fyi

If you are interested, my scrapbook site has been updated with some new layouts. You can click the link on my side bar, and then once you get to the site, click on my art.

fashion show videos

OK so these video's will never win any awards...they are shaky, you see the ground a lot, it's going the wrong direction etc. etc. But it's my girl and I think I should get credit for getting what I got! :)

edited I couldn't get one of the videos to load on youtube. I will try again later, but for now you get this one...

Trashy fashion show

( the whole troop)
( waiting ever so patiently in the hot, hot sun)


This Saturday I spent a very hot afternoon with Harmony. Her Girl Scout troop went to a celebration for Earth Day. The girls had been working on outfits that were made completely from recycled material. We walked around for awhile, and she stopped at many booths getting stamps on a passport, that was traded in later for a t-shirt. This kind of thing is right up Harm's alley as she loves science and animals.

The fashion show was really cute. Unfortunatley I didn't get very many pictures of it, and my video is very shaky.Why? Because I had to hold a squirming 3 year old while I did it. But I am going to post them anyway!

Harm said she was a little afraid of falling off the stage, because she wasn't wearing her glasses. She did fabulous though.

birthday boy

Ethan absolutely loves ice cream. One night he ate 5 scoops with chocolate and carmel and all kinds of stuff on it...and he begged Connor for the rest of his. Ben and I have often wondered how much he could eat if we never stopped/limited him!

Back in the states, Ethan's favorite place is Dairy Queen. Seeing as we don't have one here, he has had to "settle" for Coldstone Creamery. It is about a 20 minute or longer drive from here, so I try to take him when we are down there.

So the other night, we were talking about his upcoming birthday. He turns 7 on Monday!!! I can't believe it. But anyway, we had decided to take him to a hotel/resort here called the Pacific Islands Club ( or PIC) and spend the day at the water park there. I told him it would just be a family party but that we would have a lot of fun. He had this really sad look on his face and I asked him what was wrong. He frowned and said, " I wanted to go to Coldstone for my birthday!". I laughed so hard. So we are going to hit Coldstone before we check into the hotel. Funny, funny boy!

He also told me the other day that, " when I turn 7 I am going to stop driving you crazy!" I sure hope so buddy!

Why I never...

According to my kids, there are many things that I never do. Really important things too. Like...

** I never buy Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal

** I never let them have any fun

** I never buy toys

** I never take them out to get dinner

** I never play with them

** I never pack good lunches

** I never let them go anywhere fun

** I never buy the chocolate milk with the bunny on it

** I never make anything good for dinner

** I never make Harmony take the garbage out

** I never make Ethan pick up his socks

** I never make Connor help clean up the house

** I never buy good food at the store

** I never do anything right!!

standing for something

(Harmony with her girl scout leader)

Being a parent is tough. And one of the hardest things for me to deal with is seeing my kids be dissapointed. It breaks my heart. Two of the kids this week have been faced with obeying their parents/ and a commandment, and doing something they want to do. **If you are not LDS, we have a commandment about no activities on Sundays, it is a day to rest from the cares of the world and to focus on more spiritual things.**

On Monday, I went to pick Harmony up from Girl Scouts and she handed me a card with a dissapointed look on her face. Always the caring Mother, I asked what her problem was. She simply replied, "it's on Sunday." I looked at the card which was an invitation for a GS Bridging Ceremony. That is where they are rewarded with all the badges that they have recieved, kind of like a Court of Honor for boys. I told her I was sorry and that I would explain to her leader why she couldn't come. She just said, " don't bother. I already told her I am not allowed out on Sundays." ( Don't you love how kids phrase things?!)

So yesterday I was at the NEX ( where else I practically live there) where I saw her leader. We chatted for a moment and then I explained a little more as to why Harm wouldn't be able to attend. She was very sweet about it and didn't want to compromise our beliefs over it, and she would make sure that Harmony got all of her badges. ( Christy you are going to have a lot more patches to sew!)

It was a hard moment, because part of me just wanted to say, " Ok just this once." But I knew in my heart of hearts that I gave in once, it would be a lot easier to do it again. We stood our ground.(Not that anyone was making hard for us!)

Well last night,we took the kids out to dinner and a movie and I checked my email when we got home. There was an email from her leader, that she had changed the date so that Harmony could be there. I was floored! What an incredibly sweet thing to do. I told Harmony and she just about shed tears of joy, she was so excited.

