Christmas 2008

We had a great Christmas this year and, as always, Santa was very generous to our family.


The kids in their new pajamas

On Christmas Eve Santa always brings the kids some new jammies. Just sometime during the festivities of the evening the doorbell will ring, we will run to answer it and there sitting on our porch will be a beautifully decorated box filled with new pajamas for our children. This is a fun tradition that we have done for many years. It is definitely getting harder as the kids get older. We had to have some help this year. A few years ago the box had been sitting on the porch for awhile before one of us could get away and ring the bell. When the kids brought in the box and took out their new pajamas Alyssa made the comment (I think she was 6 or 7 years old at the time) that she knew for sure that these came from Santa because they were "freezing, cold, like the North Pole".

Another Christmas Eve tradition that we love is to make homemade doughnuts as a family. Every year we would try new doughnut recipes until we found the one we love the best. We ate them so fast, and I was in doughnut heaven so I didn't get any pictures.

INGREDIENTS:
2 (.25 ounce) envelopes active
dry yeast
1/4 cup warm water (105 to
115 degrees)
1 1/2 cups lukewarm milk
1/2 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1/3 cup shortening 5 cups all-purpose flour
1 quart vegetable oil for frying

1/3 cup butter
2 cups confectioners' sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 tablespoons hot water or as
needed

DIRECTIONS:
1. Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water, and let stand for 5 minutes, or until foamy.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the yeast mixture, milk, sugar, salt, eggs, shortening, and 2 cups of the flour. Mix for a few minutes at low speed, or stirring with a wooden spoon. Beat in remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough no longer sticks to the bowl. Knead for about 5 minutes, or until smooth and elastic. Place the dough into a greased bowl, and cover. Set in a warm place to rise until double. Dough is ready if you touch it, and the indention remains.
3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, and gently roll out to 1/2 inch thickness. Cut with a floured doughnut cutter. Let doughnuts sit out to rise again until double. Cover loosely with a cloth.
4. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in confectioners' sugar and vanilla until smooth. Remove from heat, and stir in hot water one tablespoon at a time until the icing is somewhat thin, but not watery. Set aside.
5. Heat oil in a deep-fryer or large heavy skillet to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Slide doughnuts into the hot oil using a wide spatula. Turn doughnuts over as they rise to the surface. Fry doughnuts on each side until golden brown. Remove from hot oil, to drain on a wire rack. Dip doughnuts into the glaze while still hot, and set onto wire racks to drain off excess. Keep a cookie sheet or tray under racks for easier clean up.




Then after all the excitment, we read from the bible about Jesus's birth. We then talk about the many wonderful, miraculous gifts that the Savior has given to us and how grateful we are to Him and for Him and how much we love Him. Each of us then takes a moment to think of what gift we could give the Savior during the next year. We then write it down on a piece of paper and roll it up like a scroll and tie it closed with curly ribbon. Then we each place our papers somewhere in our Christmas tree. Each year as we take the decorations down and put away our tree, I keep those special pieces of paper, unopened of course, in a special box with our Christmas ornaments.




This is a picture of our family room after the damage and after some clean-up.

Alyssa Plays the Trombone

Alyssa had another 6th grade band concert last week. I recorded a small part. The last note of the song is a doozy, but don't worry she is fine. She just got a little light headed.

Merry Christmas

Let it Snow!!

Tyler built this snowman out of the snow on the trampoline. All my kids love to play in the snow!

6th Grade Band Concert

Alyssa had a band concert this week. She plays the trombone and is really enjoying being in band.

Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving in Wyoming with my parents. My mom loves to have fun things for the kids to do, so she came up with this idea of making turkey leg head bands. The kids had so much fun visiting Grandma and Papa, and the food was the best ever!! I love my parents and I love Wyoming.

Sixth Grade Choir Concert

Alyssa had a choir concert last Tuesday night. Alyssa loves music and she loves to sing. We were so impressed with her showmanship. Hopefully she will continue to enjoy music and performing.

Happy 4th Birthday to our Ryan!!!!

