Rocky

The year I was born "Rocky" won the Oscar for Best Picture. Can you believe that?!! Not that I don't absolutely love those movies but, it must've been a slow movie year...Well, when I got a little older, like 3 or 4 years old "Rocky II" came out. I heart Rocky! We had the sound track on record and I remember laying on the couch pretending that I was Adrian, sick in the hospital after she had their baby. I had a big poster of Sly in my room too. I think that's a bit extreme for a 4-year old. Oh well.

Now-a-days I have my very own Rocky. His name is Bronson. 50% of the time he's getting ready to hit Someone or Something. The other 50% of the time he just finished hitting Someone or Something! If he trips on the stairs he gets mad and hits the stairs. If you take something away from him he hits you. If he falls off the bar stool he hits the bar stool. It doesn't matter if he's happy, sad, tired, silly, or mad, whatever mood he's in he still hits! The picture is proof. I was trying to get one of them hugging, but he decided to take a swipe at Nalani instead. Last night he fell asleep in my arms and it was so nice and peaceful to hold a sweet little boy that isn't constantly trying to knock me out.

I'm new to the whole being-the-mom-of-a-boy thing, but is this behavior normal? We try to teach him to be "nice" and "soft" and he's good about it for a few minutes and then it's back to hitting! Do any of you have some pointers for me? Will he grow out of this? Please say, "yes!"

I guess, for now, I'll have to pull out my collection of Rocky movies and watch them with the future Heavy Weight Champion of the World. Bronson Balboa. And as sad as it may sound, I still love those movies! What makes a better movie than watching Rocky get beat up, train really hard in the Russian wilderness and then kick Ivan Drago's butt? Not much.

Happy People!

Last week we had a great ward activity! We had a lip sync. There were some great acts: R. Kelly, The Bee Gees, Sonny and Cher, Terri Clark, The Styx, Jonas Brothers, Shrek, Sharpay, and some that I can't remember the names of. The activity committee did a great job as always! They hired a DJ and had popcorn and punch for refreshments. We also combined with the Cub Scouts and had a dessert auction, we won some yummy peanut butter cookies with chocolate kisses on top!

Our family contributed to the entertainment. Kelly sang "Happy People" by R. Kelly, and Logan along with the Activity Day girls did "Stayin' Alive" by the Bee Gees. All the acts were so good and everyone really enjoyed themselves! Here is the video of my Kelly as R. Kelly, notice his sweet suit! I have to give a shout-out to Jeremy for being able to figure out how to get our video up and running on the computer to share with all of you:) Go to the bottom of the page and stop the music before playing the video.

Darn those couch cushions!

(Just one of the MANY photos we have of Nalani with the "paci" stuck in her face.)

While we were in Utah we lost all three of the pacifiers we packed for Nalani. She did surprisingly well. I kept telling her what a big girl she was and that I would buy her a treat for not sucking on her pacifiers anymore. She's been wanting what she calls a princess mirror (a princess vanity set) for a long time, so I told her she could get one when we got home.

On the drive from SLC to Monticello she got pretty upset about something and wanted her pacifier. I had secretly kept one for such an emergency hidden in my purse. I handed it back to her and asked if she wanted a princess mirror or her "paci". She held the "paci" in her hand and looked at it, then sadly handed it back to me and said she wanted the princess mirror. I was so proud of her, because she was really given the choice!

The other day Kelly took Nalani to Wal-Mart to get the princess mirror, but they were out so he came home with a much smaller and cheaper version. It was even better because she didn't really understand the difference:) She was excited no matter what!

Well, on Friday I came down stairs to find Nalani on the couch sucking on a pacifier. She had found it in the treasure trove of the couch cushions. Darn them! Now we had to start all over again. She was sad for a few minutes, but hasn't asked for one since. Hopefully we've gotten rid of all of the stash now and I really, truly have a big girl now. I have to say that I really am proud of her. A pacifier has been her source of comfort for her whole life and now she has given it up. I'm sure that's hard for a 3-year old. Good job Nalani!

Utah Review

This post is to remind me of what we did while in Utah for my grandma's funeral. Although it was a sad thing, we got to do some fun stuff too. I haven't been to San Juan County in about 4 years so it was good to go "home" again. Here's what we did while we were there.

Monday March 3rd: I got there with Nalani and Bronson late that night and got to see my grandma before she passed away. Even though she was pretty much in a coma it was good to hold her hand and run my fingers through her hair and talk to her. It was a special experience to be with her as she passed away and be able to thank her for what a good grandma she had been to me. After leaving the nursing home we spent the night at my sister's house.

