creating my happiness

Ode to Joy

2009-05-23T15:12:00.006-04:00

Maddy had her 2nd piano recital last night. She did great and had a good time. She worked really hard to learn to play Ode to Joy and I am so proud of her. I can hardly believe she has been playing piano for a little over a year now. We are really going to miss her piano teacher, Sister Shirley, when we move to Arizona. Enjoy the video!

Ba-boom, clash!

2009-03-19T15:34:00.006-04:00

That is the sound maddy makes after she tells a joke! Can you hear the cymbals now? (she writes it as "boom! boom! clash!") So yesterday morning she was busy writing Dan a letter before school ( he was at work finishing the night shift) and she sweetly left it for him on the kitchen table. This is what it looked like:

In case you can't read it (she was writing on the soft couch after all), this is what it said (plus my translations):

Dear Papi, (because that is what Dora calls her dad, so why not Maddy?)

I am overdue 4 school! (no explanation needed, of course, isn't every 6 year old overdue for school at 8a.m.?)

Our 1-year-old (Elsie) has a didee ("mom, if I don't know how to spell diaper I can just write didee") radish. Boom! Boom! Clash! (get it? get it? Elsie has a diaper rash!)

Love, Yours Truly (dan couldn't possibly have any other "yours truly"!)

P.S. I changed my name MSB (her initials) to Pam.

Ok, now I know the last part needs a lot of explaining: this is not the first mention of changing her name to Pam (which, by the way, comes from Pam cooking spray, can you see me shaking my head and sighing?) When I ask her why she wants to change it to Pam she says because it is short for Maddy. Who knew? not me! She said it is easier to sing than Maddy. What is a mother supposed to say to that? Please tell me!

A Beautiful Testimony!

2009-01-31T22:14:00.006-05:00

I was reading President Uchtdorf's talk in the February Ensign the other day and his testimony of The Prophet Joseph Smith was incredible. It touched me to my very core and he put into words much of how I feel about that good man. This is what he knew as a child:

Before I recognized the tutoring of the Spirit testifying to me that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, my youthful heart felt that he was a friend of God and would therefore, quite naturally, also be a friend of mine. I knew I could trust Joseph Smith.

This is my testimony too. I have always felt this way about our dear prophet, President Hinckley who died last year. But I know that Joseph Smith was also a prophet of God and as a friend of God, he lived to bless me with the Restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.

For more information about the work Joseph Smith did to share the Gospel of Christ, please clickhere.

A 5 year old frat party!

2009-01-27T17:06:00.009-05:00

No I'm not talking about a frat party that lasted 5 years, but rather what a frat party would look like if it was hosted by 5 year olds!

So I was sick all weekend. We're talking flat-on-my-back-kill-me-now sick. Seriously, sicker than i have been since I've had kids. So what happens when you get a semi-comatose mom, a dad working night shifts, and three kids stuck at home all weekend?

This is what you get:

half drunk sippy cups everywhere...

fruit snacks under the bed, in the bed and stuck to the covers...

the stickiest floor all the way from the sippy cups to the open bottle of gatorade...

half eaten pop tarts on the couch, the floor, and everywhere in between...

Apparently, Levi and Elsie found the stash of fruit snacks and brought them to me in my state of semi-consciousness and I opened them, ALL of them! They must have thought they had died and gone to heaven! (Or just mom died and left a snack opening zombie behind!)

The best part was on Monday morning when I just couldn't get the kids ready for school, we waited for Dan to get home from his night shift and he took them to school a little late. At 9:15 am I hear a loud insistent knock at the door. I drag myself out of bed to see the termite inspection guy here. I had totally forgotten about our appointment! He had to inspect the ENTIRE HOUSE! I was mortified! All I could do was say I had been sick all weekend and tell him I was going back to bed while he did his thing. There was no amount of apologizing I could do that would make the mess disappear. He even had a flashlight people! Imagine a flashlight tracing the piles of crumbs that float toward the baseboards as the kids run through the house with whatever snack their dying mother just gave them! I could have died, except I thought I already was dying so instead, as I climbed back in bed I felt the smallest smile creep over my face at the ridiculousness of it! I even felt a tiny tingle of relief that it was out of my hands and there was no point in scrambling to clean anything. So for once in my life, I let it go and didn't give another thought to the stranger with the flashlight climbing over the piles of laundry to inspect my bathroom! It was quite liberating actually, but don't worry, it will never happen again!

