To Grandma's House we go.

Kate checks out the frog I caught for her so play withtrying out a tricycle

Samuel's first trip to the farm. He seemed to enjoy it- especially with his handy hand along for sucking on. He seriously can't leave his hands out of his mouth for two minutes.We weren't use to the central valley heat. Sam spent much of the time like this.
Swimming with Cousin Cami, Grandma and Jake


We spent a quick weekend at Jake's parents. We left Friday after work and drove through the night swearing we would never drive through the night again. We were exhausted. Luckily the Freeman Farm has all things entertaining to a 2 year old so it didn't take a lot of energy to keep her happy. Kate couldn't get enough of the cousins, dog, bikes, picking fruit, frogs and , trampoline, swimming, swings, and basement full of toys. It was wonderful as always to see Jake's parents, and two of his brothers and their families, these two families alone have four girls 5 and under and the perfect playmates for Kate. Church here was interesting as always (they have a ward of hardly 50 people). Not only do we pray, play the piano, talk or teach often when we come, Kate was the only kid in the nursery older than 18 months. That is right, they let babies come to nursery since otherwise there would be nobody in there- ha ha . It is such a wonderful ward though really. We headed home Monday afternoon. It was over 100 in Frenso when we left, driving mid desert, mid day with the air conditioner full blast we should have only expected what happened next. The car died, going up a hill. That is right- almost to Death Valley, at 4:00 in the afternoon. Stuck on the side of the road, Jake got out to see what he could do. The car heated up in seconds, and with two small children in the back we were sure dehydration and heat stroke was only minutes away.I did my best to keep them comfortable as I forced them to drink the luke warm water we had brought along. With some hope and a prayer, we were able to get the car started and going (although slowly with the heater on) until we could get to the nearest town about 20 miles away. We decided to let the car rest and hang out at Jack in the box until the sun went down and our car had cooled. Apparently our kids were the cutest things that town had ever seen, as eating our burger they seemed to draw a crowd of fans. When we got back in the car it seemed to have no trouble. We did pass a thermometer as we left around 9:00 at night that read 103 degrees. Putting our guess of what we were stranded in at around 112 or higher. I know there are a lot worse things that could have occured on our trip, and we are almost laughing now, but it was very miserable at the time for sure. We pulled into our house around 6:00 am. The sun was coming up, we were exhausted and seeing that is was already morning made me depressed. Thankfully the kids slept for about two more hours or so and we got a little sleep, especially Jake who had to be at work at 8:00. I am looking forward to cleaning out the car, doing the laundry and other chores so I can nap with the kids this afternoon. It feels good to be home.

Seriously So Blessed

Have you heard of this blog?
Seriously So Blessed.

A spoof on the cultural phenom that is Mormon Mommy Bloggers.
She is making fun of ME
She is making even more fun of YOU
She couldn't be more accurate
And I laughed so hard I cried last night reading her posts.

Cute Pictures of Cute Kids

I finally got this in a picture- this is such a classic Samuel smile.
Playing outside in the water- finally a sunny day!
Wants to do it himself

Samuel tries rice cereal. Mmmmmm- not so good huh?

Summer Time

It has been awhile since I last posted (for me anyway). We haven't really been that busy. We've been painting the downstairs, doing yard work, seeing friends and family, enjoying the kids- the usual stuff. One thing I haven't been doing is laundry. I can't remember a time I had so much laundry to do. Around 12 loads or so. It seems to daunting. Instead of doing laundry- I have been reading a lot again. I am almost done with my third book for the week. With nothing good on the tely in the summer I seem to just consume books. Here is a mini review.
1. Stiff: The Curious Life of Human Cadavers. Roach.- A strange informative read. A history of death and burial mostly. Not what I expected- but perfectly dark for the morbid part of my psyche. 3 stars
2. Austenland. Hale.- The closest thing to a romance I have ever read. A successful LDS author always peaks my interest but her storyline failed to do so. 3 stars
3. The Last Lecture. Pausch.- Promises to change your life, and only slightly falls short of its promises. Any book that brings real tears to my eyes repeatedly deserves 5 stars.

