to show it because I NEVER want to be that poor mom who get's pulled to the side at the school to have the swearing talk...

The point of this rant is this, I am insanely lucky to be where I am right now. I know so many people who struggle to get pregnant (if they even do at all) and I know so many people who are working so hard out of the house to support their families and they don't get to stay home with their kids as much as they want to. I realize how good I've got it right now and I really appreciate all of it. My husband is a hard working man and he busts his butt to make a living for us. He works 12 hour days on a regular basis and he doesn't complain about it, all so that I can spend this time with our kids. I can't ever thank him enough for it too. Back in 2000 I met this hot guy at a bar, and 10 years later I am stunned at how well it's all worked out. Life is good. Happy Mothers Day to everyone of my mama friends out there. We all have our struggles and we all get to share in the wonder of our kids and it is wonderful to get to be where we are.

Confused Words.....

2010-04-26T19:06:00.000-07:00

My darling dearest Sasha!!!!!! If it weren't for her crazy antics, motherhood would be a bore. She is the first child, so maybe all kids are like this and I just don't know it yet, but I swear she is a wildly unique one. Every single day, even when she makes me so mad I want to scream, she says something that throws me on my butt laughing. Just moments ago as I was putting her to bed she said this, "What is that thing called that looks like a scarf, but it's not soft, and it's really tight and you wear them at the hospital?". Immediately I figured out that she was referring to a neck brace, because she watches kid shows and ALL kid shows will feature the cliche hilarious neck brace at some point... So I informed her that the item in question is called a neck brace and this is what comes out of her mouth next,"Tell me all about them mom. Why do you wear one? Do we have a neck brace? Can I touch one? Let's talk about a neck brace." Seriously, how could I not start laughing about that bizarre encounter. She just cracks me up.

Her confusion about certain words is the thing that really gets me lately. She will walk up to me with a runny nose and say that she really needs a tennis shoe to wipe her nose with. She is of course meaning tissue, but she believes a tissue is called a tennis shoe for some reason. She ALWAYS calls a pimple a nipple, and that is hilarious. Head bands and band aids are heavily mixed up, even though band aids are her favorite things in the world. If she could will herself to bleed on command, she would do it just for a band aid. But who can blame her? We have strawberry shortcake band aids that look more like accessories than anything else.

Easter Outfits

2010-04-09T09:46:00.001-07:00

I am ADDICTED

2010-04-09T09:32:00.000-07:00

To coupon using that is.... I have turned into the tightest tight wad in the west (next in line to my wonderful hubby DAVIS) Between clipping and printing online coupons, I am scouring the weekly ads searching for my next steal. I can't explain the joy I get from walking out of a store with $100 dollars worth of groceries, but only paying thirty some ought dollars for them. It is a rush alright. I can now fully understand what chasing a high feels like. I used to dabble in coupons, but I'd end up buying a bunch of crap that I would never have bought in the first place if not for the coupon. This time, the approach is completely different. I am an educated consumer now and I know how much any given item that I normally purchase is worth and I refuse to pay a penny more for it. I am only using my ads and coupons to buy the things I would be buying anyway. When prices are optimal, I pounce and stockpile whatever it is that I need. This has all become a bit of an obsession, but my husband finds this behavior to be quite sexy indeed. Lucky for me, only one person in my life can appreciate the value of a dollar more than I and that man happens to be my husband. I know this craziness annoys the shit out of most people, but I just can't help wanting to share the savings with everyone I know. Go out and find a fantastic deal today and revel in your thriftiness. I tell you, it is out of this world.

Tea Party or O.C.D. Party?

2010-03-30T13:14:00.001-07:00

Sasha loves to pack her "luggage" and get ready to go on an imaginary vaction! Her bags are always packed full of junk, or what she considers "the essentials". These items usually include: a tea set, dried out markers, a monster truck, plastic bugs, a flash light, rainbow colored plastic balls, baby bottles, jingle bells (obviously) and whatever other trinkets she can get her hands on. When you pair her luggage with her picnic blanket, this photo best illustrates what you get: a straight up O.C.D. party. She keeps all this in her room, wakes up at zero dark thirty in the morning and starts her preparations by placing each item in it's own square. NO PLAYING ALLOWED! The stuff must stay put or she will lose it. I know this because baby tried it once and Sasha was having none of it.

And We're Walking.......

2010-03-30T13:01:00.000-07:00

So it is finally here! Lyla can walk, she may not prefer it yet, but she can walk. This is so strange because Lyla has perfected every possible version of crawling. The army crawl, the scoot, traditional, and of course the butt up in the air, walking with hands and feet... But alas she started walking last Sunday and this seems like the direction she wants to head. Before we know it, she'll hit 20lbs. and start sitting in a forward facing carseat like a big girl!

Barbra Walters?

2010-03-17T08:49:00.000-07:00

How did Barbra Walters slip through the cracks? She is beyond annoying and she can BARELY speak the English language. Who ever hired her to speak publicly for the first time? I imagine the interviewer who did hire her having a conversation in their head that went something like this: "Okay, so this lady has a MAJOR speech impediment and an indecipherable, ridiculous accent that makes it look almost painful to speak. I can barely understand what she is saying. Yes, this lady is going to be perfect for public speaking. How could I possibly turn her away?".
I made the mistake of watching ten solid minutes of "The View" today and every time I do that, I walk away angrier with Barbra than I was before. Her quest to be absolutely politically correct is so bothersome to me. Here's a hint Barbra, someone like John Edwards is a totally douche bag and it's not a secret, so don't be so terrified to have an opinion about it. You make me crazy!

