"Treasures"

(Sung to the tune of "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree")

"Ooooooh, I looked down Carter's Pull-Up and what did I see???

"Treasures put there instead of his pee!

Potty training is so much fun..."

"When you reach for a candy while you're on the run!

The kid can take a handful when he wants a treat...

A lifesaver that just smells so sweet!

He won't go poop, he won't go pee...

Pull-Ups are for treasures, oh mom, can't you see?"

Thank you. Yes...thankgoodness for the wrappers...

Where have I been???

And no, the answer is not "Going crazy!" Though some days I do claim to be doing just that!

Let me tell you:

1. The end of May, Ben was baptized...an amazing event in and of itself...but this story will have to wait until a later post....so much to say, and I need to say it in just the right way...

After his baptism, we spent Memorial weekend in Pocatello seeing family, went rock climbing, had a family Bar-B-Que, and had ice cream cones at the best place ever, Tasty Treat, (which is a family tradition...we go there after we visit the grave of Russ's oldest sister who passed away when she was two years old)

2. Things we do in a week: We signed Anna, Carter, and Ben up for the library summer reading program...and they have activities every week on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday,

Free lunches at the park, which we try to attend everyday as the weather permits (it has been raining almost everyday here for almost a month now!),

I go running every morning at 6:30 am with my friend Joni on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and I go walking with my friend Hannah, as often as we can plan, each morning at 11:00 am....then we go to the park for the free lunches.

I try to walk with Carter and Anna to her preschool every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday afternoon as well.

And let me remind all of you that through all of this running and walking business...you are either going uphill or downhill....whew!!! is all I got to say about that!!!

3. Am I only on number three??? We ran in the "Family Fun Run" on Saturday for the Teton Dam Marathon. Ben and I ran, and Anna and Carter rode along in the stroller. It was only a mile run, but it killed me pushing around 75-80 pounds of kids and stroller and stuff in the stroller!!! We got a medal afterwards, which Ben cherishes to this day.

*because of the fun we had....I am now more determined than ever to run in the 5k or 10k in the Pocatello Marathon!

4. We have finally visited the BYU-Idaho's campus gardens....they are amazingly beautiful! I had to yell (in a gentle but stern way only moms can do) at a little naughty boy for throwing stuff into one of the ponds....surprisingly, he was not my little naughty boy!!!

5. I am currently dealing with Anna, my now talkative and sassy almost 4-year-old daughter! And Carter is now talking up a storm...and throwing fits that make their own little storm!

A few cute/funny things Carter is saying now: "Dane-it" (Dang it!), "Danks" or "Dane-koo" (Thanks and Thank You), "Yessss!", if we say his name, he hollers, "What?", he has learned from his sister to say "Don't" and "Stop it!", and when he races and runs he says, "Mark..set....GO!" and then "Hurry, quick! Fast!" He has three bruises on his forehead right now from falling outside on the pavement! First thing in the morning he asks for "Tanny" (Candy) or "Dummies" (Gummis) or "Tookies" (Cookies) or "Dak-o-lut" (chocolate)!! Every morning I give him the SAME answer, "No", and he still throws himself on the kitchen floor in a fit!

6. Sunday...after a very rainy/stormy week of being mostly cooped up inside, I let Carter and Anna play outside with their cousins. They had a huge puddle on the side of their driveway....Carter splashed in it until his hearts content...and was soaked from almost head to toe! And I didn't mind one bit....okay, I lied....I minded....but just a little!

7. Russ and I take turns going to the temple Saturday mornings...though I am taking more of the Saturdays than Russ is! Actually, I have gone to all of them because of Russ's schedule and such! I am so grateful for my husband who has stayed home with the kids, even though there were times he could have gone, and let me go instead, because he knew how much I needed to be there. More than ever in my life, I have been "craving" the need to go to the temple...I feel like my thirst is never quenched, and I can never get there enough! I have felt and seen great blessings come to our lives because we have tried harder than ever to go to the temple regularly.

*I always drive by the temple as much as I can...just so I can see it. It is so beautiful, and every time I drive by, I feel peace and assurance that the Lord surely loves His children. I feel so BLESSED to live only minutes away from the House of the Lord.

We are staying quite busy this summer and I realize that there is still so much to do still!!! Though I feel like this was just a small portion of what we have been doing and seeing and living and experiencing....that just means for all of you out there that there is so much more to come!Stay tuned for lots of pictures!

A 2-yr old + cinnamon floss= well...read and find out!

A few days ago, Carter got himself into some "trouble" with his favorite cinnamon floss. But before I expound anymore, I think you need some background information first.

*Warning*

If you are the type that is easily grossed out...then this post might not be the one for you.

For years and years, the female...hmm, and, more accurately, males too....have found a fascination with the thong. I have had numerous awful experiences in a classroom setting where I was exposed to the terrible sight of a person's thong sticking out of their way-too-small jeans. Even worse than seeing a persons unsightly bum crack is seeing a piece of fabric stuck in-between it. Wives face this dilemma everyday, when we send our husbands off to college class, hoping beyond all hope that the female classmates will be covering up what most of our husbands DO NOT want to see! Russ has had moments of major and utter horror at what he has seen of the female thong. (Thank goodness for BYU-Idaho and the dress code...where the sightings are not near as often...we hope!)

Now...this small piece of information I am giving you now is VERY important to the story involving Carter. Our family (and most of the Merediths) so kindly call the thong "Butt Floss".

Remember this.

Back to Carter...he loves to get into the floss. The faint cinnamon flavor must be irresistible to his little taste buds. A few days ago, I spotted Carter walking down the hall with his floss in hand. I thought there would be no harm in letting him "practice" flossing. A few minutes later, coming from Anna and Carter's room, I heard Carter coughing and gagging, as Anna is yelling, "Bubba, don't puke! Mommy, Bubby donna puke! Stop Bubby, stop!!" Then he stopped. He was fine, and I told Anna he probably put the floss in his mouth and it made him gag until he got it out. Maybe he would learn his lesson about putting things in his mouth!

One little detail I failed to notice: where was the floss???

Yesterday, my sister and her husband and kids stopped by for a visit on their way back to Twin Falls. Carter entered the room, and it was immediately filled with an awful stench...toddler poop! As I pulled the stinky diaper off, I noticed a piece of "string" in the diaper.... then all of a sudden it hit me....that was no string but cinnamon floss!!! I grabbed it with a wipe and then to my surprise I saw that only half of the floss was out and the remainder was still stuck inside his little rectum. I pulled the rest out as all of us in the room laughed (with a bit of feeling grossed out too) at poor Carter!

Gives a whole new meaning to the word "Butt floss" eh???