Playin' In the Snow

Sunday, November 15th--Last night we had some great snow fall so Nate got the kids dressed up warm for some morning play-time in the snow. They crammed all the typical snow-playing in (snow angels, snowman building, snow ball fights and a little eating of the clean stuff) before it was time to get ready for church. I think they really enjoyed themselves! Once their tooshes were frozen we brought them in and gave them nice, warm baths then time for church. The kids are looking forward to more snow soon!

Elise Got Bangs!

Saturday, November 14th--Well, it's been a very long time coming for Elise to get a hair cut. There's no good reason, I'm just a huge procrastinator. With Christmas coming, we always take family photos for our Christmas cards so I wanted Elise to have a new look. We drove down to my sister-in-law, Marissa, to get Elise's mop chopped. I told Marissa to do whatever she wants while keeping Elise's length (that was important to Elise!). She did a great job and Elise looks so grown up and even more beautiful with her new look.

From Silly to Sentimental

Monday, November 16th--So I was reporting my daily "status" on Facebook and decided it would be an expression of my annoyance of the song "Christmas Shoes" and the fact that the radio stations playing Christmas music (which I LOVE) seem to be playing that song far more than I would prefer (meaning, don't play it at all, thank you very much!). What can I say? Yeah, it's suppose to be touching---it does have a sweet, tender message but the guy that sings it has a horrible voice and, I dunno, it's just annoying (by the way, I feel the same about that "Butterfly Kisses" song too!)! So, shortly after, Nate posts something on my Facebook "wall" making a joke about me becoming a "fan" of said annoying song (yep, I said "annoying" again, get the point yet? he he he). So I commented back that he became a "fan" of ANY Michael Bolton song. You see, Nate thinks Michael Bolton's voice is annoying every bit as much as I think the "Christmas Shoes" guys voice is. So I also mentioned I'd be playing him a MB song shortly.......and, I did. I went to http://www.playlist.com/ and chose a version of "White Christmas" MB did a while back. The ending part is the best for driving Nate crazy as MB holds notes, dips and dives notes too. It almost looked like Nate was grinding his teeth as he endured the torture I placed upon him. It was awesome! (note: DO NOT even joke about me liking or being a "fan" of "Christmas Shoes"! My revenge will be swift and harsh! ha ha ha) I happen to like a lot of MB songs and even his version of "White Christmas" is pretty nice. As I was searching for a "perfect" MB song to play for Nate I came across a song of MB's I truly love. He doesn't have the best voice, I'll give you that, but he chooses or writes music that is beautiful and the message is INCREDIBLE. He recorded a song years ago called "Once In A Lifetime". Strangely enough, this song is not popular, I don't know why, I think it's the best one he ever did. Here's a YouTube link (the video someone did to the song is very odd but it's the best one I could find unless you wanted to watch a video about Luke & Noah being each others one true love!)

Anyhoo, when I first heard this song I remember thinking how much I wanted to feel that way when I found my one true "Mr. Right"............and I do! I hope Nate doesn't mind that every time I hear this particular MB song that I'm reminded of why I love him so incredibly much and how lucky I am. He is the "once in a lifetime" for me. Perhaps he'll be forgiving of being associated with a MB song knowing how much I feel blessed to have him in my life whenever I hear it.

If you can't bear to listen through a MB song (I understand, you either love or hate him, there's no middle ground!) here's the lyrics to the song---I hope you've found that special person you feel this way for!

Once In A Lifetime

Some people fill their lives, with empty nights,
And days that slip away
Some search till the end of time, but never find,
The open arms of fate.
One moment comes along, someone who's a dream to you,
All at once your dreams come true.

[Chorus}
Once in a lifetime, you find the one you really love
For now and forever, one love that never ends.
Once in a lifetime, when every star that lights the sky
Will shine with one reason, leading your heart to the one love you find
Just once in a lifetime,

Some people live their lives in compromise,
And hide their dreams away
Some never take the chance, within their hands,
To claim the prize they make
When faith is all you need, to hold the hand of destiny
Find the love that's meant to be

[Chorus]

If you believe in the power of love
And you believe that dreams come true
Magic will fill your heart, when that moment comes along
Just once in a lifetime
Once in a lifetime, when every star that lights the sky
Will shine with one reason, leading you home to the one love you find
Just once in a lifetime, just once in a lifetime.

