Jason Julie Ellyse & Allie

Christmas Eve and morning in photos

2012-01-10T09:40:00.002-07:00

( i have more photos but don't seem to have them on this computer, will update when i find them)

It was fantastic!

Hope yours was too!

Advice from Ellyse...

2011-12-30T17:01:00.001-07:00

"Never eat jail food...It's greasy" said while we were on 24th street in West Ogden. I'm not sure where it came from in her head, but I thought the location of our whereabouts added to the strangness of her comment. She quickly followed that dousy with "Yeh, so if you ever want to grab us some lunch from a take out place, just don't make it jail food." ......Noted!

Oh, and if you are up early enough to check out a most beautiful pink morning sky and happen to point it out to Ellyse, she'll let you know that "Mars may be exploded."....So wise, this one!

Flowrider, Letter's to Santa, Thanksgiving, and Jake's Wedding.

2011-12-05T15:28:00.001-07:00

Check it! He did pretty nicely! He couldn't move correctly for about a week or so afterwards but he said he'd do it again. :)

We wrote our letters to Santa and sent them off to him at Macy's. Then we shopped and shopped and shopped. At the end the girls were pulling me out of the store. I heart Macy's! Especially if they're having a sale! And especially at Christmastime! :)

Oh, if you go, make sure to have a stamp on your letters. Whoops. :) We sent them anyway. Santa already knows anyway right?!

Thanksgiving was a little different for us this year. Not only did we get to celebrate with my parents, we got to celebrate with Jason's parents and brother all at the same time. It was great. I kept telling the girls that they were super lucky to have both sets of grandparents together at the same time! I think they were most happy about having cousin Colter up to play with.

Jake finally took the plunge. He got married over the Thanksgiving weekend! Yay for Jake and Amy!

We're so happy we got to be a part of it. We're so happy for the two of you!!

Here's Jake with all his guy peeps. What a fun bunch of boys!!!

Hope you are doing well!

My response...

2011-12-05T14:51:00.001-07:00

First off. Read this.

I think Dan hit the point to a T with this post.

I read the above blog post and realized I do a lot of judging myself. Something, I wish I could say I'm awful at. I use uncertainty as an excuse to hide behind -often. I need to stop.

Growing up in a religion that has at times made me feel superior to others, makes me a little sick of me. I need to stop feeling like because I'm part of something I deem to be great, I'm no greater a person than any other for it.

I know that Jesus loves all of us. No matter what religion we belong to or how we behave. I just happen to believe in one certain religion and because of that, I need to be a better example of how Christ would act if He were beside me. Remembering what Christ would do and then acting on those thoughts would be a lot more beneficial to myself than believing that because my religion preaches something as a sin, doesn't mean it isn't a sin to shune, judge, demote others who commit that sin.

To these things, I put up my hope that I can change some of the ways I think. I'm trying. I hope that by sharing this with you, you may be able to take a closer look into your lives and see if there's any tweeking necessary as well.

Here's a video of some of the responses this post received:

Much love!

Holy Autumn Update Mr. Freeze!

2011-11-04T15:06:00.002-06:00

I feel the need to share once again. :) Here are a bunch of pictures taken since the last post. I hope you enjoy them all. :) Above is grandma D at grandma J's house with all her grandkids. They just love to go to grandma J's house so that they can sit on grandma D's lap and get stories read to them. :)

We got to be a part of Ben and Margaret opening their mission call to Kuala Lampur Malasia mission!! I've never been a part of someone opening their mission call and it was so exciting to participate in!!! Congrats to them!

Here are my brother's kids -in disguise- in front of our home. Jason made up his yard as usual and Tiff and Daren came here to pose for pictures instead of going to a studio. We felt special. :) It was really cool to hang out with them!

We finally made it to Frightmares. We didn't have much luck this year as we got in some pretty pointless lines and stayed there for a while. Hopefully, next year will be much better.

We made it to India this fall!

Well, the Taste of India anyway. We went for Jason's birthday. Doesn't it look like he had his ears pierced in this photo? It's a good look for him I think. We'll just call it a souvenier from India and roll with it.

Another headline:
We had a baby.

What's that?

You didn't know I was pregnant?? Well, that's because this baby was much much smaller when he was born and then blossomed like a flower in the first two months. It's a very complicated process that is just not fun to listen to, so I won't bore you with the details but good news is, we finally got our boy!

Jason's so proud of little our little zombie baby. We named him Zach.

I think he's hideous. I'm a horrible mother!

Here's a cool pumpkin Jason carved.

Here's a sampling of the fog we had in our yard on All Hallows Eve.

Aw yes, the title of this post finally makes sense. That's Lance as Mr. Freeze (he's a villian of Batman. Yes, I had to ask too) Brent's is the Hulk this year. Nice costumes boys!

And to finish it out, here we have Charlie Brown's ghost complete with a paper grocery bag full of rocks, Cher, a unicorn, and a buzzy bee.

Happy Halloween Friends!

One of my most favorite authors!

2011-09-23T13:57:00.001-06:00

From one of my favorite authors....Ellyse :). Above is her rendition of Selena Gomez's "I love you like a lovesong baby!"

I lOVE this! I told her to write a story in church one day and this is what she came up with.

Translation: There was a monster. It lived in a castle. It would eat you if you got into the castle. It was a bed monster. It would wake up if you go into the castle. The end.

Moral: I don't think we ought to go in the castle!

Always and Forever

2011-09-22T17:31:00.001-06:00

These wonderful people were able to go...

to this wonderful place on Saturday and be sealed for time and all eternity!

We lucky people got to be a part of it!

The littlest child was the only one that got to be sealed to her parents but you think the temple has a great spirit.... wait until you add someone as pure as an almost 2 year old to the mix! I have never before felt the spirit literally enter the room so quickly as it did when little C entered the sealing room! What a testimony to strive to add more childlike innocent qualities in your life!

Matthew 19:14

But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven.

I love these people and I'm so happy for them! I felt as if it were Jason and I's sibilings going through the temple. I'm so happy they found each other and have been so truly happy! Congrats Kent and Kathleen!!

Awesome Augustember

2011-09-12T17:23:00.030-06:00

Ohhhhkay. It's been a crazy month and I'm going to attempt to get it all down here on this here blog. The weekend of the August 5-8 the Wood's and us headed up to one of all of our favorite spots...Solitude!
It's so beautiful up there and the weather is nice especially when it's in the 90's in SLC. Here are a few pictures of our trip.
I guess I ought to warn you of the amount of photos to come. :)
Here's a rundown of what happened. We visited The Mayan.

The girls loved it!! I was excited to finally show them that cool place. We sat right next to the pool area so we had great seats. :)

We went to the Tracy Aviary one day and learned all kinds of things about the birds.
(These are cuckoo birds. Awww. So cute :) )
We got to experience feeding some REALLY loud parrots. It was nuts! Actually, we fed them apples but you know. hee, hee. It was a really fun experience! The girls cried and screamed and we all were trying to not get hit in the head with the birds but overall, it was amazing to be able to sit there with an apple on the end of your finger and have all these beautiful birds land on your arms and hands and eat them out of it. Kind of like Snow White. :)
We also had our annual game night (which is my fave!!!) We bring out the snacks and hit the cards and board games and there's always good conversations abounding!!

One day we ended up at Discovery Gateway.While the kids were playing, Allie found her way over to the costume area and chose herself out a cow costume. She loved that costume! She played house as the cow and even went to the grocery store as a cow. I couldn't stop smiling while watching her pick out this and that from the store all while perfectly happy in a cow costume. It was so funny to watch. We were a bit worried she wouldn't give it up for the other "future cows" to enjoy. But she did.
Grouponlead us to a place calledHollywood Connection. We weren't expecting anything exciting but man, were we ever wrong! They had a roller coaster, bumper cars (so fun!), a Carousal, and two more large rides, an arcade, and all of it was indoors. Plus, there were no lines so we just kept going on all the rides over and over again. Here's Ellyse and I on the Carousal.
We went swimming in their heated pool. Yep, heated pool. Well, I guess that's swimming right?
Are you beginnning to understand why we like it so much? What? Not convinced yet? Well, take a look at this. Our room went from the middle balcony all the way over to the right hand green shutters. Ah yeah! Nice right? Totally!

Another attraction we hit was the Living Planet Aquarium.
A and cousin C. Do you see the Crock's behind in the background?
We thought it'd be fun to take a nice little hike up the mountain side that was steps from our front door. Thanks to Lance, we got a sick, crazy, insane trek STRAIGHT up the mountain. Yeah. This women figured out real quick that she is low on the totum pole when it comes to kicking some mountain trash. I did get some great shots though.
We hiked to Lake Solitude. I overheard we were at the lower lake and that the "really hard hike" takes you to an upper lake that's more beautiful. I quickly informed them that they could suck it. (in my head of course :) ) Behold, the Wood men.

One morning we ate at a cute little cafe up by Solitude and it was a bit nippy that morning so we ordered hot cocoa. So, this is what came. Cute huh? It was delicious too! Homemade I guess.
It was so super fun and we can't wait to go back!!
Alright, now on to the other trips.

Aug 10-11th - Girls camp. Nuf said.

Aug 19-21st we celebrated our 10th Annivesary. We headed up to the Bear Lake/Logan area to eat and then we set up camp. If I knew I'd be not only be camping on my 10th annivesary but I'd be the one planning the camp trip on my 10th anniversary, I'd have shot myself in the head. But alas, yes, in order to save some dough and experience something different, we stayed one night at Beaver Mountain, camping out. The next day we headed out on the horses for 2 1/2 hours.
Soreness doesn't really incompass the word needed in order to describe our pain. We. Could. Hardly. Bend. Over. :) Despite that, it was still a lot of fun!

We did get to stay at the Anniversary Inn the next night though and that made up for a lot. :) Fun huh? It even had a little sand zen garden that you could write things in. It was impressive!
Logan is a cute little city and we got to see more of it this last month than I ever thought I'd see in a months time.

