Rainy Day Fun

It has been raining all day, except for the time when it was snowing. We were bored sitting around the house so we went bowling. Guess who came in last place? Yep, me. I do have to throw in the fact that my kids were using bumpers and I wasn't. But yeah, they did really good.

DDS (Dumb Dental Stupidity)

Before school started I took the kids to the dentist to get their teeth cleaned. The dentist told me that Zac needed to have 2 fillings done and Emily needed 3. He also said that they each needed 4 sealants done. We made an appointment to come back and they gave me a paper with how much it would cost. It was going to be almost $800 (we don't have dental insurance).

I got home and I remembered that our medical insurance has some type of dental discount with it. I looked it up and sure enough, if we go to certain dentists on their list we get a discount. I looked up the discounts for what my kids needed done and figured I would save about $200. So we cancelled the first appointment we made and scheduled new ones with a dentist on the list.

We went to their new appointment on Tuesday. He looked at the x-rays I brought in and the paper that showed what the other dentist said needed to be done. He looked at the kids teeth and said that he didn't see any cavities and that they each only needed 2 sealants. At first I was like "WOO HOO!!!" 'cause I was so excited about not having to spend a fortune. But then I got really mad at the first dentist we saw for being such and idiot and I asked this dentist why he thought the other one would have told us we needed to have so much work done. He gave me some mumbo jumbo answer and then he said "They are fine until their next check up in 6 months." And I suddenly went, "HUMMMPH?".

What did he mean, "They will be fine until their next check up in 6 months."???? Well our appointments were his last ones for the day and it was 5:30 by the time he finished (our appointment was at 3:00 and it too 2 1/2 hours to do 4 sealants which should take about 15 minutes each). As we were standing at the front desk to pay, he was leaving the office for the day.

So I am really mad right now, and I don't know who to be mad at. Should I be mad at the first dentist because he was trying to do unnecessary procedures on my young children to make an extra buck? Or should I be mad at the second dentist because maybe my kids cavities were really small and he was in a hurry to go home and figured they would be fine until their next visit?

There is a local TV news person who people call when they feel like they are getting cheated. He helps them get to the bottom of it. I am debating weather or not to call him. I don't know, what do you think?

Do you see why I have an EXTREME DISLIKE for dentists???

Flashback Friday - Carriage Ride

Sam, Lauren, Destiney, Scott, Kristy, Zac, Emily, Allyson and Steve

The Snow's were in Utah visiting. Scott and Kristy were still going to BYU Idaho and had come down to visit. We all went to eat at PF Chang's (mmmm....I could use some lettuce wraps right about now) and then took a carriage ride around downtown Salt Lake.

Sam, This Post Is For You!

Apparently Zac told everyone at school today that we have Halo 3 at our house. Because right about dinner time tonight half the neighborhood boys showed up. But never fear, there was plenty of food and violence to go around. They played for about an hour and then Steve and Levi (our neighbor across the street) who up to that point had shown a great deal of restraint, kicked them off. They are playing right now and I am sure the bloodshed will last long into the night.

Something To Sink Your Teeth Into

"About three things I was absolutely certain.

First, Edward was a vampire.

Second, there was a part of him--- and I didn't know how dominant that part might be--- that thirsted for my blood.

And third, I was unconditionally and irrevocably in love with him."

This is a must read. I just finished it this morning around 1 am. I had never heard of this book until my cousins were telling me about it when we were at a bridal shower. They went on and on about it. I went out to breakfast with a friend of mine a few days later and asked her if she had ever heard of it. She said when she was at girls camp everyone there was reading it. Well my dear mother bought it and started reading it. I saw it in her car and said "AHHH! I want to read that!" and she ever so graciously gave up her copy to me. I started it last Thursday but only got about 3 pages into it. I took it to the doctors office with me on Friday and everyone that saw it stopped me and told me how great it was. I took it to the hospital with me that same day and got the same response. I was excited to read it but really didn't have time that day.

