Welcome 2009

Another year is upon us. For those of us on Guam, we rang the new year in last night. OK,not me, I was asleep at 10 but...

We sat down with the kids and talked to them about changes that we wanted to make in our home. So after telling them what a resolution is, they were ready to help. I love getting the kids opinions on things. It always makes me laugh. So here they are, the Turner Family 2009 resolutions...

**Eat healthier by eating at least 5 fruits/vegi's a day, limit sugar intake to one treat a day, only 45 min. of video games a day

**Family prayer and scriptures every night as a family, no matter what

**House picked up every night before we go to bed

** Save money by not wasting food, only buy things we need ( the kids weren't that excited about this one as they realized we didn't need Bubble Yum, pokemon cards, Webkinz, etc) only eat out once every pay period ( the kids asked what a pay period was) finishing the food we take, be responsible for our belongings

** Exercise More

I think we did a pretty good job. Wish us luck!

Life at the Turners

Oh my heart. Morning sickness has literally knocked me off of my feet. I wake up STARVING, but then after eating (so far it really hasn't mattered what it is) makes me so sick that I am laying down. Then I will start to feel better, only to get dizzy and sick and lay back down. I will force myself to do laundry or dishes or something, only to find myself, guess where? Back on the couch. I have had some good days, but unfortunatley I tend to get as much stuff done as I can, and by the evening am so worn out that I fall asleep...on the couch. Can you guess who my new best friend is? I am starting to feel a little like a hermit. I only get out when it is absolutely necessary. And even then, like at the NEX yesterday, I feel so sick before I get anything done, so I make no eye contact with anyone and just try to get through the store without throwing up in the aisle. Lovely. I forgot how bad morning sickness can really be. I forgot how much being preggo can take out of you. I forgot what it is like to take care of a baby on the inside, and 4 others on the outside. OK so this is the only time I have had 4 on the outside but you know what I mean!

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I have deep, deep concerns over the next couple of months. Why? Well the 3 olders have all been enrolled in basketball. So at this moment in time, this is what our weekly schedule looks like. Mondays- Cub Scout leader meetings and Girl Scouts. Tuesdays: basketball practice and than Harm and Ben are at the church for meetings and Achievement Days, Wednesdays: my cub scout den meetings Thursdays: Connor's cub scouts, basketball practice Friday: Family night, but also pack meetings,and other things scheduled for those days ( b-day parties, etc) Saturdays:basketball games and also the taking care of the home Sundays: There has been a rumor that I will have a new calling soon. Which means more work for me. Does that scare you? It does me!

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I have had a few people ask some baby questions so here is the 411 on that...I am a little over 2 months now. I am hoping and praying that the morning sickness will be gone by the end of next month (everyone feel free to pray for me also). I go in on the 9th to have my first ultra sound. Just to hear the heart beat and measure. I am looking forward to it very much. When the time comes, I will be finding out. I mean come on, I want to go shopping for a new baby!:) So far the vote is 6/6 in favor of having a girl. However, we will take what we get. I used the Chinese birth chart and it showed us having a boy. However when we plugged the info in for the other kids, it was wrong. So who knows right? We have a girl named all planned but no boy names. If it is a boy we will probably let the kids pick, although we may end up with Annakin or Indiana. :)

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In March, we will be meeting my parents in Hawaii!! I can't wait. I am excited to take the kids this time, even though it means a lot more work! I am anxious to see my parents. It will be so wonderful.

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And Ben surprised me with an early birthday gift. I know, really early. I haven't told anyone yet but...I get to go home!! The baby and I will be coming home for 2 weeks. He is going to pay for a commercial flight so that I can just get straight there and back. No trying to hop on Space A flights. I am looking forward to it. He will have the kids for 2 weeks on his own. I asked him if he wanted me to go in the summer so he doesn't have to worry about homework, GS, church activities, CS etc. But he said he would rather do that than try to entertain them all day every day!

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I know this post is getting way long but...Christmas was a crazy day for us. The kids were up at 6:03. We had to wake Ivan up to come down. He wasn't as excited as the older kids. They were of course spoiled rotten. The older kids just played with their toys. We had a little bit of crankiness but not too bad.

