ARGHHHHHHH!!!!

Blogging is wonderful...I love connecting with old and new friends on a daily basis. E-mail is also a wonderous and beautiful thing. It's so great to take care of all sorts of stuff without voice mail and long, lengthy telephone calls. Storing my pictures on our computer...SUPER!  I love having all my pics just a click away. You Tube...this can entertain my children forever. 

However....I HATE COMPUTERS!!!!!!!  We have honestly had the worst luck with ALL computers we have ever owned. The latest one, the one we have only had for 2 years, has had every issue possible. It's already been sent back (under warranty) to replace the motherboard, it has had every hard drive issue possible. So, once again, for the last 2 months we have dealt with "blue-screening" (aka,  the "blue screen of death"...look at the lingo I know now...I could join Geek Squad"). I limped it along as long as possible. So, a couple of hundred dollars later, we thought we had it fixed....NOPE. Messed up again yesterday. So, Bill and I made the jump to a Mac box...because who doesn't want to throw down a wad of cash after Christmas? We get to keep the monitor and keyboard, but we are essentially Mac people now. Ten years ago, Bill made me switch from Mac to PC, which I was resistant, but I did. For the last 2-3 years, he has regretted it. So, I must re-learn all this stuff. The biggest pain will be trying to put all my Quick books stuff into a different format, but I will survive. I did get an i-phone for Christmas (woo hoo), so that will be nice to have a Mac at home as well.

So what I'm really trying to say is; I can't post any pics of Christmas as I don't know what I am doing on this thing yet!

Happy New Year....here's to new things. 

The curse of the blue poinsettia

Well, once again, I don't have pics because of my computer issues. This is probably good...there were a lot of incriminating pictures that I could have shown.

I had 4 parties of various variety last week. All great and fun in their own way, but Friday's party with some good friends was hilarious as always. We eat great food and chat the night away, but the white elephant giving is so much fun. Bill and I received a gigantic 44DD flower bra (to me...the flattest woman in the room) and a lovely blue poinsettia plant. You can just imagine this beautiful plastic wonder...gorgeous! Well, Bill ended up trying to hide it in our host's beautifully decorated home, hoping she wouldn't notice, and we wanted to share this beautiful plant with her. Well, I guess we weren't the only one hiding our presents...(sorry, Shelly, I'm sure you didn't want a huge ceramic snowman in your shower).

Saturday night, I went to my doorstep to find the blue plant had found it's way home. Aahh, thanks! Emi thinks it is gorgeous....yesterday, she wanted to use it for a table decoration for my party with Bill's sister. I told her it would look wonderful in HER room. She's happy with that, but it did make an appearance for our festive tortellini dinner tonight. I guess I can always re gift it at next year's party.

10 Years with the Ball and Chain....

Well, because of my computer dealing with some drama this week, I can't post a picture of us. Maybe that's better...after 10 years of marriage, we may not want to see pics of us when we were young and beautiful. You know, before the years of diapers, bills, kid-puke, home reconstruction, and mini-vans have taken a toll on us. I sometimes look at our wedding portrait on the wall of our living room and laugh. We were so naive and had no idea what we were in for.

But, I can honestly say that marrying Bill on December 18th, 1998 was the smartest thing I ever did. Well....I should have waited until spring. My only regret. December should only be for Christmas...no anniversaries and birthdays (you can see how planned Emi was...j/k). But Bill has made me laugh almost every day of our marriage, and that is so important to me. It really gets me through the rough days. He works so hard to make our life fun, sweet, and happy. I love that he is his own man with all sorts of his own interests. Bill is passionate about many things and he gets things done. He has no fear in taking charge when necessary and is an obvious leader. That's just a few short reasons why I love him. It's nice to say that I love him more now than the day I married him. Gosh...I barely knew him when we got married! Seriously, if my daughter ever does what I did...I'll kill her. But luckily, it worked out for me.

Happy Anniversary, Bill. I love you!

p.s. for the MANY people who have begged to know the answer to the previous post....it's Bill's new FJ cruiser. Some of you saw me try to gracefully (not) climb into it after the cookie party.

Merry Christmas, Bill

Well....Bill just bought himself his Christmas/Birthday/Valentine's Day/Easter/Arbor Day present for the next 3 years. And, just so you know, plan on Bill dying when he is 74, as he has apparently reached his midlife crisis. If you want to know what it is, just take a look in our garage. It's big, a tad ridiculous if you want my opinion (he doesn't =-) ), and smurf blue. I haven't liked this color ever since my BYU cheerleader days. I cheered there back in the day when our uniforms were the color of a bright blueberry. So glad they went navy....
Anyways, I'm really happy for him. The cool thing about our relationship is that we can allow each other these type of things every so often...no questions asked. I think this is impractical, but I'm sure he thinks I'm frivilous on some things.

