Sophomore Firsts

Things have been pretty exciting around here for our little Reilly. So many new things to experience. First up, our Stake's Priest Laurel Dance. This was Reilly's first official date dance. For this particular function Stake Youth Leaders pair up the kids into "dates". The boy then finds out who his date is and he has to ask her out...usually in a creative way. They then attend a fancy dinner and dance at the Stake Center. I think the purpose is to teach them dating etiquette. Either way it is always fun and amusing to see who is paired up with whom and it always seems to be a unique pairing. Anyway, Reilly was on pins and needles waiting for her date to make his move. He was a bit slow.

Finally the day arrived when he ding-dong-ditched our house and left her a cute treat and a puzzle to solve:

Reilly didn't know who he was and a quick perusal of FB brought her to the conclusion that she knew of him and that they had some mutual friends. Plus! It also quickly brought her to the conclusion that she would be wearing flats. Negative! He is quite a bit shorter than she is.

****Side Note: Seriously...what are leaders thinking? As a tall girl who dreaded dancing with short boys because it made me feel even more awkward (as if that were possible) why would you purposely pair up a tall girl with a short guy. How about short/short and tall/tall? Or the ever popular tall guy/short girl. It's already an assigned, if not blind, date for goodness sake! That said, I am the mother of a short boy (as of now) and I guess I wouldn't want him denied the opportunity to go to a dance with the prettiest girl in the stake!! Ha ha.****

The height factor required a re-think of her outfit because Reilly does like to rock the high heels.  So what to wear with flats? It was a quandary. Luckily Reilly already had a cute formal dress from Jordin's wedding that I paid an arm and a leg for...not to mention I threatened her when I purchased the dress that it would need to get a heck of a lot more use than just this wedding. I reminded her of this little fact and she reluctantly pulled out the dress and gave it a whirl.

Will wonders never cease...she loved it!! Also, as it is a long dress it completely covered her feet so that no one would even know what kind of shoes she was wearing. SCORE. This dress happens to be strapless so I offered her my shrug that I wore with my identical dress to Jordin's wedding and was met with such a look of disgust that you would not believe. My little peach responded with "I AM NOT WEARING AN UGLY OLD LADY SHRUG!!' Great. She said she would wear a jean jacket with it? Huh? With a ball gown? Anything but that ugly old shrug. After much persuading/threatening she put the shrug on... and pronounced the ensemble...CUTE!! What the?! Then she told me I should have purchased a shrug for her last summer to wear to Jordin's wedding because it really does give the dress a classy look. Was I trying to make her look bad? (Does she have amnesia?) She then loved her darling self so much in the dress and shrug that she posted a picture of her fabulousness on Facebook. Did I gloat? Why yes I did. Did I make her sing my favorite song "You were right and I was wrong..." Yep. I get my kicks were I can. So even though it took months and months and months she FINALLY came to the conclusion that 1.) I occasionally know what I am talking about and 2.) that "Modest is Hottest" (as per HER fb post.) How long will this little enlightenment last? Probably until Prom season.

 So demure...

 Reilly and her slightly vertically challenged..but sweet...date.

Their dance picture...that she tried to destroy. Not so fast...parents love this stuff and so will she years from now.

Now onto Dance Team...

This whole experience has been insane. Last year the dance team coach was ousted. Don't know why. This year a new coach was thrown in at the last minute. Horrible. She was previously on the Bachelor. 'Nuff said. She too was recently ousted. These poor girls have had the WORST season ever and yet they still come through. They are currently being coached by their assistant coach who had to be brought in mid-year to help the regular coach...well...coach. She is wonderful and is doing a great job turning around this train wreck. As for next year, who knows what will happen. I don't think Reilly wants to be on Dance Team next year. It consumes your life and you don't have any time to do anything else or participate in any other activities. Tyler and I would be thrilled if she didn't do it again next year. THRILLED.

Either way their team is going out with some glory...FINALLY.  It is competition season peeps. I had no idea what that entailed. Let's say lots of my time and my money. I feel like I am on the dance team. They have had several competitions and last weekend they qualified for Districts. Woohoo!!