However this was the first Christmas that Ivan really knew what was going on. And let me tell you, he had a hard time with it. First of all, he was way tired. Second it was sensory overload. Third, kids with autism tend to hyper-focus on things. So he opened one of his gifts and didn't want anything else. It was a Lego set. Of course he wanted ben to put it together right that minute. Forget the fact that he had a pile of presents left to be opened. Forget the fact, that their were still presents under the tree waiting to be handed out. He would also hyper-focus onto the boys toys. Making it frustrating for them and for us. He had a rough time. Ben and I were trying to be patient on very little sleep, but didn't always work. I had been feeling bad that he has never had a friend birthday party, but now I don't. I don't plan on doing one for a while either. It's just too much for him. He fell asleep cuddled up with me that night. What can we say? It was a long day!

And there you go. The novel that is the happenings at our house.

Christmas-kind of

The past two days have left me feeling extremely nauseaus and tired. I guess I have had a little too much holiday. So I will update you all on our comings and goings when I feel better. But here is my favorite picture of my cutie-tooties on Christmas Eve in their new pj's.

Shout out

To my Dad, and Grandpa "Candy" as the kids like to call him, we just want to say:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO THE MOST INCREDIBLE FATHER
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

WE LOVE YOU

...considering that her family's Christmas gifts are sitting by the door, I don't think a birthday card is going to get out any time soon. So instead I would just like to say:

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ONE OF THE BEST SISTERS ON THE PLANET

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! Love you lots!

We love you guys and hope you have a great day!

Raingutter Regatta

Last night, the boys had their monthly pack meeting for Cub Scouts. However, this month they got to do their Raingutter Regatta. In case you have not been privelaged to be a part of this, it is where the boys make boats out of balsa wood(?). Then they race their boats in a raingutter by blowing it with a straw. It is a fierce competition, let me tell you!

Did our boys win? Well, no. But they had fun. And that is all that matters right? Ethan's boat was named "the Mayflower" and Connor's was "the Red Rocket". Ben only had 2 colors of spray paint, so they were very Christmas-y boats. They were cute cheering each other on. My favorite part was at the end of each heat, where the boys would all breathe heavy as if they had just run a marathon.:)

So that is it for our social engagements for a while!

Holiday lights, parties & rice krispie houses

We had a totally relaxing week, last week. It was amazing. We did get out and do a few things though. Being sick all the time, has made me kind of feel like a hermit. So it was nice to get out!

Friday night Connor was supposed to have a "Go See It" with his Cub scout den. However, they moved it to Saturday. So because of our Branch Christmas party, he wouldn't be able to go. We could go as a family though and he could still get credit.

After dinner at the kids favorite place, Naps ( they seriously love it there), we headed down to the Hilton. They have a huge train set up and a nice tree and decorations. The kids loved watching the train. Ivan had his eye set on one train and raced around trying to keep up with that one specific train! This little trip prompted lots of comments and questions about, whether or not we would ever see snow again.

Saturday evening was our Christmas party for church. I had not been feeling well all day, and actually planned to skip it. But when Ben said he wouldn't take pictures of the kids with Santa, I went anyway. The kids were very cute singing their songs. Well Connor never sings, but at least he doesn't cause any problems either!:) Santa unfortunatley, could not attend this year. (The rumor was the costume couldn't be found)and so my whole reason for going was a mute point. Oh well. We had a nice time chatting with friends and eating good food!

Yesterday I told the kids if they would just let me take a nap ( this was after about 5 requests) I would let them make Rice Krispie houses. We found a little kit at the commissary and I thought it sounded a lot easier than gingerbread houses! So they had a good time making those. The box said it only made one house, but we got 3 with some leftover.

Tonight is the Rain Gutter Regatta for the boys. After that we will just be doing a lot of baking, wrapping, watching Christmas movies, and just enjoying each other and the season!

How many days left?

(Ivan's gingerbread house, "just like Ethan's mommy!")
( He did a good job, didn't he?)
(munching popcorn and watching the Muppets Christmas movie. Nice face from Harm!)
( Can you believe that made it home on the bus? In one piece?)
It seems like the closer it gets to Christmas, the wilder my kids get. You would think that with the threat of Santa handing out coal instead of gifts, might calm them down but, it hasn't yet. It's been a nice quiet week here with the majority of events and activities canceled. However the kids have been busy. I realize lately I have mostly been talking about "our little raspberry" so here is what the other munchkins are up too...

