Deja Vu

Motherhood is doing everything at least twice daily.

Child's daily bath...at least twice.
Fixing dinner...at least twice.
Fixing chocolate milk...at least twice.
Shoes on and off...at least twice.
Repeating yourself...at least twice.
Repeating mistakes...at least twice.
Responding "What?" to "Mom!"...at least twice in less than 30 seconds.
Fixing owies...at least twice.
Thinking "I told you so"...at least twice.
Watching/reading the current favorite TV program/movie/book...at least twice.
Singing the same song...at least twice.
Returning your child to his own bed...at least twice.
Getting up during the night...at least twice.
Wiping noses...at least twice.
Wiping bums...at least twice
Saying "Sit down"...at least twice.

And no matter how many times in day I think to myself, "I have so done this 100 times already today" I am always willing to do it again tomorrow. And that's what motherhood is.

Have You Ever

Once again this is stolen from a friend's blog. I've done everything in BOLD.

1. Touched an iceberg
2. Slept under the stars
3. Been a part of a hockey fight
4. Changed a baby's diaper
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Swam with wild dolphins
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a tarantula
10. Said "I love you" and meant it
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Bet on a winning horse
23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Taken an ice cold bath
28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Ridden a roller coaster
31. Hit a home run
32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
33. Adopted an accent for fun
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment
36. Loved your job 90% of the time
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Watched wild whales
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach
41. Gone sky diving
42. Visited Ireland
43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited India
45. Bench-pressed your own weight
46. Milked a cow
47. Alphabetized your personal files
48. Ever worn a superhero costume
49. Sung karaoke
50. Lounged around in bed all day
51. Gone scuba diving
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Done something you should regret, but don't
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business (If my own disastrous version of The Baby-sitter's Club counts)
58. Taken a martial arts class
59. Been in a movie (Really just a scene for a BYU film class, but I'm counting it.)
60. Gone without food for 3 days
61. Made cookies from scratch
62. Won first prize in a costume contest
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Been in a combat zone
65. Spoken more than one language fluently
66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
67. Bounced a check
68. Read - and understood - your credit report
69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy
70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
71. Called or written your Congress person
72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
74. Helped an animal give birth (Do humans count?)
75. Been fired or laid off from a job
76. Won money
77. Broken a bone
78. Ridden a motorcycle
79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph
80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing (It was only about 45 minutes from Boise to Seattle)
82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
83. Eaten sushi
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read The Bible cover to cover
86. Changed someones mind about something you care deeply about
87. Gotten someone fired for their actions
88. Gone back to school
89. Changed your name
90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands
91. Eaten fried green tomatoes
92. Read The Iliad
93. Taught yourself an art from scratch
94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt
96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
97. Been elected to public office
98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
101. Had a booth at a street fair
102. Dyed your hair
103. Been a DJ
104. Rocked a baby to sleep
105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four
106. Raked your carpet
107. Brought out the best in people
108. Brought out the worst in people
109. Worn a mood ring
110. Ridden a horse
111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap
112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe
113. Buried a child
114. Gone to a Broadway (or equivalent to your country) play
115. Been inside the pyramids
116. Shot a basketball into a basket
117. Danced at a disco
118. Played in a band
119. Shot a bird
120. Gone to an arboretum
121. Tutored someone
122. Ridden a train
123. Brought an old fad back into style
124. Eaten caviar
125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need
126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant
127. Published a book
128. Pieced a quilt
129. Lived in an historic place
130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage
131. Asked for a raise
132. Made a hole-in-one
133. Gone deep sea fishing
134. Gone roller skating
135. Run a marathon
136. Learned to surf
137. Invented something
138. Flown first class
139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite
140. Flown in a helicopter
141. Visited Africa
142. Sang a solo
143. Gone spelunking
144. Learned how to take a compliment
145. Written a love-story
146. Seen Michelangelo’s David
147. Had your portrait painted
148. Written a fan letter
149. Spent the night in something haunted
150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane
151. Ran away
152. Learned to juggle
153. Been a boss
154. Sat on a jury
155. Lied about your weight
156. Gone on a diet
157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget
158. Written a poem
159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox
160. Gotten food poisoning
161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission
162. Hiked the Grand Canyon
163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks
164. Gone to the opera
165. Gotten a letter from someone famous
166. Worn knickers
167. Ridden in a limousine
168. Attended the Olympics
169. Can hula or waltz
170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books
171. Been stuck in an elevator
172. Had a revelatory dream
173. Thought you might crash in an airplane
174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert
175. Saved someone’s life
176. Eaten cooked whale
177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint
178. Laughed till your side hurt
179. Straddled the equator
180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing
181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival
182. Sent a message in a bottle
183. Spent the night in a hostel
184. Been a cashier
185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt
186. Joined a union
187. Donated blood or plasma
188. Built a campfire
189. Kept a blog
190. Had hives
191. Worn custom made shoes or boots
192. Made a PowerPoint presentation
193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course
194. Served at a soup kitchen
195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube
196. Know CPR
197. Ridden in or owned a convertible
198. Found a long lost friend
199. Helped solve a crime
200. Played the game "Have You Ever"

What have you done?

