all about the Lanes

the one about the Coney Dog

2011-06-06T14:32:00.000-07:00

Ok, it's not what you think. Allow me to explain.... Poor Finn. He hates to be groomed, but it has to be done. He is part poodle and his hair gets so curly and matted. He usually shakes and panics the whole time. My dear friend Nichole does it at her house. A couple of weeks ago when Finn was getting groomed, he was accidentally cut. It wasn't a terrible cut, but after a few days it wasn't healing so I took him to the vet. The vet said it was healing, but very slowly because Finn wouldn't stop licking it. So, you guessed it.... He got to wear a cone for a few days. And, you are right again, we called him our little coney dog. :) He hated it so bad!! It was only for a few days though and let me tell you... he was SO happy to have it gone. When I took it off, he grabbed it in his mouth and took it in the other room, as if to hide it from me! While he was wearing it, he wouldn't walk, jump or do anything for himself so we had to pack him everywhere. He is so spoiled! Speaking of spoiled, check out this picture! Ridiculous. This is a card we have at the store where I work and I think the picture is so funny! Coney Dog. Hahahaha!!!

the one about my beach cruiser

2011-05-14T08:07:00.000-07:00

In an effort to save money I have recently started riding my bike or walking…everywhere! Gas prices are outrageous and I refuse to pay that much money to drive to work when it is less than mile away. Besides, I am also working on saving ME! I have been dieting and exercising and that ride to work every day is only going to help me, right?
So anyway, about my bike… A few years ago I scored my bike for a killer deal! It was donated by a local bike shop and then auctioned off for charity. I bid on it and won! I got a $350 bike for about $100. This spring, my bike needed a little work. The tires were bad and it just needed some maintenance. I had left the house one evening and while I was gone my sweet husband fixed it all up for me! He even put a basket on the front! I have been riding it ever since. I love it! Some days it is a little chilly, so I just bundle up and off I go. My cute little Finny loves to ride with me too.
You know me… I can’t have a bike story without some kind of catastrophe. The first day I rode my bike to work, I was wearing long loose leg pants. I never even thought about the dangers of pant legs vs. bike chains…. until the two items met. My quick little bike ride came to a screeching halt. Literally. I had to stop my bike, pull my pant leg out and fix my chain guard. It bent so badly that the pedal wouldn’t even go around. I had to kick it, bend it and manipulate it to get it all back in running order. Remember the basket? Yes, I had it clear full and when the basket is full, the bike will not stand on its kick stand. It makes the front end heavy, then the handle bars turn, and then it falls. So this was tricky for me to make minor bicycle repairs on a busy street with no hands and only one foot on the ground (one was caught up in the chain, remember?) I got everything all fixed and I took off. The first 3 seconds of my ride were good, until my pants got caught again. So all of those things that I just said about fixing my bike??? Yah. I had to do all of that again. I quickly learned that I needed to roll up my pant leg. Crisis averted. I was off and running again. Nearly every day, I pack my lunch and take it to work. Usually leftovers, sometimes a sandwich or something like it. This particular day I had a slice of Papa Murphy’s de-lite crust pizza. (Chicken, bacon and artichoke. Yum!) I had placed my pizza on a small paper plate and covered it with plastic wrap. I was just getting confident after my little pant leg scare when, simultaneously, I hit a small bump and a little gust of wind blew by. Because of the thin crust pizza, there was not much weight on my plate. So guess what happened next? Yah, I lost my pizza.  Once I finally got to work, I was laughing about all of my silly adventures in the last 5 minutes. I had to tell on myself. I called Brett and we had quite a good laugh about the whole thing. The next day got a little easier, and the next even easier. I have got my pants caught in the chain so many times it is ridiculous. I just forget to roll up my pants or put a rubber band around my ankle until I get that sudden jolt. Then I quickly remember.
This is not the only trouble I have had on my bike over the years. When I first got my bike, I was taking it for a little spin around the neighborhood. My old bike was a mountain bike style and it had hand brakes. This bike is a single speed beach cruiser and to brake, you make the foot pedals go backwards. I was having a really hard time getting used to it! We had some major road construction going on so there was a lot of gravel on the road. I am sure you can predict where this is going. Bike? Gravel? Bad combo. Well I was going over to the Galley’s house and was getting ready to stop and park my bike. I still have no idea exactly what happened, but somehow right as I was stopping, I fell. And my bike fell. Right in the gravel. One of Garrison’s friends was walking out of the house right at that minute and he saw everything. I am sure he wanted to laugh so badly!! Can you blame him? I was laughing hysterically! I am right now just thinking about the whole thing. The kid looked at me for the longest time and finally says, “You all right?” I just laughed. I told him I was fine, got up, brushed myself off and went inside. It was hilarious.
I am not very graceful and I know that when I ride my bike I look like a total idiot. And I am ok with that. I really don’t care. Just look at all of the gas money I am saving. And look at how much healthier I am going to be! So when you see me riding down the street on my big orange bike with the huge basket, just wave! Don’t honk though because you might startle me and that could be disastrous.

all about things I like

2011-05-13T08:06:00.000-07:00

I will only use Charmin. No butts about it! (hehehe)
What else can I say... It feels nice and soft on my bum and stuff.

all about things I like

2011-05-07T13:24:00.000-07:00

This Friday's pick of the week is on Saturday. Sorry. My bad. Anyway, I want to highlight this amazing product because my family uses it often. It is a pain relieving gel called "Blue Goo."

It is kind of like icy hot type products, but a bazillion times better!!!! Brett uses it on his sore back a lot and Quayd and I use it on our aches and pains. It is tingly, warm, cool and fabulous. It is made from emu oil. Weird!
Not sure what part of the emu the oil comes from... but I don't care. It feels so good! And also not sure why it is called Blue Goo, because it is certainly not blue.

So many unanswered questions..... but I can overlook those for such a wonderful product! :)

all about things I like

2011-04-29T07:50:00.000-07:00

These are my new favorite cups...
My friend Cara found them at Wal-Mart and I am in LOVE!! They are insulated, cute, and have nice straws. I fill them over and over again. With them, I can easily get all of my daily water in. The cups are AWESOME! I know it sounds silly to love a cup so much, but it can really be hard to find a cup that you love and is comfortable and easy to use. I don't love the cups with the drinkie pop top spout thing... I don't like them with anything I have to squeeze or open every time I want a drink... I like cold drinks, but don't like to get ice in my mouth because I have sensitive teeth. So straws are the best for me. There is really a lot of Science in choosing a good cup. Wal-Mart, $5. Gotta love it!!

all about things I like

2011-04-22T07:49:00.000-07:00

This weeks pick of the week: Bountiful Baskets! I mentioned this last week when talking about my strawberry jam and 9 Grain bread. Since I love my Bountiful Basket food co-op, I thought it should be highlighted on my bliggity-blog. Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op (BBFC) distributes produce baskets, organic produce baskets, artisan bread and sandwich bread every week. BBFC is a group of people who work together for mutual benefit. This is a grassroots, all volunteer, no contracts, no catch co-operative. Since there are no employees at Bountiful Baskets, we as a group pay rock bottom prices on your food. To quote a press release that a local City put out to encourage residents to consider participating, “Bountiful Baskets Food Co-op is a participatory experience. Participants all save a substantial amount of money on healthy food. In exchange there are no employees to guide participants through the experience.” On Monday morning, I get on the Internet at about 9:50 AM. I have to be on the ball, or I miss out. Right at 10:00 AM the site opens for me to participate in the weeks offerings. I sign up, pay and anxiously wait until Saturday afternoon to pick up my basket. I always get lots of fresh fruits and veggies. I never really know what they will be, but I have NEVER been disappointed. We have had mangoes, apples, oranges, bananas, tomatoes, spinach, lettuce, onions, mushrooms, melons, squash and lots of other things. It is kind of hard to explain how it all works, so if you are interested, I suggest checking out their website. The best source of information is in the FAQ section.

all about things I like

2011-04-15T07:30:00.000-07:00

My pick of the week this week is my latest favorite treat... 9 grain toast with homemade strawberry freezer jam. Oh my yummy!! I am part of a food co-op group called Bountiful Baskets. Every Saturday I get a huge basket full of fresh fruits and veggies. Last Saturday I ordered lots of extra strawberries so I could make my sister-in-law Danette's Birthday cake. She loves strawberry shortcake. I ended up with WAY more strawberries than I needed. I hated to waste them, so I made freezer jam. The best way to eat yummy strawberry jam is on yummy 9 Grain toast! I get my delicious bread from my food co-op group also. It is the best bread in the whole wide world!!!! All three of us love it! I have never been able to get Quayd to eat wheat bread until now. It makes scrumptious BLT's, grilled cheese sandwiches and turkey sandwiches. It is also delicious when dipped in the yolk of a fried egg, over-medium. Yummy yum yum. :)

the one about southpaws

2011-04-15T04:55:00.001-07:00

The other morning on 2News, they gave this fun and useless random fact, "Right-handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people." I posted it on FaceBook and got a good laugh about it, but then really got me thinking.... I started doing a little research and decided it was all blog-worthy. We live in a right-handed world. For 89% of the World's population, that is fantastic. But for the other 11%, it is really kind of sad. I am a leftie. I tell people all of the time about the differences and challenges we lefties face. They are usually quite surprised at how many things cater to right-handed people. Things that really are no big deal and generally only noticed by left-handed people.

Here are a few facts... Most of these things come from the Internet.

First of all, Hand orientation is developed in fetuses, most commonly determined by observing which hand is predominantly held close to the mouth. Right-handed tools can be difficult or uncomfortable to use for people who are left-handed. For example, (right-handed) scissors are arranged so that the line being cut along can be seen by a right-handed user, but is obscured to a left-handed user. Furthermore, the handles are often molded in a way that is difficult for a left-hander to hold, and extensive use in such cases can lead to varying levels of discomfort. So-called "ambidextrous" scissors will mold the handles to be the same shape, but will not reverse the position of the blades. Most importantly, the scissoring or shearing action - how the blades work together (how they are attached at the pivot) - operates correctly for a right-hander, but a left-hander will tend to force the blades apart rather than shearing the target substance. Left-handed scissors require inverting both the handles and the blades if the left-handed user is to fully see the progress of the cut. Right-handed scissors place the thumb's blade on the left side, while left-handed scissors have this on the right side. This ensures the left hand's motion draws the blades together while cutting, ensuring a cleaner cut.

(Wow! that was a whole lot of boring nonsense about scissors! Sorry about that!)

The vast majority of firearms are designed for right-handed shooters, with the operating handle, magazine release, and/or safety mechanisms set up for manipulation by the right hand, and fired cartridge cases ejected to the right.

(Firearms and dexterity do not really a pose huge problem for me, fortunately.)

