A review and a gripe

Well, my mom and dad are going home tomorrow morning. :o(
It's been nice having them around all week. I love it when they come to visit.
They were so sweet tonight and babysat all the kids so Jon and I could go on a date! It's been a while since we've gone out together, just the two of us. We went to Batman "The Dark Knight".
Oh my goodness. What to say about it. I thought it was really good. It was really, very bittersweet to watch though. Heath Ledger really did a great job as the Joker I thought. It was sad to watch him portray this character knowing that perhaps the darkness of this character may have contributed to his death. He had so much potential I think, as an actor. I don't really get into Hollywood and all that stuff, usually, except to shake my head sometimes at some of the antics that go on. But, I do have some favorite actors. Heath wasn't ever really on my radar. I thought he was an ok actor, and enjoyed a few of his movies. But I was saddened by his death. It seemed that he died too young. Anyway, I just wanted to comment on the movie. I really did enjoy it for the most part. Just kind of sad ya' know?

The boys had their one year check up yesterday. They're doing great. How about this for crazy though? They're supposed to get their first chicken pox shot at a year, and right now, the doctor's office can't have that immunization to give out to insured patients. Only people without insurance are allowed to receive it right now--unless of course I want to pay $111 a pop for it at the health district. Insane. Oh well, maybe they'll have something they can give in a couple months time. He said to check back. They still had the pleasure of receiving their measles shot and their hep A shot. Poor little guys.

PAR-TAY!!

Today was the boys' birthday party. Grandma and Grandpa Mortensen (my mom and dad) were here, so was Jon's brother-Brad and his sweet family, along with Jon's friend from work-Mike and his wife Chrissy, and cute little baby Noah. Thanks everyone for coming and helping us celebrate!

July 24th, 2008

This was Thursday. The actual birthday day. We let them open a present, and have a piece of cake. It was kind of a practice run....

One year ago...(really long post alert)

One year ago today, I was at the hospital at 5 a.m. to get these guys out. That was a scary day for me. I was shaking, my teeth were chattering, and I started crying right before they began the c-section. Fear of the unknown. But it all turned out well, and what a ride it's been!
This has been a great year, from the sweet, rewarding moments to the not so much ones. We have been so blessed with the addition of these two precious little boys. I love them both so much. It's just amazing how the human heart expands. Before they were born, I wondered if I would find enough love for them. I remember having the same thoughts before Haley was born as well. But, the human heart does expand, thank goodness!
I have seen the Lords hand in our lives since we found out we were being doubly blessed. I have been the lucky recipient of wonderful service from some wonderful people. Wonderful sisters' in my ward who have taken them off my hands for a few hours{not to mention the fantastic shower that was thrown for me (I still have thank-you cards I've never gotten around to handing out-don't be surprised if you get one in the mail soon)}, the wonderful priesthood authority of our home-teachers, who gave them their blessings. My sweet mom, giving up a month of her time, to come and stay with us the first month or so to help out. Jon's wonderful mom, who also stayed with us for some time and helped out immensely. I don't know where I would be without any of you. I often hear the phrase: "I don't know how you do it!" But, really, I wouldn't be doing anything without the help of others, and most especially our dear Father in Heaven. Just like
1 Nephi 3:7 say's, He won't give us anything we can't handle. And, I think we can handle anything, with His help. For the most part, you just do what you gotta' do. I remember thinking many times, those first few weeks: "Man, one would be sooooo easy!!" and then my next immediate thought would be: "Yeah, but which one would you send back?" Neither of them. No way. Not ever!!
So any way...

