A Series of Unfortunate Events

Isn't it funny how if one thing goes wrong there seems to be a domino effect for the rest of the day.

Well that was my day.

I like to eat my cereal while I check my email in the mornings and Leilani likes to hover at my feet begging for bites.

Apparently I wasn't being efficient enough because she reached up and got her little fingers over the edge of my bowl and tipped the whole thing over

Milk and frosted mini wheats went splashing down my computer desk on my pants and onto the carpet while I screamed, "No No No!"

She had no idea what she had just done so I tried not to get upset at her.

Welp, no use crying over spilled milk... ba ha!

Later that day I was fixing her hair and noticed it was time to give her bangs a trim.

She has somehow developed a fear of scissors because as soon as I pulled them out she started freaking out.

So I wrestled with her to try and cut her bangs.

Never a good idea.

The bangs got cut too short and completely crooked.

Welp, hair grows back.

Nap time.

Leilani's not interested in falling asleep.

She's usually very good about bed time, whether it's at night or for a nap.

I know, I'm spoiled.

but she fought and fought it.

I finally got her to sleep thinking that I have at least a good 2 hours to get some things done.

The house needed cleaning desperately

I needed cleaning, desperately:)

I needed to make some cakes for my Mom's birthday

I had some homework that I knew I wouldn't get to any other time

I was speaking in church the next day and needed to work on my talk

Hmmm...what do I start with first?

(that's always my biggest issue, by the way)

I started with the house.

Room clean...check.

kitchen picked up...check.

Now for the bathroom.

I was scrubbing away at the sink when I heard noises from Leilani's room

What?  NO!  It's only been an hour!

Welp, not much you can do about that.

Targhee got home from work and I put him on Leilani duty while I started making the cakes.

I should have expected from the previous events of the day that my endeavours in the kitchen wouldn't be any different.

I started with the carrot cake.

My mom loves carrot cake.

Everything was going really well.

I got a yummy recipe from HERE

I should have also remembered that I'm not a very good mulitasker in the kitchen.

I was making chocolate cupcakes as well so in case some of the family didn't like carrot cake there would be more options

I got a yummy recipe for cupcakes from HERE

And you know how recipes have specific orders to add the ingredients in?

Well apparently it's important to follow that because if you don't, this happens

It may not look like anything is wrong but this is supposed to be CHOCOLATE cake batter.

Of course I started stressing out and Targhee tried to sooth my worries and said "Why don't you just try cooking it like that?"

You can't tell very well from this picture but there are lumps of cocoa in the batter

I asked him if he had ever tasted cocoa before.

He hadn't so I took the opportunity to give him a taste:)

It's horrible!!

I said, "If I cook it like this you are going to bite into a clump of that!"

He agreed that I better just throw it away and start over.

So I did.

I didn't have enough ingredients so off to the store we went.

I started over and

See the difference?

So after about a six hour interval I had finally finished my cakes.

Sheesh!

I asked Targhee to remind me never to volunteer to cook for my family again.

It stresses me out too much:)

Let's Go Fly a Kite!

It is nearly impossible NOT to sing that song when you are actually going to go fly a kite:)

This is one of the activities we did during our not so springy spring break.

It has been really rainy and stormy all month.  But when it's not raining or storming, there's a little breeze to make it perfect kite flying weather.

We set off to go to the elementary school just down the street and were laughing as we were walking because there was not ONE little tiny breeze.

Normally this would not bother me in the slightest.

But we wanted to fly a kite darn it!

When we got to the park/elementary school it dawned on me that although it was our spring break it wasn't the elementary's.

I didn't think they would appreciate us taking over their playground while school was still in so we laughed at ourselves again and turned around to walk back the other direction to a church field.

(Everything is very funny when you are pretending you don't have any responsibilities or cares in the world, which we were doing for the majority of our break)

Leilani was adorable to watch and had fun chasing the 20 foot strings hanging from the kite.

Targhee was hilarious to watch as he ran around the field trying to give our kite some lift

and I was almost painful to watch as I tried to be coordinated and follow Targhee's example.

Success:)

Things that make me smile

Leilani finishing the end of "I am a Child of God" when I say, "to live with Him some..." she says, "DAY!"

