It's beginning to look alot like Christmas

It's snowing tonight and we are loving the Christmas feel around our house! We finally got all the shopping done, and the presents are all wrapped. We get to spend Christmas with Shane's family this year, and we can't wait for the party! Seriously, Christmas with his family is so much fun- it's fun with my fam as well, however we switch every other year since they don't live close to each other. We just all hang out at Shane's parents house and eat, play games (bring on the Fear Factor, Adi) talk to each other and just enjoy being with one another. Shane and I learned a new game from our friends Lisa and Aaron called Peruado. It's a dice game that involves a lot of bluffing. It's actually really fun and we can't wait to teach Shane's family. We usually always play dominoes which is another family favorite.

We have had a lot of fun with our kids this year and Peyton is so excited for Christmas. He wrote and list to Santa and left it by his shoes for Santa to pick up and leave him a treat. This is a fun tradition he learned about in school. He was so excited the next morning when Santa left him 3 dum-dum suckers in his shoes. He told us that Santa would for sure get him everything on his list. We told him to choose his 3 favorite things for Christmas. He couldn't quite narrow it down to 3 so he came up with "back-up". Shane asked what back-up was and Peyton explained they are the "back-up" gifts Santa can bring him if he can't find one of the top 3. So clever! Connor just wants 3 "McQueen's" from Cars and a Hippo Hungry. Seriously that kid cracks me up! I don't know where he decided he needed 3 Lightning McQueen Cars, but he's pretty set on needed 3 of them.

Another fun tradition we started this year was chocolate making. The girls in my family came over to my house the other night and we dipped chocolates, made white mint chocolate popcorn (so yummy), and made carmels. My Grandma Moses is a great cook and taught us how to make the carmels. (note-make sure you have a big enough pot to boil the carmels as it's a mess to clean up if it boils over) She also made most of the centers for the chocolates we dipped. The coconut creme's were so good! We had so much fun-this is definitely a tradition I want to keep. We missed MelAnnie and Holly, but hopefully they can make it next year. Jenni brought her cute friend Angie who we have started to refer as the 4th sister. She is so sweet and it was fun to have her join us. Jenni and she used to live across the hall from each other in Louisville. Ang and her family are back in Utah so it's been fun to get to know her better. A funny thing-I found out she knows my really good friend Lisa. So crazy! I love getting new connections with people. Speaking of connections if you are from Alta, link to Kim's blog on my side bar, she has a really cute post about blogging and finding old friends through blogging. If you haven't left me a comment, stop in and say hi! It's so great to connect with old friends. Don't you love getting Christmas Cards at this time of year? I love seeing what old and new friends have been up to and their cute families. Merry Christmas to everyone!

My Favorite Things

So I missed Oprah's favorite things this year so I thought I would share mine:

1-Pureology Volumizing or Pureology Hydrating shampoo and conditioner

2-Bath and Body Works lip balm (mint kind)

3-Bath and Body Works Cherry Blossom lotion, body wash, etc, etc.

4-NY&Co. jewelry (got the cutest silver oval link necklace)

5-BKE Jeans

6- My IPOD

7-Maroon 5 (love "I won't go home without you")

8-Truflex shoes

9-Sammies flatbread sandwiches from Quiznos (Alpine chicken is so yummy!)

10-Cheddar Broccoli soup from quizno's (a cup along with a sammie is just the right portion)

11- Diet Coke with 2 Ibuprophen-cures most headaches

12-mint brownines from Peterson's

13-My fake Burberry wallet (love it-can't find another one like it and I need a new one...whaaaaa!)

14-Kiwi aerosol hairspray (I know it reminds you of Aquanet, but this is some good stuff)

15-Big Sexy Hair smooth and seal

16-OPI glitter toenail polish

17-Orbit gum-wintermint flavor

18-Dancing with the Stars (so sad that the season is over)

19-Cybex machine at the gym

20-Arrowhead flip top water

21-clean sheets

22-Dooney and Bourke zebra print purse (this is a want!!!)

23-Bare Escentuals lip gloss in celebrity

24-The yummy plate of goodies that Shane brings home for Christmas from Shauna every year-I can't wait!

25-The new sweatsuits from Express (I would love one in velour or cotton)

Ok-so this sounds more like a wish list than a favorite things as several items listed I do not own, but I would love to. Shane- in case you read this remember to add: I-HOME!!

kids say the darndest things

So Peyton came home from school, and like always I gave him an after school snack. So about a 1/2 hr. later he was chewing on his sleeve which I told him to stop doing. He then said to me "I'm trying not to, but I'm hungry". What? Seriously.
I tell ya-kids say the funniest things.

the the most busiest time of the year

Busiest??? Is that really a word? I'll have to check that one out. We have been busy at our house as I'm sure everyone else is. We had a fun Thanksgiving this year. We went to my parents house and everyone was there except Jenni, Josh, Abs and Parker. We missed you guys! As tradition, we all went around the table to say one thing we were thankful for. Shane went before me and said he was thankful for me and our family-so cute. Of course I was pretty choked up listening to everyone and feeling particularly grateful as we just got a letter from Connor's birth grandparents earlier in the month. In the letter she told us that Connor's birth mom had gotten married in the temple in August. That was such an answer to our prayers. We haven't had any contact since Connor was 6 months old so you can see how excited we where to hear such great news. Since we got that letter I have been overwhelmed by the sacrifice our sweet birth mom's made for our family. I look up to them with so much admiration for the faith they had to place Peyton and Connor with us. Now that I am a Mom I honestly don't know how they did it. They are amazingly strong and faithful women who we are so lucky to have in our lives. Anyway all these thoughts have been going through my head and I expressed my gratitude to them as the thing I was grateful for-of course I was crying. So then it came Connor's turn to say what he was thankful for-he said " I am thankful for wipes". The whole table started cracking up. It was so funny. Well my little buddy since you aren't potty trained, I'm thankful for wipes to. It's the simple things really.