Yes, I know I just said it was Tyler's birthday yesterday (he was born on Dec. 6 and Ryan was born on Dec. 7).

We celebrated Ryan's birthday with cupcakes and chocolate ice cream and lots of presents. He was so cute and kept saying, "thank you" and "I'm big now". Ryan loves to play and laugh. He loves his older brothers and sister and copies their every move and says whatever they say. He is so much fun to be around, he can brighten our day with his smile and laugh.

December 7th is a special day for us not only is it Ryan's birthday, but it is also the day that Paul proposed to me while on a horse drawn carriage seeing the lights around Temple Square in Salt Lake City. What a great day and I'm so glad that one of our kids was born on this day.

Here are some pictures of Ryan through the years.

Happy 10th Birthday to Tyler!!!

Our Tyler turned 10 years old today. I can't believe he is getting so big. Tyler is a sweet, happy, active boy and we are so happy to have him in our family.

Here are some pictures of Tyler throughout the years.

Pumpkin Patch

On Thursday, Oct. 16 Paul took Brayden and Ryan to a pumpkin patch. They had a lot of fun. They went on a hayride, picked pumpkins, and had a picnic lunch. When they got home we all made Pumpkin Chocolate Chip cookies, or we like to call them "The Great Pumpkin cookie". The recipe made about 10 dozen, so we gave plates of cookies to a lot of our neighbors. I wanted to give them a little poem to go along with the cookies, but I couldn't find one that I liked. So I wrote my own poem. Here it is. It's not the greatest poem, but I still liked it.

Pumpkins lined in rows, blank faces all around.
Watching and waiting, to be lifted from the ground.
Families rushed in, and gathered up their treasure.
Children’s laughter filled the air; the trip was quite a pleasure.
The day had been a happy one, and was coming to an end.
Most pumpkins knew they wouldn’t get picked; the patch was getting thin.
Yet one child found the perfect one and picked it from the pile.
As she carried it away, the pumpkin began to smile.

The Great Pumpkin Cookie


4 c. unsifted all-purpose flour
2 c. quick or old-fashioned oats, uncooked
2 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. butter, softened
2 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. granulated sugar
1 egg
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 (16 oz.) solid pack pumpkin
1 c. real semi-sweet chocolate morsels

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine flour, oats, soda, cinnamon and salt; set aside. Cream butter, gradually add sugars, beating until light and fluffy. Add egg and vanilla, mix well.
Alternate additions of dry ingredients and pumpkin, mixing well after each addition. Stir in morsels. For each cookie, drop dough onto lightly greased cookie sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, until cookies are firm and lightly browned. Remove from cookie sheets; cool on racks.

Happy Halloween

Make a Smilebox postcard

Looks yummy, Tastes gross

We had a wonderful time on the Sunday during General Conference. I had printed out packets of games, bingo, word searches, pictures and a bunch of other fun things to do during conference that actually related to the speakers. We also had bought a bunch of cheap toys to give out as prizes for the bingo game and to keep them motivated during confercne. This was the first year that we were able to sit and watch both sessions on Sunday and have all the kids with us and actually quiet and listening. I really felt so much love for all my beautiful, wonderful, sweet children as we sat there as a family and felt the spirit. It was truly a family bonding moment. After the first session, while I made lunch the kids got to make a "haunted house".

My kids had a great time making this "spooky, haunted mansion" out of chocolate cookies and tons of candy and frosting. The whole time they were making it they were drooling and couldn't wait to eat it (I had told them that they could eat it when they were done). When the time came to eat it they each took a bite and ran over to the trash to spit it out. I'm not exactly sure what the problem was, but I wasn't willing to taste it to find out (I saw them licking pieces to get them to stick). It was kind of funny and they didn't get a sugar rush, great day!!

New Addition

We have a new addition to our family.

