HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!

My Mom. I have been so blessed to be her daughter. I don’t know where to begin. She has had a huge influence on where I am today. I attribute my will to have fun to her. My faith in God is because of her example and faithfulness. I learned from her that you can’t change people. They are who they are and to love them anyway. But if they want to change then I should do what I can to help them better themselves. She has always been there for me when I needed her and when I thought I didn’t need her. I always knew that her love is unconditional. The other day I asked my daughter who loves her the very most and she answered “Oma does!” (That is what she calls my mom), so even her grandkids know that their Oma loves them! That opens up another wonderful characteristic of my mom-she is the worlds best grandmother. I couldn’t ask for a more loving and fun person to be the grandmother to my children. They adore her as do I. I can’t say enough wonderful things about her. She is such an example of strength to me. I though I would share some of her sayings that are famous in my family that come from her. Her favorite is “Remember who you are.”

Did you pray about it?

Are your chores finished?! ( I had to throw that one in!)

Ladies don’t chew gum nor do they call boys.

-In Dutch she says this but I don’t know how to spell in Dutch so you get it in English!

Enjoy your meal

You pee in my eye- which is really a compliment! Strange Dutch people!

I love you

Mind your own business

Well, I hope that one day you all will get to meet this wonderful woman that I am honored to call my mother.

You are the best Mom-I hope your day is all you wished it to be!

MOTHER
By Author Unknown

I appreciate the many prayers
you've whispered during
the worst moments in my life,
and the many hopes for my success
in all that I dreamed of.

I appreciate the kind wishes
that would make me so happy and fulfilled,
and the gentle words of encouragement
that were meant to strengthen my quests.

I appreciate the moments of sorrow
you experienced during my failures,
and the little gestures of kindness
that always made me feel better.

I appreciate your acceptance,
your ability to understand,
and the sincere friendship
that always gave me such security.

I appreciate the wisdom
of all the lessons you taught,
and the meaning behind the words
"unconditional love."

I appreciate all you've done -
every word and gesture.
I know you've been the best there is -
a mother beyond all compare.

For all you've done...
thank you, Mom.
For all that you are...
I love you.

A Memorable Birthday

I have had a great birthday week! This will be a memorable birthday for me. Thank you for all for making it so. I received a potted plant from my mom, a fun dinner with my two aunts and cousins at a nice restaurant- The Tuscany. I had one of my favorite desserts-tiramisu and was sung to. J I got lots of cards from friends and family, Matt made me a yummy breakfast and let me sleep in. Then I went shopping with my birthday money and found the perfect hand towels, rug, and cloth napkins for my kitchen. If the kitchen ever gets done! My neighbor brought me a new hydrangea plant to replace the one that died and her mom made me a mini birthday cake. Saturday Robin, Hannah, Jessie, and I had a fabulous dinner at PF Changs. It was the best Chinese I have had in a long time. And then we all shared a ‘great wall of chocolate’ cake-fours layers with fudge frosting in the middle of each with chocolate chips smothering the outside edge in the frosting with strawberries and raspberries. YUM! There is a reason I don’t own a scale! The girls also gave me a gift certificate to Pebbles in My Pocket. I am so excited to use it but I am first getting my office arranged so I will scrapbook on a regular basis. Last night Matt and I were able to go on a date- a rare thing these days! We went to dinner and to the movies. I wanted to go to a play but nothing looked interesting so I opted for the movies. We watched Mission Impossible III which I must say was better than the last two. I am not a Tom Cruise fan but this was a good one. I really wanted to see Take the Lead so if there is anyone out there that wants to see it with me I would enjoy the company! Here are some pictures of all the great things that made my special day special! Thanks again to all of you!

Trip to the Dentist

I finally went to the dentist Monday. I probably shouldn’t say this but the last time I went was right after Elise was born-2 ½ years ago! But, in my defense I have very strong teeth and healthy gums which I must have inherited from my mom. I have never had a cavity in my life. And again I passed with flying colors at this appointment-whew! Life is just not fair-my sweet husband takes excellent care of his teeth and has at least one cavity almost every time he goes and he does go every six months! I took Elise in as well for a ‘happy visit’. She did okay but would not let the lady scrape the inside of her teeth. But she let her polish them. I also had to take Joseph and he was the perfect child. I put him in his stroller and there he sat for TWO hours entertained by his toys and people around him. He only fussed a small amount near the end! Amazing, really.