Harmony came to me bright and early Tuesday morning, saying she was throwing up. I honestly love this age when they just come tell you, not because you have to clean it up, but just for your info! She stayed home all day Tuesday and barely got out of bed, with a fever all day. Wednesday was the day of the 4th/5th grade choir concert that she had been practicing for. She insisted that she was fine and wanted to go to school. I told her ok. I sent the kids out to get in the car, while I grabbed something. I come out to find Harmony on her knees in the grass. I asked her what she was doing and she said she was going to throw up. I sent her back to her room. She was so bummed about missing the concert. She does feel a lot better now though!

Ethan has been kind of a stink lately. I swear my kids take turns with who is going to act up in which week. Although the boys would have a tie this week. Yesterday Ethan decided to give Harmony's scooter away, to a girl in the neighborhood. I told him to go and get it back. He comes back in with, "well she said she would give it back if I gave her a popsicle." Hmmm, it was funny because when I went out there, she dropped the scooter and ran! She wasn't so tough after all.

Connor has been driving me nuts. He has been refusing to get up and get ready for school. It is literally 5 minutes before the bus comes and I am putting his shoes on, getting his lunch bag in his backpack and pushing him out the door. Ben was tired of it the other day, so he picked Connor up and got him out of bed. He told him to get his uniform on, and then Ben headed for the shower. And what did Connor do? Got right back into bed. He is really testing his limits right now. He has been sent to bed early almost every night this week!

Ivan has been pretty good lately. Apparently it is not his turn in the rotation yet. He is actually getting really excited about Santa and it is so cute. His teacher gave him a gift and he had to hold it until he could put it under the tree. Suprisingly enough, he didn't even try to open it!

Well I have a ton to do but there is just a little glimpse of what we have been up too!

Guilt trip

Ben is trying to make me feel guilty. It is 9:09 on Sunday morning, and I am sitting in front of the computer in my pj's. I am not attending church today. You heard me. I am not.And know matter how guilty Ben tries to make me feel, the fact is that I am EXAUSGHTED. Let me run through my day with you yesterday...

6:30 get up, take shower get ready for the day

7:00(ish) eat breakfast
7:01(ish) get so nauseaus that I go lay down until 8
8:30 hurry down to rec-n-crew to pick up a bounce house for the primary party
bring that up to the church, but no one was there yet
*Go home for a little bit and kids ready
*Go up to the church by myself to drop off bounce house
*Go back down and pick up my kids and head back up to the church
*stay at the church and try to help as much as I can
*around 10:30 Ben and I go pick up 40 containers of cotton candy from Party World
*Go back to the church and help out as much as we can
*Eat pizza Hut for lunch and feel like it is all going to come back up
*sit on the sidelines of said party until almost the very end
*pack up the kids and bring them home
*go back up to the church to get bounce house
*smash your head on the inside of the van, cutting the top of your head with sunglasses, do not say a bad word because you are at church
*go to a very packed NEX to buy nylons and get cash back to pay for bouncy house
*go back to rec-n-crew to pay for bounce house and drop it off
*hurry home ( by now it is 3:30ish)
*try to help Ben find his belt
*get ready for the Christmas party
*about 5:20 (20 minutes late) get the kids in the car
*drive out to our friends house and drop kids off
*get to wardroom Christmas party around 6:30 ( feet are killing me)
* stay and eat, almost throwing up dinner, suck down a lot of water ( which water was not on tap, however beer was)
* Ben wins me a gift card, woo hoo
* At around 9:30 when way to many drinks had been served by then, we check out
* Ben takes me to Wendy's for a frosty...and a jr. bacon cheeseburger
*get home, and try to relax
*11 still awake watching Chronicles of Narnia (even though yes I have seen it)
* wake up at 3, 4, 6 to go to the bathroom
*8 am "Marie you need to get up so that someone is downstairs when the kids get dropped off "( note the someone did not include him)

So that is why I am going to take this day off. No guilt trip required!

baby picture

So according to the Bible of pregnancy books, What to Expect when you are Expecting, the baby right now is the size of a raspberry. And so I wonder, how can something so small...

