The Tri-Birthday Party

Tyler was one of the "birthday boys"!

This weekend we traveled down to Stacey and John's house for a "Tri-Birthday" celebration which became a "Quad-birthday" celebration due to the arrival of little Kaiden. John and Dane's birthdays were 2 weeks ago and Tyler's is next week so we decided to celebrate them all together. We had a great time. Stacey is a wonderful hostess and we spent our time stuffing our fat faces and laughing...and squealing over our new nephew. We talked to Kirk, Jayme and my mom numerous times and Kirk sent several cell-phone pictures. Jayme put the phone by Kaiden so the "aunts" could listen to him cry and tell him we loved him.

John is birthday boy number 2

John turned 38 this year, Tyler turns 36, and Dane turned 2!! John and Tyler picked their favorite meals for the extravaganza (Dane didn't really care this year). John picked a hot spicy seafood gumbo!! Fabulous! Tyler picked the meal he picks EVERY year... Chicken Enchilada Casserole. John picked an eggnog pound cake with a strawberry/raspberry sauce and whipped cream for his cake and Tyler picked a brownie mocha torte (this is the cake I requested pretty much every birthday when I was a kid.) SO GOOD!


Ty..getting some help "blowing out" the candles...I had to resort to number candles...36 wouldn't fit on the torte!! :)

Dane is little "birthday boy" number 3...he was too tired to care.

Kelley and Jason...such a CUTE couple!!

All the cousins had a WILD time playing together. By the end of the day...with no naps...Ailey and Dane had about had it!

Aunt Kelley in her element!!

Tyler and some of his loot! I particularly like the picture of Ailey below...finger up her nose!!

My Brother is a Daddy!!

Kaiden...not even an hour old

Check out my new nephew Kaiden Bradford!! I am so excited. He was born on Saturday and weighed 8 lbs 2 oz and was 21 inches long. He had a rough journey but he arrived safe and sound. Poor Jayme was in labor for 37 hours!! Kirk is absolutely beside himself with joy. You just can't explain what parenthood is like...it has to be experienced. That absolute intense rush of joy when you see your child for the first time and that feeling of barely remembering what your life was like before they were born even when they are only hours old. Love is a powerful thing!

Tyler and I are VERY excited for our second little nephew!! We waited a long time to be an aunt and uncle. It is so much fun!! The kids are ecstatic for their new little cousin.

Congratulations Kirk and Jayme!! We love you!!

Ballet Observation Week

Reilly with Sara...one of her instructors

Last week it was Ballet Observation. This only occurs once a year at Reilly's ballet studio. Parents can watch classes but it is through a one way glass so as not to disturb or distract the dancers. Then on Observation Day parents are allowed to actually sit inside the class and film/take pictures of their child. This is Reilly's 7th year of ballet...hard to believe. She is in 2 different levels. She is in Level 3 on Tuesdays and Thursdays and she is in Level 3A (pre-point) on Wednesdays. This meant that we got to observe two different classes on two different days. It was fun to see her progress up close. Her pre-point class is really amazing. Reilly has gotten so flexible and graceful. It's unbelievable the difference a year can make.








Her teacher for pre-point is the Director of the Studio...her name is Dodie (I didn't get any pictures of her). She works the girls really hard but Reilly LOVES the class and Dodie. Sometimes Dodie would sub for Reilly's regular teacher last year and we would hear her just yelling at the girls and Reilly would stagger out exhausted. Now Reilly is used to her and really loves the challenge of trying to impress Dodie. This class is really disciplined. If the girls are late they have to stay outside the studio until the class is done at the bar so as not to disturb them and if they aren't properly warmed up they have to sit out the class. Reilly seems to be thriving in the class though and can't wait for Wednesdays. It was fun to watch her.



When Reilly was little she used to tell us "Look at me! Look at me! I'm a ballerina!" and she would run around leaping and spinning. Ailey loves ballet too and will also say "Look at me! Look at me! I'm a ballerina!" But Ailey will hold onto something and lift her leg up and down like she is at the bar!! It is so funny because she is imitating a "realistic" ballerina!