Sorry to Sasha's Future Kindergarten Teacher

2010-03-03T12:59:00.000-08:00

Sasha and I were reading a book together the other night before she went to bed. All of the pages had pictures of different animals. For each animal we saw, I'd ask Sasha what that animal is called when it's a baby. For instance, a baby cow is a calf and a baby horse is a colt. She had no problem with those at all. I turned the page and it was a dog, so of course I'm thinking she'll know this one for sure too. But when I asked her she couldn't think of the word puppy, so I began prompting her, "Pa pa pa" and to this she exclaimed, "paparazzi".
Perhaps we are listening to a bit to much Lady Gaga....

Who Needs Dance Classes When You Look This Good in the Outfit?

2010-02-23T17:07:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago Sasha decided that she could not possibly move forward in life unless she was attending some sort of dance class. I looked into it and tried a class at the place Anabel takes tumbling at. Sasha had a lot of fun, but I did not. There was a tiny little hallway where the moms sit and watch the kids, but there was no room at all for me and Lyla. The hall was not big enough for people and chairs, so there was no way in hell that Lyla's car seat was going to be neatly tucked to the side. I just sort of stood on the staircase with the baby and tried to catch a glimpse of Sasha every now and again. It was really ridiculous. Then I tried the worst possible thing I could have ever tried... talking to the other moms. It appears that the social retards of America were holding a meeting in that very hallway and I was not invited. I took the hint and spent the rest of the class downstairs watching Anabel tumble. There was only one mom watching the tumblers and she was fantastic. She was that perfect mix of crazed cheerleader mom and gymnastic know it all. The best part about it was that she didn't appear to have ever been in the physical shape to have done either of those things in her life. Nothing like a 220lb. women telling you the proper technique for a back hand spring whip combo... And the best part of all was this quote, "Cheerleading keeps girls from doing drugs or getting pregnant". This immediately told me two things, the first is that home girl wasn't friends with ANY cheerleaders in high school and second, she hasn't been watching MTV's new classic "16 and Pregnant".
So maybe we will hold off on dance classes for a little while. Besides, she doesn't really need formal training, Michael Jackson is teaching her all she'll need to get by for the rest of her life ("Michael Jackson's This Is It" DVD available now at Walmart $15.99) And like I said before, who needs dance classes when you look this cute in the outfit?

Lyla is ONE!

2010-02-23T08:28:00.000-08:00

I always wanted to say this, so here goes... This first year of my babies life has gone by so fast! (Sasha was a darling but difficult baby, and that first year felt very much like a year, maybe even a year and 3 months...) We've a had a busy year, with the whole move to the new house and the toddler going to school and all, but really, this first year of Lyla's life has flown by.
She is a sweet baby and I can already see the adorable quirkiness of her. Her favorite toy is a plastic Phillips head screwdriver (I know?????). She LOVES her tiny blankets that we call silkies. Little one can't get enough of her newborn size NUK binkies, and she gags like crazy if you try to give her the stage 2 larger binkies. She is still rocking the newborn fuzzy hair. I wonder if she'll eventually grow the thick long locks that Sasha has, or if she will remain sorta bald for life (it doesn't much matter, because she gives bald a good name). Lyla has already caught the Michael Jackson bug, she loves to watch the Michael Jackson movie whenever it is on. She will probably grow up thinking that "Thriller" was the soundtrack to her childhood.
Dear old Dave loves to call people by a nickname, and he was concerned that the name Lyla wouldn't provide many to choose from, but alas he has come up with one. Dave has started calling her "Lilliputian" and it seems this bizarre nickname is gonna stick. Sometimes we even shorten it to an awful sounding "puish". But Sasha still enjoys calling her "La La", which is also starting to stick.
She still can't eat anything beyond baby food, and I'm already getting sick of trying to push foods that are not a thin, watery puree (as vomit is not my favorite thing to clean up). Mashed potato texture will bring on the gagging sounds and usually a little barf too. I just hope she's not eating jars of Gerber in the Elementary School cafeteria... That is my only goal with her at this point. She is an interesting little baby, and I think she will provide us with the same level of entertainment that her big sister Sasha does. At any rate, it has been a great first year, and I love and adore this child even more than I ever thought possible. Happy Birthday Baby Girl and here is hoping for a great year to come!

The Good and the Bad

2010-02-12T08:35:00.000-08:00

This last week has been the worst and at the same time the best. Let me explain. Both of my girls were sick this last week, Sasha with a nasty, fever inducing cold, and Lyla with the same horrible cold and an ear infection on top of it. This means that Dave and I were worried about them, and we were getting very little sleep. The baby was tossing and turning all night, trying to cough up the junk in her lungs. she gagged on snot twice and barfed, so we were on barf watch for a few nights, and that is the worst. And our dear Sasha does the scream crying in the middle of the night most of the time, but when she is sick, it just gets ridiculous. Now the baby is on an antibiotic, which means we can look forward to a lovely diaper rash.... So that is obviously the BAD stuff.
The good stuff isn't even good, it is FANTASTIC! The winter blahs come with one tiny perk and that is great TV programming. We are loving the Bachelor (yes, Dave gets super excited for the Bachelor), and we also enjoy Project Runway and The Office. But this last week has brought me the best programming of all. First we started with Celebrity Fit Club staring my first rock star crush, Sebastian Bach who made me so proud by saying, "Nobody wants to see a fat rock star, and that's a fact". Not to mention K-Fed (famous ex of Britney Spears), his baby mama Shar Jackson, Bobbie Brown (ex of Whitney Houston and singer of "My Perogative") and Jay the first winner of Project Runway! This show is great entertainment for me. I am just a sucker for Celeb reality programming and this is quality here! Sebastian in the good old days...

