Time for the Looney Bin

I don't know if I should admit this but..........

Today with 2 hrs. of freedom before me I resolved to take a much needed nap. Two kids at school, 2 kids napping, no transcribing, nothing but 2 hrs. to take for myself. To make it a worth while nap I stripped down to my g's and climbed into bed. Two hrs. later I awoke in the exact same position I had laid down in. I really needed a nap! I got dressed, greeted the kids at the door and we headed off to Twin for Joe's b-day. We got home about 9:10 and after I got the kids all to bed I went to put my pajamas on. I took off my bra and to my GREAT surprise found my other bra was also on! I don't know when or how I did it, I just did. I had spent the whole evening at the Hopkins' double supported.

If I Could Save Time in a Bottle...I don't think I would

Am I the only one in this big, big world (shout out to PBS) that feels controlled, ruled by time? Every moment of every day is occupied with time, time, time. Try and keep up with me...

3:00 a.m. Tess fusses, I hear her over the monitor I look at the clock and think, "Yeah! I can get in 3 hrs. and 40 more min. of sleep!

6:40 a.m. Alarm goes off, I hit snooze and think, "10 min. 10 min. 10 min. 10 min."

6:50 a.m. Get Olivia up. OK! Bus gets here in in 25 min.

7:00 a.m. Olivia finish up breakfast. The bus will be here in 15 min.

7:05 a.m. Olivia get your teeth and face washed...bus 10 min. Boys! Go back to bed for another hour! Please!

7:10 Olivia are your shoes on? Bus in 5 min! Oi! Tess is awake and ready to eat. I'll have to delay excercise by 15 min. Eat breakfast and wonder, "When can I eat again?" The 'just need to loose 5 lbs diet' dictates 10:00.

7:15 Bus coming down the road. See ya at 4:00! Love ya!

7:20 Get Tess. Take mental note of wake up time so she can go down 2 1/2 hrs. from now. Feed Tess. Mentally note meal and diaper change so that when she gets fussy I can determine what 'type' of fussy it is.

7:30 Hop onto elliptical. Tortuously count down every last, miserable minute, second...30 min. 29 min. 28 min......Should I strength train today? Nah that would take an extra 45 min. Vow to do it the next day.

8:00 Feed boys and hope a 15 min. Scooby Doo will keep them occupado while I shower. Oh yeah! I need to check e-mail and blog and Drudge. Just a 5 min. peek!

9:00 Ready to Go! Check clock and ponder all of the things I can accomplish in 30 min. before I should start doing my typing for Dr. Hopkins. Dress kids, clean breakfast, make beds, pick up already played with and grown weary of toys.

9:30 Sit down to type and wonder as Mark and Nate fight how long it is until Mark leaves for school... 2 hrs. Yikes! Check mental clock and wonder when Tess needs to go to bed again. Type for 20 min. and then lay Tess down and cross fingers that she will stay asleep for at least 2 hrs.

10:00 Focus Mark on at least 10 min. of piano. When does he leave for school again? 1 1/2 hrs. I've got time to type for another 1 hr. before I need to feed him. Oh yeah! What's for dinner? What time do I need to start it so we are eating at 5:00...more mental math. Get back to typing with string cheese dangling from my mouth to complete 10 min. intervals of Dr. Hopkins' oral surgery speak, which translates to about 30 min. of actually typing on my end.

11:00 Tess awake. Take mental note so next nap can be planned and justified. Change diaper. Hmmm. Not too wet. Hooray for not letting a diaper go too long! Feed Mark and Nate lunch, make sure homework is done, brush teeth, bundle up. How long to load 3 kids into the car?

11:40 Out the door, all along the way knowing it takes us 10 min. to get to school, giving Mark 10 min. to play outside before the bell rings. OK! Kids home in 4 hrs.

12:00 Nate down for nap. Crossing fingers he'll be out of commission for at least 2 hrs. Feed Tess. Take mental note about meal to determine when afternoon nursing will take place. Eat lunch and again wonder, "When can I eat again?"...3:00.

12:30 Sit down to type. Attempting to get it done so I can watch ALL of the t.v. I want that night, guilt free. What time are my shows on? Check schedule. Determine to record one channel while I watch the other. Vow to get TiVo when I'm independently wealthy. Kids will be home...3 1/2 hrs.

1:30 Ya Hoo! Done with typing for the day...what to do....serf the computer.

2:00 Tess fussy...recalculate wake up time and determine an afternoon nap is justified.

2:10 Start chicken and cut broccoli for dinner so it can be ready to go into the oven by 4:00.

2:30 Greet Nate with a kiss and a smile and wonder how long until bedtime. I love my babies, but this is an innate thought that cannot be controlled. Any mother knows what I mean.

