just the five of us

Summer Lovin'

2011-08-14T09:22:00.000-07:00

As I sit down to write this blog posting, summer ended officially for us about a month ago. Although, the summer season is still going strong with temperatures near 107; my friends and family who live up north are still actually enjoying the month of August! I don't mean to sound as if I am complaining, because I am not. When the Arizona heat hits 107 no one really goes outside; if you live in Arizona you know what I mean. We exercise before the sun rises, we park in the shade, even if that means you have to walk clear across the parking lot in the heat to get to the air conditioned store. With temperatures reaching that high, and kids hiding indoors, you might as well have them learning something; thus year round school!

But before the school bell rings, you have to enjoy what little time you have for summer. This summer we spent a few days at Lake Powell, the southwest's secret to a bit of heaven! (if you have been to Lake Powell, you know what I mean)

These are the Falls, they are located up Navajo Canyon. This is the first time in 10 years that we have been able to get to them, because the lake water has been so low. We drove the boat up as far as we could, and then we hiked the 4 miles into them. It was so fun to walk and splash in the water as we hiked.

Here I am at the falls.

Mike, Maddie, and Brookie (Maddie's friend swam up under the falls)

sitting in the falls

We found this giant hole and we climbed up into it.

The girls had fun making drip castles with the wet, red sand. They named it the Gorilla's Kingdom. If you note the small black gorilla in the bottom middle, you will know why. (:

Burying each other in the sand is always a fun time.

friends

Mike fishing. His favorite way to unwind at the lake.

me playing in the water

Maddie loves to cliff jump. (thanks to her dad and older sisters) Thank goodness her friend is brave and will climb the cliffs to reach a good spot to jump.

This is me driving the boat! We are thinking of upgrading the boat next season and selling this one. I didn't hit the dock once and drove the boat on perfectly to the trailer this trip.

Good-bye summer!!

These are the Days of Our of Lives...

2011-07-10T10:06:00.000-07:00

Time just seems to pass through the hour glass more and more quickly, and I can't account for all of the daily trivial things that happen in our lives, but I thought I would up date you on some of the more larger things that have happened in our lives in the last few weeks.

Tiffany turned 18 in April. I cannot believe that she is 18 and off to college next month. It truly just seems like yesterday that she was 2 years old and being tossed up in the air by her dad.

I remember when her kindergarten teacher stopped by our house to do a home visit and meet T. Mrs. Hall was so nice, and at the time we were new to Silver City, NM. Tiffany started kindergarten a few days later. I walked her down to her bus stop, and I remember her waving out the window, with her curly, long blonde hair and her nose pressed to the glass. I teared up a little as the bus pulled away from the curb. As Calla and I walked home, I remember thinking that it will be years before she is all grown up and graduating. I was excited for the school years her learning to read and write, school projects, science fairs, school carnivals, band, dance team, driving a car, friends, sleep overs, and proms.

Now I have a high school graduate!! The time indeed, has quickly gone through the hour glass. It was weird, but I really don't think that her graduating set into my brain until we were in route to the ceremony. The graduation ceremony this year was held at the Wells Fargo Stadium at ASU. It was a very nice ceremony, and I really was impressed with the 3 valedictorians speeches and the superintendent's remarks. Our superintendent, joined our school district as the graduating class was entering kindergarten, and he too mentioned that he was graduating, because he is now retiring, and going into the world just like the seniors! He felt in sense that he too was a part of the class of 2011.

Tiffany and her friend

walking across the stage to receive her diploma and below looking back...

As her time at home is quickly shortening, Tiffany has been busy this summer trying to save for college but still have fun with her friends. She broke up with her boy friend after graduation and since then, we see a lot more of her (: She found a new job as the beginning of May and is currently scooping ice cream at Baskin Robbins.

Calla ended her school year with cheer competitions and trying out for Varsity Cheer. She made the squad, so her dad and I will be attending lots of football games this fall! This summer she has been busy with girls camp, cheer camp, and she spent a week and a half with her friend in California. In addition, she has been taking an on-line history class for school. The time is passing quickly and in less than 3 weeks, she will once again be back in school.

l ( I love this picture it shows Calla being tossed in the air )

Maddie has spent her time this summer playing with friends, splashing in the pool, and taking her friend Brookie to Lake Powell for 5 days. (picts to come later). Maddie made honor roll 3 quarters in row this year, and was rewarded for good grades with a turkey hunting trip with her dad in early May. Maddie also just had her ballet recital.As for Mike and I we are the proud owners of a new Ranger! We took it out one weekend for a drive in the hills, before the temperature in the Valley of the Sun hit the high 100's. It will get more use in the fall, as in time,
when the temperature drops into the nice bearable temps of the high 70's.

It is amazing how time flies! I wish I could be better at capturing the daily moments of our family, but like the rest of you, we stay busy with work and play. Some days are just a jumble!
But like spilled milk, you just can't cry over it! It's like that saying, enjoy life, or it will pass you by. That is what we seem to do best!

It's Official....

2011-03-27T16:20:00.000-07:00

Well...Spring break is officially over in just a few hours, but we had a productive spring break. (Thank goodness for year round school, here in the valley of the sun, because we get a nice 2 week spring break).

The week started off with T becoming an official Aggie.
T and I took a tour of the campus and it made me feel really old! It just doesn't seem that long ago that I was a Utah State Aggie. Where have all the years gone?? After the tour we decided to look for off campus housing. T decided that she wanted to live off campus and in the long run it will be much cheaper. She chose to live in Old Farm Town House houses. The apartment will have 6 girls in it. It was fun apartment shopping with T and before I know it, I will be back up in Cache Valley moving her in. I hope that she has the best room-mates and best experience ever!
While in Utah we visited my grandpa who just turned 91 last week. I always make it a point to stop and visit him whenever I am in Utah. My grandma has been gone for 4 years now and grandpa is really missing her; he talks about being with her soon. He still seems so young at heart! I hope that I am around when I am 91. If I live to be 100... I am going swimming with the dolphins in Cozumel!
While in Utah I always stop at Pai Tan Trading! It is the best store ever for home decor ideas and holiday decorations. I wish Arizona would get a Pai Tan Trading. This is C trying on a very flowery wreath that we found in the clearance aisle.

Utah also is home to modest dresses!! Shopping for a prom dress in Utah is way less stressful than shopping for one in Arizona. (MENTAL NOTE: for future prom dresses and wedding dresses, since I have 2 more daughters attending proms in the next few years.) Since prom time in Arizona comes when the weather is absolutely divine, prom dresses here tend to be strapless. T unfortunately doesn't feel comfortable in strapless dresses, and having to modify them is a pain, so finding dresses that are modest is a special treat!! Here T is trying on the dress that we eventually bought. She bought hot pink high heels at Charlotte Russe and the dress shop sold her a hot pink polka dot sash. Her boyfriend is going to wear a hot pink tie and vest.

Okay... and this is how I spent the last 5 days of spring break and my birthday!!
I had sinus surgery the day after we got back from Utah. My father-in-law tells me it will be the best present that I have ever given myself. Hmmm... will this top a massage...doubt it! But maybe I will be able to breathe, smell, and have less sinus infections.

I did it!!! I actually did it!!

2011-02-13T07:29:00.000-08:00

I have been a runner for a couple of years now. I started by running with my friend Jill early in the mornings before school. We would run three miles or so through our sub-divisions and neighborhoods. Last year Mike joined the gym, and I started going with him to run on the tread mill. In the back of my mind, I always wanted to run in a race, but didn't know if I had the stamina or courage to do it. My goal was originally to run a 10k. Some girls from my ward encouraged me to start running with them on the weekends, they were training for London's Run 1/2 marathon. (London's Run for those of you who aren't from QC...is an annual race held in memory for London Solomon, a little girl who died from cancer. The profits from the race help other children with cancer in the QC area). I signed up for the half marathon, with Mindi, Jennie, and Lindsay. I still had doubts but was excited for the race!!

This is me at the starting line. It was a cold morning in Queen Creek, although the sun was shining. I had my i-pod ready!

Here I am with Mindi and Lindsay the first few minutes of the race. Jennie broke through the crowd and set her pace. Jennie wanted to finish the marathon in less than 2 hours. I never could catch up to her. A few minutes later, I plugged my i-pod into my ears, and took off at bit faster pace. Mindi's had knee problems and I was so proud of her. She ran the whole race in pain! I loved running through the country on the country farm field roads. It was so awesome to see bystanders, people that I didn't even know cheering me on! Along the path, every so often was a poster of a child or someone in our area with cancer. One of the posters said "Running is way easier than cancer!" It showed a little girl with no hair sitting up in a hospital bed. It made me think of the people in my own life that have been affected by cancer...my grandma, my sister, a friend, and a mom of one of my first graders, who died in October. I can't imagine being a mom and having to say good-bye to my children. I will never forget how she would bring her children to school, with a face mask on and a cute bandanna wrapped around her hairless head. I felt pretty good all through the race, until mile 11! At mile 11 I thought I was done!! I could see the finish line in the distance, and knew that it wasn't much further, but wondered if I really was going to cross the finish line. THEN THIS SONG started blaring into my earphones......

I knew I could do it!! This was my motivation!!

A few minutes later....Mike catches me running down victory lane with Katy Perry in my ears and a smile on my face.

Here I am!!! I did it!! I actually did it!! I finished the race in 2 hours 14 minutes. It felt so awesome to finally reach a goal that had been in the back of mind for a while.

This is my sister in law, Noelle, who ran the 10k with her friend Rhonda, as they run down victory lane.

Here we all are! We finished.

Christmas Cards 2010

2010-12-04T14:30:00.001-08:00

Joy And Magic Christmas Card

Get custom photo Christmas cards online at Shutterfly.com.

View the entire collection of cards.

Cruisin.....The way life really should be!!

2010-10-31T10:54:00.000-07:00

I have to be honest with everyone. I am just not that good at blogging anymore, it has taken me 45 minutes to download the pictures from my cruise. Either my Java needs updating, or I need the memory on the computer increased. I find it so frustrating!! To me it is so much easier to facebook, I can add a quick comment, add pictures and be off in just a few minutes, and I haven't even farmed on my farmtown farm for weeks. But the whole purpose of my blog was to journal the life happenings, for family and friends far away, and for my posterity. SO... here is a quick post.