Alyssa watched our friend's dog for about 10 days over the summer. She got very attached to the dog and when it came time to give her back Alyssa got pretty emotional. Ever since then she has wanted a little dog of her own. She has been saving her money and praying that she will be able to get a little dog, the only problem is that the type of dog she likes is about $1500. The other day our friend (the owner of the dog Alyssa watched over the summer) approached me and asked if we would be interested in taking the dog. She said that ever since they got back from their vacation that the dog has not been happy and she really felt that she'd be happier with Alyssa. Well after talking to Paul we decided that it would be a good idea. When we told Alyssa she was thrilled and told us that her prayers had been answered. When our friend brought the dog (Zoey) over to us it was quite a sight to see the reunion. Alyssa was smiling from ear to ear and Zoey was spastically happy to see Alyssa. They have both been extremely happy and really are a great match. I guess her prayers really were answered.

Sports

I really try to make sure my kids are involved in some kind of physical activity. I think it is important for them to be active. These past couple of months we have been busy with soccer and swimming.

Tyler loves soccer and is very competitive. He mostly plays defender and I rarely see the ball get past him.



Alyssa has been on the swim team for her middle school. She really didn't like it at first and even brought home a drop form, but we talked about it and she decided to continue. She has done great. She competed in a kick board race and won. She also competed in 25 meter back stroke and came in 3rd, and she also competed in the 100 meter relay and her team came in 3rd. We were really impressed at how much she has improved.

Our Dinner Conversations

I need to explain this next blog. My fabulous husband, Paul, is a great man with strong opinions. I agree with him on this subject and I really wish he would understand that and not think that he needs to explain it to me all the time. Every commercial about "going green" will get him started on a lecture. I've tried to explain to him that it is not all bad, that protecting the environment is important and that to respect Mother Earth is a priority that all should have. I've asked him to be a "guest blogger" and share his feelings with all who are interested so here it is.


By: Paul

The Sun and sunspot activity (cycling) directly affects the Earth’s surface temperatures.

Clouds greatly affect Earth’s surface temperature. Clouds are formed by sub-atomic particles or “cosmic rays” hitting the Earth’s rising water vapor – causing water droplets to form, creating clouds. The more clouds there are – the cooler the Earth’s surface temperature is.

During periods of greater sunspot activity, more “solar winds” are created – which prevents as many cosmic rays from getting through to the Earth, resulting in fewer clouds formed and a warmer surface temperature.

Climate is controlled by clouds – which are controlled by cosmic rays – which are controlled by the Sun.

Ice core samples - these samples are taken from deeply drilled ice at the poles. All ice has tiny amounts of air trapped inside. The ice is melted and the air is captured and analyzed for CO2 (carbon dioxide) content. The layers of ice also show when the Earth was cooler and when it was warmer throughout it’s history. The temperature fluctuations and the levels of CO2 are directly related. Whenever there was a “warming period” during Earth’s history – the CO2 levels were higher following a several hundred year long “catch-up” phase. Equally, when there was a “cooling period”, the CO2 levels showed a drop several hundred years later.

CO2 is a PRODUCT of climate change, NOT the other way around. CO2 does NOT drive climate change. The oceans are the major producers of CO2 levels in the atmosphere. Due to the sheer greatness and enormity of the depth and breadth of these oceans, it takes a long time (several hundred years) for any prolonged/constant surface water temperature change to reach and affect the entire body of water down to the most extreme depths. During the “warming periods” of Earth’s history, it took several hundred years for the oceans to “catch-up” to the warming cycle. The warmer the oceans – more CO2 is released into the air. The cooler the oceans, the more CO2 is absorbed and less CO2 is in the air. CO2 levels FOLLOW global climate changes.

In the last one hundred years, temperature has slowly risen till about 1940, then it slowly dropped till about 1975 – prompting environmentalists to raise the alarm of “Global Cooling”. Some were even saying we were heading into a mini-ice age. Since 1975 – temperature has been slowly going back up. Over the past one hundred years, there has been a net temperature increase of less than 1 degree. Based on data and documented observations of the Sun – solar activity (sun spots) has been shown to DIRECTLY affect the Earth’s temperature fluctuations over the past one hundred years.

CO2 in the atmosphere makes up an extremely small percentage of total volume – at only about 0.0360 %. Man-made contributions to the total atmospheric volume of CO2 is even smaller, by far, than that.

