Random Thoughts with Chris

Time Gangsters Blog Tour

2012-01-21T06:00:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the last stop in the Time Gangsters Blog Tour!

Time Gangsters
by Berin L Stephens
Paperback, 296 pages
Expected Publication- February 8, 2012
by Cedar Fort, Inc
ISBN-1599559668
Source: Publisher
Rating: 3.5 stars

When Billy discovers a hidden cache of ancient coins, it isn't long before a gang of thugs swipes them right from under Billy. Plotting to use the magical properties of the coins to seize power in the past, these power-hungry gangsters will do anything to reach their goal. Their future threatened, Billy and Danny must race through time to steal back the coins---before history is changed forever!

This time traveling adventure takes a pair of cousins (Billy and Danny-who's name is actually Danielle) and Billy's friend Wheezy (a nick-name given to him because of his constant Asthma related wheezing) on an adventure between modern day Colorado and 1927 New York. Egyptian medallions that give the bearer magical powers are being sought by a prohibition era mobster for his bid to take over the country.

While the story is cute, with fun characters that the intended audience (middle grade readers) will enjoy, I struggle a bit with time travel based books. There are so many issues that arise when you are dealing with time travel, and my much too logical brain struggles with the loose ends that are usually left at the conclusion of a time travel story.

Having said that, the story has a good pace, and is well written. I enjoyed the almost brother/sister relationship between cousins Billy and Danny. All in all this is a cute book that I would recommend to others!

You can visit the rest of the stops along the blog tour by clicking the link below:

You can learn more about the book by visiting the book website timegangstersbook.com. You can also connect with the author on facebook or via his blog.

(I received a free e-copy of this book in order to participate in this blog tour)

Aaaand We're Back!

2012-01-20T09:39:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the drop off. The Christmas Holiday was crazy this year (good, but crazy) and I just didn't have time to blog. Right after Christmas a stomach flu hit our house with a vengeance and made its way through everyone except Joelle. Right after the flu, we finished our Winter Break with a great visit from Jared's brother and his family. Below you will see a few photos of what I didn't blog:


The Tree on Christmas Morning


Right after Church Christmas Morning. Joelle did an amazing job singing with me in church that morning in-front of a large group!


Waiting to go downstairs at Grandma's house to open presents.


A crochet project I completed over the break! Showing our team spirit!


A photo from our visit with Jared's brother. We took a trip down to temple square (it was a first visit to temple square for my nieces and nephew). This is a picture with the missionaries who took us for a tour.

I hope that you are all doing well. Look for more posting soon (including a book review post tomorrow!)

Choose the Right: A Year of Family Night Lessons to Help Your Children Choose the Right by Kimiko Christensen Hammari Blog Tour

2011-12-16T09:26:00.003-07:00

Choose the Right: A Year of Family Night Lessons to Help Your Children Choose the Right
by Kimiko Christensen Hammari
Paperback, 160 Pages
Published November 1, 2011
by Cedar Fort, Incorporated
ISBN 1599559412
Source: Publisher
Rating:4 stars

Here is a synopsis from the publisher:
Crazy days mean no time to plan family nights. With Choose the Right, all of your Family Home Evening lessons are done for a whole year, complete with activities, games, scriptures, songs, challenges, and a CD-Rom with printable handouts! Not only are the lessons fantastic but they correlate with the 2012 Primary topics and lessons. Spend quality time with your children as you make family night the best night!

If you struggle with Family Home Evening because you aren't sure what to teach each night, this book is for you! Filled with lessons for each week of the year (A couple months have you extend one lesson over two weeks) that follow the 2012 Primary theme, you can be certain to have a simple lesson ready to go each week. The lessons are simple to prepare and teach. The CD that comes with the book contains printable image files for each of the lessons, including activities.

One of my favorite features of this book is the resources list at the beginning of each lesson. You do not need to read through the entire lesson, scanning for the items you will need. You can look at this quick summary and easily grab the books or images that you will need to successfully prepare each lesson.

This little book that retails for only $14.99 is certain to be a big help this year as you prepare your Family Home Evening lessons!

See more of the Cedar Fort blog tour for this book by clicking on the image below:

Old Navy Bundle-Up Bash

2011-12-14T10:27:00.002-07:00

Thanks to Crowdtap and Old Navy, I was able to invite three friends to join me for a Bundle-Up Bash at our local Old Navy store. To say we had fun, would be an understatement! We thought we would be there for about an hour trying on clothes and then going home with a brand new outfit...well the trying on clothes and going home with a new outfit was true but the hour wasn't! We were there for two and a half hours, try on clothes, laughing and generally having fun! Here are some photos from our in-store adventure:

Me modeling my first look


Lisa rocking the yellow stripes

Having Fun with the Super Modelquins

Posing with scarves and hats in the background

Fabulous, helpful employees!

Deciding which hat looks best

2.5 hours later leaving with our goodies!

Happy to be going home with a brand new outfit from Old Navy

A couple of my friends admitted that, while they often shopped at Old Navy for their children, they hadn't thought to purchase their own clothes there. They were surprised at the cute styles and great prices available at Old Navy. There were so many diffrerent styles of pants, sweaters and more. Everyone found several items that they would have loved to take home with them! Ironically, while we all loved several styles of jeans, three of the four of us ended up purchasing the darling trouser jeans!

All four of us left with a pair of pants, a sweater and an accessory (scarf, hat or gloves). I chose the following items:

and a scarf that doesn't seem to be on their website. I absolutely love each of these items. I wore the whole outfit to a holiday party last night and it was the perfect dressed-up casual look! The green in the sweater is even more gorgeous in person!

It was so much fun to laugh together and enjoy trying on clothes. We all said that it reminded us of when we were young and would go out with friends and shop together. We decided that we definitely needed to arrange another shopping day.

Disclosure: My friends and I each received a free pair of pants, sweater and accessory in exchange for having and in store party and my submitting photos and a report back to Crowdtap. I also receive a small amount of monetary compensation for my time filling out the report.

Texting Through Time: Trek With Brigham Young by Christy Monson Blog Tour

2011-12-08T07:22:00.001-07:00

Texting Through Time: A Trek with Brigham Young
by Christy Monson
Paperback 128 pages
Published: November 8, 2011
by Cedar Fort, Inc
My rating: 3.75 stars

I am thrilled to be a part of the Cedar Fort Book Tour for the fun new Middle Grade book: Texting Through Time: A Trek With Brigham Young. Here is a synopsis for you (from the publisher):

When 12-year-old Micah “borrows” his father’s experimental time-travel phone, his hopes for seeing the future are dashed as he and his sister, Alicia, end up trapped in the past at Brigham Young’s boyhood home. This book is a fun way to discover Church history and learn that no matter what time period you are in, God is still aware of you.

The concept of this book is definitely a fun one for Middle Grade readers. Micah and Alicia are playing with their dad's un-tested time-travel phone and wind up an the past, arriving on Brigham Young's 11th birthday. This begins an adventure for both Micah and Alicia, as they try to make their way back to the present. They learn much from the life of Brigham Young, popping in to his life at different times.

Through this all they learn that they really have it pretty easy, and they grow to rely on the Lord through their trials. In order to progress through time, they have to text their experience, thoughts, and feelings to their own phones. When they finally return home, they find their texted journals and can revisit what they learned along the way.

This book would be great for younger readers. I will definitely be passing it on to my daughter to read (she turns 12 in February). I like how it puts a fun spin on the technology that kids know today while teaching them about the past.

To see more of this blog tour click the image below for the schedule and link to the blogs participating in the tour:

Disclosure: I received an ebook copy of Texting Through Time in order to write this honest review. No further compensation was received. Cover image from Goodreads.

Book Lover's Holiday Giveaway Hop

2011-12-01T17:47:00.001-07:00

Welcome Hoppers! I am so excited to be participating in my first blog hop :) Over 200 blogs are participating in the Book Lover's Holiday Giveaway Hop (sponsored by I Am A Reader Not a Writer and Kid Lit Frenzy)and I am thrilled to be one of them. Each blogger is giving away something that a book lover would love, and really, what to book lovers love more than books? So I am giving away a copy of one of my favorite books! I discovered the Rhea Jensen series by Sheralynn Pratt late last year and have since read each book. For my giveaway you will be receiving the first book in the series: City of Angels.

Synopsis (from Goodreads): Rhea Jensen is your typical twenty-something single girl-if by "typical" you mean a private investigator who studies ways to escape from handcuffs while waiting to take down another serial sleaze. But when a seemingly open-and-closed embezzlement case goes awry, her on-again-off-again boyfriend starts fooling around behind her back, and some Mormon missionaries stop her on the street during a stakeout, Rhea realizes her life is anything but typical-even by her standards.

You are sure to love this fantastic series, and I am going to help one of you by getting you started with the first one! Winner will also receive a bonus homemade item (a surprise :) ) with their book. I promise it is good!

Here are the rules: Enter in the rafflecopter form below. Following is not required, but does get you an additional entry :) Begins now and runs through 12:01 AM EST on the 7th of December. Only one entry per household, US entrants only. Winner chosen at random and notified by email (also will appear in the rafflecopter form in this post when winner has been selected). Winner will then have 72 hours to respond to winning email or a new winner will be chosen.

disclosure: I purchased the book featured above in this giveaway myself. I was not given a free copy nor was I compensated in any other way.

Now hop along and check out the rest of the blogs in the hop:

It's the Holiday Season!

2011-12-01T07:45:00.001-07:00

Don't you just love this time of year? The radio is playing Christmas music; the streets are lined with wreaths and lights. There is just something in the air that changes after the Turkey and Cranberry of Thanksgiving has been packed away as leftovers in the refrigerator. I think it really starts with Thanksgiving day, all of that gratitude changing hearts just a little.

There is just a different feeling for that month that spans from Thanksgiving to Christmas. (And I don't mean the commercial, crazy feeling that we sometimes encounter). Hearts are just a little softer. We think of family and friends. Memories come rushing back as we unpack the ornaments and hang them on the tree. As family gathers, they share stories of Christmases past. Donations make their way to food closets; pocket change clinks along in harmony with the bells rung outside store entrances.

And the smells! Don't even get me started on the smells. I can't get enough of the smell of pine and cinnamon, cookies baking, hot chocolate steaming. It is all so delicious.

But the best part of all is that for a little while we focus on what matters, family, friends and Jesus Christ. We remember his birth and celebrate his life! I love turning on the radio station and hearing his name coming over the airwaves. In a time where religion is being swept under the rug more and more, this month of remembrance is almost a miracle in itself.

I hope that you experiencing that change as well. I hope you are feeling that love and feeling of joy this month as we prepare for Christmas.

Whew, Do You Ever Feel that You Need a Vacation to Recover from Your Vacation?

2011-11-23T16:57:00.001-07:00

We recently returned from a fabulous vacation to Disneyland with my parents and my sister (with her family.). We had such a wonderful time. The lines were short, the weather gorgeous, the company great, and we stayed in a fabulous hotel. The only problem was exhaustion. Seriously, my legs and feet were screaming by the end of the day (and we stayed until the last moment possible every night).

The kids were all at great ages to take to Disneyland. Lucas was just tall enough that he could ride all but the scariest of rides (and a few of the rides he insisted on riding freaked him out a bit, but he was determined to ride them all). Dane was even tall enough for Indiana Jones, and surprisingly, really enjoyed it. The older three enjoyed California Screaming (we rode it several times, since the wait time was never more than 15 minutes). Jared, Liam, Max and I LOVED Hollywood Tower of Terror (Joelle rode it, but wasn't a big fan). I think the family favorite ride had to be Toy Story Midway Mania, where we all donned 3-D glasses and enjoyed a Midway game experience. Nobody could beat Jared's high score, but we all sure gave it a good try.

The last several days have been filled with recovery from our vacation. I came home exhausted and needing to do laundry.

Here are a few photos from our trip for you to enjoy:

Bitter Blessings Book Blog Tour

2011-11-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

Bitter Blessings

by Christine Mehring

I am excited to be a part of the blog tour for Bitter Blessings by Christine Mehring. Below you will find the synopsis (from Goodreads):

Megan has the perfect life, but when her mother dies in an accident, everything spins out of control. With the rest of her family falling apart, Megan must confront her past to uncover the truths that will keep everyone together. Thought-provoking and heartfelt, this book shows that even in times of trial, you can often find blessings.

My Thoughts:

This was a wonderful story. Megan deals with so many different challenges throughout her story. As the oldest of three sisters, the struggles experienced by her family are a heavy weight on her shoulder. I don't want to spill the beans on all of the twists and turns this book takes (No spoilers here :) ) but some of the things Megan learns will definitely surprise you. Luckily she has some good friends to help her along the way. Megan soon finds the blessings hiding in her trials.

My Rating: 4 Stars

More book information:

Published July 8, 2011

by Cedar Fort, Inc

Paperback, 192 pages

ISBN: 1599555239

Website: www.bitterblessings.com

Purchase here

I received and ebook copy of this book in order to provide this review.

What...It's almost Christmas? Better get hopping on those Christmas Cards!

2011-11-16T09:47:00.001-07:00

Every year I begin with the best of intentions. I plan the children's outfits, take family photos, all with the plan in mind that I will send Christmas Cards to our friends and family. But, for some reason, the last few years I put off the planning and decision making until too late and cards have not been sent. So with each arriving Christmas Card in the month of December, I feel the guilt associated with not sending one in return.

This year is certain to be different. I am determined to start now by choosing my card design and getting our photo taken early so I won't, once again let the Christmas Season pass without sending cards to our family and friends. On my search for the perfect card, I was searching through the Christmas Cards available at Tiny Prints and absolutely love this one:

How cute that it is an ornament (it even comes with the ribbon) so your family and friends can hang it on their tree if they want (and I can too)! I am a simple girl, and the simplicity of this card and the functionality both make it a winner in my book.

So, if you like me, struggle with getting your cards made in time, hurry over to Tiny Prints now and check out their fabulous selection of Christmas Cards.

Tiny Prints provides simple, modern, and unique stationery from Christmas cards, New Years cards, party invitations, andaddress labels to thank you cards. Once the holidays have come and gone, Tiny Prints will still be here to fill your stationary needs with their exclusive designs from the nation’s top designers. All year round, you’ll fine business cards,birth announcements and even custom wedding invitations. Come try the easy card personalization, a powerful preview engine and top-notch customer service and paper quality for yourself. With Tiny Prints by your side commemorating every holiday and momentous occasion is a cinch!