The day after Thanksgiving I made a run to Target at 5:30 am. I ended up getting everything I was after, however poor Jeff didn't. Hollie and Jeff met me at Target and they were after the $199 LCD TV for their bedroom. Jeff is not the type to shove and push or make a fool of himself and run after merchandise. He's so nice and polite! By the time we made it back to electronics they were gone. I'm pretty sure the store only had like 20 of them since they were only on a small end cap. Poor Jeff. He said he was never waking up that early for a sale again. I felt really bad he didn't get one, and I even asked a guy hoarding 3 of them if he really was going to buy all 3. Yes- yes he was. Maybe Hollie will go with me again next year and Jeff can stay home with their new baby!! Happy Thanksgiving Jeff!

say hello to my little friend

I have acquired a new, greatly desired friend...my new Dymo Letratag. Oh my-I love it! I have been wanting one for a couple of years and never felt the need to shell out the $19.95 for it.

My cousin, Kelly came to our enrichment night this past week and did a great presentation. She is a professional organizer for Clear and Simple. She did such a great job! She totally motivated me to get moving and take on one project at a time. She had great tips and trick for making organizing better. I am happy to report that I took on a medium sized job (less than 4 hrs from start to finish) and my kitchen pantry looks awesome! I am thrilled with the results! Shane even said how nice it looks. I wish I had taken a before picture, because my pantry before was seriously out of control. I threw away a garbage bag full of things that I didn't realize had expired. Based on what she taught, it seems like I will be able to keep up this system and keep my pantry looking like this! I can tell that I will be going label crazy for a few days! My next project...the boys' closets. She had a great idea to maximize the wasted space in kids closets that is under the clothes hanging rod. I am super excited to get their projects done and weed through some of the "treasures" they keep in their closets. (sorry I still don't know how to turn a vertical picture so it's not sideways)

ode to my husband

My husband, Shane and I have been married for 13 wonderful years and I feel that I need to tell him thanks.

Thanks for being my confidant

Thanks for being the breadwinner

Thanks for toughing out PA school

Thanks for moving me back to Utah

Thanks for being silly

Thanks for being the best Dad to our two adorable boys

Thanks for being there during the process of getting our boys

Thanks for being my shoulder to cry on

Thanks for being the babysitter for girls night out, bunko, and various enrichment activities

Thanks for supporting my friendships

Thanks for spoiling me

Thanks for not caring when I don't feel like making dinner

Thanks for liking whatever I cook (I never hear a complaint)

Thanks for nurturing our marriage

Thanks for mowing the lawn-you know how it makes me cry to do it

Thanks for honoring your preisthood

Thanks for wanting to snuggle

Thanks for being level-headed when I am not

Thanks for taking out the garbage

Thanks for working on the basement

Thanks for paying the bills
Thanks for coaching Peyton in sports
Thanks for loving to go to the temple
Thanks for being you
Thanks for loving me because I am me
I am the luckiest girl in the world! I love you!

Connor Bonner

So to explain #10 on my prior post......Last night I had to run across the street to my neighbor's house to drop off some things for the humanitarian center (they work @ the dist center across from the hum. center). Anyway, I told Shane I would be right back. I was about 10-15 mins and when I came inside Peyton was in the family room and Shane was back in our bedroom reading a book. I ask Shane where Connor is and he tells me that he is with Peyton. Ummmm-no. So I went to the top of the stairs because I thought he was in the playroom watching a movie. I yelled for him and no answer. So I went downstairs totally expecting him to be there and he's not down there. So panic starts to set in just a little bit. I run to the back door to look in our backyard (which doesn't have a fence) and I see the dead bolt is in the unlocked position. Note-at this point it is about 7:15 PM and it is totally dark outside. I yell in the backyard, and no Connor. At that point I really don't know where to look and I am really feeling panic and then I hear the doorbell ring. I run to the door and it's my cute neighbor across the street (not the neighbor that I had gone to) Judy. Judy is darling! She is a cute grandma type that is widowed. She had a really cute box of prizes that she keeps for grandkids and neighbor kids to chose a prize when they come visit her. Well in Judy's arms is Connor-totally fine and unharmed. I about died!!! Apparently Peyton asked Shane if they could go to Judy's to choose a prize and Shane told the kids no since it was late. Connor decided he would go on his own. He went out the back door, went around the house to the front yard, crossed the street by himself in the dark, and rang Judy's doorbell. She let him in and immediately called us, but I was still at her next door neighbor's house and the ringer was off on the phone in our room where Shane was. When she couldn't get a hold of us she grabbed Connor and ran over to our house. Connor and I must have just missed each other when I came back to our house. Luckily Connor wasn't hurt or lost according to him. He knew right where he was headed. So, I put a child safety lock back on the doorknob. I think I need a back-up lock. Any ideas?
Seriously-I was sick to my stomach thinking of the possibilities. Shane felt so bad that he didn't hear Connor slip out the back door. Heavenly Father was looking out for our little Connor Bonner.

random thoughts

I was inspired by Kim's random thoughts so here goes....10 random thoughts

1. I need to get the laundry done in a really bad way

2. Heather and I are going for our annual Christmas shopping trip this weekend and I can hardly wait!!!

3. I have to buy presents for Nate, Daniel, Burton, Kevin, Jason and Josh...could I have a harder list??

4. I have to get organized for next week's Enrichment Meeting with my cousin Kelly-a professional organizer

5. I still have one bathroom, dusting and vacuuming before the house is clean for the weekend

6. I should probably iron the boys' Sunday clothes today since I won't be here on Saturday

7. I am really excited to put up my Christmas decorations this year which is weird since I usually don't get excited until after Thanksgiving.

