Innocent Evening

After yesterday's scandalous luncheon, Whitney and I had a very innocent evening at the church with all the mothers and daughters of the ward. It was a "Hats Off to Summer" activity which involved making and decorating silly hats and then modeling them for each other, plus ice cream sundaes for dessert.


Whitney had been bonkers with excitement for the past couple of weeks in anticipation of this night out. She gathered some buttons, felt and foam flower stickers to decorate the straw hats I found at Target yesterday for $2.50 each.

I was seriously impressed with the crazy bonnet-type hats people came up with using paper plates, tissue paper, silk flowers and ribbon.

This hat was made with a paper plate, a cheap sundae cup filled with things and ribbon to hold it on.

This was the fanciest hat of the night and was seriously impressive because it actually stayed on her head.


There were a couple other straw hats and a sombrero with ribbon on it. The cutest part of the night was seeing all the mothers with their daughters and granddaughters though, it was very sweet.

Whitney had a definite artistic vision (that's no surprise) and ended up adding a bell to the ribbon that hung off the back of her hat, along with some other felt pieces she attached to some embroidery floss. She ended up winning the "Adorably Awesome" award for her hat, and was given a package of 550 stickers.


Working with the straw hats meant sewing things on. I had brought needles and embroidery floss at the last minute, but it was pretty time consuming so we didn't have time to get very fancy. I was glad of that because I did NOT have an artistic vision for this. (Yes, I've been doing self-surgery on my face again, hence the red blotch my my eye.)

{Riveting video of Whitney's big win.}

This was such a unique activity and made for a fun night out with Whitney. It reminded me of how easy she is to please. She loved working on her hat and love, love, loved the ice cream sundaes. Oh to be like that again...

**Have you ever decorated hats before?
Would you have modeled yours proudly?
What do you like on an ice cream sundae?**

Scandalous Luncheon

Today while at lunch with Lori at Thanksgiving Point we sat down in our usual spot to eat. I got there before Lori did so as I was sitting there by myself I could hear the conversation going on at the table behind me. I could NOT believe my ears. The man sitting there seemed to be recruiting the woman he was talking to into some sort of swingers lifestyle!


Lori and I tried to eat our lunch in peace, but there was just no way we could have regular lunch chatting with such a bizarre and shocking conversation going on a mere 12 inches away from us. I don't know how she kept a straight face during all of it, because she was facing the guy the whole time. At least I could make faces of disgust and dismay for only her to see.


We had just finished eating our lunch and were about to dive into our slice of chocolate-covered cheese cake (oh so decadent) when he started to get specific. I heard the words "Nothing arouses me more..." and then we hopped out of our chairs to go eat outside! What in the world? This is Utah county for Pete's sake. I'm officially scandalized and grossed out.


We thought we might be on candid camera or something, but so far there's no sign of Alan Funt.

**What would you have done?
Would you have been freaked out?
Have you ever overheard something like this?

Just Not the Same

Monday is here again which means we went to Seven Peaks with Amie and her kids again (Michelle is at Snowbird this week with Marc's family). We actually got there 5 minutes before they opened today (along with about 30 other people) so we got to stand in line and wait for them to scan our passes.


Amie and I have a (mental) running list of grievances going with this place, so we keep joking about sending them a letter. I don't think they'd care much for our input, but it sure would make things nicer for us if they'd make some changes.


Here are a few of our suggestions.
--Open both parking lots rather than making everyone park at the top and then walk down to where we set up camp for the day. How hard is it to have an employee look at passes in the parking lot and another to scan passes at the 2nd entrance?

--Have ALL the attractions open. This seems like a no brainer, but apparently it's a brainer for them. They spent almost all of last summer (hello, that's the only time they're open) working on a new slide which actually meant closing the Lazy River several times as well...duh.

--This summer they have one of the big, main kiddie pools closed for repairs or something. Fortunately our kids are past this stage, but if we had little kids this would be very disappointing, plus this puts all those people in to the other areas thus making it more crowded.

