Kami's Korner

The Joy of Family Traditions

2009-04-12T13:02:00.008-06:00

The Annual Henderson Easter Egg Hunt began 30+ years ago and is still going strong today! I have very fond childhoood memories of this annual event, despite NEVER winning the cake! Let me explain...every year my Aunt Lynda makes a bunny cake(see pics below). The eggs are hidden all over the yard. Some with your name on them, others that are just up for grabs. One of the unlabeled eggs contains a note that says, "You won the cake!" Whoever finds the egg, gets the cake. So since I had never won the cake, Aunt Lynda made two of them several years ago and gave one to me! I am discouraged to report that the "Bunny Cake Curse" has been passed on to the next generation. My kids have yet to win the cake! I have 364 days to find a cure. Although we didn't come home with the coveted prize, who could be upset about Miss Marley winning? Isn't she a doll?

We ate our traditional favorites of ham, yummy potatoes, raspberry jello salad, Lynda's rolls and sugar cookies and even had a couple of surprise guest appearances. My nephew, Ryan, has been working in Yuma, AZ and got to come for the weekend.
Lindsay (my oldest brother), Heather & Ryan (his kids)

Also, my mom's brother, Denny, came from Denver, CO. Mom was the only one who knew he was coming so she was able to help surprise her sister, Kim. It was great to see him!
Mom, Denny & Kim

Everyone had a great time! We did miss my Grandma this year. She fell a couple of times last week and didn't feel up to coming. She is such a trooper! She will be 90 old this July. Thanx a million to Aunt Lynda for starting the tradition and to Mom for her help in keeping it alive! Here's to 30+ more years!!
Kort & Lukas playing ping-pong in Grandpa's "shop"

SCORE!!

My weird brother and darling niece

My cute kiddos!

Aunt Kim & Uncle Mack...always good for a laugh!

Keep looking Josh!

Samee (Ryan's) girlfriend and Lukas. Deep Easter thoughts by Lukas...what do bunnies and eggs have to do with each other?

The cutest bunny of all!!

Cha-ching!

2009-04-09T16:50:00.003-06:00

1 bone-in ham, 2 London Broil steaks, 6 boxes of Wheat Thins, 9 boxes of Stove Top, 17-32 oz. Powerade & much more....spent $103.06. Saved $171.43. I love a good hunt!

Accepting the Inevitable

2009-04-05T17:08:00.002-06:00

Well as you can see by my updated blog layout, I have finally accepted the fact that winter has left us. It's a hard thing for me to come to terms with, but I know that resistance is futile. Now my "whinning-and-complaining-about-the-weather" season can begin!

We celebrated Amanda's 7th birthday this last week. It seems unreal that she is that old. She had a great day! Before she went to bed she was laying in bed with me and she said, "Next year I will be 8 and then I will have the Spirit with me!" I am so thankful that that is something that she looks forward to. It is unbelievable that next year at this time we will have all of our kids baptized! Now on to the next goal...temple & missions!

This past weekend we went to Wolf Creek Resort with Mom, Dad & Kort for a weekend of fun, relaxing and watching General Conference. We have made it into a tradition after we did it once and realized that the kids payed more attention when they didn't have all their "stuff" to distract them! Then in between sessions we swim, play raquetball, work out, etc. It was alot of fun! My favorite part was winning Kort and Joe in raquetball! We stayed up unitl 1:30 am playing cards and eating way too much food! Good times!! Thanx Mom & Dad!

School is going good. I picked up a math class at the ATC that I just finished up on Friday! YEAH!!! Right now I am finishing up the first half of my Biomed class. I am sitting at about a B+ right now but hope to bring it up with my last few exams. I decided to take the second half online during the summer. With the kids out of school it would be easier to do from home. I have learned so much from that class! I never realized what a miracle our physical bodies, and how they work, are! There is so much that goes on inside that we don't even realize or have to think about. How else could it ever be explained other than, "We were made in His image".

I don't have many new pictures. I have really gotten out of the habit of taking pics since I have been spending more time on facebook. I will do better! I will try to be a little more consistent!

I love to see the temple!

2009-03-11T22:44:00.007-06:00

Last Friday we took the kids out of school half a day and went with Mom & Dad to see the new Draper Temple. It was the second temple the kids have been in since we were able to go through the Sacramento Temple a couple of years ago. We arrived at the Stake Center, watched a short movie and then were shuttled up to the temple in a bus. They did it that way to eliminate all the traffic and parking problems around the temple. The view of the valley from the temple grounds was beautiful. Amanda was so excited because one of her friends at school told there was a chandeleir with REAL diamonds! The building was beautiful beyond words and the spirit was sweet and simple. It was such a rush being in the temple with our kids! My only true wish in life is to be there again someday with them and all of their spouses. That would be a dream come true!
Josh

Lukas was having a hard time being serious :)

Noah

Amanda

The whole gang!

Who knew going to the dentist could be so fun?

2009-03-11T22:10:00.008-06:00

Today Noah & Lukas had an appointment to get cavitites filled at our favorite destint, Dr. Matt Malan! Lukas had two cavities on his front tooth and wouldn't let Dr. Matt numb it at all. He said he dosen't like the numb feeling. So he just let him do the filling! What a stud!

Noah on the other hand got a free trip to Happyville, USA! A couple of years ago he really freaked out in the chair and had to be sedated. Since then they give him the Noxide and anything else we can think of. Enjoy the show!
I'm so happy!

Bright light, bright light!

I see dead people!

Don't worry, he's not having a seizure!

Digi Scrapping!!

2009-01-19T13:08:00.004-07:00

I made this page the other night in less than an hour while watching t.v.! I love digi scrapping! I am having it made into a skin for my laptop. Can't wait to get it!

I made this one when I was playing with a FREE kit I had downloaded. Fun stuff!

I am considering putting together a scrapbook retreat in May. I have someone who is willing to come teach Digi Srapping 101 or you could do regular scrapbooking as well. I have another friend who would probably come and do massages for a steal as well. So let me know if anyone is interested. It would be a lot of fun! We could all take care of our own Mother's Day and have a fun weekend! It's just been tumbling around in the back of my head, but if enough people are interested I will get to work. It would have to be in May after I am done with this semester! Let me know!

Where did 2008 go?

2009-01-15T16:19:00.010-07:00

Seriously?!? Where did last year go? Holy cow! You blink and you miss it! We had a fun, happy holiday! But there is definatley something to be said about 'routine'!! The Saturday before the kids went back to school we went ice skating. It was alot of fun! Amanda couldn't get enough! Uncle Kort came with us and we had a great time.

I started back to school the same day as the kids. I really didn't blog much about my last/first semester because as soon as it was done I had to get ready for Christmas. Last semester I had 3 classes which consisted of 9 credit hours. I had English 2010, Chemistry 1010 (online) and Sociology 1010. I ended up with an A- in English, a B+ in Chemistry, and an A in Sociology. Not bad for an old fart. I was pleased! This semester I am only taking one class...Biomed. It is Anatomy & Physiology combined into one class. It is also the most failed class at Weber. Everyone advised me to take it by itself if I could. So that is what I am doing. I am already glad! They told us we need to be spending about 28 hrs. per week between class, lab, SI, studying, etc. in order to get an A. It's like a part-time job!!! I have my first exam tomorrow!! It is exciting to be studying something that is directly related to being an Echo tech! I just turned in my application for the Echo program last week so everyone say a HUGE, ginormous prayer for me that I am accepted!!!

Last week I went to a class at Gwen's that taught us how to combine coupons and sales to get groceries real cheap! In the past week I have bought $270 worth of groceries for $70!!! It is sooooo fun! Every day the kids come in the house after school wanting to know what I got for "free" today! It is hilarious! I hate spending money on groceries, so I am loving this!!! Thanx Gwen!!

I have to tell you all that I am loving my new laptop that my sweetie got me for Christmas. We are connected to a wirless hub so I can take it anywhere in the house and be online! It has really eliminated alot of contention at our house over the computer!! Thanx honey!

The Case of the Missing Keys

2009-01-04T06:11:00.009-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I had been out doing Christmas shopping and then to the grocery store. I came home and brought in all my bags, put groceries away, etc. About 3:00 it was snowing real hard so I wanted to go pick up Josh at the bus stop. That's when I realized my keys were missing! Where could they have gone? I had just returned home 2 hours earlier!?!!! UUGH!! I looked everywhere! Then my kids looked everywhere. Then Joe looked everywhere. To no avail! What the heck? (Yep, that's the word I said! hehe!) We looked all weekend long and still have not found them. So come Monday morning, in the blizzard, Joe brought a big equipment hauler from work, loaded my car onto it by pushing it out of the garage and into the street, and took it to a locksmith for another key to be made!!(because it would have cost $40 more for him to come to us) Good grief Charlie Brown!

Hours spent looking for lost keys: 12

New key made by rip-off locksmith: $60

Having a husband who will load your car on a big truck,in a blizzard, with a smile on his face: PRICELESS!!

For my birthday I want "The Clapper" for my keys! Thanx honey! Love you!

The Annual Grandkids Party

2008-12-30T11:27:00.003-07:00

Every year my Mom & Dad have their annual Grandkids Party. It is usually held the weekend before Christmas and they always do something really fun. This year, all the kids knew was that they were being picked up around 6:00 pm. They waited and watched the clock impatiently until finally there was a knock at the door...

The kids were going out on the town in a super-stretch limo!! They were a bit stunned at first and really didn't know what to say! They went and got pizza and then and went and saw the lights at Willard Bay and in Downtown Ogden. They later ended at Mom & Dad's for a tournament with Grandpa's new ping-pong table! Everyone had such a great time! How lucky my kids are to have such fun Grandparents who always go the extra mile! Thank you!!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

2008-12-30T00:11:00.003-07:00

Before...

After...

Some how it just dosen't seem right that it only takes 3.2 seconds to rip through a stressful month's worth of preperation. It's a good thing it's worth it!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-26T08:41:00.006-07:00

Well it's over! Another year has come and gone! I am always amazed at how much work goes into one day! But it is worth it! We had a fabulous Christmas!

We have a tradition of gathering at Mom & Dad's on Christmas Eve with our whole family. We have awesome food, lots of fun and open presents. It is something I look forward to every year. We had a GREAT time! My handsome nephew, Ryan, was in rare form with his famous one-liners such as, "If I were passing a granade I would want the pin to come out!" He is a riot!

For Christmas, Mom made each of us a book that contains all of our families favorite recipes and family pictures from the past and present. It is incredible!! She did a fabulous job!

There was not a dry eye in the room when Lindsay opened his present. As most of you know, my niece, Heather, was in a car accident five days before her wedding. She broke her leg and her arm. She postponed her wedding because she wanted to dance with her Dad at her wedding. When that finally happend, it was a very tender moment. My dad had taken a picture of them dancing. Mom took that picture and did a water color painting of it. It was incredible!

I had made a calendar for Mom & Dad, my Grandma and Aunts with the kids picutres on it. It turned out really cute. But I wasn't the only one with that idea. My Aunt Lynda also had a calendar made with awesome pictures that I had never seen before. With mom's recipe book and the calendars it seems that we were all thinking alike! It was great!

We came home around 8:00 and the kids promptly put themselves to bed! I wish it was Christmas Eve every night!! Of course none of them went to sleep, but they were trying hard! We told them that they couldn't wake us up before 7:00 am. We woke up anyway about 6:30 and could here them talking in their bedroom. So we called Mom and Dad and Kort and told them to be here at 7:00 am!

All in all it was a great Christmas! I am so excited because Joe got me a laptop!!! Yeah!!! But he had to order it online and it won't be delivered until Monday! He was really bummed but it's okay! Now maybe I can be a little better about updating my blog! he he! It will be nice to have another week before school starts again, for everyone! I am kind of bummed though because I work EVERY day next week!

I hope you all had a fabulous Christmas! It's been a great year for our family and we look forward to more great things in 2009!!!

Thanx Mom!!

2008-12-05T16:14:00.004-07:00

Last weekend Joe had the boys bring all the christmas decorations up from the basement. There were boxes everywhere. The whole process of getting out all the decorations seemed a bit overwhelming. After having the same stuff year after year I just was not excited about putting it all out again. Mom called and asked what I was doing. She could tell I was not real enthused by the idea of decorating. So she said, "Why don't you put up the tree, put the lights on it, and then I will come decorate it on Monday?" I jumped on that in no time flat!!! So by Monday morning everything was prepped and ready for the tree fairy to come work her magic!! I was so excited to come home from work Monday night to see my new beautiful tree! This is what I came home to....

She used all my snowman stuff, some stuff of hers she wasn't using this year, and bought the fun red and green balls and tinsel. It looks awesome!!! I love it!!

My Aunt Lynda has given us all Hallmark ornaments since I can even remember. She has continued the tradition with my kids as well. For Amanda's first Christmas she gave me a rubbermaid box full of Barbi ornaments that she had collected. Amanda loves getting them out each year. Last weekend I found a little 4 ft. pink tree at Walmart. We put in Amanda's room and she decorated it with her Barbis and little silver and lime green balls. It is so cute! She loves looking at it at night when she goes to bed! The hard part is going to be getting her to take it down once christmas is over.

My New Favorite Movie

2008-11-29T09:57:00.008-07:00

BOLT has got to be one of the BEST movies that Disney has ever done!! We took the kids and Grandma & Grandpa came along too. Joe was laughing so hard I thought we would have to call 911! Amanda wounldn't believe me that Penny's voice was Myle Cyrus and yes, I am a little bias due to the fact that Bolt is John Travlota's fabulous voice. (affectionatley known as "My Johnie") But honestly, Rhino was my favorite character! He stold the show!! I was laughing so hard I was crying! Part of that may have been laughing at Joe laughing!?! Just go see it! It's the bomb!

I'm Sick of Being Sick

2008-11-15T20:37:00.003-07:00

I thought it was about time for a new look! Do you like it? Kind of fun for winter!