Just recently, Mike and I celebrated our anniversary/my graduation on a cruise in the Western Caribbean. It was the best week of my life! We have decided that we are going away every year some where together.

This is Jamaica!! My most favorite stop.

The homes you see up on the hill, belong to Mick Jagger and Barbara Streisand.

Mike and I on a charter boat cruising the Island of Jamaica.

We climbed Dunn's River Falls. To climb it, you have to make a human train, and you walk up the falls. (see below)

This is us in the falls!!

This is Mike playing with the turtles in Grand Cayman.

Below is a picture of Mike and I in Hell in Grand Cayman. Behind us is a field of black coral.

This is our cruise ship, just before the storm hit Grand Cayman Island. The storm is the aftermath of Hurricane Jean, that hit Cancun Mexico and brushed Cuba, while we were on our cruise.

This is me in Grand Cayman.

While in Cozumel, Mexico, we visited the Mayan ruins. It is amazing to think that these things are still standing. This Mayan temple was built around 1200 A.D. You still could see the stucco and streets that they used. It was truly amazing.

There were lizards every where!! This guy was the hugest! I can't imagine eating him, but the Mayans ate them. I heard they tasted like chicken. (Don't they say that about everything though)

This is our ship. We cruised on the Carnival Liberty! Here we are in port at Cozumel. We had a balcony room. It was so awesome eating breakfast on the balcony, watching the dolphins play off the ship, watching the clouds move in, and the stars' and moon's reflection fall onto the ocean waters. The Caribbean waters are so blue!!
Mike and I had such a fantastic time on our cruise. He always thought that he would be restless on the ship, but there were so many things going on all times of the day. Most nights we ate in the dining room, but one night we ate at the Sushi Bar. There were two formal nights on ship, where we got to get dressed up in cocktail dress and suit. It was fun to see everyone all dressed up.
The three days we were at sea, we spent time lounging in the sun on the top deck and each of us read. One day we had a couples massage, afterwards Mike went and sat in the men's sauna, and I went and sat in the steam room. It was raining at the time, and it was fun to be inside watching the rain pelt the windows, as I sat soaking in the steam.
On Tuesday night it was Mardi Gras Night, and we went and did the Conga, and the cruise assistants were throwing beads.
My favorite thing to do at nights after dinner was go sit in the Flowers Lobby, and Mike and I would dance and listen to this girl and guy sing. She had the most amazing voice!!
We saw comedy shows, a movie on deck, which happened to be playing at midnight, played bingo, and went to see the dance productions. It was fun to be around and meet so many people from so many different places. We met the nicest couple from Barbados, who sat by us each night in the assigned dining room, Dawn and Harry. We became friends, and met up at Mardi Gras and the comedy show.

Now that we have been home for a couple of weeks, I find myself wishing that time could go backwards, and I could be climbing the waterfall again, or having dinner in the Golden dining room with Harry and Dawn, or reading my Jodi Polcoult book on the deck. I hope I am cruising again soon. It was awesome to just reconnect with my husband, not worry about kids, school or anything else. When people ask me my favorite thing about our trip, it is hard to name one thing.

To see more pictures, check out my facebook page. I posted over 45 of them. :)

Arizona is Grand...

2010-06-28T13:46:00.000-07:00

Arizona has many things to offer and lately has been in the news. We decided to show the girls one of the grandest things that our state has... the Grand Canyon.

M had been wanting to visit the Grand Canyon, especially after she learned about the history of Arizona in school this past year. The view into the canyon is really breathtaking!! There is one part at the park, that you can pay to walk on glass over a section of the canyon and look down as if you are floating above the canyon, but it ended up costing more than I was willing to pay, so we just walked and drove along the canyon so that the children could see different views. (Although, if you have ever been to the canyon, it pretty much looks the same, at least to me, no matter what view or sight you are at.)

You do realize as you look over into the canyon, that it is an amazing sight and what a miracle that wind, water and help from God can really make some something so magnificent.

Time flies when you are having.....

2010-06-04T16:11:00.001-07:00

Braces off... Tiffany now after 4 years of orthodontic work now has a beautiful smile. Calla just got her braces on, and looks really cute. Next post, I will show the new brace face!!

Prom 2010. Tiffany was asked by JJ Holcomb to the prom. He called us and asked if she had a date and then a few minutes later came over and stuffed her truck cab full of balloons. Inside some of the balloons were words that asked her to the prom. The five couples all went to Carrabas Italian Restaurant for dinner.

This is the Mafia pose!

Tiffany and JJ

Tiffany in her dress!

Northern Arizona University Graduation. Here I am walking into the ceremony to receive my masters degree in education. I didn't think I would be emotional but I was. I got a little teary eyed as we were walking on. I can't believe that my 2 years of hard work is finally over!! I graduated Summa Cum Laude getting a 4.0!

Here I am being hooded. This was very exciting for me! I never thought that I would want a master's degree. I have thought of the different things that I now can do with my degree. I can teach at Junior College or Community College, something that I think I would really enjoy! With my Reading Endorsement I could exclusively teach reading in the elementary schools as a specialist. Time will tell. For right now, I am perfectly happy teaching 1st graders how to read, write, and tell time!
This is my colleague, Maria Martinez, she teaches in my building, along with a couple other girls who have also been working on their master's degrees with me. Maria and I pushed ourselves this last semester and doubled up on classes so that we could graduate in May instead of December. It was so fun to graduate with a friend!!!
While doing my master's degree, I met some other teachers who became dear friends of mine, Jenny and Dawn (2nd from right and far right). They also pushed themselves to finish early with Maria and I. We had several classes together, and would often have stress meetings in the parking lot after class. It is so nice to be able to study, work hard, and have friends who are feeling the same stresses as you!

Things do come in 3's....

2010-03-25T09:50:00.000-07:00

The saying is that things always come in 3's....and it's usually bad things right? Well I have 3 good things that have happened to us recently.

#1 Graduation:
Yes! I am officially counting down the days to MY graduation. This is the reason, I have been absent from bloggy land for the last nine weeks. I decided that the short term sacrifice of taking 2 graduate classes together would have long term benefits; mainly not attending graduate school this summer. Because of this, I found out recently, that I can walk on May 7th rather than wait until December. I am very excited about getting to walk in the graduation ceremony! It's even more fun, because I am graduating with a couple of friends who have been completing their master's degrees too. In addition I am graduating Summa Cum Laude! Something that I am really proud of, because I have studied so hard.

#2 Braces off!!

T finally got her braces off after 4 LONG years! She has a beautiful smile now. (Her sister is now starting the orthodontic process)

#3 T Got a Job!

T finally got a job! (isn't that sad, that I would be excited about that) She is working part time at a make and take pizza restaurant that recently opened up near our home. She works about 15 hours a week. She has always been good about saving, and buying things that she wants with her babysitting money. SO now she has started her college fund! Also, now that she is driving, she realizes that driving has it's privileges and it's disadvantages. She is contributing by putting gasoline in the truck, since she drives to high school, and likes to cart her friends to the mall. Hopefully, she will also help with a small portion of the insurance fund, since the rates went up after her rear end collision! (another post at another time)

Sentimental Saturday...A Few of my Favorite things!

2010-01-09T09:15:00.000-08:00

Today, I am sort of sentimental and thought I would share a few of my favorite things. I hope at the end, that you will share your favorite things on your blogs. I got this idea from
http://circlecliffviews.blogspot.com

My most favorite thing! My best friend of 20 years:

He has been my rock and support! He is an excellent cook. He cooks more than I do! He always makes me laugh. He goes to the gym with me! He has always encouraged me to try new things and I always appreciate his honest opinion.

My 3 girls:

All 3 of my girls, are talented, smart, and very different. My oldest is very organized, a leader, and very talented with scrapbooking and crafts. She used to play the flute. She is very laid back, and is a jeans and pony tail girl! She has beautiful penmanship.

My next daughter, is a talented cheerleader and dancer! She is a 4.0 student, and loves to read! (Thank-you Mr. Case, her 4th grade teacher). C is honest and straight forward. She gets that from her dad. She plays first violin in the 8th grade orchestra and loves to write stories.

My youngest, the ballerina. She is starting to like reading, after many years of making her:) She is an excellent swimmer and diver! M is good at school and has made the honor roll 2 quarters in a row. She is very emotional, and sensitive to others' needs. (She gets that from her mom). She is a friend to everyone!

I love Disneyland! It truly is the happiest place on Earth.

Where else can you be goofy and unwind with your favorite people in the world?

Lake Powell my paradise in the desert!

I love the down time I get at Lake Powell. I usually just sit and read a book! Here my 3 girls sitting in the sun! When we go to the lake, we ski, explore, and fish. (see previous posts)

I love the desert in the spring!

When I moved to the desert from the Northwest 5 years ago, I thought it would be sandy, brown, and filled with cactus! Well there are cactus, but year round the desert is beautiful. My favorite time is in the spring, when the whole desert is in bloom with wild flowers. I also love the sunsets in the desert!

I love the smell of campfire, I love sitting around the campfire relaxing and staying warm. Smores aren't to bad either.

I love Sonic diet coke with lime!

December Highlights...

2009-12-31T14:24:00.000-08:00

Did Thanksgiving just end?? Because it seems like December was a blur! First of all an apology to anyone who reads my blog and did not get a Christmas letter or card this year. Please don't feel bad, because I didn't get the letter written....yet! It may come, it may never come! Life is just busy, as you can all relate.

In the first week of December....

C and M played the violin and sang with the school choir at the town Christmas tree lighting. It was nice to feel the small town spirit, even if it was in Arizona and there wasn't any snow. After the tree lighting, and the girls performance, the girls and I went to McDonalds and had dinner. (Calla's choice)

The next day, C marched in the Christmas parade with the Junior High School cheerleading squad.

They marched to "All I want for Christmas is You..." by Mariah Carey It was the first time in the 5 years that we have lived here, that we went to the Christmas parade. It was really fun and it made you proud to be part of our small but yet growing city!

In the Second week of December....

Mike had to cook for 500 for the church breakfast with Santa. I stayed home and worked on my take home final, did my report cards, and lesson plans.

In third week of December...

M played the cutest elf in the fourth grade musical. I had to sew her costume. Thank goodness her elf costume was easy and finals were over!!

