the happy couple

Tessa and Carson sitting in a tree….ok, in the hallway at daycare. 

Every morning as Tessa walks in the door, Carson says, “Hi Tessa” in a very sweet, loving tone.  Tessa replies in the same tone, “Hi Carson”. 

Many of the high school students (that work in the day care) have mentioned how cute Carson and Tessa are together.  They are “joined at the hip” so to speak. 

When you ask Tessa about Carson, she starts to whisper and giggle saying, “he’s my boyfriend”.  And from what I hear, Carson feels the same. 

Tessa says that they plan to get married when they grow up and they want to have a ball pit at the wedding.

parenting

I saw this comic strip and found it to be first, really funny, and second, really true!

Being a psychology major in college combined with my experience working with people with disabilities, I used to think that I knew a lot about being a parent.  I would see mothers in the stores with their screaming children and I would judge them.  “My children will never act like that”, I would think to myself.  Or, I’d see little kids running around with bare feet on dirty floors with stains on their shirts and runny noses and I’d think “not my kids, never”. 

So there I was on Saturday night, sitting in the germ-infested McDonalds playland with two bare-footed, runny-nosed kids with stains on their clothes and messy hair and feeding them greasy chicken nuggets and fries.  It occurred to me that I am not the mother that I thought I would be.  They have worn me down. 

But, I think that every parent must think, “my kids won’t be like that” before they have children, or no one would ever procreate.  Don’t get me wrong, I love my children dearly, but OH I’m so tired.

Wrestle-Mania

Nate has begun an exciting career in wrestling.  Ok, I don’t know if it’ll become a career, but he really likes it…and he’s pretty good at it!!

He had the opportunity to sign up for “little Vikes wrestling” sponsored by the high school wrestling team.  He had his first “match night” last night.  He did a fabulous job and I was so proud of him.  He is pretty strong for a little guy.  He has two more “match nights” if anyone’s interested in coming!

Reflections

When I was in Kindergarten, I won first place in the Reflections contest…something I’ve always been very proud of.  I had high hopes that Nate might follow in my footsteps when he had the opportunity to enter the contest this year. 

I bought him a canvas, some paint, and let him “go to” it.  He did a great job and he’s very artistic, in my opinion.  I love his painting and I really thought that he had a shot at winning something.

Much to our dismay, Reflections is not what it once was.  They used to separate the entries by grade so that the students only competed against their own age group.  They don’t do that anymore.  Nate had to compete against 6th graders and needless to say….he is not moving on to the next level.

But….he’s on my top level.  Good Job Nate!!!

birthday boy

 

The earth has been lucky to have Joey in it for 30 long years now.  That’s right….Joey has hit the big 3-0. 

Not only is Halloween the day that Joey was born, it was also the day that we had our first date…11 years ago!  I met him when he was a mere 19 year old baby. 

We were supposed to have a party up at the cabin for Joey and his uncle who is turning 50, but unfortunately the party was canceled due to illness and a canceld plane.  I didn’t really have enough time to plan anything really special for his 30th…and I feel kind of bad. 

Tessa and I tried to make the best of it and made him a birthday cake.  Then, we took him out for Chinese food (his favorite) and went home to carve pumpkins for the night.  Then, we finished the day at Katie and Jason’s. 

Even though, it seemed like an ordinary birthday, I hope that Joey knows how much I really do love him and I’m glad to have him.  I really would have had a party if I’d had the time!

trick or treat

My kids are getting to the age where they are starting to care about trick-or-treating….which was kind of fun this year.  Up until now, they only have wanted to go to a few houses and be done.  This year, they did a few blocks and would have done more, but the little Tessa was done.  (She’s still not feeling it)

We started by going up and down Main Street in Bountiful and visited each of the stores.  Later, we joined Katie, Jason, & Averi at their lovely new home in Roy.  We trick-or-treated in an actual neighborhood….which was refreshing in a world of “trunk”-or-treating.  We started pretty early, so many of the people were not home….or they were at the trunk-or-treat. 

The kids had a lot of fun regardless.  Nate was darth vader, accompanied by his “daughter” Princess Leia aka Tessa. 

Averi made her debut as a spooky vampire and she looked dang cute….with black hair and all.

After the treats, we headed back to their house for some taco soup, birthday cake for Joey, guitar hero, and movies.  It was a fun time.

surprise guests

I have been very fortunate, as a working mom, to be able to have my kids in the same building that I work.  I get to bring them to school with me every morning and every now and then I get to see them during the day.  This will really come in handy for breast feeding in just 6 to 8 weeks!

Today, the whole pre-school class came to visit me!  They adorned their hand-made witch masks and sang a cute witch song to me.  It was super cute.  Then, Tessa showed them the way to my treat jar and passed one out to everyone. 

I guess that if I have to be a working mom, at least I have about the best job in the world for it. 

battle of the scarecrows

Ok, so it wasn’t really a “battle”, but because of my competetive nature and always feeling compelled to be the “best”….I made the best scarecrow.   I asked, and everyone agreed….mine was the best. 

Oddly enough, my dad thought that the children were going to help with these, but in the end it was the adults that finished them up.  I have to admit that Tessa helped me with quite a bit of it, though.  Here are the other (loser) scarecrows:

Papa Lee’s Halloween Bash

We’ve gone without Papa Lee for many years, and now that he’s back….the festivities have begun. 

When I was a kid, my dad always went to great lengths to throw fabulous parties.  This Halloween was no exception.  He went full throttle and the kids had a fun time and were spoiled rotten. 

First, I have to say that I can’t remember the last time that my parents dressed up for Halloween, but they did this year.  They were Elton John and Kelly Osbourne…very cute.

          

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The house was all decked out for Halloween and Dad had made really cute little place settings for all the kids, complete with their own personalized halloween coloring book and treat bags.  They played some really cute games (winning A LOT of prizes) and then we finished by making some awesome scarecrows.  Afterwards, the kids enjoyed PB&J sandwiches in the shape of bats and carrot sticks while the adults had some taco soup. 

Thanks for the party mom and dad!  The kids were happy to party with you this halloween!

Spooky Dino Park

We helped Kris celebrate her birthday by letting her and Bob take us out to dinner and give us free tickets to the Dinosaur Park.  I love her birthday. 

The Dino Park was all decked out for Halloween and the kids had a lot of fun!  They got to trick-or-treat, look at all the decorations and dinosaurs, watch a magician, play on the playground and even make slime….which Tessa called Dinosaur boogars.   Thanks for the fun time, Kris & Bob!

a look at Miles

I went to get an ultrasound today…and was pleasantly surprised to be able to get a 3D look at the little guy.  I never was able to get one with my other kids, so I was expecting the same old boring ultrasound photos.  Now I wish that I had brought in a DVD to record it because it looked REALLY good on the screen, much better than the print outs because of the movement. 

I think that he has Joey’s nose and lips, my chubby cheeks, and I see a lot of Tessa in him.  He also appeared to have less hair than the other two kids. 

He weighs about 4 lbs. 5 oz. right now….which is two weeks ahead of schedule, so we may just be home for Christmas afterall. 

Truth be told, I have not been very excited about this pregnancy.  In fact, it’s caused me a lot of worry and depression at times. I have been dreading the day that I’d have 3 to take care of.  I doubted my mothering skills for that challenge.   But I have to say that this picture totally made my day and I finally got a little excited for his arrival.  It’s a real little baby in there with all the parts and everything.  Wow.  And now, I can’t stop looking at it!

And yes, Kenneth, I realize that this has turned into a “mommmy blog”. 

Homecoming Festivities

It’s Viewmont’s Homecoming week and I have been busy helping the students to celebrate.

I’m in charge of two different “clubs” at the school:  Best Buddies, and the Jr. Class Officers.

So far, we’ve decked the halls, and entered the door decorating contest…which is shown in the picture (and doesn’t do it justice).  It’s a fantastic mosaic viking that I am very proud of. We’ve had lots of compliments on it and I think we should frame it.

Tomorrow is my birthday and I get to ride in the homecoming parade and then travel up the mountain to the “V”.  The Jr. officers are in charge of the “lighting of the V”.  We will be stringing lights and sitting up there during the entire football game.  Luckily, I will get to stay in my pimped out van watching a movie in the parking area, as I’m pregnant and the hike up to the V is very steep, dark and dangerous looking.  Hopefully all of the kids in my charge make it!

lizards and scorpions and snakes, oh my!

We took our freakishly fearless 3 year old daughter to the Reptile Exhibit in Salt Lake last Saturday.  We knew she’d love it, and she sure did.  She wanted to hold everything she saw, and I mean everything.  Sometimes the people gave her a double take when she asked to hold their creature.  She was able to hold a python and a scorpion, pet many snakes and a giant iguana, she also enjoyed petting various lizards.  I think that the scorpions and the snakes are her favorites. 

 

Nate also enjoyed the exhibit, although he prefers to look and not touch.  We did talk him into petting a smaller lizard, which was his favorite animal there.  He is NOT interested in those snakes.

Not a girly-girl

We took the kids to Nate’s school carnival last Friday.  They had a lot of fun playing all the games at the various booths.  Towards the end, we discovered the “Fear Factor” booth and just in time for the live snake feeding.  They were feeding two large snakes two very large rats!

Tessa immediately pushed her way to the front of the line where she watched the gruesome event from beginning to end.  She was mesmorized by every bit of it and not one bit afraid of it….and, let me tell you, it was not a pretty sight.  Even as that snake got right up to her face with the rat’s feet and tail hanging out of it’s mouth, she just turned and smiled at me.  She loved loved loved it. 

After the rat had been completely consumed, we dragged her away.  I stopped to give Nate his last tickets and turned around to find her elbow-deep in a bucket of meal worms!!

Fun Fair

We went to the Utah State Fair on opening night to take advantage of the $2 entrance fee.  The night still ended up costing $40, however.  What a rip off!!  Next time, we’re eating at Wendy’s before we go…the food prices are WAY to high at the fair. 

