New Years Eve...

I gave birth to a beautiful little girl 11 years ago. Kevin ate subway and I stared at this little creature with a bow stuck to her head with KY Jelly. She had a perfect little head and was a little overdue. I had waited years to see this little girl that I knew I would have first. She is responsible, kind, funny, smart, and beautiful. She was the hardest baby I had. Anderson was a close second, but Maddy was the Notoriously bad baby. I'm positive that she threw up on all her grandma's. We are not talking spit up here, but exorcist style up chuck! Sleeping was never a priority to her. She didn't sleep through the night until 14 months. When we discovered at 2 1/2 that she had sleep apnea, we immediately had her tonsils and adenoids removed and tubes put in her ears. Ever since then, she has changed. Gone are the sleepless nights and meltdowns, but she still is a little spit fire! She has a strong spirit and she is very literal, just like her mom. She can talk back but rarely to me. She still loves her mother. Never one to give away a hug needlessly, but is a certified flirt with the boys. Always at the top of her class, she bores easily. When she was 4, I had her in two different preschools and dance class. That still wasn't enough for her. This year, she is chilling out. All she has on her plate is piano. Taking a break from dance has been good for her. I think she will be ready to go again in the summer. Madeline Leigh Carter-Laing is my beautiful baby girl and I love and adore her for all that she does. I can't wait to see what the next 9 years will bring to her!

Christmas in the Barn

It was cold!! If you could see your own breath, it was too cold to be in the barn, but everyone wanted to persevere. Emily would have rather gone inside, but I was in the minority. There was plenty for the kids to do. Yahtzee was played. Luke 2 was acted out. Everyone got reacquainted and we all talked about the weather. When the huge flakes began falling, we got a little nervous about having to house 20 extra people! But the snow began to melt and we kept warm with propane heaters, a fireplace, and gallons of hot cocoa, coffee and cider. We always have the best White Elephant gift exchange with someone winning $27 with their procured lottery tickets. We had fabulous food and no one got stuck..Thanks JJ!! Christmas was great, but I am looking forward to the new year and no more snow and no more trials! A girl can dream can't she?!

German Food

My very favorite companion on my mission was from Switzerland. She was Swiss German, but still....I loved all the German Tour Groups that I took through the Visitors Center in St. George. They were very polite. I have always wanted to go to Germany and hopefully Patrick will hit it big and we can take a train ride from Italy to Germany...This is my ode to German Food...German Meatballs with Spatzle (little Egg dumplings,aka: Noodles!) Kids love it, Husband loves it. Now if I could just get my husband to like all things Cabbage then we could round out the meal. I am praying that someday he will love curry and then we could have an Indian night. Who doesn't love a good flat bread with lentils and a gorgeous curry?!!! But that is a different post...
The Secret ingredient to the sauce...capers!

Sledding

This little chubby cherub has red hands and cheeks from playing out in the snow for an hour yesterday with Dad.
You have to love Brighten. she still has her pajamas on over snow clothes...she's a little Diva. Patrick had a great time too.
Anderson, who has a very low pain threshold on a normal day, was immune to cold until he started thawing out. He seemed to think it was ok to not wear socks and have on dress shoes...ah, independence leads to learning does it not?!

Drinking Chocolate

If you have the fortune of living in Portland Oregon, there is a nifty little spot, located in the Heathman Hotel, called Cacao. It is divine. They have all sorts of specialty chocolate that you can purchase, but the Drinking Chocolate is what they are known for. Ever since Patrick took my on my Epicurian Tour of Portland, I have been craving this sinful little creation. It is made with high quality of bar chocolate, cream, milk, a sprinkling of sugar, and a pinch of salt. It is thick and rich, like drinking syrup except not so sweet. They serve it in shot glasses. I am a huge chocolate lover and could devour no more than 2 ounces of the stuff. Be sure to try it sometime.

The shoes...

As some of you know, I am trying to get back into a very real part of my life that I let go when I had kids....well as of today, I will have shook my butt at least an hour for 30+days in a row. Now we are not talking a light workout here. I mean sweat poring off of me and my whole body sore and spent. It's definitely been a journey of self discovery and by my 36th birthday, I hope to be in the best shape of my life and be able to teach again...so these are my dancin shoes...These little guys are the best $20 I ever spent. I usually just dance in bare feet. Most modern, lyrical, and jazz dancers do, and these handy food underwear give the ball of your foot some slide. It's saving my feet!!These guys are technically not ballroom shoes, but they are doing their duty until I can fork over the cash for real ones
These are my hip hop shoes that I can do point on too! No really, they are great dance shoes but they mark up the floor, so I don't wear them very often.

I hope to buy many more in the future...as for now these will do while I slowly shrink back into myself...see you on the dance floor sometime soon!

Snow day!

My babies out playing in the snow...a rare treat in the Willamette Valley....

Remembering to be Thankful

"Thankful"


Somedays we forget
To look around us
Somedays we can't see
The joy that surrounds us
So caught up inside ourselves
We take when we should give.

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be.
And on this day we hope for
What we still can't see.
It's up to us to be the change
And even though we all can still do more
There's so much to be thankful for.

Look beyond ourselves
There's so much sorrow
It's way too late to say
I'll cry tomorrow
Each of us must find our truth
It's so long overdue

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be
And every day we hope for
What we still can't see
It's up to us to be the change
And even though we all can still do more
There's so much to be thankful for.