And now we spill into Sept 2-5. We headed up camping once again (my poor allergies!!)to Hyrum Lake. We had lots of fun relaxing and going into the Logan area to dine out. (I know, hard camping Jul, right) But hey, that's great in my mind!! We also headed to a fun center and played a few rounds of laser tag. I haven't played laser tag since high school and it totally showed!! I think my first score was 25.

Stop laughing!

It's hard for some people.

I got about 425 points the next round. See? Improvement!!
We also stopped by the Logan zoo. I know, I didn't believe they had one either but it was one of my favorite things we did! It was so peaceful and they had some really cool animals! They had a porcupine! I was shocked! I'd never seen one that close before. Oh, and just so you know, they stink! Bad. Like really bad. They even had a bald eagle and some monkeys. It was a nice evening! I was super glad to get out of the "fresh air" though because my allergies were killing me!!!
This is a pathetic picture that I took as we were cleaning up camp. I realized I hadn't taken one picture that whole weekend (you're probably rejoicing) so I hurried and snapped this one. We camped right on the lake and it was beautiful.

Oh, and we're headed back up to Logan in a few days to go to our really good friends sealing. I'm so stocked about this! So, Logan is the city of the month(s) I guess.

Such a fun few weeks! Thanks to the Wood's for all the great memories and time together! Now, you can be grateful because you're done reading. :)

Ogden LDS Temple

2011-08-08T21:17:00.004-06:00

While we were playing on the 24th in Ogden, I couldn't help but sit and stare at how this is coming along and how odd it is to see happening in front of our eyes. I know the newer temple will be great but it's current state is leaving Ogden feeling more silent and a little more empty.

I can't help but think a little of my heart was taken away with the demolishing of the old exterior.

24th of July. Retro Post.

2011-08-08T20:48:00.008-06:00

The 24th of July was on a Monday this year. Dad had to work so we had ourselves a little girly time together. We went to the parade in town but then had to get in the car and book it to the other end of the parade because the last three entries were going by as we got to the first stop. I swear, in years past, it's been at least an hour and a half long parade. So, I was thinking we'd be okay in being 50 minutes late. But we still had to do some rearranging in order to see the last oh, 10-14 entries.
(Ellyse got 3 mosquito bites around her eye the night before and they swelled up. Poor thing. I sprayed bug spray everywhere but her face :( )

Aannnywho, after that was over, we headed to the Junction and looked around. We tried to see if anyone was doing the ifly but no. We ended up watching a surfing competition thing at the flowrider. It was actually pretty cool. Some dude did a back flip, and landed it, on the surf board. Pretty impressive.

At the parade we got handed a coupon for BOGO movie at the cheapy theatre so we drove by there and decided to go and see a movie. I scored a sweet deal by using some old coupons from E's school reading program and got us lunch for a buck! Sweet!

That night we ended things off with "Cul-de-sac of fire!" at the Read's with a BBQ and games and fireworks. Way fun day with my girls and fun with the whole fam that night.

A day at the splash pad park.

2011-08-08T20:35:00.009-06:00

Some friends and I recently got together and had ourselves a little picnic at the park before school resumes again. It was a nice afternoon. We chatted. The kids splashed and played on the outdoor stage/pavillion area and had themselves lots-o-fun! Here are some pictures from that day:

Ellyse and good friend K. (Doesn't that tall kid in the back look like he's got a mustache? Hee, hee.)

Jen, Claire, Marci, and me. Fun day ladies! Let's do it again!

Ellyse's 7th Bday!!

2011-07-29T16:30:00.020-06:00

Ellyse, my little lesee lou, turned 7 this year. CA RA ZEE! I was told that once you become a mom time flies, but I didn't all the way believe them.

Yeah well, they were right.

Here she is on her actual birthday opening her presents. Poor girl was sick on her actual birthday so she didn't get to enjoy eating out that night.
Amazingly, the next day she was really a lot better. It was a weird little cold that she got. She had much more energy that day. She put it to good use on all the fun we had planned. We kept asking her if she wanted to postpone her party until she felt 100% and imma give you one guess as to which answer she chose.
Here they are! All but one invited could make it. It was a carnival/circus theme party. We sent out invitations shaped like a ticket that said Admit One.
When they got there, they got a bag full of tickets, a hat, and a popcorn box that they could decorate while everyone showed up.
Then the fun started! We all played carnival games! Each participant had to use their tickets to "pay" to play the games. After each game they got to choose a prize to put in their baggies. (various jewelry and hair things).
One of the games was a water balloon toss. It was pretty funny, I think out of all the balloons that got tossed, 3 got caught. :)
Another fun game that turned out to be a hit was the Ask Zandar fortune telling game. I prepared some funny yes or no questions that the kids got to ask to Zandar and then wave their hand over the magic ball and get a yes or no answer. They had a great time with this!! Jason looks right at home with all those girls doesn't he? :)
Present time!

Then after preparing all the "concessions" and having the wind blow them over, we headed inside to enjoy our treats. They could purchase cracker jack popcorn, the animal crackers in the circus boxes, cupcakes, peanuts, cotton candy and a drink. I think most of them purchased everything. :)
Then a special guest showed up! A circus clown that knew how to make balloon animals! Yay! Allie about freaked when she walked in the door, but realized it'd be worth her time to stick around because of the balloons. :) Our clown made the birthday girl some special balloons. She did such a great job!
Here they all are with their balloons.
Family came that night. It was a whirlwind of a day of work for mom and dad! But the parties were lots of fun!
Cute Cousins!
Opening her Go Go Dog from gma D and gpa B. :)

Happy birthday my sweet sweet girl! You are such a blessing to have in our lives! You have a gentle heart and a sweet spirit about you. We are eternally grateful for you in our lives!! Love you sweetie!

Lemowade Stand

2011-07-01T12:52:00.007-06:00

E and A begged for a few days to do a lemowade (as Allie says it) stand. So, finally after I put them off for a few days, their daddy let them do it on the day he gets to stay home with them.

They got quite a few sales too! I think Allie figured out a secret weapon.

A lady was passing by on foot and they asked her if she wanted a lemowade. She politely told them she didn't have any coins or money with her and walked on. Fair enough.

A little later that same women came by in her car and patronized their stand. She let Jason know that she had to come back because after she told them about her not having coins, the littlest one gave her the biggest scuz face she'd ever seen!

We'll be sure to remind her of this technique come fundraising time!

Fun at home, Round 2

2011-06-20T17:12:00.007-06:00

This morning I got a call from our friend who watches our girls. She wants to take the girls with her and her family to eat and wants to know if it's alright to come and pick them up?

Of course it is! How nice of you!

So, I tell the girls to get ready and I jump in the shower to get ready for work. After the shower, I'm quickly trying to make sure they brush their teeth and hair, get dressed, get shoes on, etc, in time to go with said friend. And I'm asked by Allie if I'd be willing to put this bow in her hair. Yes, honey but it's red and green and you're wearing orange today. Well, okay, yes, we can put in an orange hair thing as well as the red and green one. Sure, just tell the friend's mom not to judge me alright?

Well, in getting things done so quickly, I hadn't quite had the time to get dressed yet and because my girls are so young, I'm naked. Yes, naked. It often happens when 4 people share a bathroom, AND YOU'RE A MOM of young kids. So, anyway, as I'm putting the hair thing in Allie's hair, she studies me. Pretty soon I hear.. "You're boobs are really big!"

Well, that's a first.

A little about myself..

2011-06-16T15:31:00.007-06:00

I love to laugh! Who doesn't right?!

I also have sweet tender spot in my heart for cute animals.

So, these two things come together quite nicely here:

Thanks to laughingsquid.com

Holy Crap, I about peed my pants. May be that's too much to know about me. Hmmm?

Ummmm, Genious right?!

Fun at home

2011-06-10T11:21:00.003-06:00

Allie was recently at my mom's house and my mom was doing Allie's hair. Allie kept looking up at grandma's face and then down and then up at her face and down again and finally told grandma: Grandma, you have really big boobs! Grandma laughed and asked if she'd learned about boobs from her daddy. --- Yep!

*******************************************************************************

My mom has some issues with her feet and needs to wear comfortable shoes all day pretty much every day. Allie again was studying my mom and asked her:
Grandma, do you take your shoes off when you go to bed?

********************************************************************************

Last Sunday Ellyse and Allie were playing in E's room. Ellyse was reading Genesis aloud and I think Allie was trying to start pretend playtime.

Ellyse - "and there were lights in the firmament"
Allie - And they found Jesus, and lived happily ever after.

*********************************************************************************
Outside of Peery's Egyptian Theatre where we had our dance recital. Cute kiddo's!

Allie's Birthday # 4

2011-06-06T16:58:00.011-06:00

Hey Allie! Happy Birthday babe! How old are you? 4? Awesome! What would you like for your birthday?
Decorations! Polka dots all over the room! Even the windows and ceilings!
Brynnley!!! And grandmas and grandpas and cousins!

Gifts! More Gifts!
And good food!
Well, looks like you had quite the birthday little cutie! We are so happy you are ours! We love your infectious giggle, your spunk, your creativity, your sweet dancing skills, your ability to write your name and make the e look 10 times larger than any other letter in your name, your cuddlebugness, your reminders to make sure we say prayers, your need to have order in all things in your life, your beautiful eyes and darling little face! We love all things Allie because you are our perfect little Allie. Happy birthday Goober!

Intense Video of Tornado

2011-05-27T12:15:00.004-06:00

The next video gives you more of a visual of where they were. Crazy!
What a neat guy to shoot this footage and help those around him. My heart goes out to them and all they have had to endure and will endure in the upcoming months and years.

Via Laughing Squid

An update...

2011-05-23T13:29:00.010-06:00

I am just going to summarize a bunch of stuff that has happened over the last few weeks/months because time to post hasn't been on the top of mind lately.

We had some Easter.

We did a little performing at rest homes. Ellyse danced too, I just got a video of her is all, not a still pic.

During the 1/2 hour of sun we received that ONE day, we played on the trampoline.

