13 Random Things For Which I am Thankful

I am thankful...

...that my husband loves to garden...



...that we have a milk cow and don't have to pay $5 a gallon a day...



...that all of my kids love to help in the kitchen...


...that my kids aren't afraid to play in the rain and get dirty...



...that I had the twins after I had 7 other kids...



...for a brother-in-law who loves to carry our twins around while we eat our meals...



...that my new kitchen is big enough for four 12-year-old boys to make grilled cheese sandwiches simultaneously...



...that the babies love to play with mixing bowls while I prepare meals...



...that the babies love Cheerios...



...for family who comes to our home for Sunday dinners even if they do leave their sweaty cowboy hats on my dish hutch...



...for the beautiful set of dishes from Guadalahara my mother-in-law gave me...



...that my sister, Kristin, and I were able to plant pansies in my mom's hanging baskets after dad's funeral...



...that Mexican pottery is so cheap!...



What are you thankful for?

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Wordless Wednesday (We Love Bananas! ...oh, and candy, too)

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Pinata Pinafore GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!

Pinata Pinafore GIVEAWAY!!!!!!!

My Newfound Fatness or The Frosting on the Cake

Here are a few of the things I don't like about my newfound fatness...

-How some parts of the sides of my back now hang down over themselves, like Ursula, in The Little Mermaid. In fact, we, in our family, call it "Ursula back".



-How it always seems to be hotter than before.



-How when I look up, like at the stars, I can feel the back of my head touching the fat on the back of my neck.



-And I thought my thighs rumbled before? Now it's just ridiculous!



-How people used to say, "You look really good for having five (or six or seven) kids. Now they don't say it much at all.



I think this post was inspired by the fact that I hit an all-time low last night. I had foolishly stayed up until 1 o' clock in the morning, using the babies' sleeping time as my fun time on the computer. Just as I was going to bed, Joseph woke up to be fed. After putting him back to bed at around 2, I innocently walked through my parents' kitchen to get a glass of water, only to be met unawares by half of a key lime cake. I was stressed out to the max after dealing with the babies all day, so, I think for comfort, I thought I'd take a quick forkful of frosting. Well, ten minutes later, the entire cake was a misshapen lump devoid of frosting or form. I went to bed feeling worse than ever, and now I am telling the world about it. Go figure!

Oh, the pressure...

Having a blog can be a lot of pressure....

At first you don't know what you're doing, but then people start making comments on what you write and you figure out that you can get a site feed and get a glimpse of the number of people who come visit your site and from where they visit. Then you realize how good it feels to know that people are interested in what you have to say and you start checking other blogs out and making comments to show your friends and family you are interested in their lives. So you keep writing. But what about when you can't think of anything to write about? You keeping checking your site feed and see that lots of people are still checking you out, but you have nothing new for them. You feel like if you don't hurry and think of something interesting to write, you are going to lose your following and they might never come back, like hummingbirds when you run out of food in your hummingbird feeder. Then, that's when you tell yourself, "This blog isn't for my friends, it's for me and my posterity." Nonetheless, I really enjoy the interactions I get when my friends read my blog and I don't want to disappoint them, so I will try to scrape up something for this post.

Here is a list of things I wonder about:

How can a plant, like a huge tree with bark and leaves, grow from such a tiny seed, being fed only water and sunlight and a few sparse minerals from the soil? It's beyond me and amazing!



How can I have nine kids that are so perfect physically? The chances of something going wrong increase with every child I have and with every year I age, so why am I so lucky?

Why does childbirth have to be so painful?

How does a camera work? I have absolutely no idea. I know some of you men out there are going to think I'm an idiot, but I really don't know.



How come men don't like to talk about their problems and women do?



Why do some people think it's okay to kill unborn children?



Why are teenagers so sullen?



Why do babies' noses run and fevers spike when their teeth come in? I don't get it.

Why do I have so much trouble with my spacing when it comes to this blogger program?



Why do some people who are beautiful not realize it?

Why is chocolate ice cream so, so good?




Well, that's about all I'm wondering about today. What are some of the things you wonder about? I would really like to know. Also, if you have answers to any of my questions, feel free to enlighten us.

Five Down, Two to Go!

This blogging thing is too fun! Just now my blog was visited by someone in Kenya! How do these things happen? Anyway, how cool! Now I have been veiwed by people on five continents. I just need someone from Australia and Antarctica and I will be set! (Do you think penguins or kangaroos blog?)

Guess What Everybody.....!

I shaved my legs last night! I see some of the stares I get when people think I'm not looking, so I just thought I'd let you know!