Happy Halloween, 2009!

Saturday (evening), October 31st--After the kids appearance on TV, we walked back home and ate dinner. Since we hadn't had Daylight Savings yet, it didn't get dark till 6:30-ish. It was kind of weird but many of us started earlier. I found some amazing coupons for full-sized candy bars at Costco so we got a few boxes along with a bag of smaller candies for the little kids. It was a hit, needless to say! Nate took the kids out for a while and I passed out candy and cleaned up the tornado-of-a-mess the kids left prior to going out to trick-or-treat. When Nate returned I took the kids around our street. A few of our neighbors did some pretty cool stuff! One, the Parry's, had a spooky looking yard and served up hot dogs and hot chocolate. Then we hit up the Alonzo's who had done a haunted porch. It was very creepy and scared the kids quite a bit. We walked up into the covered porch to find 3 skeleton men hanging from ropes. There was fog everywhere and creepy music. To get to the candy you had to walk pass the "dangling" men. Brady and Elise were not too happy about that. I laughed and walked over to the bucket of candy and then one of the dangling skeletons said something and freaked us out! I laughed and demanded to know which one was Tony Alonzo--he revealed himself and, as we laughed, made Elise and Brady feel better. It was incredibly creepy-awesome! I don't know if they can out-do that one for next year! When we got home I convinced Elise to take Nate over to the Alonzo's house. He walked into the porch area and I could hear him screaming (faking it, I think......) and he said, "Elise, help me!" She wouldn't budge! It was so funny!

When they got home we dumped out the candy buckets and well, they got tons! We put it all in one bowl and let the kids eat a few pieces before baths and bed. Our last trick-or-treaters came at 9:00 pm. They got handfuls of candy since we had so much of the little pieces left. They looked very happy and I was happy to get rid of it, considering the big bowl full of candy sitting on the counter in our kitchen! It was a WONDERFUL Halloween!

Earlier, in the afternoon, Nate and I had a great time attending Desert Star Theater. We saw "Snooty and the Beast". It was pretty funny! They were giving out season tickets for best costume. I dressed as a witch. I didn't get picked as a finalist though. I was bummed but we had a great time anyway. I recommend getting season tickets! We have them and love it!

Just for kicks and giggles--a pic of me with my sparkly black lipstick. Kind of a dark, goth moment, I guess.

On TV for Halloween!

Saturday (late afternoon), October 31st--My favorite meteorologist and neighborhood friend, Lindsay Storrs, sent out a message to everyone in our neighborhood letting us know she'd be broadcasting the Channel 2 Weather at her house and she wanted to invite all the neighborhood kids to gather around her, dressed in their Halloween costumes. It was pretty crazy, a football game had gone overtime, but she made it work and the kids loved seeing themselves on TV (Nate DVR'd it! We saved it if anyone wants to see it.). In one of the photos Spiderman is trying to grab Lindsay's microphone--that is her little guy, Aiden. Brady and Aiden are the same age and Brady thinks he's pretty cool! Aiden is also in the picture I took with the kids and Lindsay next to the broadcasting van. Thanks for the experience Lindsay! The kids loved it!

P.S.--Lindsay, time to update your KUTV page! Coen isn't on there--poor Coen! ; )

P.P.S.--I think Aiden may be following in your footsteps wanting that microphone as bad as he did! he he he

Murder Mystery Party--Staying Alive--70's Style!

Friday, October 30th--My awesome friend, Kerri, put on a Murder Mystery Party--Staying Alive. It was a 70's theme--Nate went as "John Revolting" and I went as "Gloria Stunnem". I think John is quite self-explanatory but Gloria's character description is an independant feminist that likes to dress sexy (thanks Kerri! ha ha). I sent out to find a disco costume for Nate. You'd think that would be easy right around Halloween, eh? WRONG! I went to 5 different stores, including a Halloween warehouse, and there weren't any to be found. PLEH! Finally, my friend Heather, called me from Walmart (a place I had already looked with no luck) and said they had them. I told her to please grab one for Nate. Phew, mission accomplished! Next was trying to find something for me. I found a dress at Walmart that could look convincing and a scarf to wrap around my hair. I combed out my styled hair to make it frizzy and brought out the bright-blue eye shadow. OH, since my character was a feminist I decided my little contribution to that was not to shave my legs for a few weeks! Totally true! I didn't quite make it a point to show them off, I wore long, black boots. he he he (yes, I know that being a feminist doesn't necessarily mean unshaven legs!) Nate looked surprisingly sexy in his disco outfit but opted not to do the 70's hair-do.

