Who knew it would be such a hassle to pay the bank off and get the title to the BMW?!?!?!
Saturday:
Jon calls financial institution A (the BMW lien holder) to get pay off information
Monday:
(Buy new church shoes for Zac at Burlington. Then my bad day starts. Max looses one shoe among the isles, but we do find it)
Go to financial institution B (where we bank): Deposit huge wad of cash. Get cashier's check to pay off loan so we can get the title and send it to financial institution A. (Boys get suckers)
Go to Post Office: How securely can I mail a cashier's check that is worth as much as the car?! (without sending it FedEx, trying to save money here. Boys running all over, trying to keep and eye on them and talk to post office employee, who is REALLY nice, thanks goodness). In order to insure that much "value" it would be $40. So I sent it certified mail, way cheaper. Then I get in the car and realize you can't sent certified mail to a PO Box (but later find out I guess you can these days).
Call financial institution A: I need a street address, to send the certified mail to, or so I think. Then I am told a completely different story about how to pay off the loan and get the title in a reasonable amount of time (2 weeks instead of at least 45 days). I am told the title will be released 10 days after pay off whether I send a cashier's check or pay electronically. So I decide I am going to pay electronically. It is more secure and faster right?
Go back into Post Office: Get check back and get a refund for postage. (Max is in the stroller this time.)
Go back to financial institution B: Deposit check back into account. (Again boys running all over, get more suckers.)
I am starving.
Go to public library: The last day a book on tape will be held. Realize I forgot the other book on tape (or I mean CD) in the car. Sign the boys up for the summer reading club. (They get a new t-shirt and some graham crackers)
I am starving and frazzled.
Go through book drop: So I can turn the other book on tape in. Scratch the back of the side mirror in the book drop-CRAP!
I am more frazzled and still starving.
Think of where I am going to eat: There is no way I am going home to make something good to eat out of nothing (I have needed to go to the grocery store for a few days). Its need to be a drive through. There is NO way I am taking the kids out of the car and putting them back in again!
Drive around for 15 mins: I cannot make a decision!!
I can't get a hold of Jon to tell me where to go. I call Callie, I call Rachel. I end up going to Wendy's. I need to get a meal for the kids too.
Go home: Eat, put Max to nap (he fell asleep on the way home . . .i don't think he is asleep yet)
Call financial institution A to pay off loan: financial institution A was bought out by financial institution C. I have to call financial institution C to pay off the loan.
Call financial institution C: they tell me basically the same thing as Jon was told on Saturday. I am NOT going to the bank again to get a cashier's check and mail it. They tell me I can use money gram or western union. But i would have to go get the cash (at the bank again) then go to one of these places (one is in Wal-mart. where a walmart employee is trained to do this . . . um i think not!! there is NO way i am trusting poor service wal-mart to do this for me!)
Call Jon to give the low down: Maybe financial institution B can do it for us? I am not going back there today, at least not back with the kids in tow.
Call financial institution B: To see what options there are. They try to do the wire transfer over the phone but, financial institution C is not equipped to take it wire transfers from other financial institutions?? So financial institution B (wonderful employee sent to make my day better, Duncan) tells me he will just FedEx it overnight for me and waive the fees. He conference calls with me to financial institution C to get the address. (So I guess now we are working with financial institution C to pay this off. Whatever happened to financial institution B? Well C is now managing the auto loans, B can still issue them and answer questions as they are the institution who issued it.)
Hopefully we will get the title in about 2 weeks.
*SIGH*
Monday, June 1, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
Gardening
This is the planter Jon did while I was in Arizona. I had spent a few days in a row spraying round up on all the weeds. And it seemed like it did its job pretty good. So then Jon planted so irish moss, dahlias, and other little flowers. And added bark to help keep it moist. This planter gets full hot sun all day. And it seems to be helping with the weeds. We still have some, but as long as I keep up with them they stay little and easy to get. Zac is also helping me pick out the "little heart shaped leaves", not the plants we want.
Even after the camping trip we still had some big projects to do on that Saturday.