Oh hey, we spotted Elvis at The Pie while visiting with long time friends. That was interesting. Turns out Elvis orders pizza's under the name Elvis and drives a mini van just like we do. See, he's just a regular guy like all of us.

Allie ate a bit too much of her birthday cake.

And we played around with some iphone apps.

Time hasn't been too easy on Jason or Lance or Brent for that matter.

oh okay, me neither....

Got some cute haircuts for the girls. Yay! Was just going to have her cut Allie's hair only but when Ellyse saw how cute Allie's was, she wanted it done as well. I guess no more long hair for my girls for a while. It's sooooooooooooo 100% easier to do now! AANNNd it stays styled a lot longer too! Bonus! I'm a happier momma with hairdo's that look and stay cute longer.

That's all for now. I'll get A's birthday up soon.

Weber High Flashback time.

2011-05-02T17:35:00.023-06:00

A while back, an old chum of mine and I got together and had a girls night out. We started out at good 'ol Weber High. I'd been back to the school for a few of my neices recitals but didn't walk through the whole thing. A bunch of memories came flooding back as we did.
- Warning - these pictures are quite boring to those who don't have a fondness for this school - Um, anyone else owe their math skills to this wonderful woman? You guys, she spent hours upon hours with me and helped me shape up my math skills that had been ruined by past sub par teachers.

Hours. And. Hours.

I owe so much to this lady! She will always have a special place in the mathematics part of my heart. :)

Here we have the door to the choir room. So many fun memories of choir and friends were made in this room!
Here is the room where I had to take the S.A.T. test or at least the practice test.
In this room, I took History as a sophomore to fulfill the stupid history requirement early. I hated history so I was getting this subject out of the way. Most people took it as Juniors so I was the only sophomore in the class. I got deemed "Egon" - from Ghostbusters - from a guy in this class. My Maiden name is Egan so, I'm sure that had something to do with it but I remember Egon being the brainy, nerdy fellow and I was far from smart about history! At least it made me sound smart, right? I got asked to my first dance by a guy in this class. Plus, the teacher was a cool teacher and made it as much fun as possible; considering it was history.
The Senior Hall!! Needs no words.

The Warriorette room. Oh, the memories of not feeling good enough and all the sparkles and sequence. Oooh, the sparkles and sequence.
The big gym! Basketball games, dance class, crazy insane warriorette practice. Oh, and a little thing called graduation.
Just a cool thing to see.
In this room, I had my favorite class of all. I can't remember exactly what it was called but it was set up like a real life business office. We had to trade off being the front desk person for a week and had projects with due dates, learned shorthand, and had meetings in the meeting room that was to the left of the photo. (not shown) It was such a cool class! It pushed me at times but I really liked that. It's also the place where I received my first flowers from a boy other than family. :)
The small gym. I remember trying out for sophomore class officer and we had the assembly in here. I was sooooo out of my league! Also, cheerleader tryout clinics were held in this gym. I lost the election for sophomore class officer and decided cheering wasn't for me. Dancing was my thing.
And to finish out our tour, here is said chum. We met at this school and I thought she really disliked me at first but turns out we had a special relationship that is still there today. So glad I was able to attend this high school and have such good memories.

Clearfield Easter Egg Hunt

2011-05-02T17:14:00.005-06:00

One Saturday before Easter, we headed to Clearfield for their Easter Egg hunt. We liked that one because it started at 10 instead of 9. :) I liked this one a lot because they had several acres worth of hunting going on and each one was blocked off to a specific age group. No crowding as well! Plus, inside some of the eggs were tickets for prizes and Allie ended up having one. It was a fun but extremely cold morning!
Ellyse and dad were together down there somewhere. Allie and I were together. I did the best I could with the camera. Sorry Ellyse.

Allie putting on a temporary smile for me in the frigid temp.'s!

Cuteness!

2011-05-02T17:12:00.001-06:00

Have you ever taken a photo of your kid just because they're cute?

Reflections Contest 2011

2011-05-02T16:24:00.005-06:00

Back in the winter, (I just uploaded a bunch of photos that were on my real camera recently and am catching up.) Ellyse got a Merit award for her 3D picture that she submitted. The idea had to be hers as well as the work so we were happy with the results. The theme was Together we can... and she chose to do a picture of a sheep with the caption of Together we can go to the farm.

If daddy had his way, - which he almost did - she would've been doing a "Together we can defeat the Zombie Apocalypse" paper with toothpicks used as Zombie arms sticking out of the page. You guys, the man is obsessed with Halloween. OBSESSED!

Here are all the participants. I was surprised at how many didn't participate. Ellyse is the middle looking down.

Valentines day 2011 part 2

2011-05-02T16:19:00.005-06:00

Waaaaaaaaaaaaaay back in February, I made these. I used the wrong kind of chocolate. They didn't turn out as good as others but the girls sure liked them.
Sorry about the lack of turning the photo. Laziness is all I can blame. :)

For Sarah Songer... I can't remember her new last name.

2011-04-29T14:45:00.005-06:00

I have about 5 different posts swimming around in my head but I don't have all my material to post them yet.

However, I was alerted of this today knew it needed immediate attention. To those of you who know her...please consider helping! I can't help but think of her laugh and smile as I think of memories of growing up with her. Now she is battling cancer and needs a little of our help.
Here's to a speedy recovery Sarah!

Tiny Planet

2011-04-21T14:26:00.013-06:00

On a blog I read regularly, the app Tiny Planet was featured. It's takes a photo and basically twists it. You then have the option to save it or email it or delete it etc. This is the post that peeked my interest. Here is her photo.
I'm always interested in tweaking my photo skills seeing as I. Don't. Have. Any. Photo. Skills!

I downloaded the free app and starting playing. At first I tried it on inanimate objects. Before:
After:

Cool Right?

Well, then my focus turned to a couple of chubby cheeks and...

Before:
After:

Oh c'mon.

You know you laughed.

Want some more?

These faces are already kinda funny,
Before:

but then you add Tiny Planet and get:

Before:

Annnnd after:

Fun, fun, fun! Happy apping!

Super Smart!

2011-04-08T16:46:00.001-06:00

Hahahaha

2011-03-31T20:04:00.005-06:00

Recently heard by my ears, Ellyse and I are in the back seat together on the way home from a fun night out: E: pinky promise. Mom? Pinky promise. Pointing her finger at me. Me: it's actually called pinky swear. You do this, (link our pinkies together) and then say pinky swear. Ellyse's face gets really somber and she says you're not suppose to say that! Me: what?! E: You're really not suppose to say that! Me: honey, you can say pinky swear but you can't swear.

On the way to The Home Depot, we passed Ihop. Allie goes Look Lesee, there's the pancake place! Ellyse goes "Ihop stands for Natural House of Pancakes!" She was totally sure that that was correct too.

March Madness, retooled.

2011-03-25T12:03:00.002-06:00

Back in February my brother in law mentioned that March is the worst as far as weather is concerned and wondered why. I told him I thought it was because you expect it to be good weather and then you get slapped in the face with the snow storm that has you scraping off snow from your car in your sandals.

You're told it's officially spring, you're tempted by a few really nice warmer days, the grass turning a bit greener, and the daylight sticking around a bit later in the evening. The shorts and capri's make their cameos. The kids get to be free outside a few more days in the week but then a storm takes all those wonderful things and smothers them in snow.

Annnd on top of it all, the TV is constantly on with stupid basketball games being played by people I have no interest in at all.

No wonder we're all mad in March, right?

How's that for your motivating speech?

Sweet Saturday

2011-03-11T15:21:00.020-07:00

There's a new cupcake shop in town and as soon as I found out about it I've wanted to go to there. (30 Rock) Even more so after there was a groupon for the cupcakery.

I took the kids to the Vintage Cupcake Co in Ogden and then because we'd tried before and it was closed, I took them to the Candy Land Shoppe behind the Newgate mall too. You know, because cupcakes the size of my fist isn't enough sugar.

It was darling inside, all bright and cheery and pink! My pictures don't do it justice at all. I was trying to get all the cuteness of the chandeliers and cute painting job and I failed to notice the BIG WHITE POLE smack dab in the middle.
Ellyse got the chocolate cupcake with vanilla frosting. Hate to admit this but the frosting was awful. Even she thought it tasted weird....but she still ate it all.
Don't get vanilla frosting for sure.
Allie however, chose very wisely. When I was first told this was a cotton candy cupcake I may have gagged a little bit. Then I tasted it and it was one of the best. I would order this one again for sure.

I think this one is pretty self explanatory, vanilla cookie cupcake.
This was the peanut butter cupcake. I got this one for Jason. He seemed to like it okay but I wasn't a huge fan.

What?

I had to taste everybody else's.

You think I wouldn't?

BTA. Pretty darn close!

Off to Candy Land shoppe.

You guys, it's soo cute in here. I really like all the bright colors and the all the fun candy. They are really nice store owners too. I feel bad it's not a more busy place because it's so cute. I know, total girly answer.

They have what I like to call the sixlets bar. They have all kinds of different colored sixlets separated into bins. So if you were say, throwing a baby shower for a baby boy, you could come get a bag or container full of all blue sixlets as favors or decorations or something. I thought that was so fun but I forgot to get a picture of it.
Look at those chocolate covered rice krispie treats that you can use to decorate a candy bouquet (also available at this store) or just to eat for fun. Way cute!

If you're ever in the neighborhood, you should stop in and see these places for yourself! You'll be happy you did.

Jillian Michaels DVD will be getting a big workout this week.

Goobers

2011-03-03T14:18:00.002-07:00

With my mom's wigs.

My birthday, aka Jason being a superhero post.

2011-03-03T13:17:00.013-07:00

Birthday's are BIG for me. I seriously LOVE my birthday's because I've been spoiled my whole life with great over the top ones and now, I make sure that every year I make plans and drop rather obvious hints about what I'd like to happen.

I'm just very blessed to have loved ones who care enough to listen to my whines and help me have great birthdays! Jason is getting excellent at this! He knows how much my birthday means to me and makes me feel special each and every year! This year was no exception.