He's really, really happy. He's dreamed of this for 3 years. And, he's feeling the need to suck up a little, which is nice. Yesterday, he washed my dirty pans/pots and took out trash without being asked. How long can I make this last?

My own personal hell...

Well....I had a sad loss recently. The pack and ship postal store that was so, so conveniant for me went and unexpectedly shut down. I loved it....a salty little former New Yorker ran the store and she was quick and down to business. Great little shop, rarely any lines, with funny quotes on the wall that dissed George Bush. I loved it. Well, she's gone and I really miss her.

Here's why: I found myself having to go to the post office twice this week to stand in a mother of a line both times. Yea, I know...lines should be expected during the holidays. The first time wasn't so bad, but today...arghhh. While I stood in the snail-paced line, somebodies car alarm was blarring the whole time, there was a skip on the CD being played, so I had to hear Bruce Springsteen say, "Coming to town-Coming to town-Coming to town-over and over again. The man in front of me was on some mission to collect bizarre and very hard to find stamps....DO THAT IN JANUARY!!!!!! It sucked. Ho ho ho...sorry. I'll cheer up.

My little girl is all grown up....

Happy Birthday to my little monkey. I can't believe Emi is 6. She had a super day..



Daddy brought her a dozen red roses after his morning bike ride (ignore the awful spandex beanie that he wears....SEXY). She was so happy to have her own flowers.



Then she had her first non-house party at her gymnastics gym....I seriously will never do a party at home again. It's so great to just show up and the kids LOVE it. They all wanted to sleep there. It was all we could do to get them home. She scored on Ponies, Pet Shop stuff, Webkinz, and all sorts of great things.

The "gramp" tramp...hee hee hee

All the kids in the pit....I hope we didn't lose one in there. But then, I guess we lost a kid at Parker's 6th birthday.(Sorry, Monika....couldn't resist)

In other happenings this weekend, we had a ball at the Bishopric party. Learned some cool games with Costco cups and a game called Tip It. And to our fellow ward members, look for the new and improved "Free Range Nursery" coming soon. (By the way, Karen, I can't get the Star Wars Acapella guy out of my head, either)

I love my tree....

As I said in my last post, I would brag about my tree in another post. I think it deserves it's own post. I LOVE my Santa tree. My mom has collected Santa ornaments for about 20+ years, and before I was married, I started collecting. They come from everywhere...I love the trip down memory lane everytime I open the box. It's great, because whenever I travel to a new place, I don't have to buy some tacky shotglass. They usually have a Santa to match the location. Once I had kids, I started a new tradition with them. Every year, I give them a Santa that corresponds with something they have done that year. I write the name and year on the back and then, when they get married, I will give them all the ornaments for their tree (if they want them...it may be hard for me to part with them). I know I shouldn't be over-Santa-ing my kids, but we have many nativities around as well. My kids totally love decorating it. They love the tree, too!

Some of my favorite Santa's( not all pictured): Santa moon, Santa monkey, Mr. Potato Head Santa, Santa doing crunches, Bungee Santa, Santa dancing with a reindeer, Santa spoon, starfish Santa, Tinkerbell Santa, Sandy Claws, Helicopter Santa, and Millenium Santa. Yes, they make about every kind. So fun.

(this pic doesn't really do it justice...it's a 9 foot tall majestic shrine to Santa)

As for this picture....I do not have the story on it. I found it in the camera. Must have happened while I was teaching and Dad was in charge. I think Quinn looks especially cute in my glasses.
Have a 'cool Yule'

Boring post about a great weekend

no pictures tonight....I'm too tired. And my computer is being a dork.

But, ahhh, a nice holiday weekend:
Thanksgiving at my mom's house is always a major treat. Her southern cornbread stuffing is amazing....most southern stuff is gross (okre, butterbeans, etc) but this is SO good. Someday, I'll post the recipe. She has way more side dishes than necessary, and everyone of them is awesome. I wish we could just spread it out over 4 days. Joyce's family was there as well as Anne, Kip, and Brady. Really fun group.

Emi got sick Friday, so most out-in-public plans were squashed. We still went to my mom's to do the traditional gingerbread boys. Parker made an old man, cub scout, mickey mouse, and piano player gingerbread boy, and Emi made Belle, Minnie Mouse, Li-Li, beach girl, Michael Phelps, and a blackbird dancer gingerbread girl. Cute, cute.

Saturday consisted of raking leaves, attending a nice funeral, putting Emi's birthday party bags together, making a gingerbread house (DON'T buy the Willy Wonka brand....horrible frosting...kept dripping....looks like a snowman ran face first into the house) and decorated the Santa tree. I will post about that later. It's a great tree, if I do say so myself.

