Girls' Night Out

I love my husband's family. They are a great bunch of people and I really enjoy spending time with them. Not only are there some great men in this family (I'm quite fond of one in particular), but there are also some great women. These women are people that anyone could look up to or be friends with...I feel in fine company when I'm around them. These women have an inborn sense of equality and fairness. With such a trait, they are great at planning and making sure that the women of the family on occasion get to enjoy a night out on the town(without children). The men step up quite valiantly and take over babysitting and dinner preparation (my kids enjoyed a carefully prepared dinner of cold cereal) to make such an event possible. Last night was such an occasion and I have to tell you it was just so fun. I came home with a fresh perspective, an appreciation for the arts, and a renewed sense of camaraderie. Based on our fun last night, I have come up with a recipe for a successful girls' night out:

Ingredients

*Good food (We ate at Paradise Cafe in American Fork. Gourmet soups, salads, and sandwiches...absolutely delicious!)

*Ample time to talk (We had to drive to SLC and back which gave us lots of conversation time)

*Entertainment (We went and watched an exciting performance of Lord of the Dance at Kingsbury Hall)

*No children or men (It wouldn't be Girls' Night if either tagged along)

Combine: ample time to talk with no children or men and set them aside.Then take good food and fold it gently into the mixture. Last, add entertainment and you will have a bunch of smiling women in no time at all!

I had such a fun time, I cannot wait until the next girls' night out!

Spelling Words

Here it is Thursday, once again, and it is the day we spend the afternoon making sure our kids are ready for their Friday spelling tests...to use a few of this week's spelling words...we have learned that our youngest is sick (running a low fever) because of a microbe. Mom can be hypercritical of messy rooms, unmade beds and blobs of toothpaste in the sink. The sight of them cause her to be hyperirritable. Dad tends to hyperventilate at the sight of most big game animals. The Salt Lake City area is a megalopolis, but the colony of mold on the cheese I just threw away is a microcosm. Kids should be hypervigilant when surfing the web, there are some real creeps lurking around. The movie Star Wars is a megahit, but we already knew that. These are a few of the words I have become well acquainted with this afternoon. I think the kids are finally ready...bring on the spelling tests.

Sniff My Bouquet

I love flowers. They make me feel happy and I love to dwell on their symmetry, bold colors, and simple majesty. Plus, they smell good. I love taking pictures of flowers. If I could get away with it, I would have pictures of flowers all over my house... a picture lasts forever. On this cold, gray January afternoon, I offer you a glimpse at my picture bouquet. I hope it brings you the warm, sunny cheerfulness that I feel every time I see them.

I can't wait for Spring to arrive!

Hobby Help

My husband, whom I completely adore, loves hunting! He anticipates his next outing months and, sometimes, years in advance.

He has more camouflage than street clothes. Cabelas is a biweekly destination and gun purchases are becoming more frequent than full moons. Range finders, scopes, animal calls, and gun stocks are as easy to find in our home as pine cones under a pine tree.

What's the problem, you may ask? We have four boys, two of which are approaching legal hunting age limits. I foresee that every aspect of this hunting hobby is going to multiply with each son. Soon we will be overrun with camouflage, firearms, and every vacation we take will be planned around or linked to a hunting adventure.

I have a choice to make. Should I join in and become the mighty huntress so that I am not left out of the fun....or.....should I find a hobby that is equal in cost, time consumption, and has a comparable amount of accessories??

I do enjoy photography...there is potential there. I also enjoy running...that one might be a stretch, but I could probably do it. Maybe I should take up traveling. My destinations will be alphabetical, starting with "A." How about Athens to begin with! Or maybe Australia.

Hmmmmm. This will take some planning and postulating, but mark my words, I will come up with a comparable hobby.........or I will become the second largest camouflage wardrobe owner in this household! Time will tell all. Well, enough ranting, I have to hurry and get my son over to the high school gymnasium. What for, you ask? Hunter's Education...of course.