Reilly is in the center

Reilly balancing...they have to hold this position for a really long time!

Snow Snow and More Snow

My little snow bunny...Ailey

We got a TON of snow between Friday afternoon and Saturday morning. I am personally getting tired of driving in it, shoveling it and freezing in it. But my kids and husband are LOVING it!! For breakfast on Saturday morning we had a nice healthy meal of gingerbread cookies with frosting!! The morning just seemed to call for it...and then they were out the door! The roads were too bad to head to our three favorite sledding locations: my mom's, John and Ade's, and the lake and we knew all the local hills would be totally crowded so they settled for our own yard.

The sledding hill...it's a bit steeper than the picture looks

Our side yard has enough of an incline to sled down...a little tame...but great for the little guys. Not enough excitement for Reilly our little "extreme" sport girl...she decided to take a few runs on the stairs from our deck.

A definite butt-buster!!

Tyler and the kids at the top of the hill

Going down...

Even Mrs. Beasley got in on the fun

Ailey and Kameron

Our snowy backyard

Saturday night Tyler and I hung out with my mom, Kelley and Kirk. We decided to go see a movie. Kelley and I have been wanting to take my mom to see the movie "Because I Said So" with Diane Keaton. This movie would've been SO appropriate!! A few months ago my mom broke up with her "significant other " of seven years, Mike, because he was too much of an "old man/couch potato" (My mom is the most active, energetic woman I know... She can run circles around me!!) She is now testing the waters of online dating after much coaxing by several of her single friends. My mom just had some pictures taken of her by one of her friends and she wanted to get me and Kelley's opinion on her "profile". There is a reason kids shouldn't be privy to their parents dating!! After about 20 minutes of hysterical laughter...not on her part...she is quite a catch and any man should BE so lucky as to get to date her but from some of the "interesting" men that were profiled. (There were several good prospects too!)

Check out my HOT MOMMA!! Go Mom go!!

Can you believe she is just standing in front of her friend's white garage door??

Unfortunately "Because I Said So" wasn't playing at any theaters...and we all couldn't decide what movie to see... so when we got to the movie theater the girls went to one movie and the guys went to another movie. We saw the movie "Dream Girls". I liked it. Jennifer Hudson did an amazing job! I'm glad I went with my mom because Tyler would've HATED it! He went with Kirk to see "The Hitcher". We had a great time!

Tonight is Stacey's Dining Divas Dinner that is being filmed for Rachael Ray!! I can't wait to hear how it went!!

Exciting news!! Carolyn is in YW's now!! Yay!!

VERY SCARY...YW Photo Shoot

The night before last Valynn and Jayni came over for the MOST hilarious night. I was laughing until I was crying. We are preparing for New Beginnings (a night for the young women, their parents, and all incoming young women...to explain YW's, Personal Progress, and to kick off the new year). This year for New Beginnings our theme is "P.P.U" (Personal Progress University). We are going to have a collegiate theme and liken it to Personal Progress. Our invitations are "Acceptance Letters" to P.P.U. We are going to make pennants, balloons, and banners that will welcome the girls and their parents to "Student Orientation". The girls are to bring their "student handbooks" (personal progress books). Jayni, our president, will be the "Dean" and Valynn and I will be the "guidance counselors". Incoming beehives are the "freshman" etc. The girls have to declare a major (pick a value to completely finish this year), their 10-hour project is their "thesis". YW theme is our school "motto", Scripture Power is our school "fight song" and we are hoping to convince one of our advisors to dress up as a torch (our school mascot). We are even rounding up some of the parents to sing in our "alumni choir" complete with risers and robes. Anyway...it is taking ALOT of planning. We have about 16 girls...most of whom are really struggling... and our goal as a presidency this year it to raise the bar for the YW program.


So that brings me to our VERY SCARY photo shoot!! Can you guess who we are??

P.P.U.'s Homecoming Royalty...so scary!!

