we holmans!

One of the best days of the year!

2012-02-02T13:41:00.000-08:00

It's Groundhog Day!

Is it too early for flapjacks?

It's also my sweet hubby and sweet Miss M's birthdays!!!

We started our day with balloons and donuts at breakfast.

Then lulu and I joined Miss M for lunch and recess with her friends.

She has great friends...when they're not all being drama queens. :)

They are always so sweet with Lulu and make sure she stays with the group and is included. I love them for that.

They are a busy bunch, always running around after each other. This is the best group shot I got! :)

Up next, dinner at Larry and Bob's Pizza, followed by a saturday birthday party!

Happy Birthday to my loves!

Gelish Day 14

2012-01-31T09:09:00.000-08:00

OK. It's day twelve.

I couldn't stand it anymore.

As you can see, they held up great. The biggest problem is they grew out a bunch.

But others really can't tell that.

I tried to take a picture of it, but it was tricky. As it grows out, sometimes it can start to finally peel near the nail bed. That's what happened. When that starts, I can't help and I take it all off. You can also see from this angle that it actually kind of wore off the edges from daily wear but it never ever chipped and they stayed in great shape for two weeks!

So there you go. I'm a fan. I thought I should report though. And once again, don't look at my cuticles! :)

the pink cookie

2012-01-29T18:35:00.000-08:00

Kroger made my day yesterday.

Miss M and I were out on a mommy date.

She got five greens at school this week! That means she gets a date with me or her Dad. It was my turn!

Anyway,

I found the most delightful soft cookies ever!

Not These!

Lofthouse PALES in comparison to good ole Granny B's!!!

These are the ones!

I have missed these cookies since I left Utah. They are so wonderful.

Like I have to track down a few and bring home a few when I visit Utah.

And I found a whole kit of them at Kroger.... and I may go back for more!

The cookie made my day!

I love these girls!

2012-01-26T17:12:00.000-08:00

Life With My Girls

2012-01-25T17:04:00.000-08:00

During choir practice, Miss M likes to color. I love her creations.

I love that her perfect neighborhood may have thunderstorms, but it also has a temple.

Lulu has finally mastered the ice cream cone. She is proud of herself for not needing my "help" anymore.

She sported this shiner all through Christmas. Thanks again, to her favorite uncle. :)

Don't worry, they still make her world go round!

Miss M had a play date with her bff, T.

They were such good sports to let Lulu keep up.

They keep me busy but I adore them. Good thing they're cute!

1 week nails

2012-01-23T17:17:00.000-08:00

I was surprised at all the responses to my nails. So here is my one week update.

They're starting to grow out a bit. Don't look too close at my cuticles!

But as you can see, no chipping, and it doesn't look grown out when you don't look too close!

I'll keep ya posted this week!

What I did today...

2012-01-20T11:58:00.000-08:00

I sewed with my Mom.
She has joined our quilting group!
I love that we get to do this!
Here's my January square for 12squared.

gelish nails

2012-01-18T16:22:00.000-08:00

I'm not necessarily a princess, diva, what-have-you.

But I do LOVE sparkles! I'm a sucker for anything with sparkles.

My wallet has sparkles.

I love a good fake diamond solitaire earring!

I have more shirts embellished with sequins than a woman my age probably should...

I'm not a diva. I'm not.

But I must admit, I've become addicted to manicures.

My dear friend has invested in a gelish nail system. It's like shellac.

It's a gel polish that has to be cured with a UV lamp.

It all started back in September. She suggested I buy her a color and she'd get practice by giving me manicures. It's the closest to a pyramid scheme that I've ever invested in.

I've been a bit hooked ever since. I've had the first manicures since my wedding. (see those old hands? they look just like my grandma manwaring's hands!!!)

The best parts?

It lasts for up to two weeks. Seriously.

No chipping, unless a rookie like me tries to help out by putting on the base coat (seriously shortened the life of my last manicure)

It's shiny and pretty.

The above crappy iphone pics with my lovely evening living room lighting are actually the pink color below. Seriously.

But this color below? Good gossip?

It's my current favorite! It was the perfect Christmas color! It was like wearing Dororthy's ruby red slippers on my nails!!

What I've learned?

cuticle oil is worth your time.

Taking the gelish off the right way is worth your time.

a UV lamp someday may be worth my time. :)

The downfalls? It's a whole system so it's quite an investment, between the base coat, top coat, colors, lamp, etc. it adds up. But once you've done all that, you're hooked!

(ps-these opinions are my own, but wouldn't it be lovely if gelish noticed and decided to thank me with my own system? :)

Books read in 2011

2012-01-17T11:57:00.000-08:00

This was fun to keep track of on the side of my blog. I was impressed at how many I read this year. There were some great reads in there. My book club has chosen some great books and I've already added one for 2012! Here's to another one!

*Insatiable by Meg Cabot (Jan)

*Ape House by Sara Gruen (Jan)

*The Island by Victoria Hislop (Jan)

*Major Pettigrew's Last Stand (Feb)

*The Good Earth by Pearl S. Buck (Feb)

*Black Heels to Tractor Wheels by Ree Drummond (March)

*Matched by Ally Condie (March)

*Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool (April)

*Room by Emma Donaghue (April)

*Last Sacrifice by Richelle Mead (May)

*The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen (May)

*The Forgotten Garden by Kate Morton (June)

*I'll Walk Alone by Mary Higgins Clark (June)

*Dead Reckoning by Charlaine Harris (June)

*The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls (June)

*Entwined by Heather Dixon (July)

*Poison Study by Maria Snyder (July)

*Magic Study by Maria Snyder (July)

*Fire Study by Maria Snyder (July)

*City of Bones by Cassandra Clare (July)

*City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare (July)

*City of Glass by Cassandra Clare (July)

*Bossypants by Tina Fey (July)

*Ruined by Patricia Morris (August)

*Fallen by Lauren Kate (August)

*Mansfield Park by Jane Austen (September)

*Bloodlines by Richelle Mead (September)

*Crossed by Ally Condie (November)

*Dreams of Joy by Lisa See (November)

*Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand (November)

*The Distant Hours by Kate Morton (December)

*Overbite by Meg Cabot (December)

2012-01-15T18:57:00.000-08:00

It's still January. I can still make goals!
Two years ago, I went with the word on my street: Love.
Last year, I made monthly goals that helped keep me on track a bit better.
This year, I'm going for an in between.

I'm going to focus on my ABC's.
My friend posted an inspiring article about The Abundant Life by President Thomas S. Monson in our church's magazine. I loved it, the simplicity of it, yet how easy it was to apply to everything in life. Then I got my magazine this week and read it again and decided I really needed to focus on it. Read it! The article is inspiring, no matter what your faith is!

Here are the ABC's for an Abundant Life!

Attitude! I need to have a better attitude in life, in family, in love. I need a fresh perspective.

Believe! Believe in myself! Believe in the truth!

Courage! Have courage to make changes where I need to. Have courage to do things that scare me but I know I need to.

I really was inspired how it's simple and I can remember the three areas. But I can also apply it to almost every area of my life: my marriage, my family, my work, myself, my spirituality, everything.

And this year, I'm going to!

Book Club-My Kate Morton obsession...

2012-01-06T14:58:00.000-08:00

Book Club was at my house last night.

I stress out about hosting book club. What if they don't like my book choice?

This month, they loved it!

We read the Forgotten Garden. You may remember, this was my Hawaii beach read. I have spent the six months after that trip trying to convince everyone that they should read this book.

We had a great discussion about these wonderful characters, the cross-generation search for where you came from, and the great question that keeps you reading-what happened that day on the boat?????
I didn't re-read it because people needed my copy, but it was a joy to review and discuss it. And eat cucumber sandwiches as we talked about Victorian England! :)

I also encouraged them to try more books by this author. Last month, I flew through her newest book, The Distant Hours. It is written in a similar voice and style, with strong women characters, in my beloved England, with of course a mystery and a twist to keep you guessing! I loved it. I loved the old spinster ladies and their nutty little sister-like the British version of Secret Life of Bees!

This is Morton's debut novel. I'm still in the early pages, but I'll keep you posted on what I think....while you check out the first two! :)

On the first day of January...

2012-01-03T19:19:00.000-08:00

Day one-

my little one becomes a big sunbeam!

Lulu started primary on Sunday! It was wonderful! She was such a good girl and I loved having all four of us in primary together!

Day two-
Holidays have tuckered out my little one. We had a fun family day...with no football. At all. It was nice to have our Dad home with us and enjoying time together!

Day three-
On the last day of vacation, what did we do? play ALL day! Miss M made a barbie apartment out of cracker and puzzle boxes while the girls enjoyed movies and I caught up on the last of 2011's quilting bee. A lovely day!

one year of quilting

2012-01-03T19:04:00.000-08:00

The first year of 12 squared is finished!

We're at it again for 2012, with new people and new quilts! And now that I'm caught up, I can get excited, guilt free!

Here are my two final squares!

November-Tokyo Sun

This one near killed me! It is made up of eight triangles forming a square, created with paper piecing. I had to unpick two of them...twice. Paper piecing is not my friend. I'm glad I tried it, but it won't be my preferred method, I'm afraid. But I love how it turned out.

December was Teriney's month.

She took it easy on us and we appliqued small scraps on her circle. So simple and so pretty!

Stay tuned for 12squared12!

The Good News!

2011-12-31T10:04:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year!

I am looking forward to a new year!

The good news is we can NOT foreclose on a house this year! Been there, done that!

The good news is I can fit my groceries into my trunk AND be a traveling speech therapist, thanks to the new Holman Mystery Machine (more on that later!)

