My Sister's Hands

I'm on the Enrichment committee (the women's activities group for our church) and we are planning a big event on March 11th, celebrating the birthday of the organization of the Relief Society. Our committee came up with a great idea to have a very nice dinner, slideshow, and a guest speaker (our Stake President's wife.) I was put in-charge of our slideshow and I feel it turned out pretty good, considering I've never done this before (thank you, Jake, for guiding me in the right direction!) The video has two parts to it: pictures taken showing women in our ward doing things with their hands, and the second is showing Christ using His hands. After the slideshow the guest speaker is going to talk about how we can use our hands for good, uplifting each other and doing as Christ did. I'm sure the whole night will be beautiful. Our committee is working really hard to make sure it will be perfect. Anyway, after a couple days of taking many pictures, one late night cutting and slicing pictures, and one morning of ignoring my kids to add the final touches, I now present "My Sister's Hands." (FYI It's about 10 1/2 minutes long.)


PS One funny thing I have to mention: Most of the women had no clue we just wanted pictures of their hands (we wanted it to be a surprise so didn't tell them the theme) and so many of them made themselves up with make-up, pretty hair-dos, the works. Little did they know I was just going to crop their heads right out of the picture. Hopefully once they see the video they will be okay with that. :)

Wisdom Teeth (or Tooth) Extraction

I remember when I was younger being told I had ONE wisdom tooth. My mom didn't have any and I thought it was pretty neat that I got her luck (at least most of it, having 1 instead of 4.) My dentist, Dr. Meadows, told me I might not have to get it out because it was "high up there and might never calcify." I never thought twice about it... until now. Last month I went to my dental check-up and the hygienist (who I LOVE!) took x-rays of my teeth since it had been awhile since the last ones were taken. She compared the new x-rays with the old and said my single wisdom tooth had moved down quite a bit and advised me to get it out. The dentist and my mother-in-law (Jan is the office manager) also said I should get it out to prevent future problems. I decided to wait and schedule an appointment with an oral surgeon later this year. Well, the last two days I have been having some throbbing and discomfort in my upper left gum area where my wisdom tooth is. (So much for waiting a couple months!) I decided now is the time to get it out, so March 7th at 10:30am, I will have one less tooth. The oral surgeon will have a panarex done just to make sure there really is only one and then I'll get some drugs (maybe knocked out) and the fun will begin. To be honest, I'm a tiny bit nervous about it. I know, I know, thousands of teens have this procedure done every year and it's not a big deal. I guess I shouldn't have been googling information about it or watching home videos of actual extractions on YouTube (some of them are pretty sick!) If you have stories (positive ones!) to share, feel free. For those who haven't done much research on these pesky teeth, here is some info I found:

Wisdom teeth derive their name from the fact that they form in the late teen years, making them "older and wiser". In today's world, the softer diet and shorter jaw of modern humans have rendered wisdom teeth unnecessary. In fact, the onset of wisdom teeth can be a painful and potentially dangerous development. In most cases, a relatively simple and straightforward surgery can extract the wisdom teeth before they cause permanent damage to the teeth and mouth.

Wisdom teeth are located at the back of the mouth, the "third" molar at both ends of the top and bottom row of teeth. As the wisdom teeth begin to grow, they can become impacted, or trapped in the jawbone and/or gums. As they continue to grow beneath the gum line in an angled or horizontal direction, displacement of the original line of teeth and wearing into the back molars can occur. Wisdom teeth that are unable to "erupt" above the gum line can lead to inflammation and infection. In the case of a partial eruption, a pocket often forms under the gumline, which can lead to the formation of a cyst or tumor. If left untreated, wisdom teeth cause permanent damage, including cavities, nerve damage, gum infection, bone infection, and a weakening of the jaw. Unfortunately, wisdom teeth often grow unnoticed until they cause problems in the mouth or outlying areas, such as the face. These problems can cause headaches, pain in the ears, neck, upper or lower jaw.

Malaysia... Here we come!