Margaret Thatcher was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1979 to 1990. She wanted respect and recognition from other world leaders. She and those close to her decided to use her BS degree in Chemistry to her advantage. She would be the world leader with scientific literacy. She would be looked up to and considered an authority in matters of scientific importance.

Lady Thatcher began to raise the alarm of man-made “Global Warming” at every summit meeting – not only was she gaining attention from the world stage, but she had two other reasons for raising the “alarm”. Many UK government officials had an “ax to grind” with the NUM (National Union of Mineworkers). They wanted to punish the coal industry because they felt it was, in large part, due to the NUM that their political party was defeated in 1974. Lady Thatcher also wanted to increase the UK’s nuclear program – to develop nuclear weapons. The best way to accomplish both goals was to promote “Global Warming” as a real and credible threat to the Earth caused by man-made CO2 emissions.

The incidents at Three-Mile Island and at Chernobyl served to dampen the nuclear program’s momentum, so more emphasis and money was placed on research of “Global Warming” and it’s dire global consequences. Scientists and researchers were under pressure to high-light and promote the “reality” of “Global Warming”. Other countries joined in the movement. Some saw it as an opportunity to limit US growth and power.

In the US, “Global Warming” has become a Political Activist Movement. It is being used as a tool by environmentalists to achieve their goals, it is also being used by anti-capitalists and anti-globalizationalists who want to limit world growth for one reason or another. It has grown over the last several years and now there is A LOT of money tied up in it. Too many people are too deeply involved now to just let facts be facts. They want to keep this train rolling, they want to make more money (carbon taxes) – be more important (Al Gore), but at what cost?

All this hype has really prevented the poorest people in the world from developing. The third-world countries of Africa are being highly pressured and told to use solar power and wind energy to progress and move forward towards industrialization. They have their own natural resources. They have plenty of coal and oil, but this whole “Global Warming” thing has prevented them from utilizing their own resources. Instead, they are having to try to use solar and wind for electricity – which are the most expensive and inefficient forms of energy for electricity.

Too many outspoken supporters of “Global Warming” try to say that Industrial societies are destroying the world, when in reality, they are helping the world. Too often, the simple or “peasant life” is made to appear desirable and romantic – ideal, but not to those living in third-world countries where that “simple life” is killing them. It is a struggle to simply survive and these are the places that a coal fired electrical power plant would literally make a world of difference.



The current attention and effort being placed on CO2 and “man-made Global Warming” is like having a car that doesn’t run. They ignore the engine (the Sun), THAT can’t be it. They ignore the transmission (the clouds), THAT, surely can’t be the problem. They ignore the wiring (cosmic rays), THAT’S never the culprit. Hummm… it MUST have something to do with that rear passenger side wheel. That third lug nut MIGHT not be tightened to factory specifications. Yep, better spend the paycheck and a few weeks researching THAT one. Heck, the kids can miss their activities and they could stand to miss a few meals… Everyone needs to sacrifice to make sure they do everything they can to make sure IF that lug nut is the problem – they’ve done all they could to fix it.

They built a nice barrier around the car. They put up all kinds of fancy signs to alert others of their car on the road. They built a real nice mast and a sail mounted to the top of the car. They hired all kinds of folks to run tests and forecast possible outcomes. They brought in experts who had designed and built the car. BUT….Someone noticed that the transmission is in gear (so, naturally it won’t start), but they don’t want to say anything because they will REALLY be embarrassed, so they just continue to try to figure out other ways to move the car without having to try to start it.

Those people need to just get over it already! YES, it appears there has been an increase in temperature of less than ONE degree in the past one hundred years, but the Earth does that – it’s NORMAL!

Look alike

The other day in Wal-mart a lady told me that my son looks like Macauley Culkin. I don't know what do you think? Of course, I think Ryan is much cuter.

Life Lessons

MERIDIAN MAGAZINE

Running the River of Life
By Susan Law Corpany

A friend once told me, “Susan, you see everything two ways.” It's true. So while my experience of tubing the Provo River is still fresh in my mind, here goes.