The kids had a fun time, though.  They got to do the “helping hands on the farm” exhibit and ride the giant yellow slide.  We finished the evening by looking at lots of animals, which is always fun.  Tessa especially loves the animals. 

Cheerleader Turned Football Player

I was so excited that Tessa was finally old enough to participate in the annual Viking “mini-cheer” clinic this year.  The little girls get to learn some cheers with the big girls and then get to perform during the half time of a football game.  Because I’m a faculty member, they do it for just $6!  She got a cute shirt, shorts, and pom poms.  She was very excited to go cheer, as you can see in this picture taken before the game had started.

When it came time, she stepped out onto the track to do a few cheers.  We soon regretted the cotton candy that she ate during that first half of the game when she began attacking her big cheerleader.  She started with an innocent “hug” and just seemed delighted to see her, but then she got a bit obsessive and the hugs turned to “tackles”.  Then, the other little girls noticed the fun that Tessa was having and decided to join in the fun.  They dog-piled this poor cheerleader almost the entire time! 

This picture really doesn’t do it justice, really.  We decided that Tessa will probably enjoy contact sports when she gets older.

School Days

The start of school was VERY stressful for me for many reasons that I won’t go into right now.  Let’s just say that I’m inches away from a nervous breakdown. 

For Nathan, however, it was fantastic and wonderful.  He loves kindergarten very much.

He is attending MeadowBrook Elementary just a few blocks from Viewmont High (to make it easier to take/pick him up).  His teacher is Mrs. Miller and she is just what you’d expect a Kindergarten teacher to look like and be.  She is great and Nate loves her.

He gets to have a homework book each week, and so far he’s excited to work on it each night.  I can only hope that this attitude continues for the next 12 years.

long awaited news

We have been wondering and discussing the sex of this baby for quite some time.  Because there is a history of heart problems in my family, I always have to wait an extra 4 weeks to discover the sex so that the specialist can then examine the heart at the same time!  It is horrible to wait!  I really don’t know how some people wait till they give birth….I couldn’t do it. 

Well, despite trouble with our first appointment, I was finally able to get my ultrasound today.  She told us that it’s definitely a boy and that he was flaunting his gender quite a bit.  We also saw all the other parts, and they all looked good and normal.  He measured 5 days larger than his due date. 

And so it will be…..Miles Vern Parker.  Looking forward to meeting the little guy.

9 years of Joe Joe

I’ve actually known Joey for nearly 11 years.  I met him on his 19th  birthday, he was a young-en.  We have been married for 9 years as of yesterday and in honor of the 9 years, I thought I’d write 9 things that I love most about Joey:

1-  He has unconditional love for me.  No matter how mad he ever gets, or how badly I might mess something up, or how ugly I might look…..he always loves me, no matter what. 

2-  He doesn’t fight dirty.  He refrains from ever saying mean or hurtful things to me just to hurt my feelings.  He rarely stays mad for very long and he usually can remain the calm one in a “heated” situation. 

3-  Joey is frugal and very good with money.  I know that I can always trust him to take care of the bills, etc.  He loves bargains like I do.  (Although he does get embarrassed of my coupons from time to time)

4-  Joey gives REALLY good massages and he’s always willing to rub my feet, put lotion on them, and he even paints my toe nails. 

5-  He makes me laugh.  Hard.  He is very smart and has witty little comments all the time.  Sometimes, I even steal his jokes and use them at work. 

6-  He keeps me up on politics and the issues.  He’s very patient to explain things to me that I don’t understand.  He knows so much stuff!  He also has a great memory.

7-  He is the BEST gift giver ever!  I don’t know how he does it, but he always manages to get me things that I really wanted but didn’t even know that I wanted.  His gifts are also very thoughtful  (but the cards aren’t). 

8-  He is a very good dad.  He is so helpful to me with the kids.  He almost always does the baths with them and makes sure they take care of their teeth.  He is also good for trimming their nails and he’s a PRO at that little baby boogar sucker thing.  He lays with Tessa each night for at least a half an hour telling her stories.  It’s very apparent how much he loves them.

9-  He does nice little things for me consistently, just because he knows that I like it.  For example, he almost always drives because he knows that I don’t like to.  He also always mows the lawn and takes care of car maintenance; also things that I hate to do. 

Ok, there are many more reasons why I love the Joe Joe…..but we’ll stop with 9 for now.  I’ll come up with the “top ten” next year.

I love you, Joey….Happy Anniversary!

The long long long road trip

Many months ago, Kris (mother-in-law), Katie (sister-in-law) and I had the idea of a road trip to Kentucky to visit Jenny (other sister-in-law) and her husband, Judd, and their new baby Ethan.  No one (Joey) thought we’d actually do it….but we did.  Oh yes, we did. 

The trip got off to a rather rocky start when a cop pulled me over just outside of Evanston.  I was not aware that it’s a law to change lanes when there is an “emergency vehicle” pulled off to the side.  I just slowed down when I passed him.  Several minutes later, there he was pulling me over and yes, giving me a $100 ticket!  I was not a happy camper….still not, really.  But…the road trip went on. 

We drove through Wyoming which was not very impressive and it was very windy.  Next, we hit Nebraska, where I first saw the largest statue of Jesus I’ve ever seen….and it was in the middle of a giant field.  Very wierd.  We made it to Kearney, Nebraska the first night and stayed in a nice hotel for some much needed rest.  It was a long day.

The next day we drove through some really heavy (and scary) rain storms through a bit of Ohio and then into Missouri.  We got to out hotel early enough for the kids to have a good swim….which they really needed after being cooped up in the car all day.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We stopped in St. Louis on day 3 where we got to go to the top of the “gateway to the west” arch in these little “pod” elevators.  If you ever get the chance to do this….don’t.  It really wasn’t worth the time that it took.  When we got to the top, there were just some tiny windows in a very narrow hallway.  Pretty lame.  The arch was cool to see though, and they had a cool museum.                                                             

  We took some back roads through Southern Illinois due to a huge traffic jam that we ran into and visited an Amish village in Indiana where we ate a delicious dinner.  It was delicious for everyone except Nate, that is.  He absolutely HATED it and had a scowl on his face the whole time.

 

 

 

We finally made it to Kentucky very late at night…but that didn’t stop us from cuddling a bit with cute baby Ethan.  Jenny, though very sleepy looking, seemed happy to see us and to show off her beautiful new baby.  Eventually, we did get off to bed and rested most of the next day, which was Jenny’s birthday. 

 

 

One of the funniest moments of the trip was when we were getting up to leave Texas Roadhouse, where we had eaten Jenny’s birthday dinner.  Jenny went to grab her purse and much to her surprise, there was a giant rib stuck to it!  It was Nate’s.  We all had a good laugh about it. 

 

 

During our exploration of the Kentucky/Ohio area, we got to go to a lot of neato stores.  I love love love to look at stores, so it was very fun for me.  We hit some outlet stores, a GIANT store called “Jungle Jims”, The Container Store, Crate & Barrel, and Trader Joes.  It was a lot of fun to get to go in stores that we don’t have in Utah. We also had a great photo shoot with all four kids which turned out really great. 

After all the shopping, we decided to do something the kids might like, so we decided to visit the Cincinatti Zoo.  Unfortunately, I had the WORST headache of my life (it lasted nearly 24 hours) so I wasn’t able to enjoy the zoo to the fullest extent….but, it was a really cool zoo.  They had a lot of animals that I’ve never seen before….like bonobos….very similar to chimps.  Tessa loved petting the snakes and was the only one brave enough to do so.  As we walked in to see the Manitees, Nate asked, “Are manitees a species of aligator?”  Cute kids.

On our last day in Kentucky, we decided to walk along the “purple people bridge” to say that we walked from Kentucky to Ohio in one day.  I thought that the area around the river was really beautiful.  I also liked to look at all the cool buildings and places around Cincinatti.  After the bridge, we stopped for a light dinner and then off to the Aquarium.  If any of you know of the aquarium that we have in Sandy…this aquarium was MUCH better than that one.  I was very impressed with it.  We got to feed nectar to some birds.  Just as one bit Tessa on the finger, another one pooped on my foot.  We tried hard not to laugh because Tessa was upset, but come on…pooping is funny, even if it was my foot.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We even got to pet some sharks!  Tessa and even Averi both got into it and loved it.  A very fun aquarium…so glad we went.

Our stay in Kentucky was so nice.  Judd and Jenny made us feel so welcome and were such great hosts.  Judd was even nice enough to cook for us and entertain Nate by playing video games with him.  I loved his hot wings, they were delicious.  He also made some “goeta”..this weird sausage stuff that Kentucky-ans like to eat.  It was pretty good.  And, best of all, they fed me strawberries.  Lots and lots of strawberries.  (I usually hate them, but this baby loves them)  So, thanks Judd and Jenny!  I had such a fun time.

The long 24 hour drive home was basically un-eventful except for the really terrible rain storm that we drove through (again).   Only this time, we had lots of lightning and thunder added to the enormous amounts of rain.  We stayed in Newton, Iowa and then Laramie, Wyoming. 

There were a few things that really saved me on this trip:  My iphone, to keep in touch, connect us with the internet, and to help waste time in the car.  My navigation system, what did we ever do without it?  The DVD system in the car with about 24 kids movies, enough said.  And lastly, really great traveling companions…I love my in-laws!

This was the longest I think I’ve ever been away from Joe Joe…and it sure was nice to get home to see him again. The kids especially missed him and  I think I learned to better appreciate his company.  I think he missed us too.

pool party

We’ve been lucky to have a backyard pool for the past three years.  It is sometimes a pain in the but to keep up, butt for the most part, we’ve really enjoyed having it.  Our favorite times we’ve had are when friends and family come and join us in the fun.  Sometimes it’s been hard to get them to drive all the way to Bountiful and to set foot in an un-heated pool, but occasionally, we talk them into it.