8. I am sad about the state of a friend's marriage.

9. I am so grateful for my husband! I can trust him and I know he loves me unconditionally.

10. I need to get a better lock on the back door to keep Connor inside.

good reads

I have read some really great books lately so I thought I would share some. My sister-in-law Holly sent me a link where you can share your books on this website, but I am too lazy today. Oh and by the way have you ever gone to the library to check out a couple book that are in a series only to realize when you got home that you brought home two of the SAME book? Yeah me neither-only a idiot would do that. Seriously-I need a good nap! And the bad part it was book two-so I couldn't even start the series. Ok so here is my list:
(these are in order incase you want to read these, if by the same author they are a series)
Under Currents-Traci Hunter Abramson
Ripple Effect- Traci Hunter Abramson
The Deep End- Traci Hunter Abramson (haven't read this, but the 1st two were good-I am on the hold list)

The Bracelet-Jennie Hansen
The Emerald -Jennie Hansen
The Topaz-Jenni Hansen (haven't read this yet, as I am on hold for it-1st two were so good!)

Until the Dawn-Gale Sears
Autumn Sky-Gale Sears
Upon the Mountains-Gale Sears (also haven't read-have it on hold-great books!)

The Barrington Family Saga-Anita Stansfield (I have read books 1 and 2, #3 isn't due out until Nov, both books were excellent! I kind of got sick of this author awhile back, but I have loved these new books)

A bride most begrudging-Deanne Gist (so good! not an LDS author, this was about "Tobacco Brides" in the late 1600's who came to the Colonies as a punishment for committing crimes in England. They were forced to marry men here to try to populate the colonies. Very interesting, but light)

Of course: Twilight, New Moon and Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer. If you haven't read these-where have you been? Sooooo Good.

So that is my recent book list. Most books are LDS in nature and very light reading. That is mostly what I like to read b/c I do it for pleasure. Nothing too heavy!

And on a side note-who is following Dancing with the Stars? I about started to cry when Sabrina got voted off. Seriously I thought she would take the top prize! I felt so bad for her!

so much to do...so little time

ok I know that I have been a lame blogger lately, but seriously so much to do....

1st of all Fantastic Friday went well....fantastic! I am so glad it is over with and I finally have all the projects delivered to people who couldn't come that night. My feet hurt so bad when I finally got home that night. I was basically on my feet from 3:30 to 10:00. The next day Shane was so nice and let me sleep in until right before Peyton's soccer game, even telling me I could stay in bed and miss his game, but I wanted to watch him play, so I drug myself out of bed and went to his game which was so fun!

This past weekend we had super fun weekend with Shane's family. My in-laws came to stay with us starting on Thursday night (10/25). My kids love it when Grandma and Grandpa come to stay with us. Anyway-they picked our nephews Kole and Braydon up at the airport on Friday morning. They flew here for the Kjar Halloween Party. We checked Peyton out from school early (by one hr) on Friday as I had promised him if we did anything fun we would come get him from school. G&G (grandma/grandpa) and I took the kids to artic circle for lunch, then Shane met up with us and we all went to a park by our house. We then went to Glover Nursery by our house and had the best time. They had pumkin painting, face painting, a spook alley, and a hayride. It is seriously the best kept secret! We were seriously the only ones there. While there Shane and I had to run to Peyton's parent/teacher conf (which by the way-he did so good! it was every parent's dream-he's such a smart, good student). G&G kept the kids at Glover's and kept them entertained. We got to do the hay ride for free since Shane and I bought 2 shrubs for our yard. What a deal! Shane then took us all down to IMC to see his new office and the cardiac ICU and operating room. It was very cool! The facility is beautiful! Shane is very excited to be working at such a nice hospital, especially since it will cut his commute in half. It was really cool to see the OR he will be working it. Let me brag for just a bit-my husband is so smart! I couldn't believe all the technical stuff that was just 2nd nature to him. I was overwhelmed by the fact that he really stands in an OR and harvests vein from patients legs. Honey-you are amazing! Thanks for working so hard for our family! Ok-so after about 1 1/2 hrs at the hospital we were ready to go home! The kids were tired and hungry. So we headed home and finished the night with pizza from Little Ceasars.

Saturday (10/27) Gay and I got up early to do some shopping at JCP (that woman can shop!) then we all went to Peyton's last soccer game where he scored a goal! Way to go buddy! He played really good. Kole and Braydon seemed to have fun seeing him play. After that Gay and I met my Mom at the mall from a little more shopping (did I mention that Gay know how to shop?) Shane had arranged for us to go horseback riding Saturday afternoon. A lady he works with lives in Grantsville and has horses. She has told us that we could come anytime to go horseback riding, so we took her up on her offer. We had such a blast! All the kids loved riding on the horses. Even Shane and I took a turn riding horses. It was so much fun! By the time we got home, it was late and the kids went right to sleep.

Sunday (10/28) all of Shane's siblings and their families except his youngest brother and sister came to our house for the PARTY! Grandma Gay planned the cutest games including: mummy wrapping, balloon popping, and bobbing for apples. The kids ran around like crazy but they had so much fun. We had sloppy joes, chips, and great salads for dinner. Monday Kole and Braydon flew back to Denver, and later that night Connor told me he forgot to give Braydon a hug and kiss. The boys had so much fun with their cousins for 3 crazy days. A HUGE thanks for Grandma and Grandpa Kjar for making this fun filled weekend happen. It was awesome!

