POOOPED

First, I'd like to give a shout out to all my friends, family, acquaintances, etc. who home school. As much as I occasionally think that this would be a good idea. Summer vacation sadly reminds me that this is not for me. Now on to the gist of this post. Maybe it is because I am in my 30's or that I have 4 children or that I try to do too much and become overwhelmed and then accomplish nothing...but I am tired. I am tired of refereeing sibling rivalries. I am tired of trying to entertain and stay on top of laundry and drama. I am so tired that I have ZERO motivation to do anything. Seriously when I wake up I feel as though I have not slept at all and that I may as well have not slept at all..... Is this just me? I don't think so. Many of my fellow mothers at arms feel the same away. We want to embrace the joy of mothering BUT often I am afraid I may embrace it right around the neck....Maybe it is because the routine that school offers is out of the window and therefore nothing goes right? Maybe my 13 year old mattress is to blame....Maybe my 33 year old body is to blame...Maybe it's just pure apathy? Whatever it is I have gotta get over it because I am utterly USELESS! I feel like all that I do is spin my wheels to utterly NO avail... very little sees exciting or motivating anymore....I think I will nap now. (I wish)

Bon Voyage

For years (decades in my case) I have wanted to go to Europe. For years, Ryan has been saying that we will go to Paris, it nearly happened in 2001 but terrorism changes things.
So when Ryan started school it seemed that it would NEVER happen. However, my hubby is superb and saved his airline miles and hotel points just to take ME to Europe. No not just Paris but England & Scotland & FRANCE.
For months Ryan was saying it would happen but not until the passports came and things were booked did it seem like it may happen. I was still in denial though. A friend of mine said, "It won't seem real until you get on the plane". Even then it seemed unreal as we boarded our flight in Washington D.C. and sat in Business First Class- Ryan had a lot of points.

Seriously cushy!

1 June 2012
Although our flight was late leaving D.C. we still arrived in London at 8 am London time. With a fast pass through customs we were off to find the underground from Heathrow to Covent Garden to drop our bags at our hotel. I was a bit frustrated thinking that the delay with our flight was going to make us miss some of the things that we really wanted to see but NO! We dropped our bags at the hotel and hurried to Buckingham Palace for the changing of the guard. Not only did we have time for that but to also see the band warming up and drills being done by other Guard members.

Waldorf Hilton, London, England, UK

After the changing of the guard we made our way back to the hotel to meet our dear friends, The Jones Family. We had not seen Jason and Angela in 9 years and we had never met there beautiful children. We had already planned a bus tour and we hopped on the double-decker bus and off we went! Seeing London from the top level of a bus and a boat ride down the Thames is seriously a must do!
We had a bite to eat at the tower of London and took a boat ride to the Houses of Parliament. Back on the bus we rode to the British Library to see the Magna Charta, Leonardo da Vinci's notebooks and the Tyndall Bible. AMAZING! (We even saw a British TV Star that we enjoy outside of the library!)

Off we went to have taste of the "other" traditional food of London- Indian food! We love it and Jason and Angela had the perfect spot for us to have dinner! Kahn's was the name and yummy Indian was the game, mmmmm! After dinner we ad reservations for the London Eye. (Another not to be missed way to see London- especially at night!) After a long day it was off to bed for us.

2 June 2012

The good thing about how much Ryan travels is that we get perks at hotels like breakfast!

After a yummy breakfast we were off to Victoria Station to catch our bus to Stonehenge and Bath. Luckily I found a groupon, yes they are everywhere, and purchased a tour for Ryan and I to spend a day outside of the city.

Stonehenge was so interesting. It was a great experience to see this ancient site and to recognize the spectacular effort it took to erect these stones and the fact that the site is still here- all be it half of it's original size- was awe inspiring.

A bus ride through the English countryside was just what the doctor ordered after a long first day and go, go, going! A little nap, a view out of the top of yet another double-decker bus and BATH! What an great town! Another friend and some family members had recommended this stop on our trip and it didn't disappoint! We tasted Cornish pasties and  the waters of Bath. We visited the Circus and the Roman Baths, we walked through town and learned about the oldest church in England- Bath Abbey!


