25 Random Things About Me

1. I don’t like direct air hitting me unless it is well over 100 degrees. I hate fans.
2. I play the flute, or I should say I played the flute – I don’t play it often anymore. But I can still – just like riding a bike.
3. I love all things sweet (I just ate ice cream followed by junior mints – bad Jen…)
4. I don’t really like pets and definitely do not want to own one – too messy. My poor children….
5. I love to be organized. Really, I love it. I love reorganizing closets, pantries, etc.
6. I long for best friends who live close – the kind of friends who you don’t have to clean your house before they come over and you can hang out in your PJs playing games. The kind of friends that know you inside and out and still love you. I miss having those kinds of friends who don’t live a flight away.
7. I have a strong work ethic and have worked since I was in 7th grade with an early morning paper route. I feel strongly that children should work to gain life skills, people skills and understand the value of money.
8. I love my children, but enjoy working also. I feel I have the best of both worlds right now working from home with a nanny.
9. I like to decorate my house and believe that a home is a reflection of the people who live there. So, I like mine to be organized, clean and look cool.
10. I absolutely love my parents and enjoy hanging out with them on a regular basis.
11. I need to talk to my mom once a day. It is just a need I have. She is my best friend.
12. I believe in the saying “No one made you mad, you made you mad.” I believe that you choose your attitude in life and I choose to have a positive one.
13. I believe that loosing my first child made be strong enough to endure what I have to be pregnant. I have been on bed rest for almost a year of my life, collectively.
14. When I was growing up, I thought that anything without fat was ok to eat. So, I ate a ton of Licorice, Fun Dip, Hot Tamales, fat free cookies, etc.
15. I LOVE to make lists and I love to check things off my list even more. My “TO DO” list is currently 14 pages long. OK, only 5 of those are real action items – the rest is info. I have short term action items, long term action items, Jason’s action items, action items I know I should do some day, but probably never will - you get the idea.
16. I love to water-ski and snowboard and plan my pregnancies around these sports and vacations.
17. I love Hawaii. We have a timeshare in Kauai and have been there six times. I have been to Oahu twice, Maui twice and the Big Island four times
18. I don’t read……I just don’t. I wish I did. While I am at it, I wish I was a runner too.
19. I think John Mayer is really cool and talented – not in a stalker way, but if he is in town, I wouldn’t miss a concert.
20. I watch too much TV – especially reality TV.
21. I went to 4 different major colleges and still graduated in 5 years – not too shabby.
22. I love roller-skating. I have a $400 pair of skates that I never get to use because no one will go with me.
23. I keep an excel spreadsheet of baby names I like and when I have another baby I just review the list to pick a name.
24. I have worked at the same company for 13 years (OK, technically the original company was been bought three times)
25. I have hiked Half Dome at Yosemite twice. The first time my brothers were going to chicken out of climbing the cables to the top – but I mocked them and started running up until they followed. The running then immediately stopped.

Tag yourself if you feel like doing this.

New Years in Utah

We had a fun filled trip to Utah to visit Jason's family. We drove again and it went really well. The way there took a bit longer - 12 hours. On the way back, we had it down to a science and we cruised home in 9.5 hours.

Brent and Rachelle hosted a great New Years Eve party and then everyone got together on New Years Day at My Noah's - a great place you can rent out for family reunions. We had pool tables, Guitar Hero, Wii, a raquetball court and great food. Tons of fun! Thanks to our family who came to visit us - it meant a lot to us and it was so great visiting with everyone. We missed Cary and Anita's family, Matt, Justin, Summer and Carl. Hopefully, we can see them next time.

Jason's family is entering a new phase. There are 33 grandkids and the oldest ones are returning from missions and starting to get married. The funny thing is that they are not that much younger than I am (or at least I think they aren't - I am sure they think I am ancient). So, I really enjoyed visiting with my adult nieces and nephews and their new spouses. I love relating to them on more of a peer level and seeing the people they are becoming. I am so proud of all of my nieces and nephews. They are such great kids. They were all so loving and warm to my kids, I really appreciated that. We miss everyone and wish we could see them more often but love keeping in touch through the new Packer family addiction - facebook!

I managed to get a picture of everyone at the mini reunion on New Years Day.

Aunt Christy and Holden

Taya loves Uncle Lee - I think he reminds her of Jason. She was so sick, she cuddled up and fell asleep on him New Year's Eve.