Hope everyone had a super holiday. I didn't do one inkling of shopping. I hope to get to that soon. Happy December!

Tradition, tradition, (la la la la la la la) TRADITION!

O.K.....so the game kind of sucked, but the traditional spread of glutinous treats was super. Bill doesn't watch oodles of football (due to lack of time, not lack of desire), but the BYU/UTAH game and the Superbowl require the following:

• Onion dip
• Mozzerella sticks
• Peanut M&M's
• Chips and salsa
• Weinharts Vanilla Cream (It looks like beer....it's not)
• Cocktail weenies, marinated in grape jelly and mustard....sound gross, but it is SOOOO good...very white trashy

Another tradition embarked on today was the raking of leaves. The kids go crazy for it.

Check out Parker jumping into the leaves.....he looks like he is about to hit Quinn....he didn't.

And, oh yes....one more silly tradition done by the men and boys of our ward. The infamous Turkey Bowl. They basically run around talking schmack and then limp around in major pain the rest of the day. My dear Bill goofed up his back. He's the one in the 89 jersey.

Why.....

• Why do some people forget Thanksgiving and have their trees up?
• Why is my body giving out on me?
• Why do I want it to snow so badly before Thanksgiving?
• Why do I always stay up later than I should?
• Why can't I sleep in, even when given the opportunity?
• Why do people choose to be mean to others through snide little comments?
• Why do I look forward to Christmas, even though it's a boatload of work?
• Why are the Mormons being blamed so ferociously for Prop. 8?
• Why does "retail therapy" totally work for me?
• Why does tanning cream smell so yucky?
• Why did I have wheat thins for lunch instead of something more filling?
• Why do we have to practice piano today?
• Why do I HAVE to eat mozzerella sticks, Weinharts, and Bill's onion dip for the BYU/utah game? (oh....never mind....yum)

Happy Blog Birthday...please, no presents...unless your name is Bill

Happy 1 year Blog day to me! Like I say, I like to celebrate things.

Why I love Blogging:

1. I have been able to connect with old friends that I haven't seen in years. I love this! I (unlike many in my family) am a very social person and love to still be involved in peoples' lives, even if they are all the way across the country. And honestly, being a mom of a child with special needs is a VERY isolating feeling sometimes. So, if I can connect with y'all this way, it keeps me off my ledge. That's why blogging is not a waste of time.
2. I'm a horrible journal keeper because it isn't very fun....blogging IS fun!
3. It's a non-obligatory way of keeping people abreast of my going-ons. No one HAS to read it (except Bill), but they only do if they want. I like that!
4. I love reading my friends' blogs and see that their lives aren't perfect either.
5. I love comments.....it makes me happy to hear from you all and I try diligently to keep up with all of your blogs.

Now...I'm still not very good at it. I haven't figured out how to put a site meter, images, new backgrounds, and a lot of other things on my blog, but I'll do that one day. Right now...it's just a bare bones blog that enables me to brag or bash on my kids/husband, share big moments, share little moments, and basically just spout off random thoughts into the universe.....thanks for reading!

Food Storage Pancakes!

My sister -in-law, Jennifer, gave me this recipe that doesn't use a wheat grinder! Thanks for all your responses to my food storage plea.

For you folks that have wheat but no grinder, a wonderful way to start using it is by making blender pancakes. I promise they are wonderful! We eat them nearly every weekend at my house.

Blender Pancakes1.5 C. wheat kernals2 C. milk (may use Buttermilk)3 T. vegetable oil2 eggs1 T. sugar or honey1/2 t. salt1 T. Baking Powder (if using buttermilk, use 2 t. Baking Soda instead )

Put wheat and milk in a strong blender and blend for 4-5 minutes. Add the rest of the ingredients except for Baking Powder and blend 1-2 more minutes. Add baking powder and blend till just mixed.

Fry on a hot griddle. These won't be quite as light and fluffy as white flour pancakes but the taste great. Using buttermilk does make them seem a bit lighter I think.

This recipe makes enough for my family of 6 (including 2 teenagers) and sometimes we don't eat them all - but they store ok in an airtight bag for a day or so and my kids argue over who gets them the next morning. So if your family is smaller/younger you might want to cut it down a bit - (1 C. flour and 1 1/3 C. milk)

Food storage....bleehh!

