Our Apartment

We live in a community within Clifford Estates that is called Dyanamic Garden. It's a brand new high rise building with 18 floors. We live on the 6th floor. Our apartment is 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom. It has a living room, dining room, small kitchen, and laundry room. I'm really happy with our apartment. It's much nicer than anything I expected.

In Dynamic Garden, there is a clubhouse right next to our building with a pool, gym, and play room. There is a lake outside in the courtyard. There is a man who opens the door for us everytime we walk in the building and the front desk people are very helpful and they speak English. Melanie and Shane live on the 9th floor and the kids are constantly going up and down the elevator back and forth between apartments.

Here are some pictures of our apartment.

Clifford Estates

Clifford Estates is located in Panyu, one of the 10 districts in Guangzhou. Clifford is much bigger than I imagined. Jim told us that there are 45,000 apartments in Clifford Estates. So, there are hundreds of thousands of people here. There are lots of different small, gated communities within Clifford. There are houses, townhouses, high rise apartments, etc. They have a hosptial, restaurants, resort centers, a farm, the school, hotels, and tons of stores. You could probably live here and never have to leave for anything.

Our Arrival

We got off the plane and there was a nice man waiting with a luggage cart. I tried to ask him how much the luggage carts were but he didn't really understand me and he just followed us to the luggage carousel. When he heard how many bags we had, he went to get another cart as well. Then he lifted all our bags off for us and loaded them on the cart. We put bright fluorescent stickers on all our suitcases so they would be easier to spot. I'm so glad we did because everyone has black or dark blue suitcases that all look the same. When we got all our suitcases, this nice man helped us through customs (which was quick and easy) and then asked if we had someone to pick us up. We said yes, but not until 7:00. It was only 5:30 then because our flight was early. The man was really concerned about it, even though we weren't. So, he got out his cell phone and made us call the school. He spoke to them in Chinese and then told us they would be there at 7:00 (which we already knew--language barriers are so fun!) This whole time we were trying to figure out what was appropriate to tip this man because he had helped us so much. We only had US money and the smallest bill was a 20, so we just gave him one. He showed us where McDonalds was, parked our luggage carts for us, and told us to wait there but that the school would call him when they arrived and he would come load up our stuff for us. Sure enough, right at 7:00 he came back to check on us. The school hadn't arrived yet, so he called them again. Then he waited about 10 minutes until they pulled up and he loaded up all our stuff into the Clifford Van. I was amazed by what great service there is in China, but then later I realized that we had tipped him probably the equivalent of a few weeks salary, so that's probably why he was so helpful!
Zhangyi (Jim), the secretary to the director of the school, picked us up with a driver. He had to stop off in downtown Guangzhou, so we got a bit of a tour on our way to our apartment. The driving here is crazy! The are cars, motorcycles, bikes, pedestrians everywhere. And they just go wherever they want whenever they want. There doesn't seem to be any traffic rules or lanes or anything like that. I would be terrified to drive here.
Guanzhou is the 3rd largest city in China. There are 16 million people. It's definitely different than anywhere I've ever been.
On our way driving around, it was fun just to look around and see all the different things than we are used to. There was a truck with the back full of pigs driving down the highway. People on the streets use brooms that are just sticks tied together. There are people on bikes with huge loads of trash or cans or sticks on the back so their bike is as wide as a car. It was fun just taking it all in.

Our Flight

Our flight was actually quite uneventful, which is what you want for such a long flight with 2 young kids. We had 8 suitcases and 6 carryons so the hardest part was just getting checked in. Luckily, they checked our suitcases clear to China so we didn't have to deal with them at all until we arrived. Our flight left at 4:40 pm from SLC on Wednesday, August 15.
We flew to Phoenix and then LA then straight to Guangzhou. On our flight to Phoenix, none of our seats were together (even though I asked and the airport worker said they were). Luckily, no one our flight wanted to take care of our kids, so they gladly switched us so we could at least sit 2 and 2. That was a short flight--Haley slept the whole time and Britton just took everything in. He was by a window and he was just so happy to be flying. There was a short layover in Phoenix and then it was off to LA.
That was also a short flight. The kids had their own carry-ons full of crayons, coloring books, school work, games, etc. So, they were more than occupied. Britton did some math and Haley colored. We had a 3 hour layover in LA that flew by. In fact, we were planning on eating dinner and didn't even have time for that. We got off the plane and took a shuttle to the International section of the airport and found the gate for China Southern. At that point, we felt like we were already in China. Everyone was Asian and speaking Chinese. We checked in and then went through security. After security we only had a few minutes before boarding, so I found some Pringles and Nutrigrain bars for dinner (there were NO restaurants inside security). We boarded a bus and then onto the plane.
The kids were amazing on the plane ride. They slept for the first 8 hours then were up for about 3, then slept 2, then up for the last hour or so. I had little presents for them in my carry-on for when they got particularly antsy, but I only used one for each of them. They were really great. We arrived in Guangzhou about 5:00 am Friday morning (an hour earlier than scheduled).

