Sheesh

It really doesn't seem like this summer could get any busier!! We have been here and there and everywhere without a moment to breathe!! It's been a fun summer though but it sure has gone by quickly! Here are just a bunch of random photos.

Samantha holding baby Caleb in Bear Lake.

Yummy food and raspberry shakes in Bear Lake.

Our neighbors just showed up around lunch time......so we fed them.

Samantha eating lunch with goggles on. Don't ask me!!

We got the blow-up beds out to take to Bear Lake and the kids LOVED them.

Samantha playing frisbee in the water.

Kami and the kids digging a mote around the town.....which we later flooded.


We built volcanoes for the kids.Andy and the kids in full digging mode. Andy wasn't kidding around this year....he brought our big shovel!
I was the city planner and this was the beginning of our sand town. We had a zoo, aquarium, police station, mall, airport, suburbs.....the works!!!!

Fly catchers

The kids were in the kitchen this morning eating breakfast complaining about the fly buzzing around our house. Suddenly they both came running into the living room, Alex cupping his hand, and Samantha waving a dish towel around. Samantha declared, "Alex is a fly expert!!!". Alex proudly opened his hand to reveal a dead fly. Apparently the fated fly landed on a cabinet and Alex whacked it with his hand and killed it!!! Samantha called him a fly expert, but Andy called him The Karate Kid!!!! Good work Killer!

Holla

Gigantic props to Andy for realizing how much his wife needs alone time and indulges her by watching the kids while she runs away.  I went to the doctor, grabbed some dinner and now am waiting for my movie to start.  Love you so much Andy!  You are the bestest!!!!!!!

Shield your eyes if you have a sensitive stomach!!!

Andy and his work buddies decided to have a mustache growing contest. Not really to see who could get the longest or fullest, but the most clever and hideous. This is Andy with his full beard....I think he looks quite handsome.
This is his "cowboy" facial hair in the middle of the shaving process. There were a few other variations I didn't get pictures of, but needless to say we were having a good time and a few good laughs!
AND (drum roll please!) here is the final mustache!! I'm not going to lie to you, it is frightening!! He looks a bit like a porn star - or perhaps just a pervert! He did go out in public like this today, but just for work and just for today! Thank goodness!! He chased me around our bedroom with it last night saying it was going to touch me........I cried a little.

Need a new house to put this chair in!!

I just bought this chair on target.com and am LOVING it!!! I intend to put it in our master bedroom when we get a new house. Who knows when that will be......but when that day comes, I'll have this fabulous chair for Andy to throw his clothes on. Come on Andy, you know you will!!!

Mad Skillz

Andy frequently tells the kids he has "mad skillz" when they inquire as to how he does something.

"Dad, how did you fix that?"
"I got skillz!"

So the other day when Andy was at work something broke and I told the kids I would fix it later. Alex piped up, "Maybe Daddy can fix it with his skillz!!!!". Then a couple of weeks later Alex asked his Daddy where he keeps his skillz. I think it's quite cute Alex thinks it's a tangible thing.

Another Alex story......we have been looking around for a new house for the past few months and the kids are well aware of the fact that we are trying to move. I was bathing Alex one night when he asked when we are going to move. I told him that I didn't know.....we would need to sell this house first and find a new house to buy. I then asked him if he wanted to move to which he responded, "Yeah, I want to move, I'm sick of this house. It's dead to me!". I am not quite sure where he got that expression, but I had a good laugh! I am also not sure what beef he has with the house! Did they have a fight that I missed?

T-42

One of the many reasons that I am excited to graduate next month.

"Although the interdependence of resources and responsibilities provides a structural framework for the extensive use of interunit cooperation, there is a need for effective organizational integrating mechanisms to link operations in a way that taps the full potential of the interdependent configuration."

THIS is how you make Kristi pee her pants!!

4th of July fun Slideshow

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I am really not in the mood to post anything cute or clever or snappy. Just not feeling up to it. Samantha is in quite the funk and is testing my patience beyond anything EVER, Alex has quit naps all around, Andy and I are so terribly sick of his schooling and want to move on with life by selling this house and moving into another. Nothing tragic, just regular ol' life I suppose. I am looking forward to the long weekend with my family though. Andy has tomorrow off and we are planning to do the balloon festival in Provo and then grab some breakfast. My family is coming over for a BBQ on Saturday and fireworks in the daylight. Party on.