3:00 Check in with Ellen while I fold clothes. Feel happy and zen for 1 hr. Sneak in a pudding pop and calculate 2 hrs. until dinner.

4:00 Greet kids and give them 30 min. 'down time' until homework needs to be done. Put dinner in oven. Will cook for 60 min. When should I start the rice...mental math...30 min.

4:30 Olivia working on homework with the hopes of watching AI that night. Start rice.

4:45 Set table. Dinner in 15 min! Hurry up!

5:00 Eat, laugh, clean spills...

5:30 Clean dinner while mentally calculating bath time and bedtime. Note that in order for us to fit in 1 chapter in the BofM we will need at least 30 min (we have early readers). Gotta start by 6:30 so we can be done by the time idol starts. Let's get going!

6:30 Read from BofM, checking ahead to see how long Mark's verse is going to be. Give a sigh of relief it is only 4 lines long.

7:00 Sit down for some idol, noting that boys' and Tess' bedtime is in 30 min.

7:30 Boys in bed, Tess in bed. Cross fingers Tess will sleep all night. Go back to idol.

8:00 Olivia in bed and reading for 30 min. Mentally note that if I'm in bed by 10:30 I could get atleast 8 hrs. sleep. Decide between computer, reading, movie or t.v. Opt for computer.

8:30 Send Olivia to bed.

10:00 Note clock time and gear self up for bed.

10:30 Not done doing nothing.

11:00 Hit sack mentally calculating the 7 1/2 hrs. of potential sleep.

3:00 a.m. Tess fusses, I hear her over the monitor and I look at the clock and think, "Yeah! I cant get in 3 hrs. and 40 more min. of sleep!

Disclaimer: After editing this, this looks like a pretty smooth day. Rarely do my days go this smoothly. Most days there is a reason to jump in the shagin' wagon (the van) and run somewhere, school, visiting teaching, grocery store, post office, piano lessons, blah, blah, blah. I'm usually finishing up my typing about 3-4:00. I can't tell you quick fast what gets me delayed on days I don't go anywhere, but I'm sure it's one of my darlings and I'm sure more mental math is done as I try and decided just how delayed I am going to be.

Is It Over Yet?

Holy Crap! What a bad week on idol. Please bear with me during my mini-rant...

Almost the entire group chose terrible songs (many if which I like, but not their versions) and were soooooo out of tune it was unbearable and I really wanted the majority of the performances to just end. Even my beloved Michael Johns stunk it up. I don't really care for the 'true rocker' David Cook. It doesn't translate to me. The poor guy has a receding hairline and tries to make up for it with a terrible 'edgey' hairdo, and yes, it is a 'do'. We know about receding hairlines at this house and that guys gotta one. Chickezie did do much better so I'll give him an honorable mention.

Fox cut out on us during Brook's performance so I cannot give an opinion about her. We were stomping mad! Also, when the judges were 'complimenting' Asia'h I wondered if we had just heard the same song. She completely missed a note in the 2nd phrase. Yikes! And, poor Amanda murdered her song and failed to even sing at all and I HATED her hair(sorry Haley for the use of 'Hate', but it is VERY justified). Hopefully next week will be better.

Shiny Pennies:
David KILLED (in a good way) this song. He did move ahead a bit in my liking of him. I love his "Who Me?" attitude. Did you find it interesting when Randy asked him why he didn't sing the 1st verse? Was he trying to catch him off guard? The first two verses are clearly anti-religion (even confessed by John Lennon himself) and our little Mormon boy gave a great answer. He simply stated it was his favorite verse and had a great message. This one is without guile.


I never gave this guy much thought but he did do very well last night. I'll keep my eye on him.






Carly is my new girl favorite. It might be due to her Irish lilt, but I'm going to give her 'props' for a fabulous voice and a fun watch tonight. She gets my vote today.







Still Love:
I have a little "I'm married, but still think you're cute" crush on Michael. Please sing better Michael just so I can watch you every week and justify voting for you, for previously said purpose ; )



Look close and you'll see this talented kid is John Travolta with dreads. And yes, I do like John Travolta. You'll never get me to deny Danny Zuko or one of the best all time lines in movie history, "Would ya just watch the hair. Ya know, I work on my hair a long time and you hit it. He hits my hair." I ramble...Anyway I still like him A LOT and would like to see him without the guitar just like the judges.

Pipe in with your thoughts and school me otherwise if I have offended you with my opinions or if I left out any notable performances.

Good ol' Boys

I had my hands full this weekend with a passel of boys. We had a kid swap with our Twin Falls counterparts with the girls going to Twin and the boys coming to Burley. Our house was inundated with Star Wars, Transformers, Scooby Doo and Indiana Jones. It was a boy's paradise and a bathroom's nightmare! Good times.














