Caption please ~ Repost

You guys make me laugh! I love the captions you came up with for this picture.
I guess I'll share what I was going to title it before I put it out there for all of you.

Does my General Authority haircut look as good as I think it does?

If that makes no sense, you are probably not a member of my same faith. My apologies
for confusing you. Just so you know, it's funny. Super funny. At least to me.
Thanks again friends. I am totally trying this again in the future.

Angry eyes

This is how I am feeling about right now. Without the skinny face. Guess what we still have in our front yard? Guess how many inches of snow we are supposed to get tomorrow? Guess who did not show up to fix the water pipe yesterday? Or today? Or last week for that matter? Guess who is still giving us vague promises for when the water pipe will be fixed? Just to be very clear, not our landlord. He has tried his best to be helpful. The contractor on the other hand...not so much. Errr.

But I do keep reminding myself that we do have heat (and our house didn't even blow up). And we do have water (thanks to our poor neighbors). And the faucet that has been running constantly for over two weeks has only frozen up once (unfortunately for the city it was late on a Friday night). And that this long, involved, boring story is giving me blog material during an otherwise dull winter. See, look at all my blessings. I'll focus on those. And forget about the non-helpful-super-vague-answering-contractor man who is so totally not getting any cookies from this lady with the angry eyes.

My children have redeemed me

A visit to the dentist today. Not a single cavity in the bunch. Oh my mother's heart! 

The kids are going on six years with only one cavity. Okay it really cannot continue

much longer, but boy am I grateful today. And they were so excited and proud. I love our 

new dentist and her entire staff. They were so good to the kids and just kept telling me how
wonderful all three of them were during their exams. "Yes. Yes I know," I said bowing over

and over again. Okay, so maybe I was just relieved and super pleased with them. Either way.

What do you mean your dentist doesn't use a similar drill?

Some cool pictures taken by Jacob

Sickness, excuses and quotes

Don't mind the quarantine sign on our front lawn. Although, I do think it compliments the excavator, don't you? (Don't even get me started on the fact that we still have an excavator in our front yard. All my funny joking about water pipes and gas lines have left the building. Stinkin' Lewis I am not amused any more. But back to the point of this post.)

We are a mess at our house. Seriously, living in San Diego for the past four years is going to ruin us. Experiencing winter, for the first time in many a year, is just a huge party for all of us. I'm pretty sure we've picked up every available bug going around, as well as those from the past four years that we missed. (Oh, and one of two from Paul Revere and his brave-yet-germ-sharing-late-night-ride.) The kids have each been sick two or three times already this winter. Ben is getting over the first ear infection of his long, long life. I'm not sure it helps that in getting over it he had an allergic reaction to the antibiotic. Both of the older boys have had fifth disease. (Look it up it if you are in the dark, like I was, about what in the world this childhood illness could be.) Jacob was more sick last night and this morning than I have seen him in a long time. This sickness he is experiencing rivals times he would come back from some foreign country with some crazy worm that had joined his insides. Not good. Not good at all.

And me. I'm not sure I have even been that sick, but I just seem to keep coming down with a calmer version of anything and everything the family is getting. You know how I claim to be semi-organized? Baahaa! Not this week for sure. Or the last. Or the one before that. You know when the kids run out of socks and you tell them, there are some clean ones in the dryer? Not anything terrible right? I think it crosses the line when they have fished clean socks out of the dryer for four days in a row now. I don't need a house cleaner (although I won't cry if you send one my way), I need a laundry-folding human who doesn't mind freezing basements.

Oh, and I really should mention a couple of thoughts for those that are disappointed that I haven't posted on my organization blog like I should. First, I'm working on it. Even if they are late, I will make sure I catch up. Second, when you are as unorganized as I am right now, writing on your inspirational site is hypocritical at best.

In conclusion, this quote from Annie about sums up our life right now. It happened last summer, a day or two before we left California, when our life was chaotic to say the least. Annie and I were out running errands, when she turned to me and these words came out of her mouth, "We're a disaster. And our hair doesn't look so good."

