Simple pleasures...

This morning I am reveling in some simple pleasures:

- My husband. He gets Emma up in the morning, changes her diaper, gets her some milk, and turns on her cartoon because he knows I am a cranky waker-upper and I need to stay in bed for a few minutes before I can be civil.
- The Today Show. I put my foot down and said "No more cartoons!" and watched the show that I like.
- Hot chocolate and toast. My favorite breakfast, but one that I have avoided lately in an effort to be more healthy. Today I just wanted my comfort food - health be darned.
- A new candle. Juicy Melon. What a dream...I haven't even lit it yet. Just taking the lid off has filled my kitchen with the lovely aroma.
- Baby smiles. Emma and Matthew. I tell them every day they are my little loves.

Tis the season

Last night we put up our Christmas tree and decorated it for Family Home Evening. Emma was tickled pink! She was dancing all over and kept saying, "It's the gingle (jingle) bells!" She placed and re-placed every decoration to the point that I had to tell her she is not allowed to touch them anymore.

And then today she knocked the whole thing over! I caught her standing close to the tree and reminded her it was just to look at and not to touch. I then stepped out of the room for about 10 seconds when I heard a huge crash. Fortunately it didn't land on her and nothing broke. That was one of those times I didn't have the heart to punish her too much because she was already scared to death!

This is the first year she has kind of understood what is going on. I say kind of because she keeps looking at all the Christmas decorations and saying "Happy Halloween!" We'll get it straight one of these days.

Carmel Mission

OK, mostly I just put this on here because I was trying to figure out the whole slide show thing but since it is on here, I will comment a bit.

We went to the Carmel Mission one day right after Jonny got out of school - they let us in for free since he was still in his uniform (side note: Emma calls all people in uniform "Army guys"). What an amazing place! It is so beautiful. It was built in 1797 and is still operational - they hold mass and have a school there as well.

Happy Birthday Jakey!

Today is my cute nephew's birthday - what a handsome little devil he is! Here he is with his Uncle Mikey. Jacob is very creative and has a great imagination. He is turning 7 years old today. Happy birthday Jacob!



Two years ago today is also the day that my Grandpa Amundsen passed away. I don't even know where to begin about him. He used to go bust one of his buddies out of the nursing home and take him to Costco every Wednesday. There they would meet up with some of their other friends, get the $1.50 hot dog/drink deal and "refight the war." He fought in WWII. He told me he remembers lying in bed and listening to the announcement on the radio that Pearl Harbor had been attacked and thinking "Oh crap," because he knew he would be going.



He would take so long preparing his food at dinner that we would all be almost finished by the time he started eating, but he had to have it all perfectly seasoned, buttered, and arranged just so. Some people call that slow, I call it having an appreciation for good food and taking the time to enjoy it - something we don't do enough of these days. He also had an incredible passion for good music. I'll never hear Glenn Miller's "Moonlight Serenade" without thinking of him. He loved to sit down with a good, icy beverage and listen to music. Any song that came on he could tell you a story about - where he was when he heard it or who he used to dance with to that song.


He comes from a day and age where being a gentleman goes beyond opening doors for women. It includes helping them with their coats, stepping to the side so ladies can pass by, walking on the outside when accompanying a woman down the street and rising when a woman comes into the room. At Grandma and Grandpa's house we were taught to wait to eat until everyone had their food, to ask to be excused from the table, and not to do that until the majority of the people were finished (that could have been Grandma's influence...). He used phrases like "Son of a gun!" and "For crying out loud!" He has left an indelible mark on my life and the lives of so many others. We love and miss you Grandpa!

Picture this...

Last Saturday Jonny and I watched 12 kids - just Jonny and I watching all 12 of them - while their parents went to a session at the Oakland Temple. We were crammed in a tiny room at the Stake Center by the temple and it was chaotic. One of the babies (there were 3 of those...) was screaming so I went out in the hall with her thinking it would decrease the din a bit. It seemed to suddenly be more calm in the room so I peeked through the window. What do I behold but my cute husband feeding Matthew his bottle with one hand and leading the rest of the kids in rousing renditions of "Once There Was a Snowman" and "Baby Bumblebee." Is it any wonder I am crazy about him?

Our darling Matthew

This is my little Matthew. He is five months old now. He has a little dimple in each cheek and a cleft in his chin like his dad. He has a ticklish collarbone. When he is tired he nuzzles into your shoulder until his nose and cheeks are red. He has chunky little thighs. He gets completely slap happy when he is tired and will laugh at anything or nothing. He is the only person in the world white enough to make me look tan. He loves taking his bath, watching his sister dance, and playing with his mommy and daddy. We feel so blessed to have him.

Have you ever been so frustrated that you can't even speak?

This is my little Emma. I am crazy about her. She has been the light of my life for the last two and a half years and makes me laugh harder than just about anyone. And lately, she makes me so frustrated that I can't even speak.

I remember when she was only one I said to my parents, "I fear that this is going to be a clash of the titans." They asked what I meant and I explained that I thought Emma was just like me and I was pretty sure that things were going to be crazy when she got older. And so they are. I am stubborn and emotional, she is stubborn and emotional...The beauty of parenthood, at least for me, is that after a short amount of time passes the thing she did that made me crazy starts seeming pretty funny.

Lately she loves to argue with me. The other day she came up to me holding her stuffed donkey toy from Shrek and she asked me,
"Is this a horse?"
Me: "No, it's a donkey."
Emma: "No," matter of factly, "It's a horse."
Me: "No, it's a donkey."
Emma: "No, it's a horse."
Me:(exasperated) "Fine, it's a horse!"
Emma: "No, it's a donkey."

Then we were driving down the freeway:
Me: "Look Emma, there's the ocean."
Emma: "No, it's water."
Me: "Well, yeah it's water. The ocean is water."
Emma: "No. It's dist (just) water."
Me: "Right, the ocean is ... Never mind!"




Emma and Jonny playing Army after a long day of training for Jonny.



My sister, Aubrey, and I were talking the other day about how our children condition us to be mean. We try being nice and we get no results, so then we resort to being mean and things start to happen!

Today we were getting in the car to go to an appointment and we were running late.
Me: (nice mom voice) "Hurry and get in your car seat. Sit down and put your arms through."
She starts picking stuff up off the floor and talking to herself.
Me: (still nice mom voice with a little more urgency)"Emma! Hurry! We need to go!"
She looks at me with an impish grin and continues fruiting around.
Me: (wicked witch of the west voice) "EMMA! GET IN YOUR CAR SEAT NOW!!"
She turns and scrambles into her car seat and says "FINE! Mommy, tell me nice!"