We had to get the garden in. Earlier in the week we (Jon) cleaned out the garden spot. It had tons of weeds, dead leaves, and branches. Previously, we had used it for our compost pile. Some things didn't breakdown as quickly as hoped. So now we have a pile of stuff to throw out and no where to put it. Another crappy thing is that it seems like the previous owner dumped their grass clippings here. The clippings aren't the problem. Its that the clippings were mixed with lots of trash that was mowed up too. And all kinds, cotton batting, silk leaves, an aerosol can, foam noodle pieces, bones, all kinds of plastic trash: ramen wrappers, Easter grass, etc. Very annoying and a big pain.
So then on Saturday me and Zac went to pick out stuff for our garden. We did a garden about 3 years ago and learned a few things: tomatoes plants produce a ton of tomatoes, so we only need a couple, the carrots went crazy and were either too small or way to big, stay up on the weeding and keep the soil damp.
Here's what we got:
Beef Steak Tomatoes
San Marzano Tomatoes (to make spaghetti sauce)
Zuchinni
Sugar Snap Peas
Green Bell Peppers
Red Bell Peppers
Strawberries
Raspberries (which won't produce until next year)
Herbs: basil (2), parsley (2), oregano, rosemary, thyme, pineapple mint (Zac's choice)
I kind of went a little crazy with the herbs. The food network really got me hooked!
Then I had 2 planter in the front that were still empty. I love these orange daisies with purple centers. Jon first bought them for me 3 or 4 year ago for our door step to an apartment.
Even after the camping trip we still had some big projects to do on that Saturday.
We had to get the garden in. Earlier in the week we (Jon) cleaned out the garden spot. It had tons of weeds, dead leaves, and branches. Previously, we had used it for our compost pile. Some things didn't breakdown as quickly as hoped. So now we have a pile of stuff to throw out and no where to put it. Another crappy thing is that it seems like the previous owner dumped their grass clippings here. The clippings aren't the problem. Its that the clippings were mixed with lots of trash that was mowed up too. And all kinds, cotton batting, silk leaves, an aerosol can, foam noodle pieces, bones, all kinds of plastic trash: ramen wrappers, Easter grass, etc. Very annoying and a big pain.
So then on Saturday me and Zac went to pick out stuff for our garden. We did a garden about 3 years ago and learned a few things: tomatoes plants produce a ton of tomatoes, so we only need a couple, the carrots went crazy and were either too small or way to big, stay up on the weeding and keep the soil damp.
Here's what we got:
Beef Steak Tomatoes
San Marzano Tomatoes (to make spaghetti sauce)
Zuchinni
Sugar Snap Peas
Green Bell Peppers
Red Bell Peppers
Strawberries
Raspberries (which won't produce until next year)
Herbs: basil (2), parsley (2), oregano, rosemary, thyme, pineapple mint (Zac's choice)
I kind of went a little crazy with the herbs. The food network really got me hooked!
Then I had 2 planter in the front that were still empty. I love these orange daisies with purple centers. Jon first bought them for me 3 or 4 year ago for our door step to an apartment.
First Camping Trip
Last weekend we went to Cherry campground up Hobble Creek Canyon. There are only a few campgrounds open at this time of year and this is one of them. It is a first come, first serve deal. So I drove up there at 2p to make sure we got a spot, since with waiting for Jon to get home from work, all the sites would probably be full. It was a good thing I did that, because all the other spots were occupied with trailers, tents, and fires when we all got up there about 6:30p. Lots of people drove through hoping to find a spot, but alas they had to move on.
Max was hanging out here, leaning back and making noises. His personality has really started to come out in the last month. It is so fun to see and to play with him. We went to the store a couple day before the camping trip to make sure we had everything we needed. Max needed a sleeping back and we needed a tarp for our bigger tent. A few years ago I got Zac a little lantern and I knew Max would need one. I was very happy to find one very similar to Zac's. I gave to Max to hold at the store and he LOVED it. He knew it was for him and he was so excited to have it. Then when we got home he loved to carry it around.
Oh, did I mention, Max is walking now as his main mode of transportation. It is so fun to watch. I know lots of people would prefer their kids to start walking a little later because they stay out of stuff. But I personally like when my kids walk. They have more confidence and are more mobile and self-sufficent to a point. I love to just watch him walk in from the other room with a big smile on his face-its so cute!
