Sunday, September 30, 2007

Send In The Clowns



Aren't my clowns so cute? Last night, we finally took the boys to the circus. They have asked us for years, so I surprised them all with tickets. We all had a great time. Before the circus started, we went to dinner at the Red Iguana, which is my favorite Mexican restaurant. It was such a cold day, I couldn't believe that it actually snowed. Mark braved the U game with Will. The smart ones decided to stay home and watch movies while Max napped :)






Will and Ben trying on the costumes



Max didn't really love the circus. He was a little tired and it was hard to keep him sitting in one place for two hours. Doesn't Mark look like he is having so much fun? It was fun, it was more fun just being together as a family.




At least now we can say that we've been to the circus!!!

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Bean Museum & BYU Earth Science Museum



When I told my mom we were going to the Bean Museum for Will's field trip today, she said, "Is there really a museum about beans at BYU?"

Today I had the opportunity to be with Will on his first 2ND grade field trip. My morning started a little earlier than usual, so I am a little tired this evening. I had to be up and ready before I got Will and Ben up for school. I was able to ride the bus with his class. I was a little hesitant... Last year for his 1st grade field trip, we went to Red Butte Gardens. On the way home, a boy sitting on the seats across the aisle from us, blew chunks. I thought for sure that we were going to have a Stand By Me moment. It was horrible. Throw up rolling all around our feet. Me, my head out the window the whole way home. I felt so bad for the teachers, they had to deal with it. I just got to completely ignore the situation as it was going on next to me, for fear that I would be next. We didn't have an experience like that this time, thankfully!

One of the benefits of going on the field trip was to spend some time with Will, without Ben and Max around. Just some quality time on the bus for the long ride to BYU. Well, this is what happened....



I got the sit by some some cute little girls and Will. They got to choose their groups, and our group consisted mainly of girls and Will. He is already a ladies man, and he is only in the 2ND grade. The little girl in the white hoodie is his good friend. Apparently they play every day together at recess and he wants to call her to have her come play at our house after school. I hesitate. It is cute that they are friends, but I don't think her mom would approve. What do you guys think? I haven't let him call her. I don't want that to start, ever!



These are the kids I was responsible for on our journey today. Mrs. White kept getting mad at my kids on the bus. I felt a little inadequate, not keeping a good enough eye on them. Making sure that they keep "their bottoms on the seat" and "legs and heads out of the aisle". I wonder sometimes why I didn't go into education......

Scaredy Cat

I ran to Target the other day with Max in tow. I thought it would be fun to peruse the Halloween aisle in search of a new fun decoration and to see if Max would react to the scariness of the decor. He was so funny! Yes, he was afraid. I kept searching for new items to get his reaction and laughing hard when he reacted. We bought this....


and it hangs in our home now. Max is slowly warming up to him. He talks and sticks his eyes and tongue out at the end of every sentence.

Monday, September 24, 2007

I must be mellowing in my old age.....

YELLOW

You are very perceptive and smart. You are clear and to the point and have a great sense of humor. You are always learning and searching for understanding.

Find out your color at QuizMeme.com!


I'm usually a red. It must be being a mother and a wife that has tamed me down a bit.

Saturday, September 22, 2007

Don't I Have Such a Cute Little Girl...


Am I a mean mom or what?



I guess it might be time to cut the top of Max's hair. It is really starting to hang in his eyes. So, I made him into a cute little girl. I think he could really pass. Don't let my brother see this. He may have flashbacks from when he was little. That is what he got for being the little brother to two big sisters! We would go so far as to put dresses on him. I won't do that to Max, Mark would KILL me.

Isn't it too early for him to start picking his nose?




