I'm a Yeller....

I've realized in the last week or so that I raise my voice more than I should. Let's just say it as it really is.....I yell at my kids a lot. It's not that I'm always in their face telling them what they're doing wrong. It's more my technique of choice when Graham is getting into something and I want him to stop right away or Lucy has started wailing because she has to come inside and I choose to yell over her crying and tell her how much trouble she's going to be in if she doesn't stop. It's not just when I'm upset, either. I yell from room to another all the time, too.

This bad habit has been brought more to my attention recently because I see Lucy doing it more and more. It seems like she says something once and then resorts to yelling it if she's not answered right away. Graham isn't a quiet little one either. Even though I don't understand what he is yelling at me (probably better that way), the face that he makes and fluctuations in his voice sound all to familiar.

So, I'm posting this in hopes that it will help motivate me to do better. I have a few friends that I watch with their kids and it seems like they have much more control over their emotions and because of that, their kids are more calm. I want my presence to ultimately bring more peace......not more stress. I know that by working on this, it will welcome a more content spirit into our home.

Wish me luck! More sweet tones and less strained voices!

Easter Festivities

We had a great weekend here at the Ray house. It was our little family's first Easter without extended family to celebrate with. We survived it and actually had a nice time.

Saturday we had Gavin's b-day party. You may remember him from a previous post. Gavin will be remembered in our house as the one with (quoting Lucy) "the best birthday party, EVER!" We had a great time. There was an Easter egg hunt at the end. Graham even got into it a little. He mostly liked playing with the eggs after they were opened.

Sunday morning Lucy came out to find that the Easter Bunny had left her the movie, Enchanted along with some candy. She enjoyed looking for the eggs that were hid around the living room. The bunny put pennies in some, candy in others, and some had words for us to talk about or songs for us to sing. When I told Lucy he did that so we could talk about Jesus on this special day, she said, "The Easter Bunny knows about that! He's so smart!"

We attempted to get some pictures of the kids in their new outfits before church. I was disappointed that we couldn't get a family one. Oh well. Church was very nice. Lucy got to sing with the primary. Following sacrament meeting, Lucy looked at me with a tired face and said, "I don't feel good, Mom. We better go home and rest and watch Enchanted." I had to tell her multiple times that we weren't going home. She wasn't too happy.

Jason made us a nice steak and potatoes dinner after church. That evening we had some friends from our ward over to help us finish off the cinnamon rolls. We missed our family, but we had a nice day. I'm loving that Lucy is at the age where she can grasp some of the gospel concepts. It was sweet helping her and seeing her understand why we have Easter.

Side note: Check out Lucy's quotes on the side bar. She's had a few good ones this week.

Our Cinnamon Roll Adventure

I did it! I made cinnamon rolls for the first time! This may not seem like a big deal to some, but my baking abilities have never attempted anything of this magnitude. I made them ALL BY MYSELF! Jason and I had planned to make them together on Saturday afternoon, but he got called into work around noon and didn't get back until after 11 pm. The experience was definitely full of many highs and lows.

I learned many things....here are the top 5 in no particular order:

1. While baking, always have the phone within your reach. (I called my mom at least 20 times. No, I'm not exaggerating. On about the 17th call, no one answered and I panicked! Luckily, she called back within 30 seconds and I was okay.)

2. Don't put your little boy in the tub when the dough is ready to be rolled out.....no matter how ridiculously dirty he is.

3. Feed your children some kind of snack or small dinner before you begin rolling out the dough. Otherwise, you risk having little people at your feet holding up food they want you to feed them. All while you are racing with the clock trying to get the rolls done.

4. Give your 4 year old the sugaring job....not the cinnamoning job.

5. Cinnamon rolls are hard and it will be a long time before I make them again!

They didn't turn out as pretty as my mom's, but I have to say they tasted pretty dang good! Practice makes perfect. Although, after spending all that time making them, I found that I wasn't as quick to scarf them down. I had a sort of reverence for them. Only for a while, though. We were all very well fed in the cinnamon roll department this weekend!

Win, Lose, or Draw

Lucy and I have been playing Pictionary a lot lately. We got this white board from our neighbors when they were moving. We use it for Family Home Evening frequently. Many of our lessons end with Pictionary.

Yesterday Lucy drew this picture. She said it is she and I in front of the washing machine. Some of her pictures are very entertaining. She'll draw a box and then be ticked off when I can't figure out that it's a "rag". Sometimes she has a hard time coming up with things to draw. She said to me yesterday, "Whisper and tell me a secret of what I should draw." I tried to explain to her why that wouldn't work because then I'd know what it was and I'm the only other one playing. She replied, "Just pretend you don't know and then guess!"

Sometimes I have a hard time being motivated to get down and really play with my children. But when I do, I always end up enjoying the time spent and the conversations had. I need to make an effort to do it more often.