Monday night (10/29) we went up to my parents for the Vick family Halloween party. This was a new tradition this year, and one I hope we continue. I made homemade chicken noodle soup (yes-with homemade noodles) and if I can say-it was so good and so easy to make! (I have to say thanks to Merwin for guiding me though the noodle making process and for cutting them out for me) My mom made 2 kinds of homemade bread, lentil soup, and chili. It was great! We played musical chairs-which my 2 yr old nephew Easton loved! His response to the music stopping was priceless! All the adults (except Shane and I) even dressed up. I think by Monday night we were too tired! My mom wore a dance costume that my sister Hollie wore when she was in 9th or 8th grade. Way to go mom-she looked HOT! My dad did it gansta style with his umbro's, cubs jersey, and his cubs hat sideways-so cute! (Forgot my camera for this event)

Tuesday (10/30) I took the kids with my friend Katie to Cornbelly's in Lehi for the cornmaze, etc. We had a blast but do you think I could remember my camera? NO! Luckily Katie (who is always prepared for anything) thought to bring a disposable, so I will have to get doubles from her. Seriously-if you didn't go to this-go next year. The corn maze was ok, but the other attractions were so much fun. The kids loved the giant pillows you could bounce on, the spider web, the "cow train" ride, and our favorite was the hay ride. It was so bumby, but the kids were laughing all the way, as well as Katie and I. Good times!

Yesterday-Halloween Connor and I went to Peyton's school in the morning for his costume parade. Can you believe these are the only pictures I remembered to take of my kids on Halloween? Peyton decided to be Batman to school b/c his Spiderman costume was to hot to wear to school. Connor was Bob the Builder. They both looked darling! Connor really got into trick-or-treating this year and was amazed that you could ring someones doorbell and they would actually give you candy! He didn't really get tired of walking around. Peyton actually wanted to go home before Connor did.

All in all you can see we have had crazy good times, and we are tired. I think I need a nap!

OH-by the way I learned how to make homemade apple pie! My sista Jenni has the best recipes. Shane teased me that the only reason I made this pie was so I could take a picture of it to post on my blog! I didn't hear any complaints when he ate it!

Oh what a week I've had!!!

Today is the BIG DAY! Fantastic Friday!! What the heck am I doing blogging?? I have had so many things happen (not all funny) that I had to hurry and write them down.
Kimi was here starting on Sunday and we had so much fun with Gay going shopping until my feet hurt. They are the best companions to go shopping to Ross and TJ Maxx with. Gay picks out the best stuff to show us and try to act serious about that she loves. We all found the cutest brown shoes in the kid dept at Ross that we all HAD to buy a pair-I hope we don't wear them to the same function. We were in such a hurry Tues to get Kim to the airport and we had just gotten home from Ross, so my shoes along with a pair I bought from Peyton ended up in Kim's stuff and are now in Denver-see you soon new shoes!
Earlier this week Peyton was going to the bathroom in our 1/2 bath off the kicthen when he yelled out to me "Mom, do all toilets lead to the ocean?" I think he has watched Nemo one too many times. I really got a kick out of that-ahh the random thoughts that come when in the bathroom......
Tuesday night I had my enrichment committee over for a quick meeting to make assignments for today. One of the girls had to bring a couple of her kids which I told her was great and would keep my kids entertained as Shane would be at scouts. They were all playing down in the playroom when we heard a big crash-which I thought was Connor throwing balls against the magnet board trying to knock the magnets off. About 10 mins later Peyton comes up and tells me that Connor thew Mr. Potato Head at him and he ducked and it hit the window. Yes-the crash was our window breaking!!! Luckily no one was hurt and their wasn't much glass on the floor(most of it fell between the two panes), and it broke the slider side so it's only going to be about $80 to replace-still the window isn't even 3 yrs old!! I was so embarssed b/c I had 9 ladies sitting in my family room going "did he really break a window??? Yes, yes he did." Sigh.
Then the best part-yesterday as I was driving doing errands-( was on my way to Dollar Tree for plastic table cloths for tonight) I was talking to Heather on the phone when yeah-I rear ended someone. Now before you tell me I shouldn't have been on the phone, let me say I know, however it's when I looked down at who knows what that I didn't stop fast enough. I knew the traffic was coming to a stop but it was coming to a stop faster than my foot pressed on the brake. Luckily no on was hurt and I was only going about 10-15 mph. I felt so stupid!!!! The guy I hit couldn't have been nicer and didn't want to call the police so that saved me a ticket! He didn't seem to have too much damage, but it did bent his trunk a bit. My car is basically fine except for the licence plate and a ding in the bumper. The best thing of all-we have one payment left on the 4 runner and it will be paid off next month!! Arghhhhhh! Oh-and when I called my agent (Betty-my Mom's BFF) I totally started to cry on the phone. It's a good thing it was Betty-love her!
So in a nutshell that has been my week! I will be so happy when tonight is done with!!! Wish me luck!

too many toys...

I have been feeling guilt lately. Both my boys just had birthdays and I am totally embarrassed to say that we have TOO MANY TOYS! How does this happen to someone who honestly (in their mind anyway) tries to keep the toys under control? I mean I don't buy my kids things unless it's for a special occasion, etc. But somehow we are finding ourselves overrun with toys. Clutter is something that drives me crazy! It makes my stomach hurt and makes me feel like I am living in a dirty house. Hate that! I will admit that it seems that I have a touch of OCD when it comes to keeping a clean house and trying to organize. Anyhow-since we just had two b-day's within the past two months and Christmas is coming fast I thought it would be a great time to go through the toys with the kids. They did such a great job! The 1st picture is the pile that we are taking to DI ( sorry if you see things you gave my kids that we are parting with-we have loved them and played with them, however we are done with them and want someone else to enjoy them as much as we did!) and the second is our newly cleaned toy closet in the playroom. I mean it was getting to the point that the playroom wouldn't hold everything. Give me a break. If a whole room for two little boys won't hold all their "stuff' isn't that a sign that you have too much?

Shane doesn't share my enthusiasm with getting rid of toys. He is of the mindset that we should save stuff should there be a 3rd child. I tell him that if that does happen that child will have birthdays and Christmas in which to accumulate his or her own toys. Now don't think I am too crazy-I didn't give away all the baby toys, but you can only keep so much!

