Christmas is here again!

I love Christmas.  I especially love it with 2 kids. They play so well together.  Every morning Violet jumps into Charlie's crib and plays with him before I wake up.  Brandon got a picture of the action one morning.

 And we finally put up the Christmas tree!  If there is one thing I never want to take for granted, it's how cute my kids look in their Christmas jammies in front of the tree.  I'm so excited for the season, and so is Violet.  Every day she asks me when we're going to the nutcracker. How cute.

One more Belize post!

I thought it would be appropriate this thanksgiving to be thankful for Lena, the best sister-in-law ever, who watched our kids while we went to Belize.  I'll also post some pictures from our underwater camera.

 

The snorkeling was amazing.  As you can see from the pictures, all the coral was right in your face.  I've never seen an ecosystem so full of life-- there were literally fish everywhere you looked.  And despite how it looks from our foggy blue photos, the water was so clear that all the colors were extremely vibrant.  It was the most informative trip I've ever been on.

And here's a list of all the animals we saw (that I can remember):
Fish (angelfish, parrotfish, damselfish, barracuda, triggerfish, flying fish, grunts, grouper, cowfish, and many more)
2 nurse sharks
octopus
rays (I didn't see any but Brandon saw a few)
sea cucumbers
tons of jellyfish
sea turtles!
dolphins
lobsters
starfish
seahorse
iguanas
and even howler monkeys!

Don't mind me, I'm just testing my blog width

Kissing frugality goodbye

Once upon a time, Brandon and I were cheap.  When we had first moved to Houston, we lived in a dingy little second-floor apartment and I had a part-time job to keep us out of debt.  And at that time, I kept telling myself that even after Brandon started doing internships every summer and making more money, we would stay frugal. 

Well, that first internship came and went and for the first time in our marriage, we were not living below the poverty line.  I thought we were really going overboard when I stopped working and we moved into a bigger place, bought a 42" TV, and a double jogging stroller.  We also had a baby that year and after all the medical costs, I thought, "We'll really have to be better about not spending money next year."

But lo and behold, we haven't.  We again moved into a nicer place (apparently bigger wasn't enough-- I also needed a garage) and bought a new camera, took a family trip to Utah, and went to Belize-- each of which cost a lot more than our TV and stroller combined.  But since we still have pretty cheap rent and no car payments, I still considered myself frugal.

And then we got smartphones.

That is one thing I have always considered a luxury.  Not to be judgemental, but if I heard someone bragging about how frugal they were and I knew they had a smart phone, I would silently laugh at them.  Face it; they're expensive. Brandon and I calculated that for the price of getting ourselves our new phones and plans, we could buy a new camera and all the accessories every year.

Well, that didn't stop us.  We got new Samsung Glaxy SIII's and think they're pretty awesome.  That standard guilty feeling that comes when we buy something expensive no longer comes to me.  I've gotten over it, and I love it.  I just cringe to think of what I will do when Brandon graduates and I am left unsupervised with a credit card.

The adventure of the baby sea turtles

 On the first day, right after a wonderful dinner of lobster tail and coconut rice, I was incredibly tired and planned on going straight to bed.  But as soon as I stepped off the deck, I found a baby sea turtle in the sand!  There were several of them, and I did my best to help guide them to the ocean. It wasn't working.  Soon our waiter came and told us that if we didn't pick them up and put them in the ocean, the hermit crabs would eat them.  At that point my maternal instincts kicked in and I simply could not let a baby be eaten.  So I picked up a turtle, headed to the shore, and released it.  I came back and joined the rest of the group-- they had found the nest and were rescuing the rest of the stragglers.  It was amazing.  I've heard that only 1 in a hundred sea turtle hatchlings survive to adolescence in the wild.  Maybe mine will beat the odds.

Belize-- on South Water Caye

Ahh, Belize.  I'm really not sure where to start in describing this place.  We stayed at South Water Caye-- a tiny island with no phone reception, weak internet connection, and rooms that have no glass in the windows and no air conditioning.  Perfect for people don't want the typical papmered tourist experience.  To say it was beautiful would be a gross understatement.  It was idyllic. 

