I like watching the show, "Glee". Last week they did a version of "Dream On" by Aerosmith - it was soooooo GREAT! Neil Patrick Harris guest starred in this episode and specifically this song. It was awesome.

You have to see the episode, but here is a youtube clip of the audio only. I suggest going to hulu and just finding the scene in the middle of the episode and watching it - it was the coolest. I love this song. I have "Dream On" on my workout playlist, it rocks. You should see me do the high part while chugging away on the elyptical - hahahaha. Good stuff. Neil Patrick Harris does the high part in this clip. Check it.

I am contemplating chopping off my hair ... yet again. I do this about every 2 years and so here we go again. I'm on the hunt for something that will actually work for my face type, hair thickness, etc. So what do you think of the following styles I've found? I wonna hear your opinions, so bring it on!

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I hate mornings.

It is a deep rooted hatred that dates back to my infancy. I'm sure I cried in the mornings as an infant, but I KNOW my parents told me that I hated getting up every morning as a child. They told me that I seemed to have low blood sugar in the mornings and they would actually have to come to my bedside with a piece of toast and cram it into my complaining mouth as I awoke, in order to make mornings bearable for anyone in the house with me around. As a young married couple, mornings almost ruined our marriage. Right after we got married we moved into a BYU ward that started at ... wait for it .... 8:00 AM!!!! ... that is just so wrong. I'd like to say I overcame this personal obstacle, through prayer and a serious change of heart - but no. I hated it. Every Sunday morning at 7 am when Daniel tried to rouse me for church, it became an argument and a vice in our marriage.

The sad story continues to when I first had Noah. Mornings were aweful. I usually felt like killing myself after a night of no sleep, a crying baby and the light of day shining on my tired, ugly face. Ugh, just thinking about it almost brings tears to my eyes. And for some reason, both my boys have always been early risers. We have had to put a clock in Noah's room and told him he couldn't come out until the clock said 7:30, because he'd wake up at 5:30 am, 6 am or 6:27 am (like he did last week) and announce, "I'm awake now. The sun is up and I'm up Mommy!" My boys have not improved my feelings on mornings. And if you couldn't tell by the tone of my writing, it is the morning right now. And it has been aweful, just terrible.

Daniel is the sweetest husband anyone could ever ask for and yet, even Daniel cannot save me from the mornings. He tries though. This morning he set the boys up like he does every morning. Puts both boys on the couch in front of cartoons, with blankets and juice sippy cups in hand and waves goodbye. I heard the front door close at 7:44 am and at 7:45 am I heard Noah throw open the front door (it slammed against the front room closet door) and catapult out the door screaming, "daddy!!!! noooo!! I didn't get to say goodbye!!" (which he had ... I heard him say it. He was just being dramatic, weird, I don't know). I leapt out of bed and in all my underwear wearing glory ran to the doorway edge and yelled for him to get back inside the house. Noah was going for an oscar out in the middle of the driveway with arms raised heavenward and wailing like Daniel had just left us for another woman. I kept fiercely calling out to him, all the while gripping the doorway and trying to hide my half naked self from the neighbors. Noah came trudging inside wailing and gnashing his teeth .... it was ridiculous. I told him to get a hold of himself and that Daddy would come home later (I guess that was a little stretch - Daniel has school tonight and Noah won't see him until tomorrow morning).

Noah would not be consoled, so I gave up because I had absolutely no patience at 7:47 in the morning and walked back into my room and closed the door and went back to bed. I heard Liam start crying, because Noah was crying and the symphony of sadness went on like that for only a few minutes before everyone calmed down ... for about 10 minutes. Then I hear paper crinkling. Lots of paper crinkling and doors opening and closing ... not the front door, but still worrisome. I couldn't stay in bed and had to find out what the little squirrels were doing.

I came out to find Noah with an entire roll of wrapping paper beginning to wrap the ottoman and with scissors in his hands. I saw Liam in the office closet, who immediately closed the door and ran when he saw me, because he knows the office closet is off limits (it's full of scissors, glass, frames, tools, all the things every kid needs to practicaly kill himself). I stopped them both, asked them what the heck they thought they were doing, locked the office door so they couldn't get in and told them I'd deal with the rest later.

By now it was around 8 am, maybe a little after. Ten minutes later I hear Noah scream, "Mommy! Liam took the top off my juice cup!" ... ten minutes after that it was Liam rummaging through the cupboard under the bathroom sink .... ten minutes after that it was a variety of noises - something hard hitting the wall, several times. Some more paper crinkling. Noah yelling. Liam crying. The kitchen door opening and slamming shut. Liam laughing, Noah laughing then quickly - Liam crying and Noah yelling. More loud thumps on the ground, then on the wall, then on the settee. And I finally just got up, locked myself in the office and began typing through my anger. I hate mornings.