I knew it was a teaching moment. As Connor if facing the missing of his very best friends birthday party on Sunday, I knew he needed to hear this lesson also. That when we stand up for our beliefs, people will respect us for it. I know that this will not always be the case. Not everyone is going to change their plans to meet our needs, but it did show my kids that when we stand up for our beliefs, "all things shall work together for your good."

I realize this week's posts have not been the lighthearted posts I usually do. But my life isn't always lighthearted. Unfortunatley.

prayer request

This morning, I woke up and did the same ol' same ol'. Get dressed, put contacts in, turn playhouse Disney on for Ivan,and check my email. Where I saw an email from my sister. My Mom is currently in the hospital. According to my Dad,he doesn't know if she is in pain or not because, " your Mom never complains." I realize that this is not terminal but I feel so helpless. I hate being so far away. Ben says I can go home if I need to. I don't know if I NEED to. I know I WANT too. I hate being so far away.

The whole purpose of this post, is if you can remember too, please keep my Mom in your prayers. Thanks everyone.

need help/advice

So...I am going out of my box completely, and starting in May, I will be teaching a basic scrapbooking class on base. I am totally excited but nervous. I am trying to think of a project for the class to do ( it is once a week for like a month and a half) so I am thinking of an album, where we work on one page a week. Here is where I need help...if you are not a scrapbooker ( or even if you are!) what kind of project would you want to work on? A baby book? An all about me book? A vacation album? Or would you rather just learn techniques, so that you can put together your own? If you don't scrapbook, what is holding you back? I want to be able to help and teach so anything that you guys can help me out with would be soooo very appreciated.Thanks everyone!

us

Well this has been out and about in the blogosphere forever, but I am wasting time until it is time to go pick up the "big kids". Ivan and I are constantly referring to the other 3 as the big kids. Anyway...here is some fun info about Ben and I. If you want to answer it on your own blog, go for it.How long did you date? 4 months before we got engaged. When you know, you know


How old is he? ancient...I mean 30


Who eats more? He is a grazer, where I am one who eats 3 times a day...and more. Ok probably me.

Who said “I love you” first? Ugh, it was me. We had been dating for like an hour when I said it. But I had been in love with him since I was 14, so it didn't seem to early at the time.


Who is taller? Oh, me by a long shot. yeah right.


Who sings better? Probably him but he doesn't do it very often.


Who is smarter? Him.

Whose temper is worse? Cough, cough uhm yeah that would be me. He is pretty even tempered.

Who does the laundry? Me

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Me, I have to or I can't sleep. I am usually the one who is closest to the door also, so that I can be the first one that the kids go to when they are up in the middle of the night. Fair huh?


Who pays the bills? our web bill pay ( he sets up the payments though)


Who cooks dinner? Me but anytime he wants to step up to the plate he is welcome. He makes a lot of yummy stuff.

Who drives when you are together? He usually does.

Who is more stubborn? not me

Who kissed who first? It was kind of a coming together, although I believe he moved in first


Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? I am never wrong so this doesn't come up too much. ( Isn't ben a lucky guy?)

Whose parents do you see the most? this question kind of makes me laugh b/c since we have been in the Navy, we rarely see family

Who proposed? No one. He gave me my ring in the parking lot of Dairy Queen. I guess he thought he didn't have to ask...
Who is more sensitive? me

Who has more friends? I have more people that I hang out with

Who has more siblings? Me,

Who wears the pants in the family? considering the fact that he is gone frequently, puts us in more of a partneship.

boys & books

"Read story Ethan? This my favorite." Every book right now is Ivan's favorite but it is just cute to hear!

a Kennedy thing

Ben and I are always making comparisons about our kids. Who they look like, who they act like and where they get some of their personality traits/quirks. You know how it goes, if your child does something good you say guess what our child did, if they do something wrong it's, guess what your child did! Know what I mean. Well some things are just pretty obvious. Like this one. Harmony constantly has a book in her hand. When I tell her it's bedtime, she always says, "let me get a book first". At every meal time she has to have a book or a magazine with her. Something to read. And I can say without a doubt, that she gets that from me. My Mom could always be found sitting at the table, pouring over a book. Any request at that moment was met with, " just one more page" or " just let me finish this chapter". And now I do it. I mean how boring to just have to sit and eat right? Well it is now a generational thing. I am also pretty darn sure my sisters do it. What can I say...it's a Kennedy thing!

have you ever....

hurt someone's feelings, without realizing that you did it? And then feel horrible, because this is someone you really look up to and admire? Yeah I have. And it sucks.

kids say the darndest things round 865803

The other night, Connor sat with me and we were watching the Biggest Loser finale. He watched as they showed pictures of the contestants when they were at their largest, and then they would break through with their slimmer selves. So he looks at me and says, "Mom are they shrinking?" And I said, " well yeah kind of. They are getting thinner."

