It's A Great Day!

Hallelujah...my prayers have been answered! The kids finally have school today! I have waited 19 days for today! Not that I don't love having my kids home, but seriously...when the snow is piled so high outside and they have played every game in the house...twice (or three or four times)...it's time to go to school...I know there are some of you out there who dread your kids going to school...I am not one of those...I love them dearly...but they need their friends and to be somewhere other than the walls of this house! (Hey, I might want to go to school!) Anyways, I think the surrounding school districts are still out so to that I say "sorry!" I still have 2 to get ready for pm school so...until next time........

Did I mention I HATE snow?!?!

Ugh! All This white stuff is getting on my nerves! I will give you the condensed version of my day...My baby started Sunbeams today...WAH!!! If that wasn't enough...everything went downhill from there! I got home from church (hoping for a nap) and instead was greeted with water all over my kitchen floor...fabulous...where is it coming from? The window...yep...that's right. Why would water be coming in from the window, you say? It's because there is 8,000 inches of ice and snow atop our roof...15 towels later...I called over the neighbor (Eric was asleep after working all night and all morning and had only been asleep for 2 hours at this point). Anyways, Phillip came over and assessed the damage...I then called my friend Aimee and she brought over her 2 boys to help shovel off the roof (while she was on her brother's quad shoveling our sidewalk). Eric was awakened at this point due to all the commotion. I then called a member of our bishopric who, coincidentally, is a roofer...YEAH! (Be nice to the people in your ward so when you need them, they will come!) Terry Simpson brought over 2 daughters (who my kids LOVE) and a son (who they didn't know....but now love him, too!) The girls kept the kids occupied while I hauled bucket after bucket of hot water to the men on the roof(thank you Ashley for feeding the kids and doing the dishes...i love you! (I hope Edward was a good payment...pass him on to Christina)...I think, by the time they left, that they were in agreement that Supernanny would be helpful at our house (all the extra people, of course, did not help with the caos factor). Anyways, during all of this, someone had called in sick at Holy Family and they called Eric to go in early...hahahahahahahahahaha! Well, in a nutshell...the roof is fixed for now but it is now snowing again and we are due to get 6-10 inches during the night...and they have already cancelled school for the kids...will this winter break ever end?!?! Give me a call to make sure we are all still breathing and sane...until then...here are some pictures of our fun times! It sure is a blessing that we are surrounded by good people who are willing to give service to you...and that they think highly enough of you to be willing to do it...hopefully one day, we can return the favor...Be good and stay safe...until next time....

Eric and the Hatchet... Phillip the neighbor

Jaxson & Cayson... Aaron & Jericho... Terry Simpson & his son Tyler

Where did all the snow from the roof go?

And this is only in the front yard!

What is the first day of kindergarten going to be like?

Oh, heck...so my baby graduated from nursery today and is now a Sunbeam...what is the world coming to? I don't think I'm okay with this...I was fine all morning and through sacrament meeting...then came time to take her to class..."the big girl class!" I'll admit I got a little bit teary-eyed...but I was so proud of her...she stood in the hallway quietly with her arms folded until the primary presidency came and got her...then she sat quietly in her seat through sharing time (yes...I snuck a few peeks in at her)...my baby is growing up! If this is what it is like at church...what is it going to be like on her first day of kindergarten? AAAHHHHGGGG!!! (Deep Breath)...I think I'm okay now...Until next time...

I hate snow!

Let me rephrase that...I HATE SNOW!!! I hate it, hate it, hate it! We have been stuck in our house almost the whole winter break the kids have had from school...in fact, they had extra days off because they closed the school 2 days before the break started! I told Eric...it's time to put the house up for sale and move back to Phoenix. Here are some pix from the first storm...that's right...I said the first storm...we've had a few...the news said that Spokane has had 59 inches of snow in the month of December...If the snow were a person...it could ride any ride at Disneyland...that is ridiculous! I hate it! (Did I mention that I hate it?!?!) I've tried to find snow pants for the kids...none available within 100 miles of Spokane...none on the internet...none, nowhere...none! There has to be an upside to this...I don't know what it is...but there has to be one (like one day it will melt...yes, but then there will be floods). I can't wait for summer...and then it will be too hot. Believe it or not, there are things that make me happy...