The good news is I finished the oreos and our goals to be healthier can start now! :)

The good news is this year there will be no diapers.

The good news is MBA school will finish sometime in 2012!!!

The good news is we will be rewarded in December 2012 with a trip to DisneyWorld with the entire Tobler clan!!!!!

It's gonna be a good year!

Happy Eight Years to Us!

2011-12-27T15:35:00.000-08:00

Eight Years ago today I married my sweetheart.

He is my mellow, goofy, smart, hard-working, handsome other half.

Our first year, we went to London for a ten day honeymoon.

And I graduated from grad school.

Our second year, we went to Hawaii.

Our third year, we became three when Miss M joined the party!

Our fourth year, my husband made me a true Aggie!

Our fifth year, we moved to Utah.

And Lulu made us a family of four.

Our sixth year, we moved to Arkansas.

Our seventh year, we are continuing to work, go to school, grow two beautiful girls, survive house misfortunes, and as my husband says every day, "make our marriage grow".

I love you, W, here's to an eternity more!

What We Do at Christmas

2011-12-22T12:52:00.000-08:00

We went to Garvan Gardens for the first time last year. It is our destination for this evening. We wanted to repeat this fun adventure and see the incredible light display!

Every Christmas, we break out a new puzzle. Some are done in a few hours, this one wasn't done until after new year's. I finally finished it during the snow last January, laaaaaate one night!

We add new ornaments each year. This year's is from Branson. Big Ben is courtesy of our honeymoon trip to London, EIGHT years ago! We also added a few vintage ornaments from W's grandma. I love them!

We try to keep up with our advent calendars! We've done well this year and are only a day behind! ;) This is a hand me down from my mother. I loved this calendar where the bear searches around the house for Christmas. I was so excited when she passed it along to me!

Then on Christmas Eve....

we feed the kids a fun dinner

we re-enact the natvity

we make cookies for Santa

we get new jammies for Christmas

and then we put the kids to bed

and eat a grown up meal of crab legs, artichokes, shrimp, rolls, seven layer jello and this year... creme brulee!

Merry Christmas! Enjoy your family's traditions as we celebrate the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ

Blog Christmas Cards

2011-12-19T17:27:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Lu actually sat on Santa's lap (when properly motivated that she needed to make sure Santa knew that she wanted the Blair barbie from Princess Charm School for Christmas!)

Lu loves chocolate milk. She would drink her weight in it if I let her.

Lu has a smile that crinkles her eyes and lights up the room.

She loves bananas, noodles, crazy bread, chocolate in any form, and cheese!

She recently figured out how to put on shirts and is so excited that she can dress herself completely now!

Lu loves hugs and climbs into bed every morning to snuggle for just a moment before her day begins.

Lu is tender-hearted, she wants to give everyone a hug'n'kiss and gets upset if she doesn't properly get to say goodbye to her "best friend Grandma Mardie".

Lu loves anything her big sister is doing!

Miss M is blazing her way through kindergarten! It is truly magical to watch your child learn to read!

She loves school, and has had good behavior for three straight weeks! This is a big accomplishment that we've been working toward because she has turned out to be quite the talker and gets in trouble for talking with her bff's in school!

Miss M continues to dramatically sing and dance her way through her days!

She loves pizza, popsicles, oranges, grapes, turkey sandwiches, and water!

She loves playing with her friends, and loves giving everyone extra tight squeezes!

My sweet hubby, W has two semesters left in grad school to get his MBA!!!!

There is light at the end of the tunnel!! He continues to work hard and work all the time!

I continue to work part time. The therapy clinic has gone through a lot of changes this year, and some have been great for our family. I now take the girls with me three afternoons a week. It means my cooking has suffered greatly, but I get eight more hours in, without losing any time with my girls. They hang out and play and help while I work. It's the perfect situation for where we are in life right now.

I just got called to be in the primary presidency in our ward, and I'm excited for the challenge.

We are very blessed. It's been a busy year, and not without its challenges. Two days after Christmas, W and I will celebrate eight years of marriage. I can't wait to see how our family grows in the next years!

Christmas cards (or more accurately, the stamps to mail them to the many states we've lived in during our married existence plus tons of family) were not in the budget this year.

I hate skipping cards, because it will greatly decrease the number of cards we get next year (most of my cousins already seem to think that sending it to my mother's house is close enough :) but our card budget went toward giving Christmas to some of my clients' families at work.

We love you all! Merry Christmas!

Much love from,

me, W, Miss M and Lu

steck the bells...the too tight carol

2011-12-17T17:41:00.000-08:00

I love what they think the words to Deck the Halls really are! Enjoy! Merry Christmas!

Quality Time with Cousins

2011-12-17T17:34:00.000-08:00

Sol loves sitting with Lu as she reads books or plays on my phone. It's pretty cute.

These three have really enjoyed family dinners of late. It's such a treat when they play and have fun!

It's a Christmas Miracle!

2011-12-09T09:43:00.000-08:00

Our tree is up and it's beautiful!

And it snowed!! In December! And the world didn't shut down, school was NOT canceled and it was beautiful!

Merry Christmas!

One short year ago...

2011-12-08T09:37:00.001-08:00

I feel like I'm caught up in a whirlwind! I can't quite keep my head above water yet. It's the end of my three-year period for continuing ed and I'm scrambling. I'm working extra so when I don't work much during the break it won't hit us as hard. W has finals so he is absolutely no help in the Christmas category until Saturday night. There are so many events and I'm trying so hard to make it special for my girls.

Last year, we had a magical Christmas.

Hopefully I'll get it together and it will be just as wonderful this year!!

It's Beginning to Look A Lot Like...

2011-12-03T13:05:00.001-08:00

the busiest season of the year!

the most wonderful time of the year!

Christmas!

I have a mantle to decorate this year! I had my wonderful Willow Tree nativity on the mantle but it was a little colorless. So I switched it to another spot and threw in some color!

Made the blocks last year, got the garland after-Christmas-clearance last year, and tied on some dollar ornaments for some color pops and I LOVE it! All I need are some red pillars for the candle holders!

Next up, the tree is coming this afternoon!!

Thanksgiving Time

2011-11-28T13:10:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year! W's twin sisters came to visit for a long visit from Florida. We had a wonderful and relaxing weekend of movies, games, food, hiking (and falling :), and togetherness!

Turkey day started off with a startling discovery in Grandma's garden!

Grandma found these darling aprons for the kids! So fun!

My cute pie helpers!

The table is set!

That weekend, we went to my friend Jennifer's house for some haircuts for the twins.

My girls were mostly good sports-snuggle time to sit JUST LIKE Aunt Sarah always helps!

a trim for Sarah

a new color and 'do for Bec!

We loved having them in town. We have missed them!

Bella's Bachelorette Party!

2011-11-23T08:02:00.000-08:00

My girlfriend, Jenn, was the mastermind.

We would throw a bachelorette party for Bella before the new Twilight movie! I co hosted since she travels so much for work. It was so much fun to put together and I think it went off smashingly well!

We set the scene with a few decorations.

Jenn goes all out for her parties!

We even had crafts to make! We had feathers (from their honeymoon!) to make either earrings or a clip to put in our hair.

I was thrilled with how on board the girls who came were! They jumped right in and wore them to the theater-luckily we were definitely not the most nutty girls there!

This is my beautiful friend Jenn. I love this girl!

We had come up with names from the book for each food.

And we used black crackle nail polish over red for a Twilight manicure!

My sweet pregnant sister in law with her friend-who came all the way from Arizona to join in!

Holly, Hilary and Ceanne

Our feast!

My brother Jacob held places in line for us and then ended staying!

Our group!

We were just silly (pitiful?) enough to take pictures with the posters. My favorite was Rebecca-she couldn't stop giggling! We took this girl way out of her comfort zone for this party and she was such a good sport!

It was fun, late, crazy, and boy were we tired the next day but so worth it!

Craft Night Coasters and Twilight Marathon!

2011-11-22T07:54:00.001-08:00

my friend Rebecca was coerced {{lovingly}} to join us at the Breaking Dawn premiere this week! even she will admit that she had fun and will be joining us for the second half when it comes out. however! she had never seen the first three movies! gasp! she had only read the books.

so...we gathered on a recent Saturday afternoon to watch ALL THREE MOVIES. yes, it took until one am.

we broke it up by making a fabulous, easy, CHEAP craft to entertain us and to prepare some Christmas gifts!

we found the idea on pinterest and the tutorial at Style Me Pretty.

it was fun and easy. we had fun using great pictures, paper and even maps to personalize cute coasters!

we sprayed them with acrylic sealer (wasn't so sure at first, but this stuff is great! the mod podge isn't sticky anymore!)

and watched three movies, snacked and relaxed! it was a fabulous Saturday!

i love these girls!

Dare to be Thankful!

2011-11-18T10:41:00.001-08:00

One of the lovely blogs I follow hosts a DIY party every Thanksgiving. I wanted to join in the fun this year!

I spotted this pattern on Cottage Home last year and wanted to make them but didn't get around to it.

They were a hit with the girls!

I got them done just in time for Miss M's school program!

Last year, I made this banner and it hung at my Mom's house. This year, I am so excited to have my own (albeit, cluttered) mantle to hang my Give Thanks banner!

So, go join the party and Dare to do it yourself at Newlywoodwards!

Kindergarten Thanksgiving Feast!

2011-11-18T10:24:00.001-08:00

Yesterday was a CRAZY day! I mean, I had a Breaking Dawn party to co-hostess and a midnight showing to go to, people! (more on that later, promise!)