They are competing in Pom, Kick and Hip Hop. Last weekend as they were qualifying for Districts they came in first in Pom (Reilly's forte) against some serious competition. It was EXCITING to say the least. Ailey and Bryn were in the stands cheering their little hearts out!!

photo credit: S.Davis

 Yeah...they're pretty hot stuff!! 

GO GIRLS!!

Presidents Day

Gavin, Bryn and Elle

Since the kids had the day off from school and the weather wasn't too bad we thought it would be a great day to head to the lake. The weather was perfect; while not particularly sunny, there wasn't much snow and it wasn't bitterly cold.

Kelley, Hannah and I packed a lunch to share with my Grandma and our uncles Steve and John who were out that day as well. The kids played and played outside, which was wonderful for my cabin fever kids, and we got to have a nice visit inside.

Lucky for us the lake was frozen solid. My uncles went out and tested the ice and checked the thickness and pronounced it safe for kids to have fun on. Apparently someone had driven a car across the lake earlier that day and other kids were riding bikes across the lake. Bizarre. If I would have known that the ice was good I would've packed our ice skates. So while the ice was pitted and uneven it was nice and thick.  Pitty ice doesn't bother kids!!

My Uncle John got out the runner sleds and the kids were dragging each other around and sliding across the ice. Those sleds have gotten good use this winter.

 

I asked Gavin to pose for me and he jauntily propped up a foot on the dock and leaned forward for this manly-man pose. He cracks me up!!

These two had fun together as usual...inside and outside.

Kameron, Grace, Haylee, Ailey, and Kyndell

Then the DANCE PARTY began!! It was quite the spectacle to see a bunch of kids all dancing Gangnam Style...music included...out on the ice. Kam and Grace have some serious moves. Once they got started, there was just no stopping them. They had THE FEVER...THE DANCE FEVER!!

 Haylee lookin' good out there!!

 Kam getting his freak on...

They were impressed!!

We were amused. These kids CLEARLY get their sweet moves from their mothers!!

The crew

While we were all out on the ice a bald eagle flew over our heads. Not a bad way to spend Presidents Day huh?

GOD BLESS AMERICA!!

The Perfect Book For February

As February is the month for celebrating love and romance this is the perfect book to cozy up with and enjoy. My friend Jodi recommended this book to me. She teaches our girls piano lessons and I love that they come home from piano with sticky notes in their binders of book recommendations and verbal recommendations for me...and them...from Jodi. We have gotten some great suggestions and I love that not only is Jodi broadening their horizons in music, she also shares with them her love of books. Nice huh?

I had heard such great things about this book. So many people asked me if I had read this book and I kept saying "Not yet...but it's on my list." Well, I finally got around to reading it and I am so glad that I did. I read it right before Valentine's Day and it put me in the perfect celebratory mood.

I was a little worried that this would be another faux Jane Austen ,which I hate, but I was so pleasantly surprised. I enjoyed the writing, the plot, the characters. It was downright charming.

From Goodreads:

Marianne Daventry will do anything to escape the boredom of Bath and the amorous attentions of an unwanted suitor. So when an invitation arrives from her twin sister, Cecily, to join her at a sprawling country estate, she jumps at the chance. Thinking she’ll be able to relax and enjoy her beloved English countryside while her sister snags the handsome heir of Edenbrooke, Marianne finds that even the best laid plans can go awry.

From a terrifying run-in with a highwayman to a seemingly harmless flirtation, Marianne finds herself embroiled in an unexpected adventure filled with enough romance and intrigue to keep her mind racing. Will she be able to rein in her traitorous heart, or will a mysterious stranger sweep her off her feet? Fate had something other than a relaxing summer in mind when it sent Marianne to Edenbrooke.

This book was surprisingly not cheesy and not totally predictable. It was twisty and page turning. For it not being an especially long book I was pleasantly surprised with the author's character development and how quickly I began to feel for, care about, and was charmed by the characters.

I will say that I was somewhat puzzled by the cover that had this at the top "A Proper Romance" but as I am easily able to compartmentalize things I don't really want to think about I tried not to give it a second thought and succeeded.

Imagine my shock and horror to discover that it was "Deseret Book fiction"...ahh that explains the "Proper Romance." But regardless of my abject aversion to "Deseret Book fiction" which I avoid like the plague because it induces gagging and cringing, I loved this book. Seriously.