Here are just some of the pictures... I'll post more later!

Happy New Year!

Hope this year brings love, health & happiness to all of you!

Happy Birthday, Jaxson

I can't believe he's 5! My, how the time flies! I love you, Peanut~

Do you think he's hungry?

It's not like I starve him...Jaxson sat here for a good 10 minutes watching the chicken cook...I don't blame him...it's a great recipe! Okay...you twisted my arm...i'll share it with you...here it is...

Creamy Chicken & Biscuits

1/2 large onion

1 1/2 tsp butter

4 cups chopped, cooked chicken

1 (10 3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup milk

1/2 cup chopped pimiento (the red stuff inside the green olives...yes,they sell it by itself)

1 cup shredded cheese (divided)

6-8 canned biscuits

Preheat oven to 350

Grease bottom and sides of 11X9 baking dish

Dice the onion, saute in butter. Put in bowl.

Add cooked chicken, cream of chicken soup, sour cream, milk & pimiento. Mix well.

Spoon mixture into baking dish and bake for 15 minutes.

Take out of oven and top with 3/4 cup cheese. Arrange biscuits over cheese and top with remaining cheese. Bake until biscuits are done (20ish minutes). Serve immediately!

Let me know how you like it...Jaxson loves it! (so do the others!) Until next time...

Tag!

Thanks a bunch, Kass for this opportunity...sorry I can't return the favor...love ya lots!

Here goes...

So apparently I've been tagged! This is going to be interesting...

5 things I was doing 10 years ago

1. Sitting in our quite apartment with no kids...(I now have 4)
2. living in warm weather...(our high was 30 today)
3. not much housework...(eric & I both worked 10 hour days...)
4. taking all the naps I wanted...(I can't even spell nap nowadays)
5. dreaming of having a family (see where dreams take ya...)

5 things on my to-do list
1. Laundry
2. Dishes
3. Sleep (somewhere in there...)
4. Clean out the fridge
5. Clean out the oven (my favorite!)


5 snacks I enjoy
1. Popcorn
2. Chips and Salsa
3. Orange Sticks
4. Dang Quesadillas
5. Macaroni & Cheese crackers...YUM!

5 things I would do if I was a millionaire
1. Hire a Maid
2. Go on vacations( yes...that is plural)
3. Hire a driver (with a fancy car)
4. Buy a house where I could have my own floor...with a bowling alley and movie theater and gym and a hogi yogi (I have never thought about this, can you tell?!?!)
5. Stimulate the Economy

5 places I've lived
1. Heaven (hopefully, one day I can go back...)
2. Winslow, AZ (I grew up on a corner there...well, a house on a corner... unless you ask Denise)
3. St George, UT (Love the Pasta Factory)
4. Phoenix, AZ (could use the warm weather about now)
5. Spokane, WA (here until we move elsewhere)

5 things I'm passionate about
1. Family
2. Movies
3. Music
4. Religion
5. Patriotism

5 things I say often
1. FOR THE LOVE...
2. GO TO BED!!!!!!
3. JAXSON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
4. I love you!
5. Dinner is Ready!

5 things I want to do before I die
1. Hire a Maid
2. Stay in a castle in Scotland
3. Swim with the dolphins (preferably while I am still breathing)
4. See my kids graduate high school, college, get married and give me lots of grandkids (in that order, please)
5. Buy an island

5 things I want/need
1. To go to sleep (it's after midnight)
2. My house clean (without me doing it!)
3. My kitchen painted (again, without me doing it)
4. Christmas to be paid for (by someone else)
5. My husband to not have to work so dand hard)

5 places I want to see/visit
1. Disneyland...it never gets old!
2. Australia
3. Scotland
4. Vegas (we always have a great time!)
5. Times Square

5 TV shows I can't live without (I can live with out these I just like them)
1. The Office
2. Survivor
3. The Amazing Race
4. Biggest Loser (I would love to be on it someday...I just hate Alison Sweeney)
5. Supernanny (Again...would love to be on it!)

