Sing me a Song

Today was Grandparents Day at school. The kids all prepared a few songs to perform. I went and picked up Grandma Ginny because she is the only Grandparent in town. My parents are in Hawaii and Jon's parents are visiting some friends they met on their second mission.

When I picked Grandma up I was talking to her and she wasn't responding. I yelled, "Grandma, do you have your ears in?" She said she did. I let it go for a few minutes until it was obvious she wasn't hearing anything I said. I yelled at her again, so she reached in her ear and pulled out her hearing aid on the left side. She said, "There, that's better." I don't really know what to think about that...Either her left ear wasn't turned on or it is broken. She rather enjoyed the concert. I don't know if it was because she loved the music, or because she couldn't hear it.

This reminds me of a story about Brighton. I am not sure if I have typed it before, but it is worth telling twice.

I was doing Brighton's hair when she was about 6. I was deep in thought contemplating what things I had to get done. I am very good at tuning out my kids because they are always talking and saying my name. I obviously was doing just that because all of a sudden I tuned in when she yelled,

"MOM! DO YOU HAVE YOUR HEARING AIDS IN OR WHAT?!"

While we were listening to their performance I must have looked like a crazy lady because I was video taping while wrestling Jackson and Halle. They are both busy bodies and were everywhere. I am sure I offended some old people by not having control of my kids,

but what's new?

I can only imagine what the video looks like...

Zooboomafoo

Today we went to Hogle zoo with Emmy, D.J., baby Madisen, Amy, and Carter. I am babysitting Jackson this week and brought him with Halle. It was a beautiful fall day and perfect weather for the zoo. There weren't any kids because they were all in school. A perfect canyon breeze made it even more peaceful. Now for the real excitement....

READY

SET

GO!!!

The kids were so cute lined up by the wall. I was having fun taking pictures when all of a sudden Jackson tripped on the end and they went down like dominoes!! We didn't know if we should laugh or cry!! I didn't even realize that I had a picture of it until I got home today and was skimming through them. I started laughing so hard because it is the look of pain in slow motion and utter destruction!

Poor Carter just learned how to balance without holding onto anything! He was on the end and took the worst beating! We were so proud of him when he shed a few tears and stopped after being distracted by the monkeys. What a sweetheart. Today was his last big outing before staying inside until spring. We have to be really careful so he doesn't get sick with his heart condition.

Sweet baby Madisen is only six weeks old. I think she loved the zoo today!

Jackson was making me laugh because he picked up my pamphlet and was "reading" it as he was looking at the zebras. He would look at the pictures while he read and then look up. It was so sweet. I am sure he will be very smart like his parents!

Emmy was so brave to come today with little Madisen and a busy D.J. You have to keep your eyes peeled with him because he will take off running at any moment! By this point they were both so tired. I am sure Emmy was too!

Just some of the things that happened today:

- I got 5 kids and myself ready by 8:30 and returned to get 2 more ready by 9:00.

Halle spilled all of the fishy crackers in the car on the drive up to S.L.C.

- Jackson pooped twice this morning just for fun...this is the biggest difference I have noticed about boys so far. Also, he wiggles more when I change him.

- I bought 2 hotdogs for the kids and neither would eat them.

- I learned that camels don't really carry water in their humps on their back :)

Chillaxin

This weekend Jon and I went to Park City for the Corporate Alliance party and to celebrate my birthday. It was a BEAUTIFUL weekend. It was sunny all day and rained at night. The leaves on the drive up were superb like they always are on my birthday. I love driving, listening to music, and enjoying the scenery. 


 The dinner was great and the people were fun. They had an auction after the dinner with fake money. I decided to bid on a package with 4 massages and was so excited until a guy behind me kept out bidding me and won. I turned around and saw that it was my friend from college  that I haven't seen for 14 years! He was my anatomy partner at UVU. He had met Jon earlier at Corporate Alliance and was talking to him about business. I explained to Jon who he was and how I knew him. He just said, "OH, so THAT is why you spent so much time at the anatomy lab!"  What was there to say?  Anatomy takes a lot of time in the lab to pass the class, and it didn't hurt that I had a friend there!  I met my girl friend Kori in the same class also, so overall it was an awesome class!  I loved everything we learned about the human body.  My only regret is that I didn't retain it all.  Anyway, it was funny to put all of the pieces together, other than when we went up to say hi.


Jon (all too honestly) said, "SO, you wanted to date my wife in college..?!" It was a wee bit awkward so I just laughed. (That's what I get for letting Jon know that he had asked me out). Mat is an easy going, nice, and very respectful guy so it was never like the stalker I had in college.  *that's another story!* Mat offered Jon and I his services as a personal trainer because he owns a studio. I don't think Jon is planning on that any time soon.

Because he had won what I wanted, Jon and I bid on a tube to pull behind the boat. We were going boating today and thought it would be a great addition, and we won!

In the picture above, I am holding a carmel apple from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. I LOVE them and Jon saved me one from earlier in the day.
 I was SO happy and ate the whole thing! Yumm

It was raining outside and it made all of the colors so vibrant!

Jon tried to take pictures of us.

They are both blurry but still fun.

It was so nice to sit in the hot tub after dinner. It was on our balcony and felt great! Jon had to pour about 8 gallons of cold water into the tub to make it cooler.

(I think someday a hot tub on my personal balcony would be nice...haha~)

Girls Only!