The book was delightful and captivating. Philip is swoon-worthy and Marianne isn't annoying. The scene with the love letter...uh...awesome. To read and re-read. The clincher...I just recommended it to my 16 year old daughter. How many times can you do that with what is technically a romance novel?

So while it is not the deepest of literature it is still deeply enjoyable and satisfying.

My Rating: I loved it.

***Edit: My 16 year old daughter DID love it!!***

 Valentine's Day

We had a fun and busy Valentine's Day this year. I LOVE Valentine's Day and I am grateful that my husband does too. What's not to love about a day of love? This year I was a little slow with my holiday decorating but I got it all done and just in the nick of time. It looks great and I am sad to have to take it down. January was one long dark and dreary month and February has already given us several sunny days and bright holiday decorations too.

The kids woke up early and put on their festive Valentine's day outfits. Ailey and Bryn had been planning their outfits for days. Even Kameron broke out a red sports jersey and black and red track pants. They were excited to grab their "Red Lunches" and head out the door. You may recall that red lunch is where I pack a lunch that is all red and pink (actual food or the wrappers) and Valentine themed. The kids seriously love this. Over the years they have requested that I keep the contents a secret hence the staples...no peeking. These lunches are rarely healthy but they are fun. The one dud in their lunches this year was the craisins that Tyler threw in...apparently they don't want "worthless fruit" on Valentine's day. In defense of craisins...these were the cheapo Wal-mart brand and they were horrible. You've been warned.

They were all ready to go with their decorated Valentine Boxes. Ailey's class just finished studying the Titanic so her box was Titanic themed for their Titanic themed Valentine's Party. Kameron's teacher isn't too festive and he was bummed that she didn't go all out for their party. His Valentine box was an undecorated red and black Van's shoe box that he deemed good to go as is...why mess with perfection? Bryn decorated her box with her big buddies at preschool and so this year there was no big box decoration drama. Very easy.

Very cute!!

During the morning I was treated to this fun surprise from Tyler...

It was a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. I haven't taken a picture yet as they take 24 hours to officially *bloom* but already they are looking beautiful. There is something that is so fun and extra special about flowers that are delivered.

Then it was off to the school parties...

Like I said, Ailey's party was a Titanic party. This girl had not one, not two, but THREE outfits for the day. She arrived at school in her pink and red splendor. Then they had to change into their "poor" clothes as they talked about the people who worked below the deck and they got to learn to square dance and do some other things. THEN... they got to change into their "fancy clothes" and be the wealthy passengers. Here's Ailey in her fancy clothes complete with white gloves. She even had a little fake fur stole that she wore too.

As a wealthy passenger she was escorted to dine at the "captain's table". She had a little place card that said "Miss Johnson". They were served hot fudge sundaes by their butlers and maids (aka the parents) Ailey loved each and every minute of this party!! It was a really cute idea and the kids had a great time. I love that her teacher combines learning and fun.

Ailey and one of her BFFs Audrey

Look who showed up too!! As much fun as it is to have your mom at school it is over the moon exciting to have your DADDY come to school!!

We divided our time between both Kameron and Ailey's classes. Yes, lesson learned from the Halloween party. So while Kameron wasn't having the most festive party he was still having a great time. I was allowed to take a picture (shocker) but it is blurry due to the fact that the kid never stopped moving!!

Kameron and Jonathon in their Valentine *outfits*!! Ha ha. I am so glad that along with all these wild girls we were blessed with this crazy boy. Boys are awesome.

Reilly was out the door and at school before 6am for dance team practice. It is currently competition season so we see very little of her these days. She, unfortunately, had a hellish day at school (post all its own) and I picked her up early. HIGH SCHOOL BLOWS. But even she came home laden down with flowers and sparkling apple juice and treats. She is currently on pins and needles waiting to find out who her date is for our Stake's Priest/Laurel Dinner Dance. The stake assigns a boy to a girl. The boy finds out who he has as his date and then he asks her to the dinner dance creatively. So stay tuned...