Tuesday March 4th: After finally getting everyone ready, my dad, Melanie and her kids and my crew drove to Park City and met my brother Jesse for lunch. We got the kids Happy Meals and then got some good Mexican food. Jesse had to go back to work so we made our way down to Layton and dropped the kids off at my Aunt Ann's house while we helped my dad pick out a new suit. We were also able to buy a pretty white dress for my grandma to be buried in. After all the errands were taken care of we had dinner at my aunt's house while we planned the funeral. We had a scary ride home when we thought there was a crazy after us! Luckily we drove straight to the Sheriff's office off the freeway and the crazy didn't follow us. We were sweating bullets for a few minutes!

Wednesday March 5th: During the afternoon my mom and Rachel met us at Mel's house and then we went to visit my mom's parents in American Fork. We were able to finally show our grandparents how to get onto our blogs so they could see pictures and stuff. My grandma made her famous beans and homemade bread with jam and we all had a nice visit. Bronson had a rough day. First he tipped over on one of the kitchen chairs and slammed his forehead on the tile floor at Mel's house and then he tripped and cut the side of his head at my grandma's house. I finally got to see my mom's new place and stayed the night with her. We got to see my sister Rachel and her boyfriend Brandon's new dog named Zoey. It is a cute little dog that loved Bronson and Bronson loved Zoey. She had a good time licking all the sticky candy off Bronson's hands and face.

Thursday March 6th: We left SLC in the morning to head down to Monticello and Blanding. Jesse rode with Mel and her kids while my kids and I rode with my mom. It was fun caravanning down. Fun right up until both cars got pulled over at the same time by the same cop. Melanie and my mom both got tickets. We should have told him the reason we were going down BEFORE he wrote them:) Right before we got to Monticello Melanie got pulled over again! Luckily this time we knew the guy and he said he only pulled her over for having a cracked windshield and told her to get it fixed. He must've been really bored! Kelly, Logan and Maika flew in and drove down with Mel's husband Riley. We were calling everyone we knew to warn them not to speed between Price and Green River:) Kelly was not feeling well at all so he stopped off at the doctor's office that his sister manages and got some antibiotics to help out. Thanks Jo, for hooking us up!

We dropped our stuff off in Monticello and headed straight for Blanding to catch up with some friends. I got to see Stephanie, Candace, and Kayela for a few minutes each. I'm sad that I didn't get to spend more time with them but I'm grateful that I at least made eye contact:) Hopefully we'll make it down there more often so we can see each other!

Friday March 7th: Today was grandma's funeral. It was so nice to see friends and family and be surrounded by the people who loved my grandma. My favorite parts of the funeral were hearing every one's memories of her. My grandma loved the Indian people and their culture so we all wore a piece of her turquoise jewelry in honor of her. We also did something I'd never heard of during the processional. We took grandma on a final ride past her house and up the mountain road before going to the cemetery. She loved the mountain and took multiple rides each day up the same road. My brother Jesse was able to dedicate her grave. After the burial we went back to the church for a nice family dinner. The kids had a blast running around the cultural hall playing tag. We all enjoyed spending the rest of the day at grandma's house visiting, watching basketball games, and eating.

Saturday March 8th: This was a great day! My dad took everyone down by Bluff, Utah to hike into some really cool Indian ruins. We used to do this all the time when I was little and it was fun to see my kids doing the same things. They got excited about each broken piece of pottery they found. Each piece of flint they found, they would ask if it was an arrow head. They got to play in the muddy stream and get stuck up to their knees in the mud. The hike was pretty hard and since my dad is having back problems he stayed up top with Hannah and Bronson. That must have been the only time the two babies weren't fighting because he said they did really good:) I left early with Jesse and Nalani to get a head start on the hike back. I'm glad I had Jesse there because he helped carry Nalani straight up the side the cliff. I found out that I'm very out of shape because I was huffing and puffing the whole way back!

After everyone got back Kelly, Maika, Nalani, Bronson and I left to drive through Montezuma Creek. Kelly spent most of his childhood growing up in this small Reservation town. He wanted to see his old stomping grounds. It is a pretty sad looking little town, but I love hearing all the happy times Kelly had there with his family and friends. He got to see the house they lived in and how big the tree he planted has grown.

When we were done in "Mussy" we stopped in Blanding to eat at The Patio. This is one of the two restaurants I worked at during high school. The new owner worked with me at Elk Ridge Restaurant so it was fun to see him. He called down our old boss and we had a little reunion. They even made me the famous Thin Sliced Beef sandwich! Now Kelly knows what I'm talking about when I'm craving one:) I tried to recreate them last night for dinner and I think I did a pretty good job if I do say so myself!