We had beef stew for dinner-easy and pretty good.
S'mores-yum
This is Max's first s'more. He loved it!
I was surprised at how warm the evening stayed-but the morning was VERY cold. Before I get to morning. There was night. . . We brought the port-a-crib hoping Max would sleep soundly. Last year we went to the ward campout and he was all over in his little spot and wouldn't keep blankets on so I expected the crib to help with that. And I think it would have if he were asleep...
We put Max to bed about first. It wasn't very dark. He wouldn't lay down as he saw us out of the tent. So Jon went in to play with him and cuddle. After 10 mins or so he was ready to go in the crib. And he fell asleep pretty quickly. Then about 30 mins later we had Zac go to bed. He didn't fall asleep right away. And a few hours after falling asleep he woke up crying b/c he had to pee.
(Its nice to have boys, just hold him outside the tent with his pants down. . .no going to the outhouse in the middle of the night :D )
Then he went back to sleep and was quiet for the rest of the night. I really felt like I was only half asleep up to that point. Then shortly after that, Max started to toss and turn and whine. I didn't want him to wake up Zac and I was worried that he was cold so I brought him in to my sleeping bag. But he didn't go to sleep. I have NO idea how long it was. I was in and out of sleep while Max laid by me awake. It seemed to take FOREVER for the sky to get lighter to show some sign of the morning that I longed for. Finally, it started to get light and Max fell asleep just before I started to smell pee and realized that he had leaked out of his diaper, and his 3 layers of clothes were all wet. So I decided rather than have him sleep in the pee next to me, I would wake him up and change his diaper and clothes. All better...except he didn't fall back to sleep. Then Zac woke up and they wanted to play, while staying in the sleeping bags because it was sooo cold! Max got out of the bag and crawled around the tent and quickly realized it is much better in the sleeping bag! So I cuddled him to warm him back up and he fell asleep in like 2 mins. But that was short lived as Zac woke him up like 15 min later? I don't really know again, I was in and out of sleep the whole time, trying to keep Max warm while staying down in the sleeping bag and continually adjusting Zac's sleeping bag so he would be warm. Jon was trying to sleep through all this with his lower back in a hole.
Then Jon got up and made us a fire, and boiled water for Hot Cocoa and Cider.
This is our tired and cold family. Luckily, the sun didn't take too long to come over the mountain to help keep us warm.
Max is very wiggly. Always climbing all over things and figuring things out. But not this morning. He was sooooo tired and this is how he spent most of the morning.
Zac helping Daddy make pancakes
Zac enjoying his handy work
When Max saw Jon after getting out of the tent. He wanted his daddy so bad!! He would not have me! It was so weird at how upset he was. When Jon wasn't holding him.
Two years ago, 2007 we happened to be at this exact same camp site. This is a picture from Zac during that trip. I was in my first or second trimester with Max. I remembered about this pictures so I attemped to recreate it.
2007
2009
It was really funny. Because the beany Max is wearing was Zac's. But Max wanted to wear it and Zac didn't so when Zac got cold I told him to wear this one. Which he did not want to. But when I told him that I wanted to take a picture of him like that last time we were there. He was all excited about it. And then proceeded to pose funny faces for me to take more pictures. They are pretty good faces!
Then we went on a walk around the campground and went to look at the river
Max is soo tired!!
Even though the night was hard. We still had a great time. I really like to be out in nature. I love camp fires and ironically enough I like eating camping food (even though I tend to be particular about my food). As long as I have enough padding under my sleeping bag and I am warm, then its not too bad to not sleep well. It just fun to be outside too!
Sorry for the eternal post, but I liked a lot of these pictures! I hope it wasn't to boring.
And thanks Callie for letting me borrow your camera ;)!
Max was hanging out here, leaning back and making noises. His personality has really started to come out in the last month. It is so fun to see and to play with him. We went to the store a couple day before the camping trip to make sure we had everything we needed. Max needed a sleeping back and we needed a tarp for our bigger tent. A few years ago I got Zac a little lantern and I knew Max would need one. I was very happy to find one very similar to Zac's. I gave to Max to hold at the store and he LOVED it. He knew it was for him and he was so excited to have it. Then when we got home he loved to carry it around.