Our tickets were purchased yesterday for our trip to Malaysia to visit my parents. (They are there for my dad's work and will come back to Oregon probably at the end of the year.) The kids and I will be leaving the end of April for about two weeks. Sadly, Jake won't be coming with us. (He wants to come probably more than any of us do!) There is no way he can be gone from work for another two weeks though, on top of the two weeks he's taking off to study and take the bar, another week for a mining conference in May, and a few days for scout camp in June. We're definitely going to miss him! My sister, Whitney, is flying with us so that will be nice to get some extra help with the kids. Am I nuts to even consider flying across the ocean with a 9 month old??! I just feel bad for those suckers sitting in row 34. They are going to have a great flight, watching (and listening) to three kids, confined to their seats for 14 straight hours. Oh well. It will be worth it. Ben is already asking me all kinds of questions about Malaysia. Emma's biggest concern is whether or not she will get to wear her new pink swimsuit with hearts while she is there. Yes, she is definitely a "girl!" As long as Josh is within arms length of my boobs, he should be fine. We are excited to see my parents and stay with them at their condo. It will be neat to visit all the places they have told us about and meet the members in their branch. Now I just need to work this baby gut off before we leave so I can smash myself into my swimsuit! I better come back with a tan. I'm craving nice weather now more than ever, with all these Utah blizzards we've been having. 80 degrees, a little humidity, and a slight breeze sounds perfect!

Valentine's Day 2008

To be honest, I've never loved Valentine's Day. I remember many V-Days being very awkward for me when I was younger. I cared so much about the gifts and the actual plan for the day, and I always made it bigger than it needed to be. I even carried that mentality into the beginning of my marriage. Jake and I had an "interesting" Valentine's Day our first year. I expected a nice night out on the town, a beautiful hand-made card, my favorite chocolates, and then of course, end the celebration with an amazing night together (wink wink.) Jake expected to do homework, watch tv together, and then go to bed. Well, we obviously had not figured out how to communicate very well at that point. I figured he could read my mind... he couldn't. I had made a card for him but when I realized he didn't get me anything, I ripped it up and threw it in the trash. That night was a cold one. We ignored each other and went to bed hurt and angry. To say the least, I learned a lot from that day. I'm glad we have grown up a little in the past 7 years. My expectations are not so high and I have learned that our love is constant, with or without flowers.

I thought it would be fun though to write a Blog Valentine for my sweetheart. He's my best friend and my love for him grows deeper and stronger each day. He loves me for me. Yes, the lbs. have come on (and off and on), a loss of some hair has occurred to some degree, the kids keep coming, the chaos keeps growing, and yet, we are happier than we have ever been. Laughter and love fill our home and that's all I could ask for. We are so blessed.

I love you, Jake. Thanks for choosing me. I really am the lucky one, to have you by my side for eternity.

It's HERE!

Our long awaited Christmas present finally arrived yesterday and we all LOVE it! It had a bumpy ride getting here though. Jake's brother, Ryan, helped us get a great deal on it through some connections he has. The only downside was Jake had to pick it up himself. So yesterday he went down to the warehouse with Ryan (Ryan has a bad case of bronchitis and was still willing to help us pick it up... thank you!) They packed half of the pieces in Jake's parents' truck and the other half in our Odyssey. Well, the wedge part of the sectional managed to fly out of the back of the truck, onto I-15. Luckily, it didn't get hit and Ryan didn't get hit while he went out to get it. It got a tiny scrape on one of the corners but that's it. Ryan said the company will fix it, no problem. Then Jake and Ryan had to move the beastly thing down to the basement. The longest piece (the left-arm couch) was hard to get down the stairs and the metal underneath the couch scraped the railing and wall, leaving a nice little gash, and then when they got to the bottom of the stairs it made a little hole in our sheet rock. I guess this is why people pay to have it professionally shipped and set-up. Even with the scrape on the wedge piece, the gash on the railing, and the hole in the wall, it was all worth it. Those things can be fixed pretty easily, at least that's what I've been told. :) We love the sectional and couldn't be happier. I find myself excited to head down to the basement, just to sit on it (dorky, I know.) With our new bookcases and sectional the family room feels so beautiful and cozy. I love it. (Thanks again, Jake and Ryan!)

OH MY... I'M 6 MONTHS OLD!!!!

It's hard to believe Josh is 6 months already. It feels like I just had him, and yet here he is, practicing his yoga moves (see below his downward dog pose), learning the complexities of the telephone, and becoming close friends with Truman (maybe a little too close.) Yes, Josh loves to give me and the dog kisses, not always in that order. The dog's kisses are much more wet and usually involve the tongue. SICK! Josh had his 6-month appt. last week and was 27" and weighs 15 lbs. 11 oz. The doc was a little concerned that he had gained less than a pound in two months, so I'm going to try and fatten him up (if that's even possible with the Schipaanboord genes!) It's amazing to think that Ben was 15 lbs. 1 oz. at his TWO month appt. I don't remember Ben being a giant, but maybe he was. Anyway, Josh is still the sweetest and cutest little guy. He is a great sleeper, only waking maybe once a week during the middle of the night. I'm trying to savor every moment because I know how fast this first year goes and they change so much during this time. He really is a sweetheart and I love him to pieces!