This post is part of a Tiny Prints and Global Influence blogging campaign. In exchange for my honest thoughts I will receive Christmas Cards for my family.

Big World Network

2011-11-09T07:28:00.002-07:00

Many of the books we know as classics today were written as a weekly series, published in a newspaper. Readers would anxiously await the weekly installment of their favorite story. BigWorldNetwork.com is bringing back the serial story, but bringing it to a modern world. You will be able to read stories in small, weekly installments (approximately 4-7 pages each) either online, downloaded, or via audio file. Each story has a day on which it is released each week, so just like your favorite TV series, you will know when to expect the next installment of your favorite story.

One of my FAVORITE aspects of BigWorldNetwork.com is the rating system. For years I have said that books really needed a rating system like movies, TV and video games. I have been so frustrated in the past when I have started a book that came very highly recommended only to find that it was filled with content that made me uncomfortable. If only it contained a rating, I could have made a more informed decision on whether to read the book. Each of the series on BigWorldNetwork.com have a clearly labeled rating! FINALLY, now if only this idea will catch on to the rest of the publishing world I would be thrilled.

I got a sneak peek at the website earlier this week before it went live this morning, and I read the first episode of Taking Out the Trash by Tristi Pinkston. I am already hooked; it is a cozy mystery (the genre that I have recently come to love) and starts out with a fun twist. I highly recommend checking it out, episode one is already available to read, then come back weekly on Tuesdays for future episodes!

I am very excited to explore the other series' available from Big World Network and I hope that you will take a look! Oh by the way, did I say that these stories are available FREE? Yep, FREE!

I received no compensation for this post. I did get a preview of the site before it launched but no financial or material compensation for sharing my honest thoughts about the site.

5 Kids = lots of laundry

2011-11-07T21:53:00.001-07:00

Halloween 2011

While these little monsters are darling (they are pretty cute, if I do say so myself), they sure create a lot of laundry. I have spent the day trying to make a dent in the mountain of laundry that has build up in my home as of late. I spent the month of October sick with a bad cold/flu/sinus bug and I wasn't able to stay caught up (I did laundry, of course, just not enough). So now it is catch up time, and man...5 kids create a lot of laundry. Good thing they are cute, huh?

A Soccer Free Saturday

2011-11-06T18:38:00.000-07:00

Last spring I took over as the Regional Coach Admin for our local AYSO region. My job didn't really begin until the Summer, as the prior Admin helped get us through the end of the year (I was his assistant for a few months before I was officially given his job). My life has been soccer, soccer and more soccer since late July, and while there have been fun moments, there have also been many crazy days where I questioned my sanity in accepting this volunteer position. On top of this position, I have been coaching Max's team. So it has seemed that I was living and breathing soccer for so long, I wouldn't know what to do with myself when I had a soccer free Saturday.

But the day finally arrived. The Fall season officially over, I had my first soccer free Saturday this past weekend, and can I tell you how much I enjoyed it? We woke, after sleeping in, to snow on the ground. The kids bundled themselves in coats and gloves and proceeded to make trails through the snow in our yard (that is their favorite thing to do in the snow...trudge through it, making curving trails). It felt wonderful to be able to spend the day catching up on laundry, enjoying some family time.

I know, the Spring season will speedily make it's way into my life, but for now, I am going to enjoy my Saturdays.

But really, who doesn't love watching their kids play the most popular game in the word?

(please ignore the fact that my son is wearing the wrong shorts, two different socks and that one sock is falling down....when you have 5 kids to get out the door for games, 3 playing soccer, and one of them dancing, you never know what you will get)

Key of Kilenya by Andrea Pearson book blog tour

2011-11-04T05:00:00.000-06:00

When two vicious wolves chase fourteen-year-old Jacob Clark down a path from our world into another, his life is forever changed. He has no idea they have been sent by the Lorkon—evil, immortal beings who are jealous of powers he doesn’t know he possesses—powers they desire to control.

The inhabitants of the new world desperately need Jacob's help in recovering a magical key that was stolen by the Lorkon and is somehow linked to him. If he helps them, his life will be at risk. But if he chooses not to help them, both our world and theirs will be in danger. The Lorkon will stop at nothing to unleash the power of the key—and Jacob's special abilities. (Synopsis from Goodreads)

My Thoughts:
Fantasy is a tough genre. I enjoy a great fantasy, but they require so much more to feel real. This story is enjoyable and I like the concept, but I struggled a little to immerse myself in the world of Kilenya. New ideas were presented so quickly that I did not have a chance to accept them as true before another new word or idea was there begging to be understood. This definitely improved as the story progressed, and the characters became more real and likable as I continued to read.

Jacob seems like a typical 14 year old boy struggling to figure out his place in life. He feels awkward and inferior to his older brother, Matt. When he arrives in Kilenya his thoughts are awkward, like he is, but they seem to mature and develop along his journey. There is a hint of romance (a must for me in a truly enjoyable book) that enters the book about half way through, but we may need to read further books in the series to see what happens there.

All in all, the story is a cute one. It is a good fit for younger readers and I plan to read the future installments in the series.

My rating: 3 Stars

Content: some violence, but not graphic

Buy it
You can visit smashwords and get a free e-book copy of this book to enjoy for yourself. You can also purchase a paperback copy via Amazon for $11.99 if you prefer a physical book.

Disclosure: I received a free ebook copy in order to provide this review. The opinion expressed above is 100% my own.

A Virtual Race for Autism Race Report

2011-06-10T09:45:00.006-06:00

I signed up for The Virtual Race for Autism hosted by Alica at Alicia Runs a few weeks back and for some reason thought that tomorrow was the 10th, so I planned to double up and race the 5K I had scheduled for tomorrow as my virtual race as well, but I noticed that today was in fact the 10th and I needed to finish my virtual race today and get my post up in order to participate in this great virtual event. I decided that I would just go out for a nice easy 3.1, not push it too hard, but um...I didn't do that..I pushed it, and I pushed it hard! Here's how it broke down (average paces):

Mile 1: 08:15
Mile 2: 08:57
Mile 3: 08:54
last point 1: 7:30 (yeah, that was my kick to just finish the darn thing)

So as you can see, I went out WAY too fast, but amazingly I was able to maintain a sub 9 average pace throughout! I am very happy with my result!

Here is the official Garmin photo:And here I am post race (yes, I look horrid I just left it all out on the trail, remember? Plus, I have had 5 kids..this body is pretty stretched out from all of that! And you can't see the number on my race bib...which is 7 for the number of people in my family, 5 kids..2 parents):
I hope I can run as well tomorrow in my race in the morning! Thanks for the opportunity participate in this fun virtual race. It definitely pushed me to run harder than I would have today!

Our Three Day Weekend

2011-05-31T12:58:00.004-06:00

First I want to apologize for a complete lack of photos. I didn't have my camera with me at our various activities, and while I tried to take a few with my phone, I don't have a way to get them off the phone, so there will be no photographic evidence of the events of our weekend, but you will get to read about them (ok, so not as fun, but hey, better than nothing, right)

Jared (my hubby) took the older two boys to our Church Fathers and Sons camp-out on Friday night. They had a great time and came back VERY dirty! (The camp-out only lasted from Friday evening to Saturday morning but it is a fun event for the boys and their dads).

Because the Dad and the older boys were gone for the evening. My daughter, our younger two boys and I had a sleepover in Mom and Dad's room. We put on a movie and everyone fell asleep on my bed. The kids seemed to enjoy that and it gave them something special since they didn't go with Dad.

Saturday morning I got up early and headed out a little before 7AM for a 9 mile run. It's not a good sign when you wake up feeling off. My stomach didn't feel great, I couldn't eat much (but I often can't eat much pre-run). I had very little energy and almost went back to bed, but I knew I would be mad at myself if I did, so I headed out anyway. The run really didn't have very many high points. At the start, when I was fresh, I struggled to keep up a 10 min/mi pace...and it only went downhill from there. I had no energy, my hips tightened up the last couple of miles and I really had to force myself to keep putting one foot in front of the other. But, in the end, I finished...an average pace of about and 11 minute mile, but I finished. I was pretty wiped out for the rest of the day and had a REALLY bad headache for most of the day on into the evening.

As if that wasn't enough to make for an exciting Saturday, my middle child (and 2nd son) Max was playing in his room with a stick he had apparently brought home from the camp-out. (I did not know that a stick had been brought home, nor that it was being played with indoors). I heard screaming and my husband calling for me to find a bandaid, so I ran to my bathroom, where I knew I had a supply of bandaids, but then I was called downstairs to inspect the wound. He had a nasty cut on his wrist, very deep and bleeding quite a bit. So we created a makeshift bandage using a papertowel and a strip of KT tape (hey, ya gotta use what ya have, right?) and headed to the urgent care center to get it stitched up (well me, my oldest son-who was brought along to keep pressure on his brother's wrist, and Max, who has the bleeding wrist headed to urgent care, the others stayed home). Three stitches later we headed home to get ready for our next Saturday activity.

As coaches with our local AYSO region, we received as a coaches gift, season tickets to the Ogden Outlaws, a local semi-pro soccer team. The games had started the previous Saturday, but due to an unforeseen event we were unable to make the first game. So, we were determined to go see this one, especially since they were playing the team from BYU. Our daughter had spent most of the day with my parents, and elected to continue her stay with them instead of joining us, but the other six of us headed off to South Ogden to see the game...in the rain. Needless to say it was wet and cold, but we had a fabulous time. The game was great (even if the Outlaws lost by 1 goal) and we can't wait for the next one (and we are crossing our fingers it doesn't rain). It was pretty funny walking out with a wet bum.

Sunday was a nice, low key day of church and dinner at my parent's home. (Especially since I did not have to prepare the meal). Monday was also pretty low key. I went for a run with a local friend (with whom I will be training for my first Marathon), which went great. Later that day hubby and I headed to the grocery store to fill out sadly empty refrigerator. We also cut down the tree in our front lawn that has been half dead for a couple of years. Having been unable to save it, we decided it was time to see it go. Later we meet my parents at Wendy's for a nice, easy dinner.

So that's my weekend..how was yours?

Can't think of a title...so...

2011-05-27T22:29:00.003-06:00

This week has been a little crazy.

Monday I ran my first race of the year, the Buffalo Point Elementary 5K in 26:04. That is actually a PR for me, which made me quite happy, considering my training has been so incredibly patchy this year.

Tuesday: Actually a pretty quiet night. We had NO baseball games scheduled and the only thing on my schedule was a soccer meeting (oh yeah, I have taken over the position of Regional Coach Administrator for our local AYSO region, where my boys play and hubby and I have both coached..this is, of course a volunteer position...so no pay, but actually pretty fun-when not crazy and a bit stressful.

Wednesday: Two baseball games (I only made it to one, hubby got to head to the other game), a dance meeting and a cancelled hill session (I was heading to some hills with a friend, but she had to postpone).

Thursday: One Baseball Game. Liam's first actual game of the season (due to crazy weather, each of his previously scheduled games were cancelled) and his first game pitching. He pitched one inning (they can't only pitch so many pitches in a game before they are forced to sit out several days so kids usually only pitch one inning). He was so awesome. I was very impressed and nervous watching him. In these games a lot depends on the pitcher (as this is the first year they have kids actually pitching their games). It was great to see him do so well. After baseball I headed with a friend to try some hill training, as Ragnar is getting super close. Well I did alright running uphill (it hurt, of course, but nothing more than expected) but the downhill REALLY aggravated my right knee (I have been battling tendonitis in this knee, and while it has been great lately, obviously it is not completely healed). I got a whole 1.1 miles in before I had to quit. I have decided that I am better off just skipping hills and keeping to flat for now. I may not be prepared for the hills in Ragnar, but I also won't start the race injured.

Friday: A nice slow day. The kids were on early out schedule and hubby took the older two boys to a church fathers and sons campout. So my daughter, my younger two boys and I joined my mom for a yummy dinner at Holy Smoke BBQ and came home to watch Princess Diaries up on my bed. The little guys fell asleep before the movie was half over, but we had fun!

Tomorrow morning, I plan to run 8 or 9 (depends on how I feel) to finish the week off on a good note running wise.

Sorry for the lack of pictures, I have been bad about taking photos lately! I will try to be better ;)

Aaaand I'm back to where I started.

2011-05-25T20:05:00.002-06:00

So, over a year ago I decided to try my hand at review blogging, and honestly, it wasn't my cup of tea. I really do love sharing my honest thoughts and feelings about products, etc, but I decided I didn't like the pressure to blog every day. I am a busy mom to 5 children and their activities and my responsibilities just take so much time. I can't commit to daily blogging, but I do miss the outlet. I miss keeping track of my running, posting pictures of my children, and just shooting the breeze with the cyberworld. So here I am again, I will be blogging some. Not daily, probably not even every other day. I am thinking a couple days a week of running and family updates. I don't anticipate doing product reviews and giveaways, but I might share others I find online (and I guess, never say never, because someday I might decide to start that again). I just want a place where I can share my honest, random thoughts.

My Baby is 2 today!

2009-10-22T08:51:00.001-06:00

Two years ago today my baby (#5) made his way into the world. After a week of hospital bedrest and still six weeks early, he was too anxious to join our family to wait any longer. And now, he is a rambunctious, typical two year old (albiet a bit on the tiny side)! I can't beleive that my baby days are behind me. We are definitely leaving the baby days behind us and moving on...to toddlers and preschoolers and grade schoolers...it is a whole new world. Happy Birthday Baby Boy!

A little comic relief with #4

2009-09-25T21:54:00.008-06:00

Kids truly say the funniest things sometimes. Here is a conversation I had this evening with #4 (who is three years old and completely precocious) while we were sitting on a chair together:

#4: "Mom, where'd you buy your hair at?"

Me: "Nowhere, it just grew on my head."

#4:"I bought mine at Wal Mart."

Little does he know that women have been trying to buy that color hair at Wal Mart for years! (Do you think we might do a bit too much of our shopping at Wal Mart?)

A simple reminder

2009-09-18T15:22:00.003-06:00

I know, I haven't been around lately, (and I have photos of back to school that I want to share, but some are still sitting on the camera, so those will have to be saved for a later date). But I wanted to share something that touched me last night.

