Easter egg hunt may be moving to dryer land!!!

So, this is Kierstin.  As I was leaving Mom's today she ran ahead of me just a bit.  I was talking to Mom and didn't really think about there being anything she could get into.  Well, there once was a walkway, paved with rocks where Kierstin stepped and fell face first in 6 or 20 inches of mud.  She couldn't get up.  Mom was laughing her head off...but was aware enough to suggest taking a picture.  So, this is the aftermath.  She was rather unhappy and I was a running late for a visiting teaching appt where I showed up about 5 minutes late with Kierstin wearing only a white t-shirt and a diaper...can you see my white trash roots showing???  I think we should consider hunting for Easter eggs inside.  :)

Easter egg hunt may get moved to my house

Just had to share! Motivation anyone?

WATER OR COKE?

This is really an eye opener.... Water or Coke? We
all know that water is important but I've never seen
it written down like this before.

  WATER

1. 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated.
2. In 37% of Americans, the thirst mechanism is so
weak that it is often mistaken for hunger.
3. Even MILD dehydration will slow down one's
metabolism as much as 3%. 

4. One glass of water will shut down midnight hunger
pangs for almost 100% of the dieters studied in a
University of Washington study.
5. Lack of water, the #1 trigger of daytime fatigue. 

6. Preliminary research indicates that 8-10 glasses
of water a day could significantly ease back and
joint pain for up to 80% of sufferers.
7. A mere 2% drop in body water can trigger fuzzy
short-term memory, trouble with basic math, and
difficulty focusing on the computer screen or on aprinted page.
8. Drinking 5 glasses of water daily decreases the
risk of colon cancer by 45%, plus it can slash the
risk of breast cancer by 79%, and one is 50% less
likely to develop bladder cancer.

And now for the properties of COKE:
1. In many states (in the USA) the highway patrol
carries two gallons of coke in the truck to remove
blood from the highway after a car accident.

2. You can put a T-bone steak in a bowl of coke and
it will be gone in two days.
3. To clean a toilet: Pour a can of Coca-Cola into
the toilet bowl and let the "real thing" sit for one
hour, then flush clean. The citric acid in Coke
removes stains from vitreous China.
4. To remove rust spots from chrome car bumpers: Rub
the bumper with a rumpled-up piece of Reynolds Wrap
aluminum foil dipped in Coca-Cola.
5. To clean corrosion from car battery terminals:
Pour a can of Coca-Cola over the terminals to bubble
away the corrosion.
6. To loosen a rusted bolt: Applying a cloth soaked
in Coca-Cola to the rusted bolt for several minutes.
7. To bake a moist ham: Empty a can of Coca-Cola into
the baking pan, wrap the ham in aluminum foil, and
bake. Thirty minutes before the ham is finished,
remove the foil, allowing the drippings to mix
with the Coke for a sumptuous brown gravy.
8. To remove grease from clothes: Empty a can of coke
into a load of greasy clothes, add detergent, and run
through a regular cycle. The Coca-Cola will help
loosen grease stains.
9. It will also clean road haze from your windshield.
For Your Info:
1. The active ingredient in Coke is phosphoric acid.
Its pH is 2.8. It will dissolve a nail in about 4
days. Phosphoric acid also leaches calcium from bones
and is a major contributor to the rising increase in
osteoporosis.
2. To carry Coca-Cola syrup (the concentrate) the
commercial truck must use the Hazardous material
place cards reserved for Highly corrosive materials.
3. The distributors of coke have been using it to
clean the engines of their trucks for about 20 years!

Now the question is, would you like a coke or a glass
of water?

What a day!

So there are days that come along that make everything make sense.  Today is one of those days.  Miss Kyra decided to make today the day she learns how to ride her bike.  She was a little delayed in this adventure because she was so afraid.  Jackson, our little neighbor, is the one who got her to get over it.  He says, "you're 6...get on the bike."  He took her to the driveway and helped her back and forth a few times and now I can't get her off the thing.  She is so proud of herself, as well she should be.  

Kimball also had a pretty big milestone today.  He went on a scout trip and went rappelling for the first time, well the first time outdoors and over a mountain.  He swore that he would never go over that mountain, but he did it.  He is something like Superman right now.  

