Sponge

Tonight EM said the prayer during family prayer. She nearly always says the prayer. Before we even know what's going on, she's started...."Dear Heavenly Father." Occasionally she'll let CW or I say a "short, little" prayer when she's done. Tonight's prayer went something like this:

"Blessings to this day. We're thankful for mommy, and daddy, and EM, and LuV. We're thankful that we can talk about the Lamanites and then that I can play PBSkids.org."

Maybe reading the Book of Mormon together isn't a total waste of time after all.

How Do You Know She Has an Older Sister?

Can you say "PLAY" "PRETTY" "PRINCESS"? She can.

How Much is That Doggie in the Window?

The one with the waggly tail.

It's imminent. At some point in the very near future I will lose the battle. We will become dog owners. CW knows each and every dog listed on ksl.com intimately. And there are thousands. He wastes as much time as I do blog-stalking with his dog-stalking. He longs for a dog of his own. EM loves dogs almost as much as her daddy. I can't really deny her forever. Or can I? I really, really, really DO NOT want a dog.

I am not an animal lover. Never have been. I have a cold, cold heart. The only way I can ease my mind on this issue is by deluding myself. My latest philosophy, and one I hope to be true, is that my feelings for a dog will evolve. Similar to how my feelings for babies have changed since having my own. I have never been a baby lover. I recognized a cute baby when I saw one, but I never had the urge or need or desire to hold her and snuggle her and coo at her. I was more than happy to admire from afar.

I feel quite the same for members of the canine family. There is such a thing as a pretty dog, but even so, I have never felt the need to touch, or pet, or cuddle said animal. I told you, I'm very nearly heartless. Don't get the wrong idea, I'm not cruel, just unaffectionate.

But once the adorable babies were my very own I couldn't get enough holding and snuggling and cooing. I'm still not overly eager to hold babies not belonging to me, but thank GOODness I love cuddling my own. So...my philosophy...perhaps if the dog is mine, and begins to grow on me, and melts a little of my icy heart, maybe, just maybe, I'll be okay with this. Some day.

I Believe!

Okay, so it is official. I have been married to my liberal husband for too long. And when I say "liberal," we're talking Utah liberal, which by the rest of the country's standards is pretty conservative. I actually listened to the inauguration. I have no interest in politics, but I listened all day long. I really need to have an interest, because it affects me, and my children. My husband has had a man crush on President Obama for some time. Not really a crush, but he's been an Obama supporter all along. I have had my reservations. Clearly he's intelligent. He's articulate, which is so refreshing after what we've been listening to for the past eight years. He's full of lofty promises of great reform, as all politicians are. But there's that part of me that's afraid. Of what I don't know.

As I listened to our new president speak today, I felt hope. Perhaps I have CW to thank for that. After nearly seven years of getting my current events and political news from his perspective, maybe my way of thinking has morphed into his way of thinking. After all, I really don't have my own way of thinking when it comes to politics, so I'm pretty easily persuaded. And CW is smart when it comes to things like politics and economics and stuff that makes my head hurt. Anyway, back to the historic events of the day. Obama left me feeling optimistic. I believe that he is the man for the job right now. The people of this country need someone they have confidence in, especially in our current state of economic uncertainty. We need someone who inspires hope, and he did that for me...an Obama doubter. We definitely need change, and isn't that what Obama's all about? Seriously, why wasn't I working for his campaign?!

It's a scary time. Job security, health care, war, moral decay, a failing educational system, the economy....the list goes on and on. Sometimes I like to remain ignorant on the current state of our country, because the reality of it all terrifies me. And it feels like it's totally out of my control. I hope that President Obama can make GOOD on his word. He has a tough job ahead of him. I don't envy his position. He's walking into a mess...and the expectations are great. I hope he succeeds. I want him to succeed. I hope that the faith and determination he's instilled in Americans thus far continues beyond the first few days and months of his presidency. I have lots and lots of hope. Time will tell.