I asked Jason to plan an adventurous date for both of us with the money he would have used on gifts. I gave him some ideas but for the most part, I told him I wanted to know nothing of what we were going to do. (Honestly, the surprise of it all was the funnest!)So, this is what he came up with.
It started with taking the kiddo's to the grandparent's home for the night (thanks so much to the W's for their help!) Then we headed toward Salt Lake. He had booked a room at a nice Inn in Salt Lake that turned out to be one of the most amazing Inn's I've ever stayed at!

After checking in and eating yummy warm cookies they had for us, we headed to dinner. I had a choice of 2 resturants and I chose Buca Di Peppa. That's a really fun place to eat. It has a great atmosphere. Our waitor on the other hand, not so much. He was a chatter and kept forgetting things. Anywho, it was just super nice to be out with the man I love and not have little people about 4 feet high telling us what the other one has done to the other to make them cry.
We ordered this.

We had to hit the local grocery store for Jason's favorite drink, Mt Dew Live Wire. They don't carry it up past about Farmington for some stupid reason so he stocks up whenever we're down there.
Then we headed here.

It was soo much fun to put on ice skates again and go in circles with the teenie boppers! Jason fell twice, that was fun to watch. :) He was trying to learn how to stop without using the edge of the rink. I found out the hard way that ice skates hurt your ankles without thick socks. Still so much fun to be a little active and have fun!
We then headed here.

We never knew that the Cheesecake factory was as hot of a spot as it is. We were there at about 9:30 and there was still a 20 minute wait to be seated.
We decided to take a slice of one of those bad boys back to our room. It was delish!

The next day we had a yummy complimentary buffet breakfast at the Inn before heading home where Jason made not 1
not 2
but 3 seperate birthday cakes/cupcakes with homemade frosting. I'm telling you guys, I don't know how I scored this guy. It was amazing frosting and my mom has even asked Jason for his recipe.

My parents had us up for dinner. It's always fun to hang out up there. The kids got to play in the foot of fresh new snow. I even got to have my brother and s-i-law and their family up with us. We had a great time!

The next day, I was able to go shopping with my mom all day. I love this part of my birthday! It's so fun to just hang with my mom and not do anything but shop and talk all day.

Thanks soooooo much to all of you for your birthday wishes and all the effort that was put into making it such a special day, once again, for me this year!

Valentines day 2011

2011-02-25T11:09:00.005-07:00

This year Valentines was on Monday. We didn't do anything over the top but still had a lot of good times. The girls got gifts from both grandparents. Jason and I did small things for each other this year. I set up a treasure hunt for the girls to find their little candy kabobs. I made it a long one to keep them occupied for more than a few minutes but they found the treasure before it was all over. Some of the clues were still peeking out from their hiding places as they were already eating their kabobs. Oh well.

We all had a good night together. Happy Valentines Day.

Laugh your little heads off....

2011-02-18T15:11:00.001-07:00

Whiles't yelling, ahem, discussing at my children that screaming in the house is about as attractive as a splattered fly in your diet coke. I told them to stop screaming their little heads off. They busted up laughing and now it's a running joke in the household. - thus, the post title.-

Enjoy this...It's very enjoyable!

Da Jazz

2011-02-03T15:46:00.007-07:00

Friday night we were able to attend the Jazz game. We haven't been to one together in over a year and some, which for us, is a very long time. Jason used to be a die hard fan. We used to go to several games a year but not so much now. I guess he lost that lovin feeling.

We were on the very back row so we were able to get into the top area with the windows surrounding it. I took this picture there.

Anywho, we went and I'm not even sure who we played. We were very distracted. At first it was annoying, then it became pretty funny. I'm talking about the drunk dudes in their 30's in front of us making fools outta themselves. I swear, we always sit by the drunkards. Either in front of them or in back of them. I definitely prefer sitting behind them because then you get a front row seat to their madness. Plus, you avoid getting bear spilled all over you or your stuff. This has happened to us before.

So, guess who loves you? Me, silly. I brought the camera and documented them just for this here blog. So, now you get to enjoy their madness too. You're welcome.

Mr. Williams kept turning around and giving us high 5's, shouting nonsense and cheering for South Summit because a couple of rows up there were some kids wearing South Summit shirts. SOUTH SUMMIT RULES!!! We'd hear this all the time. Soon after this, we were enthusiastically invited to the after party at the dude sitting next to Williams house, in Syracuse. Williams asked us where we were from, Jason replied, Syracuse. William's shock was evident on his face. YOU SERIOUS?? Then shouts of SYRACUSE! started. A shot was made.... SYRACUSE! Something amused them....SYRACUSE! This soon became the tag line for the night for all of us.
Soon he was yelling at somebody who was apparently making out at the game and telling us that you're not suppose to make out at the game. Jason then added, that that was for the after party. Dude was all...YEAH!!!

We won. Broke a six game losing streak. Oh, and we also saw Mr. Utah McSteamy....Matt Harpring. We tried to get closer but the guards weren't being nice. I think he may have glanced at me. Be still my heart!

Thanks for making it funner, drunkards!

Go Jazz!

SYRACUSE!

Parenting high

2011-01-13T14:16:00.006-07:00

Allie's doing like 210% better on her potty training! Halle-FREAKIN-lejah! It's only been 11 months. Seriously, sooooooo happy about this! Like a huge boulder has been lifted, at least most of the weight, from my shoulders.

Ellyse is a sweetheart and is so helpful. She voluntarily listens to her primary cd and is doing well in school.

We are not dealing with the kids crazy insane eating issues so much anymore. Such as, you know, NOT EATING ANYTHING WE PROVIDE. Soo happy about this!

Seriously, parenting has it's highs and lows and I feel like I'm on a bit of a high right now.

Ummmmmm, knock on wood, cross your fingers, and pray that it'll stick. K thanks!

Mi Familia...well...mom and sister.

2011-01-10T15:34:00.004-07:00

This was on Christmas Eve 2010.

They are cute huh?

Christmas 2010

2011-01-10T11:20:00.017-07:00

Here's a look at our Christmas morning.

These fun little press on nails shown on Ellyse were stocking gifts from Santa. Mom and dad hope that Santa doesn't stuff them in her stocking again. (They really didn't work)

We had a very extra special guest at our home for about 10 days this December and man, was it a blast to have him around! His name is Jax. He's a border collie and bernice mountain dog mix. Darling right? I think he's downright adorable!
Do you know how difficult it is to get a dog to hold still amongst so much activity? Super duper hard.
Here's a better shot. However, Ellyse looks like she's riding a small horse.
Something funny about Jax was that he was super protective of me. He would follow me around EVERYWHERE. It was actually very sweet to be adored like that! But as we found out one night, Jason gave me a hug, and Jax went nuts. He was barking and jumping up and down and sqeezing his way in between us. We had ourselves a good laugh at that one.

Then we'd do it just to bug him. :)

My heart ached for him the day he had to go home.

To the the owners: if, you know, you ever get sick of having that super amazing dog, he has a solid home over at our house. :)

One of the best Christmas gifts we all received was having him with us! Thanks!

Oh what fun....Christmas Eve

2011-01-06T16:45:00.010-07:00

One of my most favorite days! It's more like Christmas day on Christmas Eve around our families. We get most of our gifts the day prior, jealous? Yeh, I know. Plus all the yummy food too! I love it!
We started at my folks house and then on to a church for the Cowles side; as we are too big to fit comfortably in a house. Anyone who knows my mom, knows she likes a good wrapped present. "It's gotta be pretty" - I hardly ever put bows on my packages but when it comes to my mom's present, I know I have to go all out because she does the same for us. One of her cute little personality traits, is all.
Here they are, all 9 of em - together. It's a Festivus miracle!
Here are just the girls. I failed to get just the boys.
Ellyse getting her big gift from grandparents.
And most likely making their first debut as a whole on my blog - my bad - my brother's family. D's lost like 30 lb.'s or so since his scare in 09. He's a stick now!
My parent's got us all these signs that say our last names and the year of our marriage. I thought I'd spice up our photo a bit. Apparently, Jason did too.
I didn't do much camera..ing at the Cowles side. I was too stuffed from all the yummy food, it made my brain all foggy. I did however, get this one of our Wii "Just Dance" off. We had a projector and used the screen in the gym and turned all the lights out. It was a major award when you won because there were brackets and semi-finals and finalists. It was a big deal. Yours truly needs much more practice on the Wii to master this!

We ended the evening with Jax (our favorite surrogate dog) being molested by Sammy dog (that dog is weird as weird can be) at the Wood's house whilest we opened up the rest of our gifts that evening.

I hope your Christmas Eve's were amazing and wonderful all wrapped up in pretty bows and ribbons!

Santa Madness

2010-12-20T11:43:00.003-07:00

Last Thursday my dad's club hosted Breakfast with Santa once again. We ate a yummy breakfast and a had a special visitor show up during it.

Then on Saturday he showed up AGAIN. Man, he must like us or something. We had our annual Cowles family bowling party and he showed up there too! We were super lucky ducks!
It was darling. Allie ran straight up to Santa on this night and gave him a big ol hug. :) Ellyse noticed that Santa on Thursday wasn't as chipper and happy as he was on Saturday. Hmmmmmmmm.....

Oh and Jason, his brother Lance, and his cousin Jeff all learned the Napoleon Dynamite dance over the past few weeks and that night was their big show! Take a look!

Thanks again boys, you guys were so great to teach!

All i want dance

2010-12-17T11:57:00.006-07:00

Ellyse and Allie were able to go to a rest home around here and perform for some of the residents. It was cute and a lot of fun.

The kids all got candy canes to hand out to the residents afterwards. It was funny because the kids just kept handing them candy canes and they'd say "I've got one already" but the little ones just wouldn't relent. So some ended up with 3-4 candy canes.

Rudolph Dance

2010-12-17T11:57:00.004-07:00

Allie's on the right end. I like how she sort of checks out and in throughout the entire thing.

What the Dickens?

2010-12-16T15:40:00.017-07:00

Edit: I pushed publish and then worked on this post more afterwards so you may want to relook at the post to see if you missed anything.

