Weekly wrap-ups are BACK!!!

(oops forgot this picture-Blogger does not let me move them anymore...why? Look on Wednesday and Thursday for Cub Scout info!!)

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The weekly wrap-ups are back...for how long, I don't know!

But my mom has mourned their loss and this week so many post worthy items appeared I thought I might just fit it into one. SO kick back, grab a cup of hot chocolate and enjoy!Saturday/Sunday October 3/4~ Was Aunt Mara's Birthday. October is Birthday MONTH!!! Between Dan and I's family we celebrate 7 birthdays (including my own) and our anniversary~ we can hardly keep up with them. That is something I have always enjoyed doing is keeping up on birthdays- BUT my family keeps marrying people, or having babies to add to our busy month-so we just do the best that we can!

We really enjoyed general conference this weekend as well. As always, we were inspired-and enjoyed clearing our calendar and just staying home and listening. We got our Halloween costumes out and decided what we were going to be, as well as, decorated for Halloween this weekend.

While Cara had an all day date with her hubby, Amberlyn and I got together to make dinner (while the men went to priesthood) and made Cara a rice flour cake as Cara has ciliac disease.

We sang, opened presents, and played games LATE into the night!

Monday October 5~ Was Uncle John's Birthday. Dacie had preschool in the morning, and worked on finding leaves and the letter L. She LOVES school and socializing, she MUCH anticipates school and friends, and often asks for them throughout the week. I have never started preschool this early with any of the other kids, so I was not sure how it would go. But it is just right for me and her.

That frees up some time for Ryland to have me all to himself. At first, he did not like it much asking for friends and where we were going. We have started adjusting and I feel like Ryland much needs this alone time with me. He is a lover one-on-one.He has been able to meet up with his old preschool friend Makena on some of those days, as Makena's sister does Dacie's preschool with her-so we swap the 2 at home... in fact, some days I have NO KIDS for 2hours!!! What?!! I know!

After Dacie's preschool Cara and John wanted to go bowling. I couldn't because I was answering phones that day and the phones were busy, I did not much feel like going anyways. Cara and John love my kids as their own...so they still wanted to go and take Ryland and Dacie. Again kid-less?!! Don't ask me what I do--I don't have much to show for those times, BUT I know I am running the whole time!

We realized today that the oil we had found on the driveway and in the garage was NOT Cara and john's car, in fact, it was our good ol' brand new mini-van. Oh heck! I took the car in to get an oil change, that was due, and had them look at it. The o-ring had been pinched (we did not know it at the time) and the oil had splattered all over our engine. So I had to take the car back to the place that had done it previously (which was different then the place I was getting the oil change at) and request a re-do and cleaning of the engine. We set up the appointment for tomorrow.

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Tuesday October 6~ Mornings are hectic. Dan is gone from 6am-6:30pm everyday. So I get the wake-up, lunch making, getting dressed, breakfast making, reffing, time manager, drop the kids off duty. All of Cottonwood has seen me in my pj's!! I hope I do not get in an accident in those. The chaos has settled by 8:45am and Colton, Sterling, and Ryland are all at their respective schools, with a packed lunch, coats, shoes, clothes and a kissing hand for good measure...phew! Can I take a nap now?

Dacie and I sprinted home and got ready, so we could meet Amberlyn at the car place and head over to a doctors appointment. My morning sickness is gone and my appetite is BACK! So I feared the worse on the scales and was grateful to have only gained 2 pds. (the only 2 this pregnancy!!! I am not holding my breathe). Dacie got to hear the heart beat and she LOVES to pray about the baby daily...now it includes the thank thee for the baby's "heartbeep". She is going to be a great 2nd mommy! I was relieved the doctor found the heart beat so quickly and it sounded strong and good. I can rest peacefully for another month. With my early complications and serious cramping this entire pregnancy I am still so nervous...you would think by your 5th? huh?

While we were waiting for my car to be finished, so Amberlyn to take me there... she used our computer for her classes, and I went coupon shopping. Typically Dan does the shopping. I know that is one reason I stay married to him (ha ha just kidding). But I figured I would knock one store out of the way and go do the bigger store AND list of shopping. It took me over an hour and a half. I had to match every item and sale with the coupons and numbers of items, we had clipped. But once again, we saved more then we spent!

The car was finished later that day.

Wednesday October 7~ So while I was dropping the kids off at school today in the drop-off line, the car would not go out of park. Cars were honking and I was sweating that I would have to get out in pj's. I finally knocked it out of park, and it flew into reverse before going into drive, where I had it--I almost hit the car behind me. The people who were behind me were pretty stressed out and had undecidedly given me the worst driver hands down....if I only!!! I thought that maybe I was doing something funky and did not have my foot on the brake or something.

Dacie, Ryland and I rushed home to get ready for playgroup. We were doing "Cottonwood's got Talent"-and having a talent show for all the kiddo's. Dacie and Ryland had decided to do a puppet show. We went home and wrote itout- all about a princess mouse and a snake (thanks grandmas camp craft). We practiced a few times, threw on some clothes, and got in the car. Low and behold it would NOT start for the love....the kids were pretty disappointed that they would not be able to perform what we had just spent time doing and ACTUALLY getting dressed for. So I tried calling local friends to hitch a ride to the rec center where we hold playgroup, and they had all been on time (not me). However, sweet Cami (my closest friend in proximity to our house) drove all the way back to come and get me and the kids there. That is true friendship, and we missed all the other acts besides our own kids by the time we got there.

While we were waiting for Cami to come the car started rolling out of the garage, even though it was in park. Then it got stuck in the garage door-so I could not shut the garage. It would no longer roll either way, BUT it started. I got it out of the garage and then it would not go into park. I finally got it into park, and it would not come out. I shut off the car and called the dealership. They told me to bring it in that very afternoon.