With all this recent talk of majority and minority I have realized that for the first time I feel like a minority in this country. I am a minority because I define marriage as being between a man and a woman. I am a minority because I believe that an unborn child has a right to live. My values are not consistent with what the majority considers to be acceptable, and now I find that I am a minority in our society. And so while I have hope that Obama can do some GOOD for our nation, I also recognize that he is not the solution to our moral dilemmas. That is up to those of us in the minority to make our voices heard.

Wow, you will never again get a political post from me, because, really, politics is not my cup of tea, but this is history in the making, and I want to be a part of it, even if I am an ignoramus.

Remember Me?

Happy Housewife, is that really you? Really and truly. Had you given up on me? Taken me for dead or imprisoned or vacationing in Bora Bora? Well, no, just haven't been blogging. Don't start, I've already been reprimanded. "Once you've started blogging you're obligated to keep your posts up-to-date." So I'm told. Otherwise your faithful readership will just stop being faithful. Ouch. I'm not even sure my readership and I have had the "talk" about where our relationship stands. I can't say I blame them for being unfaithful when I'm still not sure I'm ready to "commit" to blogging. Besides, I thought family members were bound by blood to read my blog. I was counting on my large family and my husband's large family as a built-in fan base. Oh well, I guess I will never be a cjane. Whom I love, by the way. And, no, I don't actually know her, but I do know her sister-in-law, which is a lot more than a lot of her readership can say. This is exactly why I didn't want to become a blogger. Too much pressure. Expectations. I just don't need any more of that than I have already self-inflicted.

When there are actually worthwhile things to blog about I'm too busy. Now that it's the middle of January and absolutely nothing worthwhile is going on, I wonder is it too late to go back and recap the last month? I suppose not. After all, this is MY blog and I can do whatever I want. Unless I want unfaithful readers on my hands....

We had a cozy little Christmas here at home...just me and CW and the two girls. There was a fire in the fireplace on Christmas Eve. There was a less than fabulous roast for dinner (just because I'm a happy housewife does not mean I am perfect at my job). But the rolls definitely made up for it, thank you very much. And with the cranberry-pineapple jam gifted to us from our neighbors, they were beyond heavenly. There were PJs opened Christmas Eve. Sisters exchanged gifts. The big sister was more interested in playing with the toy she had GIVEN than the one she RECEIVED. But LuV was happy just because EM was happy. We attempted to read the story of Christ's birth from the Bible. It wasn't overly successful. Girls were tucked into bed.

When we all awoke we discovered that Santa had, in fact, found us. The girls were pleased with their Christmas loot. EM found every gift exciting. And LuV was excited by anything that EM found exciting. They couldn't have been happier. CW and I couldn't have been happier. We stayed in our pajamas until late afternoon, watching Kung Fu Panda and eating clementines.

All I want for Christmas is a pair of scissors! She has been working on "projects" ever since.

I loved it. Every minute of it. I loved that presents had been wrapped weeks earlier. Once stockings were stuffed and presents set under the tree, I was in bed. At a reasonable hour. Except that I stayed up all night watching Chuck on DVD, so I was not in bed at anywhere close to a reasonable hour. But I could have been. I loved that the Christmas morning chaos was confined to our two children. I loved being lazy all day, watching movies the girls had received in their stockings. I loved going down to Grandma and Grandpa's later in the day. Cousins played. We snacked and ate and snacked some more. We visited. It snowed. A lot. We spent the night. The next day was more of the same. We played a lot of Wii. I am finally a fan - especially of tennis, but only when it's doubles. And Wii Fit is pretty fun, too....except that I am unbalanced. We came home to a house covered in over a foot of snow, not to mention at least a foot of wrapping paper and post-Christmas mess inside the house.

We spent a couple lazy days at home before making the trek up north to spend New Year's with my parents. It was nice. We were the only ones there, besides my three youngest siblings who are spouseless and childless. It was quiet and calm. It was good to spend time without the whole gang there. I got together for dinner with some high school friends. We laughed. Hard. More to come on that experience. My brother and his wife and their little boy came and partied with us for New Year's Eve. I am getting old, or boring, or both, because I can barely stay awake to ring in the New Year anymore. I came home 5 lbs heavier.

