Status Symbols

As a teenage girl, I thought that owning a pair of jeans with a triangle and a question mark sewn on the back pocket was the must-have status symbol. When I was a young woman in my twenties, I decided that owning a pair of red bottom heels meant that one had arrived. It wasn’t until recently that I realized that strollers—much like cars—are the ultimate status symbols.

It all started with a Graco DuoGlider. Its lines were long and sleek, much like those of a stretched limo. And I was treated much like a celebrity whenever I took it out for a spin. People would go out of their way to help me, running from behind to open doors for me. Very cool! The masses also flocked to it, much like the paparazzi, hoping to catch a glimpse of the passengers inside. One brazen gawker even went so far as to tear back the retractable sun-shades of the attached infant carriers and touch the stars of the show who were sleeping at the time. Not so cool!

As the twins got older, I decided it was time for a second vehicle; this one a jogging stroller. With all-terrain wheels and a heavy duty-chassis, my Bebe Love stroller resembled a Hummer and elevated me to rock star status. There were even more stares and the comments we received were more in awe of what we were doing. People were quick to get off to the side of the parkway to make room for the ruggedly sophisticated SUV. I was growing a little tired of the fame, however, and was eagerly anticipating the day when I could ditch the double stroller and return to a life of normalcy.

And then, baby makes three. Weighing in at a mere 33 pounds my new Valco Tri Mode Twin EX Double Stroller complete with an optional third seat is sleek, sporty and loaded with features. Not to mention kids! On one holiday shopping trip I received eleven—yes, ELEVEN!—comments on the stroller in less than an hour. My personal favorite was the guy who exclaimed, “That is the Bat Mobile of Strollers!” And just like that I transcended rock star status and reached that only attained by super heroes. Oddly enough, people stopped offering to open doors for me when I was driving the Bat Mobile. Probably because they knew I had spent four years honing my Super M.O.M. (Mother of Multiples) Powers and could handle anything that was placed in front of me, including dirty diapers from my dynamic duo and the double doors at the mall.

After spending the equivalent of a house payment on the Bat Mobile, I needed yet another stroller that was both compact and economical. Enter the umbrella stroller. I consider it the Toyota of strollers; it’s nothing fancy but gets great mileage and lasts for decades. Every now and then I load my singleton into that, let the twins walk alongside and get a glimpse of the anonymity I once enjoyed when going out. Until, that is, the twins have joint meltdowns in aisle 7 because I refuse to purchase whatever over-priced, trendy toy they happen to consider a status symbol at the moment. (Sigh.)

Double the Fun!

This year the twins got to have not one but TWO birthday parties!

Friend Party

The celebration started on Saturday with a party for their little friends at My Gym.

Waiting for the guests to arrive!

Intently listening to game rules.

Playing "Mr. Fox. . .What Time is It?" (Check out video below.)

The highlight of the party for most was riding the zipline.

More zipline fun!

The guests of honor got this sweet ride and arrived for group pictures.



Show us your muscles!



Making their scariest faces!

Sammy T. decided to help Brayden & Makenzie blow out candles.

Presents!

Thanks to all of our friends—Kayla & Korvin L, Jack & Evelyn H, Baily & Kyla R, Sammy & Jack B, Julia C, and Kara J—for celebrating with us and making the party so much fun!

Birthday Morning

On Sunday morning, the twins got to their presents from our immediate family. They got puzzles, a game from Lexi, their very own Camelbacks for hiking and bikes and bike helmets!

Of course Lexi thought she was big enough to ride the bike too!

After breakfast we went outside to teach the kids how to ride their bikes. Makeznie jumped right on and started riding before we could even tell her where the brakes were. She literally rode circles around Brayden, as you can see in the video below.

Family Party

I decided to use a Candy Land theme for our family party on Sunday evening.  

The Invitation.

I had grand plans for the decorations; unfortunately Mother Nature's plans were more grandiose than mine. I bought 34 yards of butcher paper to construct a game board in the backyard, but I couldn't even keep the paper in place long enough to hold it down with 2x4's. Stupid wind!

The guests of honor at the start of the Rainbow Trail, behind them you can see the Lollipop Woods.