Power tools, machinery and other potentially dangerous equipment is typically manufactured with the right-handed user in mind. Common problems faced by left-handed operators include the inability to keep materials steady, and difficulty reaching the on/off switch, especially in emergency situations. Handheld circular saws are made almost exclusively for right-handers, with the motor and grip on the right side. If held in the left hand, it is impossible for the operator to see what they are cutting.

(Again, not a huge stresser for me!)

Here are a few that really apply to me... Regular old handwriting is difficult for a leftie because as you write, you drag your hand right through whatever you just wrote. I seldom use a pencil because it gets lead all over my hand and makes a big mess. I also have to check pens for quick drying ink. Fountain pens are a no-no because they are designed to only allow the ink to flow when dragged across the paper from left to right, not pushed across, like what would happen with a left-handed writer. Also concerning handwriting, many lefties hold their pencil all weird, like this guy. Not me. I hold mine normal, like this.

School desks are designed for a right-hander. Think about that... See. Backwards for me! Here is a typical school desk that would be comfortable for 89% of you.

Alot of research says that left-handedness is hereditary. However, nobody in my family is left-handed. Just me. There is a lot to be said about the whole "Left-brained people are right-handed, Right-brained people are left-handed" theory. Well the characteristics could not be more accurate when it comes to Brett, Quayd and I. They are both VERY left-brained and both right-handed. I, on the other hand, am VERY right-brained! Anybody that knows me would surely agree. By the way, I am completely and totally left-handed. I have NO dexterity in my right hand.

Knives... the blade is backward. see... You know how people peel potatoes with a knife, using their thumb for leverage? Well, I can't do that because the blade is backward. If I tried it, I could end up like this. (HaHaHa!! Funny picture, huh?!?!)

Advertisers should really pay attention to this one... When a right-handed person holds a pen or pencil with a logo or other message on it, you can clearly see what it says. Like this. However, when a leftie holds it... It appears upside down. Really, try it!

Other items which could prove to be inconvenient for left-handers include cameras, can openers, potato peelers, corkscrews, rulers, computer mice and keyboards, watches, checkbooks, spiral notebooks, fishing reels, boomerangs, measuring cups and pencil sharpeners. Also, I have noticed that at banks or stores when a pen is attached to a tablet, it is generally on the wrong side for me. Like the ATM/Debit things at grocery stores. They are usually tilted to be more comfortable for righties, and the cord connecting the pen is sometimes to short because it is placed on the right side. (I really notice this at Smith's Pharmacy!)

The Vanishing-twin theory used to be what researchers believed was the reason for a person to be left-handed. This theory postulates that left-handed individuals were originally part of an identical twin pair, with the right-handed twin fetus failing to develop early in development. The theory has however been debunked by researchers.

Now seriously, I am really not to worried about the whole "righties live longer than lefties" thing. When it is my time, I will go. If its so happens to be 9 years earlier than most people my age... Oh well! And I really don't get to upset about any of these things. I just think it is kind of interesting. And it sure felt good to share with 89% of my readers all of the things that only me and the other 11% knew. I actually love being left-handed. It is kind of quirky and different and I totally wouldn't change if I had the choice.

If being left handed is wrong, I don't want to be right!!!

the one about my iPod

2011-04-11T19:49:00.000-07:00

Back to the challenge.... Put your iPod on shuffle and what are the first ten songs. FUN! First, let me tell you about my iPod. I have been giddy with excitement the last few days because I have a new iPod. An iPhone 4, actually. I love it so so so so so so much! I love to play with it all day and all night. It has actually lead to some serious sleeping problems for me. OH WELL! It's worth it. The only crappy thing is that the phone part won't actually be activated until mid-May. But I can play with it until then. And speaking of PLAY, I am in LOVE with and addicted to the game Angry Birds. It is so fun! Brett loves his too! Quayd even scored because I gave him my old iPod touch. I even have a super cute case for my iPhone. I will be so happy when I can finally ditch my crappy dinosaur CrapBerry. OK, so now on to the challenge.... One moment while I put my AwEsOmE iPhone 4 on shuffle. Ok. Now... Song # 1: Bruno Mars "Marry You" (so good!!! love that song. that was a good number 1) Song # 2: Dixie Chicks "The Long Way Around" Song # 3: Alanis Morissette "You Learn" Song # 4: Katy Perry "Hot & Cold" Song # 5: Matt Costa "Cold December" Song # 6: Kenny Rogers "Lady" Song # 7: Barenaked Ladies "The King of Bedside Manor" Song # 8: Coldplay "Viva la Vida" Song # 9: Mika "Rain" Song #10: Death Cab for Cutie "I Will Possess Your Heart" Wow, that was a good line up of songs! I guess I better back my shuffle up and go listen. (while I play Angry Birds in bed, of course!)

all about things I like

2011-04-07T20:05:00.000-07:00

I absolutely HATE doing laundry. It is BY FAR my least favorite chore. However, I LOVE the following products.

I ALWAYS use Tide. I have tried other detergents in the past, but I just don't like them as well. I prefer liquid original scent. I ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS use Downy. It is just not even worth doing laundry if I can't use Downy. My washer is an old piece of crap-ola, so I have to use a downy ball. Then I use one or two bounce sheets in my dinosaur dryer.

This is what my laundry room looks like.
OK, not really, but I was too embarrassed to take a picture of my REAL laundry room and this one is shockingly close to what mine looks like. Wouldn't it be awesome though if it looked like this?

I felt like this was a TERRIBLE blog post since it talks about the worst chore on the whole planet, so I included some handy tips and alternate uses for Bounce dryer sheets.

Clean baked-on food from a cooking pan - Put a sheet in the pan, fill with water, let sit overnight, and sponge clean. The antistatic agents apparently weaken the bond between the food and the pan while the fabric softening agents soften the baked-on food.
Repel mosquitoes - Tie a sheet of Bounce through a belt loop when outdoors during mosquito season.
Freshen the air in your home - Place an individual sheet of Bounce in a drawer or hang one in the closet.
Prevent thread from tangling - Run a threaded needle through a sheet of Bounce to eliminate the static cling on the thread before sewing.
Freshen the air in your car - Place a sheet of Bounce under the front seat.
Wipe up sawdust from drilling or sand papering - A used sheet of Bounce will collect sawdust like a tack cloth.
Eliminate odors in dirty laundry - Place an individual sheet of Bounce at the bottom of a laundry bag or hamper.
Deodorize shoes or sneakers. Place a sheet of Bounce in your shoes or sneakers overnight so they smell great in the morning.
Having a bad hair day - or - alot of static. Rub a sheet on your hair. Works great and smells nice.
Eliminate static electricity from your television screen -Since Bounce is designed to help eliminate static cling, wipe your television screen with a used sheet of Bounce to keep dust from resettling.
Prevent musty suitcases - Place an individual sheet of Bounce inside empty luggage before storing.
Keep the shock away - Place a sheet in your coat pocket to avoid the shock you get getting in and out of the car in the winter.
Eliminate odors in wastebaskets - Place a sheet of Bounce at the bottom of the wastebasket.
Dissolve soap scum from shower doors - Clean with a used sheet of Bounce.
Collect cat hair - Rubbing the area with a sheet of Bounce will magnetically attract all the loose hairs.
Eliminate static electricity from venetian blinds -Wipe the blinds with a sheet of Bounce to prevent dust from resettling.
Eliminate static cling from pantyhose - Rub a damp,used sheet of Bounce over the hose.
Keep flies out of your house by tacking a sheet above the most used doors (on the outside). Works like a charm.

all about things I like

2011-04-01T07:41:00.000-07:00

My second pick of the week has to be this...
The Dyson ball.
I posted about this a few weeks ago, but I really want to emphasise how much I LOVE it!!! I can't believe how well it cleans. It really does have the "proper about of suction." And isn't it cute!?! Purple is my favorite color! :)

(almost) Wordless Wednesday

2011-03-30T11:58:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to one of the most creative, artistic, funny and handsome young men I know. He is my co-worker, my nephew, my next-door neighbor, Quayd's hero and my very best buddy. I love you Brayden!! Happy 15th Birthday!

the one about bragging

2011-03-29T19:49:00.000-07:00

So I feel kind of weird talking about this because I don't mean to brag. But I am kind of excited to share it. So here goes.

A couple of weeks ago, I went to St. George for 4H Leadermete. It is a conference for 4H volunteers and leaders to learn about new projects and ideas for our 4H programs. We get tons of great information and we usually come back all pumped up and ready to rock our 4H program. It is mostly just a bunch of women that go and we spend lots of time bonding (aka: shopping, eating, laughing, being silly). Oh, and its super fun!! I had been contacted about a month before to see if I would be attending the conference because I had been selected to receive an award. That was all they said to me. I had no idea what the award was for or anything. Fast forward to the night of the banquet... I received the 4H Volunteer of the Year Award! It was super cool, and a huge honor! Brett felt terrible that he couldn't be there the night of the banquet (it just wasn't practical for him to drive to St. George for one evening.) So I had Tara take pictures for me to bring back and share.

This is my award

This is what my bio said

Uintah-Mandy Lane has been involved with the Uintah County 4-H program for four years. Her project areas are Arts & Crafts, Drawing, Painting, & Sculpturing, Photography, Clothing and Textiles, Clothing Construction, Rabbits, Science, and Flower Gardens. Mandy serves on our Adult Advisory Council and is an Advisor to our county Teen council. She frequently does Friday day camps for the Uintah County Extension office. She is involved in the County Fair, and will presenting at Leadermete this year. Wherever Mandy goes, there is laughter and fun! Mandy helps our youth and leaders develop and expand their creativity. Mandy thinks outside the box, and we don’t even know if she knows there is a box. We so appreciate all she has done and is doing for the youth of Uintah County.

Isn't that so nice?!?! I LOVE 4H and I am so glad to be involved with such an amazing program. And to be recognized for my service on a State level?!?! Incredible!!

the one about my purse

2011-03-29T07:55:00.000-07:00

This is another part of my challenge. A lot of my friends that are doing the blog challenge and actually sticking to it, did this one the other day and it sounded fun. So since I am the rule maker of my blog, I want to do it today. :)

What would I find in your purse? My purse was a filthy mess, and I really needed to clean it so this was a great time to do this blog post. Here are some of the things that were floating around in there.

3 watch faces
2 watch bands
necklace
two rings
lotion
hand sanitizer
cash (which is VERY rare!)
4H coin purse
2 granola bars
3 pens
various cards (debit, id, insurance, gift cards, punch cards, hunter safety card)
Scentsy sample
business cards
time sheet
ziplock bags (not sure why)
gum
tampons
advil
2 oz. Vemma bottle
lip gloss
chapstick
carmex
blistex
keys
my camera

Wow! That was a lot of stuff for my cute little purse. These were taken AFTER I cleaned it.

all about things I like

2011-03-25T07:06:00.000-07:00

I realize that nobody probably cares about my favorite things besides me. It's not like I am Oprah and planning on giving one of each of these to my audience members. (Sorry friends!) It is just a way for me to express my love for silly things. My first pick of the week HAS to be my very most favorite beverage in the whole wide world. My heart skips a beat when I even think about it!! Yummy Yum Yum.

