My Egg Situation

So, I ordered 10 eggs every week from the CoOp and they're delivered on Tuesdays with my order. The language barrier proved an issue when I tried to get them every other week (becuase i don't go through that many eggs) so that's why I said oh fine, every week is fine.

Well, they forgot to put them on my account as a regular weekly item so the CoOp lady drove out special on Thursday to deliver them to me. Super nice.

5 days later I got my weekly order with my eggs. So I've got about 15 eggs in my fridge.

Four days later, on Saturday we go to the grand opening of hte mini mall outside main gate. I wanted to go becuase the first 200 guests got a 'free gift'.

They didn't tell me the free gift was 10 eggs.

And not only did I get 10 eggs when I walked through the door but Tyler got 10 eggs too! Ahhh!! I can't give them back, it's a gift from a Japanese person! So I just smile and say "thank you so much!".

So now I've got upwards of 35 eggs that I don't know what to do with.

FORTUNATELY three days later, on tuesday (six days ago), I got my CoOp order with 10 MORE eggs! Becuase if I dind't know what to do with 35 I could probably figure out something to do with 45. Right?

Actually, I dind't get my full order becuase I closed hte garge door too far becuase it was snowing when I left the house. So all the guy delivered was the eggs.

Clara fell and smashed one pacakge, so that was helpful. back down to 35. We had omletts for dinner, pancakes and eggs for breakfast, I toyed with trying hommade mayonaise or thinking about a quiche recipie or some merangue cookies--but I dind't acutally want to be eating all these eggs. I tried giving some away but my neighbors are out of town for Christmas, so that didn't work.

So Today, monday, I'm down to about 15 eggs. Yesss! Well, who comes knocking on my door but hte CoOp guy! He had my food from last week that wasn't delivered becuase of the garage door. And guess what? He put my eggs in there!! AHHHH!!!

Back up to 25.

And since tomorrow is my regular delivery day, and I put in an order for some produce (which I will then have a two week supply of becuase i can't eat a weeks work of stuff in one day), I'm guessing there will be eggs in that delivery too. So I'll be up to 35 AGAIN.

At Least they're happy chicken eggs. Free range/cage free with feathers and all that. . . . but seirously, What's japanese for "TAKE IT EASY ON THE EGGS!!!!"

Christmas Day

Christmas day still brought no snow. A little sad, considering the amount we had last year, but it was still a very festive day.

I took a few pictures of Clara by my still partially lit tree (no I never fixed it). She's holding a balloon she got when we went to dinner

at Papageno's the other night (an Italian buffet in Shimoda mall--not bad).

We started with stockings and Clara got a little monkey toy (that broke almost immidiately) and 10 bath balls. She kept pulling them out one at a time and saying "Ba baah!" which is "bath Ball" in Clara. Then she'd throw it on the ground and pull out another one.

Tyler got 6 cans of Guarana (some Brazilian drink he likes), 4 bottles of JAZ hot sauce, zip ties (can never have too many) and duct tape (which Santa obviously skimped on becuase it's the cheapest stuff that can technically be called 'tape' that I've ever seen.)

Clara got a bunch of gifts too. A Tea Set from Aunt Lisa and Uncle Chris which she loved from the moment she opened it. She spent the whole day opening and closing the lid, pouring and pretend eating cakes all day! Santa brought her a pink shopping cart which she also loved as well as a Catapillar stuffedanimal/pillow/blanket. A Zoobie pet I think it's called. Tyler and I gave her Hi Ho Cherri-o and a few fleece jammie sets (Monkey and Frog-she loves them). Her penguin jammies she's wearing were her Christmas Eve 'gift' but I didn't really let her unwrap it, I jsut sort of presented them to her. . . . . . . what? She's only 21 months!

Tyler got a book on how to build igloos and other snow shelters (too bad there's NO SNOW!!), Beatlegeuse on blu-ray, Pixar shorts on blu-ray and I can't remember what else. I got somecansolidators! But it took waaaaay longer than I thought to acutally get them set up and facilitating organizing my kitchen. I had to rearrange basically my whole kitchen set up, but it's really good now! I'm excited.

We also got a Keva Plank set! Woo hoo!! Clara loves knocking them down--hahahaha, sometiems even

before Tyler can set them up for her! It's pretty funny. She'll swipe her arm and say "oooohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!" and move her arm back and forth just in case she missed any. : )

Tyler and Clara settled in to watch some Pixar Shorts that he got from Lisa and Chris, and that's when I got the only family photo--hahahaha! : )

29.5 Weeks

If you're wondering why I haven't posted any 'dedicated belly' pictures. . . this is why:

I'm huge. And I've got a lot of weeks left to go. Ehhhhhhhhhhh.