Close up of the lollipops (my favorite decoration) , the Peppermint Stick Forest and the Ice Cream Floats.
Unfortunately, the wind blew away the other ice cream decoration.

 

The guests got to visit the Candy Bar and fill up loot bags to take home.


We decided to have the relay race before dinner while the weather was somewhat cooperative. Team Green consisted of Kara, Grandma R. and Andy. Team Yellow was Makenzie, Jenna and Brian. Team Pink was Brayden, Dallin and Grandpa M. For the first leg of the race the little ones had to carry a marshmallow on a spoon a plate.

Those in the second leg had to eat the marshmallow (which was covered with toasted coconut), two Hot Tamales and a Tootsie Roll.

Jenna DID NOT like the marshmallow!

But Grandma Rhodes had no problem eating it and showing the judge she had swallowed everything!

Contestants in the third leg had to run across the grass, blow up a balloon and bring it back to the start where they popped it with the help of another team member.

Team Green won!

After the relay race, we ate a quick dinner. It came to an ubrupt end when the wind started blowing people's plates across the table.

We managed to snap a hasty picture of all the guests before it started raining.

Opening presents inside. The twins were SPOILED!
Thanks to everyone for such thoughtful gifts.

Time for cake! Sticking with the Candy Land theme, I made a gingerbread man and a cake complete with gumdrops and ice cream cones. After the party Brayden told me he didn't like the shapes of the cakes and wanted different ones next year.

The party wasn't quite as sweet as I had imagined, but it didn't suck. I am already planning next year's Beach Bash in my head. I'm pretty sure I need some professional help from a twelve step program of some sort. Is there such a thing as Party Planners Anonymous?

Adorable 4-Year-Olds!

In honor of their fourth birthday, I decided to choose the four words that best describe the twins' individual personalities right now.

BRAYDEN

Clever - Brayden is very smart and comes up with innovative solutions to problems. I prefer it when he uses his cleverness for good rather than evil. For example, when he was potty training, he quickly figured out that if he put on two pairs of Pull-Ups he could pee all day long and I would still think he was dry and give him treats.
Athletic - Brayden can run fast, hike for miles and never tires out.
Sensitive - He cries when he watches Snow White and The Land Before Time, while Makenzie, on the other hand, can't figure out why he is crying.
Curious - The shear volume of Brayden's questions is exhausting; he is curious about everything! I try to put things in terms that I think a pre-schooler would understand, but that isn't good enough. He wants to know everything! He is constantly asking about HAFB and wants to know every detail, including who buys them their airplanes. Have you ever tried to explain the concept of tax payers to a 4-year-old?

MAKENZIE

Nurturing - Whether she is nursing her stuffed elephant or rubbing Lexi's back to make her feel better, Makenzie is very nurturing. She will make a great mother someday.
Adventurous - Makenzie is always looking for a new adventure. She loves climbing rock walls, the taller the better. She always wants to try new things and pushes to do better. This morning, she hopped on her new bike and started riding before she even knew how to use the brakes.
Clumsy - I hate to say it, but the girl trips over everything. She has the scrapes and bruises to prove it.
Outgoing - Makenzie makes friends wherever she goes!

THE TWINS

As twins, Brayden and Makenzie also share many of the same traits. They like to tease each other and are silly as can be. Sometimes they fight as all brothers and sisters do, but they will be best friends til the end!

LegenDaddy!

From day one he jumped right in

Changing diapers and his lifestyle, all with a grin.

He always gave a bold shoulder or his lap

For our wee little ones to take a nap.

Comb her hair? “No problem," he says with a smirk.

Although he admits his pigtails need work.

He does playtime, bathtime and bedtime

And everyone think he's sublime!

He even includes our latest addition

Into he and the twins’ time honored traditions

Pancakes, brownies, sugar cookies or whatever

Everything tastes better when made together.

Other traditions include “bones” at the door

Movie nights, horsey rides, hiking and more!

His parenting skills aren’t too shabby,

That’s why we consider him LegenDaddy!

Happy Father’s Day, Andy!