Sonic Unsweetened Raspberry Iced Tea.

ahhhhhhhhh...... so refreshing.

My addiction to this drink of wonderment is pretty ridiculous. I was going at least once a day there for awhile, but it was getting a little expensive. So I decided I needed to limit myself to 3 times a week and I can only go during happy hour. (That is 2-4pm and drinks are half price) I love to go to the car hop things, especially when Shae is working.

When I decided to blog about this, I knew I needed to make it worthwhile. I called Tara to see when my cute little Shae would be there. I wanted to get a picture of her as a car hop delivering my drink. Shae knows of my insanity when it comes to unsweetened raspberry tea so I knew she would be the perfect choice to get a picture of. Also, she is pretty much the cutest, coolest car hop EVER!! Anyway, we took the picture as planned. Here it is......

But then she did something that I will forever be grateful for. She actually took the camera inside and took pictures of the making of my unsweetened raspberry tea. AwEsOmE!!!!!! I feel like a 13 year old girl who just won backstage passes to Justin Bieber!! SO Amazing!!! SO here it is...... First add ice....
Then the raspberry flavoring.....
then the tea..... then serve to your creepy customer and see her face light up like an excited little girl. :) Yummy. I love it so much!!! So there it is. My fave drink ever and my very first pick of the week.

the one about some of my friends

2011-03-23T09:00:00.000-07:00

It is no secret that I have been blessed with some amazing friends. I am not sure how I find such wonderful people to surround myself with, but I am sure glad I do! :) Part three of my blog challenge is about friends. It says to post a picture of yourself with your friends. I actually have a picture of me with two of my awesome friends that we took last Friday night in St. George. I guess this is a perfect opportunity for me to tell about our super fun night!!! I went to St. George, Utah last Wednesday-Saturday for a 4H Leadership conference. I learned some incredible stuff and I will be sharing more about it in future posts. Anyway, on Friday night we had a nice big banquet. Afterwards, we had free time to do whatever. One of Tara's sisters lives in St. George and she was letting Tara use one of their vehicles while we were there. Tara asked if anyone would like to go for a ride with her. My cute friend Sheri and I hopped right in! The car was a BEAUTIFUL black convertible mustang. Tara is very familiar with the area so she knew just where to take us. We went to a beautiful place that overlooked the city. We had so much fun taking pictures and being silly!

We headed down the mountain, stopped at McDonalds for snacks, then went to the hotel. As we pulled up to the front door, we decided to get a couple more pictures of Sheri with the car since we had better light. (She LOVES Mustangs!!) As Tara and I stepped back with the cameras, two police officers happened to be walking out of the hotel. It was obvious what we were doing, so they wanted to play along! Ther didn't skip a beat and hopped right in the car! It was so funny!! We joked with them for awhile, told them we had stolen the car and that there may or may not be weed in the trunk, laughed our butts off, then finally headed in to bed. Good times!!

Here is a picture with some of the other girls that went to St. George with us. L to R: Me, Tara, Sheri, Danette, Necia

Now since this is a post about friends, and I have talked about my trip to St.George, I have to finish with this picture of my new bestie, Judy! She is da bomb!!! <3

the one about my blog name

2011-03-22T10:13:00.000-07:00

The second part of my little blog challenge is "What is the name of your blog and why?"

The web address of my blog is "www.craftymandy.blogspot.com" My email address has "craftymandy" in it and for a lot of my different Internet stuff, my user name is "craftymandy." It is just kind of the name I have given myself, and it has really stuck. Sometimes I wish I would have re-thought my blog address and had it be more about my family. But I don't feel like I can change it now. I have been blogging for 3 1/2 years!!! Besides, my blog is written by me and only me. It is about my family, but in my words. So I guess it works.

The title of my blog is "All About the Lanes." I went with that because, well, I am a dork and I love the show Friends. All of the Friends episodes are titled with "the one about..." I have always liked that, so I copied it. Most things in my life are connected, one way or another, to an episode of Friends.

Here is a funny little story about my blog. I just got home on Saturday from a four-day 4H leadership conference. I met the funniest, coolest lady there. We started calling each other "my new bestie." We hung out a lot and she is just awesome. Her name is Judy. Anyway, we spent all of this time together. I emailed her today and my blog address appears on my signature at the bottom of my email messages. Judy noticed the address and decided to go look at my blog. She quickly emailed me back to tell me that she had snooped my blog and she had no idea I was married. She thought I was an old teenager or in my very early twenties!!! Flattering, I guess. I was sure to inform her that I am actually 32, been married for 13 years and have an 8 year old. It was funny. And sweet. And kinda weird.

the one about getting back into blogging

2011-03-21T09:20:00.000-07:00

Truly, blogging os one of my favorite things ever. But sadly, I have gotten out of the habit. I have noticed that several of my bloggy friends have been doing a 30 day challenge. I thought it might be a good way to get back into it and help it become a habit again. However, I am afraid that committing to blog every day will probably overwhelm me. My cute friend Lindsay kinda said the same thing, so she inspired and reminded me that I can do whatever I want. It is my blog afterall! So I am just gonna modify the challenge a bit and hopefully it will work for all of us! I will occasionally post "Wordless Wednesdays" too. Sometimes, I just see something that kind of takes my breath away. Sometimes funny, sometimes tender and sometimes gross. So when I am feeling speechless (which isn't very often!) you will see it on Wednesdays! I also want to start "Mandy's pick of the week!" I have tons of stuff that I love and adore so I want to feature those things on my blog. I love my blog so much and even more, I love the people who follow it! So I am working on being a better blogger. I promise!

Today I am going to start with the first of my 30 post challenge.

Recent Picture of You and 15 Interesting Facts
I actually have a very recent picture of myself! I took this picture of myself on Friday evening in the back seat of a convertible mustang in St. George, Utah.
Interesting Fact #1: I love people. Really, I do. I believe that overall, people are good. People have good intentions and just want good things for themselves and their loved ones. Yes, I agree, there are some exceptions. But for the most part, everyone has good in their hearts and I love finding that. I believe that everyone has a story and I love to be able to hear it. I try to be kind to everyone. I am not always the best at this and I am certainly not perfect, but I know a little kindness goes a LONG way!

Interesting Fact #2: I love food! I love trying new things and experimenting with different tastes, textures and cultures. Not only do I love to eat it, but I also love to cook food. I consider myself a pretty good cook. I learned to cook from two of the best cooks I know.... My mom and my Great-Grandma Karren. Usually, I prefer my own cooking over a restaraunt. I live with two VERY picky eaters, so I try not to get to adventurous in the kitchen. When we go out, I LOVE to try different things. Almost everything I order at a restaraunt is seafood. Brett and Quayd hate seafood so I never get to have it at home.

Interesting Fact #3: I am left-handed. And I mean TOTALLY left-handed. I cannot do anything with my right hand. I use my hands for EVERYTHING so I get nervous thinking about what would happen to me if I broke or injured my left hand. It would be a sad day. I love my hands!!

Interesting Fact #4: I have such a soft spot in my heart for animals. Every kind! However, I am not a big fan of reptiles, bugs or birds.

Interesting Fact #5: I don't really care one bit about college sports. I know that is horrible to say and I will probably get hate mail over it, especially since March Madness is going on right now, but seriously. I just don't give a crap.

Interesting Fact #6: I really want to learn how to knit. My cousin Brooke knits all kinds of cool things and I think it is AWESOME!

Interesting Fact #7: I am SO happy to be involved with 4H. It is something that I just love! I am a teen council advisor and working with those kids is awesome. I also work with younger kids and I get to teach them skills that they can use forever. I was introduced to 4H a few years ago and it happened at a time that I really needed to feel involved somewhere. I seemed to be kind of loanly and "empty" right then. Feeling needed and accepted was HUGE for me. Life-changing, actually. I am so grateful for the people I have met and the skills I have aquired.

Interesting Fact #8: I love iced tea. Like, OBSESSIVLY love it. I rarely drink soda anymore. I just love iced tea (and water.) Incase you ever want to bring me an iced tea, I DO NOT LIKE IT SWEETENED!!! Just regular. Yummmy. :)

Interesting Fact #9: I play the mandolin. I learned when I was young, but haven't played for years. I have recently started playing again since Quayd has been taking banjo lessons and it is so much fun. I go over to my grandpa's and we just pick out tunes together.

Interesting Fact #10: I love having my hair played with.

Interesting Fact #11: I am creative. I don't mean to sound boastful, but I am. And I am proud of it! I love being able to create things. It's really pretty cool! I like to sew, scrapbook, paint and all kinds of other crafty things.

Interesting Fact #12: I HATE mornings. I hate everything about them. My alarm clock makes me SO mad every morning. Ugh. NOT A MORNING PERSON!

Interesting Fact #13: I love to travel!!! However, I hate driving to my destination. I get car sick, bored and so uncomfortable. I can't read or do anything in the car. I can only look at the road. :( Driving home from St. George this weekend nearly killed me. We finally put in a movie and I watched the whole thing while fighting back nausea.

Interesting Fact #14: I had 5 wisdom teeth! Two were on the top left side of my mouth. Weird. And kinda gross.

Interesting Fact #15: I am a total girlie-girl. I like to be pampered. I like dressing up for different occasions. I love make-up, purses, jewelry and things that smell nice. I love fashion and experimenting with different looks and styles. I like trying new things with my hair. Infact, right now, I have feather extensions! They are kind of different and weird, but I like them! (these are not mine, by the way)

Ok, so there it is. The first post of my challenge. It was kind of fun! Stay tuned for more posts!! :)

the one about a beautiful sight

2011-02-21T16:33:00.000-08:00

Is there anything more amazing and precious than seeing your child doing this?

And how about that beautiful vacuum??? That was my Christmas present and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it!! Today was my day off, Quayd didn't have school and Brett was out of town, so we had a house cleaning party. I invited everyone I knew, but nobody came. Bummer. So Quayd and I worked our butts off! It is so nice though to be sitting in a clean house. I also put up my Spring decor.

A little early, I know, but I HAD to see something bright and cheery around here since Winter seems to be dragging on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on......... Maybe my cute decor will help melt the snow!

the one about the furry handcuffs

2011-02-17T10:57:00.002-08:00

Yes, I have furry handcuffs. Don't judge me, I have a good explanation!!