We celebrated the rest of the night with the kids. Reilly had dance team practice and Ailey had ballet so we had a late fancy candlelight Valentine's dinner. Our kids LOVE that kind of stuff. Tyler picked up pizza dough from our favorite pizza place and everyone made their own personal pizza with all their favorite toppings. Then we had special drinks, sides, and dessert to go with it. At everyone's place were little Valentine's gifts from Tyler and I and cards and candy. We did our traditional family "love notes." Those are my very favorite part of Valentine's day. Tyler spoiled me with treats and gifts and I always feel like he out does me every year but I love that he is romantic and thoughtful. I wish I took more pictures but we were too busy snarfing, laughing, and quoting Willy Wonka to even think about getting a picture.

The YW in our ward did the best Valentine fundraiser. It was genius. They took orders for chocolate covered strawberries. They got a whole bunch of orders and worked hard until late on Wednesday night to make them and package them all pretty. Then they were delivered on Valentine's Day. Super great idea. I hope they earned all their camp money. I got a delicious box and then Janyse and I sent them to the ladies we visit teach. So perfect.

Anyway...Valentine's Day was wonderful and Tyler and I are going out this weekend for our own little celebration. I hope that your day of love was WONDERFUL too!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

For Your Reading Pleasure

I just finished two really fun books...books that I literally told people to "leave me alone!!" so I could finish them. That should tell you something there. Both books were great escape reading. In one the writing was cheesy but I was still drawn into it and in the other book the writing was beautiful but a little slow until about a third of the way in. I am glad that I kept reading because I found these books most enjoyable...a real treat!

First up...

From Goodreads:

1961 England. Laurel Nicolson is sixteen years old, dreaming alone in her childhood tree house during a family celebration at their home, Green Acres Farm. She spies a stranger coming up the long road to the farm and then observes her mother, Dorothy, speaking to him. And then she witnesses a crime.

Fifty years later, Laurel is a successful and well-regarded actress, living in London. She returns to Green Acres for Dorothy’s ninetieth birthday and finds herself overwhelmed by memories and questions she has not thought about for decades. She decides to find out the truth about the events of that summer day and lay to rest her own feelings of guilt. One photograph, of her mother and a woman Laurel has never met, called Vivian, is her first clue.

I loved this book, but then I am a Kate Morton fan, and I thought this was a great Kate Morton book. I like her writing. I think it is smart. I think that she does multiple plot lines across various time periods like no other. That said, this book had a rather slow start, for about the first third of the book, but then the suspense began to build and build and I was completely absorbed. The setting was intriguing London during the Blitz.  I love mysteries that are told and solved as secrets are revealed while the reader moves back and forth from the future to the past.

This writing was gorgeous...beautifully layered and nuanced with great characters who test our loyalties and assumptions (that was my favorite part) while the storyline twists and turns with the shifting perspectives of various characters as secrets are uncovered and revealed. Fabulous.

I loved it!!

My Rating: Fantastic






Second...

This was our book club pick for February. I was a little apprehensive as I hate scary books. The movie The Sixth Sense traumatized me for life. But this book, while spooky was also a lot of fun.





From Goodreads:

Practical Melanie Middleton hates to admit she can see ghosts. But she's going to have to accept it. An old man she recently met has died, leaving her his historic Tradd Street home, complete with housekeeper, dog and a family of ghosts anxious to tell her their secrets.

Enter Jack Trenholm, a gorgeous writer obsessed with unsolved mysteries. He has reason to believe that diamonds from the Confederate Treasury are hidden in the house. So he turns the charm on with Melanie, only to discover he's the smitten one... It turns out Jack's search has caught the attention of a malevolent ghost. Now, Jack and Melanie must unravel a mystery of passion, heartbreak and even murder.

Okay I'm not going to lie the writing was a bit cheesy but the plot was fun. Seriously fun. Fun enough that I was able to overlook the cheesy writing and stereotypical characters. I've always been in love with stories that are set in the South and so, of course, I was drawn into the beauty of Charleston and it's history. I also happen to have a love and appreciation for old houses and the stories that they have to tell. The book is part romance, part ghost story, and part mystery. The paranormal definitely added a unique aspect to what is basically a chick-lit romance. While the book is not perfect, it was still a fun read. The plot kept moving and drew me right in. I especially appreciated the fact that White wrapped up the mystery for us at the end and didn't leave us hanging particularly as this is the first book in a series. Will I read the next book in the series...yes, I think so.

