Work is for the dogs...

Thursday afternoon after a long days work I came home with my 2 Misters and our several bags in tow. We were greeted at the garage door (inside not out) by none other than Miss Tootsie.

Normal day's occurence? Not quite! You see we are some of "those" dog owners who have full-time jobs dont trust their doggy home alone...in the home alone anyways! She has a dog door and can come inside her crate to beat the heat but she does not have full access to roam our roost.

Now I won't mention by name who is to blame but I will say they share my bed....because that frankly could be any of them on a given night.

I also would have taken pictures but I was furiously searching the house for "presents" she may have left us. She did pee twice on the boy's floor...yeah! The worst of it was had by the boys toys & socks. I swear she had drug 50 toys and 10 pairs of socks out into the yard. Oh yeah and trailed toilet paper all the way down the stairs and around the kitchen table...twice. She also ate half a diaper. Jokes on her...it was dirty.

And just when I thought my night couldn't get any better Dillon fell out of bed at 1:30 and came screaming into my bed. Then his brother decided to come in too. Good thing I caught him before he laid down as he had wet the bed (first time since he was off pull-ups at night...1 in a month isnt too bad...right?).

Just another day in the Karafa 'hood!

Nicknames...

I call the boys all sorts of funny names, and they surprisingly respond to any of them. Dillon only calls Jordan Jo-Jo. Asking the kids, "Are you ready, Freddie?" has morphed into me calling them both Freddie. And occasionally Freddie 1 and Freddie 2.

Dillon lately has mostly gone by Pickles, which always makes me think of my sister Gillian (Gill Pickles). He's a goofy kid and Pickles totally fits him.

When we were in Snowflake my family played "Greed" (our new favorite dice game) and my Dad kept score. On the scorecard it said Lumpy, Pickles, Monkey, Hoover, Toast & Mom. Poor Mom! Or is it poor us? For the record it is:

Lumpy- Dad

Pickles- Gill

Monkey- Yours truly

Hoover- Betsy

Toast- Noah

Mom- Mom

Anyhoo.........

I think I have a new name for Jordan:

MOUTH

You know, like Mouth:

Because he is one sassy, smart MOUTHed little boy lately. Terrible 2's nothing. At least the 2 year old doesn't talk!

Conversations with Jordy...

"Mommy, I really need you to teach me High-Ya!"

High-Ya?

"You know, HIGH-YA!" (with a swift kick and karate chopping action in my face)

Boys are so fun!

P.S.

I think "High-Ya" fall under the Needs to be taught or facilitated by Daddy category!

Ash Wednesday...

Ever since I was a little girl I have been fascinated with Catholicism. I love the Gothic churches, the crucifix necklaces (in diamonds please), the sign of the cross, confession, Hail Mary's... All of it. The ritualistic nature of the faith is almost Romantic in a way.

Growing up my Dad worked in downtown Tempe right near the ASU campus. Every time we would drive by and I saw the Newman Center I secretly wished that I could get married in that beautiful church. I also wished that I could have my wedding reception on the Mill Ave. bridge.I may have also always wanted to live in Manzanita Hall... High hopes I say! ( I sort of love how my obsession with ASU area lead me to meeting my darling and is the site of our Love Story!)

While never fully giving up on my faith there were times that I wasn't 100% sure that it was the right thing for me. In the winter of 2000 I happened to be involved with a nice Catholic boy (who's mother did not approve of this nice (ha!) Mormon (cult in her eyes) girl) and decided to attend Mass with him. We happened to go to an evening Mass at the Newman Center. I was so excited! Something about those big wooden doors made me believe that there was a wonderful secret kept safe inside....

Once inside I was disappointed to find the interior did not match the exterior of the building. It was explained to me that this was because of the "vow of poverty" taken by the Priests. All i know is the plain white plaster walls and hard wooden benches were not what I had hoped to find.

The biggest disappointment however was the increasingly uncomfortable feeling I got as I sat there trying to follow along. Those romantic rituals now became a little weird and off-putting. After the Mass it was so clear to me that this was not the right place for me. It was such an odd experience to be in church and absolutely not feel the spirit with me. It was like there was a tangible void as I sat on that pew.

"To each his own", I believe. So for me it was my faith 100%.

Here I am years older, and hopefully wiser and I still appreciate the beauty of the churches. I enjoy the history of the Catholic church. I still would really like to wear a crucifix necklace but I think people would make fun of me. I am grateful for my Eternal partnership made possible through my Temple Marriage. Although I still think I would have liked my Mill Ave. reception....