But that's not even the best of it. The TV Gods have brought both Dave and I a show so fantastic that the first episode had to be two hours long. Behold, Survivor: Hero's vs. Villain's!!!!!!!! Survivor is the best show ever, and this is the all star cast of my dreams. My face hurt because I could not stop smiling during this episode. Rest assured, my Tivo is set and I am now fully prepared to deal with the rest of winter. When life hands you lemons, made lemonade and drink it while enjoying all the goods that your TV has to offer!

Couldn't resist

2010-01-19T08:43:00.000-08:00

Rockin' some Fierce Boots

Loving grandma's accessories

As you all know, the Nintendo Wii is a huge part of daily life here at the Jensen house. Sasha is a pro gamer at this point, and with a Best Buy gift card in hand, we decided to get her yet another game to master. At the suggestion of an old high school friend, we bought a game called "Just Dance". It looked a lot easier than the alternative, "Dance, Dance Revolution" and the price tag looked really nice as well, so we jumped on it. It's really easy to play, you just hold the Wii remote ( or comote as Sasha calls it) and mirror the dancing of the character on the screen. Sasha loves it and she is quickly adding new songs and singers to her limited list of favorites. The first song she danced to was Girls Just Want to Have Fun. I hope anyone reading this blog already knows the artist behind this classic, but if you don't, I'll remind you that it is the lovely Cyndi Lauper (my first concert by the way). I shared this info with Sasha, but she hasn't heard the name Cyndi before, so her adorable brain stored this information in a unique way. If you ask her who sings this terrific song that she performs ten time a day, she will tell you with absolute certainty that "Sloppy Lauper" sings her new favorite song (not to be confused with "Sloppy Joe" the creator of a delicious dinner often served with tater tots). And if that's not enough to make you grin from ear to ear, perhaps you should listen to a song or two by another Jensen favorite, "Smiley Cyrus"... Yes it's true, we love us some "Party in the USA" by Miley, but it's always a pleasure to hear Sasha call her "Smiley", and why not? I know that almost any song of hers will make me smile. Especially after I hear my daughters take on the lyrics. Enjoy your week everyone and if you are feeling down, call a three year old and shoot the breeze... endless entertainment.

Oh my dear sweet Sasha

2010-01-11T09:01:00.000-08:00

Three and a half years old and non stop entertainment for her mother. Let's just give a quick update on what's going on with little Sasha.
Her new favorite singer (don't worry Michael Jackson, you are still her top choice) is "Celine Duh-Lawn" or Celine Dion for the rest of us. Miss "Duh-Lawn" has captured another heart with her beautiful Titanic ballad, "My Heart will go on". Sasha loves that song and she is trying her best to sing it. That's a tough song to sing for anyone, but hearing a three year old try to hit those high notes is just hysterical. Good thing I love that song too, cause I will probably have to listen to it 1000 times in the next few months. Sasha is nothing if not a dedicated fan.

We can't leave a Sasha update without some great quotes. Saturday night she was deciding what she wanted for dinner when she piped up with this one, "I want some of those delicious baskets for dinner, oh and put some cheese on my delicious baskets, okay mom". It took a minute, but I finally realized she wanted a Jimmy Dean Sausage biscuit for dinner... So healthy, I know, but she just loved those mini biscuits.

Another night, another dinner decision. "Mom, just make some beef stew with peas, carrots, potatoes and beef a course". She loves the term "a course" instead of the classic "of course". And I love when she gives me the play by play on how to prepare nachos. "chips and cheese a course, and put it in the microwave a course, but not to long okay mom". On the subject of cheese, I have to tell you what she said the other day after eating some shredded cheese. "I love having cheese in my life mom". Who doesn't Sasha, who doesn't?

What a Year???

2009-12-31T10:34:00.000-08:00

First I have to admit that I just got denied access to my own blog. I tried to sign in, and I thought my password was getting rejected, only to discover minutes later that I spelled my own freaking name wrong. Hello Stefanie, welcome to your thirty first year of life. Learn to spell your name immediately!
So back to business,2009... I didn't travel the world, I didn't eliminate world hunger and I forgot to cure any major diseases, but I did do something. I had a darling baby girl that we like to call little Lyla. She came early, and tiny, but what a pleasant surprise she was. She is now 10 months old and still pretty darn tiny. She will be walking in no time and she is babbling,Dada, momma and nite nite. I am excited to see what 2010 brings for her. It will be a year full of big changes for sure.
We moved from our beloved first house, to our still somewhat overwhelming new house. This might be commonplace for some, but I have moved only 4 times in my life, and the first time I was a toddler, and I barely remember anything about it. We are getting settled now, and I must next move on to some organization. I need to figure out where everything is supposed to go, and then I can try to make it all fit in its place nicely. And of course I want to get it decorated to my liking, but that's going to take some cash, and therefore quite some time. We'll get there eventually.
Not many would put this on a list of accomplishments, but I helped my daughter move into the land of the potty trained. It wasn't easy or quick, but she finished with diapers in 2009 and that in itself makes 2009 a great year.
I'm sure there are tons of other miniature accomplishments I could list, but really these take the cake for me, and they will be the big memories from 2009. With two little girls growing up so quickly, I am sure 2010 will be pretty eventful. So here's to a great year for all my family and friends. I hope to be experiencing my REM sleep when the clock strikes 12:00. If I get my wish, the new year will start out perfect. Happy New Year everyone.