My Rating: Fun.

 Party Time!

 It has been a week of parties around here. So perfect to end January with and start off February. Tyler's birthday was this weekend. He turned 42...FORTY-TWO!! He was 22 when we met. 20 years has flown by. I used to worry about the oddest things when we got engaged such as "Will I still love him 20 years from now?" "Will I still like him?" "Will he bug me?" "Will we have anything to talk about?" I am happy to report yes, yes, yes, and yes!! I still REALLY like him!! Bonus...I still REALLY REALLY LOVE HIM. I continue to find him interesting and fun...even more so than I did when he was 22. Tyler has grown, matured, become seasoned, and has evolved into quite a fascinating man. That brings me to the bugged part. Does he bug me at times? For sure. I know that I drive him insane at times (most times!!) but I love his 42 year old face that now has crags and laugh lines. I love the sprinkling of gray in his hair. I love his odd sense of humor and the little jiggety-jig he dances when he thinks he is particularly funny or clever...which is often. I love that pretty much every night we lock the door of our bedroom while the kids bang on the door and yell "Why is Mom so needy!!" (Thanks Reilly) while we laugh and discuss the events of the day. I made a great choice in a husband all those years ago. We have grown and melded together over the past 20 years and  I can't wait to see what we are like in the next 20 years. 21 year old Kristin was smarter than she looked.

Tyler had two celebrations this weekend. First, we met my mom and sister at Luna's for a most delicious and fancy adult dinner. It was wonderful. Tyler ordered the best thing that night and I appreciate that he let me eat a lot of it and most of his birthday dessert. He's good like that. :)

Aren't you loving Kelley's hair dark? I sure am. C'mon Stacey...everyone's doing it!!

Then Sunday night we had Tyler's usual Superbowl Birthday Party which was quite the par-tay to everyone except for Bryn who said that his party "Wasn't her favorite" because there wasn't a dance party at the end like we usually do on birthdays. She informed us that her birthday party (in April) will be a DANCE PARTY with sparkles. Bring it!

Tyler's birthday cake was a true fiasco and he nearly didn't even have a candle to blow out, which we all know is bad luck, so the poor man drove to the store late at night (scandalous I know) bought himself a sad Cyrus O'Leary pie so that I could put his candles on it for him to make a wish. The pie was a frozen block of lemon-flavored ice that I jammed those candles into and we ate pie popsicles but he blew out candles on his actual birthday about which I am fanatical. I know I have issues. I owe the man a yellow cake with chocolate frosting. STAT.

Party animal Bryn still going strong despite the late hour...and no dancing.

Happy Birthday Ty!! I love you!!

Then...I got to celebrate the upcoming marriage of my sweet friend, Carolyn. We had a girls lunch/shower at our friend, Andrea's house, and what an afternoon it was!! Should your day be a little gray and depressing try hanging out with these ladies for a few hours. I love these girls!! I have known them for years and they are truly the best!! My stomach hurt for hours from laughing. If you know them...you know what I am talking about...and how lucky you are!!

 Fabulousness!!

 (Back row left to right: KariAnn, Sheri, and Andrea. Front Row: Rebecca, Me, Valynn, Carolyn, Jodi and Lara.)

Congratulations Carolyn (and Jeff)!! 

We love you!!

Cabin Fever

 

It's January and the dreary gloom is finally taking it's toll. I am so not a fan. January is gray, long, frigid cold, and there is entirely too much snow. I am over it, and so is everyone else in my family, it appears. Bring on February with the fun and excitement of Tyler's birthday and Valentines Day.

I am getting a good start on some of those New Years Resolutions. One of the first ones being teaching my children to cook. Our nights are so jammed-packed with activities that I could really use some dinner help...at least with prepping and getting dinner started. Reilly is a capable cook but she is the busiest one of the bunch so the rest of the kids are getting in on the action.

Kameron made an entire meal all by himself...burrito bowls. They were delish. He has also learned how to make tartar sauce from scratch on a night that we had fish for dinner. It pretty much blew his mind that you don't need to by the disgusting stuff in a jar. Now he helps out regularly with the chopping, grating, and prepping of dinner. It's been so nice.

