You May Be Wondering...

"So...what is going on with Tim & Jean these days??"  

Well, things have been good and BUSY over here lately.  Here's a little update of sorts:

*Remember that big rainstorm on Sunday night?  Well, our downstairs family room FLOODED.  So fun!!  Okay...I don't want to blow things out of proportion, because it's not like the entire room got soaked... just the area around the window.  That night, Tim and I were having a peaceful moment, observing the pouring rain from the upstairs foyer, when we noticed that the downstairs window well was basically a swimming pool of brown, leafy, splashing water.  Tim went downstairs to check it out, and the next thing I heard was "Grab some towels!!!"  Water was literally pouring in from the window, so we went into panic mode.  First we put all our towels and blankets on the windowsill and around the floor; then, when they were soaked, we added bowls and a big plastic tub to collect the water; then, when it wasn't letting up, Tim went outside, jumped down INTO the window well swimming pool (the dirty, leafy, spidery, icky icky pool) and scooped up bucket after bucket of water (he was so brave... and I have to admit, it was pretty hot); then, he came back inside, opened the window, and used a tube to make a little siphon to remove more water; then, the water level was finally low enough that we could open the window all the way from the inside and scoop up the disgusting brown water with a bowl.  (We poured it into the big plastic tub, then used a sieve to get all the leaves and ickies out, then dumped the water into the bathtub.)  By then, the rain had slowed significantly, so Tim just rigged up a tarp over the window well to prevent any additional downpours from starting the whole thing over again.  We also spent the next hour wringing out the soaking towels and then placing them back on the carpet, while I walked over them again and again to help them soak up more water.  In a nutshell, it was an exhausting, wet, dirty, crazy night, with lots of laundry to follow.  Obviously, the corner of the room got soaked, but there wasn't any furniture there -- just Weston's toys, which Tim moved right away.  The damage could have been A LOT worse.  (Good thing we're night owls!  Can you imagine if we'd gone to bed before the rain started?  Our whole entire family room would probably have been ruined.)  Anyway, on Monday, our landlord arranged for a restoration company to remove the carpet padding and install a couple of industrial fans and a dehumidifier, which have been running non-stop for the past four days.  (Can't wait to get our next electric bill!!)  Anyway, everything should be back to normal by Saturday.  I believe that our landlord is going to install a sump pump in the window well, which will hopefully prevent this in the future.  BLAH!!!  (But seriously, I am so proud of my husband.  His bravery and ingenuity always astound me.)

*I got a job!!!  I'm working part-time as a "Patient Service Rep" (front desk person) at a couple of Intermountain Healthcare's local InstaCare facilities.  ("InstaCare" is basically Intermountain's version of urgent care.)  I had my all-day orientation on Monday, where I learned that IHC has 23 hospitals, and that we're NOT supposed to call it IHC anymore, and that it is our goal to provide "Extraordinary Care" every day.  And I got a free breakfast and lunch, AND I won Reese's peanut butter cups for reading something out loud. :-)  Anyway, Wednesday was my first evening on the job, and I pretty much sat there for five hours with a confused, slack-jawed look on my face while another girl did a bamillion complicated things on the computer next to me.  So, I decided that Wednesday was my "observation day", and that on Thursday, I can actually try to learn what the heck I'm supposed to do.  One of the hardest tasks will be attempting to triage patients in order to figure out if someone needs priority over someone else.  For instance, chest pain is a major red flag.  Another thing that will be hard to learn is how to type their problems.  Where my coworker typed, "RT flank lac x T," I probably would've typed "Cut on right side of body this morning."  Unlike her, I'm not a nursing student, so I have extra to learn!!  (Fortunately, they use the same database system that I used at the psych hospital in Tulsa.  Unfortunately, 99% of the database procedures are different here, hahaha!)  Anyway, I'm excited, and I think it will be a good job.  I'll just be working evenings and alternating weekends, which works perfectly with Tim's schedule (so that I'm not just working to pay for babysitting!).