Pioneer Day this year was one such occasion.  We were able to talk quite a few family members into coming for dinner and a swim.  Katie, Trevor & kids came.  Jason brought Averi down (Katie D. had to work), and my folks joined us too!  We had taco salads and some homemade frozen yogurt.  The kids played and played and played while the adults chatted.  I believe everyone had a really good time.  And well, you all know how much I do enjoy playing hostess. 

My favorite part of the party was when Trevor climbed the mountain and jumped off of into the pool!  It was pretty awesome.  I like to watch Trevor do lots of cool dives too.  He rocks.

handcart day parade

I drove down Main Street Bountiful on the evening of July 22nd and was shocked to see hundreds of people “staking their claims” for the parade that didn’t start until 6:00 pm the next day.  They were all completely ignoring the MANY big signs posted saying that they were not allowed to stake a claim until 7:00 am the next morning and that their things would be confiscated.  I’m not sure if the city actually followed through with their threat  because when I returned to try to stake my claim at 6:55 am the next morning, there were hardly any spots left.  It is unbelievable that so many people go to such great lengths to see a parade.  When I was a kid, I don’t remember it being like that at all.  We just walked down and found a spot.  Those days are gone, sadly.

Because I staked our claim so early in the morning and with limited space available, I didn’t really notice that I staked us right in the sun.  Although the parade started in the evening, it was VERY hot.  You’ll notice in the picture how red our faces were.  I thought I’d melt.  I started to get a bit grouchy.  Why did I bother, I thought to myself.  Why go to all this trouble just to sit in the hot sun and watch a dumb parade?

But, when all was said and done, I guess it’s just something that you do for your kids.  They had a blast and collected a TON of candy.  And…..I guess I had fun watching them….have fun.

So, will I do this again next year?  Probably.

Kie-Yak

We spent the weekend up at the cabin and much to my delight, we were able to go kayaking.  My in-laws, Kris and Bob recently bought these and were nice enough to let us try it out. 

We took them up to Causey Dam and had a good time.  What a work out!  My arms are sure to be sore tomorrow.  I got a little discouraged about half way through our “trek”, thinking, why does this look so easy for Joey.  He always seems to take to things so well and I always seem to struggle.  Whenever I try to do anything “sporty” I always feel like everyone is staring and pointing at me; like I don’t really “fit in”.  But, I put my mind to it and actually got OUT of the kayak all by myself….without making a scene.  Yippee!

Unfortunately, I used the foot “pedals” of the kayak to try to situate myself better on the seat and broke both sides!  OOPS!  I felt just terrible.  Now we will have to see if we can replace the parts that I broke.  Hopefully, Kris will forgive me one day….she seemed pretty mad.  (no, just kidding)

I think that my in-laws are pretty hip for getting and using these kayaks.  I hope to one day be cool and sporty like them.

this was the place

We had planned to go to “This is the Place” monument/park for our fun friday adventure.  Either we are very lucky or very un-lucky that it was “KSL family fun day” as we noticed on the giant sign as we pulled in.  On the bright side, we got in for free , experienced numerous extra fun activities and enjoyed free water and popsicles.  On the other hand, it was VERY VERY crowded and kids plus popsicles equals messy. 

I hate standing in lines, really hot weather, and walking up a lot of hills.  I had to do all three of these things on the same day.  Ick!  Needless to say, I got a little grouchy by the time we left this little outing.

The kids really had a lot of fun, though.  They got to ride a pony and a train, play some games,  get their faces painted and make a few fun crafts.  I guess it was worth it in the end.

weeding with grandpa

I heard that my dad was going to be over at GeGe’s helping to weed her garden, so I thought that would be a perfect thing to do for our Thursday “service” day.  I didn’t tell my dad that we were coming and I think he was pleasantly surprised to see us. The kids were not really too helpful, but enjoyed raking and digging in the dirt; looking for worms.  They always enjoy a visit to grandma’s candy jar too.   After we finished with the weeds, we did a drive by at Wendys and enjoyed our lunch at Riverdale Park.  It was a nice time.  It’s so good to have my dad back.

God Bless America

We celebrated Independence Day at my cousin’s house.  We’ve been going there for the past 13 years and it’s always a good time. 

We usually start with a good swim, followed by some good food, and then finish with some good fireworks. 

A couple years ago, I was feeling experimental and came up with the idea of making homemade corn dogs.  It is much harder than it might seem to make the darn things, but they are now a huge 4th of July hit.  I made 32 corn dogs and they were GONE within ten minutes.  That always makes me feel special. 

The kids had a really fun time with Nicole’s firework pre-show.  She lit a bunch on the road and they were mesmerized by them.  After the pre-show, the big fireworks began, and then they were bored.  I guess that nothing compares with Nicole’s show. 

Ducks, geese, and lots of seagulls

We held our second “fun friday” at Layton Park.  We had a nice little picnic followed by some bike riding and feeding the birds.  It’s amazing how much the kids love to throw pieces of bread at birds.  They went through about six loaves in about a half an hour.  FYI:  You can buy “bird bread” at the wonder bread outlet.  You get 6 to 8 loaves for only $1.

After the bread was all gone, they hit the playground for a little while.  They played until it became apparent that everyone needed to take a nap….including the parents. 

Before leaving, we made plans to meet up again in the evening for a drive-in movie.  We had a lot of fun.  I love the summer!!

lessons in swimming

The kids finished up their two week session of swimming lessons on Friday.   They both passed their levels and had a blast doing it. 

I believe that Tessa had a little crush on her instructor, Randy.  She ran to him each morning and gave him a big hug.  She is still talking about him. 

Nate was the jokester of his group and the only boy.  He had a great time teasing all the little girls from his class.

On the last day, after passing off all their skills, they were VERY happy to receive a sucker (which they ate immediately) and a certificate. 

As for me, I am so happy to that it’s over for now.  It’s freaking hot in there!  I got a steam bath each morning!

Fun Fridays

Our summer schedule got off to a late start because of our vacation, but we are all organized now.  Katie and I met last week and came up with a pretty good plan for the summer.

Yesterday was our first “fun friday” and we spent it at the zoo.  Katie’s sister in law, Chelsea and her little girl joined us.  All three of us are pregnant and we were feeling very sleepy as we crept up all those steep hills, but other than that it was a fun day.  My kids really like seeing the animals. 

As for the schedule, if anyone…..and I do mean anyone… would like to join us for any of our activities, let me know.  I’d be happy to email you a copy of our schedule.  The more the merrier, I believe.  So…..please join us when you can!!

Mondays-  clean and do chores day (boring)

Tuesdays- Movie Club day @ Layton Hills Mall- lunch after

Wednesdays-  Swimming @ my house- bring a lunch

Thursday- Service Day @ SDRH- free lunch at the school

Friday-  Fun Friday!  See Schedule

We’ve also scheduled one pot luck park night with husbands and a couple drive-in movie nights!!

Service Day and Free Lunch

 

We decided to make Thursdays our “service” days ; to  spend time with kids with severe disabilities on the third floor of the South Davis Regional Hospital.  One of my students is currently residing there and I thought it would be nice to visit her.  I had them both pick out books to take to them and read. 

Because my kids spend a lot of time around people with severe disabilities, they weren’t really too shocked by what they saw at the hospital.  Tessa, especially loves to talk and play with the kids.  She was most taken with the really young kids.  She wanted to shake their hands and asked what they’re names were.  Both her and Nate were happy to take pictures with a few of their new friends.  I would love to post some of the pictures, but I don’t have permission from any of our friends.  We plan to take copies to the hospital next week and then make a scrap book.

After the hospital visit, we went to Washington Elementary for free lunch.  It was corn dog day…their favorite.  They LOVE to get “school lunch”….and I like to get FREE lunch. 

It was a very enjoyable day and I was so proud of my kids for being so willing to befriend others.

A Farewell to Mandt

Mandt is a course on learning how to manage people in escalated states. As some of you know, I’ve been a Mandt instructor for nearly 12 years, and have been trained in it for about 15 years. 

Well, the time has come to say goodbye to good old Mandt and hello to Safety Care.  The school district has decided to save some money and go with this new program. 

Although I was getting a little tired of Mandt, I still hate change.  It was very hard to learn a new way of doing things and it will be even harder to actually “do” and teach the new stuff….but I guess I’ll have to get over myself. 

On the last day of the instructor training, my fellow Mandt-ers and I wore our Mandt t-shirts that wer tie-dyed with love by our leader, Glenn.  On the back of our t-shirts it read, “Building Relationships…one hug at a time”.  Well, so long, Mandt.  I will miss you dearly. 

T-Ball

This is a picture of Nathan just after he hit his very first ball at his very first game.  Even though everyone was screaming “run, Nate, run” he just stood there watching everyone for awhile.  When he finally started to run, he took the bat with him.  He did well and made it to second base on the next hit, but when it came time to go to third, he got a bit confused and just ran straight into the outfield instead.  It was very cute.

The next time he came to bat, he did much better.  He is aware of all the bases and their placement.  He also dropped the bat.  Good job, Nate!

My Secretive Sister

I have never been able to keep a secret.  Even my own.  It’s been a problem for as long as I can remember.  I just hate keeping secrets and having secrets kept from me.

My sister Katie is the exact opposite when it comes to secrets.  She has always been able to keep secrets for long periods of time…..and I HATE it!!!

With all three of my pregnancies, I have called everyone that I knew within 24 hours of the discovery.  I just can’t hold it in or I’m afraid that I’d explode.

Katie, on the other hand, waits for a very long time and then shocks the crap out of me.  With Max, I actually discovered her secret because of the preg test she left in her bathroom, but she didn’t TELL me until long after. This was of course long after I’d told everyone else that I knew.  With Paige, she leaned over just before a baby shower was about to begin and said, “by the way, I’m pregnant”….after she’d already announced to everyone else at the party.  And this time, with her third pregnancy…..yep, that’s right, her THIRD pregnancy…..she decided to wait an entire month and a half to tell me that she’s having a baby 11 days before me!!!  She actually just stuck her ultrasound picture in the father’s day card for my dad. Her due date is December 16th!!!