Sadly, Larry had a travel day today and had to miss these things, which he is really disappointed about.  You work through temper tantrums and trying to pretend that you have any idea of what you are doing with this parenting thing, often without thanks or reward.  And then, you get these days.  I am sure that it will end with tears and tantrums over something silly, but for now I will savor the little accomplishments and the joy and smiles that come with them. 

Update

So, after several days of waiting on word from the sellers of this little doll house, we finally heard back.  They are willing to give us the time we would need to sell our house, but they only came off their price by a mere $4000.  I am no brain surgeon, though I could play one on t.v., but that makes no sense.  :) 

So, we have decided that we will stay right where we are in our wonderful home.  We do love it and we have put a lot of love into remodeling it.  The perks that exist over there are nice, but we do like this house better.  So, we are absolutely fine with it and will continue to add our little touches to this house, and finish some projects we have already started. 

Your input was interesting and helpful.  We are particularly happy to be staying at our wonderful little elementary school.  I was a bit concerned about that.  So, there you have it.  It was an interesting exercise that proved to us that we truly do love our little patch of paradise...well, you know what I mean.

Oh, and it has been snowing here if you haven't heard.  It was as if a tornado had picked us up and dropped us back in Utah.  The kids built snow men, that only just melted tonight.  You can see remnants of snowmen all over our neighborhood...hats and carrots and gloves strewn about green lawns like a snowman graveyard.  It was so cute this morning though.  We must have passed ten or fifteen on the way to school.  Yesterday was that magic snowfall that lasted for hours that coated the trees and dropped in some of the biggest snowflakes I have ever seen.  It was beautiful.  Tonight we are back to relative normal, with melting snow everywhere.  The grass is mush in every part of our area.  In fact, our dog Atticus left muddy prints all over the couches and stairs after a trip outside.  We almost escaped the wet mess without having to mop up mud...almost.

And one more funny thing...Larry is in Palm Beach today working a fundraiser at Donald Trump's house, Mar-a-lago.  (I think that's how you spell it)  That is funny enough, but he calls me today to rave about the golden toilets.  Mind you there are actual camels at the estate for this party he is throwing...but he calls about the gold toilets.  Too funny.

Guess What!!!

He liked the house!!!  We are making a preliminary offer on the house and if they take it we will put ours on the market!  What a surprise!  I will let you know what I find out.

Unbelievable

Ok, I am officially done.  Kimball now has pink eye!!!  Larry is home and very sick.  Kierstin is still sick with some kind of croupy, coughing, whining, grouchy thing...beyond the normal toddler grouchy thing.  Kaden and Kyra seem to be holding up and how I haven't doubled over with all of these sicknesses is amazing to me.  Let's just recap briefly...since December I have had any number of combinations of two or more members of my household sick at one time...sometimes all of them.  What is happening in the world!!!  Ok, done with the rant.

for now

Okay!  And I have started looking at a house in Double Oak.  Some of you know about it, but for those who don't, it is a 4 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath on one acre with a pool and a separate office/ workshop.  Here's the link:

David Winans GMAC Real Estate : Residential Search Results - Free search 70,000 North Texas Homes in Dallas Fort Worth

Let me know what you think of it.  There are some very sentimental reasons to stay in the house we are in now.  It has been our shelter and haven in some very difficult times.  It is the home we came to after leaving Utah.  It is the home we came back to after Kierstin joined us.  It is where we became a family again.  I walk through this house sometimes and I don't think I could love another house as much as I love this one.  Outside our front door; however, is another story.  Privacy is limited.  Space to grow is limited.  We love many of our neighbors, and others we have significant issues with regarding the children.  I don't think that changes from one street to another though.  The thing with this other house is that it is a different lifestyle.  There is the pool and the office, which are incredible for us.  There is room for gardening and playing outside.  There is room, as Kimball pointed out, for a great fort and zip line, as well as plenty of room for a good soccer or baseball game.  It looks like childhood over there.  I had an emotional response to the house the first time I saw it...six months ago.  That's how long it's been on the market.  They are asking about $40K too much, so we would only consider it if they came off their price, but it is something special.  

So, look at it and share your thoughts.  Stay in our house we're in, or move on up and over to a little more land.  Bear in mind that it is the same distance to our lovely new shopping, just from another direction.  I look forward to your opinions.