SO grateful!

I don't know if I've mentioned on my blog before but Jeramie's dad is a mechanic.  Our truck, fondly known as BIG RED is older.  She ('cause she's a girl) pulls my dad's boat up and down Parley's Canyon like a champ all summer long.  A couple summers ago the clutch went completely out on Big Red.  Gerald came over and he and Jeramie pulled the entire clutch out and replaced it.  Only cost us $300 instead of the $900+ we were quoted at a shop.  They were up real late into the night in the garage fixing that truck in time for a weekend camping trip.  Then a couple weekends ago they pulled the back end apart to fix a leak.

Well this past week we had another one of those "emergency" situations.  Gerald and Jeramie replaced all the brakes and rotors on my car only a couple years ago.  This week all of a sudden one of my brakes was acting funny.  So Sunday night while we had dinner with the family Gerald came up to my parents house and he and Jeramie pulled the front brakes and rotors off again and replaced them again. Thank goodness Jeramie bought good  brakes the first time because both the brakes and rotors were swapped out FOR FREE!!  Now my car is all better and it cost us a whopping $5 for some brake cleaner.

I am so grateful that Jeramie wants to learn how to do these things.  It saves us a ton of money. And I'm even more grateful that Gerald is willing to drop whatever he's doing to come over and teach Jeramie.  This is one of the things I love most about Jeramie, he's so anal about the truck. I make fun of him for constantly checking the oil when we're camping and stuff.  But really it's a good thing.

 Back to Sunday night, Oliver was SO happy when his daddy finally came inside.

And just for good measure. I don't have a lot of pictures of Gerald.  But I really like this one from our wedding reception.  Cracks me up how young Jeramie looks.

Grandma's House is FUN!

We normally have dinner at my parents house one weeknight per week. Usually on Thursday's so that we can watch Grey's and Private Practice.  Well this week we ended up bumping it to Friday because my dad would be out of town and so we figured we could keep my mum company.  Ended up being a bonus because Mike also had his kids that night.  It's been kind of hard for the kids to understand all this divorce stuff.  And the cousins hadn't seen each other since about Christmas.  To say they were excited would be an understatement!

After dinner we had Grandma's FROYO store.  Frozen yogurt with lots of fun toppings.

Jeramie's creation.  To say my husband likes his sweets would be an understatement!

Oh and have I mentioned that the kids sleep in a tent at my mum's house?

Yep .. it's a full size tent.  So much fun.

Wyland decided he wanted to sleep over.  However, he ended up sleeping in Grandma's bed instead.  Apparently it was a long night for Grandma.  Lot's of, "I'm scared", "I want my mom", "Can I watch a movie?"  And then at 7am .. pounding on Grandma's face, "Grandma it's wake up time.  The sun is out!"

This went on throughout the night.  Come Saturday morning they were very tired.  The kids were supposed to be going to see a pre-show of the new Lorax movie with Aunt Gelasia.  However, when they got there the movie was all sold out.  So instead she took the to the Aquarium.  Still lots of fun had by all.  While the big kids were with Aunt Gelasia and Oliver was with my mum, Jeramie and I went and got 8 miles in.  It's been fun running together the last couple of weeks.  After running we managed to all get back together to grab a quick lunch with the cousins before they had to go home.  Then home we went where Jackson proceeded to take a 4 hour "nap".  We caught up on some DVR'ed stuff.  All in all it was a really fun and relaxing day!  Jackson is still talking about how cool it was to sleep in a tent at Grandma's house.

Oops .. I swallowed a tooth.

Jackson officially lost his first tooth this week.  We were at my mum's for dinner on Thursday and all of a sudden Jackson comes running into the kitchen with a bloody mouth.  Apparently Wyland hit him in the mouth and knocked out his loose tooth.  After searching around the living room we never did find it.  So we can only assume he swallowed it.  ICK!  He was very excited that even without the tooth the Tooth Fairy still came for a visit and left him "FIVE BUCKS"!!!  Apparently another kid in his class lost her tooth too and she also got five bucks.  Is that the going rate for teeth these days I wonder?

