NIE NEEDS US!!!!

If you don't know about NIE just look HERE for the details and updates.

LINE UPON LINE

After warning my son time and time again
not to take a long, hot shower on Sunday mornings,
I told him this morning:

"I better not have a cold shower today or your butt's on the line"

he responded back to me (with an impish grin, mind you):

"My butt already has a line."






Boys

OH BABY!

I NEED HELP.
I thought I could just stop whenever I wanted to,
the problem is...I DON'T want to*.

Is it bad to huff Vick's Baby Rub?




It just smells soooooo goooooooood!




*I really can stop whenever I want to!

MY DEAR CONSTITUENTS

I promise, in my term, to represent our good county to the best of my ability.
I promise not to raise taxes, lower budgets or cut funding.
I promise to increase awareness of things that are warming.
I promise to change my shirt if I spill something on it.
I promise to not have spinach in my teeth when I'm around others, I'll save that for private time.
I promise to give my full attention to any issues that I am asked to review, address, or in any way acknowledge.

Yes, it's true. I was chosen to be the Utah County representative to attend the re-dedication of the Utah State Capitol. They announced my name on the news and everything. I got the news about a month ago and I have to say I'm pretty darn excited. They told me that they chose 1 person from each county to be the representative for that area. There will be 9 of us there with this same responsibility. I get to bring a date and go hobnob amongst the Utah Elite. Maybe, just maybe I'll be able to bend some pretty important ears my way and discuss very important things with them. I feel so grown up. Do you think they know much about HI-5?

Feels so gooooooood

I got all of my Christmas shopping done today.

Every bit.

Every morsel.

Every Polly.

Every Pocket.

Now if I could just finish decorating my house.....

MY OBSESSION

I have a new obsession

I think that I couldn't get through a day without *this

or even *this

or *this

or *this

Can you blame me?


* Some content may be unsuitable for minors

Size DOES matter!

What's so wrong with wanting 10 inches??



Sometimes more IS more.

I can tell you this...it's hard to find but when you do, BOY OH BOY are you satisfied.

I found
this one
and I can tell it can get pretty darn HOT.


I'll definitely be back for more.


You can keep your technique, I'll take the 10 inches.

HEAVEN ON EARTH

Click HERE if you want to check out our digs on the trip. And YES!! it WAS that beautiful!


More to come

FAILURE TO LAUNCH

Today was finally the glorious day that my family and I were to wake up to a brand new day in Utah and lay down our weary heads in Maui. We were so excited to try to tie up those last minute details that always seem to come up when going on an extended vacation. We were beside ourselves when the time came to back out of the driveway and drive down the street knowing that we were not to see our beloved home for a fortnight. We couldn't believe our luck as we pulled onto good ole I-15 leading us on the pathway towards the SLC International Airport. We could hardly contain ourselves as we pulled up to the curb in front of the good men and women that wear the badge of SKY CAP, without whom our luggage would just never know where to go or what to do. Our luggage was swiftly tagged and about to depart from our presence when out of nowhere we were hit with the news that sends chills down the spines of fun lovers and business people alike.....

" The first leg of your flight plans have been canceled" the poor skycap squeaked out.

".................." I blankly stared at this sky cap.

"Ummmm...let me go in and find out what's going on for you. I'll be right back."

I could tell that my silence was a little unnerving to him. I tried to say SOMETHING, ANYTHING to ease his sorrow at my seemingly failed flight plans but nothing would come out of my shocked mouth.

"Why don't you come inside with me and talk to the ticket agent to see what can be done for you today, OKAY?????" he calmly suggested.

"Uh....Okay." I stated with authority.

As it turned out my flight from SLC to LA was canceled due to mechanical problems in the aircraft. I guessed I could let that one fly. However we then had to deal with the problem of actually getting us from point A to point C. It seems the other passengers on this particular flight were already re-booked onto other flights which made our traveling group of 5 harder to accommodate.

