WHOOOOAAAA BABY!!!

Happy Anniversary Husband! (Only a few days late--it was Dec. 27th)
9 years down , and eternity to go-- I love you!

(photos by mi amigo Rachel, Thank you Rach!! You are the best!)

A Child's Prayer

Ruby wanted to say the prayer tonight before going to bed, and it went a little something like this . . .

. . .Grateful for this day,
grateful for the food,
grateful for everything,
grateful that mom and dad don't fall in a hole,
that I don't have to get a new family,
that I can still have mom and dad . . .

SEE! she does love me! Let me pause to say that I too am thankful that we haven't fallen in a hole (because I love that cute little turkey!)



p.s. this photo is the ONE and only day I tried to straighten her hair--it was curly (but weird curly) again in less than an hour. That's okay, she's perfect the way she is.

A post for the sake of posting

Its been a few um . . . days since I have posted anything--and I really want to show some Disneyland-good-times-a-rollin (since that was our last BIG thing as a family, oh yeah, and Thanksgiving) but that will wait. This post is sheerly (word?) for the sake of quickly getting something down. BEWARE--it will be random.


here is Eden dancing down California Adventure Street with the "High School Musical 3" dancers. If you know Eden, then I don't have to tell you that she was awesome, unafraid, and livin' it up dancing with them.

Here is Ruby wearing a purse at Grandma/pa Jonesee's house in St. George. I loved it because A. she looks like a Catholic Cardinal and
B. She thought it was fancy and beautiful

and last but not least (unless you are judging by body mass--then I guess he would be the least) is Jay-Jay. And who DOESN'T love getting their photo snapped while getting a diaper change on the seat of the car?

Just a few notes:

1. If you want a really good laugh, then I suggest going to see "twilight" with some of my very favorite family members (not that I really have favorites, it just sounded good) Katie, Myndie, and a very giggly Becca. The best $8 I've spent in a while and some fantastic peter-pan-like special effects (but you can't even see the ropes!!)
2. Don't allow your children to sleep with 2 Christmas pillows, a pillow sham, a long body pillow, sheets, comforter, regular blanket, and 3 of your own shirts when they have the stomach flu. Believe me, we've tried it with Ruby and it makes for a TON of laundry--especially when they also throw up into a drawer full of pajamas.
3. This unrelated stream-of-consciousness post is dedicated to my Dad who taught me everything I know about writing things that people really need to work at to understand. What about food storage? I love you Dad!
   

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times . . .

Charles Dickens opened up "A Tale of Two Cities" with those most familiar words (I need to read that one again--one of the first books I really loved and cried through)--wait a minute--he wrote those words when? 1850-ish? But aren't the best and worst of times NOW?

It has always been a weakness of mine to fear--fear what might happen if . . . or if . . . .but wouldn't it be awful if . . . etc. Unfortunately, I'm afraid I have passed this trait on to the sweetest of 6-year-olds, Eden. I have spent the last 3 full days trying to convince her that she shouldn't worry that she's going to get cancer and have to go live in heaven away from us (and also that her permanent teeth aren't going to fall out). Its heartbreaking. What does a mom do? We've tried to make her forget about it, explain it logically, or tried to ignore it, but those things don't work for long. Just like us BIG people, she needs to learn that there are things that are out of our control, and things that we can control--like how strong our testimonies are, how we treat people, and whether or not we choose to find hope and joy among the chaos. (Read about what has helped me the last few weeks here). But how can I teach this to her better?

man-tagged

Becca man-tagged me so here you go!
yard work a la baby
Joel's favorite pastime at Cannon Beach--crabbing
His other favorite pastime on the beach--running and playing with his babies
What is your husbands name? Joel Arthur Swogger (Arthur is his grandpa’s name—on his mom’s side)

How long have you been married? 8 years—it will be 9 on Dec. 27th!

How long did you date? We dated 3 months before his mission to Belgium, then I waited and wrote diligently—well, I didn’t write the most diligently, but I made sure I knew he was way better than anyone else out there while he was gone . Then we got married 4 ¾ months after he got home. Soooo, really, we dated almost 3 years—right?