A Birthday Tribute

Can I tell you that this lady is incredible! She is everything I hope to be someday and more. I feel overwhelmed with gratitude when I think of the influence she has had on me and how my life has been directly blessed by her goodness. I want to wish her a very Happy Birthday!!

Translation, Please.

Our youngest can be the sweetest, loving toddler ever. He can also be a bit of a bully. After he finally started talking, we noticed a decrease in his aggressive behavior. We then decided that a lot of his aggression was probably just frustration from not being able to communicate. In the last month or so his vocabulary has exploded and he is picking up multiple new words everyday...for an example, see "Our Sponge". This is wonderful and exciting (especially when the words he learns are socially acceptable), but I am feeling some anxiety since I can't always figure out what he is saying!! He doesn't give up either, he just repeats the phrase over and over until I can figure it out. This morning he wanted to play with the Star Wars figures. "Sarwers, peas, Mom!" Over and over again. It took me several tries, but I finally figured out that he was asking nicely to play with the Star Wars toys. Sometimes, I can't understand, though. If you see a surge in my aggressive behavior, just know that I might be a little frustrated, but I will eventually grow out of it!

Fun With Pictures

I took some fun pictures while we were on our warm get-away. The red rocks are the perfect backdrop in my opinion.

The Land of Constant Sun

This past weekend was a four day weekend for our school kids so we decided to pack our bags and head south to warmer places. Sometimes it isn't until something is missing that I truly appreciate what a blessing it is....that something that has been missing lately: the sun and the fun that we have playing outside in it. This land down south has all kinds of sun! No one ever told this place about winter and as a result it is always warm. So, you ask, what did we do in the sun? Let me show you!

We played outside without coats on, with our cousins and their toys.

We went on a hike and saw these sights.

We went on a hunting excursion with our fellow wildlife seekers.

I went running outside twice, in shorts, in the shadows of the calming red rocks...awesome scenery and fantastic running/biking trails.

We used our mighty muscles and pushed this rock...

into this canyon.

We climbed this rock....





and this one too.







We soaked up the sun, the red dirt, and the fun. It is nice to be home, but this morning was frigid and foggy...it is great to have our sunny memories to keep us warm.

A Derby To Remember

Tonight at our annual Pinewood Derby a lot of fast cars took to the track!

Some of us were excited by the racing flags!

Some of us enjoyed our excellent front row seats with unobstructed views!

Some of us were proud of our son's accomplishments!

Some of us were relieved to have a friend there who would do our hair so we wouldn't get too bored!

Some of us were happy to be surrounded by great friends!

Some of us were grateful to Dad for spending so much time making an awesome race car!

Some of us had the fastest, coolest cars of all!

Our Sponge

We have had several "sponge" children over the years but our youngest is miles ahead of the others in his ability to pick up on little conversational tidbits that shouldn't have been spoken in the first place. A quick sampling: Somewhere, (I'm sure it was around our oldest kids, unfortunately) he heard one call another "buttcrack." (Oh, the creative insults that are blurted out in a moment of anger!!) Well, being the smart child that he is, he even picked up that the correct connotation is during a fit of rage. He found just the right setting to use his newfound word at Grandma's house right when a cousin somehow sparked his short anger fuse. "Butrat, butrat, butrat!!" Fortunately this cousin didn't quite get our Sponge's toddler articulation and was spared knowing that he was just the brunt of our Sponge's new vocabulary. However...I knew what he said and so later that day...we had a careful conversation with our oldest few about how sponges pick up anything...even dirty mud.

Five!

We want to wish a very Happy Birthday to this special cousin!! She brings sunshine and adventure into every room she enters! We love you and miss you lots!!

Five is so grown up! You'll be driving soon...look out Mom and Dad!

We hope your birthday party was a SPLASH!!

Your younger cousin can't wait to catch up to you. He thinks you are pretty awesome! We do too! Happy Birthday!