Uncle Steve, Holden and Jon

Dan and his new wife - Carisa

Lee, Savannah and Katy

Stephani and Rachelle

Brent, Heidi and her fiance Brian, Grandma Packer and Sherri Lynn

London and Brooklyn

Ben, Jake and Colton

Taya, Jason and Bart

Boston, Adam, Monty, Dan and Jon

Dawson, Luke, Dylan, Sunshine, Sydney and Cali

Lacey (Jon's new wife), Dawn, Holly, Chelsea (Bart's girlfriend), Christy and Jen

Best Buddies - Sydney and Taya. They are the same age and had so much fun doing everything together.

Poor Taya - so sick! But, her cousin Ammon just loved her up. So sweet.

Aunt Rachelle and Holden

Cousin Adam and Holden

Snow Much Fun!

Dawson and Taya had a blast playing in the snow while we were in Utah for New Years. We almost didn't make the trip because Taya came down with a very high fever the night before we left. We were up most of the night with her and at 5am, we were laying in bed debating if we should get up and go or just cancel the trip. Taya woke up and we asked her what she wanted to do and she said she wanted to go to Utah and build a snowman and that she would be a very good girl in the car. So, we got up and headed out the door. Taya was so sick - but was so good about it - a real trooper. She had a fever for a couple days - but it broke just in time for her to build a snowman and go sledding. That made her trip!

Dawson wanted to hug the snowman and Taya wanted to make silly faces. So, here you get one of each :)

Sledding with cousins

Dawson getting some air on a jump!

Taya on the bunny hill

Everyone else had called it quits - but Dawson just kept on going. He couldn't get enough of it.

Here is a quick little video clip of Dawson diving off the step to sled down the front lawn.

This Baby Can Sleep

Holden is 5 months old and boy does he like to sleep and I love him for it! He has been going to sleep around 7:30PM and sleeping until at least 8:30AM or later. I have been waking him up to nurse him every night before I go to bed because I fear that he will wake up at some crazy early hour if I don't. But, last night, I decided to just give it a try and see how he did. He slept from 7:30PM to 8:30AM with no feedings - 13 hours. Wow! Holden is such a good baby - he has his schedule and is very predictable - eat, play, sleep. Repeat. Don't we all wish we had that schedule? I would love that schedule. He is a real joy and I love having a baby back in our house. And having a good night sleep makes all the difference! I have enjoyed him so much that I go back and forth between wanting to quit having babies while I am ahead and end on a good note (my Dad said babies are like Russian roulette - you never know what you're going to get) and wanting to have another baby just like him. We shall see...

I would be this happy too after 13 hours sleep

Holden is always sucking his hand!

No Wonder....

No wonder my kids love Grandma's house so much! Just see the truly pampered Taya below and you will understand the great affection my kids have for Grandma's house. They always want to go to grandma's house - it a magical place. They get pampered and spoiled - who could ask for anything more? My mom loves to wrap up the evening by getting the kids in their pjs, brushing their teeth (yeah! - I don't have to do it, thanks Mom) and then she has tickle time with lotion. The kids eat it up. This time Taya got a full blown massage in front of a warm fire. I'm jealous!

Bums

Why are kids (at least my kids) so infatuated with bums? My kids like to kiss each other's bums, spank bums, talk about bums and especially talk about what comes out of bums (yeah gross, I know...). Here is a classic example of my children's bum infatuation. The second picture was what I was trying to get them to do. The first is my kids thinking they are so funny having me take pictures of their bums! I am not laughing. They will learn soon enough that I really hate potty humor. Our good friend, Aaron Mortensen, thinks my dis-like of potty humor is particularly funny and gets a good laugh out of watching my face grimace and my eyes roll at the first inkling of a fart joke. There have been times my reaction is so good that he gets a good cry from laughing so hard. We sure do miss the Mortensens. They are such good friends and we hate that they moved to Utah - lame! It was fun catching up with them while we were there - and yes, Aaron had a good laugh at my expense.

The Mortensen and Packer kids

Not Again.....

Every year I do this to myself and then I think - I am never going to do this again. But, every January I find myself in the same position - tax time. I am sure the rest of you don't start worrying about taxes for a few more months. But for some reason (don't ask me why) I have elected myself to do the bookkeeping for Jason's chiropractic business. Every year I say I am going to keep up with it on a monthly basis and every January I am in the same boat - I have not entered even one receipt for all of 2008. I know...I am lame! You are probably wondering why I am even doing this in my spare time (all that extra time while working full time and mothering three kids). Why don't I just hire a bookkeeper? I don't know...that is a very good question. I am so type A - I like to manage everything myself - but it ends up not being managed at all. It will be a big surprise when I am done to see how much the business made last year. Jason and I are making bets. So - if anyone knows a good and reasonable bookkeeper - send me their name and number. I am sure after a few late nights entering expenses, I will break down and call one so I won't be doing this in January 2010.