Every night I go into #3 and #4's bedroom (look at header for reference :)) and the others join us for nightly prayers. #3 was saying his prayer (up to a month ago he needed assistance for almost the entire prayer, asking.."what's next" or "what else do I say" after each phrase) and unassisted his simple prayer touched me and reminded me what is most important. Along with a few other simple requests and items of gratitude he said, "Thank You for Jesus, and thank You that we can live." Aren't these truly some of the most basic elements of our gratitude to our Heavenly Father? Shouldn't we remember to thank him for His Son, who was sent as a Savior for us all? Without Christ, I can't imagine what life would be like. Without my knowledge of my Savior, who would I be? And for the gift of life that we all have received, should we not also express our gratitude?

I know that some of you may not share the same religious background as my family and I, so I hope that I have not offended you by sharing my feelings, but as this blog is a way for me to express my thoughts and feelings, I will occasionally share insights into my religion. If you want more information about the LDS faith, you can go to Mormon.org where many common questions are answered.

Changing things up a bit..

2009-07-21T16:57:00.002-06:00

I decided to give the blog a bit of a face lift...the pics of the kids on top were getting pretty old and I was tired of the boring color scheme...what do you think of the new look?

Why, Oh Why, Oh Why...

2009-07-21T09:38:00.005-06:00

...do I do this to myself?

What I really wanted was a Sonic Cranberry Limeade, but our local Sonic closed down a couple months ago. There is a Sonic in a neighboring town, but I needed to pick up a few things at Wally World (or as they like to say here in Utah, THE Wal Mart) and there is a Carls Jr in the same parking lot. I decided to hit Carls Jr instead.

Back in October I recieved a card that is good for a free Six Dollar Burger once a week for an entire year, so trips to Carls Jr are fairly frequent for us. You can't beat a giant, free burger. And to top it off they have some of the best fries around right now. Yummy. So, since I am running out, and I want a giant soda...I drive through Carls Jr and pick up one of these for Hubby:

Some of these to share:

And a LARGE one of these for me:

And here in lies the problem...I got that giant Dr Pepper at about 10PM last night...The caffiene kicked in and I was unable to fall asleep until around 3AM...It was completely my fault, but I just LOVE a good Dr Pepper...I can't seem to resist those 23 flavors....they just call my name, all hours of the day, and I often heed that siren call. And pay the price...my kids just don't understand that I was up all night because I drank a large Dr Pepper...they are up and at em and ready to go!

Summer update..

2009-07-19T23:55:00.004-06:00

This summer has been a full one so far.

My parents joined us here in UT in early June, moving into a home about five minutes from our house. The children have enjoyed many visits to grandma's house. Their favorite is getting a chance to spend the night all by themselves. They are thoroughly spoiled and can't wait until it is their turn again. We have also resumed occasional Sunday dinners and other get-to-gethers that we missed while we lived here without family.

Joelle had her first Dance recital at the end of June and she looked so beautiful and grown up, I couldn't believe it! The photos are still on my camera for some reason, so when they are finally uploaded, I will post photos of my beautiful, grown up daughter. She is excited for another year of dance to start in the fall (I think she is just as happy that this means she does not have to continue playing soccer again this coming season).

The children enjoyed the Heritage Days parade again this year, especially Joelle, who was able to ride on a float from her Dance Studio. She got to throw salt water taffy to the people lining the street. She can't wait to do it again next year. The boys enjoyed catching candy and other fun stuff as they were thrown. I was the lucky one who got to walk down with the float to get Joelle at the end of the parade route. The evening ended with a fun fireworks show at the park, where we enjoyed visiting with friends and getting bit by mosquitoes.

When Joelle was in preschool in Sacramento (many years ago) I met a wonderful friend, Stephanie. We discovered a common love for books, especially young readers. We were both part of a fun music program for young children that I brought Liam to weekly. We developed a close friendship over the course of the year. At the end of the preschool year, Stephanie and her family moved away. I was so sad to lose such a great friend. Luckily, thanks to email and IM, we have stayed in touch over the years. Her family lives here in UT, so about once a year or so we have been able to meet up for a play date while she and her children were in town. This year we were lucky enough to have her whole family spend two days with us. Her three children are the same ages as my oldest three children, so they all had so much fun playing together! Thanks for a fun visit Steph, and come back anytime!!

This summer seems so full of great days! Early this month my sister went through the temple for the first time. For those of you who are not members of the LDS church, the temple is a sacred place where we go to worship God and make covenants with him. I was able to escort my sister as she had this new experience and it brought back many wonderful feelings from my first experience with the temple. Thanks sis for letting me be a part of your day!

Our next adventure is a trip to Sac for two family reunions...wish me luck camping with five kids!

Wasatch Back

2009-06-26T09:30:00.005-06:00

I know it has taken me a while to post about our Wasatch Back race, but Jared and I finally finished editing our photos from the race.

The Wasatch Back is a 12 person relay that runs from Logan to Park City, UT. The team splits up into two vans of six runners. The first six runners start at Logan early in the morning (well early in the morning if you are a slower team like us...the BYU men's Cross Country Team didn't start until 6:30 PM and still slaughtered us!). Since Jared and I were in the second van we did not have to get up quite so early. We left Syracuse at around 11AM and headed to Liberty (the location of the first major hand off between the vans).

By the time we finally got the first hand off (around 2 in the afternoon) it was pretty hot! Jared was runner #7 (the first runner in our van) so he took the first leg for us. It was warm, but he did great, finishing at a great pace! I took the baton (which was actually a slap bracelet...you remember those from the early 90's right?) next and ran 3.4 miles. The first mile felt great and I ran it quickly, but it started to feel pretty hot after that and my pace slowed just a bit. I still finished in great time, running my miles at less than 10 minute pace (which was my goal). After my hand off Jared and I cheered for the rest of our van as they raced on in the heat. Jared served as van photographer, making sure to get great photos of our entire van (unfortunately I was not as good a photographer and got very few of him =( Something I plan to remedy next year!). We also served as water boy/girl and made sure our runners had the water they needed (there were no water stops along the way for the runners, so each team had to supply any needed water).

After our van was done with our first legs we ate lunch at Snowbasin (a very yummy pasta salad provided by Lisa...THANK YOU Lisa it was PERFECT) then headed on to the next hand off point. We pulled out our sleeping bags and found a patch of grass where we all relaxed. Two of our van mates brought guitars, so we all sat and enjoyed their music and sang along to a few numbers. It was nice to have some relaxing downtime.

Our turn began again around 10PM when Jared took the baton for his night run. Running at night was quite involved. Each runner was required to wear a reflective vest, a head lamp, and a butt light (yep, a light over your butt or close to it). It was definitely interesting running with all of that extra gear. Jared's leg went up a pretty steep hill, and he did awesome, especially with little to know hill training. Syracuse is pretty flat, so most of our running was done on the flat trails that run through town. Next year I am determined to find some good hills for training. I hear that there are some great ones out on Antelope Island that I want to try. At the top of the hill Jared handed off to me, and I began my decent. Seven miles, the first five and a half down a gradual hill (the map made it look like it would be much steeper...) with a few rises here and there. Running down hill that far is definitely interesting. The first 2 miles I went out pretty fast and then realized how much farther I had to go so I slowed up a bit. I am not sure if that was a good idea or not...the control it requires to go slower down hill made my legs tighten up a bit. The last mile and a half felt like forever winding through town. They threw in a nice little up hill there in the end for good measure!

After that I was exhausted, nodding off occasionally in the van while the rest of our team ran their legs. At one point we could not find one of our runners (it is VERY difficult to identify an individual in the dark...everyone starts to look the same with their vests, lights and head lamps.) He had changed the location of his butt light, throwing us off completely. It took a while to find him, but in the end all was well and he got a talking to about changing his lights =). After handing off the baton to the next van, we headed to the location of our final major exchange.

We rolled out our sleeping bags...on the cement in a skate park in Heber (the grass was soaking wet) and tried to get as much sleep as we could before we had to start running again. When I woke up (well I never actually fell asleep so I am not sure you can call it waking up, but I got up after laying down trying to sleep for two hours) I felt sick to my stomach. My last leg was to be a 6 mile stretch that ran gradually up hill. I was completely mentally and physically exhausted. The closer we came to the hand off, the more nervous I became. I felt sick to my stomach and like passing out at the same time. I feel bad now, because I did not take pictures of Jared during his last leg, I was so nervous.

Jared began his 4.6 miles from Heber to Midway, keeping a great pace (especially after no sleep). I can't tell you how proud I am of him. Jared was NEVER a runner until this past year, and to have completed this race is an amazing accomplishment! In Midway, I took the baton and ran the most frustrating leg. Midway is a beautiful little town, and I guess they wanted you to see a lot of it, because I had to turn in so many places I thought I would go crazy. I was exhausted, in pain and could barely shuffle for the majority of the leg. To top it off, right before the end there was a pretty steep hill that about threw me off of my goal not to walk at all during the race. When I finished I was so relieved! Jared and I were done! We had done it! Here is a picture of us in Midway after we were both done:

We hopped back in the van to cheer on our next runners who had to run some insanely crazy legs up VERY steep hills! I am so impressed with how well the did. I can't imagine having to run their legs. They ran through beautiful mountains in the rain. We ran into some car trouble going up the steep hill, but all was well in the end and we made it back down the hill safely, and in time to hand off the baton to our final runner, who would take us through Park City to the finish.

At the finish, we all met up to cross the finish line together. It was an amazing feeling to have accomplished something so difficult. The best part was that Jared and I did it together, we were there to cheer each other on and be a support during the difficult times. I can't wait to do it again next year!!

Jupiter's Dozen 2009

Just one week left!

2009-06-12T14:30:00.003-06:00

Just one more week until Jared and I attempt the Wasatch Back Ragnar Relay with a team of 10 of our friends (for a total of 12 members). I am definitely getting nervous and I am not in the condition that I would like to be when attempting this race, but I am also excited! I will run three legs in all (4 miles, 7 miles and 6 miles) and I am sure to be exhausted by the time all is said and done.

Should I apologize again....

2009-06-11T07:14:00.003-06:00

So, I haven't posted in ages. The longer I went before posting the more exciting I felt my next post should be...so I kept waiting for something huge to happen! Well, nothing huge has happened lately (well my parents have arrived safely here in Utah and are anxiously awaiting the day they can move into their new home) so I kept waiting. Yesterday I took my children to play with some of their friends and when I was picking them up my friend commented that I hadn't updated my blog in ages...so here I am with an unexciting update =)

The kids are now out of school, and I am loving it. NO more homework; NO more nagging them to get up and get ready for school; NO more braving the madness of drop off and pick up times at the school. Aaaah...summer time. The kids spend hours outside playing with the neighbors. This leaves me much more time for the things I need to get done. I am sure that by the end of the summer I will be anxious for them to return to school, but for now I am going to enjoy the freedom that comes with summertime.

Both Max and Liam have played baseball this year. Both are really enjoying this season. Liam has moved up to machine pitch and is on the Padres. Max started this year and is in T-ball on the Reds. Watching Max play is always entertaining...he seems to enjoy the downtime as much as the action. When he is not required to catch the ball or hit he is usually seen rolling around in the grass or goofing off in some other manner. Having said that, he has really improved and usually hits the ball off of a pitch as opposed to needing the Tee. Liam has done very well this year also and continues to amaze me with his athletic skills.

Before school ended, the children's school hosted their first annual 5K/Mile fun run. Joelle ran the mile and Liam, Jared and I ran the 5K race. I was so proud of both of the kids for how well they ran their races! I was not able to watch Joelle in the mile as it started just before the 5K, but my sister came to watch the younger kids and was able to watch Joelle during her race. Joelle took 2nd place in the 3rd/4th grade Girls division (and this is the girl who kept saying over and over again that she could NOT do it). Liam took 1st place in the 1st 2nd grade boys 5K. He ran it in just over 30 minutes! It was a hot evening and I am so proud of how well both of them ran. Neither race was easy in the heat, but they stuck with it and did so well. Here are some photos from race day:

Upcoming events include:
-Helping my parents move into their new home this weekend
-Jared and I falling over in the Wasatch Back next weekend =)
-Attempting to potty train Dane so he can go to Kiddie Kollege in the fall
-Watching Joelle in her first dance recital (her costume is sooo cute)
-Heading out to California for two family reunions
-Two of my friends will be coming to visit in July
-Getting back to scrapbooking. I haven't scrapbooked in over a month and I am truly missing the creative outlet it gives me. I am hoping to get going on that again soon (and don't worry, I will share when I create anything).
-Be a better blogger =)

Blog Hop with OUtta This FUnk

2009-04-25T09:55:00.006-06:00

Sorry to be late with my Blog Hop post! Welcome to The Outta This Funk Blog Hop!
Thanks for hopping by! If you came here first without starting at the OUtta This FUnk Blog, head there to start

Here's my layout for you today:

Now head on over to Dee at http://www.adashofdee.blogspot.com/

Thanks for stopping by!

Bad Mommy days

2009-04-25T09:28:00.004-06:00

You know you all have them too, and today is one of those for me. I look out my window at the gray skies and rain and hope to get a call that my children's soccer games are cancelled. Our 9AM game was already cancelled, but no word yet regarding our 11 and 12 o'clock games. I know it is purely selfish, I just don't want to sit in the rain. I want to sit here in my cozy house, with my fireplace blazing and a good book; a steamy cup of cocoa would top things of nicely. Soccer games...not really what I imagine when I think of rainy days. Now a sunny, bright day, without a cloud in the sky... that is what I imagine when I think soccer game. So I will sit here, waiting for the phone to ring...willing it to ring. And if it doesn't...I will throw on a raincoat, get everyone bundled up and head out for some really soggy soccer games.

National Scrapbooking Day is coming!

2009-04-24T10:58:00.003-06:00

Saturday May 2nd is National Scrabooking Day! Do you have any fun plans for the day? If you are looking for some inspiring challenges, with the chance to win some awesome prizes?? Scrap Attack Scrapbooking is yet again hosting a fun crop. It will run from May 1st through May 3rd. You won't want to miss out on this great event. Just register as a member of their online community (if you haven't already) and join in the fun in the crop boards!

A Giveaway on my review blog!

2009-04-24T10:25:00.002-06:00

I know, I know, I have again been a lame-O blogger lately, but I will be posting again soon. Really...

