Bountiful Basket

I Love, Love, Love Bountiful Baskets. We love having all this fresh produce in the middle of the winter. And it has been totally helping me with cooking, because I have ingredients for fantastic meals, and sometimes different ingredients than I typically buy so we've had some different meals. It also helps the boys get some fruit and veggies, maybe not lots, but some. :)

I am always trying to tell people what I get and I can never remember. So I thought I would take a pic to show how awesome this is. If you haven't done Bountiful Baskets and you live in Utah, Idaho, or Arizona, it's time to try it! It is $15 per basket and you don't get to pick what you get. You just show up with a basket and they dump all this food in. It really is awesome!
Here is this weeks basket.


8 apples
4 Asian pears - which are really different, but really good
grape tomatoes
5 oranges
9 bananas
1 tiny butternut squash
1 large celery
1 head of broccoli
2 pounds of baby carrots
1 head of green lettuce
maybe 8 or 9 tiny yams

Bountiful Baskets is a Food Co-op. It is not a business. They just buy produce in bulk and split it up. It makes it so you get the food at rock bottom prices.
http://02b8ce3.netsolstores.com/producebaskets.aspx

You turn your back for 2 seconds...........

And suddenly your son has made himself up with a blue sharpie. And boy did he feel bad about it. He knew it was a huge mistake and was so embarrassed. This picture is actually old, and it occurred on a Saturday. I was considering staying home from church the next day as Sharpie's are PERMANENT!!!! I think the Lord read my thoughts and gave us a miracle, because all the permanent marker on his face wiped right off as though it were Crayola Washables. Not so much for his arms... Haha!

My little Valentine

Isn't he way too grown up to be MY son?? Isaac had a lot of fun with his Valentine's party at school today. They did some etiquette stuff so they wanted them to wear their best dress (with red accents of course). So I slicked his hair to the side and dressed him up. I couldn't believe how grown up he looked. I love this boy.



So he took my picture too. I had to squat to avoid the "looking up the nose" shot that I usually get from my kids. This is the only red shirt I own, so I wore it two days in a row. :)

Dawson's Valentine

Dawson is extremely proud of his valentines. I can't take the credit for this idea, my sister in law gave me the idea. But I took the picture, designed it, printed it, cut the slot on his hand and stuck the lollipop in it, doesn't that count for something? Okay, the truth be told, I'm pretty proud of his valentines too. There, I said it...... and Happy Valentine's to you too. :)

When I knew it all

Today I was getting the kids ready for school. I handed Dawson his socks and told them to put them on. I walked away and came back to a struggling child who had one sock half way on. Frustrated, I grabbed the socks, and had his socks and shoes on in 2 seconds flat. I wondered how he was going to put his own socks on after swimming today at preschool. Then I had a flashback..........

The year was 2005 and twice a week I carted my little 9 month old boy to the Sports Academy preschool to teach tumbling. This job brought in a measly $100 a month, so really it was a hobby, and I really enjoyed these little preschoolers. At the end of the tumbling class, we would have to help kids put their socks and shoes on. "I can't put my socks on." I would hear in a whiny voice. "Yes you can." I would say, and the very same scenario would take place, just as it did this morning.

The thing was, I knew it all then. I would roll my eyes and think about those lazy parents that never taught their kids independence. I knew everything about parenting, because none of my theories had been proven wrong yet.

I really don't think there are very many moms who teach independence better than me. There are a lot of things in motherhood I don't do very well, but I am an extremely independent person and like my children to be independent too. But try as I may to teach Dawson independence, he still wants me to put his socks on him, and shoes, and he'd really like me to wipe him when he goes to the bathroom too, but I refuse. So I've raised one of those whiny kids who say, "I can't put my socks on." and I now understand that those parents may not have been as lazy as I thought they were.

It was nice back in those days to know everything. I wish I still knew everything. But there is good news. I know EVERYTHING about raising teenagers. And I'm going to enjoy that as long as I can. Until my theories are blown to smithereens and I look back and long for these days.

I AM excited about having all these teenage boys. I have frequently been told that teenage boys spoil their moms, and I look forward to that. And I just think they will be funny too. I'm going to have to work full time just to afford the milk, bread, and pizza they'll eat though.

Did I ever mention I love these boys?