I was able to make it to the beginning of Miss M's Thanksgiving feast at school and I'm so glad I did!!

Her class were dressed as Native Americans. (she has been giving me politically correct lessons all week!)

She decorated her own vest and was so proud of it!

This is one of her cute friends, Madisen!

The best part was they sang a bunch of songs at the beginning. They were delightful! Enjoy!

Scenes from Kindergarten

2011-11-10T11:20:00.001-08:00

Miss M's teacher has posted a bunch of pictures. I think she's having fun! Enjoy!

Freedom Parade

Pumpkin Patch

Hayride at the Pumpkin Patch!

Boosterthon fun Run

Queen of the Day

When I Grow Up...

2011-11-10T08:49:00.000-08:00

I was so excited when I was scrolling through my reader this morning! Want to know why?
I read an inspiring blog by a friend-of-a-friend called BeingLDS.

pic courtesy BeingLDS

Today, she is showcasing a new book that my very own Aunt wrote. My aunt is pretty amazing and I can't wait to get my own book!

Go check it out and enjoy! And by the way, check out this page, you'll see my very own Lulu! :) Another delightful surprise this morning! :)

What I've Been Reading Lately

2011-11-09T19:36:00.000-08:00

I think I'm behind on my reviews. Do you care?

Anyhow. Our first selection hails from my sad addiction to Vampire Academy. It's Twilight meets Gossip Girl meets Hunger Games. Basically Twilight with a bit more glamour and violence. A lot more butt kicking. And embarrassing to admit that I keep reading them. :) This is the newest one, which is actually a spinoff about a few of the characters!

This one I spotted at a book fair at the library, was intrigued by the cover and synopsis, walked across the library and checked it out for free! Score! It was a ghost story set in New Orleans. Enjoyed it and it was an easy read, definitely geared toward YA.

Last month's book club was Jane Austen's Mansfield Park. I tried. I really truly did. I checked out two different movie versions to try to make it through but I just could never get into the characters!! I thought they were just boring. And I had issues with rooting for the heroine to marry her first cousin! I don't care that it was normal back then. It just felt creepy.

This month was Cry the Beloved Country and I really enjoyed it! It was a quicker read but still a bit slow to start. But I enjoyed the characters and I really enjoyed learning more about pre-apartheid South Africa. My brother spend a semester there, so halfway through the book, I called him up for a history and demographics lesson on South Africa. This was a good read.

I enjoyed another good book by Lisa See. She is a talented author. I love learning about history and foreign countries (see above) through fiction. This one made me realize I knew nothing about communism really. I have spent some time on wikipedia trying to understand Red China since then. Her stories always seem to end in tragedy but they I keep reading them!

This month's book club is one I've read, Eat Cake by Jeanne Ray. A good fun read! So I'm hoping to catch up on a few I've had on my shelf at home and start working on Christmas gifts!!

Peak Color!

2011-11-06T16:22:00.000-08:00

It's that time of year where I love love love living in Arkansas!

It's November and it's 60 degrees! The fall stretches out and the colors slowly turn and peak and it's gorgeous!

This is Northern Arkansas. We were hoping to see great color on our way to and from Minnesota last month but it didn't peak until recently!

The roads near my house look like this-oranges, reds, purples, yellows, in vibrant flourescent shades!

Arkansas is so beautiful this time of year! And I'm enjoying every second!

Operation Girl's Room

2011-11-03T12:03:00.000-07:00

I have tried to get control of the girls' room since we moved in. But moving Lulu to a bigger bed meant losing space, a lot of space! And we just never could stay on top of toys and messes!

The avalanche of toys that is their closet was rarely this contained. It usually ended in a lava spill of toys, costumes, clothes and crap all over their room!

So..... last Saturday we got bunk beds! It took forever to convince W that it was necessary and worth the money but we got a great deal on nice, solid wood bunk beds that were only used for a year!

We gained back a whole bed's worth of space and even got the closet to close!!!

We reorganized clothes and toys and now everything fits!

Where Lulu's bed used to be, there is floor space and enough room for Miss M's clothes finally!

Here are the girls' beautiful beds! They came with sheet sets and quilts that match my girls' personalities! They are striped and flowery and match but are different. Miss M's is pink and Lulu's is purple!

Lulu was nervous going to bed last night but she always is with new changes.

However, Miss M loves her view from on top and gets a big kick out of the fact that Lulu hasn't mastered the ladder yet and therefore can't get up there alone!

Success! Even W is convinced that their room is so much better! Hooray!

ferris beuller, you're my hero

2011-11-02T15:55:00.000-07:00

So is the Barefoot Contessa!
I'm convinced that any recipe by Ina Garten will be a success.

One of my very favorites is Weeknight Bolognese! I kind of adore it. It's tangy and spicy and still just regular, wonderful marinara!

We made Panko-Crusted Salmon Sunday night. It was fabulous!

If you haven't checked out her cookbooks, you need to!

(not endorsed by the Barefoot Contessa, but wouldn't that be fun!)

Happy Holman Halloween!

2011-11-01T06:57:00.000-07:00

Jessie the cowgirl came for an encore evening with friends! She wasn't feeling too good earlier in the afternoon but she pulled up her bootstraps and we headed out!

Miss M left her cloak at the last Halloween party (we are party animals this year!) and so we improvised. She said she was a spider sister (her headband has a big spider on it)

And she was my sister (my headband has a big spider on it)

So we went over to a neighborhood where several of Miss M's friends live. We figured we could trick or treat at their houses and see a few familiar faces. Plus, their neighborhood is flat! :)

Lucky for us, Miss M's friends were just leaving so we joined them.

Lu was a trooper until the last block when I got my workout carrying her back to the car. The girls had a blast, despite a few setbacks!

Happy Halloween!

baby gifts

2011-10-31T13:24:00.000-07:00

a dear friend in Minnesota had a July baby right before a dear cousin in Colorado had a baby! I have delivered one gift but I'm sending off the second gift today! Before she grows out of it! I made two of these sets with a onesie, double tiered skirt and rolled flower clip for a headband. I fell in love with the fabric and was thrilled for an excuse to buy some! :)

I love a good twirlie skirt!

I hope she loves it!

Halloween so far

2011-10-28T13:22:00.000-07:00

I love the age when kids think they are actually transforming into the character!

She danced around the clinic, singing, I'm Jessie the cowgirl! yodle-a-ee-hoo!

I love that we are starting to branch out a bit. Hermione isn't even a princess! gasp!

However, I think lulu thinks Hermione's name is more like her-mine-ee because she keeps calling her mine-mine-ee! :)

We have had fun at the church trunk-or-treat (above) and the library character walk (below with the witch in Hansel and Gretl!)

I have wanted to make bags for trick or treating for a few years and whipped these up yesterday. sorry the picture is so horrible!

Next up! party tonight and the official day on Monday!

butterbean

2011-10-25T12:52:00.000-07:00

I have a new sweet niece. She is beautiful!

So I made her a doll. I have had this pattern from Bit of Whimsy for a few years but never done anything with it.

It was late, fabric stores weren't open, so I had fun with a few scraps I had on hand and I love how it turned out.

I will be making more butterbeans in the future because I almost didn't want to give this one away!

bluebirds

2011-10-24T15:01:00.000-07:00

a friend asked me to make two gifts for sisters who had recently experienced a tragedy.

they lost their father at a very young age.

he called them his bluebirds. so i made bluebirds for them.

my mother is much more talented with embroidery so she helped me out on the names.

i hoped they are loved and of comfort to those sweet girls.

a MN trip in pictures

2011-10-20T14:12:00.000-07:00

we had a delightful trip to Minnesota.
we accomplished MOST of our list! :)
we drove through a long night to get there. the girls were troopers!

we rested Friday.
I had a lovely lunch (no pics, shoot!) with my dear work friends.
we spent the next afternoon at the zoo.

we visited with wonderful friends at church on Sunday.
we went to story time and showed Miss M where her middle name came from.

we tortured our children like our parents before us by dragging them around to our old haunts.
this was my uptown apartment building. W and I went on our first date across the street.
our infamous first kiss was inside this building.

the girls crafted and played and read and snuggled with grandma all weekend long!

we drove a long day home, complete with carsickness, a potty accident, and restless legs...but hey, we didn't hit a deer this time!

road trippin'

2011-10-15T04:59:00.000-07:00

I hit a deer outside of Bella Vista at midnight. holy crap, that was scary! The car is fine, we are fine. Not so sure about the deer, but we kept driving until we could find a gas station to check out the car.

Hands down best part of the trip? Lu needing to go use the potty in the middle of nowhere-super windy-Iowa! What did we do? Pulled over at the state patrol office, pulled out the mini potty, sat her down, covered her with a blanket, and stood around her to block the wind. I so wished I'd taken a pic of this choice moment!

And now we are off to have a great weekend!

what is a "late-over" you ask?

2011-10-13T14:19:00.000-07:00

Miss M has been desperate for a sleepover.

I'm not sure we'll ever be ready for one!

My Mother always said, nothing good ever happens after midnight.

So I convinced her that a late-over was just as good! And I think I was right!

All the fun, silliness, late night goodness, but they all went home at 9:30 to sleep in their own beds!

Miss M and the fabulous four! These four are best buds and sweet as can be...most of the time! :)

We also added two siblings to the fun!

We ate pizza!

We dressed up and had a fabulous fashion show!

We painted nails and watched movies with popcorn and colored pictures!

They had a great time and were a delight to have over...but boy, were they loud! :)

my Minnesota bucket list!

2011-10-13T11:06:00.000-07:00

We are going to Minnesota tonight!! We are visiting W's parents and visiting our old home.