Caption please

My seventeen-year streak has come to an end

True statement. I went to the dentist on Monday. And for the first time in seventeen years, I have a cavity. Well, technically not a new cavity. Just an old filling that was wearing out and let bacteria in. Devastation. (Okay, not really, just going for drama here.) The dentist could not imagine how it had not been hurting me, but it truly has not hurt even a little. Until she jabbed that sharp instrument into the tooth to make sure the nerve still had the ability to react. And react I did. Reacted myself right over the top of the dentist chair.

Next month, when the lovely filling is in place, I will be cavity-free again. But somehow I don't imagine I will have another streak that lasts so long. I'm getting old you know. And my teeth are joining me. So here's to my seventeen-year streak. Raise your floss high friends. And say a little farewell to my cavity-free streak.

A truly historic day

With all that has been said about this incredible day, my hands-down favorite is something
written by my wonderful friend Michelle. Thank you sweet friend. I'm ready to lift.

225

This number is hugely significant to me today. But I'm not going to tell you why.

(I know, seriously annoying, huh?) You are welcome to guess if you'd like, and there
might even be hints along the way, but feel free to check back the last day of
August 2009. That is the day I will reveal why this number matters to me.

Our excavator needs to be excavated

I just realized that the common denominator in our recent crazy life is...me. Blast. And in case you were wondering, this morning was no exception.

Sunday mornings are usually a bit hectic in our home. Two mornings a month, all six of us have to be completely ready for church and out the door by 7:15am to make the twenty-five minute drive to our church building for an early meeting. The other two Sundays, Jacob goes early to his meeting and I stay home to get the kids ready and meet him there as church begins. Even that busy schedule was challenged this morning, as we had a few other complications to consider.

Two of the kids were sick (double-ear infection for Ben and some crazy MA infectious disease for Matt). We knew they were on the mend, but didn't know if they would be well enough to haul to church this morning. I really needed to be to our early meeting, Jacob was speaking during sacrament meeting and I needed to be to the Relief Society meeting, which was at the end of church. Oh, and I had a presidency meeting after church as well.

When we woke up and saw that Ben and Matt seemed a lot better we decided to try the following. I would go to the early meeting. Jacob would follow about two hours later with the kids. We would all stay for sacrament meeting to listen to Jacob's talk. Then he would take the kids home and I would stay for Relief Society and my presidency meeting. Okay, plan. Ready, break.

But just in case our crazy plan was too simple, we threw some snow into the mix. A few inches by the time we woke up, but nothing too serious. At least until I started my drive to the church and remembered that snowplows in MA do not plow the actual streets you drive on. And they especially do not plow them on Sunday. It was a scary drive.

I finally made it to church and into ward council. It started a bit late as many of the men that were attending were trying to make sure the sidewalks were safe for the church members to walk on. We finally began. Three minutes into it, a very loud noise joined the meeting. Yup, the fire alarm. And it was seriously loud. We all looked at each other like it was a joke, until the bishop told us we needed to get outside. We grabbed our things and went.

And because this post is already way too long (what is up with me and long posts lately?) I will give you the condensed finale. It appears the church's main water pipe broke. The church started to flood. The bishop cancelled church. Just as I got into my car to leave, two firetrucks showed up and boxed me in. I used the time to call half of the women in the ward. The first counselor in the Relief Society presidency called the other half (Thanks Lorri!). The firetrucks left. I then crept home at approximately 25 miles per hour because the snowplows were still honoring the Sabbath.

Seriously, what is it with my presence and broken water pipes slash gas lines? I think this is not going to bode well for getting invitations to visit others. I can hear it now...

Don't invite Linn Allen over, she is the Grim Reaper of perfectly well-working water pipes and gas lines.