"I could put you through Phoenix that connects into LAX and from there you could TRY to catch your LA to Maui flight."

"UHHHH.....No, I don't think that would do. You see I have 3 small children that I am traveling with and I just don't think I could TRY to do that." I explained

"I see..I see." He typed with the speed of angels to try this way and that way to somehow get us to LA on time for our Maui flight. I suggested a game plan that actually sounded better to me.

"I can get you on a non-stop flight to Honolulu tomorrow afternoon and then you can take a puddle jumper over to Maui. It will give you time to make your flight and maybe you could take in a little airport sight seeing as well."

We have a winner folks. What was once a massive inconvenience turned out to be a better plan, in my eyes at least, then the original flight itinerary. Non-stop out of SLC to Honolulu was acceptable.

As we were leaving airport grounds we were trying to think of things that we could do that would help us not feel so bad about not leaving for paradise this day. And we all thought what better cure is there for a day like today than a pedicure.















































Now who could possibly say that they have prettier toes then my darling little lady #3???

HOW MUCH IS THAT DOGGIE IN THE WINDOW?

fg

<
Does anyone want a 2 month old baby Chihuaua that has just a hint of poodle in it?? I like to call it a poohuaua. They are the most cuddley puppies I have ever been around...Just take a look.





































Just look how happy child #3 is around them.....Your kids can be that happy too.




Status:

Blond one : for sale

Black one : for sale

Curly blond one : negotiable, willing to time share.

Guest post by child #2

this is a picture of a tower that I made

WE'VE GOT SPIRIT YES WE DO, WE'VE GOT SPIRIT HOW 'BOUT YOUUUUUUUU

To increase the pleasure of starting yet another school year I promised my little ones to a proper, mall purchased pedicure. Yes, I know you are all thinking "But, doesn't she have a boy?"....Well, yes I do and he LOVES them, but that's not why I'm here telling you this great story......As an added treat for the little ones I told them that they could each bring along a friend. Needless to say that my kiddo's promptly got on the horn and invited a couple of LO'S kids to come along. If any of you know Lo's kids you know how much fun they are to be around and how inventive and persistant #3 is, so this next statement will not come as a surprise to any of you.......

My daughter #2 and Lo's #3 were waiting together almost patiently for me to finish primping. I guess I just wasn't primping fast enough for their liking BECAUSE I ended up having this conversation with them.....

My #2 comes into my bedroom with this stricken look on her face and says to me in a most urgent manner ...
"#3 said that we need to be in the car right now".
I look at #2 and said ...
"I'll just be a little bit longer"
#2 once again with heightened urgency stated...
"But #3 said that the spirit TOOOOLD her that we need to be in the car RIGHT NOW!"

A little bit weary of the query that I had to make to Lo's #3 child ( a cheeky child, only sometimes, I might add) I searched her out and asked.....

"#3, #2 just said that you think we need to be in the car????"
"YES!! The spirit is telling me that we need to be in the car and that you are taking too long to get ready"

WOW, was I humbled or what. How could I possibly feel good about myself if I didn't heed to the warnings of the spirit that inhabits the body of a first grader. My vanity was going to curse us all if I didn't act, and act fast.

After a little discussion about just exactly how much longer I was going to take (and a quick phone call to her parents to share the news) we were off on our way to the mall, spirit and all.

We had a grand time and all was well. And best of all we were able to start the new school year off on the right foot (pun intended). #3 is quite the spirited child!

I've been tagged 4 fun

A very, VERY long time ago I noticed that I was tagged by Wonderful Melody whom I adore. I have been so busy that I've had to delay certain parts of my life and this blog just happened to be one of them. So, now I will play......