**make me cry at every sappy show/commerical/movie on tv?

**make me so sick it nearly knocks me off my feet?

** Makes me want to sleep, sleep and sleep some more?

**Makes certain areas soooo sore?

** keeps me up until 1 am and won't let me fall to sleep?

**make me so thirsty?

**make me want to go and buy cute little baby stuff ( maybe that's just me?!)

**make Ivan look sooo huge, where did my baby go?

Ahhh the joys of pregnancy. We are excited about our little raspberry, but there are things that I can definatley do without! While I am not a night person, apparently the baby is. I have been up past 1am every night, tossing and turning. Then I have to get up early to get the kiddos ready for school. Just a little tired, so if you don't hear from me in a while, you know why!

muffins & a Christmas tree

The other morning I made poppy seed muffins. Connor came up to me and said, "Mom I just love Popeye muffins." I looked at him and than couldn't help but crack up. He looked at me and said, " that is what they are called is it?" Not quite...popeye muffins. Too funny.

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And here are the pictures of the kids decorating the tree. The "theme" of our tree is, "let the kids put ornaments wherever". At this stage in our/their lives, it works for us! We always put the tree up the day after Thanksgiving. I had gone Black Friday shopping and felt completely awful by the time we were going to decorate. So I had the kids do it while I took pictures. They had fun. They have hung around the tree, every day since it was put up. We do have some gifts under there now. So they spend a lot of time there. I just love watching my kids experience the magic of the holidays!

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And last but not least, this is my 800th post! Holy cow!January marks 3 years. That is a lot of our life recorded!

sigh

Why do I do this to myself? Seriously. Every time I am pregnant, I get this feeling like I have to "prove" that I can handle having another child. The house has to be spotless, homemade dinners, organized, calm, collected. I also do this after the child is born. After Ivan was born, a friend called to ask me what time would be nice to drop dinner off, when she asked what I was doing, I said dishes. There was a long pause, and she told me to put them down and go lay down. The dishes could wait. But I didn't want anyone to drop food off to me in a messy house. Heaven Forbid.

So I feel bad that I am not handling everything I need to handle, but hello, walking down the stairs gets me nauseaous!I was up 3 times last night going to the bathroom. I had my first ever migraine yesterday(never want to go through that AGAIN) and couldn't even bend over without having a nice sharp pain go to the side of my head. Ahhh lovely.

I am givng myself permission to take it a little easier today. My house is a mess. I have piles and piles of laundry to wash, dishes are lining my counters. My bed is not made, the playroom had a hurricane go through it (at least I am pretty sure that is what happened)and you know what I am going to do? Clean? Just work through the nausea? No, no, no, no!

I am going to eat lunch, and then Ivan and I will be taking a nap. The dishes can wait right?

2 cute 2 pass up

Here is a "kid tag". Ask your kids the following questions. You can not encourage any answers! Here we go...

What does Mom always say to you?
H: Have I ever told you that you are really cute?
E: I am cute
C: I am cute
I: I love Ivan

What makes Mom happy?
H: good grades
E: being good
C: kisses
I: me

What makes Mom sad?
H: When I do bad things.
E:when I don't help clean up
C: fighting
I: me

How does Mom make you laugh?
HEC: tickling
I:you

How old is Mom?
H:30
E:29
C:26
I:10

How tall is Mom?
H: 3ft
E:6 ft
C:6ft
I: Daddy

What does Mom like to do?
H: scrapbook
E: scrapbook
C: clean and take naps
I: no answer on that one

What is Mom's job?
H: to raise us to be adults
E:to keep us safe
C: to clean
I: kids room

What is Mom's favorite food?
H: breakfast for dinner
E: salads
C:pizza
I: grapes

How do you know Mom loves you?
H: She lets me have a home
E:for caring about me
C: Because we do good things sometimes
I: you like me

Too cute. So I tag any/everyone who has kids who can speak! It's cute to hear their responses! :)

never a dull moment

At our house, there is always something going on. I swear. I don't know how my kids come up with the things they do but...I will just blame it on Ben! :)

Last night, the three older kids wanted to go across the street and play at the park. Their homework was done along with their afterschool jobs. So I said ok. Connor however, snuck over there with out doing his homework. I called him back and made him come in. So I helped with his homework and he helped me make cookies. Good trade on his part don't yah think?