 We spent the first day touring the island and taking pictures.  I was so happy just to be there.

 Someone found a conch shell and when he came to show it to me, a tentacle flew out of it and scared us both.  Apparently it had an octopus living in it!

 We had a beautiful sunset every night and were close enough to the mainland to see the outline of the Maya mountains.

Despite what you might think, this trip was exhausting.  We were up by 7 every morning and spent most of the day in the water.  We swam at least a half mile a day.  I had to catch up on sleep during lunch time one day.  But the work was so worth it.

We're back.

I'm back from Belize.  Everybody prepare yourselves to be bombarded by pictures and stories and bragging about how awesome it was. 

And just for now, one of my favorite moments from the trip:
Me: I don't drink.
Waiter: Oh, well you're not 21 yet, are you?
Me: I'm 24.
Waiter: Really? You must have a hard time getting into clubs!  I bet everyone thinks your ID is fake.
Me:  Oh, yes, you described my life perfectly...

Ahhhh.  Thank you, waiter, for thinking I'm 20, and not 30 like most people think when they see me with 2 kids.

This is just too entertaining.

I didn't vote.  I'm a convicted felon and have lost that right.

Just kidding.  I didn't vote because the electoral college and our bipartisan system have ruined the significance of the individual vote.  In a swing state, I would have been all over that ballot.  But I am a resident of Idaho. (I know, I live in Texas.  It's a long story.) And if I were the betting kind, I would bet the entire worth of our bank account that Romney would win Idaho.  He did, and he didn't need my help.

And now the election is almost over.  I know I should go to bed, but these apocalyptic facebook statuses are just too entertaining for me to stop reading.  And just in case you wanted it, or even if you didn't (beause this is my blog and I can post whatever the crap I want), here are my opinions on them.  Enjoy.
-- You know that electoral college that everyone wants to abolish right now?  That same electoral college put Bush in office instead of Gore.  Don't get me wrong; I hate the electoral college too, but I'm pretty sure that all the people who want Romney in office didn't want Al Gore there.  Heaven forbid we elect someone who cares about the environment.
-- There are a lot of people out there claiming that they can't handle another 4 years of Obama.  When I look back over the last 4 years and think of how my life has changed as a direct result of Obama, I come up blank.  I think I can handle another 4.
-- There are also a lot of people claiming, "The Mayans were right, the world is ending." First of all, I ask them to please take a course on archaeology.  If they're still convinced that the Mayans prophecied the end of the world-- well, my faucet is not spouting blood, my children have not tried to murder me since 6:00, when I drop things they still fall to the ground, and Chuck Norris still kicks butt.  So there.
-- For all of you who are threatening to move to Canada, great idea.  I'm sure you'll escape socialism there.
-- If I hear the word "secede" one more time, I'm going to puke. 
-- If you are going to compare Obama to Hitler, be prepared for me to ask you for a list of all the Jews that Obama has killed.

Calm down, everyone.  You should all breathe a sigh of relief knowing that America didn't elect a member of some "crazy cult," which I proudly belong to.

The reception... a little late.

 On our last day in Idaho we went to the reception.  The place was beautiful-- right on the Snake River and there was a beautiful sunset that night.  We took some family pictures before the reception started.

 Violet was delighted to find a chocolate fountain there.

 She even got to help decorate the getaway car, thanks to Brandon's doting cousins whom she followed around all night.

The wedding day

The whole reason for our trip was Brandon's aunt's wedding, which was on Friday.  We had to drive down to Salt Lake early in the morning to go to the temple, and Brandon's siblings watched our kids.  After the ceremony, I came out to find Violet with her beautiful dress on and her hair all curled.  She kept telling me that she looked like a princess.