Jason,
You came first, one minute before your little brother weighing almost 1 1/2 pounds more.
You were born with the prettiest shade of auburn hair. From the start you have had the loudest cry. You did not like to be naked. Now you don't mind so much. You give the best hugs. You just hold on as tight as you can-it is so sweet. Also, your big wet, open mouth kisses--the sweetest!
I love the way you laugh. Especially when you and your brother are doing something and you just start giggling. So cute. You now have 5 teeth. You have begun taking 6 or 7 steps at a time. Mostly you still get around by crawling though. You began rolling over first, and sitting up first. These days, you've even begun trying to climb things. You are a momma's boy. You are more sensitive and shy. I love the way you "bang your head" to the rythm of music. I love the way you crawl away even faster when you know I'm following you, then you start giggling. I love the way you will crawl over and put your wide open mouth on your brothers forehead (like a kiss) when I'm changing his bottom. I love how you try to feed your brother any little treats that you guys eat.

Justin,
You were born at 8:23 a.m. weighing in at 5 lb. 12 oz--by far the smallest baby I've ever had. But, you wasted no time catching up. You took to nursing much quicker than your big brother.
You were whisked away soon after being born. I got to see you once and then that was it until 9 o'clock that night You had to go to the level 2 nursery and be put on oxygen and be monitored for a while. When I got to see you that night, I just kept thinking how much you looked like your Uncle David. Anyway, you quickly caught up to your brother in the weight department. You love your daddy. You love me too, but of the two of you, you are the daddy's boy. You just light up when daddy gets home from work. You have the prettiest blue eyes and beautiful strawberry blonde hair. You now have 4 teeth, you began getting yours before Jason. You also started crawling first. You can stand for a few seconds before you'll sit back down, and occasionally you try to take a step or two. You are very ticklish. You love the remote control. You have a temper! especially when you don't get what you want. You have the cutest smile. I love the way you click your tongue. I love the way you say "uuh!" to get my attention. I love the way you hand me things you've learned you're no supposed to have.

So, Happy Birthday my sweet precious little boys!! I love you soooo much!!!
Thank you for coming to our family and delighting us with all you do.

Reminder

Don't forget to check out the give-away at word to your mother.

It ends the 28th.

tick tock

What's my motivation?

Well, it should be the fact that my parents will be here tomorrow, and my house is a total wreck. I am feeling soooooo lazy though. I just can't get things going. Thank goodness I have an understanding mom who isn't coming to see my house.

It would be nice if I could at least do a few things though...

Jason and Justin...a year in review

Sorry, there's a lot of pictures here. I tried to narrow it down, but...

another great give-away

ok. Here's another give-away, and a pretty funny blog too!!
oh yeah, it involves a Kohls gift card. Need I say more?
go check it out!!

Merrianne's give-away

Merrianne's having a give-away! Check it out right here.


Look what you might win...

While you're there, wish her a happy birthday. Today's her big day!

This one's for Merrianne

free file hosting

Sending out birthday wishes to Merrianne.
Click here for your card!!!
I know it's a few days early, but this way I won't forget, and you can enjoy it all weekend!

King For a Day

So, I borrowed this book about blogging from the library. ok, I borrowed like 3 books on blogging-lame?

One of them had lots of suggestions on things to blog about. So, I thought I'd try out some of them. So, here goes...

What would you do if you ruled the world?

Well, here's my list

• healthcare--totally free for everybody
• education--totally free for everybody
• food--totally free for everybody

(do you see a pattern here?)

• Everyday at exactly 1 o'clock pm, everyone would stop what they're doing and have a siesta!
• there would be a ban on lima beans, liver and brussel sprouts
• There would be no Mondays
• Every weekend would be a 3 day weekend
• Once you have children, if you want to be a stay at home mommy, then you get a huge tax break, plus you get paid to stay home and take care of your children
• Teachers would be among the highest paid professionals out there
• sports stars, actors and musicians wouldn't bring home quite so much bacon
• Plesantly plump would be the ideal
• All produce would be organic
• All vehicles would be fuel efficient
• Everyone would reduce, reuse, recycle

Well, that's all I can think of for the moment. I'll have to add to this as I think of other things.

What would YOU do?