In the fourth week of December, came Christmas Vacation!

M making Christmas cookies

I hosted Christmas Eve dinner at my house, and we had Mike's sister and my nephew, and Nana and Papa. We had the traditional clam chowder in bread bowls, and then we loaded up the car and went to see the loop of lights. After seeing the lights, we came home and read the story of Jesus from Luke, and then had baby Jesus' birthday cake.

This is the tree on Christmas morning. The girls held out until 6:30 which was pretty good. (the next day the slept in until 8:00 go figure!)

I was really excited this year, because Mike had suggested things he wanted for Christmas, and I got everything he suggested, and I even surprised him with a giant tool chest from Sears! (except...I got him a larger version of the one he already had! Darn it! I thought I bought the lower section. He took it back)

Santa brought T some scrapbooking stuff. She is really crafty and talented when it comes to things like that, and maybe she will stop using my stuff:) She also got some shirts and jeans.

C's list this year consisted of contacts, a cell phone, and clothes. She was a little disappointed to realize that mom and dad were serious when they said that she doesn't get a cell phone until she can drive! She did get a 3 prong curling iron, a flat iron, and clothes. (other wish list items) C is into zebra print, so Santa brought her a zebra flat iron, zebra purse, wallet and jewelry.

I got clothes, an ipod, so that I can listen to music when I run at they gym, and jewelry.

M played Santa this year, and passed the presents when it was your turn for the present. She asked Santa for a Skateboard, and DS games.

Santa gave our family a nice surprise this year, (even one that I didn't know about). He brought our family a Wii and a Wii fit for me! It was a really nice Christmas, and I am sad to see the season end. It's too bad that the weeks leading up to Christmas are so busy! The girls are growing up so fast and soon Mike and I will be celebrating differently, and the girls will be making their own traditions; Until then, I cherish the small things that we do to make the holidays and the birth of our Saviour so special! After the presents were opened, and the wrapping paper scattered about. We charged the Wii, Mike made breakfast for us (another tradition) and then I went back to bed! Late that afternoon we went to Mike's parents for Christmas dinner and relaxed with the family. We then came home and played bowling on the Wii.

(here are the neighbor girls and C playing hulu hoop the day after Christmas)

Fall Frolicing.....

2009-11-11T06:12:00.001-08:00

Nothing is better than playing in the leaves, especially with cousins that you don't see that often.

Climbing Grandpa's apple tree to help harvest the apples.

Climbing on the shed to reach the highest branches.

We took a day and visited Jensen Historical Farm in Cache Valley, Utah. Here are the cousins all posing on the hay. Being in the fall leaves, pumpkin patches, and cool brisk air, really had me missing the 4 seasons.

The kids loved jumping off the tall hay bales into the straw. They were doing flips. I think this was their favorite part. (above is Calla and below is my niece Bailey)

We all tried the slide.

(above my brother Dave, below my nephew Ryan)

We all tried flinging the gourds. Sometimes it took team work, to get the pumpkin

to fly far.

You can't go to the farm without seeing animals. Here Avery is riding the ponies.

It was so fun to visit Utah and see family. The kids love seeing their cousins. When they are together, it is like no time has passed. They all get along so well. I just wished that there wasn't so many miles between.

A Brain Break or Road Trip?? Part 1

2009-10-15T08:59:00.001-07:00

The fabulous the thing about "modified year round school" is that we get these little Brain Breaks every nine weeks. For our break this time we headed north to visit family and honor my dad on his retirement, it was a quick trip...2 days in the car, 2 days in Utah. Here are some things that we saw on the 13 hour drive....(it is hard to pass the time in the car)

A view of Lake Powell.

My favorite part of the trip. The Virgin River, with the red rock mountains in the background.

An indian hogan.

Sleeping children, somehow make the road trip even Nicer!

"Excuses are like feet...."

2009-10-06T08:25:00.000-07:00

Okay, I orginally was going to give you a bunch of excuses of why I have fallen out of 'bloggy land.' From tissue paper state flag projects to an 11 page research paper, or farm town and face book; I decided after catching up on all of your blogs, and quoting Rex from Toy Story,

"I have guilt... " Excuses are like feet they all stink!!

I have missed my bloggy friends, believe it or not!

I have missed a friend who has lost 50 lbs,

another has lost a loved one,

another has written a book,

another started student teaching,

one is on vacation in Disney,

and another had a rock thrown through her master bed room window in the middle of the night!

I have missed Chanelle's Thrify Thursdays and my neices and nephews running a 5k for school.

I promise to not let time be to long before you hear from me soon. We are on fall break now, and I am off to paint base boards! (gotta love year round school)

HiP HiP HoORaY!!

2009-08-12T20:59:00.000-07:00

Three cheers for C! She tried out for cheerleading again this year and made it!! It was so much less stressful this year! This year the coach posted the new team on a school cheer blog. I will never forget how sad I felt and how devasted it was orginally for her, as she searched on the list for her name and number. All the while, the coaches, and some of the girls who made the team were standing there giggling and gloating. C cried herself to sleep for 2 days. Then, three weeks later, we got the call from the principal that C's score card had been put in the reject pile, and they were adding her to the team! She makes such a good cheerleader. She is physically strong, and so energetic! Her first assembly is next week and the first football game is in 2 weeks. I guess, I will get out my megaphone again!

July....It came in warm and went out like an Infereno!!

2009-08-02T13:20:00.001-07:00

YOU KNOW YOU LIVE SOME WHERE HOT, WHEN YOU CAN REALLY COOK AN EGG ON THE STREET!!!

I have been so busy this month, that I am doing a post in dedication to the fun times we had with family and friends in the month of July.

July started out with a camping trip to Overgard with Ty and CC, (my brother and sister-in-law) Mike Piazza and his son, my father and mother in law, and 7 dogs for the 4th of July!!!

Here is CC and I enjoying a relaxing moment by the fire!

The men caught crawdads and we boiled them and ate them. Here they are sucking the heads off!

Here is Mike fishing.

We took the kids into watch the 4th of July parade in Overgard.

The kids had a good time riding the quads.

JULY 9th - C's friend Ginny came for a visit from Arlington, Washington. We took her to the lake and she enjoyed a ride on the tube.

Ginny and C had a good time. They went to the Queen Creek Monsoon Madness Mud slides and came home covered in red mud! Needless to say, there underwear is no longer white:D They did pedi's, went to the movies, and had slushies!

July 16th- My brother Brent, his wife Jessica, and my neice Bailey came from Utah to visit us. I warned them of the heat, but they came and we had a fanastic time!

Here is Bailey and M wishing that they could fill the bikinis. But don't grow up too soon girls!

Day 1: I took them to Chandler Mall and the girls bought school clothes. Bailey and Maddie got matching shorts and t-shirts. After Jessica and Brent treated us to Chili's for lunch. For dinner that night, the kids stayed home and swam in the pool, and the adults wento out to all you can eat sushi. Mike and Brent tried chicken feet.

Day 2: We took them up to the lake and we tubed and played in the water. We had a good time. The lake was the perfect temperture and we enjoyed a relaxing day swimming and boating.

July 29th. THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL! CAN YOU BELIEVE IT??? i guess if it is so hot outside, we might as well be inside learning!

My body parts are talking to me...

2009-07-08T07:29:00.000-07:00

I got up to run this morning at 5:00 a.m. It was already in the 90's so I crawled back into bed. Now I am having runner's remorse!

If only it was this easy!

"Kiss my Grits"

2009-06-27T09:22:00.000-07:00

C was invited to a really fun Murder Mystery party last weekend. She was assigned to be "Miss Jade" the hair tonic salesman. We decided to be a hair tonic salesman she needed to be "ALL ABOUT THE HAIR!" My neighbor Tiffani does hair and used to do hair for the Phoenix Sun dancers and cheerleaders so she came over and did C's hair. We decided to go with the "Beehive" hair do from the 60's. Remember Flo from Mel's Diner?Well, here is my C as "Miss Jade" or "Flo"

C won the prize for the best dressed and most enthusiastic, and guess what? she ended up being the murder! SO as Flo might say "Kiss my Grits!"

Our Heaven on Earth...

2009-06-24T08:21:00.000-07:00

Our favorite little piece of heaven on Earth is Lake Powell. We decided to take a long week end for Father's Day and head to the lake; Mike could fish with the girls and I could study for my final and read a good book. Saturday, brought rain and wind, so we decided to take the girls up to see Rainbow Bridge, since they have never seen it. The lake was a little higher this year so we docked our boat, and hiked the 2/3 of the mile up to the bridge. C and M walked all the way to bridge. (Directly under the bridge is Indian land and the children were not allowed to stand under the bridge because the land is sacred to the Indians) However, they thought is was pretty cool! On the way back to Wah-Weap Marina, we docked at Dangling Rope, and bought ice cream for the girls....A family tradition carried on from Mike's family, although, Mike and I were looking forward to the traditional bomb pop! which they unfortunately no longer sale:(

Sunday:
Brought fishing and wind and some relaxing. M caught the first fish a small bass and then a blue gill. T caught a nice striper! I caught a nice nap!

after some fishing and Mike not catching anything... C decided to waterski
and the girls wanted to tube with their dad, and then we went exploring and looking for new canyons, another family favorite!

Monday:
We found a nice beach and the girls played in the sand, and I got stung by a scorpion. If you have not experienced this pain, I can tell you that a spinal tap for a C-Section hurt less! Here is a picture of us trying everything to help the pain stop. (We squished up an Excedrin tablet and rubbed it on the spot and I tried the urination thing that they do with sting ray bites, and let me tell you that worked!!! We finally ended our beach excurision and went to find a benadryl.

A trip to Lake Powell is not complete with out finding the perfect cliff to jump from. (Years ago, I witnessed my brother in laws and husband jump from pretty high cliffs) But.... I will not let the girls jump higher than a 2nd story house boat. In the one picture, you can see C doing a toe toucher while jumping off the cliff.

