{week of march 30 - apr 5}

sunday, april 5, 2009

Wow...conference was amazing. Two days of wonderful counsel and spiritual uplift from our prophet and the apostles. Each year as I get older, the magnitude of having a living prophet on the earth to lead and guide us, becomes more and more fantastic. It brings me so much peace and comfort. I wanted to soak in every word. Of course with kids, some things are missed. That's why I'm so grateful for the special issue of the Ensign every six months with every talk reprinted. It's wonderful to read the words over and over again. It really was amazing.

saturday, april 4, 2009

C, T, and L have been so excited for Patrick to come home for his Spring break from college in Montana. It's all Tess could focus on for the last week. Funny story though. He was supposed to come in last night. We were all set to go pick him up and grab dinner on the way home. He calls and informs us that the plane out of Kalispell is very delayed and he won't make his connection in Salt Lake. The airline put him up in a hotel and he finally made it this morning. He handled the whole ordeal like a pro. The reunion was delayed, but it was no less exciting this morning.

friday, april 3, 2009

I have lots of decor for different holidays, so I wasn't really planning on buying any new decor for Easter. But...Tess and I were at the grocery store, and Tess sees this really cute fat chick. I was tempted, but still thought "No, we don't need another stuffed animal." But then Tess read the tag "9 inch PHAT chick," and we both looked at each other and laughed right out loud. We had to have this 9 inch phat chick as part of our family, so into our cart he went.

thursday, april 2, 2009

I busted a gut when Lucas came around the corner in these boots and the lei. He'd gotten into the dress up box, and this is what he came up with. To top it all off, he didn't have shorts on, which happens to be his favorite dress right now. So it really was quite the look. Disclaimer...I know Lucas is in the same shirt for the last three pictures. First, he loves this shirt. Second, the last two pictures were taken on the same day. Yes he wore the same shirt two days in a row. I'm living on the wild side and I let him choose what he wanted. We were just hanging around the house and you know what? It didn't kill anyone for him to wear the same shirt again.

wednesday, april 1, 2009

This was so funny. My dad had called to check on us and say hello. He wanted to talk to Lucas. Lucas was talking along and answering questions, but then he saw his new Happy Meal toy "Susan" from the Monsters vs. Aliens movie. He was telling Grandpa all about it. Of course my dad had no idea who "Susan" was, so Lucas was trying to show him...through the phone. He kept saying, "See Grandpa, see, this is Susan." I could hardly contain my laughter. That's the joy brought about by a three year old.

tuesday, march 31, 2009

We went to this cool park in Tuscon to feed the ducks. Lucas had a blast, but I think he wanted to eat the crackers more than he wanted to feed them to the ducks. I found it so interesting to see such a huge variety in one little pond. Usually all I've seen is Mallards, but there were lots of different kinds.

monday, march 30, 2009

This is the face of someone who met a Prickly Pear cactus up close. Poor little Lucas. You can see the pure feelings of "Ouch" and "You want me to smile for this?" Just kidding. I didn't ask him to smile. He loves to have his picture taken, and he especially loves looking at the pictures of himself. There are so many teeny, tiny little prickers in his arm that you can't even see. He was very brave while I pulled them out. So sad. The neighbors actually removed that bush a week later. This was the first encounter with a cactus for Lucas.

{week of march 23 - march 29}

sunday, march 29, 2009

After church the kids were playing games with G-pa and Margy. They had the dominoes out and Chase set up the domino track. He is so sweet and patient and loving with Lucas. Even though Chase sets it up, he let's Lucas push the first domino to start the chain reaction. This was one of them, and it worked perfectly. Everyone cheered and hurrayed!!!

saturday, march 28, 2009

We went to the Phoenix Zoo today. We rented this little (okay large) bike contraption. The kids loved it, although with all our weight, we had to get out and push it a few times. It was just too heavy to peddle up some of the hills. The shade was great though. It's a cool zoo with some great

friday, march 27, 2009

Grandpa Ray and Margy came for the weekend. The kids were so excited. We went to see the Real 3-D Monsters vs. Aliens movie. It was a cute movie. The 3-D is really amazing. Chase was helping out with his school's activity tonight called "Rock the Band."