I guess this used to be somewhat of a Wood family Christmas tradition years ago before I even knew Jason and then the organizers of the festival took it away from SLC. This year they brought it back and we went to see what all the fuss was about. Warning.... My camera was my bff that night so beware, lots of photos to follow. Free Brass Rub Drawing. Mr. Marley A Spirited Chap. Horse drawn carriage rides. These guys were so wonderful with the girls. I even told them they should hire out as babysitters they were that good. The girl took me seriously and asked where I was from to see if she could or not. Allie and Ellyse played with this thing for a very long time and as you can see by A's face, it was totally boring. We all had a great time, minus Allie's reaction to the 20 foot tall Ghosts of Christmas' walking around. I fear her Christmas' to come may be slightly ruined as a result. I guess we'll have to pay the counseling fees when she's older. Check out some of the cool things we found there. You may want to turn your speakers off before enjoying this video. This stuff is called Magic Snow and it's really cool. You'll also get to hear an annoying screaming person on the ride. Doesn't that make you want to watch this?
We had so much fun! Thanks for the fun evening out Woods!!

Valley Girls Party

2010-12-13T10:32:00.005-07:00

We all grew up in the Ogden Valley, thus the name of our oh so special group. :)
It was great to catch up girls!

Thanksgiving weekend

2010-12-02T13:41:00.008-07:00

It all started with a blizzard warning and everyone freaking out. Dance classes were cancelled, Young Women's was cancelled and I just got to soak it the warmth from inside the house. The kids however, decided it was time to head outdoors. Ellyse is obviously batting for team Edward.

Then, thanksgiving rolled in. We watched a little parade, ate a little turkey, played a little game, did a little ad searching, and I got down with the idea of going out at the INSANE hour of 3 AM!
Yes, it was that cold. F.R.E.E.Z.I.N.G! So much so that I was smart and brought out the big guns in snow gear and went out in public in my purple snow pants. Yipes. I figured if I coudln't get to what I wanted in the crowd I'd flash my pants and they'd have no choice but to move out of the way.

Kallie is one super smart black Friday shopper! She even has her ad's 3 hole punched in a binder. I must say though, it certainly helped out. You guys, if you haven't ever been out on black Friday, it's definitely worth your time! Especially if you go with a bunch of organized girls like I did. Waaay too much fun for that hour of the morning! I didn't even get done until about 11:30 AM. That means it was close to 8hours of shopping I did. Are you proud? I sure am. Annnnddd, I can't wait for next year!!

Jason was once again a superstar husband when I finally made it home. He put up most of the Christmas stuff whilest I dragged my sorry carcus around attempting to help. I gave up about 3PM and had to nap.

Saturday night we went to the annual Ogden Christmas Parade and again with the freezing. We ended the night with the good 'ol fashioned Wood family tradition of watching Christmas Vacation with the Wood's.

Had a great weekend!

I managed to photograph the pie and veggie tray but did not get around to the Oreo truffles, turkey, or stuffing that we brought to the dinner on Thanksgiving. I figure you've seen one cooked turkey, you've seen 'em all.

Now, on to Christmas!

Humility

2010-11-19T15:42:00.004-07:00

Most days we go about our days business, showering, eating, working, playing, relaxing and everything becomes habit. It comes naturally. However, every once in a while it seems as if the Holy Spirit reaches out and reminds us we need to look outward. A few months ago I posted a link to Miss Preslee Jo Sullenger's mom's website about praying for others. I honestly prayed for this little girl but did not pay much more attention to the proceedings of the blog. A lot of you did. You mentioned to me that my post of a link made you cry. I had to ask You how it ended. I feel ashamed of myself for this.

I eventually went back to the blog to read about how little Preslee had slipped back home to our Heavenly Father and tears ran down my cheeks. My thoughts raced to my own two little girls and the thought of how difficult it must've been for Preslee's parents to do what they did. Or any set of parents, for that matter, who lose a child to do what they are forced to do. It puts into perspective how stupid little things are. I wish I could carry this spirit with me always. Always remembering that each moment is a gift. Every single second. My life would be shattered into millions of pieces without any of my loved ones with me. I am so grateful for them, for you.

Preslee's 2nd birthday is coming up in December and because her mom doesn't know how she's going to get through the day, she wants to look outward. They are gathering things to provide aid to those parents who are facing life with or without their precious children. They are gathering items for the parents of the children in the pediatric intensive care unit at Primary Children's Medical Center in SLC. If you would like to help out the cause please gohere for the details.

Anticipation

2010-11-19T14:36:00.003-07:00

You know, with all due respect to my parents whom I was and am extremly lucky to have; I was never a fan of Thanksgiving growing up. Not. at. all. It was basically like a glorified Sunday dinner with grandma over. We ate, chatted, and usually football was on in the background. Yick! Football! Gag me with a spoon. Talk about a boring sport to watch. I'm sure the food was always good, minus the beets, but it just was never really anything I ever looked forward to eating. Fast forward to Thanksgiving after I'm all grown up.

Totally looking forward to it!

First of all, I get in on the action and get to cook things and bring something (literally) to the table. I like to try new dishes or appetizers or whatever I'm asked to bring. Second, I get to see my immediate family members whom I don't get to see that often anymore. My mom always goes the extra mile when people are up there with yummy appetizers, drinks, or dessert or all of the above. Third, I have a bonus extended family that likes to play games and laugh a lot! I really like to play games! They are way funny people to hang with! Fourth, no work for either one of us. Yay. Am I right?! And finally, the Black Friday ads in the newspaper! Yeah baby! I need to call and order me one an issue for Thanksgiving day from the Standard so I get ALL the ads. Funniest part, I never really go out on black Friday. I just love the ad's. Yes, I get how weird that is. But to each his own right?! I am kinda tempted to go this year though. Anywho, we've got less than a week now and I'm pumped! How about you?

Jason

2010-11-08T13:00:00.002-07:00

I think I win when it comes to husbands! Super unselfish, funny, educated, smart, witty, clever, handsome, good dad, handy, loving, and much more. I am one super lucky woman!

Halloween photos

2010-11-05T13:06:00.007-06:00

Here they are: I know you've been dying to see what we were right? Right? Whatdathink? Evil Queen or Snow White, who is the fairest of them all? It's okay, this queen's just a bit evil.

Jason was paying homage to Zoolander's Blue Steel. Allie was a cat. Just in case you didn't catch that.

And a few members of our family..
Mr Crouger and Superbaby! Ahem, supertoddler!
My sister's family.

Good things are happening... followup

2010-11-05T10:57:00.005-06:00

Yesterday, we were able to receive some fun new things at our home. I also found an awesome new song that made me super happy and life was just good overall. Just in case you were wondering.

Plus, I had chocolate for lunch so that made it an even happier day. :)

Check this song out. I bet it'll make you happier

Good things are happening..

2010-11-04T13:30:00.001-06:00

I think it all has to do with the chocolate overload too! More to come...

Have you heard about this???

2010-10-29T13:41:00.005-06:00

Zombies??? Crawling the streets of Ogden? Uh, that'd be a yes!!

Click here for more info. Check under the rules section. May be we'll walk very slowly into each other. Get it? Cuz Zombies don't run.

It's a good thing he was born in October

2010-10-25T14:31:00.003-06:00

This man doesn't do his birthday without Halloween presents involved!
We went to Frightmares for the celebration together. His parents took us to see "Red" and out to eat! Spoiled, we are!

Happy Birthday Jas! You are my Yin!

Birthday Bash

2010-10-25T14:17:00.019-06:00

This year we got a special treat and got to go to the Classic Fun Center with just a few other close relatives. We had the whole place to ourselves and it was awesome! My mom even tried roller skating! It's true! Imanaged to get it on video. * We celebrated about 4 different birthday's and Jason's was one of them. Here are a few shots from the day. Much thanks to the H's!! That was super nice of you!!! * Go Mom!Kind of anti climatic but, still a site to be seen. Also, just so I have it down, Ellyse and Brynnley tried rollerblading with me and they rocked the house! I think we may need to schedule some lessons of some sort. Anyone know of anything like that?

Jason's 2nd annual masterpiece...

2010-10-21T14:18:00.010-06:00

It's ready.

Come take a look.

Best seen at night.

Contact me for directions if you don't know where we live.

p.s. there's much more to be seen than is in this photo. So drive by and if you're nice, you can stop by and say hi too! We'd love it!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

note: this isn't only the second year he's done this, it's only the 2nd year I've documented it here on the blog.

Our first visit...

2010-10-21T13:02:00.011-06:00

from the toothfairy was on Monday night, the 11th. As Ellyse sat down to do homework that evening Allie asked if she could see her loose tooth. Ellyse obliged and Allie did what Allie does and made it bleed. Ellyse said to stop it and I caught a glimpse of the blood. Knowing how a loose tooth worked I asked if I could see it as well. I put my finger on it and gently (seriously) pulled it out. Allie had done most of the dirty work for me. I guess having a little one to blame bad stuff on has it's benefits. :) It shocked her a bit and then came the jubilation of losing her first tooth. It was a really bittersweet moment for me. Some parents cry when their child goes off to pre school or kindergarten. Nope, not me. I get all sappy when they lose their first tooth. I guess it was a reminder to me that she's growing up and that this little thing came from my baby, my first baby. Hang on.. got to get it together.....okay, I'm alright....anyway, the size of it being so incredibly tiny made me remember how small Ellyse was when she was born and well, everyone's a boob when it comes to some things right? I guess my moments have to deal with teeth. :)

Toothfairy's rich man, she left a whole dollar for that thing.

Nevermind all the painstaking hours of nurturing it took to grow that thing. Listening to the whines and moans from it hurting little Ellyse and money spent to pay for the medicine to relive the pain. Toothpaste and brushes to clean and floss them plus dentist visits on top. Toothfairy just thought.. yep, dollar oughta cover it.

Want these?