The kids did great. It was such a well-planned playgroup. They ate star shaped sugar cookies, because they were all stars.... and played with balloons after their acts.

I called Aunt Cara for emergency babysitting for the boys when they got home from school, as I would be in Prescott with the car. She told me to leave Dacie and Ryland too...so I did.

I made it to the dealership with no accidents..but once I got there, the car got stuck in the service department, and they had to call the head mechanic to get it out of park, even though it was reversing. It took some emergency brake'age and time for the mechanic to finally get it into the shop. Luckily it was NOT a transmission problem and just a loose cable in the shaft! It could have gotten knocked loose while cleaning the car engine. There was oil splattered EVERYWHERE again and the o-ring was once again pinched. We had to call the old car place, get reimbursed, and then have KIA do the oil change and clean the car engine, once again!

I got home from Prescott at 4:30pm-- I was ready for the day to be done!

I did find a dresser for the boys room that day on craigslist and called and bought it. It was a church friend of ours ,ironically, and they delivered it to us that evening, nice.

Luckily, a friend came and got Colton so he could sell popcorn in fornt of Walgreens with his cub scout troop for over 2 hrs. this afternoon.

Thursday October 8~ It was a re-group kinda day at home. After the boys were at school Dacie and I did laundry dishes, and re-organized the entire boys room and their clothes. Our house was such a mansion when we moved in, but adding 3 more bodies to it since then has started to make things a little squishy. Some days I feel trapped and bursting at the seams.I am getting creative in my placement of kids, toys and clothing. Our house has seen allot of action on the market, but no offers. We are beginning to prepare to stay in our home. After re-organizing the room and buying some baskets and plastic dividers...I began to see the "light at the end of the tunnel" to make 5 kids work in our home. There is going to have to be a screened-in porch and storage shed involved to make it happen. But, I also realize that so many live with less and that is not a necessity for us to m0ve. Besides,we have been really strapped for funds since my little side jobs have disappeared or slowed down. So even these little things like dressers add extra pressure to our tight budget.

Colton went and sold more popcorn with his troop at Fry's (a local grocery store) for another 2 almost 3 hours this afternoon!!! He looks so dang cute in his uniform standing there. I have to giggle when I drive past and see my son in his little scout uniform!
I L-O-V-E having a GIRL!! Playing with Dacie's hair and faces in the mirror.


Friday October 9~ The morning was pretty busy getting ready for me to leave for a day. There was laundry to fold, a suitcase to pack, lists to make, babysitters to manage, checks to deposit, lunches to get ready. The kids were fighting over the Halloween cat that arrived in the mail that morning from Grandma Hutchings for a majority of the errands in the car. My ears were tired. I finally let them take a break and go look around the pet store for fun.

Can I tell you that the weather has been nearly PERFECT lately. Especially today!! It feels like fall without getting too cold. It dips down in the evenings to make our house cold in the mornings. We have enjoyed screen doors and windows open, the smell of leaves, fires, and fall wafting through the air. I LOVE IT! Our electricity bill will love it too since our air conditioning unit has been going "A-wall" and our electric bill has added a good $100 to it.

Around 4:30pm my sisters and I were headed down to Phoenix to attend "Time Out for Women". I have missed this event for a year or 2, but I really 'dig' these kind of things. This year it was a 2-day one, and it was a bit pricier then in the past.But we got to see some of the greatest- Brad Wilcox, John Bytheway, Kenneth Cope...and so on. It was great. Now, if I could only put into practice all those things I felt prompted about as I was listening.

(My sisters and I at Time out For Women-recognize the maternity shirt Sister Ha? THANKS!!!)



Saturday October 10~We stayed at Dan's Parents house Friday night. I stayed up late talking with his mom. The next day was as good as Friday at TOFW and the time really did fly by, my bummy did get a little restless after all those hours of sitting. We made it back up to Cottonwood in record time as my sis had a 7 hour paper project to do for school online. I came home before Dan got home from "scouting" for elk with the boys. Dan got drawn for the elk hunt starting next weekend and he took the boys out to one of his favorite spots to check it out. I took the babysitter home and he got home about the same time. We had an evening of baths and dinner, and Dan and I ended the evening enjoying each others company while watching a movie.

My stinkin' "lucky" sister who just won a drawing for a free hardcovers published journal net worth about $300-with 1800 women in attendance!!! the sad thing is she does not journal or blog...I hope she has me for x-mas...then I can publish my blog -HUGE WISH LIST!!

Sunday October 11~ We have been pretty lucky with sickness so far, a mild something here and there (besides me). It was no surprise when Ryland woke up all night complaining of a sore throat. Finally at 6am we gave him some medicine and he was fine until half way through church where they came and pulled me out of class. I took him home and he had 102 fever. He was practicing for his primary program part and did to want to miss it. SO I bundled him in a blanket, medicine and a sippy cup of OJ and took him to the last half hour of church...where he got to say his part!

He has seemed to get worse into the night. But now with ibuprofen and Tylenol in him, he is showing signs of happiness. We had Aunt Amberlyn over for dinner and she played some games of 'war' and made Halloween sugar cookies with the kids this evening, while Dan was at a priesthood. Dacie fell asleep early on her bed after a few meltdowns. I guess her new wake up time of 6:30 am and NO NAP, are not a good combo!



Bet you wish you had our GRANDPARENTS!!!!

We got these 2 Halloween care packages from both sides! They know we LOVE holidays, and YES we are spoiled!!

Grandma H's black Cat and Halloween book, and Grandma S's Halloween bowl of surprises!!!!

Until we blog again!!!