Canning

*Day 240*

Let canning season begin!
Finished 14 quarts of cherries today. (Thanks to help from Logan and Matt. It's awesome to have help with this. It makes it go by so much faster.) We also have beans and beets that are almost ready.


I'm not sure I'm ready for this. Canning takes a lot of time, and it can't wait. When the food is ready you have to do it or it will spoil. And it can make a huge mess. (It's my excuse for not mopping the floor. "It's just going to get dirty again, I'll wait until I'm done canning.") I have canning stuff all over my kitchen for months. But, I really like to be finished. The jars are pretty to look at. You have proof that you've done something. And, it's nice to have food to store. So, bring it on! I guess.

* Logan asked why it's called canning if we put the food in jars. He thinks it should be called "jarring".

Family Movie Night

*Day 239*

Family movie night. Logan picked Star Wars: Attack of the Clones. It's fun to watch him when it gets intense. He gets worried for the people. We're trying to teach him the difference between intense and scary. It's also fun to see him look away when they kiss.

Happy Birthday Yellie!

*Day 238*

We took this picture of Danielle when she went to the dinosaur park with us. She was such a sweet girl. She was so good for us. She even posed on this dinosaur for a picture. You can tell she really wanted to.

Happy birthday to a sweet little princess!

Happy Birthday Justin!

*Day 237*

Justin has been part of the family slightly longer than Logan. (About a month. You can tell in the wedding pictures.) In that time I've been several different places with him. It never fails that he will run into someone he knows. I don't know how he does it. I never see anyone I know when I'm out shopping. Maybe he gets out more often than I do. Lucky! While Justin always has a story about someone he ran into or something funny, the thing I really like about him is that he can talk to anyone. It doesn't matter who they are, or where he is, he can talk to them. And he treats them all the same. He'd talk to everyone the same comfortable way. It always impresses me because it's not that easy for me to talk to people.

Hello?

*Day 236*

The other day I left Logan with Matt because I had to go to work early. We made arrangements where and when we could meet so Logan could come over and play for a little while. It was library day. I was going to walk all the kids over to the library. Matt was going to walk Logan over, and then Logan could come play with us, and Matt could go home. When it was time for us to go to the library, there were some kids that still hadn't arrived at Lynn's house. So, we had to wait for them to come before we left. I figured that I had better call Matt and tell him that we weren't going to be able to leave yet, so they would know we were running behind. So, I dialed my number. It rang a couple of times. Then it stopped, but no one said anything. I waited a bit. Then I finally said, "Hello?". And Logan said, "Hi". At that point in time I realized that this was the first time in his life that Logan had ever answered the phone. Apparently, I didn't teach him how it is supposed to be done. So, we first had a little talk about what to do when you answer the phone. Like, he's supposed to say something if he picks up the phone. Then I gave him a message for his dad and told him how to hang up the phone. He's talked on the phone before. He always checks the caller ID for me and yells it out. ("It's just total free.") But, I had forgotten that he's never used to phone by himself. We might have to practice, so don't be surprised if you get a call from someone who doesn't say hello and then talks too quite to hear. Oh, yeah, he also nods his head a lot, so listen carefully for that. We'll work on it.

Apollo Burger

*Day 235*

*Warning*
The material contained in this my be found offensive by some. If you have a weak stomach, you may want to bypass this blog. Proceed with caution!

When my brother told us about a local restaurant that make some Greek food, Matt was immediately interested. So, we made plans to go. We went to Apollo Burger. It was delicious, so every now and then, we went back.


One day me and Matt and Logan went there with my brother Eric. We had our food and were sitting down to eat. Me and Matt were facing the counter where we ordered. Eric and Logan were facing us. We were just enjoying our meal, when all of the sudden this guy who had just ordered his food caught my eye. I had to look at Matt to see if he was seeing the same thing as me. And I could tell he was. This guy was standing there scratching his butt. OK, not just normally. He had his hand down his pants and everything. I about died. But, then it got worse. He finished. And he took his hand out..... and sniffed it! I don't remember if we said something, or if Eric just saw the looks on our faces. I just remember Eric saying, "He smelled it, huh?" I couldn't believe what I had just seen. Right there in a public place. Then they brought him his food, and he took it and sat down. Gross.