We Made It!

Well, we made it to China! We've been here three days now and we are already loving it. I feel like there is so much to write about already. I will sit down some time tomorrow and start writing about our experiences so far. But, I wanted everyone to know that we made it okay. There will be pictures soon as well.

Dream Big, but also Act

So, the other day I had a realization about myself. I was packing and cleaning and my friend Alice was over helping me. We opened my chest where I keep all my crocheting stuff and started packing it nicely into bins. She was amazed to see how much stuff I had. And she commented, "You have a lot of projects you are working on. " And I'm sure that she didn't even really mean anything by it, but it got me thinking. I am totally a project starter. But, not necessarily a finisher. And it's not just on crafty things, it's pretty much on everything. She didn't know that half of those projects I started over 7 years ago. And that really I don't have any intention on finishing some of them.
So, I started thinking of all the other things in my life that I have started but not finished. Or maybe haven't even started but have talked about doing for years and years. Why don't I follow through on my dreams? With some of them, it's that I have sincerely changed my mind and don't want to anymore. But, with a lot, they are still things that I want to do, but maybe I'm too afraid to actually act.
I'm the kind of person that really likes to make lists and goals and think of things that I would like to do or ways to better myself. But, sometimes, I think I stop with just thinking about it or talking about it. And I want to be better on the action end of things. I've always admired people who were doers instead of talkers. And maybe that's because it's something that is hard for me. So, now, I want to start DOING more. I think I need to be less of a project starter (or thinker upper) and more of a project finisher.

I can't sleep

I feel like I have so much to write about, so I don't write anything at all. I won't go back and bore you with all the details of the last few weeks especially because I can't download our pictures until we get to China anyway and it's just not as much fun reading stuff without having pictures to look at.

As it gets closer to us leaving, I've been having trouble sleeping and packing everything in that we want to do. Luckily we were smart enough to move out of our house last Wednesday and we're staying with my parents. So, all the packing and cleaning, etc. is already taken care of. Now we just get to play and see everyone.

Jason's been busily wrapping up all the jobs he needed to finish before we leave and also arranging everything so that we can watch BYU football while we're in China. He bought a Location Free Player from Sony that is hooked up to my parent's TV receiver and we can control their TV through our computer over the internet. So, we'll be able to watch basically anything we want. We set it up in a room that they don't watch TV in very often, so we won't interfere with anything that they are watching. I've been making fun of Jason for being so concerned about getting it to work and stuff, but secretly I'm happy that he did it so that I can watch BYU football too. I know I could live without it for a year, but I'm glad that I don't have to at the same time. It really is such a cool invention. Technology is really amazing.

We did get to see Bourne Ultimatum the other night and I absolutely loved it. I think it's my favorite one of all three.

I can't believe that we're actually going to China! I've been so focused on getting everything ready to go and now that we're ready, it's hit me that we're actually going to be there in a few days. I haven't thought about it much after the plane ride there. Everything so far has just been to plan to get there. I hope we're ready for this adventure. We're sure going to miss everyone at home. But, we're excited and can't wait to see what is in store for us.

Last Week

Last week was filled with so many fun things, but I didn't ever get a chance to write about any of them. So, here is a quick update.
*Tuesday we went to Chuck E. Cheese to use up some of the tokens I'd been stashing in my purse all summer long. We had a lot of tickets saved up too. Desiree and Wendi and their kids all came too. It was so fun just to sit and talk. So fun, in fact, that I stayed for 5 hours without even realizing it. :)
*That evening, my friend, Alice, threw me a little going away party with some friends in the ward. Alice is in Young Women with me and we really had a blast together at camp. It has been so much fun getting to know her. The party was really fun and she made some delicious food.
*Wednesday Desiree threw us a going away party at her house. (Actually at the park down the street from her house). It was so much fun to see people that I haven't seen in a long time, plus a lot of friends that I've been playing with all summer long. We played volleyball in the rain, ate yummy desserts including an assortment of Chinese treats, and just hung out and talked. It was such a nice evening. Desiree even arranged to have a babysitter for our kids at her house so that we could just enjoy chatting and being with everyone. How thoughtful.

Well, I only got to Wednesday, but I'm really tired, so I'll finish up the update tomorrow.