Kerri borrowed a cooking device called a "raclette". It was pretty cool! It's a small grill with little metal dishes underneath that cook things up as well. Perfect for dinner parties since you put it in the middle of the table, plug it in and grill away! Kerri had strips of steak and chicken, along with shrimp, potatos, bread and cheese. It was so yummy! Everyone else brought side dishes, appetizers and dessert. While we ate our delicious meal, we began the murder mystery. My character had some secrets, including that she was once a man AND that she was the murderer of Jackie Fever! It was so much fun! Plenty of laughing and acting. What a blast!

Kerri was Lyza (last name ?), her husband, Grant, was Andy Warthog. Heather was Diana Rush, her husband, Clark, was Bruce Leap. Dawn was Sunny and her husband, Eric, was Share.

Ya gotta love those wigs! LOL!!

Elise All WITCHED Up!

Tuesday, October 27th--I just loved how adorable Elise looked tonight so I took a few pics of her. The book is a new Halloween favorite I bought at the school book fair: "Trick or Treat, SMELL MY FEET". I highly recommend it!

JDRF Halloween Party

Tuesday (evening), October 27th--There aren't too many "perks" to dealing with Type 1 Diabetes but we have the JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) to remind us we're not alone. They do get-togethers quite often and we attend whenever we can. Many of the get-togethers have vendors and sponsors that will inform us of the latest technology in meters and pumps, plus update us on the latest in research for a cure. We enjoy attending, the staff at JDRF are always mindful of the many children that come and seem to make sure they keep them entertained and enjoying their time.

The Halloween party was held in the barn at Wheeler Farm. It was insanely crowded! Ford sponsored the event (bummer, no car give-aways!) and, I assume, KFC did as well because that's what was for dinner. Nate's dad, Dan, came along, enjoying his new freedom from being released as bishop of his ward. Nate couldn't attend. He was heading back from Reno and wouldn't make it in time. We had some fairly crazy weather, it was snowing, but we made it to and from safe and sound. After we ate dinner we went into a large tent where there were several little areas to play games and earn prizes. The kids had a great time! We were suppose to do a trunk-or-treat but the snow made it unappealing so everyone gathered back in the barn and those of us handing out treats made a line around the room and then the kids and parents walked around collecting treats. I'm sure glad Dan was there and was able to walk the kids around while I passed out treats. They got LOTS of candy and toys. It was quite chaotic but we're glad we went and look forward to the next party.

Elise's Spooky 2nd Grade Program

Tuesday (afternoon), October 27th--Elise and all the other 2nd graders at Pony Express Elementary did a program full of Halloween-ish type songs and performed it for the whole school. There was also an evening program but we were unable to make it due to a JDRF Halloween party we had already made plans to attend. Brady and I showed up to a packed gym full of kids and teachers yelling at them to be quiet (awww, memories!). All the 2nd graders were suppose to wear all black. They sang songs like "Scarin' Alive" (sung to the tune of "Stayin' Alive"), Igor and a few others. They were hilarious! The music teacher also had the kids do some choreography to some of them, it was very cute! I know Elise loved learning all the songs because she sang them around the house all the time. Way to go Elise and the rest of the 2nd graders! (the cute girl smiling at the camera is Elise's friend and our neighbor, Adeline)

Scarecrow Festival

Friday, October 16th--Nate decided to take the day off so he could take the kids to the Scarecrow Festival at Thanksgiving Point. I had to work so he took the kids all by himself. They had lots of fun, as the pictures can tell. They got to sit in a helicopter and had a chat with a policeman. During their little "chat" the cop talked about seat belt safety "Click it or ticket!". Elise got her parents busted by telling the cop we don't make them wear their seatbelts to church or the gas station, nearby. WELL, the church part is true, since it's just around the corner but, I promise, we make them put their seatbelts on anywhere else we go! The little snitch (ha ha ha)! And, since their little chat we are truly annoyed by the little speech we have to hear on the importance of seat belt safety.......coming from a 7 and 4 year-old..........all the time!
Anyhoo, they had a GREAT time!