Braces Make Feel Old

A month ago I took Aspyn (she's 10yrs old) for her first Orthodontic check up.  We have know for a while that because of the crowding in her mouth that she was going to need braces.  The check up was like any dentist appt.....scans, the Dr poking around in her mouth to see whats what.  Everyone was nice and helpful in the Ortho office.  Then before we leave they say "lets make an appointment"....I ask "what for?"....the answer "for Aspyn to get her braces".  I was a little shocked.  I knew it was a possibility for her to get them soon, I just didn't think that soon would be one week from our first check up.  Spacers were put in before we left our first ortho visit, thus begins our adventure in brace land. :)

Aspyn was all tough girl the first 12 hours, then the teeth get sore from the spacers pushing to make room for the brace brackets. Needless to say for about 48 hours she ate mostly yogurt or food that didn't require chewing.  The week pasted quickly and we were back at the Orthodontist to get her braces on. 

Pre-braces. Yep thats right she was happy to be getting braces.  I know what you are thinking...when did getting braces become semi cool?  Honestly I have no idea but am glad that I didn't have to bribe or beg her to tolerate braces so her teeth all grow where they should. 

Genetically she got stuck with Brians overlapping and my tight tight teeth.  Thus crowding ensues. 

Off to the Orthodontist we go.  For anyone who has never had braces, or never watched someone else get braces I find it all very interesting. Here is my not dentist run down of brace application. :)

First, they clean the teeth. Second, they pull out the spacers and find which brackets fit the molars best. Third, they pre fit the brackets then glue brackets onto teeth. (Fun fact we learned from the nice Hygienist... no matter how much technology or cool stuff you can do on a smart phone, glue still tastes bad, ha!).  Fourth, they glue on the small brackets onto the fronts of the teeth.  This is right after all the brackets were on, she was really excited. 

Now I am not sure which step is next but we will call it a combo step. Fifth, they apply the wires between the brackets and add the bands which are any color of the rainbow. Sixth, you now have braces and you get a super long talk about taking care of your teeth so they don't rot under your braces.  DONE. :)

The whole experience was very interesting to me.  You don't need any numbing, you just have to be patient as the steps are completed. Aspyn was so excited to have her braces on and honestly she did great adjusting to her new mouth gear. :)  Using wax to protect her gums for a few days she kept from getting any canker sores.  Within a week she wasn't sore anymore, and now she is taking awesome care of her teeth.  And my favorite added bonus....she can't bite her nails anymore because it can break the wires, who knew the trick to breaking nail biting was braces. 

Minutes after we left the Orthodontist, thats a real smile.

For now her bands are aqua and pink. Oh and she still loves them.

It is kinda weird for me to have a child who has braces.  Most things don't make me feel old but this just seems like the first of many pre-teen milestones that she is going to experience, hopefully the rest will be this easy.  LIKE THATS GONNA HAPPEN! 

Lap Desk Fun

So obviously I am failing a tiny bit at the whole blog thing. I am trying to blog at lease once a week so I guess I need a blog starting redo. So here goes. ;)

While doing a little pre-school clothes shopping-shopping, me and my girls saw some really cute lap desks in Barnes and Noble. Some had painted wood tops and some plastic. The cheapest one was $20, and being a mom on a budget there is no way I am spending $40+ on lap desks (not cheap just not a necessity). We take a little look at how the boards are assembled and I decide that it looks like something we could throw together. So we stopped shopping and headed to the store to get supplies.

Our Supply List :)
A sturdy top for your lap desk (we purchased 8x12 plastic cutting boards for $8)
A small pillow or fabric & batting to make your own pillow (we used a pillow we had and made one)
Permanent markers to decorate your board
Glue (we tried a new quick drying all purpose glue that works with all materials)

To start the ball rolling I had the girls work on decorating their boards......

While they worked on their boards I prepped the pillows. Now we used an old sm. pillow we had at home for Aspyn's. For Tearony's I took a cover off a pillow we had, took out 1/3 of the batting to make it the size we needed, then used 2 pieces of scrap fabric I had in my closet to make a sm. pillow case to but over the pillow form. You could use loose batting, rice, or anything that would form comfortably to your lap. Do whatever works for you, there are no rules in last minute make up your own craft projects.

 Here is the pillow I made...a couple side stitches, one on the bottom, turned it inside out, stuck the recycled pillow form inside the fabric case....

then rolled the open end in, and pinned it so I could machine sew it. The correct seamstress thing to do would have been to hand stitch it....but I am all about fake it till ya make it. Machine sewn it is. :)

The girls worked on their custom board designs while I played with the sewing machine. Aspyn is super artsy and knew what she wanted and where (the only thing I helped her with was a pencil outline of a pair of nerd glasses that she HAD to fix a bit because it wasn't even). Tearony on the other hand is 8 and she wanted help with the art. I am kinda artistic....so I like to pull inspiration from whatever I can think of. I really wanted Tearony's board to have a doodled note book kind of feel. And I thought of a perfect thing to get ideas from.....

yep...a pair of panties.

So Tearony and I just started drawing all kids of little doodles on the board, and I did a rough plaid background for all the doodle fun. Once we got everything drawn on that we wanted, we glued the pillow to the board. Nothing fancy here folks....put the glue where you want the pillow to sit and put the pillow onto the gluey spot.

