Our week in review

So here's what we did this week:

Sledding

Visiting the jolly ol' fat man

Not pictured: shopping, shopping, more shopping; wrapping, wrapping, and more wrapping; washing 5 extra loads of laundry because Ryan is having more potty failures than successes (I think we're running an accident:success ratio of 5:1); shampooing the carpet due to the aforementioned accidents; Ryan getting wild and crazy at the ward Christmas party; and last but not least, stuffing ourselves silly with all of the extra goodies around the house. I love the holidays!

A start

I've been wanting to potty-train Ryan for a long time. Back in April he was very interested in the toilet, so I got him a little potty. Then he wasn't interested. Then a couple months ago, he went pee in it a couple times, then got really mad every time I tried to take his diaper off to put him on the potty. He cried and said "Diaper on!" So I let it go and decided he still wasn't ready. Well ready or not, I've decided that I'm ready!!! I guess this is just going to be a battle of who's more stubborn. Dave would say that one's a toss-up. But as you can see from the pictures - I won! Ryan went in the potty yesterday morning and this morning. Now I just have to take that next step and let him finish out the day in big boy underwear...

Feliz Navidad

Last week, Dave and I continued our new tradition of escaping the cold weather. While Ryan stayed with Grandma and Grandpa Pulsipher, we spent the week in Cancun and had an amazing time. We mostly relaxed on the beach (which still stands as my #1 beach pick, if you go to the right place). We also snorkeled off the Isla Mujeres and spent a day at Xcaret, a nature/ecological park. Definitely the most relaxing vacation we've taken!

Happy Thanksgiving

Okay, so I'm a little behind. I am aware that Dave's favorite holiday was almost 2 weeks ago. We've just been so busy digesting our food that I haven't found time to post. This year, we did double duty on Thanksgiving because Dave's parents are back in town. So we started the feasting at his parents' at 1:00 and headed over to my parents' at 4:30. Don't worry - we ate full meals and them some at each place!

For those of you who have ever experienced eating with Ryan know that it is a battle to get him to eat anything other than cereal, pasta, and veggies. But thanks to some creative trickeration (thanks sportscasters for inventing that word) by Dave, we sneaked in some yams and turkey. Ry thought it would be funny to show us his food and growl during the entire meal. Wonder where he learned that?

And here's a picture of Dave eating his 5th or 6th piece of pie that day.

And of course we finished off the weekend by decking our halls and trimming the tree for Christmas.

Hitler on Recent Holy War

So it's the day before Thanksgiving and I just don't feel like doing too much at work, so I give you another great video for you viewing pleasure:

The Hoff

My friend Derek has officially ruined my day by posting some lyrics to a song originally made in the 1960s and remade by the Hoff. I'm sure most people have seen it already, so hopefully watching it again will make your lives as bad as it just made mine as I rewatched it. If you haven't seen it, well, enjoy! (If you liked this one, may I also recommend viewing his remakes of "Secret Agent Man" and "Jump in My Car")

3 years

This week marks my three-year anniversary with Wal-mart. That means a replenishment of vacation days, sick hours, and personal days...and one full year closer to complete retirement! Woohoo! Reflecting back on my last 3 years, I thought I'd share some of my favorite things about working for Wal-mart.


* Getting to see a mullet or wife-beater shirt almost every time I work.

* Listening to the 80's butt rock music that my cashier insists we listen to every time I work

* Having patients question why every prescription we fill isn't 4 dollars

* Hearing a 10-minute-long story about someone's extreme constipation

* Telling parents that it's not okay to drug your new infant just to have them sleep (unless you're on my flight, then I'll supply you with the good stuff)

* Having a patient ask my advice on a product, then not take my advice "because Oprah said..."

* Telling patients that "no habla espanol."

But I think my favorite thing is telling people that yes, I did, in fact, go to college for 7 years just to work for Wal-mart! Hey, for %^ bucks an hour, you would too!!

Bowling (the fun kind)

Orange, Sugar, Tostitos....MMMmmmm....they all sound tasty to me! Go Utes!!!

What 1/3 of a ton of food looks like

So, for the last year or so, Dave and I wanted to get our food storage supply up to snuff. So last Tuesday, Dave had the afternoon off (happy Veterans Day) so he spent it at the cannery taking care of business. Three hours later, he had cranked out 106 #10 cans of food, which included 150 lbs of rice, 105 lbs wheat, 200 lbs beans, 120 lbs sugar, and 25 lbs of powdered milk. Now we just need 60 more lbs of sugar and 650 lbs of grains (is that right?) and we'll be all set. So, here's what 1/3 of a ton of food looks like.

Don't worry, we still have our 3-month rotating supply:

If anyone is looking for a good cookbook to use all this stuff, let me suggest The Essential Food Storage Cookbook and Pantry Cooking. Happy cooking!

Number 2

So, if you haven't seen me in the last month or so, you wouldn't know that I've gained a little weight. It's not entirely due to the fact that I haven't been to the gym consistently for the past 4 months. And I'm not extremely plugged up (as the title of this post may imply:) We're actually expecting child number 2 in late April. And we just found out on Friday that it is also boy number 2. We're really excited to have another kid in the house and it will be really fun for Ryan to a little buddy here full time. It will be interesting to see how he reacts to someone that is stealing a lot of his mommy time and is taking over his bed, his old clothes, and before long, his cars and other toys. So far he seems to be doing all right. Every now and again, he'll pat my tummy and say "nice baby." Pretty funny. So, if any of you have good ideas for boys names, we'd love to hear it!