Sometimes Diamonds Aren't Forever

So much for lucky thirteen! On Monday, I "misplaced" my wedding ring (with the help of a mischevious soon-to-be four-year-old). Last time he pulled a stunt like this I found it in the heating vent. This time, we have not been so fortunate. I searched through every piece of garbage, moved furniture and checked every nook and cranny I could think of. We've offered bribes and amnesty. Nothing. In all fairness, I do not have solid proof that it was him. But based on his track record. . .I'm afraid it got flushed. The thought of not having my wedding ring brings tears to my eyes every time. I guess sometimes diamonds aren't forever.

Lucky Thirteen!

From time to time an occasion arises that allows me to trade in my official Mom uniform complete with Sergeant-like silver stripes of snot across my shoulder for a nice dress. The latest such occasion is our thirteenth wedding anniversary.

Months ago we bid on a package at a silent auction for dinner at La Caille and a one night stay at a bed and breakfast. I was tired of my other dresses and set out to find something fun, flirty and fabulous! I scoured the stores in Ogden, Salt Lake, and even a few in Spring, Texas but came up with nothing. None of them were quite right. Too matronly. Too ruffely. Too purpely. Too whatevery. So I turned my search away from the brick and mortar stores to the click and order stores. What did we do before the days of amazon.com, zappos.com, and in this case, Nordstrom.com?! I fell in love with two dresses on Nordstrom.com. The problem? Too pricey. But I ordered them anyway. Why not? I figured there would ultimately be something unflattering about those as well, but at least I would have tried.

The UPS man delivered the dresses to my doorstep right on schedule. I excitedly tried them on and found them to be too. . .perfect! And still too pricey. Now my problem was that I loved them both. I was leaning toward a hot red number, but it was (gulp) twice as much as I originally set out to spend. Almost three times as much when you added in the new shoes and earrings I naturally had to buy.

I tried those dresses on at least ten different times. Each time I tried to find a flaw, but I couldn’t. The fabric was gorgeous, hung beautifully and hugged my curves just right. I decided to keep one of them, and then mom-guilt set in like the plague. In the past few weeks we had dropped hundreds of dollars on the little people in our household for soccer, swimming lessons, and birthday party reservations without any hesitation. When it came to splurging on myself, however, all I could hear was Sergeant Snot Stripes' voice in my head. “What do you think you’re doing soldier? That’s not a good idea! Run, I SAY RUN to your closet and return both of those dresses immediately!!”

I e-mailed a friend for advice and she told me she was actually kind of proud of me for spoiling myself. She didn’t think I did it nearly enough. Those words resonated in my head for a while until they finally drowned out the barking of Sergeant Snot Stripes. I decided to keep the red dress. It wasn’t like keeping it would prevent us from paying any bills and I could always pick up a few more articles to offset the expense.

I did just that. I wrote countless articles on energy efficient light bulbs—CFLs and LEDs and halogens, oh my!—to pay for the dress. So it was only fitting that when Andy saw me he sucked in his breath and said, “Wow! You really light up the room in that dress.”

Oh, wait. That’s what Andy (played by Hugh Jackman) said in the movie version of my life. In reality what he said was, “Hey cutie pie. How’s my little Senora?” Not quite the reaction I was going for. What can I say? I love the retard! We’re retarded for each other.

This brings me back to the reason for the new dress: our thirteenth anniversary. We dated for four years before we were married, which means that we have officially been a couple for HALF of our lives! We’ve had many adventures over the years; definitely a cause for celebration. A guilt-free celebration worthy of the dress. Here's to lucky thirteen!

Our desert at La Caille came complete with fireworks!

Coming Attraction

Coming soon to a theater near you (or at least nearer to us!) Mr. Andy Rhodes, General Manager!

Andy recently decided to take the GM position at the new Megaplex Legacy Crossing theater in Centerville. Although he is sad to be leaving the number one theater in the state, the Megaplex 20 at the District, he is very excited to take on the new challenges at a new building. It will have all of the latest and greatest state-of-the-art technologies, including all digital projectors, digital poster cases, D-box seats, an I-Max screen, rear window captioning, and Freestyle Coke machines. The new theater is not scheduled to open until October, but he will be leaving his current location in July and working on site in Centerville. He will gain invaluable construction experience as well as have the opportunity to build his new team from scratch.