But I wanted to let you all know about a fun giveaway going on over at my review blog (More Thoughts With Chris). I am hosting my first ever blog giveaway and it is for 3 Yoplait Kids fun packs! Each pack comes with a water bottle, an insulated pack, fun outdoor games and a coupon for a free pack of Yoplait kids yogurt! I would love to have you all enter to win this fun prize pack!

Find the giveaway here!

A fave of mine

2009-04-08T23:19:00.003-06:00

My sister is staying with us while she waits to move into her apartment in Salt Lake. Having got the kids into bed, I needed to work on cutting fabric for ties for the boys for church this Sunday (gotta have them matching for Easter, photos of work in progress and finished product to come in a later post), so we decided to pop in a movie to keep us entertained while I cut away. I pulled out a stack of movies as options for my sister, and she mentioned that she didn't remember much about one of my all time favorite movies, The Man From Snowy River. This came as a surprise to me, as this (and its very good sequel, Return to Snowy River) is such a great movie, and one that I remember watching often while growing up.

I can't exactly pinpoint what it is about these movies that I love so much. Is it the gorgeous cinematography (and seriously guys, for the 80s, this stuff is pretty good!), Aussie accents, beautiful horses, or is it just a great love story (come on ladies, I know you all have a soft spot for forbidden love)? I'm not sure, but if you haven't seen either of there, PLEASE borrow a copy from someone (and if you are local, I have them both, albeit they are a bit scratched, but we can get our DVD player to play them for the most part =)), especially if you love horses.

Click on either movie image for more info at Amazon:

Lukie vs. the Pew

2009-03-31T09:32:00.004-06:00

It was a Battle Royal, Lukie vs. the Pew, and it appears that the Pew came off victorious. I guess we better teach this kid how to throw a punch (or atleast not to fall off his sister's lap during church). Now he is sporting his first shiner.

Unity Blog Hop

2009-03-28T14:51:00.001-06:00

Sooo sorry ladies! I swear I posted this morning before I left for soccer games and somehow this ended up on the wrong blog (I have another one I publish to regularly)!!! UGH So sorry ladies!

If you are here for the Unity Blog Hop, WELCOME! If you didn't join me from Eryn's blog, please view the Entire Inspirational blog hop by starting here at the Unity Blog.

I created this fun little card using the 1,2,3,4 Thousand Calorie Cupcakes stamp by Unity!

Here is a list of the other products I used:

Cardstock: Bazzil and WOrld Win

Strickers: Doodle bug

Die cut circle: Scenic Route

Stamps: UNITY!!!

Buttons: Wal Mart sewing section

Ink: Close to My Heart

My Favorite Quote:

"Do not worry if your job is small
And your rewards are few.
Just remember that the mighty oak
Was once a nut, like you." Anonymous

And now, head on over to Kristy for more awesome inspiration!

Thomas and Friends Live! On Stage

2009-03-24T16:31:00.009-06:00

Thanks to Mom Select, Max, Dane and I were able to see Thomas and Friends Live! On Stage at the E Center in Salt Lake City. Both boys were thrilled to be able to see the trains. For the entire 45 minute drive from our home to the E Center I was peppered with questions about the trains and the show. They were so cute and, so excited!

When we arrived we had to get some yummy snacks, of course (just popcorn and a drink, but that giant bucket of popcorn was exciting for a 2 and 4 year old!) and found our seats. We had a great view of the stage, which featured a beautifully painted backdrop.

The show itself was very cute. Filled with dancing, singing and interactive fun, it held my 4 year old's attention the entire 90 minutes! My 2 year old LOVED the show, singing and dancing along for the first half hour-45 minutes, but definitely got antsy after a while. Thank goodness we had the whole row to ourselves, so he was able to dance up and down the row without disturbing other show attendees!

The show features Thomas, James, Gordon, Sir Toppam hat and many more of your favorite friends from the Island of Sodor. It also features a troupe of Circus performers who have arrived on the Island. Unfortunately the town didn't get the message that the Circus was coming and they have to scramble to prepare for the show! Thomas tries very hard to be a "Very Useful Engine" but runs into a few mishaps along the way. In the end he learns that he can still be a Useful Engine, even if he has to let others help sometimes.

I highly recommend this show for children ages 4-7! It truly is an adorable show (heck even I had a great time singing along!), but a little bit long for the younger (1 to 3 years) set. Want to see if Thomas is chugging his way to a town near you? Head here and see a list of shows and information on ordering tickets!

So..I kinda disappeared again!

2009-03-20T22:03:00.006-06:00

So yeah, I haven't posted in a while. I really was waiting to load some photos here to my computer so I could post them here on the blog and just took way too long getting that done! Crazy, I know!

So, not really a ton going on around here. We are just busy with the normal, everyday activities. Joelle is loving Dance, Piano and Activity Days (church activities she attends every other week). Liam and Max will start baseball and T-ball in May, and soccer is starting up again in a week or so! Needless to say we will be busy, but that is good right?

I am trying to get rolling on my training for the Wasatch Back relay. We have been much more consistent the past few weeks, which is a good thing. My legs are telling me they don't really agree with that assessment, but heck, what do they know? =)

My sister arrives early next week to stay with us while searching out apartments to rent, and will stay until she finds one and moves! So starting next week I get to have my baby sister here in Utah, permanently! Yipee! My parents should be joining us as well, later in the year (depends on when their house sells, and some other details!). It will be so nice to have then nearby again.

The first graders had to do an Animal project, and the culminating event was a First Grade Zoo. Each child made a poster, that they could wear in some manner, about an animal of their choice. (Liam chose the Lion) At the First Grade Zoo, the children wore their posters and dressed as their animal for a parade through the first grade area of the school. All parents were encouraged to attend, and even invited to join our children for lunch in the cafeteria before the parade. It was fun to sit in the lunch room, eat my food off of a tray (I have to say their school lunches are 20 times better than what we were served when I was in school!), and enjoy lunch with this cutie! The scrapbooker in me insisted I get a shot of Liam and his lunch!

I wasn't able to get a good photo of Liam with his poster (the lighting in the school was so low, and Liam can't sit still for anything..LOL). But I got this goofy one of him close up!

Thanks to Mom Select I was able to take both Max and Dane to see Thomas and Friends Live on Stage last week. Look for a review this weekend, once I get my photos edited a bit! The boys had such a great time!

And last but not least, after two years of telling each other that we would go see a taping of Good Things Utah, my neighbor and I were houseguests (the people you hear clapping in the background...LOL)! It was really fun and we have decided that this summer we will take our girls to a taping!

A new blog (and no, this one is not going anywhere)

2009-03-07T09:32:00.007-07:00

I have recently discovered the world of blog giveaways (aka Word of Mouth Marketing). The idea behind these giveaways is to get products into the hands of consumers and let them share what they think with their friends and those with whom they associate. The idea is that these reviews come from real people who have actually used the product. They send product to review to a select group of bloggers, and the bloggers post a review of the product on their site. Along with their review, many reviewers offer a giveaway for the same product, so you in turn can try the product!

Here is a sample of the products I have been able to try because of blog giveaways:
Robeez baby booties (our favorite shoes for Lucas)
Eve Organics Hot Day blush
Karito Kids charmer doll
and
a boys tie pattern from You Can Make This (I seriously will be making TONs of these for my boys!)
and more!

Since I have been so lucky, I wanted to share my luck with all of my bloggy friends! I am starting a new blog highlighting some of my favorite blog giveaways! Check it regularly to see what is available to win. I plan to post a minimum of one a day. I will also include reviews of products that I am lucky enough to win! So head on over and check it out!

Here is the addy http://morethoughtswithchris.blogspot.com/ (yeah, pretty simple if you already follow this one!). I am still working on the design of the blog, so be patient with me as I play with the layout! Thanks =)

Want something handmade by me?

2009-03-03T09:08:00.002-07:00

Here's the scoop:

If you want something handmade, just for you, by me, leave me a comment below. I will leave this open until March 15th. After the 15th I will chose 5 random winners! Each of you will recieve something handmade by me. You never know what you are gonna get!

1. I make no guarantee that you will like what I make :)
2. What I create will be just for you
3. It will be done within a year (might take a while)
4. You have no clue what it is going to be
5. I reserve the right to do something really fun

Here the catch: if you choose to do this, you must post this on your blog and be ready to make something for five people too. This will be fun! When you receive the fabulous item I make you, you must post a picture of it on your blog.

I got this from Melissa's blog, so I am getting somethign too =)

Quaker True Delights!

2009-02-28T17:02:00.002-07:00

Somethign that I really enjoy is getting free samples. I think it is mostly that I LOVE to recieve mail that is not bills or junk mails. Lately the food samples that I have recieved have left a bit to be desired...they were Organic or healthy lines of sweet snacks that were just a bit too "healthy" tasting. That all ended with today's mail!

In my mailbox today was a sample of Quaker True Delights in the Dark Chocolate Raspberry Almond flavor! Can you Say YUM-O?! Seriously, this is an awesome flavor combination. I was a little unsure about the raspberry; I love fruit, but not always the dried up versions!

Do you want to try your own free sample? Head to Quakertruedelights.com and request yours today! Seriously..go..NOW =) LOL! (That or head to the store and buy a box cause one will never be enough).

The promised Layout photos

2009-02-28T13:49:00.003-07:00

Here are the photos of my layouts from last night! Wahoo!

It will have journaling on that journaling circle,. but I couldn't' find my brown pen last night!

Products:
Papers and Chipboard letters: Cloud 9
Journaling spot: Glitz
EMbellishments: dew drops
Inks: Colorbox
Cardstock: DCWV (green) and World Win (Orange)
Patterned Paper: Kaiser Kraft and Scenic Route
Stamps: Sassafrass Lass
Ink: Stampin UP
Ribbon: AMerican Crafts
Embellishments: Making Memories
Tools: Cricut Expression (with Accent Essentials Cartrige) and Cuttlebug Using a Quick Kutz alphabet die

I went super minimalist here!

Cardstock: Making Memories (white) Paperstudio (Green)

Eyelets: not a clue, from my stash and they weren't even all the same brand!

Tools: Fingertip control knife

Products used:
Cardstock: Paper Studio, DCWV and target
Patterned Paper: Scenic Route and Kaiser Kraft
Embellishments: Bazzil Bling Brads
Tools: Cricut Expression (Baseball Solutions Cartrige and Zoo Baloo Cartrige)

Not much going on this week

2009-02-28T00:18:00.003-07:00

Not much to report from this past week. Lots of running around and normal everyday errands, but not much in the way of excitement.

On a positive note, I didn't forget to get the kids to any of their activities this week =) (This has been a problem for me lately. It seems that my kids have all sorts of new activities, and I like to forget about them).

Everyone is finally completely healthy again, which is really nice after a couple weeks of sickness. Now I no longer have an excuse for not getting out the door and running. So tomorrow I am determined to start fresh and get into training mode. Jared and I have signed up with 10 other people from church to run in the Wasatch Back, which is a relay that goes from Logan to Park City. We are both very excited and nervous about this adventure!

On the scrapbooking front, I was able to complete several layouts tonight, most of which were for challenges being hosted over at Scrap Attack Scrapbooking. I plan to take photos tomorrow and share right here on the blog (as well as the great, inspiring gallery over at SAS).

Another exciting development: I finally, after 3 years, bought a co-ordinating bedding set for our bed! Yep, we have been using non-matching, unexciting bedding for three years! When we moved into our current home, we finally had a bedroom big enough for a King sized bed, so we splurged and bought one (well the mattress, box spring, and basic bed frame, we still don't have a fancy bed)! But, since we hadn't determined a color scheme for our bedroom, we held off on buying much in the way of bedding, besides a basic sheet set and basic, solid colored comforter. Fast forward to this week: I am roaming the aisles at Wal Mart and on an end cap I see a bedding set that includes sheets, pillow cases, shams, a bed skirt, 4 decorative pillows and the comforter, all for 89.95 (well actually is it supposed to be 99.95, but they had it under a sign for 89.95 so they gave me that price). The bargain hunter in me realizes that this is an excellent deal. Heck, sheets will run you around $50 most of the time for a King sized bed. As the colors were some of my favorite (brown and tealish blue) and it wasn't a floral pattern (Jared's stipulation..no girly bedding for him!); the price was excellent; and I have been itching to buy new bedding...I took the plunge!

No I did not fall off a cliff...

2009-02-21T07:44:00.006-07:00

We have had a lot of colds going around our house and I just haven't been keeping up with the blogging! I am resolved to be better and blog AT LEAST once a week going forward, so check back soon!

Here are the highlights of what has been going on in our house lately:

This beautiful girl turned 9! (Which means I have been a mom for Nine years now...I can't believe it!) and started Dance Lessons (she also started Piano back in January)

This cutie started walking, FINALLY!
(in this picture he is really enjoying the frosting that I left from my slice of cake...I am not a big frosting girl and Lucas was thrilled to help me finish)

My sister came to visit for an interview with a local hospital, and should be joining us in Utah in May!!! (I am soooo excited!)

Other than that, it has been lots of colds, Jared had an ear infection, Liam is getting over Strep (knock on wood that nobody else came down with it!) and just general business a usual in our house.

Got a file you want to send, but it is too big for your email server?

2009-02-02T14:30:00.004-07:00

Back in November I was trying to send multiple scans to members of my family. I ended up having to send each file by itself in an individual email because of the file size limits imposed by yahoo groups (the way my husbands family communicates). This was very inconvenient and frustrating! I really wish that I could have used File Hurl.

File Hurl is a site that allows you to send a file, without the retrictions of file size limits, to anyone you want. It is totally free. Only the people that you want to see a file will be allowed to access it. You can only send one file at a time, BUT you can zip multiple files together and send the zipped file.

It is super simple to send a file. From the home page click on "Hurl It" on the side bar. On the next page fill in the requested information (your name, email, email addresses of those to whom you are sending the file); click browse to chose the file from your computer; include a message with the file if you want and click "Hurl Away!".

Etsy Inspired #22

2009-02-01T22:15:00.005-07:00

I am so sad that this is my last week as a guest designer over at Heart Hugs Designs for the Etsy Inspired Challenges. I have really loved my time there and will DEFINITELY be continuing to participate in the weekly challenges.

Here is Week #22:

This week's shop is Little Snuggle Bunny. Wow, the sweet blankets in this shop are simply adorable! These would make such beautiful baby gifts! They are handmade from gorgeous, trendy fabrics!