Well I have been sick for a week now and I'm sick of it!!! It started last Friday with a sore throat. Joe & I went to Salt Lake to a viewing. My friend's Mom passed away. Then we headed to the Jazz game. Joe's boss had given him tickets. We had great seats on row 17! They played Oklahoma and won! It was alot of fun! But I felt misserable the whole time. Not only was my throat sore, but those have got to be the most uncomforable seats in Utah!

Sunday morning I really felt terrible but I was conducting in primary and I had sharing time. Double whammy!

Monday I worked.

Tuesday I went to school, work and played a soccer game at 7:20. We tied 5-5.

Wednesday I went to parent teacher conf., work and had a soccer game at 10:20 p.m. WE WON!!!! I was the happiest girl on the planet!!! The team we beat has not lost a game this session!! The score was 8-5! It was awesome!!!!! But by the time I got home, showered and got in bed it was midnight. I could not go to sleep for anything!!! I only had a few hour sleep when I had to get up and get ready for school.

Thursday I went to school and work. I left work early because it wasn't busy enough to justify my being there and I felt like CRAP!

Friday I cleaned house, went to the grocery store, made dinner, etc.

This morning we took Noah & Amanda to Disney on Ice. We won 4 free tickets for a coloring contest the kids did. Lukas & Josh didn't want to go. I guess they're getting too old. I have just been taking it easy today. Let's hope this cold goes away soon! Now Josh has it and has been coughing up a lung. Time to get out the Lysol and kill all the germs in the house!

Syncronized Swimming

2008-11-06T11:34:00.001-07:00

Just a bit of comic relief for the day!! The funniest thing about this is that I can totally see our Bishopric (and many others in our ward) doing this!! AWESOME!!

Post-Election Pondering

2008-11-05T20:14:00.003-07:00

Well, the good news is that it's over. End of good news. As I have come to accept the reality of our current state of affairs, the same thing keeps coming back to my mind over and over again...

We thank thee, O God, for a prophet
To guide us in these latter days.
We thank thee for sending the gospel
To lighten our minds with it's rays.
We thank thee for every blessing
Bestowed by thy bounteous hand.
We feel it a pleasure to serve thee,
And love to obey thy command.

When dark clouds of trouble hang ore' us
And threaten our peace to destoy,
There is hope smiling brightly before us,
And we know that deliverance is nigh.
We doubt not the Lord or his goodness.
We've proved him in days that are past.
The wicked who fight against Zion
Will surely be smitten at last.

We'll sing of his goodness and mercy,
We'll praise him by day and by night,
Rejoice in his glorious gospel,
And bask in his life-giving light.
Thus onto eternal perfection
The honest and faithful will go,
While those who reject his glad message
Shall never such happiness know.

I am thankful, more than ever, to have loving, CONSTANT, priesthood leadership to look to for guidance when dark clouds of trouble hang ore' us and threaten our peace to destroy.

BoO!

2008-11-05T19:33:00.006-07:00

Another Halloween has come and gone. While I enjoy taking the kids trick-or-treating and all the fun, the whole costume thing is so stressful. I hate spending the money on something that is so temporary, but the kids love it! This year we were able to put together some pretty good costumes for very little money. The weather was so great for the BIG night of Halloween! We had a little sprinkling rain here and there, but it was very warm. It was a great change! We made our way around the neighborhood, to "The Halloween House" (the kids call it that all year round)and we even went to another subdivision to a haunted house. Amanda was stuck to me like Saran Wrap the whole way through, and then as soon as we were out she exclaimed, "Let's go again!!" We ended up at Mom & Dad's for chilli, french bread, apple cider and brownies. YUM! We watched the movie Penelope, which was very cute! Great fun!
Kudos to Taryn for Josh's hair & make-up. Josh wanted to be a Goth dude but after seeing him I told him he should tell people he is Edward from Twilight! He looked awesome!

Lukas is really into pirates right now, hence the costume! He looks pretty scary!

Noah wanted to be Elvis (Jailhouse Rock Elvis) but we couldn't find one. I'm kind of glad because I think he makes a darling Harry Potter!

Amanda was set on being Ariel. I tried to get her to let me do her hair cute but she refused. She was happy!

The whole gang!

Twilight!!

2008-10-30T17:33:00.003-06:00

GIRLS NIGHT OUT ALERT!!!
We are trying to get a group together to go see Twilight!! All the midnight showings are sold out (which dosen't really hurt my feelings) so we are going to the 6:30pm showing on Friday, Nov. 21st at the Megaplex! I am going to go buy the tickets at noon on Sat. (Nov. 1st). So if ANYONE wants to join us you just need to bring me your money by Sat. morning. Everyone is invited!!! We can go get something to eat afterwards if anyone is interested!! Can't wait!!!

A Great Day!

2008-10-27T07:49:00.002-06:00

This past Saturday Joe & I took Frontrunner to Salt Lake to the Body Worlds exhibit. It was amazing! It was so fascinating to see all the different parts of the body from the inside out. If I had it to do over I would probly for-go the headset you can rent. It spews an unimaginable amount of information that no normal person can contain inside one head. There is more than enough info to read and digest without it. I just wish I was in my anatomy class right now. It only stengthens my belief that we were created by a supreme being!

After the exhibit we ate dinner at our favorite spot, P.F. Chang's and then booked it back to Frontrunner for our trip home. It was a great kid-free day! Perfect weather, perfect timing, perfect company!

We Must Love Soccer!

2008-10-24T16:30:00.004-06:00

Soccer is over until Spring. Both Amanda & Noah were lucky enough to have their Dad as their coach. The boys lost their fist game but were undefeated the rest of the season. The girls were undefeated the whole season. They all did so great! Joe had a great time coaching them! This game was played Oct. 11th in a hail storm! The girls were troopers! Amanda is in the black hoodie.

Noah's team did such a great job!

Tooth Fairy Time!

2008-10-24T14:59:00.005-06:00

Okay, so obviously Amanda gets her stuborn teeth from me (All but two of my baby teeth were pulled by the dentist). This is only the second tooth she has lost. It was hanging there by a thread! All I would've had to do was sneeze on it and it would have fallen out! But NO, we have to conjour up all the drama possible! She has two more that are still hanging there but won't let me touch them. She brings me the dental floss and then starts crying. oh brother. I thought this was kind of funnay anyway!

New Shoes

2008-10-13T10:43:00.004-06:00

Who dosen't love a new pair of shoes? The truth is that I very rarley find a pair of "BUY ME!" shoes. A shoe fettish is not one of my weaknesses.(thank goodness as I have plenty of others to make up for it!!) But every now and then a pair of shoes just jumps off the shelf and into your basket and insists on being taken home. I have been needing some new black heels for a while and came across these beauties. Amanda had to try them out!

The Green-Eyed Monster

2008-10-03T14:41:00.005-06:00

Yesterday Amanda was having a particularly BAD day! I had tried and tried to get her to do her reading, but she wouldn't hear of it! She wanted to go exchange some shoes I had bought for her, but I told her we couldn't do that until her reading was done. Her pleading become more instant and demanding until she finally just popped her cork! Her eyes turned green, horns appeared and her head was spinning around on her neck like something from the Exorcist. I am trying to explain the situation in clear detail as I am sure that none of you with a little girl have ever experienced this?!? HA! Finally Amanda was sent to her room to wait until her Dad arrived home from work. I was done!

Noah needed to do some timed readings so we went out onto the front porch so we could hear each other over the weeping, whaling and gnashing of teeth. Peace at last! It didn't take her long to find out where we were, so she opened her window and preceeded to yell at us from there. Soon Noah was done and off to play. I just stayed on the porch and listened to my ipod and enjoyed the quiet.

Joe pulled in the driveway. I walked over to his truck and opened the drivers door to chat. Soon I hear a small, sad voice call out, "Mommy?" I look up to her window where I can't see her through her curtains, but I know she's there. "What?" I answer sternly. The remorseful voice replies, "I just wanted you to know that I just spanked myself." "You did what?!?" I asked. "I SPANKED MYSELF!" That's what I thought I heard. I lost it! When Joe & I both stopped laughing long enough, I asked her why she did that. She answered, "So Daddy dosen't have to!"

Nothing will give you whiplash like a little girl's mood swings! Ya gotta love em!

I Love Where I Live

2008-09-26T20:09:00.006-06:00

For the past couple of weeks there have been hundreds of geese in the field next to our house every morning. They are eating what ever is left over after the wheat harvest. You can hear them honking from inside the house and when they fly away it sounds like there are thousands of them. I was sitting at the computer doing homework last Wednesday and I could see them all over the field so I just had to stop and take a picture. I feel very blessed to live in such a peaceful place!

p.s. Don't even think about hunting these birds in my field!!! I will send my dog after YOU!!!

Against All Odds

2008-09-26T19:07:00.010-06:00

Well it finally happened!! Corey & Heather are finally married!!! The big day was last Saturday @ 4:00 p.m. At 3:00 a huge storm blew in and made the rest of the evening very interesting! The rain stoped long enough to put everything in place and seat the guests. The wedding took place in Corey's parents back yard. Everything was windy & beautiful. The music started and Heather appeared at the top of the stairs of the deck looking as stunning as ever! Once she was delivered to Corey by her dad the sprinkles started again. A quick "I DO" by both of them and it was time to head inside for a minute till the sprinkles passed. I told her that the theme for their wedding should be "Against All Odds". They are so darling together and will be happy for a very long time! Unfortunatley we couldn't stay long because Joe was very sick with a cold. I had to rush him home, put him in bed and make a run to Walmart for o.j. and chicken noodle soup, the cure-all!
A proud Dad

Here comes the bride...

I love how Corey just stands to the side with a huge smile on his face!!! What a cutie!!

Cutting the cake

It was worth the wait and all the physical therapy!

Forever Daddy's little girl

GOOD LUCK COREY & HEATHER!!! WE LOVE YOU!!!

Ketchup time...

2008-09-19T10:22:00.006-06:00

Another busy week has come and gone so I thought I would take a couple of minutes before I dive into my homework to update the ole' bloggity blog blog!

Last Satuday we had our ?-Annual Neighborhood Block Party. I'm not sure how many years they have done it now but I know it's atleast 6 or 7?!? They had it in the culdasac behind us and it was alot of fun. They set up table and chairs, grilled hamburger and hot dogs, had homemade rootbeer and everyone brought a side dish to share. It was fun to meet new neighbor and visit with others that I only see in passing in the "hood" or at church. They had a silent auction to raise money for next years event, a face painting table, a fish pond and the Cub Scouts sold snow cones for $1 for a fundraiser. It was a great success!
Party in the hood!

Sunday I was asked to meet with the Bishop before church and was given a new calling. I am the 1st Counselor in the new primary presidency. I am excited about the new adventure but sad to be leaving my Wolves! Jamie and I have had so much fun with them! They are such a cute group of boys! But atleast I still see them each week and since I am over the scouts I can be sure that they are well taken care of! I am exicited to work with Angie, Andrea and Emily! Fun, cute girls! Come to think of it I think I'm the oldest one of the group?!? That's weird! It's okay! After 3 weeks in school I'm getting used to that feeling!

Amanda has been telling me for about a month that she wants to get her hair cut short. The scary thing is that the style she was describing was a mullet: short bangs around to the back of her ears (so that everyone can see her earrings) and long in the back! No can do sister!! I told her I would make her an appointment. I told my mom just last week that every time her hair gets all to the length that I can pull it all back in a pony tail, she cuts it herself. This has happened twice! So Wed. morning I am getting her ready for school and suddenly realize that her hair is shorter on one side than the other!! She freakin' cut her hair AGAIN!!!!! I'm pretty sure I get the award for the kid who has cut her own hair the most times!!! I couldn't believe it!! She said she cut it at school. I asked her if her teacher knew and she said, "No" because she put the glob of hair in her desk so she wouldn't get in trouble and have to pull a card!! FABULOUS!!! Who does that?!? Apparently there is some sort of disconnect in her pretty little head that dosen't link cutting her hair and getting in trouble to this is a colossal bad idea, DON"T DO IT!! I don't get it! So yesterday we made a trip to Sheryl's house for a haircut. I think it looks really cute on her! I think we will keep it this way and avoid the drama. Her hair looks more healthy when it is short. So all in all it turned out for the best! Maybe she's going to be a hair stylist??
BEFORE...

AFTER...

Well that's the highlights of my week! I have a buch of cute pics to post but my computer/camera is being retarded so I might have to try to add them later. Precious homework time is ticking away! Tomorrow is Heather and Corey's wedding, finally! I am excited for them!

Dumb Luck

2008-09-08T08:40:00.003-06:00

Last Thursday Joe was on his way to work when he heard them announce on the radio that they were giving away a $200 Ticketmaster gift card to the 8th caller. He thought, "Humph. That would be cool." So he dialed the number, the phone rang, the d.j. answered and said, "Congratualtions!! You're the 8th caller!!" He thinks he has wicked "Jedi Mind Trick" skills. I call it dumb luck.

Sunday Morning Panic!

2008-09-06T08:56:00.003-06:00

Last Sunday I had to go to the church early to take care of some V.T. stuff. It was about 12:45 (church starts @ 1:00) and I was in the library. One of the counselors of our Bishopic came in and asked, "Well is Josh all ready?" "Ready for what?", I inquired. "That's real funny!", he responded. "I really have no idea what you're talking about", I informed him. "Josh is one of the Youth Speakers in sacrament meeting today". I rack my brain for any recollection of this information....NOPE! So I hurry to the phone, call Joe and pass the great news on to him! Josh forgot!

Joe and the kids were about 5 min. late for sacrament meeting and Josh takes his place on the stand. Joe sat down next to me and just shrugged his shoulders. Josh's talk was on Repentence. I was holding my breath for the first couple of minutes but then relaxed as he did an awesome job! I was amazed that he did such a great job on such short notice! He gets that from Joe!

After he was done and sat down Lukas leaned over to me, patted my arm and said, "You raised him well."

Another New Beginning...for EVERYONE!