Saturday

Saturday turned out to be a very fun day! In the morning we went to Utah Lake with Greg and Richele and Nicole. The weather was perfect....not too hot, not too cold, but the water was quite cold. I was glad I wore Richele's wetsuit in the water!! I would like you all to imagine that the picture below is me on the wakeboard and not Greg. In truth, I couldn't even get up on it!!! And my muscles are STILL sore from trying! I do rock at the skiing though and very much enjoy that.


Alex wasn't in the mood to take a picture but my beautiful girls were!!! Poor Nicole doesn't really like the boat so she just sits there in her large life vest waiting for the day to be over! She is such a good sport though!!
I even tried to ski with just 1 ski.....but that didn't happen either. I'm old.

After the day on the lake the kids were exhausted and they both napped (MIRACLE!). Because they both napped we were able to go to Salt Lake for Andy's birthday dinner. Andy likes to go to Benihana for his birthday dinner and of course we forgot our camera so I just snapped these with my phone.
I know, I know, it looks like my boob is going to poke you in the eye. Just ignore it.
The birthday boy and Alex. The kids enjoyed their meal as did Andy and I. The fried rice was delicious as was the rest of the food. It was a great evening and the kids were a joy to be around.

Happy Birthday Andy! You are 34....hahahaha!

Today is Andy's birthday and this is what he got to do for his birthday week....
He has been in New York at the company trade show that he was in charge of this year. He is flying home tonight so at least I'll be able to give him a birthday hug (maybe a special hug, right Kami??). But tomorrow he's working from home so we'll be able to spend some time together and celebrate his birthday with the kids. Plus, he'll get to go to swimming lessons with us and he is very excited to see the progress the kids have made.

I was talking to my mom the other day about what it's like having Andy gone so much and the good and bad of it all. One of the good things is I think it has helped make me a stronger person and mom. I know that if I had to, I could do this alone and I would be fine. However, it also makes me realize that I NEVER want to do it alone and that my family doesn't feel complete without Andy around. We love you lots and lots Andy and are glad that you are coming home!! Happy Birthday Baby!

Ever wonder?

Ever wonder how it goes around here while Andy is out of town.......a lot????? Then check out this story from my sisters blog. chadandkami.blogspot.com

Neighbors and Swimming Lessons

Alex sliding down the pool slide after swimming lessons.

Samantha with the kickboard.

The kids with their sweet teacher.

Samantha loves to share popsicles with our neighbors.

Our days are filled with bike riding in the cul-de-sac......I think the bikes and swimming pool are going to get us through this summer!

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to the man who is helping me try to raise 2 good kids.

Happy Father's Day to the man who helped raise me (and did a great job!).

Happy Father's Day to the man who helped raise my husband to be the great man he is.
We love all of you!!!!

Just for you Flo

So, Florrie, you wanted a post on the weather, huh??? Well, here it is!!!!

Since when did Utah decide to have a spring?? I'm born and raised Utah and can never recall having a "spring" in Utah!! So what makes it think it can start now with all this moisture??? I always thought we lived in a desert, but maybe I'm wrong!! Maybe Utah is having an identity crisis?? It's probably sick of being the low-man on the totem pole. The state that everyone responds to with, "Utah? Huh. Don't they have like skiing or something? And, like, polygamists??". I've never seen anyone with an "I heart Utah" shirt like they make for NY! Maybe Utah has just had enough and decided in one season to change it's mojo. Well guess what Utah??!!! I don't like your new, damp mojo! I don't want any more rain! My plants are drowning. I have mushrooms growing in my grass. We haven't been able to frequent the pool. AND, most devestatingly, we haven't even gone boating yet!!!!! (gasp!) If I wanted this kind of behavior from a state I would move to Washington!!! Don't get me wrong......I have been enjoying the non-scorching temperatures! However, why can't we compromise and have these non-scorching temperatures without the rain!!!?? THAT would be a winning combination, Mr. Utah!!! In conclusion, stop your mid-life crisis, get a nice red sports car like my father, and DRY OUT!!!
Thank you!

Old Skool

I haven't had a whole lot to blog about lately (Andy's finishing school, the weather blows, kids need naps, etc.), so today we are going old school.

Andy and I went up to Vermont for our 1 year wedding anniversary. We missed the peak of the leaf colors by 1 week! We should have hit it just perfectly but they had a storm a few days before we arrived which knocked all of the leaves off. It was still quite lovely and we had a very nice, relaxing time. It's hard to even remember when it was just the two of us. I know it happened, but I sure don't remember much of it. My advice to newlyweds: Enjoy MANY years alone before you have kids. This was our one and only anniversary before we became of family of 3.....and then quickly a family of 4. Not exactly the way I would have planned it, but we love and are grateful that we have Samantha and Alex.

