I Hate Shopping

I am 6 feet tall. I weigh 154 pounds most days. Most people, especially seeing me for the first time, probably think of me as "tall and skinny." There is a lot of duplicity in the way I feel about myself and my self esteem has undulated between hating the way I look and liking it for as long as I can remember. I shouldn't say it like that, it's not that I hate the way that I look... how could I? I have incredible parents and it's their genes and the ones before them that make me, me. I actually love a lot of the things I see in my face that I can attribute to different relatives. It's kind of like seeing them every day. :) I don't know what it's like to be short, so how could I say that I'd like that any better? I have a bunch of stuff stored in the cupboards up by the ceiling that I'd never get to use! :D The trouble comes when I have to buy clothes for this "tall and skinny" body of mine, because no matter who is walking the runway, the normal everyday stores that I shop at do not make clothes that fit me. I take that back... they either fit me around OR lengthwise, but usually not both in the same outfit. It's a little like this gem of a movie, I'll be honest.

For instance, jeans. If it does not say "Long" in the size, they will look okay on me standing up, but as soon as I sit, you better run for high ground because there's a flood a comin'! I often have to buy non-jeans pants in a larger size to get them long enough and then either take a seam down the sides to cinch them in or use the ubiquitous drawstring. Skirts, dresses and shorts that are knee length on everyone else will be thigh high on me. I don't really "do" thigh high. And shoes? Fuggedaboutit! There are like 7 pairs and if I'm not in the store the day they put them on the shelves, the cute ones will be gone. Trust me, I worked at Payless long enough to know that they send 15 pairs of the cute style in the 7-9 size range and one in the size I wear. (Hey, I told you my height and weight, I don't need to tell you that I wear a size 11 shoe!) :D And yes, I totally used to hold back the cute pair before they went out on the shelf, because I am not kidding you, they would be gone that day. How do the shoemakers not notice this? Oh, right, because they only sent one pair, and after it's gone, they don't see the 30 vertically blessed women who came looking for the shoe, but didn't buy anything because there wasn't anything to buy!

And people wonder why I love to sew! ;)

Now, shirts... there's where I can shop in the 'normie' section. I am roughly the same height from rump to shoulder as the girl sitting on the next park bench over. I can usually find really cute shirts that fit and look nice. In fact, I know I'm average here because my size is often gone off the rack! :D I think this is where my non-t-shirt shirts come from. I love to wear something with just that little something extra, if only to draw attention away from the drawstring or the floods! :D I'm talking a little puff sleeve or a vintage Tinkerbell design or some little bling bling. It's not too much to ask, is it?

I really do hate shopping. It never fails to sink me into a depression. I mean, first of all, I had better need something really bad if I am going to take any of my kids with me because it is not a quick in and out for me. Geoff and I once went on a date, with someone else watching our kids and everything, and all I did was try on clothes at a store like a normal person. Of course, we still left without buying anything because that was the plan and the dresses all hit me in that weird length that is too long to be short, but too short to be long. It's no wonder I avoid shopping for myself at all costs... and speaking of costs, my husband doesn't hate this trait in me at all. :D Although, it should be mentioned that he is a saint when it comes to shopping for me. Not only is he patient about it, (he even went back into the store and bought the one thing, (a shirt, of course!) that I had seen, liked AND it fit me after I had said it was time to go), he also ends up finding me things that I like. We window shop online all the time and he buys me clothes, even as surprises, that I really, really like. :D

But on the plus side (no pun intended!) I have this year's Halloween costume in the bag! :D

Don Knotts, Leader of the Geeks

When was the last time you've seen a Don Knotts movie? If you can't remember, I highly recommend you open up your Netfilx queue in another tab and add one right on in there. Make sure and add one that has Tim Conway in it, too, you will not be disappointed! The Apple Dumpling Gang

Last night we watched Private Eyes. Our kids didn't get some of the spoken humor, but they loved the prat falls and funny faces from both of the main characters. They're kind of yin and yang, Don and Tim. Tim Conway is the down pillow to Don Knotts' pins and needles. Don is always nervous and on edge and Tim just seems to accidentally fall into being funny. Of course, I mean their movie characters, I am not professing to know either one of them personally. :)

As I watched Don Knotts' face morph from "uh-oh!" to "oh brother!" to "yipes!" I mused that he is funny because he's not beauiful. If you took, Pierce Brosnan for instance and made him try for those same faces, it wouldn't be nearly as fall-on-the-floor funny as Don Knotts makes them. You would have to have a unique brand of self esteem to wake up every morning knowing people loved you for your humor and not your savoire-faire. And we do love them, don't we? On Geoff and I's first date, he made me laugh the entire time! Don't get me wrong, I lo-o-ove the way Geoff looks, but the way he made me laugh that night made him more memorable than other guys I'd been out with; they tried too hard. You could be the cutest guy in the world, but if you're boring, I'm going to have trouble remembering your name, if you know what I mean.