I made it up, mom!

2009-01-21T20:46:00.002-05:00

I know, I know, I am totally behind on my blogging but school is under way and yadda, yadda, yadda...

I just have to tell you this joke Maddy told Dan today while she was practicing her spelling homework:

Maddy: Why was Tigger looking in the toilet?

Dan: why?

Maddy: Because he was trying to find Pooh! Get it? Pooh! Hehehe!

Me: (trying so hard not to laugh) Maddy, where did you learn that joke?

Maddy: I made it up, mom.

Dan: (rolling on the floor laughing with nothing to say but looking pretty proud of his daughter for telling her first dirty joke)

Me: sigh...

10 years!!!

2009-01-02T22:34:00.001-05:00

Dan and I celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary today and it was fantastic! Not because we gave each other amazing gifts or had a huge celebration but because it feels good. It feels good to know that 10 years ago we knelt across the altar in the Salt Lake Temple and promised to love and care for each other for eternity. And 10 years later we love each other more than ever, we are better at caring for each other and we have developed a deeper understanding of the eternal nature of marriage. The picture above is one I took last month while we were visiting Utah and went to Temple Square to see the lights. It was amazing and so uplifting. So I had this picture enlarged (after adding the details about our anniversary) and framed for my gift to Dan. I love the Christmas lights on the trees!
We went to dinner tonight at the Chart House on the Riverfront in Jacksonville. The place was deserted and we got to enjoy a quiet, relaxed dinner together. It was simply perfect.

So after 10 years, here's a little description of Dan & Christy as a couple and individuals:

He's a doctor and she's a doctor's wife, they are lovers of education, devourers of Jack Reacher novels and haters of cigarette smoke. They love being garage parkers. She is anal and he is laid back. He is a quoter of the Simpson's and she rolls her eyes. They are temple recommend holders and grateful recipients of our Savior's Gift. They are lovers of sunshine and haters of snow! He hates neck ties and she thinks he looks great in them. They are suckers for kids saying please-please-please! She thinks he is the funniest guy ever and he IS the funniest guy ever. They love to snuggle with three kids in a king size bed in the morning, but not in the middle of the night. She hates to cook and he doesn't mind. They dream of traveling and serving a mission together. She loves taking pictures and he pretends to love looking at her pictures. They love Macs and not Microsoft. She loves scrapbooking and he lovingly tolerates all that comes with that hobby. He is a runner and she runs to Target. He dreams of playing golf in the PGA and she is his biggest fan. Together they make each other better, a life of love and laughter.

wow my life is good!

2008-10-28T14:49:00.003-04:00

So i got a new computer yesterday (more info to come) and this means transferring data. lots of data. I just imported a folder of pictures from Dan's hard drive (hardly has any pictures from the last two years) and it was 33GB! More than 18,000 items!!! So as I sat at the computer watching my life literally flash before my eyes; thousands upon thousands of pictures of my children, it dawned on me: my life is good! Actually it is great! I just taught a lesson in Relief Society about enjoying "the moment" as a young mother. I have had so many great moments I should be exploding with joy! I think i will spend more time looking through those snapshots when i feel a little joy-less because there is no way those images won't make me feel happy/alive/grateful/joyful!

Snapshots to follow! They are still importing...

oh Crap!