Even with our differences
There is a place we're all connected
Each of us can find each other's light

So for tonight we pray for
What we know can be
And on this day we hope for
What we still can't see
It's up to us to be the change
And even though this world needs so much more

There's so much to be thankful for

This song is so poignant during this season. In Young Women, we are collecting items for the Local "Safe Place" for Teens. One of our YW has actually used this service. She is so grateful for our involvement. I know what we are doing is really what Christmas is really all about! For all of you in a tough spot this Christmas season, remember that we are blessed and there really is so much to be thankful for....

The Flirting Gene

Evidently, my daughter is a flirt! No we are not talking about Brighten. We all know that she is going to be a heartbreaker when she gets older. But my oldest, Madeline is quite the flirt. I guess I haven't noticed it lately. She has always had some boy having a "crush" on her at school. It all started with Mario in first grade. He was Italian. She has been hooked ever since. Now she is straightening boys ties in church...and I just have to laugh! When I was her age, I would have been mortified to even talk to a boy, let alone touch his tie! Not that I didn't like guys, I did, but I just wasn't that forward. Yes it's all changed! Admission of my guilt...I am a flirt now. I am married. I can flirt all I want and drive my husband wild. It's glorious that I have that much power over a man! Tricia taught me all that I know and now, I can't stop! So I guess she is just following after her mother. Now, if any of you know of an inexpensive girls school...middle school is coming and I so do not want to go there!!

We are not Homeless...

Reality is a hard place to live in. As a teenager, your world revolves around your friends and school. Rarely, do you get look outside of yourself and walk in another's shoes. Well in preparation for our Christmas activity, we have asked our YW to do something that could be very hard for them to do. As leaders of the Youth, sometimes you stay up nights trying to figure out ways to help them feel the spirit and "get it". It just so happens that I had a moment of clarity a few weeks ago and came up with a great idea that just keeps getting better by the moment. We asked our girls to wear the same outfit to school for an entire week. You should have heard the gasps that erupted. Murmuring ensued. I could go into details, but by the end of the lesson, I could tell that they were all thinking about it. Testimony meeting then proved that indeed they were "getting it" and were taking it to the next level. This is what we were trying to accomplish. Not only do we want them to feel empathy and not worry about what they are getting for Christmas, but to feel a sense of Unity, to stand out and be an example, to be brave, and share what they do have. At the end, one of our YW took the challenge to heart, and is going to try to get all of her friends to join in that are not a part of our ward! YESSSSS! This is exactly why I love my calling! Give me a bunch of teenagers anyday! I'll take them! Keep your primary kids and your Relief Society, I love Teenagers! So in the end, our lesson will be on the most important gift that we can ever get and how to give the most important gifts to others! If any of you have any bright ideas on how to bring home the last part of this lesson, feel free to comment. By the way, we are donating toiletries to the youth shelter here in Hillsboro and to a family shelter in Hillsboro. The statistics are staggering people. We are blessed to have a roof over our heads and food in our stomachs. And just food for thought, the average age of a homeless person is 12 and 76% of homeless people are families....if any of you live in the area, feel free to email me and I can point you towards several agencies that need help. Have a great Christmas everyone and let us remember the greatest gift that anyone could ever receive; the Gift of Eternal Life!

The Good Guys

I think good guys are hot! I know it sounds like a weird post, but let me explain. We all know what mainstream media thinks the hot man is. They devote whole magazines to that one subject. But I am really attracted to the Good Guy. Don't get me wrong, I love my husband, but when we go see a movie or watch a television show, I am always drawn to the good guy. So Patrick Dempsey is Hot by everyones standards, but I loved him when he was a nerdy 20 something guy in Can't By Me Love.This man is extremely good both on and off screen. Tobey is the ultimate guy and he had a pretty hard life to get where he is. I respect him.Noah is extremely intelligent and is a total family man. He always plays thoughtful characters. Yeah he's a little young for me, but the Harry Potter character he plays is very good and he wrestles with some pretty heavy stuff. I know he is in some Broadway where he was naked, but the guy is british so it can't be too great right?!
And we are saving John for last. I have seen everything this man has ever been in. Even when he plays an assasin, he was a good guy. I love Say Anything and Serendipity.

So Brad Pitt and George Clooney might be hot, don't get me wrong, but if I were to actually meet one of these men on the street, I would be geniunely glad to get to know them as people and not just the Characters they play. Anyone else love these guys or am I the only one attracted to the "Nerdy" guys. ( And I love this song! I don't care if this Clay is Gay...he is a good guy and this song is amazing!)

The Wedding

My first "baby" just got married! Ok, I might not have birthed him, but I practically raised the kid and he still calls me weekly if not daily for advice... I have a ton of family! No, we are not a big Mormon Clan, but we are tight! We are a diverse bunch, and I love them all, even the really weird ones! We don't have a ton of kids running around, but we will. Both of my parents are the oldest in their families. So here's to many more weddings!

The Flowers

And this is what I do for fun! Standing for hours wiring and wrapping stems, spray painting branches and getting glitter all over my hands is just plain fun for me. I know, I love to be tortured and to feel pain. When you really love someone, you sacrifice a clean house and glass in your feet (that hurt) so they can have pretty flowers on the cheap! This was for you Kip! Your Sissy loves you!