If you participate this week and create a project inspired by something in the Little Snuggle Bunny Etsy shop you will be entered for a chance to win this GORGEOUS blanket!

Just post a link to your project as a comment to this post over at Heart Hugs Designs.

Here is my project:

I took my inspiration from the fun edgings and gave my layout a mitered edge.

Products used:

Cardstock: The Paper Studio and unknown

Patterned Paper: Kaiser Kraft

Embellishments:Doodlebug (alpha stickers),buttons are misc.

Stamps: Cornish Heritage Farms, Sassafrass Lass, Inque Boutique

MIA

2009-02-01T21:59:00.003-07:00

Life threw us a bit of a curve two weeks ago, resulting in my going MIA from the blogging world for a bit. My Mother-in-Law, who has been suffering from Alzheimers disease for several years, passed away on January 17th. The next morning we packed our kids in the car and drove to California in order to be with family.

Diane Jensen was a truly wonderful woman. She raised seven children and was grandmother to 34 grandchildren, and 4 great grandchildren. What a wonderful posterity. .She influenced so many lives through the drama productions and dance festivals that she headed over the years. A truly wonderful woman. Her loss will be felt by so many. I was blessed with a Mother-in-Law who treated me as a member of the family. Everytime we left her home she gave me a hug and told me that she loved me

Etsy inspired #20

2009-01-17T09:12:00.005-07:00

I know, I skipped posting #19...I had a crazy week last week and last Saturday I was still getting my energy back from a stomach bug earlier in the week! But I am back today with #20, and man is this Etsy shop filled with some gorgeous jewelry! This weeks artist is Zeba. Each piece is arfully photgraphed, so you truly get to see what the item will look like when you get it in your hot little hands! And if you participate this week, you will be entered into a drawing to win a necklace made specifically for this challenge...valued at $45! So head on over to Zeba and get inspired!

Post a link to your project in the comments section of this post at Heart Hugs Designs and you will have a chance at this awesome prize!!

Now for my example:

My design was inspired by this necklace!

Now here is my sample, sorry for the really lame photo! I was taking it in my bedroom with the flash and indoor lighting, which means a yucky photo!
Products:

Cardstock: Bazzil and SEI

Patterned Paper: SEI

Stickers: Doodlebug and SEI

Die: Sizzix

Chipboard: the back of a DCWV stack of paper

Stamp: Unity Stamp Company

Ink: Colorbox

Journaling reads:

Who knew you could get 5 kids to sit still for a group shot (well almost still). Antelope Island November 2008

On Snobbishness

2009-01-08T08:11:00.004-07:00

I'll admit it. In the past I have been a bit of a snob...a diaper snob, that is. Starting with my oldest, I used ONLY Huggies or Pampers, whoever was better at the time (Doesn't it always seem like they are always changing something or other about their diapers? One will change then the other will one up them...it is a diaper game of leap frog). Now, don't get me wrong, I didn't insist on Supremes, but it was Name Brand diapers for my kids.

There were a few times that I did try store brand diapers, but my experiences with them were definitely negative. I usually ended up with leaking, torn tabs, and occasionally the whole diaper would fall apart.

So, for years I insisted on name brands...rarely condescending to buy LUVs. (And with 5 kids, all who insist that they are NOT ready to potty train until they are 3 and a 1/2, I have single handedly kept the diaper industry afloat). But fast forward to the current economic crisis. My grocery budget was not increasing and my money was not going as far. I needed to find a way to cut back, so I started buying LUVs diapers. They were fine, no complaints...but grocery prices continued to grow...and I had a week where my grocery budget was a little extra tight...I paced back and forth, eyeing the Parent's Choice diapers (Wal Mart Brand); their discounted price was calling to me. But my mind was haunted by discount diaper nightmares...leaking, torn tabs, and falling apart..Oh My! But I gave in to the siren call of money saved and the yellow package made it's way into my cart. I hoped that I wouldn't experience buyers remorse at each diaper change.

I must admit, I was pleasantly surprised. They came equipped with everything my name brand diapers had. Stretchy fit, cloth like feel, even the stretch side tabs! Each week it got easier to put that yellow package in my cart, passing by the red, green and purple packages who still whispered to me that they were better. I am now a convert to Parents Choice diapers. They run about half the price of Huggies and Pampers, and about 30% cheaper than LUVs. For this Mommy of five, with two in diapers, the savings are huge.

I did try the Target brand diapers about a month ago, and I must admit that I was a bit disappointed. They were not as soft, their side tabs not as stretchy, and I experienced night time leaking.

Etsy Inspired Challenge #18!

2009-01-03T10:15:00.012-07:00

This week's Etsy Inspired Challenge is Autumn Russell! Lillian's fun, sketchy style would brighten up any home! Check out the super fun art and use it as inspiration for a piece of art of your own. A card, layout, altered item, the options are limitless! Post a link to your project over in the comments on this thread over at Heart Hugs Designs for a chance to win an amazing piece of artwork, up to $55, from Autumn Russel!!

For my sample, I was inspired by the sketchy look to Lillian's artwork, and decided to try to add a sketchy element to my photo. To do this I printed the photo once on photo paper, in normal color. I then played around with the photo and gave it a sketched look in black an white. I printed the sketched image on vellum and layered the images, with the vellum on top:

Products:

Patterned Papers: My Minds Eye

Cardstock: Die Cuts With a View, Bazzil just the Edges, Paper Studio (Vellum)

Tools: Fiskars Treading Water Punch, Cricut Expression with Zoo Baloo Font Cartrige

Embellishments: Thickers Alphabet, Bazzil Brads, Autumn Leaves Buttons

Ink:Colorbox

Journaling reads:

Time flies all too swiftly. I look at this sweet photo of a newborn you and smile at your sweetness. In just over a year you have changed so much. You laugh; crawl up the stairs (and back down again); Say "hi" all day long; let us know you are done with your meal by throwing it on the floor; take a few steps; love to play catch...Just for a moment I want to hold on the the past; remember you as the tiny little baby who was dwarfed by a giant stuffed bear; remember the feel of you in my arms, when you fit there so perfectly. For, I know that time does fly, and in no time at all I will be watching you grow into a man.Photo: November 10,2007 Journaling: December 31, 2007

January Guest Designer.

2009-01-01T07:52:00.004-07:00

I am so honored to announce that I will be joining the amazing team over at Heart Hugs Designs, who inspire us every week with awesome Etsy Inspired work, as a guest designer for the month of January! Challenges are posted weekly, on Saturdays. A new Etsy store is highlighted each week, and the amazing team gives awesome examples of work inspired by the items available for purchase in that weeks store. As a bonus a prize from the store owner is offered for one participant in each week's challenge (a couple weeks ago there were actually 3 winners!). So, head on over to Heart Hugs Designs! You will love this fun challenge site! Look for my first sample on Saturday!

Sorry, no good pics from Christmas morning...

2008-12-31T16:26:00.004-07:00

I was looking through my picture from Christmas morning and really couldn't find much worth posting. All were spoiled royally, especially by Grandma and Poppa and Aunt Stacy. Everyone got wonderful gifts, including DSs for the older two kids and Hubby. It was pretty funny watching Jared, Stacy my dad and I playing Brain Age 2 on Jared's DS.

Since I don't have any Christmas morning pictures, here are some fun ones of the kids with Santa. Our wonderful neighbors have a fun party every year where Santa comes to visit with the neighbor kids. Dane wouldn't go anywhere near Santa, so sorry, no pics of Dane with Santa, but here are the rest of the kids:

And since I didn't have a Santa pic with Dane, I did find this one of him on Christmas morning. Doesn't he look so cute in his Christmas jammies?

A funny story about the kids and their Christmas jammies:

Usually each kid gets a new pair of jammies from my mom, and they open them on Christmas Eve before bedtime. Since my parents and sister were coming for Christmas, my Mom did not ship their jammies ahead of time. Stacy had to work the night of the 23rd, so they could not leave until about 8AM on Christmas Eve. Normally this would allow them to arrive right around dinner time, which would have been perfect...Well...there just happened to be a big snow storm on Christmas Eve and instead of taking 10 hours, their drive took them 19 hours, most of the drive in chains! Needless to say the kids did not get their jammies on Christmas Eve.

My parents and Stacy finally arrived around 4 in the morning, just in time to set out gifts and for the kids to wake up (I think they heard all of the commotion in setting out the mountain of gifts that my family had brought with them). By 5AM all but Max were wide awake and anxious to go downstairs and see what Santa had brought for them! So, as crazy as we are, we gave the kids their wrapped Christmas jammies, had them open them and of course they had to change out of the jammies they had worn to bed and put on their special, new ones! Yeah, we may be silly, but you HAVE to wear new Christmas jammies on Christmas morning for present opening!

I'm back!

2008-12-31T11:54:00.007-07:00

Sorry for the blog neglect. I am determined to be better about blogging; I am even going to make it one of my New Years resolutions. Christmas really kept me busy this year. I made a few of my children's gifts, and that took a great deal of my spare time in December.

One project that kept me busy this year was this one (yeah, you try to get 4 boys ages 14 months to 7 years to sit still...LOL):

I was lucky enough to win a giveaway over at http://www.mommosttraveled.com/ which was a free ebook pattern to make these fun ties from http://www.youcanmakethis.com/! The great part about this pattern was the accompanying ebook that had photo instructions. Perfect for the beginning seamstress (which I am! My past sewing projects have NOT been very successful). I had a bit of trouble on the first one with just one part, but was quickly able to figure it out and move on. The other 3 were simple after that! I highly reccomend this and trying other patterns from http://www.youcanmakethis.com/ . It was such a fun way to have my boys match for Christmas Sunday!

Watch for more posts later this afternoon! I have lots to update, but for now I have to hit the grocery store!

a little funny from our trip

2008-12-09T21:22:00.002-07:00

I wanted to add a photo to this post, but our camera battery was dead, and my sister took the pictures for us (thank goodness she had her new camera all charged and ready to go!). She uploaded them to snapfish for me, but I can't seem to copy the photo so I will have to wait to show these photos until I can get my hands on the files for them (probably at Christmas when we comes to visit! YEAH!)

So, while we were in Cali, we had a little party for Liam to celebrate his 7th birthday. We just had my sister, my parents and Jared's sister and her 5 children (who are my children's best friends! how perfect is that?). We had a great time visiting, eating Little Ceasars pizza and Crazy Bread, decorating christmas cookies, eating cupcakes with green frosting, and watching Liam open his gifts. While Liam was unwrapping one of his larger gifts, Joelle, in an attempt to hurry the process (or so I assume) yelled out, "Rip it like a MAN!" I swear we all cracked up! Where she came up with that I will never know, but it was too cute and funny!

I know...you are all on the floor, passed out from the shock that I actually posted twice today..You can get up off the floor now, I am done for the night! Maybe I will even see you again tomorrow! (and for all of you whose blogs I usually follow, I am slowly getting through the 700 or so posts that my google reader showed as unread this evening when I signed in after AGES of neglect...yeah, so I will get to you, I haven't forgotten about you!)

Wow, it has been ages!

2008-12-09T14:14:00.004-07:00

Sorry for the extreme blog neglect! It has been a crazy few weeks!

We spent the week after THanksgiving visiting family in California. It was fun to see everyone again! We even were able to celebrate Liam's birthday (which is actually this Thursday) with a few family members! I will post pictures of the fun later!

Now we are just back to the normal routine, which with 5 kids is anything but routine! Yesterday Max had to have some dental work done, and since he is so young, he had to be sedated (not fully out, just given a pretty heavy sedative). A kid on a sedative is a pretty funny thing to watch. WHen he was done, he was numb all over and pretty loopy. I tried really hard not to laugh, but I just had to a couple times!

I haven't really found anytime to create the past few weeks, but I am hoping to change that as I have a few Christmas gifts that I need to make. I better get my rear in gear and work on those, as I have only 2 weeks from Thursday (did I just scare you all?)!! When I get to creating I will post and share (but not my CHristmas gifts, cause ya know, those are surprises!)

I'll be back later with photos of our trip, just need to dump some from the memory card!

Lucas' birthday pictures!

2008-11-13T09:20:00.009-07:00

OK, so I am finally updating with pictures of Lucas's first birthday!! On his actual birthday we took him over to Arctic circle for one of thier courtesy cones (they are the perfect size for a little guy!). He wasn't sure at first, but decided it was pretty yummy

We truly celebrated his birthday a little over a week later when my parents came to visit for Halloween! Here are some highlights from the celebration:

He loved this present from Grandma and Poppa..a cow bowling set!

Here's the cake before we gave him a slice. I cheated and we bought it at Weinegars!

Getting a taste...hmm, this is pretty yummy!

Little fingers digging in!

The bowl is pretty fun too!

Gotta get the last crumbs!

The resulting mess!

A fun challenge blog

2008-11-06T13:37:00.003-07:00

I met Ashley over at Split Coast Stampers during the Unity Hip Hop Thursdays. She hosts a weekly challenge on her blog to use products over in an Etsy shop to inspire a project. This weeks challenge is be inspired by the fun products over at Supanerdstef's shop. She makes the cutest little hair bows! I was browsing through her shop with JOelle next to me and she seriously loved them all! I chose these cute layered flowers as my inspiration

and the fun fall colors of these clippies

I kinda stretched it a bit though, cause instead of a layered flower I did a leaf and it only has 2 layers, but I really liked this cute leaf and the little button accent! The photo ended up kinda light and everytime I tried to make it darker the photos looked funky, so IRL this is not so washed out looking!

1 year ago today...

2008-10-22T09:02:00.002-06:00

My week of bedrest ended with the birth of our beautiful baby boy, Lucas! That's right, our baby is one year old today! I can't believe how quickly this year has flown by! We have been so blessed by his addition to our family; what a sweet little boy. He was such a tiny little baby, and is still a tiny boy, but he is doing so well. Here's a look at him one year ago...

And here's a photo from a week or 2 ago....

A cutie, huh?

Happy Birthday Lucas!!

Enabler Alert...Enabler Alert

2008-10-17T09:41:00.003-06:00

Ok, scrappy friends, here is another awesome deal over at Scrap Attack Scrapbooking!!

