Move over Spielberg meet Zach

While recovering from surgery Zach (with a little help from Grandma) made his own Pokemon movie. I made the popcorn and tickets. We had a fun afternoon. Grandmas' are great because they come up with some pretty fun ideas. It was a three hour project, but Zach was completely entertained!!

For those of you who don't know, Zach went in for surgery Monday. He had a sphincter pharyngoplasty done which you can read all about here and here. Basically having this surgery will force Zach to speak through his mouth rather than his nose. He can still breath through his nose, but his speech should be much more understandable as the air flow travels through to his mouth causing his speech to sound much clearer instead of sounding nasal-ey. He had to spend the night in the hospital, but came home the next day.

He has been watching TV, and playing Wii, but was getting pretty bored by this afternoon. He and Grandma made a shadow-box, colored Pokemon pictures, set up chairs, and got tickets ready. He first presented his movie to his stuffed animals. They thought it deserved an Oscar. Maddie and Jackson loved it too, and would like to made a sequel. Zach is very proud.

He should be back to school next Monday, but he may even want to try going for a few hours on Friday. He is such a good kid.

I'm In Love

I may not be a decorator, but Dan and I have had a lot of fun decorating our loft upstairs. Yesterday I introduced Dan to Hobby Lobby and I think he was impressed. He even bought me a ladder thing to hold some of my many pictures (I have wanted one for years!!). I also stole an idea from my sister-in-law and put a big "D" on one of my walls. Jackson was convinced the "D" stood for "Dad." I had to make myself stay away from Hobby Lobby today because it is very easy to spend money there!!

It is almost complete. . .I just need curtains, but they may need to wait until I know Jackson has the will-power to leave them alone. . .it could be years!!

Butterfinger Crumb Cake

Many of you asked for the recipe:

1 Chocolate cake mix

2 small boxes vanilla or chocolate instant pudding

4 cups milk

3 Butterfinger candy bars (or any for that matter: Skore, Kit Kat, Twix, etc.)

whipped topping

Prepare cake as directed in 9x13 pan. Cool and cut into bite size cubes

Mix instant pudding with milk and chill until set.

Start Layering:

first add 1/3 of cake

then 1/2 pudding

finally: 1/3 candybar

add next layer:

1/3 cake

the rest of the pudding

1/3 of candy bar

finally:

last third of cake

entire tub of cool whip (small tub like 12 oz??)

the last of the candy bar

Chill and enjoy!

I'm a little embarassed because it is so easy, but I do love something that only takes 5 minutes to make and tastes good too!

It looks really nice in a trifle bowl, but you could serve it in anything!

Yeah Me! I'm 33!

My birthday is awesome. How many people can say they were born on the last day of the year? Everyone around the world in some form or another celebrates my day (whether they know it or not). Many get drunk, set off fire crackers or stay up way past their bed time. As a child I thought Christmas was awesome, but always felt bad for other kids because they didn't get to open more presents a week later like me. I have never had to go to school on my birthday, and most of the time Dan has not had to work on my birthday. Some may think that Christmas over shadows my birthday but I don't see it that way. . .and to top it off I usually have a guilt free helping of an extra piece of birthday cake knowing that my diet will start the day after my birthday.

(I didn't want the traditional birthday cake this year. . . this Butterfinger trifle was delicious!)


So, to all of those who celebrated my birthday with or without me. . .Thanks!! 33 doesn't seem all that old, in fact I am healthier and happier (and lighter) than I have been in a long, long time!!

Other important things that have happened December 31st (besides me)

1997
Microsoft buys Hotmail E-mail service

(and to think, I thought the Internet was just a fad)


1997
South African and U.S. surgeons separate Zambian Siamese twins joined at the head

(I remember that!)


1991
U.S.S.R., last day of existence


1981
CNN Headline News debuts

1977
Ted Bundy escapes from jail in Colorado

(I've always been fascinated by him)


1966
Monkee's "I'm a Believer" hits #1 and stays there for 7 weeks

(My husband loves them. I loved their TV show when I was a kid)


1946
President Truman officially proclaims end of WW II

(my favorite part of American history!!)