PUZZLED

2009-06-10T10:52:00.000-07:00

A couple posts back, I mentioned that M and I went garage-saling. We bought this ridiculous puzzle that had 1,000 pieces. Buying from a garage sale means there is no guarantee that all the pieces are in the box, I told M; but she insisted that we buy one. So...her and I tried and spent lots of time on the puzzle. When C and T returned home from girls camp, C wanted to try putting the puzzle together. So...as the week has progressed, we continued to work on our puzzle. Infact, it was therapeutic to walk away from my master's homework and continue with the puzzle. Yesterday we finished the puzzle, and to my amazement every piece was in the puzzle! It's our little trophy, and it helped keep the girls entertained away from the computer and TV.

Has it really been that long?

2009-06-09T07:18:00.000-07:00

Time Flies when you are having fun. M and I celebrated our 20th Wedding Anniversary yesterday. It doesn't seem that long ago that I was a new bride. He called me around 9:00 and said "Hey it's official, we've now been married 20 years."

Me in my wedding gown.

M and on our wedding day. (the girls were laughing at my puffy bangs and M's longer hair. Infact, they were laughing at my brother David's hair and they started singing "I want my mullet back")

M and I went to Hawaii for our honeymoon.

He surprised me with 20 long stemmed red roses, a rose for each year, and for dinner we went to the Melting Pot. The Melting Pot was so Yummo! We were going to go somewhere exotic and far away, and romantic for our anniversary. But we have decided to wait until October and go on a cruise. I am so busy with this master's class this summer, that I didn't have enough spare time. Pretty pathetic huh?

Where has 20 years gone? Let's see...We have 3 daughter's, 2 dogs, and have lived in 5 states. Through the years, we have laughed, cried, worried, fought, and loved. Our friendship and love is better today, than it was 20 years ago. There is the old saying: "That love is like a violin, the music only gets sweeter with time!"

On The First Day of Summer Vacation my Day went like this...

2009-05-31T16:00:00.000-07:00

Today was my First Official Day of Summer Vacation...

Did I sleep in? No, up at 5:30 a school habit.
Did I exercise or run my 3 miles? No, instead I got C and T up and ready and loaded for girls camp.
Did I make them breakfast you ask? No, I helped them pour their cereal. I did help T get her sack lunch packed and ready.
At 6:45 we loaded the neighbor girl, and my girls in the Excursion, and I drove them to Wal-mart to get batteries for their flashlights, and then to the Stake Center to catch the bus and meet the group. They quickly jumped out of the truck, waving, blowing kisses, and ran to meet their friends and leaders. That left M and I sad and glad. I walked over to get a real hug and kiss good-bye. But my girls were so excited and laughing, with the other girls. I stepped back and realized they were growing up. (I hope on Wednesday, when they return, they are excited to see me)

Then...M and I rejoiced in being together and having Mommy and Me time. She asked after the girls were dropped off, if I would swim with her this afternoon and play in the pool with her. I thought that was so sweet that she would ask me. We then treated ourselves to breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts. (I tried to choose healthy, knowing I will have to exercise)

After M and I went to a benefit Garage Sale for a girl that goes to Middle School with C. (Natalie has recently been diagnosed with Cancer.)
M and I found some great steals and deals at this garage sale.We bought a couple of puzzles and we are currently frustrated with a 1,000 piece puzzle. (Who knows if all of the pieces are even in the box.) I bought some Halloween decorations... (that I plan to tweek. Thanks to my sister-in-law, Chanelle, who always finds great deals and can change them into something fantastic!)
I almost bought a lady bug Halloween costume, so I could tweek it. Every year at school, we have a book parade, during Reading Week. I am always scrambling for a costume. I thought maybe I could be the "Grouchy Lady Bug" or a friend from "Miss Spider's Tea Party"

We then returned our library books, started that puzzle, went swimming together, and that night her daddy and I watched her pirouette at her dance recital.

In memory of...

2009-05-25T15:55:00.000-07:00

M asked this morning what Memorial Day is all about. Mike explained to her that Memorial Day is a holiday set aside for remembrance of our fallen soldiers from all of the wars that our country has ever been involved in from the Revolutionary War to the Irag War. At the moment he was telling her, I so badly wanted to transport our SUV into a space craft or a time traveling machine, so she could see things that would help her remember what this day is really about.

This is the Marysville Washington Cementary. I have never seen a cemetary so decked out in flags. It always made my heart proud to drive by it.

The USS Carl Vinson, returning to port in Bremeton, Washington in 2003. I wasn't there, at the port, but I will never forget the unity of community as it pulled into port. I loved how the sailors were all standing so proud in their whites, waving to family and friends awaiting for them.

My grandpa fought under General Patton in World War II. He returned safely home to my grandma, mom, and uncle. But there were many who didn't. My heart goes out to their family and friends this day.

...And for the men who fought very early in our country to make it what it is today, I thank you. Thank you for fighting in what you believed in, to make our country free. Every morning as my children in my class raise their hands and place it on their hearts, to Pledge to our flag, I think of you.

No more pencils, no more books, no more teacher's dirty looks...a quote by Alice Cooper

2009-05-24T16:42:00.000-07:00

Okay so, it has been a while since I posted. We are alive, healthy, and finishing out the school year. (The countdown is 3 days...of absolutely, positively...NOTHING!!)

I wish we had gotton out before Memorial Day this year, but the district calandar people didn't plan it that way! I guess that is okay, because now I can just sit, laugh, and play with my 1st graders, and probably cry for joy that some of them are leaving, and sadness for some others.

As the school year ends, summer plans begin. With Arizona summer vacations being short, due to year round school, summer seems busy already...I hope there is time for rest!

Things that are on the family list to do:
1. Dance Recital for M
2. Master's classes (I have 2 this summer, 2 nights a week for 8 weeks)
3. Girl's Camp for C and T (they leave 2 days after school gets out)
4. Painting the foyer (hopefully before family comes to visit in June)
5. A trip to Lake Powell (God's secret if you have never seen or heard of Lake Powell, check this link out.http://www.lakepowell.com/)
4. Yeah!! Family comes to visit in June
5. Camping for the 4th of July
6. C and Mike have birthdays
7. Boot Camp (Yes, I am signing up for Boot Camp..or have good intentions of it. If Helen on the Biggest Loser can do it, I can too!)
8. reading a good book (not Twilight)
9. organizing some unorganized things (mainly M's bedroom, and a couple of cupboards)
10. some scrapbooking caught up.
11. the upstairs started for expansion of a family room
12. fishing for Mike

stay tuned...."A goal not written is merely a wish!"

Count your many blessings..name them one by one...

2009-04-28T18:40:00.001-07:00

We are so fortunate to know the Lauro family. Natalie and C met during the fourth grade and were in the same school class for 2 years. The girls even went to California to Sea World for a school trip together in 5th grade. This is Natalie's story and I would like to share it with you. Her story will make you go hug your children and thank Heavenly Father for your small blessings in life.
http://www.pchhandprints.org/ (Click Natalie's story)

Sweet 16 and Prom....

2009-04-27T19:46:00.000-07:00

CD came over and re-asked T out to the prom last Monday in a creative way. The fun part was, that it was her 16th birthday and so it made it a little extra special. She found this fun note on her door, and then she had to pop the balloons with a rose that he left.

The question was hidden in a balloon somewhere other than her bedroom. So she went on a scavenger hunt throughout the house and finally found the magic balloon.

She answered back by making a cake and putting a big yes on the top of the cake. She dropped the cake off at his house when he wasn't home, so he found her cake in the refrigerator when he was scrounging for some snacks.

For T's Sweet 16 party, we had a bunch of her friends over and they played games, swam, we BBQd, and then they went dancing.

We finally broke down and bought T a cell phone. We decided now that she is driving, it would be important to have a phone. (call us old fashioned for not getting a phone sooner but really she had no social life before now:)

Tina doing hair for the dance, cake and ice cream, and the new phone!

Well Saturday was the prom. This was T's very first date, and it was her prom date's first date. It made it sort of special for both of them, but the funny thing, is neither one of them can drive quite yet, so CD's mom drove them to the prom. Cd's mom came in and took more pictures than me! I wonder if she blogs too!!

T was very excited and all day she prepared for the dance. She went and got her nails, toenails, and her eyebrows waxed. We did her hair and make up, and we frantically ran to the hair salon and Wal-mart looking for cute clips and or babies breath to put in her hair at the last minute.

Her hair turned out nice! We did a half up do, and put rhinestone barrettes to hold some of the curls.

This is her dress. She chose a tea length dress, and her shoes were silver with rhinestones.

This is her date. C said after they left, that he looked a lot like Troy Bolton.

She had a great time at the dance, was home by midnight and didn't turn into a pumpkin.

We found the dress, we found the shoes...Prom will soon be through!

2009-04-11T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today T and I had a fun day shopping for her prom dress! (I do have to admit though, I was worried that it would be frustrating to find a modest, well priced dress, in the midst of a very wordly, strapless, skimpy, designer world!) But I was wrong! T googled modest dresses in Arizona, and found a place in Mesa that sells them. We went to the store, and the selection was slim, but the woman sells them from her home too. I gave her a call and she graciously invited us over without an appointment, and the day before Easter to boot! She has a bedroom in her home that she uses as a dressing room, and she had racks and a huge closet full of the most beautiful formals. (Everyone of her formals are modest, and at the most reasonable prices.) She kept handing T more and more choices. It was so fun!! T would swirl around in the 3 way mirror, and smile or shake her head. T finally decided on a tea length, teal green formal. After dress shopping, we went to Cafe Rio for lunch, and then went shoe shopping. T found some really cute, strappy heels at the Nordstrom Rack, and then we headed home.

I honestly thought that we would be gone all day, and that we would come home empty handed, and a little bummed! I am so happy that we found that fabulous dress shop called 'A Dressy Occassion' I hope someday, wedding dress shopping is as easy!!

Bedroom Bliss

2009-04-07T21:11:00.000-07:00

YES, I have finally reached bliss in the bedroom!! Hey this isn't X RATED! WHO DO YOU THINK I AM???

This is what I am talking about......

Our New Mattress! (although, that is not my bedroom)

We finally broke down and bought us a new mattress. We tried this mattress out, but the price tag was way out of our price range. So we had decided on a Sealy, when we went back to buy the Sealy, the Heirloom Mattress was on sale!! FOR HALF OFF. They were clearing out the floor models. This bed is so comfortable....and for all of you people going GREEN, This mattress is made of soy and latex, so in 10 years when I am out shopping for a new mattress, I can be rest assured that my mattress will biodegrade just fine!

