Shield of Angels

To start, I need to tell my mom not to worry about me :). You taught me to follow my heart and follow the Savior. I'm trying to do both :)!

The Houston Chronicle reports....

MEXICO CITY — A record 111 U.S. citizens were killed in Mexico last year, nearly half of them on or near the Texas border, as the country's gang-fueled violence worsened, according to the U.S. State Department.

The recently released reports don't specify how or why the Americans were murdered, nor does it name victims. But 80 percent of them were killed in border states where narcotics violence is worst - 39 alone in Ciudad Juarez, which shares the Rio Grande with El Paso, and other nearby towns.
The number of U.S. victims last year was more than triple the toll in 2007. Over a four-year period, 283 Americans were reported murdered, according to State Department figures.

Less than 10 miles across the Mexican Border in the City of Jaurez lies the
Colonia Juárez Chihuahua México Temple. It is the smallest temple in the world at only 6,800 sq. ft. There is one ordinance room and one sealing room.


The first thing I noticed about this small temple was the larger than life statue of the Angel Moroni. He was only two stories up :). I was completely overwhelmed by the power of Him and the army of angels protecting those sacred grounds and the path to get there. I went with a handful of ward members I barely knew, but felt the strength in the promise we were given of protection. As I was waiting in the celestial room a sister asked me if I was scared.

I probably looked at her like she was crazy :), but I told her I didn't think that our ward would be assigned to that temple if it wasn't safe for us to be there and that I trust that the leaders of the church would not put us in harms way. What I didn't tell her was that I couldn't eat hardly anything all day and that I had left a few notes of instructions for my husband in case I didn't make it back :). I had to talk my husband into being ok with me going and I didn't call my mom because I knew she would not be happy. I kinda felt like I was in jr. high, sneaking out of the house. Not that I did that Mom ;)!

But it worked out great! I was able to put my friend's name on the prayer roll, do a little of the Lord's work, and spend a few minutes in one of the most peaceful places on earth!

Never mind the fact that I had to put my foot down when my ride wanted to stop at a pharmacy and then for a burrito! The promise the bishop gave us was contingent upon us going straight there and back without stopping anywhere, and I was holding to that promise! We had already passed men with machine guns and mean looking dogs... What is wrong with people!!!

Mom... I'll call ya before I go next month and I won't ride with that crazy lady again ;)! So no worries!!! I'm just trying to follow what you taught me (and I'm still your smart-alick daughter :).
Aren't you glad you had me get that passport a few yrs ago!!!

"Mornin Scorpion!" by ME

(photograph also by ME)

Just this morning I was inspired to write this cute little story...


One Monday morning a little boy runs into his parents bedroom and says "Hey mom! I'm pretty sure there's a scorpion in my bathroom"!

The dad says "no there's not, just get in the shower!"

The mom jumps out of be to go see it :). She is not afraid.

The dad comes down the hall sporting his church shoes, no socks, and g's. He's not showing off, but just wants to see what the fuss is.

He finds the mom has cornered the scorpion using her bare hands :). She tells him to get a jar. The dad says, "what for?!?". She says, "it's cool, I want to keep it". The dad shakes his head and heads downs stairs. He slowly comes back with a big jar, lid, and a huge thing of bug spray :).

The mom says, "I had it, but you were taking quite a while, and now I don't know where it is. She calmly turns around and asks him to look on her back and in her hair. He backs away from her and without even looking says, "nope".

She laughs, grabs the jar, and scoops up the evil scorpion trapping it inside! The children are in awe! The dad, not so much. He takes his big gallon of bug spray and squirts enough poison to kill an army of man eating scorpions into the jar.

Mom makes breakfast. Mom dresses and feeds the children. Mom makes lunches. Mom takes care of the dog and cleans the kitchen. Mom drives the children to school and returns home. Dad is there still. This time he has clothes on. He says, "I called a pest control service and they will come tomorrow". Mom says, "great job! way to take care of our family :)! what would I do without you!"

The dad smiles. He knows he has done a good thing. The mom kisses the dad and sends him on his way!

The End

What's that sign say mom?