How old is he? The big 3-0
Who eats more sweets? Him. He has the tastebuds of a 10 year old—he loves gushers, sour patch kids, nerds, etc.

Who said I love you first? It’s debateable. I said something about him being the one I was in love with—then he told me “I love you” later.

Who is taller? Joel

Who can sing the best? I THINK I sing better, which probably isn’t true, truth-be-told—he really can’t carry a tune to save his life, but I still love it when he sings—especially with the kids. BTW, he raps WAAAY better than me—surprised?

Who is smarter? Joel. He reads way more boring books than me and was an econometrics TA at BYU—but I’m really good (or was) at memorizing and multiple choice tests--so, yes, he's smarter because I think I once saw a documentary on gorillas that could take multiple choice tests.

Who does the laundry? ME. However, when the pile of clean-to-be-put-away laundry turns into what I lovingly call "the mountain" he'll start folding it while watching sports.

Who pays the bills? I click “pay bills” on Bill pay, but he does all of our banking—hence the job title “Private Banker”.

Who mows the lawn? Joel. But, I would rather do it than clean up the kichen/bathrooms/laundry on Saturdays. (Okay, he helps with that too)

Who cooks dinner? Me. However, Joel can and does make the girl’s favorite dish (and I’m talking favorite—they would eat this over any restaurant or anything) oatmeal and scrambled eggs a.k.a. “oats and eggies” .

Who drives? Joel.

Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Usually him. I have to start cleaning really fast and let it fester until I can’t stand it anymore then I say I’m sorry.

Who kissed who first? Joel kissed me first—outside San Juan hall at Utah State on May 21, 1997—errr, something like that, I think.

Who asked who out first? We were studying for a Geography test at his apartment with Coby Rich (because they were roommates and we were all in the same class—that’s how I met him) after we were done he asked me if I like to go to Jazz games—and if I wanted to go to the playoffs against the Lakers—game 6. Ummm . . . I guess so. Believe me, I was turning on all the charm and giggles and unnecessary arm touches—I’m sure it would have been embarrassing and awful to watch, but I guess it worked. Who knew?

Who wears the pants? I think we both do—don’t we?


The rules for this tag: answer questions about your spouse, list names of people you are tagging in your post, then leave a comment on their blog letting them know they've been tagged.

I am man-tagging Rachel Sandberg, Kat Fuller, and Katie Blatter (if you haven't done this before)

Happy, Happy Birthday Ruby Dear!

The Stats:

Name: Ruby Su Swogger
Aka Ruby Suby, the Rubester, doodlebug, woogy, etc.
Age 4
Height
Weight 35 lbs.
Hobbies/interests: barbies, fake hair accessories, joy school, singing, playing, dressing up (still), sucking her thumb, taking naps, having an opinion about everything
She has recently been overheard saying: “Mom, don’t wash off my ratatouille (a press-on tattoo)”, “we don’t say berdiculous—that's a bad word”, (to a beetle we found crawling on the tub) “that’s my friend Lacy the bug-she’s so tired of doing her chores” to her cousin Lincoln, "can you hand me that washcloth?" Lincoln- "no" Ruby-"please, you're my servant"









This is a shout out to my little gem--she turned 4 last week! We had a dinner for her the previous Sunday with all the family that could attend--she wasn't short on presents either--thank you everybody! Then I took the kids (Joel had to work) to St. George on her real birthday (th 16th) where we met up with Sara & fam--picked up some in-n-out, played at a park then went back to Sara's for an "efficient" birthday celebration--it was about 45 minutes long because it was getting late. The Albertson's bakery was kind enough to write "Happy Birthday"on donuts, Sara had punching balloons, and sweet presents and it was great--those pics to be posted later when I get them form Sara. Here are a few Ruby facts and flashbacks--We love you Ruby!