3 June 2012

After a full English breakfast we were off to church at the Hyde Park Chapel. A jam-packed meeting full of members of the church who were from all over the world and who had been all over the world.  Located across the street from Hyde Park (where Pres. Hinkley taught), down the street from the Boy Scouts of England and next door to the Victoria and Albert Museum it was a great start to our last day in LONDON.

We then headed to Westminster Abbey, the Tower of London to see the crown jewels and then to await the QUEEN with 2million of our closest British friends. It rained like crazy but it was great!
Afterwards we went to St. Paul's and then headed back to the hotel via Covent Garden. The paella at Covent Garden was great! At the hotel Jubilee Celebrations continued in the executive lounge. We had a great conversation with a couple from England and another couple from Glasgow, Scotland. Ironically enough we were headed to Edinburgh, Scotland in just a few hours.
Off to Euston Station to board the Caledonia Sleeper train to Edinburgh! Fall asleep in London wake up in SCOTLAND!

I got the top bunk ;)

4 June 2012

Ah, Scotland!!! But boy were we there early, 6:30 am and we were checking in the Hotel to drop our bags and you know what those lovely Scots did? They not only checked our bags but let us eat breakfast gratis! And then we took a nap in the lobby before we were off. First we found a car to rent for the next day and then headed to try to visit the Scotland's people museum to find dead people. (Later we would find out that the Museum was closed due to the Jubilee :( )

While looking for the museum we stopped and bought kilts. YES my hubby has a kilt coming any day now. After purchasing our kilts we headed up the Royal Mile to St. Giles Cathedral and eventually to Edinburgh Castle. It was unusually sunny and we loved every second of it!

We walked through Princes' Street and visited the National Art Museum, so quiet and nice that it was FREE. We then found an amazing Scottish Seafood restaurant called, Fishers in the City. IT was so yummy and HUGE!!! I had muscles and Ryan ate the rest of the ocean.

 

After our amazing dinner, and seeing that the sun had yet to go down, we meandered through Edinburgh and then  found our way back to our hotel. What a lovely city!
Upon returning to our hotel we found that we had a corner SUITE- ahh! What a nice surprise! Again Ryan had a TON of points!

Hilton Grosvenor, Edinburgh, Scotland

Room #1

Room #2

5 June 2012

Ryan made few requests but one was to go to St. Andrews, the birthplace of golf. SO we rented a car and we were off. With me in the driver's side with no steering wheel and Ryan driving on the wrong side of the road and no GPS. Although it was quite crazy and a bit dysfunctional, driving through Scotland was amazing!! The scenery is unreal and the beauty is unsurpassed and with another day of little rain it was a rare Scottish treat! Apparently, long before golf, St. Andrews was a place of pilgrimage for Christians from all over Europe. The ruins of the Cathedral as well as the Castle, situated right on the North Sea were amazing to see.

Next, we drove towards the Low Highlands and found a village called Comrie- I am moving here one day! This place was so picturesque with the river Eden flowing through town and so much charm it was beautiful.

Although our map was not world class we continued on and enjoyed getting lost together. On to Stirling- former capital of Scotland- Castle where BRAVEHEART & Robert the Bruce defended their homeland.
After a long day with an early morning ahead of us we spent a good 45 minutes trying to get to the car rental place but due to construction it was a bit of an adventure. We had a grand tour for our last night in Edinburgh.

6 June 2012
This would be our longest travel day other than flying. We had to catch a 5:45am train- luckily the station was just around the corner from our hotel. Our hotel again was stellar and provided us with a to-go breakfast which we munched on between naps on the train to Bolton, England. Why Bolton? Well Bolton was the nearest train stop to my ancestors home of Bury, England. We took a short cab ride to Bury and found St. Mary's church. On this spot my great-great grandfather was Christened and his parents were married here! The edifice has changed over the years but for over 1000 years a church has been on this spot. Just down the street from the church was Bury Castle. It is amazing to stand where my ancestors stood and be where they lived.
The church even has a little cafe where we had the best Scone I have ever tasted. Divine would not be an understatement.