In other, not so exciting news Wyland and Oliver LOVE to take baths together.  I love that Oliver is big enough now to hold his own in the tub with Wyland.  They have so much fun together.

They think it's the best part when I let the water run for them to play with.

Jackson gets "fauxhawks" all the time.  This is the only place Wyland gets them

because of the length of his hair of course!

Won't he looks so WEIRD when we finally cut his hair?  See it all pulled away from his face.

We have the big kids signed up to start swimming lessons next month.  We're doing them at the local rec center that doesn't have a "great" pool.  But they do lessons just on Saturday mornings and I like that a lot.  Plus I think having lessons this time last year really helped Jackson with building his confidence last summer on the boat and in the pool.  This year Wyland is old enough to join them.  Jackson and Wyland will be in the same class which I think will be fun with them.  Then we'll have a 30 minute break and Baylee gets to have hers.  One thing I do like is that they have a very small toddler pool off to the side so while we wait for Baylee's lesson to start and then have the 30 minutes to kill of her actual lesson the boys can play in the toddler pool.  I'm excited because I know the kids will love it.  But at the same time I'm NOT looking forward to giving up my only sleep in day.  Then on top of that the majority of the time I'll be taking them by myself and juggling Oliver as well.  Plus I'm kind of itching to throw in a half marathon on St. Patrick's day for fun.  I have a 9 mile training run that weekend, so I figure what's 4 more?

Speaking of running, my running buddy Rebecca is out of town for the next two weekends so I had to drag Jeramie out with me.  We had an awesome 8 mile run this morning out on the Parkway.  I usually do my long runs on Sunday's and it's pretty quiet.  But we were able to arrange for a babysitter this morning and so we headed out today instead.  There were SO many other runners out there.  Kind of neat.  Jeramie did a better job of running next to me instead of 6 paces ahead of me.  I was teaching him the ways of courteous running.  Things like:

1.  Say "good morning" or wave to people when you pass them. 

2.  Don't blow snot rockets without checking behind you first, to ensure that you don't snot rocket ON someone.  (I don't EVER blow snot rockets mind you.)

3.  Keep your music low enough that you can hear people coming up behind you when they say, "on your left" so you can move out of their way.  He failed to do this once because he has his music turned up so loud.  He almost got ran over and pissed the guy off.  Oh well, hopefully it was a learning experience.

4.  He learned about fueling.  He says, "These taste like GUMMY BEARS!!!!"  Yes, yes they do.

Then I made him push it the last mile (after we'd already run 7).  We increased our speed to about a 9.25 min mile (in my world that's fast, I am not a fast runner by any means).  He says, "That last mile was INTENSE!!"  Yes, yes it was.

We stopped for coffee at the end and walked back 1 more mile to the car.  During our walk Jeramie tells me that maybe running will become his new MMA.  Gotta love that running high!!

YOU control your destiny.

I came across this today.  I love it.  What a great reminder.

Just too good that I had to share.

Trip to the Zoo

Last weekend we bundled up and headed out to the zoo.  Jeramie had to take Jonathan to his basketball game so it was just me and 5 kids.  Luckily my parents were kind enough to join us because I was severely outnumbered!  I'm loving these ages though.  Jackson and Wyland both obviously don't need a stroller and they're pretty good about staying with me.  They kept talking about how warm it was going to be.  When we were packing up the car to leave I was thinking it was pretty warm and went with my down vest rather than a full on coat.  Well once we got up there I was windy and cold.  Boy did I regret that decision.  Fortunately my mum had an extra hat in her car so other than cold hands it wasn't too too bad.

Who knew Giraffe's eat left over Christmas trees?

Deep fried smore?  Yes please.

It was pretty tasty.

Nice ear hat Mum.

Baylee enjoyed her hot chocolate.

Love this guy.

Doesn't he look so grown up?

All in all I would say the day was a success.  It was nice to get out of the house.  It was great to get the kids outside this time of year and enjoy some fresh air.  And I was especially glad that my zoo membership hadn't yet expired.