****ATTN TIFFANY Do you recognize your luscious mint green dream of a prom dress****

Jayni and Valynn came over the other night and we got "glamorous"...thrift store prom dresses except for the mint green one that belonged to my best friend from college Tiffany (that my girls us as a "princess" dress)..."dress-up" tiaras and jewelry, LOTS of blue eye shadow, bright red lipstick...pretty SCARY! Yes...we will be blowing this beauty up to have on display at New Beginnings. Tyler was our poor photographer!! Not only did we do still shots but we also shot two "live action" commercials. (We are also going to take some action shots of our bishopric as P.P.U's championship basketball team).

We are filming some of the girls who have completely finished a particular value and have them talk about their "major" and what they have learned from it and then throughout the video we will be breaking in with "mini-commercials" like..."and now a word from our Homecoming Royalty". We are doing one for the campus bookstore and the "pretty clothes" they have for sale (in which I am doing an "Elaine from Seinfeld" type dance) and one telling everyone to go and buy Homecoming Tickets and if you buy two you get a discount on teeth cleaning from Dr. Finn (a dentist and one of the dad's of our YW) See next photo!!

We WILL be rounding out the night on a spiritual note...we got an AWESOME speaker to talk to the girls about the importance of personal progress and the difference it can make in their lives and then Jayni and the Bishop will also speak. It's taking a lot of planning but I think it will be worth it.

Three Day Weekend...Yay!

The kids are out of school for Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Tyler had it off too. We have had a fun and busy weekend. I finally ended up cutting Ailey's hair. Kameron had cut it into a terrible mullet over Christmas vacation. Then Ailey had her surgery and I couldn't take her anywhere to get it fixed. Once she was well enough to go somewhere I doubted she would've LET anyone cut it. So her hair has remained in a mullet for weeks. Luckily she had enough hair that I could gel it into one very sad little ponytail. This weekend I couldn't take one more minute of it and got out the scissors and went to work. I am no hairstylist but I think it turned out pretty cute...maybe a tad Ramona Quimby...but still pretty cute. She has enough natural curl that it flips upon the ends and doesn't look too bad.

Ailey mullet free!!

Side view

The back

Kameron was feeling very handsome on Friday and wanted me to take his picture in his "favorite" outfit. He is very into anything "pirate". Uncle Kirk went to Utah and brought him back two awesome pairs of shoes. Kirk used to manage the Vans Outlet in Park City and so on a quick trip I asked him to grab a pair of Vans for Kameron (Kam is a BIG Van's fan). Kameron as a little toddler had a pair of the red and white checkerboard slip-ons and he has been devoted ever since. Kirk came back with not one pair of Vans but two!! He said it was buy-one-get-one free but I have my doubts. Kirk is sweet like that!

Kameron's favorite outfit...the shirt even glows in the dark!!

Cool shoes!

Saturday night was Stake Conference. Tyler and I went to the "adults" session and then afterwards had a great "date night"! It felt like forever since we had been out ALONE! We decided to go eat at Twigs. It was romantic and cozy and WARM...the temp. that night was around 5 degrees. We love Twigs and ordered some great food. I love their signature fries...they are garlic fries with a hit of cayenne and fresh basil on the top...then you dip them in a gorgonzola cheese sauce. YUM! I also love their Creme Brulee (my favorite dessert). It was fun to be out...just the two of us!! We were even all dressed up. Too bad I forgot my camera!

Today we wanted to do something fun since everyone had the day off. We wanted to do something outside but were limited since the weather is still in the single digits. We decided to brave the cold and drive out to a gorgeous lake near us. Tyler had heard that some bald eagles were nesting at the end of the lake. We drove out to this gorgeous bay...the weather was beautiful...sunny and blue skies even if very FRIGID! We saw five bald eagles. Two males and three females. They were flying and soaring over our heads and out over the water. It was beautiful. We walked around for a bit and took a few pictures but it was COLD!