Saturday in Misawa

There's this big store/mall thing right outside the main gate they've been working on and I saw a sign for the grand opening this Saturday so we (meaning I) decided we should all go. (Mostlybecause the sign said free gift to the first 200 guests--how could i NOT go?)

I felt bad because it started snowing pretty hard early that morning and hadn't let up. Then it turns out that only one of the stores was actually open. It was a farmers market though, so there was produce and flowers. . . and they apparently supplied the 'free gift' of 10 eggs to the first 200 visitors. Tyler and I got 20, 10 for each of us.

But there were a few other little booths and vendors and stuff, and they had a choir singing Christmas carols, so it was nice, I just felt sorta bad that all those nice Japanese people were expecting this huge turnout probably and hardly anyone came.

There were a bunch of news cameras and reporters there though, for Japanese outlets. And I'm pretty sure they recorded Tyler and Clara--a lot.

Clara liked smelling the flowers. She always does.

My Tree Situation

I put the lights on our christmas tree awhile ago. I checked the strands before applying them to said tree. I started from the top down and even plugged them in occasionally to make sure they all worked together. They did.

Except for when I went to plus them in after I decorated the tree (which, granted, was a few days later, but still!) Something is wrong with the second to last strand of lights so only the bottom row of branches is lit.

I've been jiggling and wiggling lights and shaking branches and I even jsut tried leaving it on all day and hoping for a Christmas miracle. . . . skugged.

The last row. . . . .

So mad.

And sad too. My little snowman that changed colors when you plug him into the light strand is so boring now. Just a frosted plastic snowman. LAME!

I'd post a picture but the convinence of the promised beroom computer has been put on hold yet again. It's all microsoft's fault. . . . and seagate for making stupid harddrives. BUt I digress.

Just TURN ON DANGIT!!!! LIGHT!!!!!!

PS. It's after Christmas now, the 27th and I never got the lights fixed nor did my Christmas miracle ever happen for me. It seemed so much less festive without the lights on. . . : ( I'm in the process of putting Christmas stuff away and I"m going to throw that stupid strand of lights away that ruined my Christmas.

A Day in Winter

Sometimes I just think she looks funny and cute all bundled up for winter so I take pictures of her.

Santa in the Jet (OG Christmas Party)

Yesterday we went to the Ops Group Children's Christmas party after church.

It was potluck style so there was a lot of food and they had tables with crafts for the kids to make Christmas cards, ornaments, marshmallow snowmen, glittery snowflakes for windows, and a bunch of other things Clara was too little for. We tried the card-making with the stickers, but it didn't pan out like I'd hoped.

I tried to get Clara to just stand and take a nice picture by the tree in her super cute dress, but she kept sitting on a gift under the tree that was just an empty box I"m pretty sure (it looked a little crumpled when she left). She did find an airplane ornament and was very gentle with it.

After hanging out for a bit Hoser got a call from the North Pole announcing Santa's jet. So we all went outside into the FREEEZING FREEZING COLD!! and watched as Santa taxied around to us.

Clara was horrified. And not because of the cold (although I'm sure it was a contributing factor). When Santa actually got out of the jet she turned and clutched Tyler like he was about to throw her into a sacrificial lava pit or something. She didn't let go until she was certain Santa had left. You can hear her grunt on the video in response to my question "Do you want to go see Santa?" And after some more prodding by the World's Greatest Mother she eventually bursts into tears. . . and I keep prodding. HAHAHAhahaha!

Then we all went back inside to the briefing room where Clara had fun playing with the seat. The spring was a little too stiff for her light little body, so the chair kept bouncing back up and folding her in half (see video--if it uploaded).

When Santa came in we had her standing up and she just stared at him. I said "Clara! Is that Santa?" and she just shook her head "no" repeatedly.

Santa would pull a gift out of his bag and call the child whose gift it was up by name and then give it to him or her. When he called Clara Young and Tyler brought her up to the stage--the SECOND he put her down she took one look at Santa, screamed, and tried climbing back up Tyler.

Tyler carried her over there and had to mediate Santa giving her a candy cane and her gift. Tyler put her down and I said "say thank you!" she did a quick nod of the head and grabbed for Tyler's hand to pull him off the stage--hahahaha!

Once back in her seat though she really liked un-wrapping the present and was excited when she saw it was a book. "I Can Be Helpful". Man that Santa can choose them! It's all about being helpful and it even has a dog in it! How does he know? : )

I'm not sure how the second Christmas Tree photo got down here, but here it is. At least the video clips seem to be working.