 Charlie was not so thrilled about being at the wedding.  Brandon's siblings had lost his pacifier and this boy was ready for a nap.  He spent most of the time perched up on Grandpa's arm, snarling at us.

 After pictures, we went to the luncheon at the Lion House.  The place was beautiful and the food was good, but Charlie was screaming bloody murder by this time, and I was beyond stressed.  I was so desperate that I left in the middle of the luncheon, walked around downtown Salt Lake until I found a store, and bought a pacifier.  Within 30 seconds of me putting it in Charlie's mouth, he was asleep. 

The rest of the afternoon went much more smoothly, thanks to a sleeping baby.  Violet was surrounded by little girls who loved playing with her, and she thought Merania's wedding dress was the most fascinating thing in the world.  She loved it and we were all happy to be able to come to the lovely wedding.

Bryson's senior pictures

Brandon's little brother is graduating from high school this year, so I got to take his senior pictures this week.  He is valedictorian of his class, has tons of personality, and is also an amazing artist.  This kid is going to do awesome things.

 Also, Blackfoot has to be my favorite place to take pictures.  It's a small town with tons of old industrial-looking alleyways, but drive 10 minutes and you're out in the middle of the county with wheat fields and lava rocks.

I love this one.  It captures his moody teenager look.

Violet's birthday

I can't belive this beautiful girl has been part of our family for 3 years now.  Violet was spoiled this year and got 3 different birthday parties.  For one of them, we had cupcakes at the park with her friends.  She woke up at 4 AM on the morning of the party and wouldn't go back to sleep, so needless to say, she was a bit grumpy before her party.  She looked at the cupcakes that I had stayed up making and yelled, "I don't like them! I wanted chocolate!"  I couldn't convince her that they were chocolate.  She also had a kicking-and-screaming fight with me over putting leggings on under her dress that is so short that her diaper sticks out of it.  I ended up winning, but this sullen face was all I got out of Violet until her friends showed up.

 

 Oh well.  Soon more kids came and when she was surrounded by all her best friends singing Happy Birthday, she couldn't have been happier.

 Her birthday party in Idaho was equally fun.  She again threw a tired-induced fit over her birthday cake, but this one didn't last as long.  After opening her presents, she had a silly string fight with Mia that left her so excited that I had to lock her in her room in order to get her to go to bed.  I know, I'm a great mom.

 She had plenty of presents but her favorite one has been being able to spend time with Brandon's family all week.  Between the kitties, the wide open spaces, the family, and the trampoline, it has been heaven for her.

One fun fact about Violet: she loves singing and listening to music.  One of her favorite songs is "Just to be the next to be with you," (from the Monster Ballads CD) and whenever it plays, she sings, I'm the one who wants to be with you.  Deep inside a hole, you'll feel it too."  So I guess she doesn't quite get the lyrics right, but she makes me laugh every time.  We all love this crazy little girl!

Our fall trip... so far.

Lots of things have been going on lately, but just so that my family knows I'm still alive, I will blog about our trip to Utah and Idaho.  Travelling was about as easy as it gets with 2 kids, and as soon as we got to Utah, Violet was in love.  We first stopped at my grandparents' house and after picking raspberries off the bush and gorging herself, she asked me, "Mommy, can we stay here?"  I had to tell her no, we were headed to aunt Lena's house.  But she was equally delighted to stay there because Lena has a bunny, and both kids thought little Willa was the coolest animal in the world.

 Charlie started squealing every time he saw her. The next day, we went to BYU and took a tour of my old place of work.  I got some ice cream and brownies but nothing seemed to taste the same.  Also, it made me feel really old. Fortunately, we went back later and got bread with honey butter and it was just as good as I had always remembered.  We also headed to the Eyring Science Center where Brandon used to spend 90% of his school hours.  They have a display of some beautiful quartz crystals in the lobby, and Violet couldn't help but notice how pretty and sparkly they were.  Then she turned to me and said, "Hey mom, this is quartz."  That's right, my 3-year-old can correctly identify minerals without a field guide.  She is just like her daddy.  We went upstairs to the Geology office and the secretaries actually remembered us (they said they recognized my nose...) and it was fun to actually run into someone that we used to know.