2008-09-06T08:12:00.003-06:00

Well, it's 8:11am on Saturday morning and I finally have a free moment to update my blog. The last two weeks seem like a whirlwind. Unforturatley I don't have any photos as I could not find my camera for three weeks. But breathe a sigh of relief, Joe found it in his truck under the seat! PHEW! I don't think I would have had time to use it anyway!?!

The kids started back to school on the 25th! It was a beautiful day!!! All 4 kids in school ALL day! Life dosen't get any better than that!!! I remember when they were all babies and toddlers thinking this day would NEVER come! I ran over to the school that morning to help direct kids on the school grounds and saw Amie, Susan & Dyan. We were talking about the kids getting back-to-shool blessings and Amie said she thought she needed one for being so excited! She was feeling guilty for being so excited her kids were back in school. I LOVE it!! Well, I'm right there with ya sister! So far they are all happy with their teachers and loving it!

Josh was a little nervous about his first few days of Jr. High. He came home the first day and informed me that he had already lost his planner. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Not to worry though, he found it the next day. He loves Jr. High! I think being able to get up and change teachers and walk around every hour is a good thing for him. He is in Beginning Band and has decided to play the tuba. So now we have this ginormous piece of metal in the front room that looks like it was drug behind a car from here to Disneyland! It dosen't sound much better either. That's one concert I'm already dreading! The things we do in support of our kids!?!

So what, do you ask, am I doing with all of my precious "free time"? Well, I am one of Weber State University's newest returning "Non-traditional" students! That just means your old. I'm still kind of scratching my head wondering to myself, "What were you thinking?" But at the same time it is exciting! Right now I am working on my generals with the hopes of being accepted into the Diagnostic Medical Sonography (Echo)Program next fall. It seems that life just gets more and more expensive! I love working in the hospital but know I am more capable than answering phones. I do not want to be a nurse for more reasons than I can count. I have a good friend who is an Echo Tech and started talking to her about her job and was able to go spend a day seeing what they actually do. Ultrasounds are done on the heart and other arteries and veins for many diagnostic purposes. It seems like the perfect fit for me! As I have moved forward with my plan it seems that everything has just fallen into place.

Right now I am taking Eng. 2010, Sociology 1010 & Chemistry 1010 (online) I go to class on Tues. & Thurs. morning from 7:00-9:45 and then go straight to work at 10:00. Tues. I work until 10:00 pm (12 hrs) so that is my long day! Thurs. I only work until 2:00. I am also still working Mon. 2-10. So needless to say I have to use my time wisely to fit in homework, family, scouts, v.t., laundry, etc. If I get into the echo program I will start that next Aug. and grad. Dec. 2010. It will be along haul but I think it will be worth it! I just have to take it one day at a time or it seems a bit overwhelming. It is exciting to finally figure out what you want to be when you grow up! I am so lucky to have such a great husband who is so supportive and excited about me going back to school! It has also been fun to sit and do homework with the kids. If nothing else maybe they will see that you're never too old to learn! I just need to send a disclaimer to Amanda's teacher that I am not responsible for what she wears or what her hair looks like on Tues. & Thurs.:) So just say a little prayer for my sanity!

B.T.S.N.!!!

2008-08-21T10:19:00.005-06:00

My favorite commercial of ALL time! We had Back to School Night at the elementary on Tues. and the Jr. High on Wed. Tuesday night we were able to meet the two new teachers that Amanda and Lukas have. They seem to be very nice and come to our school with alot of experience. Lukas teacher has paticipated in the International Space Camp and has taught school for 20 yrs. She said she gets extra funding from NASA for her class so they might get a few "extras" throughout the year. She had her flight suit hanging on her wall. I was very impressed! We ate pizza and watched Amy B. suffer through being introduced as the new PTA Prez! She will do a fabulous job!! They had the blow-up jumper thing and the huge slide. Josh said he went down the slide and landed in a puddle of sweat!?! They all said the slide reaked. But it was great to see everyone from the community!

Yesterday we spent 2 hrs. @ the 7th grd. orientation and then 2 hrs. later at Back to School Night @ the Jr. High. It's interesting how different your perspective is on the whole experience as a parent rather than a student! Josh was able to find all his classes and open his locker. The rest will work out itself!! It was a whole differnt experience meeting his teachers as the night before. At the elementary the teachers are like, "Hi! What's you're name? I'm so terribly thrilled out of my living mind to have you in my wonderful, exciting warm fuzzy class room." Then you go to the Jr. High and you get, "Hi. My name was on the door as you came in. Who is here for Pre-Al? good. You might want to bring a pencil to write with and some paper. I don't care what kind. If you parents want to know what's going on in class look at the website. This will probably be the last time we converse in person as I only deal with you through email. Thank you. Goodbye." Okay, it wasn't that extreme, but darn close. It's just a whole new world! I am positivley optimistic that it will be a good experience for us & Josh! Only 4 more days and counting!!!

Teenager in the house!

2008-08-18T11:31:00.008-06:00

Well, it's official! We now have a teenager in the house!! Josh turned 13 this past Sat. I can't believe it! How did this happen? He had a great b-day! He requested breakfast burritos for b.f. Half of the family won't eat them so I don't make them very often but he enjoyed them! We decided several years ago that we wouldn't let our kids watch PG-13 movies until they are 13. So guess what he wanted to do all day!?! He and Joe watched a few movies and then Joe & I took him out later that day. He got the iPod he wanted and Grandma & Grandpa came down in the morning and he got some great school clothes! Lastnight we had invited the family over for cake and ice cream and had an incredible turn out! I think we had 22 people here! It was so great and really made Josh feel special! Thanx to everyone for taking the time to come. Josh also got a call from his Grandpa in Lousianna. What a lucky to kid to have so many people who care about him!

We went to the Jr. High to pick up his class schedule last week. That was a new experience. Just a note for anyone doing this in the future...they really won't let you have your son's class schedule if your immunizations are not current. OOPS! I remember getting the note last spring but never did anything about it! So we flew to the Health Dept in record time, got his Tetnas booster and made it back in time to pick up his schedule and find his locker. PHEW! He gets to go this week to 7th grade orientation then back-to-school night. Hopefully after all that he will feel a little more confident about finding his classes. I realized that out of the 10 teachers my kids will have this year I only know 1 of them. Lukas & Amanda are both getting brand new teachers at the elementary. It won't be long now!!!

Josh is such a great kid and I really don't worry too much about him being a teeager. Besides he promised Joe & I that he wouldn't loose his mind! He is such a great help at home and has an amazing testimony. What more can a mom ask for? Love ya bud!

And the winner is.....

2008-08-11T12:37:00.003-06:00

For all of you who participated in my Top 10 Favorite from the new catalog I just want to say THANK YOU! It was so fun to see everyone's favorite pieces! It helps me to know what pieces you want to see at a show! I just realized I am a day late in posting this. For some reason I had it stuck in my head that the 10th was Monday! Sorry!!

So I wrote all your names on slips of paper and had my husband draw one out and the winner is......ABBY SHELLEY!!! Congratulations! She will be getting the Swoon Earrings (pg. 18) for FREE!!!

Here is her Top 10 list:
1. Swoon earring
2. Spinnaker Bracelet pg. 18
3. Spinnaker Slide pg. 18
4. Upscale Slide pg. 19
5. Mesmerize Bracelet pg. 19
6. Abracadabra Slide pg. 20
7. Outlaw Earrings pg. 28
8. Outlaw Necklace pg. 28
9. Cherry Bomb Necklace pg. 29
10. Jinx Cuff Bracelet pg. 43

YEAH!!! Thanx again for everyone's participation! I will getting all of your gift certificates to you soon! If you would like to place an order just remind me of your GC! Have a great Monday!

Soccer, soccer & more soccer!

2008-08-08T22:26:00.005-06:00

Last weekend Lukas' team participated in a soccer tournament in Park City. It was so much fun! We had games scheduled Thurs. & 10:30 & Fri. @ 8:30 & 4:30. We didn't know if we would play on Sat. until we knew our standing after the first three games. As it turned out we won our first game 8-0, tied the second game 2-2 & won the third game 12-0. This put us in first place in our bracket!!! The boys played soooo great! So Sat. morning we played and won and then we played again at 4:30 for the U12 championship. Unfortunatley we lost that game 3-1. But who can complain about second place? We were soooo proud of them!!! They did such a good job! This is the best we have ever done in a tournament! It was so well organized and the fields were great! The boys were given a very kool medal for second place!

I am so thankful for Lukas' coach, Bob Stoor. He is so good with the boys. During the games he dosen't scream like a maniac on the side lines and he has taught the boys good sportsmanship. Whenever a player on the other team got hurt our team would automatically take a knee until the player either left the field or was okay to continue playing. Bob even had our boys kick the ball out of bounds when one of the other players got hurt. Our boys also play a very 'clean' game where other teams use alot of aggression and elbows to gain the advantage. No matter the score, our boys are always winners!

We stayed overnight in Park City Thurs. night at a condo and the kids had fun swimming. I took all 4 kids school clothes shopping at the outlets on Thurs. At first I thought, "What am I thinking?" But they were all great and we actually had alot of fun. That is a first experience for them. In all the years past I have just gone and bought their clothes and said, "Suprise!" While the other three wouldn't mind me still doing that, Josh wanted to pick out his own this year. It must be the teenager coming out in him. It was fun though! We had a great weekend together! What more can you ask for? We are looking forward to another tournament next week!

p.s. I will post some pics tomorrow or Sun. I'm too tired tonight!

Breaking Dawn

2008-08-08T22:18:00.003-06:00

No, I didn't stand in any crazy lines @ midnight last Friday night or dress up. I walked into Walmart on Sat. morning @ 8:00 am, picked it up off a palette of about 200 books, payed for it and walked out. I finished it Wed. @ about 4:00 p.m.

I don't want to give anything away for those who are still reading, but WOW! I love a book that can throw me a curve ball that I don't see coming for 3 chapters before hand! This one definatley did with J & R. If you've read it you'll know what I mean! Didn't see it comin'!

All I have to say is that I was not disappointed and I can't wait for the movie!!! Happy reading!!

Dark Knight a little too dark

2008-07-30T08:09:00.002-06:00

The Dark Knight gets two ** stars from me. It was a little too dark, a little too violent and ALOT too long. I thought it was kind of freaky watching Heath Ledger knowing this movie basically killed him. Save your money! I left not even knowing who won...good or evil?

Awesome costumes Elena & Cassie!

A dream comes true

2008-07-28T07:58:00.005-06:00

My crazy sister-in-law, Gwen, is fulfilling a lifetime dream of going to Egypt. She went with her best friend, Pat, and her daughter, Meg. Their trip has actually encompassed Rome, Greece and Egypt and has been an adventure since Day 1. I don't think I could do it. There dosen't seem to be alot of shade there. I can't wait to hear all the details! Here are a few pics and an excerpt from one of her emails.

There are no words to describe our experience here in Egypt!! I have read many books, watched countless videos, and taught this stuff for years, but to actually be there and see it first hand-it has been one of the most thrilling experiences of my life. We went to the Pyramids of Giza, which were stunning. Meg and I went inside one of them, which has an entry about 3 feet tall. We decended 50 yds down steps in a tiny hallway, then probably that far going up stairs to the chamber which held the mummy's sarcoficus. I was handling the Pyramids, the camels, gathering sand, everything until we got to the Sphinx. I was so overtaken, tears just flowed down my cheeks. I felt foolish, but I was so grateful to be there and for this opportunity, I couldn't control my emotions. Then to top it all off, we rode a camel over to the pyramids, and had pictures taken. I could die today and be happy!!

We are totally exhausted. Meg told me that she thought this was going to be a nice relaxing trip with the "Grandmas". She renamed it...."BootCamp Vacationing", I think it is appropriate and I'd better hit the bunk!!

What do you remember about me?

2008-07-27T22:42:00.001-06:00

Tag you're it!!!

1. Comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.

Syncronized Treadmills

2008-07-25T20:40:00.005-06:00

This treadmill workout is not for the faint of heart. Warning: For all of you who have 8 treadmills in your basement (and tin foil on your walls) DO NOT try this at home, especially you, Robyn. :)

Newest member of the family

2008-07-23T09:19:00.003-06:00

Congrats to our nephew Kevan and Robyn and their new baby girl, Ashlyn Larue Cox! She was born Saturday morning @ 9:52 a.m. and weighed 6 lbs. 5 oz. and is 18 1/2" long. Robyn had toxemia and they had to take the baby 6 wks. early. We were all worried she would have to spend some time in NICU but she came out PERFECT! The only bummer part is that her Grandma, Gwen, is trapsing through Rome, Greec and Egypt right now and missed the grand arrival!

Kids say the darndest things...

2008-07-23T09:07:00.002-06:00

Monday morning I was at the computer (my favorite place to be) and Noah had just woke up. I asked him to take J.C. out to go potty. Noah was still only in his boxers. So he gets her leash on and heads to the back sliding door and after looking outside says, "Mom, it's raining." I explained that didn't change the fact that J.C. needed to be taken out. He stood there for a moment and then asked, "Mom, do you have a hat?" I turned around and looked at him from head to toe and just bust out laughing! What a kid!

Our first Scout Camp

2008-07-23T08:46:00.002-06:00

Josha went to scout camp for his first time last week. He left on Monday and returned on Saturday. They went to Camp Hunt @ Bear Lake. It was wierd to have him gone that long. That was his longest trip from home. There were only 2 other scouts from our troop who went also. Three deacons. I felt kind of bad for Josh because these are not boys he hangs out with. (not that there are any boys in our ward he hangs out with as there are none his age!?!) But they had planned the High Adventure activity the same week so the older boys and most of the Y.M. leaders were involved in that. I couldn't help but to think back at Girl's Camp and what a great bonding experience that was between ALL the girls and leaders. It would have been a bummer to only go with the Beehives and the camp director. I hope there is some better planning next year!