I can't explain it, but I'm so excited to be going. I had a very hard time visiting Minnesota with the house fiasco. With all of it unresolved and so very stressful, I had a hard time facing Minnesota. I'm thankful for God's timing that has made all this come together at the same time.

And we're going!

We are going to see beautiful leaves at the arboretum-or what's left of them!
We are going to the Cheesecake Factory! It's a must! I may even go twice. gasp!
We are going to soak up grandparent time!
We are going to the zoo! Minnesota has a great FREE zoo!
I get to have lunch with my dear work friends!!
We are going to church to see friends too numerous to count!
We are going to eat cheese curds!
We are going to walk around the University of Minnesota and Lake Harriet!
We may even go to the Mall of America! (been there, done that but it's a good stop)
We are going to buy sales-tax-free clothes!
We are going to drive by our house, cry a bit, collect our lawnmower and snow shovel and sigh a huge sigh of relief.

House {fore} Closure

2011-10-11T10:59:00.000-07:00

A year ago, I sat with my dear friend at our Halloween party, and I confided in her that something had to be done about our house. We were continuing to lose thousands of dollars renting, and there was no end in sight.

We decided that we would raise the rent at the end of their lease so that they would finally be paying the mortgage and we wouldn't be caught with a shortfall each and every month. We were nervous, worrying that such a hike in rent would send them packing.

Luckily for us, they were transferred to Georgia, somewhat solving our problem. We immediately put the house on the market.

Three short sale offers and rejections later, we are finally coming to the end. The last short sale was rejected last week.

Our house in Minnesota is being sold at auction tomorrow morning.

It is truly a relief.

I never, ever thought I'd say that, but it's so true.

I'm relieved that we can stop dreading the mail.
I'm relieved that we can stop feeling guilty about bills all the time.
I'm relieved that we can move on.
I'm relieved that we can start saving again and start over.

It was a good home for us. I will always treasure memories of bringing home Miss M to it, sitting on the couch watching the Olympics and watching the snow fall while I nursed, planting a garden with my mother, and turning it into our first home. I wish that it had ended better. But we were meant to move to Utah. In all the things I've second guessed about the house and worried about all these years, I know that we were supposed to be in that home, and I know that we were supposed to leave it to go to Utah. Just like I know that we are supposed to be here now.

I am so ready for it to be over. And I'm thankful that it will be very soon.

Our weekend

2011-10-05T16:24:00.000-07:00

Miss M finished a good week off at school. She has some great friends...when they get along. :)

General Conference was enjoyed. Sticker books were well used and well loved!

Crisp fall mornings called for yummy french toast!

I love catching my girls reading :)

Octobler is almost here!

2011-09-30T06:51:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow is Octobler. Time for Octoblerfest!

I'm looking forward to fall weather, crunchy leaves, crisp mornings

I'm looking forward to visiting Minnesota friends and family in a few weeks!

I'm looking forward to time with my own grandma.

I'm looking forward to pumpkins, pumpkin squares, Halloween!

I'm looking forward to General Conference and hearing the prophet speak.

I'm looking forward to some closure with the house, a new niece just in time for Halloween, and watching my sister in law grow cute fat babies!

Forget Me Nots

2011-09-26T18:57:00.000-07:00

I am so thankful for inspired apostles of the Lord.
And creative women who help us remember their words better.

lately

2011-09-21T11:43:00.000-07:00

Lately, I've been working on catching up...

...on sleep. We have had two bouts of a stomach virus hit each girl, plus nasty colds and fevers that just won't quit!

...on laundry. I've missed work staying home with the girls, but the upside is my dishes and laundry are caught up!

...on sewing. My sewing machine is back in the shop, so I've been cutting and piecing and assembling and serging as much as I can and then I take a stack to sew at Mom's.

My Mom always said if she wasn't working on Christmas by September, she was in trouble. So I'm hoping my machine is back and working well soon so I can get busy!!

I made a skirt and a doll skirt for one of my coworker's girls. We missed her party, but the girls and I wanted to get her a gift anyway. I had to totally guess on the doll's size so I may be revamping that one a bit!

I also finished my September 12squared block. I used some of my favorite fabrics on this one. It's cobblestones and bricks, and she gave us the stripes to coordinate with. I hope she likes it!

Seattle

2011-09-16T11:53:00.000-07:00

I had the choice opportunity to go to Seattle as you may recall.

The weather was sunny and beautiful with crispy cold mornings, warm afternoons, and cool evenings. I got to wear pants! :)

Wonderful friends of my aunt and uncle took us in. Their home and its surroundings are idyllic. They belong in a magazine! They had private rooms for my parents and my Dad's brother and his wife. Then the "kids" (the youngest being my 18 year old brother and 4/6 of us being married!) slept in a large room full of trundle beds. They fed us, they opened their homes, these people were wonderful!

We enjoyed the scenery and I remembered why I loved my visits to Seattle so much all those years ago!
We sat outside in the evenings, playing games, sharing stories, enjoying time together as family and rebuilding bonds.
One of the many things we have missed about Utah are our weekend game night buddies.
We enjoyed a day at the lake, complete with a barge race, clogging, Rage, and crawfish-ing. Is that a word?
My beautiful cousin and I created beautiful arrangements for the funeral.
The crawfish were cooked. The boys were quite fixated on these crawfish. It was funny to watch them all.

Our wonderful hostess created these beautiful arrangements from contributions from my aunt and uncles' friends' gardens.

Our family is so spread out that this is the first time I've seen them in three years. I'm thankful for the bonds of family that make it possible to get together like no time has passed, play games, share tears and hugs and support and love each other. I'm so thankful for them.

This is my uncle's obituary from his local paper. It's more for my records to post it here, but if you care to, enjoy. He was a remarkable man with a remarkable family. I love them.

Dr. Christian Arthur Vikari completed his mortal journey on Aug. 31, 2011, after a long and difficult illness. To those of us who knew and loved Art, it seems too soon to say goodbye, yet, there is comfort in knowing this wonderful, compassionate man is now free of the pain and suffering he endured these last few years.

Christian Arthur Vikari

Art leaves behind a great legacy of love for family and friends; caring, compassionate service to others; and an unfailing love of God. All who came within the reach of his smile and warm embrace will long remember how good they felt when they were with him.

Art was raised in Washington, yet his life journey truly began the day he married his sweet companion, Valine. They have been devoted partners in life for 27 years and will be companions forever in the eternities. Art and Valine have been blessed with five beautiful and talented children.

Dr. Vikari practiced oral surgery in Issaquah, and was loved and admired by his patients, staff and colleagues. He cared deeply for his patients and they loved and respected him in return. Art found many ways to help others. He regularly shared his time and talents, and gave generously to others in need.

As a bishop in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, he ministered to the members of his congregation. He opened the scriptures to the hearts of those searching for answers; he counseled those with heartache and loss; he visited the sick and weary; and encouraged the youth to live up to the best within them. Art was a true friend to all who came within the sphere of his influence.

Art accomplished much in life and enjoyed a variety of interests, however, his greatest joy and satisfaction came from his family. Home was where he most longed to be. Above all else he will be remembered as a devoted husband and father who loved the Lord and did his best to serve those around him. He lived a life of selfless service and optimism for a brighter day. Throughout his life and even when suffering from difficult medical issues, Art would share his life’s motto: “It’s my best day yet!”

the much-less-frustrated-potty-diaries

2011-09-09T07:50:00.000-07:00

we have made several breakthroughs this week.

she has been actually requesting to go to the bathroom.

when she goes, it doesn't take FOREVER anymore.

accidents are greatly decreasing.

she wants to wear panties at nap and is staying dry.

she begged to wear panties overnight last night and she woke up DRY!

she has actually made #2 in the pot, more than once!

sorry if that's too much information, i'm just so stinkin proud of this girl!

what title?

2011-09-02T22:35:00.000-07:00

My extended family was shocked by a tragedy this week. My brilliant, funny, loving uncle has passed away. My sweet husband has encouraged me to use my frequent flyer miles and go with my parents and brother, and so I'm going to Seattle tomorrow for a funeral.

I'm so thankful for my wonderful husband who immediately jumped into action to take over this weekend and encouraging me to use miles that we've carefully hoarded for a "rainy day". Seattle's rainy, right?

I'm thankful for loving friends and coworkers who have continued to send me texts and prayers ever since I stumbled into the office after talking to my mother, in shock.

I'm thankful for my understanding girls, who have recovered from Mom losing it when Lulu had an accident and I became a puddle of tears.

I'm so eternally thankful for Heavenly Father's plan of salvation, that gives me peace in the knowledge that families are forever.

Pinwheels finished!

2011-08-28T16:49:00.000-07:00

Remember when I joined the quilting group last January and I got to go first? Well, I FINALLY finished my quilt! I had it put together last winter but got really frustrated with machine quilting it and put it away because I was scared to finish it.

I finished my pinwheels last night! I finished machine quilting it Saturday and put on the binding last night. I love it so much!

the discouraged potty diaries

2011-08-28T14:24:00.000-07:00

Remember about two years ago, when Miss M was being an absolute stinker about going on the potty? It was such a power struggle, she discovered right off the bat that she could control the entire situation? She would almost have on purpose "accidents"? Can you believe I would give anything to go back to that now?

At least by three years old, I felt like she knew what she was doing, she was just too smart and stubborn and wouldn't! Oh, those were the days!

Lulu doesn't care! And I guess that means I shouldn't either except I know she's smart enough and dangit, I'm soooooo sick of diapers! If I can't have a baby right now, at least I should have a diaper hiatus! She wants to help change her own diapers-the girl can pee on the pot!