thursday, march 26, 2009

This whole desk area was quite a disaster before this picture. I spent a good part of today getting it a little more organized and cleaned up. I was trying to use another area in the house for my office, but it wasn't working so I'm going to try and move it up here. Of course today as I'm typing this from said spot, it's not looking quite as tidy as this photo. Oh well. I'm working on it.

wednesday, march 25, 2009

I don't know about you, but stores are closing left and right down here right now. Having a "space available" sign in a store front window is becoming a common sight. The economy is a little scary right now to say the least, and I'm not seeing our new president helping this situation any. Wasn't a fan of Obama before and he hasn't changed my opinion now he's in office.

tuesday, march 24, 2009

Tess is a wonderfully sweet and giving daughter who helps me around the house and with Lucas so much. However, her room is usually quite the opposite of this picture. It is often a spot of contention between us. So when I saw not only her bed made, but all decorated with her build-a-bear animals. I just had to document the moment.

monday, march 23, 2009

At 42 It's quite possible that I'm more than half done with my earthly life. I'm feeling pretty good about being the age I am. I'm feeling pretty good about the things I've accomplished, the way I look and the prospects for my future. I still have things I want to do and see, but if I died tomorrow, I wouldn't have any regrets. My son was the photographer for this pic and he loves tilting the camera so I just had to use one of his artistic tilted shots depicting "42." I had an absolutely fantastic birthday. I had wishes from tons of people on Facebook. I got lots of cards and phone calls. I went out for a fabulous dinner and the most amazing Strawberry Shortcake dessert. We watched a pretty funny movie. Laid under the stars. It was just a really great day!

{week of march 16 - march 22}

sunday, march 22, 2009

Every Sunday this is where the kids and I are first thing in the morning. Being edified and lifted up by the spirit. I love church. I love learning. I love feeling the spirit. I love being able to begin each week with the spirit and a fresh start.

saturday, march 21, 2009

This show was in Scottsdale on tour. I had been wanting to see it, but time kept slipping by. Finally I decided I was taking myself for my birthday and Doug was nice enough to come along as my date. The horses were beautiful and it was fun, but I have to say it wasn't quite what I expected. At least I can say I went. The rest of the evening was great though. We went over to Desert Ridge shopping center and ate some great food and talked by the fireplace.

friday, march 20, 2009

We took the girls to see Jonas Brother: The 3D Concert experience, hence the 3D glasses picture...clever eh? You know what? It was really fun. I was completely entertained and enjoyed their music and I have to admit they are pretty cute too. Tess has a crush on nick. All the girls really enjoyed themselves and it was a fun outing with our friends.

thursday, march 19, 2009

This is my fireplace vent right out our back doors under the porch. This nice little morning dove couple. Came back again after last year and set up house even through my futile attempts to keep them away. Now you can see the fruits of their labors. There are two little babies peeking out from under the mommies body.

wednesday, march 18, 2009

Before we headed out today, we hit the beach. This is Little Corona Beach in Corona Del Mar. Even though it was misty we had a blast exploring the tide pools, where we found tons of sea cucumbers (I think that's what they were) and hermit crabs, a few anemone's and urchins. I spent a fair amount of time searching for sea glass. I came home with some beautiful pieces. The kids tried daring the cold water, but didn't last too long. I've yet to find starfish in tide pools like I found at Moss Beach. I went tide pooling right before we left Stanford almost 14 years ago.

tuesday, march 17, 2009

This is Doug. Doug and I have been dating for 2 1/2 months. We've been having a great time getting to know each other. It's definitely a learning experience when you spend all day for almost five full days with each other. I think we managed making sure everyone got to do everything they wanted with little or no contention. I'm thinking that's pretty amazing. Oh and Happy St. Patrick's Day...notice I'm in green!

monday, march 16, 2009

A few times we ended the night at Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Tess happens to love this ride. Come to think of it, this used to be one of Chase's favorite rides too. I noticed that this ride seems to make an appearance in my pictures every time we've gone to Disneyland. I like this picture especially because it's taken at night. Chase and I say it everytime, "I love being here at night near closing time. Most people have left, things are more quiet, and it feels like we are the only ones left in the park." Disneyland is definitely MAGIC for our us.