Our Fears

Saturday night, Jason and I were talking about what we were going to fast for on Fast Sunday. We were talking about how Melanie would be hiring our nanny and cook this week and that we should fast and pray that she can find someone who will be good for our family, especially for our kids. Then we were discussing that we needed to also pray that we will get everything taken care of here and have a safe journey to China. That we will be able to arrive without any problems.
I think Haley overheard the last part of our discussion because later on in the evening, she said, "We need to get to China safely. I will be very sad if I fall out of the airplane." It was so cute. Then she said, "Will you hold me the whole time?"
I forget that there might be things that our kids are getting nervous for too. And even if their fears are things that we think are a little silly, it's good for us to talk about it to help them have a good trip over there. If I really think about it, all fears are probably a little silly and very unlikely to actually happen.

Mimi's Cafe

Haley and I went out to dinner with Nani, Lani, and Krystal for a little girl's night out last week. Here Haley's looking like a superstar wearing Nani's glasses.

Family Pictures

Last weekend, we took family pictures with Jason's side of the family. I took a few just candid snapshots in the waiting room.

Now I Can Go on with My Life

I just finished reading Harry Potter! Now I can get back to my regular life. Once I was into it a little bit, I just couldn't put it down. I realized that I wouldn't be able to concentrate on packing or anything else until I finished it so I read almost all day yesterday and until I fell asleep on my book last night and then finished it this morning. It was very good--I laughed, I cried. I won't give away any spoilers though for those of you who will still be reading it.

You'd Think We Were Moving Or Something

This is what my kitchen looks like:

My lovely mother-in-law gave us our Christmas present early. She told me she was giving everyone storage bins and that she would bring ours over early so we could pack. I was so excited since I've been using whatever random boxes I can find for packing. I was picturing about 10 from her, so when she showed up with a truck load, I was pretty shocked. She and Jason went to several different stores to find enough. This morning I counted them and there are 65! Holy cow! I don't even think I have enough stuff to put in all of them. Especially since a lot of my house is already packed. But, I'll probably be surprised at how quickly they fill up once we start completely clearing the house. Otherwise, I'll be storing our storage bins as well! :) What a great gift.

Midnight Madness

Last night at midnight, Krystal and I went to Walmart to brave the crowds and buy the last (sniff! sniff!) Harry Potter book. It was crazy how many people were there! Haley and I went to Walmart about 9:00 and got wristbands so that we could get a book for sure and there was a party going on with people dressed up like different characters. Haley got a black cupcake that turned her mouth and hands all black. It was pretty funny. At 11:30, when Krystal and I arrived, the line was already wrapped around the store several times. I left Krystal in line while I did my grocery shopping. At 12:01, they started handing out books and everyone disappeared within about a half hour. It was amazing. We each bought a book, but, unfortunately, I don't get to just lock myself in a room and read for the next few days. I read the first few chapters before my kids got up this morning, but I'm afraid that's all the time I'll get for reading in the next few weeks. Luckily, I have a LONG plane ride coming up soon.

My Girl

Cheerleading 101

Yesterday Haley got all her dental work done. When Britton got his done, he got a Lego set afterwards so Haley of course wanted a reward as well. So, we went to the store and she picked out a cheerleading doll. It's perfect for her. It's wearing blue and white (BYU colors) and you press her hands, feet, and stomach and she sings different cheers. I know it's going to be one of the more annoying toys that we own, but she loves it.

Anyway, this morning, I took Britton to a birthday party, so Haley and Jason spent the morning together. When I got home, I discovered that they spent the ENTIRE morning practicing cheers. Jason taught her some moves to go along with the cheers that the doll says. It was too cute. They performed for us when we got home. The one they were practicing went like this:

"I stomp my feet, I boogie to the beat, I turn around, I touch the ground, I wiggle it just a little bit."

And then of course they do corresponding actions. I especially liked watching Jason "wiggle it just a little bit". It was hilarious. I'm glad they got some good quality father/daughter time.

Harry Potter 5

We saw Harry Potter 5 today. I loved it. I can't wait for book 7 to come out. After seeing the movie, it really makes me want to go back and read all the books, especially 5 and 6. But, unfortunately, I don't have time for that right now.
Anyway, I don't want to say too much about the movie until people have had a chance to see it, but I'd love to hear what others thought, so feel free to leave a comment! :)

Yesterday

Yesterday, we picked up, Krystal, who will be staying with us until the 27th. She's visiting from Oklahoma.

Here's a few pics from last night--we went to the Mayan for dinner and to Temple Square.