Oh, did I mention, Max is walking now as his main mode of transportation. It is so fun to watch. I know lots of people would prefer their kids to start walking a little later because they stay out of stuff. But I personally like when my kids walk. They have more confidence and are more mobile and self-sufficent to a point. I love to just watch him walk in from the other room with a big smile on his face-its so cute!
We had beef stew for dinner-easy and pretty good.
S'mores-yum
This is Max's first s'more. He loved it!
I was surprised at how warm the evening stayed-but the morning was VERY cold. Before I get to morning. There was night. . . We brought the port-a-crib hoping Max would sleep soundly. Last year we went to the ward campout and he was all over in his little spot and wouldn't keep blankets on so I expected the crib to help with that. And I think it would have if he were asleep...We put Max to bed about first. It wasn't very dark. He wouldn't lay down as he saw us out of the tent. So Jon went in to play with him and cuddle. After 10 mins or so he was ready to go in the crib. And he fell asleep pretty quickly. Then about 30 mins later we had Zac go to bed. He didn't fall asleep right away. And a few hours after falling asleep he woke up crying b/c he had to pee.
(Its nice to have boys, just hold him outside the tent with his pants down. . .no going to the outhouse in the middle of the night :D )
Then he went back to sleep and was quiet for the rest of the night. I really felt like I was only half asleep up to that point. Then shortly after that, Max started to toss and turn and whine. I didn't want him to wake up Zac and I was worried that he was cold so I brought him in to my sleeping bag. But he didn't go to sleep. I have NO idea how long it was. I was in and out of sleep while Max laid by me awake. It seemed to take FOREVER for the sky to get lighter to show some sign of the morning that I longed for. Finally, it started to get light and Max fell asleep just before I started to smell pee and realized that he had leaked out of his diaper, and his 3 layers of clothes were all wet. So I decided rather than have him sleep in the pee next to me, I would wake him up and change his diaper and clothes. All better...except he didn't fall back to sleep. Then Zac woke up and they wanted to play, while staying in the sleeping bags because it was sooo cold! Max got out of the bag and crawled around the tent and quickly realized it is much better in the sleeping bag! So I cuddled him to warm him back up and he fell asleep in like 2 mins. But that was short lived as Zac woke him up like 15 min later? I don't really know again, I was in and out of sleep the whole time, trying to keep Max warm while staying down in the sleeping bag and continually adjusting Zac's sleeping bag so he would be warm. Jon was trying to sleep through all this with his lower back in a hole.
Then Jon got up and made us a fire, and boiled water for Hot Cocoa and Cider.
This is our tired and cold family. Luckily, the sun didn't take too long to come over the mountain to help keep us warm.
Max is very wiggly. Always climbing all over things and figuring things out. But not this morning. He was sooooo tired and this is how he spent most of the morning.
Zac helping Daddy make pancakes
Zac enjoying his handy work
When Max saw Jon after getting out of the tent. He wanted his daddy so bad!! He would not have me! It was so weird at how upset he was. When Jon wasn't holding him.
Two years ago, 2007 we happened to be at this exact same camp site. This is a picture from Zac during that trip. I was in my first or second trimester with Max. I remembered about this pictures so I attemped to recreate it.
2007
2009
It was really funny. Because the beany Max is wearing was Zac's. But Max wanted to wear it and Zac didn't so when Zac got cold I told him to wear this one. Which he did not want to. But when I told him that I wanted to take a picture of him like that last time we were there. He was all excited about it. And then proceeded to pose funny faces for me to take more pictures. They are pretty good faces!
Then we went on a walk around the campground and went to look at the river
Max is soo tired!!
Even though the night was hard. We still had a great time. I really like to be out in nature. I love camp fires and ironically enough I like eating camping food (even though I tend to be particular about my food). As long as I have enough padding under my sleeping bag and I am warm, then its not too bad to not sleep well. It just fun to be outside too!
Sorry for the eternal post, but I liked a lot of these pictures! I hope it wasn't to boring.
And thanks Callie for letting me borrow your camera ;)!
