Kids say the darndest...

Last week Dason brought home the Recipe Book his class made in preschool. Each child was interviewed and asked to give the recipe for their favorite food. Upon the reading of all the other children's ideas, I was very interested to hear what Dawson had to say. Here is his recipe for chicken nuggets:

"Buy chicken nuggets at the store. Put them in the cupboard. Then when you want some, you cook it in the microwave. Or my mom just goes to McDonalds!"

Yup. There it is in black and white. The only child to mention a restaurant of any kind. Some of the other children describe in great detail how to make such deliciousness as carmel popcorn, spaghetti, mashed potatoes..."real food." But Dawson knows where the real goodness lies.

I rock.

I'm lovin this.

We made it back from Florida! It was a blast, we didn't do much but veg and eat. Totally a vacation. Upon arriving home, the boys were still in Price with Grandma so I got the opportunity to play again. I like how it turned out...granted I'm not a professional.

Before

After.

Jason said he wanted this for his office...even though it's not the Temple we were married in, its still a "sweet pic" and maybe for his birthday he'll get a framed copy. I will even autograph it for him. HA!

What keeps me up at night...

Last week, our computer started making a sound similar to that of a jet plane taking off. Upon the 24th time of this occuring, I told my dearest Jason of my concern- our computer crashing and taking years of documents, pictures and videos down with it. We sped to the nearest Best Buy and purchased a new, beautiful HP. Whew! Crisis avoided.
Upon enjoying our new PC, we had to go through the agonizing process of downloading everything from our "jettish" hard-drive onto our new one- programs, software, saved files and all....not super fun to do on a Friday night, but we're cool like that.
As it came time to load my ALL TIME favorite software 'Microsoft Digital Image Pro' (purchased more than once) I knew within seconds of putting the disk in the drive, that something was wrong. The disk had been corrupted and after hours of trying to trouble shoot the problem. I. Gave. Up. SO! In the true nature of my obsession with playing with pictures all night long...I gave in and bought Photoshop. A program I haven't been familiar with since my time at good ole' Carbon High.

 If I'm ever asked what keeps me up at night...I have but one solid answer. "Playing in Photoshop!" It was well after 2 a.m. last night before I realized it was stinkin daylight savings- Oops. And I finally turned off my creative juices and tried to fall asleep. boo.
Dawson was invited to a birthday party yesterday and had to dress like a pirate. Ahh! So cute! Here is the fun I had with the pictures...he didn't understand why he was dressed up, covered in black eye-liner and forced to sit "cute" before the party.

 Maybe when he's 17 he'll understand.

Original

Ahh! He's cute.

High contrasted B&W

I really hope my kids run away from the camera for the next few weeks. I really need to sleep.

feelin springy and adding ruffles!

I recently had the itch to dust off the amazing sewing machine my mom gave me and put my inner seamstress to use. I bought a shirt a while back at Downeast and it was way too long/big. SO! I saw some inspiration on the Tea Rose Home blog that I love and started cutting! Here is how it turned out...

before

   after

I used a simple gather stitch and made two rows of the ruffle then added it to the neckline. Now its the perfect length and looks so feminine! NEXT UP- my swim suit...yikes.

before. 

and a little low in the front for my liking.

that same simple gather stitch...

pin to the suit...and sew...

and TADA!

 I added a cute flower and gem and I'm ready!

Now there is more coverage in the front and it feels more flirty!

My one enemy...

I'm not usually one to share the very personal woes in life. But because this one has caused me to gain weight, break out like a 15 year-old boy and want to sleep way longer than the National Center for Sleep Disorders would recommend...I thought I'd share.

About 14 months ago- Jason and decided to add another member to the Rasmussen crew. I thought it would be so simple because the last 2 kidlets were here without much delay. Much to our surprise- its not happening. With 6 months on our "own" without any luck I decided to seek some guidance from my amazing doctor. Dr. Nance was sympathetic to the situation and discussed some options for us, with the final outcome, 50 mg dose of Clomid. I dont' know if you're familiar with the side effects of this nasty pill- but here a just a few I thought I'd share. For the week leading up to and the week after you get:

- Hot flashes (no need to wait till menopause!)

- Abdominal pain and discomfort (yeah...no joke)

- Weight gain (probably my favorite one of all)

- Mood swings (sorry Jason)

- Nausea and dizziness (love that it acts like your pregnant)

Conclusion? Clomid makes you feel like crap.

For 6 months I endured what I could, without trying to whine too much and on the 7th month, Dr.Nance really wanted to hit the problem head on and upped the dosage to 100 mg per cycle. And still- no bueno.

So! Here we are. Not pregnant. My pants don't fit and I know what a hot flash feels like at 26.

We will try one more month without Clomid (hallelujah), before we start testing for other possible reasons why. I guess more prayers and more *ya know* and hopefully things will swing our way.

Throughout this entire experience, I have learned a few things about my life. Wanna know what they are?? Too bad I'm telling you anyway...

1. I LOVE THE 2 PRECIOUS LITTLE BOYS God has given me, more than anything. I have appreciated them more because there have been moments when I've felt like they were all I was going to have. They make my life worth living and if they are all I get, then I am a blessed mommy!

2. Jason is the most patient man on Earth. He put up with the counting, calendar watching, temperature taking, tears and the "doing work" part of conception, better than he should have. I know it hasn't been the easiest thing to deal with and he has been so supportive and understanding. He never gets upset or gets frustrated like I do. Which is a total blessing, because 1 freak is better than 2.
3. I have to trust the Lord- A LOT MORE. Its been trying on my testimony (just a bit) and I've dug a little deeper in trying to put my faith in God. He knows what I need, when I need it.

4. My mom is amazing. I've really only shared with her and Jason my inner frustrations and she always knows exactly what to say to calm me down. She never lets me sulk for very long. "Good things come Amy, be patient." She's the first one to say, "diet pepsi?" she knows it doesn't take much to put me in a better mood. I know Jason has done the BEST he can, but I am so thankful I have my sweet mommy to be the woman in my life that continues to guide my life in a positive direction. (tearin up, major, here)
5. When things don't go "your way" My motto in life (that my mom taught me) PUT YOUR BIG GIRL PANTIES ON AND DEAL WITH IT. So for the next, who knows how long...the panties are on and I can do this.

Thanks for reading my sad, self driven rant. Sometimes you feel better when you can put it all out there. More positive posts on their way, I promise.