Sunny Days, Sweeping the Clouds Away....

Today is a glorious day here in Salt Lake City. The sun is shining, I can see my grass, and I even think my daffodils might be showing themselves soon. We couldn't resist when we got home from school to take a little time outside. The bikes came out and kids were so happy to be outside of the house!

Here is Zoey on a little bike. She had no idea how to make it move, but she didn't really care.

Porter is going to learn how to actually ride this thing this year. He was getting really frustrated that he couldn't keep it going and I told him he just needed more practice. He said, "OH! I'll just go get some." Then he got off his bike and started into the house, like he was going to find it in there. If only it were that easy.

Here's Hali enjoying the day. Yes, she is wearing pajamas. It's Dr. Suess's Birthday today, and they encourage the kids to come in their pajamas, with blankets, pillows, stuffed animals and BOOKS. They have a big party in the gym and read.

Zoey is trying to get back on the bike. It kept moving on her, but she just kept trying. Mean mommy, just sat back and took pictures.

I know, lots of pictures of Zoey. She was just so fun to watch! It was like an animal being let out of it's cage. She just kept moving with this big smile on her face. She was so mad at me when I made her come in. She threw herself on the floor and had a fit.

Just going for a spin around the driveway.

Of course, this won't last. We have ANOTHER storm coming in tomorrow. It will mostly be rain with a little snow mixed in. sigh.

Politeness is a Virtue!

Scott and I must be very polite people, because our children sure are. I get comments from other parents all the time about how polite our children are. It drives me crazy when we have the kids friends over and they talk to me in a way I would NEVER have talked to my friends parents when I was a kid. My favorite: "Gosh, Nikki, I sure am thirsty." And? I'm supposed to do what with that. First of all, calling me by my first name is a no no. I would have been scared to death of calling my friends parents by their first name. I'm not sure I even knew what they were! There is one little neighbor girl who insists on telling me how things are done at HER house all the time! We don't do it that way, we do it this way. Aaargh. Secondly, ask me for what you want!!! I will gladly get you some water or even kool-aid, just ask me for it! HUGE pet peeve, there.

I guess we teach our kids from an early age how to say please, and thank you. I find myself working really hard with Porter right now. And they can't just tack on a please, when I give them the" look". They have to repeat the sentence back to me with the please involved.

And Scott and I say thank you to the kids all the time. In fact, Zoey now can say three, well, technically four, words. She says Mom, bye and Thank you! She just started saying thank you this week. It's so darn cute. And she knows when to say it, too. When I give her something to eat or a toy, she says thank you. Of course, she doesn't say it that clearly, but I don't think that I could phonically type what she says, but it's thank you for sure, not just mommy interpretation.

I just hope that politeness will become second nature in my kids. I think it's a lost art these days, but I don't want it lost in my house. I'm a mom, I can find anything.

Hot Flashes?!

I see an endrochronologist (I know I spelled that wrong) for my pituitary thingy and every time I go they take blood. So the last time I went, just after Christmas, the doctor decided since they were taking blood for my pituitary, they might as well check out a bunch of other things, too. So they found I had a vitamin D deficiency (which means not enough sun. Hello, have you seen how fair skinned I am? You wouldn't spend much time in the sun either!) So I had to take supplements for that, but I'm done with those now. They also checked my cholesterol levels. I think these days, EVERYONE has high cholesterol. So instead of the normal "name" brand pill they could give me, they put me on Niacin. It's a form of vitamin B. The recommended dose is 16 mg. They gave me pills that were 250 mg. I started taking one a week and each week increased a pill until I was taking 1000 mg. Yes, that is one thousand. So, I had to renew my prescription on Monday and they gave me a different brand of pill, so that only one pill in 1000 mg. One pill is better than four.