So the next day we are looking at some old pictures that ranged in times from my first stake dance ( which Connor pronounced that I looked beautiful) to our wedding etc. He looked at them and said, "oh so these are when you were thinner." Grrr thanks Connor. I said no these were 4 kids ago!

I also showed him a ton of cute little baby pictures of himself and he said, " wow these are old. I didn't even have any Crocs yet!" Apparently that is how he measures time.

purse-onality

A while back my friend Cindy had a post on her blog, where you have to show what is in your purse. It sounded like fun so I decided to do it. And then well I didn't. But Ivan, thoughtful little kid, dumped mine out. So I figured it was meant to be.

First off is my purse. It is a new one. I have a lot of purses/bags. Ask Ben. He doesn't see the need for so many. But you have to constantly be changing things around. I saw this one at the NEX and I loved it. Did I mention it is reversible? My friend pointed that out to me I didn't even realize. They had one that was a little larger for $20 but I went with the smaller one. Why? Because I am sooooo close to being away from a diaper bag. I don't really want to carry some big huge honkin thing around all.the.time. anymore. This one does NOT hold a diaper or a wipes case. Although it did have a fruit snack wrapper...

So here is the run down:

*my blue wallet. A little too small and actually am thinkin' of an upgrade.

* a coupon for St. Ives body wash that I never used
*3 pens
* A Tide to Go pen
*Mary Kay lipstick
* an envelope of my grocery $$ (note not in wallet, see it's kind of small)
*.26 cents
* 5 recipets for the commissary, 1 for McDonalds, 1 for Dominos and 2 for the NEX ( can you tell what I spend my $$ on?)

Ok so now for what you DON'T see...
**my keys are (gasp!) on their hook
** cell phone on the counter charging
** checkbook...in the church bag. Basically we only write one check these days
**military id is in the car. I have to show it to get into my house so if I don't just leave it in there I would probably lose it!

Now wasn't that fun? Well guess what? Now it is YOUR turn. If you read this blog, and you have a blog, you are TAGGED. So first you have to take a picture of the actual purse and than what is inside. Have fun!

Note to self...

Your house will not clean itself while you are "blog surfing." You are going to have to break away from the computer and do it yourself. Your family deserves you getting off. Trust me. Oh and btw...Ivan needs his diaper changed.

a story problem

What do you get when you add....

**2 parents who went to bed later than usual
**1 Mom who couldn't get to sleep anyway
**1 phone call at 1:30 in the morning
**1 power outtage at 2 am
**1 3 yr old boy crawling into said parents bed
**1 8 yr old girl complaining she couldn't sleep b/c it was too hot
**1 Mom begging her husband to wield some of his power as the public works officer to get it back on and him saying, " they are working on it, there is nothing I can do"
**1 Mom giving that husband a big sigh
**1 Mom sweating to death as her son had to snuggle
**1 Mom very annoyed with daughter who feels this is the perfect time to stay up and read
**3 lights coming back on as the power comes back on
**1 huge boy lugged back into his bed
**30 min to get back to sleep
** 1 sec. to reach over and turn the snooze button on, and sleep until 6:30

Add it all up and what do you get? One overly tired, baggy eyed Mother! However one who was determined to exercise. So since I snoozed through the alarm, I got Ivan dressed, dropped the kids off at school, and headed down to the base to go for a nice long walk. Except it started pouring down rain. So we went into the gym.

The gym has this nice little kids area, where you can lock them in to play, while you exercise. It is nice. I went in and there were two women on the treadmills and one child in the play area. So I put Ivan in and got on a bike. Well the other little boy, would not leave Ivan alone. Chasing after him with a huge bucket, taking his toys and throwing them around the room, not letting him go on the climbing wall, getting in Ivan's face until Ivan would hit him, and then come tell me that my boy hit him. So after a huge long work out of 8 whole minutes, I gathered up Ivan and said that is it we are leaving. And guess what? That whole time, his Mom did not say one single thing to him. Not one. I am thinking of making a sign that says, "if your child is more wild than mine, please get off your treadmill and come take care of it."

This day did not start off well and I am hoping will get better!

at least it's not a cemetary...

Morbid title huh? Not really though...