Here is Ailey making Huevos Rancheros on a Sunday night. Our church now starts at 1pm and goes until 4pm at which time it is nearly dark. Not. Cool.

Even Bryn is getting in on the action helping me make Rice Krispy treats. She was so darn proud of those cookies!! So cute.

It's been finals time around here so there has been more studying than usual going on.

One morning while driving the kids to school we had an ENORMOUS moose leap...yes leap...Harry and the Hendersons style... right out in front of us. That was a shock to the system!! I screamed, the kids screamed, the other drivers on the road were screaming as I slammed on my brakes on pure ice and slid to the side of the road. The kids were yelling "What is that?! Was that a camel?!" (It was a huge mangy moose and we have had a camel sighting this fall in a field on the way to school... That was also a crazy sight!!) Anyway after our near miss that moose took of running, slid and fell on the icy road, and leaped...yes leaped...again over a fence. Who knew they were so agile?

This is what has been keeping me going for the last few weeks...

Best show ever...until last night when it really ticked me off.

The whole family has been doing a lot of this:

Image via Pinterest

My goodreads account is getting more action than it has seen in a LONG TIME. Lots of books are getting read while trying to keep warm. Having that extra reading time has been wonderful though.

Great news!!  Our friend, Bill Thumstedter, who was seriously injured a few weeks ago has regained consciousness and things are looking good for his recovery. It will be a long and hard rehabilitation but there have been so many miracles along the way already and so many prayers have been answered. It has been wonderful to see. There has been such an outpouring of love for this family!!

Other exciting news has been all the Sisters Creed contracts arriving in the mail for various sales for 2013. So exciting!! 2013 is going to be a busy and fun year for our business.

Other than that I am gritting my teeth against the cold and counting down the days until cheery February...and so are they:

 Bring on Valentines Day!!

Book Review

This book series was recommended to me by a friend. I am not a mystery lover or spy book enthusiast but I decided to give it a try.

From Goodreads:

Mrs. Virgil (Emily) Pollifax of New Brunswick, New Jersey, was a widow with grown children. She was tired of attending her Garden Club meetings. She wanted to do something good for her country. So, naturally, she became a CIA agent. This time, the assignment sounds as tasty as a taco. A quick trip to Mexico City is on her agenda. Unfortunately, something goes wrong, and our dear Mrs. Pollifax finds herself embroiled in quite a hot Cold War--and her country's enemies find themselves entangled with one unbelievably feisty lady.

The book was published in the 1960s and has a dated feel and tone. It also has an antiquated political storyline in a Pre-Internet world but it was that part that I actually enjoyed. I liked the retro-factor. As for the rest of it...uh...not so much. I just didn't really get into it. I kept thinking that this was a book for the Murder She Wrote crowd and Mrs. Pollifax, in my mind, looked just like Angela Landsbury. It could have been a made-for-TV movie from the 80's. Imagine when I found out after reading the book that it WAS made into a made-for-TV movie starring none other than ANGELA LANDSBURY!! Craziness.

This book series is well-beloved and that is wonderful but it just wasn't my particular cup of tea. It didn't hold my interest as it wasn't really a mystery but more of a spy tale sans mystery. So yeah. Not for me, but other people really love it. If you liked the show Murder She Wrote you will probably thoroughly enjoy it.

My Rating: Okay...but not for me.

Crazy World

Yesterday we had another reality check of what a different world our kids are growing up in. Two homemade explosive devices went off in two different buildings at Reilly's high school. Both Reilly and Bryn were in both of those buildings during that time. Both are fine thank goodness...but seriously? Can't we send kids off to school anymore and feel confident that they will be safe? Apparently not.

When I dropped off Bryn at the preschool in the morning there was a fire truck in the parking lot but as I walked her inside it didn't seem like anything was amiss. Then when I picked her up a couple of hours later an unmarked police car drove in behind me and two police officers hurried inside. That doesn't ever give a parent a good feeling...especially with two daughters inside. Nothing was said as I picked Bryn up and drove home.