But she doesn't care one whit! She doesn't care if she has an accident, she doesn't care if she goes on the toilet, she doesn't tell me when she needs to go, and half the time, she doesn't tell me if she has already gone! grrrrrr!!

Lulu has always been on her own developmental curve. She didn't crawl until she was a year and then it wasn't quite a crawl! :) She didn't walk until she was 20 months. She was always smart with her speech and language so I know she's a smart chick, but she also beats to her own developmental drum! But I'm impatient! and I'm sick of the weird looks people give me as my obviously three year old talker gets her diaper changed!

okay, i'm done now. I will go back to scrubbing the carpet now.

marathon week

2011-08-26T09:12:00.000-07:00

she looks how we all feel this week!

W is back in school Tues and Thurs nights.

Miss M is full swing into school, complete with homework!

Lulu and I have been running ragged all week, trying to catch my speech kids in their new school homes and daycares. Most days, I drop off M, run to work, run an errand, run to get Miss M, run back to work, run home to scarf down some dinner, bathe the girls, do homework, and get to bed.

i have a scary premonition that this will continue in one form or another for many years to come!

however!

i blame the increased caffeine intake this week (to compensate for not feeling good and running around town!) on my insomnia. the result? i sewed my rainbows together last night! and i'm off to find sashing this morning! soooo excited to show you how it turned out!!!

TGIF!

Lulu turns 3!!

2011-08-25T09:03:00.000-07:00

she wanted yellow and purple and princesses. those were her qualifications. and chocolate.

we gave her chocolate ice cream and a funfetti cake. she loved it! she loves rapunzel because rapunzel has golden hair like her and loves purple like her. this girl melts my heart, i tell ya! :)

she loved wearing her birthday "grel" crown. i made a birthday banner (in the background) but i haven't gotten a good picture of it yet.
she was overjoyed with her toys and has been toting around mermaids, fairies, and a baby Cinderella ever since! and any day is made better with a good birthday Jessie shirt! :)
for dinner that night, we took her to "Bob's Pizza" which is really Larry's Pizza buffet where the girls eat pepperoni pizza to their hearts' content and top it off with chocolate chip pizza (or in Lu's case eat mostly that all night! :) we even got to eat dinner with some friends and family who also were there celebrating a birthday! thanks Sharps!

my birthday grel was a happy princess. i'm so thankful for these three. they make my world go round.

which do you think?

2011-08-23T08:26:00.000-07:00

layout A?

or layout B?

and what do you think? isn't it lovely?

happy birthday lulu!!!

2011-08-22T07:07:00.000-07:00

it is amazing to me how this...

is now this! oh, how i miss this little snuggly baby!

happy happy birthday to my sweet, happy lulu!

who still climbs into bed to snuggle every morning,

who will always be on her own learning curve,

whose smile lights up the room,

who knows how to rock the sunglasses,

who loves everybody and everything,

who could drink her weight in strawberry milk,

who says her best friend is Grandma Mardie,

who loves the color purple,

who loves to play quietly, singing to herself,

who wants to be cowgirl Jessie when she grows up,

who i can't wait who she grows up to be!

blueberry, raspberry, bubble gum, lemon, and lime

2011-08-19T16:17:00.000-07:00

this is how i spent my friday afternoon...

i love the sandi henderson prints (the henna print and the big flowers) that i found in my scraps-the last of a few of my all time faves!
this yellow is my current favorite square.
this one is a bit of an homage to my 12squared block from June for Becca
i laid them all out last night and pieced three more squares. this truly is an illness. and for the record, my house is a MESS!

a tale of two manly ipad cases

2011-08-19T04:46:00.000-07:00

My Dad is a technophile. Specifically, an Apple technophile.

He asked me to sew him a case to protect his new ipad. He has the attached cover but wanted something to cover the entire ipad for transporting, etc.

I scoured the blogosphere for "manly" ipad cases. I mostly followed the moda bake shop tutorial from quilt dad.

Here is my first "cute" and "manly" ipad case.

Alas, I measured wrong and it was too small. I growled and maybe shed a tear or two. (no, not pregnant!) and then I walked away for a day. And got feedback from Dad. He liked the beige fabric on the sides the best and didn't need the piecing. He may have mentioned "pleather" somewhere in there, but I refused.

So, here is my "boring" and "manly" ipad case.

Hooray! Hooray! A {{perfect}} fit!
I lined it with soft flannel to keep the cover from getting scratched. Plus it has quilted batting for extra protection.
And really, one can see how it wouldn't fit once you put them side by side. Stupid seam allowances!!!
I hope he likes his "boring" and "manly" ipad cover.

ps-I will be taking all my photos outside until I can get my birthday-anniversary-Christmas camera to replace the dead camera. I think it really helps the quality of iphone photos. Yes, I just figured this out! :)

linking up

2011-08-18T15:28:00.000-07:00

I have never done a "linky party" before.

But one of my blog friends recently started a cute blog with great ideas so I thought I'd show my Southern roots and join in!

So, go enjoy her cute blog and the creative things she does!

My Bottled Rainbows Addiction!

2011-08-18T07:54:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, I took advantage of a sale at JoAnn's and got a pile of kona solids that have since sat in my stash.

After doing my 12squared rainbow square, I got excited to start on my own!

I also love these squares because I've been adding a few pieces from my mom's stash-so far each square has a bit of her in it too!
This was my first one. The directions say to baste around the edge of the color to hold down the batting but I found just pinning it worked better for me.
As you can see, I used batting on each square like the original directions from from stitched in color. I thought I'd try it, and I love it!!! I love the dimension it gives to the ticker tape pieces. I still have my doubts about how thick it's going to be at each seam between squares but we'll see.

Right now, I love it! And I cut out pieces for five more last night!

Branson!

2011-08-16T08:30:00.000-07:00

We are blessed with little vacations every now and then. my Dad needed to use some marriott points, so he took us all to Branson!

They have a lovely resort there, where the kids had a blast, they have a wonderful pool and other fun things for the kids!

Mom and Dad offered to take us to a show, and with raving recommendations, we went to....
yes, yes, we did!
and it was AWESOME!!!!!!
We sat around an arena, we cheered for the South, and booed the North!
yes, yes, we did!
we were served this yummy yummy dinner, to eat with our hands! :)
we watched a show of the history of the wild west, followed by a skirmish between the north and south, complete with pig races, horse races, barrel races, carriage races, and dancing and singing to boot!
It was a blast and we highly recommend it!

Miss M goes to Kindergarten!!!!

2011-08-15T08:16:00.000-07:00

This weekend she wrote a note to her new teacher. As we were leaving for meet-the-teacher night last week, she said, "but mom, what if they show me lower case letters and I don't know whether it's a b or a d!" I told her if that was her biggest worry, kindergarten would be a breeze! :)

We loaded her up with a good breakfast first thing this morning! She didn't want to get out of bed, but I felt like Nemo this morning, jumping around so excited for her! I'm thankful for PreK last year to get my sadness and tears out of the way-this year, I'm just excited for her!

My talented friend, Emily, embroidered her name on her backpack and lunchbox to make her not-new-backpack, special again!

do you think she might just be a {{little}} excited?? :)

she had so much fun choosing some new school duds. she even let me do her hair!

she sat right down, pleased as punch to be there, and said, you can go now, mom, see you after school!

Lulu was more upset than I was! :) ...until we got to the door and she realized she can sit in sister's booster seat while she's at school ;)

I'm so proud of my big girl!! She has two of her best girlfriends in her class, hopefully a good thing! :) I pray that she has as wonderful a teacher as last year and that she is happy and loves school!

sucked into books!

2011-08-10T01:33:00.000-07:00

I have read a few series that have absolutely sucked me in! I alluded to the first, Poison Study, in an earlier post.Poison Study by Maria Snyder sucked me in from page one! I loved the intrigue. I wanted to know what was going to happen with each character and I had fun guessing! I loved the characters in this, from the murderer-turned-food-taster to the assassin-turned-politician. I love the friends she makes and how they learn more about themselves as Yelena pushes herself. I was happy to see them in the next book!
I dove into the second book, which had a slower start but then grabbed me and I couldn't put it down either! It is a bit racier than the first book, but still not at all rated R. I loved the concept of magic in this book. That it is all around us, and we draw from it to perform magic and control the world around us. It isn't something conjured with a wand. I like that. I was happy to see the relationships she builds with her family when she had never had family that she could remember.
I was excited to read Fire Study but somewhat disappointed. It felt like Suzanne Collins' Mockingjay where it just rushed from one disaster to the next while she tried to fit everything in! I loved these character so much in the first two novels, that I was disappointed with the rush job that seemed like neverending conflict. I grew tired of Yelena's "I have to save the world and OBVIOUSLY I'm the only one who CAN!" attitude that I feel is in a lot of female protagonist books...at least the ones I've been choosing lately! :)

Did I finish it? Yes.

Did I love it? The first two, yes! The third, ok.
Would I recommend them? Sure!

happy birthday, gracie!