After that we went into town and got some much need hot chocolate!! We did some shopping. I hit a few of my favorite thrift stores...nothing too exciting. I did find one really cute little vintage turquoise jewelry box with pink satin inside to sell at our next Sisters Creed event. But that was it. Then we drove back to our town and decided to get something to eat. The kids have been BEGGING us for weeks to go to Ron's (a hamburger joint)...you all know my feelings about hamburgers...YUCK! But they do have really good onion rings and milkshakes so I was persuaded. Ron's has been open since the 1950's I believe. The owner..."Ron"...was LDS and so this was the place to stop at in the 60's when my mom was a teenager after Church dances and other events. My grandparents LOVED this place. My favorite thing to get from Ron's is their butterscotch milk shake...so good! So we stopped there to eat. But to my DISMAY they no longer make butterscotch milkshakes and they used to have really good fry sauce to eat with your onion rings and they no longer make the same recipe. I think the place has new owners...no longer "Ron's " family and it wasn't nearly as good. But that didn't stop us from eating a whole ton of junk!

So now I am off to make sure everyone has their homework done and things ready for school. Reilly just informed me that she has a report on MLK Jr. due tomorrow and needs to use the computer...AAaahh! Good thing we had a Family Home Evening lesson on him last night!

Happy Martin Luther King Jr. Day!!! What an incredible man. His "I have a dream" speech chokes me up every time I read it.

Also... Happy Birthday John (my brother-in-law) and Dane (my sweet nephew)!! Hope you Sykes had fun in Walla Walla!!

Salt in the Dining Divas Wound...


I am once again bemoaning the end of my cooking club Dining Divas. It will be a year next month since we called it quits. Kelley and I miss it a lot. Stacey's group is going strong and the other day she called me to tell me her "good news"...her Dining Divas group is going to be featured on the Rachael Ray Show!!! I am really happy for her...seriously...I am...ok...just a tiny bit jealous...ok ALOT jealous... that her group has turned out so great and that our group turned out so lame. I guess RR is doing a show on cooking clubs and one of Stacey' s D.D. members sent in information on their group and were contacted by RR's producers. They are filming their next gathering...on January 21st. I am not sure when it will air. Way to go Stacey and the Dining Divas!!



P.S. Even the struggling Houston Chapter of Dining Divas has pulled it together and are going strong...the injustice of it all!! ;)

Now onto Rachael Ray...I am really bugged by her. Why is she so popular? Everytime I hear her say "yum-o" or "spoonula" I want to throttle her!! But national TV is national TV...yay Stacey!! Now if it were Paula Deen (my absolute fave...I daydream about what if she were my mother-in-law...how much fun we would have cooking together!!)...back to my point...if Stacey's Dining Divas were going to be on the Paula Deen Show I would be REALLY upset!! I am very proud of Stacey. Dining Divas has been her "baby" for years and it truly is an awesome club and I am happy that she is getting the recognition she deserves. Way to go Stac!

Tuesday night was Book Club...yet another great gathering. I love going to Kari Ann's house. She has the cutest house and I love looking around trying to get decorating ideas. We all brought food to share and she did the cutest thing...I am totally stealing this idea. She did a hot chocolate bar. She had marshmallows, whipped cream, peppermints and all different flavored syrups. It was SO good...and such a cute idea.

The book we read for January was:



I absolutely LOVE this book!! I highly highly recommend it. It is the perfect gift to give a friend/sister/mother or to buy for yourself to read and re-read. It is also a really quick read which is a nice little bonus. If you want a really professional review read Lucy's. (I really think Lucy should become a book critic). But here's what I thought about it...this was my second time reading the book. The first time I read it I was around 18 and getting ready to leave for college. My mom had read it and really liked it and had suggested I read it. (She has always had two copies of this book...one she kept at home and one she kept at her office). I read it and liked it and even took notes and wrote down favorite quotes from it. (I actually found my old franklin planner and the notes that I took...it was really fun to read). When I read it at 18 my parents were in the process of getting divorced, my family was moving from Kansas City to Houston, and I was getting ready to leave for BYU. Most of the quotes I wrote down were about separation.