And now the tree is down. It is just January. 2009. Another year. Older. It is cold. Some days are unbearably cold. But the holidays were GOOD. One of the best, really. For that I am grateful. And I have these two cute little girls to thank for making it the best holiday ever. Christmas. With small children. A fire in a fireplace. A warm home in which to celebrate. Family and friends. I am blessed. Immeasurably.

Animal Instincts and Other Random Thoughts

I have been noticing of late that I eat A LOT. No really, a lot. I could also sleep for days if I weren't responsible for two li'l girls...who are stinking cute, by the way. So I am either pregnant or I am getting myself ready for the long winter months. Maybe I was a bear in a past life...hibernation suits me.

Why is it that my almost 15-month-old insists upon roaming free while out shopping - refusing to be confined to a shopping cart or her mother's arms - and yet, when I want her to go play and run around at home she insists that I hold her?

The other day we were cleaning up breakfast before EM went to preschool. She said to me, "Mom, your hair is crazy. You really need to fix it before you take me to preschool." She is already embarrassed by her crazy-haired mother! How does a 3-year-old whose hair is ALWAYS crazy become concerned with how her mother's hair looks in public?

I am so glad that I finished my Christmas shopping the first week in December...I had to go to Wal-Mart for some random non-Christmas item, and there is not an ounce of Christmas spirit in Wal-Mart the week before Christmas. Then again, it was Wal-Mart, and even when it's not Christmastime I can't think of a single pleasant experience I've had shopping at that store. Regardless, I am making a mental note to do my Christmas shopping early from now on (and also not to shop at Wal-Mart).

Some days I look at my girls and for a brief moment my heart melts...my heart breaks...my heart aches...my heart pounds. I can't adequately describe the feeling, but it overwhelms me. I am consumed with love for these two little munchkins. The rest of the 23 hours 59 minutes and 50 seconds are spent losing my temper, pulling my hair out, scolding, reprimanding, saying "NO!", losing sleep...but in those 10 seconds none of it matters. They are the most perfect things I've ever laid eyes on, and they belong to me, forever and ever and ever.

GOOD Intentions

CW arrived home from work, and I promptly sent him back out (with both girls in tow) to purchase a gingerbread house kit. I try hard to be festive...even though it doesn't always work out for me, what with two small children who don't always cooperate. He came home with the only gingerbread kit they had left...a Disney princess gingerbread castle. How perfectly fitting...we're big princess fans in this household. We bribed EM...she had to eat ALL her dinner before we could build the castle. She ate every last bite, and when she was done she had one protruding belly. But interestingly enough she did not request a bowl of cereal, piece of bread, and/or glass of milk before bed. I think we're on to something here!

We began our building and decorating with gusto...visions of a princess' dream castle danced in our heads. By the time the four walls were glued together with sugary paste, the enthusiasm was already starting to wane. Instead of making a castle fit for a Disney princess, the girls were more interested in:

Just like their momma, they can't pass up sugar in any form. We'd made it this far...
and EM was no longer interested in painting the castle walls pink. I could not manage the sticky goo, and was making even more of a mess than my 3-year-old. So, I graciously took LuV to the bath...leaving CW alone to create "our" masterpiece. What a GOOD sport...not even his idea in the first place, and left to finish the job. And finish he did. Our gingerbread castle may not win any awards, and in the end the girls were more interested

in their bowls of mint chocolate chip ice cream

(and who can blame them?),

reading Skippyjon Jones,

which led to tickling,

which led to snuggling,

until it was time to go to bed...which both girls did without complaint.

but it was a splendid evening, nonetheless. Mostly because I didn't stress about things that are irrelevant. Things that I normally have a hard time letting go. Who cares that our princess castle turned out nothing like the picture on the box? Who cares that EM lost interest after 5 minutes of gingerbread castle making? We were together, we were happy, and EM thinks our princess castle is beautiful, so what else really matters? And yes, CW really is the superdad he appears to be in the photos. He does it all, and he does it best...you got a problem with that?

And here is CW's finished project in all its pink, snow-capped glory....