Happy Birthday to ME!

I had a really nice birthday on Monday ... I got to sleep in, then I went to a friend's house for lunch. A second friend was there for lunch as well, and then two more dropped in!! It was very nice. I got balloons (I'm not sure I've ever gotten a bouquet of balloons before! Or, if I have, it has been a long time.), and cupcakes (so I didn't have to cook my own cake!). I also got another latern to add to my growing collection...

And, my friend whose house I had lunch at, has a vinyl lettering machine ~ she helped me design and make this sign... I LOVE it!! It's perfect for our guest room and house in general... anyone is welcome to stay ... but you have been forwarned!

One of the BEST things I got ... was this coffee table ...

I've been looking at it in the little antique store on base for quite a while ... I almost bought it myself after Christmas. My sneaky husband bought it, had it stored at a friend's house, snuck it in the night before my birthday, and had it all set up in the morning when I came downstairs!! It was a wonderful surprise! I discovered that it is a dough table (which I've been wanting ...) ...it's a little short for a dough table, but I LOVE it as a coffee table ... so much fun!

I was very spoiled this year, with new books to read, lots of fun email birthday wishes, treats from my kids, and even an itunes card ... what more can a girl want? HAPPY BIRTHDAY to ME!!

My teenager said the cutest thing!!

How often can you say that? It's not that often that teenagers say much that we want to repeat ... but, Devin has been especially fun lately (must be trying to get something from his parents) ... We were driving down to Stake Conference this past weekend and he said, "Can our next car be a mini van, like before we get a truck or something?" WHAT?! "Can our next car be a mini van?" That is definitely NOT something you hear from teenagers!! They are WAY too consumed with how things look, and it is SO not cool to ride around in a mini van ... I guess we have traveled too much in our styling BMW station wagon ... It is a rather cramped back seat, especially for 3 growing children ... But, wasn't that cute?!

Happy Birthday Valerie!

My friend Valerie had a birthday this past weekend ... Some friends and I, decided to have a little birthday lunch for her on Friday. Since I have a little bigger kitchen (by German standards), and plenty of room to wander around, we had it here ... Well ... most of Valerie's close friends still have one or two toddlers at home ... No Problem! Spencer has a TV and VCR in his room, and lots of legos, etc. The kids can all play there .. Did I mention, about 8 or so toddlers?... Anyway - first obstacle... the sandbox - oh, I mean litterbox! So, we moved that in the the little closed foyer/vestibule area by the front door. Next obstacle, the front door - being German, no handle ... just push to open! Not a good combo for toddlers and a busy street right out the front door. So, lock the front door from inside- no problem. Then, the foyer seems like a good place to play. Afterall, the litterbox is now there .. and there are tennis rackets, etc. No problem, just put the bench in front of the glass door and no kids can go in there... Okay.. oh, yeah... the back doors to the patio are easy to open and escape from .. Just put the roladins (I'm sure I spelled that wrong- basically metal shades on the outside of windows and door that come all the way down and close completely) down ... There. Okay, movie on the downstairs TV for littler ones... movie in Spencer's room for those a little bigger... Oh, and here is the potty at the end of the hall if anyone needs it ....

Did I mention the lovely locks and keys for German inside doors? They really are kinda cool looking... When we first moved in, none of the bathroom doors had keys to them... In fact, only Darren's office door, the master bedroom door, and one other door that we had taken down had keys ... Well, that is just not very functional for a family of 5 sharing a bathroom to shower in .. So, I just switched the locks of the door we weren't using .. WhaLa! Bathroom door with a key ....

What do these innocent looking items have in common? (excuse the sideways picture, I thought I fixed it ..) Well, that is the key to the bathroom door, the airfreshner for the bathroom, and the soap for the bathroom. All sitting on the stand by the bathroom window (hence, lacey curtains behind them) ... innocent enough... Well ... so are toddlers ....

So, the party is going along just fine ... Everyone enjoyed lunch...no screaming, fighting, or disasters ... It's almost time to cut the cake ... I think I will go upstairs and see how the group in Spencer's room is doing ... Hmm... the bathroom door is locked... knock, knock - no answer... continue on to Spencer's room - all looks good there... back to the bathroom door... knock, knock... (giggles) ... hmmm.... let's look through the key hole...

Here's the key hole ... if you look carefully, you can see the tile wall of the bathroom, and just make out a little of the window frame with lace curtains ... OR ... if you were me... you would have seen a little boy with a cowboy gun, and a little girl (pump, pump) washing hands! I swear I just saw their moms downstairs .... Sure enough, that is where the moms were ... So, up the stairs they come with me, to try and coax the kids to either turn the key, or take it out and slide it under the door ... Lots of, "turn the key", "it's time for cake, don't you want some?", "take the key out and give it to mommy" ... and Lots of, (pump, pump)(giggle, giggle)... I have to admit here, that the giggles were not just from the other side of the door. Now that my kids are older, I find these situations kinda funny. After at least an hour (probably only 5 minutes), I had the outside of the lock off and was able to push the key through with a screw driver. The little culprits passed the key under the door, and began to wimper. I think they realized that the gig was up, and they were about to pay the piper. Anyway .... We got the door open... to a wave of STRONG air freshner, and soapy key and hands. But ... that was all the damage done!! No soap in anyone's eyes, nothing flushed in the toilet, no drawers gone through and dumped, no chemicals opened, no bath tub or sink with running water... We were blessed, indeed... and, I got my giggles in for the day! Gotta love other people's toddlers!!

What's the difference?

So... it's been a while since I was consistant on my exercise ... I haven't "run" on the treadmill (or anywhere else) since I left Las Vegas .. Darren has a room at his work that has 2 treadmills, some spin bikes, and a stair master. He works out every day. In fact, he has started training for a marathon (thanks Samantha!). He is registered to run in a midnight marathon in Norway in June (it will be sunny 24 hours a day in June that far north - right near the artic)... well... since I can't seem to get out of bed early to join my friends at the gym... and it's too hard to talk and really be motivated to "run" ... I have started going to work out with Darren during the day. The first thing I noticed about his treadmill was how S-L-O-W it is ... At the gym, I walk at a rate of 3.7, on his treamill that would be a saunter! I walk at 6.0 on his... Well, day 1 I walk for .5 and then run for .5, for the entire 45 minutes. So, I ran for about 2.5! I was so proud of myself. Day 2, same thing! AND, I wasn't even sore!! Starting to feel some in my shins, but doing okaky ... HAD to tell my friends how great I was doing... THEN ... Darren lets me know the BIG difference between his treadmill and the ones at the gym ... the ones at the gym are in MILES ... his is in KILOMETERS!!! So, what's the difference between miles and kilometers? A lot!! My "5 mile" walk/run, is really only 3.2!! so... my "2.5 mile run" is really only about 1.5 something!!

Oh, well ... at least I'm exercising again ...