Brynnie ate a quick lunch and then we rushed out the door to get her to ballet. As I was driving out of my neighborhood I saw all kinds of high school students walking. Odd. I checked my emails to see if there was any reason the high school was out early...nothing. We live close to the high school and before I had gone more than two blocks I saw that there were high school students everywhere walking home. I quickly spotted Reilly walking with a friend and pulled over to ask her what was going on. She said that she heard that someone had set off smoke bombs and that everyone had to be evacuated. I dropped her off at her friend's house to study for finals and took Bryn to ballet. While driving there Tyler called to tell me that two homemade bombs had been detonated in two different buildings at two different times and that some teachers had been injured. As I drove past the high school it was swarming with firetrucks, ambulances, police cars, and news vans. (Reilly saw a guy in our ward who is a local TV news reporter and she said hi to him and asked him what was going on and her told her to just get out of the school fast and get home!!)

It wasn't until I had been at ballet for about 15 minutes that I finally got a call from the school saying what had happened and that the school had been evacuated and all activities were cancelled for the rest of the day...that was probably a good 30 minutes or more AFTER they sent all the kids home. That is a FAIL on the emergency notification system in my opinion. When I saw all the kids I quickly checked my phone for texts or emails from the school. Nothing.

Anyway...the person who set the 2 liter soda bottle "bombs" confessed and the authorities have assessed the school and found it safe so everyone went to school as normal this morning. Seriously though...this kind of stuff is CRAZY. It this the new norm?

Book Review

I just finished this book. It is an insiders look at a "modern" polygamist family. Very interesting. I have to admit I liked the book and read it super fast. I think it would be a fantastic book club selection. SO.MUCH.TO.DISCUSS.

From Goodreads:

From a family that inspired 'Big Love's' story of Bill Henrickson and his three wives, this first-ever memoir of a polygamous family captures the extraordinary workings of a unique family dynamic, and argues for the acceptance of plural marriage as an alternative lifestyle.

Polygamy is not something I have ever really wanted to think about let alone read about. I am LDS and I get annoyed by people who think that people who are LDS practice polygamy...we do not. We haven't for over 100 years and anyone who does is excommunicated. But still it is there...lurking in the past. That said, my Great-Great Grandfather was a polygamist and I am a descendant of one of his plural wives, Jane. (After reading her life history it didn't sound like she was a happy plural wife but that it was a sacrifice that she made.) So while this practice makes me truly uncomfortable, I still am curious about how in the world people subscribe to and practice this lifestyle...especially in our day and age.

I have never seen the TV show Big Love that was inspired by this family because it was about...you know...polygamy and I was sure it was filled with all kinds of fallacies about the Mormon Church.  But, somehow, I did start watching the train wreck that is the TV show Sister Wives. It is infinitely more intriguing to watch a show about actual polygamists than watch actors pretending to be polygamists. Every time I watch Sister Wives I think that they are crazy!! (and I really think they are) This family, though, the Dargers seem so much more intelligent and normal. They are able to articulate why they live this way and why it is important to them to shed light on this particular practice. They feel compelled to bring it out of the dark and dispel the myths so that people will know that it is only a very tiny population of practicing polygamists who are the Warren Jeffs of the world and that they too (the Dargers and most all other Fundamentalists) are appalled and repelled by his actions and crimes.

I guess that was what was so interesting to me. Hearing these seemingly normal people (not living in a compound somewhere in a long dress, french braids, and being child brides) talk about their beliefs in a way that made me have a deeper understanding of their choice of lifestyle and how it works for them. 

I found their day to day logistics fascinating. I loved learning how they run their household, raise their children, buy their groceries, coordinate three families integrated into one large family in one large house. I feel like I can barely do all I need to do taking care of four kids and one husband and here they are throwing in homeschooling, religious instruction, running a business, educating the world about polygamy, serving in their community, and helping the state of Utah work with polygamous families, getting 24 kids to various extracurricular activities, and grinding their own wheat and making 7 loaves of bread a day. Hello? How? They explain it all which was very satisfying.

They are also very open about honest about things that are hard. They talk very candidly about the difficulties and struggles they have had to overcome. Jealousy, persecution, wayward children, prejudice, dealing with the state, and particularly standing up for what they believe even when it is in complete opposition with the rest of the world. Unlike the Browns of Sister Wives that come off as somewhat false...don't tell me that Janelle is a happy wife. No way. I don't buy it. But...I do buy the Darger's story. I think they are sincere. Hearing all four of their different perspectives including the perspectives of their three oldest children was interesting and compelling. I found myself liking and caring about this family.