Joe, Nate, Hank and Mark

Peaceful Sleep

I am fine and satisfied with the results of the voting tonight. I did feel bad about Joanna, but not enough to loose any sleep tonight. I was happy to see those two boys go. I couldn't stand Garrett's Peter Frampton fuzzy locks and Colton's over the top singing. No loss there. I'm sure anyone who reads this (all 2 of you) that you may grow weary of my AI thoughts, but for some weird reason I find comfort in typing out those thoughts, maybe because my hubby doesn't lend a sympathetic ear. Never fear though, I will still post more minding bending, hurt your sides funny posts that don't dwell on idol.

Ladies Night

So I sat down last night ALL excited to see what the gals had to offer us on American Idol and while many of them are very talented singers, I didn't walk away feeling too jived about any of them. Am I being too critical? At this point I am somewhat indifferent to this lineup of girls and would be fine if any of them won. I don't think I'd be screaming at the t.v. like I was when Taylor Hicks won. Can you tell I just don't like that short bus guy? Here is my favorites and a few honorable mentions.

Favorite Gals:
Yes we all know she is LDS (check out the CTR ring on her left hand), but that is not my draw to her. I think her voice and style are quite distinctive. I really liked her song choice last night and would die for her hair. I enjoy her sunny disposition and, unlike Simon, feel our television viewing is in need of some cheery. I would be happy to see her win.



Amanda is true blue in who she is. In no way does her style and attitude seem contrived. I laughed myself silly last night when Simon asked her if she had forgotten the words to the song and she asked him (a music exec.) if he had ever heard the song! I have always liked the type of music I know she will choose but I do wonder if all of her songs and song choices will sound and be the same. In the words of Simon, "Joplin has already been done."

Honorable Mentions:
Loved the song and really liked her.










Talented and different.











I like the husky quality to her voice.










Great voice, maybe a little too 'mature' sounding for me. Should the fact that she has already had a recording contract make her ineligible? She is one of the 12 that I will be interested to watch and see what song choices she makes. So sad she ruined her cute little self with that hideous tattoo sleeve.


Sooooooo pretty and vocally talented too. She seems a little sassy...She might be really fun to watch.

Whose Digits Did I Dial?

I've grown weary of Obama's hope and change rhetoric, Hillary's "I'm picked on attitude" and John McCain's maverick lies. I'm in a political slump. I'm disappointed and disgusted with the prospects ahead of us and I have been dreaming of the time when Christ will rule and reign. I doubt there will be much politicking and campaigning. While I may still listen too and read everything I can get my hands on about the campaign trail and those mucking it out, I'm so glad to have American Idol around so I can contemplate other world shattering votes outside of the political realm. Voting started tonight. I always ask myself, "Which person's music would I actually spend money on?" Chris Daughtry, Carrie Underwood and Bo Bice have all received a little bit of our hard earned moolah. I stick to my guns about Bo Bice. I still really like his southern throw back and wish he could have been more successful, especially when bozos like Taylor Hicks can win. Here is how the night shaped up for me:

I split my votes between:
Michael Johns: He just got up and sang and didn't try too hard to 'be' something. I'm with Simon on the thought that the majority of them are more worried about their hair than their song choice and sound.



Jason Castro: Again, he just stood up and sang and I really enjoyed his take and sound on the song. He appears unassuming and unaffected. I like the fact that he has only sang publicly a hand full of times.



Honorable Mentions:
Robbie Carrico

Solid performance, but not my ultimate favorite.

David Archuleta

Very sweet, humble kid with a great voice. Would I buy his stuff?






Please just go away:
Danny Norriega
I can't handle a whole season of finger snaps, head flips and lisp speak from this youngin'. If he is kept it will simply be to drive me crazy. He would be the Sanjaya of Season 7. Spare me!

Week in Review

While plenty happens every week in the lives of the Sellick Six, not everything is worthy of a report. Here are just a few highlights of our past week....

Today was Lunch with Mom Day at Olivia and Mark's school. I'm happy to report that lunch has NOT changed in the last 25 yrs. The only difference noted was how the milk is presented- plastic instead of paper. The room still smells the same and the lunch ladies are still happy to be feeding the masses. I think I heard "Move along now" about 5 times. It made me think of the song "Shiny, Happy People". Boy were those ladies happy. We had taco salad and apple crisp and lots of silly conversation. We talked Webkinz and the kids have decided I need my own because I played on Webkinz last night for about 30 min. Its addictive! It was well worth the $ to go spend 30 min. with Olivia and Mark and see how tickled they were to have me there. They like me! They really like me!

Our little Tessie is a whirlwind. Never mind the plethora of toys we have laid about the house...She wants what is NOT laying about the house. She's hit that fun age where books no longer live in the bookshelves, an open dishwasher is play heaven, bathroom cupboards are a smelly wonderland of lotions and deodorants and paper plates are meant to be played with not eaten off of. It seems when babies are at this age the main objective is to search and destroy. It is their mission from the break of dawn until nightfall to undo everything that is done and not to play with those organized items, just to undo those organized items. It's hard to get mad though when you see how proud she is about the chaos she has created.