"Parting is inevitably painful, even for a short time. It's like an amputation, I feel a limb is being torn off, without which I shall be unable to function. And yet, once it is done...life rushes back into the void, richer, more vivid and fuller than before" Anne Morrow Lindbergh.

I also had a few that I wrote down about trying to figure out who I was and how I mattered to the world.

"...When one is a stranger to one's self then one is a estranged from others too. If one is out of touch with oneself, then one cannot touch others". Anne Morrow Lindbergh

I remember crying on my bed, while reading the book, thinking...Anne Morrow Lindbergh really GETS me. Reading it again at 34 it was a like a whole different book and this time I was laughing reading it thinking...Anne Morrow Lindbergh really GETS me.

She compares the different phases of a woman's life to different sea shells. I loved the analogy of the oyster shell. That would be the married/raising a family stage. She describes it as very ordinary looking...rather lumpy...embedded on a rock...with things attached to it. She talks about how it reminded her of a house full of children, toys and bikes everywhere, with friends spilling out, noisy, messy and chaotic. That sounds so familiar!! She talks about how women's lives are so full of responsiblities, meals to be made, housecleaning, kids to be taken care of, pets, hobbies, friends, children's friends, activities, children's activites, committees and husbands that women rarely take any time for themselves to be renewed. So that quote that I wrote down when I was 18 about being a stranger to one's self means something totally different at 34.

I also really liked how she described the different stages of marriage. My favorite quote from this read-through was:

"Love isn't gazing at each other...it is standing side by side and looking in the same direction"

I think this book has had such appeal and longevity because it is full of universal truths. We, women, are more alike than we are different and that it even transcends time and generations. I can't wait to read the book when I'm 50 and again at 80 and see if Anne Morrow Lindbergh still GETS me...somehow I think she will.

100 Things...

O.k. Lucy...here is my list. I loved yours and Carolyn's.

1.) I have three kids.

2.) I married my best friend.

3.) I would've never thought growing up that I would be a stay-at-home mom...I
was ALWAYS going to have a career AND have kids. (Now I wouldn't trade being at home for the world).

4.) I attended BYU and majored in Psychology.

5.) I went to four different high schools.

6.) I am the oldest of five kids.

7.) I am the first-born daughter of a first-born daughter of a first-born
daughter...and my first-born was a daughter...cool huh?

8.) I hate the Midwest.

9.) I love the South.

10.) I like to travel.

11.) I am a worrier.

12.) I love to read.

13.) I like historical fiction.

14.) I think about characters from books I read years ago and wonder
what they are doing now.

15.) I always daydream about some cool or interesting scenario to fall asleep at
night.

16.) I love exploring new cities.

17.) I lost 50 lbs on Weight Watchers.

18.) I am a 95% vegetarian...I rarely buy meat and can go weeks without eating
it.

19.) I am easily annoyed.

20.) I love sunny days.

21.) I love seafood.

22.) I love soap operas...I only watch one now...Days of Our Lives.

23.) A secret only Tyler knows...I have subscribed to Soap Opera Digest...I love
it!

24.) Rock Star Energy Drinks are my favorite beverage...bad habit...I know!

25.) My first job was working at "Top Dog" a hot dog shop in the mall in Kansas
City which Tyler constantly confuses with "Hotdog on a Stick" and has
asked me several times if I still have the outfit...wink wink!

26.) I hate pizza...except for pizza Margarita.

27.) I love to go junking...garage sales, thrift stores, flea markets, antiques
stores...I love all things vintage.

28.) I love reading people's blogs...even if I don't know them...I am very curious
about other people and how they live.

29.) I LOVE Food Network!!! Paula Deen is my favorite! I also like Barefoot
Contessa and Everyday Italian.

30.) I subscribe to the Paula Deen Magazine.

31.) My ancestors are from Scotland and Germany.

32.) People ALWAYS ask me if I am part-asian...NO...Not that I know of...maybe
there is missing link somewhere out there.