I loved the way Sherry laughed when I told her this. And then she used to pen to sign her receipt. She thought of that guy and had to pull out her hand sanitizer.

Sisters

*Day 234*

On Friday I went to a "family" funeral. I left Logan City with my sister Lynn. On our way I thought of my sister Sherry. I knew she was coming, but thought it wasn't worth it for her to go all by herself. I called to see if she wanted to go with us. She said my sister Renae was coming to get her, so we could all meet and go together. We climbed into Renae's mini van, and I started looking around. I realized that all of my sister's were together at one time..... without kids! (OK, Ty is a kid, but I'm not counting him. He's still nursing, so he had to be with his mom. But, he mostly slept, and never interrupted us.) I don't know when (if ever) was the last time this happened. So, it seemed like a special day. (Now, I have three wonderful sister-in-laws that I also love. I'm not trying to say that I'm glad they weren't there. But, this would probably have been one of those days when they feel like they don't fit in because we were sharing a lot of childhood memories about someone they have maybe never met. I love them and enjoy the time I have shared with each of them. And it would have been just as fun to have them there too.)

We went to the funeral. I won't bore you with too many details. Sometimes I feel bad after funerals. I sit there and I realize what neat people I'm privileged to be around. And I feel bad that I don't take full advantage of getting to know them better and learning more from them. I certainly learned a lot at this funeral. I'm still not sure how I feel about what I learned and the feelings the I had. But, I guess I knew that was an option going into it. But, like most funerals I've been to, it was a testimony building experience to think about life after death and the plan that our Heavenly Father has for us. And we got to visit with a couple of my cousins that I don't see very often. I hope they felt the love!

After the funeral, we went to the purple Turtle. It's a restaurant. It's sort of a landmark in Pleasant Grove. We used to always look for it on the way to my grandpa's house. I remember always wanting to go there when we went past. I'm not sure why it was so cool. It was just something different that we only saw when we went to grandpas. And it meant we were almost there. We got ice cream. I think that's all I've ever eaten at the Purple Turtle. It was delicious.


(I forgot to take my camera, of course. I really wanted a picture of the Purple Turtle. They had these pictures in the napkin holders at the restaurant. My sister's offered to take one for me. They're so sweet! I told them I was pretty sure I could find it online. I did! It's just really tiny.)

Then we drove back home. On the way we decided to go to Apollo Burger for lunch. (I know it seems a little backward, but that's what you can do when you don't have to be a good example to your kids!) On the drive we talked. Stay tuned for my Apollo Burger story that I had to share with my sisters. I have always loved watching my mom and her sisters. They are such neat people. I love their relationship. Sometimes we make fun of how crazy they can be together. But, it's fun to watch. They make jokes and laugh really hard, they relive childhood memories working out details between them, they discuss their kids and solve peoples problems, and anything else that comes up. But they have a good time together, and love each other. On the drive back, I felt like my mom and her sisters. And I was glad that we all had that example, and can giggle and be silly, and help each other with our parenting problems (or at least laugh at them), and love each other. I love my sisters. They each have taught me so many things and I know I can turn to them anytime and have their support and any help I need.


OK off that tangent. We went to lunch at Apollo Burger. Just being there brought on a whole bunch of giggles. (Stay tuned for the story of why.) We decided that we could share some fries and onion rings. I said I would order the onion rings with my sandwich. I felt bad for the guy at the counter. I really hope he didn't think we were laughing at him. It just sounded really funny when I ordered a philly cheese steak with no onions, and an order of onion rings.