Walk down Memory Lane

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Captured in Time [TAG}]

Capture a moment in time from the view of your desk/computer.
Rules of the Tag:
1.Take no more than 3 pictures from the view of your desk
2.Post them on your blog w/ captions either on the pictures themselves or below/above the image describing everything in the picture.
3.Tag 6 people including the person who tagged you. Linking their name with their blog url.
4.Title your post “Captured In Time”

My dining room in the morning. The boys have already been up for two hours and have begun their daily annihilation of all things neat and tidy. (they weren't really that neat and tidy to begin with). The Today Show is on tv. That's Friday, my kitty on the floor by the dining table.








Sorry this pic came out a little blurry. There are the piles of laundry, waiting to be put away. I probaly should be doing that instead of playing on the computer. There's our dvd rack in the background.









My little blockade to keep the boys away from the books, on the right, and Justin working on getting through. My Christus statue--(I got it at wally world for 20 bucks. No way could I afford the one at Deseret Book for $200). There's a sinkful of dirty dishes in the background.

Ok, I tag....
1. Rebecca
2. Erin
3. Heather
4. Mrs. Mordecai
5. Melinda
6. Jilene

my Lifesong

Do you ever feel like you're just so far away from where you need to be? I do. I've been feeling this way pretty much since I became prego last year. I think it has a lot to do with my focus moving from spiritual matters to this whole life-changing event.
There's this song by Casting Crowns that I love. They're a Christian group-not LDS, but I don't think that matters. This song really speaks to me.

LIFESONG
Empty hands held high
Such small sacrifice
If not joined with my life
I sing in vain tonight

May the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to You

Let my lifesong sing to You
Let my lifesong sing to You
I want to sign Your name to the end of this day
Knowing that my heart was true
Let my lifesong sing to You

Lord I give my life
A living sacrifice
To reach a world in need
To be Your hands and feet

So may the words I say
And the things I do
Make my lifesong sing
Bring a smile to You

Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Let my lifesong sing to You


I was listening to this on my way home from work tonight, and reflecting on my day, and I just had to start crying. "May the words I say and the things I do make my lifesong sing bring a smile to You." I said some words today, to my sweet children no less, that a Mother should never say.

"I want to sign Your name to the end of this day knowing that my heart was true".
I really want to live in this manner. To be able at the end of the day, to say that I did my best, and I feel good about how I've acted.
"Empty hands held high, such small sacrifice, if not joined with my life, I sing in vain tonight"-- if I can't speak and act in a good way, then no amount of praise will make it ok.

This song brings out a yearning in me to be closer to the Lord, and to my Father in Heaven. I haven't felt that in a long time. I know the answer lies in my personal prayer and scripture study. I have been doing better lately on the scripture study. I'm doing it in the mornings now, instead of at the end of the day when I'm too tired to spend much time with it. I need to work on prayer though. I'll say a short prayer before reading the scriptures, and I say one before I go to bed, if I don't fall asleep during it. But, they are vain repetitions I think. I'm praying for the same things every night.
How do you keep it fresh?
One really good thing...I'm not working on Sunday's any more, so I can attend all three meetings. Yay!! I'm so happy about that. I hope this will help too. OF course, I'm afraid that I'll be spending most of those meetings in the hallways with the boys. But, still, it's better than being at work. :o)

just me...

HowManyOfMe.com

There are 1 or fewer people with my name in the U.S.A. How many have your name?

Merrianne gave me an award. How sweet!

Thanks Merrianne, your so thoughtful.

Here are the rules:

1. Post the logo on your blog.

2. Add a link to the person who nominated you.

3. Nominate 7 other people for this award and add links to their blog.

4. Leave a message for the people that you nominated!

So, lets see...who to nominate? There are so many wonderful blogs that I like...

1. Jamie's blog

2. Nicole B's blog

3. Jessica's blog

4. LaDawn's blog

5. Nicole M's blog

6. Anna's blog

7. Rebecca's blog

There are more that I like, but only seven can I list. For a few more check out my I"m impressed post from a few days ago. Also the other blogs I have listed on the right, are also among my favorites.