The saga continues

This morning I woke up excited to think that this fun experience of ours was soon going to be over. Earlier than I expected, the doorbell rang. When I answered it, there stood the gas guy from yesterday. I think he saw the confused look on my face because he asked, "Didn't anyone call you? You weren't expecting me?" Well, I don't usually greet my guest in my pajamas, so I'm going with a no here. Apparently, someone from our city had driven by early this morning (you totally know he just wanted a good laugh and some pictures for his blog) and said he could still smell gas. So we had our friendly gas gentleman check out the inside and outside of the house. All was well.

As he was finishing, the contractor showed up. They talked for a minute and then the contractor came to the door. He also seemed very impressed with my pajamas. This is what he told me, "We won't be reopening the hole today blah blah blah blah have to be at least three feet away from box blah blah blah blah freezing weather blah blah blah possibility of an explosion blah blah. We'll see you Tuesday." Tuesday? Four-days-from-now Tuesday?

But I was going to make you cookies. And I'll change into jeans and my bag lady sweatshirt.
YOU FORGOT YOUR EXCAVATOR.AND YOUR ORANGE CONE.
But I was going to make you cookies...

Our house smells like a gas line broke

Oh wait. It did. Do you want to hear the story? Indeed. I knew you would. So, remember the lawn ornament picture from yesterday? Well, a couple of days ago we woke up to water bubbling up from the lawn and pouring into the street. It was lovely. Jacob called the landlord and then hung up and called the city. They came out quickly (way to go city that we live in) and passed by to make sure we were not making things up to make winter seem a little less boring. They disappeared quickly, but then showed up again about an hour later, with the required "droorings" they would need to find the leak.

Within an hour or two, the man in charge came to the door to deliver the "bad news." The busted water pipe was under the lawn. Our responsibility. I think they thought me a little pickled in the head because I smiled and graciously thanked them. The look on his face told me the city gentleman was trying to figure out if my slow brain had understood what he told me. I quickly explained. "We rent." I believe he was genuinely happy for me.

For the next few hours, I spent many a minute on the phone. It was all worth it though as by the end of the day, the landlord had a contractor that would be fixing the water pipe the next day, we were "borrowing" water from our neighbors (with the city's recommendation and setup) and a giant excavator (our new lawn ornament) had been dropped off for our viewing pleasure.

Very early this morning (there was a day's delay because another job took overtime), the excavator
 went to work. Well there was a man inside it, but he was just moving his hands a little. I'm not giving
 him any credit. The machine was definitely the one lifting the heavy stuff. Anyway, within a short
 amount of time, we had this lovely hole in the front yard. And then the contractor, who I had met
the day before, showed up. That manly piece of machinery continued to work hard and I suddenly
had the thought it would be fun to take pictures of this experience we were not paying for.

Approximately fifteen seconds after I took the above picture, the contractor climbed out of the
hole with a very funny look on his face. He quickly came to our front door and made this lovely
announcement, "We just broke your gas line. You need to get out of the house NOW!"

And now, I would like to invite you into my mind for the next thirty seconds.

Out of the house. Out. Of. The. House. I think that means I should leave. Okay, I can do that.
Wait. I should take the children. How many do I have? Let me think. Let me think. Four. I have
 four children. But I can only find two. Oh yeah, two of them leave every morning and reappear
in the afternoon. Okay, so I guess I'll only take two with me. Okay, does it matter if the baby is in
his pajamas? Not to me. And boy am I glad I threw on the bag lady sweatshirt I wear as often as 
possible. It will not only keep me warm, but be just perfect for everyone's viewing pleasure...

Should I confess to something here? Oh why not? In the two minutes it took me to grab
Ben out of his crib (he has been very sick and was sleeping so deeply), get shoes and a
coat on Matt, grab the diaper bag and my purse, there was only one more thing I needed.
My children, myself, some money and my camera. True. Let the birth certificates burn.
Let the scrapbooks go up in flames. But not my children. Or my camera. Yes indeed.