I read on a blog that I read occasionally http://www.creativeorganizing.typepad.com/ about how she just organized her little boys room and that got me thinking and excited to get Peyton's and Connor's rooms organized for fall. Take a look at her blog it is so cute! She also had a great post about organizing your games in one central location. I am totally doing that-the bottom shelf in our hall closet will be the perfect spot. In doing this it will help me organize the kids rooms as Peyton has a lot of our games in his closet. See one thing leads to another-can't do the playroom w/o doing the kids rooms, can't do the games w/o doing the kids rooms and the family room. Can you tell I have the fall cleaning bug?

Another blog that I love is http://www.shannonbrown.typepad.com/ I can't remember how I stumbled on her blog, but she is so cute. I want her to be my friend! I have no idea where she lives, but she seems like a down to earth kind of gal! She had a cute idea on how to make your blog into a book which I loved and has inspired me to keep up on mine more often. Way to go Shannon! Cute new family room re-do!

one more random note and Jacy you will be thrilled!!!!!! Did anyone notice my pictures aren't all stuck at the top? Yeah- I was able to drag pictures down into my post. Yeah for me! I didn't get one turned but you can't expect too much technical abilities in one post.

Snowbird 2007 and random stuff

(Isn't my Mom so cute? She didn't want to get her hair wet so she wore my Dad's hat)

This past weekend we went up to Snowbird for my parents time share. Shane and I actually slept over with the boys on Saturday night which is something we haven't done for a few years mostly because our kids have been too small and it's too hectic to set up a pack-n-play and there are ususally a lot of family sleeping over. As it turns out everyone had stuff going on Sunday and couldn't stay over, so it was just my parents, my family and my nephew Jefferson. We had so much fun! It was bad weather on Saturday and snowed clear down into the valley, so by the time we got up to Snowbird, it was so pretty! After being inside for a couple of hrs we all (Shane decided to stay home and take a nap)decided to go for a walk over to Oktoberfest. It was totally snowing and so much fun. The kids thought it was so great to see snow. Peyton, Hailey and Madison got into a snowball fight with MelAnnie. Connor thought that the snow was great by he kept yelling for everyone to wait for him! Gosh! Sunday we got up and went to church up at the bird. We have been going to Snowbird since I think I was 12 or younger and we never knew they had an LDS branch up there at the Snowbird Center. It was a very sweet service that last an hr and consisted of Sunday School and Sacrament meeting. There were about 30 in attendance. It was come as you are, so we didn't have to dress in our Sunday clothes (good thing b/c I brought a short sleeves and no nylons outfit for church). It was a little strange being there in regular street clothes, but I was so glad we went and the kids were so good during the hour long service. While we were walking back to the condo after church my Dad totally hit me in the head with a snowball! I could tell he felt so bad-looking back on it, it was pretty funny! Good aim Dad! The weather turned really nice on Sunday and by the time we got back to our house Sunday I couldn't believe how warm it felt in the Valley. All in all a fun time at the bird!

Other random stuff-this week is Albertson's (love their sales) General Mills sale. I persuaded Shane to go with me which was really a great help! I ended up getting 2 boxes of potato flakes, 7 cans of progresso soup, 6 boxes of Gogurt, (4) 6-packs of kids yougurt, 4 tubes of crescent rolls,1 tube of Cinnamon rolls, 1 box of pizza rolls, 1 box of toaster streudel, 2 tubs of Grands biscuts, 1 bag of frozen garlic dinner rolls, 2 bags of frozen biscuts,11 boxes of cereal ( Total rasin bran, cheerios, kix, cinnamon toast crunch, golden grahams), 5 boxes of fruit roll-ups, 2 boxes of granola bars, 2 cookies mixes, 3 cans of frosting, 1 cake mix, 2 muffin mixes, 2 boxes of frozen corn, and 1 box of frozen peas......oh and 2 packs of jelly belly gum for the kids and a magazine for $4.29 (it threw off my total).......all for $ 64.28!!! My savings were $138.35! I was so excited! way to go coupons and way to go Albertsons! Some of the stuff I normally wouldn't buy (toaster streudel or pizza rolls, but hey they were like .50 or so, so I say what the heck we'll try it). Oh and last week I got 16 packages of sausages (the rolls and the links) for $6.66 (that included one other small purchase for about $3.00) so $3.66 for that much-holy cow-maybe I should be saying holy pig!! Seriously you have to try pinchingyourpennies.com it really becomes a game or a sick obsession to see how much product you can get for the least amout of money. I guess if that is my obession it can't be a bad one. later.....

Happy Birthday Connor!!!

Connor turned 3 today, and I can't believe my little bubba luca is 3! I feel like he is officially out of baby mode and really a big boy now. We are working on potty training and you'd think since I have done this once before I would have a better idea how to handle this one...not so much. Hang in there little buddy we'll figure this out together! It just goes to show you that each little spirit has their own personality built in.

Here are some fun things about Connor:

He loves to snuggle and gives the best hugs! I love how he will bury his face into my neck and play with my hair. He loves to be tickled on his stomach, back, arms, legs, and face. He will say "tickle me Mama." I could melt. He is the ultimate boy and loves anything to do with sports. He can pitch a baseball like nobody's business (seriously he winds up and everything-it's so cute!). He currently loves Go Deigo, Go, Dora and Yo Gabba, Gabba. He loves to play with his friends Dylan and Benjamin. He always has to wear shoes in the house and for those that really know him-he almost always wears a hat. Seriously he loves his baseball hats!

I can't imagine our family without him. He is the best little boy and we love him so much! Happy Birthday Connor-we love you!!!

We had a fun little party for him on Monday night since Shane's parents were up at our house. He got the best presents from everyone and didn't know what to play with 1st this morning. Peyton is in heaven as well with all the new toys around-thanks everyone he loved everything! We had banana splits and ice cream sundaes which were a fun alternative to cake that never seems to get eaten and then I end up eating it for like 4 days afterwards-bad habit! We rounded out his b-day today with dinner at Texas Roadhouse and a trip to the library to get some movies and books. Such a fun birthday-he's such a sweetie!