We are just now coming out of a yucky winter storm. The kids have had 4, yes 4, snow days. We have not had huge amounts of snow, but the wind that accompanied the snow caused it to drift up and over the roads and made them impassable. The drifts by our church reached the roof of the building. It wasn't the type of snow to go out in play in either. With the wind as it was there was no snow in the yard to play in. It was all in the roads. Crazy! My kids liked the 1st snow day, but by the 3rd one they were dying to go back to school just to have something to do and somebody to talk to besides me. We don't live in a 'neighborhood' so there are no kids to call up next door to come and play. They had grown accustomed to my face and were sick to death of it...and for my part...I was tired of breaking up fights and trying to suggest things to do.

My husband James gets a gold star and some other unmentionable kudos for restoring my best friend the t.v. this week. It was restored just in time for me to tune into Lost, Survivor and American Idol. I have been without it since September and it really has been hard. It is a luxury that turned into a necessity, just like my iPod, high speed internet, cell phone and Oil of Olay (nongeneric). Is it bizarre that these worldly, often times naughty shows make me happy? I'll admit it for everyone, yes!! I really am embarrassed by how happy I was to be able to sit down at night and let my mind drift to 'other' matters besides my life in Burley.

I just have to say I love, love, love Lost. What a great show. The characters drive me crazy and I find myself yelling at Ben (the bad guy) to just spit it out and tell Jack, Locke and the survivors what the heck is going on. I then stop myself with the realization there would be no show to watch or story to follow if he did so. It's the unknown that is so intriguing. For those 'other's out there who consider themselves "Losties", who is Jacob and why do the four members who helicoptered in want Ben?

P.S. Come back Charlie!

Snow Bunny

We got this sweater for Livvy when she was a baby and I've been dying to use it again. It's a really good thing we got another girl or this is the one item I would have been broken hearted about. Here is our little Snow Bunny all ready to head out the door for church. She makes my heart melt. She says "Mama" and "Dada" and knows what they mean. It makes it easier to have to get her at 3:00 a.m. when you open the door and she says in her happy voice, "Mama". Ahhhhhhh! Do want some candy with your milk sweetie? Nothing like a baby girl.

Battin' for Our Team

Olivia got baptized yesterday and what a great day it was. We had oodles of cousins and friends to share the day with us and it made for a special time for Livvy. Our stake does baptisms on a ward basis and Olivia was the only one to be baptized from our ward. We got to plan the entire program. We didn't have to listen to one person we didn't know! Even better! Olivia's cousin Trent gave the opening prayer, her Uncle Ryan spoke on baptism, her cousin Isa played a musical number on the piano, her Grandpa Mark spoke about the Holy Ghost, her brother Mark gave the closing prayer and her Daddy baptized and confirmed her. I especially enjoyed hearing my father speak. He bore a strong witness of the Holy Ghost and I know it really had an impact on Olivia. I love that she and her cousins got to hear his testimony.

I also have to say that it is moments like these that make me love James even more than I already do. There are many great blessings in my life and certainly one of my greatest is a righteous man with righteous desires. James is a man who can baptize our children and bless them and I can tell he takes pride in being able to do so. I set my sights high years and years ago and told myself I would accept nothing but the best and I'm so glad I did. He is a blessing to me and to our children.

The best part of the day was seeing James blush a 100 shades of red. After he baptized Olivia, I went back and quickly got her dried and dressed and back to the font room. James wasn't done yet and so we waited for about 3-5 min. for him to return. He came back in, proud as a peacock to find us all staring at him. He said, "Wow! Livvy's already back?" He thought he had beat her back, thinking she was a girl and would take longer. He blushed and blushed. Big bad cops still get embarrassed! My brother-in-law Tim zinged him with, "I thought Olivia was the one with wet hair!" Keep in mind James has none! He claims he was working on his tie, which I do believe because I've seen him put on a tie and it is quite the process to reach perfection.

After the baptism we drove into to Twin Falls to go to Gertie's for some pizza and to celebrate Nate's 3rd birthday. The poor little thing had no idea it was even his b-day or why he was getting a whole slue of Transformers. He just cared about the fact that he now had Bumblebee, Jazz, Barricade and and a new Star Wars Transformer. In the chaos of it all I forgot candles for his cake and there was too many of us to rally to sing to him. Wow! I really let this one go. Of the three pictures I managed to get, the one pictured is his joy and best buddy Bumblebee. We need a new camera! He was tickled to death that night though to line up his new armada to watch him sleep. I guess that's all that matters. He was happy.