SLEEP TIGHT...

Over the mountains and through the snow to grandmas house we go!

2009-03-21T08:35:00.000-07:00

You Know you are on the down hill stretch when you pull into Provo, Utah! Our trip started on Friday the 13th. We left our home at 5:00 am so we could beat the morning rush hour of Phoenix, and pulled into Provo about 12 hours later! It was a fun day in the car, although long, the drive up US 89 from Kanab is so pretty. I just love the small towns along the Virgin River. From Provo, I still had a 2 hour drive.

Saturday: We went shopping in Layton, We went to Tai Pan Trading, and the Quilted Bear in Ogden. Some guy was handing out samples for Charlies deli as we were leaving the mall, the samples were so yummy! We decided to eat in the mall and skip the Olive Garden. It was so fun shopping with my sister, sister-in-laws, niece, and mom. We don't get to do the girl shopping thing together very often. M had the most fun!! In Arizona, she has mostly boy cousins her age, and hanging out with my niece B, meant so much to her.

This is M, C, and B (my niece) posing with the mannequins at Dillards. The girls were trying on prom dresses and being silly. I think the sales clerks were glad to see us leave.

Here we are leaving the mall with all of our shopping bags!

Sunday: Going to Grandma's house, means that Aunt Sheri also comes to visit. Sheri loves doing hair, and giving the girls facials. Sheri did M's hair before Sunday dinner.

After Sunday Dinner, all of the nieces and nephews went outside and had a huge snowball fight. (with what snow there was left)
Sunday relaxing time: Here are my 2 brothers and my dad.

Here is my sister, 2 brothers and my mom and dad. My 2 sister-in-laws, Chanelle and Jessica, were taking pictures.

Monday: I drove to Logan. Logan is a very special place to me, my friends in high school and I used to cruise main, and hang out in Logan. I went to Utah State in Logan. But the reason it the most special to me is that is where our first home was when I got married 20 years ago. I drove by our very first home, and showed the girls where their daddy and I used to live. The house was built in the 1940's. During the summer it was extremely hot and the winters it was really cold. The house wasn't insulated very well. I used to love sitting out on the front porch in the autumn and do my homework. The kitchen was huge, and their was the cutest fireplace inside the living room. The house when we lived in it, had the original brass, antique light fixtures.

My brother and sister-in-law invited the girls over for a sleep-over on Sunday. The girls had so much fun hot tubing and playing in the snow at their house. They bungee jumped their stuffed animals and went sliding down the stairs in the sleeping bags. For lunch, they took us to Cafe Rio for the best Mexican food!

After lunch on Monday, Chanelle took us to this very fun park to play in the snow. The park is named Ryan's Park, in honor of a 2 year old boy who fell off a house boat at Lake Powell 2 years ago and drowned. Ryan used to love to play at the park, so his parents and the community came together to build a park in memory of him. The funny thing is, I went to high school with the little boys dad.

Tuesday: We went to see my grandpa who is 89 years old. He is in pretty good health, and it was fun to visit him. My mom treated the girls to lunch at Chuck-a-Rama. The girls and my niece had wanted to eat at Golden Corral on Saturday, and Chuck a Rama is a close second.

Wednesday: On the long trip home, I stopped in St. George to see my friend Tonya. Tonya and I have been good friends since our days living in Washington State together. She used to watch M and C, while I subbed one day a week. We also became scrap book buddies, and she started my passion for scrapbooking. (Which I am now 4 years behind) We used to get together and scrapbook all day, neglecting dinner, laundry, and housework. We would plug in the Veggie Tales or some other movie and scrapbook, while our poor children rotted their brains. It was a good visit, although, my children were restless, and slightly annoying! Next time I visit I am leaving my children in the car! From St. George, we headed home. We pulled into our drive way at midnight.

Our Spring Break trip was so much fun! I am back to cooking dinners, laundry, and grocery shopping. School starts Monday:( and it is back to my masters class and grading papers.

D Day...

2009-03-09T20:28:00.000-07:00

Okay....So, today was the day! It was D day! We started by all going to the "D"entist. (check an earlier post for the details) We all had our cavities filled, and the girls got sealants, and lucky me, got to have 1 cavity filled twice, because there was an air bubble behind the new filling. So he drilled out the new filling and refilled it! Calla was "D"isapointed when her one filling was so huge that it turned into a root canal! That will be filled on Thursday, and she will get to travel to Utah on wonderful "D"rugs! Wish I could take some! But I don't think I can drive legally and do codeine.(May take the edge off of my 12hour plus drive by myself with the girls:D)

I then went to the Day Spa and had my nails filled, the original plan was to take all of the girls for Pedi's but after forking out a huge amount of money to the new dentist, we decided to do our Pedi's at home. (Mike is in Denver this week) and so we it made for a chick night!

After our "d"elicious dinner of frozen entries, we all gathered around to do our pedis.

We filled up the tub, and scrubbed our feet. It was fun! but not as fun as a real Pedi, at the salon,

but it was cheaper and I will now have some extra spending money to spend shopping in Utah.

My award

2009-02-20T20:33:00.000-08:00

I got my first blog award! I am so excited! I haven't been a blogger for very long and Susan over at Adventures of a Minivan Mom, gave me my first award. I met her through SITS. I follow her blog and she follows mine. I think if we lived near each other, we probably would take our kids to the park or have lunch once in awhile. I have really enjoyed meeting people through SITS, its a great blogging community, that links people from all over the world. Stop in and say hello at SITS someday.

So, here are the rules:
1. Put the logo on your blog or post.
2. Nominate at least 10 blogs which show great Attitude and/or Gratitude.
3. Be sure to link to your nominees within your post.
4. Let them know that they have received this award by commenting on their blog.
5. Share the love and link to this post and to the person from whom you received your award.

I nominate:
Tonya (who got me started in blogging)
Chanelle
Jessica L.
Jessica A.
Sarah
Tiffy
Noelle
Brenda
Agnes
Naomi

When the going gets tough...Get flossing!!

2009-02-18T20:26:00.000-08:00

Dear Abby,

I used to be a very good mommy. A few years back, I faithfully took my 3 toothy, grinned, girls to the dentist every 6 months. My dentist was a member of our church, and he was very thorough! Infact, I often complained of his high prices, and his pro-activeness to tooth decay! Well, we moved 3 years ago to a new state, and it that entailed finding a new dentist, doctor, you know the whole works of moving to a new place. A co-worker told me that her dad was a dentist. Hooray!! So I made cleaning appointments for my girls. He was a grandpa, very conservative, had shag carpet throughout his office, and his office was very inconvientant from my house. It was a 45 minute drive and his last appointment was 3:30, making it very difficult to schedule that appointment when school dismissed at 3:00. So, I scheduled appointments during summer vacations and holidays. Well as time went on, I became less enthusiased about driving 45 minutes for a cleaning. Just recently our little town has had a growth spurt, and several new stores, doctors offices, and dentist office are now opening. I scheduled a cleaning with a new dentist just 3 blocks from my house, how convienent, and his office was very up to date with technology, and no shag carpet! Well now I am wondering if the 45 minute ride is worth the money because yesterday was our cleanings.

Daughter 1: Braces coming off soon, needs 2 sealants, and NO CAVITIES!!! HOORAY!!
Daughter 2: Needs braces, needs a root canal from a poor filling from done by grandpa dentist with the shag carpet, and has 2 cavities.
Daughter 3: 6 Cavities, and was overheard by her mommy telling Mr. New Dentist, that her mommy never showed her how to floss or brush her teeth! WRONG!! WHO IS THE ONE THAT REMINDS HER TO BRUSH AS SHE IS RUNNING TO THE CAR IN THE MORNING?
Mommy: 6 cavities, (surprised because last summer I had none from Mr. Shag carpet, conservative Dentist)

So....Thankful for dental insurance, but the nice receptionist informs me of my part of the payment $708.00, and that only is part of daughter #3 and my trip to the dentist.

So please advice,

Destraught by Dentists

Reality Check

2009-02-08T16:23:00.000-08:00

I used to be a Reality TV junkie. I watched Survivor, many, many seasons of it, The Great Amazing Race, The Bachelor and the Bachelorette, and my life and conversations of revolved around these shows. It was the conversation at lunch on Friday who was outed on Survivor. A friend and I wanted to apply to the Great Amazing Race, it was our way to see the world and let our husbands have a taste of what mommy hood is all about! My husband finally asked me, "Why do you watch a shows, where you are rewarded to lie, cheat, and have no integrity to win a million dollars?" He suggested to me to get a life.

Well, I now have a pretty busy life, and now I have no time to watch TV at all. Well I do a have a couple of favorites, Criminal Minds is top, but last summer I started watching The Bachelorette again, and I got hooked on who DeAnna was going to pick. (For those who don't watch this show, DeAnna was a previous Bachelorette that wasn't chosen by Brad in the season earlier) I only watched a couple of those episodes and I didn't care much for DeAnna then:) Well last summer, they had this cute guy from Seattle who is divorced and has this darling son named Ty. I really thought that he had DeAnna had a connection, and I was so mad that she let him get down on his knee at the season finale and get ready to propose, and then she had him stop in mid-sentence to tell him that she chose the other guy. Well this season, Jason is the Bachelor and I am so hooked again!! We are down to the home town dates on Monday, and from the previews it looks interesting! My favorite Molly, has to have complete support from her family, if they don't like him then they won't embrace Jason in their lives! My second favorite choice is Melissa, and her family will not meet Jason on the air; to much publicity.

So, I now need a reality check! Between my master's class and tutoring, all I do is school. This stupid reality show has become my down time. Go figure!! Good thing that the Bachelor season is almost over!

My Maddie turns 9

2009-01-24T15:44:00.000-08:00

Maddie turned on 9 on January 19th, I cannot believe that it has been 9 years. When she was born it was the year of babies in our family. All 3 of my sister-in-laws had babies, along with my sister. Bailey came first, then Jack, next was Ryan, then Maddie, and then Harry. It was fun being pregnant with everyone. She was the last of my babies! I think if I would have known that she was going to be my last, I may have held her longer, rocked her more, and took her to the park for play group more often.