I didn't start reading it again until Saturday and it was so good. I even posted about how I couldn't stop reading it on Monday morning. Then I got to the middle part which I have to admit was a little over the top mushy teenage romance and even though I still enjoyed reading it, it took me a few days to get past that part. Well last I was so exhausted I fell into bed ready to sleep but I thought, I will just read a few pages before I fall asleep. Well HELLO! All the sudden we moved past mushy gushy and by dang if I couldn't stop reading no matter how tired I was. I stayed up 'till 1:00 and finished the last 150 pages.

It is excellent. There are 2 more books in the series that are already published and two more on their way. And they are making a movie about the first book.

It is written for teenagers. It is by an LDS woman although it is not an LDS book. I love it because it is a thrilling love story and it is rated PG. And there are no naughty words. The idea for the book started with a very vivid dream the author, Stephenie Meyer, had one night. This is what she says:

"I know the exact date that I began writing Twilight, because it was also the first day of swim lessons for my kids. So I can say with certainty that it all started on June 2, 2003. Up to this point, I had not written anything besides a few chapters (of other stories) that I never got very far on, and nothing at all since the birth of my first son, six years earlier.
I woke up (on that June 2nd) from a very vivid dream. In my dream, two people were having an intense conversation in a meadow in the woods. One of these people was just your average girl. The other person was fantastically beautiful, sparkly, and a vampire. They were discussing the difficulties inherent in the facts that A) they were falling in love with each other while B) the vampire was particularly attracted to the scent of her blood, and was having a difficult time restraining himself from killing her immediately. " Click here to be linked to her website.

I just started the next book in the series (thanks again mommy!). I highly recommend it. If you are like me and the sappy stuff gets on your nerves, just know that it is worth it to stick it out. And for those of you (you know who I'm talkin' about) who thrive on the sap.....ENJOY!

Oh, and FYI. Her third book that just came out, Eclipse, is the book that knocked the last Harry Potter Book out of the #1 best seller spot!

Monday Morning Musings

When I said to my dear husband, "Honey, we really need to start getting the house ready to put up for sale" I meant something along the lines of finish grouting the tile in the bathroom, actually install the bathroom sink correctly, finish putting in the bottom part of the vanity, put the wood down in our closet, fix the lights in our bedroom, fix that big hole in the floor by the front door (the list could go on and on forever). This is how he interpreted it:

In case you don't know what his interpretation means here is the translation:

"MAKE YOUR WIFE ABSOLUTELY FREAKING CRAZY"

For some reason he thinks that to actually be getting something accomplished you have to take something that is perfectly fine and totally destroy it and then take (don't listen honey) your own sweet little time putting it back together. (Stephen, I love you more than anything in this whole world!) (just wanted to make sure you knew that).

Is it bad to start a sentence by saying, "The next time officer Olsen pulls me over...."??? I mean he has only pulled me over 3 times. In the past year. In the same place. You'd think I'd learn by now.

I am sorry if your children are going to be exposed to my hacking coughing children in school today. They just really needed to go. We have had 3 very quality days smushed up in the house together. It's time to get back to real life no matter how sick we all still are.

I have come to the conclusion that I am not going to get anything done until I finish my book. So I am just going to give up on everything else and read. The problem is it there are 2 more books after it in the series.

PMA (positive mental attitude) is not helping me feel any less sick at the moment.

It is Monday! Time for a fresh start. Everyone have a GREAT week!

Today

It's been one of those days. It has been overcast and raining all day. I love it. That is one of the things I miss the most from the place from which I come. We don't get a lot of those kinds of days here. It has been a lazy day. We haven't done one lick of work (I feel like an old lady saying lick). It has been a snuggling day. We have done a lot of that around here. I am reading a GREAT book which I cannot put down (everyone warned me from the people who suggested it to all the people I saw at the doctors office yesterday and all the people at the hospital and my visiting teachers and so on and so on and so on). Apparently I am the last person in the whole world to read it. But it rains all the time in the book and so today has been a perfect backdrop. I have had the windows open to let the cool breeze come in and to enhance the sound of the rain falling. I made breakfast for dinner and have Carole King playing in the background. I am about to go pick up my book again. Yeah, it's been one of those days.