I hadn't had any reaction to the four pills, but last night and this morning I've found that I react to the one. I woke up last night, at who knows what time with what I think felt like hot flashes! I was burning up and my skin was all tingly. I threw off the covers and turned on the fan. Scott was burrowed under the covers and I couldn't stand to have them touch me! I got up to use the restroom and found my skin was bright pink. I looked like I had a really bad sunburn! Not to mention that I could feel my heart beating, because it shook my whole body. Not fun. It lasted about a half hour, then was gone.

I knew what to expect, because the first time I got the pills, the pharmacist told me all about it. Said that it would feel like I was having an allergic reaction, but that it was normal. I thought I immune to it, seeing as I hadn't reacted for the first two months! I guess, I was wrong. Now, all morning I've been having lesser reactions. My skin feels really hot, but not tingly nor pink. If the pink happens again, I'll get a picture just to prove how silly it looks! Luckily this is only supposed to be temporary. I get flushed enough as it is with my fair skin, I don't need additional help from some stupid medicine!

My Little Dapper Dan

So when we found out that Zoey was a girl, we were a little worried about Porter being a bit of a "sensitive" boy. If you get my drift. But anyone who knows Porter, understands that any worry we had is totally unfounded. He's ALL boy. At the same time, he can't help but pick up certain feminine traits. Every morning, I have a line in my bathroom of girl's hair to style. Porter insists every morning that he is part of that line. I usually just give his hair a few squirts of water and a couple of strokes with a comb and we call it good. Now Porter has been showing another feminine quirk for the last month or so. He's very into what he clothes he wears. Well, one day a week anyway. Porter insists on wearing a sweater vest to church on Sunday.
I have a button down shirt and dockers laid out for him on Sunday morning, but he won't leave the house unless there is a vest involved. I guess he thinks that the outfit is not complete with out one. Of course, he never has his shirt tucked in so I guess there's hope after all. I guess I should be happy that my son likes to look nice for church, instead of being a slob.

Poor Porter. Even the dog is a girl, well technically an it, but she was a girl. It's a good thing he's got his dad and lots of boy cousins!

My Mishap Adventure!!

Hi. It's me, Regan. My mom asked me to do this post (she is so nice!!) , 'cause she doesn't know all the details. Ok, time to tell the story. So I was at school, doing jogging (It's this thing for fourth graders). My teacher wasn't finished with science, and she locked the door (I don't really get that.. do you??). So me and my friend, Karli, went outside with no coat. It was sort of cold, but we could jog pretty nicely without dragging our big coats. I was jogging ahead of Karli about two feet. The next thing I knew, I was on my knees in the wet grass screaming my head off!! And, to top that off, about the whole fourth grade sees me crying more than the ocean!!! After that my friends, Selena, Karli, Tiffany, Maddie and Paradi are helping me to get to the office. Once we got there, the office people laid me down on an ice pack. How long I was there, I do not know. But it seemed to take hours!! Finally, i could go out to find my mom. Once I was in the car, Hali started to go over to our meeting place by the third grade doors. Me and my mom yelled for her but she didn't hear us. Then my mom had to get out of the car (in her slippers!!), and go get Hali. So, that was today's mishap adventure!!

More Pictures of Our Second Home!

So Porter and I just went out and took more pictures of our trailer. See, last night we took the picture of the kids on the couch and then the neighbors descended! So, the tour began and, as they also have a trailer, the advice followed. We loved it. We talked for quite some time until it got way too cold to stand outside!

Here is the main part of the trailer
The "master" bedroom.


The bunks in the back. We liked this model because the bottom bunk is bigger than the top. That way if Porter falls off, he'll either land on something soft, or the person sleeping below. :-)
Here's Porter on the couch that folds down into a bed.


We are really excited to use this. The first part of March we are meeting Scott's family in Moab for our first camp out in the trailer. We just hope that it starts to warm up a bit down there. Their highs are still in the 40's. Brrrr.

Trailer Delivery Day

I am going to beat Nikki to the post and share pictures of our new Travel Trailer that we brought home today.



The kids enjoying having the trailer home.