I am really quite amazed that she was able to hold that in for so long.  Even after I asked her for old baby toys and to borrow her boppy pillow.  Does anyone have a boppy pillow I can borrow?

Happiest Place on Earth

Joey and I have been wanting to take our kids to DisneyLand since before we even had kids.  We are both big fans of the place.  I remember standing in line to ride the train at EuroDisney and watching the cutest little blonde girl in front of us.  We both envisioned her as what our little “Tessa” would look like.  We imagined how fun it would be to take her there. 

Well, little Nater came before the little Tessa did, but we finally made that trip and had a WONDERFUL time.

Much to our delight, Jason, Katie and Averi were able to come with us and we all drove down in my pimped out van. It was fun to be able to go spend time with them and the kids were VERY cute together.  We stayed in Primm, at Buffalo Bills on the way there and the way back which was a nice little break from driving.  In California, we stayed at the Ayres Hotel in Orange.  It was a really nice hotel that served a full breakfast each morning and had free shuttle service to the parks.  It all turned out really well.  We went to the parks for five whole days and then spent one day at the beach. 

 

 

Tessa found absolutely EVERYTHING about DisneyLand to be absolutely wonderful.  She was terribly delighted with everything she saw, especially the characters and princesses.  She just ADORED  ”it’s a small world”.  She was so stinking cute and not a bit afraid of anything.  It was so much fun to spend time with her there and to see so much excitement in her face.  In California Adventure, she even had the opportunity to talk to “Crush” in “Turtle Talk”.  It turns out that Tessa’s turtle name is “Tubular Tessa”.

 

 

Nater was such a trouper the entire trip.  He walked and walked and walked and NEVER once complained or asked to ride in the stroller.  At the end of one day, I asked him why he had been such a good boy, to which he replied, “I just really enjoy DisneyLand”.  He went on every single ride that he was only afraid of one of them:  Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride….but this was the first ride he went on.  Once he saw that it wasn’t so scary, he settled down and had a blast on all the other rides.  Nate also had the awesome opportunity to participate in “Jedi training” in TomorrowLand.  He was chosen and he was so dang cute up there….fighting Darth Vader. 

 

 

Averi was scared of many of the rides and with me being pregnant and not able to ride the good ones, spent a lot of quality time with me.  It was fun to ride a bunch of the “tame” rides with her.  We all got a lot of small world.  I think that Averi’s favorite part of the trip was getting to eat lunch with Ariel and four other princesses at Ariel’s grotto.  When Jasmine came out, Averi stopped drinking her drink and stared at her.  She quietly leaned over and told her mom, “She’s so pretty, I can’t drink”.  Nate wasn’t very excited about the princesses, but he put up with it and even posed for a few pictures. 

 

All of the kids also had a GREAT time at the beach, playing in the sand and swimming in the ocean.  They were COVERED with sand, and I’m still finding sand in strange places.  It was overcast in the beginning, and we didn’t put the sunscreen on it time.  All of the adults really got burned, but the kids made it out ok. 

 

 

 

 

All in all, it was a FABULOUS vacation!  I can’t wait to go again….when baby #3 is 40 inces tall. 

 

 

For Sale

 

Thanks to the help of our family and friends we were BARELY able to pull off all of the projects that we needed to get done to put our house on the market.  We still have a few minor things to get done, but it is officially listed. 

Shout outs to:

Jason Dalton- for his AWESOME drywall skills to help us fix the hole in our ceiling and re-texture the entire upstairs.  He is truly gifted and amazing with the mud.  If you are in need of drywall anyone, he’s the one to get!  On top of the drywall, he also helped with some yard work as well.  Thanks Jason!

Jeremy Holmes- my handyman cousin for hanging several doors for us!  He really did a great job and we appreciate the terrific deal that he gave us.  If you’re in need of a handyman, he’s a great one!  Thanks for your help, Jeremy!

Katie and Trevor Bailey-  for helping us rake and a haul A LOT of crap out of our back and side yards.  We surely would not have finished it all on our own!  Thanks for taking time to come help us!

Kris & Bob Geier-  For helping us start our front rock project and for other yard work projects.  I know that we can always count on Kris to jump right in to help us, she’s never afraid to get her hands dirty.  They also bought us some awesome hanging baskets for the front yard.  Thanks!!

Anne Allred-  my good friend, for taking a few hours to help me weed our back planter and scrape the wall for painting.  Even though she was just getting over a terrible illness, she still came down to help me.  I really appreciate her willingness to help us out.

Even if we don’t sell it, the house is looking great!  We will definitely have to have a few pool parties this summer.

shoulder to the wheel

The Koldewyn side of my family gathered together on Memorial Day to help week Grandma’s yard.  With all of the help, it didn’t take very long at all.  Afterwards, we had a BBQ at Aunt Connie’s.  Even though I was tremendously busy trying to clean up and fix my own yard, it was rather nice to take a break and  congregate with my extended family. 

Above, you’ll see my cousin Becky’s rear end.  I acutally have photos of everyone’s back sides, but I thought that Becky would really appreciate it the most.  She once mooned me in Vegas and seemed to be quite proud of it. 

Below, you can see a great shot of my Aunt Connie and Uncle Phil.  When we saw this pitch fork, we just couldn’t resist.

Clean House

I have an obsession with Home Improvement/Real Estate Reality Shows.  I just can’t get enough of them.  I am automatically drawn to HGTV and it would be my dream job to be a part of one of those shows. 

I’ve recently been watching “Clean House”, a show where they find some disgusting pigs and then make them throw out their stuff and makeover their house.  I am ashamed to admit that I wake up at 2 am and watch this show when I can’t sleep.  It’s mostly embarrassing because I don’t even like the show, but still can’t look away from it.  I don’t think it’s fair that people get rewarded with home makeovers when they live like pigs.  And, they are usually not even grateful to boot! 

During the last month, Joey and I have been working our fingers to the bone trying to get our house ready for the market.  Our deadline is next Friday…June 6th.  It is now that I’m grateful that I also watched all those staging shows. 

If anyone is looking for a service project, show up to our house this Saturday morning.  We need some help with raking and cleaning up parts of our yard and some painting projects inside too.   Bring some work gloves and a rake if you have them.  We will BBQ afterwards and will be forever in your debt.  I am good for painting (as long as it’s in color) and tiling.

Due Date

It looks like our bundle will arrive around 12/27/09…officially.  Since I have c-sections, I imagine that she’ll schedule it a bit early…before Christmas.  So, it seems we’ll have a special Christmas present.

cute cousins

We gathered together for Mother’s Day Brunch on Sunday Morning.  Tessa and Paige were wearing matching outfits and looked so adorable.  They look a lot alike now that Paige got her hair cut. 

After brunch, we went up to the cabin to surprise Kris with a Mother’s day lunch.  Bob bought her a new Kayak and the kids were so excited to be sitting in it when she arrived. 

For my own mother’s day, I enjoyed some art work from my little ones (which I LOVED)  and a gift card from Joey.  He said it was to buy some new maternity clothes….uggh.

Baby Bath

Our co-worker Nate is having a baby very soon, so we decided to throw him a “Baby Bath” before the little tyke gets here.  I did all the planning for the event so that I could add to the material for my book. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Using my fanstastic new photoshop program, I made some really funny invitations with some clipart I found on google images.  I then went to town with the rubber ducky theme. I decorated the room with rubber duckies made from construction paper and then floated a few real ones in the lemonade.  For food, we had homeade frozen banana yogurt and cookies.  It was very yummy and most people had seconds. 

As displayed in the first picture, we made Nate dress up in a bathrobe, shower cap, and hold a sponge on a stick.  He was a very good sport.  For one of the games, we played “guess how big around Nate’s belly is?”  Each person had to cut the string to how large they thought it was.  It was hilarious…and again, he was a good sport. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For party favors, I got some cute Country Time Lemonade candies from Honks and put them in cellophane bags and tied them with a little duckie.  Prizes for the games were bottles of yellow body scrub…that I also got at Honks.  By the way… 88 cent Tuesdays at Honks= Awesome. 

Nate mentioned that he has never been to a baby shower before, but I bet after this experience, he’ll want to.

Prom Night

I am going to be next year’s junior officer advisor and in being so, will have the honor of going to Prom every year.   Joey is so excited.

This year, we attended as chaperones to see how things worked, etc.  We had fun….yes, even Joey did.  It turns out that Prom is a very fun place to sit and people watch.  We commented on the crazy outfits and crazy dancing. 

We got paid $70 between the two of us and got free pictures.  I think it was a fun date night.  We ate dinner at Rino’s…a VERY good restaurant if anyone’s interested.  And after the dance was over, we went to a late night movie which I slept through (of course). 

Oh, and Joey and I danced too!  twice!

A change in plans

Exactly one week after Joey’s vasectomy, we discovered that there will be a third.  I had been feeling quite tired and not myself and decided to rule out pregnancy by taking a test.  I was shocked to discover TWO lines when I was expecting to see only one.  I showed it to Joey and he just chalked it up to the cheap test from the dollar store.  Then, he went and watched the Jazz game.  I think he was in denile.  He continued to be in denile over the weekend, and he even “laughed” about it.  I was worried.   I took two additional tests just to “prove” it to him.  He has now accepted it and spilled the beans to his family.  He wouldn’t admit it, but I think he’s kind of excited.  Just regretful about the vasectomy thing.  I feel bad about that too.  I’m also sad that I just sold or gave away all of the baby items that I had….except for the crib.  Oh well.

To make room for our new addition, we are planning to sell our house and move to a bigger one.  We will miss the pool, but I’m on the look out for a garage and a walk in closet this time around.

a trip down the red carpet

We held our third annual Viewmont Best Buddy Ball on Saturday.  It’s an event that all the kids really look forward to.  This year’s theme was “hollywood”…and you know how I like a good theme. 