An Empty House

It was a strange feeling, waking up to a quiet house this morning. My sister's family has been here visiting for over a week and we were getting used to the noise and chaos. Emma told me this morning that she loves Jayden (her cousin) and liked playing dress-up with her (multiple times a day.) I can already tell that the kids are missing their cousins. It was fun to have them here, but all good things must come to an end. Real life has to kick in eventually, right?! Chad, Ashleigh's husband, is a chiropractor and begins his practice full-time in a few weeks and Jake is studying non-stop for the Utah bar... 15 days and counting. Chad and Ashleigh took some nice pics while they were here (although, I did take the last one... professional photographer, I think so!) Enjoy!

Bookshelves!

We have a very talented brother-in-law, Jake Garlick, who offered to build us bookshelves in our basement as a house-warming present. Jake (my husband) and I love them and think they make the basement feel a lot bigger. Jake Garlick is very talented and we appreciated all of his long hours of hard work. They are exactly what we wanted. Thanks again, Jake!

PS Check out the before and after pics. They definitely add a lot to the room. We are getting our sectional this weekend so I'll post pics of that too. Exciting!!

Cousin Time = Fun Time!

My sister, Ashleigh, and her husband, Chad, are visiting us this week. Ben and Emma have been really looking forward to their cousins staying with us. Within five minutes of the Thornocks entering the house, the kids were already in dress-up clothes and were dancing around the house in them... yes, even Ben in his Tarzan costume. It has been fun watching them play together, even brush their teeth together. I think they will probably have Jayden withdrawals when it's time for them to go. Of course, Josh and Ryleigh are here too (we can't forget these two cuties!) I'm sure in another two years they will both be joining the fun. Today we went to the zoo. It was nice feeling like we had the whole zoo to ourselves. I think we saw maybe 5 other families there, besides us. We had a great time, cold weather and all. Last night we had dinner at our Grammy and Grandpa Call's house in West Valley. The dinner was great and the company too. We plan on going sledding, shopping, taking the kids to Discovery Gateway, going to Provo to visit more family, and more. It's going to be an action-packed week, that's for sure! Can you tell which pictures were taken with my camera and which were taken with Ashleigh's nice, new Nikon DX? Yeah, it's pretty easy. I'm pretty convinced I "need" one now.

PS GO VOTE! If you are one of the 24 states with elections happening today, make sure to get out. Every vote counts!

"Awesome" Day at the Grocery Store

So, as a mother of three now, one of the things I probably dread the most during the week is grocery shopping. I don't mind when I have to run in the store and grab two or three things, but I'm talking about the MAJOR shopping trips that seem to take forever. When we first enter the store I get plenty of looks and comments. "Oh, aren't they cute?!" "Wow, you have your hands full." "Your children are so well-behaved!" "I bet they are your big helpers." The kids stick right next to the cart, the baby is asleep, and I trick myself into thinking that somehow this trip will be different from the past hundred trips we have taken. Of course, by about 15 minutes into the trip the kids are running down the aisles, touching everything in sight, begging for their favorite fruit snacks, the baby is crying, and I'm ready to put the food back and get in the car... and yet, I persevere and we manage to make it out alive, but just barely. Well, yesterday was a different story. I prepped myself for a morning full of "fun" at Costco and Smith's. I bribed them and said if they were good all morning we could go to McDonald's for lunch. Costco went rather smoothly, besides Ben getting teary-eyed because I bought Emma an Easter dress and he didn't get what he wanted, a $10 kite. I told him we would get him a nice outfit with a new tie but that definitely wasn't as exciting as a kite! We hopped in the car and headed to Smith's. Right when we walked into the store, Ben noticed one of those kid carts and grabbed it. I gave him and Emma a list of things they were in-charge of getting (saw it on Nanny 911.) Instantly, they were engaged. Of course we had an issue with there only being one cart and two children, but once they got the sharing thing down, it was GREAT! They actually had a lot of fun and I had fun watching them. Emma looked so serious, staring down the aisles trying to decide which hotdog buns to get. Ben loved arranging the food in the cart, and then Emma would re-arrange it. Overall, I would say this was the most successful shopping trip we've ever had. When I put the kids down for their naps yesterday, I told Ben thank you for helping me pick out the groceries and he said "Mom, that was awesome. We need to get one of those little carts again." So there you have it.. grocery shopping was "awesome." Maybe I should invest in one of those carts so that we can be guaranteed "awesome" grocery shopping trips every week!