Random Thoughts and Happenings

It seems that I don't have much time lately to post. We have been very busy. Here are some of the things I've been thinking about or doing lately:

*I've been thinking about how incredibly blessed I am with such a hard working husband. He has been working 12-14 hour days for the past 3 weeks and sometimes that much on Saturdays. He's been staying up in Kearns so he doesn't have to waste time and money driving home every night. I'm very lucky to have such a wonderful man for my husband. I don't write about Jason much because I don't really like to sound mushy or braggy or whatever, but I do think I'm the luckiest girl alive.

*I can't stop thinking about China and how soon it will be when we're getting off the plane there. I hope we're ready for it. I can't help but wonder if we actually know what we're getting into--of course we don't really, it's going to all be new to us. What an adventure! I'm starting to get a little nervous. But, I'm more excited than nervous, so that's good. I always get nervous before a change even if it's a good change and one I'm looking forward to. I've been trying to pack up all the stuff we're leaving here and it's been quite a task. It's hard for me to know what to take with us and how much to take. I've packed up a lot of stuff and there's still tons to go! We have way too much stuff. And I feel like we got rid of so much in our various yard sales and DI trips.

*Kids are just too smart. Haley loves to change her clothes a million times a day and I'm getting tired of it. So, the last couple of days I have refused to let her change. I told her that she can only wear one outfit a day. So, this morning, after being dressed for about an hour or so, she spilled a drip of water on her shirt, so she took it off and asked me to get her purple shirt for her. I told her it would dry and reminded her that she could only wear one outfit a day. Later, her friend Alli came up to play and she was wearing a dress, so Haley wanted to wear a dress too. I didn't give in and she stayed in her one outfit. After playing outside, her clothes were a little bit dirty, so she asked again for her purple shirt. I told her just to keep those clothes on. I thought that I had finally won and that she was going to actually make it through a whole day in just one outfit, but then a few hours ago, she came out of her room naked and announced proudly, "I just pee'd on my bed!" I said, "Why did you do that?" And then she said, "Can I wear my purple shirt?" Aaaargh. Kids. They're just too smart.

*As I was carrying some boxes out to our shed, I saw a mouse run by inside the shed. It scared me and I dropped the boxes and ran in to call Jason. I told him I saw a mouse and he didn't act at all surprised. He said there's probably always been mice out there. I've always assumed there might be, but I haven't seen any or any signs of any in the whole 5 years I've lived here. And I've spent a lot of time out there, especially lately, cleaning and organizing. Now, I'm just creeped out to go in there. I told him I couldn't finish loading up all the packed boxes. He wasn't very sympathetic. He asked what I was afraid of and I said, "What if it runs up my pant leg?" Then he just thought I was ridiculous. It reminded me of being at Oakcrest, stranded on the top bunk with Beta, screaming until someone came to rescue us from the mouse. Then having Barb make fun of us being scared of mice and having me say, "I'm just worried it might try to crawl up my nose while I'm sleeping". Then I just got mocked more. But, seriously, mice can get into the smallest of areas. I think I read somewhere that they can fit through a hole the size of a dime. And that's where the picture of one crawling in my nostril probably came from. But, I am proud to say that I did finish loading up the boxes and I didn't even see the mouse again let alone have it climb up my pant leg or into my nostril. I was much more cautious and on-edge though. I'm not really into rodents.

*I can't wait for the next Harry Potter movie. I think I'm going to go see it on Wednesday. And then of course, I REALLY can't wait for the 7th book to come out. Only a little more than a week for that. Unfortunately, I may not have time to read it until we're on the plane to China.

*Tomorrow we're having a friend come stay with us for 3 weeks--Krystal Lowe. She's from Oklahoma. We stayed with her family a few nights while we were in Oklahoma last October. Now, we get to return the favor. I've been trying to think of all the fun things I can do with her since she's never been to Utah. We'll probably do all the typical touristy things plus go to our cabin and just hang out a lot too.

*I have been extremely happy lately. I think I've always been a happy person, in general, but it's been a different kind of happy lately--a happy-all-the-time kind of happy. I don't really know how to describe it. I read in a book the other day that the 3 requirements for happiness are to have something to do, someone to love, and something to look forward to. I definitely have something to do--so much that I am constantly busy. I have an over abundance of people to love, but most importantly the ones I see everyday--Jason, Britton, and Haley. And I have something to look forward to--going to China. I think in the past few years, I may have been lacking one of those 3 things at different times. There's always something to do as a stay at home mom, but it's not always defined and it doesn't ever feel like anything gets done. And there hasn't always been something to look forward to other than just everyday life. Anyway, for whatever reason, I am extremely content and happy. I love that feeling.

