Happy Halloween!!

I openly admit that Halloween is not my favorite holiday...in fact I really do hate it. I mean for starters we always end up with soooo much candy!! 4 kids x 4 very full candy bags=stomach aches, gained weight, toothaches, and sugar highs..and those are just the side effects for Bayden!! And then there is the costume issue...it can get pretty expensive, lucky for me I have good kids who were more than happy to recycle some of our old costumes and they really did turn out pretty cute. This year, Kaytlyn was an evil sorceress, Jax and Wyatt were rodeo clowns, and Kenna was the cutest dang cow this side of the Rio Grande! We spent the first part of the night at the ward/town trunk or treat. It was the first time Fredonia has had a trunk or treat and it was AWESOME!! We participated in the Chili cookoff..(didn't win, but our chili was great) and the costume parade, and we also decorated Bayden's trunk for the Marshal's office contribution...it was pretty spooky!

Where is my bedroom?

It occurred to me today that there has been a major injustice in my life....I no longer have a bedroom. I mean, I still have a room with a bed, my clothes, and my bathroom, but seriously it's not reallIy mine. It is apparant that my entire house is being run my small people and I am left scratching my head and wondering what on earth has happened.

It all began on a cold January morning..January 21, 1999 to be exact. The day that our first daughter was born. She was so precious then. Little did I know that just 10 years later she would be leading the great invasion into my bedroom. It all happened very innocently. I just wanted to be a good mom. I wanted my children to always feel welcome and safe and happy in our home. So I have always just allowed my children to come and go from my bedroom. As a result, they don't feel the need to knock before entering my not-so sacred bedroom. You would think that a closed door would at least make them hesitate, but this breed of invaders only sees the door as an obstacle that must be conquered. In fact, Bayden and I can be sitting in our bedroom with the door open and they make no act to infiltrate, but the second that door closes..it is like they know that the grownups are seeking privacy. That closed door has just become a challenge...A challenge that says "who can get passed me first?" For obvious reasons, I have had to resort to locking the bedroom door..even just to go potty! What happens when the Invaders are stopped by a locked door you ask? Well to be honest you would think there was a natural disaster in the house with all the wailing and whining. I always have to remind myself that no one is actually being ripped apart by bears on the other side of the locked door...it just sounds like it. After they recover from the initial shock of encountering the locked door, the banging and yelling begins..."MOOOOM...MOM...MOMMMM...MMMMMOOOOMMM!!!" Again, I am always tempted to answer their shrieks, but no...I have to look in the mirror and repeat the phrase.."I am an adult, and I can go potty by myself." Just when I think they have given up and I have won...they switch to different tactics...they lay on the floor and peek under while wailing and sticking their fingers under the door wiggling them pathetically...it is like the disturbing scene from Signs only worse, they aren't aliens they are my CHILDREN!!! All this has just been a mild disturbance in the house , something we have been dealing with...but today was the last straw! Today, I was just wiping the sleep from my eyes when my door is pushed open by the Commander of the Invasion..Kaytlyn. This is a daily occurance because apparantly my bathroom is far more superior to hers..(A fact that I can hardly blame her for, she has two brothers...need I say more?) Usually she heads right for the bathroom to beautify herself, but this morning she stopped at my dresser, opened the drawer and began rifling through MY stuff! I was speechless for about 20 seconds, and then I asked her what she was looking for...Ok, so here is where I subconciously acknowledge that there is a problem, because what I should have said is "What in the heck do you think you are doing?" She turned to me and said, "Socks, I am out of socks so I am going to wear yours." I still have not recovered my senses enough to reply to this comment and she is probably still wearing my socks. I have been defeated...I have been invaded. My bedroom is not my own and neither are my socks.

The moral of this particular story is "Payback is a Beast" I just want to take this moment to let my own mother know how very sorry I am for not respecting her privacy, stealing her socks, wearing her shoes, using her makeup and various other misdeeds that shall go unmentioned....you deserved your own room, Mom!
Perhaps someday I will gain back control of my bedroom territory from these pint sized invaders, but for now I will just have to keep fighting the good fight because in their world, mom's don't have their own bedrooms, or their own socks, and privacy is just a figment of my imagination!!

Mommy's little Helper

I spent the afternoon cleaning the house and I told my kids that they could help or they could play outside while I cleaned. Kaytlyn was at a friends house and the boys wasted no time getting out the door. But Kenna decided she wanted to be my helper. So she picked up, and threw away trash, and then spent quite a bit of time dusting furniture. More specifically she spent alot of time dusting the kitchen chairs. When her dad sat in one of the chairs and "made noise" like dads sometimes do, her reaction was total disgust as she said to him, "EWWWW, DAD, I just cleaned those!" I love this age!!

Kenna's moves!!

All my kids like to dance around, but Kenna thoroughly enjoys bustin a move! Here is a small portion of her dancing skills that leave our Grover family laughing hysterically!

Kenna's Moves