This is a test of the Housley Broadcast System.

Holy cow, this blog is still active. Shocking. It's funny - I have a list of blogs that I regularly check on, and envy those amazing ladies who manage to update their blogs every day or two. Blog envy. Anyone written a dissertation on that? So much happens in our lives that I would love to document and record, but the So Much That's Happening keeps me from being very valiant about it. Still, I will yet again make another attempt to keep things up to date here. I love having some motivation again: both my parents and Mike's parents are waiting for LDS mission calls, and knowing that grandparents kind of like to be kept in the loop will help me make the time for blog entries. So, if anyone else is still reading at this point, stay tuned for brief but witty reports of Housley House Happenings. And, good grief, a new family picture, please!

A few more Esther funnies

I posted this on facebook already, but this blog is what we'll save for posterity, so I'll repeat it here.  Last week, Esther and I were outside trying to get as much yard work done before the next rain/snow storm came through.  I'll admit, mowing the lawn and pulling weeds can make a girl smelly, but I thought it was uncalled for when she declared, "Mom, you stink like a man!"  She's just callin' it as she sees it.

Tonight we were trying to salvage what little spiritual teaching we could at family night, and so we sat around the table with a big Symphony bar (yes, chocolate goes a long way in fostering a spiritual atmosphere.  That's what I tell myself all the time).  I asked each of the kids to say something they like about everyone else in the family.  Caleb mentioned how he liked Esther because she was funny, but he must have slurred a bit, and Esther indignantly replied, "I am NOT a bunny!"

I've got to write this down

Two funny things from Esther today (keep in mind she just turned four).  After I picked her up from preschool, our conversation went like this:

Me: How was school, sweetie?

Esther: It was tragic.

Me: (wondering where on earth she learned that word) What do you mean? How was it tragic?

Esther: (sigh).  I dunno.  You wouldn't get it, Mom.

And then at lunch, when I asked her if she wanted punch to drink, she replied politely, "I would prefer not."

This girl scares me sometimes. When she's not making me laugh!

Dog Poop H@*%

Don't read this if you have morning sickness or in anyway feel queasy.  Okay, read it but I take no responsibility for making you feel worse, because I warned you.  :)

I really do like the dog - she is utterly devoted to me and the rest of the family, and you can't help but love a creature that fawns over you and adores you and wants to be with you all the time.  Still, she is a dog.  And dogs don't use the convenience of a litter box.  So, since she has pretty much had the run of the backyard all winter, I knew there would be some, uh... evidence. Knowing that a storm was on the way, and that the girls were begging to play outside, I went out Thursday to clean up.  Thinking ahead, I put a garbage sack inside a 5 gallon bucket for "easy cleanup." Hah.  I started with a garden shovel, then the pooper scooper, then had to resort to a hand shovel because the poop, being brown, had melted through the snow underneath it.  Ick.  Fortunately it was still cold enough that there was no smell to speak of, and I really loved being outside in short sleeves!!  My quick clean up lasted for nearly two hours, and completely FILLED the 5 gal. bucket.  Double ick!  The girls were pretty much banished to the swing set but Esther just could not resist the sweet siren call of the muddy garden.  Dirty girl  :)  Eva was just happy to be alive, and sang as she swang.  I know that isn't grammatically correct, but it rhymes better that swung.

Saturday I ran with my sister and sister in law out on Antelope Island.  We squeaked in a long run between two storms - the weather and views were just perfect - just what this seasonally depressed mom needed!  I hesitate to write too much about my running on this blog because I'm afraid those who don't know me well will think I'm an energetic athlete and I hate to have people thing better of me that I deserve.  Wait.  Shouldn't I want that?  Anyway, I am about the laziest woman alive, I just happen to have a lot of fun running with my sister, and since she IS an amazing energetic athlete (she runs at 4 in the morning, for crying out loud), I have to keep up some semblance of physical fitness to hang out with her.  Anyway, we ran 18 miles of UP and down trails (mostly up, I swear) and loved it.  Joy, my SIL, was such a good sport and and tolerated our strange sense of humor.  We were afraid Joy would leave us in the dust, but she slowed up and waited for us, thank you Joy!  I'm surprised today that my quads and hamstrings feel fine, but the muscles around my ankles and lower calves are sure complaining.  I'm excited to go back to trails again.  Hopefully this dog will settle down to a fine trail companion instead of just a pulling, pooping machine!

Xin Nian Kuai Le!

Happy Chinese New Year, everyone!  It isn't often you get three holidays all together: CNY, Valentines Day, and Presidents' Day.  Think of the sales!  Yeah, that's about all I do, just think about shopping.  What a poor specimen of femaleness I am.  I'm missing some gene I think!

Yesterday  I had 15 miles on the running schedule, a run I wasn't looking forward to,  but as usually happens, once I got going I was fine.  I found The Count of Monte Cristo on a playaway (little preloaded player the size of an ipod) at the library, and even though I've read it several times, I am enjoying listening to it immensely.  I even took the dog for a walk today, just so I could listen to it - voluntary exercise!  So, I got my run in yesterday, then took the boys skiing for our ward ski night.  I haven't been since the boys were just learning, so I was surprised that I could just turn them loose and just... ski!  I haven't had this much fun skiing since high school!  It had snowed all day but stopped by the time we got there, and it wasn't too cold, no wind - perfect conditions.  The boys were good sports the whole time, and we skied until the lift closed.  I haven't had such a good time with the boys for a long time.  I mean, no one argued the whole night!  I can't remember when that last happened!