*I am glad that I am doing a fitness contest with Amber and Desiree right now. It's been really fun so far and has really kept me in check with my eating and exercising. It would be really easy for me to get out of control with my eating and skipping my exercising because I've been so busy and not been home a lot of the last 3 weeks. So, this contest is really saving me. We have a blog where we write about the contest at http://www.3fitfriends.blogspot.com/ Check it out.

*I think I may have found a way to continue blogging while in China. My cousin Kathryn is there now and she's been able to do it. My cousin, Nathan (her brother), figured out a way for her to do it and he shared the secrets with me. I hope it works because I love blogging and I especially love to be able to read other people's blogs.

This has turned out to be far longer than I anticipated. I guess I had more random thoughts than I originally thought.

Playing with Davis

Sara, Davis, and Eden came to town last Monday and we got to play with them in the morning. Then, Tuesday, Davis came over to spend the whole day with us. We decided to go to Chuck E. Cheese because we haven't been in a really long time. And it was Davis's first time going so he was super excited. We played there for several hours and used up lots of tokens all for a few little prizes. But, it was fun. A couple of the rides take pictures of you, so I scanned our pictures. They are not the best quality, but it's pretty fun.

We spent the afternoon playing and swimming in the backyard. It was a fun day. I'm glad that Britton and Davis are still such good friends even though they live so far apart. They always get along famously whenever they do get to see each other.

All Good Things Must Come to An End

I just got an email from my friend, Melanie, who is living in China right now. She said that she is no longer able to read any blogs on blogspot because the Chinese government banned them. (They regulate the internet). She has tried everything she can think of to get around it (i.e. RSS feeds, etc) and nothing has worked.
Anyway, I'm really sad about this news. I LOVE reading my friend's blogs and I also LOVE blogging. I was anticipating using that as my method of keeping in touch with everyone while I was in China. I even thought about starting a new blog just for our adventures over there. So, now I guess I need to start researching and figure out if there is something similar that will work over there.
In the meantime though, will everyone please send me their email addresses if you're someone that I don't email regularly, so that if I have to go back to the email updates as a means to keep in touch, I'll have everyone's addresses. My email is mary.kemp@gmail.com

Girl's Camp

I had such a blast at Girl's Camp. It was amazing. It was so much fun to get to know the girls better and to be up in the beautiful mountains all week. We hiked, canoed, sang a lot, played a lot of games, did pranks, and had so much fun. I met a lot of amazing people--both old and young. I stayed up late with the girls playing games almost every night. We mostly played Psychiatrist and Mafia--two of my favorite games. It's been quite a long time since I've been to girl's camp and it was so much fun. Camp has always been a special thing to me and I was able to relive a lot of fun memories and reconnect with myself (if that makes any sense). Now I'm going to go through withdrawls from seeing the girls all day everyday. I'll have to think of some project or something that they can help me with so that they'll come over a lot.

I'm Off

Well, I'm off to Girl's Camp for the week. I have so much to post about, but no time. So, hopefully, I can play catch up when I get back.
I think it's going to be a great week, I just hope I don't miss my kiddies too much.

The Dog Barks at Midnight!

The past few days I've been doing a lot of preparation for Girl's Camp in two weeks. It's been so much fun. Somehow I got recruited by the girls as their co-conspirator in planning lots of pranks. I don't mind one bit--that's my specialty and my favorite thing about camp. So, about a week ago, I got a call from some of the girls at about 10:30 pm to see if they could come over and discuss some of our secret plans. Since my kids had just gone down for bed, I went over to their house instead. We discussed some plans and we've been spending the past few evenings building "Herb"--a paper-mache dummy that we're taking with us to scare people. I don't necessarily think that placing a paper mache dummy outside people's cabin windows is the best prank in the world, but we're sure having fun building him. I don't think the girl's really even care how successful the pranks are, they just have fun talking about them and planning them. I think mostly they just like hanging out. So, we've been paper mache-ing different body parts and then hopefully once we attach them and put clothes on him, he'll actually somewhat resemble a person. I suggested that we stuff him with candy so that we can have a giant pinata after we're finished scaring people with him. :)
Anyway, a few nights ago, I suggested that we have a code phrase for when we are meeting together to work on pranks. So, I suggested "The dog barks at midnight". So, now I have girls passing by my house yelling, "the dog barks at 9:30" meaning there is a meeting at 9:30 or phone calls saying, "The dog is barking, the dog is barking" so I know to go over right then.
I'm really having so much fun with these girls. They are great. They've been helping me with all the other preparations that I'm in charge of--writing the song, doing the decorations, etc. I can't wait for camp. I know we'll have a blast and make tons of fun memories.