Comparisons, Envy, Perception

We all basically start out like this right?

Beautiful little babies.

Or do we?  Nature vs. Nurture arguments commence.

Why do we spend our entire lives seeing how we measure up?

Who weighs less?  Because of course thinner is somehow better.
Who drives a nicer / newer car?
Who's kids were better behaved in church?
Who is prettier, more handsome, or cuter?  Enter "My Grandkids are cuter than yours" license plate frame.
Who makes more money?
Who got better grades?
Who's kids have better manners?
Who went to college?
Who has a bigger home?  In a nicer neighborhood?  Enter East side vs. West side.
Who's kids learned to read sooner?
Who's kids are better behaved?
Who's a better mom, dad, husband, wife, brother, sister, son, daughter, cousin, friend?  You get the point.
Who has a better marriage?
Who is kinder?
Who exercises vs. who "doesn't have time"?
Who budgets better?
Who is more compassionate?
Who has a cleaner house?
Who had a better upbringing?
Who is a more fun person?
Who got the best deal?
Who has suffered the biggest heartache or heartbreak?

Oh how the list could go on and on and on ... yeah .. you get the point.

Why do we spend our lives so worried about what other people think?  While it's nice to say you don't give a crap what other people think, who really truly doesn't give a crap?  Nobody likes anybody thinking something negative about them if it isn't true.  They say that so many people run the risk of painting a "too perfect life" through their blog life.  I think it's kind of true, because really who wants to air out their dirty laundry for all to see?  But we all have bad days and good days I think.

But when does it end?

As Jackson started kindergarten this year it's been a huge adjustment for us. In many ways it's a first for me.  Baylee's education was SO very different.  There weren't mountains of kindergarten homework. There was never any comparing her to the rest of the class.  This is all new territory.  There was "grading" but let's face it, it's pretty loose grading.  Her last report card was straight A's!  But she isn't doing what "normal" 8th graders are doing.  Jackson has very little interest in the academic side of kindergarten.  But the kid sure loves his recess and his friends.  But look, here I am comparing Baylee's educational experience to Jackson's.  It's what we do.  Compare everything.  It's hard not to compare apples to apples.  And as a result of comparing one thing to another it often results in Envy.  Not something people intentionally want to feel.  Often people will push such feelings out of their minds.  Because we know it's "wrong" to feel envy.  It isn't a positive feeling.  And how often have people thought to themselves (whether they say it out loud or not, or would even admit to it or not) but would think they would trade their own problem for someone elses any time.  Which leads up to Perception.  Our perception of other people.  Their lives.  Their problems.  Their successes.  Their failures.  You realize that a lot of the time our perception is wrong.  Yours and mine.

Who are we to judge each other?  People in glass houses ...

But really ... when does it end?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately.  As I get older it turns into:

Who's better prepared for their retirement?
Who's kids go to college?
Who's kids get better jobs?
Who has a better relationship with their parents?
Who paid their house off quicker?
Who gets to retire sooner?
Who's kids get married first?
Who's kids marriages succeed versus fail?
Who's kids grow up happy and well adjusted?
Who's kids end up in jail?  Please let it not be mine!

I swear it feels like it never ends.   At least not at the rate so many people are going.  It takes a conscious effort to not get caught up in the Comparison, Envy, Perception trap.  It's REALLY hard.  Because even when you think you aren't doing it to other people .. because you're working so hard not to.  Then you can't help but wonder whether they're doing it to you?  Assuming that people say things to "rub in" that they are somehow better than you are.  Sometimes people are just sharing something because they've been thinking about it.  Because they're excited about it.  As soon as I posted my last post about vacation I instantly wondered what "hidden meanings" people would draw from it.  There were no hidden messages.  I was literally updating my budget spreadsheet and thinking to myself how excited I am about our next vacation.  It's one of the ways that always makes me feel better about working full time.  That it means we get to do fun things like this with our kids.  It's these moments that help make it worth it. 

There are no hidden meanings in this post.  No pointing fingers.  Things are so much easier when they're this little.  Eat.  Sleep.  Poop.  But even then and for some people it isn't even THAT simple.