Miss Ainsley has been talking about signs in her kindergarten class and of course she's totally into the signs everywhere. I'm feeling a little more like rain man lately reading the signs as we cruise through town. This would be a bad time to visit Vegas :). Anyways, after 3 days couped up in the house together for "snow days" (biggest joke) we spent most of the day out at a favorite park. It has a skate park, ball fields, trails to run, and a few playgrounds. We loaded up the bats, balls, gloves, scooters, and skateboards for the day. Obviously we parked in a different spot this time because the first sign we see says "Beware of Snakes". The kids are all looking at it asking me what it says. "Oh, it just says that sometimes snakes sleep here at night after the people leave". Not exactly a lie, but we had already gone in and out of the house a few times to get all the garb and I didn't see a snake anywhere. Still, that's a first! Next time I'll bring Diggidy with us just for fun :).

A few weeks ago we hit the local Academy and loaded up on baseball gear. I'd been craving some catch with my boys! It's so funny how I found myself saying all the same things my dad used to say to me.... "get under it!", "don't be afraid of the ball", and "keep your elbow up". It's so fun! Caleb has got a great arm and most of it comes pretty natural to the kid. It's going to take a little work for Jacks to get a good pitch down, but he rocks at nailing a catch!



Joe headed up the mountain bike trails today and a few of the super heroes in their matching neon shirts kept asking Joe if he was cold since he was only in shorts and a regular t-shirt that he did not have to paint on himself. Wimpy Texans!
Anyways, we learned the hard way that Saturday was not a day to run around town. It was such a great day! I love that the mountain trails are at the end of the street, and that there are so many great parks! Wildlife and all :)!

Appreciating Everything!

I apologize for the little break. In my defense, our computer was broken! Not my fault :)! After a couple hundred bucks and a few trips to best buy (don't ever go to the El Paso best buy to get your computer fixed btw), I'm back in business!

I keep thinking that I am learning to appreciate more of the little, every day things I have taken for granted, like the computer, yummy grandma sycamore white bread, and driving past a friend on my way to Ridleys :).

Today I am appreciating electricity! It's only noon and I am ready to go crazy! Just because we got less than an inch of snow last night, the schools are cancelled and the power source for the Wii, cartoons, and computer games keeps shutting off! Apparently, I am the only other source of entertainment! I finally had to go find some earplugs just to think straight for 5 min :)! Appreciating those little things right now!!!

For years I took that yummy, white, granny sycamore bread for granted! After hitting all the local grocery stores and searching for a non-mexican bakery, I decided it's time to learn to make the darn stuff myself! Sorta myself, I bought a bread machine and I dump all the stuff into it & hit start :)! It rocks! The best part is that you can cut the slices as fat as you want! I've only had 4 slices of bread today :)!

I really took my running partners (bff's :) for granted! After a few solo runs with a crappy play list, I finally decided to just leave it home. It's amazing how much mental clarity I get from hearing nothing but my own footsteps and breathing! I would still love to have those girls with me and be crazy and confused :), but I love that I can have my own quiet time! Actually, I ran with a couple of girls yesterday morning, and even though my shirt sleeve got caught on a cactus, and it was really early (5 AM!), it was the funnest thing I've done in weeks!

I miss having my little buddy Ainsley with me for most of the day! She is in all day kindergarten now and loves it! She even rides the bus home with the boys in the afternoon. She feels like big stuff, and it seems like she is learning tons more! She is always telling me Spanish words she has learned, and I love the little songs she sings even if NOBODY can understand them!

I took it for granted that almost everyone around me was Mormon. The great part about that is, I think that I am even more open with people here about my beliefs partly because it's just habit. I can really sense how much we are needed here! None of our neighbors are members of the church. Another Mormon family lived down the street, but they moved away a few weeks before we moved in. A little boy in the neighborhood has been calling me "the new Jamie". He is at our house a lot, and His mom apologized when she picked him up the other day. She said for some reason he loves being at our house and he thinks I am just like the other lady that used to live a few doors down. Then she asked if we were Mormons :).