Long Day

Today has been a long day. It all started at about 3:00 this morning when Britton climbed in bed with us. Then he started screaming and crying that his foot hurt, so we had to actually wake up, turn on the light, and check it out. He has a really bad sliver in his foot that we didn't know about and everytime it got bumped, it would hurt really bad. So, I suggested that he move out onto the couch to sleep. Well, Haley heard us and woke up so she moved out onto the couch as well. When they were both back to sleep, I went back to bed only to be awoken again around 4:00 by the phone. My friend Cieanna was in labor and needed me to come over to stay with her 3 kids while she and her husband went to the hospital. So, I quickly ran across the street. It was hard falling asleep at their house because it's a different bed and different noises, etc. I did get a little sleep though until 6:00 when their youngest woke up. I got up and hung out with the kids for about an hour and a half when another friend showed up to take over for me so that Jason could go to work and I could go be with my kids.
I came home and immediately started hauling stuff outside for a yard sale. Our other neighbor was having a yard sale, so we saved all our stuff from our last one and put it out again today. Since it was just leftover stuff, I was just happy to get rid of things. So, it was kind of fun selling things for super cheap prices. It surprised everyone that came and I think a lot of people really needed the things they bought. Plus I got rid of a lot of stuff. And made more than I expected.
I had to deliver some chairs to a lady, so after doing that, I loaded most of the remaining stuff into our van while the back seat was still out. Now I'm just waiting for Haley to wake up so that I can take it all to D.I.
I've decided that I really like doing yard sales. It's so liberating to get rid of stuff. I know I could do that by just taking it to D.I. but I usually don't. I get attached to my stuff, so it helps me to actually get rid of it if I think I might make a little money. Plus it's fun to see people who actually really want and need the stuff. And they get it for cheaper than they would at thrift stores. Also I really like being out all day long and talking to everyone in our neighborhood. Everyone comes over to hang out and visit for a bit. I meet people in the neighborhood that I didn't already know. It's just fun.
Jason has been working over at our neighbor's house all day long (the other one's doing the yard sale). He is doing their soffit and fascia on their house. So, it's been fun just watching him work and going over to chat with him and the neighbors.
My kids have been great all day too. Haley has been outside with me most of the day helping with the yard sale. (And by "helping" I mean moving things around from the boxes that they're in and taking things out that she doesn't want to sell, etc.) Britton has been in and out all day and back and forth from our house and the neighbors. He's actually been in heaven because I've been letting him play Xbox and computer games and PSP. It's not too often that I let him play without a time limit. Or at all recently.
It's been a long day, but a very productive and rewarding one. Now I'm tired. I need Haley to wake up so that I don't get too comfortable and too lazy to take the stuff to D.I. I don't want it to be in my van any longer. Maybe I need to go make a lot of noise outside her door. :)

Budding Actress

Haley has taken to storytelling. She loves to make up stories and tell them to me. She has quite the imagination and I love to hear all the things she comes up with. But, my favorite part about it is how expressive she is as she's telling them. She really gets into the words she's saying. I think we have an actress on our hands.
This morning she was telling me a story about a baby alligator who was lost from her parents. As she was telling about how sad the baby alligator was, she actually started crying. And not fake crying, like most kids. It was real, lump in her throat, tears in her eyes crying. It was amazing (and so cute). Too bad she's probably too shy and/or stubborn to ever do it on demand for an audience.

Conversation with Britton

Here's a conversation that I had with Britton this morning.

Me: You need to eat something healthy, you've only had cookies today.
Britton: Well, I ate oatmeal yesterday.
Me: But, that was yesterday.
Britton: Well, actually I've eaten oatmeal today because I had cookies and you said cookies have oatmeal.
Me: Not all cookies have oatmeal, those cookies are made from pumpkin.
Britton (smiling): Well, that's perfect, pumpkin's healthy.

How can you argue with that?

Mountain Mondays

Yesterday we had our first official "Mountain Monday"--something that we're going to try to do all summer long. The kids and I had so much fun. We went to Donut Falls for our first mountain excursion. We went early in the morning so that it was still cool enough outside. The weather was perfect! The whole morning was perfect! I forgot how much I just love being in the mountains. And my kids love it too. It is an easy and short enough hike that they didn't get too worn out or tired. Plus it has the really fun waterfall. It's one of my favorite places. Haley was too scared to cross the river on the logs, so we weren't able to go very close up to the falls. But we still had a nice view of it. Britton would have liked to go up farther, but I didn't dare let him cross without holding my hand and Haley insisted on me carrying her, so it was too much for one person and two little kids. It was such a fun morning though. I can't wait for our next hike next Monday!