She was a whopping 8 lbs 8oz. and unlike her sisters, I was at last a SAHM when she was born. Since her birth, she has lived in 3 states and attended 2 elementary schools. She is smart, loves to hang with her dad in the duck blind or field, she takes ballet, loves to swim, ride her bike, and play with her friends. She is very creative when it comes to writing and she loves to write stories.

She plans on having a party with friends next weekend. We are taking all of her friends to see "Hotel for Dogs." She did get to share her birthday with her friend Cheyenne who is one hour older.

Here are a few pictures of her from the past. I don't have a scanner, so I can't post her baby pictures, and it's only been a few years, that I have taken pictures digitally:)

Summer 2008 making fishy faces in the pool

Maddie's baptism dress. Jan. 19th 2008

Shooting pigeons off the roof with dad. (Before church)

Spring dance costume 2008 Fishing at Lake Powell 2007. Age 7

Maddie and her friends for her 6th birthday at the beauty college having make-overs

Crabbing in Puget Sound. Age 5

Holding a canary at Hogle Zoo. July 2004. 4 years old.

First day of Preschool. Age 4. Arlington, Washington

Age 3. Feeding the ducks near our home in Arlington, Washington.
Blowing her dad's duck call. Age 3

Will I get the MOM of the YEAR AWARD??

2009-01-07T15:39:00.000-08:00

Last Friday, we went quading with Noelle and Steve and their family. It was fun to hang out and ride the quads and watch the children ride the quads. We also roasted hot-dogs in the desert. Little R (my nephew) looked so cute on his quad with his helmet. He was oblivious to any danger and would follow the older children up and down the trails. Infact, when it was time to get ready to load the quads, we noticed that little R, who is 4, had ridden off into the sunset all by himself. We found him a few moments after we realized he was missing, but it was a little scary to think that darkness was only moments away, and the Arizona desert gets really cold fast!

We started a fire and the children on their quads, decided to ride back and forth through the flames!! (With a little encouragement from Uncle Steve and Mike) I wondered if this was safe, but I was soon out voted as the children continued to ride through the fire! Little R would stop and look at the flames, to see if his tires were catching on fire. I am sure that people consider flame jumping dangerous on motorcycles, but these kids rode back and forth right over the fire. The only one a little nervous was C. It was kind of funny! My nephew H would reve up the quad just as he would ride over the flames, and the flames would jump a little, and would increase in size. Finally the flames died, and so did the fun, as it was time to load the quads to go home. (Moments later is when we realize little R had driven off into the sunset)

Reflections...

2009-01-04T17:58:00.000-08:00

As the 2008 ended, and I carefully packed away the ornaments from the tree (Notice, the girls can't wait to help decorate the tree, but when it's time to take it down, they are no where to be found, which is okay I guess) I found myself a little sad that the season had come to a close and a new year beginning. This year, as I packed away the ornaments, I found myself thinking that T will be leaving in a few years, and will be out on her own. How different the house will be without her. (She is already looking at colleges and she is only 15)

A new year means a new start, new goals, and dreams...the end means I am getting older, succeeded in some things and failed at others. We recently saw the movie "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" if you haven't seen this movie, it is a must!!! It runs about 3 hours, but is so good. After leaving the theatre, the movie made me think about my life, my goals, and dreams. You see Benjamin in the movie is born as an old man and his life goes in reverse. What have I accomplished in life? What am I proud of most?

1- I always wanted to get married and I am going on 20 years this year!

2- I always wanted to be a mother and I am a proud mom of 3 darling girls. I sometimes wish that I could of had a son. Some day I will have three.

3- I got an education and I am currently working towards a Masters Degree. Something I really didn't want a few years ago.

4- I have a nice home, a husband with a secure job, and smart children.

5- I currently have good health, and continue to exercise and try to eat right.

6. I teach school and continue to touch the minds of young children.

7. I continue to be faithful at church and serve.

Mike always asks me what I want to do in the future, what are my goals? I still hope to travel more someday, have grandchildren, and retire in comfort. The future to me still is a blank map. Does anyone else ever think the same thing?

Even the smallest person can change the world. The Lord of the Rings.

Well I asked for it...

2009-01-02T19:25:00.002-08:00

As I have said before, I really miss snow, and I was hoping for a White Christmas. It rarely happens in the Valley of the Sun. The last time it snowed in Phoenix was December 2004 (North Phoenix, up in Cave Creek in the hills). My friend said she remembers snow in Mesa, in 1999, but it didn't stick to the ground. A couple days before Christmas, and on Christmas we got rain in the valley - which translates to the white powdery stuff in the mountains.

This is a picture of it snowing just north of us.

The day after Christmas, we took the girls up to the Rim to go sledding. It was great to feel the cold air and see the beautiful white stuff. While we were sledding, it started to snow some more. We played in the snow for about 3 hours. The snow idea must of been on everybody's mind from the valley because the place was packed! Hundred's of people came out to play in the snow, until the fun police showed up. The highway was so packed with cars, that the snowplow couldn't plow, so the sheriff came and made us all leave. We were a little bummed!

Above is the girls at the top of the hill ready to sled and Mike at the bottom after he came down the hill.

Well I asked for it...

2009-01-02T19:25:00.001-08:00

Twas hours after Christmas....

2008-12-29T11:16:00.000-08:00

Twas hours after Christmas and all through the house,
Dad and Mom go back to bed and the girls are quiet as a mouse.
With the tree, presents no longer adorn, but the crumnpled up paper is stacked by the door! The shopping and preparations are gone in a dash, but smiles on faces are shown with a flash. Christmas is gone for another year, But memories will last and are held real dear.

The Tree after Christmas morning

M with her DS that Santa brought her

T with her Aeropostal Christmas.

C with some of her treasures. She asked for clothes too.

The wrapping paper piled by the door!

What kind of Christmas are you?

2008-12-20T13:35:00.000-08:00

Your Christmas is Modern

Your wish for the New Year is more happiness.

For you, Christmas is a spiritual holiday. You can't separate it from your beliefs.

You are patient when it comes to Christmas. You don't celebrate too early, and you don't like seeing holiday decorations in October.

You like Christmas traditions, but you're not uptight about them. You do things your way.

You like to celebrate Christmas your own way, and you don't like to have to compromise.

You enjoy Christmas more than anyone you know. Some might call it an obsession!

You give a big during the holidays but nowhere near as much as you'd like to.

What Does Your Christmas Say About You?

Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?

2008-12-20T11:09:00.000-08:00

*This was a tag from Susan, my friend from SITS. I was also tagged by Tonya, and I will do hers in a couple of days...

Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate?

1. Egg nog or Hot Chocolate?
I like eggnog, but not the calories it brings.
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree?
A little of both. Santa will place large items under the tree unwrapped, but the others are wrapped. I love big fancy bows, and pretty wrapping.
3. Colored lights or white?
White lights
4. Do you hang mistletoe?
No
5. When do you put your decorations up?
Usually I get the decorating done the Saturday after Thanksgiving, along with the tree decorated, and Mike usually puts the lights on the house too.
6. Favorite holiday dish?
Yams and I love peppermint iceream, although, I could eat it in a huge dish
7. Favorite childhood memory?
Christmas at Grandma Johnsons. She has been on my mind alot lately, and I miss her waffle cookies.
8. When/how did you learn the truth about Santa?
Fourth grade, and after that Christmas just wasn't as fun anymore, until I got married and had children. I tell my own children that if they stop believing, then Santa stops visiting.
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve?
No, unless it is from Nana. She will sometimes give the girls pajamas and then we let them open the gift up, so they can wear their new Christmas jamas.
10. How do you decorate the tree?
Mike sets up the tree. Since moving to Arizona, we have an artificial tree. The white lights are already on it, so Mike just puts the thing together. I put the gingerbread men on, the bows, berries, pinecones, and the girls put on the candy canes, and all of the red bulbs, along with their hallmark treasures from Grammy (Mike's grandma) and then Mike puts on the big bow on top.
11. Snow. Love it or dread it?
I miss the snow. We love to ski, and sled. I would love a white Christmas! I do not miss driving in it, or spring never coming.
12. Can you ice skate?
Yes. Another thing I miss about Cache Valley. Ice skating at the park.
13. Do you remember your favorite gift?
Probably a kitchen that Santa brought me when I was 4.
14. What is the most important thing about the holidays to you?
celebrating Jesus' birth, and teaching the girls that Christmas is about giving, not receiving.
15. Favorite holiday dessert?
Peppermint icecream
16. Favorite Christmas Tradition?
We always have clam chowder in bread bowls, along with Ceasar salad on Christmas Eve. We then have a birthday cake for baby Jesus. For Christmas morning, we all take turns opening presents, that way Christmas lasts a little longer, and we enjoy each other. AND THEN THIS IS THE BEST PART...MIKE MAKES A HUGE CHRISTMAS BREAKFAST AND CLEANS IT UP!!
17. What tops your tree?
a big bow
18. Do you prefer giving or receiving?
Both - I love to find that perfect that you know someone will love, and it is fun to receive a surprise.
19. Favorite Christmas song?
I really like that song "Mary Did You Know?" by Kenny Rogers
20. Candy canes. Yum or yuck?
I hang the things on the tree, but I don't really eat alot of them. I do like those soft peppermint ones. Infact I got a peppermint burn on the roof of my mouth from eating to many the other day.
21. What do you want for Christmas?
A white Christmas, to see my family in Utah, and go skiing.
22. Do you attend an annual Christmas party?
I have missed the last 2 years of the annual facutly party. Other things going on. (Dance recitals etc.)
23. Do you dress up for Christmas Eve or wear P.J.'s?
We wear jeans, and sweaters. We try to be dressy casual.
24. Do you own a Santa hat?
Yes, I wore it to school yesterday, and I was the only teacher with a hat on:( The girls wear the hat on Christmas morning.
25. Who do you normally spend Christmas with?
We usually spend it with family. We do our own Christmas morning at our home. Then in the afternoon we go to Mike's parents home and hang out. We usually don't do a big Christmas dinner. We usually do rolled ham, turkey, and roastbeef with rolls, salads, and junk food. Christmas Day should be relaxing.

I'm just going to leave this open to anyone who wants to play along....I know Tonya just finished a HUGE tag week, it would be fun to hear how everyone else does Christmas.

Our weekend journal of pictures...