Anyway, all this to say, I made the conscious decision to make an exception in my post Christmas-chocolate-frenzy self imposed ban on chocolate.  I haven't had any chocolate (with the exception of fat free hot chocolate made with skim milk - and really, does that count as real chocolate?) since the first of January.  It hasn't been as hard as I thought, going cold turkey.  I even helped the kids put 2 bags worth of mini Hersey bars on their valentines without snitching a single bite.  But today, the kids have been selflessly trying to share their candy with me, and I gave myself a day off.  To be honest, the cheap chocolate (that I gave them) wasn't all that good, and I don't think it will be hard to go back on the wagon tomorrow.  Unless Mike offers the gooooood stuff.  THAT I might miss.

What the hey?

Shocker.  This blog is still active.  I've done my best to ignore it but it wouldn't go away.  Is anybody still out there?

I originally started this blog to keep Mike's parents in the loop while they were across country, and to ease my guilt that I didn't write actual letters and send photos to them.  Once they got back to Utah my motivation ran out, and that's partly the reason I haven't written for the last... oh... seven months?  That and I've just been lazy; too lazy to write, too lazy to figure out an easy and quick way to upload photos, etc.  And now that I'm in the mood, I can't find the card reader for the camera card.   Soooo.... I'll just ramble and hope that inspiration strikes me again before the year is out.

Life is good.  The transition to parenting four kids was harder than I expected, but I think I'm getting the hang of surviving the piles of laundry, dirty dishes, clean clothes that were never put away, SHOES everywhere, and four children all talking to me at once with something VERY IMPORTANT.  I've learned some coping mechanisms, like always remembering to lock the bathroom door and keeping ear plugs handy.  The boys (now 10 and 11) are pretty good to pitch in and help, and it is SOO nice to leave the boys in charge when I have to run quick errands.  I've learned that taking all four kids to the grocery store is a baaaadddd idea and I avoid it like the plague.  Yes, feel free to laugh if you have 5 or more children and my life sounds like a breeze.  Doesn't it always seem like we moms have one more child than we can easily handle?  It's good, though.  I always appreciate the chance to be humble.  That I am.

Eva went back to Primary Children's yesterday for a check up.  Her ankle has straightened out and the bones seem to be mending as they should, but we've noticed that she still is really sensitive on the bottom of her foot and walks just on the outer edge of her foot.  We suspected some nerve damage that makes those areas sensitive, and that she still compensates by using the same muscles that she used when her foot turned in.  The orthopedist agrees and so we'll start physical therapy soon.  She is still a happy, cheerful girl who throws herself into my arms when I do something to make her happy, like cook her ramen noodles for lunch.  She acts like that is the best present she has ever been given!  She is feeling more and more like part of the family, and we can tell because she is developing the same sort of sass the other kids employ.  We are using "Respecto-wash" to help with that.  It's that nasty generic brand mouthwash that kind of burns, and since the kids don't brush their teeth all that well, we get two birds with one stone.

Let's see, what else - my creative juices are drying up.  Oh, we got a dog, who is alternately the best or the worst dog ever.  She's a german shepherd and has the potential to be a fabulous running companion, she just likes to run in front of me, as far as the leash will allow.  Which drags on me and bugs the heck out of me.  We've tried every type of harness, gentle leader, etc on the market, but what has really worked is just a little thin stick that I swish in front of her nose every now and then, or just tap her to get her attention.    She also gets really aggressive with other dogs (or sheep or cows, oddly enough), but I know she'd take on a mountain lion to protect me.  That takes care of one recurrent nightmare!  She's too big for the kids to walk, and I don't run everyday, so she isn't getting as much exercise as she needs.  So far we've taken her up to 12 miles, and she still jumps around like she's got gobs of energy to spare.  She'll be a marathon dog someday!

Going home today (we hope!)

This little girl is a trooper, but she definately has a grumpy side. She's been like Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - she's either calm, cheerful, and accomodating, or just plan mad at what she has to endure. I can't blame her a bit. She's hardly complained about her leg/ankle hurting at all, but she sure is not a fan of her catheter, the epidural line, oral medicine, blood pressure cuffs, etc. She DOES enjoy the goldfish crackers they supply, and the vast array of princess movies available. We are on our third screening of Snow White as I type.

At about 1 pm the pain specialist came to remove the epidural - Eva was in a down cycle and fussed and cried about having the tape removed (from my own epidural experience I remember that it was the most excruciating part of labor and delivery), then she was upset about the removal of the catheter. For as much as she hated those two intrusions to her body, she was pretty upset after getting them off! The physical therapists came and she was still so upset and tired that we could barely get her to use the little walker (a requirement for going home today), and now at 3 pm she is a completely different child. She's hopping around like she's done this for months and is soooo happy to be unfettered. They gave us the choice of spending another night, but I'm already packed and ready to go - just waiting for the little walker and wheelchair they are renting for us.

Thank heavens this part of the ordeal is over (though it hasn't been too bad, as far as hospital stays go) but we realize we have follow-ups and lots of therapy, and the outcome is far from certain. I just hope that all this will result in a fairly normal life for this amazing girl. She may not be a prima ballerina or a gold medal runner, but as long as she can dance with joy and run after the other kids on the playground, life will be good.

Now it is 3 pm and she is a completely