Targhee walking in the door to come home from work.

Hearing Leilani's laugh when Targhee plays with her.

Watching the kids at school choose to do something nice for each other.

Even just the slightest peak from the sun.

Leilani clapping and dancing every time she hears music.

Leilani pointing to a picture and saying "Jesus"

Cereal.

Seeing Leilani smile and say "Hi" when I go get her from her crib.

Watching Leilani say "Hi" to EVERYONE we pass.

Snuggles.

Watching Targhee give Leilani a bath.

Friends- the show and the real thing:)
Reading to Targhee before bed.
Family Home Evening.
It's an incomplete list, but this is what I'm thinking of right now.

The Happiest Place on Earth

So I know everyone says that the happiest place on earth is Disneyland, but apparently none of these people have ever been a one year old at the Treehouse Museum in Ogden.

If only I could make my daughter smile involuntarily as much as she did today I would be a happy mama.

Holy Cow, what an awesome place for kids!

They have definitely improved it since I went there.

I remember going for field trips and being totally bummed out because there were so many rules and ropes blocking me off from climbing and exploring places.

Not anymore.

This is a totally roam free, explore everything, touch everything, see everything, made just for kids place.

The only time we had to tell her "no no" was when she tried to push another lady's stroller:)

Pretty sure that wouldn't be the case at Disneyland!

Look at this face!

I mean really!

The Barn

I'm almost positive she thought this was real.

Yeehaw!

Milking the cow. 

"Milk" even came out of the utters- lol

Things to climb on and in.

Do you see the look of pure bliss on her face?

(p.s. if you're wondering why the pictures aren't very good, it's because I was lucky to even get a shot.  Leilani was so busy running from one station to the next.  She was actually a blurr in some of my pictures!)

"Don't bother me.  I'm creating music."

She thought it was more fun to knock over the chess pieces than anything else.  There was a doll house right next to this and she didn't want anything to do with it.  Don't worry there were sound effects of explosions and crashes with every toppled piece.  She's not a very dainty little girl.

Oh ya.  And Targhee had a little bit of fun too:)

King Cole

I'd say my money was well spent today.

Well that's a first

I should know by now that when it gets very quiet something that should not be happening is probably happening.

*Sigh*

On a happier note, this is my attempt to bring Spring in a little more quickly.

Ya, I'm done with the snow and cold and stuff.

I even opened my windows and turned off my heater just to prove I was D.U.N. done!

I'm paying for it tonight though.

My little toes are freezing!

Just Not Feelin It

So I've started my 5 weeks of student teaching for Level 3 in my Elementary Ed courses and I'm really bummed to admit that I'm just not feelin it.

In the past years, being in the elementary is what I've looked forward to.

It reminds me of why I am still going to school.

I love being in the classroom.

I love being with the kids.

I get the "Ya, this is where I'm supposed to be" feeling.

But, this year just isn't clicking for me.

I don't know if it's a rub off of how I've been feeling this whole semester or what.

My head hasn't been in the game.

I'm just going through the motions just to get it over with.

I'm really hoping this Spring Break will give me that extra umph I need to get through the rest of this semester.

Or...perhaps all I need is this music video:)

Lookin for a good recipe?

Ok I decided to be nice and share my secret.

I'm not really a great cook.

But I know a woman on a blog who is:)

Everything I have made from her site has been scrumptious and somebody usually asks for the recipe when I make it.

She's got all sorts of stuff to try out and it never disappoints.

I think she cooks for a hobby and well

I cook out of necessity.

So I there are a few things I would tweak to her recipes to make them a little more time friendly.

But if you're looking for something yummy head on over there.

http://www.twopeasandapot.blogspot.com/

Alright, now the secret's out.

Mmmm!  Doesn't that just make you hungry?

Extended Winter

Our neighbors took their little boy sledding a while ago and I thought it looked like a lot of fun so they let us borrow their tube and we went sledding this weekend. 

There is a grassy area on our corner with teeny Leilani sized hills.

It didn't work so well with Mom and Dad on the tube.

Perfect!

While Mom and Dad built a snowman...

Leilani did this:)

I suppose there are some advantages to more snow when it's starting to feel warmer.

Feelings

I'm one of those people that tell it all.

The good, the bad, and the ugly.