--DON'T WATER THE GRASS IN THE MORNING! We went to our regular spot today and the sprinklers were on. Good hell, really?! Shouldn't they be watering in the middle of the night? That was just lame. The place we ended up camping-out was wet too. Isn't there enough mud and wet grass going on without starting the day that way?

--How about subscribing to XM radio so we can be commercial free and not have to hear the same songs over and over? We were there for 6.5 hours today and heard the same 5 commercials about 20 times. It was highly obnoxious and sometimes not kid-friendly (there were commercials for stretch marks and breast augmentation, do little kids need to hear this?)

--I'd also like there to be a ban on band-aids at the park. It seems like many people show up wearing them but NOBODY ends up leaving with them...gross.


I'll stop here for now, but really don't these things seem obvious? Back to our day. Because of the sprinkler debacle we had to find a new place to set up for the day. We don't like to change and have been hanging out at the same spot for 3 years now. We were there early enough to have our pick of the place but still didn't end up loving the set up. It was too open so we ended up being surrounded on all sides by people determined to get cozy with us. I actually got sunscreen in my eye from being down wind of somebody's spray kind!


The concept of personal space doesn't seem to exist there. As the day went on and more and more people arrived it seemed to mean any open blade of grass was fair game, even if that blade of grass was touching ours. We had a group camping so close to us today that it felt like we should be offering the lady our snacks and asking for her opinion on our conversation! Good grief.

{How funny is it that our coolers match us?}

Amie and I ended up being cold in the shade of the trees we were under today, that's a first. We weren't even wet and yet still got cold. We moved our chairs into the sun for about a half hour of the time, but then retreated back to the shade and hung out under our towels. It was only in the 70's today and it was breezy so the kids kept coming back to us with goose bumps. It's supposed to be summer right?

I failed to mention (until now) that our day just wasn't the same without the hot guy from last week. I missed him so. Amie did point out a man near us who was laying out on his towel and scrunched up his shorts so as not to get such a low tan line...yikes!

Amie and I did manage to walk over to see the kids on the rope swing (their new favorite so far this year). I'm so delighted that my kids can make it to the edge of the 9 ft deep pool, they're not that strong of swimmers, but improved greatly last summer thanks to a few private lessons.

**Do you have mental grievance lists?
Have you ever actually sent one?
Would you go to the water park
if the high was 76 degrees?
Do you have issues with personal space?**

Sunday Thoughts

Today's Sharing Time was on how our tithing helps build temples. But part of the lesson was Malachi 3:10.

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the Lord of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.


I explained to the kids that this means that Lord promises us more blessings than we can receive when we pay our tithing. (In our church we pay 10 percent of our gross income in tithing.) I had them all draw pictures or write a list of all the blessings they could think of. It was so heart-warming to watch them get into it. The little kids drew pictures of their families, houses, and food mostly, and the older kids listed all kinds of things they're thankful for. I took 1 minute of the time and wrote a list of 21 things I was thankful for.

After that I had them wad their papers into a ball (if they weren't too attached to them) and then put them in a big basket I had brought with me. I then had the biggest man in the room come up front and make a circle with his arms. Then I dumped the basket full of papers (blessings) into his arms to see if he could hold them all. There were so many they filled his arms and spilled over onto the floor around him. The kids loved it and totally got the point of that scripture in Malachi. (Oh how I wish I could take pictures in primary, it was magical.)


It was a great reminder for me, because even though Randy's job situation has challenged us we are still greatly blessed with so many things, and I know it's because we pay our tithing every month. We don't dwell on the loss of that money, because we know it wasn't ours to begin with. The Lord has given us everything we have, so giving 10 percent back is the least we can do.

**When was the last time you made
a list of your blessings?
What do you think??**

Up at 6:00 on a Saturday?!

Edited to add: I removed the slideshow because hearing the music every time I clicked on to my blog was driving me crazy!!! (Monday 6/9/08)

We did our first ever 3 Generation Family 5k this morning in the rain out in freakin Eagle Mountain. I also created my first ever slide show with music, though somehow have "demo template" on it #*?@!. Oh well, I'm not doing it over again. Enjoy!