More pictures to come.

Scott's Work related sillyness

Last Wednesday some of the other guys I work with came up with the idea of a Mustache Appreciation Day. Leading up to that day some guys tried to grow what they could under their noses while others had full facial harryness. Here are some pictures of the celebration.

This is my employee photo and is the way I have looked for the past few years.

This is me celebrating Mustache Appreciation Day.

I was going for a biker style mustache.
Here is the group that participated . You may not see all mustaches but they do have something there.

The next day I shaved off the mustache and began the road back to full goatee.

Cake Decorating 101

Hey, anyone in the Salt Lake area, I just signed up for a cake decorating class that begins April 10th at the Joann's in Sandy. Anyone interested on joining me? Call me or email me and let me know! I'd love some company.

Valentine's Day Humbug

Ok, to prove to some of the men that Scott works with that there are actually women who don't want anything for Valentine's Day, I thought I'd blog it. I know that some of you read our blog, and I'm sure that Scott will show the rest of you the proof. And yes, it's me writing this, not Scott, nor did he bribe me with Diamonds.

I am NOT a fan of Valentine's Day. Never have been. I think it's the most ridiculous holiday ever created by people to spend money on grocery store flowers and bad chocolate. I mean really, who eats the filled kind? (shudder) Anyway, I would much rather have the money that would be spent on stuff I don't need, saved for my birthday or our anniversary. You know, days that really mean something special.

And I really think Valentine's parties at elementary school are kind of dumb. Seriously, this holiday is about romantic love! How many school children do you know with a romantic relationship going on! It's just another day that my kids bring home ALOT of candy, that I end up eating, that my big old tummy does not need. Not to mention the sticky hands of Porter and Zoey and those WRAPPERS!!!! I find them for weeks afterwards!

So, there. Are you convinced, yet? I really don't like Valentine's Day.

A Couple of Crazy Days in Utah

Yikes! The snow hit hard yesterday. Although, not as hard as the last major storm, for us anyway. It hit the Alpine/Highland area hard. There were even kids who had to spend the night at school because they couldn't get the buses out and all the roads were closed and parents couldn't get in. Crazy. People were stuck on the freeway and running out of gas. And I got to watch all of it from the comfort of my own home with all of my family around me. I kind of like snow storms like this. Our school was even delayed for 2 hours this morning due to the storm! So now my house is quiet again, Scott delayed going into work, so HE cleared the driveway, and I'm about to have some ME time on the treadmill. Oh, and the sun in shining! What a lovely morning!

By the way, our travel trailer came in and we are scheduled to pick it up on Monday. I'll post pictures!

Whew! Easter Dress #2 is Done!

Well, here it is. This is Hali's dress. I kind of like this one better than Zoey's. Hali's been begging me to finish it fast. Obviously, there is more skin showing than I normally allow. She will have a shirt underneath or a shrug over, depending on who wins the argument. I'll not willingly let my work be covered up!

Here's a close up of the top of the dress. It ties at the neck and is elastic on the back at the top and the waist.
Here's a close up of the smocking. This pattern was easier than Zoey's and not as much work.


This is another pattern from the smocking magazine I get. I just love that thing. I just went back and ordered two back copies, because I only get about 4 a year. Not enough for me! Anyway, now on to Regan's!

Well...We've Done It!

This weekend is the RV Show in Salt Lake. We've been computer researching for a long time to find just the right Travel Trailer. Actually, it started as a tent trailer, upgraded to a Hybrid and then we realized, if we saved just a little bit more, we could get a full out travel trailer. So in our excitement, we took the kids to the RV show last night and put money down on the trailer we wanted. Here's the floor plan:

We don't have the trailer, yet. They only had one left in the color we wanted and they were using that one in the show, so it was getting pretty beat up. So, we'll have to wait a couple of weeks before one comes in. And then Scott will have to take a class on how to work the thing! We already have several trips planned this summer with Scott's brother, Jeff, and his family. We are really excited and can't wait for warmer weather so we can use it! It's probably a good thing we don't have it, yet. We'd have to blow all the snow off our cement pad in the back just to store it! Whee!