2010-10-06T13:09:00.004-06:00

We bought these on Saturday at Walmart. My allergies have been driving me nuts so I thought I'd try these. I ended up getting a Rx for them because these will make my blood pressure go up. So, they are new and unopened. I tried to return them to the pharmacy but because they are from behind the counter, they can not accept them back. They cost us about 9 dollars but if you want them, they're free. There are 10pills and are the generic of Claritin D. Just come and get them. Better let me know you're coming though. pilotjwood@yahoo.comUnused and unopened.

Ballerina's

2010-09-30T13:37:00.011-06:00

This year BOTH the girls get to take dance classes. And how lucky for me, they're classes are both at the exact same time on the exact same day. Now, that's perfection! Thanks Starstruck for awesome scheduling! All I have to do is wait around to pick them up.

They're both loving their classes. Constantly asking if today is the day they get to go to dance class. This is a total transformation from last year when Ellyse wouldn't go back to tumbling after the 2nd or 3rd week. I think it's because all three of us girls are either taking or teaching at the same time. Plus, her teacher rocks!

My wonderfully talented friend Carly's little girl takes the same class as Allie and she took these beauts for me. Thanks so much C! Check out her beautiful blog and photography here and or her webdesign page here.

Gotta love ballerina's!

As promised..

2010-09-28T09:30:00.003-06:00

'member how I told you about the operator guy at Lagoon yelling turn your wheel? Well, here it is.

Ellyse is in the green car and Allie is in the blue one. And remember- "Tuuurn your wheel!"
Take note of the little guy in the purple car at the end just going in circles. Fun stuff!

Who's that chick that's rockin kicks?

2010-09-24T14:06:00.001-06:00

Aren't these the cutest? Best part? Only 5 bucks! Sweet!

One of my favorite days

2010-09-23T16:15:00.008-06:00

It's been a few weeks since we went there but oh man, it was such a blast this year! Mostly because now Lagoon offers rides that the little ones like, that the parents can ride too. Makes a big difference when you get to ride instead of just watch your little ones have all the fun. The view from the Sky Coaster. What a boring ride. :)

The. Absolute. Hit. Of. The. Day. Bumper Cars! I think they rode it about 6 different times. It was funny too because the kids would always get stuck in the corner and not turn their wheel. The guy operating the ride kept saying "turn your wheel" over and over and over and over and over and over. Yeh. Like, that annoying too! I have a video of it, I'll have to post it later.
I think this might have to be one of my favorite photos of all time. We were all on the Tidal Wave. We missed out on the closest row to the middle too so it was a bit much for Allie. Ellyse loved it. I think the exact words of Allie were "I never want to go on that ride. Ever. Again!"
We stayed there for about 8 hours one Saturday. Jason had a bad back that day too and man, he totally pulled it out of the hat for us to stay that long. So, so, so much fun! It was truly one of the funnest days I've had with my little family!

Happy Autumn Day!

2010-09-23T14:03:00.001-06:00

Do you see the changes happening already? I'm not a huge fall fan but as long as the temp's stay high, I'm good. Happy first day of fall y'all.

A fact of our life

2010-09-17T12:01:00.003-06:00

Ellyse: Are you rich?

Me: no

Ellyse: Aaahhh mom, I wanted you to be rich.

Me: me too kid, me too.

.........

Ellyse: then why do they call Michelle Rich?

Me: That's her last name, sweetie.

This is one reason I L.O.V.E. to dance...

2010-09-02T17:41:00.005-06:00

Doesn't this just make you want to get up and try it? Thanks to Dooce.com for the reminder.

p.s. Nobody can dance like the king!! RIP Mr. Jackson!!

Just so you know

2010-08-26T16:55:00.002-06:00

Allie informed me this morning whilest driving to work. Wesee's gonna be a mermaid for Halloween.

Me: Oh yeah?

Allie: yep, with BIG BOOBS.

Oh, and last night amidst an argument of who was really in charge of cleaning Ellyse's room.

Ellyse: I don't want to hang all my clothes up.
Me (after telling her for the umpteenth time to hang her clothes up): Ellyse, it's not my responsiblity to clean your room.
Ellyse: Well, it's your house. that you bought. with your money!

Just being honest

2010-08-23T13:04:00.003-06:00

A fun sign we came across in Flaming Gorge.

Oh, and we had a wonderful weekend celebrating our 9th anniversay without the kiddos.

Sheep Creek Geological Loop

2010-08-12T15:18:00.014-06:00

On our way home from the Red Canyon Lodge in Flaming Gorge, instead of taking the beeline to our cabin, we chose to take the Sheep Creek Geological Loop. We'd passed this loop several times before in our travels back and forth but oh man, we were totally missing out!! They should've had a sign out on the road saying. 'TURN RIGHT HERE, YOU IDIOT!'

We actually came into the loop backwards so this is the sign we saw first. Whoops. (I think it was prettier this way anyhow.)

So, you're traveling along in beautiful scenery nothing out of the ordinary for north eastern Utah. It was a few miles in and we took curve after curve looking initially for mountain goats or sheep. Our disappointment in not seeing any wildlife quickly went out the window when we came around yet another curve and saw this.

These cliffs were all straight up. Vertical. Erect. Perpendicular to the road. We're talking professional rock climbers would be shivering in their timbers, straight up. Crazy beautiful!

We also got quite the view with this group of mountains together. Can you see the curvature of the mountain?

May be this will help.

Looks like bacon don't you think?

Mmmmmm, bacon.

Ahem.

CRA-ZY huh? Can you even begin to imagine what kind of geological things had to take place here in order for rock to bend under it's pressure?

Jason and I almost got divorced just so we could get remarried right here.
It's funny because you go down the road for about 30 seconds and you get out of your car and snap a photo.

And then you go another 30 seconds with your head out the window looking like a dog who's just been given the right to go on a car ride, and are all. 'LOOK! LOOK AT ME! I'M ON A CAR RIDE! I HAVE THE WIND IN MY FACE JUST BECAUSE I CAN.' Except it's because you don't want to miss anything. And you have to stop again to snap another photo.

Then at the end/beginning you get to see this giant rock sticking straight up out of the Earth. The girls thought it was a castle. Figures. Just about as pretty, don't you think?

Never before have I wanted to be a Geologist so much in my life.

Flaming Gorge

2010-08-09T13:18:00.040-06:00

At the end of July, we were able to head south east to Flaming Gorge. It was a ton of fun and here are the million of photo's to prove it. :) Here's our cool camp site at Mustang Ridge.
We went to the beach one day. Lots and lots of fun!!

Here's the boat launch area where we rafted the Green, in the rain. So very much fun was had!!

We went on the Flaming Gorge dam tour. Very cool. And free! Awesome!
At the bottom, you could feed these guys.
This is looking up from the bottom. Whew!!

Then we moved to a Cabin in Manila.

Manila = Vanilla! Very plain. :)

Although, we did have a bit of excitement when we came eye to eye with a bull while looking for a baseball. - funny story! Too long to post here though. Such a cute cabin though!!

While at the cabin, we saw well, the Big ol Bull, bats and stars galore, and a magnificent thunderstorm right outside our door. Literally! We'd see the lightning hit the field in front of us and then hear the crack and boom from the Thunder 1-2 seconds later. It was amazing!! Good thing the little ones have been trained to think that thunder and lightning is THE COOLEST THING EVER!!!

We went to Red Canyon Lodge also. This is the place to not miss if you go! Look at this view.

The original Wood Family.

We scheduled horse back rides with these guys but because of the lightning, it got cancelled. I was really sad because once we got up to the horses, the weather was absolutely perfect for riding a horse! But alas, we did not get to go. Instead, we went on the lake in a row boat. Much more stories to tell

Don't let this smile fool you. I got to sit across from gma D the whole boat ride and I don't think she moved once from this position...except to hand the water bottle to Allie who would not stop asking for it. Poor D!
But look at the view. Gorgeous!

Also at Red Canyon Lodge they have a kids fish pond and a cool swing to sit in.

We went in an had a bite to eat and got to watch the bazillion birds feeding off these. Allie wanted to take a shot and I was going to leave this one out but I liked how it showcased the liquor menu. Always so important right?!
Then Ellyse had to take a shot. I just thought she caught a great photo.

At Red Canyon Lodge.

On the way to the cabin from Red Canyon Lodge, we went over the Sheep Creek Geological loop and I'll post that soon. B.E.A.U.T.I.F.U.L!!!! Breathtaking, and amazing all rolled into a few miles of Earth. Stay tuned.

Ellyse's friend party

2010-07-23T10:59:00.009-06:00

Happy 6th! Welcome to the Chaos!!

We had a Princess and the Frog themed friend party for Ellyse's 6th bday this year. They played in a kiddie pool in the back yard, went down a cool slide thingy - much thanks to Mammy - opened gifts, played games, and handed out gummy frog's with a Tiana ring attached.

Plenty of little helpers. :)

In between all this madness, we managed to play the classic game leap frog and the last leap was into the "pond" (kiddie pool). We also played Tiana's restaurant relay where the girls had to work in teams to hold trays of play food and run back and forth the fastest. They had a blast but my little 6 year old had a bit of a problem realizing that she can't always be first. EVEN on her birthday.

Where's the cake you ask? We he ell... let me just tell you. I made two cakes for E's family party and let them cool on the stove whilst I helped out at young women's. I came home to find that Allie, AKA The Destructor, had herself a little snack. With her hands. So, we scrapped that one and had to make another one.

THHHHHHHEEEEEENNNNN, I wasn't going to make another cake so I purchased some pre- made cupcakes from the store for her friends party. I again left them on the counter while I attended to Ellyse. Allie grabs the entire package of cupcakes and brings them to me to show me how fabulous they are and in turn starts to lose her grip on them. They slid and slid and slid till EVERY. SINGLE. CUPCAKE frosting was mauled and mangled.

Seriously.

Big breath in.

Okay Allie, let's count the score here. Cake v. Allie = Winner, Allie Cupcakes v. Allie = again, she takes the cake. ha, ha.

Hoo boy, I tell ya, we had NO IDEA what we were getting ourselves into when we ordered her.