2008-12-16T05:38:00.001-08:00

Our weekend started with M having her December Winter Ballet concert. This is her 5th year of dance and she is in the intermediate ballet class. She did very well, and is the youngest in her class. She is 9 and everyone else is 12.

Next, came a Saturday of crafting. The girls and I made at least 12 of these metallic bulletin boards with magnets. We bought a scrap of 12 by 10 sheet of metal from Home Depot. We then covered them with cute scrapbook paper, and added a bow. We slightly bent the bottom of the sheet of metal so that the bulletin board can stand freely. The magnets are those clear plastic rocks that you put in fish tanks and we hot glued a magnet on the back it. They turned out darling, and they weren't that expensive to make. Great friend gifts and teacher gift.

Next, came my treasure. This is Goldie! 10 years ago, I refused to pay the $100.00 that ebay wanted for him. I was collecting Beanies back then, along with my mom and sister. I know that Beanies come a dime a dozen now. I payed 50 cents for him out of a vending machine at the pizza restaurant. He even has his plastic hang tag. My husband wants to sell all of my Beanies to a vender now!

Sunday we went to see Christmas lights. This is the next Criswold's house. After we came home watched a Santa movie and had hot chocolate.

Oh how Sweet it is....

2008-12-13T08:26:00.000-08:00

Years Ago...Before we moved to Arizona, we would come visit for Christmas, and you could smell the orange blossoms. I just loved that smell. Anyways, last year Costco had a whole bunch of fruit trees on sale, and I bought three of them for our yard, thinking that it would be years before we actually got fruit from our little trees. Well, I was wrong. Our little orange trees are producing fruit, the yard smells sweet, and they taste yummy.

Traditional Black Friday....

2008-11-28T14:33:00.000-08:00

Okay...Some of you may call me crazy, but shopping on Black Friday has become a tradition at our home. It all started a few years back, when my friend Tonya and I got up early, and stood in the freezing cold in Marysville, Washington at Wal-mart to buy gameboys for a screaming price. I remember the line was forever long, and past the garden center when we got in line. After we drove to Everett to Toys R Us.

For the last 3 years, my oldest daughter and I venture out into the dark to shop. Three years ago she wanted a digital camera and that was the main shopping item. Since then she looks forward to fighting crowds, freezing cold, and impatient shoppers to find a few Christmas wishes.

Today was no different. We woke up at 2:30 am and we were at Kohls in line by 3:10. The doors opened at 4:00 and I was through checking out by 4:20. The girl in front of us, said that Kohls' lines can be long, so T went and stood in line at Target for us. Our new shopping friends from the Kohls' line joined us, and we all stood in line until Target opened at 6:00. We were right in the front of the line. T and I were through with Target by 6:20. (T and I split up in Target, that way, we were guarnateed some of our wish list items.)

We were home by 6:30, and getting the other girls up so we could all go to IHOP for breakfast. After stuffing our faces with pancakes, we headed to Kmart, where we lucked out, and then off to Michaels and then then the mall.

We got everything we wanted but the lite brite from Kmart, and I think I will head to Walmart to price match it later.

Gratitude...

2008-11-27T19:52:00.000-08:00

My first graders have been learning about the Pilgrims and all of the trials that they endured from the time they left England until that first harvest. As we completed our unit this week, I asked each of my students what they were thankful for most, and I was so surprised that most of them said they were thankful for family, friends, school, and pets. One little girl, said that she wouldn't have wanted to be a Pilgrim because the children had to work to hard, and if she had to be a Pilgrim, she would rather be a Pilgrim boy vs. a girl, because the girls in her opinion, had to do more work.

I have asked my own family to list the things they are greatful for this season. As the Christmas lists are beginning to form, I reminded my children that we have a million things to be thankful for and what more could we really want or need. I mean we can always make wish lists, I have my own, and I am heading out into the rain for the traditional Black Friday Sales tomorrow with my daughter; to fulfill wishes.

Here is the Gratitude lists condensed:

M- thankful for his home, wife, children, security of a good job, and hunting.

J- I am thankful for my husband and children, friends, a home, my freedom, my faith, insurance, my education, and my health that lets me laugh with my girls, look at sunsets, and run in the desert.

T- thankful for family, Molly and Sage (our labs), school, our house, electricity, a nice warm bed, indoor plumbing, her contacts

C-thankful for family, freedom, the military, clothes, her friends, i-pod, Dr. Pepper, cheerleading,

M- thankful for her house, her family, her 3rd grade teacher, dogs, flowers, dancing, birthdays, Primary, shoes, webkins

At last the Big Game!!

2008-11-10T17:51:00.001-08:00

Today was the First Basketball Game of the Season for the Wildcats! Calla was so thrilled to finally cheer, she's been waiting forever for this day to come. I think there were more cheer moms there supporting their girls than actual basketball fans.

Calla is a flyer and gets to stunt! I hope these 7th grade girls don't drop my girl on her bootie!! She loves stunting and being tossed up in the air.

WILDCATS WON! 34-6

Exactly what is a boogie?

2008-11-06T09:01:00.000-08:00

Okay...Something is going around my classroom, and now I have it! I scrub the desks, wipe the sink, and sanitize my hands to the point that I am now the lotion bottle's best friend! Exactly how do you prevent yourself from catching what is going around? Can you over sanitize?

On Monday, this little boy in my class said "Mrs. B, can I hold your hand?" as we walk down the hall to lunch. Usually, I will hold his hand, because he walks much better. But on Monday...I said, "Have you picked your nose today? (which he does constantly) and he says "uh, huh", "Nope, you can hold Kiley's hand." She said "NO! I don't want his snot on me!"

SO...Now that it is finally cooling down, I guess it's Boogie time. (I thought germs didn't like the cold)

A trip back in time....

2008-10-25T14:42:00.001-07:00

Here I am in 1996. Friends and Seinfeild were the top shows. We had just re-elected President Clinton, and I was scared to death of what would happen in our country. Calla was just a baby, and we had just bought our first home in Elko, Nevada. Grunge was popular, and millions of us went to see the Titantic!
Here is my favorite hair style of all times!! My husband now refers to it as bat wings and poof bangs. I loved BIG HAIR!! I wish it would come back in style. The year is 1990. I had just celebrated my first anniversary and the favorite movie was Pretty Woman!

Here I am back in high school, 2 years before I graduated in 1986. The year was 1984, and I just got my driver's license. I was rockin' to Billy Squire and Van Halen and I was hauling all of my friends around in my parent's '74 Galaxy Ford. I remember it was brown. I was working hard at the Bear's Den on school nights and weekends, saving for college. Jake Ryan was my biggest heart throb! I wanted to celebrate my 16th birthday with him!!

Here I am back in 1974. I loved my skinny jeans, mini skirts, and so wanted to date Greg Brady!The year is 1966. My Go-go boots were so groovy! I loved the Beach Boys! And my itsy-bitsy-tiny wienie, yellow polka dot bikini!!

And...here is what I would of have looked like back in 1950. My mom was only 4 so, I guess this is what my grandma would of have looked like. Although, I have seen pictures of my grandma back then, and she was so beautiful. A little bit of Mayberry life may have been nice!!

The Place for a Million Dreams....

2008-10-18T09:53:00.000-07:00

Well, Fall break has ended, and it's back to school and a routine again! We spent a fabulous, fun, filled four days in California at Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm (Knott so Scary Farm). Maddie was tall enough this year to enjoy all of the rides that her older sister love, except she really dislikes the "Tower of Terror" and she didn't care for "California Screamin." Infact, she was in tears when we climbed on, and the attendant made her get off. Here is the picture of her after she got finally decided to ride the coaster. Although, she didn't ride it again!

We were chosen by a Dream Team member and we got to ride in the wheel house of Tom Sawyer! We were hoping for the unlimited Fast Pass prize, but this was one of the highlights of the trip! It was fun to hear some of the secrets behind Disney, and the girls and I got to toot the whistle, and horn. The ship is guided by someone other than the people in the wheel house, but it was fun spinning the big wheel anyways.

This is the girls with Cruela D. She was so hillarious! She gets to be cranky on the job for real!

Here are the girls and I standing with our Toy Story 3-D glasses. The line was long for the ride, but the wait was so worth it! It was one of the best rides! For the ride, you get to ride through the toys, and shoot at them like a shooting range, everything is 3-D. So much fun!

Finding Nemo! Another fantastic ride with a very long line. But the girls were mesmorized by the underwater computer graphics and figures. It is so weird, that they can take a ride that was 20,000 leagues under the sea and turn it into something so neat!

Here is Calla, Maddie, and Mike on Grizzly rapids. We all got soaked, but it was so hot that day, that a little water just made the day more bearable!

Calla loves rollarcoasters! She rode them all day long. When we went to Knotts Berry Farm on Friday, there were no lines, and she jumped on and off all of the coasters one right after another. After doing 12 loopy loopy loops in row, she finally decided to call it quits for a while. Tiff and I like coasters, but I can only do a couple in a row, then I start feeling queezy. I guess I am getting old! Mike rides the coasters with Calla, but the day at Knotts he had the flu!

My Mr. Incredible with Mr. Incredible. They almost look the same size!:D

Maddie loves Minnie! We ran over to Toon Town to meet Mickey and Minnie, since that is about the best place to find them in the park! We waited quite a while for Mickey to show up at his house, but it was so cute inside and Maddie and a fun time playing in his house. The other girls felt that Toon Town was a little to babyish for them, so they along with Mike, ran to ride Splash Mountain, and get fast passes for other rides.

Now that vacation is over, and we are all back to school, and my new master's class has started! I just wish that the Magic could last a little longer!

Tagged Again...

2008-10-06T13:15:00.000-07:00

My friend from St. George has saved all of her tags up, and tagged me on this one.

7 weird things about me...(Do I only have to think of 7?)

1. I am a Utah State Aggie, but not a true Aggie. To be a true Aggie, you had to be kissed on the A on a full moon. (I think that was how it went)

2. I was 25 when I got my first cavatity.

3. I am constantly making sure there isn't anything in my teeth! (I am really OCD, see #4 and #6). Until last year, my teeth were discolored due to flouride in our water when I was young. Being a teacher, my students, and some parents used to say things, about the color of my teeth. I was teased as a child too. So, I have been very self conscious about my teeth. Last year, I paid to get veneers on my teeth. The veneers straightened them, made them a nicer shape, and made them all white! Now, I have pretty teeth, and I just worry occassionally if there is a pepper flake in them.