(do you like the picture here? I found him in the bathroom washing an apple in the bathroom sink and eating it? What? That's Connor! Do you love his new haircut? He asks me all the time "Mom you like you my new haircut?" So funny!)

I love a good sale

For those that know my craziness and love of coupons you know that I seriously love a good sale. You may be thinking..who doesn't love to go shopping for clothes, shoes, etc...but I am talking food. A little over a year ago a good friend of mine introduced me to coupon shopping. I used to always shop with coupons when I could, but this was serious. A new concept to me...you don't use the coupon until the item is on a great sale. I have been known to get up and be at Albertson's at 6am to hit a good grocery sale. I have taken a break on and off from coupons, but baby I am back at it! Today is the start of the famous Quaker sale at Albertsons and I got 16 boxes of life, cinnamon life, and captin crunch cereal, 10 boxes of cereal bars, 3 canisters of oatmeal, and a box of granola bars for .....drumroll please.... $28!!! I saved $91!! It's a sickness, I will admit, but it felt so good. I seriously get so excited when I save a lot and pay so little. There have been times in the past when my savings have been over $200 (coupons and sales combined). I love stocking up my food storage for so little.

Because I haven't had a post in so long, you probably wonder what I have been up to-or maybe not. Well I'm still so busy with Super Saturday but we did get all our projects done, decided, and displayed. We seem to have a good response from the ladies in our ward, but frankly at this point I have put so much work into it and I really don't care if they like it or not. Rude don't you think? I'm to the point if someone thinks they can do a better job (and I'm sure they probably could) then I say go for it. In all honestly we really do have some cute projects and I think the whole she-bang will turn out great!

Laundry

So I have been doing a little laundry today. I opened the washer to find a batch that has been sitting for oh-a couple of day (ew) and please don't tell me that you each haven't dones this at least once. So anyway I re-wash it and I just went to change it into the dryer when gasp! I found a t-shirt from Gymboree with a new rust stain on it. Because I let the load sit (unintentionally) a buckle on some shorts was wet for too long and it actually rusted onto a new Gymboree t-shirt. grumble, grumble. I know I didn't pay a lot for the shirt as I am fairly certain I didn't pay full price for it. It still makes me cranky. So note to self : DON'T EVER LET THE CLOTHES SIT IN THE WASHER!!!!

MIA

Yes, it's been a little quite on my blog. We have spent the last two weeks sick, sick, sick. It looks like we are finally getting better, but believe me when I say it is after many trips to the bathroom. No-we don't have the pool sickness as we haven't been swimming in over a month, but we did get some stomach bug that has been through every member of our family.

Can you believe it's September? I LOVE FALL! It's probably one of my favortive seasons. I love the cooler air, leaves crunching, apple smells, wearing cozy sweaters and jackets-yum! Love it! Beginning with last year, there has been a little bit (ok a lot) of dread and worry when it comes to fall. Why? You ask. Two words. Super Saturday. Yes that's right-it's the time of year when every good and faithful enrichment leader comes up with fabulous and exciting projects to entice and woo the ladies in her ward. That's right, I'm the enrichment leader and I dread SS! It's not that I don't like the crafts (ok-I'd rather buy them already done), it's all the decisions, displaying, money collecting, calling to veryify orders, buying wood, paint, brushes, stain, food,....ahhh! Ok-I'm calm again. See I have a smile. Can't you see it? Remember soon this too shall pass.

I've been bitten..

Oh my! I just finished Eclipse and it was so good! I loved it! I am so sad that a new book won't be out for another year. I just read on www.stepheniemeyer.com that the next book will be coming sometime in Fall 2008 and will be called Breaking Dawn. For all you fans out there she also has the 1st chapter from Midnight Sun on her website that you can download in PDF format. It's the companion book to Twilight in which Edward is the narrator. I just read it and can't wait for that either-fun to read!
So now that I am out of vampire books to keep me up at night. I need some good suggestions for future reading material. I did start The Poisionwood Bible prior to starting Twilight. My neighbor suggested it. Anyone read that one? She said it's a slow start but gets really good.
Connor got sick on out way home from Shane's parents on Sunday night and oh my goodness-what a mess! We seriously had to pull off the side of a very busy road (highway) to clean up 3 bowls of cheerios! Yuck. It took me forever to get it out of the carpet under the seats. I finally got his booster seat cover all washed and dried and him packed up in the car to run an errand today when the thought popped into my head that I had better grab a bucket and a towel just in case. I no sooner got back out the to car when yep-Connor started to puke again. Luckily he grabbed the bucket. Poor buddy. I hope he gets over this yuckiness soon. No errands for us today. We are staying home.

I'm now 32....

Yesterday I turned 32. I seriously still feel like I'm 24 or thereabouts. I really am into the 30 something stage. I had a fantastic birthday thanks to my awesome husband, family, and great friends. Thanks everyone!
Shane took the day off work to spend it with me and I was greeted with breakfast in bed. S then took P to school and then took me and C to the running store where he bought me new running shoes. (I went to the gym the am and I loved them-so much more chusion than my last pair) He then took me to this great store on Highland called On Occaision. It's a darling home decor, jewlery, paper, gift store. Anyway- I told him about this bracelet I wanted-Pandora (so cute!!! you have to google this). So he set me up with a bracelet a one heart charm to start with. I seriously can't wait to start adding more charms. I just love these-they are so cute and creative without being too charmy.
After we got home Jenni and Hollie came by to wish me happy b-day. Jenni got me this really cute pink block that says " she must be something special. she is. celebrate her." Love it! It goes with the "She" book. So nice of Jenni! Holls got me two cute chunky earrings and a darling chucky brown bracelet. So cute!! Holls also brought me Chili's chips and salsa-yum!
S then took me to see the Bourne Ultimatium (got a babysitter on his own) and then took me to Red Robin for dinner.
My parents then stopped by to give me a really cute black linen skirt. I can't wait for Sunday!
Thanks to everyone for the gifts and calls-I had such a great birthday!!! Happy 32-not so bad after all!

twilight

A little over 36 hrs later and I'm done. I have to admit I was a little skeptical based on the premise of the story, but I LOVED it! I can't wait to go get New Moon and Eclipse. I may have to break my rule about buying books and run over to Barnes and Noble (gasp!). Seriously. I can't wait for the LONG hold list the library has. Such a good read!