Okay, so I wanted to post about this dental office and not so much about my mouth. If anyone out there is looking for a dentist this is the place to go! It is called Total Care Dental. They are serious when they say 5 star VIP service. So this is how it went. After taking my xrays and setting Elise up with a movie in the children’s play area with a cookie and a juice box for each of the children they offered me a paraffin wax treatment for my hands. Then adjusted my dental chair which is also a heated massage chair to whatever made me the most comfortable. By the way I had a personal lady that stayed with me nearly the entire time just to make sure I was comfortable and if I needed anything. Posted on the wall was a sign that listed all the items that they provided:drinks, snacks, coffee, hot chocolate, etc. So, I was laying all the way back when I notice the television on the ceiling and the lady asked if I wanted to watch a show or a movie. After my teeth were cleaned and polished the dentist came in to exam my teeth and talk to me about some cosmetic stuff I want to get done. Very nice man. After he looked in Elise’s mouth-no cavities by the way-‘the lady’ brought me a moist hot towel, a mint, and chap stick on a silver tray to me. She gave each of the kids a goodie bag with toothbrush, past, and gold coins to buy toys with in their little trinket machines. That’s not all, you then move on to the restroom if you need to and there you find samples of makeup, lipstick, lip gloss, and perfume or cologne so that you look better than when you arrived! After that, it is the only negative part- you go into a small office where you have to pay but I thought they were very reasonable, especially for all the pampering you get! I am already looking forward to my six month checkup!

Well, that was the BEST experience I have ever had at a dentist office. My worst experience was when I busted out my front tooth from a fall off a skateboard and had to have a root canal or the time the dentist pulled out my adult teeth instead of my baby teeth to make room in my mouth so I am short a pair of teeth. No wonder I had questions about the cosmetic dentistry! When I win the lottery I will be able to get that work done! What was you best/worst experience at the dentist?

(Alright-I have just spent the last ten minutes trying to upload a picture and it is not working. Sorry.)

Sunday Evenings

I thought I would post about what I like to do on Sundays after church. We have a ward that meets late so by the time we get home and eat dinner it is time to put the kids to bed. They go to bed rather early on these days since church is during their nap times. So by 7:00 both children are usually in bed and Matt and I have some catch up time to ourselves. I really look forward to these evenings together. Matt doesn't work on thesis stuff and I am not distracted by our adorable children. our favorite thing to do is to play our instruments together. I have played the flute since I was in the fourth grade-so about twenty years! But I haven't played as often as I would like since Elise was born. My dad gave me his flute that he used while in highschool so it is a family treasure. I am not sure how long Matt has played the guitar but he has taought himself all that he knows and does a prety good job. He really would like a piano but the guitar works for now! I think he has a nice singing voice and he sings along while we play. It is a pleasant way to pass the time.

We also enjoy playing games. Matt LOVES to play chess and wants to play it all the time but I am terrible at it and the game never lasts very long. We also like Monopoly and Risk. I love that Jessi and Timm have a game night. I really want to start something like that up here. I have a few prospects of who I can have attend. It is just a matter of getting the ball rolling:)

The other thing we do sometimes is visit with eachother and get to know one another again! We'll do this over a bowl of ice cream or make cookies together and eat to much of the dough! I like this activity alot but it doesn't happen often enough!

An update on the flowers my mom sent- they died. I was very said because I thought they would never die since it was a potted plant. I called the florist and took it in for them to see. The guy said that they must have just reached the end of their time in a pot so he let me pick out a replacement. Unfortunatly he was out of flowering plants. I picked this one which is nice but doesn't smell as wonderful as the hydrangeas.

As for my birthday I would love a girls night out. How is Saturday? I will send out an email to you all!