We started with really cute invitations with a picture of the “hollywood” sign on it.  They were instructed to come dressed as their favorite movie star or character…..and boy did they!  They all looked so cute in their outfits.   

 

 

We decorated using a giant “hollywood” sign, lots of stars, balloons, and movie posters all around the room…all in red, black, white, and gold colors.  And, of course, we had a red carpet.  When the kids arrived, we had them make handprints on their stars for our own walk of fame.  Then, they enjoyed dancing, music, and food. 

 

 

For food, we served “movie” food:  popcorn, candy, hot dogs, and nachos.  I also made some rice crispy treats in the shape of stars. 

 

 

 

 

 

Near the end of the evening, a few students were awarded with their very own “Oscar”…also made of rice crispies.

It was a very successful “Ball” and I wish that I could take all the credit….but the officers of the club really did most of the labor.  I just gave them the ideas.

But…they were great ideas!

coach for a day

Spring soccer got off to a shaky start because of all the icky weather we’ve been having, but Nate finally had his first game last week.  His official coach was out of town and asked Joey to fill in for him.  He did an excellent job with the boys and I was very proud of him.  All of the soccer moms were so jealous. 

It was amazing how much those few winter months made in the boys’ soccer skills.  They can actually pay attention to what’s going on and they didn’t try to pick the ball up as much.  Nate even scored a goal!  He is a very persistent player.

Cinda-Tessa

Tessa has really taken a liking to scrubbing the floor ever since Nathan “got to” scrub the floor after pee-ing on it.  (yes, he really did)

She asks to scrub the floor nearly everyday.  I hope that she’s this excited to scrub the floor when she gets old enough to do a good job!

getting fixed

Joey was “fixed” on Friday and has been wearing a really sexy jock strap and sitting on ice all weekend. 

I was having a “moment”  with the children when I agreed to this operation several months ago and have had many second thoughts about it.  Joey has never wavered, however,and has remained consistent in knowing that he only wants two children.  He agreed to three ONLY if we had two of the same sex…just to try to get another flavor.  But, since we were blessed with one of each, I guess we are calling it “good”. 

So….unless there is some sort of “miracle”, it looks like we will not be having any more children.  I’m o.k. with it (I think) but it still makes me feel old and sad to think that we are done.  I guess I can always have kids with my next husband.

my sweet new ride

We picked up our sweet new ride last Thursday.  It’s a 2006 Honda Odyssey with leather seats, DVD player, navigation system and a back-up camera!  I LOVE it!!  The kids are hypnotized by the movies and they don’t fight anymore!  It’s gonna be so nice for our drive to DisneyLand in June and then to Kentucky in August. 

We bought it at a place called “Totally Awesome Cars” in Clearfield….they are are not affiliated with SuperDell.  It was a very “casual” place with absolutely no pressure whatsoever.  They have very awesome prices, but the service is not so hot.  The owner, Josh, will not return my phone calls since we bought it.  I need to get the wheel lock key from him so we can get the new tires.  It is also lacking the owner’s manual.  I hope the good deal will be worth it in the end.

It’s Britney B*tch!

Oops, I did it again!  Okay, I’ve never done this before, but I had to use that line.

Unbelievable as it may be, I attended the Britney Spears concert last week.   Before you start judging me…I did NOT pay for it!  Hayley got free tickets and aksed me if I wanted to go with her.  Much like my inability to look away from a car crash, I just couldn’t say no.  So, I got all “hootchied” up (as best I could) and went to the show.  When we got there, I discovered that everyone was a lot more “hootchie” than me.  I tried to take a picture of one of these girls, but it didn’t turn out.  There were MANY girls in “school girl” outfits.  I was also surprised at how many YOUNG children were at this concert. 

 As for the show, I’ll just say it was quite a “spectacle”.   Our seats were on the VERY tippy top near the ceiling, so this is the best shot of the Brit I got.  We also got to see the Pussy Cat Dolls.  They looked a lot like strippers to me.  I fell asleep a few times, but Hayley and a few of her friends from work REALLY liked the show. 

 

 

 

 

I think that her friends may have been a bit tipsy?

After the show, I found an empty popcorn box with Britney’s name on it.  I thought it would make a lovely photo.  Hayley kept it ….for her scrap book, I guess?

love affair

I would just like to announce that I am in love.  In love with a mini-van.  It all started last night when I sold my car (after only 2 days, by the way…thanks KSL.com!). 

Having the car gone, and after Nate’s birthday dinner, we decided to do some test drives to decide between Toyota Sienna and Honda Odyssey.  The Odyssey won.  I had the opportunity to drive THE coolest car ever and I am now in love.  In love with it’s leather seats that warm your bum, it’s DVD entertainment center, it’s power everything, it’s back-up camera that appears as if from nowhere, all of it’s luxurious features and most of all the smell!!!  Too bad that it’s too darn expensive for us to buy! I seriously dreamt of this van all night long.   Unfortunately, we (Joey) were not in love with the price of this beauty and we can’t get it. 

It sure would be nice to buy one brand new, but I guess that I’ll have to settle for used luxury.  “sigh”

Nater Potater

Well, it’s been five whole years since little Nater came into my world.  It was a terrifying experience becoming a new mom and in such a violent (c-section) way.  But, I survived and have been blessed by this little boy. 

As of late, Nater has really given me a run for my money.  You might say that he gets a big kick out of “shocking” people by doing strange things. For example, he recently peed on the living room floor in front of his cousin and he “mooned” some of my friends.    I admit that he “might” have gotten this from me.  The shocking part, not the pee-ing….I don’t do that. 

In addition to his shannanigans, Nater LOVES his action figures and video games; he is a true boy.  He’s a huge goof ball, always making faces for the camera and loves to perform little songs for people.  He is a meat eater and his favorite food is ribs.  Nate is also very creative and loves to draw and do “homework” as he calls it.  He is such a little smarty pants too, always wanting to know about stuff and shocking me with his five-year-old wisdom. 

Happy Birthday Naters!!

Easter Festivities

In the five years that we’ve had children, Joey and I have never really agreed on what Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny are really “responsible” for.  We both have completely different ideas on the subject because of the different households from whence we came.  The Easter Bunny, for example, has never hid any eggs for me.  He simply came and put stuff in my basket and left. We went to grandma’s house for the easter egg hunt.  For Joey however, the bunny took their eggs and hid them throughout the house.  Regardless of how you do it, the Easter Bunny is creepy if you ask me. 

Giving in to Joey’s idea, we decorated the eggs on Saturday night and left them for the Easter Bunny to hide.  The kids really liked dying the eggs.  We shall see if they are equally excited to eat the eggs.  Sunday morning, Nater woke up early and very excited to see what the Easter Bunny had brought him.  He was surprised to find lots of candy, an outfit, and stuffed animal.  They were both delighted with the ritual and when they’re happy, I’m happy. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At church, I taught the lesson to the 4-5 year old primary kids.  I explained Jesus’ death and Resurrection, etc.  Then, I asked them to each tell the group a part of the Easter story.  Each of them told me that Jesus hid the Easter eggs.  I knew Joey wasn’t right.

Oh yes, I did it again

I really wish that my kids didn’t have birthdays one week apart.  It would really help with the “sickness” that I have.  Each year, I consider not having a party for one of them, but each year I do them anyway.  I guess you could say that it’s a hobby of mine.  Besides, after I write my book and sell a million copies, it will all be worth it. 

So Nate’s party was on Saturday, and I must say that I really out-did myself on this one.  Even a few strangers at the park commented on how outstanding it was, and of course, I really ate that up. 

Nate has liked “BatBan” since he could barely talk and even dressed like him for Halloween when he was 18 months old.  So, it was inevitable that he would want a Batman party eventually.  We started with some awesome invitations which I made myself, spending just $2.00 total.  I found a template for a bat mask online and I used clipart for the bat symbol in the background.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We decided to hold the party at the park, which is free and has plenty of covered table space and loads of free entertainment for the kids.  I picked up a few pizzas from Little Caesars, it cost $15.  The pizza was accompanied by a batman fruit roll up.  We had lemonade to drink.  All together the food cost about $20. 

I made three things for the kids to take home with them:  bat capes ($1.50 each), bat cup/mugs ($1 each), and bat signal flashlights ($1 each).  So, total I spent for each child was $3.50, coming to $42 for 12 kids. 

 

 

  I spent about $5.00 decorating the table.  I used black plastic table clothes and sponge-painted yellow bats on the sides.  I used yellow plates atop batman coloring book pages that I printed from the internet.  I then, provided crayons so that the kids could color their place mats. 

After the kids put on their masks and capes, they searched for “villains” , which they really enjoyed more that I thought they would.  For this, I just printed out pictures of 12 different batman villains, put them in plastic sheet protectors, rolled them up and tied with some twine.  I had Joey “hide” them in the park. 

For cake, I decided to do cupcakes to make things simple.  I topped them with yellow frosting and then rolled the edges in chocolate sprinkles.  I printed out some batman sybols and had Joey glue them together with toothpicks while he watched the Jazz game.  They were very easy and cute.  They didn’t really cost anything because I already had all the ingredients for these puppies.

So there you have it:  fantastic Batman party for 12 kids for only $62 total.  I’ll now take my bow.

buying and selling

I am looking to sell my car so that I can get a mini-van.  Yes, I realize that I only have two children, but I still want one; don’t judge me. 

I spent much of my spring break getting new tires, oil changed, full inspection and getting it detailed.  It is in really good shape and I’m now afraid to let my kids ride in it. 

In case anyone out there is interested, we are selling it for $5,000 (if I know you or we are related, I’ll cut you a deal).  It’s a 2002 Mazda Protege 5 with 117,288 miles on it.  It’s in good condition, but has a little body damage.  Send me a comment if you’re interested! 

baby animals

We drove up to Logan on Friday for the annual Baby Animal Festival at the American West Heritage Park.  My kids have gone to this festival in the past with their babysitter, Reanna.  Since it was my spring break, I got to go this time!   It was really fun, with lots of fun activities for the kids to do, but it was REALLY crowded.  We had to wait in a lot of long lines, which is not easy for little ones….or big ones, for that matter.  Tessa REALLY enjoyed the baby bunnies and Nate liked the baby turtles.