I just got back from another whirlwind party in California. I had the best time ever with my family and Melinda. I consider her family also. Even though we have very different coloring, people have asked if we are sisters because of the shape of our eyes and cheeks. Sometimes I see it, and sometimes I don't.

Anyway, Mandy's wedding is in a week and a half. I can't believe it is finally here. We will be going back to California to celebrate soon. The whole family will be coming. We are planning on having a flower girl tea party, attending the wedding and reception, and going to Disney Land on Saturday. It will be a fun memorable time.

The first morning we were in California, Melinda and I went through the temple with Mandy. It was an awesome experience to be together as friends and family to share the experience.

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The shower was flapper style and it was so fun to dress up for the party. I am all about dressing up, I love it. That is the reason I love Halloween! The candy, Carmel apples, and pumpkin cookies don't hurt either!

On the way to the shower Melinda took pictures in the car. The sun was in our faces and it wasn't working so she told me to hold up something to block the sun. It wasn't a plug for our bags, but ended up looking like it!

I haven't ever been to a party that was decorated as darling as Mandy's shower. I spent half of the time just looking around and taking in the scenery. It was at a great house in Three Arch Bay. She had so many little details in the house that made it special. The party decor was the same way. The food was great and the people were pretty fun also!

Mandy's friend Tristan dressed up like Charlie Chaplin and acted out clues to fun info about Mandy and Brian. She was hilarious. She should be on the big screen! Everyone loved it.

This is my darling cousin Kelly. I thought this picture was so cute of her. She has so many cute facial expressions. I had to record one of them! Kelly and I grew up together going on trips with the families. We are the closest in age and spent a lot of time together. We went to Y.M.C.A. camp, Jackson Hole, Yosemite National Park, California, and many other places to play. It wasn't until Mandy moved down to college that we got to know each other better. When we were growing up I just remember thinking how cute little Mandy was and loved watching Aunt Barbara corner her to brush her hair into tight piggy tails.

This is Jaymi. She is a good friend of Mandy's and mine. She came down to college with Mandy and spent countless hours at my house for years. We had tons of fun together and her family became part of ours. Her sister Cayleen came to Orem next. She loves to hang out with us too. They are both darling with my girls and we love them!

Jaymi is a buyer for a store called Tuvalu in California. She brought perfect gifts to give the winners of her game. I never actually try to win a shower game but I was really into it because I knew Jaymi's gifts would be to die for!

After the party Mandy decided to sneak up to Brian's window to scare him. It was so funny watching her slither across the grass in her flapper threads!

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Earlier on Friday we went and had a pedicure. It was great. We stopped by and had Yogurt Land frozen yogurt before we went in. Pretty much heaven to eat frozen yogurt, read magazines, and get a pedicure. Melinda picked out a bright turquoise color and tried to talk Mandy into it for 45 minutes. When Mandy finally relented Melinda was loving it. I picked a lighter blue color to match my swimming suit. We were dying laughing because they kept trying to up sale us in getting fake nails in a different language and we didn't know what they were talking about. When we were leaving Melinda yells, "I HATE this color!!" Mandy looked at her like she just pulled out her eyelashes. Mandy said, "YOU WERE THE ONE THAT TALKED ME INTO THIS COLOR!"

In the car Melinda went on to explain that it was a pretty color for clothing but not for toes and she would be sick of it in a few days. It was so funny because Mandy was going to get a neutral color. All in good fun!

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This was such a fantastic night at the beach! We went to Three Arch Bay a private beach where Brian lives. It is breathtaking. Brian set up the bonfire and brought lots of great food like hot dogs, chips, and stuff for smores. We also stopped and grabbed some stuff to add to the pot. I am used to having a bonfire in the mountains but it was a whole different experience on the beach. I loved listening to the waves in the dark. I kept wondering how it would be to swim in the water in the dark. It would scare me to death! There are so many animals staring at you and you can't even see them. It is the same way in the day but at least you would see what was about to eat you! We had a great time just sitting around and chatting about whatever. That's what I love about Mandy and Melinda. We can rip on each other like guys and not be offended. We enjoy having things pretty relaxed when we hang out.

POSERS!!!

The two love birds!

Ella saw this picture when I was posting it and said, "They are a perfect couple! I mean like, they are cute together!" I thought it was so cute.

They really are great together.

This was right when I got to the beach. The sunset was amazing over the water.
I was so sad that I missed taking more pictures of it.

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Um...WOW! What more do I say about Saturday at the Glen Ivy Spa other than UNBELIEVABLE?!? We had so much fun laying in the pool, rolling in the mud, and getting massages. It was the perfect girl relaxation day. I think we all needed a break and this was the perfect place to do it. I definitely plan on going back someday!

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Jon was very cute to get the girls ready and surprise me at the airport with a sign. I had my car there to drive home and he came anyway. Afterward we drove up to my parents house to visit for a minute. They surprised me with an AWESOME gift! When we went skiing last week on Palisades Reservoir I tried my mom's ski and loved it! I had been using one of Jon's for 15 years! My dad found the exact same ski in my size and bought a case for it and some juice to get the ski on. I was so surprised and happy because I love to ski and it fits me well and is so fun to ski on. My mom gave me a ring that reminded me of her. She used to wear it all the time when I was a little girl and it brings back so many memories. When I wear it I see my mom's hands. It reminds me of all the years she took care of me. It was a special surprise.