Some Catching Up To Do

A lot has happened since my last post. Beside moving 1000 miles, we celebrated two birthdays and other milestones.

Avery turned four - here is the cake I made, using one of those giant cupcake pans. I didn't like how one side cooked faster than the other.
Here is he family enjoying one of Avery's new toys, the bubble machine!

Lilly turned two!

Not related to Lilly's birthday in anyway, but this dress Ave is wearing is something I made in sewing class!

The happy birthday girl, looking a little beat up with a cold sore and a cut on the cheek.

Lilly loves cats, so I made her a cat cake.

Our other milestones include me learning how to sew (yay!), Kate's piano recital (photos to come), Kate & Avery's dance recital (photos to come), Mac starting grad school, and registering Kate for Kindergarten (yikes!)

Lilly Turns One

My baby turned one on Monday. Here she is NOT enjoying her cake.

I love that little girl!

Silly Girl

There's something about being four years old that makes you think it is so funny to do thisand this and this

when mom tells you to smile pretty.

I love those big eyes on Lilly, though.

April in Idaho Falls

These pictures were taken this morning.

Here's baby sister wondering why she can't have fun too.

I just LOVE Idaho Falls in the SPRING!

Does she look like a boy to you?

I remember when my older sister Aimee had her first daughter, Emileigh. Emileigh was a cute little baby, and, like Lilly, didn't have much hair for a long time. She used to get mad when people mistook her baby for a boy. I laughed at her and said, "It's not a big deal - it's an innocent mistake." I thought she was being way too sensitive to get mad over something like that. Well, now I understand how she felt. I'm going through the same thing she went through with Emileigh, with Lilly, and I'm none too happy about it. Today, two different people at the grocery store thought Lilly was a boy. "Hey little guy" one of them said. It must have been my scowl that alerted the clerk to her mistake, because she then tried to correct herself with, "Or, er, little gal - which is it?" And this isn't the first time this has happened. A lot of people have mistaken Lilly for a boy, actually. And it's happened when she's been wearing pink, for goodness sakes! I don't understand people! Here are some recent favorite photos of Lilly. You be the judge - isn't that the prettiest girl baby you've ever seen, or does she look like a boy to you? There's only one right answer to this question.

High School Musical Dancing!

We're big High School Musical fans at our house. We just took the girls to see the third movie in the theaters. They are still a little young to have the stamina for a theater movie, but it was still fun. Kate and Avery do a good rendition of "Bop to the Top." I'll have to find the video and post it, but this video was readily accessible, so I hope you enjoy it. (And yes, sadly, my house is usually this messy.)

Mystery Shopping: The Bane of My Existence

I did two mystery shops today, both of them paying pretty well for what mystery shopping usually pays. I dragged my kids along with me. They didn't mind too much the Arby's shop, because they got to eat lunch, and they thought the Anywhere Fitness I "checked out" was pretty cool because Avery kept slipping on their floors with her wet shoes and making all of us, including herself, laugh. But I found that I minded taking my kids along because it wasn't how I would have chosen to spend time with them. (And yet, I did choose this because I am the one who signed up for the shops!) I'm discovering more and more how I loathe performing these shops that I sign up for, and when the due date approaches and I finally have to make good on my obligation, I'm cranky and resentful and stressed. And the people who pay the price for my bad mood are Kate, Avery, and Lilly (and Mac, too, I guess, but mostly the girls).

When I first started mystery shopping a couple of years ago, it was fun and interesting. Here was an unusual way of making a little mad money that often got me free stuff and allowed me to role play different scenarios. I fell in love with it! But as Mac's work schedule has gotten busier and the number of babie's I've birthed has increased, I'm finding that it's just not worth it to me to spend my precious time out on these errands that have become so laborious and so, well, stupid. It's not just the time spent doing the shop either. Once I'm home, I have to find time to input all of the information online while other important things, like cleaning, cooking, playing with my kids, reading, addressing Christmas Cards, and relaxing all have to wait. It's just not worth it anymore!

So why haven't I quit? The same reason any intelligent person doesn't stop a knowingly destructive habit: Because I'm addicted. I keep saying that I'm trying to stop, but doing the stopping is actually really hard. I've always enjoyed making money, and when I became a mom and quit working full time, I began looking for other ways to make money, even when I didn't need to. But I'm hereby declaring that once the new year is upon us, I will sign up for no more mystery shops! I mean it. I do have one shop I'm already scheduled to perform in January, but really - that will be the last one! By making this commitment public, I'm counting on myself actually standing by it. Mylife will be richer, fuller, and more stree-free if I can finally let go of this little money-making side business that has made me into more of a working mom than I want to be.

I blame (er, thank) Lilly for pushing me to this state. That third child really makes you come to grips with your limits.

Ta da! I've finally managed to blog my first video. It was really hard, and it took forever for the video to upload, but here it is in all its glory. Lilly has started to "dance" by shaking her head back and forth the instant anyone mutters anything with a beat. We think it's hilarious, but that's because she's our baby and we love her. Most of you will probably find it passably amusing, a little cute, but boring.