Dear Mom,

Happy Mother's Day. We had a great talk in church today, and it reminded me of some things I haven't thought about for years.

Thanks for teaching us kids how to respect you. We may not have always given it but we knew it. Dad also played a role in this because he had NO patience for us disrespecting you. What a fantastic lesson. Simple, yet necessary.

(oh denim, remember when all denim was so cool?)

Thanks for teaching us how to treat each other. Brothers and sisters, that is. I love my brothers and that is because we had a peaceful home. They loved me, and they made me feel good about myself. Shane, Dan and Jeromy, were so good to me, not just siblings but also my friends. Yes, I got teased-but it was one way they showed they loved me.

(The best siblings ever!)

I've always wondered how I managed to make it through my teen years with my self esteem intact. I really believe it was because #1 Dad always said such nice things about me to other people and #2 the brothers were always good to me. You and Dad just expected it and that has made a world of difference to me. #3 I felt accomplished, whether that came from hard work or from sports, or in other ways, I felt accomplished, you encouraged all those extra things in my life; piano, soccer, cross country, summer jobs and working around the house.

I'm grateful for the dating lessons. You taught me to expect a certain behavior from boys and because Dad was so great to always open your door, or hold your hand, or do what was asked of him, then of course I expected and looked for it as well. Ben is wonderful. The perfect husband. I have you and Dad's example to thank for that.

(Oh, we have all come such a long way.)

Thanks for teaching the gospel. I have always loved that you have taken your callings and assignments so seriously. You have always shown those that you had stewardship over that you cared enough to spend the time on a lesson, an activity etc. I remember many a night when you practiced your seminary lessons on us kids. You were so great at supporting Dad with F.H.E. Because of your great example I want to be better at all my callings. I've also really admired your knowledge of the gospel. Whether you are prepping for a seminary lesson or just taking an institute class you always take it to the next level. You are both great examples of feasting on the word and not just reading the word.

Finally, thanks for your commitment to the family. Sometimes that meant fresh bread and jam after school, dinner at 6:00 p.m., (heaven forbid anyone ever missed the 6:00 dinner hour) or reading scriptures in the car on the way home from some event, (you and Dad were so good to always fit it in when it seemed impossible) and now that means flying hundreds of miles to be with us for the big moments like baptisms and baby blessings and sometimes the small moments in life like painting walls and dressers and shopping.

(Wait, I know that look. It is the same one Rosie gives me,
I guess I know where she get her attitude. te hee)

Thanks for being the example that you are. Happy Mother's Day.

I love you,
Sharalee

It's Official: Professional Student No More!


The day has come and gone. He has graduated. Finally, after nine years of full-time school, my husband finally graduated. I'm sure most of you felt the earth tremble a bit when it happened. Good job hubby.

Wait. . . it is over, right?

Primary Idol

Rosie's version of I Know That My Savior Loves Me.

Rosie & Her High-Heeled Shoe

This week we got a bag of hand-me-downs that Rosie was crazy about. Among the various treasures was a tiny, high-heel shoe, which looked like character shoes for a dance. It fit Rosie perfectly. Notice that I did not say pair of shoes, because there was only one.


Yesterday before church, Rosie wore the single high-heel shoe around the house. She loved the *clunk* sound it made on the hardwood. I kept begging her to put on two matching shoes but to no avail. When we arrived at church, I looked down to find that she still had on mismatched shoes. Apparently, she was trying to make a fashion-forward statement in Primary. She was not bothered at all by the difference in height or that she didn't have a pair of them. When she walked, you could hear the clunk, scuff, clunk, scuff. It sounded like a pirate with a wooden leg.

But what do you do when you have such a fashionista? I let it go with a smile on my face and did my best to suppress my giggles. Rosie rocks.

Lemon & Lime Party

Yes, indeed, the celebration has begun and will continue for weeks to come. What could cause such happiness and jubilee. Oh, you know, just the little thing of the hubby graduating ... for the third time. So what if it's the third time? Third time's a charm, right. (I only wish I'd known he was planning so many graduations so I could have given him regalia for a wedding present and saved us the cost of the 3 rentals.) Anyway, as part of the celebration, we decided to host a graduation party for Ben and some of his law-school friends (pictured below).