Tagged by BJ

Tag! 20 Random Questions...
1. Where were you born? The Pass
2. Where would you live if you would live anywhere? CJ
3. What's you're favorite book? The Book of Mormon. It has had the biggest effect on me of anything I have ever read.
4. What brand of make-up do you use? Revlon and Loreal
5. What do you do to cool down when you are mad? Clean something really fast and furiously
6. Favorite quality in you're significant other? His Generousity
7. Do you play an instrument? Piano, Organ, Sax and Clarinet
8. Have you ever had braces? Yes, and I didn't wear my retainer faithfully, so now my bottom teeth are crooked again, but I don't really care
9. Do you have a birthmark? I don't think so.
10. What's you're favorite indulgence? My homemade chocolate ice cream
11. What was the last movie you watched? Underdog (I wouldn't recommend it as it's my two-year-old's favorite)
12. Who is a good friend you've lost touch with? Melissa Burton
13. Favorite place you've vacationed? Puerto Vallarta
14. Do you know a foreign language? A little Spanish and an even littler German
15. Do you like your handwriting? Yes.
16. What was the last piece of mail you opened?A box from Amazon filled with books about how to teach your kids to work!
17. What's the most random article in your purse? An EpiPen, with which I would have to stab myself in the thigh in the event I would have an allergic reaction to my allergy shots.
18. Have you ever flown 1st class? Yes, in exchange for giving up a seat on an overbooked flight.
19. Are you still friends with your ex's? No
20. What is something random about yourself? I can't go to bed unless I actually see my children's chest going up and down as they breathe. Even my teenagers. Weird, huh?
I Tag...Christy, Kristin, and Bethany

Where do they get these people?

Border patrol agents...I think that every time I cross the border, their IQ gets a little bit lower. Case in point...Kyla, Claire the twins and I had to go to EP to pick up Conor from the bus depot. When we got to the border, there were about six cars in front of me and Joseph had just started to fuss because he had slept all the way from CJ and he was hungry. I did a quick mathematical calculation and determined that if each car took three minutes at the border, then I would have 18 minutes to breastfeed. I asked Kyla to get the baby out of his carseat for me and proceeded to feed him. Unfortunately, I have mastitis, so to nurse was agonizingly painful. So much so, that it took all of my concentration to deal with the pain. However, while I was doing this, I prepared all of the proper documents, i.e. birth certificates, ID's and so forth. However, to my chagrin, the line moved much, much faster than I had anticipated and after only seven minutes, we were up next!

Kyla said that she thought she should put the baby back in his seat, and I brushed her off, saying that it would be fine (foreshadowing). Upon driving up to the guard post, I confidently stated my citizenship, and deftly handed the female patrol agent my paperwork. It was the first time we had had the proper paper work for a long time, so I knew that I would be well on my way in about thirty seconds. However, when the male agent checked my license plate, I did not have the proper sticker. He asked me to pull into a side lane to examine my paperwork further. By this time, Hyrum was hungry, so Kyla and I switched babies and I began to feed him.

When the male agent came to my door, he asked for my insurance and registration. Again, I confidently handed him this paperwork as I was sure everything was up to date. He took the papers to the back of my vehicle to survey them, then came up to my window to deliver the verdict.....I was to receive a citation for not having the baby in an infant restraint system as I approached the border.

"What?!? You are kidding!" I cried.

"No, I am not kidding. I am dead serious and you would be serious, too, if you had seen the things I've seen" he said.

I again expressed my shock and stated that I couldn't believe that I could be ticketed for this. I asked him what harm could have come from me feeding the baby and he said that I could have run into one of the pillars next to the guard station and that that could have seriously injured my baby. He asked how old my baby was, I and asked him which one, and he glared and said, "The one you were breastfeeding." I told him that he was three months old and he asked if the other baby had been unrestrained as well. Apparently it would have delighted him to no end to give me double citations for double babies. Fortunately, Hyrum had been restrained but to my ultimate amazement, there was no getting out of the ticket for Joseph. Fifteen minutes and $75 dollars later, I was on my way to my parents in a very depressed state of mind. I was sad that I was now depressed, because my intent all along had been to happily surprise my parents with our visit. They had no idea we were coming. I had to figure out a way to get happy really fast, so I asked Kyla to put on some really happy music from her shuffle. She chose Georgia by Gladys Night and the Pips, which you can listen to below and we listened to some John Mayer. After three songs and some intense meditation, I felt happy again and was ready to surprise my parents.