It's The Little Things

2009-12-16T13:10:00.000-08:00

I always say it, and it's always true. It's the little things in life that make it so great. Let's face it, I won't be relaxing on a beach anytime soon, or getting backstage passes to meet my favorite band for at least the next twenty years, so I make it a habit to enjoy the little things. My favorites are: An uninterrupted hot shower, a new gossip magazine and a cold soda, a smokin' hot bargain, cinnamon and sugar toast, the perfect parking spot, a random e-mail from an old friend, Thursday night TV, Sasha's wit, Lyla's "hammin' it up" smile, Daves dancing, appetizers at a party, a free music download and during the holiday season, a mailbox full of Christmas cards. The cards are great because you never expect them and you never know who will send you one. I like the word ones, but the picture card are the best. I just love to see every ones smiling faces. I almost didn't make cards this year because I've just been busy and it seemed like an overwhelming task, but at the last minute I pulled it together and got it done. I'm so glad I did, because I would love to make someones day the way they've made mine. Not to mention that this year, Sasha was really involved with it and she loves our card. Speaking of Sasha, she loves the little things too. Just today I pulled a little piano toy (probably an old happy meal toy) out of my purse and gave it to her for a car ride. When I got in the car she immediately said,"How did you know mom? This is my most perfect present! I always wanted a piano!". I made her day just by handing her a junky little toy. It doesn't take much to make her that happy. A Capri Sun fruit drink or a measuring tape will illicit the same response of pure joy. The point is, enjoy the little pleasures that life brings you everyday, because there's no sense in overlooking the little things that truly make you happy.
Dave put on this silly hat I like to wear when it snows. He was sweet enough to let me take a picture. I treasure pictures like this.

Sasha dressing up and being silly!

Posing for some pictures...

Lyla's crazy smiles! She loves to turn it on for the camera.

Lyla's Troubles

2009-12-12T16:19:00.000-08:00

Many of you already know that Dave and I produce highly allergic babies. Sasha was allergic to milk, but she out grew it and now she is only allergic to eggs and peanuts. Sasha's situation plus Lyla's eczema made me decide to get Lyla tested at six months old, only to find that she too was allergic to milk. Over the last few months as baby Lyla started eating baby food, we've had a few to many barf days with her. It seemed like rice cereal was a problem, and then she had corn and we noticed a problem as well. She would eat a meal with one of these offenders and two hours later she would be full on throwing up. Not spitting up, but vomiting again and again for a couple of hours or until she was down to stomach bile. She would be worn out and lethargic after these episodes and I finally decided we needed to go back to the doctor to see what was up. She was retested for allergies and she was positive for wheat and milk this time. Hopefully she will out grow both of these, but she wasn't "allergic" to rice. Instead we found out that she has a rare condition called Food protein induce entercolits syndrome, or "F-PIES" for short. There are a large variety of "trigger" foods, which include cereal grains like wheat, oats, rice and barley, other things like soy or milk, and possibly even poultry. Her GI tract can't process these foods, and so once she's eaten them it takes up to two hours for her to have this violent reaction where her body just tries to get rid of the offender. We know for sure that rice is a problem for her, but since she is still eating baby food, we don't know what else will be a trigger for her. The only way to find out is to give her something new, but we are only supposed to do that with the consent of her doctor, at the office or at the hospital since she can dehydrate so quickly. I am trying not to think to far into the future with this because there isn't going to be a lot of food options left that a toddler will like. From what I've read online, it looks like she has a good chance of getting over this by the time she is three, but there is no way of knowing right now. I am going to try to fatten her up if she'll let me. I figure a little cushion is probably the best thing for her right now. She loves her baby food fruit and vegetables, so hopefully we can stick with those for a while to come. I'll keep you posted if we find out anything else about it.

The Big Move...

2009-12-09T14:43:00.000-08:00

So it's finally over and we are starting to get somewhat back to normal. Moving is such a drag. Packing is no fun, especially when your husband is rarely ever home and you have a curious toddler and a teething, crawling baby. It was tough, and we didn't know if it was really going to happen clear up to a few days before the papers were signed. I don't want to hear the word appraisal ever again if that's possible. So it was big drama, but it's over and I am back to sleeping a little at night instead of stressing out about what still needs to be done and who still needs to be called. But the absolute best thing happening right now is my brand new Internet connection. I have lived in a house for two weeks with no home phone and (brace yourself because this is awful) no freaking INTERNET!!!! This was so much more horrible than I could ever find the words to describe. It turns out that life in the year 2009 takes place mostly online, and you can't do anything without the Internet. My daughter is only 3 and even she was having withdrawals. She needs her Noggin.com and she knows that mom needs a small dose of facebook to remain sane. She patted me on the back the other night and consoled me saying," I know you miss your e-mail mom, it's going to be okay". And as it turns out, she was right. The comcast dude finally showed his face and hooked us up to the world, and magically everything IS going to be okay. Hooray! We are back in business. Life is good again, but I have to go now because Sasha needs to use the internet. Girl has waited two weeks and that's a hell of a long time in a three year olds life.

This Is It!

2009-11-09T14:21:00.000-08:00

I have so much cleaning and organizing and packing to do today, so instead of doing that, I took Sasha to see This is It, The Michael Jackson Movie. What a great idea that was. Sasha has never been to a movie theater before, and this was the perfect first movie for her (minus the scary Thriller part where she kept her face buried in my shoulder).
The whole way to the theater we listened to our favorite MJ songs and we got all pumped up for the 11:55am show. The entire experience was magical for her, even watching mom try to use the automated ticket machine for the first time. We skipped the concessions stand because we came prepared with our own free Halloween skittles (no sense in getting her accustomed to buying the $5 candy when she will spend the rest of her life smuggling in treats and drinks the way her frugal folks do). We made it into the theater and up to the top row as the last preview was playing (perfect timing). So the movie starts and 2 minutes later her candy has been eaten and she is ready to sing and dance (hence our choosing the back row). I could barely keep myself in my seat, the music was so loud and the songs they chose were terrific. We were clapping after every song. I could not wipe the smile off my face for the rest of it. They even showed him singing "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" which has been her very favorite song for the last 3 weeks. The whole thing was perfect! I even got a little teary from time to time just realizing again that he died and all that talent of his is gone forever. I also got a bit emotional just thinking about how lucky I am to be sharing this great experience with my adorable, unique little girl. What a perfect date with my sweet Sasha! Today will become a fond memory for decades to come.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-05T14:45:00.000-08:00