Since we were in Logan (my absolute favorite town ever) we decided to visit a few favorites.  We ate lunch at the best A&W in the world (really, it is) and then went for ice cream at Casper’s.  Tessa made a gigantic mess with her ice cream cone, but it was cute. 

Driving back, we hit the Pepperidge Farm outlet and Gossner’s cheese.  All of these festivities completely wore me out!  I slept all the way home.  Thank goodness Reanna drove.

just another quality party by Anda-ree

Here are all the details on the outstanding party that I threw for Tessa.  I don’t mean to toot my own horn, but c’mon….I am freaking awesome. Tessa really likes to sing “old McDonald” so we decided to go with the barn theme. It all started with the CUTE invitation made from construction paper and my printer.  Total cost: $4.00

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I planned to have the shin-dig at Wheeler Historic Farm which is free to the public and has a lot of space for a nice picnic. Unfortunately, it had rained all morning and was quite chilly and muddy….so we had the picnic at our house instead after we visited the farm.  They have hay rides for $1.50, duck food for 50 cents, and you can milk a cow for 50 cents.  We had planned to do each of the activities, but it was too muddy for the hay ride. The kids had A LOT of fun just feeding the aggressive geese, looking at all the animals, playing in the treehouse, and finally milking the cow.  The total cost at the farm was $8.00.

 

 

 

 

 

 

For the picnic, each child got a sandwich, bag of cheetoes, and “my little pony” fruit snacks all placed in a red “fast food” basket.  I got the baskets at the D.I. for $1 for all of them. The PB&J sandwiches were in the shape of a chicken.  They were easy to do using a cookie cutter, and cheap to make.  The entire dinner cost about $6 total.  I bought $5 foot longs from subway for the adults to eat, which cost $20 total. 

The party favors where little plastic barns with toy animals inside and a few “cow tail” candies wrapped up in a clear cylophane bag and tied with a red bandana.  The total cost for eight kids was $24.00. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I made a cow cake based on a picture I found on the internet.  It was super easy to do and only cost about $4 to make. 

And there you have it.  Cute party for a 3-year-old.  The total cost was $72.   I am saving these pictures for the book I’m gonna write one day.

Tessa Lee-ta

It was my niece, Averi, that coined Tessa’s nickname, “Tessa Lee-ta” when she was just a baby.  I’ve been calling her that ever since.  I remember from my five years of Spanish, that the ending “lita” means little.  So…I guess we are calling her Little Tessa Lee. 

We celebrated three years with this little princess and we’ve loved  every minute of it.  From the very beginning, she’s been a very good girl, although full of opinions, spunk, and determination.  I’ve always been impressed with how well she catches on to things like swimming, singing, and anything physical, really.  (she definitely didn’t get this from me) 

She’s a fairly obediant child and has always worn her glasses without complaint, just like Dr. Larsen says.  She loves to play cook and take care of her many babies…which she prefers to have naked at all times.  Her pre-school teacher has told me that she’s the smartest in the class and can read a lot of words already.  (this she got from me, definitely) 

I just love her to pieces!  Happy Birthday Tessa-Leeta!

Ge Ge

I was a bad grand-daughter and completely forgot my Grandma Ge Ge’s birthday until one week later!!  I know it’s a terrible excuse, but my mom usually reminds me.  I felt really really bad.  My grandma ALWAYS remembers my birthday.  I

The kids made gifts and we loaded up and headed to Riverdale for a visit.  Because my grandma is so awesome, she has forgiven my transgression and welcomed us with ice cream and cookies. 

So, Happy Belated Birthday, Grandma!  I love you!

Jazz Girl

Joey subjected Tessa to a Jazz game the other night.  He bought her this outfit and pom poms and she was thrilled to go cheer for the team. 

After her popcorn was gone, she got bored and ancy; couldn’t really pay attention to the gam. 

That’s my girl!

“hunting” for plastic eggs

We attended the annual Best Buddies Utah 5K walk/run at Davis High on Saturday.  I am proud to say that I can run a mile…and walk the rest. 

After the run, the kids had a “hunt” of sorts.  I think it’s funny that they call it a hunt, when in reality they just throw a bunch all over the big gym floor.  They should call it an Easter Egg “pick up”. 

It was a fun day.  One of my students won 4th place, and was 1st place out of the students with disabilities.  He ran the entire thing in 28.32 minutes.  I signed him up for the track team on Monday.

Wall- Ah

Well, my bathroom is finished, all but the door…just a minor detail.  I have been enjoying my jetted tub, but Joey refused to take my picture, even with bubbles strategically placed.  So, I decided to take my own photo. 

I finally finished the photo display, the idea that I stole from my sister.  Joey still disapproves of this, but admitted that it looked FABULOUS.  Okay, he didn’t use the word fabulous.  Here are the final results of our 7 months of hard labor:

Minnie Me

Tessa got a new haircut and it looks very similar to my haircut.  We look like a couple of hot mammas. 

Memories

We went to El Matador for lunch for a “community outing” for my class.  Even though we attended the Bountiful location instead of my favorite Ogden location, it still stirred up a lot of fond memories for me. 

When I was young, it was one of my favorite restaurants because it was “dark” and mysterious and they had chickens on a fake straw roof.  I remember the big mural of a Matador and even a faux Alamo.  My favorite part was the lion fountain that “spit” water.  I could’nt leave before throwing a penny or two.  One particular time, I through a penny and wished for a baby brother…and it came true!!  I was convinced that the fountain was magical.  I also really enjoy their salsa served warm with a side of grated cheese to mix in.  It is the bom diggity, yo!

after the poker

We went over to the Gillman’s on Saturday night to play a little poker.  I was the biggest loser, only in a bad way and was banished to the other room with the kids.  I successfully got them all to fall asleep and then fell asleep myself.  I later found this photo on my camera….not sure who took it?

Wendover

My good friend Ann Allred and I took a trip to Wendover on Friday to see Lily Tomlin perform.  We were very excited for our hot night out on the town.  We started off with a seafood buffet at the Rainbow and were DELIGHTED to discover that the crab legs were big, warm and “sawed” down the middle for easy access.  It was awesome.  We took pictures to make our husbands jealous.

After Lily amazed us with her amazing-ness, we hit the casino for some blackjack.  Ann Allred was new the game, but was addicted by the time the night was through.  I left with an extra $25 in my pocket….woo hoo!  We then retired to our room where we watched “The secret lives of Bees” on my portable DVD  player because we couldn’t get it hooked up to the tv.  We stayed up till 2 am and slept intill 10 am.  It was just like college. 

mountain fun

Some of you may not know that we have a mountain in our backyard.  It looks like something you might find at Cherry Hill or Lagoon and it is an interesting sight.  On one side, there is a drinking fountain, and a shower on the inside, neither of which still work.  Besides containing our pool pump and equipment, the mountain serves as a conversation piece and for very daring people, a cool way to cliff dive into the pool. 

With the weather being nice the last few days, the kids wanted to go outside to play.  They had fun climbing the mountain and told me to get my camera and take pictures. 

We are hoping to have a “tear down the mountain” party this summer so that we can build a pergola instead.  We will miss the mountain so.

toy box

My mom has often told me stories of my toddler-hood when I would empty my toy box and climb in.  There are even pictures depicting my old past time.  That’s why I was so tickled to find Tessa enjoying herself inside her toy box. 

When I took this picture, Joey said, “Oh boy, I can see the blog entry now….Like Mother Like Daughter”.  Well, for the record:  I did NOT say that.

Partini

Ken and Scott were in town so Katie invited us all over to play games.  I hate learning new games (it’s such a hassle) so I was very dismayed when Katie suggested we play a new game called Partini.  After we got playing, however, it turned out to be a pretty fun game.  It’s a whole bunch of games rolled into one and with a “drink” theme.  It’s like Cranium, only it has more games to play.  Above, Scott is smoking his “joint” made of clay.  The funniest game was the “hum punch”, where you have to hum a song and your team has to guess the title.  It’s so hard to guess, but I nearly peed my pants listening to everyone, especially Trevor.  There are no words to describe his humming.

out on the town

We got some free tickets to Disney on Ice for Best Buddies.  Luckily for us, not all the buddies could go, so we got to use them!  They were good seats too, much better than the nose-bleeds we had last time. 

We rode the rails (front runner) to get there and it always feels kinda “cool” to me to use public transportation.  We are so green.  The only problem with riding the rails, is that you have to wait around for the rails to pick you up.  While we were waiting at the first stop, the kids posed for a few…

 

 

While we waited for the runner, the kids started to get tired and running aimlessly into each other and laughing hysterically.  Tessa especially finds it very funny to tackle people and wrestle them to the ground.

No children were harmed in the production of this blog.

tubby time

We have finished our bathroom (all except for a door!)  and have been enjoying our new jetted tub ever so much.  At first, the kids were scared to turn on the jets, but have since calmed their fears. 

My sister has a cute wall display in her bathroom that includes three close-ups of her kids in the bathtub, printed in black and white.  I liked it so much that I decided to copy her.  Joey is very much against this because he would like to put something more original on the wall and calls me a copy cat.  Well, forget him…I’m doing it anyway!

lay right down and die

Nate came how a few weeks ago very excited about being able to “lie right down and die”.  Upon further questioning, I discovered that Nate had earned a special “part” in his upcoming pre-school program because he had been the “best” singer.  He was VERY excited for this and he practiced all of the songs a lot.  We were excited to go watch him too, because the songs and actions that he practiced were pretty darn cute. 