While taking Harmony out to her camping trip, I was honestly overcome by how beautiful the drive was. The first day was kind of grey and so all the colors just seemed to be magnified. I so badly wanted to stop and snap pictures but I was following people, so I couldn't. Then on the way back, I had someone following me.

So after picking her up, I decided to stop and take pictures along the road home.The kids complained and complained. I mean poor babies, having to sit in the air conditioned car watching Harry Potter while I snapped a couple of pictures. I told them that at least they weren't with Grandma Kennedy because she stops to take pictures at cemetaries. They couldn't believe that! I tried to explain to them that it was for geneology purposes but I think they were still stuck on the cemetary thing!

Anyway, here are some of the shots I got, while my poor babies had to wait for me...

Family Fitness Walk

Here on Guam, there is usually a 5k every single weekend. And a lot of the times they are on both Sat. & Sun. I usually do these by myself or with friends and neighbors. Never with Ben. Saturday is his only day to sleep in and since most of the races have a go time of 5:30 or 6:00 he doesn't want to get up that early. I also have never wanted to wake the kids up that early and than have to deal with them.

Last weekend however, there was a family walk that didn't start until 10:30. So we packed up the bikes, scooter and a stroller and headed down to Sumay Cove. Harm immediatley started whining ( this was the day after her camp out) because she didn't feel that the road was flat enough to scoot (er) on. Ben told me to just head off with Ivan and he would keep the other three. So Ivan and I kind of half jogged/half walked, when the next thing I know, here comes Ethan passing us on his bike. As soon as Ivan saw him he said, " go faster Mommy, go get my Ethan". So we tried to keep pace with Ethan the whole time. He did great. We passed the finish line together and than I went back to see if Ben needed any help. Connor had fallen off his bike, and got right back up and started running. Harmony eventually stopped complaining and she passed the finish line with a grin.

The kids were really hot so we headed over to Kids Day. They ran around and got prizes, bounced in bounce houses, got Harry Potter scars painted on their foreheads and more. We all came home and had a nap/quiet time and then ben took the older kids swimming. Ivan wasn't feeling well so he and I snuggled and watched Noggin.

It was a long day but we had fun!

Harm's camping trip

Since I am feeling somewhat better, I decided to update my blog. Hopefully everything will make sense as I am still taking medicine every 4 hours!

After a long day of horseback riding last Monday, Harm's GS leader decided that the kids were not ready for 3 days and 2 nights of camping. So it turned into just an overnighter.

I got the kids up early and we followed a group of people up to the site. It was a long drive, at least an hour, one way. The boys got a little car sick but honestly were real troopers about the whole thing.

Harm said that her favorite part was washing dishes, and the cooking. When I went to pick her up she was absolutely exaughsted. She said the ground wasn't very comfortable and so she didn't sleep very well. Plus, poor child, she didn't have a good lantern and so couldn't stay up and read.The next day she slept in until 8:30. Although she was still a little grumpy!

She had a fun time. I only snapped a few pictures but you can check out some of the others on her Girl Scouts site.

carrier monkeys

In the movie "One Fine Day" with Michelle Phiefer ( sp) and George Clooney, her boss tells her that he doesn't like kids because they are little carrier monkeys. Carrying disease everywhere. Apparently, they really are!! Ethan started off spring break with a cough and stuffed up nose. He passed it on to Connor, then on to Ivan and now...on to me. I took Nyquil last night and still didn't sleep a wink. So I will be back to blogging and normal life again, when I can sit up for longer than 10 minutes!

dinner ideas

I was getting ready to make dinner, and I askd Ethan what he wanted for dinner. He usually says sloppy joes but tonight he said..." I know Lucky Charms." "No, Ethan we are not going to eat Lucky Charms for dinner tonight." " How about Cocoa Puffs?"

LOL

I found this on a site and had to share. I am still laughing. Ethan keeps saying, "breathe Mommy, breathe." So funny. All Moms will love it. It's about all the different hats that Moms wear....

insecurities

Tonight I will be teaching my very first scrapbooking 101 class. I am not sure how many people are attending, so I don't know how many I will be teaching. But, even though I have been excited about this...I feel nervous. I really do love scrapbooking. I didn't start selling CTMH to make money (Ben's dreams of me being his Sugar Mama are slowly dying...) it was just so I could teach people. And now that it comes down to it...I am scared of rejection. What if people look at my pages and say, " yikes she is not very good at this so why would I want her to teach me?" I know that I am the only one on this planet with a fear of rejection but...I just don't want to be the reason why people don't scrapbook. Maybe I am just reading way too much into this....