Zion Park


This last week we took a trip to St. George with my parents and Lindsey. Daniel, Sam and I took a bike ride up Zion Canyon. It was hard on the way up, but the way down was fast and easy. We had a great time. Poor Sam was sleep deprived for the whole week and fell asleep in the bike seat on the way down. Daniel has video of that. I'll post it later.

We rode up to "Emerald Pools" and took a short little hike just to the lower pool. Sam liked going up and down the hills. We saw several lizards and once we saw a lizard and a snake in a stalemate. Neither was moving, maybe because there was a group of about 20 hikers gathered around taking pictures of the standoff.

On the way down we found some wild turkeys. I have never seen them before and I was impressed at their size. Sam made turkey noises at them and fell asleep about two seconds later.

It was a beautiful day.



St. George

We had breakfast every morning at the Bear Paw Coffee Company. It was so yummy! I really wanted to try the Fudge Brownie Waffle with Vanilla Bean ice cream, but I restrained myself. Not that the Creme Brule French Toast, the Vanilla Strawberry Waffle, or the Blueberry Pancakes with Home Fries were healthier choices.

St. George has a fun little plaza downtown with a fountain and a little wading stream. Sam loved playing in the water.
He loves Aunt Lindsey. She played with him a lot and took him down a big scary slide at the playground at the hotel. Funnily enough these two have a little rivalry going on. They are best buds and then they fight over the same things. Sam would pretty much share with everyone but Lindsey. He knows she's the competition I guess.

This is a cute swim towel hand-me-down my mom made for Lindsey. I can't decide if he looks more like a boxer or a samurai. The only reason Lindsey is sharing this with Sam is because it is a little too small for her now.
The pool at the hotel was great. They had a kids pool that was only 2 feet all around and Sam had a great time in that. We've been going to swimming lessons and Sam loves to blow bubbles and "swim" with a noodle. He will even go all the way under the water.

Bryce Canyon

On our way home we went through Bryce Canyon. It was awesome. Sam was fearless and we had a death grip on him at all times. It is an amazingly long way down.

Here is our poor exhausted baby desperately in need of a nap. We really wore him out.

I wish I had remembered our camera for all the other fun things we did. We hiked up to see some petroglyphs and had a barbeque with Jeris and Suzanna at her parent's condo's pool. We went to Tuachan and saw the Sound of Music (Really good. It's one of my favorites) and Les Miserables with my grandparents. It was a fun and relaxing vacation. I think I'd like to make it a yearly event.

It's Been Decided

People are always asking which one of us Sam looks like. We don't think he looks a whole lot like either one of us. The computer program couldn't make up its mind either. Maybe he's just a really good blend.

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Blank family tree - Free genealogy

Travel Bug

I am in the mood to travel. I want to go somewhere new, interesting and far far away...or even close by. I don't care I just wanna go. There is a lot of the world and this country that I have never seen. Now all I need is a lot of money and a nanny ('cause really, who wants to travel with a toddler) and did I mention the money?

create your own visited country map
or check our Venice travel guide



create your own personalized map of the USA
or check out ourCalifornia travel guide

Random Things

Sam and I thought this was really funny. We watched it about a million times. Sam says, "Wanna sing. Watch "hey Dude". Click on the link.
Check this out


Sam got his first skinned knee on Monday. He showed it to me and said, "Mom, my knee is broken." He's very proud of his "owie" and of course he shows it to everyone.


I was so tired the other morning when Sam came in to wake me up. I told him I was so tired that I didn't think I could get up. He stroked my hair and said, "Come on Mommy, get up. Come on." I rolled out of bed and he said, "Yea Mommy! Bravo!" I had to appreciate the enthusiasm and encouragement.


Sam got pretty disappointed yesterday because I wouldn't help him get inside his Little People toy barn. He kept asking me to help him "get inside". It was hard for him to understand that he was just too big.