His pre-school class performed for the high school students as part of a lunch time activity to promote the child care class.  All of the students did a great job, but I have to say that Nate stole the show when he did in fact, “lay right down and die” there on the floor.  He grabbed some flowers to hold on his chest and everything.  Everyone laughed and he was so proud of himself.  We were also proud of our little actor.

grins and giggles

I was just finishing up my breakfast this morning when I first heard the giggles.  It wasn’t until I went into Tessa’s room and turned on the lights that I saw the grins.  I guess that Nate woke up and climbed into Tessa’s bed.  I don’t know what they were talking about, but they sure thought it was funny.

fantastic John

We took a trip to Wendover this weekend to see the “Amazing Jonathan” or as I like to refer to him, “fantastic John”.  He is a comedian/ magician that Joey had seen on comedy central.  He puts on a show with a crazy lookin blonde named Tanya. He gave me some great ideas for practical jokes which I will soon play on all my co-workers!!

We ate at the buffet, played some blackjack, and slept in a hotel room WITHOUT any children.  (thanks Kris)  Even though the amazing John wasn’t that amazing, it was still fun to escape for a day and have some wild and crazy time with the husband.

sexy gonzo

For the last six years, I have been using a Cpap that I refer to as my “breathing machine”.  I have sleep apnea and it allows me to sleep AND breath at the same time.   From the first night that I received it, I have LOVED it dearly.  It is the greatest thing ever and I cannot live without it.

The past few months, it’s not been working properly and I could hear the motor dying.  I slowly got more and more tired and decided that I better look into getting a new one.  After a few hundred calls I finally got a new machine……and it’s so CUTE!!!  My old machine was at least twice it’s size and weight.  It also comes with a cute little “laptop” case to carry it in. 

I put on the mask to show Joey and he said that I look like Gonzo.  I agreed that it does “sorta” look like Gonzo, but I’m sexier. 

3D

My parents are here from Germany making selections for their new house.  They called and asked if we wanted to go see a movie with them.  My kids LOVE to go to the movies and they LOVE popcorn even more.  We went to see Coraline.  It was a really cute movie and Tessa sat through the entire movie….it was a modern day miracle. 

After the movie, the kids wanted to eat at what Tessa calls it, “Carlos Jr.”  They do love those darn chicken stars.  It was a fun outing with grandma and grandpa.  Thanks mom and dad!

free bee

If it’s free, you know I’ll be there.  It was free pancake day at IHOP and I took my whole class for a field trip. I sat with Jan and had a good time showing her how to make “lemonade” with equal packets and a lemon.  It was very enjoyable.  We were seated within two minutes and outta there in twenty.  Much better than the Denny’s fiasco.  If you’re interested in free pancake day for next year….it’s always in February on “fat tuesday”.  Check their website for details.

On the bus home, we had a great conversation with our bus driver, Renee.  He offered himself as a free dating consultant to find Alicia (my co-worker) some dates.  It sounds promising.

faculty faux pas

There were a few faculty members at today’s luncheon commenting on what a moron Chris Buttars is.  I can’t remember the exact words they were using to describe him, but they were not complimentary.  I listened for a bit and then casually added, “He’s my grandpa.  Chris Buttars is my grandpa.” 

The looks on their faces……priceless.

special gloves

Nathan has been very curious about where babies come from lately.  He has been asking me all sorts of questions about it.  I had explained how he grew in mommy’s tummy, etc.  He said, “how did I get out”?  I told him that the doctor cut me open and took him out.  He had a few more similar questions  which I answered the best way that I could and then asked, “well, how did I get in there?”   I told him that his daddy put him in there.  He seemed satisfied with that answer and stopped asking for awhile.

About two hours later he returned with, “so, how did daddy get me in there?  With some special gloves or something?”  I told him, “no, daddy forgot to wear the special gloves”.

Happy Heart Day

When you are married with children, Valentine’s Day becomes more about the kids than anything.  I think this is especially true when they are young and you don’t have a babysitter.

Tessa and I made pink heart pancakes for breakfast and spent some mommy-daughter time together.  It was really fun.  Tessa loves to cook and clean…I’m sure she’ll grow out of it once she’s actually old enough to do a good job. 

For dinner we had our traditional heart shaped pizza and bread sticks.  The kids planted valentine flowers for the window sill.  They also enjoyed a visit from my parents, who spoiled them with a lot of valentine candy.

rocking provo

Jana and I had the opportunity to rock provo Thursday night as we attended the augmentative conference at the Marriott.  I couldn’t care less about the conference part, really….I was just excited to get to stay in a hotel and to get a break from my sometimes mundane life. 

I was excited and had big plans for us.  I expressed to Jana how it would be just like in college.  I even invited the “boys” over to play poker in our room and brought all the supplies for margaritas.  When we actually got to the room, this was Jana’s response to my enthusiasm…

The “boys” were equally excited and needless to say, we didn’t play poker, or anything for that matter.  We watched a little Seinfeld, went to dinner at BrickOven Pizza, and then I talked her into a little hot tub action. 

And then, we crashed on some really nice beds.   Don’t get me wrong, I am happy to share my bed with Joey, but boy is it nice to sprawl out and take up the whole bed sometimes.  We both woke up happy girls.

guest lecture

I became a “master” last spring and in doing so became an “expert” in the field of managing para-educators.  I put together a slide show presentation and taught teachers how to manage/supervise their aides…in a nutshell. 

I was excited to get an email a couple weeks ago from Cindy, my former professor, asking me to be a guest lecturer for her class.  I was tickled pink to be able to do it because I’m sick and wrong in so many ways.  I guess that it just makes me feel good when people actually care about what I have to say….and so much that they want me to talk for 3 hours straight!!

Well, I must say that it went very well and they seemed impressed for me.  My self esteem grew three sizes that day.

Two Shay

Alicia, LaRae, Nate and Jan paid Jana and I back by cooking us breakfast this morning.  I have to admit, their breakfast was better than ours….but they did blow a fuse in the kitchen, something that Jana and I didn’t do.

Breakfast duo

We’ve had “late start” days because of testing and so Jana and I decided to make all of our staff breakfast.  I made the pancakes and Jana made the eggs.  Aren’t we the nicest and funniest “bosses” in the whole world?  I think so.

Before coming to Viewmont, I had to carry the burden of being the “only” teacher in the program.  I was actually a little wary of having to share with another teacher, but after getting to know Jana, my worries were no more.  Jana is a great person to work with and we compliment each other nicely.   She’s funny and she’s got my back.

birthday girl

We went out for dinner for Katie’s (my sister-in-law) birthday last night.  We ate at Windy’s Sukiyaki, a place that I’ve never been before.  They had really good calamari and my salmon was pretty great as well.  My kids were obnoxious and I thought that Bob (father-in-law) was going to die of embarrassment.   I don’t think he’s used to dining with toddlers.  Nate threw a giant tantrum and Tessa spilled her drink.  Averi was perfect, however.  I was jealous. Maybe it was her birthday present to her mom?

For dessert, Jason brought her an ice cream cake and it was delicious.  I’m still thinking about it.

Hostess with the Mostess

There is an episode of “Friends” where Monica works really hard to remodel their new apartment (after moving across the hallway) to make it suitable for her friends to hang out in just so that she could be the hostess again.  When all of the friends finally come over and start to eat her food and enjoy her living space, she lays down on the couch and falls asleep saying, “I’m always the hostess”.  Well, I can totally relate to Monica because I love to be the hostess.  It’s sort of my hobby.  My cousin Becky and I, we have this in common and love to come up with all sorts of party ideas.  We are going to write a book one day. 

I hate football.  I don’t understand it and it looks and sounds like Japanese to me when it’s on.  I can’t follow it at all.  Regardless of this fact, I threw a superbowl party on Sunday.  It was actually Joey’s idea and I acted as if it was a pain and that I didn’t want to, but secretly I was excited about getting to throw a party.  I cooked shredded beef in the crock pot with mexican seasoning to make taco salads.  Everyone seemed to enjoy them. 

I always spend more time on these things than really necessary, but it’s worth it in the end when I can sit on the couch, get ”tingles” in my stomach and think to myself, “I am always the hostess”.

groundhog for breakfast

I have been on the Activities Committee in my ward for almost three years.  I am kind of sick of it, although I can admit that it’s a job that “suits” me.  Last year, I suggested that we hold a “best pajamas” contest at our annual Groundhog Breakfast, and the Bishop thought that was a swell idea.  It was a hit and has now become somewhat of a tradition. 

I think it’s nice to just wake up and go.  I did, however add a bra underneath…no need to scare everyone.  I also wore Joey’s giant moose slippers, which were a hit.  Many people wanted to vote for me (I think) but I told them that I didn’t want them to because I was counting the votes and didn’t want everyone to think that I fixed the election. 

I made 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place awards, which were all sleeping masks with a cute tag to state the award.  Everyone thought they were cute.  What good ideas I have sometimes.

About a blog

I came home from step aerobics tonight and found Joey and the two munchkins on the floor  in deep meditation. They looked like little boodas and I thought it was so cute that I whipped my camera out to try to take a picture of it.  Joey suddenly cringed and hid his face, and the munchkins followed suit.

It seems that I’ve offended a few people in recent days, Joey being one of them.  He let me know that he does not appreciate me “bad mouthing” him on my blog and he doesn’t want to be on my blog anymore.  He also said that his friends are offended with my words and that not everyone “gets” my sense of humor.  I went to take a shower and I contemplated what he had said.

I  started this blog a few months ago for a few reasons.  1)  I wanted to take more pictures and thought that a blog might give me a reason to work on that goal. 2)  I thought it might be a nice outlet for some of my thoughts and feelings.  3)  I might feel more important if I knew that other people cared about my life.  4) I thought it might be fun to show others how darn funny I am (okay, not really).  I really thought it might help my self esteem and out of the pit of despair that I felt I was falling into.

Like most things that I undertake, I have gone full throttle with my blog, and some might say “obsessed”.  Mostly I was just trying to disprove Joey’s prediction that I would not keep it up. However, it HAS improved my self esteem, I HAVE taken a lot more pictures, it HAS made me feel better, and it IS really funny if you have a sense of humor. I have really enjoyed writing in my blog and I “think” that a lot of people have enjoyed reading it as well.