33.) I get "special" treatment at Asian restaurants...see #32.

34.) I love tattoos...Tyler has a big one on his back...he got it before the "no
tattoo" edict.

35.) I am neither a night owl nor an early bird: I like to sleep late and go to bed
early.

36.) I dated Tyler because I thought he looked like a wild "bad boy"...long hair,
earring, tattoo, grungy...and inside beat the heart of a good little Mormon boy!!
(He was once pulled over by the BYU campus police while riding his mountain bike through campus because they thought he looked "suspicious"...Ha Ha!!

37.) I love all things Scottish.

38.) I hate carbonation...Rockstars are the exception...I HATE soda. I like
lemonade and fruit punch.

39.) I have a great sense of humor...if I do say so myself.

40.) I like to work-out and have done so regularly since my junior year of high school.

41.) I hate mayonnaise.

42.) I am afraid of cats!! I am not the only one...so is Kelley (my sis) and our friend Meghan.

43.) I am not afraid of spiders or bugs. I am the "spider-killer" at our house.

44.) I am TERRIFIED of mice/rats...just thinking about them freaks me out!

45.) I am an adventurous eater...I will try anything once and pretty much have.

46.) I love foreign language and have an aptitude for them...I took German for 4 years and French for 4 years...French is my favorite. I have read a novel in French (my claim to fame)...it was very thin.

47.) I hate touching people's feet.

48.) I am obsessed with earwax removal...particularly of my own family members.

49.) My favorite author is Diana Gabaldon.

50.) I love chips (corn and potato)...I have zero control eating them. I rarely buy them unless I need them for an event...if there are any left overs I make Tyler take them to work.

51.) I hate melon of any kind!!

52.) My favorite class in high school was British Lit.

53.) I am horrible at math.

54.) I can't drive a stick shift.

55.) I am obsessive/compulsive.

56.) I HATE McDonalds...except for the orange drink...yum!

57.) My favorite color is pink.

58.) The time that I lived in Springdell truly defined the person I am today. I learned who I am and what I am made of while living there. I believe God had a plan for my life and that the people I met there and what I learned there were all a part of His plan for me...so many of the gifts I have in my life today can be traced to that defining period of my life.

59.) I hate indecisive people.

60.) I love to cook--I don't like to bake.

61.) I've never been stung by a bee.

62.) I never had a cavity until I was 30.

63.) I had braces for 4 LONG years!!

64.) I love names...naming things, the meaning of names, baby name books.

65.) I hate the month of January.

66.) I love summer and fall.

67.) I hate winter and spring.

68.) I hate milk and NEVER drink it.

69.) I love pedicures...but don't like nail polish on my fingernails.

70.) Tyler and I talk AT LEAST 4 times during the day on the phone.

71.) I am not good at small talk.

72.) I hate church functions.

73.) Family is #1.

74.) I am close to and truly adore all my siblings.

75.) I am obsessed with Sting...I LOVE HIM!!

76.) I am oddly talented in that I can rhyme...all the time. I can also make up little funny songs...and poems on the spot...much to the amusement of my kids.

77.) I like crafting and making things...but I can't sew. New Years Resolution for 2007.

78.) I want to learn to Latin Dance...New Years Resolution for 2007.

79.) I have to have a "white noise" machine on to sleep at night. I keep it on the "train" setting.

80.) I love boating, water, and the lake...but I hate water skiing.

81.) I love going to brunch.

82.) The Office and Lost are my favorite T.V. shows.

83.) I am sarcastic.

84.) I swear...New Years Resolution for 2007.

85.) I didn't go to church until my senior year of high school.

86.) I cherish my time at BYU...I loved the social aspects of it but hated the conformity.

87.) I hate calling people--I love talking on the phone--just don't like calling.

88.) I am addicted to Carmex...used to be Blistex until one of my pregnancies when the smell and taste of it made me sick.

89.) I hate the smell of toast--we don't own an toaster.

90.) My feelings get hurt easily.

91.) I love polka dots.