CoOp Delivery and the Undercover Crate

My First CoOp elivery arriived yesterday! Woo hoo!! December first. I tried to take a picture of it but clara saw the camera and ran into the fram and I thought it was funny so I took a picture of her and my first delivery. The advertisements include things like bedding, giant quilted Snuggies/slankets, pots, pans, socks, underwear, organization bins and lots of japanese cleaning supllies and makeup that i have no idea what it is.

If you think I'm above ordering socks from a delivery catalogue you'd be wrong. I just have to measure my feet in Centemeters.

Then while Clara was napping the other day I sewed up this crate cover. It's an old Deseret Industries crate from the Creamary on 9th at BYU that's had many a use since my Dorm room CD holder. Lately (the past 4 years ish) it's been in garages--Until NOW!!

Now it's apparently clara's new favorite chair. I tried taking a picture of my handiwork and again, she jumped in the frame and gave me the grin of grins, so

my crate cover, and clara. And clara climbing out of the crate to see the picture I just took of her.

The novelty hadn't worn off by morning and she spent all day today climbing in and out of it and sitting in it while watching a movie or playing with a little toy in her hands. I personally like the bed head she's got going on.

Clara Stuff

Lately Clara has taken to reading the dog book of sayings we

have--and by reading I mean opening it and saying "Gaga!" and proceeding to kiss the picture of the dog. If there are two or three dogs she kisses each one. The stupid book is about 35 pages with multiple dogs on every 3rd page practically.

So while it keeps her busy, it takes some getting used to this new morning rythem: "Gaga! >Kiss<" "Gaga! >Kiss<" "Gaga! >Kiss< >KIss<" "Gaga!"

It's literally like she has no idea there will be a dog on the next page and is super surprised when she sees one.

She has also taken to freaking out when Tyler leaves in the morning and asking for him when she doesn't like what I'm doing.

Example 1: "Ok clara, lets go take a nap!"

(vigerously shaknig head) uhh uh, uuuh uh >shake

shake shake<

Example 2: Whilse sitting in time out for hitting me (mostly so I can calm down becuase I don't think she gets it but whatever) she'll scream GAGA!! GAG

A!! GAGA!! As though if He were home he would release her from the horror that is her mother's punishment (of sit

ting on a stool for 90 seconds--if we get that far). He probably would, acually, if I wasn't there to say "NO! She's in a timeout! Don't touch her!"

Every time she hears a plane she gasps and looks at me and says "gaga!" The loud ones scare her (when we're on base) so I started talking about them. "It's ok. It's just a plane. Yeah, it is loud, but that's ok. Yes, that's daddy's plane." So now, ever time she hears the faintest airplane sound in the distance she gasps, looks at me, says Gaga then signs "Loud" with her verbal variation fo the word.

She will freak out if you don't let her open the door to let the do

g in or out (any door, it doesn't matter) as well as if you don't let her

pick out her underwear or give the dog a treat (TREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!) or if you try to read a book she doesn't want for bedtime. She also, apparently, has a probelm when I deny her cereal for dinner after she's already eaten three bowls that day. I refuse to raise my child on Cherrios, Mini Wheats and Rice Chex.

We have a blue exercise ball. She loves to bounce her face one it. I'm not sure why. I'd stop her but I'm usually laughing too hard.

She's a great laundry helper. Especially with folding rags. She shakes them out for me then hands it to me so I fold it while she gets the next one. This is a much better system than the previous one.

I cannot put her in bed for night or nap without brushing her teeth an

d cleaning her ears. She refuses everything until I do those two things. For some reason she doesn't have this freak out with Tyler.

She is obsessed with the movie Cars. She asks for it all the time and acutally watched the large majority of it. "Vroom vroom! Jeeya!" Which is Clara for "Car movie!!" I'm not sure why movie is 'jeeya'. She says "mama" just fine so I know she can pronnounce m's. I've tried to correct her to no avail. I just have to keep reminding myself to not call them jeeyas myself.

She is also obsessed with the camera. I can't take pictures of video of her without her stopping what she's doing and running towards me to see the "jeeya!". She understands she has to go back and say cheese and let me record for a few seconds before she can see the movies. If I played homevideos of her on a loop I don't think I'd ever have to check on her. She can't say camera, bbut she says "cheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!" very well.

She also repeats things I do. Like when I'm looking for a movie to put

on or a home video file I apparently say "Ummmm" a lot. Everytime I pull up the video folder she says "ummmmmmm" as though shes thinking she might want to watch something other than cars (although, as I type, she requested the Fish movie. . . so I put nemo on. Woo hoo! A new movie! : )

PS. Nemo didn't last long. Dangit!!