Absurdities...

I've got nothing on the agenda for today and I have to say, I kind of like it!!!  No classroom to visit, no shuttling the boys to and from preschool, no doctor appointments, no play dates, no visiting teaching appointments, no shopping that needs to get done today, no crafts I need to make, nor any decorating that needs to be done, no toilets to scrub or vacuuming to do, no aquarium or museum to visit and no Cub Scouts activity to throw or pack meeting to attend... just a care free day to do what ever, when ever I want, with just me and my boys {of course I do still have to change a few dirty diapers, fix meals and feed my children, along with cleaning up after them, but that's all easy peasy stuff compared to every thing else I've mentioned above}. I LOVE these kind of days!  My two youngest are napping for now, while Cohen and Ian play together in the toy room... they've been up there, uninterrupted, playing together now for well over 2 hours--- no fighting, no hitting-- it's bliss when they all get along!  Noah's at school.  Gramps is there now, volunteering in Noah's class {bless his heart for being kind enough to volunteer}... we switch off every Thursday--- one week I go in to volunteer in Noah's class while grandpa watches the rest of my boys; the next week, I stay home to hold down the fort while gramps volunteers....  So, it's just me, with my computer...  I have about a thousand new pictures I need to crop and post here on my blog... hopefully I'll get 'em all up either today or by the time this upcoming weekend is over. I'm so behind on this blog--- it's about time I get it completely updated so I can clear some space in my mind and stop worrying about what I haven't added yet to the blog.  We were sick until last weekend.  The whole family {count that: 5 kids + 2 adults} was sick with some sort of virus...  it lasted for nearly 2 weeks, being passed around from one person to another, until finally everyone was down for the count last week... Spencer still had to work thru it {he's a trooper like that and rarely EVER calls in sick to work}, while I on the other hand, spent a couple days feeling miserable, lounging around the house in my pajamas, make up'less , feeding my boys what ever left overs I could find in the fridge {luckily for me, I brought home a crock pot full of let over sloppy joe from our wards Cub Scout Blue and Gold banquet... my boys survived off of sloppy joes for dinner every night for nearly a week! PUKE! They never complained, of course; in fact they LOVE sloppy joes now!  I'd never fed them to my boys before then.}

Fortunately, everyone's better now... a few of the boys still have runny noses but that's about it.

I finally got my hair "did" last Friday.  If you've been following my blog- you'll recall that I've been talking about how "desperately" I needed to get into a salon and have my hair re highlighted and trimmed.  My roots had been showing badly for over a month by then and my hair felt heavy and blah!  I was beginning to have a hard time feeling like "ME" with such horrible hair... it's funny isn't it, how hair really does become a woman's identity?! Mark me vain.