I definitely took having all my family so close! We talk to them on skype and my mom sends awesome packages in the mail! I miss stopping at the UPS store to see my brothers, Sunday dinners at mom & dad's, and doing random stuff with my sisters! I miss seeing my nieces so often that I don't notice how much they are growing! I do love that as a family, we are closer! My kids pretty much just have each other to play with, and we have more time to together. It's already getting a little busier, but it's nice to have the slow down from the usual crazy busy routine!

I will say that I did not take the crappy winters there for granted! I am appreciating sunshine and this one day of a little snow is a reminder of how amazing it is to have 60 degree weather in January :)!!!

Love to you All!

We made it!

Yeah, we finally made it here to El Paso! I would have never in a million years thought that I would live here, but obviously I'm not in charge! Since last August Joe has been coming here by himself all week to work and it's just so great to be together! Caleb used to pray that we could be a "whole big family again" :)!

Christmas this year went by too quick with us being so focused on this move! We had movers coming the morning of the 27th so by 1:00 am our house was cleared out of any possible sign that Christmas had come! That's a first!

That whole next was such a blur! Movers were at our house packing up everything in their path. I had explained to the kids that if they didn't want certain things packed they had to keep them in our designated "safe zone"/ the hall bathroom. That stuff would either be packed last or we would take it with us on our trip. Jackson and Ainsley drug everything they owned to the bathroom thinking that if their stuff didn't get packed, maybe we wouldn't have to move. Caleb on the other hand, kept coming to me telling me that the movers kept taking all his stuff and he couldn't find anything. Like those guys would want a pillow pet! That kid never listens :)!

It was not a week I ever want to repeat! Jackson did nothing but sob all day and all night! By the time the movers were done, I just through the rest in the van and took off! It had already been the longest drug out goodbye ever!

We had a day to get the lay of the land, unpack our utensils, and get registered for school before the rush of a new week in a new place began. The kids' school is mainly Hispanic, 95%, so it was no surprise when Caleb introduced himself to his class as being new here from America! Nice! Great way to start it all off, offending everybody! Lucky for that kid he wins everyone over with his witty sense of humor and smile!He has already made several friends :). Jackson is still adjusting. He has a good friend in his school class that is also in his primary class. That just doesn't happen here in Texas, so I know he's being watched out for. Ainsley has loved switching to all day kindergarten to my surprise, but really misses her old primary teacher Sister Bancroft! She has also loved trying to decorate our new house...



As for me, I am looooving the beautiful sunshine!!! It is hard to be so far from our family and friends, but I am happy for this new adventure!!!

The Greatful Dead totally nailed it...

I can't remember the exact stages of grieving, but I am pretty sure is goes something like... DENIAL...ANGER...BARGAINING...SADNESS...ACCEPTANCE.

The trick is recognizing where you are on the whole scale of stages. I think I'm still somewhere in the middle.

We just got back from spending a week in El Paso looking for a house. I decided I better go into it with really low expectations. It works for movies! So I'm picturing tumbleweeds and cracked dirt and snakes and stuff. Then we get all these picts of houses from the realtor that's supposed to be helping us and my vision turns to swimming pools and palm trees and Mexican resorts with strawberry daiquiris.

After the first day of checking things out and getting the lay of the land, I spent the rest of the night huggin the bowl at the downtown Marriott! Straight up!!!

I just don't think it's a good sign when people have bars on all their windows and doors! And I'm not so sure how comfortable I am with letting my kids ride their bikes outside when I can see the freaking border!

Day two was spent primarily looking at the West side (where all the swimming pools are). My Mexican Riviera bubble burst when I walked IN the houses. I'm going to sound like the biggest brat, but when it looks like somebody couldn't make up their mind whether they wanted the stove or the dishwasher in a certain spot and they ripped them out and swapped them back and forth a few times it's really not a good sign! I can deal with bad carpet (really big rugs). I can force myself to do super dirty (strap on the rubber gloves and go to town)!But what do you do when floors slope down? And why on earth would someone put pink and baby blue marbled tile in their entire house? What exactly do termites look like? Lots of questions I haven't thought about since I worked for DCFS!

We did nothing for the next four days but SEARCH! PONDER! and PRAY! Joe lost 10 lbs and I lost 5! In four days!

