what a beautiful mess

I haven't blogged since last Thursday and I was kind of starting to miss it.  Over the weekend, I turned 32. And I feel terrific. As if I wouldn't...I mean, I'm still a spring chicken, unlike Trevor who is so old...He took Friday off so we could spend the day together and we had a fantastic day. He learned the joys of jean shopping with me which he most likely will never do again~I'm a picky person. After that, he took me to lunch at Red Robin, our favorite place for a hamburger. Then it was grocery shopping, napping, he made me craisin white chocolate chip cookies, blt sandwiches, angel food cake and then it was bedtime for the kids. (we stayed up celebrating...no early bedtime for us!)  We had a great rest of the weekend as well. My birthday may have been the highlight but there were a lot of awesome things that happened. Like seeing the Hunger Games with Scott and Jenee, painting the boys room, building a chicken coop, nacho movie night on Saturday, more...

He's a little bit quirky but we love him still.  Our gingerbread man, that is!  (I'm sure you were thinking Josh or Trevor, right?) We used Dots for the buttons and chocolate chips for the eyes and mouth.  And instead of the traditional gingerbread, we made graham crackers.  And so we of course had to use cream cheese frosting!  (it was either that or fudge frosting...I think we made the right choice) And Josh played with him for a good hour before he decided to eat him.  We went to the library today and I was able to push myself out of my comfort zone.  Hurray for me! It's always fun to do that (yeah, right...). I couldn't find a book that seemed interesting to me and I was feeling a bit overwhelmed so I decided to ask the librarian what she would recommend (that's out of my comfort zone).  She was so sweet and recommended Lamb in Love~written by Carrie Brown.  She said she's read it four times so it has ...

Usually the word epic is used to describe things like movies (Lord of the Rings, Star Wars...) or books (The Bible, Lonesome Dove) but rarely to describe a night in the Haslem household. Well...believe it or not, it was epic. A night for the books (or the blog as the case may be). Just look at this picture and you can imagine all the fun that was had. I promised the kids an extra scoop of ice cream to the child that could sit against the wall the longest. And the winner was?!? Stephen!!! Then it was me and Trevor's turn. I won him~ big time. Emily joined us and we were both going strong till  it got to be 4 mins 57 secs and I gave up. That girl's got some strong quads... Afterwards, we turned on some music and what better song could've been playing than "You've Lost That Lovin' Feelin"? There aren't many songs better than that for an epic evening. What else were we to do but dance?!? And that's what we did. To finish ...

Only 2 more months until Stephen gets baptized.  Tonight FHE was on baptism and the conditions that apply to that sacred covenant.  I really hope he's starting to understand the importance of this.  He's such a good boy..even with those huge teeth...Luckily he has such handsome eyes!

These boys are tough.  They fight off bad guys with their strong kicks, punches and muscles.  Unfortunately, they can't seem to keep from kicking and punching each other.  So while they may be tough, one of them usually ends up crying.  Being a ninja is hard work. 

Trevor turned 32 years old yesterday. (I am so glad I'm still a young 31 year old) When we woke up this morning I asked him how he slept now that he's so old and he replied "Terribly. I could feel my prostate enlarging all night long." (Is that totally inappropriate? I'm not sure exactly what a prostate is or even what it does...I thought it was really funny though.) As of right now, him and the boys are out in the shed putting together a place for our chicks to stay. I can't stand the smell in the laundry room any longer. And I think it's starting to seep throughout the whole house. My homemade febreeze isn't even working to mask the smell any more. So since they're taking care of that I have a few minutes to dedicate a blog post to my hardworking cowboy. We had a great day yesterday celebrating Trevor. Josh and I went to Idaho Falls to buy him some presents and to take him a soda and a pink cookie. He came home and we wished him many Happ...

This is Joshy having a ton of fun on the motorcycle at the mall. This is me thinking about what the dentist told me on Wednesday. Thoughts that are not far from my mind at all times. (not the most flattering pic..in fact I look almost manly...) I need 4 wisdom teeth pulled, 3 cavities filled, possibly braces, my baby tooth removed and a new one  implanted. And I'll have to go without that baby tooth for a couple of months.  Bummer. 

It's been such nice weather that the boys went outside to practice catching balls. Baseball season is coming up for Stephen and he's got to be ready... Hey guess what?? Trevor is going to be 32 tomorrow! WOW! All he's requested for his birthday is two white church shirts and a pair of work pants. That's crazy, I say. And totally lame. I think I can do better than that.... Want to read something totally funny? Candice's text to me today: (after asking me if I'd read The Hunger Games yet and me answering yes and have you?) "Quinn and I are reading it together. Loooove it. A girl in my EARS bought me premiere tickets...I'm so excited." Funniest thing I'd heard all day long. My reply: "That is so weird that you have a girl in your ears...does she talk to you a lot? and how does she get out? I assume she does since she got you tickets..." My favorite response from Candice: " Haha I love the girl i...

There are 25 of these little furry things in there! I have yet to hold one.  (To be honest, I don't really want to. They're food, not pets) Although my kids constantly want to hold them. I told Trevor I'll take care of the dog if he takes care of the chicks. So far it's working out really well. But I'm afraid that Carl is going to get hungry and eat one. And that would completely gross me out. The other day, I couldn't find Carl and so I went to the laundry room and found him laying on the floor by the chicks, trying to sleep, or trying to get up the courage to see what was in the box. I took a head count and luckily all were still there, alive and chirping. Just an FYI: *We do not have a good, working camera at our house right now. So most pictures for the time being are going to be very, very bad since I have to use my phone.

