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Halloween week begins....

(To the tune of Oh My Darling, Clementine)
Carving pumpkins, carving pumpkins, carving pumpkins, is fun to do
First we lit them, then we sit them, with a wall around it too!Dressing up, dressing up, dressing up with Kong Fu


We are happy, oh so happy, that we sang a song for you!

Killing time

We had to get an oil change after all the miles we put on our van this summer, so to kill time we went to the pet store.


$400 dollars for an upside down bird? Anyone?Micah decided to make herself an employee and do a little rearranging

I Heart

I Heart

1. Babies trying to put food in their mouth, when their binki is already there.
2.Learning how to install my new hardware and light fixtures and also having it done (see previous post, Mary vs Martha)
3. That the can of Cinnamon-Cherry red paint came off my driveway after it was spilled by a couple of 3yr old culprits.
4.Having already borrowed my friends pressure washer so that the tipped can of paint could come off so quickly from the driveway.
5. My husband returning in 6 days 14 hours, but who's counting.

Mary vs Martha Inner Turmoil

Dear Friends,
Have you ever had your own inner battle taking place with in the walls of your head? It seems lately, that if I wake up and decide to put something on my to do list, it HAS TO BE DONE. I don't know why, I consider it some kind of a sick twisted challenge to make my life maybe a little more exciting. I should relax, I KNOW, I TRIED! People say that as you get older the messes and undone projects won't bother you as much, but honestly, I think I'm getting worse as I get older. It's some type of mental freakish obsession. I was explaining this to my home teacher (why I was explaining this to my home teacher? good question) and he said, "so basically you have a hard time procrastinating?" "Yes, Yes that's right, I guess, I have a hard time procrastinating (in my head I'm thinking, "that sounds really stupid! I can't procrastinate. Shawh!")." Then I realized, he's right. It isn't necessarily a bad thing, UNLESS YOU"RE ME. I so desperately want to leave toys strewn all over the house and walk out the door, but then the challenge fever comes into play and I then dare myself to do it in 60seconds flat. And, the whole time I'm picking up the toys the cannons are going off inside my head with comments like, "what the heck are you doing?' 'you should be outside putting on your shoes' .....I know, just a few a few more toys' ....you're going to be late" and so on. I'm just beside myself.....unless any one would like to sit by me, then I won't sit by myself, beside myself, anymore. Anyone? Please?

Signed-Martha

If you are a Mary, don't call the shrink just yet.

I Heart

I Heart

1. Becket watching scary movies with the blanket over his head








2. Micah using two channel changers as her telephones (multitasker, maybe?)









3. Baking when the weather gets cold











4. Gretchen's creative Halloween stairs.

















5. ANY excuse to sing happy birthday when it is no one's birthday at all.






Don't heart that Micah is able to climb up on the table:

Quirky Eating Habits

After the kids downed their cookies from their earned cookie party, I noticed that they all have individual eating habits:

Criminal #1: Eats with his face and occasionally uses his hand to to push it in.
Criminal #2: She likes to mine out the chocolate chips out of her cookie and then she mysteriously disappears.
Criminal #3: She is very purposeful in her motives and deliberately throws her morsels on the floor as if to look death right in the eye.
All three are GUILTY, GUILTY, GUILTY, if I could only catch them.

Target Update

I went to Target today and no one greeted me to say hello or asked me if I need help finding anything. Ummm, funny. When the cat is away, the mice aren't as welcoming. (See previous post)

I Heart

I Heart:
1. Getting home safely
2. Having my house unpacked and in ship shape
3. A cell phone to talk to my hubby
4. Little servants to get me things when I don't want to get them myself
5. Candy corns

Mickey Mouse Club House

My Adventure to Target

I went shopping at Target today and I found three things very comical
1. I managed to grab the cart with the squeaky wheel and broken seat belt
2. An area manager was observing the store and so the store was overly spotted with red clothed workers. Everyone was actually doing something that looked efficient. Then, something that rarely happens, they kept asking me every second IF I was finding everything okay. I kind of became annoyed. I thought about asking one of them to kiss my feet, just to see if they would do it.
3. Gothic Cheerleader Costume in the Halloween section. Who's the one that thought of that hybrid? Who's going to be that hybrid?

I paid and got into my car and drove away.

WHEW!

We made it! 24hrs of driving with three kids and a few stops in between. My vagabond days have come to a close and I can honestly say I will miss my summer of '08. Every place I traveled I found myself not wanting to leave...Minneapolis, St. George, Salt Lake, St. George, Minneapolis, Columbus, Hershey...and now, well I'm home. I got to see so many new things, got to visit with family and friends (not rushed) and we were taken such good care of---it was safe and warm, like you were a child.
It's a different feeling of being home this time. One feeling I'm not sure how to take. Yes, I am glad to be back in my house, our own beds and familiar places to put things. I missed my friends dearly and have loved our reunions. I guess, my home still feels kind of empty when all of your family isn't home yet, i.e. my husband. It's not complete and in a way it's not something I would say I was looking forward to, returning home. Unpacking a house, yard work, errands, callings, digging up stored strength somewhere deep within your innards, is something I have had to mentally and physically gear up for, alone. I have often reflected on those service men and women who have taken years to return and be reunited with their families , so I'm trying not to dwell on it too much and I am happy it is only for a month. It will just be safe and warm when he returns.

A musical rut, and how to get out of it

Have any of you looked at the music you listen to and thought, "my music tastes have barely changed since high school or maybe college?" A while back I had just this thought. My iPod was full of tracks that I had been rehashing for years. Old songs I loved in the 80's and 90's when I had time to listen to the radio and could afford to waste all my money on CD's. I'd listen to certain songs, get sick of them, then months later reload them again. Sure, here and there a new song would enter the mix, but these were usually songs I'd hear on the radio getting tons of play that I'd be burned out on pretty fast. However, my old standby songs always remained. I was starting to see why classic rock stations exist. We seem to be hardwired to keep listening to music we liked at a certain time in our lives. I know my parents still only listen to stuff they liked in their teens and early twenties.

So, to get out of this rut, I've been trying to listen to music by people I've never heard of. People that the music industry hasn't hand picked, prettied up and over-produced. Here are two good sites and specific songs that I've come across lately to get you out of that rut.

- The Sixty One -

This site is awesome. It is full of songs and bands that are up and coming who are voted on by the listeners by giving them "bumps" which are votes of confidence. I have found tons of good music on here, much of which is freely downloadable, such as these songs --











- Skreemr -

This site isn't necessarily for song discovery, but more of a site to turn to when you hear a song or band and want to get ahold of more of their music. The site is basically a search engine and the result it returns includes a link to download the song directly by right clicking on the title and clicking "save link as". A few examples--

	G. Love - Hot Cookin'
	Found at skreemr.com

	built for the sea - release
	Found at skreemr.com

	Meiko - Piano Song
	Found at skreemr.com

There are heaps of other sites like these, including Last.fm and Pandora for example. If you have found any good new groups or songs, share them in the comments.