In all seriousness though, I love both these girls with all my heart, no matter what fiasco we're currently going through and am soooo glad to have them in our lives!! Cake or no cake, they rock!

Courtesy of a good summer evening...

2010-07-19T20:46:00.001-06:00

Happy Birthday to the one who made me a mommy

2010-07-15T16:04:00.010-06:00

Six years ago today, I became a mom. And boy, was I so totally not prepared for it! I was basically in panic mode for about the first 5-6 months but it was all soo worth it to be able to have my sweet sweet girl Ellyse!!

Last night I surprised her with decorating her room with some crepe paper and balloons and candy hung from the ceiling. I did frost her cake and then realized I need to keep it fresh until Friday night. uhhh, okkkaaaay, Jason came up with a pretty creative idea of how to store it without it getting too much air. Note to self: DO NOT decorate the cake until the day of the party!!!

No judging on the cake. I was working with a horrible tool and so you get what you get. Or in this case, Ellyse gets what she gets.

We managed to wrap up the gifts late last night and I knew as soon as she saw them, they'd be mauled so I snapped a pic then.Today, she's getting her choice of dinner, plain chicken with cherries on the side. :)

And tonight she gets her friend party. It's so fun to be 6!!

We're all too happy to have her in our lives!! Happy birthday Lesee!

The 3rd of July

2010-07-15T15:34:00.009-06:00

Because of the holiday falling on a Sunday, most of the state celebrated the 4th on Saturday the 3rd. Annnnd we had Monday off as well so it became a bit of a 3 day celebration for some. Unfortunately, not for us. We did our partying on Saturday.

The morning began by enjoying a waffle. The girls and I then decided we wanted to go be a part of the parade in Clearfield. We got ready and helped out Starstruck with their "float." Ellyse and Allie were able to ride but E wanted to throw candy and in order to do this, you have to walk the entire length of the parade. You're not suppose to get on and off the trailer. So, she stayed on the trailer for the most part of the parade until the end where we broke the rules a bit and let her get off and throw a bit o candy and show off some of her amazing kartwheel skills. ( If any of you saw me making a fool of myself... well, all I can say is... guilty as charged. It's a parade people, you gotta keep the energy up. )

Later, we met up with the Woods for a birthday party and were able to take in Toy Story 3. Very cute!

That evening we got together for a bbq, volleyball ( my favorite part of the day! ) and some fireworks. I stole this pic from Darby. Thanks Darb! Check out the teams. Jason, Lance, me and Jimbo against basically the Read's and the Brady's. It was a bit of a slaughter hee, hee. Considering they only had one player taller than any of our players. We had so much fun laughing it up!! I love me some good volleyball!!!

Fun day with the fam! Love this holiday!!!
I tried to get a non posed picture of their faces watching the fireworks but as you can tell, someone knew about the camera.

Prayers

2010-07-12T13:27:00.002-06:00

I think praying for someone you don't know is never a bad thing.

A friend of mine's, friend is is need of special prayers. As a mother, I can not imagine how difficult this could be to deal with. Please pray for little Preslee and the Sullenger family.

Go here to read about it.

Thanks!

Indian Trail Hike

2010-07-09T17:00:00.014-06:00

We made it up to Indian trail this year. Sooo beautiful! E and A came with us this time and E was such a trooper! Always the leader of the pack and way ahead of us most of the time......until she fell....twice. Then it became I hate this mountain! Why did we have to go up this mountain? This is the worst mountain EVER. I'm never going up this mountain ever. again. (hee, hee) We had to let her know that we don't just give up when we fall down. We pick ourselves up and get right back at it. She didn't really like hearing that. But how could she not get back up this mountain? Check out how beautiful it is.

Jason spotted quite a few critters around. We were able to catch a couple on camera. They scare easy so I used the shadow of my finger to point to him. See.

Then, when we got to the bottom again and thought all was well, we came across this guy.

We looked at him, he stared at us. We looked for an owner, nope. We began to panic a bit. He kept staring. We rethought our path. Then, thankfully the owner started talking to him. OH thank heavens.. we seriously thought it was a wolf for a minute. Nothing like that to get your to your target heart rate.

Nice hike. If you haven't been up it...GO!! You're totally missing out on some amazing views!

A nice game of Cowles baseball....

2010-07-09T16:31:00.009-06:00

For Father's day evening, the Cowles fam got together for a picnic. Afterwords, we enjoyed a rousing game of baseball.

As the mean mom that I am, I drug (literally) Ellyse onto the field to get her to at least try it. I actually had to bribe her with a slurpee to just try it once. Daddy helped her bat and I ran around the bases with her. To my surprise, she really liked it. However, she wanted me to run the bases with her all the time. I guess I thought she was good on her own and after I made her do it by herself, this is where I found her. Pouting.

I'm soooo mean.

Hair

2010-07-01T14:37:00.008-06:00

For most of my life, I've had my hair in pretty much this same style with it being short and long or even different colors at times.
However, in 2008 I decided to chop it all off, and go to this style.
Much thanks to my friend Jessica who does an awesome job!! I liked it a lot but now, I've added a little different flare to it. We added bangs and it's suppose to have spikes on the crown but I'm not able to get it to look decent enough yet. So, this is what I get.

And up until I changed my hair in 08, I don't remember EVER having as crazy looking hair as I do when I wake up except with these shorter cuts.

I just had to take a picture of it because of how much it makes J and I laugh in the mornings.

A good old fashioned back yard evening...

2010-07-01T13:25:00.012-06:00

Usually, we head out to eat on weekend nights. Jason's family has done this for years. We like it and have incorporated it into our family tradition too. This particular Saturday night though, we got home from grocery shopping a little later than usual and the girls were dying to play in the water. With the weather being like it has, we haven't had too many opportunities up until this point. Jason and I both caved in and let the girls set up the kiddie pool in the backyard. By about 6 the pool was finally blown up and ready to go. The girls were dressed in their swim garbs and they hit the pool asap. They played and played, jumping on the trampoline and into the pool.

We didn't want to make them get all dressed up again...alright, alright so I didn't want to have to get them all gussied up again, to go out; so Jason went and got some yummy pizza from a local pizza place that we love and we ate it with swim suits as an optional dress code. We hung out in the back yard and sat in the nice breeze.
It's funny because the girls play in the pool every once in a while however, this being a weekend night that we're usually out, we were "in" and I already had blocked out that time for family. I was just able to sit and relax and not worry about the laundry or the activities the next day or whatever. I just enjoyed our back yard and the beautiful weather.
Guess who else made it even more fun?

The ice cream truck!! Da, da, da, da!!

I have many memories of the ice cream truck going around my grandma's house when I was visiting there as a kid. I'd always get so excited to see it, even if I didn't get to purchase anything. It was just so different from where I grew up where we didn't have things like that around. Jason noticed it had the tune of "Praise to the Man" blasting from it. I don't remember that ever being the case when I was a kid.
Anyway, after walking bare foot across the street to the correct side of the road, the ice cream "mini van" (there's another big change from what I was used to as a kid) came by and stopped and we got the girls their ice cream. We didn't really have a huge selection to choose from because of their prices. Some were like 2.50 or more. Uh, hello. The store is just down the street. I guess that's what we get for the convenience of it.We had bought ice cream bars from the store earlier that day so Jason and I had a bar to eat as well. I just wanted the girls to have the "experience." We all ended up switching popsicles because everyone kept changing their minds. I had to convince Allie that she couldn't have both the chocolate and the sour one she'd chose from the truck. Somehow, she just didn't want to give one or the other up. Hmmmm, I wonder where she gets that from? She ended up with mostly chocolate however. A woman after my own heart.
Jason sprinkled the yard and sprayed the weeds as we all just hung out. I had to capture the moments with camera, cause that's what mom's do best.
I have to say I don't think I'll forget that night. Nothing special or extravagant but soo much fun! I love my family!

Allie and me

2010-07-01T13:22:00.002-06:00

Turns out Ellyse is a pretty good shot, even if mom forgets to turn the flash back on.

Memorial Day 2010

2010-07-01T13:15:00.008-06:00

I really love me some time to see the beautiful colors left all over the grounds of the graveyards on Memorial Day! I miss my loved ones as well! But I couldn't be more happy to have all these loved ones in my life!!!

Twinners

2010-07-01T13:10:00.006-06:00

Grandma D gave Ellyse some new pajamas in a bigger size for an early birthday present. I may or may not have forgotten to send pj's to their house one night. She had a smaller size that she gave to her sister and suddenly, we're seeing double.

Ellyse is a graduate.

2010-06-18T12:17:00.012-06:00

Somehow the episode from Full House comes to mind about how silly it is to have a kindergarten graduation but alas, it was an event and a great one at that. Can I believe it's been a year? Nope, not hardly.

We got a little bored waiting for them to call her name so we pulled out the camera.

Her "cool" teacher, Mrs Cool. Yep, that's her name.

Congratulations Miss Ellyse! You super duper smart kiddo. Now you get to go to all day school. Yay!!!
(Graduated on May 27, 2010)

Do you see it?

2010-06-14T17:50:00.005-06:00

Do you see where the littlest of our bunch decided to cut her hair?

May be this photo will help.

Stinker pot!

ps. those are mosquito bites on her face and her poor little eye was swollen from one of them. It just looks like she has purple eye shadow on but man, was she a sight to be seen that day! :)

Hey Syracusians and West Pointers....

2010-06-14T17:40:00.003-06:00

Syracuse - Just found out my little class will be performing for your heritage days on Saturday the 26th at 1 PM by the elementary.

West point - Also just found out that my little class will be performing at your West Point days on July 3rd at 1 PM in the park.

Super duper excited! So glad they were chosen!

The recital

2010-06-08T11:53:00.008-06:00

Well, we finished out another year at Starstruck on Monday night with the recital and man, was it fun! So much better than last year's nearly 4 hour debacle! This year was quick, fun, and totally organized - plus 100 points! My little class did excellent. I was impressed. They danced their little hearts out and all their practicing the dance over and over and over paid off. Way to go girls!

