drowsy dining

I guess she can get away with not finishing her dinner this time...

oh so shelvish!

Aren't they just beautiful??? I am so excited to finally have shelves in my fruit room/storage room! The food storage hasn't been put back yet. But, some of the beverage storage from the garage has already migrated to its new home.

What makes them even better? I helped! One of the few opportunities to put my awesome jigsaw skills to use!

put up or shut up

Yep. It's official. I put up this weekend. Not put out, mind you. Put up. Proof of my domestic skills? Please see below.

me and 2 of my awesome sisters "jamming":
(cute apron courtesy of jessi. thanks, jess!)



the fruits of my labor:

fallen soldier

Here's a little dialogue from our house this morning:

Me: Did you put a soda in the freezer?

Trav: Ummmm...

Me: You know that soda explodes when it freezes, right?

Trav: Ummmm... ooops...

Yadda, yadda, yadda...had a real good reason to clean out the freezer and ice tray this morning.

it was independence day

We had a pretty fun 4th and had great weather to go with it! Could you ask for anything better? We started off our morning by going to the Cherry Days parade in North Ogden. I don't think I've missed a single one in all my years. It was overcast and in the low 70's...perfect parade weather.

so excited... obviously too excited for a picture with mom it's a bird, it's a plane, it's the 419th fighter wing checking out the planes getting in a prime candy grabbing position myka got scared by the clowns (don't blame her!) hey, roger... thought you hated parades??? myka retired from the street after the clown incident myka and grammy laurie candy grabbers cute cousins
We took the kids to see Ice Age. I think this is the 500th Ice Age movie. Wondering how many more times they're going to attempt that one??? We spent the later afternoon and evening swimming at the Thompsons'. The kids always have lots of fun when we go swimming. Myka was so brave and let her daddy jump off the top of the rock with her. She wanted to do it over and over!

myka wearing the gobble-gobbles (myka for goggles)and a much too small swimsuit me and my baby hanging in the hot tub tilt your head to watch cuz i don't know how to rotate it...


And I won't ever be the same...

pick-o-the crop

Note to self:

Don't pick your butt when someone is taking a picture. Especially when that picture is going to be used to sell your motor home on the KSL Classifieds. Do you know how many people look at that stuff? Seriously!



I found the picture here

thank you for bea-ing a friend

Tragedy! Bea Arthur passed away on Saturday. I was always a fan of The Golden Girls and remember watching it after school when I was young. If I happen to see a rerun on, I will still gladly watch it. While as a young girl I always imagined myself as Blanch on the show and NEVER wanted to be Dorothy (Bea). Being older I have much more respect for Dorothy and really enjoy her wittiness and humor. So, here's to you, Bea Arthur. Thank you for being a friend!

i can relate

pack mule

Travis and I are leaving today for NY and VA for a week. We are going with my sister Missy, her husband Roger, and my parents. The trip should be a blast! I am definitely excited to go places I haven't been before. And, a little nervous about leaving my kids for an entire week (and a little excited for some grown up time).

While I love to go on trips I HATE packing! I hate trying to plan what I will wear so far in advance. Especially since the weather can be so different and change so frequently. Here is snippet of last night's packing:

Me: Trav, have you seen that white shirt?

Travis: What white shirt? One of these on the couch?

Me: No, that one I just went and borrowed from Hailee.

Travis: Did you bring it in the house?

Me: Yes. I put it on the table with that Hurley jacket. Will you help me look for it?

Semi-frantic and frustrated searching ensues...

Me: I have no idea where that shirt is! How can I not find it?!

Travis: (walking in from garage with shirt in hand) You mean this shirt that was in the car?

Me: Um, yeah... That would be the one...

I hope this isn't an indicator of what the trip will be like.

birthday bowl-o-rama

Today is #1's birthday. He is the big 4 years old! We decided it would be fun if we took him bowling for his birthday. We picked him up from the sitter's and went bowling and for lunch. We had such a great time! He thought this was pretty cool!

Be impressed - I actually took pictures and uploaded them in the same day! I'll do another post with pictures of his birthday tonight. Be prepared to see some adorable cupcakes!

The birthday bowling boy:


Getting some fatherly guidance:


Me and #1:


Trying to figure out those tricky finger holes:


Action shot of dad:


Action shot of mom:


Action shot of birthday boy:


Sheer anticipation - this was his stance each time he bowled:

on a boat or with a goat?

Yesterday I decided to make my kids a little St. Patrick's Day dinner. My mom would sometimes make us green potato pancakes for St. Pat's and green jello. Being short on time (mainly just late thinking about it) I decided to go for green eggs and ham. Plus, Tyce loves the book.

So, the kids had green scrambled eggs and ham (really canadian bacon) and green pudding for dinner. I know this doesn't scream "nutritious dinner" but they really liked it. A late Happy St. Patrick's Day to all!