Monday, May 18, 2009
A Pilot
We bought a Honda Pilot! This has been my car of choice for the last few years. Jon does not like SUVs, but after a few years, he warmed up to the idea ;) And since I will be the main driver, the car fanatic let me choose. Isn't he great :)
We have had a hard time fitting in the Civic. Its ok for staying around town, but if we ever want to go camping or go out of town on the weekend, or even take anyone with us, or buy something at Home Depot we struggle to fit.
One time we went to buy a hose reel, a latter, rake and some other home supplies, and forgot that Jon's snow tires were still in the trunk. In trying to fit it all in we moved Zac's carseat over to the smaller fold down seat, folded the 60% of the back seat down. Put the passenger seat all the way up where Jon sat while holding the hose reel, while I drove with the steering wheel slighly pushing in to my 7 month pregnant belly. But we made it home safely with all our stuff.
And it happens to be the color I wanted! Its a 2006. Sorry the pictures aren't the best.
Now to sell the Bimmer. . . Anyone interested? Its great looking car!
We have had a hard time fitting in the Civic. Its ok for staying around town, but if we ever want to go camping or go out of town on the weekend, or even take anyone with us, or buy something at Home Depot we struggle to fit.
One time we went to buy a hose reel, a latter, rake and some other home supplies, and forgot that Jon's snow tires were still in the trunk. In trying to fit it all in we moved Zac's carseat over to the smaller fold down seat, folded the 60% of the back seat down. Put the passenger seat all the way up where Jon sat while holding the hose reel, while I drove with the steering wheel slighly pushing in to my 7 month pregnant belly. But we made it home safely with all our stuff.
And it happens to be the color I wanted! Its a 2006. Sorry the pictures aren't the best.
Now to sell the Bimmer. . . Anyone interested? Its great looking car!
Mother's Day
I have a tendency to talk about all the hard things about being a Mother, but I just want everyone to know that I love it. There isn't anything else I would rather be doing with my life right now.
Here are some things, just off the top of my head, that I love about being a mom:
*Watching the boys try new things and learn new things
*Watching them have success with those new things and being the first to applaud them
*Watching them sleep
*Being able to comfort and cuddle them when they get hurt
*Reading children's stories and looking at picture books
*Sharing my favorite kids' books with them like, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs", "Love You Forever" and the "Little Critter" books
*An excuse to have Disney a part of our home and entertainment
*Getting to buy little kids things, that would be pure indulgence if it weren't for them (a frog lantern, bug catchers and cute little shoes)
*Giggling with them
*Having talks before bedtime about whatever is on Zac's mind
*Getting to know their personality
*Having a baby's room in the house
*Laying out all day next to the kiddie pool
*Going to the library-story time
*Going to the park and teaching Zac how to use the monkey bars and the fire pole
*Cuddling with Max before putting him to bed
*Singing to them and knowing they don't care or know how bad I sing
*Not feeling childish for buying snack puddings and goldfish
*Always having a toy car in my purse
*How date nights and girls nights are SOO much more fun because I know what a break it is
*Going to the pool 1-3x a week in the summer
*Shopping for their clothes, toys, and room decor
*Being able to go to lunch and not be alone, and eat a kids meals
This Mother's Day was so enjoyable! The boys made me the perfect breakfast in bed and got me flowers, and this cute mug, and an electric toothbrush (which I have been wanting for months).
Then at church the youth and priesthood took over all the primary classes, so I got to enjoy the Gospel Doctrine Sunday School class and Relief Society. It was perfect.
Then we went to my parents for steak dinner and homemade Lemon Ice Cream (my mom loves all things lemon) and we got to talk to Elder Kolb on the phone. It was really good to talk to him. He is doing great! Keep up the good work Elder! We love you!
Blogging is tricky without a camera. My mom let me borrow her camera for all these last posts. Thanks Mom!
