Fri Jan 02 2015 17:09: Another trip to Utah, another round of sick kids. Maggie and Sienna both started throwing up Tuesday night. Sienna was basically fine after that, but Maggie basically lay in bed the next two days. she missed the New Year's Eve party where we played tel-tionary (hilarious).

On Thursday I took her to the urgent care because she was also complaining that her ear hurt. Apparently, ear infections are strongly associated with a couple types of stomach bugs (which explains why Dalton had the same thing a couple weeks back). So, she had a really bad double ear infection on top of the tummy troubles. Three trips to Walgreens got us chewable ibuprofen, anti-nausea, Benadryl for car sickness, and antibiotics. We cleaned her up for family pictures in the state Capitol building. We had to spend some time waiting, but the kids had fun running around with their cousins. Except for Maggie who slept on the marble floor. With a pillow her smart daddy brought.

After the pictures we had Su Casa and Waffle Luv food truck for dinner. Yum. Splitting the drive with a stop in Vegas means we didn't have to get up early, but four days of driving is a waste of time. We're flying next time.

Sun Jan 04 2015 09:35 Sunday Morning: We have 11:00 church. Not sure if that's good or bad.

Pro: I made 4 dozen peanut butter chocolate chip muffins this morning. The kids cheered.
Con: In the middle of eating my first muffin I realized that it's Fast Sunday.
Con: John is leaving for Chicago after church.
Con: I just got called into the nursery. Yay, in general, but 11:00 church is the worst for naps.
Con: 11:00 is the worst for naps during Sacrament Meeting too.

Basically, I don't like 11:00 church. But I do like muffins!

Sun Jan 04 2015 09:42 New words for Sienna:

backpack
pancake
lollipop
fork
snow
button
pillow
present
Santa
reindeer
star
baby Jesus
iPad

She also defines everything by the person it belongs to. "Nenna pillow. Daddy pillow."

Tue Jan 06 2015 18:39: I just looked at the calendar on my check register for possibly the first time ever. It wasn't very helpful though, since it isn't 2006.

Thu Jan 08 2015 09:03 Bad Excuses: This morning, Maggie said she couldn't play the piano unless one person was upstairs. I told her that was the dumbest excuse I'd ever heard. Even she had to laugh at that.

I also spent all morning cleaning/fixing the vacuum. And then re-vacuuming the house. Water and pine needles make nice clogs, apparently.

Thu Jan 08 2015 21:37 School Mom: Today I volunteered in Dalton's class for the first time. I just did some prep work, but it was fun to see Dalton and all his little friends working hard. I'm looking forward to going every week. He is so cute sitting at his little table, cutting little fox ears with his little scissors and being a good listener. His class is so well behaved, especially compared to Maggie's 1st grade class. She has better luck this year, and/or a better teacher. I am assistant room mom for Maggie's class, so I have to go to all the parties. Helping at a 2nd grade class Christmas party left me quite winded.

I also made friends with two other moms who have had Dalton over for play dates already. He loves that, and it was nice to get Sienna down for a nap earlier/get stuff done. I think next time, I will take her to Disneyland when it opens.

Sat Jan 10 2015 18:57 I Don't Believe That Ever Happened: Today John said, "You know what sounds good for dinner? Cafe Rio." And I said, "YES!"

Sun Jan 11 2015 20:21 New Activities: I took Maggie to the kickoff meeting for the Stake Musical. Sounds a little crazy and intense. She wanted to do it with a friend. Hopefully it's fun and a good experience for her!

She is also doing skating classes right now, which we got her for Christmas. I think we will be quitting gymnastics soon. They've been doing it for 2 years and have kind of lost the spark.

If she likes skating and picks it up ok we might do ice skating lessons with a friend in a couple months. Dalton is interested in soccer or something. And swimming is coming up already, too! This year we are going to do cheap-o lessons at the community center since they both already know how to swim. Ish.

Tue Jan 13 2015 12:20 Trader Joe's: Everyone has their favorite products to buy at Trader Joe's. I mostly shop there for dairy and produce, not for their specialty food items. I started going there when I was looking for non-UHT organic milk, and didn't like the taste of the only other brand I could find (Sprouts). So, I buy organic dairy, eggs, and produce there, but there are a few other items we've tried and really liked.

European-style chocolate yogurt
chocolate covered butterscotch caramels
dye-free gummies
chicken field salad (with sweet basil dressing)
nitrate-free ham, pre-cooked bacon, and organic hot dogs

Those are the main staples we really like. The yogurt is really good.

Mon Jan 19 2015 16:09 Silly Fruit: Dalton checked out his first school library book - Fruits and Vegetables A-Z. Last night when we read it, I had him point to each thing and say what it was, if he knew. When we got to U, he pointed to the Ugli fruit and said, "dumb fruit."

Mon Jan 19 2015 21:07 A Moment at Disneyland: We went to Disneyland on Saturday morning. On our way out of the park, we stopped at the candy store on Main Street, and bought a vanilla cake pop and a rice krispy treat (both Mickey-shaped). Then, we sat on a park bench and listened to the Disneyland Band performing a few songs. It was a really enjoyable way to spend a few moments. We weren't riding any exciting rides, or doing anything unusual. Just a restive moment with our family, some treats, some music, and enjoying the atmosphere. All the things I love about Disneyland.

Wed Jan 21 2015 21:45 A Cup of Sugar: One of the things I really love about where we live is the community feel. It's not just at church; I love walking to school and seeing familiar faces. But a whole lot of it IS the church. We have a large group of friends who attend both church and school with us, including one family who also lives right in our neighborhood. We trade childcare at an unprecedented rate in my life: Sienna goes to our neighbor's house an average of four times a week. It. Is. Awesome. It's a great feeling to have friends I can count on to pick up Maggie, to carpool, to go out to dinner, the meet at Disneyland, to chat at the park after school, to be part of my extended family.

Just for example, here's today: I walked Maggie and her friend to school, while my neighbor watched Sienna. After school drop off, I went running with another friend. After I picked Dalton up from school, he went with our neighbor to baby group (which happened to be at a pool). I picked both the girls up, and we hung out at the park with three other friends from church.

This afternoon, I dropped Sienna and Dalton off at another friend's house, and took her oldest with Maggie to rehearsal for the Stake Musical. I sat with several other church friends (nearly all of whom had carpooled with other neighborhood moms).

And we'll do it all again tomorrow.

Thu Jan 29 2015 13:46 BOY!: The other morning. Sienna was snuggling in bed with us. When Dalton came in, she yelled, "Boooy!"

Where does she get this stuff? It reminded me of when Dalton was one and called Maggie "iss."

Thu Jan 29 2015 13:48 Dumb or Innocent?: Dalton was watching a Facebook video over my shoulder. Me: Oops, he said bad words. I hope you didn't hear that.
Dalton: What? I didn't hear him say "dumb."

A couple other Daltonisms: My eyes is all spiced up.
I want a bacon bite with smashed tomatoes.

Sat Jan 31 2015 20:36 Saturday Live: Last night I went to Disneyland with a friend, late. We stayed till after closing, hopping on Indiana Jones with no wait as the cast member beckoned us at 11:56. This morning I slept in a bit and woke up to breakfast in bed (!) from my hubby.

John had to work, so the kids and I did some chores, watched Snow White, and played around at home. After lunch, we went for a family hike in Bommer Canyon, which was so lovely. Everything is really green right now. Sienna took a nap and the kids played Wii. Then John and I went out to dinner at a Japanese/sushi restaurant nearby. We walked there and back, and stopped at the grocery store to get some ice cream for dessert. It was great!