Motherhood Is Not For Sissies

GO TIGERS!

2008-11-20T10:45:00.004-07:00

Our high school is playing in the 3A state playoffs tomorrow agains Juan Diego. First time since like 1949 that they've made it this far. Ben and I are going to cheer them on with our families who are coming up from Hurricane. It starts at 10:30 at Rice Eccles. See you at the game! GO TIGERS!

Halle Mae 2 Year Old Pics

2008-10-21T14:43:00.002-06:00

Check out these new pics of Halle. It cuts some of the photo off....I couldn't figure out how to do portrait pictures. She's pretty dang cute if you ask me, but of course I'm biased. :)

Make a Smilebox slideshow

My Deamon

2008-06-11T11:58:00.002-06:00

So we watched the Golden Compass over the weekend and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. I love the whole deamon concept. So I went to the website and found that you can create your own deamon my taking a quiz. I'm happy my deamon didn't turn out to be a monkey or a snake or something icky!

Life as a Secretary

2008-03-03T15:40:00.002-07:00

Yesterday I had a meeting with a member of the bishopric. I could only guess what it was for. My conclusion was that they were calling me to a different position within the ward. The YW presidency has only been in for about 2 years so I thought it was too soon to be releasing everyone. I spent the morning making a mental list of callings that I'd love to have - and ones that I'd rather say no to. Much to my surprise, they released me from Secretary, and re-asked me to be the new secretary to a different YW Presidency. That was a little weird, but easy to say yes to. A little part of me was sort of bummed that it wasn't something new, but being the YW secretary works for me.

Denise mentioned that I was the eternal secretary. I hadn't really thought about that before, but the last calling I has was the secretary in the RS. And, not only am I a secretary at church, I also do it for a living - although it has a more glamorous title of Executive Assistant. I guess the Lord has decided to put my professional accomplishments to work in the church. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to be learning or accomplishing as the secretary, but it's obvious that there is SOMETHING that I'm supposed to be learning. Otherwise, I wouldn't still be here being secretarial.

Contemplating the Blog

2008-02-28T08:49:00.002-07:00

I've been on a sabbatical from the blog for at least a month as you can see by the dates on my last post. I have to apologize to those of you who check up on this blog to see what's happening in the Hawkins' family. I realized the other day that my blogging ability is closely tied to how much free time I have at work. Much to the dismay of my blog, I haven't had my normal down time to surf the internet, post on the blog or look up random information. Today, however, I have a few minutes.

So, what's been going on lately? Well, Halle has been waking up multiple times in the night. Why is it so much harder to deal with it now than when she was a newborn? The bags under my eyes have never been bigger. Is it that I just turned 29 or that I'm not getting enough beauty sleep? Probably both. The last 2 nights she's slept the WHOLE night and I feel like a new woman. It's amazing what a full nights sleep can do for a person.

Halle is saying lots of fun words now. She copies us if the word is easy enough. Yesterday she was wearing a shirt with a cherry on it and I said "Can you say cherry?" and she did! The cute little learning to talk pronunciation is so endearing, it's impossible for my heart not to jump with joy over the little milestones. One of my favorite accomplishments as of late is finally understanding the yes/no difference. I love to ask a question and get a forward head nod, rather than the side to side head shake for no. It's definitely a communication breakthrough!

As for news about me, I'm back on the exercise bandwagon. The month of February wasn't good to my physic, so I'm refreshing my commitment to exercise at least every other day. I had to dust off the old treadmill. I've been invited to participate with a group of 12 women in a relay race called the Wasatch Back in June, but I've been putting off committing because I'm not sure I can be ready to run 8 miles by June 20. But, people keep telling me it's achievable if I set the goal now and work on it consistently. Running on a relay is a lot of pressure, so I'm sure if I commit I will find the will to train for it. I am going to run a 5k on March 15 called the Leprechaun Lope. I'm sure I can finish that little goal. In the mean time, I just better hit the treadmill as often as I can whether i'm sleep deprived or not!

Booty Shakin'

2008-01-16T16:20:00.000-07:00

So we were at Best Buy on Monday night in the car stereo department. Ben needed to buy a navigation unit for work. In the car stereo system they've always got some thumpin' music going so you can imaging the awesome systems in your own car. Halle was oblivious to the technology but enjoyed the beat. She got right to it and started shakin' her booty! It was the funniest thing. Not that I want my daughter to do the booty shaking when she's older, but it looked like she was in one of Beyonce's music videos. Ben and I and the Best Buy guy all had a laugh. Oh, the funny things she does in public!

