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Friday, June 26, 2009

Nerd


I am a nerd. I've always felt like one anyway. I just thought I'd share it today. My kids are great at reinforcing the notion. They think I'm ridiculous. Really, all I am is the same little nerdy girl with glasses that I was in 4th grade in a much bigger, much wiser, nerd bod. I hope I can teach them to love their inner nerd also and that it keeps them out of trouble. Nerds rule...and the candy isn't bad either.

"Golden" Gifts

Planning the 50th Anniversary for my parents...
they wanted to get their kids together all in one place. Since this will take place at the cabin, 4 hours away from where they live it limited the number of people anyway.
What we've done so far:

We reserved a separate room at a nice little restaurant to have a "formal" dinner at. At this dinner will be all of my brothers and sisters in laws- which is a big deal since I haven't seen one of my brothers in 6 or 7 years.

At dinner we will pay tribute to them and give them gifts. We've gathered a box full of cards and letters from all the friends and family members (we sent out a letter announcing their anniversary back in May and asked for help in gathering 50 of them).

The box is fancy and hopefully they will treasure it and enjoy going through all the notes. Then we had a little clock engraved to present to them. I also made them an album that they can add the cards and letters to once they open them all and save them. I tried to get memories of Grandma and Grandpa from the grandkids as well (although I am still missing 2 from the adult grandkids- we can always add that later if they'll ever get back to me). After dinner we are going to have pictures taken and I am hoping for good weather! Please! Please!

The next event will be going back to the cabin for cake and we will watch the DVD that I made. I didn't put the pictures of my parents and their grandkids in order because I didn't want them to be conscious of themselves aging (silly maybe, but they notice those things).

The best part is that we are not just celebrating for an couple hours at a party, we are going to all be together for a couple days. I hope it will all turn out very nice.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

50 Years


I can't wait to see my family all together again at the lake. It's been 6 years since I've seen my youngest brother. Mainly this gathering is to celebrate my parents 50th Wedding Anniversary but also because it's where my kids have always grown up spending their summers with Nana & Papa at the lake and its a tradition close to our hearts.

I can't believe it's been 50 years together for my parents- they are too young to hit that milestone in my eyes.
My parents are very caring. They want the best for each of their children, grandchildren, and now even great grandchildren. They are great worriers like most parents. It's been a blessing to me that I have had fun, kind parents that have stuck together all these years. I am grateful for their examples.

Grandkids... (10) Kirt, Chelsey, Jeremy, Chase, Zane, Hope, Christian, Corynn, Chloe, Sadie Great... (3) Aubrey, Conner, Kollin

And a Daughter in law soon to join the family in October so we are all hoping that these numbers change soon! :)

When planning this event, my mom started to stress out so my sister in law Michelle and I told her to leave it up to us. My mom said she just wanted to get her kids together all in one place for once since we are spread out across the country these days. Somehow, I think that we are going to pull that off! Hooray! (BTW- they took a 3 week trip around China last November to celebrate this together as well).

The plan is to have a nice celebration dinner at a restaurant. I sent out 6o something papers asking people to send cards and letters to my parents, since they (at the time) didn't want neighbors or old friend, just family to come. We have a fancy box to present to them at this dinner that is full of letters and cards and hope that they feel how much people care about them.

After we go to dinner, we are going to have our family pictures taken (Hopefully)! Then we are going back to the cabin to have cake and ice cream and watch the "Tribute" dvd that I made to them from their grandchildren. I hope that they are happy. I really really hope we have good weather so we can get pictures outside! My kids are so excited they can hardly stand it.

Sunday, June 21, 2009

Here's to the man...

...who see's his influence on the next generation.
...who feels the responsibility to inspire the boys, not ignore them.
...who knows that little eyes are watching their every move and chose to lead.
...who stand up, speak up, and hold steady in their beliefs.
...who follow God and HIS wisdom.
...who allow themselves to live in humility and to be taught, then to teach.
...who carry the guns to defend our freedom.
...who are brave in the face of the evil or bad in the world.
...who use their strength to carry someone elses load.
What would the world be like without good men? Strong founding fathers?
Here's to you honey! Daddy! Dad in law! My son- the far off future daddy! Todays little boys!
Here's to the men and their impact on each of us and on our children.
Happy Fathers Day!

The man loves his cars...

Friday, June 19, 2009

These are a few of my favorite things...

Today I took a little moment. A pause. Just enough time to think about some of the day to day things about life that I really enjoy.

*The smell of rain.
*Peeking in on my sleeping kids.
*Watching them wake up happy.
*Babies dressed in white.
*Tulips in my garden.
*Ice cold water on a hot day.
*Sunsets and sunrises.
*Cookies from the oven.
*Witnessing the goodness of the average Joe.
*Music that makes me cry.
*Friendship.
*Holding hands.
*Laughing til it hurts.
*Feeling inspired.
*The sound of giggling kids.
*The word Mom.
*Soldiers. Courage. Our country.
*Raspberries fresh from the bush.
*Popcorn, oh how I love you popcorn.
*Really sassy shoes.
*Fitting into a new smaller size.
*Getting my hair done.
*Feeling a baby kick for the first time.
*Getting over a bump and being a better person from it.

Isn't life a great thing?

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Music

I think this is a great example of the power of music. Excellent song and I just really love kids.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Camping at Zions National Park

My husband is famous for the self portrait snapshots...

View from the "Narrows".

Taking a break.

My kids, hot and tired but always amazing.