I was just thinking about this stuff this week.  How much I worry about these kinds of things sometimes and I just wish it was easy not to.  I read in this book the following, "When unhappiness or stress hovers overhead, rather than taking it all personally, you learn to treat them as if they were black clouds in the sky, and to observe them with friendly curiosity as they drift past."  Sounds so simple doesn't it.  Simply put, YOU are not your thoughts, you choose how you react to them.

May I give my kids the tools to handle Comparison, Envy and Perception well.  I hope I teach them how to cope with those things.  But I worry.  Three boys .. what if one is athletically gifted while another really struggles.  Some things will come easy .. others will not.

How long does it take to plan a vacation?

Back at the beginning of 2010 we began saving and planning for a trip to California.  We had plans to go with Mike and his family, then also my parents would join us for a few days as well.  Mike and I both spent months planning, conspiring, saving, and comparing ideas.  It almost became a game of who could come up with the most cost efficient way of doing things.  We made being "cheap" cool.  At least we felt like we did.  This was really the turning point for Jeramie and I too as far as budgeting too.  It was around this time that I read the Dave Ramsey, Total Money Makeover.  I would buy one item each week at Costco that we would be taking on our trip (i.e. Capri Suns, box of cheese crackers, box of chips, etc.).  In the end we took WAY too many snacks.  Poor Jeramie was hauling these huge Tupperware tubs to our hotel rooms and back and we ended up taking so much home.  Not that I don't think it's a good idea, but we'll down scale it just a little the next time around. 

I read something once about how it's all the preparation that's the most fun.  The event itself goes by so quickly, and then there's this huge let down afterwards when it's all over.  I guess this is why they say that you have to enjoy the journey in life right.  Or I read this week in my running magazine that when talking about a marathon or half marathon.  The fun is in the training, the race itself is just the party at the end.  It's so true.  I love running ... I digress ... back to vacations.

So this week I began thinking.  As I shifted the monthly amount to our emergency savings fund I could see at the bottom of that column on my spreadsheet the red line.  This red line indicates when I hit a certain milestone in our emergency fund and shift that monthly savings amount to our vacation fund!!  We officially start saving for our next big vacation in only a few more months.  Back in 2010 when we had been on vacation and we were talking about how great it was and when we would do it again, I was pregnant at the time with Oliver.  So my mind immediately went to thinking, okay when will be the last point we can get Oliver in to all these places for free?  Because I'm all about him being as old as possible so that he can enjoy more of it, but being young enough to still cost nothing.  So 2013 it was.  At the time I was thinking how somewhat depressing that was to think that it was THREE long years away.  Were we really not going to go on any big vacation for the next two summers?  But here we are, approaching Spring on 2012, closing in on the red line on my spreadsheet.  And now that it's 2012 I can officially think, "next year" we're going to Disneyland!!  Instantly my mind begins to want to start planning.  Thinking about how we will do things differently based on our last experience.  I'd be lying if I didn't say I'm really very excited. 

I truly cannot wait!  Looking at our pictures from our trip makes me so excited and happy.  I love knowing that we will carefully save our money and plan things and I get so much fulfilment in knowing that we are so smart in how we do it.  I don't think we'll go down to San Diego this time around.  Moving hotels in the middle kind of sucked.  I would rather lay roots down for a week and not have to bounce around.  And I would like more beach days.  I enjoyed Universal Studios and there were more things there that we didn't get to do the first time, so I do think we'll try and squeeze that in again as well.  I would love to see all of my family get to some for some or part of the trip.  But if it's just us that's okay too.

Some of my favorite pictures from our last trip.  16 months and counting!!!!

 

If you want to revist the entire vacation go here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.  Yeah, there were quite a lot of pictures.

I truly cannot wait to do this again.  Baylee just loves these trips, she's been SO many times (we went a lot when it was just she and I).  Jackson will be old enough and tall enough for some much bigger rides next year, I really hope he will want to go on them.  Wyland might actually remember the trip when he's older.  And it will be Oliver's first trip.