A Perfect Brightness of Hope

Well, wasn’t last weekend a breath of fresh air? I’m talking about General Conference—not the 40 degree drop in temperature! The whole economy/war/election/world has had me so worried (Wow—me, worried?)—it was so nice to have message after message of hope, joy and love and all that is good. I am so happy and full of gratitude to have President Monson leading us closer to the Savior—he is God’s true prophet! So . . . in the spirit of positivity (is that a word?) and hope, I thought I would start a new “Thing” on this blog. About a month or so ago a friend (Amy Jacobsen) of mine dropped by for something—I can’t remember what . . . but we started talking about bla bla bla and I started complaining and feeling sorry for myself for whatever silly reason and started crying. She was so sweet and supportive and cried with me and came back an hour later with a cute notebook. She told me that she uses a positive journal—when something good happens she writes it down and (you see where this is going) everything seems a little better. So, here’s my good things for today . . . Oh, and I would love to hear everyone else’s positive comments so PLEASE leave me a few!

1. I love it when Jay is crying and I come to get him and he tries not to smile while he’s still crying (but he still does!) sooooooooooo cute!


2. nestle chocolate chips in the freezer

3. Eden blowing up marshmallows in the microwave today at lunch--at school (who lets 1st graders use the microwave?) it gave me a laugh

4. 7:30 bedtime for the kids

5. good friends that listen/cry/laugh with me

My Men

This picture was taken for Jay's baby blessing back in July--I feel bad that I never got around to posting anything about it--so here goes . . . I know I'm not a great writer, so this probably won't come across how I want it. Watch out--I'm going to start laying it on thick, it might be emabarassing to read, but I just want to have a record of how I feel and share it with whomever wants to know. I fell in love with Joel in the Spring of 1997-- when we were studying for a geography class at Utah State. Of course I can remember my life before him but I never really knew myself then. From the beginning he has always made me want to be a better person--he still does. Everyday I think about how lucky I am to be married to the man that I am both deeply in love with and who is also my best friend. I love spending eternity with him. He is the most loving husband and father. Joel gave our little Jay Alfred a blessing and I am so happy that he lives so he was able to. I am madly in love with the 2 men in our little family--Jay, I hope you grow up to be just like Daddy!

FIRST DAYS OF SCHOOL

Okay--so this is only a month late for Eden, but let's just roll with it. Here is my cute little first grader--she has loved being in school and her favorite part is (you guessed it) 3 recceses and taking lunch. Its been an adjustment from our summer schedule of getting the kids to bed at 10:00 (What the?) now that school starts at 8:00! With the help of some friends (Eve and Kristy--who I also took 2 hip-hop classes with) and the book called Healthy Sleep habits, Happy child everybody is going to bed at 7:00! The girls may not be sleeping until later, but at least they're in their room for the night. I'm finally feeling like I can do more that just survive! Its great! Where was I . . . oh yes, back to school. Eden has adjusted so well to school all day and has been learning so rapidly! she even comes home with a "joke of the day" from her teacher i.e. where do you take a sick bee? To the WASPitol! I really miss her through out the day but she is loving it and thriving. Ruby also started Joy school a few weeks ago. She is the only girl in her class of 4 and this coming week is my turn to teach--we'll see how it goes. Ruby is so proud to be going to school and is growing up too fast (just like her sister!) As for Jay-Jay--he recently started eating mushy rice cereal and his favorite . . . sweet potatoes which have a laxative effect--Whoooaaa!

Eden ready for school


Big girl Ruby Suby


this is what I had on the table when Eden came home from school--the cake has starbursts and m&m's on it (kind of weird) so I tried to think of something healthy, so, (even weirder) came the smiley face of cheese sticks, cups of applesauce for eyes and peanut butter-filled celery for either eyelashes/hair. You love it!

FOOT BLING

also known as "Sparkly Shoes". Grandma Mimi bought the red sparkly shoes for Ruby over a year ago when she took her shopping and Ruby insisted that she needed them. As you can see, they got their money's worth--those shoes were worn with everything--rain or shine. I wish I had more pictures of Ruby in her "ensembles"--these things go with every color, style, genre--you name it and she's worn it. We had to say goodbye to the red ones because they were too small and were digging cuts in her feet. Baba got her the new silver sparkly shoes and we've made the transition without a hitch (pheewww--you know Ruby, when she's not happy, aint nobody happy!) Here are a couple of bad pictures but you get the idea anyway. (when am I going to learn to take more pictures???!!)