2008-10-11T15:56:00.007-04:00

So while I was at my stake Relief Society meeting today, Dan took the kids to Home Depot. His mission: to get supplies to build a gate to keep Elsie out of our bathroom. (You see Dan is not one of those guys who goes to Babies'R Us and buys a pre-made, ready to install gate. Oh no, he has to build it. Oh but this is a topic for another post....:) So back to my point. Levi runs ahead of Dan to the bathroom supply section. You know the place where they have all the pretty bathrooms on display. I'm sure at this point Dan was thinking there probably wasn't much he could break in that area of the store. Well before Dan can think twice about this poor assumption, Levi is standing in front of a display toilet with his shorts and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse undies down around his knees!!! According to Dan, he ran down the isles to the display section as fast as he could and got to him just before he peed. I'm still shaking my head in disapproval even as I type this! Actually, i just wish we had a camera on that boy at all times! For two reasons: first so we have evidence that we tried to stop whatever delinquent behavior gets us arrested for being poor parents and secondly because I think we might have a real shot at the $100,000 prize on America's Funniest Home Videos!

So while we are talking about Levi's pants being down, I can't help but reminisce about a few other times behavior like this has occurred.

There is of course the backyard. The second he gets out there all his clothing comes off. Whatever. So this summer, he was out in the backyard, naked, playing around a little wading pool when he comes crying, pulling on his you-know-what. It didn't take long to find the black ants! Ouch! Within 10 minutes he had this cherry sized blisters in all the wrong places. Ouch!

And then there was the time we went to WalMart and told Levi we weren't going to the toy section. Oh man did he pitch a fit! When he saw we didn't care and were walking away, what do you think he did? You guessed it! He pulled is pants down! I told Dan we were going to get kicked out of WalMart, and I'm pretty sure it takes a lot to get kicked out of WalMart.

So as I sit here on my bed typing this, my sweet Levi who was dozing on the couch and watching Power Rangers, has just walked in here NAKED! I suppose this means I should stop typing and look for the wet spot. :(

Deceptacons versus Transformers

2008-10-09T22:57:00.004-04:00

Since Levi is firmly in the middle of boy super hero fascination, we spend a lot of time discussing transformers at our house. So the other day when I was really struggling with the desire to give up on my school work (with only 2 classes left to earn my master’s degree), Dan reminded me that the Deceptacons were working hard to convince me to give up, that I couldn’t do it. He was right, as usual. My mind took it a little further and as I sat at the computer to write a paper, I thought: ‘Autobots, transform and roll out!’ So all week, when I needed to talk myself into getting to work, I told myself to “roll out”. I know it sounds corny, but we all know the “Deceptacon” is real. And he works hard to discourage me (and all of us) from doing things that need to be done. It isn’t always about good or bad but it is about dragging me down with deception. Making me feel like I can’t do what I need to do, like I don’t have the right weapons or tools to do what life requires of me. Well, the Deceptacon is wrong! I have the strength within me if I Transform my thoughts and “roll out!”

My name is Levi and I am a child of God

2008-09-22T20:59:00.004-04:00

We had our primary program yesterday and Levi did a great job with his line.

But he said it even better today. He gets home from school about an hour and a half before Maddy so he always comes out with me to meet her bus (sometimes in his underwear despite my warnings). Today Maddy was off the bus and walking up the driveway as I was coming out the front door. Levi skipped (because he never really walks anywhere) passed Maddy and climbed straight onto her bus. I got to him just in time to hear him telling the bus driver:

My name is Levi and I am a child of God.

It doesn't get any better than that. My sweet son knows who he is! I love him so much and I hope his testimony of this truth grows as he does. I love you Levi and you are a child of God.

*art by Greg Olsen

Heaven Help Me....