Maybe it doesn't sound like a super exciting day, but I was glad to be able to spend time with sisters, and get ice cream. Oh, and talk about whatever. Going over bumps in the car, or what our kids are learning in school, or how they change when they start to get too old for mom, or anything else. I always have a good time talking with my sisters. I always leave feeling good and like trying to be a better person. I'm glad I got a day to spend to with my sisters. I'm glad that I have sisters (and sister-in-laws. I like to be with them too, and I learn a lot form them also. I'm not just saying that because I know some of you read this. I really mean it).

Pioneer Day

*Day 233*

When I started working with Lynn about 5 years ago, we were trying to spread the word about our preschool, so we decided to enter a float with our preschool kids in the 24th of July parade. I has now become a yearly tradition. I will bypass all of the trying times the parade has brought and try to focus on how much fun the kids have. And, it is fun to throw large amounts of candy at people I know. Here are some pictures from the parade today.





Darrell sitting on the float "Beverly Hillbillies" style after the parade the was over. He's a big help to get all this done.

Loganism's

*Day 232*

We went to the pool this evening. Logan has been wanting to go for a couple of weeks now. Our stake reserved the pool for tonight, so we went. I put my hair in a ponytail to keep it out of my way. When my hair gets wet, it all kind of mats together, and it looks darker. So, after we've been swimming a while Logan looks at me and says, "What happened to your hair?" I told him it got wet. And he says, "It looks like a banana." Not sure that's a compliment. But it was funny to try to picture.

Working Girl: Taco Bell

*Day 231*

When I turned 16, I thought I needed a summer job. So, I started looking around to see who was hiring. I ended up getting a job at Taco Bell. I don't have a ton of memories from there. I only worked there during the summer. I worked for a while after school started, but it interfered with my cross country schedule, so I quit.

The other kids that worked there called me "front counter girl". Because I usually worked the front counter. I took orders and such. If it wasn't busy I got to clean tables and trays or do dishes and fill drinks. I worked the drive up window sometimes. It wasn't much fun because the box you talked into was on a curve. It was hard for people to get close to it. Sometimes it was really hard to hear what they were saying. It was almost impossible to tell the difference between "beef" and "bean". And some people didn't like you to keep asking what they said.

My coach made fun of me. He told a story of when they were kids, and one of their friends worked at a fast food place. He said they went to the drive up window. When their friend came they had an orange crush that they shook up and opened on him. So, one day when I was working, he came through the drive through and asked for me. When I came to the window he gave me an orange crush. He didn't open it, but he might have shaken it.

And I got a discount on food I bought before or after my shift. Not bad for a first job.

The Roller Coaster

*Day 230*

OK, I've think I've put this off long enough. When Matt talked about doing this blog and writing down memories and such, this is the first memory that I thought of. It's one of my favorites. It's been told so often around my house that Matt now pretends like he was there too. I didn't want to write it first, that seemed too obvious. But, the time has come.


When I was a kid, we lived on an acre. It was awesome. We spent a lot of time outside playing and climbing trees. One day we were looking for something to do. We decided to build a roller coaster off of the garage. My dad had all these 2x8 planks that he used for his scaffolds when he did brick work. We took a couple of them and nailed them to the edge of the garage. The plan was to ride down them in the wagon. Lynn and Eric tried to get Sherry to go down and test it out. She refused. So they filled the wagon with bricks and sent it down. It hit the ground and flipped over. The roller coaster didn't work. So, we found this big piece of plastic, covered the boards with it and made a waterslide. We had lots of fun in the backyard.

*My mom never knew that we did this. When Lynn came home from college one summer, me and her were out taking a walk around the neighborhood. We stopped and were talking to one of our neighbors. For some reason we ended up telling her this story. A few weeks later my mom came home and asked about it because the neighbor had mentioned it to her. That was the first time she had heard it.

Rules

*Day 229*

I remember my mom telling us this rule when I was young. (OK, maybe it's not really so much a rule as just good advice. But, I tell the kids I work with that it's a rule.) "Never put anything smaller than your elbow in your nose." (I add ears in there too, just to be safe.) Maybe there's a reason she taught us this. Listen closely kids, and learn something here.