92.) I love Thai food.

93.) I hate the flavor of "Chocolate Raspberry".

94.) I love Art and Art Museums.

95.) My favorite snack/comfort food is my mom's homemade Chex mix with only cashews in it.

96.) My shopping "heaven" is the Homestead Stores in Fredricksburg, Texas.

97.) I love nachos...Tyler and I are on a quest to find nachos as good as Diego's nachos in Provo.

98.) My dream is to live here June-Dec. 31st and then live in the South Jan.-May 31st.

99.) I want us to live in a house on a lake.

100.) I have never been offered drugs...and have always been ready and wanted to "just say no!"

101.) This is for Tyler...just so there can TRULY be "101 Dull Details" (see my very first post)...I hate pulp...it makes me gag!

Ringing in the New Year...

Once Christmas was over things went down hill in the excitement department around here!! I've got a bit of the post-holiday blues...or the January blues...or maybe the January "grays" would be more appropriate...and my stint as a "shut-in" isn't helping!!

Two days after Christmas Ailey had her surgery...she had a tonsillectomy and an adenoidectomy. Things went well. Reilly and Kameron stayed at my Mom's house and that helped a lot. Ailey had to be at the surgical center by 7:45 am. One of my friend's daughter's had had the same procedure done at the same place so she was able to give me a lot of helpful advice. We got to take Ailey back and change her into her little hospital gown and footies. We met with the anesthesiologist and her doctor. But the worst part was handing her over to the nurse and walking out!! It was hard. Then the waiting seemed like a lifetime...but it was really only about a half an hour...an hour counting recovery.

Ailey did great. She is such a little trooper!! Even that afternoon you really wouldn't know that she had even had surgery. Our biggest challenge has been to try to get her to take it easy! She's done pretty well with keeping hydrated and my kids are freaks in that they like the taste of medicine (I hope this isn't a proclivity toward drug abuse or alcoholism!!) so she would just slurp the medicine down. The last few days have probably been the hardest in that the scabs are coming off and this has been the only time she has told us that her throat hurts and that she needs medicine. Other than that she is doing fine. It was nice that we had the surgery done over Christmas break...Tyler had the week off between Christmas and New Years... and so we were able to hang out while she was recuperating...nice but boring. She isn't supposed to leave the house for 10 days. She's gone in the car but not in anywhere so that's why I feel like a shut-in...I was in pajamas for days!!

FYI: No more snoring or sleep apnea episodes...she doesn't make a sound!!

The day before New Years Eve I did go out briefly for my DREADED Young Women's hike! We had to meet at the Church at 6:45am! Before the crack of dawn!!

Yes...I did drag Tyler out of a nice warm bed to snap my picture...it's all about the blog!! ;)

We got all our girls and then drove over to another church building on the north side to meet up with all the other wards. Then we drove to our hiking spot. We hiked Mt. Baldy. For all of you who are from Utah...It was not a mountain but really a glorified hill...but in about 18 degree weather and snow, fog, and ice it felt like Mt. Everest!

Our group

Valynn, Jayni and me. Hideous picture! Plus...the 80's called: They want the knitted headbands back!!

Some of our girls...I finally got Nicole to take off her full face mask/hat thing!

The top

Our activity was that all the girls were to make a banner that represented what they stood for...a la Captain Moroni and the Title of Liberty. The girls all did such a great job on their banners. We got to the top and sang "I walk by Faith" and "Army of Helaman" and said the Young Women's theme. Our Stake President spoke along with our YW Stake President and her counselors. Then the girls went one by one (this was the REALLY cold part) and unfurled their banners in the wind and read what they had written on them. The spirit was actually very strong on that EXTREMELY cold hill and the camaraderie between all the girls was neat to see. The two bonfires and hot chocolate, muffins, and fruit at the bottom made it all worthwhile!

Our Young Women's Theme for 2006 was: "Arise and shine forth that thy light may be a standard to the nations" (D&C 115:5). It looked really pretty to see all the banners whipping in the wind.


