Haircuts, budgeting, and random pictures

Those are about the highlights of this past week (if you can even call them highlights!).
Ellie was the lucky recipient of a haircut. She had been begging me for a few weeks, so I finally gave in. I took her over to the Super Cuts on Saturday morning and told the hair dresser that we wanted it cut in a bob a little below her chin. Well, this is what we got...Definitely not below her chin, but still a cute cut. She's a cute girl, and for some reason I like her hair better when it's shorter (maybe not this short- but oh well, it will grow)! Next will be Anna's turn. She's been begging just as much as Ellie, she just wasn't home Saturday morning to go with us.

We have some money saved up from tax returns and our monthly contribution to our savings account. Last night Bryan and I sat down and came up with a list of the things that we could spend that money on. The list included things like- the basement (trim & carpet), a treadmill, a deep freezer, a shed, a family vacation, a garden, and food storage. Now, one of the hardest things for me when it comes to budgeting is distinguishing between a "want" and a "need". So it was really hard for me to say "Yes, our food storage is more important than a treadmill". But in the end I think we got it all worked out in order of importance, with a good mixture of boring "needs" and fun "wants". So the treadmill might have to wait a little while until we either find a really good deal or a decent used one, but at least we'll get to take the kids on a small vacation.

It's not often that I find my kids playing quietly and nicely together. But that's exactly what I found on Sunday. Tyler was playing the Leapster and Ellie sat down to watch him- which usually results in someone getting mad. But not this time, I found this instead...They sat, head to head, playing together. I love it! It was so nice and peaceful in my house before church, which is not always the case. So thanks you two for being so nice to each other!

Kate is starting to figure out what the camera does, so now every time I try to snap a picture of her, she makes these crazy faces. She's such a fun little girl to have around!

Pay it Forward!

I commented on a friends blog for a fun surprise- and now it's your turn. Comment on mine and you'll get something fun from me!

The first five people to respond to this post will get something made by me!
My choice--for you!

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make NO guarantees that you will LIKE what I make! (I can only hope)
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It WILL be done this year.
4. You have no CLUE what it’s going to be … it may be cards, a bookmark, something delicious or a complete surprise to you (and me!) … who knows?
5. Most importantly, you MUST offer the same deal on your blog - the first 5 people to comment on your blog get something made by YOU!

A month in review

I'm so busy with life these days that I sometimes forget that I have a bog to update. Let's face it- I'm a bad blogger. So here's a review of what we were up to in February (mostly for journaling purposes):

-Bryan and I made it to the temple together for the first time since I was pregnant. I'm embarrassed to say that it had been over a year since we had gone. It was so good to go again and feel what I had been missing for so long.

-Anna brought home Strep throat, missed 2 days of school from being sick, went to a school Valentine's dance, and got a valentine from a boy in our ward all in the same week. She's a busy girl! I really can't believe that she'll be 13 in a few weeks.

-My sister came to help me paint the basement. Thanks Aubrey!! The paint is now 90% done. It is taking so long because neither Bryan nor I have very much time to work on it. The whole project is so close to being finished, yet there seem to be so many things left to do. I'll be so glad when it's finally done and we can spread out a little. Right now we are crammed in here with not much room to roam.

-Bryan took me out for Valentines Day. We went to dinner at Pat's Barbecue in Salt Lake. If you like barbecue, you've got to try it. It's amazing! We also saw a lame movie- Mall Cop. Don't waste your money. We had limited choices of movies for the time that we could go. It was fun just to go out with out the kids. He also gave me new super-soft fluffy towels and a new pillow. I have the best husband!

-Thanks to Anna, I came down with strep throat the week after she had it. I started feeling sick on a Tuesday- but didn't do anything about it. In fact, my dad was in town so he came over for dinner. I fixed a really sorry dinner, and I'm so embarrassed that he came and ate it anyway. When I woke up Wednesday- I felt like really bad. Fever, soar throat, aching body. Bryan stayed home for half the day so I could go to the doctor. Thanks to some penicillin I'm all better, and so far no one else has gotten it.

-On Saturday the 21st we went on a tour of the new Draper Temple. We were able to meet up with some family. There was Bryan's parents, my Mom, my sister Aubrey and her family, and Aubrey's mother-in-law and niece. It is very beautiful and the kids had a great time walking through it. Ellie has had some questions lately about what it's like to get married in the temple. She's asked if you get to walk down an isle or have flower girls. It was really neat to show her the sealing room and teach her about temple marriages.

-This last Saturday (the 28th) we drove up to Logan for my niece's baptism. Islay Mae was baptized and we are so proud of her! She is such a sweet girl and I'm so glad that we were able to be a part of her special day.

It was a busy month- I guess having 4 kids keeps my hands fuller then I ever imagined it would. But honestly, I wouldn't change a thing!

This one's for you Mom

My mom has been asking for a new video of the baby. We don't get to see her much even though we are only about a 90 min drive away. I tried for a few days to get a good video of Kate, but she's decided that she likes the camera a lot. Once she see's it out she drops whatever she was up to and heads straight for it. So this is as good as it's going to get for now, enjoy Mom!

Bryan and the missing fingernail clippers

I wrote this up in December and never posted it . Let's just say that I love my husband!

Bryan went to clip his fingernails last night but couldn't find any nail clippers. He came out of the bathroom saying something like "Why is it that I can never find any nail clippers when I need them?" Well, I apologized and blamed it on the kids since they're always taking things and not putting them back. I was pretty sure through that they were probably in my bathroom drawer, which was a mess to say the least. So I went into the bathroom, closed the door, and started cleaning out my drawer. When I finished a few minutes later I still had no nail clippers. Where were they?!? So just out of curiosity, I decided to looked through Bryan's drawer. And look what I found...Yes, that's right, 6 pairs of nail clippers. After finding these gems, I walked out of the bathroom and said "I found all 6 of these in your drawer, which one would you like to use?" He wasn't too pleased. Why is it that husbands and children can not find things unless they are in plain sight.