Ben comes home from work and says, " do you know where your kids are?" Me:" Uhm I am assuming not at the park like they had said?" Turns out, that one of the contractors working on the house next door ( the Varney's old one)had left the door open. So a bunch of kids fromt he neighborhood, including my 2 oldest, were in there playing. There were probably around 8 or 9 kids. Ben caught Ethan coming out and Ethan said, " I know I know, I am going straight to my room!"

So they are now in huge trouble. We talked to them about breaking and entering, trespassing on private property, not being where they said they would be, lying, not being a good example to the younger kids (Harmony) and all sorts of sins that they had committed! They are grounded from just about everything for a very long time. So I hope they learn their lesson!

Speaking of lessons, I think that Ivan has learned his about using the microwave. One night, he decided that he wanted chicken nuggets. Did he ask me for some? Not so much. I was upstairs and started to smell something awful. I run downstairs and it is completely filled with smoke. I am serious. The whole downstairs was black. I run to the microwave, where Ivan is standing on a chair. I open it and smoke comes pouring out. It had been set for 98 minutes! "Mommy, I want chicken nuggets." I start yelling at him to go sit on his bed because he almost burned the house down. ( Completely ignoring the fact that we have concrete walls, of course). Now whenever someone uses the microwave, Ivan will say, " be careful, you burn the house down!" The picture with the green plate shows his nice black nuggets.

Ivan has decided that every day, on the way home from school, he needs a Happy meal. On the way to school, the back gate is open, so we don't have to drive by it. But that gate is closed in the afternoons, so we get to drive past McD's every.single.day So every single day, he kicks my seat and screams his head off from the moment we pass McD's all the way home. Today, he was so mad at me ( which he let me know a few times) that he slipped out of his seatbelt! So I got to pull over, put his seatbelt back on, and talk to him about his choices. Yeah it resumed as soon as I got back in. He is a sweet boy. Truly.

In case you are feeling like an unfit parent, you can just look at us and feel soooo much better about how you are doing!

fyi

Just to let everyone know, that after months now, Harmony has updated her blog. In case you don't have the address it is http://harmonysgazette.blogspot.com I am sure she would love for you to check it out and leave comments! :)

the baby 411

So I honestly did not intend to leave people in the dark about our baby situation. The facts are that 1) I have not felt well at all and 2) my sister just adopted and I didn't want to rain on her parade! :) But here is the scoop for all the interested parties....

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Men feel free to skip through this! :)

So we had been toying with the issue of whether or not we wanted to have another child. To be honest, we have been toying with it for over a year ( if not more!). We prayed and finally decided to put it in the Lord's hands. And so we stopped using any form of birth control.

Well in the middle of October, I really wasn't feeling well. Car trips made me sick, I was constantly getting sick from different foods. So I thought that I might be preggo. I took a test and it was negative. Then we were talking about timing, and how we wanted to be able to go home over the summer. When you fly on a military flight, there is a rule about being preggo and infants. They won't fly you when you are within 6 weeks of your due date and then 6 weeks after the baby is born.

We were thinking about the timing of all that, and so we were kind of half hearted about trying. Sometimes using birth control sometimes not. I ended up getting my period at the end of October. I talked to a friend of mine, who is a nurse, and she was saying that sometimes you can get it while your pregnant. So I was feeling a little unsure.

Fast forward and I have been absolutely exaughsted. Taking long naps and than still crashing at like 8 at night. It was hard to get my head off the pillow. Then came the nausea. I decided to take a test. Ben thinks that pregnancy tests are a waste of money, so I just didn't tell him. lol

I bought a 2 pack and figured I would save one for later. The first one I took was invalid. The control window didn't have anything in it. So the next morning, I took the other one while Ben was at PT. I was shocked but happy.

Because of the Thanksgiving weekend I wasn't able to make an appt. with my doctor. So I have to go in and do a pregnancy test at the clinic, then from there I get my first appt. and so on and so forth. However, according to our calculations, we are looking at July.

The kiddos are so excited. Ecspecially Ethan. He keeps telling me the cutest things. I was frustrated yesterday because the kids have been fighting everything I say. Like, " Can I go to the park Mom?" "No, not right now." "But, please so and so got too and I did my homework and it's not fair that I can't go." Things like that. So I sat them all down and told them that it was disrespectful to me when they did that. Ethan pipes up with, " yeah and it's disrespectful to the baby!"