Why can't the day start at 10 am? Why can't everyone just stay unconcious, as a rule, until 10 or maybe even 11 am? That would be great. Yup. That would solve all my life's greatest problems I think. Let's all start doing that now.

Oh my gosh ... I just walked into the front room. The whole place looked like raccoons had ravaged it - toys, pillows, blankets, cups, paper, wrapping paper .... everywhere. The whole room smelled like a poopy diaper, thanks to Liam, both boys looked guilty in the face and Liam said, "eat!" as I entered ... good morning.

Happy Birthday Liam! You are two! Your birthday was pretty fun, I hope :)

You got to open one gift in the morning with Daddy and Noah - it was your plastic dump truck and you loved it and scooted it around the front room all morning (ok, maybe not all morning, but definaely for a few minutes). You got to sleep as long as you wanted on your birthday and you took a 4 1/2 hour nap! Way to go! Then the party really started once daddy got home.

While you were sleeping Noah decorated the kitchen with pictures stuck to the walls with stickers and your birthday banner was of course already up. When daddy got home he fired up the grill and we had hot dogs (as requested by YOU, "ot dogsh") and asparagus with balsamic vinegar - you loved it!

We did a "ball" theme with your banner and cake because of your affinity for balls ("ballsh"). So your birthday cake had bouncing balls all around it and on top of it. You didn't quite know how to blow out your candles, so you tried and then giggled, but it didn't work, so Noah gladly helped out :) After eating a ball cake and toffee ice cream we opened gifts. From Gammie and Uncle Ian you got: "mighty sleepy" jammies and a Lightening McQueen magnetic board book and a Bible book. From Mommy and Daddy you got a plastic set of armor and your dump truck. From Grandma and Grandpa you got clothes, jammies, a cool ball with water and more balls inside of it and a bubble machine ("bubb-oosh")!

We love you little Liam - happy birthday!




Noah's decorations




























listening to Clarks sing "happy birthday" over mommy's cell phone.








jammies from Gammie

I usually jot these down in the back of my journal, but I couldn't find my journal and didn't want to forget them. While on the phone with Christina, she says the funniest stuff. Tonight, while on the phone with Daniel she stopped talking to Daniel and said, "Ben and Rocco - stop barking at other peoples' dogs and come inside!"

Then a minute later she said, "Rocco! Did you pee in the front yard? You HAVE to stop doing that!"

yep.

What is it about rainy days that makes you want to just curl up in sweats all day, stay inside and watch "hope floats" ... is that just me?

Anyway, I have been working on two things this week that have kept my mind off the rain we've had all ... week ..... long. OK, first of all, I painted the office white. About 3/4 of the way through I called my sister Mina and freaked out. I feel like I've ruined the room - it looks a little like a mental hospital in there, but it's a work in progress and I have been looking around online for inspiration. I DO like the fact that it's brighter in there and it feels very fresh, but I've got to warm it up a bit with texture and some warm colors. Especially since all the furniture is black, yep, white insane assylum walls and black austere furniture - not so homey. Here's my inspiration, from Pottery Barn:



And the second thing is Liam's birthday - it's on Friday (tomorrow). Noah, Liam and I spent the morning making a birthday banner for Liam and I've been looking for inspiration for the cake. Liam doesn't seem to gravitate to any one toy, movie or character at all BUT ... he loves balls. So that's our theme for the mini party tomorrow. It's just going to be a small family party (i.e. Noah, Daniel and me) but a banner, cake and theme is essential, right?

I found out how to make "cake balls" on bakerella's site and will be doing that on top of a cake that hopefully resembles something like this:




Here goes nothing, hope it works :)

I love accomplishing things. It makes me feel good. If I can walk around the house at the end of the day and show Daniel all the physical things I did or made, I feel really good about myself. Today is not one of those days.

I have spent the majority of the day sitting on my settee(sp?) in my front room checking blogs, emailing, checking my favorite sites (like this house on apartmenttherapy.com) and warming up leftovers for me and the boys to eat all day. I have also talked to my sister Christina 4 times on the phone already, Bethany on the phone, Mina online, Eric online and my mom on the phone. Wait, Christina just called again, make it 5 times to Christina.

Every once in a while I get up and walk outside, then realize it's feezing outside (anything below 60 degrees is freezing in my book), even though it looks nice and sunny. Yet, I am fooled by the sunshine every hour and a 1/2 or so to wandering outside, freezing myself and walking back inside to sit on my settee some more.

I have been sick since Friday night and am still feeling pretty bad - congested, sinus headache, tired, achey, etc so I blame the sickness for my lazy nature today. But I think having a lazy day every once in a while is good for the soul, right? If not, it means I'm just lazy for no reason ...