1907
For 1st time a ball drops at Times Square to signal new year
(Gotta love Dick Clark!)


1890
Ellis Island, in New York City, opens as a U.S. immigration depot
(I love NYC!!)

Do You Die If You Swallow Pennies?

Call it mother's intuition, but when I woke up Monday morning I just had a feeling something was going to go wrong. I remember making a mental list of all I had to do before Thanksgiving, and knew that this was the one and only day I had to do them. . .my luck was never that good. . .right??

And so the day began:

Got the two kids off to school--check

Exercised--check

Jackers dressed-check

Looking for keys. . .found, and in hand to go. All of a sudden a very serious Jackson comes to me and says, "do you die if you swallow pennies?" I replied, "I don't think so, but you may have to go the doctor if you do . . .so don't."

Jacker's then says, "O-tay, but what if I already did?"

Me: "You are joking, right?"

Jack: "Maybe." Long pause, longer pause. "But, I might have."

Me: "Seriously? Did you forget to put your brain in when you woke up this morning?"

Jackson: "Call the doctor, and then call grandma." (My children seem to think Grandma is the know-it-all when it comes to stuff like this; she usually is!)

So that is exactly what I did. While on hold with the doctor I called my mom. Both encouraged me to go to the ER to make sure it was not stuck in his esophagus.

I will admit, the car ride to the ER was not pleasant. I did a lot of thinking out loud, except for the four letter word of choice!! Jackson was totally quiet the entire ride, until we got to the hospital when he just had to make sure he was not going to die. My first response was that the penny wouldn't kill him, but I was about too. He then asked if you go to the "kid jail" for swallowing pennies. He was white as a ghost at this point and terrified for his future.

To make a long story short. The X-ray showed the penny in his stomach, and just waiting for nature to take it's course. For the next few days Jackson pooped a lot, and would stick his head in the toilet to examine each stool. We never found the penny, but I lied one day and told him that I thought I saw something shiny in the toilet. He believed me, and now he tells me that pennies are "spicy" and he hates spicy things.

Lesson learned. . .I hope.

Proud Of My Boy

Before I get into Zach's B-day festivities, I just have to tell you how proud I am of Zach. A few weeks ago he came and told me that he is no longer going to watch one of his favorite cartoons because they say naughty words. Since I was pretty sure my son didn't know any actual four letter words I was interested to hear what words he was talking about. Reluctanty he told me: "stupid," "dumb," and "poopy-head." I was so proud of my son, that I grabbed him and hugged him as tight as I could. I assured him that I would never let him watch anything that I thought was bad, but he expressed concern that if we have bad words in our house, Heavenly Father would not be happy. After that, I decided to learn by his example and just be proud of my son. His sister has refused to go along with Zach and expressed great concern that she could not miss this particular cartoon; when she turns it on Zach goes to his room to play with his toys, or goes to another room to watch a different show. He has never asked if he can watch that cartoon since. I am so proud of Zachary. It seems like just yesterday he was telling me how boring church was, and now he can't wait for primary, and fast and testimony meeting. He has quite the testimony and is proud to share it with us every month.
Zach's birthday was short and sweet. I made him a Star Wars Lego chocolate birthday cake which was a huge hit. He got Star Wars Lego for the Wii, a space book, and lots of science stuff to experiment with. I have decided that the age of seven is pretty awesome! I am so proud of Zach, he is loving, kind, responsible, and wants to be independent. He is really growing up!

Happy #7 Zachary!!

Happy Birthday Zachary!!

Some interesting facts about Zach:
He was a BIG baby:
9 lb 5 oz

He has had more surgeries and been in the hospital more than anyone in our family!

He loves computers and video games, in fact we think he is a genius when it comes to both.

He is a very picky eater, but his favorite foods include:
pizza, brownies, sugar cereal, pumpkin chocolate chip cookies,
mashed potatoes and gravy, stuffing, bacon,
pancakes, and chocolate (he gets that from his Grandma Dinger!)

He loves BYU

He HATES BSU (His father has brain-washed him just a little!!)

He is obsessed with:
Star Wars Lego on the Wii, Batman Lego on the Wii,
Pokemon cards, and most Superheroes

What you may not know about Zach:
He is a Math Wiz
He is a perfect speller
He is fascinated by space

We love you Zachary!
Happy Birthday Big Guy!!