Out with the old, in with the new, but wishing things could stay the same

A few nights ago I made smothered pulled pork burritos for the first time. I was all excited to be moving out of my cooking rut... you know the one ( and don't act like you don't)... spaghetti, chili, chicken and rice, tacos, chicken noodle soup, pot roast, repeat.

We all thought the burritos were awesome---Isabella didn't. The TinkerBell flying-fork trick wouldn't even persuade her to open her mouth. I begged, I pleaded, I coerced, I threatened to put her in time out.

"Okay mama, I want to go time out"

She left the table with her hands on her hips and looked back at me smiling as she walked away, then casually walked off in the opposite direction.

I've done this to myself.

Moving on...

We're getting ready to put our house on the market, which means making the closets and garage pristine. Clutter removal is a time for some serious self evaluation... Like, why do I still have my horrific grandma dress from my high school senior dance? And, more importantly, why didn't anyone even try to talk me out of wearing it?

I keep thinking maybe someday someone will need it for a costume or something. No one is ever going to need or wear that thing... I can hardly stand to look at it.. what do you think? Time to let go?

Finally, I realize I completely skipped Christmas celebrations on the blog this year. Too many pictures to even think about posting, so you'll have to use your imagination... lots of presents, wrapping paper, smiles, joy, happiness :) I love Christmas!

We took down our Christmas Tree on the 26th... I know, so shameful!! Shane's parents were coming into town on the 29th and we didn't want to have to worry about taking it down while they were here, so we just got it done.

We had a wonderful time with Grandma and Grandpa Lewis. It was a special time because we learned that they have been called to be mission Presidents and will be gone by the time we get to Utah. In the back of our minds, we knew that was the last time for a while that we'd be able to spend quality time with just them, so we really enjoyed it.

We went on a jog to the lake, and went to the movies and saw "Voyage of the Dawn Treader" -- probably my favorite Narnia movie yet.

We went bowling, where grandma Julie schooled us in the finer points. I'm not kidding, she kicked our butts. Here are a few of the pictures...

After the kids started school again, Shane's parents helped us get two bathrooms painted and the garage cleaned out in one day! It was amazing! Thank you!

It's a Hard Life

One night the boys just had a hankerin to paint someone's fingernails... Isabella was more than willing to help them out. I thought it would be a sloppy mess, but it turns out these boys have an eye for detail.

It's tough being the baby sister.

Christmas Crunch

Isaac is the king of one-liners. I was scolding him one day about his inability to focus on a task or chore that I give him. Very simple things like, "put on your shoes", or "brush your teeth" seem to instantly escape his brain, once he sees something more interesting to do.

He looked at me with very sad eyes and said, "It's just hard! For some reason I always forget, before I remember."

My heart was instantly softened, "I know exactly how you feel, Isaac."

I'm afraid Isaac and I share an affinity for being easily, very easily distract ..... oh did I tell you the real reason the chicken crossed the road?

Oh wait, back to the story. Well my distracted nature has cost my parents a lot of headaches and a good deal of money over the years. There is a long list of infractions; locking my keys in my car more times than I can count, sometimes while running and once with a small child in it (I was just filling up my gas tank, relax people) losing my keys, dropping my cell phones into water and on pavement, leaving my blazing hot curling irons plugged in all day, forgetting to turn my oven and stove off, forgetting to look behind me when I pull out of the drive way and hitting a parked car on four different occasions ... you get the picture. I think that's why my dad was smiling the day he gave that responsibility over to another man.

So we were on our way home from the twins Christmas choir performance. Anyway, Shane came straight from work so we were driving home with the boys in our two separate cars. Shane and I are competitive with each other, always, so of course, we were racing.

Shane was right on my bumper trying to find a way around me ... I swear he would've crashed into me if it would have helped him win, as we pulled into the driveway. I didn't pull my car all the way into the garage because I was trying to let Mason out so he could run to the door and win, because winning is the most important thing. Well, in the end WE won, at least according to my version of the story.

I turned off the car and went into the house. A little while later I heard Shane saying my name in an aggravated tone. When I walked out to the garage I cringed... Christmas spirit instantly gone. It's hard to see from the picture, but my garage door resembled an accordion.

I felt horrible. Not a good time of year to be in need of a major home repair. After getting the kids into bed, I crawled into my own bed and cried. My boys took pity on me and came up with a plan...Even though it was supposed to be a secret Isaac came down the stairs and told me what the plan was. They were going to sell all of their toys including their DS's to help pay for a new garage door. What awesome, caring boys I have. I am so blessed.

Well, I'm happy to say the garage door has been replaced ... now the only ding is in my checking account. On the bright side I now have the distinction of being one of the only women who can say that her Christmas present was a garage door.

More Jingle in the Buns this year

I ran the Schlotzky's Jingle Bun Run again this year... only this time it was a half marathon. My hubby and kids were SUPER excited when I told them I signed them up for the 1K... haha :) It's a fun race for the kids because they race against the Big Man, Santa Clause.

I wasn't able to watch them do their race... and Shane didn't take any pictures :( but Isaac informed me that he kicked Santa's butt.

The holidays are a difficult time to run a half marathon and it was really hard to get the training runs in, so I felt very unsure about my chances of doing very well. The weather was great starting out and amazingly, after not enough preparation I felt pretty

good.

At mile 6 I was so excited when I saw these little cuties and it gave me a second wind.

Then came mile 10 ... it had been calm all morning until then, and we ran mile 10 and 11 into some serious headwinds... I just kept my head down and hoped I could put one foot in front of the other. At mile 12 I experienced shooting pain in both of my calves... I've never experienced muscle cramps like that, and it wasn't good... but ran through it. Jackson helped me through the last hundred meters. I was elated when I came in at 1:54... and took 3rd place in the old lady division ages 30-34.

Sadly my friend had a barf-a-thon around mile 7... I wasn't with her at that time but felt really bad for her!! So miserable to run when your stomach isn't happy with you. :( What a tough chick... despite it all she finished 2nd in her division 35-40 women! She is awesome.

This picture really isn't suitable for publication... but our medals are pretty cool so I put it in anyway.

All the Single Ladies

I am definitely meant to be a boy mom... but I love girls! They are so emotional, irrational, and most of all fun! Here is a little video I finally took the time to post. It's from our summer in Utah. This particular clip is from the family cabin in Wyoming, where we were having our family reunion.

These are my cute nieces and crazy daughter... lets just say, after this trip I hoped I never had to hear this song again!

The Backyard Gridiron

The Kick-off...

The Huddle...

The Snap...

The ultimate look of determination... that just makes me smile. :)

Isaac's unconventional blocking technique... I'm no football guru, but I'm pretty sure that's considered "holding".

Bella, going in for the TD...

Bella and Isaac... like fire and ice... but super cute playmates.

All in a days work...