Wadey Bug

My cute Wade has been tagged so here are 5 things about him...

1 - He likes to swat flies! He carries our purple fly swatter around all day and wacks things with it pretending he's getting flies and then laughs his head off at himself.

2 - He weighed 2 lbs. 14 oz. at birth. Yowza!

3 - He yells. I think because he's the 3rd child he thinks that no one is listening to what he has to say so everything he says, he screams it. He also likes when we yell or jump out and scare him or play really loud music.

4 - He loves bananas. He'd have 50 a day if he could.

5 - If he doesn't want something, instead of saying no and just handing it back he has to chuck it as far as he possibly can. And then he laughs of course.

Wade has been my most unique child of all. He's funny and feisty and definitely knows what he wants. He can make all of us laugh like no child ever has and then on the other hand he can make us all run crying to our rooms. I am most excited to watch him grow and see the person he becomes. We love you Wade.

Wade Tags

Hazel G.

Cameron S.

Addy D.

Natalie L.

Nate P.

AE For Kids

Did you guys see that American Eagle is launching a kids line. 77Kids opens in 25 more days. They are promising high style fashion for kids ages 2-10. Should be cute!

Nothing's Wrong With Your Kid!

My morning started off with a trip to the doctor's office. Wade has not slept well the past two nights and last night he was up every hour or so with a fever. I decided it was definitely an ear infection so I called in. It is always a big decision for me on whether or not to head to the doc's office because I hate more than anything going in, paying $20 and leaving with a big fat "Nothing's Wrong With Your Kid!" This morning though I was certain something was wrong so I headed in without hesitation. Wade was so excited to see the toys in the lobby and started playing, but everything went downhill when the nurse called his name. As soon as he saw her he started screaming and seriously did not stop until the entire visit was over. When the doctor came in and began listening to his heart, you would have thought someone was sticking needles all over the child's body. Anyways, she checked his ears and found nothing. She proceeded to check his throat by sticking the wooden stick in his mouth and Wade instantly vomited all over both me and the doctor! It was disgusting. And so the story goes, I left the office covered in puke and a big fat, "Nothing's Wrong With Your Kid!"

What's For Dinner?

Speaking of good health, i.e. my Health Alert post, this is what the Larsen Family had for dinner last night. I'm not kidding! At least I didn't get any complaints on what's for dinner.

The Obsessive Squeegee Woes

A few years back, while I was still living at home, my mom enforced the rule of the shower squeegee. If you don't know of this rule it states that you must squeegee the glass shower door each time you're finished showering. Well, of course this rule has carried on to my own home, although I have know idea what the purpose is considering my shower is completely disgusting and filled with mold even when cleaned and needs to be completely torn out, but even so the rule sticks. Well, I just realized along with my obsession for the rule I have an obsessive pattern on how the squeegee must be run along the door. It goes something like this...
↓ ↓ ↓ ↓
→
↓ ↓ ↓ ↓
←
→
↑
Go ahead, call me crazy!

Cozi Calendar

I've been really in to calendars lately because as my kids get older I find myself starting to forget things. So for all you super busy mamas out there, this online calendar system is awesome. It's free and so easy to set up. It color codes each family member's activities for the day and provides shopping lists, recipes, and daily reminders. You can also add journal entries and photos to your page. It's really cool. Just go to Cozi.com.

***Health Alert***

I saw a very interesting segment on the Today Show the other day about women's health through the decades. It talked about what happens to your body during each decade of your life and what you can do to fix it. Now trust me I am not the expert on good health here being that my diet consists mostly of Diet Coke and candy, but this for some reason caught my attention. What they said to add to your diet didn't surprise me but why you needed it was news to me. So here's the basic jist of it...

20's - Folic Acid of course. This was not a surprise to me because this is the decade where most women are having babies. Also many women in this decade are iron deficient.

30's - Calcium. Now we've all been warned of Osteoporosis, but did you know that this is the last decade that your body actually makes new bone? I did not know that. So this is basically your last chance to build some good bones. Also eat food rich in Vitamin B6 because the birth control pill actually absorbs this.

40's - High Fiber, Low Fat, Protein Diet. After you reach 40, your body automatically starts losing 1-2% of muscle mass per year. The only way to slow this down is to add a muscle building program to your workout and lower the fat. Here's link on 5 foods to maximize your muscle power. Heart Disease is another common concern so the high-fiber helps this.

This is what I want for Paige's bedroom but it costs about what we paid for our whole house. Does anyone know where I could get a cute, cheap white vanity?

Veet Whatever!

Alright, does anyone use Veet or Nair? I give them both the Worst Products Ever awards! I have tried different types of both brands because I like the idea of what they are supposed to do and they do not work for me. I'm left with a whole lot a nothing removed and burning skin. If anyone knows how to get these to work, let me know.

Turtle Time

My little boy brought this adorable Turtle Time book home from the school library yesterday. It's a story of a little girl and her pet turtle friend. The pictures are so cute. I loved it!