Project Prepared Part 3

Disaster Survival Kit and contents

Project 3 is a 72 hour kid- or really a natural disaster survival kit. I used the space for other things instead of putting all the diapers and clothes we would need for 72 hours because I have an emergency diaper bag for the kids in my car at all times with wipes, diapers, socks, clothes, drinks and kid food. I also have blankets, the first aid kit, and flares in my car as well instead of in this kit.

I had made us a 72 hour kit a few years ago when Hurricane Katrina came. At the time I was not working and had all day to watch the news coverage. It prompted me to make the 1st version of this which we kept next to our front door. We wanted to be ready- but mostly because we had no choice- our house was very small after all. I packaged everything in this great soft backpacking backpack I purchase from Out N Back before I went to China. It works perfectly and cost me $25 at one of their super sales. I like the large backpack for storing everything in because although it is heavy- it is the most portable it could be.

I decided to re-evaluate the kit and our needs in my current preparedness obsession. Then we were two healthy hardly twenty year olds who could have likely survived without shelter or food for three days regardless of the kit. Now we have to small children. I had a ton of stuff already- including all the first aid stuff and most the disaster supplies, but I added a few new things- mostly kid stuff, and all new food since the other stuff had all expired. This ended up costing me more than the other projects so far. About $100 and about two hours of time. I think if you had to start from scratch the project would take double the money and time.
All the items barely fit inside the backpack. I just used freezer bags to pack everything and keep it water proof. I talked about adding a survival guide and Jake came back with some comment about how he is a scout. It is true that now we have all the supplies and as long as Scoutmaster Jake is with me I think I will feel very capable of survival.

Resources
http://www.ready.gov/america/index.html
http://www.providentliving.org/channel/0,11677,8033-1,00.html

Food and Cooking
One Mess Kit
Plastic spoons
dish soap
1 gal water
dehydrated apples
Large Beef jerky
3 sevings instant pasta
Large Trail Mix
3 pediasure ready made drinks
6 servings dehydrated chili
6 serving dehydrated soup
6 servings instant oatmeal
4 servings hot chocolate
2 cans soup
crystal light packet- for water flavoring
water purification tablets aprox 4 quarts (should get some more)
I would also like to get some high calorie energy bars

Personal Hygiene
sunscreen
bug repellent
contact case and solution
razor
shampoo
hand soap
lotion
chapstick
toothbrushes and paste
hair bands
comb
maxi pads
nursing pads
diapers and wipes for both kids
Lysol spray
toilet paper
Clorox wipes
Germ- x

First Aid
packet distilled water
80 band aids various sizes
8 gauze dressings
large wound dressing
6 butterfly band aids
20 alcohol prep pads
20 antiseptic towelettes
3 iodine prep pads
3 insect relief pads
tape
4 finger splints
splinter removers
neosporin
blistex
4 doses antacid
3 electrolyte tablets
4 non aspirin tablets
instant cold pack
q-tips
10 latex gloves
tweezers
scissors
blessing oil
first aid guide
thermometer
super glue
respirator masks
sting/bite relief stick
Most of this came in a ready made kit I purchased, I am debating whether or not I should take it out and give the space to something else, since I have an even better kit in my car already.
I should probably add some infant fever reducer too

Disaster Supplies
firestart
lighter
6 boxes of matches
leather work gloves
collapsible shovel
compass
magnifying glass
whistle
leatherman
8 glow light sticks
reflective tape
duct tape
citronella candles
two flashlights battery operated
4 D batteries 8 AA batteries
crank flashlight
4 rain ponchos
4 emergency blankets
50 ft poly cord
pocket knife
pen
paper
trash bags
tarp
I haven't been able to find a crank radio so I ordered this one from Amazon today.

Comfort Items
money- bills and quarters
Book of Mormon
Playing Cards
Bubbles
Small stuffed animals
crayons
candies
hot wheels cars
army men
toy whistle

Again if you have any ideas for something you think I left out leave a comment.



Closer Look 72 hour kit contents

Project Prepared Part 2

Being motivated by my church group I have been making great strides in preparing my home and family for anything. Perhaps you remember this post: http://jakeandcrystal.blogspot.com/2009/04/project-prepared.html- then you are familiar with what I am talking about and why it is again midnight while I type this. I have felt a new weight of responsibility in protecting and preparing my family lately. Perhaps it is because my family has grown recently. Tonight the project was first aid. Although I am still anxious to take a refresher CERT class at least having and organizing all the supplies to respond in an emergency makes me feel a bit more ready.