We stayed at the former home of Norman Rockwell.It had this great old covered bridge and church.Kind of a mouthful to say, but we loved it.This is the back of the house with the leaves all covering the ground.

Cookies Rule!

I just updated my cookie website a bit. Please check it out to see pictures and prices!! You know you want some cookies!!! Admit it!
www.krandyssweetco.com

BEST. CHOCOLATE COVERED RAISIN. EVER!

It's almost like his evil-ness is staring straight into your soul!!!! And after his photo session, I ate him!! And yes, he did taste mildly evil. Bwahhhaaaaaaaaa

Gavin and Stacey

The other day Kristi mentioned in her post the show Gavin and Stacey. I figured I'd share a clip with you so you can see what she was talking about. It's a BBC show (I think you can or will be able to see it on BBC America if you get that), but it looks like they are trying to bring a version of it over to ABC. The first season is also out on DVD here. Or if you're a geek like me, you can read this post about how to stream BBC shows here in the US (you can only usually do that in the UK).

I ran into this show on one of my flights - it was one of the options in the on demand TV. Fair warning - this is a British show, so it doesn't have the same FCC oversight that shows here do. Most of it is PG (as is this clip), but some episodes have moments that are quite firmly PG-13.

2 months, 11 days.....

......until Andy graduates!!! Praises and hallelujahs all around!!! I am not only looking forward to him being done with school, but I am looking forward to going down to Arizona for his graduation. I made a very smart decision to leave the kids home with family and go down by myself so that I can actually enjoy the cocktail reception, BBQ, graduation, hotel, massage, swim, and dinners!!! It will be nice not to have to be back at the hotel at 7 pm for bedtime. Besides, the graduation is like 2 hours long....can you imagine doing that with my 2 kids???? I didn't think so!! Thanks to my sisters and mom who are going to tag team to take care of my kids for 2 days. Ya'll are the best!!

Vegas - BLECH!

We took the kids to Vegas this weekend and you know what I discovered??? I don't really like Las Vegas very well!!! Especially not when the kids are with me. There just isn't much to do to entertain the kiddies. We figured we'd just lay by the pool most of Saturday but the pool turned out to be freezing cold!!! Heated pool my BUTT!!! The kids didn't last more than 15 minutes before they wanted to get out and get wrapped up in a towel. We ended up seeing a movie, shopping and eating. All things that we like to do down in Vegas but without whiney kids! Both kids hadn't napped in DAYS so they were cranky most of the weekend which made me cranky as well. Needless to say, I drank A LOT of Pepsi to help calm the raging headaches! At least the kids did well on the long drives. And finally on the way home yesterday they both fell asleep for at least 30 minutes. Which is a lifetime in the Higham house! There wasn't much to take pictures of, but I did snap these......

A few other gems I discovered this weekend:
1. My kids are too big and old for their blow up mattresses.
2. Samantha likes to cuddle when she sleeps.
3. Samantha likes to KICK me in the back in her sleep.
4. Alex likes to cuddle in his sleep.
5. Alex likes to FLAIL his arms about in his sleep.
6. I don't sleep well with my kids in the bed.
7. The drive from St. George to Vegas is longer than the drive from my house to St. George.
8. Del Taco strawberry shakes are THE BOMB!
9. Most people don't go to bed at 7 pm in Las Vegas like we did.
10. Bless you Gavin and Stacey!!!! (Don't know about Gavin and Stacey? Check out BBC.)

You're welcome

And the side by side comparison

Please help us sell our house!

Hi all, we are selling our home!! If you know of anyone who might be interested in our lovely townhome, please let me know!! Here is the link to our ad on KSL. Thanks for your help!!

LINK

****Clarification: This move is, unfortunately, not to England. Sounds like Andy's company isn't quite ready to pay up to send us there yet, so we have decided to try and find a home around here. Actually, we found one in American Fork that we really want and may put a bid on soon. We will keep you updated!

Piggy Back rides

One day the kids were stuck playing inside by their horrible mother (ME!) and so they got very inventive. We found out just how strong Samantha is. Keep in mind that Samantha and Alex weigh the exact same and the only difference between them is that Samantha is 1/2 inch taller.

Breast Snuzzle

I love how newborn babies fit perfectly right on my breasties. How sweet does Caleb look all cuddled up and sleeping?? I am having a major Caleb craving right now! I might have to wander down to Salem tomorrow to hold him.

Win a Bike!

I think this bike is kind of rockin'!! Click the banner for a chance to win this awesome bike!