4 Jobs I have held:

1. Phone girl at Domino's (first real job).

2. Receptionist

3. Mother's Helper (Lived in Lexington, MA., worked in Concord, MA.)

4. Instructor of On-site Training "IOT" (great traveling job!).




4 Movies I can watch over and over and over and over and over.......:

1. Pirates of Penzance (and I do)

2. Phantom of the Opera (and I do)

3. Sleeping with the Enemy (creeeeeepy)

4. Spinal Tap (These go to ELEVEN)


4 Places I have lived:

1. Vancouver, WA.

2. Lexington, MA. (See question 1, answer 3)

3. Orem/Provo, UT.

4. Salt Lake City, UT.


4 Categories of TV programming I enjoy:

1. Reality - FOOD NETWORK

2. Comedy - 30 Rock

3. Drama - Law & Order SVU

4. Wild Card - Anywhere from Court TV to Discovery Channel

5. Guilty Pleasure - "Sensuality and the Suburbs" (wink, wink)



4 Places I have been on holiday:

1. Jackson Hole, WY

2. Hawaii.....MAUI, Hawaii......HANA, MAUI, Hawaii

3. Oregon Coast

4. Martha's Vineyard YUMMMMMMMMMYYYYYYYYYY!

5. California (Northern, Southern and Central)


4 of my favorite dishes:

1. Tomato/ Basil Soup from Ottavio's

2. Salmon...Grilled....Seasoned....YUM (the best I've had was at the OLD STONE CHURCH RESTAURANT in Castle Rock, CO)

3. Chicken Bryan from Carrabba's Italian Grill

4. Yet another wild Card (subject to change at a later date)


4 websites I visit daily:


1. Bank Account

2. E-mail

3. MSNBC

4. Foodie Websites



4 places I would rather be right now

1. Martha's Vineyard

2. Jackson Hole

3. New York City

4. Oregon Coast

5. Summer of 1996




Boy, I could have gone on and on and on with some of those lists. How do you choose just 4 places you would rather be....ANYHOO, I don't know who has and who hasn't been tagged but I think I would like to tag........This is hard, so if anyone is out there consider yourself tagged.

GIVE IT TO GRAAAAAAMMMAAAAAAAA

Last week I went to Sears with Hubbs, Child #2 and Child #3 in the hopes of coming home with a brand spankin' new SHOP VAC. Little did we know what was in store for us.......

After we had made our decision on which shop vac to buy we followed our lovely sears associate up to the checkout counter to complete our transaction. Now, I have to say that child #3 was quite lively this particular afternoon and was running around playing hide and seek with the card board cut out of Bob Villa. She was having a great time, well at least till we met this scary lady (SL).



#3 was hiding around a display from us and chewing on a hand pump that we had brought in to the store with us when one of the cashier's was talking to #3 to make sure that she wasn't chewing on a store item (my assumption) when SL decided to take it upon herself to extract whatever it was #3 was holding onto with her kung fu grip and not giving up to anyone. SL held out her hand and said to #3
"Give it to gramma"
#3 held out and didn't give it up. Once more SL insisted
"Give it to gramma"
#3 was standing her ground while SL was getting more and more agitated by #3's defiance. Although you can't call all of it defiance since neither one of #3's "gramma's" call themselves
grandma.
Finally SL just wun't having anymore of this and said in her hard living gravelly voice
"GIVE IT TO GRAAAAAAAAAMMMMAAAAAAAAAA".
At this point after watching this go down I walk over to let SL know that I'm in charge and that she can back off all the while maintaining my composure (after all #2 was watching me) when I look at #3's face to see her reaction to this crazy SL. She had a look on her face as if to say "Excuse me , I don't know who you are and you're not getting my toy so take a hike?"
I say "Give it to mommy" and as I hold out my hand to accept the offering and as #3 is handing the pump to me SL grabs it
"Here, I'll take that " I say sweetly to the cranky ole' bat.
SL wouldn't give it to me. She set it on the display next to her, away from me, mumbled something while she turned back to the checkout counter and continued to argue with the salespeople why the sale price in the ad didn't start till the next day when she got it in the mail that day.
I know it was immature of me but I took the pump and made darn sure SL saw me give it back to #3. After all who the heck did she think she was???
She certainly wasn't grammmmmmaaaa like she had self appointed herself to be. Wherever she is I'm sure she is still mumbling about one thing or another.