An Answered Prayer for Gabe

My nephew Gabe prays every day that Ruby can come to his house--we were the answer to his prayers this weekend! It was a quick trip to St. George--down on Friday afternoon and back home Sunday afternoon. Thank you Laytons for entertaining us--we had a great time! We stayed with Grandma/pa Jones in their basement guest suite and caught up on all the neighbors and politics, etc. Its always fun to get to visit them and feel like a grandchild again. I love them so much! We visited Grandma Johnson on Sunday and she made sure the kids got oreos, juice, and ice cream sandwiches within the first 20 minutes we were there--they sure love grandma Johnson! These two (Gabe and Ruby) are the male and female version of the same little person. They swam, laughed, cried, and played "Odette" on the trampoline (pretending to be the dead bird from Barbie Swan Lake). Speaking of birds (Marilee Davis will love this one) We were visiting Dedo today and Eden came downstairs and told me that she was petting a bird outside and it hopped onto her hand. You have to know that this has been a dream of Eden's ever since she was 2-- at Disneyland (when she was 3) she walked around holding out her finger waiting for a bird to land on it. That's how it's supposed to work in the land of Disney--is it not? So today when she told me about the bird I didn't really believe her but then she told Ruby to follow her so I did too. Sure enough there was a huge black and white spotted bird (in between the size of a seagull and a Robin) sitting on the balcony handrail (Gross). Eden walked up to it and it didn't even move but I got sort of creeped out and made her come in and wash her hands for 10 minutes and the second I walked up it flew away. It sure made my sweet little girl's day. I told her she has a real talent with animals and that just made her glow. Now she has been saying that animals just understand her and she can understand them. So cute and funny.

Oh What Do You Do In the Summertime?

Who ever liked that Primary song anyway--I always thought it was so boring . . . Anyway, we have had a pretty summerish summer-- Lots and lots of backyard swimming at Baba's house, swimming lessons, fishing, and even a lemonade stand with some friends from our neighborhood. We haven't gone anywhere yet for a vacation--we can't wait until fall to do that (I need to get out of here!). We started soccer last week and met with Eden's 1st grade teacher today. I can't believe she will be gone all day long! She can hardly wait but I will miss her and Ruby will be lost without her big sissy--she'll have to find someone else to play out her dramas with (FYI, when Ruby is pretending she is usually trying to save someone named "Brayla"--go figure). Here's just a few pics of summer '08!

It's About Time!!!

Well, I guess it's only been 3+ months since I've updated, so I thought it might be fun to throw something on Ye olde blog. My friend Rachel took these for Father's day--I mean, I know she's a fabulously talented photographer, but look at those kids--I sure turn out cute kids! By the way, Jay was grumpy and not willing to participate, that's why they are mostly of the girls.

First Lost Tooth

Eden lost her first tooth last week--then there was one waiting behind it! Apparantly it's all the rage among 6-year-olds to lose their teeth (making it a touchy subject with Ellie since she hasn't lost one yet). I can't believe Eden is growing up so fast--PLEASE STOP GETTING OLDER!! The tooth fairy brought her a gold dollar coin and some mints (quite the upgrade from when I was little)

5 Weeks old!

Our little Jay-Jay is 5 weeks old today!. He had a big week--he smiled on his one month birthday! I was shocked because our girls didn't even crack a smile until almost 3 months old (I guess they're just more serious).

America's Top Model--Family Edition

I found this picture that Heather took of us a few years ago--I love how Eden rose to the call to be serious. She's my girl--what can I say?

funny chicken

just thought this was cute

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!

Today is my mom's birthday--Happy Birthday! This is the most recent picture I have of her (taken the day before we had Jay) They took the girls to the annual St. Patricks Day Parade in Salt Lake (Ruby was going to have fun whether she liked it or not) Thanks for being such a great mom and Mimi! Happy 40th! (wink! wink!) We all love you mom!