The theme for the party was "Lemon & Limes" -- just a theme, mind you, not a reference to Ben or any of his friends, all of whom are planning to become lawyers.


Why "Lemon & Lime," you ask? I don't know. Like all inspiration, it just came to me while I was picking out invitations. In any case, we did EVERYTHING in yellow and green with accents of red. We even bottled our own drinks: Passion Fruit, Mango Twist, and Pina Colada -- each of which had it's own label. The drink glasses had colored sugar rims and matching straws.

I know this sort of obsessive-compulsive party planning borders on ridiculousness. But I had a month to plan the party, and I couldn't help myself -- isn't there an expression about idle hands and a backlog of Martha Stewart Living's are the devil's playthings?

The appetizer was bruschetta with five different toppings: feta, mozzarella, parmesan, bacon, and avocado. Yummy. (See Martha Stewart Living, "Bruschetta 101," May 2010, page 72).

Of course we had a children's table. (Yes, after that much school, every student is bound to have two or more kids.) So we had to provide kid-meal happiness as well.


The kid's cuisine included homemade lemon pudding inspired by many years of growing up eating banana pudding filled with Nilla wafers. I still love it -- thanks, Dad.

We also had three salads -- a leaf, pasta, and fruit -- provided by the guests, which I somehow managed not to photograph, as well as delicious ribeye steaks, which Ben cooked on the grill. I somehow managed to not take a picture of them, only the stuff I did. Go figure. (I'd like to say it was a minor oversight, or that they didn't fit the "Lemon & Lime" theme, but the real reason is probably my party-planning ego -- which is a delicate flower.)


Here are some water bottles I made with custom "Lemon & Lime" labels. Yes, I know -- this is way over the top. Again, the lesson here is not to give me too much time to plan a party. For dessert, we had New York cheesecake with a hint of lemon. (The recipe can be found at the SmittenKitchen.com.)


We also had yellow cake pops, which were inspired from Bakerella.com


I forgot to take pictures of the table settings and the centerpieces/tablecloths and the Martha Stewart-inspired pom-poms hanging in the tree. (For me, this is as egregious as not taking pictures of a newborn child.) I also forgot to take pictures of the kids' tables. I did get a profile of my belly, though. Wow -- my belly is the only part of the gala not inspired by lemons or limes but rather a Green River watermelon. If someone were to touch me, I think I might pop.

Despite my initial embarrassment for doing everything in the "Lemon & Lime" theme, the party was a hit. Time to start planning my next party ... maybe for my husband's fourth graduation. You never know, right?

P.S. Special thanks to my sister Keri for helping out with the party. I couldn't have done it without her.

A "Magic" 8th Birthday Party

The week before Wiley's designated birthday I started suggesting to him that for his birthday we just get a few kids together and going to Jump on It. But Wiley would have none of that (oh, it would have been so simple to do it this way!). Instead he told me he wanted "a wizard party."

Huh? What kind of wizards are we talking about? Harry Potter wizards, Wizards of Waverly Place wizards, Lord of the Rings wizards? Where did this come from? In the end, the wizard he was talking about was Merlin (think Sword in the Stone). I was slightly baffled by the idea of a wizard party but soon Wiley and I were planning away. He was very specific about wanting to use scrolls. So here are the invitations with coordinating maps to the house.


We decided to have crafts for the guests to do while waiting for everyone to arrive. Wands made out of dowels and tin foil and wizard hats made out of poster board and construction paper. Oh, the work. I stayed up way too late one night cutting out the hats and the shapes. I kept telling myself, he will love you for it.

As the guests arrived, if they weren't already dressed as wizards we had wizard clothing for them to put on and we had a backdrop for pictures. Ben dressed up like Gandalf with the full beard and everything.


Both Ben and I studied magic tricks for a week. We each had a few awesome tricks to perform for the kids, but even better, we showed them how to do the tricks and then they got to do them themselves. We even did the cut-the-lady-in-two trick. AWESOME.



We had bottles full of gross looking stuff, and a menu. The kiddos could go down the menu and circle what crazy food they wanted. Here is what we served.