When they were kids, unbeknownst to anyone, my mom's little brother put a dried bean up his nose. But, he couldn't get it out. So, he just left it, but didn't tell anyone. Well, soon, his mom started to notice that he had a weird stench to him. And he was having a hard time breathing. So, she took him to the doctors. The doctor found the bean and took it out. But, the bean had started to sprout! Maybe watermelon seeds won't grow in your belly, but a bean will grow in your nose. And, that, children is why you never put anything smaller than your elbow up your nose.

Happy Birthday Eric!

*Day 228*

Eric is my big brother. Wait, all of my brother's are bigger than me now. Eric is also my older brother. Eric is the reason that I always wanted a boy first when I had kids. I wanted my kids to have a big brother who would watch over them and protect them. Eric did his fair share teasing us, but he was the only one allowed to tease us. He was ready to beat up any body that tried to mess with us. There were some boys in the neighborhood that were giving us a hard time. Eric taught me where to kick on their bikes to knock them right over. I think I even tried it once. It worked.

I remember Eric would go out running to get in shape for wrestling. He was nice enough to let me tag along. I wasn't as fast as him, so he would tell me to cut off the circle and he would catch up with me. I remember one time I had a really bad side ache. He sent me on a route shorter than the one that he was doing, but one where he kept crossing my path. We always ran at night, and I know he did this so he could keep and eye on me and make sure I was OK.

Eric has also been great with Logan. He was going through some rough times when Logan was born, but he would come over to hang out with Matt while Matt was home taking care of Logan and I was working. I know (that on some days) it helped Matt a ton to have Eric there. I remember coming home one day. I opened the door and they were both sitting on the couch. Matt had the video game controller and Eric was holding Logan. I was glad that there was someone there to help my boys through hard times. Someone who loved my son, and still likes him enough to tease him when he sees him.

I'm glad that we got to spend some time with Eric for his birthday. (But, sorry for the circumstances.) We love you!

Harvey Reunion

*Day 227*

Growing up, every second or third weekend in August was the Harvey family reunion. It was for all the descendants of my moms grandma and grandpa Harvey. This was the only vacation that we went on through the summer (at least when I was younger). We always camped somewhere, and we always had fun. When we got older, the reunion was changed to every other year. The summer after I got married, I took Matt to the last Harvey reunion. Great grandma and grandpa Harvey had both passed on by then. There was a vote, but only between grandma and grandpas children. It was decided not to have the reunion anymore. They figured that all of the children had enough kids, grandkids and great-grandkids to have their own family reunion. We were upset that we didn't get to vote because we would have all voted with grandma Anderson to keep the reunion. I have a lot of fond memories of the Harvey reunion. (Of course, they might be too random to turn into a blog.)

But, yesterday, we had a Harvey reunion. It was just a few hours at the park by my mom and dads' house. As always it was fun to see family, and we had a good time.


James, Kellie and Logan making a sling shot.


Joey and Cassie and Heather enjoying some refreshments.


Matt and Steven refueling after some frisbee.


Logan hanging with the older boys, being "bored". (You never would have caught us saying we were bored at a Harvey reunion. I think we knew more people than they do. We don't see these guys very often.)


Andrea, Addie and Mom and Dad hanging in the shade. It was hot!

Happy Birthday Josh!

*Day 226*

Today my nephew Josh turns 20. Josh was my very first nephew. He's the one that made me an aunt. I was.... oh, wait a minute, I was going to tell you how old I was when he was born. But, if you can do math, then you'll be able to figure out how old I am. And since this blog isn't about me.....

It's fun to be an aunt. You get to play with the little kids, and have fun. But you don't have deal with them at bedtime or when they're cranky, or when you don't want to. I loved being an aunt from the very beginning. It was really fun to watch Josh learn and grow. And he was such a cute little kid. Now, he's a pretty funny big kid. (I just don't know if I can call him adult. I mean, I remember him as a baby.) You Turkey! (Inside joke, maybe a blog for another day.)