His new favorite drink is "Chokit Mielk" (Chocolate Milk)

Sam is terrified of Cosmo (BYU's mascot cougar). It's kind of a love hate relationship. He is always excited to look for Cosmo at games. He waves and calls his name, but if Cosmo gets close Sam scrambles for higher ground. He doesn't think I offer much protection so he goes for Uncle Jeris (who is tall) or Daddy (who is strong), but Mom probably wouldn't have a chance against Cosmo. We were having dinner with Mike and Dottie after a basketball game when Cosmo came walking into Brick Oven. Sam freaked out. Now he thinks Cosmo can show up anywhere. He looks for him at home, especially when it gets dark. He peers around corners and asks, "Momo? Momo?"



And just a parting thought. I'm hoping for a better Mother's Day gift from Sam this year. Last year I got two big bruised bite marks on my arm. Happy Mother's day.

Sam's Girlfriend

We take weekly excursions to The Bean Museum (more on that later) and Farm Country at Thanksgiving Point. This trip we took with our friends Jackie and Elise.

Elise is braver than Sam and held his hand passing the scary goats.

Stealing kisses.

We had such a fun time.

Workin' Out

Daniel and I have started doing a little bit of exercising in an effort to be healthier. Sam has picked up on it. Here he is demonstrating his moves with Uncle Pablo.

He counts out push-ups. He only consistently counts to three, so we do a lot of sets of three.

He likes to finish his workouts the same way I do, with a big treat. This was Daniel's mom's birthday. (Happy birthday Lucy!)

Hogle Zoo

Jeris and Suzanna had Monday off, so we took a trip up to Hogle Zoo. Some of you may know that Sam is a little bit of a scardy-cat, but he LOVED the zoo. Every animal was exciting and interesting. His favorites included the meerkat (see video), a crazy black squirrel, the tortoises, and the great apes.

I need some better pictures of Jeris and Suzanna.


Sam played this game with the Meerkat for about 5 minutes.

Tulip Festival 2008

We went to Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point this year, but sadly due to our freezing cold spring there weren't too many tulips. However, we did have a wonderful time just being outdoors and we got to spend the afternoon with some of our favorite people: Aunt Dottie and Sarah.

These were the best of the blooms and they were very pretty.

See last year

Credit where it's due: I stole this outline from my cousin Challis's blog

Two years ago this month(2006): I was impatiently waiting for our little Sam to be born. I was already enormous and had three long more months to go. Pictures sent to Andrew when he was in Brazil at this time had him asking, "What are you guys feeding Jenna?" Nice.
Oh, and Daniel was "graduating" from BYU. (As an aside, that English class that he still lacks to be an official graduate will be completed this week! Hurray! And only two years later. That's some sort of graduation record in this household.)

Five years ago this month (2003): Daniel and I got engaged! The day after finals at BYU we went up to Idaho and I got my wisdom teeth out. The next day we decided to take a drive to Yellowstone. I was drugged (Lortab) and we were the only people there and I kept having Night of the Grizzlies flashbacks. I was sure some beast was just waiting up ahead on every boardwalk. When a jackrabbit jumped out of the bushes, I jumped out of my skin. Other than that it was beautiful and fun. Then I sent him off to Virginia for the rest of the summer and that pretty much sucked.

Ten years ago this month (1998): I can't believe this was 10 years ago. I was getting ready to graduate from Hillcrest High School. Ashley and I had picked out an apartment in Rexburg, which committed me to Rick's College. Yeah, I know. Most people pick a school first right? Good times ahead.

Fifteen years ago this month (1993): I can't even remember what grade I was in. I'm thinking 8th. (We all know math is not my strong point.) That would mean that I was probably just getting the cast off my leg. I broke that sledding at a Young Women's activity, prompting a ban on sledding at church gatherings. Actually, now that I think about it, that was 7th grade. Middle school was a wild rough place. Generally I thought I was pretty cool. We all know I wasn't. Let's all forget it.

Twenty years ago (1988): 3rd Grade? I have no clue.
Probably reading Little House on the Prairie for the hundred millionth time. I think this was the year my friend Tara introduced me to Watcher in the Woods. Scary stuff.
I remember my math teacher Mrs. Williams and something about fences. This could have been an effort to teach me about decimals. Hopeless, scary stuff.

Twenty-five years ago today (1983): My world changed. My little brother Jeris was born. Although I distinctly remember plotting his demise, I eventually have warmed up to him.
He is one of the nicest, most generous, easygoing, fun to be around people in the world. He is sweet to Sam and adored in return. He has a beautiful and kind wife, whom we all love. He is one of my best friends.

Happy birthday Jeris! We love you!

Sam's new favorite pastime is"hoops". We had to get him a real hoop because we were tired of having to stand there, arms in "hoop" position, and let him aim basketballs at our faces. He can do this for hours. Daniel went out and bought this one night while I was at work. When I got home at 3AM, Sam came running into the living room to greet me and said, "Bastball, hoops!" and proceeded to show me his basketball moves, completely unaware the children should be asleep at this time of night.