Brett has this buddy that lives in Evanston. He is hilarious!!! His name is Jerimy and He and Brett think they are both the greatest things alive. They are very funny together and quite crude (if you can imagine that coming from Brett!) I tease them about being lovers, boyfriends and soul mates. Jerimy was in town on Tuesday and I told Brett I would fix dinner for them so they could hang out. I had plans for the evening so I wouldn't be home. Anyway, after work, I ran to the grocery store to grab a few things. As I walked to the checkout, I noticed a bin of Valentine's clearance stuff. I will admit, I was hoping to find Reece's peanut butter hearts. But I found one better!!!! You guessed it! Furry handcuffs!! And they were CHEAP!
I knew it would be so funny to give them to Brett and Jerimy with their dinner. I made them a lovely dinner and gave them the handcuffs. It was funny and everything worked out just as I had planned. The next day, Quayd and his cousin found the handcuffs and thought they were super cool. They started playing with them and had a great time. They were totally clueless as to why they were red and furry, they just thought it was cool to play Houdini and cops and robbers with the new handcuffs. We just went with it. It was harmless...... UNTIL.... Quayd started telling us how they have been playing FBI at recess and how cool it would be to take the handcuffs and lock up the bad guy. OH MY HECK!!! Can you imagine??? What would the faculty think of the little Lane boy locking up naughty kids with red furry handcuffs!?!?!?! We told him he couldn't take them and he just didn't understand why. He tried to sneak them in his backpack, but I stopped him. Geez.... That was a close one! I would have been the talk of the school all because of a $.50 gag gift!

So see, it was totally innocent. A blog post about furry handcuffs turned out to be totally different than you expected, right?
Trust me... If I wanted to do the handcuff thing, Brett still has a pair of REAL handcuffs from way back when he was in police academy. I wouldn't mess around with these cheap plastic ones! ;)

the one about nothing, really

2011-02-16T19:27:00.000-08:00

I am so disgusted that it has been 5 months since I last blogged. It seems like the time just flew by and before I knew it I went from blog slacker to blog QUITTER. Everytime I would think about blogging, I would get overwhelmed at how far behind I was. Tonight, I talked myself out of my fit of anxiety, decided not to worry about playing catch up and just BLOG! This is my 352nd post! Isn't that crazy!?!

So much has been going on with us. First of all, my camera has been broken. So I pretty much have no memory of the last few months. I take pictures here and there on my Blackberry, (Or should I say CRAP-berry? I cannot WAIT for my new iPhone!!!)but there is such a delay on my phone and the pictures are usually awful so its just not worth it. However, I do have the CUTEST picture of our new puppy. His name is Moe. He is a Shih tzu and SO much fun! We now have two dogs and they seem to be the center of our lives! They are so much like our kids. Certainly as much work as a kid! But the love and companionship they give us is priceless! They are our babies and we love them so much. This is Finn.
We have had him for a little over a year. He turned 1 in September and we had a birthday party for him. We also celebrated the anniversary of the day we got him. It was called his "Special Day." We got Moe the day before Halloween and he is quite the character! He is kinda naughty, but so much fun. They love each other very much. Most of the time. :)

Ok, I am starting to creep myself out with all of the dog talk. New subject.

Last month I got to go to Dallas with my sister-in-law Danette and my nephew Brayden for market so we could get new stuff for the store. It was so much fun! I love going to market. It is so much work and total chaos, but I LOVE it!! I have the best job ever!

Quayd is getting smarter and funnier every single day. He totally keeps us on our toes with all of his crazy stuff! He loves country music. Not like new pop country, OLD classic country music. He is obsessed with it and cranks it up every chance he gets. His iPod is even loaded with old country music. He has decided he wants to learn to play the banjo. My Grandpa has been working all week getting ready for his first lesson tomorrow. We will see how that goes.

Ok. I think that is all for tonight. I don't want to have blog overload. This was a start. A really boring post, but it got me going again. I hope. I truly do love to blog.... I just can't seem to bablance my time well enough to do it. Hummmmmmmm..... something to work on.

the one about football

2010-09-29T07:37:00.000-07:00

This fall, Quayd decided to play tackle football. We started practice a couple weeks before school started and it has been a little more than any of us bargained for! We practice for two hours Monday-Thursday and games one night a week and every Saturday. Quayd is on the Broncos (woo hoo!) and they are doing AWESOME. They are the number 2 team in the league and we are so proud! It has been a little hard to watch my baby boy play such a tough sport, but I have enjoyed it and I have actually learned the game!!! (Something Brett has been trying to teach me for YEARS now!) Not only have I learned the game, but I am starting to LOVE the game! Who knew?

Yesterday morning, Quayd had a dentist appointment. When he was finished he earned a token to use in the little prize machine. I was paying at the desk while he chose his prize. We got to the car and he was so excited to show me what he got... A FAKE MUSTACHE! It is so funny, and SO Quayd. He put it on right then and wore it all day. He even insisted he wear it to his game. He said that nobody on the other team would want to tackle a tough kid with a big old mustache!

the one about my dinner group

2010-09-23T23:46:00.000-07:00

I recently joined a dinner swap group. I must say, it has been one of the best things in the world for my family. It is a pretty simple concept.... I cook dinner one night a week for 3 other families. I get food delivered to my house 3 other nights. It is amazing! This is actually the second time I have been involved in a dinner group and I have loved it both times.

I love to cook and I feel like I am a pretty good at it. My problem is that I have a busy family and simply don't have time to fix an elaborate sit-down dinner each night. With my dinner group, I don't have all of the hassle of cooking and cleaning up every night, but I get the benefits of a delicious meal.

The first time I was involved in a group, we all pitched in and got nice dishes to pass around. For 4 families, we bought 6 sets of dishes. (One set of dishes included 1- 13x9 casserole dish, 1- 8x8 dish, and 2- glad ware rectangular containers) When we started, the Monday night cook had 3 sets of dishes. Tuesday night cook started with 2 sets and the Wednesday night cook started with one. Thursday night cook had zero to start. On Monday, the cook delivered 1 full set to each family (even if all dishes were not used) and used her own dishes to cook for her family. On Tuesday, with the set of dishes delivered the night before, the cook has 3 sets of dishes to deliver her food. At this point, the Wednesday cook has received another set, and so has the Thursday cook. By the time it is your turn to cook, you should have 3 complete sets of dishes to pass around. Does that make sense?

My current group does the dishes thing a little differently. We just use the disposable dishes from the dollar store. Whenever you cook, you buy whatever dishes you need. Personally, I like having the real dishes better than the cheap throw away dishes.It cost a little more up front, but was worth it in the end.

I found this GREAT website that will answer all of your questions about starting a dinner swap group. They explain things FAR better than I do!!

I have to say, my favorite thing about being involved in a dinner swap group is the time it saves during the week for me to be with my family. We sit down together and eat dinner as a family at the table nearly every night! I usually set the table, which I didn't always do before. I am not as stressed about "slaving" in the kitchen all night every night, so we actually ENJOY our time together in the evenings. I also love the fact that I work extra hard to prepare a nice meal on my night because I know I am feeding more people. Sometimes we get too comfortable and forget to take care of the ones that mean the most to us, so this type of cooking reminds me to do that. Plus, I know that every other night, the cook is doing the same thing for her family.

I am not even kidding... this has been a WONDERFUL thing for my family!!!

This is a sample menu and recipes from each one of us in my group. "A week in the life of Mandy, Cara, RayDean and Aubrey." :)

Turkey Pot Pie (On Monday, from Me)
Ingredients
1 (15-ounce) package pie crusts
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
3 cups cooked, cubed JENNIE-O TURKEY STORE® Turkey Roast
2 cups mixed vegetables

Directions
Heat oven to 425°F. Place pie crust in 9-inch pie pan. In medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion; cook until tender, about 2 minutes. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture is bubbly. Remove from heat. Stir in broth and milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute. Stir in turkey and vegetables; remove from heat. Spoon turkey filling over crust. Place second crust over filling; flute edge. Cut slits in several places. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

Chicken Zucchini Bake (on Tuesday night, from Cara)
Ingredients
2 (8 ounce) cans refrigerated crescent rolls
2 tablespoons honey Dijon mustard
4 cups sliced zucchini
1 large onion, sliced
1/4 cup butter
2 cups cooked, shredded chicken breast meat
3 eggs
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1 (8 ounce) package shredded mozzarella cheese

1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2.Open the cans of crescent rolls, unroll the dough, and place the dough into the bottom of an 11x15-inch baking pan. Do not separate the rolls. Press the edges of the dough up the sides of the pan to make a shallow crust. Spread the honey mustard over the dough.
3.Place the zucchini and a few tablespoons of water into a saucepan over medium heat, cover, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, and cook the zucchini until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain and set the zucchini aside. Place the onion in a large skillet with butter over medium heat, and cook and stir until the onion is translucent, 5 to 8 minutes. Stir the cooked zucchini and chicken into the onion, and mix well. Let the mixture heat for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Spread the zucchini mixture in an even layer over the crust.
4.In a bowl, beat the eggs with salt, black pepper, basil, oregano, and garlic powder; pour the egg mixture over the zucchini. Sprinkle the cheese over the top.
5.Bake in the preheated oven until the egg mixture is set and the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 20 minutes.

Lasagna (on Wednesday, from RayDean)
Ingredients
1 pound sweet Italian sausage
3/4 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 (28 ounce) can crushed tomatoes
2 (6 ounce) cans tomato paste
2 (6.5 ounce) cans canned tomato sauce
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
4 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
12 lasagna noodles
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 pound mozzarella cheese, sliced
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions
1.In a Dutch oven, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, 1 tablespoon salt, pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.
2.Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook lasagna noodles in boiling water for 8 to 10 minutes. Drain noodles, and rinse with cold water. In a mixing bowl, combine ricotta cheese with egg, remaining parsley, and 1/2 teaspoon salt.
3.Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
4.To assemble, spread 1 1/2 cups of meat sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 noodles lengthwise over meat sauce. Spread with one half of the ricotta cheese mixture. Top with a third of mozzarella cheese slices. Spoon 1 1/2 cups meat sauce over mozzarella, and sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Repeat layers, and top with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. Cover with foil: to prevent sticking, either spray foil with cooking spray, or make sure the foil does not touch the cheese.
5.Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. Remove foil, and bake an additional 25 minutes. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Stuffed Pork Chops (On Thursday, from Aubrey)
Ingredients
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 thick cut pork chops
3 cups day-old bread cubes
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/4 cup chicken broth
2 tablespoons chopped celery
2 tablespoons chopped onion
1/4 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/3 cup water

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2.In a skillet, heat the oil and brown the pork chops. Place the pork chops in a baking dish.
3.In a bowl, toss the bread cubes, melted butter, chicken broth, celery, onion, and poultry seasoning together. Put heaping mounds of the bread crumb mixture onto the pork chops.
4.Combine the cream of mushroom soup with the water, and pour this mixture over the stuffing and pork chops.
5.Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
6.Uncover and continue baking for 10 minutes longer or until juices run clear. The meat thermometer should read 160 to 170 degrees.

the one about our cute moms

2010-08-24T23:06:00.000-07:00

My mom, Julie and Brett's mom Gleneita just had their class reunion. I have to share these pictures because they are so cute!! Gleneita was SO nervous, so she had to come down to my house so I could reassure her she didn't look like the "class hooker." (her words, not mine!) And my mom needed my help getting into her "slimming apparatus," as she called it. They were both so cute and looked so BEAUTIFUL! Brett and I wiped a tear as we sent our girls out for a fun night with their old friends. (Not really, but we kinda felt that way!!)

the one about the fair

2010-08-21T12:04:00.000-07:00

We LOVE the County Fair! We look forward to it all year. We love the concerts, the exhibits, the food, and of course the CARNIVAL!
It seemed like our family was at the fair the whole week this year! I am a 4H leader so I was asked to take a few shifts working "security" for the indoor home, arts & crafts exhibits. Brett helped with the fireman's challenge and there were just so many fun things happening so Quayd wanted to be there every minute. He visited the little red barn, participated in the candy drop and played at the carnival nearly every day. He also worked very hard this year and made some projects for the 4H exhibit. He is not an official 4H member until he goes into the third grade (in 4 more days) or turns 8 (in 9 days) so he wasn't able to compete or place for state judging this year, but he earned rainbow "Cloverbud" ribbons for all of his projects.