Josh had a great time and quickly made friends from other troops. He earned his first merit badge and is close to several more. Joe went up Wed. morning and stayed unitl Thurs. morning. The last thing I told him before he walked out the door was to remember his sleeping bag. Guess what he forgot? So needless to say he had a pretty cold, miserable night under Joshua's towel. Isn't the Boy Scout motto: "Be Prepared"? Just wondering. Josh begged Joe to stay. If it hadn't been for a meeting he had to be to, and no sleeping bag, he probably would have. When Josh came home he said he cried himself to sleep that night because he was so homesick. I was proud of him for sticking it out! He has too much of his dear ole' Mom in him!

When he came home Sat. morning I was home alone preparing a lesson I had to give Sunday. It was great to see him. Every time he goes a little longer and comes back a little taller. I was very proud of him and it was nice to have him all to myself and hear about all of his adventures. He was glad he went and was thankful for Chris Casey for taking the time to take 3 deacons to scout camp. Thanx Chris!!

Summer Fun

2008-07-21T07:29:00.009-06:00

Well once again I have to do some catching up. Life has just been far too busy to sit down and document it all. Not to mention it's like Baskin Robbins here and you have to take a number and stand in line to get any time on the computer. Even Amanda has joined the ranks! I WANT A LAPTOP!!!!
07.10.08 Camp Kiesel
Jamie & I were able to take our boys to Camp Kiesel. It was a fun day! We had preordered t-shirts for the boys that has our troop # on the sleeve. So now they can wear those to Den meetings rather than wear thir $100 uniform every time. They were all exicted to be there. They were able to learn about Indian lore, light fires with flint & steel, shoot bb guns and bow and arrows, tie knots, make a boondogle craft, obstacle course and go out in row boats. It was a great time! Josh went with us as he is our Den Chief. He was a great help! The boys were able to pass off alot of things. Josh looks forward the turning 14 because he wants to work there in the summer. He had met some friends @ Scout-O-Rama who were on staff there and they remembered him. He was definatley enjoying his "celebrity status". It was a great day! Noah & his buddy, Logan, at the BB gun range The whole gang! What a cute boy! I love my boys!!

07.16.08 Cherry Hills
IHC had our company picnic at Cherry Hills this year. Grandma and Brynlee went with us since Dad and Josh were at Scout camp. It was alot of fun. We also hung out with Heather and Sue.(her mother-in-law to be) The kids had a great time. They swam, played in the Lazy River, rode the Rapids & played mini golf. IHC also had a BBQ and served hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, pasta salad, Fat Boys & drinks. It was a great spread. And the best part...it was all FREE! Thank you IHC!
Ahoy Mates!!

Silly girls!

The Semi-Annual Sale of the Century!!!

2008-07-11T22:20:00.005-06:00

Calling all lovers of LIA SOPHIA!! It is time for the wonderful Semi-Annual Sale in preparation for the new catalog! This is the BEST sale that you will ever see! It's time to get those pieces that you have been eyeing since this amazing catalog arrived in February! Many of them will be discontinued by the end of the month! Here are the sale details:

Buy 1 item of your choice at full price (your least expensive item) and receive 4 items of your choice 50% off! Then you will receive a FREE pair of stud earrings of your choice found on page 42(F).

This is a great month to host a show! No one can pass up the opportunity to get 4 pieces at half price!! I still have a few dates available. If you want to place an order for yourself you can contact me via cell phone, home phone, work phone, email, blog, text, carrier pigeon, smoke signals or singing telegram. I will be placing an order on July 25th. If you need a catalog I would be happy to provide you with one!

I can also give you a SNEAK PEAK at the new catalog making it's debut next month! I had to put a plastic cover on it as the girls at work were drooling over it! hehe! It has some amazing pieces, as usual! DON'T MISS OUT!!!!

Catching Up

2008-07-09T20:19:00.013-06:00

A few weekends ago we took the kids to Spring City again for the weekend. We left Friday and made a stop at Seven Peaks. Sorry, no pics. We were having too much fun to take any! The boys had a great time on all the slides and Amanda loved the lazy river and wave pool. It was a great way to beat the heat!

We drove to Spring City that night and the kids were glad to be back! The next day was just a lazy day. We just hung out, read books and played games. Later that night we left for the "Mormon Miracle Pageant". We were there before they opend the gates so we had pretty good seats. We walked back into town to a little burger place and had dinner. We walked back to the temple grounds and waited for the show to start. The cast members came down and mingled through the crowd before it started and Amanda wanted her pic taken with all of them! The weather was perfect and it was a cool summer night!

The pageant was great. The kids had never seen it before. When we were waiting for traffic afterwards Joe was asking them how they liked it.

joe: what was your favorite part?
josh: the battle scenes were really cool!
lukas: Captain Moroni
amanda: I THOUGHT THE TEMPLE WAS GOING TO BURN DOWN! (when the volcano erupted)
noah: no respons
joe: noah? what was your favorite part?
noah: the end.
joe: oh the end where the angels were all dressed in white and singing?
noah: no. the end when we got to leave!

Nothing like brutal honesty! We were laughing so hard. I hadn't been for a long time and had kind of forgot that it is more suited for the older kids. The verbage they use is kind of over the little one's heads and it is 90 min. long with no intermission. But all in all it was a great weekend! Thank you again to Aunt Lynda for letting us share in her little piece of paradise!
Playing Golf with the head monkey!

This will really give away my domestic skills but I made waffles (successfully) for the first time. We were given a $2 D.I. waffle iron when we were first married and it was a piece of hud. So I found one in the kitchen and tried it out. My kids were soooo amazed! They thought waffles only came in the frozen form in boxes!

Monkey see, monkey do

Here's something you don't see everyday...a Lifeflight helicopter in a cemetary. I think they're a little late!

Goofball!

How many times do you have to take a pic to get the right one?
One

Two

Three

I love to see the temple!

Practice Makes Perfect

2008-07-06T09:27:00.003-06:00

Well this is my first attempt to design my own blog layout. Kind of fun!!! Now that I kind of understand the process I can work on getting the sizing right. Stay tuned for more fun blog backgrounds to come!

Happy Birthday Scooby!

2008-07-03T16:20:00.005-06:00

Yesterday was Noah's brithday and he turned nine!! He was very excited for his BIG day! We are so lucky to have Noah in our family! He has such a big, tender heart. No matter what he always gives me a big hug and kiss whenever either of us are going anywhere without each other. I hope that never changes! For his birthday last year Noah got J.C., his dog. He loves her so much and takes such good care of her. They are best friends. He finds her first thing every morning for lots of hugs and kisses. He is a joy to have in our family! I love you Scooby!

Wiggling Ears

2008-07-03T15:36:00.000-06:00

The Big Fix

2008-06-29T09:45:00.006-06:00

The Big Fix came to town and J.C. is now officially an "IT!" The Big Fix is a big bus that comes around from town to town and does on-sight spay and neutering of cats and dogs for a nominal fee. They also do shots. It was only $55 to have her fixed which is atleast half of what a vet would charge. They were very kind and professional and I would recommend them to anyone. You can go to their website and get all the info and see the schedule. You have to schedule and appt. and they go very quickly! They can only do so many at each stop so call now if you are interested. http://www.utahpets.org/spay.html#02
When we arrived she was fine and just checking out the other animals. Then when they tried to take her from me she about ate the guy for lunch. He promptly brought me a muzzle to put on her and away she went.
When we picked her up later that day she was not happy with us at all. Noah was crusehd because she just sat in the backseat and looked out the window and didn't even acknowledge him, which is NOT normal for her. When we got home she just curled up and slept for a long time. She just wanted to be in someones lap after that. She was almost back to normal the next day. Noah was proud of himself because he figured out how to get her to take her pain pills. He would wrap them in a piece of turkey and feed them to her. He was very concerned for his puppy but she is doing great! I'm just glad I don't have to worry about PUPPIES!!
A little T.L.C. from Noah!

Amanda shared Sniffy with her so she would feel better!

When life hands you lemons...

2008-06-17T23:55:00.007-06:00

Heather was able to come home from the hospital last Saturday, on her wedding day. Alot of family and friends had already made plans to come into town for the wedding that couldn't be changed so they decided to have a BBQ. We were all just glad that she is okay and on the mend. After a while my Dad noticed that Corey was missing and asked Heather where he was. She said she didn't know. Just then her niece appeared with a bouquet of shasta daisies (her fav) and handed them to her. Heather asked, "Who are these from?" Then Corey came around the corner in his tux, knelt down at her side and asked, "Heather will you marry me, again?" He then gave her her ring back that had been taken off in the e.r. How romanitic is that? What a dang cool guy!! He is such a doll! Heather is a very lucky girl! So I just thought I would share that with y'all!
"Heather, will you marry me, again?"

How cute are they?

Heather and Grandma!

The happy couple!!
Have you ever seen a more beautiful bride?

By the way, she said, "YES!!!"

Heather Update

2008-06-13T14:34:00.004-06:00

Heather was finally taken to surgery on Tuesday around 1:30 p.m. They put a rod in her leg and pins and screws in her arm. They were not able to get on top of the pain until Wed. She was told she could go home on Friday but an xray Wed. morning told them that she still has a leak in her lung and they will not be able to remove the chest tube and let her go home until atleast Sat., her wedding day.

Heather and Corey have decided to postpone the wedding. Heather said the clincher was realizing that she wouldn't be able to dance with her Dad or Corey if they went ahead with the plans. I think she will be happy with her decision.

She is in good spirits and putting on a brave face. Corey is a sweetheart and has been at her side nearly 24/7. They are such good, kind, responsible, caring kids. We all love them so much!

Prayers for Heather

2008-06-10T09:41:00.003-06:00

Yesterday I was at work and I got a phone call from my Mom that my niece, Heather had been in a car accident. It happened on Hwy. 89 in Harrisville at the intersection near where the North Star drive-in used to be. A lady turned left on a red light and hit Heather head on. It took them quite a while to get her out of the car due to her injuries. They took her to McKay where we found out that her right leg and wrist are severly fractured. They were going to sedate her in the e.r. to set them but then they realized she had a collapsed lung as well. After another MRI and CAT scan they knew she did not have any other internal injuires. She was taken to a room late lastnight and is awaiting surgery later today. They will have to opperate on both her leg and wrist. She is in alot of pain right now but is being brave. She is 20 yrs. old and the cutest, sweetest girl you could ever meet! The heartbreak of all of this is that she is suppost to be married this Saturday. Lstnight she said she WILL get married on Sat. even if it is in her hospital bed!

We are all just thankful that she is alive and well. So far all her injuries are fixable. My poor brother (her dad) is on vacation with his wife and they can't get here until 11:30 tonight. I can't imagine his anguish in being so far away. Heather is definatley a "Daddy's Girl" and he is all she has asked for.

If you read this please send a little prayer her way! Also, be safe and drive careful! Life can change in an instant!

Rave Revues!

2008-06-08T20:55:00.003-06:00

Amanda just finished her first "year" of dance. She took ballet and tap. She had practice every Tuesday and worked very hard to learn her dances! She had a dress rehersal last Wed. and then Friday was her big night! The Revue was held at the Browning Center @ Weber State. Amanda's group did two dances. Thier ballet dance was called "Tantrum". They got to throw a tantrum in their dance. They were laying on the floor shaking their heads, kicking their feet and banging the floor with their hands. It was really cute!

Her tap dance was to "Singin' in the Shower". They wore towels and shower caps. They also held a shower head that they used as a microphone. It was very cute!

We stayed and watched the whole show and it was great! They did a whole "Hairspray" production at the end that was fabulous! I have been really impressed with this stuido. While this was Amanda's first experience with dance, it was also her last. She is done and wants to play soccer instead. What can I say? She's her mama's girl!! She did say that all the hard work was worth the pink roses that her Daddy gave to her! We were very proud of her!
Amanda in her "Tantrum" costume!

A star for a night!

Amanda's "Singin' in the Shower" costume. I couldn't get her to smile because she still wasn't sold on the whole shower cap idea!?!

After we got home Amanda went and got in our bed. I went up a few minutes later and she was OUT! She's all snuggled up with her best friend, Sniffy!

If I can figure out how to put the video of her dances on here I will. Does anyone know how to do that?

This is the house that Lynda built...

2008-06-01T18:13:00.008-06:00

Over Memorial Weekend we had the opportunity to go to Spring City. If you don't know where Sping City is, you're not alone! It is a little, blink-you-miss-it town just north of Manti. We went there with Mom and Dad. My Grandma, Aunt Lynda &
Aunt Susan were already there. We left Friday at about 6:30. It was about a 2 hr. drive. We also took J.C., our dog. Mom & Dad took their trailor and 4-wheelers. Ten years ago my Aunt Lynda bought a little house that had been built by hand by my Great-Great Grandpa. The house had been abandoned and the north wall had fallen down. She hired a man who does restoration work for the church to restore it. It turned out beautiful. Now it is on the Historical Register of Utah. There are quite a few homes in Spring City that have been restored. Every Memorial weekend they open alot of the homes and you can tour through them. My Aunt had her home on the tour the first couple of years but it just too hard on my Grandma right now to open it up.

The house is so cute! It has all the modern amendities except t.v. & a telephone. Aunt Lynda also had a garage made the past couple of years so she could park inside and have more storage. It is really nice! Mom & Dad parked their trailor in the driveway and were able to plug into the garage. It was great! It is such a peaceful, quiet place to go. None of us wanted to come home on Monday! Joe & I have gone there a couple of times for a little getaway. We love it there!
L to R: Mom, Josh, Dad, Grandma Henderson, Aunt Lynda, Lukas, Aunt Susan
Front: Amanda, Noah

There is a little room upstairs that has two single beds. Lukas & Joe were up there playing Aunt Susan's Nintendo DS. They needed a little extra leg room;)

We went to the Spring City cemetery on Sunday to decorate family graves. My Aunt Lynda pointed out this one to us.

Orson Hyde had setteled and died in Spring City. We decided to do a little Geocashing while we were down there. The first one was found by my Mom right in the cemetery!

All the rest were found by Lukas. He is a Geocaching bird dog. We even told him to hang back and give someone else a chance. We all looked around for a while and then Joe looked at Lukas and he mouthed, "I found it." He felt bad. It was funny!