Although Ben says "Marie is just fine". I have been having issues. Feeling light headed and dizzy vs. nausea. So I am going to get my blood sugar checked and make sure everythng is ok with that. I am extremely tired and do have my moments of nausea. I am hoping it will go away soon.

So anyway, that's our story. I will keep you posted on everything!

only fair

Ooops! I neglected to do this for Harmony. I did it for the boys, so it is only fair. Or so she tells me! :)

Harmony is running out of time to sell Girl Scout Cookies. ( All totals have to be in on Sunday). Money is not due until cookies are in, so if you would like to order some, please do! If you are not interested in the cookies but would just like to donate $$ to go towards her troop, that is great too. Just let me know how much and we can do it in your name.

If you are local, let me know and we will bring the form to church, or by your house. Thanks for your support!

So very thankful

Today I am feeling more thankful than ever.

So thankful for them.

So thankful for him.

Thankful for the new life that is growing inside of me.

Thankful to be a new Aunt! ( Jensen family we love you and are so happy!)

Thankful to have friends and family.

Thankful to have a home, food to eat, clothes to wear.

Thankful for the Gospel.

Thankful for the life I lead.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Drive for five

hungry all the time + nausea all day + feeling insanely tired +mood swings =

Relaxing....

Whew! After some PRETTY busy times, this week has slowed considerably. Yay! We have a bbq tonight, Thursday well duh, and Friday, I will be at the nex around 5am. That is it. That is all that is on our schedule. So today, I was so excited to just relax. Nothing pressing to do. I fell alseep on the couch for 2 hours while Ivan played his video games. And let me tell you, it was delightful!

I have a ton of photos to upload, and lots of other stuff. But first I wanted to share Ethan's homework assignment with you. He had to list 20 things he is thankful for that do not need a cord or batteries to operate. So here is his list...

Astro
legos
the world
My Mom
God
My teachers
my familia (Yes he did write it like that)
friends
the school
the ocean
the soler system
land
fish
America
food
water
rain
books
pencils
trees

I am not sure if this is in any random order but I am not sure how I feel coming in after Astro and legos....

stop the madness!!!

Agenda for today...

Hurry my bum up and get down to the scout store to buy my son his scout shirt. Why didn't I buy it YESTERDAY when I was already there? Oh because I thought I bought it weeks ago. Not so much.

Hurry to the commissary to buy food, to make dinner, for a friend who got out of surgery. While there also pick up food to make lunches for boys and Mom for tomorrow ( cub scout day camp).

Hurry to the NEX, or AAFES(Air Force exchange like store) see if I can print off cub scout pictures. Kodak kiosk at our nex broken. If they do not have one, hurry to K-Mart to use theirs. Also picking up extra sunscreen and a first aid kit to have on hand for tomorrow.

Come home and drop 2 scout shirts off at my friends house so that she can put all patches on.

Hurry home and do a mad cleaning dash of our home.

Bake cookies to take to friends home.

Go pick up friends kids from school and take them home with me, until their Mom/Dad get off work.

Make Harmony and friend do my cub scout poster using pictures, adhesive runners, and markers.

Babysitter comes at 5 for Ivan. Give him instructions and leave the house with...
**dinner for friends family
**canned good for Salvation Army canned food drive
**fishing stuff to donate for Operation Christmas drop
**den flag
**bird house
**poster
**2 cub scout jokes for Ethan
** 2 boys so excited to be decked out in their uniforms

Drop dinner off. Do not stay and talk. Wish well and leave.

Go to community center. Set up the "Wolves Den" table.

Sit with my den and make sure that they behave. Hand out awards.

Help clean up and go home.

Try to get some sleep, because I have to be at day camp from 8:30-3:30 the next day. 6 scouts, all day in the sun, shooting bb guns and bow and arrows.

My boys will appreciate it some day right?

a break

(Grrr, I tried flipping this photo the right way about 10 times. You are just stuck with it this way, sorry!