2011-08-10T01:05:00.001-07:00

my sister dropped a hint that i was supposed to do a birthday post.

so here it is.

it's her birthday. she's turning twenty-two.

when i was nine, i couldn't imagine anything worse than having two older brothers. we had grown beyond the years when we could all share a room peacefully. when my barbies and their gi joes could share a play world peacefully. all i wanted was a sister. i just knew she'd be my ally. however, my parents assured me that after nine years, this was obviously not happening. i insisted that for Christmas, i wanted a baby sister. apparently, i nagged my mother so much that, in desperation, she told me to pray for a miracle.

i did. i prayed and prayed for a sister for Christmas.

and my mother found out she was pregnant a week before Christmas.

they gave us all pacifiers for Christmas Eve to announce it.

i still remember when mom took us all to the ultrasound, the doctor knew that i was desperate for a sister, so she whispered it to me first. i thought i'd won the lottery.

i definitely have.

despite the fact that we proved that you could have years of sibling rivalry even with a ten year gap (mom, she's looking at me!!!) we survived and she is one of my very best friends.

she has endured years of me calling on my way home from work because i just need someone to talk to.

she has loved my baby girls like her own.

she has finally started following my book recommendations. :)

she cries too easily, but it is that sensitivity that makes her so loving to everyone, a great listener, and a patient aunt and teacher.

i love singing near her when she visits and is at church. there is something about blending voices that are from the gene pool that is just magical!

the only parts i like about her living far away is that 1) i can call her and complain to her about the rest of the family :) and 2) whenever she comes to visit, life shuts down and everyday is a vacation!

i love her. happy birthday, baby sister!

my not-full-time job

2011-08-09T09:18:00.000-07:00

(Lulu at work with me last week)

You all know I work part time as a speech therapist.

I love what I do.

I visit dirty, smelly daycares and my boss told me when he hired me that I needed to remember that in many cases, I would be the most enriching part of that kid's week. But I love it. It has been such an answer to prayer, fitting into the flexibility of my life with toddlers and now a preschooler while still paying the bills, getting me out of the house and stretching my skills.

In June, anticipating Hawaii, I started feeling pretty desperate for a break from work.

I knew I needed a vacation. I needed a break from the reality of miserable house selling, packing and moving apartments to escape hellish neighbors, and general life frustration. I lumped my work into that and ran screaming into the arms of palm trees and really good books.

Two weeks before Hawaii, you see, I found out that my boss was shutting down his practice.

I was essentially laid off.

I wanted to call the bank and say, see? I really DO need that short sale because our situation has become even more desperate than before!

There were immediate rumors that the other PT in the practice was interested in buying it from him, saving all of our jobs and even possibly kicking the clinic up a notch. But it was several stressful weeks before we heard for sure. Laura did indeed buy the practice, I did indeed get to keep my job, and the transition at the clinic has felt nearly seamless. I'm excited for the changes she will make and I'm so honored that I get to stick around. The transition has not been seamless on my schedule though. In the process, we lost one of the daycares where we used to see kids and it was essentially 80% of my caseload.

In one day, I went from making my own schedule, seeing kids on my own time, and being my own boss, to being at the mercy of the clinic and hoping there were extra kids there that I could see! I am working odd hours all over the place trying to get enough hours. Especially after an expensive month like Hawaii June, this blow to my caseload came at an awful time. I am a contract therapist, if I don't see a kid, I don't make money. A week in Hawaii equals 1/2 a paycheck lost. So, July was nerve wracking in yet another way.

Laura has been amazing though. She has worked tirelessly to get me the hours that I need and to build back up my caseload. Hopefully in the next few weeks, I'll have a consistent schedule again. I need it. And Lucy needs her naps back!

I find it interesting and humbling that my cry for a break from work was really only a lesson in how much I need to work, how much my family depends on my work, and how blessed I am to work with these amazing therapists. I've worked in beautiful clinics, amazing hospitals, sparkly clean schools, but I'm most at home right where I am right now.

Come to mama!

2011-08-08T20:53:00.000-07:00

I had the most delicious treat tonight!

I had heard that there was a Papa Murphy's Take 'n Bake Pizza in Bryant.

That's about 20 minutes south of us.

I had never ventured to it, but always had it in the back of my mind to go there after searching for some rare thing that took me to the Benton Target.

Today, W had an auto claim in Bryant. I gasped, asked which shop he was going to, mapped it out on google and discovered that he would be exactly 0.7 miles from the Bryant Papa Murphy's!!!

It's sad.

I got that excited about a pizza that you bake at home.

But it's been over 3 years!

My Papa Murphy's initiation was early. I was a junior at Utah State, and my study partner fed us dinner while we studied for Prof. Simonsmeier's exam in the most boring class I ever took in my major-sorry Professor! The study session was only kept going by the heavenly smells of garlic chicken pizza in her oven.

I introduced it to my skeptical husband after we were married and I discovered, to my great delight, that Papa Murphy's was also in the Minneapolis area! Papa Murphy's makes heart shaped Valentine's pizzas and pumpkin-shaped Halloween pizzas. Papa Murphy's was the highlight of many get togethers with my work ladies. Their pizzas are heavenly! They have a tangy sauce and spicy pepperoni.

But my heart belongs to this one!

It's the gourmet Vegetarian, but we add chicken to it... because I love chicken.

It has a creamy garlic sauce instead of marina, tons of stringy, stretchy cheese, plus a boatload of mushrooms, tomatoes, zucchini, spinach, onions, artichoke hearts and more! I love love love it!

It was worth a late dinner, waiting for W to finish his claim and pick up pizza. It was worth going all the way to Bryant to get it.

It was worth the three year wait.

And I'm sure we won't be waiting that long next time!

a new record

2011-08-04T15:15:00.000-07:00

Arkanas set a new record.

Not just for the day or the month, but EVER.

116* F

And believe me, we felt it!

Going outside kind of hurts. We swim a lot. We stay inside a lot.

So, I will return after running away to Branson for the weekend, where it's cooler at an amazing 98* F!

Scrapbuster Fall Pillow!

2011-07-27T08:14:00.000-07:00

We've been having fun!

This weekend we whipped up a few fall pillows! It was fun and easy following Cluck Cluck Sew's tutorial!

I tried to use fall colors that also match my home. We used heat 'n bond (love that stuff now!) to attach the leaves. Then I sewed around the leaves and trunk.

And made a pillow backing!
It may be more of year-round pillow, I love it so much!

Miss M goes to VBS!

2011-07-26T08:08:00.000-07:00

do you know what VBS is?

it's Vacation Bible School! And yes, I sent our little Miss M to VBS. She needed to get out of the house!

She went to VBS with her friends from school. The things she learned? 1) The head chef had a pet raccoon. 2) Celebrate God!

She had fun though and she's been singing fun songs ever since!

My Resurrected Chair!

2011-07-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

I asked for a reading chair for my birthday when I was sixteen.

I was, excuse me, AM, such a nerd.

I got a white wicker chair with dusty blue cushions. I also got a matching headboard (cue Miss M's room)

It has traveled with me to Minnesota, Utah, and now here to Arkansas. It is in pretty good shape, but I felt like it looked like, well, a sixteen year old's chair.

So I took it to my Mom's garage. I scrubbed it down and sanded down a few spots where the paint had chipped off and branches (is that the right word?) had broken.

Then I primed it with grey spray paint. Lovely, isn't it? :)

I promise we're not done yet!

And then I painted it espresso brown!!

I am in love with it! It now fits in my living room! I recovered the dusty blue cushion with a dark blue crosshatch outdoor fabric and threw my trusty beautiful IKEA pillows on it to brighten it up! What do you think? (besides that I really really need a new camera-the iphone just doesn't always cut it!)

I also hung up my artwork (someone asked earlier and it's 38"x32") I love how it looks with the living room!

And here is one half of my living room! It actually looks like a room! Things match and go together! Who knew!

I love it! And now for curtains!!

Grace

2011-07-21T09:37:00.000-07:00

I think, I just think, that my girls are enjoying having Aunt Grace in town for a bit.

I am too.

Girls Night In!

2011-07-19T09:29:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday, the Tobler women went out to dinner. Our men were all out of town, busy or working, so we decided to go out too! After a lovely dinner at Bravo!, we had waaaay too much fun at Charming Charlie's (coming out with headbands and purses for all!) and Anthropologie (coming out with fun ideas of things to make "cheaper")

We decided crafting was in order. I picked up a few more colors of poly satin and showed the girls how to satin flower clips and bows!

At one point, my Dad came out and asked us not to burn down the house. Have no fear, it's still standing.

Jen has a wonderful mix of old vintage buttons to adorn our flowers.
I tried a new kind of flower last nigh-the pink one in the middle of the pink ones :) by cutting out several flower shapes, folding them up and glueing them to a felt circle. I love how it turned out! I also made bobby pins with smaller satin flowers (in the champagne color, below the pink flower) that were inspired by Anthropologie hair duds and I love them too! Small, simple, and elegant!
We were very productive! :) Thanks girls!!

It's art!

2011-07-18T07:14:00.000-07:00

I have big lovely walls in my new apartment that were crying for something bigger than my little 8x10 color glossies!

My friend suggested I find some fabric that matches "my colors" and make my own!

So I did!

I found some wonderful upholstery fabric with big bright flowers in my favorite blues and reds and bought a yard during a great sale!

Then I picked up canvas stretcher bars and saved fifteen bucks and made my own canvas!

pic courtesy google

This is the point in my DIY project that I learned the important fact that Lulu is TERRIFIED of staple guns! She came running up to us, crying, "stop! don't do it, Grandma!" like we were going to sacrifice the innocent! We had to send her away to finish our project! My Mom and I then stapled the fabric to my stretcher bars.

It definitely took both of us to hold the fabric taut and use the staple gun!
But I am in LOVE!! (this is my mother's wall-I'll share again once it's hung in my own house)
I love the colors-they match my throw pillows on my couches and really will brighten up the room!

a few more books

2011-07-17T20:06:00.000-07:00

I haven't sewed much lately. I've been busy reading!