**The pictures are in case the video doesn't load and for future blog publishing.

Before the race. What in the world? There were like 50 people, what's up with that?

My dad and Olivia, cute.

We got passed by almost the whole family.

Video of Jared, Landon and Austin passing us.

Tess and Adam at the finish.

Whitney had a hard time with this "race" but loved finishing.

Our family shot (courtesy of Kelly) in our matching t-shirts.

Victory!

Classic note from my mom.

Wording by me!

Bacon!

Randy and I were so tired from getting up early and doing our power walk that we crashed when we got home at 1:00. I slept until 4:30!! Good grief. This day feels like several days in one, and the wacky weather is definitely contributing to that feeling.

**Have you ever done a 5k?
Do you love bacon?
What do you think of our t-shirts?
(Randy designed them.)**

Creative Friday--Week 2 of Summer

Creative Friday started off a little rough this week with the kids all wanting lunch as soon as I got there. Michelle and I did a double-mom trick of making quesadillas, soup and paninis in the kitchen so that everyone got fed and out of there before we ate. Phew! We were starting to feel doomed again, but fortunately it passed.

We had soup and paninis again, and I've decided I'd be happy to eat this every Friday forever.


Michelle set up this table and chairs outside for the boys to have their board-game tournament so that they wouldn't be in the family room right next to us. This was a genius idea which we're hoping will work well through the rest of the summer even when it gets hot.


I didn't accomplish very much. I wrote 4 cards and mod-podged the cover of my Sunday notebook. I managed to make it look worse though because I didn't take the binding off the covers (lazy girl) and ended up with an unsightly edge of the original book. I fear I may scorn my beloved notebook now.

Michelle created a bunch of darling birthday cards and tags for sending to bloggers on their birthday. She's got a good thing going there for sure.


Our weekly self-portrait. We've finally figured out where to go outside for good lighting. How many years did that take?

**Do you have a Sunday notebook?
Do you make cards or tags at home?
Could you eat soup and paninis weekly?**

200 Things A La Jane

I swiped this from Kristi's blog...but I adore Jane too!

Today in her newsletter Neighbor Jane Payne had this list of 200 things in honor of her 200th newsletter. She invited anyone who wanted to to put them on their blog as a way of journaling some things they have done or not done in their life.

All you have to do is copy the list and bold what you have done.

200 Have and Have nots!

1. Touched an iceberg

2. Slept under the stars

3. Been a part of a hockey fight

4. Changed a baby's diaper

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity

7. Swam with wild dolphins

8. Climbed a mountain

9. Held a tarantula (good heavens NO!)

10. Said "I love you" and meant it

11. Bungee jumped

12. Visited Paris (woohoo!)

13. Watched a lightning storm at sea

14. Stayed up all night long and watched the sun rise

15. Seen the Northern Lights

16. Gone to a huge sports game

17. Walked the stairs to the top of the Statue of Liberty

18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables

19. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope

20. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment

(Once during a piano recital I was watching with friends, we scarred the poor kid for life and it had nothing to do with him.)

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Bet on a winning horse

23. Taken a sick day when you're not ill

24. Built a snow fort

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Taken an ice cold bath

28. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar

29. Seen a total eclipse

30. Ridden a roller coaster

(Though I'm not doing this any more, ick.)

31. Hit a home run

32. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking

33. Adopted an accent for fun

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors

35. Felt very happy about your life, even for just a moment

36. Loved your job 90% of the time

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Watched wild whales

39. Gone rock climbing

40. Gone on a midnight walk on the beach

41. Gone sky diving

42. Visited Ireland

43. Ever bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited India

45. Bench-pressed your own weight

46. Milked a cow

47. Alphabetized your personal files

48. Ever worn a superhero costume

49. Sung karaoke

50. Lounged around in bed all day

51. Gone scuba diving

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater

55. Done something you should regret, but don't (my mind is blank for this, but does that make me boring?)

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Been in a movie

(It wasn't an official movie, but it involved multiple takes and was amateurish but cool.)