Get Your Daily Candy

This Daily Candy site has some really fun quick tips for moms everywhere, like today's Crazy Forts post. You just become a member and they will send you emails of fun ideas for kids, travel, fashion, food and much more. Try It!

Bonjour Paris

We made our official reservations for Paris today. We won't go until our anniversary in June, but we wanted a specific hotel in a specific location, so we were told to book very early. I guess we have a long time to prepare but we're very excited!

Boo!

I've seen quite a few posts on how you some of you ladies are excited about football season. Well, here's how I feel about football season.

Our Day Of Fun

Dean and I were supposed to be going to NYC this weekend while my mom watched the kids. She had a whole day of fun planned for them on Saturday and they were soooo excited. Well, me and Dean didn't get on the flight so we had to come back home. On Saturday morning when I walked out Gabe saw me and said, "AHHH, Mom! Now we don't get to have our day of fun. Can't you go back and get on another plane?" I was glad to know that I was so loved! Anyways, I ended up joining them for the day of fun. We rode the front runner to SLC where we went to the Spaghetti Factory and the the Gateway. It was a fun day!

Crazy Crayons

We made Crazy Crayons with Paige and her friend Koy today. I saw the idea on Martha Stewart and thought it sounded fun. You just chop up old crayons and let the kids sprinkle them into tiny muffin cups. Martha used hearts, but circles worked fine. Then you just bake them for 15 minutes until they're melted. Really any kid could make these. I thought they'd be really cute teacher gifts if you put them in a jar with a ribbon.

Bobo The Creepy Clown!

I was hesitant to post this pictures for fear that nobody will ever come to our house for one of our parties again but it was just too funny. Plus I had some requests. Danika, this one's for you!

Carnival Fun

We had a really fun carnival party for Paige's birthday today. The kids had so much fun and Paige loved having all of her favorite friends over. Serious picture overload, I know!

Let The Celebration Begin!

The day has finally arrived. My little Princess Paige is 5. Yes, she is my Princess today and I only get one Princess so I am allowing myself to spoil her rotten. We started off our morning with an early trip to Village Inn for their yummy strawberry crepes. It was here that the shiny new princess bike was revealed. Paige is most excited for this bike being that the tire on her old one is ruined and she loves riding bikes. We had to do everything super early this morning so Dean could head off to work. That's about it for today but stay tuned for more fun with our exciting carnival party!

Happy Birthday

A Happy Happy Birthday to my good friend Jill. We've shared so many great memories and she has always been there for me when I needed her to be. Thanks for being such a great friend. I hope you have a great day!

My Squishy Squishy Squash

I love this time of year for one reason, Squishy Squash. If you're wondering what in the world I'm talking about, let me explain. Squishy Squash is an old time family favorite that goes back to my great grandma Olds at least. I have probably eaten it a hundred or so times and I still get excited for the first yellow crook necked squash that pops out every year in the garden. My mom and grandma both have made the dish over and over for me and I swear it's better everytime I eat it. I have still not been able to master it like they have. However Paige begged me to make her Squishy Squash at 10am yesterday morning so I must be doing something right. I wouldn't exactly call it a recipe, considering the fact that it's pretty much squash and butter, it's just all in the way you cook it. So I'm letting you all in on the step by step guide to our family famous Squishy Squash.

1 - Cut yellow squash (onion optional but preferred)
2 - Cook yellow squash in lots of butter until it's soft enough to mash with fork
3 - Add lots more butter and salt and pepper
4 - Make it even less fattening by topping it off with melted cheese
5 - Mush some more in your bowl and ENJOY!

PS...If you're looking for a healthy squash recipe, this is not it.

90210

Now don't pretend all you ladies out there my age aren't excited about this one. You know it, 90210 is back! I watched the premiere tonight and I have to admit I was expecting it to be totally lame and it kinda wasn't. I think I'm already hooked. The content was a little questionable, but no worse than when we were kids and definitely not as bad as Gossip Girl. Kelly and Brenda are back. All who watched let me know what you thought. You know you watched it!

Coupon Code Secret

Okay so this is not my idea, it came from my sister Ashley and I'm sure some of you already know the secret but if you don't, you need to hear it. So if you ever need to buy anything online, which I will probably buy everything online now because of this, you can find Coupon Codes off the internet that can save you some big bucks. So let's pretend you're shopping online at The Gap. Just type into your browser Coupon Codes Gap and tons of sites will come up that provide the codes. My favorite one is RetailMeNot.com. It's the one where I've had the most luck. They have free shipping, discounts, free gifts with purchases, and much more. Just get the code and then type it in at checkout. Some don't work so you have to play around with it. I swear it works. I just got a free $60 pair of pants at Express plus free shipping from one of these codes. Try it!!!
PS...I know the picture has nothing to do with online shopping, I just liked it.

Gabe's First Day

I totally forgot to post a picture of Gabe's first day. Now that the first week is over the hype is gone but oh well. Gabe did good and really likes his teacher. The day seems so long and he is exhausted by time he gets home but I guess that's how it goes. I have to say this year was harder for me than kindergarten. I don't know why. He's just such a little guy for such a big giant school. I guess most mom's feel that way though.