Back by popular demand and just in time for some holiday shopping…a fresh new variety of Scrap Attack {Mystery Boxes!} We’ve taken all your comments and suggestions and made this batch of {mystery boxes} better than ever! We’ve scaled back on the papers and tried to add more alphabets and fun embellishments to each box. For an added bonus each kit, regardless of the manufacturer, will come with a couple sheets of KI Memories Lace papers!!
We have handpicked a few of our favorite manufacturers and put together some awesome {mystery boxes} just for you! I know many of you wanted an “embellishment” box so we have added 2 sizes of those for you to pick from!! If you like American Crafts, Basic Grey or Dream Street Papers this is your lucky day!
American Crafts Designs Mystery Boxes Contains doublesided papers from 7 collections, ribbons, embellishments, rub-ons & Thickers, Thickers and more even more Thickers!! *Plus bonus KI Memories Lace Paper!
Our Price: $35.00 (List Price: $100.00)
Basic Grey Mystery Boxes Contains papers from 6 collections, die-cuts, ABC’s, rub-ons, buttons and a very nice assortment of Basic Grey ribbons! *Plus bonus KI Memories Lace Paper! (We have not carried Basic Grey in our store for very long so this kit is a steal!)
Our Price: $35.00 (List Price: $125.00+)
Dream Street Papers Mystery Boxes I love that Dream Street Papers are smaller lines so you can get more of a variety. This kit contains papers from 11 collections & coordinating stickers/die-cuts. We’ve also added some Prima flowers, Basic Grey Ribbons, Bling & a nice selection of alphabets from miscellaneous manufacturers. I think the additions to this kit give it a nice selection of extras to play with. *Plus bonus KI Memories Lace Paper!
Our Price: $35.00 (List Price: $95.00){MINI} Embellishment Mystery BoxesYou asked for it and we delivered! This {mini}kit comes with some great embellishments such as buttons, brads, bling, charms, felt, stamps, flowers, ribbon + more…Our Price: $25.00 (List Price: $65.00){BIG DADDY} Embellishment Mystery BoxesBigger and better than the {Mini} Embellishment Mystery Box, this set contains most of the same embellishments plus some extras! It also comes with a nice selection of alphabets and best of all…Thickers, Thickers and even more Thickers! {WOW!}Our Price: $40.00 (List Price: $110.00+)FINE PRINT: Quantities are limited on these mystery boxes. No additional discounts or coupons can be used on these mystery boxes. Shipping and Handling: $4.99 each. *Adjustments to s/h will be made when you order is shipped. If you are interested in 3 of them, we will ship these to you FREE of charge!* Discounted & free shipping and handling on the Scrap Attack Mystery Boxes will be for domestic orders only. If you would like to purchase other items too, we request that you place 2 separate orders. Please make a note in the comments and we would be happy to combine your order(s) into one shipment to save you on overall shipping.
BEST OF ALL--->>>Each Mystery Box will come with a "Golden Ticket" (so to speak.) On October 31st we will pull a random winner from all the Mystery Boxes sold. If we pull your ticket, you just won an {AWESOME} $40 Gift Certificate to the Scrap Attack Scrapbooking Store!!These have been added to the store and are available immediately! To get yours now, click on the SHOP NOW link! I know you will not be disappointed in these new and improved mystery boxes!! Don't forget to hold onto your "Golden Ticket" until our drawing on October 31, 2008!

Sometimes it's the little things that remind you how blessed you are!

2008-09-29T19:12:00.005-06:00

Sorry to be remiss in posting lately. I have just been really busy with the back to school stuff. Man life gets busy when school starts up again.

Today I got an odd envelope in the mail addressed by hand to me. I opened it and inside I found a gift card for Wal Mart. I turned it over and the amount showed was $100. I was confused. I could not figure out why it had been sent. The envelope had a business name and address in the return address spot; one that I did not recognize. Inside was only the gift card and a piece of business stationary folded over the card...no letter, no information. On the bottom of the business stationary there was a phone number. I was confused so I gave the number a call to inquire...I didn't want to have received a card that someone else was expecting. It turned out I had won a contest over at sheknows.com. I do enter their contest occasionally, but have never won anything and had not received any communication from them regarding my win! It truly made me feel so blessed.

I am truly feeling so blessed by my Heavenly Father right now. I know, it is just a gift card, and I had entered the contest, but such an unexpected blessing has reminded me how much He loves each and every one of us and how He knows exactly what we need, and so wants to bless us.

Running is paying off!

2008-09-12T10:23:00.002-06:00

I am so glad that I have been able to be somewhat consistant with my running lately, because it has really started to pay off BIG TIME! Seriously, I pulled out a box of clothes yesterday. You know that box of skinny clothes that you just can't seem to part with because you KNOW that you are going to get back in them SOMEDAY! Most of these clothes are pre-Max (the pregnancy that I gained the most and kept the most on afterwards). And I am happy to say that I have fit everything that I have tried on! YEEEHAW! So, these are not clothes I wore before Joelle or anything (I seriously got rid of all of that, that is a long ago dream that I don't even aspire to), but I havent' seen this weight on the scale or this size clothes in 5 years! Wahoo!

Thanks for letting me share =}

Sharing some scrapping!

2008-09-07T15:39:00.002-06:00

It has been atleast 2 weeks since I did a scrapbook page. I have done a few other projects but not a layout. I thought I would share my page with you all.

These photos were some of the few we took during Lucas' 12 hours in the NICU.

Journaling: After my water broke you began having heart decelerations and they found meconium in the fluid. When you were born the cord was wrapped around your neck. I was so worried about you. Having been born at 34 weeks, after a short time in my arms and being weighed and measured, you were taken to the NICU. I thought that you would end up staying in the NICU for at least a week, and even when you did go home that we would be dealing with many issues due to your premature birth. But you were so strong! You spend 12 hours in the NICU, just being monitored. You were a little champ, and got to go back with me to my room. I was so happy! We did deal with some small issues, and you stayed in the hospital one day longer than I did, but when compared to what I feared……I know that we were blessed.

Products:

Cardstock: SEI

papers: I only know the maker of the plaid, and that is Making Memories, the others were not labeled

embellishments: Bazzil (scalloped edge), Clearsnap(ink), American Crafts (Thickers)

Tools: Provo Craft (Coluzzle Circle Template)

First days of school!

2008-09-05T10:39:00.006-06:00

Max had his first day of preschool on Wednesday. He was so cute! He goes to a great little preschool, that Liam also attended. I am so glad that he is going to get to have this fun preschool experience!

Here are some pictures from the first day:

Today was the first day of school for Joelle and Liam. They are going to a brand new schoool, which will be great when everythign gets done...LOL..for now they don't have a Library, Cafeteria or Gym, and the front of the school where there is supposed to be grass there is only dirt...but it is really a beautiful school and both of thier Teachers seem very nice.

Here are some pictures from this morning:

Feelin the love!

2008-09-04T07:32:00.003-06:00

My sweet friend Vicki gave me this blog award!!

Now it is my turn to pass it on!

I award:

Suzanne-such a sweetie and an amazing scrapper! And that little boy of hers is adorable!!

Andrea- Andrea is one amazingly talented lady. She has been so strong as she has endured some major trials lately. I truly admire her. What an awesome lady.

Mess(ok...it really is Melissa, but she will always be Mess to me!)-Now we go way back...art class in 8th grade! A truly great friend over the years. I am so glad that we have been able to keep in touch!

Kathy-such a sweet neighbor! One of the first people to greet us after we moved into our house. She came to the hospital when I was on bed rest (and bored to tears!) just to say hi and bring me a Jamba Juice! What a sweetie.

Melinda-Another awesome neighbor (and Kathy's SIL). You should hear the band that she is a part of! They are amazing! We spent many Sundays chatting in the Mother's Lounge at church with our little guys.

Stacy-I can't leave out my sister! She is an awesome Nurse working at Shriners hospital. So many memories together I can't even begin to list them! Love ya Sis!

Christy-My sweet cousin who shares my name! This truly has created a bond between us that, even if we don't see each other for years at a time, we are instantly close again! What an amazing woman and mother. Thanks for teaching me how to make Jam!

Make sure to collect your blog award and place it in your blog!!!
1. The winner can put the logo on her blog.

2. Link the person you received your award from.

3. Nominate 7 other blogs.

4. Put links of those blogs on yours.

5. Leave a message on the blogs of the girls you’ve nominated

Chewy Coconut cookies

2008-09-03T11:28:00.001-06:00

I brought these to a family party Monday night and was asked to share the recipe. These are my hubby's FAVORITE cookie!

1 ¼ c flour
½ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
½ c butter
½ c dark brown sugar
½ c sugar
1 egg
1 1/3 c flake coconut
½ tsp vanilla

Mix flour, soda, and salt and set aside. Cream butter, add sugar gradually, beating thoroughly. Beat in egg. Add flour mixture gradually. Mix until blended. Mix in coconut and vanilla. Drop onto ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375º 9-10 min until cookies begin to brown.

Honorable Mention in a photo contest

2008-09-03T10:11:00.003-06:00

I decided to enter a photo contest over at the Reminisce blog (a scrapbooking company). I didn't win, but I was on the Honorable Mention list. Here's the photo I entered...it was one I had just taken and was really happy with how it looked.

September Featured Scrapper at Scrap Attack

2008-09-01T14:50:00.002-06:00

I know I have meantioned it before, but I love the wonderful online scrapping community over at Scrap Attack Scrapbooking! There are some wonderful ladies there and wonderful inspiration in the gallery. The site owner is an active member of the community and is also an incredibly talented scrapper. And the store! Have you been over to the store yet? Oh my, the best of the new stuff is always at Scrap Attack and always 10% off retail!

Every month on the Scrap Attack Blog, Lauri highlights one of the members of the community. It is a great way to get to know a bit more about the wonderful ladies there and see some of their great work. Well...this month I was chosen as the featured scrapper! So, if you want to see some of my scrappy pages and a little bit about me..head on over to the Scrap Attack Blog!

Another year came and went...

2008-08-27T08:57:00.004-06:00

and I was yet again not on the list of chosen designers of Creative Express...I have to say that I was really disappointed. I really felt like I put together a really good submission (well the best that I can do) and that I had a good chance. But, not everyone can be on the team, and I guess that I was not what they were looking for. Congrats to all of the ladies who made the team, and bug Hugs to those like me who did not! I may take some time off from DT submissions for a while, while I usually create my best work when working on them, I have a really hard time not taking the rejection personally. Thanks for listening to my complaining =} My next post will be more upbeat, I promise!

Guilty!

2008-08-26T15:13:00.002-06:00

Of blog neglect, that is! We have had a busy past few weeks and I just haven't had a chance to post. We have had visitors the past 2 weekends, which of course means a lot of attempting to clean before they arrive (some how it just never gets to the point I want it too...maybe it is the 5 kids making messes while Jared and I clean). Nothing too exciting there, though just quick visits. We enjoyed a day with Marcia, Jared's sister, and also with my parents.

Soccer practices will be starting for both of my older kids this week, Joelle tonight and Liam on Friday afternoon. Jared is coaching Max's team this year, but his age does not have midweek practices, they practice for 1/3 hour before thier games on Saturdays. It will be fun to watch them all play this year. Both Liam and Joelle have advanced in age levels, so thier fields will be larger than the past 2 years.

School was supposed to start yesterday, but due to some delays, they will not be starting until the 5th (next friday). They are starting at a brand new school, and the construction was just not complete enough for the kids to safely start school. Max will also start preschool next week, on Wednesday. I am so excited for him!

As for me, I am anxiously awaiting the results of the Design Team call over at Creative Express. I have applied this year and though I know that so many talented ladies have applied, and that my chances of getting a call are miniscule, I am still holding out hope until I see a list that does not include my name.

My children's ideas regarding posession and ownership...

2008-08-11T23:54:00.003-06:00

Sorry, for the lack of posts lately. My sister Stacy has been visiting (and we unfortunatley have been fighting off a mild stomach bug) so I have been busy, and have not had time to blog. Here are a couple funnies from my kids from today:

We went down to Liberty (This is a correction, my original post said Legacy Park...oops, I was tired, SORRY ={ ) park in Salt Lake City and enjoyed some time in the water play areas and on the play ground. Before we left Aunt Stacy bought the kids some snow cones and cotton candy. Instead of getting more cotton candy from the cone Liam, decided to snitch some from his sister. When asked why he didn't just get himself some more he said,"I did, I got it from Joelle's hand!"

On the way home Max had a nickel in his hand. He had been carrying it for sometime and the other children asked him where he had aquired it. Max responded, "My Stacy gave it to me!" with a big smile on his face. Stacy never actually gave it to him, but she did drop it on the ground when she went to buy the snow cones, so when he picked it up that was as good as her giving it to him, in Max's eyes!

11 years!

2008-08-08T08:16:00.003-06:00

Wow! It seems like I was just writing my blog post for our 10 year anniversary, and look another year has flown by! I am so incredibly blessed to have this wonderful man beside me for the last 11 years. He is so supportive of everything I do. I Love him more than ever!

Yummy Homemade brownies

2008-08-03T16:12:00.002-06:00

I brought brownies to choir today and was asked for the recipe, so I decided to share it on the blog. This way you all can try these yummy, homemade brownies (the only homemade version that I have liked...I usually prefer the boxed ones). Sorry, no photo as they are all gone, but I tell ya, they are good!

I got this recipe from my mom (she made them almost every sunday while I was pregnant with Max, because I craved them so bad during his pregnancy...so it was probably more the fault of my sweet tooth than Max that I gained so much weight and have had such a hard time losing it!)

Yummy Brownies:

4 ounces unsweetened chocolate
2/3 cup shortening
2 cups sugar
4 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 ¼ cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Heat oven to 350. Grease baking pan 13 x 9 x 2 inches. Melt chocolate and shortening in a large saucepan over low heat. Remove from heat and mix in the sugar, eggs and vanilla. Stir in the remaining ingredients. Spread in pan.

Bake 30 (a little less if you are more of a gooey brownie fan) minutes or until the brownies start to pull away from the sides of the pan. Cool slightly and cut into bars.