This is Josh wearing my running shoes when he was 2. I felt so proud when he went home and told his mom that he wanted "a little pair of Nike's". I felt like I was being a good influence on him. That made me feel like a good aunt. Hopefully I'm still a good aunt and have a good influence on all of nieces and nephews.

Hope you have a great birthday Josh!

Listen!

*Day 225*

I was thinking about my blog from yesterday and why me and my friend talk for hours when we see each other. Today at work I think figured it out.......SHE LISTENS! I think I'm in the wrong profession for someone that likes to be listened to when they talk.

*Day 224*

So, my friend came and picked me up for water aerobics last night. We went over and the pool was closed for maintenance. (Second time this week.) So, she brought me back home. Then we talked and talked and talked. I didn't get in until an hour past what I would have if I'd actually gone to aerobics. It's easy to talk her.

It got me thinking...... No wonder our presidency meetings were always so long when we were in the primary presidency together. Just kidding. Actually they were always long, beacuse we would get talking and there was always plenty to talk about. We just have a lot of the same views and opinions on topics such as parenting. And I just think she is amazing. After talking to her, I always leave feeling inspried to try something new or to be a little better in some way. She just motivates me to be better. Just by the way she lives and acts. For instance, I don't think I would have started going to water aerobics without her. Two summers ago, I wouldn't have lost 20 pounds without her heading up a contest. And sticking to it. Anyway, I'm tired today, and I feel bad that I kept her away from home for so long, but I feel better today. Thanks Amber!

Random Thoughts (Read if you dare)

*Day 223*

So, here's what's going on inside my brain.

* I ordered a bountiful basket this week even though I wasn't going to because I didn't need it. But, my sister needs peaches and they had them for sale. Only problem is, you can't get the peaches without the basket. I thought I could finish all my produce without it wasting. But, I have to be at Lynn's early and late the rest of the week because she's gone. That means we're not home to eat it. Now I don't know how I will eat so much produce.

* For being alone at work, today wasn't too bad. I seemed to be in a much better mood than I thought I might be in, and time goes by pretty fast when you're the only one there to cook and clean up and change diapers, and get projects set up.

* My mood improved when I found out Lynn will be back Friday afternoon instead of Saturday. That means I won't have to stay super late on Friday. Yay!

* I really want to go to my family reunion on Saturday. I'm missing my family. But, I don't know if I want to be in the heat that's supposed to be down there. And I might need some R&R this weekend.

* Fresh Market has chocolate chips on sale. I had an incredible urge to open the bag and eat them all.

* Matt has a big bag of candy from Canada. I really want to eat some. But, I really want my summer shorts to fit me more. So, I have to be really good and not eat any treats until I loose enough weight to fit comfortably into my clothes. I think summer will be over before I get there. But, at least I will be able to fit into my winter clothes. Hopefully.

* Looking forward to water aerobics. Cool water. Non-bone jarring workout. Sounds good. Also, I burned my finger cooking dinner. I hope the water helps it feel better.

* I am sore from playing kickball yesterday. It's sad what will make me sore these days. I'm not looking forward to getting really old.

I guess I'll stop now. That's probably as much of mind as you need to be exposed to right now. Besides my other thoughts are coming and going too fast for me to remember them.

Sorry

*Day 222*

I'm sorry to anyone who is still reading this blog. I know my posts lately have been really lame. My mental energy lately just isn't enough to come up with a good idea. Tonight is no better. Lynn is gone the rest of the week, so I'm on my own at work. I am NOT looking forward it. It's already put me in a cranky mood. So, I'm really not in the mood to blog. (Just wait for tomorrow. Feel the sarcasm.)