Happy Birthday Peyton!!!

Happy Birthday Buddy! We celebrated Peyton's 6th birthday this past week and had a family party for him last night. He had so much fun for his b-day. On his acutal b-day he had to go to school, and I had been telling him all summer that we could go do something fun on his b-day. That was before we had to switch to A track and he had to go back to school before his birthday. So... to make a long story short we ended up going to Chuck-E-Cheese after school with his two friends. Needless to say they all had such a great time! Last time we went there I came home with a migraine, so I was hesitant to go, but in the end it was worth it and no headache this time around.

Yesterday we filled up a smallish pool and put it in front of the slide to have a make-shift water slide. I didn't know if it would work, but the kids had so much fun. I have to say thanks to everyone for helping with dinner and thanks so much for spoiling Peyton! He loved, loved, his presents. He takes after my Mom and said "it's just want I wanted" or "I've always wanted one of these" after every present. I especially got a kick out of the adding machine. Thanks Burton and Mel! He seriously loves it! How many 6 year olds want their own adding machine with a years worth of paper to go on it? That was a cool gift!!

(I'm still having a hard time getting my pictures where I want them. I used ctrl x to cut but can't get them to paste using ctrl v. What am I doing wrong-seriously leave me a comment so I can figure this out!!)

splurge vs. steal

10 things I'm willing to spend money on and 10 things I will not.....

splurge:
1. purses-I have always loved purses! Shane got my a really nice Dooney for Valentines this year and I love it! it's hard to go back to a cheap purse after having a really nice one. (Katie will disagree with me on this one-I do have to say the purse I just got at Mervyn's for $7 is cute, but I won't feel bad if I only use it for one season)

2. Make-up. I love, love, love Bare Escentuals. It's about $24 for foundation, but it lasts at least 6 months and makes my skin look so good. I also love their Bisque (couldn't live without it) which is also about $24, and my new love of theirs is the tinted Mineral Veil (big size is $38) I love it instead of bronzer and blush in the summer-gives such a nice glow. I could go on and on but I will wrap this one up with their brushes-love them too and worth the $20+ per brush you pay, my two favs are the bisque brush and the handi buki-love it!!!

3. Hair care-didn't use to be, but Hollie has changed my ways. My current favs are Big Sexy Hair-Sleek and Shine and Pureology hydrading shampoo and conditioner.

4. Watches-Shane got me a nice Skagen(not too expensive, but nice) for my b-day last year and it can get wet, I haven't had to replace the battery like you do on cheaper watches.

5. Photos- it's so worth it to have nice quality photos of your family. You can never get that time back, but the photo can always remind you of the memory.

6. Cameras- along the lines of the previous-you can tell a difference in quality of photos that come from a good quality camera. Still love my Cannon Rebel that uses film (gasp!), but I don't use it as often as I'd like to. Digital is a lot easier.

7. Flowers- I love flowers in my yard and don't mind spending some money on them every year. Some people don't want to spend money on annuals (and that's fine), but I do love the punch of color they give you your yard.

8. Bedding- I got cheap bedding from Walmart when we first moved into our new house and it looked terrible in 2 years. I just got much nicer bedding at Linens-n-things and I can tell it's such nicer quality. Hopefully it will last as long as my Mom's has and still look as good as hers (going on 8 years)

9. Jeans-I have to agree with Jacy on this one. It's worth the extra money to have a pair that fit decent and that you feel great in! Where are my Silver friscos?????

10. Kids clothing- for nice things such as Easter and Christmas I love to get my kids a nice outfit. I know it will wash up nice and they can wear it for months. Also kids jeans-I hate Old Navy jeans for boys-they get holes in the knees so fast. Gymboree jeans are worth the extra you have to spend.

steal:

1. Toilet paper-I don't care if it's not Charmin-if it gets the job done-I'm good.

2. Baby wipes- again don't have to have Huggies or Pampers, Kirtland Brand is fine. Think of the job you are doing and then you are throwing it away. Why waste the money?

3. Food-for the most part I don't buy brand name, I usually buy the cheapest I can find.

4. Shoes-I love shoes at Ross and TJ Maxx-that way if they go out of style I don't feel bad. Also-I've been told by my Mom that I am hard on shoes and I really am beginning to believe her.

5. Clothes for me-I do like nice things, but I won't spend a lot on summer t-shirts. I usually wear them 2 seasons or summer at most then I want new stuff.

6. Cars- one of our cars is paid off and the other will be paid off in Oct (yeah!) I seriously don't care to have a new car (unless of course it was free). Don't get me wrong I like new, but I will be so glad to not have a car payment, and really I don't know if I want a NEW car. I will really be ok with something used as long as it's been taken care of and has low miles.

7. Food storage-this goes back with food. I love doing coupons and getting a ton of stuff for $35. (I have called Jenni and Kim plenty of times to tell them my deals at Albertsons! Ha! Ha!)

8. Books-when I can get a book at the Library why pay for it at a book store? That is a no-brainer for me.

9. pots for flowers- I am not willing to spend $30+ per pot. I found a great deal at Sam's club this spring and got them for $9.87 each and they are the cute ones that look like stone.

10. Cute ones-speaking of cute ones (Jenni and Hollie know) I will not pay alot. Generic is fine with me!

and the rains came tumbling down....