We decided that out of the two of us, I would make a better coach! I am really good at pep talks and making up bull crap that is totally believable :)! We took turns lifting each other up and pointing out the bright side of the situation. It was a real bonding experience!

This morning I thought I would try to find out some more info on El Paso and I found some lyrics to a song by The Greatful Dead entitled "El Paso"...

Here goes...

Out in the west Texas town of El Paso....

Just for a moment I stood there in silence,
Shocked by the ....
Many thoughts that ran through my mind as I stood there;
I had but one chance and that was to run.

Out through the back door of roses I ran, out where the horses were tied...
I picked a good one; he looked like he could run,
Up on his back and away I did ride.

Just as fast as I could from the west texas town of el paso,
Out thru the badlands of new mexico.
Back in el paso my life would be worthless; ....

Maybe tomorrow a bullet may find me,
Tonight nothings worse than this pain in my heart.

And as last here I am on the hill overlooking el paso, ....

Off to my right I see five mounted cowboys,
Off to my left ride a dozen or more.
Shouting and shooting; I can't let them catch me,
I've got to make it to roses back door.

Something is dreadfully wrong for I feel a deep burning pain in my side
It's getting harder to stay in the saddle.
I'm getting weary, unable to ride.

Yeah, super dramatic! But it made me laugh! Maybe that's a good sign that I'm headed for the acceptance stage :)???

Truthfully, I still think that we are doing the right thing. It's a great job for Joe and he likes it! The schools have rockin programs for kids with dyslexia! The City of Commerce web page "says" that the sun shines there at least 300 days of the year! I didn't see any snakes. And I got rid of a whole ton of crap that's been taking up space in my house!

Something else I found this morning was the meaning of the city name. It means "the step". At first I was like... that's dumb! Then that cheesy quote about a journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step came to mind. I know I have a lot to learn. Change is never easy, but the greatest blessings rarely start out looking that way!

RIGHT?????

Pretend this is Me! But for real!

It took me a minute to remember the correct address for this blogspot thing, but I did it :). I was thinking the other day that I am gonna have to get back to doing this since we are moving to Texas and all my family is here in Utah. Might as well start today since my morning has been totally blogworthy!

I went for a run up the canyon with my overly dedicated (but exactly what I need lately :) running partner, and you are seriously not going to believe me, but I was totally attacked by a huge Eagle!!! I know, your thinking...she has lost it and really needs to start sleeping at night! But it is TRUE!

It was a little cold and windy this morning, so I put a long sleeve top over my tank to start and part way up the trail I decided to take it off. So I stop and raise my arms to pull it off, when I hear this crazy loud screeching! Straight ahead there's this massive bird coming off the cliff right at me. It took me a sec to register that its flying fast right at my face. I tried to duck down and it slammed into me knocking me back a few feet! I got road rash up my leg and back and skinned up my hand and elbow to prove it!

The crew of super hero bikers guys in their matching tight blue shirts totally stopped and got off their bikes even. Usually they are completely annoyed by us runners and would just rather run us down, so I was surprised when the second crew of super heroes stopped too!

I'm still thinking "WHAT THE"... when one of the guys says "what was that?"! Out of my white trash mouth comes "some crazy ass hawk"! Not until one of the guys starts busting up do I snap out of my horror movie trance and start laughing myself! Weird thing was that the bird was still sitting on the trail a few feet away just screeching all crazy like at me :). Two of the super heroes must be like nature reserve guys or something because they confirmed that it "was indeed" a golden eagle.
Whatever that meant, I was out of there! I hopped up and took off up the trail while all 8 of those men, that didn't even offer me a band aid out of their secret bike packs, just stood there looking at the golden eagle!

Super weird! I'm still debating on if I should call my aunt Dana who knows all kinds of crazy witch craft kind of info what kind of a omen it is!

Enough blogging. I gotta get back to de-junking my house before the movers show up and don't know where to start!

Oh yeah, and we just found out last week that we are moving to El Paso,Texas!!!

What a week :)!

What do ya think? I could use some hints :)!