After a cab ride back to Bolton Station we had a nice wait for our train back to London. While we enjoyed seeing the English countryside from our window I remembered that I had missed being able to see the British Museum while in London, despite several attempts. So I was crunching the numbers and realized that if Ryan didn't mind waiting for me at the station with all the bags I could take the tube and run to make it before closing time. It was on!

















I made it! I even had some time to run through part of the Egyptian exhibits. Note to self- I gotta come back here! It was so astounding to understand the great significance of this artifact and to appreciate that had it not been brought here it could have easily been destroyed.

I made my way back to the train station with another check mark on my itinerary and ready go to PARIS! I found Ryan and we turned in our London metro pass to get some money back and then headed to King's Cross & St. Pancras station. What amazing architecture! What a great place to catch a train.

St. Pancras Train Station

We boarded our Eurostar train and headed to Paris on D-day.

Although it was late we got to our hotel after using my poor French skills and we were in one piece! 

Once again we had a great room- thanks again to points!

Hilton Arc de Triomphe

Room

7 June 2012

We originally planned to rent a car and head to Normandy BUT with traffic and everything it seemed better to grab breakfast and go on the 9th instead.

So a yummy french breakfast was awaiting us and boy did we enjoy it.

With a full stomach we were off to get a pass for the museums that were on the docket. Again with my minimal french we were able to find the store on the Champs Elysees and purchase our passes and we were ready for another jam-packed day of sightseeing.

First, the Arc de Triomphe. Then we headed to the Louvre where we escaped a downpour and we were even locked in for a period of time.With three hours there it still was the minimum that we could do. Next, we visited Notre Dame Cathedral and Sainte Chappelle. The beauty of these buildings was amazing. Although we could have hiked to the top of Notre Dame Ryan's arthritis in his ankles was unbearable  so we went to Sainte Chappelle instead. AMAZING!

Next we visited the Musee d'Orsay and Ryan discovered his new favorite impressionist- Signac- while seeing Van Gogh & Degas and so much more. Last but NEVER least the Eiffel Tower. We hiked to the second floor and took the elevator to the top. What a feat of architectural genius.

As we were climbing down people were rushing past us and that is when we realized that the lights on the tower were flashing. It was beautiful.

Now that the sun had gone down after 11pm we headed to a cafe for dinner. Savory crepes! YUM!

As we caught a cab back to the hotel I received a compliment from our driver. He thought I was Belgian. I guess that my French ability was at least passable.

8 June 2012
Today VERSAILLES!
Our friends, The Jones Family, had already planned to be in France at the same time that we were going to be there so we decided to see Versailles with them. We ate our breakfast & caught our train & Jason met us at the gate- talk a bout timing!
I knew Versailles would be a long day and Ryan was a trooper with his feet in agony he walked the whole day until we all caught the tram back to the main palace.

I found it so interesting that there was nothing about where the servants, my people, would have been or how they lived. In Louisiana whenever we visited a plantation home we saw how EVERYONE lived. I think that would make Versailles and other places like it even more interesting.
After the palace we walked through town trying to find a place to eat but to no avail. So back to Paris we went.
After a long day I just wanted food and bed because tomorrow would be long as well.

9 June 2012
Normandy.
As soon as I heard about Mont St. Michel I was more than ready to see this astounding place. Although the car rental was astronomical and the tolls equally so it was well worth the drive to visit. The French countryside was gorgeous and being able to stand on Omaha beach and visit the cemetery where so many US serviceman rest was an honor. Seeing that the French people still honor the memory of my countrymen that laid down their lives for the was a great blessing. Above all being there with Ryan was great!

As we drove through this beautiful part of the world we snacked on yummy pastries and tart au Normandie. Yummy and fun! Every town should have multiple pastry shops.
Back to Paris we went and we tried to get to Sacre Couer but seeing as though there was no parking and it sits above the Red Light District- not my cup of tea- we headed back to the hotel and got a bite to eat in the executive lounge. We would spend a lot of time here on Sunday as we caught up in corresponding with our children.