2008-09-21T19:46:00.005-04:00

I just took Dan to the airport a few hours ago and this is how I look already:

Image courtesy of Google images
Dan is on his way to Sunny Arizona for a week of job interviews! Yes you heard right: job interviews. Unlike other jobs, when you finish residency you can actually apply for jobs 10 months before you start work! Woohoo! Finally we are in a position to be in control of our lives! No more applying and begging and applying and waiting and letting some computer "match" us with a city on the other side of the country! Hooray! So Dan has 5 interviews this week and is gone a full 7 days. I love my kids but they are INTENSE! Even when they are on their best behavior it is exhausting! I love them and love being with them but Dan is my wing-man, my #2, my Dwight! Can you imagine Michael Scott without Dwight? It's just pathetic! Well that's me! Pretty pathetic. But we will survive, it is for a good cause. All day yesterday Maddy kept wishing Dan to have lots of fun on his "vacation" and behind laughs I was definitely feeling a little jealous! So wish me luck everyone and we will keep you posted on the job outcome.

Phoenix here we come!!!

(in 9 months and 2 weeks, but who's counting?)

Every day is Earth Day!

2008-09-20T01:07:00.004-04:00

Yesterday, Maddy got home from school and said to Dan “I want to clean the earth”. After watching her pick up the garbage in the church parking lot on Sunday morning, Dan knew what she was talking about. So he put Elsie in the kiddie backpack and armed with three grocery bags walked with Maddy and Levi to the park. The plan: to clean the earth, starting with the park and all the streets between the park and our house. So off they went and as they arrived at the park, Maddy decided they should have a contest to see who gets the most garbage. Just one catch- nobody is allowed to beat Maddy! She refused to let Levi pass her on the sidewalk.

So as if the story isn’t cute enough already, picture this: her Daddy had the sweetest little grandmother who used to walk around her neighborhood picking up garbage and she was affectionately known by her neighbors as the “garbage lady”. She was even in the newspaper once. He told me this story years ago but I know he was very fond of his grandmother so to see this connection between his daughter and grandmother melts his heart. He is putty in his little girl’s hand! Just how it should be.

As for "cleaning the earth", you rock Maddy! Thanks for being beautiful you! You make me want to be a better person and take better care of this beautiful world Heavenly Father created for us.

Cool!

2008-08-25T15:36:00.000-04:00

I just found this cool website that mixes your words up to make a cool arty thing so I thought I would try it. I used the words from Elsie's birthday post so it is about Elsie, again...
Check it out at www.wordle.net

More Birthday Pics

2008-08-11T21:34:00.001-04:00

Oh Girl, You're One!

2008-08-09T17:12:00.002-04:00

Today is Elsie’s birthday and we had such a fun day. We had a little party at the pool so we could eat cake and cupcakes and still keep the kids entertained. From a mom’s perspective, this was the best idea ever! No cleaning the house before guests arrive and no cleaning after they leave! Piece of cake! Haha! So we went to the pool with just a few special friends: Bastian’s, Williams’, Amberson’s and of course Grandma! Elsie was great! She had fun getting into her “e” shaped cake, although she was definitely not attacking the cake (maybe because it wasn’t chocolate, my bad!). Oh yeah, the other awesome idea: washing the cake mess off Elsie in the pool (shhh, don’t tell the lifeguards ;)! Anyway, the weather was great, the company was great and the baby is big now! What a great day. We wish we could have shared it with all our family, hopefully next year!

This relationship is moving too fast…you’ve changed…

2008-08-08T10:56:00.001-04:00

I’m uncomfortable with where this is going…I feel like you are pulling away from me…you’re more interested in playing with your friends than spending time with me…we hardly ever snuggle anymore…I miss the way you used to stare at me as if I was your whole world, now you’re so busy you only look for me when you want something…

No, I’m not breaking up with someone, I’m crazy about my baby girl but she just isn’t a baby anymore! How did this happen? I know I never took my eyes off her but somehow I was blinded by adoration and didn’t see how her growth would suddenly change our relationship. I miss the baby I used to take naps with and who would sit on my lap for hours. Now she wants to follow her big brother and sister everywhere, climb on everything, feed herself, eat anything she finds on the floor and WALK! You would think this would be a piece of cake by the time you get to a third child, but no, it’s actually harder. So Elsie, I'm begging: slow down my baby girl!