What a difference a year makes! Trick'or'treating with Sasha this year was so much fun for both of us. She was Michael Jackson of course, for anyone who knows nothing about her. Really, there was no other costume choice in the running for her. Unless something big changes this year, I would imagine she wants to rock the MJ costume again next year. She was lucky enough to have her wonderful cousins, Lucas and Anabel, take her all through our neighborhood on the hunt for candy. After every door, she would come up and ask me if she could go get more candy at another house, she seemed stunned that the answer kept being, "yes". Lyla was dressed up as an adorable Owl and she came along for the ride in her stroller and later in Aunt Stacie's arms. The weather cooperated nicely, and it turned out being a wonderful night I'll not soon forget. We took an insane amount of pictures that day, not only of the costumes, but we got some great shots during the day of the pumpkin carving. We really enjoyed ourselves out in the yard, taking in the sun and the warm air. I hate snowy Halloween, and you just never know what you are going to get around here, but it was perfect!

The NIKON

2009-10-26T14:07:00.000-07:00

We got this great new camera with tons of features that we don't understand. We also got a DVD that goes with it that will hopefully enlighten us about all these cool features. So far though, it takes much clearer pictures than the old garbage camera, so I am way excited about the possibilities. This thing is Dave's new baby, so I'm a bit afraid to touch it when he's not home, cause he would be emotionally wounded if I hurt the camera in any way. But I am getting the photography bug. It is very contagious when you live with someone who is so into it. Wish us well, and hopefully we will have better pictures to come!

Family Portraits

2009-10-19T13:50:00.000-07:00

So it's finally time for the Jensen's to get a family portrait. We sort of had one when Sasha was 3 months old, and we've not ventured into family picture zone since. The main reason we don't do it is this; I don't know what the hell we should wear... I know that is the stupidest road block, but I honestly don't know what route to go as far as the outfits go. Do we all go matchy-matchy? Do just the kids wear twinner outfits? Is it lame for the girls to wear matching outfits since they are not even remotely twins? What shirt can Dave wear that hasn't yet shrunk into a belly shirt? These are the thoughts that flood my head when this subject comes up. I suppose I could just take the dang pictures and hope that whatever ensembles I choose work, but I just know that I'll see some darling kids clothes at Old Navy a week later that would have been just perfect for the occasion. So instead of blowing a ton of money on a picture that will never be perfect, we decided to go another route entirely... We will blow a huge chunk of change on a great Nikon camera and do as many different family photo shoots as we like until mother is happy. I'm sure this sounds idiotic to most, but in the long run, won't it be great to have a quality camera that takes a great shot every time? Dave and I hope so. I hope this post makes sense, because the entire time I was writing, my "napping toddler" was running the Kentucky Derby through the main level of the house. I guess she thinks I'm deaf or oblivious, today I am choosing to be a combination of both and it is very peaceful in the basement.

How Old am I?

2009-10-15T15:00:00.000-07:00

This last week, Sasha keeps asking me when her birthday is? I tell her that she has to wait about 9 months for her next birthday party, but still she insists on making preparations for the party now because she is so sure it is taking place "on Thursday" (though she has no idea when Thursday is). If she colors a picture, she plans to use that picture for decoration at her party. If she sees a balloon, she wants to get it and save it for her party. And don't even get me started on the toy commercials, because she wants just about everything she sees to be wrapped in wrapping paper and presented to her at her party. I finally explained that my birthday comes next, then papa's and Lyla's, and hers will come in the summer. That is when it hit me that my birthday is coming up... I am turning 31.
Now this is no big deal to the 50+ crowd, but these birthdays are coming at me a lot faster than they used to. There is no stopping the aging process. I was driving in my car last week, by myself (this literally never happens) and I was listening to an old Tori Amos song that I listened to far to often in high school. So I'm singing along by myself and I see a couple of teenagers standing by this old car that a friend of mine used to drive (probably wasn't the exact car, but it looked like it). All of the sudden, it hit me like a ton of bricks that "I WILL NEVER BE YOUNG AGAIN"! I'm no idiot, and I guess I knew that I was getting older before this sighting, but somehow I just sort of figured that the only reason that I'm not "young" right now is the fact that I'm married with children. But it isn't the husband or the kids that make me not a carefree teenager, it's the date on the calendar and the passing of many years that attribute to where I am in life. That young phase of my life has passed. In a lot of ways, it's so much better to be past all the drama of high school and the confusion about who you're supposed to become, and I hope I enjoyed it while it lasted (I think I did). But still, you don't get any of that back, it's only gonna be older me and the future. I'm going to do my best to enjoy every year I've got, especially while I have young kids in my house, because I don't want to have this same realization at 51, 71 or maybe if I'm lucky, 91. Happy birthday to me I guess.

Enjoying what Mother Nature gave us

2009-10-06T13:34:00.001-07:00

The last few weekends, we have been taking advantage of the nice fall temperatures. We have been trying to go hike a different trail everytime we go out, so we can take in as much of the fall colors as possible. Sasha has a lot of endurance, and she can walk a lot farther than we ever expected. Hopefully we will have at least a few more weeks left of nice weather. Most of these slide pictures were taken up at snowbasin, that is why Dave and Sasha are doing the rock bowling. John Paul is a steep run, and it is very entertaining to watch Dave throw huge rocks down it. I hope no one cares that we've rearranged natures rock layout. Free entertainment for the Jensen family!