"Flaming monster eyes" (meatballs in BBQ sauce)
"Fried skeleton ribs" (fried mozzarella sticks)
"Cheesy worms" (Cheetos)
"Dried bat wings with guts" (chips and salsa)
"Dehydrated fish" (goldfish)
"Troll eyes" (green grapes)
"Slivered giants liver" (canned pears dyed green)
"Mini dragon brains" (canned peaches dyed red)
"Monster hearts" (strawberries)
"Lizards tongue in sauce" (carrots with ranch)
"Gnome legs in sauce" (celery with ranch dressing)
"Troll fingers" (bottled green beans)

We also had an awesome blue potion drink. It was blue Kool-aid with Sprite, green sherbet, with floating Jello eyes and chunks of fruit. Sorry I don't have pictures of everything. I was trying to be a hostess and not a photographer.

I'm most proud of the cake. It turned out to be HUGE. I made two cakes and built up the the base of the hat with various sizes of cake circles and a wooden dowel. The point of the cake is an ice cream cone stuffed with cake. The shapes on the cake are made up of flattened Airheads and Starbursts. It took two days to make the thing.



We gave out Magic Tricks kits from the dollar store for party favors and sent the kids all home giddy about the magic. Oh, phew. It seriously was fun to put together and throw the party for Wiley. He was really happy with the results, and he told me that he felt really popular because his party was cool (oh, to be eight again). That wasn't what we were aiming for, but he seemed pleased nonetheless.

Ben and I decided that we would not throw another party for him of this magnitude until it was his 16th birthday, or maybe not until he turns 18. Hopefully, he won't be requesting wizard parties then ...

Lessons Learned at the Welch House

You know your child is thirsty when she is sucking the condensation off the side of the toilet tank.


You know your child has cabin fever when she dons her swimming suit, life jacket, and goggles on a 10 degree weather day and demands that someone take her swimming.

You know your child needs more supervision in the morning when he leaves for school wearing a polo shirt, gym pants, and no socks, not having combed his hair or brushed his teeth, and then, moments before being dropped off at school, admits that he didn't have breakfast.

You know you are raising tough kids when, having skied once before, they insist on trying the black-diamond runs at Park City. Then, after falling down several times during that attempt, ask to go again.


You know your child should be taking a nap when she falls asleep sitting up in the grocery cart. (However, you also realize this arrangement allows for more peaceful shopping and you plan to go again during nap time.)

You know if your cell phone goes missing for 24 hours or more there are two never-fail places to check: (1) the LEGO bin, or (2) your second grader's backpack. The problem is when you call and your second-grader answers it while at school.

You know your eight-year-old wants more validation for helping watch his youngest sister when he asks you fifteen times in a row if he is my favorite babysitter and could I please pay him. (You also know he's trying to save for a Nintendo DS.)


You know your four-year-old daughter loves her older brother when she will take off her shirt and follow him into the river so she can be just like him.


You know there are too many LEGOs in the house when you keep finding LEGO man heads in your youngest child's dirty diapers.


You know there is hope for your four-year-old tom-boy when she ALWAYS wants to help when mom is making bread.


You know your one-year-old loves you when she bats her beautiful eyes at you and then bites your cheek so hard she leaves marks. (And you also start feeling sympathy for the LEGO heads.)


You know your four-year-old is smarter than she looks (and possibly smarter than her parents) when, after being relocated to Mommy's bed as a punishment, she waits for Mommy to leave and then stuffs the bed with two pillows and covers them with a blanket to look like a sleeping child. Then she sneaks into another room to play.

You know your child is mischievous when even after being told not to, she convinces her two friends to all lock themselves in the bathroom, run both sinks, and flush the toilet. What she didn't understand was the water heater was being replaced downstairs and the water heater repair man is trying to stop the gushing water from getting all over him as well as our wooden floors. Meanwhile, I'm running for towels and promising the repair man that no one is running water because I couldn't hear anything in the bathroom. Moments later I discovered three girls with large yellow cleaning gloves on, all giggling. . . and me begging for forgiveness from the soggy water heater man.



You know you have your hands full when you can come up with so many lessons learned without even trying. It seems like every night, Ben and I just lay in bed laughing at the funny-story-of-the-day. Such chaotic fun.