*I have a new calling at church!  I am now the Activity Days Leader, which means that I run the "Activity Days" program, a twice-monthly activity for the girls who aren't old enough for Young Women's yet (thus, ages 8-11).  I think it will be a lot of fun... mainly because I get to indulge my inner 10-year-old with making bead bracelets, preparing cake pops, writing with glitter pens, and playing the cup game over and over at the kitchen table.  (I don't know how to describe "the cup game."  It's a thing where you take a plastic cup and make a rhythm.  Are there others out there who know what I'm talking about?)

*Chris and Adrienne are BACK!!!  Tim's brother just got married, and now the newlyweds are back in town.  They arrived last Thursday, and today marks the first day that we haven't hung out with them.  Haha!  (I'm sure they LOVE hanging out with us and our children ALL the time.  It's not like they want to be alone or anything...)  Anyway, I've decided that they're my new favorite photography subjects, for three reasons: (1) I'm so excited that they're in Utah again; (2) Adrienne is always so photogenic (good job, lady); and (3) Chris is even less vain than I am when it comes to making a ... memorable photo.  (See below.)

*Weston starts preschool next week!  AHH!  My BABY is going to preschool!  I attended a parent orientation this week, where I met "Miss Vicki" and learned all about the color teams and the rotations and the book lending and the "bring a jacket" rule and the drop-off procedures.  I feel like such a MOM!  Ha!  Anyway, I hope that Weston loves it, because it sounds pretty darn fun.  (And have I mentioned that it's free?  Hooray for our elementary school where only half the kids meet standard proficiency!!  ...Hooray?  Seriously, though, I had to wait in line for an hour to get him signed up, and I was one of the last people to get in.  Soooo glad I found out about it in time.)  Anyway, I'm looking forward to Weston having some structured social time again (I miss Parent Ed in Pasadena...), and to MY having some one-on-one time with Cole.  Who perhaps will be napping those afternoons.  Which is fine by me.  Because maybe I can nap, too.  I'm just sayin'. :-)

*We just got a membership to Discovery Gateway!  I love it.  I love it very much.  I think I could play there, too, with or without Weston.  And it doesn't hurt that when we're all played out, we can walk to Ben & Jerry's for ice cream and then walk to the Olympic Legacy Plaza for some splashing. :-)

*Y'know how I love Paradise Bakery?  Well, I seriously do.  But I recently discovered another place that I equally love... KNEADERS!  Oh man, have you tried their white chocolate macadamia cookies??!  I'm SO glad that I tried this place with Abbie and Nicole.  That was last Tuesday, and then last Saturday I forced Tim to take me there again for our date night (haha).  I got the chicken salad croissant sandwich with broccoli salad and a cookie.  MMMM!!!!  I don't know what it is about Utah, but they are rocking the bakery-cafes here!

*Is anyone else ridiculously excited for the holidays?  I AM!!!!!!!!!!  I think that the longer I'm a mom, the more I anticipate the holiday season.  I always think of more decorations that I can hang, and more treats that I can bake, and more traditions that I can start.  Only two more months until Halloween!  And three more months until Thanksgiving!  And four more months until Christmas!  SQUEEEE!

And that's the update!!  Here are some photos to appease the grandparents:

The rolly-pollies did NOT heed the warning.  I guess it doesn't help that Mom now enjoys catching them and storing them in a little habitat as much as (or more than) Weston:

"Look, ma!  I done catched 'em!"

Weston at the dino dig at Thanksgiving Point (hooray for two-buck Tuesdays in August!):

Chris and Adrienne introduced us to Fish Taco Tuesday at Rubio's.  Isn't the excitement just palpable?!!

My favorite thing is the look of disgust on Adrienne's face:

See?  My new favorite photography subjects.

Chris reminds me of an '80s punk rocker.  He should definitely consider this look.

Mr. Chubster, for his part, found their hijinks to be absolutely hilarious: