What's in YOUR mailbox?

I love it when the mail arrives. I guess there isn't enough excitement in my day because I really want to run out to the box the minute I hear the mail truck. Sometimes I jump the gun a little and run out after I've heard it, only to check my box and find it empty because the truck was actually on the opposite side of the street. I walk quickly back inside, hoping none of my neighbors have seen me and notice that I have nothing better to do than listen for the mail truck.
Well, I received an unfortunate piece of mail this week... jury summons. Four years ago I received my first summons and I was actually a little excited. Once upon a time I wanted to be a lawyer when I grew up. I've always been facinated with the court system and feel like my opinions are terribly important. I was nursing Logan at the time, so I requested to be excused until I was through. I figured they would forget all about me, but no... I received another summons the first day I had said I'd be available again. I had no more excuses, so I had to phone in every day for an entire week, wondering what in the world I'd do with my two kids and piano lessons if they told me I had to come in. I'm sure I didn't sleep well as I never do when there are huge unknowns in my life, but the week went by and I never had to make my appearance.
They sent me another summons at the beginning of last summer. I said I was expecting a baby and would have to be excused... again. So this week I received yet another summons (if you're keeping track, that's FOUR summons in as many years) and I told them again that I'm nursing a baby and will have to be excused until September. I think once August is over I won't be running to the mailbox anymore. This time I have three kids to arrange babysitting for and their $18 pay won't even reimburse me for the gas it'll cost me to get to court.

Congratulations Josh & Amy

Nate's brother Josh and his wife Amy brought their first baby into the world on Tuesday.

Jaxson weighed in at 9 lbs 2 oz and was 22 in. long! Aeris will love having a cousin close to her in age, even if he is practically big enough to beat up on her already!

Nest Photo

Here's the photo I took of the nest the birds were working on in our barbecue. I didn't include it originally because I didn't think the photo did it justice. I should have taken a top view picture so you could see all the stuff down under the rack.

Beware of Birds

It's nest building season. Pretty little birds are gathering twigs and grass to create a home for their little ones. With ten trees and several bushes large enough to hold nests, it's surprising that we haven't found more nests in our yard. The only one we've had was in a butterfly bush just outside our kitchen window a couple of summers ago. So, you'd think I'd have been excited when I saw a bird with a twig in its beak pass by my kitchen window. Instead, I quickly stopped what I was doing and ran out to investigate. It all started about a week ago. Nate went out to fire up the grill to barbecue some pork chops. When he opened up the lid he found a pile of grass and twigs on the rack. When he asked me who might have done it, I immediately thought of Jade. Since we don't have a swing set, trampoline, swimming pool, slides, playhouse, etc., our deprived children are left using their imaginations to keep themselves entertained out there. I figured this was one of her games. Upon further investigation, however, Nate discovered bird poop on the concrete next to the BBQ and even along the inside edge. Too bad we'd already accused Jade. She sounded quite shocked and quickly denied it. When I opened the lid today I literally yelled. I cannot believe the mess those "pretty little birds" have made of our grill! It was packed so tightly they must've been about finished. I'm sad for them to have to start over, but come on! We have ten trees in our yard... TEN!

Does this ever happen to you?

So I'm holding Aeris on my hip because if I put her down she'll cry and I'm trying to open the seal on her Gerber baby food. I've got a spoon in my hand ready at the corner of the seal where I'm very gently starting to pull in an upward motion. I'm hoping the spoon will deflect what I know by now is inevitable... the baby food that blurps out of the container the minute the seal is broken. If the spoon trick is unsuccessful, I end up with baby food splattered on my hand, the counter, and usually either Aeris's clothes or mine (or both!). Then I have to wash it off my hands before adding any other spots on our already stained clothes. Since I'm doing my best to follow the doctor's orders and fatten her up, we go through this 2-3 times a day. Ahh, motherhood!

At the Convention

For those of you who have never attended a political convention, here's the rundown of what I saw and learned today as a delegate at the Republican County Convention.

Arrive early. The best snacks (ie fresh fruit, breads, and pastries) will be gone within the first hour. I arrived just before 9am and went straight to the registration tables clear at the back, afraid that I might miss out on registering and thus miss the opportunity to cast my votes as a delegate which is why I wanted to be there in the first place. By the time I made it back to the booths at the front, which were handing out the "best snacks," the tables were empty.

Speaking of snacks. There are a LOT of snacks. Mostly candy, but also bottled water, popcorn, apples, brownies, and cookies.

It's okay to bring a baby, but be prepared for difficulties maneuvering through crowded walkways.

Watch for celebrities. I didn't bring my camera, otherwise I might have snagged a photo of myself with SUPERDELL looking quite uncharacteristically serious. I can't wait to see how serious he is about his run for Governor.

Watch for friends. I saw so many people I knew. I spent nearly all of the convention with another stroller-pushing mom/delegate, who happened to have a son in Jade's kindergarten class last year... and her baby is also 9 months old. That was fun!

Some candidates don't even show up. The only real ballots I cast today were for our district's remaining state delegates and for Salt Lake County Mayor. There were two names on the ballot for county mayor but only one of the candidates was even there. Gee, it was pretty tough to figure out who was going to win that one.

It's hard to get rid of the old guys. Chris Butters... does the name ring a bell? He's the politician famous for sticking his foot in his mouth. He managed to stay in the race, winning with 60.2%.

It's worth it to be involved. The majority of the crowd today was men... most of them older. As a mom, it's hard to make the time to read up on politics and attend meetings, but having done so, I am much more informed about issues that concern my family... education, public safety, roads, immigration, etc. Education is a hot topic for me right now, and I'm not just going to sit back and let others make the decisions when I have three little people at my house who will spend a lot of time at school in this state. I encourage all of you to do the same.

Sometimes you miss things. Jade scored the only goal at her soccer game today. Which I missed. They won the game 1-0. Congratulations Orange Cheetahs!