Well, I finally crossed something off my summer to-do list. I got into my food storage and organized it up a bit. I had a lot of out-of-date stuff to discard. I loaded up on many staples (coke is a staple) at Costco and feel just a wee bit more sound if there was an emergency. However, food storage is very depressing to me. Is my life going to come to eating the 35 cans of beans I have stored? I am not a bean fan. Will my family really be forced to eat the wheat I grind with my unopened electric wheat grinder (if there is electricity to cook the bread, there will be electricity to grind the wheat!)? Will dried apple slices and beef jerky be my only form of treats? Will I be able to convince my children that they cannot be picky or they will die of starvation? Will I be sent to Hell because I will inevitably have to steal my neighbors food storage (Sheri...the food storage Queen!)?
Here are some questions I send out to the universe to help me finish this project. I could google these things, but I trust the collective mind of my "blogiverse" more:

• Is there any way of storing eggs or egg substitutes?
• Is the dry pack the best deal of dried milk?
• Will the leftover Halloween candy save for awhile?
• What are your best food storage secrets?

Thanks for the help...I really hate this. I would much rather be doing ANYTHING else.

Congrats to a few....

Parker and David (the pic is on Bill's phone, I'll post it soon) competed in the piano Duet Federation Festival yesterday. They worked SO hard on "Monster Play" and "Moonlight Stillness" and received Superiors. They worked together really well and I'm so proud of their accomplishment. It wasn't easy....thanks, Monika, for working their tails off.



And now a HUGE congrats to Julie and Dave with their beautiful, new, healthy triplets. Wow, a family of 9! So much more than what you bargained for, but they will enjoy your family so much. I can't wait to see them.



And.....congrats to my brother, Mark. He was put in as Bishop last week in his ward in New York. However, being your sister, I must let it be known the reasons you shouldn't be bishop:

1-Mark and I once stole a Taco Bell bell and replaced it with a roll of toilet paper.

2-He didn't get married until he was 28. A definite menace to society.

3-He once poured rootbeer on his applejacks just to bug me, though he admitted it was gross. He just wanted to make me mad.

4-He took my bed outside while I was at ballet. Hoodlum!

5-He threw a party when my parents were out of town. O.k....it wasn't too crazy. The prophet's grandson attended (that's pretty much the norm in Utah).

6-He re-nigged on a bet with his best friend that he would name his children "Scripto" and "Colgate".

7-He toyed with the emotions of Mr. Knight, his 9th grade geography teacher. Seriously, he messed with the poor man....so much that Mr. Knight had it out for me when I came into his class.

8-He once paraded down Broadway in a Kool-aid man costume.....all in the name of his job. PR?!? Oh yeah, he got kissed by famous mall-rat Tiffany and hung out with Cyndi Lauper while making the 80's Trivial Pursuit commercial. Not fit to be Bishop!!!!!



Oh, just kidding. I find it weird that I am at the age where I go on group dates with Bishops....it's bizarre. Good luck, Mark. You will be awesome! As will your family.

I was tagged and now you must suffer (or not read it!)

The 8 Things Tag...in no particular order

8 T.V. shows I love to watch:

1-Office

2-30 Rock

3-ER

4-Samantha Who?

5-House Hunters (it's the voyer in me...I love to see inside people's houses)

6-Jon & Kate +8

7-So You Think You Can Dance

8-Curious George and Charlie & Lola come in as a tie.



Favorite Restaurants:

1-Zupas

2-Cafe Rio

3-Sampan

4-Citris Grill

5-Noodles

6-The Do Do (my VERY favorite)

7-Bonsai

8-Bucca de Peppo





8 Things That Happened Today:

1-I started laundry (isn't this exciting?)

2-I shoveled heavy, wet snow

3-Parent Teacher Conference

4-Subbed for Jen and taught her 2 classes

5-Drove to school 3 times (morning, Kindergarten, PT conference)

6-Got both kids to finish homework within half an hour of getting home

7- Dealt with a VERY long tantrum from a middle child who shall remain nameless.

8- Found 3 pair of mittens in 1 minutes time.



8 Things That I Look Forward To:

1-8:30, when all kids are in bed

2- hearing about the birth of Julie's triplets (I heard it was really close!)

3- a new president (yes, I don't share my "conservative democratic" political views often because of the rudeness of many, many Utahns, but I am excited for the new year. I did vote for Huntsman and a few other choice republicans)

4-attending a play with my hubby on Saturday.

5-Thanksgiving week....I love that week.

6-Girl's night, whenever and wherever it will be.

7-a cure for autism/asperger's

8-seeing Quinn when he wakes up because he is so cute in his monkey sleeper suit.



8 People I Tag: seriously, like any of you! do it. Monika? Stacey? Kari? Amy? Jessica? Brooke? Mark? whoever!

Halloween Fun...Now it's done!

This is how I feel after Halloween is finally over.....I do love the holiday, but I'm done. I'm done doing the "Monster Mash", "Pumpkin-Patch-Polka", and "Thriller" in my dance classes. I'm done with spiders, gore, and ghosts and ooooohhhhh so much candy tempting me all the time.