Okay, this is the picture when I returned several hours later. I had called the contractor who told me
everything would be completely finished in about thirty minutes. He was kind of right. The house,
although radiating that lovely gas smell we all love, was safe to enter. But the heat would not be
turned on for two or three more hours. I do have to say, every single one of the men that were
working on the gas leak or the water leak were so kind to us. So helpful and so nice, especially
considering the weather was the coldest it has been since we arrived. Somewhere in the teens.

I snapped this beauty driving by to pick up Matt from preschool. This is definitely
what everyone is hoping to see in their front yard. A beautiful sight indeed.

And one more picture from inside the house. Correct me if I am wrong, but I think the hole is a
smidge bigger than it was when the morning started. At one point I asked the contractor if he or
anyone else needed anything and he said, "Just my head examined." He felt so bad. Poor guy.

And the worst news? Around four this afternoon, I went outside to see if they needed anything
 or if they wanted to come inside to warm up. They declined and the contractor told me they
were leaving soon. They just had to refill the hole. Come again? I guess the water leak has not
been found and they cannot leave the hole open through the night because we will be dropping
below zero. They will be back in the morning. When we warm up to a balmy fourteen degrees.

Just so you know, there is something more entertaining than television. Now you tell me.

One last thought. Remember when I complained about our gas bill? It hit a cord with many of my friends. One of my favorites being my fabulous friend, Jana, and her super entertaining story about gas bills. But now I'm feeling a little guilty about my complaining. Because everything that happened today is my fault. But the guilt is outweighed by my gratitude.

When I arrived back home, one of the gas guys (I bet he would love the fact that I referred to him as that) asked if I lived in the house. I told him I did. He then asked if I knew that all of our baseboard heating thingies were closed. I don't know how many you have ever had baseboard heating thingies, but in our defense, they are super weird looking and it would never have occurred to either Jacob or me that they could even open or close. He was so kind about it, went through the whole house opening them up, even took the front off some so I could vacuum out lint and then gave me some tips for lowering our gas bill. Seriously, this is a guy that works for the gas company. And if I could track him down, I would make him dozens of cookies by way of thanks. I actually had the thought to do that while they were outside working on things. Then my brilliant mind remembered our gas stove might not be too helpful in the cooking department.

Oh and just so we are clear...did I mention we rent? And that I'm pretty sure I will be renting the rest of my life? And that my house feels so much warmer than it did yesterday? And that fact is true even with the thermometer turned down? And that I already feel bad for those nice men that will be back tomorrow? I think I'll make them cookies. But I'll wait to see if they snap any gas lines before I start handing them out. I forgive almost blowing up my house once. Do it twice and you are so not welcome to my cookies.

Our new lawn ornament

It's not too much is it?

Annie, her mom and some scissors

Our gas bill...

...is more than we paid for our firstborn. And I wish I was kidding. Seriously, this is getting a tad ridiculous. When we received our gas bill last month, I stopped breathing for a few seconds. Then walked around the house lowering the programmable thermostats a few degrees. Jacob spent a Saturday putting plastic over many of our windows. We told the kids they were forbidden from opening the front or back doors. (Yes, we do have a mud room door they could use. No, we didn't require them to exit out a window.)

Today I took a gander at our new gas bill. And stopped breathing all together. It was worse. Much worse. Awesome, I guess we are down to exiting out a designated window and setting our heat below the current outside temperature. The good news is I really have not felt that cold. When you don't breathe, the cold seems to affect you a little less.

Oh my beloved California, what have I done?
Oh and Cam the man, you were a MUCH better purchase.

Museum of science

This morning we went with family, cousins to be exact, to visit the museum of science in Boston.
It was absolutely awesome. Honestly. Jacob and I thought we would stay a couple of hours and
get to see most of it. We stayed for over four hours and did not even get to half of it. Happily, we
have a pass that allows us to get in for free anytime throughout the year. We are definitely going
back. It was hands down, the coolest, most educational place we have ever visited. And it was
all the better because we went with Xaidie and Rob and their cute kids. Fun, fun times.

Are you people for real?