5 things you don't know about me
1. I love to play games (I am all alone in my family on that note...we still have games from our wedding that haven't been opened!)
2. I love having my feet rubbed (hint to the husband...it has been a while)
3. Sterling Roses are my favorite (eric, I swear you better read this)
4. I love to fill shopping carts in the store and then leave
5. I have narcolepsy (snore, snore...I'm sorry, were you saying something?!?!)


Tag: Whitney, Shiela, Glenna, Natalie, Lauren...You are welcome, Girls!
Until next time...

Happy Birthday, Eric

Eric,
Thanks for being the person you are...my rock, my friend, my partner, my babies' daddy! I hope you had an amazing day...(not really since you had to work...sorry!) Here's to many more birthdays...and hahaha...for now you are as old as me! I love you!

SPOILED ROTTEN!!!

Apparently...I can't leave these guys alone for one second (I refuse to bring them all in to the bathroom with me)...this is what I found when I came out...Although...I do wish I could find the picture I have of Cayson painting Eric's toenails (it is not safe to fall asleep on the couch at our house...) I only wish I would have had a camera on Eric when he found his red toenails (a scream from the shower...hahahahaha). Anyways, Hailey wanted to paint her own nails but Deni was just fine letting her brothers help her out (I'm not quite sure what happened to her shirt). Seriously...I was just going to the bathroom and getting the dirty clothes out of there so I could throw them into the washer...3 minutes TOPS...man, they move fast! Oh well...at least it didn't end up on my carpet...there's always tomorrow!.



This is pathetic!

So Pretty!!!!



Until next time...

Happy Thanksgiving

Much to be thankful for this holiday season...many family and friends who continue to put up with me...thank you! Eric...you are the love of my life...thanks for putting up with me mostly without an argument...I love you, bloodsucker! Hailey, Cayson, Jaxson, & Deni...thanks for making me laugh everyday...even if the windows get broken (twice)...Supernanny would die in our house! Denise, Kim, Brother...I call him that because he is my brother:)...thanks for always being there for me...keep sending me the funnies, bro! Mom and Dad...what great examples you are to me...thanks for 32 years of unconditional love! Danna, Mike, Charlie, Leslie...thanks for letting me into your family...even though I am a PITA...it seems I fit right in (kidding, kinda)...Gma Brewer...I canned peaches and cried cause you weren't there to tell me I was doing something wrong! To all my friends (the list is WAY too long)...thanks for lots of shoulders to cry on...even if some of them are attached to phones...the list could go on and on...yeah, I do have a lot to be thankful for...you all are a part of me and I love everyone of you...Until next time...

Update on Deni

Okay...thanks to all of your prayers for Deni...they were definately answered. She went to the dermatologist on Monday and here's the news...

1. She has one of the worse cases of excema he has seen on a child...not rash wise...but the different types of sores she has on her body...her bottom and feet are rashes...her belly and legs are sores...it's weird, he says...there is a cream for it!

2. She has blackheads...on her nose and forehead and a little on her belly (weird). Anyways, puberty is gonna be great! There is a cream for this too!

3. Atopic dermatitis...she has been diagnosed w/this before but just not given the right treatment for it...change the laundry soap (All...free and clear), shampoo (Johnson & Johnson no more tears baby shampoo), soap (cetaphil cleansing bar), lotion (yes, there is a cream for this too)
Which brings me to our daily routine...
After bath...moisturize w/cetaphil moisturizing cream, apply one cream to bottom and feet, apply other cream to nose and forehead...put on boxers (the elastic on her panties irritate her skin...she's not excited to wear boys underwear), shirt, pants, socks, shoes....it doesn't seem like much...until you have to remember...did I put that lotion on yet and where does it go?!?! And it has to happen TWICE A DAY! It has been really fun re-washing all of her clothes and bedding and the towels...oh, well...I'm glad we have a road in which to travel with her, though...let's hope it is free of any more speedbumps! Until next time!