Weekend Hikes

2009-10-06T13:29:00.000-07:00

Should Have Said Nothing

2009-10-05T12:11:00.000-07:00

The contents of Sasha's purse: Jingle bells, Olivia Newton-John key chain (okay this is actually mine, but what am I gonna do with it), a baby bottle, one tea party sugar bowl lid and the grand finale! A half naked Zac Effron barbie doll. These are the necessities when you are a sassy three year old. Seriously, this girl will keep me guessing her whole life. And now onto the topic at hand...

So I accidentally told Sasha that "next-teen" is not a real number. Naturally she was shocked at this development. I thought she should learn her numbers correctly, so that's why I told her. I see now that I will pay for this for quite sometime. Now I am constantly asked questions such as, "Is 5 a real number, what about 12, is that a real number or a pretend one?" Thank God she hasn't invented a new letter. If she does, I won't say a word.

Though this has nothing to do with the number incident, there is something else she says a lot these days that we get such a kick out of. She'll say, "okay, I will just not drink all this water so I can grow big and short like you mom." Or she'll say, "When I grow short like you, can I bake a cake all by myself?" It is cute because she is 3 and adorable, but also because she'll be short like me long before I'll trust her to bake a cake all by herself.

Old Songs

2009-10-02T09:07:00.001-07:00

Me and Kid Rock in Jamaica
Spencer, Dave, Ashley, Jessica, Russie, Vincie and K.J. at our weekly Dawson's Creek / Temptation Island party in 2001.
Below is a picture of Vincie, Russie and myself on Halloween 2000

I drove Sasha to school this morning listening to Michael Jackson of course. As I pulled out of the parking lot, I suddenly felt this crazy freedom overtake me. "I can listen to whatever music I choose for a few hours." And just like that, I dug deep into the glove compartment (by the way, there are not now, nor have there ever been any gloves in there. So mine will now be called the junk compartment since it holds: registration, napkins, broken glasses and Cd's that I never get to listen too.... and a freak roll of packing tape, just in case). I quickly retrieved a CD mix that I made years ago simply titled "Good Jams". Well I couldn't find any beef with a title like that, and my personal music voyage is being timed, so I thought why not pop this in and see what treasures it holds. Now, don't get me wrong, I know I've not properly earned the name DJ Stefanie, but I knew how to make a great mix back then, and I still do in fact. The music starts and suddenly I'm on a drive down memory lane....

This old Dixie Chicks song comes on from the early Beauty School party crew days. This pack of trouble making girls and I couldn't start any night without strawberry margaritas, Ricky Martin and this Dixie Chicks song, properly titled, "There's your trouble". Next is this great Craig David track (who the hell is he?) that reminds me of my bachelorette party because that's where I won his CD at.... and yes that's another story all together. Then it's right on to Madonna's great hit "Music" which reminds me of Vegas and my old room mate Spencer. Then no CD at the time was complete without some Kid Rock who inevitably reminds me of my best friend Russie (because she loves him and we partied with good old Kiddie Rock in Jamaica).

One scratched up old CD brought back a flood of great memories that led me to have a great day. It is so fun to think of all the different places that I've been, but most of all, the entertaining people that I went with. Some of those people I see once a week, but others I haven't talked to in years, and that's fine, because we have these great memories that none of us will ever forget. Whether it's a song, or the mere scent of the hair spray I wore in the tenth grade, I love finding these little triggers that unlock parts of brain that I thought were lost. Turn out it's all up there, locked tight in my vault of a memory.

Private Lyla

2009-10-02T08:17:00.000-07:00

This is my sweet girl waking up from a nap. It's no wonder I'm excited to go get her up.

They love each other so much, I hope it stays that way.

My sweet baby girl is moving along in this world. Literally! She has mastered her own unique form of the army crawl. Hers, however is a bit more like the crawl of a wounded soldier. It appears that my little soldier has taken a shot to the right shoulder, but she must flee the battle field, so she pulls her body with her left hand, while her crippled right arm supports her body. It ain't pretty, but it's very effective. I see no reason why she would need the standard crawl at this point...

This whole debacle is half my fault and half Lyla's DNA. She has battled an epic bout of Eczema for months now. Her legs got a lot of it, but her little raw elbows have taken the brunt of it. So for most of the summer, she was wearing short sleeves (obviously) and her itchy rash was being scratched on any surface she could find to scratch it on. The car seat was a favorite, but the (nasty, matted, builders special) carpet in my house took the top spot. So like a creative mother, I put a king size bed sheet down on the living room floor so that she could play on the floor without scratching. She loved being down on the floor with toys, but she soon discovered that she could bring the toys to her by simply pulling the sheet towards her until the desired object was within her grasp. This discovery delayed the crawling for sure, but it worked for her. She only crawls now for the challenge and because she loves to disappear from my view and cause me mini hear attacks all day. I will miss summer weather, but this year I say, bring on the long sleeves! My baby needs them.

Lessons From Sasha

2009-09-22T13:50:00.000-07:00

Sasha is always teaching me something new. I'm sure I've shown her a few things along the way, but she has shared some great information with me as well. For instance, I had no idea that "most" objects and toys can't talk. She let me know last night that we don't need to tell her watering can "night night" because her watering can does not talk. Her stuffed animals don't need to be spoken to anymore because they don't talk either. However, it is critical to answer Dora the Explorer when she asks you a question from the T.V., because Dora can in fact hear your response...

Sasha has been learning so much lately, she can count in English and Spanish. It's coming along so well that she has decided to add another number into the mix. I had never heard of "next-teen", but it is alive and well, usually next-teen comes between 16 and 17, but occasionally it falls in line after 12. That is what's so great about next-teen, it is just so versatile.