My high school counselor once asked me “where all this sarcasm is coming from?”  She didn’t know me very well.  I am a very sarcastic person and I use sarcasm to “tease” people.  The good news is that I only “tease” people that really like and I “tease” myself as well.  The trouble with my sarcasm, as Joey made me understand, is that it doesn’t really come across well on a blog.  Some of you, including Joey, have been offended, and I feel bad about that .  I am truly sorry.  The truth is that Joey and he who shall not be named are two of my favorite people and two of the people I feel I can act myself around.

With that being said, I cannot just walk into the living room to find my husband “talking” to his video game very loudly,while wearing a “headset”, saying very silly sounding things and NOT make fun of it.  I mean,  come on!  I calls ‘em likes I sees ‘em….and I sees that it’s very very funny.

rebels

Hayley and I went to the movies on Friday night.  We went to the Tower Theatres and we both commented on the “different” people that attend that theatre.  They are not your “normal” Utah crowd, and we kind of liked it.

We went to see “Revolutionary Road”, which looked a lot better than it acutally was.  It was kind of boring in some spots and I didn’t really “feel” for the characters, perhaps because I didn’t live in the 50’s.

After the movie was over, Hayley sheepishly asked if I wanted to stay for ANOTHER movie…it was 9:00 pm at this time.  I gave her an evil laugh and said “yes, we are such rebels”.  And we were.  We stayed for “Slumdog Millionaire”, got lots of refills on our drinks, and stayed up way past our bedtimes.

I must say that Slumdog was the best movie I’ve seen in awhile…I’m glad we stayed.

Encore

Those of you that have ever tried to take two toddlers to the grocery store know that it is quite an exhausting experience.  Tessa is especially naughty at the stores these days, so I avoid these shopping trips at all costs, under normal circumstances.

The other day, Joey was gone to a Jazz game, so I had to take them both with me, as it was the last day of the sales and I needed to use my coupons.  Both of the kids started out in the car, but I had to separate them because they were fighting.  I finished my shopping as fast as possible because Tessa was grouchy and whining about everything.  In fact, I was so distracted with her, that I forgot all about Nate, still in the front.

I paid for the groceries and headed out to the car.  I put Tessa in first, and turned around to find little Nate, sound asleep, drool and all.  He must find these shopping excursions just as exhausting as I do.

work of art….sorta

Joey and I spent the better half of two days tiling our tub surround.  I think that if our marriage survives this remodeling project, it will survive anything.  We were driving each other crazy the entire time. I spread the thinset and laid the tiles, while Joey measured and cut the tiles.  We make a pretty good team when we’re not yelling at each other.

Things would have been much easier if our house was not so crooked.  I don’t think that any of our walls are straight or level, which made laying the tile a huge pain in the neck.  We still have a few stray tiles to get done and the ceiling still to go.  We had to put an end to it because the water in the tile saw kept freezing.

We’ve also had a problem getting the cabinet company to come back to finish installing the cabinets.  The guy came to start and never has come back.  He makes appointments and then never shows up.  I’m getting very frustrated with them.

One day, this will all be over and I will look back and laugh….I hope.

bane of my existence

For Christmas, Joey got a t-shirt from his friend Rico that said, “I’m the only one without an Xbox 360″, as he is, the only one of his kind without one.  They all laughed and said that they felt so bad for him.  Then, he would look at me with puppy dog eyes as if to say “don’t YOU feel sorry for me too?”.  I didn’t.  I did NOT like the idea of Joey having access to Xbox live and forming an addiction that would ultimately lead him to wasting even more time than he already does.  I was pretty confident that Joey wouldn’t buy one because they are too expensive, and he is too cheap.

Much to my dismay, his friend (he who shall not be named) decided to give him his old one that was in need of repair.  Instead of just fixing it, like any normal person would do, he just bought a new one and Joey inherited the broken one.  Normally, it takes Joey months, sometimes years of me nagging him to get things fixed or to finish projects around the house.  Let me tell you that it took him less than two days to fix the XBox, rig up the internet connection, and hook the whole thing up.  He was up and running in no time.

Each night, this is how you’ll find Joey.  Sitting on the couch, headphones on, talking very loudly to his friends about video games and staying up till al hours of the night.  I could just kiss he who should not be named.

High Five

We celebrated my niece, Averi’s birthday on Saturday at Fat Cats in Ogden.  We did some bowling, which is one of my favorite things to do.  I often call bowling my own little “self esteem booster” because it’s one of the few things that I can actually win.  I also enjoy taunting Joey about losing to me.  He tolerates it because he knows that he can beat me in EVERYTHING else.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been five years since Averi was born.  My how time flies.  We gave her a Hello Kitty alarm clock because we thought it would come in handy when she wakes up for kindergarten.   She has always been very smart for her age, so I’m sure she can handle it.

Up Chuck E Cheese

We’d been promising Nate that we’d take him to Chuck E Cheese for awhile now.  He had earned enough “smily faces” at school, so we owed him.  We decided to buckle down and go last night. 

I have to say that the pizza is not bad.  Everything else is, though.  It’s far too loud and there are far too many little kids running around.  My kids had fun, however, so I guess that’s all that matters.

tide pools

Anyone that knows me, knows that I love to paint colors on my walls.  A few years ago, I painted my Grandma Butcher’s kitchen and she made me paint it WHITE!  It wasn’t any fun at all.  It physically pained me to do it.  I told her that’s how she knows that I really love her.  I won’t paint white walls for just anyone. 

We are getting very close to finishing this damn bathroom.  (pardon my french)  The walls are done (and pretty smooth, I must say) and I finished up the painting last night.  The walls are a pretty blue-green called “tide pools”.  It matches the color of the accent tiles very nicely.  Tessa calls it “pretty green”. 

Our final list of things to do before we are finished with this project:  put up the bead board and trim, tile the tub surround, put up the light fixture, and put up the mirror.  Oh, I feel my long bath in my jetted tub now.

fun at Willey’s

Joey and I decided that we’d like to find ourselves a nice sectional for our living room to make more use of the space.  That was about the only thing we agreed on, however.  You see, Joey would really like a “comfortable” couch with all sorts of poof , built in recliners, and cup holders.  The kind of thing that you might see in a rich person’s “home theatre”.  Me, on the other hand, I would definitely sacrifice the comfortable part as long as it looks cute and matches my living room.  I do not care for the unsightly sectionals that Joey falls in love with. 

So, we spent the day looking at a few stores to try to come to a compromise.  We didn’t find anything too special.  Nater REALLY enjoyed himself on this massage chair, though.  I told Joey that we could definitely NOT put that in our living room.

Arts & Crafts

At Viewmont, we have a once a month class called “Advisory”.  It’s when the students meet in a “home room” for twenty minutes and have a touchy feely kind of lesson.  The purpose is to help the teenagers feel a “part” of their school and such. 

Some of  “our” students have a hard time attending a regular ed.  advisory, so we have our own.  This year, we decided to have an art project during this time.  It’s been fun to watch all of the staff get more involved in the crafts than the students do…myself included.  Some of the crafts have been difficult for the adults to master, let alone the students.  I don’t know what I was thinking. 

Here is a Alicia with her work of art.  She was very proud.  Alicia is also single, in case any of you were wondering.

En Vogue

I made a trip to Roy OATC beauty school where my friend Lacey attends.  She has been my favorite hair cutter-rupper for the last two years.  I’ve been getting basically the same haircut every time, but last night we mixed it up a little.  It’s a little shorter, more trendy and hawt, I might add.

Sheet Rock Nazi

My brother-in-law, Jason, came over to help us finish the sheet rock in our bathroom.  I never realized how much work a little sheet rock would be.  Although Jason says that my skills are pretty good, I don’t think that I’ll be quitting my day job any time soon. 

At any rate, I am VERY thankful to Jason for helping us out.  He’s driven to our house about four times to help/teach us how to do it.  One day, he even took my kids home with him!!  Jason is my new hero.  He IS a sheet rock nazi, though.

Sequence This

Traditionally, for the last five years, we have gone over to Ann Allred’s house for a Sequence tournament on New Year’s Eve.  Ann Allred invites about eight couples and all their children over for appetizers and some healthy competition.  There is always a little trash talk.  The winner of the tournament gets a giant glass “cup” filled with treats and things.  The winners of past years are written on the side of the cup and we are proud to have our name written there twice.

During the summer, Joey noticed an add in the Sequence box for odering your own Sequence t-shirt.  He thought it would be funny to wear them to the party.  I am too cheap, however, and decided to make my own.  They turned out pretty great, if I do say so myself.  You can’t tell from the picture, but at the bottom they read, “Table talk is not necessary, It’s all skill now”.  Everyone got a kick out of our t-shirts.  I heard some of the newcomers to the tournament say, “Oh no, now we have to play the ones with the t-shirts”. I think they were intimidated by us.

Well, we didn’t win the tournament this year, but we cam in second place.  The Rockwells took it.  That’s ok, I filled the cup with all the leftover candy that I didn’t want anyway.

Home Depoted out

Since embarking on this road to a better bathroom, I have made MANY trips to the Home Depot.  Most of these trips I try to make without my children because….well, have you ever tried to take two toddlers to Home Depot?  The other night, I had no choice and I tried it with the kids.  Tessa was very naughty, as usual and refused to sit nicely.  Nathan was equally unruly for most of the trip.  He was riding and climbing on the cart and finally got underneath to ride.  I didn’t object because he was finally quiet.  To my shock, as I went to pay, I noticed that he had fallen asleep!

Rock On

I usually go to bed around 9 pm, however Joey found a way to keep me up until 2 am.  I found him in the living room SINGING to RockBand all by himself!  I thought it was pretty funny.  He promptly challenged me to sind “Black Hole Sun” on the medium setting, as he couldn’t pass it.  I passed it easily and the screen called me awesome a lot.  I kept on singing and Joey played the guitar.  Before I knew it, it was 2 am.  Stupid RockBand.