Shaved Ice

*Day 221*

In honor of going out to get shaved ice tonight, I thought I would post the picture of the first time Logan had shaved ice. He was about 18 months old. We shared (obviously). He liked it then, and he likes it now.

Saturday

*Day 220*

Felt busy today, but it didn't seem like I really got much done. Did some grocery shopping, spent some time weeding in the garden and picking peas, cleaned up some stuff outside, washed the cars, did some dishes, then dirtied some more, vacuumed, made some cookies and had a good time with the neighbors at a BBQ at the park.

OK maybe I did get some stuff done, just not all the stuff I wanted to get done. Well, there's always next Saturday. (Unless Logan is successful at talking me into going to the aquatic center.)

Chicken Noodle Soup

*Day 219*

I know it's more of a winter food, but we had homemade chicken noodle soup for dinner. The best part is homemade noodles. I'm trying to teach Logan how to make them. Then maybe we can have them more often, and it's not so much work for me. :)


mmmmmmmmm....soup

Dinner Tonight

*Day 218*

I've been in a cooking funk lately. I was out of town for two weeks so I didn't really have to cook for my family. Then, when I was finally home, I was too tired to cook. Now I'm living in reality again, so I have to start making some healthy meals. Trouble is, I don't feel like cooking hot food when it's hot outside, and I want easy stuff to fix. I've had no ideas for dinner lately, and no desire to go back to my old standbys. So, I've been looking for some new ideas. Tonight we tried one. It was easy. It was fast. It didn't heat up the house. It was good. It's a keeper. Here's the recipe.

Strawberry Cashew Salad
1 pkg. Ramen noodles (any flavor)
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 teas. soy sauce
1/2 c. green onions (if you like that kind of thing)
1 c. cashews
1/4 c. vegetable oil
2 Tbls. red wine vinegar
8 cups romaine lettuce
2 cups strawberries

Break up ramen noodles into bite size pieces. Saute noodles and cashews in butter until golden brown. Mix vinegar, oil, sugar and soy sauce to make dressing. Chop onion and strawberries. Toss all ingredients together.

We didn't have strawberries, which would have been so good with it. And of course I didn't use onions. I was sad because I had some spinach from the garden I was going to add and I totally forgot about it. Oh well, we still liked it. Logan already wants to pick lettuce from the garden to make it again. Hurray!

Swimming Lessons

*Day 217*

When I was a kid, I thought swimming was playing on the steps and splashing in the shallow end of the pool. And I liked it. But, that was as far as my swimming abilities went. Until my mom decided that we needed swimming lessons. I had to be at least 9 or 10. From the beginning I don't think we were fond of the idea. We thought we knew how to swim just fine. I didn't know how little I knew. Here is the story of our first day of swim lessons.

We got to the pool, and we were a little nervous because we'd never really swam before. I didn't know the first thing about how to keep myself up in the water. Sherry was in one class and me and Renae were in the same class. Me and Renae went with our class and got in the pool. In pretty deep water. I don't think I could touch. So, we were clinging to the edge of the pool. Then, our teachers said to start out, I want you to swim across the pool. I just froze. I didn't know what to do. I knew I couldn't do that. But, I was also a very shy kid, and I didn't know what to say either. Thank goodness Renae was there. She took care of it. She started to cry. When the teacher asked what was wrong, I told them that we couldn't swim. So, they told us that we should be in another class and swam us across the pool to a different teacher. I was so glad to have Renae there that day.

Lessons went OK. We learned to keep ourselves afloat. But, we didn't want to do it again. At the end of the year they gave us little cards to tell us what class we should be in the next year. We didn't want to take swim lessons again, so we hid the cards from our mom thinking that if she couldn't find them we wouldn't have to take lessons again. We didn't have lessons again. But, I'm not sure it had anything to do with us hiding those cards.