I know I am just a little behind on the times, but I just barely bought the photo shop program and have been playing around with it a little. It's crazy how things change so quick! It's great! It's all about progression, right (dangit)!
I am embracing the fact that photography has become more about 'editing well'. I've been cropping and balancing light and color, and that is about it. I know... archaic!
Opening up the photo shop program is a little overwhelming, and really exciting all at once (so much to learn :). I will say that it gave me a boost of confidence to see that all the cool effects and perfect lighting I've seen on so many other photos are done not through skill or pure luck, but by a few simple clicks on a computer program. I was blown away by the whole head swapping action! I could have used that one over the years!
So... I'm actually opening myself up to opinions to see what the popular vote is :).
The top photo is just my normal bag of tricks. The bottom two are photo shopped using various enhancements.
What do you like???
And that's my little sister and her hubby, so no comments about the "subjects" :)!

Also, because I am new with this stuff, I would love it if anyone had any fun tips or sites with good tutorials!

And Thanks to my friends that help me with just figuring out how to use this blogger stuff!

Oh yeah... and how in the world do you change the size of your photos when you post them on your blog???? Kami? Laurie? ANYBODY?.....

Chixie Dix and Family Pix

The other night, Joe and I went to a Fancy Shmancy awards banquet at The Grand America hotel. It was actually a lot of fun to break out of the rut and get a little dolled up to rub elbows with an over-accomplished crowd. Since we were 'fashionably late' we ended up at a table of unfamiliar faces. Which to me, made the night even better. I am cursed with this uninhibited ability to say just whatever random (and most likely stupid) thought that pops in my head. Knowing that I would probably never see or recognize these people again totally took the pressure off :). I am happy to report that it was not me that made the hilarious goof by mentioning the 'Chixie Dix'!

As the night wore on, and the various crystal and over sized jewel awards were claimed, my mind started to wander (big surprise) to the events of the past year. It started out like this... wow that chic totally climbed Mt.Everest and that other lady has 7 kids and 'somehow' she managed to become an amazingly successful business owner. And then there was this gorgeous scientist/ doctor that was making monumental discoveries that are changing the field of medicine... she was 29!

Yup... I was thinking what the crap is my problem! I have this mountain of unfolded laundry in my bedroom, I fed my kids corn dogs for dinner, and I'm pretty sure my shoes don't match what I'm wearing! So when the little server guy dressed in a tux brought me out this huge piece of strawberry cheesecake, drizzled with strawberry glaze, and sprinkled with flakes of white chocolate; I thought what the heck! Good thing I did, because it turned out amazing :)!!!

I am honestly not a jealous person (don't we all say that) and I was so happy for these people and their achievements (especially the one's I was there to support!), but I started to think about what my greatest accomplishments were in life, and what are my dreams for what's ahead.

There have been moments over the past few years that have felt like Joe and I were being dragged through the mud! Given a crappy hand! No more than anybody else, less than some I'd say... but just a raw deal!

That night, as we drove home together, I thought about how all the bumps in the road have helped my sweet Joe and I hold on to each other and our little family a little tighter.

Yesterday after church, we headed over to my mom's house where we did our own little family photo shoot, got some exciting news ;), and celebrated my brother in-laws and our oldest boy's birthday! Life is great! I have some pretty great accomplishments right in front of me!

 

That's What I get...

For taking my kids to church! AND
For thinking everybody else is crazy!



I haven't licked any pigs, but I am big on the sanitizer and washing my hands. I totally avoid McDonalds playland and only go to Walmart when I absolutely HAVE to. I've been known to use a gas station bathroom in an emergency, but only in an EMERGENCY! I'm sayin... I try to be healthy and keep things clean. And I really don't mean any disrespect by saying this, but the chapel I go to church at is gross! Specifically the bathrooms!!! It's totally worth the trip home!

So my last post (over 2 wks ago) was about how Caleb came home from church sick... Today was my little boys first day back at school! I have been super sick myself for several days (this really is not a whiny, poor me thing :). My personal nurse practitioner (my amazing little sister who is a nurse practitioner) braved a visit to our house and told me I have the swine flu.