60. Gone without food for 3 days

61. Made cookies from scratch

62. Won first prize in a costume contest

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Been in a combat zone

65. Spoken more than one language fluently

66. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone

67. Bounced a check

68. Read - and understood - your credit report

69. Recently bought and played with a favorite childhood toy

70. Found out something significant that your ancestors did

71. Called or written your Congress person

72. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over

73. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge

74. Helped an animal give birth

75. Been fired or laid off from a job

76. Won money

77. Broken a bone

78. Ridden a motorcycle

79. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100 mph

80. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon

81. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing

82. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days

83. Eaten sushi

84. Had your picture in the newspaper

85. Read The Bible cover to cover

86. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about

87. Gotten someone fired for their actions

88. Gone back to school

89. Changed your name

90. Caught a fly in the air with your bare hands

91. Eaten fried green tomatoes

92. Read The Iliad

93. Taught yourself an art from scratch

94. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

95. Apologized to someone years after inflicting the hurt

96. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language

97. Been elected to public office

98. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream

99. Had to put someone you love into hospice care

100. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you

(If good mail labels count.)

101. Had a booth at a street fair

102. Dyed your hair

103. Been a DJ

104. Rocked a baby to sleep

105. Ever dropped a cat from a high place to see if it really lands on all four

106. Raked your carpet

107. Brought out the best in people

108. Brought out the worst in people

109. Worn a mood ring

110. Ridden a horse

111. Carved an animal from a piece of wood or bar of soap

112. Cooked a dish where four people asked for the recipe

113. Buried a child

114. Gone to a Broadway (or equivalent to your country) play

115. Been inside the pyramids

116. Shot a basketball into a basket

117. Danced at a disco

118. Played in a band

119. Shot a bird

120. Gone to an arboretum

121. Tutored someone

122. Ridden a train

123. Brought an old fad back into style

124. Eaten caviar

125. Let a salesman talk you into something you didn’t need

126. Ridden a giraffe or elephant

127. Published a book

128. Pieced a quilt

129. Lived in an historic place

130. Acted in a play or performed on a stage

131. Asked for a raise

132. Made a hole-in-one

133. Gone deep sea fishing

134. Gone roller skating

135. Run a marathon

136. Learned to surf

137. Invented something

138. Flown first class

139. Spent the night in a 5-star luxury suite

140. Flown in a helicopter

141. Visited Africa

142. Sang a solo

143. Gone spelunking

144. Learned how to take a compliment

145. Written a love-story

146. Seen Michelangelo’s David

147. Had your portrait painted

148. Written a fan letter

( To Ricky Schroeder back in 1982)

149. Spent the night in something haunted

(Nope, won't do it, never, never, never)

150. Owned a St. Bernard or Great Dane

151. Ran away

152. Learned to juggle

153. Been a boss

154. Sat on a jury

155. Lied about your weight

156. Gone on a diet

157. Found an arrowhead or a gold nugget

158. Written a poem

159. Carried your lunch in a lunchbox

160. Gotten food poisoning

161. Gone on a service, humanitarian or religious mission

162. Hiked the Grand Canyon

163. Sat on a park bench and fed the ducks

164. Gone to the opera

165. Gotten a letter from someone famous

(Ricky Schroeder wrote me back.)