Spencer and I enjoyed a nice Valentine's Day with our boys {pictures and more details to come later in another post but I will make mention here now that I rented "Breaking Dawn: Part 1" and we watched it late that evening after all the boys had gone to bed... WORST MOVIE EVER!!!  It was absolutely, positively, HORRIBLE!!!  So glad I did NOT pay to see it in theater!}... Spencer gifted me with an early Valentine's present of a generous amount of cash so I can go out and buy myself a brand new wardrobe {I desperately NEED one!  Maternity clothes aren't very cool to wear, especially AFTER you've had your baby, and since my baby is 9 months old now, um yeah- maternity clothes are so.very.unflattering (don't worry, I haven't been wearing them) but that's about practically all the clothing I own!  Can you really blame me?!  I was pregnant for the past 5 years of the 7 years I've been married.  Any "normal" clothes I owned, I tossed (while I was pregnant of course- because they didn't fit me); now though I find myself wishing I hadn't been so compulsive to purge while I was pregnant and had just held onto them, you know, so I'd have something other than a few sweatshirts and old jeans to wear.. Anyhow,  I'm incredibly grateful for Spencer's thoughtfulness and for how hard he works to support and provide for our family.  I haven't spent most of the $$$ yet; my initial reaction is to buy my boys clothes {I actually enjoy shopping for them! It's easy when pretty much anything, as long as it's 1T-6T in size, fits!} but I've been ordered to spend the money only on my own clothing; I'm slightly hesitant, only because I want to be certain that what I do buy with it are things I really need/LOVE, so I've been pouring over store websites late at night, browsing styles and blouse/skirt/pant selections {great news!  Did you know that you can order clothing from Zara online?!!!  Zara was my FAVORITE store to shop at while I lived in Portugal.  The closest one to Utah is in Orange County, California--- sadly, too far to drive to just for a shopping trip}... My current goal is to find a fab pair of red pants and electric blue pants that fit my curves and look great on me--- so far the only pants in those colors I keep finding are skinny jeans and jeggings... I'm so NOT convinced any lady my age should be wearing jeggings, so I'm going to pass on those and continue to search! {I used to own a pair of red and blue pants (and purple, lime green, and hot pink too)  during high school and college and I LOVED those pants!!! (Eventually I chucked them and gave them to D.I.  Who ever found and bought them from there are lucky ducks in my book... what I wouldn't GIVE to have them back, and of course, be a size 4 again) I'm not afraid to wear bright, bold colors.  When I was little I used to refuse to wear anything that was black or grey, because I thought the clothing looked drab and it was a reflection of ones personality.  My taste has changed a little since I've grown older- I do own some clothing that is black and grey- but I do still believe that what color of clothing you wear is a reflection of your personality and how you feel, so I prefer to go with bright, bold hues!}   I told my mother just yesterday, as we were discussing the $$$ Spencer gave me for Valentine's Day, that while it's nice to have it, I'm having a terribly hard time deciding HOW to spend it; it was always much easier and more FUN, spending my parents money shopping for clothes, than actually spending my own. She couldn't help but laugh when I confessed. It's so true though, isn't it?! Actually, I have an idea a lot of women in my community wouldn't even think twice before spending the same sum of $$$ I received on a pair of high end boots, scarves and jeans... I love my neighbors, but sometimes I feel like going to church, the store to do grocery shopping, the mall to pick up some makeup or even just preschool, to drop my boys off, is an unexpected fashion show!  If anyone gets the "worst dressed" award, I'd probably be it.  Utah's something else when it comes to its women and glitz...  I've lived here now for 8 years--- you'd imagine I'd have grown used to it, but the honest truth is, I haven't.  Don't get me wrong, I like to look nice, own and wear nice clothing... but is it really necessary to dress up fancy just to run to Walmart and grab a loaf of bread?  And isn't $200 say, a bit much to spend on a pair of jeans that already torn??? Isn't it enough just to wear an old pair of soccer shorts and an old tee shirt to go running in???  Since when did it become mandatory to get dressed up, do your hair and wear make up just to go work out at the gym???  {If you have no clue what I'm talking about, you better jump in the car and visit a gym in Utah County- specifically the Provo/Orem area} and did my hair dresser, who's only 23 really just tell me she got Botox because she was starting to get annoyed by all the wrinkles on her face?!!!  {Did you know that the two wrinkles along your brow line have a name?! Yep, they're called the "11's". I always learn some pretty fascinating things when I visit the salon...}  Visit any hair salon in Utah County {there's plenty to choose from} and you'll find a smorgasbord of options gals as young as 18, 19 and 20 are getting routinely done... i.e. hair extensions, Botox, mink eye lashes, skin peels...  the things women DO to become/stay beautiful here in Utah are absurd {some of you might be calling me a hypocrite right this very minute because I like to highlight and straighten my hair and wear make up--- and so I might be considered a hypocrite in your own book... and that's fine.  I don't want to look hideous, so that's the very reason I do DO my hair and makeup... but Botox at 20?! Is it just me or don't you also think it's just absolutely ridiculous young girls are spending oodles of money trying to scare away wrinkles that don't even exist on them?!} I guess I'm my own sort of breed here in Utah... I'm So. Cal bred. I prefer flip flops to fancy leather boots.  Growing up guys didn't care how much bling I wore on the back pockets of my jeans--- wearing board shorts was considered hot.  Remember the trip I took with my boys back in August, when I went home to San Diego to visit?...  It wasn't just a visit or a vacation, but it was also an escape! An escape from the pressure women {including myself} feel HERE to look a certain way.  Skinny and tall is in--- just like in the media...  for a lot of lucky women here they're born that way; it's encoded in their DNA, but then for those who aren't so lucky, you better believe they feel or have at least once or twice in their lives felt the mounting pressure here to be skinny... Not healthy, but skinny. It's scary. Upon going home to San Diego, I see dozens of women owning and loving their curves on their bodies... "Casual" is the word I'd use to explain those of us from So. Cal. People in San Diego are not afraid to wear booty shorts {which b.t.w. aren't my personal fave} and let their junk hang out or bikinis on the beach- they don't care if they have a muffin top! I'm the first to admit I don't love my muffin top or the flab under my arm... I'd give almost anything to be a size 4 again and not worry about back fat... but I have to be real... I've had 5 kids, 7 different pregnancies in all of 6 years...  It took me 50 months to gain all of the extra weight and chubs I don't necessarily LOVE; it's obviously going to take me a little bit of time to shed the pounds... until the day I'm a petite size 4 again, I'll just work hard to love my curves, and loose them... the healthy way.  I LOVE Utah, I do... I have to be fair, not every woman here who was raised in Utah is skinny and completely fake, and we have "fakies" in California too, we do... there are a lot very beautiful, healthy, modest, humble women here I've met too... they keep me from loosing it and lashing out on all of the "fakies"...  I get it, everyone wants to be perfect--- isn't it interesting though how everyone's idea of what perfection is varies???