Ha! I laughed!!! I have been making fun of people that are all worked up about this stupid thing for weeks! I am sick of hearing about it! So I guess I deserve it :). Yea it's pretty crappy stuff and the other night I didn't think I was gonna make it through the night because I was so freakin congested I couldn't even breath! I haven't left my house in what feels like forever, and I've had to be creative to keep my kids from killing each other from their boredom! I even entertained myself one afternoon by cruising the classifieds on ksl. By the way...somebody is selling a "real" rodeo queen outfit for only $800 and then there's another lady that makes all kinds of red hats with feathers and stuff in them. She says your friends will all be jealous if you have one! And who knew there was such a thing as a fur coat made out of raccoons! Certainly not me! It got me thinking... who catches the raccoons and then skins them? Then what woman in her right mind sews them together?!

I know I sound pretty crazy myself! Must be the swine flu talkin! Anyways, I am hopefully on the up side of this whole deal (really- nobody make me soup or I'll be chapped!) and I still think people are nuts!!! And even though I no longer need the vaccination for it, the whole idea sounds scary!

I love this little guy...

But, I absolutely HATE it when he gets sick!! Not because he whines or moans, or even complains at all. He is actually the sweetest little angel! He goes from the tasmanian devil to a little bundle of blankets with a sweet little smile poking out the top. He's full of "thanks mom" and "I love you too mom". He even takes a nap (which he quit doing at the age of 2)!
In the past, him being sick was always a scarry deal usually involving a 3 am trip to the emergency room! The kid has had more than one brush with death since his birth! So, yesturday when we get home from church and he says "I'm not feelin so great"; I immediately start the routine of home remedies and swear to myself that I'm not taking him to primary in the last 3 months of the year again! What is wrong with people?! Don't they know that having a sick kid is the best excuse (I mean reason) to stay home and watch sacrament (or even football) on TV! I'm all for it!!!
ANYWAYS... my purpose in writing this is because I'm so grateful and relieved that during FHE tonight, he started teasing the dog and making the calm and peaceful moment out of control, once again.
See... I am grateful for the stressful, crazy feeling I get when he's running circles around the kitchen at the speed of light, leaving catastrophic messes behind!
I know I will have to remind myself I said that... just a few times tomorrow. Crazy me! I'm keeping him home just one more day to be sure (and to have a good excuse to cuddle up on the couch and watch cartoons again :).
I love being a mom!

Hot "Diggidy" Dog!

Third times a charm right :)...

We are catchin some flack for going down the dog route again, but I promise :) this one's gonna work out!

Here's how it all started...

So a friend asks me to watch her 3yr old little boy. She doesn't tell me it's his first day in underwear (that is a whole other story) and that he's a little mischievous. OK, he's 3, I'll call it curious. He's a sweet little boy, but he was really into our latest summer pet - the hamsters. He kept trying to manhandle the little guys and didn't seem to get the whole "be gentle thing". Reminds me of 'Of Mice and Men'! So I stashed the whole cage in the office and got the playdoh out thinking he would go for that. Soon after, my own two youngest get in a little fight (summer is so much together time :). I send the main culprit to 'His' bedroom to cool off. After I gave him a minute, I went to his room to talk to him. The talk only took like 2 min. We both have ADD, no sense in dragging it out! When I came back out, Ains was still up to the counter with the playdoh, but the other little guy was gone! I searched the whole house except for the office. I had closed the door earlier and it was still closed so I thought for sure he wasn't in there. I was wrong! I Caught him with a hamster in each little fist! Sneaky little guy :)! He dropped them back in the cage and slammed the door (kids are so funny when they know they are caught :). Anyways, Jacks came home about 2 min later and got right to work on his chores. First up on the list was cleaning the hamster cage (can you tell where I'm heading with this). To make a really long story shorter, we ended up having a funeral on the side of the house followed by a quick refresher lesson on the plan of salvation. The poor kid was in hysterics!!! He spent the next 3 days on the KSL website looking for a 'replacement' pet. It was driving me insane, because he has dyslexia and can't read very well yet and he was hollering for help every 2 min. I was very patient :),but I sure didn't get much done!