She has also pointed out that there is a big problem with the stop sign at the end of our street. The problem is that this stop sign isn't an octagon, it is a triangle, and the biggest trouble of all is that is doesn't have the letters S-T-O-P on it. I told her that this would be a really big problem, except for the fact that the sign at the end of our street is a Yeild sign. Problem solved.

First Day of School!

2009-09-15T14:37:00.001-07:00

Sasha has eagerly been awaiting the first day of school since about May 29th. Her old school let out for the summer, and she couldn't wait to go to the new school because they have bikes on the playground (I'm sure she likes to learn inside the building, but she is three and bikes are king). It has been a long summer leading up to this day. First, she had to be potty trained to go to the new school, and my oh my what a long road that was. June 1st there was no hope, and by August she got the hang of it. Of course I had to do that awful thing mom's do and hang the promise of riding bikes at school over her head, but that along with stickers and ice cream seemed to do the trick, and now she is officially potty and poop trained. HOORAY!!! So last year, I dropped her off at school and she cried every time for the first month and a half. This year was a different story. She barely had time to turn and say bye to me before she was in the door. She did mention that she expected me to pick her up later (duh), and that was that. What a lovely change of pace that was. When I picked her up and asked her how it went, she promptly responded, "Thor is my favorite boy" (the apple doesn't fall far from the tree now does it, and yes the adorable boys name is Thor for God sake, but he looks nothing like the rottweiler for which he was named). So she is going to school now and she loves it. I couldn't be happier or more proud of her.

Sasha Is A Funny Gal

2009-09-15T13:56:00.000-07:00

So today my friend Wendy comes over to get a haircut. Sasha loves visitors of any kind. If the house was on fire, she would talk the ears off of the firemen. So she keeps talking to Wendy, only instead of calling her Wendy, she calls her Wendy's (like the fast food chain she loves so much). It was hysterical to hear her say it over and over again. Of course when my friend left, all Sasha had left to say was,"Can we eat at Wendy's today, I need a chicken nugget sandwich".

Last night she was cracking us up as well. Baby Lyla had been throwing up earlier in the day, but after a good nap, she was happy as a clam, so we retired to the basement for some Wii sports. Sasha is a big time gamer, and she can navigate through the Wii Sports disc like she invented the thing. If Dave or I want to play something, she'll say something like, "okay, let me set that up for you", and she'll get your game ready for you. Then it's, "click A mom, hit the ball now mom". I was up to bat in her baseball game and the kids were looking so cute cuddled up on the couch. Dave had the camera out taking pictures of the girlie's on the couch and Dave tells baby Lyla to say cheese. Sasha immediately informed him that, "Babies don't talk pop! She won't say that." Her other big response that she has to EVERYTHING is,"tell me about it". That one seems to be the answer for any request I might have of her, from go brush your teeth, to finish your oatmeal, that is her constant response.

Then we have the random subjects that she just can't get over. We were driving on the freeway behind a horse trailer carrying two horses, and a long black horse tail was hanging out the back of the trailer getting wind whipped in the breeze. I made a comment to Dave about it, and Sasha brings it up daily. She is concerned about it, and she needs to be assured that it is okay for the horses tail to be hanging out of the trailer. It was no big deal, the horse looked fine and dandy, but it made a serious impression on her. She saw an episode of the Brady Bunch where Peter and Greg throw a football in the house and broke Carols favorite lamp. Well of course this is a constant source of concern for her. This too must be brought to my attention three to four times a day. Forget that she saw this show like a month ago, it really packed a punch for her. The impact of Carols lamp being broken will stick with Sasha forever. The next time she brings it up, I guess I'll just say, "tell me about it".

The Obsessions of the Jensen Girls

2009-09-05T08:58:00.000-07:00

Young Sasha is obsessed with Michael. That's Michael Jackson to those of you who don't know. I thought it was adorable at first. A toddler who requests Billie Jean and then sings at the top of her lungs that, "the kid is not my son", is actually very funny and adorable. Then after a few months, it got a little worrisome. She wanted nothing but MJ and that is when the music video fixation began. She tossed aside The Wonder Pets and Dora for the "Bad" video and of course "You are Not Alone" where MJ goes shirtless (no one needs to see that really). Dave and I began to worry that we had a stalker fan on our hands, you know the crazy girls who faint and hyperventilate at the site of Michael. Needless to say, he probably won't be performing anymore live concerts, so we would never have to witness the depth of her obsession. But just then I recalled that I too had a celebrity obsession when I was a kid, that truthfully lasted well beyond my childhood. The target of my obsession was of course the wonderful and talented Olivia Newton-John. I loved ALL her movies, and I spent countless hours at the video store debating whether to rent her music video tape or her concert tape. The concert had been filmed at the Dee Event center in Ogden, before she was notoriously banned in Utah for the overtly sexual "Let's Get Physical", which I genuinely thought to be about exercising at a gym (thank you mom for exposing me to aerobics and such in the early 80's, otherwise I might have figured that song for what it was). I adore Olivia to this day, I even went to her concert a few years back. If the name wasn't so wildly popular, everyone knows Sasha would totally have been named after her (since that was the plan I'd had since grade school). I guess the point of this rant is that little obsessions are just fine and probably healthy too.... At least I hope so. Oh well, enjoy this little piece of heaven I call "Xanadu".

The Duggar Family ruins my life...