The Cutest Thing

On Saturday, while driving to Walmart, I saw the cutest thing--this old couple driving matching "His and Her's" mopeds. The lady had a pink one and the man had a blue one. It was so cute. They were coming up the hill as I was going down. The husband (I'm assuming they were married, but maybe not) started slowing down and the wife sped right passed him and gave him the greatest look. Anyway, it was so cute. Now I want to add that to the list of things for when we're older--owning matching mopeds.

Tuesday

I took my kids to our favorite park on Tuesday. They got to swing and play in the fountain/splash pool. My favorite thing at the park is the swings. You can get them spinning really fast and it's tons of fun.

Mop Water Bath

Saturday as I was mopping, Haley couldn't think of anything more fun than jumping into the bucket of mop water. I tried to discourage her and even threatened her with punishment if she did it, but she just gave me this look and a smile like she wanted to do it so badly that it would be worth any punishment. So, I just told her that it was okay. Then she sat there for a good half our as happy as can be. I had to force her out of the bucket and into the real bath so I could get new mop water and finish mopping. I'm glad that I gave into her whim since she had such a good time. But then, first thing this morning, she said, "I want to take a livingroom bath again". :)

Britton's Orange Belt

Last Wednesday Britton got his orange belt in karate. It was so much fun watching him. He's made a lot of progress and he's really enjoying it. We're proud of him.

Conversation with Britton

This is a conversation that I had with Britton a few minutes ago while eating dinner:

Britton (to me): You're not so smart. ( I forget what I said to inspire such a comment from him)
Me: Oh, really?
Britton: Well, not as smart as me.
Me: How do you think you got so smart? (Trying to get at least a little bit of credit)
Britton: From Dad
He thinks for a minute.
Britton: Well, maybe I was just born smart. Do you know who taught me that 2 +2=4?
Me: Who?
Britton: Myself. I just knew it.

Then he went on to tell me that two 10's are 20 and ten 10's are 100 and so on. While I'd like to take credit for his smarts, he may be on to something. He probably was born smart.

Britton's Blog

Britton wanted to start a blog, so I set one up for him and he tells me what to write on it. He even picked the name, "The Chocolate Milk King". He's having a lot of fun with it. There's a link in the sidebar or you can see it here: http://www.chocolatemilkking.blogspot.com

My Week in The ABC's

I haven't written in a while, so I decided to do my week in the abc's. That way you'll get a lot of details that really aren't so blogworthy. Lucky you!

A is for American Idol--I can't believe that Melinda got kicked off this week, she's just too good. Even though I still like Blake and Jordin, I really thought Melinda would win.

B is for babysitting--I did way too much of it this week. Watching the kids downstairs and my nephews.

C is for cookie, that's good enough for me!

D is for daring--Britton continues to amaze me as he learns tricks on the trampoline. He has now mastered the one-legged flip (something he came up with himself).

E is for elderly--for Young Women's we had a dinner with the elderly of our ward. It turned out really nice. The youth had been paired off previously and assigned an elderly couple to visit a few times before the dinner to get to know them. Then, they also picked them up for the dinner. We played some fun games, my favorite one was 2 truths and a lie. It was funny to see what the older folks made up for their lies.

F is for first aid--we had a first aid clinic yesterday for camp certification. It was a good refresher for me on CPR.

G is for Gilmore Girls--I can't believe it's over! The series finale was last Tuesday. I'm really going to miss watching it every week. Good thing there are a ton of reruns on my DVR! Maybe I'll have to break down and buy all the seasons.

H is for Haley's haircut--I trimmed Haley's hair this week. The spots where she and Britton cut it a while ago are finally growing out. They're not quite long enough to be layers, but they're getting there. Luckily, they are in places that aren't noticeable unless you look for them.

I is for island--I wish I lived on an island. Maybe one day.

J is for John and Reed's birthday. The twins are 9! We went to their birthday party Friday night. It was fun. They got a lot of gifts that they were really excited about. And, as always, my mom bought presents for all the kids, so Britton and Haley also made out like bandits with new clothes, legos, and little people.

K is for karate party--Britton had a karate party last night. They invited all the kids and their friends to the karate studio for a big party. So, their were kids of all ages there from all the different classes. It's the first time we've gone to one of them. Britton loved it. They practiced a few karate things and he was really focused and did everything well. Then they played "Gladiator" and ate pizza. It was fun.

L is for Lady Fanny of Omaha (always worth mentioning).

M is for Music and Lyrics--we saw this movie last night. I know it's been out for quite a while, but we don't get a chance to watch movies very often. I really liked it. It was a fun movie with catchy music. I think Hugh Grant makes a great has-been pop star.