The parallels to life did not escape me. First, when I willingly decided to embark on this adventure, I was watching from the road as people leisurely floated by. It looked like a good time to me, and I don't like missing out on a good time. It escaped my memory that the last time I did this, I was a teenager running a short length of the Snake River , not a fifty-plus grandmother, running a considerably longer length of river.

Accompanied by several of our children, and a couple of their spouses, I waded into the water, which was colder than it had looked from the road. I plopped down on my tube as others held it to keep it from floating away without me. Once launched and acclimated to the water, I was either no longer cold or totally numb, and I figured this was going to be a piece of cake. I hadn't seen any whitewater from the road. I would just float along and enjoy myself.

Conversing away with stepdaughter Becky and my new daughter-in-law Jessica, I was soon rudely interrupted by several of the kids yelling, “Susan, big rock!” I turned my tube around just in time to kick off from and avoid impacting with a huge boulder jutting out of the river. First life lesson: face forward and pay attention to where you are going. Listen to people who can see something you may not see.

Then my water bottle fell into the water. I paddled after it frantically. It wasn't just ordinary bottled water, after all. It was flavored with a hint of raspberry, and I had been looking forward to the refreshment. Soon I found myself separated from the group and headed down an alternate channel of the river. Carried away by the current, I wondered if it would connect back to the main river or if I was headed to St. George. My stepson Shawn headed after me. Second life lesson: Don't be chasing after unimportant things or you might find yourself going down the wrong path. Someone else might have to come after to rescue you.

Eventually, Shawn and I met back up with the rest of the group. They had a rope and decided it would be best if several of us linked together. I gladly took hold of a section of the rope and floated along in the company of my family members. Third life lesson: Stick together and you have a better chance of getting through.

There were times, however, like when we had to go under a bridge with pilings, that we had to split up again. The current carried us each at different rates of speed and while we were within shouting distance, we could not get linked back the way we had been. Fourth life lesson: While sticking together is great, we ultimately need to be able to stand on our own.

Not too much further down, the current carried me to the edge of the river, where I got tangled and dragged along through tree branches. Struggling not to lose my tube and trying to free myself, I finally got back out into the middle of the river, a little worse for the wear. Fifth life lesson: You can't just let the current decide where you will go or you might end up somewhere different than you intended.

Becky, an experienced river runner, took it upon herself to give me some advice. “When you find yourself drifting, face where you don't want to go and kick away from it.” It worked. Sometimes I had to kick really hard to get back into the middle of the river, but eventually I got there. Sixth life lesson: It is good to listen to people who have more experience than you do. Seventh life lesson: Face your problems and do what you have to do to overcome them.

In some places, the water was shallow enough that we found ourselves almost scraping along the rocks. “Butt up,” yelled Becky. Whenever I got to the shallow parts, I sang a song to myself, to the tune of The Theme from the Pink Panther, which is also my ringtone. “Buddup, buddup, buddup, buddup buddup.” Eighth life lesson: Sometimes the best you can do is give yourself some clearance and hang on, trying not to scrape bottom.

From my vantage point a little further (or is it farther—I never can remember that one) down the river, I was able to observe how our newlyweds Rob and Jessica worked together and looked out for one another, and I knew that they were going to have a good marriage. Ninth life lesson: The Buddy System started with the creation of Adam and Eve. If you are blessed enough to have someone you love by your side, it is still the best way to go through life.

Despite what I remembered seeing from the road, there were a few spots that qualified as rapids. There was nothing terrifying, but there were a few exhilarating moments in the whitewater. Lesson ten: You can't judge the rapids from the road. You can't truly judge a rapid unless you are in it.

In between all this, there were a few times of calm when we were able to float leisurely along, conversing and enjoying nature. Lesson eleven: There will be times when you can coast. Enjoy them, because life won't stay that way.

As we neared the spot where we were going to get out, I realized I needed to stand up, fight the current, and hang onto my tube. Taking one tenuous step after another, I reached out and took the hand of my waiting son-in-law, Josh. Feeling his strength, I was able to take the last few steps and get my battered and bruised body up the bank to the others. Impressed with his mother-in-law's valiant efforts, he said three words, “Susan, you rock!” Lesson Twelve: When you've run the river the best you could, there will be someone waiting at the end to greet you, perhaps with a “well done thou great and faithful servant.” I'll even take a “you rock!”