I'm not a sugar coater.

And I've also recently found out about myself that I have to talk out my problems.

I don't really want the person on the listening end to solve my problems.

I can do that on my own if they will just listen long enough.

But that takes a lot of patience.

Which is one of the reasons I love my husband so much.

He is often on the listening end of my Woes and Woohoos!

Anyway, that was a very long way to go about introducing my next few thoughts but just bare with me as all of you have now volunteered to be my listening end.

*Deep sigh*

Here we go.

One of my biggest struggles in life is myself.

I know I know everyone is their worst critic.

But mine goes a little deeper than that.

I am blessed to not be tempted by the world of drugs, alcohol, and sex but we all must face challenges in this life and they all come a little differently.

Mine can't really be seen by people around me.

Mine come from the inner most parts of my own head.

My perception of myself and my perception of my inadequacies hold me back and trip me up WAY more than I would even like to admit to myself.

I have recently been faced with one of the biggest challenges of my life thus far.

Motherhood.

It is becoming more and more evident as time goes on that my daughter is gifted.

I know I'm a first time mom and every first time mom thinks their baby is the smartest, cutest, funniest, most adorable thing on the planet, but this isn't just coming from my own motherly pride.

There is a special spirit about my daughter that I cannot describe with words.

Even before she was born I knew that Heavenly Father had an important plan for my child.

She did not come here by my terms.  She was meant to come to earth at this time for a specific purpose.

That feeling has only deepened as I have watched her develop into the exeptionally smart, loving, happy, easy going person that she is.

Something in her beautiful, deep, hopeful eyes tells me that she also knows that she has a special purpose.

So...what seems to be the problem, you ask?

Well.

That knowledge terrifies me.

My insecurities tell me that I'm not good enough or prepared enough or capable enough to make sure that she fulfills that potential.

Even while I'm typing this tears of fear and anxiety fill my eyes.

I know Heavenly Father trusts me enough to send her to me or he would not have done so, but Heavenly Father will also not take away our agency.

Do I have the strength to do what it takes to step up to the plate for this calling?

Are my own selfish worries going to hinder the progression of my daughter?

Do I have the strength to change the things in my life to be the example to my daughter that she needs so that I don't have to say "Do as I say and not as I do"?

The only answer I can give to that, is I hope so.

It will not be easy.  And that may be my biggest hold up.  I know it will be hard.  The procrastinator inside of me says you can wait just a little bit longer to change.  But no I can't! 

"Yea, behold the day of this life is the day for men to perform their labors...for after this day of life, which is given us to prepare for eternity, behold, if we do not improve our time while in the life, then cometh the night of darkness, wherein there can be no labor performed...For behold, if ye have procrastinated the day of your repentance even until death, behold, ye have become subjected to the spirit of the devil"
Alma 34:32-35

I know these things.

The question that has been haunting my mind the past couple of days is "Why do I do what I do, when I know what I know?"

I hope I can change that to say, "I do what I do BECAUSE I know what I know."

But,this is how spiritual progression works, and I need to trust that the Lord knows how to help me overcome.

What I have to face has already been faced and defeated.

So I guess the only thing left to say is

Bring It On!

(p.s. see I told you I could work through it myself if you would just listen long enough:)
(I also feel it important to add, that I don't think my daughter is the only child who was sent with a specific purpose at this time.  The children being born now have truly been saved for these last days.  They are strong willed personalities that are equipped for the war they are fighting against the world.  I think it just calls for the parents to raise the bar and that is always a scary hurdle to look upon)

BLAH!

I don't know if it's the weather.

Could be.

I don't know if it's stress.

Could be.

I don't know if it's hormones.

Could be.

But I feel blah!

I'm tired all the time.

Except right now it's 2:15am and I can't sleep.

hmmmm...

My mom took Leilani home today so that I could focus on my homework.

Focus.

Ha!

That's a joke.

I can't focus on anything right now.

I ate a whole snickers today.

Pretty sure that's not part of the diet.

Who cares about a diet right now?

That's what I say.

(Ok I don't really say that.  I know I care, but I just don't wanna right now)

I think I need to read this book

and take a sleeping pill.

Except I don't take sleeping pills.

And that's all I have to say about that.