Dad had found a place up in the hills where the kids could drive the 4-wheelers so we took them up there Monday morning for a while before we had to leave. It was a great place and alot of fun! Amanda just screams the whole time she is riding. She loves to go fast!

Lukas was ready for inclement weather!

Joshua couldn't get enough!

Noah was loving it too!

Right as we were about to leave we had a huge hail storm. This is where it was sliding off the garage onto the ground. It was crazy!

On the way home we stopped in Nephi and put flowers on Grandma Rosie's (Joe's Mom) grave. We don't get down that way very often so it worked out great! We had a fabulous weekend with fabulous family! Thanx to everyone!

Scouts, scouts, scouts

2008-05-28T12:15:00.008-06:00

Our Wolf Den has been very busy the last couple of months passing off all our requirements to get our World Conservation Award and our Leave No Trace Award. The boys have been very excited about it! For our conservation project we went to the Nature Center and pulled Dyers Woad for them. The boys worked hard. We had to bag it up so they could dispose of it properly.

Mr. Noah digging away!

Our awesome Wolf Pack!!

Last week Jamie's Dad taught the boys about tools and helped them build an awesome bird house! He was so cute with them and they loved it!

They even got to make S'mores after we were all done! It was a great day and we accomplished sooooo much! Thank you, thank you Mr. Skeen for all your help!

Girl's Night Out

2008-05-19T08:46:00.004-06:00

Friday Joe was taking the boys to Scout-O-Rama so I decided to have a Girl's Night Out with Amanda. She was so excited when I told her! We left at 6:00 and went shopping at Justice. It is a cute store that only carries clothes for little girls. Amanda was in 7th heaven. She tried on a few things and finally settled on a cute pink dress and flip-flops that are silver with rhinestones on them. I was a little frustrated with that store because EVERYTHING was sleevless or tank top style. UUGH!

After that we went to the mall and had dinner at Chick-Fil-A. We were going to go see the new Narnia movie but she decided she would rather get some new Hannah Monatan make-up. So we stopped at Walmart on our way home.

We returned home around 9:00 and Amanda jumped in my bed and informed me that she would be sleeping with me. She said she wanted to watch High School Musical if it was on. I turned on the t.v. and guess what was just starting...HSM! I looked at her and asked, "How did you know this would be on?" She answered, "It's on every night Mom!" DUH!! So we watched it and had popcorn. It was a fun night! What a girl!

The next morning at 11:00 we went to find the boys at Scout-O-Rama becasue Noah had a soccer game at 12:45 that I hadn't discussed with Joe and his cell phone was dead. We finally found them and were talked into staying. We rode on the lake in the canoes, went on a Leave No Trace hike, walked on a monkey bridge, rode bicycles, tasted some yummy dutch oven peach cobbler and lots of other stuff!! They gave everyone one big patch for coming and then we were given a little patch to go under it at each station that we completed. It was cool. Noah was able to pass of 1 requirement, 14 electives and 2 belt loops. Noah enjoyed being with the big boys now that he is in scouts. They slept overnight on a tarp under the stars. The weather was perfect! Lukas was also able to pass off a buch of things for his Tenderfoot! I am thankful my boys have such a great Dad who will take them to these things and be so excited about it!

We went home and cleaned up a bit and then Grandma made the mistake of telling the kids that their pool was open. So we went there at around 5:30 and they all took the first Polar Plunge of the season. The water was only 54 degrees! They would jump in and then come up gasping for breath. Joe even joined in the fun. I said, "NO THANX!" It was a fun day together!

To sit at the feet of a prophet...

2008-05-05T12:15:00.011-06:00

It was my privilege to attend Women's Conference at BYU last week. Classes were held all day Thurs. & Fri. It was announced on Wed. that the concluding speaker would be our new prophet, Thomas S. Monson. I went with friends Robyn & Susan and we had a fabulous time!!! On Friday Susan & I camped out all day on those wonderful plastic chairs in the Marriott Center so that we could have the best seats possible for Pres. Monson's talk. It was worth it! There were about 20,000 women there and as Pres. Monson entered the room it was immediatley silent and everyone stood. He made his way, behind his wife, to the stand. As he did everyone spontaneously started singing "We Thank Thee Oh God for a Prophet". It was very moving.

Later when I was relating the experience to Joe he commented on the press coverage he had seen recently when the Pope visited the States. He said that as his car drove down the street people were jumping and screaming in histerics like you would see at a rock concert. To contrast that to the reverence and respect shown to our prophet is a stark comparison.

His message was inspiring and the Spirit was undeniable. How thankful I am to KNOW that we have a living prophet who leads the church of Jesus Christ. To literally sit at the feet of a prophet and be taught is a privilege I will never pass up.

Although Women's Conf. was Thurs. & Fri. we left on Wed. morning and stopped by Good Things Utah on the way down. After going with my Mom a few weeks ago Robyn & Susan said it looked like fun. It was fun and we came away with some faboulous swag!!! We were given a cute green box that had a small pkg. of black licorice carmels that were very yummy (Robyn's didn't make it out of the parking lot), some cute chip board letters from Robert's Craft, a bag of Don Jullio chips and a beautiful lap quilt done in pink and browns! We couldn't believe they gave us all a quilt. It was a company called "My Quilter Girl" where you can go online and choose the fabrics and design of a quilt and they will make it for you. Their website is www.myquiltergirl.com. It was amazing!! It was like Christmas!! Then we got to take some pics with the girls. It was fun!

Our great gifts!!

The rest of the day was spent eating, shopping, eating, playing cards and more eating! We stayed with Susan's mom who lives only 1 ml. from campus. Wilma was such a gracious host and insisted on Robyn & I sleeping in her bed! She was so cute! It was fun to get to know Susan better! She had a lot of great tips and ideas on how to be more HAPPY!! I have not laughed so much in a very, very long time. There is something completley magical and theraputic about a "Girlfriends Getaway". It had been a looooong time since I have had one and it was three days of pure joy. I feel very blessed to have friends that I can laugh with, joke with and have incredible spiritual experiences with. I will forever be a better person for their friendships! Until next year, Thunder & Flossi, keep the faith!
p.s. Sister Braegger, next year we're not taking no for an answer!! We have a roll of duct tape and we're not afraid to use it!!

A New Frontier

2008-04-24T17:19:00.005-06:00

For a long time now I have been wanting to learn how to do digital scrapbooking. I didn't even really understand the whole concept and definatley didn't have any idea where to even begin. About a year ago my visiting teacher, Sister Phyllis White told me that her daughter did digi scrapbooking. But the timing wasn't right and for whatever reason we never hooked up. Well, now the time is right. I was talking to her again and mentioned that I still wanted to learn how and she told me to go to Susie's blog and send her a message. So I did. Last Friday I spent three hours being taught by Master Yoda. My brain felt like a big sponge trying to absorb and soak in every keystoke, mouse click and verbal as well as written instructions!! I think I absorbed it all it's just that my 'download' function isn't all that great! I couldn't wait to get home and try it out for myself! By Sunday morning I had created my first two pages and it didn't require dragging out one bit of scrapbook paper, stamps, pads, eyelets, hole punches, pictures, scissors, paper cutter, ribbon, glue, glue dots, double-sided tape, chip board, stickers, hammer...I think you get the idea.

Although I am still in the "Aniken" stage I am soooooo excited about learning something new! I don't think I could ever give up the paper scrapping 100%. I still enjoy doing cards for my card exchange and other crafts, but as far as scrapbooking, I'm sold!!!

Thank you, thank you, thank you to Master Yoda(Susie)!! She is amazing!! You have to check out her incredible work on her blog. (there is a link to it on the right side under 'my peeps') I can't wait to learn more!! Here are my fist two attempts at digi scrapping! Enjoy!!

Geocaching 101

2008-04-20T08:42:00.005-06:00

Geocaching: Geocaching is an entertaining adventure game for gps users. Participating in a cache hunt is a good way to take advantage of the wonderful features and capability of a gps unit. The basic idea is to have individuals and organizations set up caches all over the world and share the locations of these caches on the internet. GPS users can then use the location coordinates to find the caches. Once found, a cache may provide the visitor with a wide variety of rewards. All the visitor is asked to do is if they get something they should try to leave something for the cache.

Last weekend Joe borrowed a gps from one of his friends from work. We had been wanting to try out 'geocaching'. Geocaching is basically a modern day treasure hunt. You use a gps so find different 'caches' that people have hid. A cache is just a waterproof container that holds a small logbook, pencil and small trinkets of no value or significance. When you find a cache you sign the log book, date it and write what you are taking/leaving. For example, at one cache we took a matchbox car and left an earser. You find these caches through the gps coordinates that are listed on geocaching.com. After someone hides a cache they log it onto this website and then you can email them to let them know you found it.

We had a BLAST! The gps gets you within 20-30 ft. of the cache so once you are close you just have to start looking around. We found them under logs, groundcover, hanging in trees and even in the top of a fence post! We took a soccer ball stamp and stamped the log books with it. The kids took turns holding the gps and being the navigator. It was a great lesson for them in compass orienteering. There has to be some merit badge or belt loop we could pass off for this?!? Now we are trying to decide where we want to hide our family cache. We have several locations in mind.

Our adventures last Sat. took us from Barker's Trout Farm to Huntsville, to Weber State to The Tree House Museum to The Ogden River Parkway. Here are a few pics from our day!

Bingo!!

Yesterday we had a family Spring Fling party at Mom & Dad's. Dad & Joe put together a scavenger hunt that we all did with the gps. We divided the family into two teams and we each had a gps and a list of 20 coordinates and we had 1 hr. to get as many as we could. It ended up being the girls against the boys. We all went in Aunt Lynda's van. It was Susan, Lynda, Mom, Karlee, Erin, Amanda and myself. Joe also came with us. We ended up finding 7 of them. They were all within 1/2 ml of Mom & Dad's house. Aunt Lynda was really getting into the spirit of the race. She was flying through our subdivision at moch speed! It was hilarious! The guys ended up finding 7 also so it was a tie. But it was alot of FUN!!! Thanx Joe and Dad!

PINK GIRL POWER!!!!!

2008-04-17T08:35:00.005-06:00

SHE DID IT!!! Ali is the first girl to ever win The Biggest Looser! I have to say I was a bit nervous when Roger came out! He looked incredible! But Ali reigned supreme! What a stud! IT CAN BE DONE!!!! SEE, DO, CONQUER!!

Happy Birthday Mom!

2008-04-15T08:38:00.007-06:00

My Mom's birthday was Sunday! HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!! The celebrating started on Thursday. I decided to take her to the live taping of a local morning talk-show called Good Things Utah. It is a fun show hosted by 4 cute ladies and they talk about and cover local(and some national) happenings and events. So we went down and got to sit in the studio audience. It was so fun to have that birds-eye view and see how they do everything. They asked before it started if it was anyones birthday and I told them it was Mom's. At the end of the show they have a little shout-out for birthdays so they showed her on the camera for about 2.4 seconds. If you blinked you missed it. But we got our 2.4 seconds of fame! Then after it was all done we were able to take pictures with Reagan, Marty, Angie and Neisha. They were so nice, cute and friendly. They wished Mom a Happy Birthday. When I told them to guess her age they all decided on 47. When I told them she was turning 65 they all about died!!! Especially when I added that she dosen't dye her hair! They were alot of fun!

We then headed back home and met Joe at lunch at The Olive Garden. YUM!!! It was a fun day of doing something different! Hope you had a great b-day Mom! We love you!
Getting ready for the show!

The set

We fit right in!!

What would Ali do?

2008-04-09T13:44:00.004-06:00

While I readily admit and accept the fact that I am somewhat of a reality t.v. junkie, this season of The Biggest Looser has blown me away! I was about to give up on this show because I don't think it's fair that they have a compitition between men and women to loose weight. Anyone on the planet who has ever tried to loose weight knows that women loose weight differently than men. All Joe has to do is cut out pop and reduce his portions and he drops 20 lbs. in 3 weeks. I on the other hand am busting my can at the gym every morning, playing soccer and "half-heartedly " doing Weight Watchers and I gain. Someday, in my world, not only will it rain every other day but women will be whatever weight they desire and still be able to eat what they want!!!

Back to the original subject....I was about to turn my back on The Biggest Looser forever when low and behold, Ali and Kelli blow the men out of the water!!!! YAHOO!!! Joe and I were watching lastnights episode until midnight lastnight because I had to work until 10:00! We couldn't believe it! There are 2 men and 2 women left and they had their last weigh in before going home and the finale next week. The two who lost the least percent of weight are up for elimination and only one will go to the finale. Well Roger weighs in first and drops 15 lbs. to set a new B.L. record for the most amount of weight to be lost on the ranch! At that point everyone is thinking the girls don't stand a chance! Then Mark drops 12 lbs. as well! That was the nail in the coffin! But then Ali drops 11 lbs!!!! I about died! She has lost 99 lbs! (a record for the most weight lost by a woman) Then they tell Kelli that she has to have lost atleast 13 lbs to be safe from elimination. She gets on the scale and she lost 13 lbs!!!! I about died!!! So both women lost more (%) than the men so one of them is out! Now all of America gets to vote who will get to go to the final. I voted for Roger because although he has more to weight to loose than Mark, I think he is less motivated. Also, Mark already got his second chance. I think the girls have the best chance against Roger. We'll see next week!

Ali is amazing! She is so inspiring! I want to print this picture and paste it where I will see it a million times a day! You would think that I could loose 30 lbs. if she could loose 99!!! Although I was up until midnight lastnight I still got up and went to the gym at 5:30 for the step class. I just thought....What would Ali do? My new mantra.....What would Ali do?

Six Years and Counting!

2008-04-06T18:48:00.006-06:00

I can't believe it has already been six years since Amanda came to our family! She informed me the other day that she is going to skip her 6th birthday and just go straight to seven!?! Next she would skip eight and go straight to eighteen! She is ALL girl and has added alot of sugar and spice to all of our lives! Amanda, we love you and are so thankful that you are part of our family! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

Princess Night Out

2008-03-17T08:44:00.007-06:00

Friday night was Princess Night Out! Since the Barkers have the Annual Disney on Ice newspaper coloring contest rigged (jk) both Erica and Preston won tickets to Princess on Ice. Thinking that Preston wouldn't be very interesting in skating Princess Amanda & I were invited to go with them.