Spoof on the new Twilight Movie

2008-08-07T09:07:00.000-04:00

I thought this was hilarious. If you haven't seen a trailer for the movie coming out in December, just Google Twilight movie...I think this spoof should be part of the bonus features when it comes out on DVD!

Count Down!!!!

2008-07-28T17:13:00.002-04:00

Yes this may seem very adolescent, but I don't care! :=) I love the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. And yes I am going to the midnight release and yes I have pre-ordered my copy of Breaking Dawn. So there! That said, woohoo! I am going to hang out with a bunch of teenager girls (possibly wearing their prom dresses) and get my hands on the 4th book as soon as I can. I plan on reading it until I finish (I will probably take a break to teach Relief Society on Sunday, probably). So now I better get off this blog and finish my finals and prepare that lesson so I can read guilt-free all day Saturday. Good thing my mother-in-law is flying in from Utah just to watch the kids so I can read! Just Kidding! She is coming though, only to help us when Levi gets his tonsills and adenoids out on Monday. I'm sure I can finish Breaking Dawn by then and get right back to my motherly duties! ;)

Goodbye Sweet Angels

2008-07-24T10:27:00.002-04:00

Elliana & Emmaline, you are loved and missed.

Rest peacefully with our Savior and watch over your mom & dad. They miss you dearly and will always hold you close.

Thank you for coming to this world, however brief your stay, and changing us forever.

I love you little angels.

http://www.marcandmegan.blogspot.com/

4th of July Fun!

2008-07-05T23:01:00.011-04:00

Maddy, Elsie, Levi & Fireworks!

Well I think the kids had a blast celebrating Independence Day twice. On Thursday July 3rd, we went to the fireworks show at the local Baptist church with our good friends the Bastians and the Williams’. The kids had so much fun playing together and they all waited patiently for the show to start. In the meantime, we had fun with the glow necklaces I got from the dollar store. That was the best $2 I ever spent. As you can tell from the pictures, they added lots of color and entertained the kids all night. The church grounds were packed with thousands of people (this is the Bible Belt so the Baptist church is huge!) and I am proud to say of the 12 kids in our group, we didn’t lose any. Way to go on the backpack leashes, Kelly!

Then on Friday (Independence Day) we had the Bastians over for a barbeque and Sparklers (yes that is as good as it gets as far as fireworks go if I am in charge!) Our neighbors had their own stash so we got to enjoy their show. So while Kelly & I prepared the food, Dan & Quinn grilled the meat and watched the kids in the backyard. That means all children under the age of 8 were naked and Elsie crawled around after them wishing she could get her clothes off! Nothing like a backyard sprinkler and a mud hole to make a kid want to get naked! Oh and thanks Taylor & Carter (the only kids over 8) for keeping your clothes on!

Maddy & Levi enjoying Sparklers! Sorry Elsie, it was way passed your bedtime, maybe next year!

The Bastians! Kelly, Quinn, Carter, Taylor, Tanner, Sydney, Riley & Bailey.

Honorable Mention goes to ……

2008-07-03T14:36:00.001-04:00

…..Robin Williams! Seriously, I just have to blog about this girl for a minute. She is going through some mega trials but she is holding strong. Her blog is called “We Have Faith”, that says it all. So Robin, I just wanted you to know I’m thinking of you, praying for you and here for you. Check out the story of the milk jug in this month’s Ensign. Even though you aren’t going through the husband problem in the story, you still have a heavy milk jug to carry. Let Him carry you, it is the only way. Love you girl! Hang in there! xoxo

Kelly Bastian is the coolest!

2008-07-01T12:22:00.005-04:00

This post is a completely spontaneous shout out to my bff Kelly. She in no way told me to mention her by name and how cool she is. Seriously, you rock girl!

BTW, I really need a picture of you! I have a million of your kids.

Enough Already!!!