There are currently 24 chicks making a home in the girls room, praying that the big, mean dog doesn't make dinner out of them. Our fridge in Meridian broke. About 300 dollars worth of broke. My thighs are killing me from an awesome work-out last night. I made a pillow today. I'm going to make another one tomorrow after I get home from the dentist. I hope the dentist doesn't find any cavities and doesn't pester me about getting my wisdom teeth pulled. I have book club tomorrow night and am only two thirds of the way through my book. I think I will wake up at 6:15 tomorrow morning so that I can be better at time management. I suck at time management. Today I was doing great; woke up at 6:45, and still the kids missed the bus. Why am I always so cold? Thank heavens it's turning into spring around here. Although the radio man said that it'll probably be nice all through March and will snow all through April. I no longer listen to that radio s...

Stephen gave his missionary presentation last night. Just like the others, he did a terrific job. He gave his report on the Arizona-New Mexico Navajo Mission. We ate delicious Navajo tacos. They were slightly different than we normally make them. This dough had no yeast and it was more of a fried flat bread. We all really liked it and had more than one serving. Stephen tied his own tie when getting dressed. WOW!  Just like a real missionary! He gave a terrific lesson on the Navajo people. Doesn't he look so grown up? Only a three more months until he gets baptized and he so excited! Great job Steveo!

Women:  Would never eat their pet dog, Carl if they were starving and there was absolutely nothing else to eat. They would rather eat a horse (literally). Men:  Would most definitely eat their pet dog if they were starving. And they would also eat a horse. And not feel the least bit guilty about it. And now you know the topics that are discussed around the Haslem family dinner table.

Do you ever think about your life and wonder, "how in the world did I get so lucky?" (and then to realize that blessed is a more accurate word to describe your life) I do. I wonder that a lot. Take Trevor for instance. He works so hard to provide for our family, working many hours. He loves his kids and his wife (me) and his dog. And his country (that just seems fitting to add right now). He has been gone most evenings this week and everyday and so having him home tonight just reminds me of that. And it reminds me that sometimes I take advantage of his dedication to us. After working a lot this week, he came home to a party with 6 girls (a just for fun party) and decided to take the boys out to dinner and to spend some time with them. After that they came home and cleaned out the shed to get it ready for some chicks. And he's planning on spending time with me a little later tonight (wink, wink....). EEEWWWW GROSS! Jeez, we're just going to ...

Morning at my house is so bright and lovely~that is, as long as it's not snowing or preparing to snow. I made Annabelle open the curtains first thing this morning. When my mornings start out like this, warm and bright, it just makes me happy. Today Joshua decided to be a dog. A dog named Ralph. And Ralph loves raspberry sherbet. Ralph got really tired and is now resting while watching Shrek 2. Not my favorite movie but whatever... I think I misspoke yesterday when I wrote that I/we had big decisions to make. There's nothing out of the ordinary except for, you know, the usual. And the fact that we found out yesterday that both girls need braces; Emily now or at least soon and Annabelle in a year or so. And Stephen has possibly two developing cavities. At this moment in time, I am very, extremely, incredibly grateful for dental insurance. That may not be the case in a few months but I'm not thinking about that...and I'm trying to no...

How funny is it that I don't know what child of mine this is? And it's a really blurry photo, so I have a good excuse for not knowing who it is.... I do know that she is being naughty and allowing Carl on the couch. It's also naughty that I just ate some Charleston Chews and am now finishing off the box of Mike and Ikes and in just a few minutes, Trevor should be bringing me home an ice cream. Sugar overload, anyone?? I'm of the opinion that sugar makes hard decisions just a little bit easier...

A little like this? (kind of peaceful...)  Or more like this? (a lot more chaotic...) It is always chaotic and messy here at dinner time. But it's still one of my favorite times of the day.

They can be so frustrating and so rewarding at the same time. Like today. My girls fought most of the day; argued, cried, yelled, screamed....but they also made every single meal that was eaten today. They made pancakes and fried eggs for breakfast, tuna sandwiches for lunch and pizza for dinner. Plus a cake for the afternoon snack (that unfortunately got burnt; another bad moment). And they did it all without complaining. Carl peed in the house today. But it is so sweet when he comes and lays down right beside me, just to lay there and relax. And he's so forgiving. After being shut in his "room" for being naughty, he comes out and just wants to be loved. Which we all happily obliged to (all except Trevor). Stephen was able to play the Nintendo a lot today. He probably got in a good hour and a half of playing and ended up doing really well at Mike Tyson's Punch Out. But then we told him he had to stop playing for the day. He got upset and the Nintendo was take...

I'm sitting here eating my eggs and figured I should do something worthwhile.... How about I BLOG!?! Here's my Annabelle...or Cindy Lou Who who she's dressed up as today. And now to continue the worthwhile-ness, I'm going to go get my exercise on.  That way I can eat a huge plate of nachos tonight! (It's flawed thinking, I know...)

Not really but she learned a whole lot about it.... She did such a good job on her report. As always, I'm very proud of her and the effort she put into this. It was done during a hectic couple of weeks but she did so well. (we really need to stop taking pictures in front of the t.v.) She gave a great lesson on the Savior and him blessing the children when he came to the Americas.  And after her lesson, she shared her very sweet testimony.  Speaking of sweet, she made flan!  And it actually turned out. I always figured it was a hard dessert to make and although it turned out short, it tasted.....like Flan. (not a favorite around here) Dinner however was delicious!  We had Lumpia (it's like an egg roll) and fried rice. Definitely a Haslem-type meal. Next up? Stephen on Monday. He will be sharing with us what he's learned about the Navajos-or  Nava-joes as he reads it. Still.  I can't wait!