I'm going to step off of my soap box now--- I imagine I've probably made some of my readers upset--- I'm sorry, but this is my blog and I'm entitled to my feelings and opinions... I'm thankful for my So. Cal roots and my up bringing.  I never once felt pressure to dress or look a certain way to fit in growing up...  I feel like I was always surrounded by AMAZING friends and my family, {certainly my parents} always made me feel beautiful.  That's key, I think.  Feeling like you're beautiful because you're told by your parents that you're beautiful.  It builds confidence!  Enough.  My intent isn't to upset anyone; just please understand San Diego will ALWAYS have and hold my heart.  I was raised MUCH differently than my friends from Utah, but that's okay.... there's a million and one things I LOVE about living in Utah too!

So back to the awesome Valentine's Day present my husband gifted me with... hopefully I'll get a chance at some point, sometime soon, possibly? to head to the mall and do a little shopping... with out the boys in tow.  I NEVER have ANY luck EVER finding anything I like when I'm shopping with my boys--- they distract me too much...  Spence said he'll watch them for me this weekend so I can go out shopping, but I feel sort of unprepared to go on a spending spree for a new wardrobe.  I need to do more looking around online before heading to any stores... what I really need is a personal stylist and shopper...  How awesome would that be?!

On another note, I read an article today, click here to read it...  {warning: a few of you may find the language used in the article a little offensive, sorry, I'm not the author}... It's hilarious!  And so true!!!  I have an idea 96% of the people the author is referring to are mothers from Utah {sorry to throw everyone from Utah under the bus again--- myself included}...

A.N.Y.H.O.W.... Happy belated Valentine's Day!  I hope it was fun and fabulous for everyone! 

P.S. The plan today was to make some gluten free sugar cookies with my boys...  I've never made them before and I have to confess, I'm slightly intimidated... baking gluten free isn't any simple task.  I've been putting off making these cookies all week long now...  unfortunately we forgot to make them this afternoon, SO, it looks like making g.f. sugar cookies is on the agenda for tomorrow.  Wish us luck.  We'll need it!