I have to share a great deal going on over at Scrap Attack

2008-07-31T12:38:00.003-06:00

If you LOVE Scenic Route, Fancy Pants or Sassafrass Lass (all awesome manufacturers) you are going to love this deal! Here are the details:

Fancy Pants Designs Mystery Boxes Contains doublesided paper from 6 paper collections, die-cuts, ribbons, rub-rub-ons and/or buttons!! Our Price: $35.00 List Price: $90.00+

Scenic Route Mystery Boxes Contains doublesided papers, die-cuts, chipboard, ABC's and/or rub-ons!! Lots of fun papers from over 7 collections! Our Price: $35 .00 List Price: $100.00+

Sassafras Lass Mystery Boxes Contains doublesided papers from 8 paper collections, die-cuts, ABC stickers & rub-ons!! This set has a great selection of rub-ons & ABC's! Our Price: $35.00 List Price: $100.00+

* Embellishments, rub-ons and ribbons will vary slightly from box to box

FINE PRINT: Quantities are limited on these mystery boxes. No additional discounts or coupons can be used on these mystery boxes. Shipping and Handling: $.4.99 *adjustments to s/h will be made when you order is shipped. If you are interested in all 3 brands we will ship these to you FREE of charge!* Discounted & free shipping and handling on the Scrap Attack Mystery Boxes will be for domestic orders only. If you would like to purchase other items too, we request that you place 2 separate orders. Please make a note in the comments and we would be happy to combine your order(s) into one shipment to save you on overall shipping.

BEST OF ALL--->>>Each Mystery Box will come with a "Golden Ticket" (so to speak.) At the end of our {SAS}sy Birthday Bash Crop we will pull a winner from all the Mystery Boxes sold. If we pull your ticket, you just won an ENTIRE collection of the NEW CHA papers from Glitz Designs!!

So what are you waiting for?? Head on over to Scrap Attack Scrapbooking and get yourself an awesome mystery box!!

Back from Sac!

2008-07-31T08:27:00.009-06:00

We had a great visit with our family while in Sacramento. It was an exhausting drive, both directions, but it was worth it to spend time with family. The purpose of the trip was to join the family in running the Alzheimer's Association 5k, attending the De Lucia reunion, and to celebrate Jared's sister Marcia's 50th birthday. We also spent time visiting my parents and sister.

Here are some photos from the trip:

Here's our family in the T-shirts we made for the run. It was a fun race. Jared and I ran together for almost the first 2 miles, when he stopped to walk a bit. I was able to run the whole thing, even after a month of no running. My ankle was sore for a day or two afterwards, but is fine now! I am so happy that I was able to run. I got about the same time as my last one aswell, so I didn't get worse for having to ride the bike instead of runing. Hopefully I can work back into a running schedule so I can improve.
Here's the backside of our shirts...they all say "Running for Mom" or "Running for Grandma". The image was designed by our 10 year old niece Rebekah.

Joelle, Liam and our niece and Nephews at the beginning of their 1/2 mile run
Liam totally amazed us and came in around 5th or 6th in his kids race (which had kids from age 6 to 9!). We watched a few older kids come around the corner and then here came Liam! I swear I screamed so loud!
Each kid got a medal for participating. Max ran with 2 of his cousins in the 1/4 mile race for kids 5 and under. He was so cute! Here is he is showing off his medal!
These 2 girls are adorable (Joelle and my niece Eliza, aren't they both beautiful?)! They ran the race together. It was so cute to see them coming around the corner, encouraging each other. What sweet girls!

On the way home from the reunion we were able to attend a birthday party for my good friend Lynnette's son, Spencer. He and Joelle have had a really cute friendship since they were in preschool together. They used to say that they were going to get married. They are still so cute together. Here they are enjoying their dinner:

Saturday night we swapped kids with my Sister in Law, she took Liam and Max (she is a VERY brave woman!!) so they could play with Dallin and Jake and we brought Eliza and Rebekah back to my parents house. They attended church with us at my parents ward, and after church Jared had to get a picture of these three beautiful girls!

It was truly a great trip. We had so much fun visiting with family and friends; our only complaint was that it wasn't long enough. We are planning to go back in November for Thanksgiving.

memories....jumping on the bandwagon

2008-07-18T11:58:00.002-06:00

OK, so all of my ward blogging friends have done this memory thing, so I thought I would hop on the bandwagon and give it a try!

1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!

2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog (if you want) and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll check your blog to see if you've copied this to play.

Tagged!

2008-07-17T22:07:00.003-06:00

I have been tagged by the super sweet Andrea. Here goes:
1. Ten Years Ago... I was a 20 year old newlywed, coming up on my 1 year anniversary. I was working at Wells Fargo's Business Banking center... not much else, really. Just the day to day life of married life before kids...life was simpler but not as full.
2. 5 things on today (tomorrow's ) to do list...1.work out..2.LAUNDRY..3.Change a MILLION diapers..4. scrapbook after kids go to bed..5. DISHES
3. Snacks I enjoy.. garlic bread, peaches or nectarines, chocolate
4. Places I've lived... Loomis, CA..Newcastle, CA..Sacramento, CA..Mather, CA..Syracuse, UT
5. 4 people I tag... Sarah.. Stacy(my lil sis).. Alecia.. Wendi

The results are in...

2008-07-17T15:54:00.002-06:00

from my bone scan. The Dr said it looks like I have a stress fracture. UGH. That means, lots of rest. As nice as that sounds, I am itching to run. I actually tried some jogging twice this week, before I heard from the Dr today. I only jogged a half mile each time, but this mornign, did feel some twinges in the ankle right as I was hitting that half mile mark. So, it looks like mostly bike riding for me for a while. I can try walking with some light jogging, but if I feel pain, I have to stop and rest it for another week (wherein I can do alternative exercises, like swimming an biking as long as they don't cause any pain). Luckily, it does feel like the few weeks of rest I have already given it has started to help, as I do not feel pain while walking anymore! So, I am on the road to healing, but it sounds like it will be a long road before I can run any 5Ks. That having been said, I have decided to walk the Alzheimers 5K next week. Many of Jared's siblings will be walking, so I am just gonna hoof it and hope I don't do any damage in the process!

A little funny for ya:

The other day Max was playing outside, as he often does. He had been playing for a while and I was wondering about him, thinking I should probably go check on him soon. I put it off for a bit, and soon we sent the older 2 kids outside to clean up some toys that they had left in the front yard. When they came in they told us that they had finished cleaning, and to that one of them added, "oh yeah, and Max is asleep on the front porch!" I go outside to look and he was sitting asleep in his old car seat that I had left on the porch after switching it out for his new "Big Boy" booster seat a bit ago! Here he is all cute, and sleeping out on the porch!

Need something good to read?

2008-07-13T11:03:00.003-06:00

I have been re-reading some of my favorite books lately, and thought I would share. Robin McKinley is a great author! I would describe her writing as light fantasy (I know that this is not an official genre, but I don't want to scare any non fantasy fans away =}). Her retelling of the story Beauty and the Beast was the basis for the Disney movie. Now for the books that I have been reading lately:

and

The Blue Sword was actually written first, but I prefer to read them in the opposite order, as chronologically speaking the Hero and the Crown takes place before the Blue Sword. They are about a land called Damar. In The Hero and the Crown, we follow Aerin and her journey from awkward girl to hero and leader of her land. In The Blue Sword, which takes place many years after, we follow a girl named Harry, who comes from a place called Home (very reminiscent of England) to the land of Daria to live near her brother who is stationed there in a military post after the death of their father. The post at which he is stationed borders the land that contains what is left of the once great Damar. She is kidnapped during the night by the king of Damar, and we follow her adventures as she discovers that she is blessed with what the people of Damar call kelar (what we would call magic).

Both books are wonderfully written. They are classified as Young Adult fiction, but would be enjoyed by those of us who are not so young adults as well!

I am Radioactive!!!

2008-07-11T22:45:00.006-06:00

Yup, I said radioactive! OK , so that is going a bit extreme, but I was injected with a radioactive tracer today.

I am still dealing with pain in my right ankle from my running related injury. I have yet to try running on it again, as I still have pain when walking. The Dr said to call if I was still dealing with the pain mid month or so (as I told him of my desire to run the Alzheimer's 5k on the 25th) and he would order a bone scan. Yesterday I called and the appointment was set for today at noon at the Nuclear Medicine department of the local hospital. Luckily they told me that it was on the 3rd floor when they set the appointment as I could not find Nuclear Medicine on any of the directories.

When I arrived on the 3rd floor I headed towards the sign for Nuclear Medicine (luckily I saw one!). When I got to the sign I looked around; there was a registration desk for Respiratory Therapy on one side of the sign and another for the Heart Center..but only one door with a small sign indicating that on the other side was the Nuclear Medicine department. I was unsure as to whether I should just walk in or if I had to register somewhere first. Luckily my confusion was obvious to someone passing by, because I was offered help. It turned out that I just needed to head through the door, no registration needed.

Through the door was a dark room, with odd, large x-ray style machines. I was asked to take a seat while they waited to finish with the patient before me. I was there to do the first part of the procedure...an injection with a radioactive tracer and the "before shots", I would have to return at 3 to have the "after shots" taken. Luckily the injection was no more painful than a blood draw (they put it directly in the vein in the arm, as opposed to the typical shot in the arm) and there were no weird side effects from the injection. It did seem odd to think that I was being injected with something radioactive, and they carried the tracer to the table in a metal box..kinda freaky if you think about it too long.

When I came back at 3 they took about 10-15 minutes to take scans of my bones, which were odd looking on the computer screen. I could see my feet/ankles and they were all lit up with white dots...I am assuming that is the tracer showing up. I will get the results early next week, so we shall see...Hopefully I will return to running soon, injury free (and free from any more radioactivity)!

Scrapped last night

2008-07-11T09:52:00.005-06:00

Here's a layout I made for a blog challenge over at the Scrap Attack blog, I used some left over scraps from the Fancy Pants "About a Boy" line I recieved a while back in one of my GDT kits from Scrap Attack:

The challenge was to make a layout with a little peekaboo (which I interpreted to be a hole in the main background...hope I was right..), as the photo above was taken on the cement outside my front door (light seems to be best here for photos) I held the layout up so you could see that it was see through.

Products used:
Cardstock-Making Memories
Patterned Paper-Fancy Pants
Transparency-Fancy Pants
die cut-Scentic route
chipboard-Scenic Route (star), American Crafts (letter thickers)
pen-Sakura Souffle
circle template-coluzzle

Thanks for letting me share!

Card for sketch blog challenge

2008-07-09T15:24:00.004-06:00

Scrap Attack Scrapbooking is the sponsor this week over at 2 Sketches 4 you, a card sketch blog. I decided to give the sketch a try and really had fun. I used mostly Making Memories products. Here is my card:

-Products-

Cardstock: Creme (Provo Craft), Pink (backside of MME pp), Brown (unknown)Paper: Making Memories
Flower: Making Memories
Stamp: Studio G
Ink: Stampin up and Clearsnap
Tools: Coluzzle circle template, Around the block Paper Tagger, Souffle White Pen, Provo Craft Embossing Envelope

A bump in the road.

2008-07-03T23:41:00.008-06:00

Well, my running has had to be stalled, due to a bump in the road, or rather an injury. Before the race last Saturday I was dealing with some ankle pain. I bought some tape and just taped them both to be able to run the race. Well, the tape worked great for getting me through the race, but afterwards my ankle pain was much worse. I rested Sunday (as I do anyway) and again didn't run on Monday. Tuesday morning I got all ready, headed out the door and hit the trail. After about 5 steps, I had to stop running, the pain in my ankles (even though they were taped) was too much. I walked about a mile that morning and came home.

I scheduled an appointment that morning and decided I really needed to make sure I wasn't dealing with something major before I continued. The Dr was thorough, taking many x-rays. Luckily the X-rays came back clean, but due to the fact that the bone where I am experiencing most of my pain is a major load bearing bone, there is still the possibility that I am developing a stress fracture in that area. I cannot run on them until I have no pain while walking (which I still do, so no running yet). So my morning runs have had to be converted to morning bike rides until I can get back to running.

I can't tell you how disappointed I am! I felt so good having completed that race, and I was really hoping to continue. I am still hopeful that I will be able to run in the Alzheimer's run later this month, but my chances of bettering my time have gone down the tubes! Oh well, that's what I get waiting until I am overweight to start running again! More stress on those bones and joints!

Happy Birthday Paper Trunk!!

2008-07-01T07:08:00.002-06:00

Paper Trunk, a fun new scrapbook company, is celebrating thier first birthday! They are having prizes and fun all day long today. Go check out the fun, and wish them a

Happy Birthday!!

running again

2008-06-30T19:42:00.003-06:00

Some of you may know that at one time in my life I was a good runner. I spent 5 years running Track and Cross Country (between 4 years of Highschool and a year at college), but between getting married, going to work, and having children, running went by the wayside. I have not had success in getting started again, until recently. I ran a 5k race this weekend as part ouf our city's Heritage days, an it was fun to be in a race again. I wasn't very fast, just over 31 minutes, but the experience makes me hungry for more!

I know, some of you may be wondering what happened to the triathlon I had planned on completing. Well, my training had been too patchy (due to illness and scheduling conflicts) so about 2 weeks prior to the event I made the decision that I would not be able to attempt it. It turned out fine, as the bike portion was cancelled due to high winds, the swim was almost cancelled due to temperature and I was VERY sick with a BAD cold that day. Instead of quitting all together, I turned my training to running instead of all 3. I have the trail right by my house, and it is really easy to find time to fit that in to my day if I just get up at about 6:30 and head out for a half an hour.

Ignore the fact that I do NOT look good in short shorts and I look exhausted, but here are a couple photos Jared took of me during the race. One at the beginning and one at the end.

Another one bites the dust...

2008-06-22T21:20:00.003-06:00

Having lost a tooth last night, Liam woke this morning to a dollar under his pillow from the toothfairy. He was quite excited about his new funds and the hole in his mouth! I guess the mention of the toothfairy in combination with her recent discovery regarding the Easter Bunny led Joelle to question the validity of the tooth fairy. When nobody was arround she questioned me and after the Easter Bunny discovery I felt I had to be upfront, and admitted that the tooth fairy was in fact not real. What was cute was she asked me, "Mom when I get a lot of money, can I be the toothfairy." I thought it was so sweet of her to want to give her money as the toothfairy.

The Easter bunny is dead!