One thing I haven't given up on though is the idea of Lent . I like to put my own spin on things, so I stand in fellowship with my Catholic friends and try to give something up for 40 days. The more I have researched Lent the more I like it. Forty days of Repentance, Resistance (of temptations), Fasting (not every day), Sacrifice (what I choose to give up), Spiritual feasting (my scriptures), Remembrance of my Savior's love and sacrifice, all culminating in the celebration of Easter Sunday. Celebrating the Resurrection of our Lord. Yes, I think I definitely like Lent.

I am giving up soda by the way...

"Our" day off...

Means the children do this:

 

  

While I get to do this:

Oh to be a kid again!

From Blah...

To Ahhhhhh.........

Before:

After:

Cheery? Check

Bright & Happy? Check, Check

Totally my style? Check-A-Rooney!

I love it!

FHE- We have Prophets to teach us.

Song: "Follow the Prophet". pg. 110

Scripture: Fifth Article of Faith

Lesson: The Church of Jesus Christ Has Prophets to Teach Us

Activity: Treasure Hunt (find tonight's treat)

Coloring Page: I Will Follow The Prophet

Jonathan Adler...

While not only being fabulously "flamboyant"..... (ahem)

Is also one very wise man. In his 15 Fabulous Design Tips he says:

"Orange is the poppiest color and the answer to most decorating conundrums."

Stay tuned my pretty's....it will be worth the wait.

Have you noticed...

My fondness for ellipsis? Believe you me, I am not using them in the correct sense a good 75% of the time. And if I am... I probably don't know it! The proverbial  dot, dot, dot is rather a raised eyebrow and telling look. or perhaps an inside joke untold to the masses. 

In addition to my love of ... I have a love of orange. Not just the fruit, although I readily admit to eating an entire 20 pound box in 1 weekend...by myself. I blame Jordan as he was incubating inside me at the time.

Sometime around 1995 give or take me and the bestest decided that our favorite colors were lime green for Katie  and orange for Mindy. You would be surprised when on the lookout what great things you can find in orange. Shirts, purses, sunglasses, boyfriends who drive jacked up orange Chevy trucks............................................ 

Back to the present. The older I got I let my taste for color include pinks, reds, and shades of orange beside FLORESCENT. In the testosterone house (aka the Karafa house) so far red is the only one that has been incorporated. I have been hankering for a little remodeling and my love of orange is in FULL force again. Darn Orla Kiely stuff!

I have been online looking for inspiration and imagine my surprise when I stumbled across my new favorite blog: How About Orange...

Go right now and take a look around! besides sharing a love of orange and ellipsis, she is also one crafty lady who designs fabric and regularly posts fun how-to craft links! 

Happy Friday indeed!

It must be a "Mom" thing...

Because even covered in boogers and grime I just love this little face.

I will even admit to smooching him all over, and maybe even getting a little extra lovin (snot) in the process. And it doesn't even faze me!

Patience...

I need peace and quiet while I attempt to fiddle with my HTML!

My little Casanova...

Jordy has his very first Valentine. One of his preschool friends has a little crush (her mom told me) on Jordy and she really wanted to give him a "love letter".

She also happens to be in my Primary class so I may be biased in regards to her utter cuteness!

The cute Valentine. Make sure to read it!

Give me this day....

**Reposted, because Blogger hiccupped and posted this earlier than I scheduled it!**


My daily bread. Or delish whole wheat pita bread, whatever you want to call it.

Anyhoo, BEAST here is your recipe. Eric can thank me in elk horns (that I forgot to bring home but Jordan remembered).

Pita Bread

1 1/2 C All-Purpose flour

1 1/2 C Whole Wheat flour

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 TB sugar

1 pkg Rapid-Rise yeast

mix dry ingredients together in large mixing bowl.

1 1/2 C warm water (115-120°)

2 TB EVOO (I may have just puked....Rachel Ray egads!)

add to dry ingredients.

Dump contents onto floured surface and knead 10 minutes (give or take). Return to bowl and cover with damp towel. Let rise until doubled. 

Separate into 8 equal mounds. Cover with damp towel and let rest 10-15 minutes while you pre-heat oven to 400°. Put a pizza stone or over turned pan in oven while preheating.

Roll each mound to 1/8-1/4 inch thickness. Bake for 5 minutes.

Serve with something Yum-O (ew there I go again) like hummus or chicken salad. Or plain. They keep well for 4 days or so.

**FYI- This is NOT a Rachel Ray recipe or an endorsement for her insanity thank you very much!**

Flat Stanley came to town.

My cute little nephew Timothy made a Flat Stanley at school. Jordan was excited to take him on a trip to the NBA Allstar Jam session with us.

We had grand intentions to find the Phoenix Suns Gorilla, but the Atlanta Hawk would have to do!

