2010 High/Low

When Jarom and I were newlyweds, we went to dinner at my Aunt and Uncle’s house one night.  At the time they had three girls (there are two little boys now too!) and they went around the table and each gave a high/low report for their day.  The high was the best thing that happened, the low was the worst part.  We were impressed by the game and have done it over the years (less consistently, but during some memorable times in our lives).  I’ve decided to compile my list of high/lows for 2010 as I welcome 2011 with open arms.

In no particular order, here are my lows:

*    March - Hazel has an anaphylactic reaction to hypoallergenic formula

*    April - I come down with strep throat

*    November - Jarom lands in the hospital with abscessed tonsils and low oxygen levels

*    June - Hazel has a scope and biopsy done and is diagnosed with eosinophilic esophagitis

*    April - Hazel is diagnosed with multiple severe food allergies

*    December - Jarom’s tonsils are removed

*    August - Hazel suffers another severe reaction to milk

*    March - Hazel is labeled a “failure to thrive” for weight and development

And my highs:

*    June - Family RV trip to Oregon for the Wright Reunion

*    June - Jarom turns 30 and celebrates with friends at a surprise party

*    March - I help as a committee member with Miss Eagle Mountain Scholarship Pageant

*    October – Walk for Food Allergies with team Hazel

*    November – I complete a 5k Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day

*    June – Hazel is no longer labeled “failure to thrive” and sits on the charts in the 25^th percentile for weight and is well above average for development!

*    June – Jarom and I celebrate 6 years of marriage in the seaside village of Florence, Oregon

*    October – We upgrade to a minivan!

*    September – Cannon starts Preschool

*    December – Hazel starts Nursery

*    December – Hazel enjoys a number of regular foods as well as almond milk

*    December – Our first Christmas at home in years – so awesome!

I'm certainly glad my Highs outnumber my Lows.  Call me crazy but I just love the thought of a fresh new year.  I love the opportunities that exist in the blank pages of a new calendar.  Jarom and I have been compiling our short list of goals for 2011 and I just feel like it’s going to be good.  I hope it’s a good one for you as well.  We’ve had our struggles but we’ve also been able to witness miracles at the hands of strangers and loved ones.  We’re hoping to stay out of the hospital this year and enjoy our time as a family a little more.  Happy New Year!

Hazie's Kitchen

I fully plan on doing a Christmas recap. I just need to document the one gift we worked the hardest on. First of all, this was not an original idea. I don't actually have many original ideas. I'm just really good at copying others and adding my own little twist. You can find entire flikr groups dedicated to nightstand play kitchens that people have done. I came across one of these groups over the Summer and became obsessed with the idea of making on for Hazel. Basically, the idea is that you find an old nightstand. We found this one at Deseret Industries for $10. Jarom thought it was hideous and almost didn't buy it. I took one look and saw the potential. I loved the little embellishments and the fact that it had a bit of a wider surface. It was in rough shape but I knew a little TLC was all it needed to reach it's true kitchen identity.

Then you sand it, paint it and decorate it to look like a little kitchen. Sounds easy enough, right?

I won't say it was easy. It wasn't. We actually made one to donate to our local Hearts for the Holidays program which provides Christmas gifts to families in need. It was good to have a little practice before we started hers. I thought the first one turned out great, though.

Okay, here's a side-by-side before and after of the totally finished product for Hazel.

and here's a closeup of the finished kitchen.

• 

• Salt and Pepper shakers are little wooden "people" I painted from Robert's crafts
• The sink bowl is a cheap dog dish from Walmart
• The faucet is a real one we found on KSL for $5 and cleaned and shined and put new knobs on
  
• The knobs for the stove top were one of the most expensive parts. $16 for a pack of 4 at Home Depot. Jarom brilliantly rigged them with a spring so they kind of bounce and turn. Love them!
• The stove top burners are just black circles of paint (I thought we could have done felt too) and silver painted dowels
  
• Jarom added the back splash and shelf - did I mention he's brilliant?
  
• The towel on the side rack is just a dollar store washcloth with the straps and ruffle added
• The curtian over the "pantry" where the bottom drawer used to be was made with a little help from my mom and her surger. I've been saving that fabric for something special
• Jarom took off the handles from the old drawers and fabricated the oven bar which was also painted silver to match the "towel rack", burners and the inside of the oven
• The "oven rack" was made from wood scraps Jarom had laying around that were painted silver
• We painted the entire inside of the kitchen black so the silver oven rack would really pop
  
• The napkin holder is a picture frame Jarom's had on his workbench for a while. I cut little hearts out of the scraps I had left from making the ruffle and towel. The End.
  

We went to Toys-R-Us and compared it to the play kitchens there. We paid a total of about $40 for all the items for Hazel's play kitchen. I just love how it turned out and I'm glad we did it. It looks totally fabulous in her room along with her new table and chairs. I love that we were able to match her room and make it personalized with the things we wanted. We also splurged on some Melissa and Doug food sets (the sushi one is my personal favorite) and a pack of pots, pans, baking supplies and cooking utensils from Costco.