I do feel sad for them though. It has to be a lonely lifestyle even in mainstream society and surrounded by wives and children. To never be able to give yourself fully to one person and have that one person give themselves fully to you is very sad. Joe has to be the loneliest person of all. I was surprised to feel so much empathy for this family (and Joe) but I did and I do.

I found this book to be unusual and affecting. It gave me a different perspective on polygamy and those who practice it.

My Rating: Good

 Hey Go Team...Go Go Team...Hey Go Team!!

We've been cheering ourselves hoarse around here lately. We've been watching various games on TV and going to games, both high school and college. There has been a lot of cheering and yelling around here. Sports are making dull, dreary January a bit less dull and dreary.

First off...

Well...it was fun while it lasted. Poor Kam. He's a die-hard fan and he was seriously bummed.

Second...

We are some serious BYU Men's Volleyball fans!! I have been since college. I loved going to those games. It was the place to see and be seen. How I loved Hugh McCrutcheon back then...you know...when he had hair. These days I am still a BYU Volleyball fan but throw in the added enjoyment of watching the head coach and it's golden.

I grew up with Chris in...that's right...SPRINGDELL. He's a dell kid and I love watching dell kids conquer the world. Just as we always knew we would. :) He is a great coach and I get quite a kick out of watching him...well...coach. Of course, the highlight is when they cut to a close-up of him and I regale my kids with stories about him. A few of my kids current favorites are: 1.) When he hit me in the head with a baseball and I fell to the ground as if dead and he pick me up and carried me home crying and apologizing profusely, 2.) When he ordered me out of my own back yard so he could make out with my friend... in my back yard, 3.) When he felt my leg and said "Gee Sasquatch ever heard of a razor?! (I was in 6th grade and immediately went home and attempted to shave my legs and nearly bled to death), 4.) In Jr. High when I got my hair cut into a short preppy bob and he nicknamed me Cleopatra and walked like an Egyptian (while humming the song) whenever he saw me for the next 6 months until it grew out, 5.) When he and our friend Kyle showed up uninvited to my jr. high band concert (they were in high school) and suddenly appeared on stage (in the wings) jumping up and down and calling my name flustering me so much that when my big french horn moment came I couldn't even squeak out a note...Then telling me afterwards, when I was screaming at him for ruining my concert, "Relax Kristin. We just upped your coolness like 110%!! You should be THANKING us!!", 6.) When he broke his leg in high school and wheeled himself around in a wheelchair (Nellie Olsen style) and demanded that I push him around the dell to which I pushed him in a dead run directly towards the pond (Laura Ingalls style) as he screamed like a little girl and tried to apply the hand brakes...oh I could go on for days!! Seriously though...he's a great guy and I am super proud of him and his success.

Third... Reilly's High School

We have had such fun cheering on the mighty Saxons this year. Last week it was the big rivalry spirit game..."Rubber Chicken"...and it was held at the arena. The girls basketball team played...then the big spirit pep rally in which Reilly's dance team did a fantastic job (you can see it on my fb page if you are so inclined) and then the boys basketball team played. It was quite a night!!

Fourth...

The other night we hit the road to Pullman to watch a WSU vs the U of U basketball game. Reilly's dance team was performing at half-time. It was a lot of fun and Kameron had a blast. We need to do things like that more often. My mom, Ken, Stacey, and Dane all met us there. Dane and Kam are true basketball fans and were thrilled when WSU throttled the Utes. We all were. Yes, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.

Kam and Dane...serious fans

Sad day...Kameron was too old/cool to go pose with the WSU mascot for a picture. Luckily Dane still would. This poor cougar is no BYU Cosmo is he? Time to upgrade the costume.

 Now there's a studly cougar!!

 Stacey, Mom, and Ken (intently watching the game)

Reilly joined us after she was done performing

Whenever you use the function on the iPhone that allows you to see yourself when taking a picture you just look crazy.

Ahh... father and son at a sporting event. Warms the heart. Kameron is looking more and more like Ty every day.

Go Cougs!!