I also happen to love The Ghost and Mr. Chicken because he gets the pretty girl. It's so cute how he doesn't really believe that she likes him over the obnoxious hunk of man-meat that is always chasing her around. As for me, myself and I... we stand by our geek, uh, um, man.

Geoffrey- eoffrey- eoffrey

Don't forget to go look at Landon's big boy bed on his Daddy's blog.

And while you're blog hopping, check out Geoff's new photography blog, too! He loves comments, even short and sweet ones, so make sure and let him know what you think! ;)

Growing UP

Growing up as in Tall

We do a lot of this at our house! All of our kids are above-average in height, which isn't surprising given the height of their parents. I have noticed some hemlines raising lately and it's not due to haute couture, but rather because the occupant of the clothes has lengthened their legs. Those tags they put in clothes with the size on them are suggestions, really. If I want to cover my kids modestly, I usually have to get them a size ahead. I just moved Ethan up into 6 to 9 month clothes because the 3-6 were too tight and short. He just passed 3 months old a couple of weeks ago. Landon has been wearing 3T since he turned 2 and it's not limited to the boys... the girls all wear a size ahead, especially in dresses to get them the right length. I don't remember if it was this way for me when I was a kid, but I know now that if my pants do not say "long" in the size, they will not be anywhere near long enough!

Growing up as in Old

I have always said that it is not my birthdays that make me feel old. It used to be my siblings. My sister is 21 months younger than I am and, without fail, every time she has a birthday, I'm like, "Aren't I that age?" Nope, about to turn the age that is 2 years later.

Now, it is my kids. Becca is about to turn 10! WHAT?!! When did this happen? She's going to have double digits! Emily turns 8 this year and WOW! Talk about a wake up call! Being LDS, 8 years old is pretty special. When Becca turned 8 we did things differently and it was a difficult time to wrap our head's around. Now Emily is here and even though we won't miss the 'milestone' of Baptism this time, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it. I remember being 8! If I mess things up for her, she'll REMEMBER it!! Maybe that's a silly thing to worry about, but there it is! We went to a special little meeting yesterday that was focused on the kids getting Baptized this year and it was so neat! They listened to talks and went around to 3 different chats about different aspects of Baptism that they got to raise their hands and participate in. Emily really felt like a million bucks when it was all over! It will be really neat to invite family to our special event in June.

So, even though growing up doesn't actually mean gaining more height for me (thank goodness!!), I am constantly amazed at the rate in which time passes and my enduring hope is that I can keep up! I want to remember all of this! I don't want to miss important things because I was focused beyond them or even behind them. I want to be here... present... for all of the exciting things my family and I are going through. Especially in this year of double digits and Baptisms! :)

How goes Project Simplification?

As a small update, my goal to simplify is going really well! Unlike so many resolutions that end in ashes in January, I'm determined to make this part of my personality and the way I do things. I have already cleaned several areas in my house with a mind towards getting rid of things I don't need. I have also simplified the way I spend my time and focus on those things that will make me happy and nourish my spirit. :) So far, so good!

Simplify

This is the one and only resolution I am making for myself. Simplify. I am only going to do the things, keep the things and think about the things that will make me happy, keep me close to the Lord and make my family stronger. My mind has already been reeling with things I can do (or stop doing) in order to accomplish this and I figure the best way to be held accountable is to openly declare my attempts and hopefully results. :)

The first thing that came to mind was simplify the way my house looks. There are many ways to describe how it looks now... lived in... broken in... an obstacle course... sanitary clutter (my favorite). You see, it does get cleaned regularly and I even get down to the scrubbing, vacuuming and disinfecting stages of things. But the clutter, well, now the clutter just keeps on creeping in. No matter how many times I put it away, it ends up right back on the floor. I often say in exasperation that I wish we had less stuff, but I never actually do anything about it except to keep right on picking it up and putting it back away. My goal for this year is to get rid of unnecessary things if only to avoid the laps they make from the shelf to the floor and back again. I would love to be so magnanimous as to donate them to a specific cause, but in light of simplifying, I will just hope that the good people at D.I. will price them such that someone who really needs them will be able to afford them easily. :)

An interesting thing happened to me during this past Christmas season that has driven my perspective on simplifying my life. I love to sew a lot for Christmas. It does tend to save money, but it also gives me oodles of time to think about the people that I am sewing for. By the time I have finished their gifts, I have imagined their response to the gift and reminisced on our shared experiences and thought about how much they mean to me and why I am spending my time on them instead of my money. However, this year I decided that I wasn't going to panic if things weren't finished on time and sew until the wee hours of every night right up until Christmas Eve. I wanted to enjoy it and all of the other things I sometimes miss out on when I sew obsessively. Instead, I prioritized my list with the things that definitely mattered that they were done early, such as those to be sent far away, and the things we had decided would be the "big" gifts for our kids and so on. As a result, I didn't get everything done that was on my list in time for Christmas morning. *GASP!* And it was okay. *Gasp! Choke! Bug eyes!*

I stopped sewing during the day right before my kids' first day of Christmas break and only sewed at night after they were asleep, making sure I went to bed at a good time. And you know what happened? I was happy. I enjoyed my kids while they were home (for the most part... I'm not THAT patient). I baked and made dinners that had thought behind them instead of "freezer surprise" every night. And I didn't hear anyone complaining Christmas morning. I don't sew for people in order to stress myself out and this year I made sure that didn't happen.