Easter Celebration Ideas

Easter is fast approaching and I am curious to know how you all celebrate. As we are away from extended family, I'm hoping to start some traditions of our own. (Although, I'd rather be in Utah doing our this with the fam. I'm having a rough couple days.....very homesick!)

Anyways, we thought about having the Easter bunny come on Saturday so that we could have more of a spiritual day on Sunday. But then I worried that Saturday would always become the big day and Lucy (and the other kids) wouldn't get excited about Sunday.

So........what do you do for Easter? Do you have an Easter bunny come to your house? We decided that this year we'll do it on Sunday morning, but some of the eggs that the Easter bunny hides for the little hunt will have words in them (like resurrection, tomb, crucified, 3 days, etc, etc.) so that we can talk about the words as she opens them. In the future the eggs might have scriptures instead of words. We're going to keep the bunny part of it all pretty simple, but there will be candy. Oh yes.....there will be candy!

I may attempt to make some of my mom's amazing cinnamon rolls tomorrow. Maybe each year we'll have cinnamon rolls for Sunday morning breakfast. My mom makes hot cross buns every Easter and I looked forward to it each year. We'll see if it really happens.

Here Comes the Sun!

I thought I'd post a picture of the swimsuit I ordered last week. I'm pretty sure it won't look as good on me as it does on the model......the flat stomach doesn't come with the suit. I ordered it from Modbe clothing. A little pricey for my blood, but I decided that it was a good investment. This is my rational: If I spend a little more coin on a suit that I like, it'll last me a few summers. If I go cheap and I don't like the suit, I complain about it all summer and I get a new one the next year. I explained this to Jason and he went for it, but he told me to "wait until the loan goes through before I order it!" I decided to splurge and get the little swim skirt, too. I usually get a suit and then wear shorts that I've had for over 7 years that don't match. Here comes the sun! We've had 70 degree weather the last week or so! Bring on the summer! (Not July weather, though! We got up to 115 last year!)

Lucy's Views on Marriage

This picture is of Lucy when we got home from church. Her teacher had given her a treat and she ate most of it on the way home, but offered two last bites that she had held in her hands the whole way home to give Jason and I. The treat was a chocolate covered marshmallow bunny. Needless to say, the bunny was no longer chocolate covered.

Lucy and I have been having the funniest conversations lately. I try to remember them, but by the time I sit down to do it, I've forgotten the details. This morning while we were getting ready for church, out of nowhere she says:

Lucy: "I just wish I could marry Oliver."

Me: "You can't marry your cousin. Sorry, Lucy."

Lucy: "Well then who can I marry?"

Me: "You don't have to worry about that for a while. So don't stress it."

Lucy: "Miss Stephanie (her preschool teacher) said that her brother didn't

get married. That's funny, huh, Mom."

Me: "Sometimes people don't get married, and that's okay."

Lucy: "I can marry Gavin!"

Me: "Why do you want to marry Gavin?"

Lucy: "Because he's my best friend"

(She then got a very worried look on her face)

Lucy: "I hope he doesn't want to marry Hayley!"

Me: "You don't need to get married for a long time, Lucy. When you get married you don't get to be a kid anymore, so just be a kid for a while first."

Lucy: "Well, I'll just play all day when I'm married and a grown-up and a Mom! It'll be okay!"

It seems like everyday she just gets more and more funny. Yesterday the base was hosting a little Easter party outside down the street from our house. I was being really grumpy because Jason wasn't home from helping someone move (what a jerk) and I decided that we would just go and he'd meet us there. I was being really rough and ornery with the two kids as I helped them get their shoes and coats on. As we walked outside she said, "Wow, Mom! It's a great day for an Easter egg hunt!" I had to laugh and put a smile on my face after that.

She's always singing and dancing her days away without a care in the world (some of the time). I love hearing her songs from the other room as she plays. I get sad when I think too much about her growing up and me forgetting all the funny moments we have at our house. Hopefully I can capture more of them in word here on the blog.

As I finish this post, Lucy is in her room screaming because she doesn't want to eat vegetables for dinner and "Daddy never lets her eat what she wants for dinner or fly the kite!!!" Did I say singing and dancing her days away without a care in the world?

The Seabee Ball

Friday night Jason and I went to the Seabee Ball here on base. The Seabees are a division of the Civil Engineering Corp that Jason is a part of in the Navy. They are a construction battalion that travels and builds stuff in war zones. Jason will more than likely be a part of one of these battalions when we move the beginning of next year. Anyways......back to Friday night.

We had a babysitter come and watch the kids. Lucy is always very excited about having a sitter. She loves the attention she gets from them and a grown up playmate that will do what she wants.

The ball was a lot of fun. It's always nice to have an excuse to get dressed up. I'm not a huge fan of the dress I wore. My friend let me borrow the wrap so I could cover it up a bit. I got it at Ross for $15.99, so I can't complain too much. I have a hard time spending a ton of money on a dress I'll wear once or maybe twice a year. (I spent the big bucks on an adorable swim suit I ordered last week!).

We spent the evening with the people from Jason's office and their wives. They are all so nice and we enjoyed visiting with them.