2009-09-02T08:54:00.000-07:00

Sorry if you are a facebook friend of mine, because you already know what this one is about. I cannot tolerate the Duggar Family anymore! If you don't know, they are the horrible hillbillies from a TLC show called 17 kids and counting. The title alone is reason to hate the show, but the rat mullet mom and the brain dead dad just add fuel to the fire. Well, yesterday while I watched the ten minutes of the Today Show that I can tolerate, rat mullet announced that she is expecting her 19th litter, or rather baby. This is especially disgusting because she will be a grandmother in a few short months (apparently some troubled girl married into this cluster-**** and is now expecting). I proposed on facebook that rat mullets uterus fell out years ago after gross miss use and it just sits in her closet and a hillbilly baby just falls out every 11 months or so. I still believe this to be true, but there must be some government agency that can go it there and shut down this puppy mill of a home. At the absolute least, the show should be canceled immediately. So there it is, I can't handle this yucky turn in reality TV. I will lose it big time if Octopus, or rather "octomom" gets her own show....

What to do with myself????

2009-09-02T08:45:00.000-07:00

My daughter is peeing and (hooray!) pooping in the potty, and today she went to school without a tear in her eye. She is growing up, in all the right ways, and I am overjoyed about it. So today I found myself with something so bazaar and foreign that I didn't know what to do with it.... Alone time. Sasha went to school, and Lyla took a nap, and I had some time to myself. This strange enigma happens so rarely that I have to really step back and evaluate what I should do with this time. More often than not, I simply do nothing and thoroughly enjoy it, but today I decided to be productive. A nice run on the treadmill, a good hair washing, I dabbled with some minor kitchen clean up, paid a bill and did some blog updating (this was possible only because Sasha wasn't demanding to watch Michael Jackson videos on my computer). If this alone thing continues, I might just accomplish something this month(or I just might read my Vampire books on my bed) , so again I say HOORAY !

The Photo that allows Dave to get away with anything

2009-08-31T14:46:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, I took the FUNNIEST picture of my husband (you need to double click on it to see the detail). I have no clue if anyone else in the world would find this picture hysterical, but I love it. I laugh so hard (almost pee my pants) whenever I see it. He now has license to act stupid, because I can't be angry after I see this picture. He knows just the perfect face to pull when I want to take a picture of him. To be nice, I have also added a nice normal picture of him that does him justice in the looks department. Also, I finished princess dress # 2, and I like it. It is shorter because my daughter has only been walking for 2 years, only one of which has includes "high heel" walking. She gets around the house just great in this dress and her precious pink heels. This was going to be her Halloween dress (yes she was a princess last year, but it's her halloween, not mine, so let her do what she wants to do), but yesterday she hinted that she may be open to the possibility of being a cat. I will now be pondering the best way to make a kick-ass black (ofcourse it will be black in honor of Muffin) kitty costume . I hope my machine can handle faux fur.....

This Mornings Stroller Adventure

2009-08-28T08:54:00.000-07:00

So I put the girlies in the jogger this morning for a nice run. Truthfully, there isn't much about that experience that is nice (except the company of course). Not only am I pushing 60+ pounds of kids and stroller, but there are so many obstacles that I encounter each morning. There are the sidewalk problems: getting on it, getting off it, landscape crews mowing, weed whacking and of course using the huge industrial blower to move grass clippings from the sidewalk. The grounds keeper at the local apartments that insists on whistling every time I pass by, if he didn't resemble Nacho Libre, this might be flattering, but he does so it sucks. But let's not overlook the biggest most annoying trouble of all: the sprinklers that are on from 8-9 AM that water nothing but the sidewalk (we all know that the sidewalk won't grow unless it's properly fertilized and watered, right). I know which houses are the biggest offenders in this department, and it's the same old drama everyday. Adjust your freaking sprinkler heads before Sasha and I go postal!

So today, we get through all the above mentioned trouble zones and we seem to be cruising along at a decent pace when Sasha yells some jumble of words so suddenly that I stop in my tracks. I heard the word poop, and that gets the immediate attention of any toddlers mother. Once stopped, I hear what she is saying, "poop dog, poop dog mom, right there on the sidewalk, poop dog mom." This small mix up of the English language made me laugh so hard, and she told me right then to stop laughing because poop dog isn't funny, it's gross. I had to agree with her there...

The next stop on this mornings journey was the Walmart Market. Today was the big day that Sasha felt ready to turn in her last remaining precious yellow Binky. I told her she could turn it in for a lollipop, and that sounded great to her. I realize she is 3 and looks the part of a four year old, but she loves to sleep with that Binky, and I have used it to negotiate many times. "Stay in bed or the Binky goes in the garbage" and so on (yes I do the bribing, I use any tool I've got, parenting is guerrilla war fare as far as I'm concerned). So we get to the store, and they don't have the particular sucker that she had in mind. After much searching, she settled for a ring pop, two to be specific. She ate one the entire ride home, and it lasted about another hour here at the house. So far it has been a successful day, now we'll see how nap time goes.....

Princess dresses

2009-08-27T14:45:00.001-07:00

I have had this leftover material from my wedding of all things just sitting in my sewing basket for years. Sasha's favorite color is yellow, the fabric is yellow and she always wants a new princess dress, so that's how it all started. Now I am obsessed with making the perfect dress. The first one was cute, but the bodice was to long (I know she is growing like a weed, but still) and it was very amateurish. The one I've been working on today, is made of the same material, but the trim is different, and the style is also different, so it should end up looking completely different than the first one. There is a lot of thinking that has to go into sewing a dress with no pattern, and I think I finally have a good game plan this time. So far so good. Dress two should be done tonight. I need her to have a fitting before I can finish, and she is taking a nice long nap right now (God bless her for that). Wish me luck that this one turns out great so I can stop making dresses for a while....

This Is Going to Take Awhile

2009-08-25T16:39:00.000-07:00

So I'm just starting into this blogging world. I need sometime to work out the kinks. I want to credits all the women who's blogs I read, because this is much tougher to set up than I expected.