Executive Lounge

10 June 2012

Off to church. So we tole our friends, the Joneses, that we would meet them at church on Sunday. Well as we all waited for church to start with 50 or so other tourists and business people we finally found out that church was being held in Versailles. So what do you do when you can't get to church? Well you sing a hymn and head off to find the best ice cream your mouth will ever enjoy. EVER!!!

Oh Berthillion, how you have spoiled me. The Isle St. Louis in the Siene just south of Notre Dame was a little piece of heaven and allowed us to fill our tummies with french yumminess. The pasty and cheese and ice cream and bread. Ooo la la. YUM!

 After a tour of Isle St. Louis we left our friends, headed back to our hotel and napped. We needed it. We were pooped. When we woke up we spent hours in the Executive lounge loading our pictures for our kids to see before we flew back to the states.
We decided to take one more trip down to see the Eiffel tower. This time from a distance. Our time in Paris was just about done.

11 June 2012
All packed and ready to go. One last breakfast. One last train ride and one last surprise up Ryan's sleeve!
GLOBAL first class!! We each had our own seat with enough storage compartments to fit our small children in. Meals as good as any restaurant and the nicest flight attendant ever.

Even more cushy!

Once back in Washington D.C. we got through customs- luckily I remembered to throw out the produce that I had and the huge water bottle. We were on our way home to our kids and our normal crazy life.

I will admit that I did start to miss them but it sure is loud when you go from two adults to + four children. 

I am so grateful for an amazing husband who works so very hard to give me the opportunity to travel with him and have my dreams come true!

It's About Time

For 12.5 years I have wanted a sibling to get married and it finally happened! On 18 May 2012 my brother, David, married Adria Jensen in the Jordan River LDS temple.
It was quite an amazing experience to have all my siblings there and even my other brother's girlfriend, Stephanie- LOVE HER, was able to come too.
Adria and her family are amazing. Everything ran smoothly, especially since this was the 4th Jensen wedding in 6 months. (They deserve an endurance medal or something!)
It was a bit of a whirl wind with a funeral viewing and the wedding in quick succession After the wedding we were off again back to the homestead and met with a minor basement flood. Ah, yes no rest for the weary.
We are so blessed to have another sister and especially since it is Adria. We have however issued an ultimatum that the next wedding better not be our child's.

In case you need more pics: http://s1197.photobucket.com/albums/aa431/kmbnorris/Facebook/David%20%20Adria%20Wedding/?albumview=slideshow

Master of the House

Ryan's Parents 

So for mother's day this year I got my husband back. After 2 years of graduate school my husband finished his MBA. I am so very proud of Ryan for how well he did at school, work, parenting and our marriage all during this crazy insane time.
For years I had felt that Ryan needed to do this and so did he. We just didn't know how to do it with life going on all around us. So, after a lovely vacation 2 years ago we agreed that now was the time. SO carpe diem we did. With the outlook that we may not get accepted the first time he applied & we just went for it. And then we were off August of 2012 Ryan started his MBA.
That's pretty much how it works out for us. If it's right it happens at break neck speed; if not then nothing goes right.
Will this Master's degree change our lives overnight? NO.
Will we look for a new job immediately? Not yet.
Will it give Ryan a sense of accomplishment and our family a sense of pride in a job well done? Yes.

So to sum up....It was hard...It was not always fun...BUT...It was worth it.
I am glad to have my husband back and look forward to being able to have a co-parent again.

Way to go babe! You are so awesome!