It was so nice coming home and having the kids already asleep in their beds. Babysitters cost a pretty penny, but it was worth it. I love seeing my man in his uniform!

Purse Tagged.....I'm it!

Kim tagged me so here it is. I thought this one was kinda fun. Here's my purse. I didn't think I'd use it much because it's pink. I thought it would bug me that it wasn't more neutral and would clash with a lot. I guess it doesn't bother me too much because I've had it for over 3 years. Every time I wear red I think to myself, "I should get a different purse", but oh well. My purse was in desperate need of a cleaning out. After the trash was gone there wasn't a whole lot left.

-Lip Smackers (cotton candy flavor)

-Lucy's heart lip gloss

-Lotion

-military ID card

-3 gift cards (Sports Authority, American Eagle, and Visa Card......I gotta get shoppin'!)

-calendar (I use this soooo much. Once I write appointments or meetings down, I forget them completely. I'd be in trouble without this little baby)

-check book (Lucy's preschool only takes checks.....annoying!)

-Dum Dum suckers and crackers for the kids when we're shopping. I've created a monster. As soon as I sit Graham down in the cart, he holds his hand out and waits for the little sucker.

-Ibuprofen and a random prescription of Jason's from December

-wallet

Pretty exciting stuff, I know. Who's up for it? Tag to anyone who needs to clean their purses out as badly as I did!

The Race from Hades.....

Okay, so as many of you know, Jason and I ran in a 1/2 marathon over a week ago in Vegas. My brother and sister, Blaine and Beth, along with Beth's husband, Jason, ran in it with us. I've been waiting to get the pictures sent from my mom so I could post about it. The weekend with the fam was a lot of fun. The race........was horrible! This is Beth and I after the race. The website where we registered for the race mentioned that the course had a "slight incline" for the first few miles. Ha! The first 8 miles were uphill! Not exaggerating! We were not physically prepared for that! There would be a major hill followed by a very, very short downhill and right away we were climbing again. Not to mention the wind that was blowing like crazy the whole time. I'm not just being a baby. I've done 2 full marathons and this half marathon was soooo much worse than those. Needless to say, Jason and I were not happy with our times. Our times were about 15 minutes slower than we hoped.

The event was not put together very well. We went to check in the night before and waited in line almost an hour to pick up our numbers and packets. Usually at the finish line of a race they have booths and tents set up with lots of food and plenty of water and drinks. They ran out of food and there were no tents. So, if you're a race runner looking for a good event........cross Red Rock 1/2 Marathon off your list.

Here's picture of us before the race. Look at us fools smiling away. If we had only known the hell that was waiting just around the corner. Like idiots, we showed up at the pick up point way too early. We had to hang out at the start line for an hour in the cold wind. We stayed the weekend at Blaine's sister in law's house. That part of the trip was a lot of fun. The kids had a blast! Hopefully I'll have pictures of them soon. The Taylor's were great guests and we fell in love with their beautiful home. We had dinner at The Cheesecake Factory that night (one of my favorites). It was hard saying goodbye to everyone after just 2 quick days. Lucy had so much fun playing with Abby, Oliver, and the Taylor boys.

7 Wonderful Years!

Today is our wedding anniversary! 7 years ago on a rainy morning we were married in the Salt Lake Temple. What a fun and exciting day! Last night our friends watched the kids so Jason and I could go out. While eating dinner, we were thinking about what we wanted to do in the next 7 years together. We have many adventures to come and many places to go and I'm so glad we get to do it together! I couldn't have imagined a better match for me. I love you, Jason! Whenever we go to receptions now I get jealous because I want to have another party devoted to just us. Does anyone else feel that way?

Happy Birthday, Katie!

Today is Kate's birthday! I just got off the phone with her and it got me thinking about the good times we've had over the years. I've known her since 8th grade and we've been close for over 10 years! Nearly all of my fondest high school and college memories include Katie. One such memory is pictured below: Katie and I decided one afternoon to dress up. We ended up driving around Layton and going to a couple friend's houses to pretend we were lawn mower salesmen. We did weird stuff like this all the time. I have a picture of Katie and I freshman year at USU when we dressed up 80's style one night when we were bored. I decided against posting it......it's not a good picture of either of us! (And this one is?)

Another memory is our road trip to California. It was just the two of us and we drove to LA to see the sights. We were on a very tight budget. I think we only spent like $120 including gas for the whole trip. All we ate was a bag of tortilla chips and a box of Chex cereal. On the way home we had some cash left over on our budget, so we stopped in Vegas and made ourselves sick eating too much at buffet. Good times!!

I feel very blessed to have had such a wonderful friend for so many years. It's so crazy that we're both raising kids now and I love talking to her and getting advice on how to survive. Katie and Steve are so much fun and we just love spending time with them. I wish we could see them more often!!

Thanks for the memories, Kate! I wanted you to know I was thinking about you and hoping you had a good day. Our chats always brighten my day!