Back to School Traditions

I love to create traditions that will lead to good memories for my children. This year we decided to have some "Back to School" traditions. We started on Monday night with a special Family Home Evening. This is an outline of what we did:

Attention Activity: Work together to stock a portable caddy with supplies and find a special place to keep it. I told the kids that the caddy was their "homework caddy", full of everything that they would need to complete homework assignments. I also put a clipboard in each of their caddys.

Limit this activity to fifteen minutes or less.

Lesson:
Discuss how many days are left until school. Let the children share things they need to do to get ready.

o Why do we go to school when we are young? (Expect some humorous answers but also tell them that we learn things and establish learning patterns that help us throughout our lives.)

Have family members read the following:
--Alma 37:35. (‘learn wisdom in thy youth.’ Some parents may also wish to include all or parts of verses 36 and 37.)
-- Quote from President Gordon B. Hinckley: “It is so important that you young men and you young women get all of the education that you can. The Lord has said very plainly that His people are to gain knowledge of countries and kingdoms and of things of the world through the process of education, even by study and by faith. Education is the key which will unlock the door of opportunity for you. It is worth sacrificing for. It is worth working at, and if you educate your mind and your hands, you will be able to make a great contribution to the society of which you are a part, and you will be able to reflect honorably on the Church of which you are a member. My dear young brothers and sisters, take advantage of every educational opportunity that you can possibly afford, and you fathers and mothers, encourage your sons and daughters to gain an education which will bless their lives” (“Inspirational Thoughts,” Ensign, June 1999).

Heavenly Father has told us:
--to learn about all things ‘both in heaven and in the earth,” (D&C 88:78-79);
-- the intelligence we gain in this life ‘will rise with us in the resurrection,’ (D&C 130:18-19);
--we are to learn from the ‘best books’ (D&C 88:118);
--be acquainted with “languages, tongues, and people” (D&C 90:15);
--and to ‘seek learning, even by study and also by faith’ (D&C 88:118)

o Why are these things important to the Lord? To us?

o What does it mean to seek learning by faith?

o Does faith work at school? Why or why not? (Lovingly listen to your children’s responses. Open a family discussion that will help them learn how they can use faith throughout their school day. Can they pray for His help during a test or thank Him for a blessing during the day? Can they listen to the whisperings of the Spirit as they face peers whose standards may offend the Lord? Discuss ways they can bring their personal faith to school and thank Him throughout the school day.)

President Marion G. Romney of the First Presidency said: “I believe in study. I believe that men learn much through study. … I also believe, however, and know, that learning by study is greatly accelerated by faith” (Learning for the Eternities, comp. George J. Romney [1977], 72).

Discuss how learning by faith brings blessings. (You may wish to read the experience of Elder Russell M. Nelson. A noted heart surgeon, he had done all he could to prepare his mind to ‘know’ medicine and his spirit to ‘feel‘ the Lord. At one point, a faithful stake patriarch came to him in need of surgery. Tests showed that surgery would not work for one valve. With faith, the patriarch told Elder Nelson the answer to fix that valve would come to him. Elder Nelson agreed to try. He continued to seek for an answer through research, fasting and prayer. One did not come. Then, during surgery he had the impression come so clearly to his mind that he actually saw dotted lines on the heart showing him where and how to repair and stitch the heart. It worked.)

Tell your children that when we have done all we can do through study and prayer, the Lord can grant us answers we never knew before--just like He did for Elder Nelson. He can also call to our memories things we had forgotten and, in other ways, help us do better than we could on our own.

Challenge your children to keep the Lord close this year, to gain learning by study and by faith.


Treat Idea:
One apple per person, cut into wedges or pieces.
14 oz. pkg. of caramels, unwrapped
½ c. milk
Forks for each person.