2008-06-21T17:34:00.003-06:00

After Easter, I had some supplies left (ie jelly beans, eggs grass, etc)and I put them in the garage where they were out of site of little eyes. I had intended to move them elsewhere, but never got to moving the bag. With an attempt at a garage sale a couple weeks ago (unfortunately, due to wierd weather, we got hailed out!) bags in the garage were shifted. Joelle was in the garage, putting a bike or scooter away and found the bag full of items, she had thought came from the Easter Bunny. She came through the door, into the kitchen and loudly exclaime, "THE EASTER BUNNY ISN'T REAL!" I quickly tried to hush her, so as not to share this news with the other children in the family, and luckily I am pretty sure they were not close enough to hear (or atleast I hope so) and I explained that she needed to keep this to herself, to keep Easter fun for the other kids. Luckily, she is at an age where she was wondering anyways, so I think this was probably just a confirmation of what she already suspected. But funny, all the same!

In honor of my Father

2008-06-15T21:42:00.002-06:00

Yes, one more post for the day (3 in one day, I know a bit excessive) but I made this layout last night and I had to post because the title is inspired by my Dad. Whenever we talked about bowling or went bowling, my dad would sing this song from Sesame Street:

"I like to go bowling with my friend Bert
My bowling ball and my bowling shirt.
Bowling is my kind of game..."

Now, whenever I think about bowling, this song instantly pops in my head.

All paper products (except the cardstock, I am not sure where I got that, I think at a Making Memories Wearhouse sale) can be found at Scrap Attack Scrapbooking as they were all part of my GDT kits during my GDT term.
Polka dot paper is Fancy Pants, About a boy
the die cut arrows are the Lynden Die cut shapes by Scenic ROute
grid paper is also Scenic Route
Letter stickers are American Crafts THickers

Just sharing some Lucas photos

2008-06-15T15:56:00.002-06:00

I had fun with the camera last evening and got some really cute pictures of Lucas. My sister Stacy bought him this adorable outfit, and I have meant to get some photos of him wearing it, but it was either too cold, or one or the other piece would be dirty. Finally having both the shirt and shorts clean, I dressed Lucas in his cute summer clothes, and took him outside for a photoshoot. Here are the results:

June 15th is a full day in 2008!

2008-06-15T15:39:00.005-06:00

We have 3 events to celebrate today: Father's Day, Max's 4th birthday and Dane's 2nd birthday...whew, I am tired! LOL

Daddy with his kids about a month ago. We sure love the Father of our home!

I can't believe he is 4 already! Crazy how time flies!

Isn't this a cute little guy? Well he is 2 and letting us all know that he is a definitive 2 year old..LOL!

Jared recieved my completed Harry Potter Scarf (I have been working on this a bit at a time over the past 2 years...I worked very dilligently at the beginning, but my enthusiasm waned as it took so long to complete. FiNALLY, last night it was completed, and it was presented to Jared this morning. He didn't know I was going to give it to him, as I was originally making it for myself) and Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark on DVD. He also recieved a King size Reeses at church.

The boys did well, also. Max recieved a large golf club thing (hard to describe, but it is like a huge golf club with large golf balls), a skate board (this was the most exciting for him!), a water gun and a small, soft dinosaur. Dane recieved a new baseball mit with ball, a pair of new sandals (which immediately had to be put on his feet), a water gun and a small stuffed dinosaur.

We will have Birthday/Father's day cake tonight after dinner.

Happy father's day to all of the fathers!

FHE and CHF

2008-06-05T08:56:00.003-06:00

For Family Home Evening this week we had a lesson on Flags and the Title of Liberty. At the end of the lesson, we created our own family flag. Here is a picture of all of us with our flag (sorry Liam, wasn't holding it up correctly, but the next photo will show details! And PLEASE ignore the fact that I look awful!! I was super tired on Monday!)

Here is a close up of the flag. I could have used one that was closer up and didn't' include Lucas, but how could I deprive you of that cute face? We included the names of everyone in our family and things that were important to us (The savior, and apple for being healthy, music, the earth, stars to represent our country, and a large book because we all love to read). Clearly we are not artists when it comes to drawing, but it was fun!
Now onto the CHF part! I have previously shared that Cornish Heritage Farms makes some of my favorite stamps! Starting today, through Sunday, they are hosting a Kim Hughes Collection Blitz with challenges (and prizes!). Come check out some of the wonderful, high quality stamps that they have available!

Today's challenge is to create a card using supplies from a short list (and you must use a Kim Hughes collection stamp). Here is mine:

Heart and sentiment are both from "A Welcome Hug" by Cornish Heritage Farms

Cardstock is Provo Craft(Orange), Hobby Lobby(Creme/Tan) and unknown (brown)

Embossing folder is Provo Craft

Buttons are Autumn Leaves

Die is Ellison

Inks are Bazzil

Ribbon is Unknown (it was a RAK from a friend)

Max and Anchie (or our first Imaginary friend)

2008-05-27T09:42:00.002-06:00

For the last few months Max has been telling us all about Anchie..Anchie likes this...Anchie does that..Anchie lives in a big house..Anchie likes horses..etc. So on Sunday at lunch Max again tells us something about his friend Anchie. Jared then asks Max, "So when are we going to SEE Anchie?"

Max looks at us with this huge grin and laughs, "You can't see Anchie," in this tone that clearly said "Hello...are you guys idiots?"

It was the cutest thing! He truly enjoys having this "friend" to talk about. (I never hear him pretending to play with Anchie, I think Anchie is just someone he talks about) Max really only has one little friend that he plays with very often, as there really aren't any little boys his age on our street. The other kids are always playing with friends, and I think he is really wanting to have good friends like they do. Luckily, he will be going to preschool next year, so hopefully he will find many good little friends there. But, hopefully we will always remember the Anchie days...

lots of updates

2008-05-26T11:23:00.008-06:00

I have been meaning to update for a while, but I load my photos to our regular computer upstairs (we have had bad luck with lap tops and crashing on us, so I don't trust my photos to the lap top) but I do most of my browsing and general Internet surfing on the lap top. Last Saturday (not 2 days ago, I mean a week ago) Jared's work had a Literacy Fair at the Gateway (An outdoor mall, to which his office is attached). Each child received two books (most were very nice, hardback books!) and Radio Disney was there playing music and hosting fun little games. Dane even won a game and got a Speed Racer T-shirt (which on him looks like a dress!). After selecting books, playing games and a tour of the office building where Daddy works, the kids had the MOST fun playing in the water in the common area at the mall. Around a hundred spouts shoot water, choreographed to music. Here are some photos of the kids having way too much fun getting wet!

Joelle was a bit reluctant to get in the water, so Daddy took matters into his own hands!
Liam was the most enthusiastic about the water, running everywhere and getting the most wet!
Liam and Max were quite goofy together!

While I was taking pictures Max called out, "Mom! Take a picture of me!" How could I resist that cute face?

The kids were off track this past week, thus allowing me to sleep in a bit! It was wonderful to get a little more rest, and tomorrow morning when they go back will be hard on ME! They go back through the end of June, and then they will be off for the Summer.

Now for this Saturday. The best part was NO SOCCER GAMES. Don't get me wrong, I am so glad that the kids play soccer. It is great for them, they enjoy it, and I enjoy watching them play. But, a Saturday without commitments was wonderful, and I was much lazier than I should have been! It was just so nice not to be running here there, and everywhere. We made homemade Pizza's for dinner. The kids always enjoy homemade pizzas, especially since I let them each make their own.

Yesterday I actually did a little bit of scrapping after almost 2 weeks of nothing. Here are the projects that I completed:

Papers here are scrap works (I got them as a prize from the last cybercrop at ScrapAttack Scrapbooking).

Other products used are: Cricut Expression with Opposites Attract and Accent Essentials Cartridges, Bazzil Brad, Prima Flower, HOTP ribbon, and the little bubbles are called Skittles (I don't know who makes them, they were a birthday gift from my awesome sister in law Sarah!)

This card was for a challenge over at Scrap Attack.

Products used are

Stamps: Cornish Heritage Farms (My Guy and the background check pattern) and Inque Boutique (Stars)

Ink: Tim Holtz Distress Ink

other products are unknown

Sorry about the book, but it has been forever since I updated! If you got this far, Way to go!

For all of you Mom's out there

2008-05-24T13:17:00.001-06:00

Jared showed this to me today, and I totally cracked up. I thought that all of you mom's out there (or everyone who has a mom..LOL) would get a kick out of this little song!

Our new adventure

2008-05-15T20:55:00.002-06:00

Last week we embarked on a brand new adventure! Baseball

Liam plays on Wednesday and Friday and Joelle plays on Tuesday and Thursday, so I spend 4 nights a week at the baseball field. This would be and adventure all on its own, but with Jared working nights, I am all alone, with all 5 children on these adventures in baseball!

I never played softball or baseball, and neither did any of my siblings, as the games were always on Sundays in the area where I grew up (and I really had no interest in playing). This is all a new adventure for me, so I am learning right along with the kids. They are both really doing well; getting better with each practice. Games begin next week, so I will bring my camera and take some photos to share!

Locks of Love and Elephant Nuts

2008-05-09T19:34:00.005-06:00

Many of Joelle's cousins have been donating thier hair to the Locks of Love organization. Joelle decided that she would also like to grow out her hair and donate it to Locks of Love. It has taken her a long time, but finally we had the requisite 10 inches of hair. Here is her before picture:

Today we headed to Great Clips, who offers a free haircut when you donate, for the big hair cut!

Here she is getting the ponytail snipped:

Here's a back view of the finished cut:

And the final result, is

Isn't she beautiful?

Now, I know that you are wondering, "What are Elephant Nuts" so here is the story:

I am going away tomorrow to spend the weekend in Oceanside with my parents. While I am taking the baby with me, the other 4 children are staying behind with Jared. After the big haircut, we went next door to Smiths to fill the fridge and pantry for the weekend, so Jared would not have to go to the store with all four kids. With a big basketball game on Sunday, Jared had to buy game snacks, and one of the snacks he picked up was a bag of shell on peanuts. While unloading the groceries, Liam noticed the bag of peanuts and said, "Yes!! We got Elephant Nuts!!!" Jared and I both totally cracked up! Kids can say the funniest things.

Drs Appt update

2008-05-08T17:01:00.006-06:00

Well, Lucas hasnt' gained as much weight as we would like. He dropped off the charts weight wise. So we now have to start supplementing with formula a few times a day and upping his solids. We will check back in a month and see if that has helped. Crossing my fingers that we won't have to do a complete formula transition (as that can hurt the budget!)

I thought I would also share some random photos from the past week or so:

Here's Max all dressed up for the Missionary Primary activity. Isn't such a cute missionary?

This one is Jared and the kids enjoying "Tear Down the House" aka Extreme Makover Home Edition

THese are just random pics I took outside the other day. I thought that they turned out cute:

Training Log

2008-05-08T07:53:00.002-06:00

OK, so I have been very bad about my training log lately!

We took a week off because my training partner was sick and I had stuff going on, but got back on track on Monday of this week. SO here is this week so far:

Monday: Bike 10 miles
Tuesday: Walk 3.5 miles run .5 mile
Wednesday: no work out

Today was supposed to be a swim this morning, but I had a really bad night last night and just could not get up at 5AM to go swimming..heck getting up at 7:15 with the kids was hard enough! So I am going to try to get a run or bike in after I get back from Lucas's well baby appointment today. Look for training and Lucas updates later today!

30!

2008-05-06T16:25:00.004-06:00

Well, the day I have been dreading for the last year has finally arrived; my 30th birthday! And honestly, it's not too bad. Sure, I am not in my 20s any more, but heck, I have 5 beautiful kids, an awesome husband, a beautiful home....what more could I ask for?

Photo taken today by Joelle

Happy May Day

2008-05-01T09:27:00.002-06:00

Happy May Day to all! Here is a pretty picture of my favorite flowers for you all to enjoy (They are Ranunculus if you were wondering). I figured this was the only way I was going to see any flowers this morning, since it is Snowing here in good ole Utah! Yes, you read that correctly, on May 1st, May Day, it is snowing. There isn't enough to stick to the ground, but the dark skies and flakes falling from the sky are definitely not spring like! Here's hoping you are having a more springlike day!

The countdown begins!

2008-04-29T14:21:00.003-06:00

I have officially begun the last week of my 20s. Next Tuesday I will hit the big 3-0! But 30 is the new 20, right? No big celebration planned, so I will probably just enjoy the day with my kids. So, for those of you who have hit this milestone, let me know what you like about your 30s!

Training Log

2008-04-29T14:18:00.002-06:00

Ok, here is my training log so far this week:

Monday: 1.5 mile walk (we were short on time)
Tuesday: 800 meter swim

Not sure what we will be doing tomorrow, it depends on the weather.

Lucas is 6 months old

2008-04-27T19:20:00.005-06:00

I know, this is a bit late, as Lucas was 6 months on the 22nd, but Lucas and the weather (too many clouds) were not co-operating for the photo shoot. I noticed that we were getting some nice light through the window this evening, so I gave it a try. I didn't get too many great ones, but enough good ones that I can finally post them on the blog.

I can't believe how quickly he is growing! It seems like just yesterday that I was in the hospital, trying to keep him in for a bit longer. Now he is playing with toys, giggling, rolling around everywhere, blowing raspberries, eating solid food....so many new things. I love him more everyday.

I had a very busy week.

On Monday, I headed into Liam's classroom to help with skill sets. For lunch we headed to Arctic Circle with friends to celebrate Max's friend's birthday. It was a good time for the kids, and for me as well, as I was able to visit with my friend while the kids played.

On Tuesday I had a song rehearsal in the morning, then we headed to Sam's club to pick up some treats my mom had ordered for the kids.

Wednesday afternoon I sang with 3 other ladies at a funeral. I did not know the man who had passed away, but I could tell that he was a wonderful man by the messages that were shared by family and friends during the service, and by the number of attendees. That evening I had a choir concert for the Syracuse City Choir.

Thursday was a normal day with just the normal housework, etc.

Friday we headed to Provo to have a lunch with Jared's sister Marcia and her family. They were in town to celebrate the graduation of two of their daughters from BYU. We are so proud of them! It was wonderful to spend time together. That evening the kids and I attended a ward function.

Saturday was the normal soccer routine.

Whew, man am I glad that week is over. It was busy, but I feel that I accomplished a lot. Unfortunately, because of the craziness that was my life this week, triathlon training did not happen, so it is back on the wagon tomorrow. I am sure I will be sore and exhausted after a week of nothing but running up and down my stairs!