Monday, November 05, 2012

Just randomness

I don't really have anything interesting to write about but haven't written a post on this particular blog for awhile so thought I'd write something.

We have the case of the sickies in my house right now.  Mike stayed home from church and when I left him he was obviously not feeling well but when I came home he was worse with a fever of 101.5.  He thought maybe he had strep throat because he was so miserable but turns out he just has a really bad cold with a fever.  Then this morning I woke up to Eli crying in the bathroom with nasty poop issues.  He seems fine now.  Then Will woke up complaining about his ear.  I think he's getting Mike's cold and has junk backed into his ear.   I'm hoping a good clean of my house with disinfecting wipes will do the job and keep the rest of us healthy.  Everyone but me has had a flu shot so I need to get on that.

Today I have to go get my teeth cleaned, which is always fun.  I'm dreading having to get my wisdom teeth out in a month or so.

Anyway, the boys have thanksgiving party's the same day this year--next Friday.  I have to run from class to class since they both have them the same day and same time.  They get out for Thanksgiving on the 19th, so they get a week off.  I think that has something to do with the fact that they start school almost an entire month before everyone else.

Hmmm, what else?  I'm trying to get all my Halloween stuff put back in boxes.  I've decided not to put up any other fall decorations this year and just wait until after Thanksgiving for Christmas decorations.  We have a good majority of our shopping done already and just have a few last minute stuff to do.  Halloween was good here.  We skipped the trunk-or-treat and just went around the neighborhood--I didn't think they needed three wards worth of candy plus trick-or-treating.  We were out for about an hour and the boys loved it and got just the right amount of candy (I realize some of you would say any candy is too much candy and some of you would say there is never too much candy...but we don't feel that way in these parts.  A little bit is fine by me).  I am impressed with my boy's ability to NOT eat candy.  One guy tried to give Will handfuls of candy since there weren't a lot of people out.  Will said, "Oh no thank you.  That's plenty."  The guy looked at him like he was crazy.  That actually happened at a few houses....The boys ask for a candy in their lunch and then ask for a candy (or two) when they get home from school.  Eli  has a harder time not eating candy but he does pretty well.  Anyway, it was a super non-stressful night with lots of happy boys and perfect weather (and no complaining by Mike!).

I think that's it for now.  I've got to get some cleaning done today.  Mike and I started the task of going through the boy's clothes and holy batman do they have a lot.  People just keep giving us clothes and now their drawers are overflowing and I feel embarrassed like I'm someone from a hoarders episode or something.  But why get rid of good clothes?!  Anyway, it's definitely a blessing and I appreciate that the majority came from other people.   So, I have to go through the piles and pick out six or seven of each and put the rest in bags.  All the clothes smaller than Eli I will donate to Goodwill or give to someone in the ward.  It's time to let go....Wish me luck finishing it.  I am dreading it.

 

15 comments:

Jason said...

Are you sure you want a flu shot? Doesn't sound like it is doing the rest of you clan any good. :)

I hope everyone get feelinig better.

Mike said...

Yes, I am sure I want to get a flu shot--none of them have the flu, just colds and other random things. Last year I did not get a flu shot-the first time in a long time and I got the flu. This year I plan on getting one when I have the time.

Jess and Jen said...

I think trunk or treats are unnecessary. They tend to segregate LDS from those who aren't and, as you indicated, people get candy there and then go door to door to get more candy.

We had fun not trick or treating this year. Don't know that we'll do it again next year, but it was a fun experiment that worked very well -- better than expected. Jen and I feel that stuffing your face full of candy is not an entitlement and we hope our kids learn to not rely on candy (or food) for emotional support. -Jess

The Duke said...

The weather was better this year than ever and we had fewer trick-or-treaters than we've ever had. I was shocked but happy. I'm thinking that next year we'll conveniently be gone from home. Does that make us a scrooge? We really didn't have very many kids come. We don't have many live on our street any longer and maybe that had something to do with it. Ammon manned the door for us. It was nice!

Mike and Adrianne said...

I think it's great that you guys know what is right for your family and stick to it and that you are teaching your kids what is important to you! And I think your Halloween night looked like a lot of fun. I don't think you were saying this by the way, but I don't think my kids feel entitled by going trick-or-treating. I do think there are plenty of kids that do feel that way. Like I said, I am very happy to see the way my kids have responded to the candy this year. They didn't even ask or seem to care that they didn't go get candy at the church and I was happy to see them turn candy down at some of the houses as well as really show restraint in eating the candy they did get. They seem to understand that candy is a priviledge and a treat and not something that they get to eat all the time. I hope this mindset continues throughout their lives--that they see treats as just that, a special treat that they can have but not stuff their faces with.

Michelle said...

I'm glad our ward still has Trunk-R-treat because this year there were more non members that came to this activity then in any other activity done by our ward. I feel it's a worth while activity and I hope we do it every year. Scott was the only one to go trick or treating this year, but when he came home he handed over his candy to us and he is only allowed to have it once in a while and has to ask for it. This is working well to prevent him from eating it all in one day.

Michelle said...