Yes, I am bored today. Mark has been working all day outside and I've been cleaning inside, but now I am ready to do something. We have a babysitter coming at four so we can go shopping and out to dinner!!! YAAAHOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Mad Max





Max is so much fun! He is starting to throw tantrums when he doesn't get his way. Tonight we were teasing him, which I know isn't nice, but it was so funny! He loves buttons, so when he found a Nintendo DS, he was in heaven. I know I've said this before, but we all have so much fun with him. I have to really watch him. If our front door isn't locked, he will open the door and sit on the step, watching the world go by. He can go down stairs, but needs help turning around to start. Tonight he did it all by himself at our neighbors house. He loves books and dogs (from a distance). He loves to be tickled and chewed on. Whenever we stop, he pulls our head back down to his tummy or says "tck tck". Bugs and flys catch his eye, he loves to smash ants with his pointer finger. His hair is awesome. I had someone at the U game refer to him as a girl. I just cannot bring myself to cut it and probably won't for a while. He lets me comb his "pretties". He loves shoes. A few days ago we went to Nordstrom and bought him a couple pair of new shoes. He lifts his foot up to have me put them on. He loves to be chased around the house and pats our hand to give us a "5". They grow up way too fast, so I really need to sit back and enjoy every minute!

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

What the ???

So we are having a sports court installed in our backyard and an RV pad installed along the side of our home. What a mess!! Anyways, I was in my home today and looked out the window and saw this...



Yes, that is our contractor that we've hired to complete this work for us. I just had to laugh. And you wonder why they get such a bad wrap. Anyone need a good concrete guy?

I came home from Will's eye doctor appointment to dirt spread all over my driveway and he (the contractor) no where in sight. I swept it up as fast as I could before it got drug into my clean house and garage. My timing is impeccable. I spent so much time yesterday while Max was asleep, cleaning out my garage. I removed everything, swept and pressure washed the floor. I probably should have waited a week to clean the garage, now I am just fighting to keep the dirt out so my good work wasn't done in vain. Yes, I am proud of myself. I even pressure washed the lawnmower!

(He showed back up this evening with broom in hand. Too bad it was already swept up!)

Saturday, September 15, 2007

GO UTES!!




Today we went to our first game of the season. We missed last week because Mark and I went to Spamalot at Capitol Theater and dinner at Setebello (highly recommend) which is a fairly new pizza restaurant downtown. We changed our tickets this season, so we sat in a different location and purchased more tickets so we have room to spread out and take our boys. Max was a little difficult, but all in all, we had a great time. Especially since they won!!! It was such a great game. They played UCLA and I actually paid attention this time (I usually just watch the people).

We had a good day today. I attended Cardio Kickboxing with two of my neighbors at the gym. I need to start making a better effort of working out. With Will and Ben, my body bounced right back, but with Max, I've struggled. I am back to my pre-pregnancy weight, but I just don't look the same and I need to tone up. I can hardly wait to see what happens if I have another baby! There were only two men in the class and they were so funny to watch. Geez, and I thought I wasn't coordinated!!!

Having all boys, we are pretty into sports. I haven't been really, but am starting to slowly as my boys are involved in more activities. We've decided to have a basketball court installed in our back yard. At the same time, we are pouring an RV pad along the whole side of our house. Will and Ben are so excited! We've talked about doing this for a long time, but haven't because we've toyed around with the idea of moving. They are starting the job on Monday and should be done in one week. Hopefully they'll get to play before the snow falls.

*****Read Kami Bigler's blog about the fair, I promise, you'll laugh out loud!!*****

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

It's Official


My mom is getting re-married! The date is Friday, October 5th at 11:00 at Sundance. We are all so excited for her and we think Steve is great. They actually grew up together and he was great friends with my mom's brother, Brian. They ran into each other last summer at the airport and have dated basically since then. He lives in Payson, but will be moving to Salt Lake until my mom is able to retire. She teaches 4th grade and her school is so close to where she lives, that she doesn't want to move until she stops teaching.

My parents divorced the summer before my senion year at Brighton. She met and married Keith in 1995 and he passed away from Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma in January 2005. She and Steve have so much fun together! It will be great, we worry about her being alone. They got engaged officially Labor Day weekend, so this wedding is happening so fast! Why wait, right?? We had a little get together last Sunday at my mom's home. They thought it would be a good idea for the kids to meet, and it was great. We met three of the five kids he has and they were all so nice. His youngest just turned in her mission papers last week and the others are all married. All of us kids were laughing that we hadn't seen our parents all summer long. They drive to each others' house basically every day, which is a long way to go. I worry about my mom driving back to Sandy at night, so it will be nice when they are married. Yikes, it is only two weeks away! What am I going to wear???