In college I had to take a swim class. (One of the requirements for a Physical Education major.) I was still scared. I knew the teacher was a die hard swimmer. So, naturally, I put it off as long as I could. I was still nervous on the first day, but I didn't have Renae there to cry for me, so I had to suck it up. It wasn't that bad. She started like we were beginners. I learned all the different strokes. Some I could do, and some I couldn't. I'm still not good at diving. I just don't like going head first into the water. But, I am a more confident swimmer now.

I don't want Logan to be as scared of the water as I was, so I have tortured him with swim lessons. His first year he wasn't a big fan. He didn't like his face in the water. (That sounds familiar.) But last year he was a lot more confident and excited to be in the water. We'll see how he does this year.


He's the one in the white shirt. He is such a modest boy. Doesn't like his shirt off even to swim. Just don't tell him white is see through when it's wet.

Parenting: Shut the Door

*Day 216*

We were talking the other day. And I was remembering a story from my childhood. I thought it was funny, so I'm going to share it. Maybe it can bring you inspiration or help you in your parenting at some point. I know that I have used this approach (or modified version) on Logan. Enjoy!

I don't remember all the exact details, but you'll get the main point.


We were home one night. My mom was working so just dad was there. I don't remember what happened, but I'm pretty sure it was Aaron. He got mad about something and went into his room and slammed the door. Now, my parents had taught us to take care of their house and respect others peoples property and stuff like that. My dad wasn't happy about him slamming the door. My dad my not have been able to hear anything that was murmured under your breath, but he can at least feel the door slam. And, like I said, he wasn't happy about it. So my dad went into my brothers room. He told my brother that he didn't like the way he shut his door. Then, he told him he wanted him to practice shutting his door the right way. My dad stood there and made him shut his door nicely ten times. My brother had a pretty sheepish look on his face while he did it. But, my favorite part was the tenth time he shut his door. My dad said, "I didn't like that last one, do it again." I don't think I've ever slammed a door. I think if my son ever does it, he will be practicing shutting his door the right way.

Sunday Confessional: Crafts

*Day 221*

There is a room in our house that has been titled "the craft room". In reality it is more than that. Yes, my craft supplies are in there. But so are the holiday decorations, old baby clothes, toys, and furniture, the ironing board, emergency preparedness items, camping stuff and anything that doesn't fit anywhere else in the house. Well, in my efforts to clean and better organize my house, I was led to the craft room. As I stood there overwhelmed and wondering where to start, I realized something. (Here is the confession part.) I am just a craft supply collector. I want to be crafty. I like doing crafts. I have good intentions about finishing (or starting) projects. But, the truth is, I don't get around to it very often. So, I realized that for all my love of wanting to be crafty, at this point in my life it has got pushed so far down the list that I am just a craft supply collector. It's really a shame because if I actually used some of my supplies, my room might be less of a mess. *Sigh*

Sorry no picture. I thought about it, but I would be way too embarrassed for anyone to see that mess.

Long Weekend

*Day 215*

Oh long weekend, how I will miss you. I realized this weekend that this is the first Saturday that I have been in town since Memorial Day. No wonder my house is a mess and I can't muster the energy to do anything. And of course it means that I had big plans for a long holiday weekend at home. Actually, I tried not to make any plans. In case I just felt like relaxing and recovering from the past month.

Here are some of the highlights of our long weekend. I think it was a good mix of work and play. But that doesn't mean I'm ready for work again tomorrow.
* Went to the Library
* Went to the Temple
* Watched fireworks with family
* Went to breakfast with family
* Logan got a new bike


* Celebrated my mom's birthday
* Celebrated Jessica's birthday
* Water aerobics
* Bike ride
* Taught a lesson
* Got to the garden and weeded, weeded, weeded, weeded...... I can see my plants now! Also got to pick fresh peas. Delicious!
* Relaxed!
* Cleaned kitchen
* Made shorts for Logan. He is so happy to have them. He was soooo hot.

Happy Birthday America and Jessica!

*Day 214*

Happy 4th of July! I'd just like to take this opportunity to say that I am grateful to live in this country. I'm thankful for the freedom I enjoy. I'm thankful the men and women who fought for the liberties which we now enjoy. I'm grateful for all those who are still fighting.