2008-06-30T23:09:00.004-04:00

It has been way too long since I updated this blog. No more excuses, at least not until next week ;) But seriously, I am back on board and will try to post often even if it is just a little hello. But over the last six months, lots of fun stuff has happened like Maddy’s & Levi’s birthday so to recap I am going to start a fun little segment called Monday’s Memory and I will use that to get caught up and maybe share some random stories. That’s it for tonight. But I promise to be back soon with more exciting news. In the meantime, enjoy a few cute pics!

Levi on our camping trip in March, Elsie at the beach on Hilton Head Island & Maddy signing "I love you too"
One of many alligators seen on the golf courses on Hilton Head Island.

Our Prophet, President Hinckley...

2008-01-28T15:05:00.000-05:00

I was so sad last night when I heard the news of President Hinckley's passing. I wanted him to live forever. So I guess this is a good time to share my testimony about prophets. President Hinckley taught me that I am loved by my Heavenly Father. How? That sweet, loving face of his radiated the light and love of our Savior Jesus Christ. When he spoke in Conference, the Spirit testified to me that his words were true, all of them. I have never known such an intense trust in another human being, but if President Hinckley said it, it must be true. What a man, what a servant of the Lord! He will be missed and I am so sad my children will not grow up to the sound of his voice in General Conference. We had stake conference yesterday and it is strange to think we were listening to the new prophet and we didn't know it. President Monson spoke in our regional broadcast. The Gospel of Christ is true and my life is better because of it. I am so thankful that Heavenly Father loves us enough to send prophets to show us His love and the way to return to Him.

Great to hear from everyone

2008-01-05T10:02:00.000-05:00

This is so fun! I had no idea how quickly I could reconnect with people by starting a blog! When the kids are in bed I will try to get back to everyone who has left comments and update the blog. It feels good to narrow the distance between Florida and everyone we love!

New Year's Eve

2007-12-31T23:00:00.000-05:00

It's 11pm here and everyone else is fast asleep. Dan has to be up early for work tomorrow and Maddy tried to stay up but finally gave in to the warmth of her bed. I feel such anticipation for the new year. 2007 was a long hard year for me, filled with many opportunities to grow and change. But it was also a year with a few particularly wonderful blessings- number one, by far, is the birth of Elsie. I have actually been living in a state of post-partum bliss since she was born. I call it bliss because I adore her and smile every time I look at her. It's like falling in love all over again. Truthfully, my pregnancy was hard and it turns out I was quite depressed, only I had no idea it was {mostly} pregnancy induced. Within days of giving birth, the depression lifted and life is beautiful again. (if anyone reading this wants to learn more about what I call prenatal depression, please contact me!) So yes, Elsie is the best blessing of 2007 but there are a couple others worth mentioning. We moved into a new house with a great backyard and neighborhood pool. The pool was my sanctuary while the kids were in summer school and my pregnant body was too heavy to carry and too hot in the heat! With our move came a new school for Maddy & Levi. Another great blessing! Their teachers are fantastic and they are thriving in ways I couldn't imagine. To complete the move, we joined the Orange Park II ward in the Jacksonville West Stake and the blessings keep coming. There are some incredible people in this ward. Even the not so incredible people are teaching me to be kinder, less judging and more loving. Our Bishop is a leader of amazing magnitude and is a Shepard in the truest sense. Last but not least, tomorrow marks half way through Dan's residency program! I couldn't be happier! He amazes me with the things he learns and does everyday. He is awesome and he is all mine!

So with all that said, I say goodbye to 2007 and hello 2008, I can't wait!

Here is a quick list of things I am looking forward to in 2008:

Elsie learning to walk and saying mama
Maddy learning to roller skate, maybe losing her first tooth (not at the same time)
Levi learning to ride a bike and being a Sunbeam!
Dan getting his medical license so he can moonlight and we can afford more date nights!
Me spending more time scrapbooking and becoming the person I want to be by doing whatever it takes to create my happiness!