Some other views of the finished product

The inside of the oven

The "towel rack"

If you are interested in making one of your own, please let me know! We'd love to offer our advice after making two of these. There are some things we'd do again and some things that were not worth it. If you can't find me, I'll probably be in Hazel's room playing with my her kitchen!

Ketchup

I missed Thanksgiving. I really have a lot to be thankful for too! We were in California with the Becar family and had a blast. Dawn Noel and I ran a turkey trot Thanksgiving morning. It was a good way to stretch our bellies for the great feast. We also got to watch Jordan play football for Cajon (Jarom's alma mater). They totally dominated!

The Turkey Trot
Jarom and I at the Cajon game

We stopped in Vegas on the way home to find a place showing the BYU vs. Utah game. It probably would have been better just to keep driving. Bummer.

Now it's Christmas time. I've been so stressed this year about making things just right for the kids. They love the tree. A little too much sometimes. I've got a sad little branch hanging down from one of them trying to stand on it.

Hazel turned 18 months last week which meant Sunday was her initiation into Nursery! I've been so stressed about it with her food allergies but she's got great, attentive teachers. She went right in without a single tear and played the whole time. Not that I was checking on her every 10 minutes. Jarom watched her during snack time and she enjoyed her dried blueberries and rice crackers just as much as if they were orange fish-shaped crackers. She'll never know the difference anyway.

Monday we went on the "Polar Express". A family in my parents area has a train running through their property. They put on a full fledged show with a visit from Santa and all. It was a highlight of my kids' Christmas festivities so far. We'll have to make it a tradition. I had tears in my eyes as they showed pictures of Christ's life and played a beautiful Christmas music.

My dad "Papa" and Hazel waiting for the train

Cannon on Santa's lap

All Hallows' Eve

We celebrated Halloween on Saturday, the 30th. A majority of kids in Utah trick-or-treated then, too. Even though the weather was less than ideal, we had a great holiday. The kids only lasted for about 8 or 9 houses. Hazel loved every minute and Cannon got whiny and wet.

We started the evening with our traditional meal of "monster brains". I started that a year or two ago when I saw it on a blog. (If it was yours, let me know because I've forgotten and would like to give credit!). Cannon has called spaghetti "monster brains" for the last year. He prefers his without meatballs aka "witch eyeballs". Hazel likes hers plain. I like mine with yummy red sauce aka "ogre blood". Jarom likes "the works".



Cannon was Buzz Lightyear. He's been planning his costume since July when we were looking at pictures from last year. He loves Toy Story and especially Buzz. He was thrilled when we put on his costume and wanted to sleep in it. Hazel was a pig. She was a pretty darn cute pig. We tried to get her to oink for us. The closest she came was a bark. Close enough, I say.



We started out trick-or-treating in a wagon with 3 umbrellas. We made it to about 4 houses when we decided to turn back and finish in the car. That was a novel idea and we made it to one whole street before coming back home. The weather let up for the last part and made it slightly more enjoyable. When we got home, Cannon and Hazel both handed out candy. I'm pretty sure that was their favorite part.

The highlight of my night was a little girl dressed as a witch who came to our door. She had black and orange stripes all over her hat and dress. Cannon said "Oh, she's a darling Halloween carrot!" Jarom and I tried to apologize but busted up laughing when he shut the door. We'll work on some Halloween costume etiquette for next year.

Jarom ended the night by dumping our entire bucket of candy into some teenager's bag. Score! Some kid lucked out with a solid $8 worth of candy. Looks like we'll be raiding our kids pumpkins for any Sunday trick-or-treaters.

I hope you all had a happy and safe Halloween!

One great thing about not blogging for months is that I find out that people really read this thing. I see old friends at the store and they say something like "where have you been?" or "you need to blog". It makes me feel needed. Even if most of the stuff I post is about my kids. People, the wait is over. I have a list of things that I want to post about. Mostly it's updates from the time I wasn't blogging. A few trips, and a few exciting things about Hazel.

So, let's get to that part.

(Hazel with my mom aka "Gramma") taken 10/28/10

Hazel is doing great! She's eating regular foods like wheat crackers (yes, wheat!) and fruits, vegetables, breads, rice and beans. She's chunky and healthy and incredibly feisty. She's saying little words like hat, hot, bath, bye bye, uh oh, no no, ball, baby and duck. She loves balls and balloons and bubbles. But, we're working on her aggressiveness tendencies. She tackles and bites kids twice her size and is generally a tiny bully. I know she has a high pain tolerance and confuses being loving with being mean. She's come a long way and I'm thrilled with her progress. And she's got hair. Lots and lots of hair! Like piggy tail doin' hair! Yay!