It's monsoon season here in Utah-yes I said monsoon. Seriously. The monsoons have been coming up from Arizona into our lovely, dry, deseret. I love this for many reasons: 1. I love the smell of rain 2. I love the sound of rain 3. I love the sound of thunder 4. I love green grass without turning on 2ndary water (those who have it know my complaints-it sometimes smells like Utah Lake) 5. I love a break from watering the flowers! All fab reasons to enjoy the summer rain. NOTE TO SELF: DO NOT and I repeat DO NOT leave the house with the windows wide open when skies are grey and cloudy. So I got our carpets cleaned yesterday (finally!) They look awesome! Our poor carpet cleaner burned his foot so he had to reschedule until yesterday-he's gonna be ok. Anyhow-the carpets were so dirty this time and he (Jim from White Glove) did a great job-no more stains. It looks like new carpet again, we're back to NO shoes on the carpet. So when he finished he said I could open some windows since it was quite hot outside and turn the ceiling fans on high and that would help the carpet dry faster. Great-or so I thought. Connor and I left for Nordstrom to get some Bare Escentuals (whole other post) and I was planning to be back in about 1 hr. As I came out of Nordies it was sprinkling. I didn't think too much about it until I was on I-15 and it was pouring! Then the realization came that I had 3 huge windows WIDE open! AHHH! Luckily the window above the leather love seat was not getting the rain in it. Peyton and Connor's window seals were sopping wet, along with their blinds! At least the blinds in their rooms are clean now. HA!

So after I got the windows closed Shane got home from work and it started raining even harder. It was so amazing! I have never seen rain so big and so much so fast. Our builders didn't do the greatest job grading our lots (grumble, grumble) so all of us have low spots. Our foundations are great-it's at the edge of our properties. In our backyard we have 4 of us that don't have fences (love it!). It's like one giant backyard. Our cute neighbors, Tyler and Amber have this great playset that is dug down into the ground with wooden edging and then filled with the shredded rubber. When the rains started, they playset started to fill up. It was like a waterfall over the wooden edging! I was pretty cool to watch. I wish I had a picture of the water running in. The news said the monsoon should be subsiding so we will be back to HOT, HOT, and HOTTER with no relief by next week. Goodbye rains-I'll miss you.

Tanners Flat 7.27.07

This past spring we bought a pop-up camper trailer from a neighbor that I used to run with. They moved to southern Utah and didn't have a place to store it, so they decided to sell. Anyway-we are actually in a timeshare on it with our next door neighbors-Bill and Barb (love them!) We took the camper out on our 1st offical camping trip on Friday night. We had so much fun! We drove up to Tanner's Flat early Friday to get a 1st come, 1st serve spot and managed to get one. The kids had a blast playing in a little creek that ran near our campsite. We took them over to Little Cottonwood Creek (which isn't so little) and they both loved throwing rocks into the creek. What is it with kids and water?

My Mom and Dad came up and stayed overnight with us, and Hollie and Jeff also came up for a yummy dutch oven and brought stuff for s'mores. Thanks everyone for your help!! Can I just say that Hollie has the biggest sunglasses ever? (see picture) Hello-I look like Nicole Riche-they are so big-either that or I have a really small face.

Peyton went to school again this morning (1st day riding the bus to school). He was so tired and onery this weekend from being at school ALL day. Connor and I are hanging out today-doing some cleaning and hopefully the carpet cleaner will be here for my 9am cleaning-yeah!

1st grader at last!

Yesterday was Peyton's 1st day of 1st grade! He was so excited. I looked in his room at around 7:ooam to see if he was still asleep. He was totally awake with a huge grin on his face. He asked me if it was morning yet, when I told him it was he got so excited! I told him to lay back down for awhile while I made breakfast and got in the shower. I made him German Pancakes for breakfast (see below). While I was making breakfast, showering, making beds, etc. I totally had a new appreciation for my Mom. She raised 6 kids and I NEVER remember eating cereal before school. She always made us pancakes, cornbread, eggs and toast, cracked wheat, something hot for breakfast everyday! Even in HS when I had to be at dance co. at 6 am she would often times get up and make me something while I was in the shower. Thanks Mom! You rock! I don't know how you did it with all 6 of us!

Connor and I spent all day away from home doing various errands, and it was so nice not to have to rush home for kindergarten. I will admit that when I pulled out of the school parking lot I did get teary and I was remembering bringing Peyton home, waiting with anticipation for his arrival, and it just being he and I for 3 years until Connor joined our fam. He's really my little bud. I totally miss him!

When I picked Peyton up from school he was so cute. He LOVES 1st grade. Here's some of the funny things he said after I picked him up: "I feel like I'm grown-up", "it went pretty well", "I like 1st grade, but it's pretty long". He was being so funny. He also told me he made a new friend, Noah that sits at his table. He said when it was time to leave school he told Noah that "it was nice to meet you." What? How cute is that?

Last night I went to Bunko which is always a blast. Jacy hosted and did a fab job! Yummy salads from Rumbi and cinnamom rolls. I won two yummy apple candles-yum! I've been having an apple candle problem lately, so I was really happy to win two new apple scents! Thanks Jace!

(so Idon't know why the pictures are right by each other-still need to figure that one out)

German Pancakes:

4 eggs

1 c. flour

1 c. milk

4 Tlb. Butter

melt butter and pour into a 9x13 pan. Mix all other ingredients together and pour over melted butter. Bake @ 400 for 20 mins.

Serve with syrup, jam or powdered sugar. *We like powdered sugar the best!*

Yeah! My very own blog!

Ok-for those that knew my frustration level at not being able to start a blog (Jenni has heard my rantings ), I finally got my computer to cooperate! I am beginning to think maybe it was operator error-couldn't be. Anywho-I love reading everyone else's blogs and am excited to add my own thoughts and ramblings to the vast space out there.

Summer has gone so fast for us since Peyton only got a 3 1/2 week break from school (year round). He starts 1st grade (gasp!) on Wednesday and couldn't be more excited! Seriously where did the time go? He just came home from the hospital and is still my little boy. I seriously remember 1st grade, it wasn't that long ago right?