Here's my cute, out-of-focus, children. They had just trick-or-treated at Bill's work, but were ready for more. Apparently, they ran the whole way.

Quinn (with a headless Grandpa S.) was nervous about trick-or-treating, but quickly found it to his liking.

Parker, hard at work on Halloween. Please ignore Bill's empty office. He just moved there and I haven't had time to add my womanly touch.

I was lucky enough to help with Emi's school party. Such a cute age.....except for the little boy who downed 2 entire bottles of my sprinkles.

Parker's baptism was today....I'm too tired to do that post tonight, but will get to it soon. Happy November....please don't play the Christmas music yet. I'm not ready to face it.

"Footloose" and Fancy Free

One of, like, the most important jobs of the bishopric is, you know, like, chaperoning stake dances. Gag me! Grody to the max!

How cool are we....it's truly sad Bill and I never dated in the 80's. How cute would we have been? You can't tell, but my florescent yellow sweatshirt is totally flashdanced out. Nor can you see my stylin' neon orange canvas boat shoes (with yellow socks). The bangs took awhile to get out this morning, but well worth it. I totally give it up to John and Karen though. She is wearing cut loofah gloves and John made a special trip to Harmon's JUST for binaca mouth spray. Karen even gurned (crusty) a few times to complete her look. Check out her blog Like, totally rad!! for more radical pics. Bill attempted the Flock of Seagulls hairdo, but ended up with this.

I must say to the youth of today....get your own music! Electric Slide, Boot-scootin' Boogie, Footloose, White Boy, Forever Yours (by Journey), stuff by KISS and the Ramones....come on. There were a few I didn't recognize, but really. I'm old and I knew most of the tunes.

P.S. Marrdy just gave me a Blogger award....she's so nice....I think she feels sorry for my little blog. Thanks Marrdy....it made my day!

The Quinners, the Quinners, ooo, we love the Quinners (to be sung to the tune of "The Bunny, The Bunny" from "Rack, Shack, and Benny")

I just bought this picture for Quinn's room because it reminds me so much of him right now. He loves to point out noses. Isn't this a sweet pic?

Quinn's favorite new game; It involves a racquet in each hand. He will let me help him hit a ball with them properly, but then is just happy to chase the ball around the house by pushing it with alternating racquets.

He is as sweet as can be, but definitely my most emotional toddler. He will being pushing his train happily and then instantly break out in shrieking sobs. He has also shrieked every morning as I take off his PJ top. Very attached to his sleepwear, I guess. He is so attached to his lion, Li-Li. I know it's naptime when he proudly announces, "LI-LI". He says "Li-Li" more than momma or daddy, so I guess I know where we stand in his priorities.

Quinn picking his first pumpkin at the cabin. He took it very seriously!

In other news, Princess Belle ran off and married some old, crotchedy man after her first piano recital.

A year of a million dreams....packed into 3 days!

Well, we packed up and headed to the Magical Land that is Disneyland for 3 fun-filled days. Here is our top ten:

1-Quinn....of all the fun the park had to offer our little guy, this was by far his favorite spot. The fountain. So entertained by water!



2- Good food! We enjoyed the Blue Bayou (my absolute fav), the girls did Ariel's Grotto, and the boys did Goofy's kitchen. This is Emi enjoying her shells and cheese with goldfish on top.
3. Pirates...well, Quinn screamed through the entire pirate ride, but that didn't dampen Parker's love for all things pirates. Didn't dampen my love for a audio-animatronic Johnny Depp, either.
4. Fun characters everywhere. It's nice that Emi doesn't run away screaming like she used to. (Bill is the one on the right...yuk, yuk, yuk).
5. Thrill rides! Parker ADORES them. This is us on "Tower of Terror". Emi went on it once, but not twice...she really did get brave for most things this year. Parker just giggles through these rides. I love it! It's a good age because he is as happy on those as he is on Dumbo.
6. Grandparents (these are in no particular order). This was AWESOME! It's like bringing your own personal nanny and photographer. My dad must have taken a billion pictures of my kids.

7. Mickey Mouse. Too bad Quinn decided to nap for this part, but oh well. He loved all things Mickey.
8. ....speaking of which, here he is enjoying the Mickey ice cream. Thanks to my dad's obsession with these little beauties, we enjoyed them a lot!
9. Princess Emi.....couldn't believe it! She got to meet Belle! She was so happy. The princesses rotate, and we were so lucky to get her. Especially since I dueled out a bunch-0-money for her Halloween costume. We met almost every princess, but Belle is so her favorite right now.
10. The new "Toy Story Mania" ride in California Adventure. Super fun. It takes the "Buzz Astro-blasters" to a whole new level. I'm seriously so impressed that Disney Imagineers come up with this stuff. Had a ball on it!