Swim time re-visited

Whoohoo!!
We made it to the pool this week. They didn't cancel the family swim time. Yaay! Jon even went with and we took the babies. They really enjoyed the water, especially Justin.
So, we swam for about half an hour, then the lifeguards called everybody out of the pool. I thought it was just so we could all take a break. Well, guess what?
Somebody cr**ped in the pool--alot!
So, we got to leave early. At least we got passes for the next time.
Ah the joys of the public pool.



Haley's so sweet. She just told me her hugs are free. The best kind!

Sewin' and stylin'!

So, Ashley got this cute sewing machine for Christmas this last year. Well, today was the first time she got to use it! Can you believe that? It's been over 6 months, and I'm just now letting her figure it out. Great mom huh'.
Anyway, she found this great book at the library last week on how to sew some simple projects. Ever since, she's been itching to make this little swim suit cover up.

Here she is working away on it.

And here's the finished product. Cute huh'. I think she did a great job.
Of course, Haley wanted to try her hand at it too.
I let her sew a little pouch for Ashley's glasses.
Here's the complete ensemble'!!

On a side note, both my little guys were fussy babies all day.
Guess who's getting more teeth?

Justin!!!
He was miserable most of the day. Jason was too, he was running a low grade fever. He's been teething for the last little bit, but I couldn't see any new teeth coming in. I hope it's not the beginning of something nasty. Jon's had a little summer cold the last couple of days--I hope he hasn't passed it along.

Fun in the Sun, ok, it was actually twilight.

myspace graphics

Happy Independence Day!!

I have to work tonight. (bummer) But we're going to bar-b-q this afternoon. Cheeseburgers and Johnsonville Brats (yum), pasta salad, corn on the cob, & watermelon. Otter pops for dessert.
I bought a cute little inflatable pool with a canopy that sprinkles on the kids. So, I think we'll set that up too, and let them have fun in the sun. So, what are you doing?

I'm impressed!!

Here are some blogs that just amaze me.
This one is beautiful and smart, and she can really do wonders with a sewing machine and some fabric.
Here is another one that is beautiful and smart. I love the craft projects she does.
I am inspired by this blog. Not only is she athletic, but her posts are thoughtful and beautiful.
I am amazed by this lady. Her blog is fabulous--beautiful, informative, helpful, intelligent...I could go on and on.
My own Family Adventures is another one I adore. This is a lovely lady, who, along with her beautiful family keeps me in stitches. She also knows how to inspire and uplift.
So, there you have it. Some notable blogs, worth checking out.

What are the odds?

OK, so, the girls were sooooo excited to go swimming. Haley was asking me from the moment she woke up this morning how long it was till we were going to go. Seriously, every half hour..."How long til I can change into my swimming clothes mom?" So, finally, 6:15 rolls around and we're off to the community center for Family Swim time.
Here are the girls, all decked out for swimming. They're sooooo excited.
So we get to the community center, and what do we find?

Family Swim time

has been cancelled.

Sorry for the

inconvenience.

Oh man!! You've got to be kidding!? Haley starts crying. Great. So, I decide that we'll go check out the other community centers. But we'll have to hurry, or they won't have much time to swim. So we get to the next closest center. It's open. Yay! We get inside, and I go ask for vests for the girls. The guys asks "Are you here for lessons?" I say, "No, we're here for the family swim time".
"Oh, sorry. " He says. "It's been cancelled tonight."

You've got to be joking!!

Well, there's two more community centers listed in the recreation guide. So, I attempt to find them in time. No luck. I couldn't even find Bruce street. Where the heck is Bruce Street?

Well, when life hands you lemons....

We ended up going to Sonic for ice cream and slushies. Then when we got home we played in the sprinklers.

Night salvaged. But still, the pool would have been so much more fun.

Pretty much sums it up hmmm?