N is for nose--my nose keeps running and sneezing because it's hayfever time! Time to get some good medicine!

O is for Oprah--I happened to catch part of Oprah this week when she had the cast of the movie, "Hairspray" on her show. It made me really excited to see the movie. It looked fantastic!

P is for passports--we're still waiting for them to arrive! I can't wait!

Q is for Questar Gas--I called all of my bill companies this week to either cancel my services in August or switch over to email bills for while we're in China. It's amazing how long you are on the phone for simple requests. I had to go through the different menu options and stay on hold, etc. for each one. Who has time for those kinds of things?

R is for reading--Britton's getting to be quite good at sounding out words and reading silent e words. He loves doing it too.

S is for Samuel the Lamanite--I got to dress up and play Samuel the Lamanite for our Primary party yesterday morning. It was fun. The kids got to throw stones (balls of paper) at me while I was standing on a wall. They got a kick out of it.

T is for temple--Tuesday we had a special ward temple night and the temple president spoke to our ward before we all went to a session together. It was nice to be there with so many people I know.

U is for underwear--Haley changes hers about 10 times a day.

V is for very tired--the last few weeks I've been very tired all the time. My eyes burn from the combination of little sleep and hayfever. It's not a fun feeling.

W is for work, work, work--Jason's been working like crazy lately. I'm proud of him, but I hardly ever get to see him. We need him to work a lot so we can afford this upcoming trip to China.

X is for xbox--Kyler, the boy who lives downstairs, snuck in our house while we were gone to play xbox. I was so mad! But, after talking to him about it and his mom talking to him about it, I know he won't do it again. Now, I just think it's kind of funny. And, we'll be checking to make sure all our doors are locked when we leave from now on.

Y is for yard sale--last Saturday (May 12th) we had a big yard sale to try to sell a lot of our stuff before moving to China. It was quite successful. We got rid of most of the things we wanted to. There are a few other's that we'll be listing on Craig's List though. And the rest will be off to DI. I have fun when I do a yard sale, though. I love being outside all day seeing everyone in the neighborhood. And I love when people get something they need at a cheap price. One man was so excited. He bought a lot from us and said, "You're furnishing my whole house!"

Z is for zoo--we went to the zoo with Desiree and kids on Tuesday. It was a great day for the zoo, not too hot. We went around the opposite way that we normally go so we weren't burned out at the same animals as usual. We went at a nice leisurely pace. It was great.

My Haley

Okay, I just can't get enough of this girl. She makes me smile every single day. Right now she is in the livingroom, singing and dancing her heart out for no one but herself. It is so cute. She starts out with "How much is that doggie in the window" and then just makes up whatever words after that. And she's singing LOUD. She's wearing two different shoes, cut-off shorts, a tank top, and her hair is as crazy as ever. She's also wearing sunglasses and a back pack. I'm just glad I can observe her without her noticing so that she'll keep going. She's too funny.

Mug Shots

We got our passport photos taken and I thought it would be a quick, painless process. But, if any of you know Haley, you know she always has to be difficult about things. She completely refused to get her picture taken. We tried everything we could think of--bribes, holding her, threatening that she would have to stay home from China, etc. She would sit down in a ball on the floor. Or turn her head right as he would be ready to take it. Or cover her face with her hands. It was unbelievable. The man was very patient. We finally just gave up and started to pay for the others when we decided to try one last time. Jason held her on his shoulders and kneeled down while I stood behind the photographer trying to get Haley's attention. He snapped one in the knick of time. She has a great face though. One day she'll look back at it and be completely embarrassed that that's what she looks like in her only form of ID. And of course she's wearing some crazy headband as a necklace that I didn't even notice until afterwards. That's Haley for you!

Britton, on the otherhand, was very cooperative and his picture turned out quite nice.

Sleep Deprived

So, I think my kids are seriously sleep deprived. This morning I decided to let Britton sleep in as long as he could. Haley and I went outside and I was doing yardwork, mowing the lawn, etc. while she played. Every once in a while, I'd go in to check on Britton. Without any noise in the house, he sure slept for a while. It was after 10 before he woke up and that was only because I walked in the room to check on him.
Then, later on in the day, I went to check on Haley in the bath and she was dead asleep--in the bathtub! It was a bit scary seeing her laying there and I am so lucky that her face was up out of the water. I knew she was just asleep, but it still freaked me out seeing her in the water like that. Scary moment. When I picked her up, it startled her awake, but she fell right back to sleep as I carried her to her bed. It was about an hour before her nap time, so it's not that unusual that she was tired, but it was a bit early.
I guess I need to be better at getting my kids more sleep at night.