So that was the good.....we won't mention Tinkerbell malfunctioning during the fireworks, 3 of us getting the gurgly crud, or the monorail breaking at a crucial moment in our day.....the good far outweighs any of the bad!

Parker, age 8

Here is my little baby....turning EIGHT!!!! I can hardly believe it. We've had quite a crazy week. We took off for Disneyland last Thursday and returned Monday (more on that later) . Parker's b-day is today and we had his party at a bounce house place. He had a ball. He said today was the greatest day of his life. Such a cutie. Seriously.....EIGHT! It's been eight years since I went through 36 hours of hard labor.....wait, let's forget that. Let's celebrate him.

8 reasons why I love Parker:

1-He invents great jokes.

2-He loves to play with his brother and sister who adore him.

3-There is nothing funner than hearing him play piano.

4-He's very articulate and imaginative.

5-He gets absolutely giddy about certain things.

6-He knows how to suck up to me when he really wants something, but I love it and milk it for all it's worth

7-He's got the most contagious laugh

8-He's incredibly sensitive to spiritual things....it's awesome. Not to get religious or anything, but I feel like he's an "old soul". He's deals with a lot and is very brave going into things that are hard for him. I can't believe all he has overcome and all he is TRYING to overcome. I know he was given his challenges for a reason, and I believe it was because Heavenly Father knew he could handle it.

So many more reasons, but I'm exhausted. I love you, Parker. You're my inspiration!

Happy Birthday to me!

Not to toot my own horn, but HAPPY BIRTHDAY to me! I don't really hide birthdays and I am a big believer of celebrating little moments in life. So, despite my ever-increasing age, I will enjoy this day. The kids made me breakfast (banana/choco chip pancakes) and I always love that. On Friday, I was treated to dinner at Buca de Peppo (sp?) with 12 great friends.

Why I love an October 5th birthday:
-Cool, crisp fall weather with gorgeous, decorative leaves
-When my birthday falls on a Sunday, I don't have to tote all the kids to church because it is conference weekend. This is way more important to me since I ALSO have my hubby home, which is unusual for Sundays.
-I can usually talk my mom into making me stuffed baked potatoes.
-I get to celebrate with my bro and sis (Oct 2 and Oct 4). Not ALWAYS fun to share "Birthday Week", but it also kind of makes it an event (and it drains Mark of all his cash....the only sib with his b-day in July).
-I can buy new fun fall clothes under the label of "birthday shopping". I tend to buy a lot of things under this label...often way into November.

Why I don't love an October 5th birthday;
-studies show that this is the most popular day to have a birthday. More people have their birthday on Oct. 5th than any other day. It's less special because 15 other people are being sung to in any given restaurant.
-if my birthday falls on a Saturday, Bill (or any guy I was dating) was off to priesthood session. This means I'm on babysitting duty.
-having to spend my birthday shopping for sibling presents, which I always leave to the last minute.

Favorite birthdays past:
-2 years ago, we woke up at 4 am and hopped a plane to Disneyland. It was Parker and Emi's first time there. I was WAY prego with Quinn, but we had a ball! They were SO excited, and that kept us going (even though we were tired). I've never seen my kids fall asleep so fast as they did that night.
-My first year we were married, my hubby arranged for me to have a full spa day, complete with lunch. So fun.
-My 18th birthday was so fun....it was the night of my senior year homecoming dance. It was Ryan's (the guy I went with) 18th birthday, too (see what I mean about EVERYONE sharing my birthday) and we had a ball. We went with a fun group....I was escorted to the U-haul truck by all the guys, we all had pizza in the truck looking out from Zarahemla drive. After the dance, we watched "Field of Dreams" on Skyline's baseball field on a big projection screen. The only bad part was my dad's automatic sprinklers went off during the doorstep scene......an accident? Probably not.

My house is made for Fall!

To start out with, I have been sick all last week, but it nailed me this weekend. However, I had promised my kids that I would pull out the halloween/fall decorations this weekend. So, as I lay dying on the couch, my kids did nothing short of a voodoo dance with every instrument in the house that was apparently supposed to cure me. Sure enough, I got up and put up the decorations.

I LOVE Fall, and being that my birthday is in the Fall, I seem to receive all sorts of wonderful decorations. The browns, tans, and reds I use in my house make it SO beautiful with Fall decorations (Christmas and 4th of July, too....spring, not so much). So I actually adore pulling out these decorations. If it sits still, it gets a Fall garland laid on top of it. Gourds are awesome, too, though I need to secure some more of those from my Dad's garden. My Mom has been stuffing her hutch with gourds (on advice from her decorator friend), so I think she has secretly been hoarding all of them. I managed to produce 2 measly little pumpkins in my garden this year, and no gourds, but tons and tons of awesome Zinias. They are still coming on.