On Saturday, before the demolition derby, my mom and I took Brayden, Brennen and Quayd to the carnival. We all had so much fun! I started not feeling well after a couple of hours, so I had to leave a little early, but not before getting some great pictures!!!

he did it AGAIN!!!

2010-08-17T22:53:00.000-07:00

Remember the helpful household tip??? Pine Sol in the swamp cooler?

Well, Brett did it again. Only MUCH WORSE this time. He came home for lunch the other day and I asked him to do the Pine Sol trick. I had done it the last time but I am just a little too short and when I dumped the capful, more ran down my armpit that actually went into the cooler. I reminded him, "just a capful!" Quayd and Brennen were in the living room playing Wii so Brett and I went to my bedroom to watch the noon news. After a few minutes, the boys came in and told us that they were getting all wet. Brett just ignored them. They came in a few seconds later and said the floor was all slippery. I told Brett to get his butt out there and see what was going on. Well no joke... we had 1/2" standing water on our living room floor! The couches were saturated and soapy and the power strip that has all of the tv cords was SOAKED! It shorted out and sparked and we lost power to that outlet. The living room smelled like a forest fire!

I was trying so hard not to be mad... BUT SERIOUSLY!?!?!? Twice? Come on, Brett!

the one about my super fun girls weekend

2010-08-16T23:40:00.000-07:00

My friend Cara was invited by some friends and I was invited by Cara to attend the first annual wine tasting girls weekend in Palisade, Colorado. Cara and I rode out together. We left Saturday morning and arrived in Palisade, met up with the other 6 girls and had lunch. We hired a limo to drive us around to different vineyards and winery's. It picked us up at the hotel at 1:00. Natalie, Nan, Jeanine, Cara, me, Jen, Amber and Kim

We were able to taste, shop and tour several winery's and a brewery. It was a 4 hour tour.... a 4 hour tour. (Get it? Gilligan's island, hahaha!)
Anyway, the tour was really cool and we had a great time! We stayed at the Wine Country Inn. It was SO nice! Cara and I shared a room and it was beautiful!
We had dinner at a cute little pizza shop then everyone wanted to swim. I was so tired, so I hung out in the room that night. I hate it! I wanted to play with the girls, but I also have to respect my body. When it says slow down... I gotta listen. Anyway, we slept like LOGS that night. I guess having a bed to ourselves with no interruptions is just what we both needed! We woke up Sunday morning and first thing, took care of the most important thing you have to do in Grand Jct./Palisade this time of year.... PEACHES!! We each bought a big box of fresh peaches. YUMMY!!! After that, we headed to the mall and got school clothes. I can't believe school starts NEXT WEEK! And I really can't believe my baby will be 8 in two weeks!!!! Summer has just flown by. It seems like school just barely got out for the summer, and here I am, getting Quayd ready for 3rd grade. Anyway this girls weekend was the perfect way to say goodbye to summer. Thanks girls for the invite, and I can't wait til next year!!

the one with a helpful household tip

2010-07-20T07:33:00.000-07:00

It's hot. Lets face it, we are in the dead of summer! I heard this little tip the other day and thought it was too good not to share. When you are running your swamp cooler 24/7 it kinda starts to get that musty smell. To get rid of that smell and also just to freshen up the smell in your house, raise one of the panels and put a capful of PineSol in there! It instantly freshens your whole house.

HOWEVER.... (you knew there would have to be a story, right???)

Don't over do it! A little goes a long way. While I was at work Saturday, Brett was cleaning the living room and decided to use this helpful tip. I am not sure how much he put in there, but he suddenly noticed bubbles blowing all over the house!!! He ran (well, limped!) outside, lifted the panel and soapy bubbles came pouring out. He had to spray out the whole swamp cooler and had quite a mess to deal with. HaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa! Poor Brett!!!

the one about fruit roll-ups

2010-07-17T15:47:00.001-07:00

Quayd left this box of mini fruit roll-ups at my work. There were two left. Earlier today, I decided to eat one. It was delicious. Later, since I had been thinking of how yummy, sweet and chewy it was ALL DAY, I decided to eat the last one. Now, I am no expert on eating fruit roll-ups, but I really thought it was pretty user friendly. Yummy green candy spread out on a thin sheet of paperey plastic. Peel and eat. Right? WRONG! I could not get the fruity divinity off of the thin papery HELL! I used my teeth, my nails, and apparently the rest of my face and tounge since it was all green by the time I gave up. I finally gave up after trying for about 20 minutes. After I finally threw it away, I realized that fruit roll-ups really arent that good afterall. Why was I so persistent on something that is not only bad for me, but BAD alltogether! I couldn't stop thinking about it all day though, just because it was right by me. And I was like a raging wolf trying to get it all off the paper and into my belly. SICK! 20 minutes of my life was wasted on this nasty green glob of papery plactic gooey chewy green MESS!!!!

the one about the pouring rain

2010-07-12T21:38:00.000-07:00

The pouring rain, you ask? Well, it has been made clear to me lately that when it rains, it pours! That is not meant to sound negative, but in this update, every story has something to do with rain or pour. Plus, we have had so much going on lately, that.. yes. It does seem like when it rains, it pours!

I'll begin with rain/pour story #1. (Warning, this story is kinda long, so feel free to skip ahead.) As probably everyone knows already, I have some issues with my heart. I really hate talking too much about this but I have been having some problems recently and thought I would share. In January, I went in for my regular check up. My Doctor decided to take me off of my medicines because I had been doing so well. It was decided that the negative side effects of my medicine were not worth it anymore and as long as I didn't get pregnant, I was fine. The first few months were going well, but lately I have noticed things were changing. My energy was crap and my blood pressure and heart rate were getting high again. I got super sick with flu like symptoms during the first week of June. I went to my family doctor and she said I had a virus. I had been fighting a fever, aches, chills and all of that fun stuff. I started feeling a little better within 10 days or so, but still not awesome. I was up and down for a week or so, then i got really sick again. I was feeling awful and I knew it was my heart. Brett had called my cardiologist and made and appointment, but until then I was supposed to stay down and track my vitals. (Sure is handy having an EMT for a husband!) My appointment was set for Thursday July 1st. The Friday before, I could feel I was going down fast! I felt awful. I had a RESTING heart rate of 120-140. I had headaches, body aches and a sharp pain in the left side of my neck. We were super scared. We called the cardiologist and he didn't seem to concerned. He kept saying that my heart looked great in January when I had my last echo cardiogram. Well a lot had changed since then and I didn't feel like he was taking us serious. By Tuesday night, Brett was scared enough that he felt like we needed to go to the hospital. I didn't want to go to our local hospital because I knew they would just send me to SLC. We packed up everything, sent Quayd to my brother's house and hit the road. We got to SLC around 11:00 pm. When I got to the ER, there were several people there waiting to be seen. As soon as they took my vitals and heard my symptoms they marked my chart as "URGENT" and took me right back. I saw a Doctor right away, they started an EKG, blood work and a million other tests. I had a fever of 101.5. They did several different tests and scans on my heart and decided that except for the high heart rate, it looked good. They knew there must be an infection somewhere but didn't know where so they didn't dare give me an antibiotic. (BUG! What is with doctors and antibiotics these days?!?) They gave me some meds and IV fluids and I started feeling better. They released me the next day. I still had an appointment with my cardiologist on Thursday so we just got a hotel room and crashed. When I went to the cardiologist, he was a total jerk to me! He made me feel like I was wasting his time. Don't get me wrong, I was glad that he said my heart looked good but he didn't even take the time to listen to everything that had been going on. He pretty much told me that I was old and fat. OLD???? I am 31!! Fat??? Yes, but had he looked at my chart and cared a little bit, he would have been impressed to see how much weight I have lost since I last saw him. He adjusted my medicines and sent me home. He was a huge ass! We drove home and I was feeling worse than ever. On Friday, I went back to my family doctor and she said that it was obvious that I had a terrible sinus infection. I had a fever of 102 and she gave me an antibiotic. I have been feeling better, but my heart rate is still high. I still have body aches and I just don't feel that great. I guess it will just take time. Whatever. Anyway, I can't end this story without telling about the HUGE outpouring of love I felt during all of this. I have such great family and friends and they were right there, bringing us meals, stopping by bringing treats, visiting, calling and texting and it seriously meant the world to me! My pal Cara let me borrow her New Moon movie so I could get all caught up before I go see Eclipse. She also brought me some popcorn, licorice and these fun vampire teeth!

Love it! Thanks Cara! We had tons of fun with these!

Ok, rain/pour story #2. It was the Annual Galley family camp out this last weekend and it was a blast, as usual! We had a huge turnout and I love being around this great family. We were able to go river rafting on Friday morning, and even though I wasn't feeling great, I still had a great time. (There was on incident that happened that kind of put a damper on the weekend, but I am saving that for story #3.) The weather wasn't totally cooperative. It rained and poured almost the whole time. Oh well. Nothing can ruin our camping spirit!