I purposely don't get a flu shot because I've seen many of my co-workers get one and then either go home sick that same afternoon or be out sick the next day or two. One co-worker was out an entire 8 days after he got his shot. I believe in all vacinations except for the flu shot and that one I'm strongly against. I hope it works out for you and you don't get the flu. And likewise I hope it works out for me to not get the flu shot and also not get the flu either. We shall see.

Mike and Adrianne said...

Michelle, I always get a flu shot and never get the flu. The one year I didn't get it I got the flu. But I have also heard that the flu shot does not cover all the flu strains--just the ones they think are the most likely to make people sick so even if I get the flu shot, I could still get the flu this year, just probably not the one they vaccinated me for. Has anyone else heard this or am I just making things up?! Regardless, I hope no one gets the flu this year whether they get the flu shot or not!

chelsey said...

I agree with Michelle about the Trunk or Treat. We used to have a huge turnout by members of our community that weren't LDS, so even if it meant I had to purchase more candy, I felt it brought our community together. And that was here in Rose Park, Utah. If the whole neighborhood knows they're included in church activities, regardless of the type of activity, they just might be more willing to open their doors to missionaries.

And as far as kids stuffing their faces full of candy, that's just kids being unsupervised. Any smart parent will do like Michelle does monitor the distribution. We let the kids pick a few of favorite pieces to keep on Halloween, then we end up putting most of it in a baggie and save it for decorating gingerbread houses in Dec. That way, the kids get a little candy and don't feel like they've missed out since they get to use that same candy to decorate their houses with -- and I'm off the hook from having to buy any for that activity. Fun for all!

Jess and Jen said...

I figured trunk or treats would be much more effective outside of Utah where LDS churches are more rare. We didn't have good success in our last stake and our stake president asked all the wards to stop Halloween activities. We had at least two other activities during the year where we called them (via the flyers that went door to door) "neighborhood" blah blah in an attempt to woo non-member involvement.

Jen and I have experienced a sort of paradigm shift in regards to food. We so totally understand how crazy we look to the rest of you, because it feels a bit crazy to us. We don't have any intention of trying to get others to follow suit because we really don't care.

Having said all that, we certainly haven't banned sugar from our lives. We still eat the occasional candy bar, or milkshake, or whatever. It is pretty awesome, though, that Jen cooked with sugar for the first time since January just about a month ago. That was pretty monumental.

When we go places (like to family parties, for example) we eat like normal Americans -- I overeat and we partake of the all the goodness, sugar and all. But since we are trying to change attitudes about food in our house, allowing our kids to collect 5 lbs. of candy on Halloween didn't seem to jive. The kids initially objected because they wanted the fun of dressing up and going door to door. However, some of that "sting" was alleviated since they got to dress up for a church primary activity and school parties. Once we offered the kids an opportunity to go out to dinner, they quickly lost interest in trick or treating and the promise of a ton of candy. We were amazed at how little we missed the candy and activity of Halloween night.

And it wasn't a money-saving thing, either, since we ended up spending $47 on dinner and dessert -- much more than we would have spent on candy to hand out to all the neighborhood kids! (Plus, many of our neighbors hand out full-on candy bars and I didn't really want to compete with my tootsie rolls and dum-dums.)

This is a long comment. You'd think Adam was writing about politics on Facebook based on the length of this!

Mike and Adrianne said...

Jess, I really don't have a problem with your shift in thinking about food. I was sincere in saying that I like that you have considered what is the best for your particular family and that you have stuck to it and are teaching your children what you think is the best thing. I don't think you are crazy--there are things I feel my family should do that I am certain others think are crazy. But that is what I appreciate about the spirit--each of us have the opportunity to receive guidance concerning what is best for our family and I think when we act upon that guidance we are blessed for it. With that said, I haven't received the same guidance for my own family that you have. Perhaps one day I will but until I feel the same strong feelings you both feel, I don't think it is the best choice for my family at this time.

I wasn't sure from your first response if you were insinuating that because the rest of us allowed our kids to trick-or-treat that we were teaching our children to feel entitled and that we were teaching them that stuffing their faces with candy was a way to deal with their emotional problems. I hoped/hope that wasn't what you were saying--I think I know you better than that. If that is what you were saying, then I just would like to reiterate that I disagree and that I am happy with the way my family eats and I am always striving to teach my boys to be healthy (and not just by eating healthy foods, but by exercising regularly and encouraging them to do the same). I feel like when I see them turning down second handfuls of candy at doors and when I see the way they restrain from eating the candy they got from Halloween, that I am successfully teaching them that you can be healthy and also enjoy some sugar here and there. I do NOT encourage an excess of sugar, processed foods, dyes, etc. But I also do not encourage them to refrain from everything.

LanceandNance said...

I'm eating a blow pop right now @ 9:16 am. Gives me that morning push, you know, like "You're gonna be successful today!"

chelsey said...

You make me laugh, Lance. Maybe I need a blow pop right now...that must be what's missing. :)

Michelle said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Jess and Jen said...

Adrianne, by your defensive reaction I'm not sure you even read my response. My comments were never about you or your kids or what's right for your family. Why would I start that argument? And why would I do that here on the blog?

Y'all can eat blow pops all day long for all I care. So can your kids! And yes, I ate a Milky Way yesterday.