I really want this to work and with 5 kids it's just got to work or they will grow up remembering a stressed out, disheveled, screaming Mommy and that is just not an option. They grow up way too fast and I don't want to miss it! Wish me luck! ;)

Two of my favorite recent pics of Ethan

Things that have changed since Ethan arrived:

I realize that my previous post gives me every reason in the world not to be blogging, but at the same time, I should be documenting all the cool stuff so someday my Mama mush brains can look back and remember. :D Let's call this entry... "Things that have changed since Ethan arrived:"

1) We can fit our whole family in the van, but ONLY our whole family. The only people not in car seats are Geoff and I! Yep, that's 5 car seats! Emily graduates out of her booster when she turns 8 this May, but everyone else is either under the age limit or doesn't have enough stability in her muscles to keep herself safe with just a seatbelt.

2) Sleep is apparently somewhat optional. To be fair, he sleeps really, really well these days, but in the beginning, I truly forgot what it felt like to be rested. That wonderful thing that makes you forget labor in order for you to want more kids later, also helps you forget the extreme fatigue that comes from feeding someone whose stomach is the size of a walnut! :D I really can't complain too much, though because we just barely passed the 3 month mark and he has been sleeping through the night for a few weeks now. :D

3) Kids as young as 5 can carry babies around. :D Emily pretty much always helps me if I ask and I trust her to carry him around quite a bit. Gracie on the other hand doesn't always wait to be asked, but LOVES to carry her baby brother around! I decided from the beginning that it would probably do more harm to freak out at her and yell and scream when she's only trying to help, so I try to keep my voice calm and level and she really does quite well. I do say to her, though, "If you feel like he's falling- sit down quick! " :D

4) We now have 3 different sizes of diapers in our house. When Becca started the diet, her liquid intake apparently increased because her liquid output definitley increased! A little TMI maybe, but we have been resisiting going up a size in diapers for some time now because once you get out of the sizes they sell at the store, you really have to rely on that home health to be on time. And if you've ever had home health deliver you anything, you know you have to really stay on top of things or you run out!! And not only that, but Ethan grows into a new diaper size roughly every couple of weeks it seems like! :D We literally fill up a tall kitchen garbage sack with just diapers every few days. I really hope Landon takes to potty training this summer... for my sake! :D

4) Our washing machine runs every day. I thought I was doing a lot of laundry before Ethan was born, but it is amazing how someone so tiny can get so many things dirty in a day! :D I ran out of OxyClean which is my stain remover of choice and I thought the world was going to end! Not on my favorite outfit of his! Someone! Anyone! My kingdom for some OxyClean! :D

5) Baths take a lot longer! Not only is there one more person's surface area to keep clean, but he is so cute and smiley that everyone in the house wants to watch him get a bath which makes him much harder to reach while scrubbing. :D I love me a good, clean baby, though! Boy, do they smell GOOD! :D

6) My ears are much more sensitive or something because every sound made when he finally falls asleep sounds like a sonic boom to me! I'm grateful for school and the fact that he got a lot of noise in the womb because he seems to do okay most of the time... but ask me on a day when he was woken up by fighting siblings and I'll tell you what's what!! :D

7) Our house is nearing nuclear explosion messiness. Now, I know Ethan is not MAKING the mess, but he sure makes it a ton harder to clean up! I mean, seriously! Hold a baby or clean up a mess? Is there really a choice there? :D We're getting there as the rest of the kids start taking on more responsibility. They actually do a really great job with good motivation and some really great cleaning tunes. Our favorite CD is the Shrek soundtrack. :D

8) It's a good thing digital technology replaced film cameras or we'd be running to get film developed every day! We have taken a lot of pictures of the new little guy and especially the new little guy with is very proud siblings. I can't get enough of he and Becca especially. I love to put him in the crook of her arm with her arm under his armpit. She will just roll to him and snuggle him all up and he is happy because she is warm. Sometimes she drools on his head, but we do plenty of #5 and honestly, what's a little drool between friends? :)

9) The weather seems exponentially colder with a baby around. It's one thing to bundle myself up, but I really have to stop myself from bundling him up TOO much. Sometimes I get where I'm going and pull him out and he's all sweaty from too many clothes on and too many blankets on top! :D

10) My heart has just expanded and stretched so effortlessly to include our new little man. I love being a Mom second only to being Geoff's wife. I want no other job and no other calling in life as much. We have so much fun together and we love each other so much and I wouldn't trade this for anything. I feel so incredibly complete and full and like everyone who needed to make it here, made it here safely. :) If I had tried to plan it all out, I couldn't have planned such a perfect placement for every child that joined our family. It's juuUUuust right! ;)