Thanks lucky!!!!!

My pirate name is:

Captain Anne Rackham

Even though there's no legal rank on a pirate ship, everyone recognizes you're the one in charge. You have the good fortune of having a good name, since Rackham (pronounced RACKem, not rack-ham) is one of the coolest sounding surnames for a pirate. Arr!

Get your own pirate name from piratequiz.com.
part of the fidius.org network

KIDS ARE SOOO CRAZY

We received a wedding announcement in the mail a couple of days ago, with it
was a lovely picture of the bride and groom smiling back at us (with dry lips).
I thought it such a nice picture that I posted it on our family info board for all to see.
Later that day I was driving my 6 yr old to her friends house to play
when we proceeded to have this conversation:

B: "Are those people in the picture getting married?"

Me: "Yes, they are."

B: "Well, there are a couple of things weird about it."

Me: "What things?"

B: "Well, #1 they don't look alike. And #2 She looks like she's 16 yrs old."



I didn't know what to say.
I smiled at her and dropped her off at her friends house to play.
What was a 6 yr old doing with these kind of thoughts.
Do married people look alike in her world?
Do I look like my hubby?

I was grateful that she thought 16 was too young to get married but I want to know
What age is a good age to get married?
I'm going to ask her these questions when she gets home from school today.
I'll post her answers later

Do you have any questions for an all knowing 6 yr old?

Al*ler*gy
-noun, plural -gies.

1. an abnormal reaction of the body to a previously encountered allergen introduced by inhalation, ingestion, injection, or skin contact, often manifested by itchy eyes, runny nose, wheezing, skin rash, or diarrhea.
2. hypersensitivity to the reintroduction of an allergen. Compare ANAPHYLAXIS.
3. informal. a strong dislike or aversion, as toward a person or activity: He has an allergy to hard work.

Dictionary.con Unabridged (v1.1)

Al*ler*gy
n. pl. al*ler*gies

1. An abnormally high sensitivity to certain substances, such as pollens, foods, or microorganisms. Common indications of allergy may include sneezing, itching, and skin rashes.
2 .Informal An adverse sentiment; antipathy: an allergy to cocktail parties.

American Heritage Dictionary

Allergy

noun

hypersensitivity reaction to a particular allergen: symptoms can vary greatly in intensity

WordNet

BLASTED ALLERGIES
n. pl. freakin' allergies

1. A sensitivity to some crap in the air that gives me a snotty stuffed up nose, splitting headache, itchy read swollen eyes that make me look like I'm HIGH, I JUST planted flowers and it better not be from that attitude, sore dry throat that no amount of water will cure, BUT I'M NOT AN ALLERGY PERSON whiny voice, and YES I lost my sense of taste and smell AGAIN thank you very much.

2. Informal WHO THE H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS THOUGHT THIS ANNOYING CRUD UP?????? I THINK I HAVE AN ALLERGY TO ALLERGIES.

Peef (v 1.1)

Guess what we're reading in book group this month?!?!

I know that I have seen this movie, the old black and white one, but I don't remember much about it.
NOW I get to read it for real!!!!!!
I think when I am done reading I am going to watch the new version of it,
but which one?


The Colin Firth BBC mini series?





The Keira Knightley movie?

Any suggestions???




Does anyone want to come watch it with me when I do??
I have popcorn.

WE ARE ON OUR WAY TO SCHLICKROCK .....WAHOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

SMART A@#'s

After an eventful evening of FHE and a little Baskin and Robins goodness we brought our brood home and tried to reclaim some kind of order.


HA!
I should have known


I finally got the baby out of her diaper but the excitement that was going on around us was making it next to impossible to get her back into another diaper.
Out of desperation I ordered my two oldest kids to


"FIND YOUR CHI!"






and this is what the smart a**'s did