This is the glue we used. We found it in the craft department.

Then the girls sat on it to make sure it stayed (once we were all done we stacked the boards on top of each other and put a heavy pot to weight it down to ensure the bond).

Then WhaLa...two lap desks for under the price it would have cost us for one. Plus ours are way cuter then the plain ones in the store, it was a fun way to spend the afternoon, and as you see I even took pics so I could blog. YAY!! Here are the finished boards.

 Tearony's Board....she does good in school but swears she doesn't like it. So we put a school stinks cause school rocks just doesn't fit her. Notice the B+...her sister was doing an A+ and she wanted a B.

 We picked the zebra and pink polka dots because her room is pink, white, and black, gaudy but fun.

 Aspyn's Board.....she is a smarty pants who likes books and nerds, she is so cute. If you look close the N of her nerds is a nerd. I will have to say cutest nerd glasses ever.

When we had cleaned up I realized that I haven't had a day where I could just decide to stop and do a random craft project in forever. And for anyone who hasn't tried it, you are missing out. It was rewarding and therapeutic in a get some artistic energy out....I know..I know...doodles aren't really art....but they are to us. :)

DMV.....why are you so sad?

This week I had to suck it up and finally go out and get my drivers license. :( Don't tell the po-po but I should have done it before my Bday last week, but due to life and my many excuses why I couldn't get it done, I avoided it for a week (sinister laugh). Sadly though my luck ran out and I got pulled over yesterday for speeding, even though I rarely speed, and was quickly reminded to renew my license. Needless to say I HAD to go to the DMV.

Someone tell me why the DMV is such a depressing place? The people that work there all look sad, or bored, or whatever. They are not cheery. They ask questions quickly and no matter the answer they seem annoyed at the answer. The people coming to the DMV are hoping to be finished with whatever task quickly, which never happens and always ends in disappointment. And that is just the people. The DMV is an ugly place. Ugly tile, everything is gray or tan. There is no music.....just silence....silence broken by a computer voice announcing which # needs to go to which counter#, funny this is that even in crappy restaurants there is some type of music. And then there is the waiting area which is in the middle of a large room, cold, just chairs randomly lined up like an elementary assembly, oh and the chairs are gray.

Then there is the information you need to prove you are who you are and that you need what you need. To renew your drivers license in Utah you need: proof of SS, 2 forms showing your currant address, your birth certificate, and your expired license. All these requirements made me what to renew my license even less...childish I know but hey it is so annoying for someone who is only mildly organized to find all this stuff. :)

So I was thinking, while I sat in the horribly depressing DMV, I think there should be 2 DMV's in each county. The sad DMV, and the fun DMV. We all know what the sad DMV is like. The fun DMV though....it would be awesome. To start music.....anything peppy and upbeat.  Then the chairs would be colorful and set up less clinical. Color everywhere like a fun coffee shop. And while we are at it coffee, and drinks for everyone. The staff would be friendly and glad to be working and the fun DMV. That way while you are stuck waiting it would be enjoyable. Ok. I guess I will stop with this silliness.
You cant always get what you want.

Anyways....if you have to go the Washington county DMV anytime soon prepare for a dose of sadness.

Bridal Hunger

This weekend was filled with photography fantastic-ness.....thanks to Nick and Jaylee. Nick used to work with my hubby, and we got to know Jaylee through Halloween and birthday parties. Nick is the sweet boy next door type, and Jaylee is full of joy and giggles about everything.  In the last 6 months they moved to Iowa so Jaylee can finish some nursing programs, but planned a trip back to St.George for the sole purpose of having there engagements and Bridal photography done. To everyones surprise they are not getting married until 2013, because they are paying for all the wedding bells and whistles they are spreading out their expenses. 

Needless to say SHE is a little bit obsessed  with her photos.....its ok she knows she is obsessed. Countless props, ideas, and must do's, half of which Nick would snicker about how silly they were but like a good boy he just held his props and sucked it up. Way to be Nick. :) We went to more locations and spent more time then I think I ever have in a photo shoot.....but I loved every second of it!! I had so much fun shooting them and even had a couple of photography firsts.....like Nick has an artificial leg from the knee down (1st..1st) and we shot the last of their engagements in a fountain splash pad (2nd..1st). 

Not sure if or when I will post any of their engagements or Bridals since the wedding is a ways off....but let me say.....some of the shots in both sessions are amazing. :) Cant wait to get to editing. Thanks for all the fun guys. :)

We ended our long morning of Bridals in the 90degree weather by stopping at one of our favorite restaurants Cafe Rio. Of course the dapperly dressed couple got all kinds of attention walking into such a casual place. Then while we are standing in line to order an older lady walks up and hands Nick a $20 bill telling him "good luck". Nick politely told her that he could not except the gift because they had only taken their photography. She quickly responded "I have been married to my husband for 56 years, I would like this to be the first of your wedding gifts." Hard to say no to logic like that. :) 

Cafe Rio. MMMMM>>>>Aren't they are so cute?

 

Hello Blog World

Well here I go.  Diving into the world of blogging.  Life has been full of challenges in the last few weeks and I find myself thinking of things I want to get out and figured it is time.  My plan is to post any of my photography that I love and thoughts I just want out of my head so I can sleep. And maybe if I get really ambitious I will post any recipes that I make up.  Hello blog world hopefully I wont let you down. ;)