My cousin recommended this book to me. It is a retelling of the twelve dancing princesses-with a big twist. I loved this book! It was enchanting and fun and exciting and suspenseful! I loved the princesses-they had strong characters and they were different from each other. I loved their relationship with the king and how it developed. I loved the suitors that came to the castle! This was a fun read-I passed it right on to my sister in law and she loved it and passed it on to my sister! :)

My good friend recommended this one to me-it's the first in a trilogy and it is another exciting read! I devoured this book! I got so into the characters and the mysteries and the wonderful, handsome well, assassin! I wanted to keep reading to find out what happens! and yes, I've already got the second one from the library and passed on the first to my sister! :)
Then I read this one-I loved Tina Fey on SNL. She was on the show when I really was in a phase of watching SNL-at least since I was a kid and a fan of the church lady and buckwheat! I laughed out loud a few times, but I'm also glad it was a quick short read because when it was done, I was ready to move on!
Now, I'm reading the second City of Bones book!

and eight movies later...

2011-07-15T11:10:00.000-07:00

we are STILL the nerds that wait in line for hours to see Harry and his gang!

We even dress up (Jason as Dobby, Grace as Tonks)

But I was soooo impressed when my tired husband joined us (after getting ready for his trip that he left on the next morning) with his best Gryffindor tie on, like a good little Hogwarts wizard!
The movie was awesome, the friends were fun, the people watching is always entertaining, and yes, some of our group was on the news for all of our craziness!

Lake Ouachita!

2011-07-13T11:26:00.000-07:00

To welcome Grace and Jason into town, we took off to Hot Springs, stayed overnight in a cabin and went boating on the lake all day Saturday! It was hoooooooooooot but it was fun!

We spent Friday night playing games, snacking and goofing around!

Mom and Dad got a big cabin for us to stay in right by the lake!

The lake on Saturday was very hot, but we had fun playing at the beach, taking turns boating (pics to come!) and relaxing! Moonpie even got me to ride the tube with her!
My girls had fun and were so excited to spend time with Grace and Jason in town!

You should know...

2011-07-11T13:41:00.000-07:00

I really wish I were back in Hawaii. I miss it.

It is stinkin' hot here. I feel mean putting my girls into their car seats, Lulu has a heat rash on her neck from her hair, sunglasses are NOT optional, the heat and humidity is like an oppressive wall when you go outside!
My little sister is in town for three weeks! hooray!!! boy, did I need her to come and visit! Our second short sale offer just fell through last week, W has been working very hard at work and school (which really means I've hardly seen him!), the heat makes me want to lay flat on my bed under the A/C vent and do NOTHING, and I'm missing my friend. The last few weeks have been a doozy!

Yesterday, I taught the parable of the ten virgins to my Sunday School class. I am so thankful for this opportunity to teach these girls. Not only do I have the best, most diverse group of girls that are a lot of fun and really make me work :), I have needed and appreciated the opportunity to review the bible and teachings of the gospel these past two years. This lesson was one of those weeks. I needed the reminder. The reminder that the ten virgins were the followers of Christ. Yet five were still foolish. The reminder of the things that I need to be doing to fill my lamp with oil. The reminder that if I'm not increasing my testimony, I'm losing it. Then, I got to go to Relief Society (the women's meeting third hour at church) with my sister. My friend, Hilary, taught the lesson, and it was exactly what I needed. I need to pick up the slack and get moving!

So, hooray for family in town! Hooray for the midnight showing of Harry Potter this Thursday! Hooray for boating at the lake and girls lunch last week! Hooray for Vacation Bible School for Miss M next week! Hooray for swimming after naps at Grandma's house pretty much every day! And hooray for some much needed refocusing for myself!!

Meg Swims!

2011-07-05T17:44:00.000-07:00

I mean, for real, swimming without the assistance of floaties or noodles or anything! She beat me by five years! :)

No mocking, please!

I'm so proud of her! She took to using a mask yesterday, and so we got her her own and sure enough, she took off!!!

Hawaii links

2011-06-30T15:53:00.000-07:00

My sister is doing a much better job documenting with pictures (you just have to avert your eyes from the mushy newlywed stuff!)

Here's day two. (day three is them risking their lives going SCUBA diving-I sat on the beach SAFELY reading my book while W went golfing!)

Here's day four.

Enjoy day five, here.

aunts S&B visit on their way

2011-06-28T17:19:00.000-07:00

W's sisters Sarah and Becca just graduated from college (yay!) and decided to uproot and try out Florida living for a while! So they found a place to live and stopped by Arkansas for a visit on their way! It was wonderful to see them and the girls had a blast with their aunts!

somewhere during the visit, Miss M took a special liking to Sarah.

and wouldn't let go after that! :)
Saturday, we went to the farmer's market, strolled downtown, went to storytime at the library and had lunch at one of our faves:
It was really fun to see the twins, and it was fun to watch my girls bond with them all over again!
We are hoping they love their new home and we're excited to visit them! :)

Summer Reading Reviews: June

2011-06-28T14:50:00.000-07:00

My mother in law asked "where June went" on facebook this morning.

I've decided I read it away! A week on the beach and quiet social life make for a heavy reading month for me!

I have a tendency to request a bunch of books and they all come in at the same time, so I also had a bit of a jam to get them read fast!

First up was Sarah Addison Allen's newest Southern gem!
I love this author. I have decided I will probably read all of her books. I love the quaint southern towns. I love the characters!!! I love how her books have characters that you love and relate to! I love the twist of magic and the little mystery in each tale! The Sugar Queen and Garden Spells are her best but this one was a lovely book as well!!

I got The Forgotten Garden from my mother in law over a year ago, started it a bunch of times but always got distracted by something and then would forget who all the times and characters were! I took it to Maui which was perfect! A week to dive in, get lost in the story and then get sucked in!!
The Forgotten Garden was fascinating, complicated, and I ALMOST guessed the twist but didn't quite get it right but it definitely kept me going, wanting to know what happened! It travels between different time periods from the present character, to her grandmother thirty years ago, to her great grandmother 70 years ago, to even further back a hundred years, weaving these characters' tales together, their histories, and how they all became the people they are until it all resolves. It was definitely A good read!

I traded books with Mom the last day in Hawaii, and brought home the newest Sookie Stackhouse novel.

It is our guilty pleasure. They are fun, you have to cover your eyes and skip a few parts, but they are fun. So sue me! You learn a lot more about the different kinds of "supes" in this one, so it was good to read. But if she doesn't end up with Sam (her boss who is a LIVING shapeshifter) I'm going to be disappointed!

When I got home from Hawaii, my mother in law had picked up my library holds and even read one of the books while I was gone! I knew it had to be page turner!

The Glass Castle is our book club read for July, so I'll keep my thoughts to myself for a few more days! :)

My mil also read another hold she picked up for me while she was here! (I love talking books with her-she always has good suggestions!)
I will probably always read Mary Higgins Clark. She is formulaic, she is predictable (I figured out the twist and the end!) but she is also clean, clever, and I still always get sucked in to each story!

I have moved on to Entwined by Heather Dixon and City of Bones is overdue so I may not get to that one for a while!

What are you reading????

Bottled Rainbows for 12squared!

2011-06-25T14:47:00.000-07:00

This month's quilting assignment is a bottled rainbow.

You frame a white square with a solid color. Then you piece on the white square with scraps that match the border. Fun, huh!

This was my first layout. It changed a bit once I started sewing it together!

It was fun to do another new technique and I can't wait to see all the rainbows together!

Hawaii-the beginning

2011-06-24T17:35:00.000-07:00

I looked at this picture every time I got homesick for my girls. I love this one with my lulu, taken just before we left!

We arrived late Sunday night and got up EARLY Monday morning to drive up to the top of the crater, Mt. Haleakala. It was very windy and very cold and very worth it! I am not sure I've gotten up to see the sunrise anywhere before so I'm glad we did this!
It's W and me. I promise! (did I mention I couldn't find my camera charger, hence all pics are either iphone quality or stolen from my sibs)
It was gorgeous
we stopped on the way down at a cafe for a very yummy breakfast!
We heard it was a good place to kiss!
This was the view from our lanai (porch). It was so lovely each and every day we were there!

my sister has posted some great pics and recaps. go to her blog for more as I slowly catch up!

mending fences

2011-06-24T17:24:00.000-07:00

I avoid the blog when things are on my mind. I've noticed that. I would like to be totally open here, but I've discovered that I blog less when I'm having a problem or struggling with something. I don't want to air my dirty laundry, yet I also don't want to dance around like I'm fine and wonderful.

I'm lonely. One of my best friends just moved and I've been having problems with some others.

I'm utterly distraught about the house.

I'm trying.

but I also feel so ungrateful sharing this. I'm so blessed in so many ways, I just wish I could stop tearing up all day lately! (and no, i'm not pregnant)

I feel like Jo in Little Women who begged, why can't things just stay as they are?

Change is so hard.

return to normal programming...soon!

2011-06-21T07:17:00.000-07:00

My mother calls it re-entry.

The awful days, post-vacation, post visit, post excitement-when the house is a wreck from crazy busy living, and the kids are a wreck because they've been playing hard and sleeping light, and the parents are a wreck because they're wondering where their relaxing vacation disappeared to.

Been there?

I'm there.

The internet is on the fritz lately. The house is slowly being put back together. The letdown of all the excitement is quite lonely. And I'm slowly washing EVERY SINGLE towel in my house (how did that happen? there were only seven of us!)

I'll be back soon with lovely pictures (or go visit facebook to see a lot of them!) of paradise!

back at the starting gate

2011-06-14T06:10:00.000-07:00

We came home from an amazing week (pictures to come) to the news late last night that the sale has fallen through. The bank wanted more on the offer and the buyers immediately backed out. I'm quite devastated. I dreamed last night that I was back in high school. Those dreams only come when I'm stressed! :)

Well, the week was relaxing while it lasted! Here we go again!