We had planned a camping trip to Goblin Valley that day, but it ended up raining, so we stayed around Provo.  We instead went on a drive around Mt. Nebo and enjoyed the autumn colors.  And being the wannabe-photographers we are, we took about 400 pictures.


This one was taken using the macro extension tubes that we bought with Brandon's birthday money from Mom.  Thanks, Mom!

Violet occupied herself by throwing rocks into the stream and stood out nicely against the fall colors in her blinding outfit.



Lena took some nice family pictures for us.

And Charlie is always, always cute.  Even if he makes grumpy faces most of the time.

The kids loved spending time with Lena.  Who wouldn't? It was hard to convince Violet to leave Lena's house.  She told us that we could go to Idaho and she would stay with Lena.  But somehow we got her into the car and now we are in Idaho... with Mia.  Let the fun begin.

From an anonymous donor

Awhile ago I found a canvas at my mom's house.  I was a little confused because my mom doesn't paint, ever.  When I asked her what it was for, she told me that someone had left it there for me.  She couldn't remember whom it was, but I took it anyways, because I had been wanting to do a painting of Mount Rainier ever since we had been 2 years ago. Well, here is the finished product, and if you want to take credit for donating the supplies, here's your chance.

I have been a little better at motivating myself to do these projects.  People at Brandon's school sometimes ask him what I want to do with my life (apparently having kids doesn't count) and he tells them, "Lindsey wants to live off my money and be an artist."  And you know what, it's kind of true.  And I figure that if this is what I'm doing with my life, I had better get good at it.  So I've been trying.

What have I been up to?

Art projects. I may actually reach my 5-in-a-year goal!  But grr, they never photograph well.

 Cleaning up after kids.  I was doing my hair in the bathroom when Violet came up to me and informed me that Charlie had ruined her rug.  When I asked her how, she said, "He put his hands on it." So I came into her room to find this.  She had given him an enormous peice of  chocolate candy, and it was everywhere.  But boy, did he love it.

 Enjoying the weather.  It has been pretty nice out lately and Violet and I even caught a show at Miller Outdoor Theatre.  I'm not sure if she was more excited about watching Cinderella or sitting with her friends, but who cares, it was free.

 Crafting.  We painted some pumpkins for the first day of fall, and Violet was thrilled about it.

 And enjoying time with Brandon.  He frequently gets tackled by the kids, and is a great sport about it all.  He has finished all his interviews for internships next summer (I know, this last one just ended!) and has THREE offers so far.  I can't complain about that.

And I haven't had too much time to blog because I've been too busy enjoying it all!  (Minus the cleaning up after the kids part.)

Things that annoy me

I'm not sure where else to put these, so here it goes.
- When I go to people's houses and they apologize for it being "so messy," and I look around and all I see are 2 dirty dishes in the sink and a toy on the floor.  Some day I'm going to say, "Are you just trying to make me feel bad about my house?  Because this is cleaner than my house is, ever."

-When people pin a picture of an outfit and put the caption, "Casual," and the outfit involves big earrings and high heels.  Please, if it doesn't involve either a t-shirt you found on the floor or your birthday suit, it's not casual.

-When people say, "Pin now read later."  In other words, "I'm trying to get a record number of pins but the content really isn't that great."

- Old men who brag that "in fifty years of marriage, we have never had an argument."  Congratulations.  Try being married to me.

Fall pictures

It has become somewhat of a tradition for me to take pictures of the kids every fall at Hermann Park. My friend asked me if her son could tag along and get his pictures taken too, which was a ton of fun, especially for Violet.  I made them a scavenger hunt and they had to find "clues" that told them where to go and how to pose.   So I got pictures while the kids thought they were just playing a game.  Worked like a charm. The only hard part is deciding which ones I want to print out!