My Rant

"Tired" is not a good look. You wouldn't walk up to someone and tell them they look fat or ugly. So why do people feel it's okay to walk up and tell someone they look tired? Even if it's true-- you're tired-- what good does it do to point it out? Is the person who brought it up going to whip out a bed and tuck you in so you can catch up on your sleep? No! The only thing it does is make you aware of the fact that you apparently look like crap.

On the flip side, if someone's tag is sticking out of their shirt and you tell them as you fix it-- that's okay. Or, if someone has a booger and you offer a tissue-- fine. If you can fix it-- bring it up. If you can't-- keep your mouth shut.

The other day Maren and I were picking up a few things at Trader Joes. It was pretty cold outside and unfortunately, with the colder weather setting it, Maren's color changes a little-- sometimes a lot. So we're at the checkout and the hippie checker yells out (referring to Maren,) "Wow! You've either been crying really hard (thanks clogged tear duct) or... you're not breathing." Then she turns to me and says, "Is she breathing?"

I thought, "No. My baby is struggling to breath and on the way to the ER I thought I'd stop in to buy some snackies to keep me busy at the hospital. She's not THAT blue! And she's eating and smiling. Uh, yeah-- I'm pretty sure she's breathing." But I just said, "She's a heart baby," and the issue was dropped.

For the next hour or so I tried to decide whether I was offended by this random lady who felt it necessary to bring my attention to the fact that my baby was a little blue OR if I was upset with the reality that was thrown in my face that I sometimes forget-- my kid is blue because she has half a heart.

I concluded it was a little of both, but I got over it quickly. I'm sure it won't be the last time someone makes a stupid comment about Maren. And, Maren may have half-a-heart, but she's very cute and doing awesome! (Screw you, hippie chick from TJ's!)

Lookin' For a Deal?

I just got this coupon in my e-mail. Whoa, Mama! 40% off AND free shipping on any regular-priced item from This is the Place Bookstore's online site. (It's an LDS bookstore.) Enter coupon code 40THANKS at check out. It's only good from November 23-25, so get to it! Happy shopping!

The Office is Funny

If you find the phrase "dumb ass" offensive, this clip is not for you. For all the rest, enjoy:

Swine Flu Hysteria!

Check out this "Day in Photos" from The Washinton Post website today. (click on link, wait about 5 seconds to load, then click on photo #15.) Yes, I may look bothered, but the 2+ hour wait really wasn't that bad thanks to a half-a-bag of chocolate chips and an entire bag of Cheetos from Trader Joes! See if you can find Henry-- he's behind Super Man.

Oh, and Henry was among the lucky 1000 who actually got vaccinated. Two down and two to go! (Maren got hers last week:)

Jack-o-Lantern Fun

Tonight for FHE we made Jack-o-Lanterns. Well, first we read Daniel 3-- the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego chillin' in the fire. (I love it when when God sticks it to the bad guys!) Anyway, here are some pictures:

Scooping out the guts:


Henry working on his (while I wait for him to cut off a finger or poke out an eye):

Randy down to business:

They turned out great!

My Sweet Henry

Randy came home on Saturday night after working in New Mexico for a couple of weeks. Home alone with two kids wasn't too bad, but I did have my moments. One night after a particularly long day, I put the kids to bed early-- 6:30; lights out; no crying; see ya, bye!

A half hour later I realized I forgot to give Maren her meds. Crap! I knew she was still awake, but when I walked in with the syringe, I saw that she was close to sweet, sweet sleep. She sat up and I gave her the enalapril, then patted her on the head and walked out. She screamed, and screamed, and screamed. Ugh.

After a couple of minutes I went back in and went through the whole bedtime routine a second time, hoping she'd go to sleep without issues. No go. I went to put her in the crib and we had screaming all over again. Ugh.

I grabbed Maren from her crib, sat down on Henry's bed (he was lying down but still very much awake)and began to sing to her. I didn't even get through the first verse of "My Heavenly Father Loves Me," when I stopped and said out loud, "I don't want to do this."

Henry popped up and in all seriousness said, "Mom, I'll put her to bed."

"Henry, you can't put her to bed," I replied.

"Yes I can. I'll just sing I Am a Child of God until she stops crying."

I paused for a minute-- thinking about how sad it was that I was actually contemplating letting my 6-year-old put my 2-year-old to bed because I was done being a mom for the day. I decided it wasn't sad enough to not take Henry up on his offer and asked, "Really?"

Henry shrugged his shoulders and casually said, "Yeah."

I got up, put screaming Maren into her crib and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind me. Five seconds later, through the baby monitor, I heard Maren's screams with Henry's singing in the background. It only took a minute before Henry took center stage and the only thing I could hear besides his version of "I Am a Child of God" was Maren's binky-sucking. The singing continued for another minute, and then it was silent.

Thanks Henry, I owe you one. Seriously, I love that kid.

Maren's Got BO?

Poor Henry had to start wearing deoderant last year. Seriously, have you ever heard of a 5-year-old wearing deoderant out of necessity? Anyway, one day we were on the elevator and a guy got on with us. He was S-T-I-N-K-Y. After he got off I jokingly asked Henry, "Did you put on deoderant this morning?"

Henry got nervous, did the sniff-test and then said, "I think it's Maren."

I'm sure.