Fluffy Vs. Fat



You know you are no longer fluffy when you run errands all day and finally you visit the restroom at 7:00 p.m. at night only to discover that you have a rather large hole the runs down the front of you. I started laughing so hard in the bathroom the kids had to find out what was so funny.

I managed to go to Old Navy, Home Depot, Wal-Mart, and pick up the kids from school. Where and when the rip happened I do not know. You'd think I'd have felt it, seen it, or at the very least heard it before 7 at night. But that is the evidence that I am no longer fluffy, I am 100% fat with pregnancy. I've had a number of people ask me when my popping date is . . . and I still have 10 weeks to go (yikes!). I can't imagine filling my clothes more than I already do, and yet I just popped another mini doughnut down the old trap. People keep trying to say nice validating things like, "but this is your 4th child", (as if it is okay to let yourself go because it is your 4th child.)

I did just buy the Old Navy's version of a MuuMuu, which is comfy, it makes me giggle just a little bit every time I put it on, sigh, hee he, my very own MuuMuu. Soon I'm going to start wrapping myself in old sheets to be covered. I've got a great collection of safety pins that could make it into an outfit. I'm going to start watching Project Runway to get ideas for my clothing for the next 10 weeks. I kid you not, today (Saturday) a lady in the ward came over at 1:00 in the afternoon and I was still wearing my comfy robe. I almost apologized for not being dressed and then smartened right up. Why should I . . . because it's okay to let myself go -because this is my 4th child!

The winner of the food challenge is . . .


Not me. My sister-in-law took the grand prize, and deservedly so. She was always making stuff from scratch and I was pulling stuff from the freezer, I didn't even have to resort to powdered milk. I did win a great second place prize. $100 bucks. Thanks Mom. Lets do it again in a year from now. It was nice to rotate and get through some of that stuff.

Also, thanks again to all my neighbors who made the bartering fun during the game.

The Wrap Up.

Because the family is coming into town today, I need to do a wrap up on the food challenge and move onto other things, like Wiley's baptism -which is this weekend.

Monday Menu
French toast
Meat and Cheese sandwiches with grapes
Potato bar, cheese from freezer, canned chili, yogurt etc.
Tart Mango ice cream

Tuesday Menu
Smoothies
Mac and Cheese
Frozen Asian style meal from freezer

Wednesday Menu
Oatmeal
Meat and Cheese sandwiches with sliced apples
Sheppard's Pie
Vanilla Ice Cream in cones

Thursday Menu
Cereal and milk
Lean Pockets from Freezer
Homemade Marinara with Noodles and green beans
Root Beer floats

Friday Menu
Oatmeal packets
Meat and Cheese
Smoothies
Pizza

Lessons learned:

One can never have enough of certain items. I am running low on toilet paper, whereas two weeks ago I'd have never thought that I would get through it all. I'm also running low in laundry detergent and toilet bowl cleaner. I am down to 5 lbs of flour, of course I have wheat flour if I need it, but still. It is strange to only have 5 lbs left. I also feel like I could never have too much chocolate in the house. I'm also very aware that I didn't have enough diapers or formula in the house for even two weeks. How sad is that. I can do better.

I hate canned veggies, but I can see the value in having a flat on hand for moments like this. We couldn't have survived without green beans, corn, tomatoes, peas, and beans. Not to mention all the bottled pears and peaches that we went through. Wow, we made it through a lot of stuff. My freezer is looking empty. Although, I still have two flats of chicken, freezer jam, frozen fruit, puff pastry, concentrated juice and a few other things.
My pantry shelves have slimmed down and could really use some organization. I am really impressed with how much cereal I have- I still have 5 boxes left. Yeah for me. I still have sugar and oats in abundance as well.

I've also learned that my long term food storage was not put to use as often as my short term food storage. It is nice that the church has re-focused its efforts on a three months supply in addition to the longer term storage.

I've learned that friends and neighbors make it easier. I've learned that variety is essential and no one method of storing food is better; frozen foods, long term, short term and fresh foods all made for better meals. I am also really looking forward to having a deep freeze one day. But that will happen when I actually have a garage.

Thanks for sticking with me through the challenge. The winner is going to be announced soon and I will post that as well.