My niece was born on the fourth of July. So, I want to say happy birthday to Jessica. She is three years old today. My favorite thing about Jessica is the ways that she is not like her mom. (Don't get me wrong, I love her mom. I have to, we're surprisingly similar.) I love that I can get Jessica to do anything if I promise to paint her toenails. I knew that her mom would never paint her nails. I'm sure Lynn has never owned nail polish. I also knew that she didn't want to Jessica to be girly. So, as a good aunt, for Jessica's first birthday I painted her nails. I knew it would be hard to get away with and that Lynn wouldn't want me to. So, I painted them red and blue. Lynn was so into dressing Jessica patriotic that I would be able to get away with it only if it was red and blue. While I painted Jessica's nails for the first time, she sat so still and just stared at me. Lynn stood back cringing, tyring not to say anything or smack me as her little girl enjoyed every minute of it. I just laughed. Hahaha, I got away with it! Now Jessica will ask me to bring my fingernail polish over so I can paint her nails. I always happily oblige. And Lynn has come to realization that it's cute for her to have her nails painted, as long as she plays tee-ball too.


Jessica with her Tinkerbell cake. Another hard thing for her mom to swallow. She like Princesses! (You can't see her fingernails, but they are painted, red and blue. This year at her mother's request.)

Happy Birthday Mom!

*Day 213*

It's my mom's birthday. I'm glad I have her. (I'm glad she had me!) I don't remember ever going through that phase when I didn't like my mom. (She might remember differently?) But, I think I've always appreciated my mom. Of course I've learned through the years to appreciate her for different reasons and my appreciation for her has grown. And hopefully I have learned to show my appreciation better than maybe I did when I was younger.


I am glad I have the mom that I have (not that other mothers are bad...). I am so grateful for the way she raised me and the things she taught me. She was always supportive of us. (How many of your moms' have run up the big hill in Sugarhouse park?) She is a great example. She is a hard worker and doesn't shy away from any task. She's willing to help others. She's sensible. She's a good teacher. She shares her love. She can do pretty much anything you need her too. And I still ask her to help me with plenty of things.

Thanks for everything mom! I wouldn't be who I am without you. Hope your birthday was great. I love you!


Logan picked out a compass for my mom. He giggled while she was opening it. (I'll try to keep him from picking out another for Christmas and your birthday next year. He thought it was so funny.) When we were in Montana last month, my mom got turned around. She kept asking which direction we were going. There were days when she just couldn't get it straight. Of, course, we teased her about it. We also joked about getting her a compass. Logan is a good listener when he wants to be. So, enjoy the compass! ( He also picked out some bracelets.)

Fireworks!

*Day 212*
Off to watch the fireworks!

POP!

*Day 211*

I make Logan ride his bike to work with me in the summer. It's really not as bad as it sounds. He actually got really pouty the other day when I told him we were driving. It's not a punishment for him. So, we rode our bikes over to Lynn's yesterday. Diego brought his bike too. Logan and Diego brought their bikes into the backyard to ride them. Later in the afternoon we were out by the bikes trying to get a toy out of the tree. All of the sudden we heard a big bang. I looked toward the sound and saw a puff of dust come from near Logan's bike. So we went to investigate. And...... Logan's bike tire popped. It was just sitting there all by itself and then his tire exploded. The tube and the tire had holes in them. I guess it got too hot for Logan's little bike. Maybe it's all right. I was noticing while he was riding that his knees come within an inch of his handlebars when he rides. Yesterday he was also pointing out that his seat was bending in half. I was planning on getting him a new bike. Now, I'd rather get him a new bike than fix his old one. I wonder if he planned this just to speed up the bike buying process. Hmmmmm?


Logan's Spiderman bike. Farewell friend. You have served us well.


This the hole in Logan's tire. It must have been really hot yesterday. Oh, yeah, it was.