(Taken 10/28/10)

Cannon is doing great too. He's growing up fast. He started preschool with me and has been doing well. He loves his friends and is learning quick. He loves letters and numbers and is mourning the loss of Summer. He's definitely an outside boy. He says the funniest things and is totally excited for Halloween.

(taken 10/12/10)

We went to California in the middle of October to visit our Becar family. We got to go to Knott's Berry Farm. Looking at this picture makes me want to go back. It was warm and nice there meanwhile, it's freezing and snowy here.

Anway, I have the best of blogging intentions. Especially since this blog serves as my scrapbook, journal and family timeline. I'll be back soon.

Family Pics?

This is mostly for Mandi, my amazing friend and neighbor who took our family pictures yesterday. And for my Mom and other Momma, Sheri.

Look! It's our whole family all together in one picture! It's a miracle!



I like this one because of how everyone is standing. See all the different levels? I love it. Could Hazel's little arm on Jarom be more adorable? And Cannon is posing, and kind of smiling.


And this one? Love it! We started out with eight balloons, but the wheat did a number on them and ended up with only this one. But I think it's perfect.



Then there's this one. I really like it. I think I like the placement on that first one better, but this is nice too. Hazel's little crusty face cracks me up! Jarom said she looks like a pioneer baby. Haha!

There are really so many to choose from. I'm having a hard time deciding which one to put on my wall. I'm excited to finally have a family picture with Hazel included.

So, a huge thank you to Mandi! You seriously rock and we LOVE them! Grandmas, you'll get your prints soon.

June

June 28th finds me on the couch in my PJs reeling from the month I've just had. I don't know if I've ever experienced a month quite like it. So many milestones, events and getaways crammed into 28 days and it's still not over! This is a small taste of our experiences of June 2010.

June 2nd - Hazel's 1st birthday. Swimming, eating, and joy-ing for our 1-year-old.

June 4th - Hazel has a scope and biopsy done on her esophagus, stomach and intestines showing that she indeed has eosinophilic esophagitis or EE (as we suspected all along). 7 long hours at Primary Children's Hospital. She was so cute in her little gown and such a good girl.

June 8-11 - Annual getaway to Park City. We stayed at the beautiful Westgate Resort in the Canyons while Jarom attended the annual convention for Secondary Principals. Shopping, eating and shopping some more.

June 10th - Celebrated Jarom's 30th birthday in Park City with a BBQ and cake.

June 12th - Successfully planned and carried out a surprise party for Jarom's 30th birthday. He was actually surprised. His family came from California, we danced and ate nachos and chocolate cake. Many long-lost friends came and it was a special night. Thanks to those who came and made it special. And my apologies if you weren't invited. I was a wreck for the whole month before and I know I left some out that he would have loved to see there. So glad it's over!

June 15th-16th - Beehive campout. Cute girls+s'mores+tinfoil dinners+wind=successful overnighter.

June 16th - Cannon's 3rd birthday. Jumping, left-over nachos, cake. So much fun for my little boy!

June 17-19 - Trek. Jarom and I were a "Ma & Pa" for 10 kids for a handcart Trek through the mountains. 20 miles, exhaustion, dancing, eating, pulling, hiking, dirt. We came back exhausted, sore and forever changed.

June 20th - Father's Day. I love my father(s) and the mystifying father of my babies. I'm sad we didn't really get to celebrate, but I hope that the 3 fathers in my life know who they are and that they are loved.

June 21-27 - Wright Reunion/Becar Family Magical Mystery RV Tour. 7 days in a giant motorhome with my little family was amazing. We traveled to Lake Woahink just outside the coastal city of Florence, OR. We boated, ate, talked, shopped, 4-wheeled and enjoyed our awesome Wright family (My mother's side). I'm planning a full post dedicated to this trip. A highlight for me was definitely being on the tube with Jasmin and Kristin. We were pretty much assaulted and abused on the tube and my neck hurt for days but I've never laughed so hard in my ever loving life.

June 24 - Celebrated 6 years of marriage! We snuck away from the reunion festivities for a quiet dinner at a sleepy little seafood place and a walk on the docks where the fishing boats were resting. I had oysters for the first time and discovered my unquenchable LOVE for clam chowder. Holy heck, fresh seafood is freaking good stuff. I vow to someday live where it's readily available. Jarom had a double cheeseburger, of course.

June 28 - Nap until July.

This does not include the doctor appointments, physical therapy, packing, unpacking, repacking etc. I'm not doing this to brag (not sure if advertising my inability to say "no" and clinical insanity is really considered bragging). But, I'm in awe of the stuff we were able to do in one month. I'm not necessarily someone who loves having a lot to do. In fact, I really like my down time. I plan on having lots of downtime the rest of the summer. I do feel incredibly happy that I have the opportunities that I do. I guess in short, I love my crazy life.