When we drove up to their house in anticipation, their car wasn't there. I went inside and looked around, hoping it was in the shop (because they never go anywhere), but to our great disappointment, they were nowhere to be found. I had to ruin the surprise by calling my dad's cell from his house. He answered hello and after I said hi, he shouted, "Jennifer! You are calling from my house! Patti (my mom)! Jennifer is calling from our house!" They had been traveling to various different fast food restaurants in search of the perfect meal. I guess that reaction was almost as good as surprising them in person and it gave me a little more time to get happier. The end.

Just an Average Day

I guess if I wait for something spectacular to happen before I post, I'll wait a long time, so I'll just give a summary of my day.
Today began a little earlier than usual as Johnny woke up crying at 6:00 am. Reid and Landon were trying to console him, but to no avail. I brought him downstairs and we cuddled together on my favorite recliner for about half an hour, then the babies woke up and I started the day.
At 9:30, three sisters from our ward came over to practice for a performance we will be giving on Thursday night for the high priests. It was really fun practicing with them as they all sing like angels. Directly after this rehearsal, I met with another singer to practice his piece. However, to my utmost humiliation, the piece was too difficult for me to sightread, so I had to tell him that we would have to forego his number. Conor helped me immensely during these rehearsals with the twins and Johnny.
The day progressed with me planting some beautiful trailing geraniums in a terra cotta pot and creating a container arrangement for the guest suite. I found that I kept going into the guest room just to look at the new plants. They quite literally bring such life into the room!
Around lunch time, I got a call from Landon as he was feeling sick and dizzy. These seem to be the symptoms of a bug that's going around town. The weirdest bugs show up in this small community and EVERYONE gets a turn getting to know them! Claire was also sick. Her fever got up to 103 degrees, so I finally broke down and gave her Motrin. I recently bought an otoscope, so I will use it tomorrow to see if she has in ear infection. If so, John's dad will pick up some antibiotics in town and hopefully, that will fix the problem. That is one thing I truly love about Mexico. Easy access to prescriptions drugs!
During the afternoon, I made several rounds of the house to see the progress the men have been making. Small decisions had to be made, like ceiling color and which way a bathroom door should open. Hopefully we made the correct choices!
In the evening, I remembered that the kids had their church activities tonight and as I reread the email announcement for it, I was horrified to realize that Kyla was supposed to bring cookies or brownies. And she had to leave in 15 minutes! I cried to her, "hold the baby, whichever one is fussing, and I will find a no-bake recipe!" With help from her and Reid with the babies, and Mary having taken Johnny to talk to her cows, we were able to get a batch of no-bake oatmeal things ready in time for her to take to her activity. Thank goodness for allrecipes.com!
After getting her and Conor off to their activies, Mary returned with Johnny and told me that John's parents hadn't gone to the temple after all. I asked her to go with me to visit them, as I needed help keeping the twins awake until 9:00. She agreed and we had a great visit. However, not only the twins, but Johnny also, fell asleep while we were there, defeating the purpose of the visit, but it made the time with them all the more relaxing.
I arrived home, bathed the twins, put Johnny to bed, fixed Landon and Claire a vitamin C drink, did scripture study, said family prayer, did a double nursing session, put the babies to bed, set the timer for 20 minutes and cleaned stuff, ate a salad and now it's midnight and I'm blogging it. And after this, I am going to eat some ice cream. Okay, boring, but that's all I got!

Chinese Cheese Torture

So have you heard of the Chinese bamboo torture where they stick bamboo shoots down your nail beds? Well when I was washing dishes yesterday, I was stabbed by a very hard piece of cheese down my nail bed. It hurts really bad to type, but since I thought you might want to know, I am making the sacrifice to blog it. Weird, huh?

Welcome! It's great to have you here!

Welcome to...
Eleventh Heaven's Homemaking Haven!
...a place hosted by me, a mom of 9, where women can share in the excitement and humor of creating a place for family and friends to find joy. Whether you're a family of one or twenty-one, get tips on topics such as housework, babies, and answering the ever-persent question, "What's for dinner?"

PLEASE feel free to leave random remarks, considerate compliments, constructive criticism, quirky questions, subtle suggestions, attentive advice, or just a happy howdy! (I don't get out much, so it would really be appreciated!)

If you're not sure where to start, try checking out some of these popular places on my blog:

Wally (This post really has nothing to do with homemaking. Readers just seemed to enjoy it.)
Profound Piles of Laundry
How to Dress a Baby (or Two)
Kids Working at Home
Raising a Large Family

HAVE A GREAT DAY! :)