Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Watch your wallet around this kid...

Jake: Penny for my thought?
Me: Not interested.
Jake: Oh man, if you only knew my thought you'd be regretting that decision.
Me: Okay, but it will have to be on credit. I don't have a penny on me.
Jake: If it's on credit then it will be twenty-five cents.
Me: What? Keep your thought to yourself then.
Jake: Okay, okay, ten cents.
Me: Nope.
Jake: Five cents?
Me: Nope.
Jake: Okay. Two pennies, final offer.
Me: Man... this thought had better be worth it.
Jake: Um.....
Me: You don't actually have a thought! Do you?
Jake: I love you?

Monday, August 20, 2012

For those who are about to rock...

We salute you!

Sunday, August 19, 2012

A new twist on an old proverb...


When your three year old "accidentally" peels all the bananas... 


bake banana bread.


Why do I get the feeling this was her plan all along?

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Happy Birthday Mom

Today is my mother's birthday. We decided to celebrate by wearing yellow and having a yellow dinner, her favorite color.


Our lovely yellow decorations and lemonade to drink.


Her favorite flowers, daisies.


All yellow food:
Chicken with lemon and herb marinade
Golden fingerling potatoes
Yellow Squash
Yellow onion
Corn on the cob
Cornbread


It's been nice to spend time talking about her today without my children bursting into tears. And I think that she would really like that, that we are moving into a place where we can remember her without tears and sadness. Well, most of us. Lila keeps being confused when I talk about "my mom". She thinks I mean my grandma. I think she finally got it this afternoon. When Brian got home she ran to the front door to welcome him home and tell him all about the yellow party we were going to have. "It's mom's mom's birthday today! Oh... but she's dead." Brian quickly turned to check my reaction to this, but I just had to laugh because that's pretty much what I had to say to her to get her to understand why we were baking a cake today.

Happy Birthday Mom. 
We love you.
We miss you.
We were happy today.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Brown paper packages tied up with string....

Did you finish singing that line?
I do. 
Every time.

This summer my cousin Tiffany suggested a fun idea, she invited the girl cousins that wanted to, to participate in a name swap (sort of like a Secret Santa for the Summertime) called the Brown Paper Packages Club. We each listed 15 of our favorite things right now, and whoever drew our name would put together a package of little gifts over the summer and mail it off. Because who doesn't like to get packages in the mail?


Mine arrived this morning by Special Delivery!


Chock full of fun brown paper packages to unwrap.


I found out that Caite had drawn my name.


 Yay for sisters who are best friends too.
Let's dive in and open those presents!


Pretty ribbons.


I love the messages on the packages.


A string of beads.
I love beads.


Buttons!


Stamps, I love the sewing ones! I'm thinking some personalized note cards are going to be in my future...


Yummy smelling lemon verbena soap, my favorite scent.


Another good message.


No, she's not calling me a chicken. She's telling me to let go and embrace them as decorating theme for my kitchen... long story. But it made me smile and I'll show you it's new home soon.


Pretty fabric fat quarters.


Because she knew I would love it!


Yarn!


And because she knew it would make me smile...


A yarn ball winder!
I squealed like a little girl. I have wanted one of these for a couple of years now! I will be spending the rest of today winding up all my yarn. (Caite said she thought that we could probably decrease the size of my stash by at least 10-15% if they were all wound into balls... I say I'm game to give it a try!)


All my goodies! I love them all and think this was a fun and brilliant idea by Tiffany. I hope that my brown paper package arrives soon and that the cousin who gets it loves it all as much as I love mine! 

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Evie's 6th Birthday!

That's right, now it takes both hands to tell her age! That's quite a milestone.


Jake was so sweet, he stayed up late the night before helping me make some presents and setting up a treasure hunt for her to find her first present in the morning!


Reading the clues, I was impressed by the fact that she could do it all by herself!


Looking...looking...


Found it!


 Recognize the birthday sash? Yup, a tradition three years old and still going strong. :)


We wanted her to have one present to open in the morning since she'd have to wait until after dinner for the rest, and that can be hard when you're a kid.


A Fancy Nancy book,


and a Fancy Nancy dress,


for my Fancy Nancy girl.

We spent the rest of the day just hanging out quietly at home with Aunt Caite. Evie got a special treat by going on a walk with Caite to the Square and getting Orange Leaf ice cream and renting a movie. 

We went over to Pa Dave's for some swimming and grilling hamburgers for dinner. Finally it was time to open the rest of the presents. 


From Lila, a Hello Kitty book and some bracelets.


From Jake, some Squinkies and some earrings that he made with my beading supplies. (It was really so cute, he wanted so badly to make something for her, and as he was stringing the beads he said in a very masculine, matter of fact way, "I think these earrings are going to make her look fabulous.")


From Mom and Dad, doll clothes, a doll carrier backpack and an American Girl book about how to take care of your hair. If you'd like to see a doll fashion show of the clothes click here.

She got money from her Grandparents on both sides, so she and I are going to have a fun day of clothes shopping soon. 


Time for cake.


Happy Birthday to my six-year old sweetheart!

Informative and Fun!

A couple of weeks ago we went on another weekend adventure.


It was very cool, and not expensive. Two requirements for entertaining a family on a budget!


The next Vanna White


Looking across the mine.


The kids were fascinated by the giant trucks and machinery.


These dump trucks are as big, if not bigger, than our house!


For perspective, see that little dot between the dump trucks? That's a pick up truck, and not a small one either...


These are the tires for the dump trucks!


Can you find Jake?


There he is.


We went into the visitor's center and spent a long time looking at all the displays and watching different videos about how they mine the copper and other minerals, and how we use copper.


Vanna White again.


This was really neat. On the black turntable is all the different minerals they mine here, and you can look through the microscopes to see them. This was a favorite for all of us. 


The kids were thrilled when they found this compass. Lila was convinced that they had found a treasure map.


The girls thought that this was a witch's cauldron.


It's actually a bucket that the early miners used to carry ore to the surface. They would even ride up and down in them.

We also spent quite a long time browsing in the gift shop, mostly because it takes all of my family forever to make a decision! The girls finally ended up picking out copper earrings, Jake got a polished stone arrowhead necklace and a copper pencil sharpener in the shape of an airplane, and Brian found a steel ring which he was happy about because his wedding ring hasn't fit for awhile and he had been looking for a temporary one until we can afford to get it sized up. When we got back to the car he asked what I had picked out for a souvenir, and when I said I didn't get anything he kept asking if I wanted to go back and pick something out. (He does that male thing where he feels bad if he gets something and I don't.) I kept saying I was fine, and he kept urging me to go back in. Finally I told him that I didn't want to get anything here, but if we ever find a gift shop that sells yarn all bets are off! He laughed and agreed and we started for home.

But then he realized we were right by a mountain loop road that ends up in Tooele, that he's "always wanted to drive" and since a big part of these weekend adventures is to satisfy his love of taking long drives I agreed. We had taken my Highlander because after driving his van on washboard, dirt roads when we went to the Golden Spike National Monument and rattling something loose in the back (fortunately it just turned out to be the spare tire which he tightened back down.) we've decided not to take chances with the outrageously expensive vehicle anymore. And it was a good thing too, the loop ended up being a one car width, unimproved, dirt road at the top.


A pretty view looking out over the mountains, once I stopped hyperventilating long enough to look. (I really don't enjoy off-roading of any type...)


Lila slept through the whole drive. I wish I could have too!

Once we got back on paved streets I was able to relax and agree that it had been a good day.