Place caramels and milk in a microwavable glass bowl. Heat one to two minutes, then stir. Repeat the heating and stirring cycle until the caramels are melted and smooth. Using forks, dip apple pieces into hot caramel sauce.

We had a great time during this family home evening and it gave the kids an opportunity to express any concerns that they might have.

Then the next day I took all 3 boys to get some new clothes, turns out they only wanted t-shirts and shorts, and haircuts (I did bribe them to get their hair cut).

On Wednesday I took Alyssa shopping, I must say that it was much more fun than the outing with the boys. We also got pedicures and manicures, well actually she is the only one that got a pedicure due to the fact that I have a "black" foot (that's another story). Then that night Paul gave each of the kids a Father's blessing. It was a special night and the calm, peaceful feeling in our home was wonderful. They each had a great first day of school and I know we will have a wonderful year! This weekend I told them that we could make s'mores as a special "Back to School" treat. We have a fire pit in the back yard, but because of all the rain I think we will make them inside with the fireplace.

"Black Foot Story"
I have the cutest pair of sandals that I absolutely love. They remind me of a pair of sandals that I bought in Spain. I was going to wear my cute sandals to church on Sunday when I noticed that one of the straps was coming off. I decided to use some gorilla glue and glue it down (only ten minutes before we needed to leave). By the time I got to church, wearing my cute sandals, the bottom of my heel was glued to my sandal. I spent a good 20 minutes during church trying to pull my foot off of my shoe. I finally succeeded, but not without some battle wounds. My heel was black, apparently some of the sandal came off. It is getting better each day, but a little too embarrassing for a pedicure.

Back to School

One of my favorite times of the year is quickly approaching: back to school. I can't believe they start on Aug. 14.

I was always the one begging my Mom in July to take me school shopping. Sometimes it was that I was excited about the clothes, but most of the time it was the supplies: pencils, pens, trapper-keepers (remember those?), lined paper, notebooks. I waited with anticipation for the day we would go shopping for all the stuff we would need.

I loved the freshness, the possibilities, the blank slate that came with each new school year.

Of course, back to school now has a whole new meaning for me as a mom.

I am definitely not as excited about buying school supplies. I really hate crowds and the school supply aisle makes me feel claustrophobic. I took all 4 of my children last week to several different stores to buy all the supplies that they would need and I found myself wishing I had a stun gun (either for them or me, I didn't care at that point). I'm just kidding of course, but I did feel my blood pressure rising.

The part I do love about school starting up is the ability to keep my house clean, and just to get back into a routine. My kids have great friends and I love to see their excitement about being with their friends. I have also missed my little Ryan, so I look forward to be able to have some one on one time with him. We used to play together, but now that the other kids are home he wants to play with them (can't blame him there).

What I am wondering about now is if anyone out there has any great back to school traditions in your family that you would be willing to share with me.

What do you do to make it special?

July Trip

We went to visit my parents for a week in July. They live in Torrington, WY just 30 minutes away from Scottsbluff, NE. We like to hike to the top of the bluff, thus the name Scottsbluff.


We visited the 23 acre Scottsbluff zoo, small but cute. We got lucky and it happened to be $1 day, but with the 100 degree weather we pretty much had the zoo to ourselves. It happens to be home of the rare Red Panda.


We went swimming a lot, the pool is about 3 houses from my parents' place. It was only $1 a person to go swimming, I love the small town prices for everything!

On our last day we went to Cheyenne to go to "Cheyenne Frontier Days". My kids loved the rodeo, especially the bull riding. They each got a Cowboy hat and wore them with pride! I grew up in Cheyenne and used to sell "Cheyenne Frontier Days Souvenir Programs" so I could go to the rodeos and night shows for free. I remember seeing the Oakridge Boys, Barbara Mandrell, Pam Tillis, Night Ranger, REO Speedwagon, and my favorite, Garth Brooks. It has really grown over the years, but was still a ton of fun. We loved the Indian Village. We watched the Indian dancers, the kids got to make a craft, and hear stories. We saw Tee Pees and a coat made out of buffalo fur. We had a great day in good Ol' Cheyenne!