Come back next week!

2011-06-04T20:36:00.001-07:00

I'm off to paradise with my sweetie and family!

It's been too crazy to schedule posts, so I'm sorry I haven't been around much!

I promise lovely pictures when I return! :)

Hello June! Stay a while!

2011-06-01T06:33:00.000-07:00

I'm probably the only one who noticed I didn't post goals for May.

I accomplished them. I moved. I cleaned the old yucky apartment and I moved into the new one.

I survived. Done. May is over, and I'm ready to move on!

Here are my lofty goals for the month:

**Swim a lot

**Go to Hawaii for six days and have real conversations with my sweet husband, remember him?

**Have quality family time with visiting relatives from Minnesota! We are so excited to see them!

**Find places for all my stuff, and if I can't find a place, get rid of it!!!

**Try not to spend a fortune on air conditioning... or curtains!

**Read my scriptures every day and pray every morning and night

**Smile

**Read a new book

**Make end of year presents for teachers

A few have asked about the Minnesota house. Your continued prayers and concern are so appreciated! We are currently STILL waiting for the bank (this is normal) to approve the short sale. The offer on the house expires at the end of July so we are hoping and praying that it gets approved soon!!

PreK Promotion!

2011-05-31T11:23:00.000-07:00

Miss M graduated!

This preK has been such a blessing in our lives! It was exactly what she needed and she has learned so much!
These are her two buds, Miss M and Miss N. They hang out everyday, and we hope they stick around with us next year!
Grandma and Aunt T and cousins came to help her celebrate!
I don't know what we are going to do without Mrs. Strom next year. She is an amazing teacher and we love her!

day off

2011-05-30T11:21:00.000-07:00

sometimes we all need a day off.

we've been busy.

we had the day off and we took it.

i still unpacked boxes, but the girls played.

it was needed!

super buggles to the rescue!

Schmagratulations!

2011-05-27T12:42:00.000-07:00

This is my baby brother, Sam.

Wasn't he a beautiful baby?

This is Sam around age four, when he graduated from the Children's Behavior Therapy Unit, his preschool in Utah. He had just started talking.
See, this smiley, happy, busy boy is Autistic. He likes physics, electronics, weather, pool maintenance, xbox, Chuck Norris jokes, and action movies. He paces outside by the pool when he's stressed or there are too many people in the house. He doesn't always understand when people are upset with him.
He loves anything his brothers and Dad do. He has gone from looking like marvin the martian with his giant red motorcycle helmet on the back of Dad's bike, to recently taking lessons to (eek!) drive it himself. He used to only eat peanut butter and marshmallow fluff sandwiches and is now willing to try anything, loving Indian food, and always looking for a new hot sauce to pour on his food.
He is a most excellent uncle, always willing to help with his nieces and nephews, and relating to them in a way that he doesn't with everyone. Lulu has always loved Sam.
He is a workhorse, strong and quick, if he knows what he's doing, but just became undone in the kitchen when Mom asked him to sweep. :)

See, he's gone from a silent, nonverbal toddler to a brilliant, kind of strange, but uniquely charming young man.

He is graduating high school tomorrow. He has risen to be the top student in three of his classes, two of them AP classes. He has exceeded everyone's expectations, and I cannot wait to see what he does next.
Congratulations Sam! I love you!

changes!

2011-05-27T11:18:00.000-07:00

Our girls are growing up!

Miss M graduated out of the wonderful, but BIG, carseat she has sat in for five years! :)

She was so thrilled to get a booster!

And with the new apartment, Lulu moved out of the crib!!!!!

I'm not sure I'm ready for that, but she's doing great. She loves that she has a big girl bed like sister!

A List

2011-05-25T21:36:00.000-07:00

1. I love how the doors don't stick in the new apartment. I can now check on my sleeping babes late at night without the risk of waking them. I love watching my girls sleep.

2. I love McChicken sandwiches. There. I said it. I do.

3. I decapitated the head off a statue in the move. Stupidly. Like it made it to the new apartment safe and sound and I dropped it. Head clean off. It should repair quite nicely which makes me happy because it's the same statue that was in my Grandma Manwaring's living room of a mother in prayer, but it's not her statue, if that makes sense.

4. Miss M complained of a crampy stomach all afternoon and sure enough threw up this evening. All plans of working extra to gear up for a work-free (and therefore paycheck free) week in Hawaii are ruined.

5. I leave for Hawaii in less than two weeks!!!! That means Grandma and Grandpa Holman are coming in 8 days!!!!! We are so excited for them to come! And the girls!

6. Memorial Day=Cleaning the old apartment day for us. ugh

7. I can't quite decide what to make Miss M's teachers for end of year presents. But I need to do them soon since the last week of school, I will be across the ocean.

8. I can't believe I will be across the ocean from my babies. I didn't think it would bother me too much, but as it gets closer it is. The last time I was in Hawaii, I was pregnant with Miss M. In fact, I announced it to my family in the LAX airport. I got morning sickness and spewed Vietnamese food ALL over the bathroom on Maui, and I was carsick on the road to Hana when usually nothing makes me carsick.

9. I'm not pregnant this time.

10. We packed most of our things for the move in girl scout cookie boxes. They were ridiculously small, but my friend delivered them to me, they were nice and light and so they did the trick for the most part. But my Dad says people are going to start thinking we're cookie hoarders.

I can't think of many better things to hoard than thin mints.

12squared: May

2011-05-24T12:46:00.000-07:00

I got together with some of my local quilting friends from 12squared last night and we made sixteen of these.

which makes one of these, and someday soon a beautiful spiderweb quilt!
It was labor intensive but I loved learning a new pattern and technique!!

frustrated

2011-05-24T06:33:00.000-07:00

I have discovered something this weekend.

Banks make short sales as miserable as possible to make sure you are really really really serious that you cannot sell your house or pay your mortgage any other way.

I have just sent my taxes, financial information, hardship letter, and everything you ever wanted to know about me for the FOURTH time.

Little Hoots Aprons

2011-05-18T16:54:00.000-07:00

These are the aprons I made for Teacher Appreciation. You can see the teacher's blog in the post below, but I wanted the pictures I had for a record as well.

I love love love how the applique owls turned out! I love their button eyes and cute little beaks and feet! I love learning how to do new things!
apparently, my cooking skills need some work, if this is how Miss M thinks cooking is done! The kids made a cookbook and it is sooooo cute and funny! The best one is "Pizza" and the instructions are "Drive to Larry's Pizza and get a meatball and cheese pizza. The dessert chocolate chip is good too." At least my daughter knows we have an oven! :)
I don't know what we are going to do next year without these wonderful ladies! We are so blessed!

A Snappy Good Time!

2011-05-15T17:28:00.000-07:00

Moonpie brought over their box turtle, Snappy, to visit for Sunday dinner. We didn't eat him though. He crawled on the floor, everyone got to hold him, and my girls exhibited more bravery than their mother!

Lulu was absolutely enchanted by Snappy and wanted to hold him over and over!!

Miss M was more hesitant but was a brave girl.

He was teeny and cute and was a fun special visitor!

Mother's Day Tea

2011-05-09T15:37:00.000-07:00

go here for some great footage of Miss M's Mother's Day Tea!

a list

2011-05-06T18:50:00.000-07:00

1. It. has. been. a. week. It's been crazy busy and I can't wait to go to bed early or at least put my jammies on early!

2. We move in the next two weeks. I should probably start packing.

3. Mother's Day Tea is my new favorite event. I turned into a puddle watching my girl with her classmates recite a poem and sing a song to their moms.

4. My parents are on a diet and my Mom looks outstanding! Once again I'm blown away at how amazing she is.

5. It's been sunny and warming up but I still haven't made it into the pool. I intend to rectify that tomorrow, if possible. I'm excited for summer but not the heat. Wish I could have summer, the pool, but 70 degrees!

6. I'm infatuated with my new yellow box silver sequin flip flops. They are delightfully comfy and cute and I may have worn them every day this week.

7. I love book club. I need to write a review for Room, which we read for last night. I chose Moonlight over Manifest for June. I needed something I'd read before since we're moving.

8. I have borrowed a string of disappointing movies from the library, so I redboxed The King's Speech this week so W could finally see it and so we're better now.

9. I'm antsy. I can't wait for Hawaii but I also wish I could go west and visit all our family. We were spoiled the year we lived in Utah and I miss them all so much. And "Gra-son" needs to visit much longer than a week. Just sayin.

10. I love the McChicken. There. I said it.

in only 68 days...

2011-05-01T13:45:00.000-07:00

Grace & Jason are coming to visit!!!

Miss M has taken up the cause to make everyone know that it has been FOREVER and EVER since they visited and whenever she is sad, feeling tired, cranky, or in trouble and can't quite figure out why.... she blames it on the fact that Grace is NEVER coming back!

oh, but they are! They are coming in July, so Grace thought she'd try and help M's continual moaning and groaning that she has left us forever!

She sent a package of papers that we stapled together to make a chain and each day we will take off a link, and when the chain is gone, they will be here!

It's cute though, every time M groans about Grace being gone, Lulu immediately chimes in on Jason's behalf! And we are excited to for their visit!

And 68 days until their visit means...

34 days until Grandma Jan and Grandpa Bill and Sarah and Becca come (it's in writing S&B, you can't back out on us this time!!!!)

36 days until W and I leave for Hawaii!!!!

wahoo!!!!