going home

( all these pictures were taken from the last time we saw Vale, almost a year ago!)
I realize that some people know, and some don't, but we are going to go home this summer. The earliest we can leave, according to the school, is the 20th of May. We are going to fly on a MAC flight, which means a military flight. If you can get on, it is a free flight. We aren't on a time table so we can leave whenever they let us. The kids are sooo excited. I am too. I can't wait to go to a decent grocery store, hit Target ( as many times as possible as there isn't one where my parents live), getting away from the humidity, spending time with family, etc. The kids are also excited, but for different reasons. I asked Ethan why he is so excited and he said,"2 V's Mom. Video games and Vale." I said," you can play video games here." " Oh well just one V then!"

The kids absolutely adore their cousin Vale. I do too of course but not for the same reasons. They are so excited to see him. I am hoping that they get to know some of their other cousins this trip. My kids are honestly Vale's biggest fan!

goof offs

The boys are so cute. They are silly and quirky. Funny, a little gross. But oh so cute!

sorry Connor...

Boy apologies all around today!! I am a HORRIBLE mother. Wanna know why? Last week, Connor read his very first book, all by himself. I read one word. That is all. I was so impressed. He picked a long one but I was just so proud of him. And I took his picture with the book, just like I did with Ethan. And that was it. I didn't share his accomplishment with the blogging world. Then today I was scrapbooking, and I didn't have any pages of him in that particular album. Now I have done a million and one pages of that kid, but it hurt his feelings that he wasn't in that one. So Connor, the cutest little blue eyed boy in our house, this is for you!!

Sorry Mom!!

I got an email from my Mom today. Very concerned ( after reading Harmony's blog concerning x-rays) and let me know that it had been 8 days since I updated my blog. So, I apologize. I really haven't fallen off the face of the earth...although it seems that way sometimes.

Ben got home( after a delay) on Monday night. The kids were soooo excited to see him. Except for Harmony who decided to skip out on going to the airport and going to Girl Scouts. They were working on a fashion show and she did not want to miss out! So the big boys and I went. Ben of course, came bearing gifts. The kids had a blast opening Legos, video games, movies, books etc. etc.

Tuesday Harmony informed me that she had signed up for the bookfair and would need to have her project turned in the following morning. I wanted to strangle her little neck but instead, I took her to the NEX in hopes that we could find what she needed. We spent maybe 2 hours on it but she was happy. So I was happy. The next day however, she came home in tears because she hadn't won a prize. I had to explain to her that some kids had put days and weeks into their projects and she had only spent a couple of hours. A lemonade stand with her friend eventually got her mind off of it and she was very happy with just her participant ribbon.

Thursday Ben had a softball game. Since Spring Break had officially began, I took the kids down to the field to watch him. On one side there is a nicely lit park although the toys leave something to be desired. However a little bit down the sidewalk is a nicer toy, just no lights. I took the kids over anyway and everything was going fine until...Connor and his friend Kameron crashed on the slide while playing Star Wars.He complained that his finger really hurt. So being the mean Mom that I am, I gave him a kiss and a hug and told him he was fine.

The next morning he wakes up and his finger is completely swollen. I felt awful. I took him to the doctor and she said to get x-rays just in case it was fractured. It wasn't but it is still pretty swollen. She said because of all the soft tissue on the finger it could take a little while to go down.The kid had a fun story to tell though!

Saturday I felt like I got nothing done. I went to a baby shower, which is always fun hanging out with friends, then grocery shopping. I took the kids to see the Spiderwick Chronicles and they were scared to death! Connor was in my lap, literally shaking, using my hand to cover his eyes.Ethan was next to me with his face buried in my shoulder saying, " I want to go home. I just want to go home." Harmony sat with her knees up to her chin and a stuffed animal in front of her eyes. I had no idea they would be so scared!

Sunday was a pretty typical Sunday for us, with out too much excitement.

Today, Harmony was off with her Girl Scout troop riding horses. Her leader said they had a great time but the girls were really hot and complained a lot about being outside for so long. I think they were expecting an air conditioned barn or something! Harm's leader is so great and she has a lot planned for them this week. Thursday night she gets to go camping. She is really excited and I have to go and find her all the gear she needs!

So there you have it. An almost complete wrap up as to what has been going on in the Turner household. And just to give her a little plug...you should head over and check out Harm's blog. She has been better about keeping it updated than I have. If you don't have the address you can email me for it!