4. I am extremely organized!! Everything in my house must have a place! I have to have things tidy, and beds made, before we leave for school in the morning, nothing bums me out more after school than seeing cereal bowls still in the sink or better yet, cereal stuck to the sink for hours!

5. I collect witches! I got my first witch from my mother-in-law the first year I was married to Mike. We give each other witches, as gifts, she now has quite a collection too.

6. I have an earwax fettish! I cannot stand earwax glopping out of my kids ears. I am always checking to see if they have gobs of earwax that needs a good Q-Tip! I have been tempted at school to pick at a child's ear, but don't think that is appropriate:)

7. At 40, I still think Disneyland is the happiest place on Earth! I love that place!

I TAG JESSICA, NOELLE, TIFFANY, SARAH....

2008-10-02T17:16:00.000-07:00

TAG YOU'RE IT!!

Two names you go by:
1. mom
2. teacher
Two things you are wearing right now:
1. Khaki shorts(how nice it's Oct. 2nd)
2. cream shade shirt
Two of your favorite things
1. my husband
2. my girls
Two things you want very badly at the moment
1. my microwave fixed
2. no mortgage payment☺
Two favorite pets you have/had
1. Sam (our 14 year-old lab)
2. Dumb and Dumber (our black lab rescue, and Sage our other yellow lab)
Two things you did last night:
1. Went to my master's class
2. Went out to dinner/drinks with the girls from my masters class
Two things you ate today:
1. a granola bar
2. cheerios
Last two people you talked to
1. Mike (on the phone, he's in Denver)
2 Tiffany (she got home from babysitting all day)
Two things you plan on doing today
1. Watch the Palin/Biden standoff
2. Take Calla to the Dentist, library
Two longest trips taken in the last five years:
1. Alaska
2. A trip to Lake Powell for a week
Two favorite holidays:
1. Halloween
2. Christmas
Two favorite beverages:
1. Diet Coke with lime
2. Dannon flavored Berry Water

I TAG CHANELLE, JESSICA, AND TONYA

I can...

2008-10-01T15:20:00.000-07:00

On Monday, Tiffany and I got up at 5:30 a.m. to can our Utah pears. With it being still 105 in Arizona, we had to start early so the kitchen would not be 105:) We finished by 9:30 and had 18 quarts canned. I felt pretty accomplished and I have 18 little trophies:) The girls loved it when we canned pears last time, and made a couple of the quarts green. So...we have 1 green jar for St. Patties day. (If they last long)

Don't you love the nice space above my stove?? The mircrowave broke, and the scary Sears man came today and ordered the part. Needless to say, we won't have a microwave until Oct. 13th!!!! URGH!!! Thank-goodness we will be in California next week at Disneyland & I won't need to use it.

If you don't have anything nice to say....

2008-09-29T20:28:00.000-07:00

I think Sarah Palin ROCKS!! I am so tired of the press trying to find something to dig up about her so she looks like a drip. I wish the press would remember that golden rule-If you don't have anything nice to say... I think Palin is the most straightforward, got her act together candidate that we have had in a LONG TIME!! The only reason they try to dig up crap on her, is because they can't find any fault with her, and the press knows that she is salt. Even Bill Clinton has been noted for saying good things about her. I watched a short clip on Fox News with Elizabeth from the View, and she had the best things to say about Palin. I wish I could remember all of the things she said, because she said exactly how I feel about Palin.

slacker? I think not....

2008-09-23T18:11:00.000-07:00

Slacker... Yes, but I have been busy! A couple of weeks ago Mike took me to Pei Wei. My fortune said "Don't give up; the beginning is always the hardest." Well I am finishing up my first grad class. It was a 6 week class, and I really loved it! NOW...I am stressed. I have power point presentation next week, a pamplet due, and a 5 page APA style report to write. Do you know how loooonnng it has been since I have written a report, let alone an APA style. WHAT THE BEEP is APA? So I am trying to get ahead of schedule and work on my report. Sunday after church I spread myself out all over Mike's office and began to write that report! I am almost done with it, I hope I have cited my references right.

Other good news to share:) Calla ended up making the cheer team after all. Her principal called us last week and they were going over the score sheets so they could add some new girls to the team. Calla should have actually made the team to begin with they just misplaced her score sheet and it was set in the reject pile! She is very excited about the team. She just wished she would had her name on the original "YOU ARE A WINNER" list. Anyway, better late than never I guess.

We waited and waited...

2008-09-01T16:18:00.000-07:00

Well, we've waited all season...and Labor Day is here! Most places it is the last bang for summer!Thank-heavens the weather in Arizona is beautiful until October and we can go to the lake until then. Mike gutted our ski boat in May and redid all of the carpet, vinyl, and redesigned the inside of the boat. Our older boat is now a new boat! Well, we finally got our boat back this week, and couldn't wait to take out to the lake. We drove to Lake Roosevelt on Saturday and had a fun time tubing and boating. Calla, Tiffany and Maddie love being pulled behind the boat on the "stratosphere." The wind kicked up making some humongous waves and the girls went flying. Unfortunately, Calla landed wrong in the water and bruised her arm (we thought she might have broken her wrist) so we left the lake, and hurried home. Thank-goodness her arm was fine! Can't wait until next week. Hope you all had a fun weekend too!

Some Gals have all the luck...

2008-08-18T20:31:00.000-07:00

Well, we won some this weekend and we lost some:(
1.Calla tried out for cheer and was a fantastic candidate! She landed her back-handspring, and did a front walk over, unfortunately, she wasn't chosen to be on the cheer team. It was very sad. I can't describe how I felt as she stood at the door, where they posted the winning girls' numbers. We watched as Calla searched for her name, and then walked back to the car. She said "I can't find my number, I must of not made it." So I jumped out of the car, as some girls, who made the squad watched us, along with the coaches. I ran over and double checked the list. Sure enough, her friend made it, but she didn't. I could feel her disappointment. She cried herself to sleep, and I did too.
2.Saturday, Calla, Tiff, and I went to the new Sport Chalet, and did a free underwater scuba class. Calla and Tiff were naturals, and on the bottom of the pool within minutes. Me, I am a little claustrophobic, and it took me 45 minutes to finally stay on the stairs sitting down in 5ft of water with my head underwater. Finally, the last 10 minutes or so, I walked on the bottom of the 12 foot pool, I still was a little nervous, but I ended up liking my experience. I truly thought for a few minutes I might suck the whole tank down, and cry at the same time. Mike and I want to go to Belize next spring, and we want to scuba if we go. I am going to have to get used to the underwater thing!
3.While at Sport Chalet, I won a youth size BMX bike. It's red, and great for a boy! Which I don't have. So I think I might put it on Craig's list. Even if I make $30.00, I am ahead!

How safe is school?

2008-08-10T08:00:00.000-07:00

Well, we are in the second week of school. On Wednesday, a boy brought a 9mm handgun to Calla's Middle School and was showing his friend how to load and unload it. The young man, brought the gun to school to take care of a boy who was "picking on him." A teacher on duty, saw the young man with the gun, and called the principal, and authorities. THANK HEAVENS that a teacher was aware of what was going on in his/her classroom. I can't imagine the horrible things that could have happened. The boy was arrested and taken into custody. His parents are here in our country illegally, along with his brother. They are going to be deported back to Mexico. Which is causing major debate in our area! Send him back, I say. I just finished reading the book "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult and it's a story about a school shooting. Since Columbine, most schools now require teachers, and students to wear I.D. badges. While reading the book, I often wondered if the I.D. badges were for safety, or to identify the dead after a school shooting. Great read, if you want a good book! if you want to see the full story from the news and watch a video clip, click on www.abc15.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=0450ce2d-8f53-49d8-a65f-1938692db1f4.

School Dayz, School Dayz...

2008-07-30T06:13:00.000-07:00

Well, we started school on Monday, July 28th. I can't believe summer is over. Tiffany is now a sophomore in high school. She is practicing driving with her dad, because she gets her permit in October. Be glad you all live far away...Sorry to my neighborhood friends...Stay off the curb!! Tiffany loves her classes, except Spanish, and we are doing a schedule change today. Her Spanish teacher teaches in Spanish and T doesn't understand a thing he says. One year of Spanish, last year, didn't give her enough understanding to comprehend all of the lessons taught in Spanish. Maddie is in 3rd grade and loves her teacher, Mrs. Horst. She is making new friends. Her classroom is right around the corner from mine. Calla loves 7th grade. She is trying out for cheer. Every night she is practicing her splits, kicks, and flips. I will be glad when tryouts are over! Calla's favorite class is science. She says "Mrs. Berry is the bomb!" They have already been in the science lab twice this week, and it's only Wednesday! I teach 1st grade again this year. My class seems to be a good one! I have several children that can already read!! YEAH! That will give me more time to help focus those who can't.

Oh! What do you do in the summertime....

2008-07-27T09:31:00.000-07:00

When it's 107 outside? Do you play outside because it is hot? Do you play with your friends and ride a bike? NOT. Do you swim in a pool to keep yourself cool? Is that what you do? So do I.

Although the pool is more like a warm bath in July...The girls, Maddie's friend, and my nephews; enjoyed the last week before school starts by jumping off of the trampoline and into the deep end. The pool has been the best investment ever!!! Although it will take years to pay off, my kids get up in the morning and swim all day. It's the best babysitter! All of the neighbor kids come here to play and swim. We often spend our family home evenings playing Marco Polo.

What Stays in Vegas...

2008-07-16T10:39:00.000-07:00

Mike had to go to Vegas for business a couple of weeks ago. He invited me to go and arranged for his mom to come and watch the girls at our house. (Even though she lives 25 minutes from here) I was excited to get out of town! and maybe enjoy a little bit cooler temperatures. He told me to pack something nice to wear for one night. I was all excited thinking that maybe he bought tickets to Cher or Bette Midler, who I would love to see in concert. I wasn't even thinking Phantom for some dumb reason. Anyway, he bought us 8th row tickets in the center. It was so fantastic!! When the chandelier fell, it landed on the lady's head 2 rows behind us. We felt the heat from the fireworks and smoke. I really enjoyed the show. Shopping at Ceasers Palace was fun too.