Here are some things, just off the top of my head, that I love about being a mom:
*Watching the boys try new things and learn new things
*Watching them have success with those new things and being the first to applaud them
*Watching them sleep
*Being able to comfort and cuddle them when they get hurt
*Reading children's stories and looking at picture books
*Sharing my favorite kids' books with them like, "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs", "Love You Forever" and the "Little Critter" books
*An excuse to have Disney a part of our home and entertainment
*Getting to buy little kids things, that would be pure indulgence if it weren't for them (a frog lantern, bug catchers and cute little shoes)
*Giggling with them
*Having talks before bedtime about whatever is on Zac's mind
*Getting to know their personality
*Having a baby's room in the house
*Laying out all day next to the kiddie pool
*Going to the library-story time
*Going to the park and teaching Zac how to use the monkey bars and the fire pole
*Cuddling with Max before putting him to bed
*Singing to them and knowing they don't care or know how bad I sing
*Not feeling childish for buying snack puddings and goldfish
*Always having a toy car in my purse
*How date nights and girls nights are SOO much more fun because I know what a break it is
*Going to the pool 1-3x a week in the summer
*Shopping for their clothes, toys, and room decor
*Being able to go to lunch and not be alone, and eat a kids meals
This Mother's Day was so enjoyable! The boys made me the perfect breakfast in bed and got me flowers, and this cute mug, and an electric toothbrush (which I have been wanting for months).
Then at church the youth and priesthood took over all the primary classes, so I got to enjoy the Gospel Doctrine Sunday School class and Relief Society. It was perfect.
Then we went to my parents for steak dinner and homemade Lemon Ice Cream (my mom loves all things lemon) and we got to talk to Elder Kolb on the phone. It was really good to talk to him. He is doing great! Keep up the good work Elder! We love you!
Blogging is tricky without a camera. My mom let me borrow her camera for all these last posts. Thanks Mom!
More Jumbo Clothes Pins
This year, with my Reunion trip and reconnecting to my life after I finishing babysitting, Mother's Day really sneaked? (how about snuck.. but that isn't a word is it?..sneaked just sounds off...) sneaked up on me.
I didn't get a package out til the Tuesday after. So I wanted to wait to post this until after the package arrived.
I also made the jumbo clothes pins for my moms.
These are what the backs look like.
This one is double-sided. The back side is designed upside down so it can hold a music book open while playing the piano.
The backs
These were a lot more time consuming than I anticipated, but they were fun to make. I especially like the mirror birds.
I didn't get a package out til the Tuesday after. So I wanted to wait to post this until after the package arrived.
I also made the jumbo clothes pins for my moms.
These are what the backs look like.
This one is double-sided. The back side is designed upside down so it can hold a music book open while playing the piano.
The backs
These were a lot more time consuming than I anticipated, but they were fun to make. I especially like the mirror birds.
Last Day of Preschool
Sorry for back posting. I really have no excuse, except I forgot I had pictures for this.
Zac went to preschool this year and LOVED it! He only went from January through April, but it was something he looked forward to every week. He always did his homework and enjoyed it. He seemed to like the math stuff more than the letters. He made some friends and enjoyed the independence.
Since his Birthday is in August they celebrated his Birthday on the last day of class. He got to bring his favorite toy and book for show and tell. He brought a remote control car, and the book, "Where the Wild Things are". He also got to bring treats, chocolate pudding!
They also had a pizza pajama party on the last day. These are his favorite pajamas :)
Also for his special day, we made a poster about himself. It was fun to put it together and look back through his pictures.
I have seen these cute, jumbo/oversized clothes pins and have wanted to make them for a while. This was the perfect reason to jump on that. We gave these to his teacher as a thank you gift.
I love the ruler ribbon! The red one has cursive upper case and lower case letters on the paper. It was really fun to pick out these supplies.
Zac went to preschool this year and LOVED it! He only went from January through April, but it was something he looked forward to every week. He always did his homework and enjoyed it. He seemed to like the math stuff more than the letters. He made some friends and enjoyed the independence.
Since his Birthday is in August they celebrated his Birthday on the last day of class. He got to bring his favorite toy and book for show and tell. He brought a remote control car, and the book, "Where the Wild Things are". He also got to bring treats, chocolate pudding!
They also had a pizza pajama party on the last day. These are his favorite pajamas :)
Also for his special day, we made a poster about himself. It was fun to put it together and look back through his pictures.
I have seen these cute, jumbo/oversized clothes pins and have wanted to make them for a while. This was the perfect reason to jump on that. We gave these to his teacher as a thank you gift.
I love the ruler ribbon! The red one has cursive upper case and lower case letters on the paper. It was really fun to pick out these supplies.
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