Twilight...Brace Yourselves...It is LONG~

Okay...I was hoping to post this a lot sooner but I just haven't...thanks for the push, though (Lauren...I'm talkin' to you...) Here goes...

So Patti and Rachael and Diana and Waz and I all met at the theater at 9:00pm (for the midnight movie). There were a few people there...none of which were nearly as cool as we are! We had some other friends that were coming at 10 but we didn't want to wait for them so we got our place in line (we were 2nd...the 1st had been there since 6:30-yes, there are people crazier than we are) anyways, we were hungry...the kids had already been fed but we wanted "real" food...PIZZA! Now, there aren't many movie theaters out there that serve pizza...so we enlisted the help of an usher named Ethan that we adopted as our pet~(oh, let's say a pet gopher, hahaha). All we had to do was call his name and out of nowhere...tada...there he was! Well, we wanted pizza and so we asked him if they would let us order a pizza...we were sitting not far from a sign that said "NO OUTSIDE FOOD OR DRINK". He consulted with the mgr who said...YES...just don't take it into the theater (I think it was safe to say that a pizza wouldn't be there after 3 hours of waiting). So off to Fat Daddy's Patti and Rachael went (it was next door). While they were gone...I heard a very nasty rumor...there was a Twilight party going on in the game room of the movie theater and someone told us that they were going to be able to cut in line...OH, ETHAN...after a squabble with me...Ethan went to find his manager and came back with some news...the people who rented out the game room had paid extra for the services offered...one of which was early admission into the theater...however, since they had WAY too many people in the party room...and WAY to many words with me...and others, I am sure...they decided to give them their own theater...which was fine with me...I still got to put my feet up in the theater and enjoy the movie...or so I thought...Now, I would never in my poorly thought out schemes...ever let my 13 & 14 year olds go to the movies with their friends at midnight...EVER...but that is who was there...1000s of them (or so it seemed). Every time Edward came out on the screen...AAAAGGGHHH!!! They all screamed! SHUT UP, seriously...Ugh! It was awful and I left the movie theater HATING the movie...But, Patti saved me and we went the next night (technically, it was later that night, I guess) with her sisters and I absolutely LOVED the movie...they left out things that I would have liked to have seen...but for the most part...I thought they did a good job with what they had to work with. I think they could have made it a tad bit longer and done things with the other characters to involve them a little more but overall...I gave it a B+...Until next time...(They gave the go-ahead to start on New Moon...)









Here's Rachael and her "Team Jacob" shirt...
Patti's husband made the sign for her back...
gotta love duct tape!











The Whole Gang! We all have Twilight T-Shirts!











Patti wanted Edward on her boobs!
Sorry it's sideways...it's late!





Ethan...our "pet"...he even snuck over and had pizza w/ us! Good Times!

We're On Our Way!

Well...I got a great phone call this morning from Deni's dr...the dermatologist had a cancellation and her appointment got moved to MONDAY!!!!!!!!! I think maybe they just told me it was a cancellation so I wouldn't think that all of my bugging them actually got me somewhere! I'd like to think that it was my "power of persuasion" or maybe all of your prayers...thank you. I'll keep you all posted! Until next time...

The Pledge of Allegiance

So I am really grateful that they still teach The Pledge in school...not only in Elementary School but they are teaching it to Deni and Jaxson in Head Start. It almost brings tears to my eyes when I visit the classroom and listen to these kids (ages 3-5) saying their pledge to our flag and our country. I am grateful to the teachers who explain to these kids, line for line, what the pledge is and its meaning. I feel very blessed to live in a country where we are able to have the freedoms that we are so blessed with. Jaxson was too shy to be in the video...but I think Deni did a great job (we are still working on left hand/right hand...even I get confused sometimes!!!) She is getting so big!

Until next time...