Why you wish you were short

One of the best parts of being short, besides always having plenty of leg room in cars and on airplanes, is the mad seamstress skills you acquire from having to alter all new clothes. The unfortunate thing is that for a short person my seamstress skills leave something to be desired. However, what I lack in sewing skill I make up for in street smarts and ingenuity.

Steve got a new pair of jeans that needed to be hemmed. When I finally got around to it, I discovered that quilting thread does not work in my sewing machine. (I bought orange quilting thread because it was the only orangish looking thread they had. I specifically asked if using it in my machine would be a problem and they said …..oh, no . It will be fine. Thanks a lot JoAnn’s)

So after wasting a solid hour of precious “kids are sleeping, get as much done as possible” time, I relented and hemmed the dark blue jeans with…yes…white thread. Yes it looked terrible. So I started thinking…..

Then I got out my orange sharpie and colored the white thread hem orange. The jeans were so dark that the orange sharpie only showed up on the thread and not the jeans. Problem solved.

Steve couldn’t even tell the difference. Everyone is happy and I am very proud of my clever self.

So to answer your question…Why you wish you short…So you could find ways clever ways to solve life’s greatest conundrums, like me.

To those who have gone before me...Help!

Night wake-ups have to be one of the best parts of being mother of a new baby. Getting a full night’s sleep is way over rated. Besides, TV in the middle of the night is so quality and interesting.

I understood I would be getting up with the new baby. What I didn't understand or agree to is getting up with my two-year-old. What is this about? All of a sudden she is afraid of the dark, afraid of scary monsters, needs a drink of milk, or can’t find her bed buddies (stuffed animals), so she wakes up crying. Luckily she isn’t up for a long time, but I just can’t take any extraneous sleep interruptions during the night. Plus I am always afraid the cry means the dreaded throw-ups are here for another visit.

Alyssa is handling the whole big sister thing like a champ. She loves her. In fact, she acts like it’s the best thing that has ever happened to her. But she rarely used to wake up in the night. Are these things related, even though they don’t seem to be?

To those who have gone before me….Did your kids do this? How long did it last? Is there anything I can do to stop it? Also, how long (duration) are/have you been up in the night with your new babies, just wondering what normal is…one hour, two hours, fifteen minutes?

Your advice and or information on the subject is appreciated.

Yogurt

I don’t know why I feel compelled to Blog about yogurt, because I don’t even like it that much. I mean, I like it, but not as much as I like…say…pudding, but I do like it. I think the reason I don’t like it more is because of the live cultures that are in yogurt, which is the very essence of yogurt. I just get creeped out when I think about what I am eating as being “alive”. I don’t know…it just bothers me a little, but I still enjoy yogurt on a fairly regular basis.

Anyway….the real point of this blog about yogurt is to inform you that I like and appreciate eating yogurt in all its many forms.

Have you given any thought to how many ways you can get yogurt these days. I have. You can get it in a plastic tube and eat it frozen or refrigerated. You can get it in a bottle and drink it. You can get it thick-and-creamy, regular thickness, whipped, custard style, fruit on the bottom, fruit mixed in. You can get yogurt that will help you “go” more regularly, or my personal favorite….carbonated. That’s right, carbonated yogurt, in a plastic tube, eat it frozen, eat it thawed….delicious either way. Oh and lets not forget good ole’ frozen yogurt, yummy. That’s twelve different forms of yogurt, and there may be more that I’m not recalling right now. Not to mention it’s also available in different caloric values: fat, fat-free and reduced fat or “lite”.

I never realized how many different possibilities yogurt had until my new neighbors moved in. My new neighbor is a yogurt mechanic. That’s right; he works for Dannon fixing yogurt related production machines. He recently brought us a big box of several different varieties of yogurt which added to the collection of yogurt I already had in my refrigerator which consisted of thick-and-creamy, regular, carbonated-tube and regular-tube yogurt.

I now have seven different varieties of yogurt, and I’m not just talking about flavors, in my fridge at this moment. So I guess I have my work cut out for me Don’t I? I better just get over the whole “live culture” creepiness thing, because I’m the only one who eats yogurt in this house and I have to have it all eaten by June 9th, and I’m not about to let free yogurt go to waste. Wish me luck. I feel lucky to be living in such a land of plenty.