We got back to the motel and packed to get ready to leave in the morning back to SLC to catch our flight home.

Sunday March 9th: We traveled again with my mom and Jesse and got a pretty early start. It was so beautiful to travel down there and see the red rocks and dirt again. I guess I never really appreciated how pretty it was while I was growing up and living there:) We were able to meet Nani and Joann and their families for lunch and then took the kids to the park to play while we waited to go to the airport. They had a lot of fun playing tag with the cousins and Uncle Jasen.

We made it home safe and sound. The flight was FULL so Kelly had to wrestle Bronson the whole way home, which wasn't too much fun for him! We enjoyed ourselves so much while we were visiting and I'm finally caught up on all the laundry.

My Grandma: Zola Bronson Holden

I just got back from spending almost a week in Utah. On March 1st I got a call from my sister saying that my grandma was not doing well and not expected to live through the weekend. I made reservations and flew down on the night of the 3rd with Bronson and Nalani.

My grandma was still hanging on by the time I got to Utah so my mom drove us straight to the nursing home in Oakley. I arrived at about 10:30 pm and I got to sit by my grandma and hold her hand and rub her forehead and talk to her a little and to my dad, my two aunts and my mom. After about a half-hour we started noticing changes in her breathing and after about 15 more minutes she was gone. Everyone told me she must've been waiting for me to get there so she could finally go. I'm grateful for the experience of being there when she passed. It was peaceful and comforting to know she wouldn't be suffering from the cruel disease of Alzheimer's anymore.

My grandma was such a patient and kind person. She never sat still and always kept herself busy. She was a huge worry-wart! She loved the outdoors and nature. She spent most of her time with friends and sisters in the "hills" looking for arrowheads. She worked as "Rosy the Riveter" during WWII making airplane parts in California while my grandpa was away at war. She never put herself or her needs before others. My grandparents always had stray-people at her house for meals. They used to sneak food and blankets to the Japanese people that were in internment camps near Moab after the war. She lived almost her entire life in the beautiful small town of Monticello, Utah. In high school she wrote a story about how there came to be the appearance of a horse head on Blue Mountain made out of trees. It was printed on the menu of a local restaurant.

Some of my favorite memories of time spent with grandma are: taking rides up to the mountain and down in the desert. Looking for arrowheads. During the deer hunt we would ride up to the mountain and honk her horn to scare all the deer so they wouldn't get shot. Finding a new-born fawn on the side of the road. Sleeping at her house and climbing in to the cold, crisp sheets and listening to the wind chimes. Laying in her hammock with the big silky blanket. Mowing her lawn. Having cook-outs. Going to Lake Powell and teasing her about swimming in her clothes. Snooping all around her house. Waking up to the busy-ness of her house; she always had her sisters and friends up in the morning for coffee and to plan out where they would go during the day. She went grocery shopping everyday! She hated to throw anything away. Pretty much living with her for three months while my mom was in the hospital during a pregnancy. We spent so much time with her that there are many more memories, but I'll stop here. I'm grateful that I was able to name a child in her honor. Bronson was her maiden name.

I'm grateful for the time I was able to spend with my family. I'm grateful for Kelly and his willingness to get me there so soon and for bringing Logan and Maika down a few days later. Thank you to Rochelle for letting my girls stay with you for a few days while Kelly was away. It was so nice to not have to worry about them while I was gone and really be able to enjoy the time I had with my family.

I will have to write another post to remind myself of all the things we did down in beautiful San Juan County. For now I just wanted to get my thoughts down about my grandma. I've missed "her" for a long time, but I miss her more even now. I'm grateful for her life and her example to me of a truly Christ-like life. I love you grandma!

Count-down Tag

10 years ago: I was pregnant with Logan, living in Orem, UT, working full-time at OfficeMax, and just old enough to drink legally (if I was to drink, and I didn't. Still don't).

9 daily uses: Internet, telephone, toothpaste, Q-tips, concealer, chap stick, books, stove, patience.

8 things on my to do list: (have Logan) wash windows;), wash sheets, vacuum, dust blinds, get a swing set for the kids, (have Kelly) put the swing set together, pay water bill, answer emails.

7 places I have lived: These are in order from the time I was born. Provo, UT; Blanding, UT; Laie, HI; Blanding, UT; Provo, UT; Orem, UT; Beaverton, OR.