No Shrinking Violet

2008-01-16T13:39:00.001-07:00

Our lovely little 18 month old took matters into her own hands yesterday at Daycare. Now I know that little squirts aren't supposed to be that fond of sharing and are capable of hurting each other, but my little angel? Never! So I was wrong. She was playing with the the xylophone and the xylophone mallet when a little boy (who I'm sure is the same boy who chased her into the wall when she had to get stitches) decided that he wanted the toy. A fight ensued and Halle ended up whacking him right in the face.He ended up with a black eye. A proud moment to be a mother! I feel a little bit bad, but am consoled by the fact that he didn't have to get stiches and didn't bleed. At least I know she can hold her own. I hope this is still the case when she gets to the dating age. Boys, beware!

2007-12-07T16:37:00.001-07:00

So I thought I'd hurry and get some pictures up so you could all see what's going on lately. I'll come back and write about them later. Halle's scar looks better every day and we are excited for Christmas - especially after our first big snow.

Santa came to visit us. Ok, maybe it's one of Santa's helpers.

2007-12-07T16:32:00.000-07:00

I'm a book. Like my longish hair?

2007-12-07T16:30:00.000-07:00

Yummy Snow

2007-12-07T16:24:00.000-07:00

The Sucker Incident

2007-12-07T16:18:00.000-07:00

The book is still sticky, but Halle cleaned up nicely.

Fall

2007-12-07T16:15:00.000-07:00

The Mouse in our House

2007-11-05T14:35:00.000-07:00

Ben was out of town last Thursday and Friday so of course we had a mouse in the house - probably brought in by our great hunter, Bella. Luckily I'm not totally freaked out by them. I just don't like wild disease ridden roadents in my house. Actually, I think they're kind of cute if they're in a cage at the pet store. So after I got home from taking Halle to get her wound glued, I noticed that Bella was guarding the refigerator. I spent about an hour trying to catch it with a hand towel, then I just gave up and went to bed hoping that Bella wouldn't bring it to me as gift in the middle of the night. (She's done that before).

The next day I left for work hoping that Bella would catch the mouse and take it out of the house. Unfortunately, I came home to the cat guarding the pantry. This time a strainer as my weapon of choice. As it ran out from behind the dish washer detergent I caught it! Halle was eating dinner and was totally bugged that I wouldn't let it out of the trap so she could pet it.

I actually feel really good about catching it because the last time there was a mouse in the house Ben killed it by putting it in a grocery sack and slamming it against the cement. I am more humane and threw it over the fence into the neighbor's yard. LOL!

Is That a Purple Booger?

2007-11-05T14:30:00.000-07:00

Well, no. Not a booger. It's super glue! A couple days after we took the stitches out the wound opened up a little and being the paranoid parent, I called dad. He said not to worry about it, but I had already called Dr. Clayton and he called me back and said he'd glue it. So one more tramatic experience at the Dr. later and now she has a purple looking blob on her forehead.

Halloween!

2007-11-05T14:03:00.000-07:00

Halle wasn't too into the pumpkin carving and lighting. But you may notice that we tried to make it look like her complete with a scar and little teeth! One of the trick-or-treaters said "Look, it's a Harry Potter pumpkin!" Close enough, I guess.

Ben took Halle around the cul-de-sac, but he had to carry her the whole way because she was kind of being a monster on Halloween....go figure. It took about an hour, but she came home with a load of candy that I put in the community bucket.

The TV is Up and Running

2007-11-05T13:57:00.000-07:00

Anyone who reads this blog should be happy to know that I'm over my TV issue. But it sure is nice to have a place to vent so I don't have to vent directly at my loving husband who I love and don't like to fight with. Honestly, I'd still be happy with our old one, but if the new one makes Ben happy, then I've decided that I'll be happy too. Steven, I forgive you. lol....

So does anyone want an old TV without RCA jacks?

No More Stitches!

2007-11-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

Halle got her stitches out on Halloween. The Dr. put steri strips on the cut, but by the time we picked Halle up from daycare, she had already pulled them off. So we put some more on. I think we went through 4 sets before we finally gave up.

