the 7 year itch

Spencer and I just celebrated our 7th anniversary! I can't believe we've already been married that long and have 3 kids. Time flies. We went up to Sedona for a night (with Danielle in tow). Steven and Laurie watched Cale and Carli for us (Thanks guys!) so we could have a romantic getaway. Of course, we got the trip for free! We went up for one of those 90 minute time share ordeals, and got free hotel, food, and gas! It was great.

Spencer and I were married on August 18th, 2001 in the Idaho Falls Temple. I really don't remember much of that day. I remember that I was really happy. I wanted to marry Spencer because I knew that he respected and loved me. He had a quick smile and laughed at the funny things I said, and he let me cook healthy, low fat dinners for him. He also would go running with me, but then after we got married he informed me that he just ran with me to be with me, not because he liked to run. Nice.

Spencer is always so willing to help me with whatever I need. He comes home from work, and even though I'm sure he's tired, he immediately starts helping me with the kids, or helping me cook or set the table. After dinner, when I'm exhausted and done being a mom for the day, he takes over and helps put the kids to bed. I love you, Spencer! Looking back, I really didn't know you at all when we got married, but I definitely lucked out! You are perfect for me.

Potty catastrophe's

So, we've been working on getting Carli to keep her pull-up dry at night for a while now. It seems that she keeps them dry all night and then soaks them right after she wakes up. So, we told her that if she kept them dry for 3 nights in a row, than we could go to Chuck E Cheese. It took her a few weeks, but she finally did it. So, we decided to go today. As we were about to get in the car, Carli came downstairs with new shorts on. I asked her why she changed, and she said, "because I went potty in them." Lovely. I was really tempted to say we couldn't go to Chuck E Cheese anymore, but Cale was really looking forward to it, and I didn't feel like it was fair to punish her by taking away something she had already earned. Soooo, we went upstairs to clean it up. She had gone on the bathroom rug while looking for pink hair things to wear. I took the rug to wash it, and made a mental note that it had soaked through and gotten the tile wet underneath it. Carli was standing on the stool next to it, and happened to step down right onto the potty. She proceeded to slip and slide in it and land full-body in the urine. Lovely.
So, we clean her up and then finally leave to go to Chuck E Cheese. The kids were all happy, having fun playing on the nasty, dirty, rundown toys. Carli was up in a tunnel (like the ones at McDonalds), and Spencer was underneath watching her. He saw something dripping down through the holes, and had an idea of what it might be. Then Carli came down in tears (probably to get sympathy because she knew she was in trouble) and admitted that she did in fact pee in the tunnel. Spencer looked up and could see other kids splashing right through it. Lovely.
So, to say the least, Carli could not play on the toys anymore. Funny that we went there because she kept her pull-up dry, yet she couldn't seem to keep them dry there. I'm sick of potty, and diapers, and messes! Is anybody else???

bus drama

So, we live one mile away from the school, so Cale can ride the bus. I drove him to school on the first day, and I was going to drive him all week, but he really wanted to start riding the bus. So, on the second day of school, we went out to the bus stop 5 minutes early. Cale goes to pre-kindergarten in the afternoons, so nobody else was at the bus stop. We waited for the bus until school was about to start, and then I decided to just drive him to school so he wouldn't be late. When we got there, the buses still hadn't arrived, so it probably came right after we left. Oh well, we'll try again tomorrow.
Then, I went to pick him up at the bus stop after school. I put Danielle in the stroller and Carli was walking with me. I was planning on being to the bus stop right on time, and as I approached the bus stop, I saw the bus arrive. I encouraged Carli to start running and we hurried to get there. As I turned the corner, I could see the bus starting to pull away. I looked around and saw Cale nowhere. I didn't know quite what to do, so I hurried over to some girls and asked them if they saw a little boy with an orange shirt and a blue backpack. They said no, so I started to walk quickly to the next bus stop, which was around the block. Carli by this time is sprinting to keep up with me, and she starts complaining that she's tired, so I put her in the stroller and hold Danielle. As we are approaching the other bus stop, I see a mother and her little boy that looked like a school boy. I asked her if he just got off at that stop, and she said yes. I asked her if she saw a little boy with an orange shirt, but she said no other kids got off the bus. She told me that sometimes the driver will not let a child off the bus unless their parent is there waiting for them. So, I imagine Cale driving to who-knows-where with some strange bus driver.
I start to head home and call the elementary school. They checked with his teacher, and she did indeed put him on the correct bus. They put me on hold to find the bus driver. I was almost home, when my neighbor told me they found Cale alone on our porch, so they took him to their house.
Well, I was relieved, but very confused as to how he got home. After getting the story out of him as best I could, it sounds like his teacher buddied him up with an 11 year old boy, and he helped him on the bus. Cale recognized his stop, and while I was hurrying to the bus around one condo building, he crossed the street with a bunch of other kids and walked with them on the other side of the building and he went home. I of course reminded him he is supposed to wait for me on the sidewalk and not walk home by himself. And all he could say was, "but mom, my bus is the purple bus, and that's a girl color". Nice.
Hopefully tomorrow will go better, and now I know to get to the bus stop WAY early and stay WAY late.

Top ten ways to toughen Danielle up

1. Cale-when Danielle is peacefully taking a little snooze on the couch, he will see her, smile to himself, and run and jump on her cushion. She of course flings her arms out and her eyes almost bulge right out of her head in surprise.
2. Carli-we were driving in the car. All of a sudden, I heard someone choking in the back, and I look back and see Carli's finger all the way down Danielle's throat.
3. Cale-He finds a pen, or something of that shape, and is pleased to find that it fits it in her ear/nose perfectly.
4. Carli-pats her tummy and back as hard as she can.
5. Cale-likes to see how far he can bend her fingers, arms, and legs before she cries.
6. Carli-tries to jump over Danielle, who is laying on the floor, and "accidentally" lands on her arm.
7. Cale-When Danielle is in her swing, Cale pushes it as hard as he can and scares her to death. (I always have to make sure her little seat belt and helmet are on)
8. Carli-Hugs, I mean squeezes, her until she cries
9. Cale-Presses something like a block, or a deck of cards, down on her head until she cries
10. Carli-talks really loud about 1 inch from her face, and shakes one of those instruments with all the bells on it right in her face.

Amazingly enough, they really do love her, and Danielle adores them. She smiles so big whenever she sees them, as long as they don't get too close!

Scissor Trouble

So, Cale and Carli were playing quietly in there room while I napped. I was very happy they were so good until I opened there door. They were on Cale's bed, with their scissors. Carli had about 50 holes all over her shirt. Cale had cut them while Carli was still wearing the shirt! He also cut a hole in her blanket, and she was in the process of giving her doll a haircut. Well, at least they didn't cut their own hair! I made her wear the shirt the rest of the day. We went out that evening, and everyone probably thought we were white trash!

California Trip