Big Boy Moments

Sam is turning into a big boy. He's growing up so fast. I've decided to document some of the new steps we've taken in the last few weeks.

Toddler Bed

Sam was doing fairly well at the whole sleep thing until we spent a week in Idaho over Thanksgiving. When we got home he started rebelling against the crib. He is pretty spoiled and wants to sleep in our bed. First we tried to let him cry it out, but he had a cough and would cry until he puked. Cleaning up throw-up all night long was less restful than letting him sleep in my bed. The final straw came when he began launching himself out of his crib and onto the floor. I decided that the safest move would be to set up the toddler bed, which he loves...just not at night. We're still doing the night time battle. It's not hard to get him to sleep initially, it's just that when he wakes up for the fourth time in one night and it's 4:00 AM, my resolve is weak.

Naughty Stool

We've been working on not hitting. He gets one warning and then has to sit on the naughty stool for 1 1/2 minutes. This worked brilliantly for a few days. He even went several days without hitting at all. The downside is that now he LOVES the naughty stool. He thinks it's FABULOUS, FUN, HILARIOUS! He pretends to, threatens to, and sometimes actually hits someone and then laughs and runs to the naughty stool for self inflicted time outs. Yet another parenting failure.

Self-serve Breakfast

One very groggy morning after a night shift I was dozing in bed with Playhouse Disney babysitting. (I tell myself that I am able to supervise while half awake and that Sam has learned a lot of very useful things from Mickey, Little Einsteins and the Wiggles.) I began hearing a strange plastic scraping noise. I peered over the edge of the bed and found Sam quietly sitting on the floor with an empty cup and a spoon, very diligently eating nothing. "Oh Sammy, are you hungry?" I asked. "Yeah" he said. Poor pathetic child. Poor pathetic mommy. But at least he is learning to be resourceful.

I guess he is officially a Big Boy now.

Christmas in a Nutcracker Shell

This is life when you are an only child. Lots of attention from Mom and playing "Ring around the Rosie" with your stuffed animals.

Sam has been obsessed with horses for the past little while. He rides anything he can. This includes the arms of the couch, mom and dad, and even dishrags with pictures of horses on them. I knew Santa would have no trouble deciding what Sam needed for Christmas.

Dad gave Sam a Christmas Eve haircut and then we headed over to Israel and Melissa's for Peruvian Christmas. Dinner started at 10:00 PM and presents at midnight. After that we had hot chocolate and Pannetone (Christmas Bread) and made it home by 2:00 AM.




Sam caught on to opening presents pretty quickly. It took him a few tries to remember that there was actually a gift inside the box. Pablo gave him a new pair of shoes. I picked them up and put them away with his other gifts so they wouldn't get lost in all the shuffle. In the midst of playing with the farm toy that his Abuelitos gave him he stopped and looked around. "Shoes?" he asked. Right then and there he removed his "Old" shoes and wanted the cool new Converse sneakers on his feet. Then he had to show them off to everyone.



Christmas Morning

This expression is shock and excitement and wonder. Sam walked into the living room and stopped in his tracks and just stared at the horse. Then he went right to it and petted it and loved it. His expression never changed. He can ride it like crazy. He spent most of the day on it and takes it very seriously.

Merry Christmas!

We finally broke down and put up the Christmas tree. I don't know why we are feeling so scroodgey this year, but we just are not in the Christmas decorating mood around here. Sam on the other hand loves lights and Santa (HoHoHo) and always gets very excited to see everyone else's trees and decorations. In fact he woke up in the middle of the night and asked to go see the Christmas tree. He thinks it is so pretty. He knows he isn't supposed to touch it and is very careful not to. He does get as close as he can and then he blows on it. I think he thinks the lights are candles. (We've celebrated a lot of birthdays lately and he has the blowing out the candles thing figured out.)

We went to Sam's friend Gabe's birthday yesterday and brought home dinosaur stickers. Sam has been enjoying them.

Thanksgiving in Idaho

We spent Thanksgiving in Idaho and then Sam and I spent another week just hanging out while Daniel flew out to Virginia to help his mom move to Utah. Sam loved spending time with Nana and Papa and Lindsey and Andrew.

Sam especially liked playing with Gus. He fed Gus treats and shared his cup with him (Gross, I know). He loved to pet him and tell him to sit. Gus pretty much did his best to ignore Sam, but Sam had the best time.

Sam and "Ballball"

We went to the BYU vs. TCU game on Thursday night and Sammy had the best time. He loves "ballball". The weather was perfect. No wind and the temperature was very mild. We didn't put our coats on until the second half. Sam really likes to yell "First Down!" and raise his arms for a touchdown. He also likes the cougar fight song and does the actions at the end.