What a life we lead. Busy, busy, busy. Constantly going. This Saturday I left my military ID at a store about 30 minutes away. 4 trips later, I had it back, and had also wasted about 2 hours of my busy day. Today I was given checks so that I can place an order for cookbooks. As I was gathering up my book order stuff, I thought I had everything and left. I get home and empty my pockets....book order forms, cell phone, keys....hmmm no checks. I cry. I freak out. I hurry back to the school. I ask at the front office. I check the hall and go back into the PTO room. While in there, I realized I had put them in my BACK pocket. I had them the whole time. Harmony is having a hard time right now. I am not exactly sure of what all is happening but I know that I need to take care of it/her. We decided to have a journal that we share. Where she lets me know what is going on and I write back. So what do all of these ramblings lead too? I am taking a "media break". I won't be blogging,or facebooking, for awhile. I will only be answering emails that I HAVE to respond too. Limiting myself to 30 min. in the morning ( when the kids are not awake) and 30 in the evening ( when the kids are in bed). I know I will be missed but I owe it to my family and to myself. Much love

Oh and before I take this break, I need to make a shout out! Happy 1 year anniversary (of her 29th birthday) to my wonderful friend Beth. She has been such a good friend to me. She is funny, patient, kind, just a wonderful person. If you don't know her, you are missing out. I can say that I am one of the lucky ones who calls her my friend! So HAPPY ANNIVERSARY BETH!

Christmas list

I was driving with the kids the other day, when I brought up the subject of what they wanted to get their Dad for Christmas. This is how it went...

E: "How about black socks?"
Me:" Well he actually has a lot of black socks."
E: "OK, how about white ones then?"
Me:" Hmmmm, well socks aren't that exciting. Can you think of something that isn't socks?
E: "How about an I Love Guam shirt."
me:" I am not sure Daddy loves Guam."
C:" How about an xbox 360?"
me: "Well he already has a PS3, a psp, and an ipod. So I don't think he needs another video game system."
E:" Well what if all those go out at the same time?"
Me:" they won't."
E:" Well what if they do?"
Me:" They won't."
C:" OK how about a guitar?"
Me:" You mean like guitar hero?"
C:" No just a regular guitar."
Me: " Ok well your Dad doesn't actually know how to play a guitar."
C: " That's ok he can just learn."
Me:" You know what, we will just worry about it later."

So many good ideas, it's hard to choose! :)

Veterans Day

To all those who went before


To all of those who serve today


THANK YOU

Where do I even begin?

(the end result, isn't that a nice face)

(about to get all cleaned up)

(car ride to the hospital, look at his gash!)



(Harmony's GS troop before Hairspray started)

(whee!)

( standing very still!)

(Maries cute little Wolf den)

Whew. I just realized it had been awhile since I uploaded my pictures. I guess it is because I have had a busy week. So here is the rundown...(btw sorry the pics are in the wrong order)

On only one try, Harmony learned how to ride her bike! We are very excited for her!
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Last Thursday, Ben helped me do cub scouts. The boys had to participate in an outdoor flag ceremony. It was cute to watch these boys stand still and really show respect to the flag. They stood still for the whole thing. This is my den with a couple of extra siblings in there!

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Friday night Harmony and I headed out to see Hairspray. From what I understand, the actors were from the surrounding high schools. We went with Harmony's GS troop. I was wondering what kind of performance it would be, seeing that we were on Guam. It was fabulous! They did a great job! Harmony loved watching it. We asked the girls how they liked it and they said, " Link Larkin was soooo cute." (In the movie, he is the character played by Zac Efron). Harmony has been talking about it ever since though! We are going to buy the whole soundtrack now!

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And that leads us today. It is non-stop action at the Turner home let me tell you! We had our 2nd annual Fall Festival with Ben's command today. As Ben and I were chit-chatting with people, the kids were busy climbing on rocks. A little bit later, Ben brings me a bleeding Ivan. He had blood on his hands but at first didn't see where the actual cut was. Then he lifted his chin. A huge( in Mom's eyes)jagged gash on his chin. It was still bleeding. I wasn't sure whether to take him up to the ER or not. Luckily we have women in the spouse club who have medical training and they encouraged me to take him up. So we dropped the older kids off at home with a babysitter, and headed out to the ER. Ivan did pretty well! They cleaned him off and at first decided to put a stitch in. After it was all clean, they said that it would not be easy to give him the numbing shot, so it was up to us whether or not we wanted it. We decided to just go with the butterfly bandages. What are they called again? Anyway, he ended up with a nice big bandage on his chin and a box of legos from Dad for being so brave.

What can I say? There is never a dull moment around here!