NKOTB

NKOTB. Do those letters mean anything to you? If you are my age, they certainly should. Let me remind you for those of you who have forgotten so quickly. New Kids on the Block. That’s right, the New Kids are back! Are you as excited as I am? YES! Did you have New Kids parties when you were thirteen. Did you eat off New Kids paper plates and wear giant New Kids Pin on Buttons? Was your room plastered with pictures you cut from teen magazines? I know you did this stuff too, don’t try to deny it. Embrace it, revel in it.

Which New Kid was your favorite? Most people liked Joey, not me though. I like shy guys. I loved Jon.

The real news for those of you haven’t heard is that they are reuniting and have made a new album. Their first reunion concert is Friday, May 16 on the Today Show. I am TIVO-ing the performance and am hosting a New Kids viewing luncheon at my house. Space is limited, call me if you want to come. I have enough Chicken Salad Sandwich makins’ for about 10 of us. Bring something to complement. (if you must bring kids feed them before you come. No runny noses or lingering coughs or any other symptoms please, I have a new baby in the house)

Surprisingly, all the New Kids are still quite attractive. You would think that at least one of them would be ugly, drugged out, overweight or dead by now….but no. Hang Tough, New Kids, see you tomorrow, can’t hardly wait.

Cheap cable

One of the best things we have is cheap cable. You know, the kind Comcast doesn't advertise is available, but they are required to offer. It cost $12 a month and is just all the local channels plus Discovery and the Travel Channel. Oh and every available spanish speaking channel.

We finally subscribed to cable afer our tacky rabbit ears just couldn't provide a reliable clear picture. It drove us to cave and start paying for TV.

The best thing about cheap cable is getting the Travel Channel. I seriously just can't get enough "Top 10 hot Hawiian Beaches" and Samantha Brown shows.

The best part though is a show called Globe Trekker. They go places where no one would really ever consider traveling to like Pakistan, Morocco and Iran. We are currently watching our favorite Globe Trekker Host, Ian, in Iran.

You can't believe how people really live in other parts of the world. It's really very eye opening and interesting.

So, the point is...if you have cable, you should make it a point to watch Globe Trekker on the travel channel. I actually reccommend any and all travel shows, but Globe Trekker is the most interesting.

Oh, another good thing about cheap cable is the clear picture we get now. A lot less headaches, and we don't have to look at rabbit ears like we still live in the twentith century.

Looking for a date?

So, we went to down to Provo a few weeks ago and saw this kid on just East of BYU campus. I made Steve flip a dangerous U-turn to follow him. It was worth it--proof that Provo is kind of creepy.

I mean, what is this kid doing? He is obviously looking for a date in true Provo style.

Anyway, with all the craziness lately, we forgot about this picture until we uploaded Sunny's birth pics today. So, if any of you single gals is interested in going for a tandem bike ride. . .head down to Provo.

Family of Four

We've just been enjoying a week at home together. Alyssa loves playing with her new baby sister. She loves to pat her back when she needs a burp. She loves riding inthe car with someone in the back with her. She loves watching Sesame Street with her too. I think the two of them will be great friends.

Steve is a champion care taker of three girls. We are all very happy because of him. Pat him on the back next time you see him and tell him what a stud he is.

I have been doing rather well considering our Monday delivery. I have been holding on for dear life riding the hormone roller-coaster. One hour spent weeping the next spent totally content. I wonder what tomorrow holds? We'll see. All you mom's know what I am talking about right? I'm not the only one who is totally mental in the days and weeks following childbirth?

On a more positive note...I have lost 10 pounds in the last two days. I am very happpy about that. I hope to lose more. If I do, I am considering selling my diet secrets to People Magazine for millions.

So there you have it. We are doing well. Sorry if we've been incognito and hard to get a hold of, sometimes I've been too nutty to answer, but I love you all and appreciate all your sincire love and support and sweet blogger comments. They mean a lot. It's nice to have such considerate friends and family. I'm really not sure what we'd do with out you.

Aren't my children cute. I have two now.