Not even rain/pour story #3. Brett, Quayd and Finn headed up the mountain for camping on Wednesday night. I needed to stay and work another day, so I rode up with Talia Thursday night. It was so nice to get there and have camp all set up! Brett and Quayd did a great job. After we ate dinner that night, we were all chatting around the camp fire. Brett started playing around with some of the teenage boys. Not sure how it started, but they started having a fly swatter war. Some how, Brett stepped back in a hole and hyper-extended his knee. He was in a lot of pain but said it would be ok. By Friday afternoon, he was about to pass out from the pain. He decided to head to town and go to the ER. The ER doc said he tore a contour ligament and that he needed to see the ortho specialist. He said it would most likely require surgery. The Doctor put him in a brace, gave him crutches and sent him on his way. Brett made an appointment for Monday (today) at 4:30 with the ortho guy. We weren't sure what a "contour ligament" would be, so when he got back to camp, we googled it. (Yes, we had Internet on the mountain. Talk about "roughing it!") It is either the ACL or the MCL. Both are very bad. We decided to wait and see what the doc said on Monday. We went to his appointment and were told many different scenarios of what it could be. All sound pretty bad. Brett has to have an MRI of his knee so the doctor can see exactly what is going on, then we will go from there. I keep reminding Brett that he is not as young as he used to be, so playing with those teenage boys was probably not his best idea. Actually, he is suffering enough with the pain, so I have tried to keep my mouth shut. So when it rains health drama at our house, it pours!!!

Rain/pour story #4. A few weeks ago, Brett had to teach a HAZMAT class in Price. He had already been in Denver for a few days for work then 3 more days in Price. I had been feeling crappy and stressed and I just needed my hubby. Quayd and I packed up and drove there so we could spend the weekend with dad. we ended up staying an extra day and we had a great time! Brett was teaching with his friend Todd and his family ended up coming down too. One night while Brett was teaching, Todd's wife and I took Quayd and the other kids to Toy Story 3. The next day when Brett was finished teaching we went to the wave pool.

The waves were seriously pouring down on everyone! It was so much fun!

We were lucky enough to get to go boating with my brother and his family on July 4th and 5th. That brings me to story #5. We packed a nice big lunch, bought fishing licenses, caught night crawlers and got all ready for a fun day on the lake on the 4th of July. We were there for a couple of hours and guess what? It started to rain! And when it finished raining, it started to pour! We tried to stick it out for as long as we could, but we were freezing! We had caught several nice fish. We thought if we just cruised around the lake for awhile, it might clear up. We had been going pretty fast for awhile when we realized that our fish basket was still hanging off the side of the boat. We stopped pulled it in and it was empty. :( All of our fish fell out the bottom. It was raining even harder, so we packed up and went home. Empty handed. Because of the long holiday weekend, we packed a new lunch and headed out the next day! It was perfect! We caught lots of fish (and even came home with them!) and cruised around on the lake for hours.

The tooth fairy is responsible for rain/pour story #6. She has been hitting our house so hard lately, it seems like it is raining tooth fairy magic! Quayd is at that age where he is losing tooth after tooth after tooth.

It seems with each tooth comes less drama! Quayd used to freak out when it was time to pull a tooth. Last week, he lost one while eating a ice cream cone and it was never retrieved. He lost another last night and he came to me and asked me to pull it. The tooth fairy has brought "scratch and win" lottery tickets for the last two teeth lost. He thinks they are so cool. :) He is getting so big! I love and hate it!

So I guess that does it for my "when it rains it pours" blog. Kinda hokey, I know. And very long. Sorry about that. Once I finally take the time to sit down and blog, the word seem to just pour out!

the one about a butterfly

2010-06-29T10:11:00.000-07:00

So I have been feling a little ill lately. I have had to stay down in bed as much as possible and Quayd has been taking very good care of me. Yesterday, my mom had picked up a few things at the store for me so I sent Quayd to pick them up. When he was walking in my back door, he noticed a little butterfly. It had flown near a spiderweb and part of its wing was stuck. It was struggling to get free. Quayd quickly brought the grocery items inside, grabbed a pair of scissors, went back outside and clipped the butterfly free. I was in bed through all of this. He came in my bedroom and told me the story. He was beaming with pride as he told me all about it and he had a tiny little tear in his eye as he said, "Mom, it made me feel so good to help that little butterfly."

How sweet is that???

the one about a boy and his dog

2010-06-28T10:45:00.000-07:00

When we got our dog Finn last November, I honestly wondered what we were thinking. We are not dog people and we are WAY to "on the go" to be dealing with a dog. I always feel so much guilt for Quayd being an only child and I know he gets super lonely and bored. So when I have the cutest little boy holding the cutest little puppy, what am I supposed to say??? It was right before Christmas and the dog cost more money than we really needed to be spending at that time, but seriously... what do ya do? I called om my good old trusty back up. The mean dad! But he couldn't say no either. I truly believed that it wouldn't last. The breeders told me they would take him back if it didn't work out so I kind of had an out. Well little did I know that this damn dog would work his way right into our home and our hearts! We are crazy about him! All of us! He is our whole life. I never would have expected that we would all be so smitten. We take him everywhere with us and he is spoiled rotten! He is very well mannered, doesn't bark, bite or pee everywhere. He is just a good dog. He has given Quayd the companionship he needs and has even filled a little void for Brett and I. We have a routine at night and when everyone is getting in bed, Finn decides who he wants to sleep with. It usually involves lots of coaxing from both sides because we all want him. This particular night, he chose Quayd. I went in to check on them in the middle of the night, and this is what I found. I swear this dog has brought so much to our family and we love him so much. He was meant to be our dog. Like I have said before.... Quayd didn't pick the best dog, the dog picked the best boy!

the one with some updates

2010-06-09T07:41:00.000-07:00

Lazy summer days??? NOT! It has been CRAZY summer days around here. The older I get, the more busy we get. This is what we are up to these days...

Right now, Brett is playing in a men's softball league and I am playing in a woman's league. Even though we both LOVE it, it takes up two nights of our week! Brett has played for years and he is the pitcher. I have played off and on for my whole life. I am not any kind of pro, but I do love to play. I like playing infield. Because I am a lefty, I usually play first base. The team I play with has a first base player so I have been playing third base. I have really enjoyed it! Its challenging as a lefty (I know that seems weird, but ask any lefty and they will tell you!)

We have been coaching Quayd's AYSO soccer team. It has been so much fun for us!
Our team did awesome too! They were undefeated up until the last few games, then they lost a few. At this age, they play 6 on 6. A few of our team members quit coming to games so we didn't have any subs for the 6 that came all of the time. As the summer got hotter, our boys got more and more tired. It was hard for them at the end, but they still did awesome and had a great season!

So Mr. Quayd has become quite aware of the way he looks lately. I have always been able to dress him in pretty much anything and he never complains, until now. He is very opinionated! The first day of his summer break, I was starting to do his hair. I have done it in spikes since he had enough hair to spike it. He was looking in the mirror as I was gooping it up and he asked me to try something different. I kinda flattened it on top and just spiked the very front.
He looked so cute and very grown up. He looked him self over in the mirror and finally said, "You know who is really gonna like this?" I asked who. He said, "Drew." Drew is a cute little girl that has been in his class for the last two years. All the boys love her! He was so cute about it. All day he asked everyone we saw if they could see anything different about him. He is also very concerned about his clothes and if he matches or not. So he about had a stroke when he saw his dad lounging around the house in this. Quayd kept telling his dad that he was going to call all of his friends to come see how hideous he looked. So funny!!

So that is a little glimpse into what we have been up to lately. I am trying to be better about blogging, so check back and don't give up on me!

the one about Quayd's second grade program

2010-06-08T22:55:00.000-07:00

Quayd's program was the cutest thing I have ever seen! It was western themed and his cute little teacher seriously goes all out for these things. They learned several songs and even learned how to SQUARE DANCE!
Quayd is such a performer and even though he gets a little nervous at first, he loves being in the spotlight. Here is a classic Quayd moment...My friend Aubrey and I helped decorate and set up for the program. Mrs. Murray bought these cute cardboard fences and stuff. We put it all together during school so Mrs. Murray wouldn't have to worry about it. (She was in the process of moving her classroom! She had to be packed the next day) anyway, during the program, a couple of the kids knocked down part of the set. Mrs. Murray rushed over to fix it and Quayd turns to the crowd and says, "Excuse the interuption. We are experiencing technical difficulties." What a nut! Of course, Aubrey and I ran up on stage and saved the day! ;) The program was adorable! It makes me kind of sad to think that my baby boy is going into 3rd grade. But at the same time, I love seeing him grow and learn. He ended the year as one of the top readers in his class, he got a math award, top speller award and an award for being the class comedian!! We are so proud of him! :) This is Quayd and his best buddy Shade. During the program, they sang about the Sasparilla saloon. For refreshments, they had "sasparilla" (soda) and cookies. This was totally unplanned, but I caught Quayd and Shade enjoying some "sasparilla" and shootin' the breeze. SO CUTE! Quayd and Mrs. Murray Another Quayd performance..... saying "Rock on!" as the curtain closed We were so lucky that Quayd had such an excellent teacher for second grade. Mrs. Murray was fabulous and Quayd LOVED her! We were super excited to hear that she got moved to third grade for next year and Quayd is in her class again!! I love school, but I am SO ready for the summer break!!! So is QUAYD! He is amazing and I love being the mom of the class comedian.

the one about the BEACH PARTY

2010-05-30T17:22:00.000-07:00

Quayd's teacher let the class chose a theme for their end of school party. The voted and decided on a Beach Party. I am the official party planner mom, so Mrs. Murray asked me to come up with a plan. I bought leis and squirt guns for everyone. We played some water games, had a water baloon fight, snacks and tons of fun! Quayd and his teacher Mrs. Murray)

To finish it all off, Brett brought the fire truck and sprayed the kids. They LOVED it! Everyone thought it was pretty cool that Quayd's dad was a fireman and could bring the firetruck just for them! Quayd was pretty proud to have his dad there. (Dad was a just a little proud too!!!)

the one about Brett's hairy chest

2010-05-23T21:35:00.002-07:00

I was just thinking about this funny thing that happened on our cruise and thought I would share...

Seriously, cruising is so much fun! Whenever there is a "Day at Sea" the crew works really hard to make sure you are having fun and they schedule activities for every second of the day. Our second day at sea, they had a Hairy Chest competition. We had been begging Brett to do it. He was a little hesitant at first, but he finally decided to go for it. The only requirement was that you started the competition with a shirt on so you could take it off for the big reveal. There were 8 contestants. They had a panel of 4 female judges that could touch and feel the men to determine a winner. For round one, they took all of the men (yes, the contestants were all male! thank goodness!) to the second level of the pool deck. They had these curvy stairs and the guys had to walk halfway down the stairs, take their shirts off then go the rest of the way down the stairs. Then the judges felt the hair and eliminated a few men. Brett was super funny as he came down the stairs and everyone was cheering for him. He cleared round 1.
Here he is meeting the judges.