Samantha's Preschool graduation

Samantha graduated from Preschool on Friday and her class had a little ceremony that was too cute for words!!! Her teacher even had a cap and gown for each child which made it just THAT much more cute!! Samantha did a great job singing the songs and saying her part and afterwords we all enjoyed some cookies and soda. Samantha had a great year in school learning her alphabet, her address, telephone number and is beginning to sound words out in preparation for reading. She is a very smart little girl!! I think she enjoys the social aspect of school much more than the learning part, but I understand that since I felt the same way as a kid. This summer we are going to be having "school" everyday with me as the teacher - we'll see how that goes, but I am going to give it a try.

(BTW, I highly suggest you click on this picture of Samantha to enlarge it and see just how gorgeous she is!! Have you ever seen eyes quite that pretty? Or a heart-shaped face that lovely? Or elf ears that perfect?)

More Caleb - cuz I can't get enough of him!

I took Andy and the kids to the hospital today to meet baby Caleb and they all adored him!! Samantha didn't want to put him down! Both of the kids were very sweet and kind and soft and Alex squeaked out in a very girlie voice, "He's so adorable!". Andy got to burp and hold him for a long time while I helped Shell-Bell get a shower and get changed. I think it made her feel a bit more human!! When we left Caleb had a full belly and was sleeping, Richele was clean in a clean bed and was about to eat lunch. I think it was a successful visit!

The new love of my life!

My baby nephew Caleb was born today!!!! I was lucky enough - thanks to my dad - to be there for all the labor, attempted delivery, and eventual C-section. Richele did AMAZING and was so tough and brave and Caleb is lucky to have her as his mom! I just got home from spending 2 hours holding him at the hospital and I didn't want to leave him. Good thing I'm going back in the morning for another dose of baby!!! Look at this adorable face.....
I tell ya.....there is nothing greater in this world than being an aunt!!!!!! I guess maybe Grandma trumps aunt, but I (hopefully!) won't know how that feels for MANY more years! And just for the record, I am SO going to be the favorite aunt. You hear that Kami???? (You would think since this is the 6th grandbaby we'd be over this by now, but we aren't, we love our babies!)

SYTYCD

Who else is excited for the start of So You Think You Can Dance this Thursday??? I sure am!! Last year was the first year that I watched and I thoroughly enjoyed it. It helped that a friend from high school was on the show, but all the dancers were amazing and entertaining. I think it might be my favorite summer show. Along with Wipeout. If you've never watched Wipeout, I highly recommend you start. It is so mindless and hilarious which is perfect for summer!! Call me trashy, but watching people do stupid things and getting hurt is always good for a laugh!

Another thing, I've been looking at a lot of housing in London and prices have REALLY gone down since we looked about 6 months ago!! That is good news! Hopefully it means we'll be able to afford a nicer place that is also closer to Andy's work. We are shooting for a 30-45 minute commute each way - MAX!! New Jersey was 1 1/2 hours each way and that was WAY too long!! Andy is in London right now and working hard with clients and trying to impress all the guys there. He says everyone has been very nice and mentioned several times that they want him out there full time. So..........cross your fingers!!

Bee Stings and S'more Cookies!

Alex got his first bee sting on Wednesday and his little finger swelled up like a sausage!! I love the look on his face in this picture though! What a cutie!
Tonight I tried a new cookie flavor......The S'more cookie! Andy and I were in agreement.......YUM!!!! They were so gooey and rich and a side of milk was for sure needed! I think next time I'm going to use small marshmallows in the batter instead of filling the dough with a large marshmallow. I felt the marshmallow goodness needed to be spread throughout the whole cookie! Mom and dad, you'll get to try them when you come over for dinner tomorrow night - so be prepared! If you are on Facebook and would like more cookie updates, become a fan of krandy's sweet co.!

Cabela's virgin no more!!

Andy has been telling me for quite some time now that I need to venture off to Cabela's in Lehi and check it out. I never understood why and since I never thought, "Hey, I need to get XYZ, guess I'll go to Cabela's for that!", I never made it up there. Well, Andy is going off to London Sunday night and since he can't take me with him he has to take his special pillow. And, for that, he needed a compression bag to fit it in his luggage. So off to Cabela's the family did go. The kids have been there before and loved it and I can see why now!! The size alone is incredible as are all the dead animals! Now, I don't really like hunting or the use of guns to kill live things (although, the use of guns to shoot at targets such as paper or cans is, in my book, one of the greatest things in life!). But that is a discussion I will not delve into right now......let's just say that I don't like hunting and dead animals. But, if they are there, I will probably look at them and I actually am impressed at the size of some of them! Them moose be huge!!! I do enjoy camping every now and again so it was fun to look at the camping gear and the boating gear (Greg, you better be ready with your boat soon!!!) and the cute clothes. I also purchased a great bag that has so many pockets and zippers and places to put things that I almost needed a moment alone!!! We did forget a couple of things so I think next week I will take the kids up there for some shopping, dead animal looking, and lunch. What more could 2 kids ask for???