We left around 4:15 so we could get to Salt Lake and get the tickets early. We then went and had dinner at Crown Burger. Robyn and I really had to scratch our heads and wonder where we have gone wrong. Hardley any of the kids touched their french fries!?! What is up with that? I know we have discussed several times in FHE that french fries are an essential food group all of their own! We NEVER leave fries on our plate! Especially when you have the option of the best fry sauce that has ever come out of the Beehive State! And yet, as we surveyed the damage after the feeding frenzy was over, there were enough fries left on the table to feed a third world country. What up? So they kept bringing all the unwanted fries to our table. I'm pretty sure I ate 3 days worth of Weight Watcher points in fries that night!

We left the car at Crown Burger and walked over to the Delta Center or the Energy Problem Solving Place or whatever it is!?! We still had time to kill before they would open the doors so we took some pics and the girls played Red Light, Green Light.

Crazy Princess!

They finally opened the doors and we were able to go inside. We had awesome seats on the 12th row. It was great! The only thing I hate about these events are the evil guys who walk by you 48 times trying to sale you a light up wand, crown or sword for a mere $72.00! Guaranteed to break withing 24 hours! Of course every time they pass by again your child raises the begging to the next level. By the time the show atarts there are kids everywhere in complete histarics. The only ones not in histarics are the kids of the suckers who gave in to the evil scam. I talked Amanda into a $10 waterbottle filled with lemonade and a $5 coloring book. I felt like that was a good compromise. I still had to deal with the occassional "Why can't I have those?" anytime the scam artists came within a 10 ft. range of our seats, but we made it until the show started! Amanda and Brynlee used Brynlee's cotton candy as a pillow between their seats.

The show was great! The costumes and special effects were very impressive! Thank you, thank you, thank you to the Barker's for inviting us along for a great night of fun!

While we were gone the boys also had a fun night together. Joe took them to see "College Road Trip" and they also hung out in Fat Cat's for a while. Fun, fun, fun!

No Excuse!

2008-03-11T14:55:00.005-06:00

Yesterday my friend Jamie asked me if her daughter, Chloey, could come play with Amanda before school and get on the bus with her because they had to attend a funeral. "Sure! No problem!" So she dropped her off around 10:45 am. The girls played and then we had some lunch and headed for the bus stop around 12:00. Once we arrived at the bus stop we waited and waited and waited. I thought, "Where is that dumb bus driver?" Mind you I have no valid reason for blaming the bus driver or thinking he is dumb. He is actually a very nice old man who waves at everyone every day and waits for the kids when they are running from 3 blocks away. Anywho....befuttled and frustrated I throw my hands in the air and decide that "somehow" we have missed the bus. So we scurry back home, load the girls in the car and run them over to school. They jump out and skip into class.

I then came home and walked over and talked to my neighbor who was cleaning out her garage. I scored two exercise mats and a mountain bike. We chatted for a while and then I came home, got ready for work and then left at about 1:20. I needed to be at work at 2:00 so I had oodles of time! About half way there I was on my cell phone when another call beeped in. When I looked at my caller i.d. I saw that it was the hospital. (my work) I thought, "Why are they calling me from work when I will be there in 5 min.?!?" Then I glanced at the clock in my car and my heart sank. IT SAID 2:37!!! What the......?!? How the freak did that happen?!? I looked at it again and then thought back on the morning wondering where I went wrong! I had set all my clocks ahead the day before! We had been on time for church, Joe to work, kids to school, etc! I wish I could find a valid reason why I was an hour behind, but I still have no excuse!!!

Apparantley I dropped the girls off an hour late for school. I called their teacher today to explain and she when she asked the girls where they had been they just said, "We missed the bus." YA THINK?!? She probably thought they had walked to school! She just laughed and thought it was funny. When Jamie asked Chloey about it she said it was "short day"! I have a feeling she is going to want to get on the bus with Amanda more often!

Share the Love of Jewelry

2008-03-11T14:37:00.003-06:00

Well as most of you know I became a Lia Sophia Advisor back in September 2007. So far it has been alot of FUN and is defiatley the easiest thing I have ever sold. LS treats their advisors very well and their Hostesses even better! I have added a link on the right side to the LS website where you can browse the new catalog that is full of FABULOUS jewelry! At the first of each month I will post the sale for that particular month here so you can watch for the things you really want! LS jewelry is ALWAYS on sale!

March Special: Buy any two items (least expensive), get the third item of your choice at 50% off and up to 3 pair of earrings for 50% off also.

This is a fabulous sale if you love earrings!! I am also looking for a "Few Good Hostesses"! If you call me and book a show in April I will give you your Hostess Bonus Item (anything in the catalog that is $100 or less) for FREE! All you have to do is email me a guest list and I do the rest! It couldn't be eaiser! Hosting your own show is a great way to get lots of FREE jewelry! CALL ME!

T.F.T.D. (thought for the day)

2008-03-06T15:47:00.001-07:00

Courtesy of one of my heros: Rhonna Farrer

Catch up time!

2008-02-22T09:36:00.022-07:00

The past two weeks have been non-stop insanity! So much has happened that I will just try to do a quick catch up on everything!

First and foremost I wanted to wish my Mom & Dad a Happy 47th Anniversary! Their Anniversary was on Feb. 17th but our computer died last weekend. Another reason for my behindedness! Anyway, 47 years if a freakin' long time!! I am just so thankful that I have two great parents that still love each other and have powered through the rough waters of marriage. We just have to enjoy the smooth sailin' when we get it! Thank you for your neverending example of patience, love, faith and fortitude! Here's to Eternal Famiies! They ROCK!!

DOG FOR SALE!! Last Friday afternoon Joe & I went and saw "Fool's Gold" for our Valentine date. The kids had beat us home by about 5 min. and when we pulled in the garage Noah came bolting out the door in a panic and said, "When you go inside you might, um, you will probably, um....scream." My mind is racing at this point as to what could have possibly gone wrong in the 5 min. they had been home!?! Well I forgot about the naughty toddler who stays home alone! JC! Apparently she wanted some of Lukas' birthday cake!
She knocked over the cake saver on the cupboard (amazingly the lid fell on the tile floor and did not break...yet)...

She had her feast of birthday cake all over the kitchen and then proceeded to push the glass lid down the stairs to the tile landing. The lid did not survive the fall and there was chocolate frosting and broken glass everywhere!
Crime Scene pics:

She also decided to help herself to Noah's valentines...

And then she tries to look all innocent...

I really hope she lives a long time because she is the first and last dog the Seward's will ever have! I never really wanted a dog but Joe insisted and it was the ONLY thing Noah asked for for his last b-day and guess who JC loves....ME! I don't get it! She is a love when she's not barking at me for attention or being naughty!

Saturday we took Lukas and his friends to the movie "Spiderwich Chronicles" for his birthday. We had a really fun time! Lukas has great friends!

Tuesday I hosted Bunco at my house and a little angel came and cleaned my house for me that day! Karey in in our ward and she is a sweetheart! She approached Joe before Valentines Day and told him that she wanted to come clean the house for me for his Valentines gift to me...for FREE! (she cleans houes as a PT job) She asked him which day would be best and he told her that it would be great if she could come the day that I host Bunco, so she did! It was such a stress reliever and just a unbelievably nice thing to do! Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Lastnight was our Blue & Gold Banquet for scouts. Joe is the Pack Committee Chair something or other and I am the Wolf den assistant(Noah's den). The theme was Chinese New Year so we had dinner catered by Eastern Winds and made dragon masks, paper lanterns and fortune cookie neckerchief slides. It was quite festive! Everyone put alot of work into it and it turned out great! Lukas got his Arrow of Light and crossed over to Boy Scouts. He was proud of himself! He did a great job! Thanx to all his leaders who helped him!

Noah's dragon mask...

Lukas receiving his Arrow of Light...

Lukas "crossing over" to Boy Scouts...

Lukas' biggest fans...

One of these things is not like the others...

And the best news of all is that JOE GOT A JOB!!! He is now a Project Manager for E.K. Bailey! We don't know alot of the details yet but we are thrilled! I feel like I have just finished running a 3 month marathon! Thank you so much to all our family and friends for all of your love, support, concern & prayers! We never could have survived this without YOU!! Prayers are answered. Miracled do happen!

My Valentine!!

2008-02-14T10:42:00.002-07:00

Pieces of Eternity
by Dayle King Searle

I always knew you would come
Someday
I guess I just wasn't expecting it so soon.
And though i wasn't expecting
A white stallion
And a castle in the clouds,
maybe I was expecting a little armor.
It's odd how quietly you came-
no fanfare,
No fireworks,
No dramatic revelation;
I just turned around one day
And there you were,
Where you'd always been.
Your hand fit quietly in my hand,
And your life quietly filled a void in my life.
It seems odd:
I hae always looked at eternity
As some vast and distant goal,
But now I find
That bits and pieces of eternity
Are settling quietly
All around me.

Every day gets better. I love you!
Freckles

Happy Birthday Lukas!

2008-02-12T10:14:00.001-07:00

Eleven years ago today our family was blessed with an amazing little person! On that day, as I held him for the first time and looked into his eyes, I never could have dreamed or imagined the incredible giant of a spirit that I had been entrusted with. Eleven years later I am in awe of this person. My son.
Happy Birthday Lukas! I LOVE YOU! Mom

Why I am a Glen Beck Fan

2008-02-09T18:11:00.000-07:00

In light of a very disappointing week in the political realm of our world I found this Youtube video to be very refreshing. I am absolutley sick to death of all the political riff-raff that have come out of the woodwork that continue to polute our minds through the numerous veins of communication that feed us from the outside world! In my heart of hearts I knew Mitt Romney would not survive the first cut. Why in the world would our nation elect someone who is honest, courgeous, smart, kind, upstanding and God-fearing? I honestley have no deisre to vote in Nov. Who would I vote for? Dumb or Dumber? Sorry, just a little ranting! I feel better now! Enjoy the interview!

2008-02-01T08:46:00.000-07:00

Well the Blue Team is still holding strong in second place! We have really got to pull some good numbers to get ahead of the black team! I know I wasn't much help this week! I lost 1.2 lbs. which I was still excited about considering all the birthday celebrations. After one visit to Olive Garden, two to Cafe Rio, movie popcorn and about half a dozen of Aunt Lynda's sugar cookies, I breathed a giant sigh of relief when I saw that it was a loss!! YEAH! I'm sure if it hadn't been for the 3 visits to the gym, a soccer game and a bb game I would have been on the other side of the stick! Whew! This week will be better! If nothing else I am sure I have burned a million calories shoveling snow! Speaking of which I need to get my shovel and get to work!

At Weight Watchers they gave out this very strange recipe. Everyone raved about it so I ran right over to Stop & Shop and bought a brownie mix and a can of black beans and ran home and made them. Okay, I am a very picky girl when it comes to "diet" food and treats and I have never bought a can of black beans in my whole life, but I have to tell you that these are the BOMB!!! They are absolutely delicious! Even Joe couldn't taste the beans! Although they truly are "bites" they are only 1 pt. (70 cal. or less) per bite. The trick is going to be not eating all 72 bites in one sitting! So I will include the recipe and instructions so you can try them. Leave me a comment if you try them and let me know what you think!

Magic Brownie Bites

1 Betty Crocker (9x13) dry brownie mix
1 can black beans

Drain beans in colander. Thoroughly rinse beans & can discarding all liquid. Return washed beans into clean can and fill to brim of can with cold water. Puree beans and water in food processor or blender. Combine brownie mix & pureed water/beans. DO NOT ADD EGGS OR OIL!! Bake in 9x13 pan as directed on brownie mix. When cool cut into 72 rectangles (9x8). Each bite is 1 pt. or less than 70 cal. each!!!

I am also including a funny email Shelly sent to the Blue Team! It's worth the read! Have a great Friday!

If you read this without laughing out loud, there is something wrong with you. This is dedicated to everyone who ever attempted to get into a regular workout routine.

Dear Diary,

For my birthday this year, my daughter (the dear) purchased a week of personal training at the local health club for me. Although I am still in great shape since being a high school football cheerleader 43 years ago, I decided it would be a good idea to go ahead and give it a try.

I called the club and made my reservations with a personal trainer named Belinda, who identified herself as a 26-year-old aerobics instructor and model for athletic clothing and swim wear. My daughter seemed pleased with my enthusiasm to get started! The club encouraged me to keep a diary to chart my progress

MONDAY:
Started my day at 6:00 a.m. Tough to get out of bed, but found it was well worth it when I arrived at the health club to find Belinda waiting for me. She is something of a Greek goddess -- with blonde hair, dancing eyes and a dazzling white smile Woo Hoo!! Belinda gave me a tour and showed me the machines. I enjoyed watching the skillful way in which she conducted her aerobics class after my workout today. Very inspiring! Belinda was encouraging as I did my sit-ups, although my gut was already aching from holding it in the whole time she was around. This is going to be a FANTASTIC week!

TUESDAY:
I drank a whole pot of coffee, but I finally made it out the door. Belinda made me lie on my back and push a heavy iron bar into the air then she put weights on it! My legs were a little wobbly on the treadmill, but I made the full mile. Belinda's rewarding smile made it all worthwhile I feel GREAT! It's a whole new life for me.

WEDNESDAY:
The only way I can brush my teeth is by laying the toothbrush on the counter and moving my mouth back and forth over it. I believe I have a hernia in both pectorals. Driving was OK as long as I didn't try to steer or stop I parked on top of a GEO in the club parking lot.

Belinda was impatient with me, insisting that my screams bothered other club members. Her voice is a little too perky for early in the morning and when she scolds, she gets this nasally whine that is VERY annoying. My chest hurt when I got on the treadmill, so Belinda put me on the stair monster. Why the Hell would anyone invent a machine to simulate an activity rendered obsolete by elevators? Belinda told me it would help me get in shape and enjoy life. She said some other shit too.