Lessons From A Big Brother

Why do I have a feeling that she didn't instigate this?
That would be paper from our paper shredder. I had just shredded a bunch of stuff earlier in the day and had neglected to empty the container. Although I only found Zoey in the room, I have a hard time believing this was her idea, seeing as how she can't open up doors, yet, and we always have the office door closed. I think that Big Brother is teaching his sister bad things!

Our New Prophet

It was certainly no surprise, that President Thomas S. Monson was named the new Prophet this morning. Tradition holds that he would be named. So it took me by surprise, as I was watching the press conference that I felt the Lord confirm to me that President Monson was called by God to be the next Prophet. I certainly hadn't prayed to have a conformation, nor was I having a Spiritual morning. Anything, but. Porter wouldn't leave Zoey alone, so of course, there was a lot of yelling going on. But I made sure that Zoey was napping and Porter had cartoons on upstairs, so I could have some peace while watching the news.

I didn't do a tribute post to President Hinckley, because I'm really horrible at good-byes. I hate them. I avoid them at all costs. I like to think of him being with his wife and the really big party going on in heaven to greet him. Also, I like change. You get really used to changes on a mission. So, I'm excited to see our new Presidency and what they will teach me. I'm extra excited about President Uchtdorf being in the Presidency. I'm a tad partial to his accent and all. And I found out that President Monson and I have the same favorite color, yellow. He already taught me things about yellow that I didn't know. Wow.

My First Project Done!

My big present for Christmas was a pleater. It's a machine that makes the pleats for smocking. I decided that all my girls were going to get something smocked for Easter. I know, Easter. Hey, it's only a month and a half away. It took me a month to finish this one and I still have two more to go, so give me a break! Anyway, this one is Zoey's.

Here's a close up of the top part of the dress.
I had to hand embroider the flowers on the collar. They do give me a guideline so I didn't just come up with the pattern.
You even embroider the cuffs on the sleeves!
I've always been a seamstress, but this takes it to a whole new level! I got this pattern from a smocking magazine I get. I love that magazine! It's full of beautiful things to do for all ages. So Regan won't have to have a frilly little girl dress. I'm actually doing a skirt for her that's really cute and hip. I'm having a great time with this! I have all the stuff for Hali's, so I'm ready to go!

Snow Day!!!!!

Ok, I moved to Utah in August of 1994, so that makes it 13 1/2 years I've been here. Only ONE time has church been cancelled due to a snow storm. Today makes number TWO! We have 9:00 church and it's a blizzard outside so church has been cancelled. I have to say it's not such a hardship. When you look outside and the snow is blowing horizontally, there's not a big desire to head out there.

The dog had to do her business outside and this is what she had to get through to get out. Not to mention what came back in with her.

Here is our play set out in the backyard. The swings are almost touching the snow. It's crazy. And this is just from Today's storm. The sun was actually out yesterday and had melted most of what was there!

This has been the most bizarre year for snow! We were SURE the minute we bought our snow thrower, that we had doomed the Salt Lake Valley, or at least South Jordan, to absolutely no snow for the rest of the season. Little did we know, how much we were going to use it! And let me tell you, I kiss it every time I have to go out and clear 3 or more inches off our driveway!

Porter is Quick!

Funny Story. Today we went to Costco. We had their pizza for lunch and Scott got those little packets of crushed red peppers. So all through lunch Scott tried to get one of the kids to try it. Finally he turns on Porter. And I say, "Jeez, Scott, are you trying to kill the kids?" So Porter picks up a piece of pepper, puts it in his mouth and then slumps over with his eyes closed and his tongue sticking out, like he's dead! Oh man. We were totally laughing. I had to wipe away the tears! He's such a little actor!