Feeling grateful, frustrated, apprehensive, and stressed

1. I am feeling grateful to my awesome husband who makes every day feel like Mother's Day. I know that is super cheesy but it's true! Most women are so grateful that one day a year they don't have to cook and they get a break from the kids, but Andy is so great to do that almost every day. He certainly does most of the cooking around here and whenever I want to get out of the house alone he is more than willing to watch the kids for me. Andy, you're pretty great! For Mother's Day this year I got a fantastic watch from Andy and Samantha made me these pens in preschool. Andy also helped the kids make homemade cards with their photos and I really loved them! Oh, and don't forget the e-card from Andy that made me laugh!
2. I am feeling so frustrated at my beautiful children. I can't even being to explain what it is like to be a parent to these two. I was hoping that since Samantha is nearing age 5 she would be close to being done with tantrums. I was wrong. I keep thinking that as they get older being their mom will get easier. I think, again, I'm wrong. I am frustrated.

3. Maybe apprehensive isn't quite the right word, but we found out today that our move to London has been approved! Now the fun of negotiating begins! It still isn't set in stone that we will be moving because they still have to make us an official offer and we need to accept that offer. With the economy the way it is, JPMorgan has cut back on a lot of things (like most companies have), and so we'll have to wait and see if their ex-pat package is acceptable for us. In the meanwhile, Andy will be flying to London next week and who knows how many other times before we get this all settled. Having him gone makes me apprehensive.

4. Stressed!!! Why in the world did I sign up for this damn BYU Independent Study class?? I don't have time to do it!! I don't have energy to do it!! I don't have the brains to do it!! I was used to getting mostly A's in high school and college and maybe the occasional B. The first C+ I ever got was in Chemistry class in college and I was devestated! I think my highest grade on any of my assignments so far has been a B+. My lowest???? D!!!! I am proof that children rot your brain and turn it to pure mush!!! AND, I am supposed to have this course finished by October and with everything going on lately (see above number 3), I can't imagine me getting it all done.

Life could be worse. At least my family has their health which is SO important to me, so I really shouldn't complain. I just think it will be fun to look back on this post in a few years and laugh about what we went through. At least I have my parakeet to entertain me......right now he is playing in his cage with his paper towel liner and fighting with himself. Not as funny as when he hangs upside down and falls, but it still cracks me up!!!

The Party Cookie

Tomorrow is my dad's birthday (Happy Birthday Dad!), so today I made some cookies to take to his work. I also wanted to introduce "The Party Cookie" and demonstrate what can be done with a giant cookie! The kids were very excited to see Grampy and to see the big machines where he works. Grampy gave us the tour and showed us all the missile parts that he is in charge of, but mostly the kids were concerned with the safety glasses they had to wear! I wanted to take some pictures, but that isn't allowed around missiles!! Go figure!

Scrubs

Last night was the series finale of the TV show Scrubs. I have always enjoyed this show and I was so happy they ended it before it got boring and stale. This season was hilarious and ended with this great song that I hadn't heard before - The Book of Love by Peter Gabriel. I looked it up on YouTube and here it is for your listening enjoyment.

Ugh

I really haven't been in the mood to post lately. Not sure why. Could be that things have been so hectic and then, suddenly, Andy was home and I felt like I could breathe again and I didn't want to waste those breaths on blogging. OR, it could be the fact that if one child is being good, it automatically means the other has to act like the spawn of Satan!! Today Samantha will be playing the role of Satan's child. Afterall, yesterday it was Alex's turn and we want to keep things fair! In an attempt to make myself feel better today, here is this video.

Andy laughing

Andy doesn't like taking pictures. Therefore, in most photos he kind of has this cheesy, fake smile (see below). I saw this picture from a friend of his on Facebook and had to steal it because I LOVE the look on Andy's face!!!! That is his true smile when he is laughing and I think it is so cute!! Try to ignore the nastiness in the background! They were on the nasty food street in Beijing and I don't even want to know what half of that stuff is. All I know is that Andy didn't eat ANY of it!!! Love you baby! Come home......FAST!!!!

Andy at the Great Wall of China.