6 things I enjoy: a good book, an afternoon nap while the dryer is drying the last load of laundry, cooking, road trips, time spent with Kelly, kids that get along.

5 facts you don't know about me: I got bit by a dog when I was 3 or 4 and living in Hawaii. I don't like putting on make-up but wear almost everyday. In the 3rd grade my friend Shelly and I made up a dance to the song "Footloose" and preformed it in the school talent show. I like spending time in the Great Outdoors. I have my ears pierced twice, but only wear earrings in one set of holes.

4 jobs I've had: waitress, copy girl, janitor, wedding dress shop.

3 bad habits: rolling my eyes, not-nice tone of voice, eating junk food.

2 books I last finished: Eat Pray Love by Elizabeth Gilbert, and Appeal by John Grisham.

1 favorite: not having to decide what to cook for dinner. I'll make it if someone tells me what they want:)



Now I tag anyone who has an "i" in their name who hasn't already been tagged:)

FEA or Modern-Day Robin Hood?

Was anyone else a member of FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) in high school? I was, but mostly just to go on the 3-day, under-chaperoned trip to Salt Lake City with friends and cute boys.

I think Logan is founding a new club and she's only in the 4Th grade. It's called FEA (Future Entrepreneurs of America). She just started it yesterday, but I only found out about it this morning. While I was in the bathroom applying my makeup she came in and asked how she could earn some extra money. I thought about it and told her she could wash the windows, and if she did a really good job I would pay her $10. She seemed very excited about that, so I said she still had to make sure she did her homework and practiced the piano, and I expected the job to be done up to my standards:)

Well, as I was going around the house this morning opening up all the blinds and letting in the sunlight, I noticed Maika's piggy bank. It was tipped over on it's side with change scattered around it. I knew Maika had a $5 and $1 bill in there because of a recent visit from the Tooth Fairy, and doing an extra hard chore by herself. The cash was mysteriously missing so I called Maika in and asked her where all her money went.

Maika proceeded to tell me that she had to pay Logan back. I knew she owed Logan a dollar or so for a treat from a convenient store, but not five dollars! So, I asked what else she owed money for and she told me, "So I could play with her and Tyler." WHAT THE!!!??? I could immediately feel steam coming out of my ears! Luckily Kelly hadn't left for work yet so I went and told him about it. We both felt so bad for Maika, but she doesn't really understand. Money is only a piece of paper to her. What's the big deal if she gives some to Logan? That way she'll be able to play with the "big" kids. Melanie or Mom: I know I pulled a lot of crap as the oldest child, but did I ever charge Melanie to play with me?? Please refresh my memory.

I think this may have stemmed from a TV program she saw yesterday. It was one of those tear-jerking commercials about feeding the starving children of Africa. Logan and Maika were stunned to see that people in other parts of the world don't have clothes to wear and eat rotten food out of garbage dumps. The program was trying to get people to pledge just $8 a month to feed a child healthy food. So Logan came up to me and told me she had $7.50 and asked if I would call and pay the $8 so a child could eat. It made my heart melt to know that she felt so deeply about it. I told her that when we pay our tithing, we could also donate extra money to other funds that help people like the one's she saw on TV. When we came home from church she informed me that she paid $2.50 to the Humanitarian Aid Fund. I was one proud mama.

So, now we're at a loss as how to discipline Logan. Is her secret desire to save the world, or does she just want more Webkinz? We thought about going to get her out of school and talk to her immediately, but didn't want to upset her at school. We thought about giving Maika a $10 bill at dinner time just for the heck of it, in front of Logan, but think Logan needs to pay her back. We know Logan needs to learn a serious lesson: you can't charge your sister money to play with you!We want to hear her side of the story too. Do any of you out there in cyber-world have suggestions of what to do? Any creative object lessons? Extra-fun ways to punish wayward children? Please, help!

Update: First of all, thank you all for your wonderful suggestions. Here's how I handled it: I talked to Logan when she got home from school. Her side of the story is that they were starting a club to look for cool rocks and that Maika offered to give her money to buy the pretty rocks. Maika says she offered Logan the money to be able to play. Logan says Maika offered the money so why not take it? Logan immediately gave the money back and wanted everything to go back to normal. All I know for sure is that Maika doesn't understand money. She saw Logan crying and upset and the first thing she did was run in and get the $5 and throw it at Logan to make her feel better. I guess the moral of the story is that Logan now KNOWS that it is unacceptable to take money from Maika in exchange for playing privileges:) It's funny to me what they think we won't find out about, or that they won't get caught. What's scary to me is that we only find out about things that we catch them in...There must be soooo much I don't know:)