In round 2, the contestants had to show their muscles (or lack thereof), make their best Tarzan yell then "aligator wrestle" a beach towel. Brett may have not been the hairiest man, but he was by FAR one of the best performers!! He was so funny and everyone was laughing at him. Another guy, Rich, was also super funny, but the real crowd favorite was on old man named Bob.

Brett cleared this round too. The last part to determine the winner was a popular vote. Brett did pretty well on this round too, but like I said before, the real crowd favorite was Bob. Brett did a great job and I was so... ummmmmm.... whats the word I am looking for?? Not proud... but, well... I guess HAPPY for Brett for doing so well and for being a good sport. He got a nice medal for participating and a lot of cheers for being so dang funny!

the one abut the field trip

2010-05-19T18:52:00.000-07:00

Today I was able to go with Quayd on his second grade field trip. We went to historic Josie's Cabin. Josie was a lady who built a cabin and ran a ranch near Split Mountain on Dinosaur National Monument land. She is known for letting some of the outlaws (such as Butch Cassidy) stay at her place when they were traveling in the Colorado, Utah and Wyoming areas. The cabin is in such a beautiful location and it is amazing to think of what her life may have been like when she lived there. Josie established her homestead in 1914. She raised and butchered cattle, pigs, chickens and geese. She canned vegetables from her large garden. Her source of heat for her cabin was wood, her water came from a spring, and light from an oil lamp. Josie lived a 19th century lifestyle well into the 20th century. She lived there until she died at the age of 90 in 1964. It was so primitave and I felt totally weird playing with my cell phone and checking twitter from just outside her cabin!
Quayd and his friend Antonio

Quayd and I didn't really feel well. I have had allergy/sinus crap and Quayd had a stomach ache and said he had growing pains in his legs. We hung out together and took it easy the whole day. We sat together on the bus, ate lunch together and hiked together. I kept telling him to go play with his friends that he didn't have to hang out with his old mom, but he said he just wanted to spend the day with me. He is so awesome! It was such a great day. The weather was perfect, everything was starting to bloom and so beautiful.

I haven't been to this area for many years and I was so happy I went. I enjoy refreshing my mind with all of the fun history of this area... plus I LOVE seeing Quayd in another world besides home. Its fun to see him interact with his teacher and friends. He has such good friends and he is such a good little boy. We live in such a cool area and we are surrounded by rich history and amazing beauty. It was such a great day! I heart field trips!
Shade, Quayd and Rylan
Shade, Austin and Quayd
(Austin is the cutest little boy... He is autistic and has seriously grown leaps and bounds this year! Quayd and Shade have tried really hard to include him and be his friend. Austin LOVES these boys and is very posessive of them! He likes to know where they are and what they are doing every minute. Quayd and Shade don't even act phased by it all. They are such good boys! They make their moms very proud!)

the one about my cousin Brooke

2010-05-17T23:09:00.000-07:00

I suck at blogging. I am so sorry that I just can't get my blogging life together. It seems to be the last thing I can find time to do. Blogger drives me crazy because it is so slow at loading pictures and I hate fighting with it for hours! I have no patience! Excuses, excuses. I know.

A couple months ago, I went to SLC to see my cousin Brooke and her new baby. While there, she told me that she was going to stop reading my blog because I never update it. I promised her that I would blog the pictures from that weekend. Well, of course, time got away from me and here it is, mid-May and I am barely getting to it. So sorry Brooke! She told me that the last time I posted a picture of her, it was very unflattering (SO NOT TRUE!) and she wanted me to post a new one that looked better. Go to this post, scroll down a bit and see that it was a good picture of her and her hubby!! She is adorable!!! Anyway, with this post, I am hoping to redeem myself to my FAVORITE cousin, and hopefully win her back as a blog reader. Besides, I am excited to show off her cute baby!

I come from a small family. My Dad only had one sibling, a brother, who he married later in life and he and his wife never had children. My Mom only had one brother and he and his ex-wife only had one child. That means I only have one cousin. Yes, just one. Brooke. My grandparents only had three grandchildren, therefore, we all got lots of attention. Growing up, we were all very close. We lived near each other and did everything together. I always thought Brooke was so cool. I wanted to be with her all the time and I thought she was the greatest thing ever. I was crazy jealous of her. She was a few years older than me, and I know I had to be totally annoying to her, but she was always sweet to me. I got to go on a few trips with my aunt, uncle and Brooke and they were all so good to me. They still are! Brooke has accomplished a lot in her life and I am so proud of her! She has a great job as a paramedic and is married to a math teacher! She never seemed to want to have children, but finally got to a place in her life where she needed to be a mommy. Her sweet baby Moses must be the luckiest kid ever because Brooke is the BEST MOM! It has been so much fun to see her transform from "super strong independent career woman Brooke," to "gentle kind nurturing motherly Brooke." They are just the cutest little family and Moses is the most beautiful, perfect baby I have ever seen. (Well, maybe the 2nd most beautiful and perfect baby I have ever seen!) ;) I LOVE my one and only cousin and I am so proud of her! And I am really mad that she lives 2 1/2 hours away so I can't love on that baby more often.

Here are the pictures of our trip to meet baby Moses. My uncle is a collector of all things weird. He has this creepy puppet, "Jerry Mahoney." I think it is hilarious, but Brooke is totally creeped out by it! She was throwing a total fit when we took this picture. "Get that away from my baby!"
"Grandpa" Kim and Moses
Four Generations

the one about our super amazing vacation

2010-05-02T16:13:00.000-07:00

I am sitting at the LA airport bored to death waiting for our flight that is still 2 1/2 hours away. I was wondering what I should do to kill some time... hummmm.... what to do, what to do? OH! I could BLOG!!!! I just loaded up all of our vacation pictures so to help pass my boredom, you can hear all about our cruise!

Let me start you off with a pick from our pre-cruise planning party the Monday before we left.We left last Saturday, April 24th around noon so we could go watch my nephew Brennen's traveling soccer team play in SLC. Once we got there, we met up with my uncle and brother's family and had lunch. I had a little bit of pre-vacay shopping to do and then it was bed time. My super awesome amazingly cool uncle Kim let us stay at his house that night. (Thanks Kim and Jayme!!!!) Of course I couldn't sleep worth a dang because I was SO excited! We got up early on Sunday morning to make it to the airport for our 8:15 flight. Everything went very smoothly. We landed in LA and found the Carnival Cruise people right away and boarded the bus for the pier. It was a pretty quick drive and once we got there and got checked in, we could walk around the ship, the pier and there were lots of things to do there. We were so excited though, that we just kind of hung out by the ship. It was pretty cool. We were able to board the ship around 1:30. It was so beautiful! It was shocking to see how big the ship really was. It was incredible. Our ship left Long Beach around 5:30 that evening.
It was a beautiful sight!

Our first two days were sea days. We played on the ship and soaked up the sun for 2 days as we traveled to Puerto Vallarta.
Quayd took advantage of the kids programs on board and totally loved it!!! He got to do a build-a-bear, make a t-shirt and played lots of fun games.
On Wednesday morning, we arrived in Puerto Vallarta. It was Brett's 30th Birthday!!!! And the city, the ocean, the weather, EVERYTHING was beautiful!

We just kind of explored the city. We shopped, went to Senor' Frogs and just hung out.

We had a great time there. They were having a real live bull fight in the evening. Brett thought that sounded awesome, but nobody else would go with him. He went all alone, and hated it. He said it was totally different than what he had expected. He was thinking one on one, man vs. beast. But they actually give the bull a tranquilizer first, and there were about 5 people helping the matador. I thought it was gross and I didn't really pay attention to details, so if you are really that curious, you will have to ask him. Gross. Oh well, happy Birthday to him!

Thursday was Mazatlan. Beach Day.

Amazing.

By the time we made it to Cabo San Lucas on Friday, we were BEAT! We were only in Cabo for about 7 hours, so we just went into the city and looked around. We bought some treasures and enjoyed the beautiful city. I am a BIG shopper! Love it, love everything about it, however, I hate shopping in Mexico. I hate bartering, bargaining, and listening to all of the beggers. It drives me crazy. Brett and Quayd love it though!!! So needless to say, they did all of the shopping. I pointed and things I liked and they took care of the rest. I actually forgot my camera on the ship the day we were in Cabo, so the only picture I have is this one I took from my cell phone.

The last day was another sea day and the seas were so rough!! It was a hard day and night! It kind of threw us all over the ship. Crazy. It was windy and awful too. Yuck. Anyway, it was nice to have a day to relax and wind down after a week of non stop GO GO GO!

Here are a few more pictures of some highlights of the trip.

Ok, that is all I am going to add. I don't want to bore you anymore. Plus, its almost time to board our flight!!! YAY! We are finally making progress home!!!!

the one about Diary of a Wimpy Kid

2010-03-25T21:57:00.000-07:00

I am so proud of Quayd. I know I just posted an exciting reading achievement from school, so I am sorry to bore you with another reading blog post. But I am going to do it anyway. Sorry.

Quayd got the first book in the series "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" for Christmas. He has been reading everyday, and fitting this book in as much as possible. When he heard there was going to be a movie, he was so excited! I told him that when he finished Book 1, I would take him to the movie and get him book 2 to start reading. He actually finished it a couple weeks ago, but tonight was the first night we could fit in a movie. (It's only MARCH and our schedules are already filling up!) Brett is out of town for work, so we decided it was a perfect date night! We called our trusty date night companion, Grandma! (Gleneita) We all 3 went to dinner at Cafe Rio (tamale Thursday! Yay!!!) then headed to the show. The movie was so cute and it was so fun to see Quayd get so excited. He would get giddy and tell me, "Oh this part is funny!" or "I love this part!" After the movie, we headed straight to Wal-Mart to find book 2. In the car, I asked Quayd which was better, the movie or the book. I was so excited to hear him say.... THE BOOK!!!! He was telling me all of the differences and I was thrilled to hear it. The book is ALWAYS better!!! And I am glad that he can see that, even as a second grader. When we were at Wal-Mart, he saw this book too and he was very torn which one to get. This one is about the making of the movie and it looked pretty cool too. But he decided to go with book 2. He started reading it in the asiles of Wal-Mart. He came home, read for a bit and crashed. (With me of course since Dad is out of town!)

This was kind of fun... I found it online here. You can "Wimp" yourself! Here is me,
and here is Quayd.

the one about my freaky rash

2010-03-23T22:29:00.000-07:00

I'm not sure what this is all about, but I got the weirdest rash in the WORLD!