Wishing I could crop my hips out of this one.

View from our campground of the Watchman.


The men setting up the beast.

The girls in search of tadpoles.

My baby girls...

Don't you love Wildlife adding itself to your pictures- I love this one!

We just got back from Zions today. I'm tired! It was worth it to have such a great time with the kids. My little junior adventurers like to go go go. We camped at a beautiful campground (Watchman- we like the B loop) but did some hiking and snooping around the park. It is so beautiful there and so close to our home. Our first time with 4 kids though.

Our youngest was so (surprisingly) good but the 7 yr old had a harder time. I was afraid she would, she's the sensitive one and let's face it... camping isn't all that comfy. She did great until bedtime, everything was weird in the dark to her and definitely not her own bed. I'm sure our camping neighbors loved the 2 crying fits during the night. Besides that it was great to be together and have that time with them!

Monday, June 15, 2009

Red White and Blue

Pictures from the kids activity this morning. Just wanted to post them asap!

Made patriotic pinwheels, which unfortunately did not spin since they were stuck on a pencil.

Recycled centerpieces.

Water balloon madness.


Bounce house...

Doughnuts... they were soooo good.



Friday, June 12, 2009

Learning something new...


Sewing on Paper? I'm so behind in the craft world. I hadn't tried it before now and I am loving it! Why did I wait so long? Oh, yeah, I'm a bit busy. This is the Fathers Day card I made my dad in zig zag. Try it! Just remember that the pieces you sew on need to have glue or adhesive on the back so the stitches don't pull out.

Also I have been lifeguard in the backyard as I am every summer... getting nothing done but teaching swim lessons for the 7 and 3 year olds.




Thursday, June 11, 2009

Little Prayers

I love to listen to my kids say their prayers. It made my day tonight to kneel down with my daughter and hear her talk to the Creator.
...help me to be good
...bless my family
...help me to not have bad dreams or bad thoughts
...take care of those who are sick
...help me to learn.

No, I think it's me who learns from her. Simply, the children GET the important things and aren't caught up in the repetitions like they do as they get older. I'm always learning from my kids and on my knees for them every day.
My prayers echo hers from a moms perspective...
...help me to be a good mom
...so I can bless my family
...keep bad things away from my kids
...take care of everyone who are struggling and not be caught up in my own problems
...help me to keep learning and once in a while, I hope, teach.


Monday, June 8, 2009

What Matters Most

With all the business life can throw at me, this is what matters the most. My little family.

Yesterday at church everything that could go wrong picked that day to actually go wrong. I am in charge of the little kids and some days I feel like that voluntary job that I have undertaken is heaven... and then there are days where I can't wait to go home. It was more like the latter this past Sunday. I have a love/not so much love relationship with the position.

I felt like I was scrambling the whole time I was there. No one showed up to do what they were supposed to do. The best was that I had to add lib a 20 minute "sharing time" with 30 kids and somehow pulled it off. My daughter was naughty while I was trying to do my job. I was very glad I had a back up plan but a little cooperation would have been nice.

I got home on Sunday and my gratitude for the children I have been blessed with opened my eyes. They really are what matters most because they need me and I need them. That is why we were organized into families after all isn't it. I would say our dear Father in Heaven knew that we would need that strong unit of family love and support while we were here on Earth traveling the ups and downs of life and learning from our day to day experience. I am so amazed at what he has blessed me with!



Friday, June 5, 2009

I'm Burnt...S O S

School is out and we are into the 2nd week of summer vacation and I am still burnt. May was a horrible month with busy stuff everyday and every night. I haven't recovered yet I guess.

Totally burnt. Of course there are many forms of "burnt"...
*Growing up, the teenage smokers were the "burn outs".
*Sometimes we say we are burning a candle at both ends.
*Dinner is occasionally burnt to a crisp.
*Tough exercize makes your muscles burn.
*Burns hurt for a long time and need medical attention.
*Someone could play a trick on you and you get "burned".
No, not the kinds of burnt I mean.

If your like me or have ever felt like me or have just felt burnt in general, what's a girl to do about it? Seriously, I need idea's. How do I re-energize? Fuel my batteries? I am at a loss...

This is why I haven't recovered and am still burnt...
*I am trying to get my sons Eagle papers done, scout merit badges finished, and Electronic High School squared away. These are tough!
*I take care of my elderly in laws and their craziness gets to me.
*I have a church job that I have a love/hate relationship with.
*I am trying to plan my parents 50th wedding anniversary from out of state.
*I am dieting.
*I have kids struggling with learning issues that need help all summer.
*I have a husband trying to find design work in a slow economy, thus leaving me on a tighter than tight budget.
*I have a household to keep up with.
*4 Kids to raise, nurture, feed, entertain, care for, and try enjoy.
*A cross country trip to prepare for.

Yeah, I'd say that load is bound to drain anyone's batteries. Advice needed!

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Let Birthday Season Begin...

My husband was born when my mother in law was 43. I give her credit. Her 6th child at that age is quite an accomplishment. Yesterday was my husbands birthday- he turned 45. He is 6 years older than I am and this birthday bothered him a lot so I don't mind that I'm still in my 30's a little longer!

I made this birthday banner and just taped it to the mantle...






















I bought these "gourmet" cupcakes for a new twist






















I was in such a bad mood by the time this picture was taken...
Let's just say my in-laws came over and chaos and craziness drove me to the point where a smile was not happening.






















His birthday is the beginning of birthday season for us... lot's of cake in the summer.