Life Support

My poor little blog. You had so much potential but alas you are all too often neglected but for good reason...I promise!
You know how it goes the routine mental breakdown, kids sports, slight bout with depression, sick children, Nursery at church, husband in graduate school, taking classes, babysitting, helping Eagle Scouts, genealogy jobs, kids music, spouse sick, getting ready for a wedding, getting ready for graduation, planning our summer.....And then their is the usual stuff too. You know: laundry & bills & dishes & sleep & bathing & cooking & sleeping & driving & exercising ......
Somewhere in the midst of it all life just happens. The 11 year old is actually helpful- without being nagged, the 8 year old folds laundry, the 5 year old whines a little less and the 4 year old picks up a new word: AWKWARD.
Maybe one day I will actually learn to chill out and enjoy motherhood.  Sometimes I get glimpses of what being a happy mom is all about and then schedules and life interfere and the stress rears it's ugly face and bam!
I get a migraine and feel like crying and screaming and napping all at once.
No it is not a rational reaction BUT until my insurance covers lobotomies here we stand.

And here I have to face that my children are great but their mom needs work. I can just hope that my efforts don't mess them up too much because lets face it, I can only afford so much therapy and I am at the front of that line....

So here is to our coming summer and an almost certain mental breakdown but hey everybody is a little nuts I am just admitting it.

Deja Blue

So a while ago I mentioned that I am addicted to shopping at Goodwill & Salvation Army. I love a good deal anywhere! Clearance at Target, saving by using coupons, getting a Groupon  for travel or local events; I am not too picky but if I can save some of the hard earned money that my hubby brings home I am happy!

So when I found out that the Denver Goodwill was opening a boutique in Cherry Creek I was all about it! Sure we had to stand in line for a while but they had water on hand and we were able to park less than a block away.  It was a great way to start a spring day in Denver.

Cute Exterior & glimpse of interior.

It was a blast to eye stuff that was super cute and wait breathlessly to see if someone decided they didn't want it. (I won out at least twice with this method of shopping.)

Cute Decor- Notice the painted pallets

There was so much to go through and the line to try on and check out was long but then you could shop while in line and the people in line would totally hold your spot!

Although I love finding deals at my local Goodwill I will for sure be going back. The prices were a bit higher than a local Goodwill but when it goes to Goodwill and it is still less than retail. 

My scores this trip included: Levis capris, grey flutter sleeve shirt (Target brand), Green and white polk-a-dot skirt, and a tags still on red pea type coat. 

Deja Blue Botique is located @

Cherry Creek North

303 University Blvd.

Denver, CO 80206

Hours: 

Mon - Sat 10am-6pm

Sunday 11a-5pm

Meeting Ree

Do you ever idolize people that you have never met? I have a few. My grandmother who I am named after. My facebook friend Molly. And Ree Drummond. Now you too may LOVE Ree. A.K.A. The Pioneer Woman. It is easy to do. She is beautiful, talented and basically amazing!!!

So when I was on her blog recently and saw that she was having a book signing in Denver- bestill my beating heart- I had to go!!!

She is BRILLIANT- Sigh

She is funny.

I found out that she is about 10.5 years older than me- you wouldn't know to look at her.

So my goal?? In ten and a half years to be as happy as she is.

She finds joy in everything!

And has a quiet confidence that just makes you want to be her BFF.

(I think I look pretty darn good here)

Oh I hope that I will be as cute & lovely & awesome as Ree

BUT

in my own SPECTACULAR

Katie way!

I even convinced some friends to come BUT that wasn't too hard....

So my dear Pioneer Woman I love you!

I am grateful to you for your example of finding joy in your life!

There's no way of Knowing

I feel just like the rhyme in this film.

There is no way of knowing

which direction we are going!

Light @ the End

Many of my friends and family have endured higher education with children in tow and survived to tell the tale. Now it is my turn.
Over the past two years things have been harder but not impossible.  It almost seems like a dream that my DH will soon be free of the bondage of higher education -MBA- and able to resume the normal humdrum tasks that he hasn't been able to do since before this endeavor began. When we decided that this was a necessary step in our lives, shortly after returning from a vacation without children, it was something we thought may not happen right when we wanted. Crazily enough we applied and were accepted first thing.
As we have both loved and hated this process it has become evident that we were inspired to take this jump when we did and where we did.
The program Ryan chose was completely online, allowing him to keep up his strenuous travel schedule while studying and reading etc., etc.  Although there have been times that we have all be ready to scream about more school it has been a great blessing to get this done before the tuition went up and before we had kids that were too old to remember that Dad was gone all the time. So here we are with only about 12 weeks left and all I can say is HALLELUJAH!!!!