And Pumpkin spice candles/scentsy's....ummmmm! My favorite. I would use it all year, but it wouldn't make it so fun in October. I'm such a Fall geek!

I actually made the "Boo" sign at church last year. It was a Halloween Miracle.

Oh, joy.....camping time!

Bill being helped by oh so many cub scouts.... (don't stress if your child's picture is on my blog....no one reads it!)

Camping time again....I would really like camping more if it didn't involve an intense amount of labor for me. Parker and Emi absolutely adore camping and hiking, so who am I to deny them the experience. Plus, my mom offered to take Quinn for the night, so I really had no excuse.

cute, sticky kids

They sleep like the dead when we camp....even through a terrential rain storm. Wish I did. Of course, I drugged them.

Me, with headlamp and hot chocolate, finishing "Breaking Dawn". I so want to be a vampire.

Hiking the "Mormon Trail"...colors were awesome. This picture doesn't do it justice. Fall is in full swing and I LOVE fall! Please ignore the bedhead. I don't fight the hair battle when camping.

Boy carpool vs. Girl carpool

On some days, I drive the morning shift of the school carpool. This consists of Parker (Emi and Quinn are usually along for the ride) and two cute boys from the ward. In the middle of the day, I often drive the midday kindergarten drop-off carpool with Emi and two of her friends in the neighborhood. There is such a difference in the conversations:



Girl carpool today: "I LOVE your shoes...they go so well with your bow"

"and then we were trampolining and we slid everywhere..heee.heee.hee!"

"why does Quinn wear those shoes EVERYDAY...isn't he sick of them?"

"does everyone have their backpacks on the hooks...oh good, we are all alike!"

"Cheetah girls were on again last night.....I love them..they are so amazing"

"why does your cat run away when I try to pet him?"

and ended with singing a rousing rendition of, "What's more American than Cornflakes.....". This all takes place in about 6 minutes time.



Boy carpool today: "Do you know the best way to stop throwing up....just swallow it. That's what I just did. That's the best way to stop throwing up....do you want to know what it tastes like?" ....end of conversation.



Such a difference.

You might be my sibling if......

O.k.....so it's the new blogging trend (thanks Kari and Amy for the idea), but it looked so fun. So Joyce, John, and Mark....this is for you.

You might be my sibling if:

1. you know of the lesser-known FHE manual that suggests watching M*A*S*H* or Newhart.
2. you still have deep fears and issues resulting from your kindergarten teacher, Mrs. Leverich.
3. you never, ever call Dad on Saturdays between 5-7 p.m.
4. the sound of a fire drill suddenly makes you want to get naked and run outside.
5. you have Co-cola running through your veins.
6. you know that cherry cokes and Disneyland have no sense going together.
7. you know what a wombel, Freddy the Wonder Guppie, a lerp, Herman/Frank, Le Mutt, the sheepskin, or James Jenny Wilson are.
8. you crave vanilla shakes with....oh, flavor.
9. the thought of a Hawaiian Dairy Queen gives you an ulcer.
10. you ka-chunka your trunk.
11. you start thinking of your Halloween costume or the order in which you will run downstairs on Christmas morning in early June.
12. you know the secret of the 2 Foo-foos.
13. you have slept on Mark's apartment floor in NYC and seen cockroaches in the middle of the night.
14. the Hallelujah chorus brings to mind exploding gingerbread lips.
15. you can get Dad on any roller coaster if you call it a train.
16. you have ever been dressed into a cupid costume, bunny costume, or even a tollbooth to ask someone to a highschool dance (oh yeah...that was just me.....never mind.)
17. you crave powdermilk biscuits once in awhile.
18. you look for a vacuum any time you pass gas.
19. breaking a tradition KILLS you.
20. you hear the "Happy Birthday" song, you must cross your arms and hold hands.
21. you hear the words, "I can't I can't I can't I can't" you must say in a low, husky voice, "yes you can yes you can yes you can yes you can".
22. you throw a little beach sand into your sub sandwiches.
23. your stuffed animals belonged to groups (ie the dog group, the snake group, the fish and owl group).
24. you have ever peed at Zzyzx exit in California.
25. you must clog your arteries with homeade eggnog, cheeseball, and southern sausage every Christmas.

Yes....there must be a million more, but I won't bore you with those. Enjoy!

Scenes from our weekend

Here is Emi facing her biggest fear in "gynashtiks" class....the swinging rings. She actually swung on them for a full 5 seconds today!