Thursday, September 6, 2007

Having Fun!

Okay, last night I went out a purchased a scanner. I cannot believe that we don't own one yet, we own pretty much everything else. So, today I am having fun scanning pictures. It is so fun going through old photos that were taken before digital cameras. I'm going to post some that I like, in no relevant order... (and Mark wonders what I do all day)!



One of our engagement pictures & we look so young!!!


Mark home from the mission. Look how funny his dad looks with his moustache!!



Mark in Cape Verde, Africa. He served there for six months of his mission. I'll have to ask him where his garments are in this picture??? I've never noticed it before :)





I was just pregnant with Will. With my good friends, Stephanie, Mary and Sarah.



Me & Jen, Becky, Stephanie, Mary and Sarah


Sarah's wedding; she was the first to bite the bullet! We were all inseparable while the boys were on their missions. We had so much fun together. Videotaping dates, following each other on dates, we were crazy!!



This picture was taken during high school. One night, in a huge snowstorm, we didn't want to drive, so we went on a walk through Kellie's neighborhood to Jason Overbaughs house. From top to bottom, left to right, Amy, me, Karen, Sarah, Stephanie, Kellie and Summar. We all chose ugly hats from Kellie's winter supply and for gloves, we wore her socks on our hands. Those were the days, young and so carefree!

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Happy Anniversary to Us!!


Mark and I were married ten years ago today and it was a beautiful day!!! We met in October 1991 while hanging out with mutual friends. It was the night of the MORP dance at Brighton and we weren't old enough to date yet. We basically dated all through high school, with our relationship getting more serious our senior year and the year before he left on his mission. Mark served in the Portugal, Lisbon South Mission. I wrote him his whole mission, but there was a time where it kind of was getting old, so I used him changing locations as an excuse not to write. He called me at work one day (he was in the office), making sure that "no one was cutting the grass back home"! I laugh about that! He is the king of one liners. Mark returned home the night before Thanksgiving 1996 and when he got released the next morning, we couldn't keep our lips off of each other. We knew that we were going to get married and we were afraid to tell his parents that we wanted to get married. We knew that school was a high priority to them. My mom was all for it, asking when she could get a grandchild! When he finally talked to them, they were okay with the idea. Mark proposed on Valentines Day while eating dinner. It was so sweet! I had picked out my ring a few days before, so I was surprised that it happened that fast. I didn't think the ring would be ready.

Our wedding day was perfect. We had the typical mormon wedding. We were married in the Salt Lake Temple, had our wedding breakfast at the Lion House and our reception was held at the Old Meeting House. We spent our wedding night in Deer Valley and a few days later we were off to Oahu. My mom got us a condo in Waikiki and Mark's parents gave us our plane tickets. I got really sick while in Hawaii. We were able to do a session at the temple and to visit the Polynesian Cultural Center. But, most of the time was spent, sick, in the condo. Poor Mark. This was his first visit to Hawaii, and he spent most of it taking care of me and eating fast food from nearby restaurants. My mom picked us up from the airport and told me how "green" I looked. I was planning on going to work the next morning, but when I got up, I knew I couldn't and made Mark take me to the ER. I was admitted to the ICU with a severe kidney infection and spent the next week in the hospital. Mark had started school that week and had to work, so my mom spent every night/day with me. He was probably wondering what he had gotten himself into!


I am so blessed to have him as my husband. He is such a loving, wonderful husband and father. I am so proud of him! He is such a hard worker and so successful in his career and anything that he does. We seriously get along so well. He is my best friend and I am so blessed to have him as my eternal companion and that our boys have such a great example to follow. He sent me the most beautiful roses this morning. Max and I went and took him to lunch downtown and tonight we are going out with our kids. He surprised me a couple of months ago with tickets to Spamalot, so we are going to the show and dinner on Saturday night. Happy Anniversary Mark!!! We are planning a trip next month to celebrate. I really want to go to Monterey, California. I've heard it is beautiful. Has anyone been, know a great place to stay? We always go to California, but never Northern. We went to Maui last year, and been to NY. So, I want to go somewhere different. Any suggestions?