Chronic Pain

For about 9 years or so I have had varying extremes of pain that is pretty constant (ie. chronic). Due to this pain I have seen multiple doctors, gone to physical therapy, taken various drugs, been adjusted multiple times, & on and on. Recently my sweet husband indicated that he was done with me being in pain all the time- probably because I make everyone's life miserable.
Years ago it was determined that I suffered from something called sacroilliac joint  dysfunction. Basically I have a constant pain in my behind! Some days it is worse on one side than the other but for the most part something always hurts. (This video is the best explanation that I have found)

Due to my husband's ultimatum to figure this out I am going to yet another doctor. After my initial visit with this new doctor I realized how long this has been going on. I realized that I have  tried to figure this out. I have worked to lose weight and get stronger. I have worked really hard to be able to walk and be there for my children but there is no guarantee that I can always be there. 

For instance, last June my in-laws invited us to Vail with them for a few days. I did something and threw everything out of alignment and BAM I had to find a chiropractor ASAP! The cane was pulled out and my lack of mobility made me a burden rather than a joy to have around.

Unfortunately I also get to have migraines & depression & back pain & neck pain. I really do try not to tell people that I am in pain or that I hurt. I try to suck it up more often than not but something has got to give. I can't continue to be such a bummer for my family.

After I spoke with the doctor I had a mini breakdown and realized that right now there are NO answers. I don't want surgery & I don't want no answers. I want to at least understand and hopefully find an effective treatment.  In some ways the idea of not living in constant pain is just as scary as coping with it forever.  If I am not in this role  then WHO AM I? If I feel good all the time- is that even possible?- then what do I do with that?

I am sure this all sounds quite self absorbed but this is me trying to figure this out and also because there are others that feel this way too.
I don't know what my answers will be; thyroid? disc issues? Who knows? I do know that somehow I have to explain this to my children so that they don't misunderstand my pain and frustration as anger towards them.  They have to learn that when they make a mess or neglect chores my frustration comes from not only knowing the time and effort it will take to clean it all up BUT also the pain I must re-endure to accomplish a task that had been done.  This will probably  be harder to teach them then finding the root of these issues.

For a past description click here

Time

The Persistence of Memory

by: Salvador Dali

This painting by Salvador Dali sums up my relationship with time.  I try to be productive and accomplish things- possibly too many things- and then it just seemingly melts away.

Something always happens and the time I thought I had just evaporates.  Unfortunately this does not just apply to the unimportant aspects of my life but to every aspect of my life. (Time management is not my talent.)

I go to bed with good intentions and then I don't sleep well. So then I don't wake up easily. Then I get grumpy and I am tired and then there is this chronic pain- more on that in a different post.

Somehow I WILL find a way to manage this stuff better. I have to.

Until then....thank you Senor Dali for describing how I feel perfectly with your work of art!

LENT

So growing up in Louisiana we celebrated Mardi Gras and because our mother was raised in the Catholic faith I was pretty familiar with what Lent was.  Not until recently have I really wanted to give something up for a substantial period of time but this year is different. I am prat of a wedding party in May and I am going to Europe as well so this year it is time to give it up......

SUGAR

Now this DOES NOT include chocolate- lets face it I am no saint. Seeing as though I work out nearly 5 days a week- not all strenuous but I am there- and I have plateaued over the past two to three years something must change.

I will admit that this is hard!

I LOVE sugar....brown, white, etc. LOVE LOVE LOVE

On day one there was a dessert contest at the Blue & Gold Banquet. NOT one bite.

Now on day two I am still doing OK. I may need to buy more dark chocolate soon but NO sugar.

Who knows maybe I will lose a few extra pounds OR go completely insane. Either way I will complete this challenge. I mean if I can survive 4 pregnancies I can do anything, right?