Our New Years Eve...wasn't "Rockin"...It was very low-key. We had been invited to our friend's house for a New Years Eve Party but with Ailey's surgery we just stayed at home. I didn't mind too much. I'm not really into New Years Eve even if I am going somewhere. I really just think..."What's the big whoop?" I am usually still too exhausted from Christmas to get all excited about another big celebration to cook and entertain for...I know...I'm a party-pooper!

We usually eat Tyler's family's traditional Christmas food on New Years. Tyler is Norwegian...VERY Norwegian...and so he will make Lefse (a kind of flat bread made with potatoes...kind of like an tortilla) that is really good and rosettes (a delicate fried-cookie type thing that you dust with powdered sugar) also really good.

The shut-ins...making lefse...in jammies!

The little tonsil/adenoid-less helper...Notice the lovely hair cut...thanks to Kameron and his supposedly blunt "Kindergarten" scissors...my baby has a mullet!!!!

We also make beef and cheese stuffed crescent rolls that Tyler's mom makes and drink frappe (these are NOT Norwegian :) ). Who doesn't like raspberry sherbet and 7-up?? We played a bunch of games with the kids. We played a never-ending marathon of "Chicken Foot" a dominoes game that Stacey taught us last year and it has been a hit ever since!

We also played a lot of Battleship (Thanks Sykes!) and later on Tyler and I played Trivial Pursuit 80's Edition (Thanks Brett and Marissa!). I LOVE trivia games!!
The best part of the night was when the clock struck midnight. Ailey went to bed around 9pm but both Reilly and Kameron stuck it out until midnight (Kameron's first time!). Growing up in Springdell (a small community up Provo Canyon) there was a New Years tradition that I still like to do to this day. When we were kids at midnight everyone would come outside to wish all their neighbors a Happy New Year and all the kids would grab pots and pans and would walk around and around the dell banging them like crazy. (Springdell is a circle of about 20 houses). So at our house...forget blowing things and tooters...we grab the pots and pans and wooden spoons and bang the heck out of them. Every year we lose a wooden spoon or two, due to EXTREME enthusiasm, and this year was no different. This can go on for quite a while and I am always the last to stop. (I've got to get all my aggression and aggravation with the past year out some way) Tyler usually has to remove the pot and wooden spoon from my hands but beating those things is better than therapy!

On New Years we took down our trees and put away all our Christmas decorations!! Our house seemed really drear!! I organized our whole house...pretty much every room... (a shut-in can really get quite a lot done!). I made Tyler buy more plastic bins and boxes than you can imagine and then I sent him out on a quest to find plants (I needed to spruce up the house). Finding plants in January is no easy task.

We watched a lot of DVD's, ate a lot of food, and rarely showered or got dressed! Yehaw!

The girls and I did have a pedicure night. We (Reilly and I) are addicted to pedicures. I blame my aunt Bonnie and the fact that we have a little nail shop down the street. Bonnie comes to the lake and does all of our nails...she has all the good expensive nail polish...all the equipment...she will do flowers, french pedicures...whatever you want. This has inspired her little protege, Reilly. For Reilly's birthday she got a bunch of nail polish and equipment and then she got more for Christmas...She is quite the little "artiste". She has had to be. I hate feet...and now that she is older and sweatier I don't like doing her toes!! (Side note: this made what I had to do for the Christmas "Would You Rather" game so vile...I had to wear John's sweaty sock fresh off his sweaty foot!!) Ailey didn't want to be left out and ran through the house yelling "me too! me too!" when the fun began.

Our handy work!

So...Happy New Year! I have made a bunch of resolutions. I am a typical Type A goal setter. For 2006 I set 68 goals for myself and accomplished most of them. I won't bore you will them or the ones for 2007...suffice it to say most are the usual...get in shape, be more patient, pay off debt, read my scriptures, travel, have more date nights, learn to do something new, spend more one on one time with my kids, do more service, share the gospel...leave my house....get out of jammies!! I can't tell you how excited I am for book club next week!!