I need to buy a scanner to post some of our wedding pictures. Is that what I should do? How do you post old pictures (before digital)? What kind of scanner is best?

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Bees Game

Friday night we had Mark's office party at the Bees game. It was pretty fun. The fed us and bought out a whole section for the entire company so everyone could sit together.




There really were a lot of people there, but we stayed until the game was over. I guess this is what I have to look forward to having three sons. We had a few embarrassing situations happen to us while we were at the game. First off, we were all sitting around eating dinner. Someone dropped an empty can of Sprite on the ground and Max found it and was trying to pick it up. Will noticed this and took the can away from him. Suddenly, Will threw the can over a fence, out of the ball park. Everyone saw this, and thought it was quite funny! Will was so embarrassed. Next, while we were watching the game, Ben was lucky enough to have a player throw him a ball. Well, during the game, the ball dropped below the seats in front of ours. There just happened to be a puddle of standing water and the ball landed right in the water. Well, Ben reached down and picked up the ball and licked it clean! Yes, everyone EEEEWWWWW'd. They must seriously wonder about our parenting skills! Sometimes I even wonder.



This picture is of some of Mark's employees. Doug, his wife Lisa and Robert Tucker. OK, Robert Tucker is also know as "Tito" Tucker. For those of you Brighton alum, you should know Tito. He was the Bengal tiger at good old BHS. Mark had no idea that this was who he was going to interview for a job at the firm. When he came in, he figured it out. Funny. I sat next to him during the game. It was fun reminiscing with him about high school. He likes to go by Robert now, but I made sure that everyone know about "Tito". I'm sure he loves that!!

Doug with Max and Bumble. Max isn't sure what to think...





At the end of the game, yes, the end of the game, they let anyone who wanted to run the bases. (Seriously, I don't think I've ever stayed that long.)

Zermatt Resort



We just got back from a fun get away in Midway. We stayed at the Zermatt Resort and it was wonderful!!! The rooms are so comfortable, the restaurants were good, gelato and desserts at the bakery, the merry-go-round for the kids to ride, and the Sunday Brunch was delicious! They have a miniature golf course for all to play with putters and balls available for guests. I took the boys swimming last night while Mark slept with Max. They loved it! They thought it was so great to swim both indoor and outdoor in the same pool. We stayed at Little America last winter and they loved swimming outside in the snow. I highly recommend Zermatt!! We may even go up again before Christmas. We thought it would be a fun activity to do for Christmas with my family, instead of exchanging gifts! Maybe go sledding at Soldier Hollow, cross country ski or snowmobile at the Homestead. None of us really NEED gifts for Christmas. It is so much nicer spending quality time together as a family. We all have so much!! My kids don't need more toys - you should see their play room. We always struggle with what to give, especially our parents.

While up in Midway, we went to Swiss Days. It was so crowded. We walked through all the booths rather quickly and left. But, not before purchasing boys wooden guns that shoot rubber bands. Boy, that was a mistake. We fought with them about them all yesterday and today. How many times do you have to tell them not to shoot each other or to shoot Max in the butt. They may just disappear.....

I ran into an old friend, Buffy, at Swiss Days. It was so great to see her. She just had her first baby, a little girl, just four weeks ago. I am so happy for her. She has had a lot of sadness in her life, having lost both her parents within the past decade. Yeah, something happy, a beautiful baby!!


Riding on the merry-go-round...



Don't look at me, I don't know what I am doing. But, look how scared Max is. He is so funny!! (Man, my mouth is huge! You can even see my retainer.) Am I such a mean mom? He obviously doesn't enjoy rides. But, he surely acts like he wants to go! It's all fun and games until we actually ride the ride :)



Playing in the fountain.