166. Worn knickers

167. Ridden in a limousine

168. Attended the Olympics

169. Can hula or waltz

170. Read a half dozen Nancy Drew or Hardy Boys books

171. Been stuck in an elevator

172. Had a revelatory dream

173. Thought you might crash in an airplane

174. Had a song dedicated to you on the radio or at a concert

175. Saved someone’s life

(I gave my sister the Heimlich Maneuver when I was 5)

176. Eaten raw whale

177. Know how to tat, smock or do needlepoint

178. Laughed till your side hurt

179. Straddled the equator

180. Taken a photograph of something other than people that is worth framing

181. Gone to a Shakespeare Festival

182. Sent a message in a bottle

183. Spent the night in a hostel

184. Been a cashier

185. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

186. Joined a union

187. Donated blood or plasma

188. Built a campfire

189. Kept a blog

190. Had hives

191. Worn custom made shoes or boots

192. Made a PowerPoint presentation

193. Taken a Hunter’s Safety Course

194. Served at a soup kitchen

195. Conquered the Rubik’s cube

196. Know CPR

197. Ridden in or owned a convertible

198. Found a long lost friend

199. Helped solve a crime

200. Responded to a NJP newsletter

**Will you do this too?**

Blogger's Block?

How is it possible that I feel like I have nothing to say? Maybe it's because this is the first week of summer vacation so my routine is shot and I feel like I can't account for my time. Who knows?


The good thing is that I'm more in-sorts than out of sorts, but still feel a little bit lost. The kids seem to be trying to cram in as much time playing with friends as possible, as if they only have this week to do so. Landon especially, so though it's nice that they're busy and having fun it still kind of feels like a bit much. Particularly because yesterday and today have involved playing until almost bedtime. I realize I'm the parent/boss here and can put a stop to that if it bothers me, I'm just not sure if it does. The only problem I really have with it is that it makes the day feel so long.


Whitney started the orthodontic process (which will last many years I'm sure) yesterday morning. I took her to get molds of her mouth done and some x-rays. She goes back next week to get an appliance put in the roof of her mouth which will slowly spread her palate apart to fix whatever Binky-related damage she's got going on in there.


She took it like a champ even though the goo for the mold-making process made her gag. I almost had a fit of giggles when they were taking pictures of her teeth and had her mouth pulled so far open. Seriously, if it had gone on much longer I would have lost it. Apparently we should have started an orthodontics fund when she was a baby. Of course, that would mean saving money (we never had any money TO save) which we never do. We're hosed.


Lori and I met for our weekly lunch on Tuesday, so I guess that's still part of my routine. We'll see if things change if Randy ends up going to work at some point, but for now he's around enough that it makes it mighty easy for me to go out without the kids. I just don't have as much funding for shopping. I believe that's what we call a Catch-22.

Other than that, I've got a family 5k this Saturday which starts ridiculously early and is in freakin Eagle Mountain, I have to do Sharing Time on Sunday (again!), and I seem to be getting fatter each day. Is this what happens when you stop being gymalicious? Oh the humanity.

**Are you in or out of sorts?
Do you have orthodontics in your life?
How is your routine/summer mojo?**

Out of Sorts--A Poem

My head hurts.
It's a rainy day.
The fissure on my forehead is large.
I don't feel like doing anything.
I'm hungry.
I'm not going to book club tonight.
What's up with the universe?

Except, look what I made today! This is attempt #2 at Marc's Take-Out Challenge.

Monthly Special--June

Michelle's husband Marc is a great photographer and has some serious technical skills. He has started a new do-it-yourself blog and will be issuing monthly challenges complete with step-by-step instructions. This is very cool and will be fun. Here is the description from Marc's blog.

"Take-out photo" is meant to be the free "to-go" DIY version of Marc Olivier Photography. Since I'm project-oriented, I have organized the blog around the idea of a "Monthly Special" (which, by the way, was inspired by seeing my wife participate in Self-Portrait Tuesdays). Most posts each month will relate to a "Monthly Special" challenge/project, often inspired by work I do for clients. Using "Mister Linky," I will encourage (read: beg) creative bloggers out there participate by posting their results and linking them to the Monthly Special Post.

So here is my attempt at project #1. Woohoo is all I have to say. I had a pixel/inch trauma at step 6, but the groove buster was able to help me figure that out today so I could move on. Everything else was super user-friendly and easy to follow. I will most likely start making these grids out of everything! Thanks Marc!