If It's Not One Thing....

So Addison and I took another little trip to the hospital today. This is her, what? Somebody help me here. I've lost count. One - RSV, two - strawberries, three - skull fracture, four...Ok, this is our 4th time in the last 9 1/2 months since she was born for us to go to the hospital.




It's been a fun day, just let me tell ya. Addison (I still don't know how to spell her nickname, but thanks for the votes!) has had a snotty nose for a few weeks. Then this week she developed a cough. Last night when I put her to bed she sounded really bad so I thought to myself, "Self, you should take her to the doctor tomorrow". Well when she woke up this morning I went to get her out of her bed and she had thrown up everywhere. That's always fun. So I thought I definitely will take her to the doctor today. I made her an appointment. Then I woke the kids up. Emily woke up in major drama mode. She was screaming and crying that she was starving and need to eat RIGHT NOW! I finally settled her down with a bowl of oatmeal which I was just sure she would throw up. Did I mention I was feeling very nauseous myself? Well she ate it and immediately went into drama mode again because she was still hungry and needed more. I tried to tell her she should wait and see if she was going to throw up before she ate more. However there is no dealing with her in that frame mind so I made more oatmeal. Yes, I would much rather clean up throw up than listen to that for one more second. Well, she took about one bite of her second bowl and started heaving, but never actually threw up. Oh, and I forgot to say that Emily has had a bad cough for a few days too. So I figured I would call and add her to the appointment also.




Then Zac started complaining that he felt like he was going to throw up. And he was also hacking away. I was like, OK. This is so much fun. I guess no one is going to school today! Let's all go to the doctor!!! On the way to the doctor, Aubrey started coughing really bad too. But I digress. You are probably wondering how I ended up at the hospital with Addison.




The doctor listened to everyone, swabbed their throats, blah blah blah...It seems like we all just have a virus. A few viruses to be exact. One of the snot kind and one of the vomit kind. Aren't we special? But when she listened to Addison she said she sounded really bad when she listened to her lungs but not bad in her throat or mouth. So she was afraid that she had pneumonia and wanted me to take her right up to the hospital for a chest x-ray. Which I did. And thankfully that came back fine. She just has a yucky virus like the rest of us.




So it has just been a barrel 'O fun around here today. And poor Steve had to miss it all because he is out of town. (He is on his way back at this very moment for any crazy psychopath reading this.) (Ok, truth be told, I am probably the craziest psychotic person reading it. But still.)

Flashback Friday - Football Fever

Bart (hee hee hee- you look like a little boy), Allyson and Farrah

I decided to use this as my flashback picture today because I am just so excited that football season is upon us again (please read that last sentence with sarcasm) (extreme sarcasm). Really I came upon it just now and what with my pizza post the other day and all (sorry I am getting a little misty eyed) I was thinking about how much I miss the good old days when Bart and Farrah were living in Provo going to BYU and I could bug them constantly and not have to do it long distance. (Hee hee hee, I just looked at the picture of baby Bart again).

And Farrah, I am still mad about the cast/chopstick thing even though that was about a thousand years ago!

And That's Why I Drink Bottled Water

As some of you know, my neighborhood has a little twin phenomenon going on. We had something like 5 or 6 sets of twins born in our ward in about a 5 year time period. Being that I live where I live my entire ward consists of about about 6 streets, so that many twins is a big deal. Not to mention all the twins born to people who grew up in this ward and their parents still live here, or all the other sets of twins born in this neighborhood but not in our ward. Zac has 2 sets of twins in his class at school.

Well, it has been a few years since our last set of twins were born in this ward. But all that is about to change. We have a set about to be birthed any day now. And just last week we found out that another girl in our ward is pregnant. And SURPRISE! She is having twins.

When people around here get pregnant people don't ask. "What are you having?" No. They ask, "Do you know how many you're having yet?"

Quick, somebody call Oprah!