The funeral was on Mon. and I left Thurs. evening for a race hoping that it would have all blown over by the time I got home on Sat.

By Sat. evening I took Jacks with me and bought him this adorable little dog! His name is Diggidy and he' a Chaweenie. A chihuahua and a mini weenie dog mixed. Serious! Anyways, I told him that it was really important to read to this kind of dog, and being the obedient angel child that he is, he does it! Jacks hates to read because it's such a challenge for him, so it's working out to be a great thing!

So far the little guy is rockin the house training! Ains is warming up to him since he's cool with being wrapped in a blankie and stuffed in a doll bed. And he has been a great reminder to Joe and I of how great it is to be out of the 'up half the night with a baby stage'!

Things always work out for the best right :)!!!

Highlights of my week...

Here's just a few of my fav's from this week!

First up:

I told the boys it was time for a haircut and asked who wanted to be first (they hate getting hair cuts). For some reason Caleb jumped up and said "me first"! We headed out to the back deck with the clippers white trash style. Caleb looks up and says "give me a MOHOG mom".
Me..."what's a mohag"?
Caleb..."ya know..." He totally goes on to explain a mullet!

What do ya think?


We were headed to the temple open house that day (which didn't happen- another story)and I asked him if he if he wanted to go to Heavenly Father's house like that. He told me I better cut it all off like an army guy instead. No offense to anyone with a mullet or "mohog" - we are all children of our Heavenly Father :).

My next fav...

I was in Albertsons with Ainsly and she is trying to be so helpful bringing me all kinds of random stuff. I was getting totally annoyed, so I started telling her things on the list. Of course mountain dew is on it so we head down the pop aisle. I turn around holding a 2 litre in each hand to see Ainsley giving it all she's got to pull a case of Heineken beer out of the refrigerated drink section (opposite the pop of course). She says "I got your mountain dew mom. It sure is heavy". So funny! And I can totally see why she got confused!




I don't drink much dew myself these days (it's true, hard to believe)but I am not the only one in the house that contributes to the shopping list :).

Speaking of my sweet husband :)... He cleaned the carpets yesterday! I've got to make a big deal about that!!!




See boys...it goes a long way!

Chimes Choir Performance

 

 

This year Jackson got up extra early every Wednesday morning! He set his own alarm clock, made his own toaster waffles, and the whole works, just so he could get to school an hour early to be part of the chimes choir.
He has totally loved this experience and we were so excited to see his end of the school year performance!!! He did awesome!!!
However, he failed to inform me that instead of wearing his regular school uniform he was supposed to wear a white shirt and black pants :). I honestly think he didn't even notice...so I didn't point it out! I don't think the kid even looks in the mirror...he just doesn't care, and I personally think it's an awesome way to be!
After the concert, I took a minute to thank his music teacher. Of course he told me he loved having Jacks as part of his chime choir :). What I didn't know was that Jacks was the only 2nd grader he allowed to be part of it. All the rest of the kids were 5th graders. I had no idea his teacher had made an exception! I barely know his teacher, but I totally love him for seeing how amazing my little guy is and giving him the chance! Thanks Mr.Peterson!!!!! And thanks Jacks for an amazing night!

Time for a "summer pet"...

Ains was bored the other day so I broke out some craft stuff and let her go to town on some rocks we so kindly removed from our neighbors yard (they have lots :). She made her "very own pet" and made me feel just a little sorry for my kids!



Then Jacks asks me if we can get a "summer pet". We obviously don't seem to have a great track record with animals and the poor kid knows it! Playing it safe he asks for one of these...



We got this whole set up including two little dwarf hamster guys for $20!




I've been told they don't live too long and they seem to be really low maintenance. I think we've found the perfect summer pet!
So far the kids are having a blast with them! They put them in their little balls to race and let them climb all over them (yuck!). Caleb already learned the hard way (with a microscopic bite on his little finger :) that he can't play with them too much. I still haven't even held them and hopefully I will not end up having to search for them! I'm not too worried... I have this really great attachment on my vacuum that could come in handy :)!

Another classy wedding...