Tonight I made two car first aid kit and a large one for our home. I had most all of this stuff already in my home- just not organized. I did purchase a few things totaling under $30. It took me a total of 1.5 hours- which includes a trip to the store. I am starting to see that it really does not take that much time or money to prepare ever needful thing.

Car Kits
Tupperware container- red of course
infant tylenol- I seem to always buy when we still have 1/3 a bottle left- all the car needs
IBuprofen
Benadryl
tweezers
latex gloves
gauze
tape
bandaids of all sizes
ace bandaid
tums
alcohol wipes
alka seltzer
iodine wipes
germ x wipes
saftey pins
Immodium
vaseline
neosporin wipes
maxi- pads -use to stop bleeding from large cuts as well
Tic Tacs- diabetics or keeping kids quiet in an emergency
Lighter
Fingernail clippers
super glue
Benadryl cream
eye drops
Emergency/ contact phone numbers
Basic first aid fact sheet
Allergy/ medication family information
I am still hoping to get some kinds of sting kit for the car kit as well

For our home first aid kid-
I had this great red cooler that we just don't use that often- perfect. I zips shut- where I could easily put a combo lock through it to make it more child proof. For now I just have it on the top shelf on the linen closet with a child proof handle
I went through our medicine cabinet and threw away everything that was expired- half of what was in there was
What was included
Infant fever reducer
children fever reducer
Ibuprofen
children's bendadryl
rubbing alcohol
hydrogen peroxide
cotton
ear thermometer
traditional thermometer- I had four. I guess I never need to buy another one
Immodium
Children's immodium
Pepto
Children's Pepto
bandaids of all sizes
ace bandaids
gauze
tape
super glue
icy hot
hot pack
surgical masks
latex gloves
eye drops
Tums
Vaseline
milk of magnesia
cold medicine
night time cold medicine
pain antiseptic
cold sore medicine
Tucks
Itch Cream
Cold Compress
Large Neosporin
Emergency/ contact phone numbers
Basic first aid fact sheet
Allergy/ medication family information
I am still also hoping to get an epi pen and/or sting kit

I also went online and ordered some more surgical masks and am going to get some more gloves since I only had a few of each. Knowing me the next time I am at the store I will make a quick sweep of the pharmacy to see what else I am lacking.
If you have an idea of things I should add- based on experience or need leave a comment.

Car First Aid Kit contents picture
Home First Aid Kit Contents

family scrapbook stuff

Hey Little Sister

My youngest sibling Ali graduated this past weekend. We are so proud of her. We had a lot of fun with her this year as she stayed with us off and on while my parents were gone. She is awesome. She seriously rocks. She let me take her graduation pictures which was really fun. I know she will love Utah State next year. Congrats Ali!

I could look at these all day

I am using my blog to upload straight into a scrapbook now. Instead of printing any pictures. So you will likely see more pictures than usual for a while on my blog. I realize that not everyone has the same fascination with my children that I do.

A little media review

I've been reading and watching and listening to a lot lately, and enjoying it a lot. I thought I would leave a review for my readers.

Movies
Doubt- 3 stars. Beautiful with intense actors, but the plot had me expecting a big finish and then it let me down.
Australia- 5 stars. You know me and anything based on fact. I don't even usually like Kidman.
Twilight- 2 stars. Visually pleasing, but darker than expected, The cannibalism really bothered me strangely when Silence of the Lambs it one of my all time favorites.

Books
To kill a Mockingbird. 4 stars. I have read this before, but we listened to it on our AZ drive and I loved it this time. Such a part of our culture.
The Hobbit. 3 stars. Not my cup of tea fantasy.
The Hiding Place. 5 stars. Not just another WWII autobiography.

Just the two of us.

Jake and I don't have a picture of just the two of us since last August- almost one year ago. Funny enough that too is a snapshot we took of ourselves. Yesterday when I was taking picts of the kids all ready for church I had us snap a shot since it has been almost a year. I thought it was nice too because Jake subconsciously matches whatever I am wearing all the time. Looking at this picture I think it is so true that the longer you live with someone the more you look alike.