These boats are WAY harder to control than they look...Parker found that out, but I choose not to go into details.

Look at that great Tiger Woods grip on his club.....he must have learned it from his dad!

Bill (with Emi) showing his true California driving ability.

Never, Never, Never

Well, I was lucky enough to be whisked away for a night in Deer Valley with my hubby to celebrate 10 years since we got engaged. It was wonderful to get away, even for just a short time.

Let me tell you about a quick conversation I had while away. I had been reading by the pool and got up to go back to the room. Mind you, I'm wearing a swimsuit. Well, this older lady approaches me and says, "How far along are you?!"...........................Tears sprung to my eyes and I sucked my tummy in and said, "EXCUSE ME?". She then pointed to my book and said, "How far along are you in "Breaking Dawn"? I'm only on the third book".

So, there is a little lesson there.....NEVER ask someone how far along they are unless you specify what you are talking about. NEVER, NEVER, NEVER!!!!

First Day Fun and Fires!

Yes, we are back to school and all that goes along with it. Parker is enjoying his new class so far and Emi had her first official "no mom" kindergarten day today. She loved it! Yesterday threw me right into the frying pan....here is just a quick rundown of everything that happened!

• Parker's brand-new lunch box zipper ripped right off as I was closing it. Yeah for Target for returning it, even with his name "sharpied" on it.


• On the first (there were three) drive to school, I somehow lost my car keys, but did find them quickly


• I got home, and the basement bathroom had flooded as a result of a broken sprinkler...yes, the one we had just fixed on Saturday. Hallelujah for tile floor!


• I spilled baked beans all over the kitchen floor. Hallelujah for tile floor!

• Quinn fell down the bottom 3 stairs....not Hallelujah for tile floors! Poor guy!

• Took Emi to Kindergarten orientation....the second trip to school. As we were leaving to get Quinn, noticed a little puff of smoke in the mountains above the kids school...hmmmm. Glad to see Parker out at lunch recess, now knowing he didn't start the fire!
• Got Quinn, headed back to school for a third trip to school to pick up carpool for early out day. I become engulfed in smoke! Fastest fire I've ever seen.

• Went husbandless to Wendy's for dinner with the kids to celebrate first day of school. I let Quinn down as much Diet Coke as he wanted....he had to be in the car all day and I took pity on the boy!


• Finally, I plopped into bed to start "Breaking Dawn"....zonked out after 5 pages.

Back to the rat race......I'm just tired of being the head rat!

Why do I still feel it wasn't enough?

Summer is about to draw to a close...just one more week until school kicks in. We have had a fun and busy summer, but why do I still feel I'm not doing enough with my kids during their time off? Here is the list of activities we have done:

1. Legoland
2. Padres Game
3. 5 full days on the beach
4. Zoo
5. Children's Museum
6. Thanksgiving Pointe Farm
7. Aquarium
8. Boating
9. Sleeping under the stars with my sis and watching movies on the gigantic movie screen.
10. Countless playdates
11. hours of Wii fit tournemants (I ROCK at ski jumping.....seriously, I'm good at it!)
12. hours at the library
13. biking, jeeping, and razor scooting the neighborhood
14. Staying in Grandpa S.'s RV for the night
15. Cousin time, many parties/BBQ's, firework displays

Granted, this summer has also had the boring things like countless grocery store trips (with 3 kids...who doesn't love that?), hours of AS therapy, and house scrubbing. But, come on....why do I feel like I have to fit 10,000 more activities into next week!?! They have toys, don't they?

That's Entertainment!

We are reaching the point of the summer when my bag of tricks has almost run out, yet I am always amazed at what will entertain a child.....Emi decides to entertain herself by dressing up as a fancy lady....Parker decides to dress up a camera tripod and name it "Tall-E" (to be said with the correct Wall-E voice inflection). This thing has proved even more humorous to him because it keeps scaring the bejeebies out of me when I walk downstairs. I swear it's real. Parker thinks that is hilarious...until he freaked out when he walked upstairs Saturday morning. Perhaps I will move "Tall-E" into his bedroom in the middle of the night and see what that does to him. Serves him right!
Here is Emi at the Hopkins BBQ in Park City the other night. They entertained themselves for an hour by turning on and off the bounce house. Thanks again, Carey, for having us up (and 22 children) to eat and play. Sorry that we all ended up in your bedroom with Julie watching Olympics and using your massager!
And then there's Quinn....stick him in a swing and he's happy forever. The one sock is result of a wasp sting on his toe...thanks to former lifeguard Jenn who knew how to treat it right!
I will now try to entertain myself by simultaneously watching Olympic Gymnastics, unloading my dishwasher, and finishing "Eclipse" so that no one will spoil "Breaking Dawn" for me!