**Do you have Photoshop skills?
Will you take Marc's challenge?
How did I do?**

It's That Time Again

The time when people all over Utah County cringe as I dawn my bathing suit ensemble (which includes board shorts and a t-shirt for the safety of others) and bare my bluish white legs. Cries are heard across the land and children weep at the sight of me, but I am a nice mother (sometimes) and wriggled myself into my bathing suit (that was a workout) for the sake of the my children.


This is our 5th summer (right Amie?) having season passes for the water park. Convincing me to do this was extremely difficult, but Amie is very persuasive and somehow bamboozled me into it, so I bamboozled Michelle as well.


We've got it good now that the kids are older and are better swimmers. They can go down the slides, swim in the lazy river and the wave pool without us. It's luxurious. Today Amie and I didn't even get wet (except for when the kids came back to check in and accidentally dripped on us). We're not opposed to getting wet, but since they don't need us or necessarily want us with them and because it wasn't very hot today we never got wet. We hung out at our little camp from 11:30-6:30! That was a first.


I was ill-prepared for this first outing of the season and didn't have many good snacks packed so that area could use some improvement. Also, even though we reapplied sunscreen twice the kids got rather red, especially Landon (poor kid). Good thing we brought the cooler eh?

Hanging out chatting almost interruption free all day with Amie was nice, but the other highlight of the day was the extremely hot guy who camped out near us. He made me lose my train of thought more than once and even caused me to gasp a couple times. His girlfriend was equally hot, but I didn't let that keep me from checking him out.

This sort of thing is a rare occurrence at 7 Peaks because the vast majority of bodies there are frightening. There aren't that many guys there anyway, but oh my goodness this guy surely was. I felt like a giddy teenager! (He's in the red shorts. I was merely taking a picture of our feet and he just happened to be in the background.)

**How do you feel about wearing a bathing suit?
Do you like to people watch?
Have you ever been reduced to giddiness by a stranger?**

Sunday Thoughts

We sang Reverently and Meekly Now today as our Sacrament song and several interesting things occurred.

1. Landon leaned over to me and said "This is the longest hymn ever!"
2. The young men were done preparing the sacrament by the end of the first of four verses!
3. The song felt long at first, but then ended up being great preparation for taking the sacrament because the slowness of it led us to focus on the words.
4. It inspired multiple testimonies today.


Reverently and meekly now, Let thy head most humbly bow.
Think of me, thou ransomed one; Think what I for thee have done.

With my blood that dripped like rain, Sweat in agony of pain.
With my body on the tree I have ransomed even thee.

In this bread now blest for thee, Emblem of my body see;
In this water or this wine, Emblem of my blood divine.
Oh, remember what was done That the sinner might be won.
On the cross of Calvary I have suffered death for thee.

Bid thine heart all strife to cease; With thy brethren be at peace.
Oh, forgive as thou wouldst be E'en forgiven now by me.
In the solemn faith of prayer Cast upon me all thy care,
And my Spirit's grace shall be Like a fountain unto thee.
(I love the 3rd verse especially!)

At the throne I intercede; For thee ever do I plead.
I have loved thee as thy friend, With a love that cannot end.
Be obedient, I implore, Prayerful, watchful ever more,
And be constant unto me, That thy Savior I may be.

The conducting Bishopric member bore his testimony of the importance of keeping Christ as the constant in our lives (as mentioned in the last line of the last verse). He pointed out that as we face the many changes that come our way, it is our faith in Christ as our constant source of strength that we are able to deal with those things.

In our ward this year so far we've had many births, a tragic death, people moving in and out, job losses (hello!), health issues, spiritual struggles, and so on. How would we deal with those things without Christ and His Atonement as our constant strength? Seriously, how do people do it?!


As the meeting went on this theme of constancy continued in other people's testimonies. It reminded me that we have no idea what's going on in other people's lives, not just in their homes but in their extended families as well. So we all need to look to Christ with His love that won't end and to give Him our burdens rather than shouldering them alone. It's such a relief when we remember to do this or finally figure out how.

**Thoughts??**