It's a guy thing....isn't it? THE TV VENT!!!!

2007-10-29T16:29:00.000-06:00

What's the deal with guys and HUGE TVs? I've been able to make Ben hold off on getting a huge flat screen for a LONG time - almost 7 years to be exact, but this year, I finally gave in. Most of the wanting stems from getting a TV for our wedding that doesn't have RCA jacks so we have to use a converter box to play DVDs and hook up the satellite. Ben says the TV has been obsolete from the moment we got it. That's probably true, but it was a gift, and most importantly, it was FREE!

The straw finally broke the camels back when our DVD player went out and we had to buy a new one, but it took us three tries to find one that would play on our old technology (which means through the converter box). So I said, "When we get our bonuses this year, you can have a flat screen." That was my first mistake. My second mistake was when I didn't say "No!" when he said his brother could get us a 46 inch, top of the line, flat screen for a huge discount. Here's the logic: It's saving us money because the HUGE TV is close to the cost of a smaller, less intrusive, size that will fit our room model, and it's the best of the best. My question....Why does brand matter? It'll be obsolete tomorrow anyway. If you don't have the no-name brand next to the Sony or Sharp you can't tell the difference. That is, unless you're a guy.

So now we are shopping for a new entertainment console. It has some requirements: 1. It has to have a shelf for components that is higher than Halle can reach, and 2. It has to have some storage for all the DVDs that we own but never watch and Halle's books that are constantly strewn about the living room. Oh, and 3. It has to be big enough to look good with a 46 inch TV! Now I'm asking myself, what have I got myself into? I've decided that I've lost this battle. But, I'm not backing down on the surround sound. After the experience at my in-laws where I thought my ear drums were going to burst, I'm keeping my foot down on that one.

The TV is supposed to get here later this week. I'll let you know what I think when I see the monstrosity. I think I'm going to miss my old obsolete, less than 30 inch, plain old, TV. It's been a great 6+ years.......:)

Trunk or Treat

2007-10-29T10:01:00.001-06:00

All my friends and I dressed up on Wednesday for the big trunk or treat at the church. In this picture I look like an ewok from Star Wars with my two side kicks, Yoda and Chewy.

Here I am with my other friend. She's a flower, but I care more about what's in my mom's hair. I'm not sure what she's supposed to be and neither are any of the other kids. They asked her all night was she was. Mom wonders "do the other moms ever wear face masks?"

Can I have some candy daddy?

We hope boys dig scars....

2007-10-29T09:48:00.000-06:00

We spent half the day at Primary Children's on Friday. Halle was being chased by a boy at daycare and ran smack into a corner. I didn't know they started that young! She ended up with a 3/4 inch laceration that required 8 stitches - 4 on the inside, and 4 on the outside. Our first experience with the emergency room was a decent one. We waited for the Plastic Surgeon so that the scar would be as minimal as possible. The hardest part about it was when the nurses couldn't find the vein for her IV. They had to stick her 4 times. The medicine that they put in the IV made her loopy. She said "wow", and "oh" the whole time the doctor was stitching her up. It must have been some good medicine! We (mom & dad) were exhausted by the time that whole ordeal was over. Halle didn't skip a beat. She was back to her happy self before we even left the hospital!

2007-10-23T09:58:00.000-06:00

My friend started a blog and told me I should, too. Being new to the whole blogging world, I'm pleasantly surprised that it's so easy. Hopefully there are enough fun things in our lives to keep this interesting. I sorta wish I had started this a year ago. I have so many pictures of Halle that I haven't done anything with yet. Seems like I never get around to doing the scrapbooking thing. Anyway, happy perusing!

Farm Country

2007-10-23T09:47:00.000-06:00

One of our favorite things to do is to visit the animals at Farm Country. Halle loves go on the pony rides.We're hoping that one day Halle will grow some hair in the front, but until then, we'll dress her in pink from head to toe!

BOO! Aren't I the CUTEST koala you've ever seen?

2007-10-23T09:42:00.001-06:00

The other day Halle brough me her Halloween costume and really wanted me to put it on her, so we did and we had a ball. We've tried it on before, but she's never left it on very long. I don't think I've ever seen such a cute koala bear!

She can really ham it up when she wants too.