Jason and the girls came to watch just the teacher's dance so I didn't get a video of my little class dancing but here is the teacher and Elite Emeralds dance if you'd like to see it.

Jason had no clue when the teachers were coming on stage so he only caught about two-thirds of the dance on camera but it's still good. All the teachers choreographed it together and it was so much fun to hang out with others who love to dance and can dance at about the same level and just have a good time. Yay for dancing!

Ha, ha, I know about half of you just gagged but for those of you who haven't ever tried it, you're totally missing out on what the COOL people do. :)

If you care, I'm mostly center stage in the back row the whole time.

Tonight is the night

2010-06-07T12:30:00.002-06:00

Tonight is our big show at Starstruck! We had our dress rehearsal this morning and man, it went soooo much better this year than last years did! Like, total 180 from last years. I'm excited for it, although I know a lot of it will be babysitting the dancers who are not performing at the moment but it should still be fun. It's days like this that make me realize that I love my teaching job!!

If you'd like to come it's tonight at Syracuse High at 6:30 PM. I'd love to see you there!

Our super smart kids...

2010-06-03T15:16:00.000-06:00

Recent conversation in our home: While coloring a map of the U.S. Cousin says - that's wezzeeanna (louisana), Allie: Cheeseyanna? Cousin: No. Wezzeaanna.

Moving on to another state, Cousin: This is Kansas, Ellyse: Where's Kansas? Cousin: Far, far away. Ellyse: So, in Syracuse?

Check out how cute these girls are!!!

2010-05-27T07:50:00.003-06:00

Presenting: My little dance class!! Woot!

They've been so fun to teach this year! Isn't that outfit to die for? It has ruffles on the back side. So cute! We are performing on Monday June 7, 2010 at Syracuse High at 7 PM. You should come see them.

The teachers are performing too. I got my outfit last night and got to buy my first glitter eyeshadow. Yipes. Lookout!

Follow up to the Follow up

2010-05-24T13:38:00.003-06:00

Last month I set out to do something. . . .see here to be reminded.
Well, today's the day I was suppose to be down 5 lb.s and I when I weighed in last time, I was down 3.5 lb.'s Yay! I didn't stick to the plan as good as I'd hoped but at least a little bit of weight came off! Here's to hoping that with my medication being done soon, I'll be able to knock off a few more pounds then too!

Like moths to a flame

2010-05-21T09:42:00.006-06:00

Recent goings on at our house... AS. SOON. as I turn on the hair dryer, the one that's so loud and right next to my ears that I can't possibly hear what others are saying...AS.SOON. as I turn it on, in comes Ellyse or Allie to ask or tell me something. Invariably, I have to turn the blasted thing off several times while I'm drying my hair to find out what they just said and then answer their questions. My dryer gets so hot sometimes that when I turn it back on it takes a good 10 seconds to get back up to the high setting again. Such a pain. So, I've tried and tried to explain that I can't hear them when the dryer's on, yet rarely, there is a day that goes by that this doesn't happen.

Wehehell, today I got smart and shut the bathroom door and locked it. I turned on the exceptionally loud hair dryer. . . . then came the wailing and knashing of teeth right. outside. the. door.

Impossible children.

A few words of wisdom

2010-05-17T13:55:00.006-06:00

I've heard a few things the last couple of days that I'd like to share.

In church yesterday I heard, in essence:
No matter if you're 70, 80, or 90, we have only been here on Earth for a few years. The third host of Heaven that were cast out for rebellion, have been here for thousands of years. They know the in's and out's of deception and they know how to deceive you and how to tempt you.

I recently heard this on the radio.

It's hard to be overweight, it's hard to lose weight, and it's hard to maintain a healthy weight. Choose your hard.

Two totally different topics that struck a cord with me. I thought they were worth sharing! And that's all folks.

Alison and Koa

2010-05-13T14:29:00.011-06:00

An old friend of ours got married over the weekend and we were lucky enough to get invited. I added this photo to show the pretty roses on her bolero. They're very hard to see but they are there, in white, and they're gorgeous!
They had a really cute theme of red, white, and baby blue. Crisp, clean, and very beautiful!
The cake. Have I ever mentioned how much I adore wedding cakes? I do. I wish I could create them myself.

She and the ladies in the wedding party all wore red shoes. Such a classy and fun addition! Thanks for letting us be a part of such a special day of yours!

These two are such go getters! Alison just passed the bar and is an attorney at law and Koa plans to take the bar in the next month or two. They are going to be forces to be reckoned with! happy Wedding!

Us girls

2010-05-13T14:25:00.004-06:00

Up to my madre's on Mother's day with my sister and her daughter.

(Seriously can't wait to be off of Prednisone because of what it's doing to my face! I feel for anyone who has to take the stupid medication, sooooo many side effects!)

A bit of a 180

2010-05-10T15:29:00.010-06:00

Rewind about 4 weeks.
The Wood's took us and the girls down to SLC to eat some yummy italian food at Buca di beppo and to see the IMAX movie at the planatarium about the Hubble Telescope. (Allie totally put her hands up to "feel the stars" as they were coming out at us in 3D. ) We had a great time and on the way to and from SL we saw the Bountiful Temple up on the hill from the freeway. We told the girls that was where mommy and daddy got married. Ellyse was really super excited to see it up close and kept asking when we could go see it.

Fast forward a few weeks.
We get invited to a viking wedding. It was. . .interesting and verrrrrryyyy different from any idea of what a wedding looks like in our girls' mind's. (Keep in mind most are from some sort of Disney movie.) They really didn't understand why we were watching these people do what they were doing. I just had to keep telling them to be quiet, we were at a wedding, and to be respectful. That was in the afternoon. That evening was open so we decided that night would be a perfect one to fulfill Ellyse's request to see the temple up close.
I guess there was something on the lense of this photo. Sorry. The lighting was perfect and I wish my camera batteries didn't die after 4 pictures, but alas.
The girls ran here and there around the temple and absolutely loved the waterfall. Their smiles rarely stopped while there and they were overly happy just to be around the temple It was a good learning opportunity for them. . . .and us.
Loved the grounds of the temple! So beautiful! As usual.

Darn batteries.

ps. Looking for great italian food? Check out Buca di beppo. YUM! I had never eaten there before and it T.O.T.A.L.L.Y. beats the competition!

Dear Mommies...

2010-05-10T15:03:00.003-06:00

My mom beats your mom's butt!

Same with my mother-in-law!

They could form a team and really kick some...

I'll stop right there.

Happy Mother's day to the two best mom's out there!!

It's great to be three!

2010-05-07T12:37:00.013-06:00

Yep. She's 3! Still as stubborn as a mule but as cute as a bug!
She got to open her gifts in the morning from us and it took FOREVER to open and unhook all the toys from their boxes. What's the deal with that anyway? It also took a very long time to put together all the little pieces to this Barbie birthday party thingy. Oh the things we go through. Do you see the red trike in the back? Thanks ksl.com!
Check out her tongue. It's so cute, she's got this obsession with it lately, she's always playing with it and sticking it out and around and all over the place.
Such cute girlies!
At her party that evening, she received some clothes from several people and it was funny, she'd gasp and smile, give them big ol "loves," and then....
hand them to daddy. On to the next gift please.
Here's the cake that I forgot to get a photo of until after I told the kids they could have the dum dum suckers out of the cake corners. I put three suckers together and put the sticks in gummy lifesaver rings and stuck them in the corners.

Dear Allie: You and your sister are truely the highlights of our lives. I love that you know what you want and fight to the death to get it. I believe this will prove to be such a valuable tool- that will need to be tweeked a bit- in your life! You are so funny and say the cutest things! I wish I could capture your face when you talk sometimes because your facial expression are priceless. You love to play with your sister and you two get along beautifully, for the most part. You also love to push things around, be it a stroller, a lawnmower, a wagon, or anything that rolls basically. You fuss and fuss when it comes to naps but when I agree to read you a story before nap time you cuddle up and succomb to my way of thinking. I have always loved to cuddle with you and love that you love to cuddle with me! It's funny because you love to proudly announce when you've tooted, even it was just a "tiny one." :) You make us laugh all the time and we are so glad you have been given to us to raise! You are so beautiful, funny, loving, and fiesty all rolled together to make you-you and for that we are grateful! We love you soo much! Happy birthday Bubbas!

FYI, if you care, I used two boxes of cake mix and put the mixes in the cookie sheet and it turned out just fine and didn't bubble over in the oven.

I did it again!

2010-05-07T12:35:00.001-06:00

3.1 miles straight. It killed me and I thought about quitting several times but got through it and was done in 37.20. Yay!

No Luck...

2010-05-03T12:06:00.003-06:00

..with Jason's job interview. He found out Friday morning that they offered the job to another applicant. Darn it!

He still has several other applications in with other schools so hopefully he'll be able to nab one of those. Now is the hiring time for fall so we're hoping that he'll get other chances at other jobs! Thanks for all your concern and prayers! Keep em coming that he'll be able to nab another position. Please? We truly appreciate your support!

Because she likes to see us go insane...

2010-04-29T14:31:00.005-06:00

Remember this? Well, hahahahahahahahahahahahaha nana nana poo poo on that idea. Literally.

It's been a trial and then some. She did excellent for about a month and then all of a sudden accident after accident. We thought it was a temporary thing. We waited it out. We tried ALL KINDS OF THINGS but now looking at my brains spilling out all over the floor, I've realized that I can't handle that many accidents in a one hour period.

Kudos kid. We have fought the fight and you win. You get your diapers back. Now excuse me while I go cry my eyes out.

Interview

2010-04-29T12:46:00.004-06:00

Jason had his interview yesterday at Snowcrest Jr. and he said it went well but they kept asking him about any past experience and he really hasn't had any - everyone's gotta start somewhere. So, we won't know until tomorrow or Monday but keep him in your prayers please. Thanks soo very much.

I did it!!

2010-04-29T12:46:00.001-06:00

Yay! 3.1 miles straight, no breaks!!! 38:35