My mom's gonna kill me, but this is one of about 5 shots I actually got to take last night at my little bro's reception! It totally cracked me up when one of his buddies snuck the lovely flowers off the top of the cake to replace it with his even lovelier cake topper!
It was such a great day! I love it that my whole family can be in the temple together to support each other(this time for Dan and Christi)! What an awesome blessing!
The reception was a big Texas BBQ out at Wadley Farms. Brisket, blue bell ice cream, country music, and a chocolate grooms cake covered in choc. dipped strawberries...family traditions I love!
Dan's the baby so it was a great way to end the wedding chapter for the Weber Family!
Congratulations Bubba! I love ya!!!

Random...

 

I know I am pretty random about the stuff I throw on this blog, but for some reason the lost tooth thing always makes it. So much happens on a daily, weekly basis. There really is a lot more going on in our lives than this :). I just like to share the fun little tid-bits I guess.

Anyways, this here photo is our boy Caleb. We was just eatin a meal down at the Burger King in Cedar when one of his bottom baby teeth falls out biting into a nugget.

I don't know if the white trash/country hick talk is coming out because I've been reading "To Kill a Mockingbird" again or because I totally felt like a white trash hick sitting in that super nasty Burger King!!! I think the picture will be some good black mail material anyways. The tooth fairy even showed up 3 days late... must have been the white trash one :)!

And since I'm being random and talking about country hick stuff...

Last weekend I ran the Hurricane Half and I have to say that even though they were totally ghetto with only giving me an empty race bag and a race # without safety pins to put it on (and no shirt to put it on); It was a fun race and I'd probably run it again if that super witchy race directer got down on her knees and apologized and beg me to grace her with my entry $$$.
It's really not a good deal when you pay to run really far and mostly up-hill and get nothing out of it. Ok... ok... it was an amazing view, I really had fun, and I was with two really great friends! Who needs a race shirt when you've got all that!

Hey mom...I want to be that dog

 

I love this dog! I see him all the time just hanging out on the roof of this house. Today when we saw him Caleb says,"mom, I want to be that dog". When I asked him why he said "him looks relaxing". I'm totally with Caleb on this! I'm not sure why the dog's on the roof, but if it was warmer, and my roof was flatter, I'd love to just lay on the roof by myself RELAXING! Nobody hollering at me or begging me for stuff or whining for no reason! That dog's got it good :-)! I think!

March Madness

I know I sound like I'm having a sale, but I'm not. Just a lack of creativity! This month has been full of fun stuff, but I haven't taken the time to record it. My birthday was on the 3rd and even though I was a little out of commission, my super amazing friends all showed up at my house to surprise me with this token of true love called "Double Fantasy Fudge"...

I know, I have really great friends!!!

Caleb's 6th birthday was on the 16th. Birthdays turn into more of a week long deal at our house. He got to take treats to school and his whole kindergarten class made him a birthday card! They are really funny, nothing like kindergarten artwork! He said his teacher even gave him spankings (pretty sure that's against the law, good thing I'm not one to freak out about the little stuff)!! We had a super fun friend party at classic skating! We wore them out and sugared them up! It was like a flash back with the whole roller skating, disco lights, arcade thing, but they loved it!



My parents had a b-day dinner at their house with his favorite dinner of spaghetti and meatballs, cake and ice cream, way too many presents, and one really out of tune version of the 'Happy Birthday' serenade!



We ended the week with a trip to "Ogie Ogie" with Grandpa Paul and Grandma Connie...



Jackson had his first ever "Blue and Gold" boy scouts banquet. He got to make and decorate his own cake. He was so proud of it! (Most of the cakes did not look like they were made OR decorated by little boys though... some moms!)




The last thing I will post about march was this cute field trip we took to Macy's grocery store with our little joy school group. Who knew macy's could be so fun! They got to go behind the scenes of all the different departments. I really could have missed out on the meat dept. though! Raw meat gives me the dry heaves and chills! Good thing it ended in the bakery! The smell of heavenly fresh bread made it all better!

Happy 6th Birthday Caleb!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Caleb! I can hardly believe he is 6! He is so full of energy, smiles, fun, and sweetness! We all love him very much!