THURSDAY:
Belinda was waiting for me with her vampire-like teeth exposed as her thin, cruel lips were pulled back in a full snarl. I couldn't help being a half an hour late, it took me that long to tie my shoes.

Belinda took me to work out with dumbbells. When she was not looking, I ran and hid in the restroom. She sent another skinny b to find me. Then, as punishment, she put me on the rowing machine -- which I sank.

FRIDAY:
I hate that b Belinda more than any human being has ever hated any other human being in the history of the world.Stupid, skinny, anemic, anorexic little cheerleader. If there was a part of my body I could move without unbearable pain, I would beat her with it.

Belinda wanted me to work on my triceps. I don't have any triceps! And if you don't want dents in the floor, don't hand me the damned barbells or anything that weighs more than a sandwich. The treadmill flung me off and I landed on a health and nutrition teacher. Why couldn't it have been someone softer, like the drama coach or the choir director?

SATURDAY:
Belinda left a message on my answering machine in her grating, shrilly voice wondering why I did not show up today. Just hearing her made me want to smash the machine with my planner. However, I lacked the strength to even use the TV remote and ended up catching eleven straight hours of the Weather Channel.

SUNDAY:
I'm having the Church van pick me up for services today so I can go and thank GOD that this week is over. I will also pray that next year my daughter (the little shit) will choose a gift for me that is fun -- like a root canal or a hysterectomy.
I still say if God had wanted me to bend over, he would have sprinkled the floor with diamonds!!!

I never thought it would happen...

2008-01-28T09:28:00.001-07:00

Lastnight I was laying on my bed watching t.v. Amanda came and snuggled up to me and we both fell asleep. I was only asleep for about 20 min. or so when I woke up at 8:10 and saw a "Breaking News" segment on ch. 5 news and at the bottom is said that President Hinckley had died. I had to look around for a minute because I thought I was dreaming. But it was true. He had died at 7:00 pm in his apartment in SLC surrounded by his family.

I went downstairs and told Joe and the boys. They were all stunned. I then tried to call mom and dad but they didn't answer. I called Robyn and she hadn't heard yet. Mom and dad called back later and I told them.

It's just one of those things that I never thought would happen. Pres. Hickley has played a significant part in the leadership of the church for as long as I can remember. We kind of feel a personal link to him because my Grandpa Henderson was in the same mission with Pres. Hinckley. My grandpa knew him and I think they even lived in the same "flat". In 1996 Joe, Joshua & I had the privledge of going to the church office building and meeting Pres. Hinckley in person. Joshua was only about 18 mon. old. We took some pictures that my grandma had of the flat that he had lived in in England. When we showed the pictures to him he know exactly where each one was taken. He even remembered the address of the flat. He said that his historian already had pictures that were similar to the ones we had but thanked us for bringing them. He thought he could still remember my grandpa. I will never forget shaking his hand. I absolutley knew before that experience that he was a "THE" prophet of God. That experience only solidified my testimony in concrete!

What a legacy he leaves behind. Can you imagine the line of people waiting for him on the other side. I'm sure Marjorie was first in line. I think more than any other prophet he has brought the church out of obscurity and helped people to understand who and what we are. He has taken temples to the people. He led 13 million people on a level that we could all relate to. I will miss him!
The cute little love birds!

The Salt Lake Temple

I arrived at the gym this morning just after 7:00 am and The Today Show had just come on. I watched intently waiting to hear the news about Pres. Hinckley. But all they had to talk about was politics, Buckingham Palace, SAG Awards and The Superbowl. all of which pale in comparison to the importance of this man and the life he has led. I am hoping that they just hadn't received the news yet.

One year older and wiser too.....

2008-01-25T21:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my birthday and I just wanted to thank everyone who called or sent me messages! It made my day! I had a great day. It started out at the gym with Robyn. Sweat, sweat, sweat! As I pulled in the garage at around 7:30 Amanda came running out the door in her nightgown and bare feet yelling, "Happy Birthday Mom!" I think it was negative 4 degrees or something. Crazy girl! I entered the house to all the boys running to tell me Happy Birthday and give me hugs. About every 1 or 2 minutes Lukas would say, "Happy Birthday Mom" until he left for school. This also continued after school as well:)

Mom was the first to call (as tradition has it) and sing. We had to be at the school at 10:00 to register Joshua for Jr. High. YIKES!! I can't believe we are doing that already!?! After that I went to Salt Lake with Mom, we went to lunch at Olive Garden and ran some other errands before returning home around 5:00. It was nice to spend the day together.

I came home and rested for a while before my soccer game at 7:15. It was a good game. We won 11-6. During the game they made an announcement overhead that it was my birthday. No one has confessed to that yet. It was alot of fun and we played really great as a team!

After the game I rode home with Robyn because we had to be at the church at 9:00 pm for basketball practice. She got her kids to bed and we were about to leave and then Kassidy threw up in her bed. She had been sick for 2 days already. Needless to say she had to stay behind while I went to bb. We had a good practice. There was another ward there to play against. Once they started the game I sat out because my ankle was feeling a little tired after a long day.

All in all it was a great day! Before my soccer game I found out that Lukas had ordered me flowers. It was his idea and he payed for them. All Joe did was dial the number and hand him the phone. He told them what he wanted and what he wanted the card to say and everything! It says: "You're the best mother in the world!! I love you, Lukas" How did I get so lucky? He is such a kind and thoughtful young man! The flowers were finally delivered today. He was happy to see them here when he got home from school! Thanx Lukey!
Beautiful flowers!

Flower up the nose! hehe!

Today Joe took me to lunch at Cafe Rio and went shopping for Bunco gifts at Tia Pan Trading with me. Now I need to continue getting ready for my Lia Sophia open house that is tomorrow. I hope people come!?! Thanx for a great b-day everyone!

The Biggest Looser

2008-01-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

One of my great BFF's sent me an email inviting me to be part of her Biggest Looser Team! Her timing couldn't have been better as the Prodical daughter has recently returned to Weight Watchers! After ankle surgery and two cruises it's time to get serious again! The Biggest Looser team will be just one more motivation to get out of bed and get to the gym! I love the show! It's so inspiring although I do think they need to have the men and women compete seperatley! It's no contest with men! They will win every time! I am already predicting the grey or black team to win this season.

So we have 3 BL teams. Black, Pink & BLUE!! We are blue! We have to report our weight to Shelly every Tuesday. If you gain, you are on probation. If you gain two weeks in a row you are eliminated. We all put $25 in the pot and after or final weigh in on April 8th the team that has lost the highest % of weight will get to split the pot amongst the remaining team members. They also decided to acknowledge he BL of the week according to who lost the most weight that week. Then they in turn can share with the rest of the group what worked for them that particular week.

Right now the black team is in 1st place having lost 43.1 lbs. (1.96%), then blue having lost 50.5 lbs. (1.74%) and then pink having lost 13.2 lbs. (0.53%) Amazingly enough I ended up being the Biggest Looser of the blue team this week! I weighed in yesterday and had lost 4.4 lbs!!!!! YEAH!!!

So...what did I do that worked for me?
1. Drank more Propel/water than Pepsi (mucho grande accomplishment for me)
2. Stayed within my "points" (WW lingo) and did not use my exercise or weekly allowance points. (By the way, if this were truly a fair world we would get credit for twice the amount of calories burned at the gym when you go at 7:30 am and it's NEGATIVE 7degrees outside!)
3. Went to the gym 4x's and spent about 3 hrs. shoveling snow/ice from my driveway.
Basically, I moved more and ate less/smart!

A few of my favorites...
1. Propel packets that you add to water bottles. They are cheaper than the pre-made stuff (10/$3.00 @ Walmart) and they are only 20 cal. each. Love em!
2. Tilipia. It is not real "fishy" and is easy to prepare. I spray both sides of a fillet with spray butter and then spice it up with lemmon/pepper and bake it in the oven. I usually add 1/2 c. of rice and 2 c. of veggies. YUM!
3. I also love the Teriyaki chicken breasts from Costco. They are Tyson (I think) and they are back by the frozen chicken breasts, etc. They are very moist and yummy and are only 3 pts. a piece. They are great on salad as well as a main course. My kids love them too and they are very easy to take to work and throw in the microwave or do in a hurry. I do prefer them cooked in the oven but that's just me.

I hope this has helped. I am optimistic for great reaults for all of us this week! Lets get ahead of the black team!!

As for work yesteerday, it was a very strange day. First we had a patient steal one of our ear thermometers when she was discharged. The nurse noticed her putting it inside a drawer in the room. Then the brilliant person asked the student nurse working with the nurse if she knew where she could buy the probe covers because she "had one just like it at home". Then after the patient left the nurse returned to the room to find the thermometer gone. She told the charge nurse who called the pt. at home and told her that we noticed that the thermometer was missing and wondered if maybe, somehow it was inadvertantly put in with her belongings. The pt. denied seeing/having it. The charge nurse asked her to please check again reiterating that the nurse knows she saw it in the room prior to her leaving. This time her response was a suprised, "Oh, here it is! I do have it!" DUUUUUUUH! I guess there really is no such thing as a smart criminal!

The second strange event occured around 6:00. I was walking by room 3109 when I heard the housekeeper that was in there kind of wince or cry in pain. I went in the room to check on her and found that the floor was slippery as it had just been mopped. The housekeeper was standing at the foot of the bed bracing herself with both hands complaining that her knee hurt. I asked her if she had fallen on it and she said no. She then started crying harder and then she kind of slowly "melted" onto the floor. The next thing I know she's on the floor, half under the bed, unresponsive. What the heck!?! Just as she was going down the charge nurse came out of the break room and saw it all happen. She came in and we tried to wake her up by yelling and shaking her. When that didn't work she told me to pull the code blue button. I then ran and got the crash cart down the hall and by then there were already 5-6 people there to help. They took her vitals and blood sugar which were all normal yet she was still unresponsive. Once they verified that she was stable and not in a life-threating situation, they loaded her onto a gurney and took her to E.R. It was so strange. She was young (maybe early to mid 20's) and the other housekeeper said she had called in sick the day before and still wasn't feeling 100%. It was all very strange and definatley got my heart pumping! Can I count that as a work-out?!? JK! I don't know what they found out, and probably never will, I only know that she was dc'd around 10:00 p.m. so she should be okay. You never know what you are going to see at work! It's great!

Here's your sign!

2008-01-21T10:35:00.000-07:00

Lastnight we were invited to my oldest brothers new house for dinner. His name is Lindsay and his wife is Kay. They have spent the last year and a half building their home in Thatcher while living in their fith-wheel the whole time. Alot of hard work and sacrifice and now they have a BEAUTIFUL home to show for it! I had made a "HENDERSON" sign for him before he met Kay that had his and Ryan and Heather's name on it. It needed to be updated so I did them a new one since they were married and finished their house in 2007. I'm glad they liked it!

Dinner was yummy and the company was fun. All who came were Grandma, Aunt Lynda, Aunt Susan, Mom & Dad, Kort & Glenda & kids. We had turkey, my yummy potatoes, Susan's raspberry jell-o salad, Lynda's rolls, steamed veggies, stuffing, etc. It was like Thanxgiving all over again! My favorite holiday! While some watched a football game others of us played our new 6 Nnmt game that Kevin & Robyn introduced us to. Congratulations to Corbin for getting the new high score record for one hand...45!!! (The object of the game is to get the least amount of points:) Aunt Susan even joined in the game! Everyone voted it the funnest game they've played in a long time!

It was a great evening and something we need to do more often! Lindsay is 10 yrs. older than me and we have different lives. I think that if we weren't in the same family our paths probably never would have crossed in this lifetime. Therefore, I am very thankful that we were given to the same family so that not only would we know each other, we are related! Lindsay is a good man with a very big heart! I know that I could call on him (or any of my brothers for that matter) any time day or night and he would be there for me! He has experienced alot of heartache and disappointment in this life so it thrills me to see him so content and happy! You deserve it bro! Love ya!

Need a sign? I do make customs signs to order. They are fun to give as wedding presents. I can do about any color combination. The black with white lettering is my personal favorite! I charge $30. Chow for now!

The Trip of a Lifetime!!

2008-01-17T21:35:00.001-07:00

Out of fear of being deleted from LeeAnn's "Friends" list (hehe) I have been motivated to update my very outdated Blogg!! Life has been crazy busy/stressful as of late. So there is my reason/excuse for my lack of creative energy. But after taking 2 cruises in 8 weeks, I'm feeling a little better!

Much has happened in our lives but since this is a "happy place" I will just stick to the positive! Before Joe & I took our cruise to Mexico in Nov. (It was FANTASTIC by the way) Kent & Robyn came across a screaming deal for a 5-day cruise to Catalina Island & Ensenada. We couldn't resist! We called Mom & Dad and it didn't take much arm twisting to get them "on board" as well!

So the plans were made! The cruise was from Jan. 7-11 so this was our Christmas. We kept it a surprise until Christmas morning. Joe & I made a scavenger hunt for the kids. After they opened their Santa gift they started in on the clues that led them down to the basement, up to the game closet, to Joshua's email, to the freezer and finally to the DVD player. They were instructed to push PLAY. When they did they saw a video of Joe and I on the beach in Puerto Villerta telling them that we were all going on a cruise! Joshua burst into tears of joy! Lukas had to read the card that gave all the gory details of the trip! They were elated! We were relieved that they weren't disappointed in the lack of gifts to open that morning. They were ready to pack their bags!!

So we left on Thursday, Jan. 4th and traveled to St. George, UT where we stayed two nights in Mom & Dad's condo (Trendwest). They are nice because they have a full kitchen and 3 bedrooms and are very new and NICE! The boys loved the murphy bed, arcade, ping-pong and sitting in the hot tub while it was raining. Kevin & Robyn Cox came over to see us and surprised us with the great news that they are pregnant!! Yeah!! Congrats!! Grandpa brought the 4-wheelers with us and the guys went out to Sand Hallow and had fun on the dunes. Amanda was very sad to be left out because she had the stomach flu. When we arrived at Trendwest late Thurs. evening I thought she was car sick. She threw up all down the hallway in the main office when we were checking in. But she threw up all night and had a fever the next morning! I was so worried it would spread! But it didn't and she was feeling much better by Sat.

