Ayres Insanity

  It's only 1:00pm and already it's been an eventful day.   Last night after dinner as I was getting Kalei ready for a bath, I noticed that the dog was missing, so Russ searched the house to see if the kids had locked her up somewhere, but she was nowhere to be found. We figured she had snuck out unnoticed while Russ was getting the mail a few hours before, so he and the boys went out driving to try and locate her, but to no avail. We figured that if nobody had let her in she would probably freeze to death in the 20 degree weather with heavy snowfall, but what could we do?   As I was shoveling out my car at about 6:45 this morning, guess who showed up? Yep, Annie Belle, and she didn't look like she'd been freezing all night so I'm assuming some good Samaritan let her in for the night. I hope that dumb dog learned her lesson this time!   On a happier note, Kalei slept for NINE hours last night! By the time she woke me up at six, my boobs were like milk sprin...

  I love this time of year, the opportunity to remember what we're thankful for and to enjoy a fabulous meal with family. It was a fantastic Thanksgiving and now we're ready for the rush of the Christmas season.   Yesterday we put on some Christmas music and set up the tree, the house now looks and smells like Christmas!   One of my Favorite Christmas songs is the Mannheim Steamroller version of "Silent Night". I love it because it makes me feel a portion of the spirit that must have been there the night the Savior was born.   Taevin was born in January, which means I was very, very pregnant during the Christmas of 2004. It was that year that I gained an appreciation for Mary, and she has held a special spot in my heart ever since. I remember being as Luke would say "great with child" and feeling the difficulty of getting in and out of a car, and it made me wonder how Mary felt getting on and off of a donkey in that delicate state.   There is a p...

  Tomorrow is a big day, my little Ryler is turning three!   I was talking to Russ about him the other day and told him that I've never met another child who is capable of stirring up such extreme emotions within me. There are times when he makes me so angry I think I might just snap and end up in a mental hospital (like when he took a meat mallet to my hard wood floors or stuck my wedding ring in his poopy diaper), and then there are the times when he looks at me with that sweet little face and says "I love you mommy" and my heart melts and I know that there's nothing in the world I want more than to be his mommy.   It's funny how the same two parents can create children who are so incredibly different, for example; Taevin has always been relatively easy. Mild mannered, compliant and sensitive, much like his dad. Ryler is the polar opposite of that; he's vibrant in every way. Bold, curious, and filled with energy. Only time will tell what Kal...

    Anyone who knows me well knows that I hate Halloween. I think it's a ridiculous waste of a holiday, a time when childhood obesity, diabetes, cavities, and greed is encouraged. And not to mention the freaks out there who use that day to perform satanic rituals and torture cats. But aside all that, nothing good has ever happened to me on Halloween, usually it's just the opposite and this year was no exception.   Friday was the ward Trunk or Treat. We had been gone all day and Russ felt bad about having left Annie home all alone so he suggested bring her along. I agreed as long as we tied her up, since she does like to run. We kept her tied to the trunk latch and everything went fine until we were getting ready to leave. We unhooked her leash and put her in the car but when the kids got in, a back door was left open. Just as Russ went to shut it, our stupid dog jumped out, took off across the parking lot and attacked our neighbors dog. Russ took off af...