Oh for heaven’s sake. I certainly feel loved. I had no idea how many of you read our blog. I mean seriously. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

When I posted our intent to go private, I honestly thought I would hear from maybe fifty or sixty people. The number of emails I have responded to in the last twenty-four hours is boggling my mind. It is getting a tad ridiculous. I am thoroughly filled to the brim with love. Spilling over actually.

Whenever my kids do something especially wonderful and good, I tell them (insert dramatic, gushy voice here), "Oh my mother's heart!" And they know I am extremely pleased. And so to all of you I say,

Oh my blogger's heart!

Now please excuse me, I need to clean up this large spill under the computer chair. Strange. It smells...like...love.

Extra, extra...

Blast. My year-long quest to build a fan club has come to an end. I knew this day would come and I am still not happy about it. But to me it is inevitable and so, I might as well go private now and get it over with. As the kids are getting older, I'm just not sure I feel comfortable with a public blog and would like to try private to see if I feel more comfortable about it.

So, I will wait several days to gather everyone's information, but if you would like to continue reading our blog, and I know you (or you would like me to know you) even a little bit, please ask me for an invite. C'mon, mouse yourself right on over to your email and send me your request and I will totally include you on the list. (And if you don't get a reply from me, it means I did not get your email. Please try again.) Oh please don't be shy. I would be so sad to miss any of you. Even those who don't comment, but like to read all about our crazy little family. And now, for the information you need. Please email me at...

linnallen AT gmail DOT com

And no funny stuff. I am like the airport. I take all jokes seriously and will completely not send you an invite if you pretend to be (or are) creepy. No matter the relation. Or how many years we have been married. Hope to hear from you all soon.

Oh, and to avoid confusion, the new blog will look a lot like this blog, only privater.

Our Benjamin

Happy Birthday sweet boy! We sure LOVE you!

Twenty-two

Last year I read twenty-two books. Ugh. Not so happy about that number. Now I have an excuse or two as to why I read so few books, but I still don't like it. And I cannot wait to leave that number in the dust. I'm off to a good start, as I finished my first book on New Year's Day. And I cannot wait to make that list you see on the right, nice and long. I'm not really a goal setter (at least at the beginning of the year and often not at other times either), so I won't promise any numbers. But I will do better. And I cannot wait. Oh, and I would love any suggestions you have on books I just have to read in 2009. Thank you much.

Super random sharings

We have been bird-sitting for the past two weeks. And we have loved it.
(But don't tell our friends, they think we are doing them a favor.) I don't think
any of  us realized how much we would like having birds.

My mom and dad gave us a Wii for Christmas. Thanks Grandma and Granddad! Unfortunately, none
 of us like it. Especially not Campbell. I mean, we have only spent six or seven hours a day playing it.
Ridiculous. I have been extremely lenient because it is Christmas vacation. Monday will be a sad day
in Cam's life. But he'll appreciate it when he is thirty or forty. In the meantime...not so much.

Several hours ago, I ran upstairs to put in my contacts. When I came down, Annie had
snuck outside to bring in the garbage cans to surprise me. That sweet girl. There she was
in her pajamas and flip flops (she might be related to me, it was twenty-six degrees)
pulling in our two, large garbage cans. Man, this girl is a sweet one.

Apparently Matt took the New Year to heart. Yesterday, while visiting some cousins, he spent a
good hour or so playing on their elliptical (with permission of course). He loved that thing. And
it definitely makes sense that the four-year old set a goal to lose weight. I mean really. I was a
little disappointed about his lack of motivation last year, but 2009 is a new and fresh start.

And I just had to put in this ridiculously cute picture of Ben. He has spent every waking
moment of the past eight days in the arms of his dad (Jacob has had work off since
 Christmas Day). When I went to take him out of his crib this morning, he looked at me
and smiled. Then said what he says every morning, "Dada?" Jacob had already left for work.
Poor Ben. Has to spend all day with his mom. And just when he thought he was past that.

New Year's Day with family