#2 turns 2! - pictures now included

Happy Birthday to my princess Myka! She is the big number 2 today! She was so excited that today was her birthday. She wanted to open all of her presents this morning. She even tried to trick me and Travis into letting her do it. She asked Travis and he told her to ask me. She came running in telling me "Daddy said yeah!" So, we couldn't resist how cute she was being and we let her open one. I'll update the post and add pictures after her "birfday party" tonight.

The birthday girl - she was so excited this was all I could get her to hold still for:


She loved opening her presents:


Happy birthday to Myka....


Get ready...


Make a wish!


One of her super cute cakes - shout out to my friend Quinn and the Clearfield Baskin Robbins!


The party table


Lipstick - her favorite present! Thanks Cody & Katie!

tyce's first primary talk

Tyce gave his first talk in Primary today. He did such a great job and was SO excited! He looked at the audience, kept his voice loud, and spoke into the microphone. He wasn't shy at all - go figure! We recorded him doing it this morning before we went to church. It was so cute we had to share.

snowy day

It was a really wet and snowy day yesterday. It snowed pretty heavily throughout most of the day. We had about 7 inches of new snow when we got home from work. While Travis was out taking care of the driveway the kids and I had fun playing in the snow!

Myka thought it was pretty fun the eat the snow. She didn't really move around too much when she was in the snow. Tyce, on the other hand, decided to trek across the whole front yard. His boot got pulled off at some point and he walked through the snow in his bare foot and the other boot! We made some mini snowmen that the kids just loved.

Here are some cute pics:

Sew What!

Lately I've had an increased interest in trying to sew. A couple of weeks ago I made a pillowcase dress for little miss Myka. Although, I didn't accomplish it by myself. My sister Mandy and her daughter Tayler were there to supervise and make sure I didn't screw things up too badly. Being my first sewing project in quite some time, I was quite pleased with the results. So, I thought I would attempt to make a few more cute clothing items for my princess.

I bought the pattern here. This is what I bought. I made her the wrap skirt last night. I don't really care for my sewing maching, so I went to Mandy's house for a little help and to use her machine.

The fabric I used was darling and I think it turned out rather well. Here are some pictures of princess this morning wearing her new skirt. I must apologize for the poor picture quality. I took the pictures with my cell phone and everyone kept moving so things were blurry (very fitting for a morning in our house).

Oh, the Horror...err... Whores...Ok, BOTH!

I have a guilty pleasure to admit, though my interest is fading fast. The TV show "Rock of Love" with Bret Michaels on VH1, which is currently in its 3rd season titled "Rock of Love Bus". Photos and video available here (if you dare). I saw a few episodes of season 1 and watched a bit of season 2. I had many people make the comparison between this show and a bad train/car wreck...just can't help but watch!




Seasons 1 and 2 were filled with the type of girls you would typically imagine to be with Bret Michaels. I guess I should interject here for those of you who don't know who Bret is. He is the lead singer for the band Poison (80's-early 90's). Perhaps part of my attraction to the show is from the special place in my heart for this band. Bret is venturing out on his own with a solo music career. I don't believe it is as wildly popular as Poison, but Bret is also older, not as slim, and still opts to wear pink lipstick and do the pouty lip face. Plus, using the bandanna and cowboy hat to cover up the receding hairline (my personal belief) just to keep the long hair is a little over done. Give it up already, Bret. You can be old, semi-bald, makeup-less, and attractive.




Anyway...

We recorded episode 1 and watched it last night. I must say that my jaw was on the floor for a majority of the show! I have never seen such a heap of silicone, saline, dermal fillers, black eyeshadow, fake eyelashes, freaky facial piercings, bleach blond hair, and just plain nastiness in my life! This doesn't even touch the brainlessness of most of the females (they're not worthy of being called ladies) on the show. There are a few that are actually very pretty and are not nearly as bad as the others, however, I don't expect them to last long.

I found it very entertaining that the nasty girls always complain that people look down on them. This is usually for a variety of reasons: they're strippers, they drink a lot and behave poorly, and have not a single shred of decency among them. I must say the most entertaining part of the show is when Nikki was "rapping" for Bret. The lyrics she had written were on paper with information/care instructions for Genital Herpes and Gonorrhea! Plus, she can hardly walk straight or manage to stand up half the time. I wish she would have stayed - purely for my entertainment/dismay!

I must mention the "Utah girl" on the show...Kelsey. Definitely a cute girl and isn't a pile of white trash like the majority - at least on first glance.

A few highlights for the closet "Rock of Love" fans out there:

*Marcia kissing Bret right after puking her drunk guts out.
*Nikki attempting to walk after the first night on the show.
*Nikki at the elimination - tipping over continually then throwing herself on the floor after being eliminated.
*Samantha (who looks like a grandma compared to everyone else) trying to use the stripper moves from her "learn to strip at home" workout DVD to be sexy for Bret.
*Fight after beer being poured on/throw at someone else fight.
*Watching the girls try to pack their luggage on the bus.

Episode 1 elimination girls:




2 of these girls are much too cute and normal to be on this show. Good thing they were eliminated!