Stanley got to see some of Uncle Blair's favorite memoribilia....Michael Jordan of course!

Stanley believes that there is always this season for the D'Backs!

Public Transportation anyone?

Go Suns!

Come back anytime, Stanley!

New year, trying out new things...

On my blog that is.

I am enjoying my calling in Primary teaching the CTR 6 kids. While preparing my weekly lesson I have been trying to think of ways to implement them into our own Family Home Evening activities. So each Monday I am going to try to post our FHE plans and hope that it helps out some of my friends/family who like me have a hard time coming up with ideas for little one's.

Faith in Jesus Christ

*Song- "Faith" with actions, (Children's Songbook, page 96)

Faith is knowing the sun will rise, (arms form a half-circle over head)

lighting each new day. (arms slowly drop to shoulder level)

Faith is knowing the Lord will hear (cup hands behind ears)

my prayers each time I pray. (hands together as in prayer)

Faith is like a little seed: (cup left hand and imitate planting a seed with right hand)

If planted, it will grow. (right hand imitates a plant growing from the cupped left hand)

Faith is a swelling within my heart. (place hands over heart)

When I do right, (point right index finger upward)

I know. (touch right index finger to head)

*Scripture- Alma 32:28  (27-43 for older children)

*Lesson- "Faith in Jesus Christ"

*Activity- Plant seeds in garden/pots

*Treat- Sunflower seeds, poppy seed muffins, Pop Rocks

My sweetheart...

Just had a beautiful bouquet of flowers delivered to me at work. Red roses, red & pink carnations(shut-up Katie, they are my favorite), daisy's, and bluebells.

My office smells delicious!

I have been quite crabby this week and feel very VERY badly!  (I may have found out the reason for my memory issue's etc....PMS) Oh yeah, and I told Betsy & Kristal just last Friday that he never ever sends me flowers!

Blair will be smothered with smooches when I get home!

A nice treat!

It actually snowed in SNOWflake! Too bad it showed up right as we were leaving town!

The boys had fun catching snowflakes on their tongues.

Jordan perfected the "bedhead" snow collecting!

I have lost my mind...

I think it may be lying on the icy road somewhere between Forest Lakes and Payson (I have not gripped the steering wheel so tight since learning to drive with my Dad).

When I look back the best part of being pregnant was being able to blame my memory loss on "placenta brain" or whatever. I am not pregnant however (do not hold your breath Hunt family) and I cannot remember a thing.

Like this morning....
Mindy: I think I need tech support, I have been gone for 7 days and for the life of me cannot remember my password.

Mindy: Um self......You are tech support.

I could take the easy route and blame it on Dillon. My family can attest to him crying all night for the last week. Poor baby is sick and having some crazy nightmares. So far his head has been swirling with Wall-E, dogs, home, dogs, and last night Popcorn. He also added kicking uncontrollably and screaming to the mix last night. Have I mentioned that Blair is working nights? Have I also mentioned that today was my first day back to work in 7 days? I wish I had a webcam, I am the picture of dishevelment this morning.

I could blame the nasty recurrence of my bleeding ulcer, GERD and hiatal hernia issues. Even if Dillon was allowing me to sleep I probably couldn't as laying on my stomach (which is how I sleep) makes me feel like I am going to throw-up/pass out/have a heart attack or all of the above at the exact same time. TUMS and Ranitidine are only going so far these days but I really do not want another scope. Or to be sedated and be naked in front of my mother in law again. Good times, good times!
By the way, can I say how much I love her? She has never mentioned that incident. EVER! But secretly I know that one doesn't get from naked in a gown to fully clothed with her in the room modestly while coming out of sedation.

I made a batch of the Freezer Cookies yesterday with the kids and they tasted okay, but a little off. And usually it makes 7 dozen and it only made 5. I must have forgotten some ingredient or like half the flour. I just don't know which honestly.

Pity......party of 1?

I want my mind back!

Furlough...

A few weeks ago a company-wide email was sent basically saying the following: "Good news! We are giving you an extra week of vacation. And you get to keep for job for now!" Oh yeah and we aren't paying you for it! Have fun!

And fun I did. The boys, Tootsie and I packed up the van and headed to higher ground (Snowflake) for the week. The Beast recently moved into a new house I lovingly refer to as "ramshackle". Really it didn't matter what it looked like, with a family of 8 they had outgrown the old house 2 or 3 kids ago. I got to join in on the remodeling fun and since Blair wasn't around I was even trusted with power tools! Quite fun I must say!

The real reason we went was to see my 1st nephew baptized and my newest nephew blessed. Pictures to follow soon.

We were karmically blessed with snow (and lots of it) on our way back to Buckeye today. That's what we get for travelling on Sunday.