Saturday afternoon we left for Anaheim, CA. We drove through some pretty serious wind & rain between Las Vegas and Burbank, CA. I am a very nervous traveler when the weather isn't absolutely perfect! But we made it just fine! We stayed in a hotel right across the street from the main gate of Disneyland. Thanx to my cousin Brian and his connections, we were able to spend Sunday in Disneyland! It was great to be back again! We fist headed straight to the new Nemo Submarine ride. It was cute. Amanda & I were sitting by Astro Blaster when I spotted Brian and his cute wife, Deb. They had broke down and bought season passes so they could come spend the day with us in the park! It was so great! It was fun to spend time with Brian and to be able to get to know Deb better! The one thing I really wanted to do there was see the Aladdin show because it was shut down last time we went. While we were sitting having lunch one of the Dream Maker Staff started talking to us and ended up giving us a Dream Maker Pass to the show which meant that we were taken in first and got to sit on the front row for the show! It was fabulous! It was overcast and chilly all day and then finally at 5:30 it started to rain! So we bought ponchos for the kids and kept on truckin' We walked on to every ride we wanted and really had the place to ourselves! We held out until 10:30 and finally went back to the hotel with soggy socks and shoes and lots of great memories! THANX BRIAN, DEB, TIFFANY & CHRISTIAN!!!!

The next morning we drove 30 min. to the pier to board our Carnival Paradise Ship. The kids were so amazed at how big it was! Joe & I had our own cabin that had an outside window and the kids were right across the hall with two single beds and 2 bunk beds. They were all excited about having their own t.v. and bathroom. Kent & Robyn and kids were on one side of us and Mom & Dad were on the other side. We explored the ship and introduced the kids to the buffet! It was one meal that everyone sat down happy at. And then they found out about the ice cream machine!!! That became their favorite stop! Especially Noah! On the last day we asked him how many ice cream cones he had eaten and he immediately responded, "51!" Now that's a good vacation!!

The kids had fun in Camp Carnival. They had camp counselors and programs for each age group. They made alot of new friends from many different places. Lukas even made a friend from Australia. It was nice because after dinner each night we could check Noah & Amanda into Camp Carnival from 7-10 while we went and enjoyed the entertainment! They had alot of fun! They also had some of their friends from home there. They loved the pool (even though it was salt water) and the hot tub! It was a bit chilly so they spent more time in the hot tub.

We stopped first in Catalina Island where they immediately kicked off their shoes and let the waves chase them on the beach. We walked through some shops and then rented a 6-person golf cart for the 8 of us. We were driving along and ended up behind the Barkers. We ended up racing them all over the island. Going up hill was a bit slow but you couldn't stop us going down! We had alot of fun!

The next day we were in Endanada, Mexico. We walked from the ship into town. Mom bought the kids a bracelet with their name on it from a street vendor. He didn't have one for Noah so we got to see him make it in about 3 min. time. It was worth the money just for that. It was incredible! The kids enjoyed shopping and bartering with the people. I was about to have an anxiety attack trying to make sure we had everyone together! After about an hour I was done. So we headed back to the ship. There's no place like HOME!!

The dress-up night was fun. There was Lobster on the menu and all Lukas wanted was fries. So our waiter brought him a huge plate of fries! The next night they all ordered 4 shrimp cocktail. That is the beauty of a cruise! Eat what you want, when you want! Our waiter was from the Phillippines so it was fun to talk to him in Tagalog. His wife and family are from a town that was in my mission, but it was assigned to Elders. Quite a few of the crew members were Filipino so it was fun to be able to use my Tagalog! I don't get that chance very often!!

All in all it was a great time! The kids were very sad to have to get off the boat on Friday morning! I was too! A cruise is never long enough! It is the ONLY way to travel!! Joshua & Lukas loved it because they were pretty much on their own! They had no need for us! We had fun with Mom & Dad, The Barkers & The Morrisons! Great people, great fun!!

After getting off the ship we headed back to St. George to stay at Trendwest again! We were in no rush to get back to reality! We took the 4-wheelers out again on Sat. and had a great time. We relaxed, the kids swam and Kevin, Robyn and Chelsea came over. They brought a fun game called 6 Nimmt! (Take 6) They got it for Christmas. It is from Germany and it was SO fun!

Sunday we drove the rest of the way home only to find our driveway covered in a foot of snow. JC was beside herself with joy to see us!! We had a friend of ours house sit for us and take care of the dog (JC), the lizard (Rex) and the turtle (Ashley). I don't think we will see our driveway again until May!

I am so thankful that we were able to take this trip. The timing of it all wasn't very great but I know this is something that my kids will remember forever! And to be able to do it with their grandparents is an added bonus!! I may need my basement finished, my laundry room finished, a new dishwasher, a new washing machine, new carpet, etc, etc, etc, but I truly feel that making memories together as a family is an investment that will yield eternal bonds and relationships.

I'm back!

2007-11-07T23:26:00.000-07:00

So much for being on top of things. I really thought that once the kids went back to school I would have all of this free time to sit in a rocking chair, bake bread, knit a scarf, learn a new language, read the entire BOM once a month, attend the temple daily and solve world peace. But instead I feel as though someone pushed the fast-forward button and my head is spinning most of the time. I have really enjoyed the concept of running errands with out little people. So, therefore, all my errand running is crammed into a few short hours each day. But it's worth it! My kids will probably never see the inside of a grocery store again until they get their drivers licenses. It's all about appreciating the little things in life.

I know that one of the major set backs this past few months has been my bionic ankle! I sprained it playing soccer in May and had surgery Aug. 17 to have 2 tendons repaired. It was out-patient surgery and I came home with a pain pump that was like an epidural in my ankle. I spent 3 days in bed with it iced and elevated. The pain pump was removed and I was in a splint for the first 10 days. Then it was on to a bright pink cast for 6 weeks. The first 4 weeks was also spent on crutches. I was not allowed to drive with the cast on so that was a real joy. I have to tell you though that I got pretty used to being "driven". hehe! Joe still comes and takes me to lunch and to work on Mondays and then comes and gets me. We have enjoyed that little time together. After 4 weeks in the cast I made an appt. to have it changed. It was really bothering me! It itched and burned like crazy! I wanted to amputate at the knee but Joe reassured me that it was just part of having a cast. Well....when they took the cast off we discoverd that my ankle was covered in blisters! Apparently I am allergic to the medicated steri strips that were used. Who knew? The good part about it was that I was able to get out of 2 wks. of cast time. He put me in a walking can boot and I went to the dermatologist. After a week of cream and antibiotic the blisters were gone! To make a long story short, I just got the can boot off last Tuesday (Oct. 30th) Yeah! I have been doing physical therapy for 3 weeks and it is feeling great! I have had virtually no pain since the surgery. Thanx for the blessing honey! I am going back to the gym and hope to be back on the soccer field by Jan.

"Get in my belly!"

Halloween was fun! We had a trunck-or-treat at the ward a whole week before halloween. I don't know who came up with this idea but I think it might have been the kids! Now they get double the candy and I have to buy twice as much. Am I the only one who finds this a little disturbing? We had a great turn out though and so many of the adults dressed up.

Joe's costume was a big hit. Especially with the adults who actually knew who he was suppost to be. He just told the kids he was Fat........Scottish Guy. If you don't get it you need to watch Austin Powers although I would not recommend it if you are trying to save your brain cells for something of worth. Of course he had to ham it up and kept rubbing his belly and saying, in his best irish accent....."Get in my belly!" I made him quit saying it to the children after a few horrified looks and running to parents in tears. He had fun with it though. He wore it around the neighborhood as the kids were trick-or-treating and one guy ran out of his house after his wife had answered the door and saw Joe and yelled, "Get in my belly!" It was funny! As Joe and I are leaving on our cruise this Sat. my mom suggested that he take it with us and wear if for the talent show. He has a few Irish jokes and a great song he found that is by John Denver. It would be great if he won us a free cruise! I would insert it here but my blogging skills are not that advanced yet. Goggle it and find it on the web and listen to it. Imagine Joe singing it in his costume. I think it's worth a free cruise. The song is called: Drunken Scotsman by John Denver. He has been rehearsing. Kind of frightening! hehe! I'll let you know how it turns out!

Miss Amanda

2007-09-11T21:07:00.000-06:00

I decided I would do a blog highlighting each of my kids and give you a little snippet of their lives and personalities! I will start with Amanda for no particular reason since I am not bias and have the same amount of love for each of my children and certainly don't have favorites. Do you think that is enough disclaimer?!?

Amanda is our April Fools baby, 2002. She is ALL girl ALL the time! The word "pink" describes her to a tee! We're not sure where that DNA came from but it has brought a whole new dimension to a house full of boys! Amanda has already decided that she is going to be a "Fingernail Girl' when she grows up. It wouldn't suprise me in the least! Before school started I took her to get her hair cut by one of our neighbors who has a salon in her home. Afterwards Amanda exclaimed, "I'm so glad I have my own haircut girl now!" Then she asked, "Mom, next time I get my hair cut could you just drop me off and then pick me up later?" I guess she has some issues to discuss with her hair dresser!?!

For Christmas last year we gave Amanda a little brief case style box that had little girl make-up in it. Even after our new dog used it as a chew toy, she still carries that thing around and does her make-up every chance she gets. That is one Christmas gift that dosen't owe us a dime. I have had to lay down the law when it comes to my make-up. Her aspiration in life is to wear mascara. OH BROTHER!!!

Since she turned five she has taken on some new responsibilites around the house. Before then she begged and begged to help with the dishes! So we were more than happy to oblige her and let her contribute to the household chores. Mind you of course that her doing the dishes consists of emptying the dishwasher in which she is required to put away any dishes/silverware that she can reach and the rest she stacks on the counter. Then she helps load the dishwasher as we rinse the dishes and hand them to her. Well it hasn't even beeen 6 months and she is already threatening to turn us in for child abuse:) That didn't last long! The other night I was helping her and turned around to find this:

I just had to laugh. Yes, that is her sulking in the corner in her Cinderella gown! Like I said, ALL girl ALL the time! I made a mental note that we need to work on domestic skills.

Amanda's best friend is Sniffy. Sniffy has been with our family since December 2002. We had taken a trip to Lousianna to visit Joe's family and we needed a little blanket for her. Sniffy was adopted into our family through "Walmart Family Services" and has been Amanda's faithful companion ever since! The name Sniffy came about because she will rub the blanket on her top lip and the end of her nose. She also sucks on her tongue when she is tired. Just yesterday Sniffy started to loose her trim and needs a little repair job. What would we do without Sniffy?

Amanda just started kindergarten and is loving it! She is so excited to learn to read and do "homework" like her brothers! I'm sure that buzz will last about as long as doing the dishes. By next week she should be bored with it! She is very social and loves being with her friends each day. She has also just started dance class for the first time. Guess what color her leotards are? PINK!

Amanda loves her Daddy, Grandma & Grandpa, Sniffy, make-up, Polly Pockets, Bratz (uugh!), high heels, painted fingernails, Grandma's lipstick (since her mom dosen't own any), gum, snuggling in bed with Mommy in the morning, riding her bike (when it doesn't have a flat tire), Mac & Cheese, ALL her cousins (especially the boys!), Heather's fiance, Corey, jumping on the tramp, walking to the bus stop, Disney Princesses, playing dress-up and being the center of attention.

Amanda has brought a fun, vibrant, explosive ray of sunshine into our home. She is my little shadow and constantly tells me she wants to be a Mom just like me when she grows up. I hope she still feels that way in 15 years as being a Mom has been the greatest blessing of my life short of being a wife.

Another "first"!

2007-09-02T16:04:00.001-06:00

As parents we are continually hurdled past milestones and "first" moments at breakneck speed! Try as we might there's no going back, no rewind, no "Play it again Sam". All we can do is recognize the moment and try to create yet another new page in our mental scrapbook. (it's my only scrapbook that is up to date:)
Today I was able to add another page to a 12 year old album entitled: JOSHUA. Today I was able to witness my son participate in his first priesthood ordinance. Today Joshua passed the sacrament for the first time.
I panicked a little as we sat in sacrament meeting and asked Joe if he knew what to do?!? He reassured me that when they were cleaning the church yesterday they had taken a moment to do a little role playing. Thanx honey! :) Therefore, Joshua was able to participate without hesitiation. He did a great job! I was very proud of him! Good job buddy!

What to do with all my free time?

2007-08-31T15:01:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone! Thanx to my friend Monica I am jumping onto the 21st Century bandwagon and creating a BLOG!!! Who came up with that word anyway? Stange! Now that the Fabulous Four are all in school (Amanda half-day Kindergarten) I have been wondering to myself, "What to do with all my free time?" All 4 hours of it! (per day, except short day which is just a waste of everone's time. by the time you get them ready, fed lunch and on the bus you barley have time to go to the gas station drive-thru and get a pepsi and a couple of corn dogs. you just get home and eat them in peace and quiet and the kids are all pounding down the front door as if they have been gone for days on end. they attack the kitchen as if they had been living on MRE's for the past year and turn on the t.v. for fear that their t.v. battery cells will drop to a critical level which i'm sure would cause uncontrolable convulsions and night sweats. i'm not a big fan of wednesdays!) After reading Monica's blog and giving in to her encouragment, I decided to make my own!! I figure I can hurt two birds with one stone this way. Since I'm not a very good journaler (is that a word?) this will help to squelch that bit of guilt in my life and because this is on the web it will be a good way to keep all of our friends and family who we don't see enough up to speed with our lives. I am not promising daily postings. But as I am not very mobile at the moment, I figured this would be a good time to get it up and running! I'm not quite sure how it all works yet so we'll see how it goes! Any comments, suggestions and/or donations are strongly encouraged! The Fab Four are about to burst through the front door so I better brace myself. Until next time...