{week of march 9 - march 15}

sunday, march 15, 2009

This is one of our favorite places when we go to Disneyland. It's over in California Adventure in Hollywood Pictures Backlot. It's called Disney Animation. This big room with huge screens all over plays clips from all the animated Disney movies. Some screens have stills while the others are action. The music from the movies plays and it's just awesome. It's a great place to get out of the weather and sit down to relax. There's lots of fun things for the kids to explore in here too. It's a great place to take in some magic.

saturday, march 14, 2009

Doug and his daughter are going to D-land with us. The kids were playing Mario Kart Wii right here. It's pretty funny to see the way they are all focused on the screen as the play. We'll be spending a ton of time together, so I guess we'll see how if we still want to hang out after this. I've been told these are good tests for a relationship.

friday, march 13, 2009

Bags all packed and ready to go. We are leaving tomorrow morning bright and early. Tess is always packed about a week ahead of time. I love her and the way she attacks everything. I'm not sure if she's like me in that way. I'm trying to enjoy the journey of life. Tess is often looking ahead to "what's next" before we've even started the "right now." But I know I'm impatient sometimes, so maybe I'm not as good at enjoying the moment as I should be.

thursday, march 12, 2009

LAUNDRY?@$%*&!
Need I say more...there is never a time that I can say "The laundry is done." Always before I've finished folding and putting away the last batch, someone has discarded something new into their laundry basket. This was my basket of clean clothes, so I can pack for Disneyland. Yeah...we love that place!

wednesday, march 11, 2009

"The ring around the Moon (moon halo) is caused by the refraction of Moonlight (which of course is reflected sunlight) from ice crystals (usually from cirrus clouds) in the upper atmosphere. Weather folklore says that a ring around the moon signifies bad weather is coming, and in many cases this may be true." Found this info online. I took this a few days ago. The picture didn't come out as clear as it was in person. Pretty cool thing, huh!?

tuesday, march 10, 2009

This boy just loves "Blues Clues." I don't know how many pictures I already have of him watching this show. He usually watches downstairs with me and we watch episodes that I have TiVo'd. Today he disappeared upstairs where the little TV/VCR was plugged in and put in his own tape of "Blue's Clues." This is the way I found him. Fast asleep, with his favorite show in the background.

monday, march 9, 2009

These two are a funny, silly, pair of friends. They have a love/hate relationship. They both want to play with each other all the time, but they also both want to be "the boss" of what they do. Not only would Mark not think it's cute to have let him dress up in a cheerleading outfit, but then to have it be a "UTAH" cheer outfit...that would send him over the top. Sorry Mark. It was funny, and look at his hip action. He was totally into it! HILARIOUS!!!

{week of march 2 - march 8}

sunday, march 8, 2009

Often times it's the most simple gift that means the most. I received these beautiful wild flowers from Doug. It was so sweet and thoughtful of him to bring them to me. I smiled every time I came into the kitchen and saw them on the table. I only wish they lasted longer.

saturday, march 7, 2009

Going to the temple is such a peaceful and spiritual uplift. I love being in the House of the Lord. I can feel the spirit and focus on the more important things of this life. I can get so caught up in all the everyday stuff, but the temple can bring me back to what's really important.

friday, march 6, 2009

Birthday dinner.
Singing the Happy Birthday song.
Eating cake.
Opening presents.
Celebrating LIFE with friends and family...it just doesn't get any better.

thursday, march 5, 2009

Stack:
–noun
1. a more or less orderly pile or heap: a precariously balanced stack of books; a neat stack of papers.

I have come to a reconciliation that I will always have stacks around my house. It's my flaw and I'm trying to embrace it rather than hate it.

wednesday, march 4, 2009

I've been practicing a song with some other ladies from church that we are going to perform this Sunday. It's a really beautiful song about coming together as sisters and becoming one with God. It's a wonderful message. This piano is about 10 years old. I don't play well or often, but I do love the sound it makes. I love when Chase sits down and plays the few pieces he knows, or when he plays around with a new song.

tuesday, march 3, 2009

This is the greatest place. There's a water feature of fountains right near this enormous fireplace that is two sided. Doug and I went to dinner and a movie and then talked for awhile sitting right in this spot. It was a really fun night. The music, the sound of the fountains, the chill of the night but the warmth of the fire, the clear sky and great company.

monday, march 2, 2009

Yes that would be my daughter jumping into the pool. We don't have a thermometer, so I'm just guessing that the temp was around 65. She and Lucas ended up actually swimming around and jumping in for about 20 minutes. The day was hot, but not hot enough for me to brave the water yet. It's coming though! :)