Brett and I started going to the tanning bed 1 week ago to get ready for our vacation next month. (We are going on a Mexican Riviera Cruise April 25th - May 2nd!!!) I have not been able to tan for years because of the medicine I was on for my heart. Since I went off my medicine in January, I just assumed I would be able to tan like I did when I was a kid. I have started VERY slow! The first 2 times I went was only for 6 minutes. I did get the tanning bed itches that come standard with your first couple of visits to the bed. I only went every other day and by the third time, I upped it to 7 minutes. I got a little toasty and even more itchy so we took it back down to 6 when I went last evening. My back had really been bugging me so I left my shirt on and made sure my back, belly and boobs were totally covered, since they have been itching so bad. I even adopted a spatula that I carry around and I so affectionately call "Scratchula." As soon as I got out of the tanning bed, I knew something wasn't right. Brett and I got in the car and I was about to go crazy with itch. I took my bra off first thing and it was just getting worse and worse. We got home and I took my top off. I had Brett rub lotion on it and it would help for a second, but it just kept getting worse. It started breaking out in hives and wherever I would scratch, it was looking like it might bleed. By about 8:30 I was in tears because it was so bad. The hives/welts were huge and covering my whole back!!! I showered, Brett ran to the store for cortisone cream and I started popping benadryl. NOTHING. I tried EVERYTHING! By 11:30 I couldn't take it anymore, so I took myself to the ER. They got me into a room pretty quickly and started me on several pills. Steroids, something like a benadryl but much stronger and something else. They said it should start to improve within 20-30 minutes. By this time, the rash and hives were spreading to my legs. Well, they monitored me for about an hour and nothing was changing so they came in with some shots. I don't know what or how many but I told them I didn't care if it was battery acid and dog crap, if it would help, I would take it! After another hour, it was still really bad but I felt like it was getting a little better. They told me there was nothing else they could try and that they had given me the max dose on everything. They sent me home with a prescription for a week worth of steroids and 3 other things. Today was much better, but I am still very red and itchy. It is just making me feel like crap. I didn't want to broadcast my back fat on the Internet, so I just took a picture of my legs. This is looking about 100 times better. There is little to no swelling, just lots of red dots.

I think we finally decided that 7 1/2 years of heart medicine messed with my blood and skin and that it is probably not in my Best interest to tan. I guess it is either pasty white, or tan in a bottle for me. :( By the way, Brett has the nicest tan and he looks so good!!! I am going to be the ghost woman on our cruise ship. I am so white I am nearly translucent.

Just as I was leaving the hospital last night, the Doc started to say something about the dangers involved with tanning and sun exposure. I just looked at him and said, "Seriously, look at me.... I don't need a lecture about tanning beds!!!"

the one about my stupid old microwave

2010-03-23T22:09:00.000-07:00

My microwave is the BIGGEST piece of crap! It has been since I bought it. The light never worked, and almost instantly it stopped rotating. I tried to fix it a million times but it kept breaking. Since it wouldn't rotate, it burned EVERYTHING! I haven't been able to pop popcorn forever! And it is my favorite treat in the world. Especially the Jolly Time Kettle Mania. YUMMY!!! One morning, Quayd wanted me to cook him some sausage. I buy these pre-cooked sausage patties in the freezer section and he totally loves them. I cooked them for the normal time, and not even halfway through, we could smell the most horrible smell EVER! I stopped the microwave and we had a small fire going on! This is what my stupid microwave did to the sausage!!!!

So this is what I did to the microwave!
And then I went to Wal-Mart and bought this!

the one with some pix of Finn

2010-03-22T17:53:00.000-07:00

Yah, we are totally in love with this dog! Finn is just another one of us! He has for sure made himself at home with our family and I know he is supposed to be our puppy. He is serioulsy the BEST DOG EVER!!!!!!

These pictures are just over a month ago, before his haircut. he loves his brother!!!

These pictures are after his haircut.

the one about the reader of the month

2010-03-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

Yah. Quayd is awesome! He was the top reader in the 2nd grade at his school for December. All during the month of February, the PTA had some of Quayd's things on display. They asked for a framed picture of him and 3 of his favorite toys or anything that would discribe him. He sent a Lego toy, a Nintendo Wii and DS game and a book. He was having a hard time parting with one of his books for a whole month, but he finally decided on "Hop on Pop" by Dr. Seuss.

Isn't he awesome??? We love him so much and we are so proud him!!!

the latest on my purse drama

2010-03-18T23:48:00.000-07:00

Thanks to one of my blog readers... my purse has been FOUND!

I got a phone call this morning at work. (I may be a bit off on the details. I was so excited about the news, I kinda lost track!) I was told that yesterday afternoon/evening, a woman came into a dance studio near Wells Fargo and asked if anyone was missing a purse. Nobody was, so she said she was going to take it into the bank because she didn't know what else to do with it. This kind blog fan of mine read my entry this morning and started to put 2 and 2 together. She was able to track me down at work and said she wasn't sure if it was my purse, but that I might call Wells Fargo and see. AMAZING!!!!

I did just that and you know what??? They have it!!! They told me that a woman brought it in and said that it had been shoved up into the wheel well of her vehicle and she thought it was very strange. It would have been one thing to find it on the ground, but to see it there, she knew it was put there on purpose. The bank told me to come and get it, but I didn't feel comfortable touching it without one of the cops giving me the ok. I called the officer who has been working with me and told him the great news. He said he is going to try to get some fingerprints so he might not get it back to me right away. He was also going to check to see if anyone in that area has security cameras that might have caught the little punks in the act of either stealing, or ditching. (Hopefully they won't find video of me and my foul mouth running through the parking lot!)

Anyway, this is great news!!!!

However, there was some disturbing news to the whole thing too. This afternoon, about closing time, a truck was driving behind my work VERY SLOWLY! It caught my attention, and I noticed someone was really looking at the building and my car. It was a young kid wearing the same hat as one of the kids. I am pretty sure it was the one who actually had my purse in his hands. He was pointing at my car and seemed to be laughing. It really freaked me out and I am nervous about what they are going to try to do to me, my family or the Country Bear. I don't really know how long they keep kids in jouvie and he may be there still so it is possibly NOT him. But I am PRETTY SURE it was. Freaking stupid kids.

Anyway, lets not dwell on the bad. MY PURSE WAS FOUND!

the one about SENDING someone to jail

2010-03-17T20:05:00.000-07:00

How ironic that my last post was about spending the night in jail, and after the events of today, I think I am responsible for SENDING someone there. Maybe not jail, but detention anyway. And I guess I am not really responsible since I didn't commit the crime, but.. well... How about I just get to the story?

It was 5:00 and I was just getting ready to close the store where I work. Danette was there helping me close and Brayden, Quayd and Amelia were there because we were getting ready to go to the Rec. Center for a St. Patty's day activity. I had my back to the back door and Danette was facing me so she could see out the back window. All of a sudden she yells, "Those boys just got something out of your car!" Right then I heard my car door slam and I turned around and saw two teenage boys walking away from my car, and they had something with them. I ran right out the back door and started chasing them.

(If you aren't familiar with where I live, I am sorry for the names of businesses and all of the confusion. For those of you who are familiar, this part will help you visualize it all.)

I spotted them behind Curves and I could see they had something.... I couldn't see very well until they turned around when they thought they were being followed. I knew exactly what it was.... MY PURSE!!! I started screaming at them to drop my purse!! (I added a few extra words in there though that I will not repeat... your welcome Grandma Galley!) I was running after them and they crossed Vernal Avenue to the parking lot behind Gale's Office Supply. I made it to Wells Fargo and knew I would never catch them. I didn't have my phone with me so I turned around and ran back to work to get my car, my phone, or something!!! I didn't really know what I was going to do. Before I turned around though, they were getting to that weird little alley way behind Mr.S and The Sage Motel. I got back to the shop and Danette was just getting in her car and yelled for me to get it. We took off towards them, and I called dispatch. We figured they were gonna come out somewhere by the Catholic Church, so we headed that way. Sure enough, we ran right into them. I was on the phone with a very nice man and I was able to tell him a very good description and exact location of me and the kids. He got an officer on the way and we didn't let the two kids out of our sight. We didn't want them to think we were following them though, or we knew they would run. I couldn't see my purse anymore, so I am guessing they ditched it somewhere. Anyway, we followed them to the North Office building of the hospital and they walked into the north entrance. I was still on the phone with dispatch and he advised me to stay outside and wait for an officer. Danette hopped out of the car and ran in after them. They were way fast, and they went up the stairs. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she heard the door shut upstairs. She was worried that they would walk through to the hospital and get away and we would never see them again. So she came back out, got in her car and drove around to the other entrance/exits of the hospital to watch for them. By then, 3 officers had shown up. They asked me for a description and they all took off into the building. I had called Brett and he showed up so he headed in the building too. Danette came back around and said that she had not seen them come out yet and pretty quick, here came the 2 kids in handcuffs!! Yay! They sat them down outside the building and started asking everyone questions. The kids were so mouthy, disrespectful and RUDE! I feel so sorry for them! How sad that they are starting a life of crime at ages 15 and 17. They were saying awful things to Danette and I and calling us liars. Of course, the cops totally believed us but it was still kind of hard to sit through. They searched them and they had nothing of mine. I had $60 cash in my purse, a $25 Maurice's gift card, a debit card (yes, I cancelled it already!) and just other typical odds and ends that we all carry in our purses. I don't know if I will ever get it back. Really, it all could have been much worse. Pretty much everything in my purse is replaceable. It was a new purse, and I loved it!!!! But it was just a purse.

The kids were taken away and will probably get nothing but a slap on the hand. I hope they can learn from it all. I am really not all that mad at the boys, I just feel kind of violated. I can't begin to express my gratitude for my Sister-In-law and her quick thinking, for my husband and Cory who were ready to fight the little punks! And for my brother and Brayden and Quayd who spent ALL NIGHT searching the dark alley ways, bushes, trash cans, dumpsters and everywhere else we could think of to look for my purse. Also to the officers who responded so quickly and who could have NOT done a better job!!! And of course to John at dispatch who helped keep me calm and who got everything set up to find the little punks.

It all could have been SO much worse!!! Tonight, I am home safe with my husband, my beautiful son and our pets. Really, that is all that matters. Nobody is hurt, just a little shaken up.

Crazy.

the one about going to JAIL!

2010-03-06T07:44:00.000-08:00

I spent last night in jail.

So did Brett, my brother and Brayden.

We got there around 9:00 pm and got home around 8:00 am. It was MISERABLE, loud, uncomfortable, hot and the food was not only cold, but disgusting. I can't believe I really spent a night in the CLINK!

But at least we got these sweet T-shirts as a souvineer!

Ha Ha Ha!! Did I freak you out??? Our county just built a new jail and it will be opening up in the next few weeks. They held an open house yesterday for people to come and tour the facility and learn how it works. You could also pay $10 for the chance to spend the night. Brett, Brandon and Brayden signed up weeks ago to stay all night. I didn't really think I wanted to stay until after I toured it yesterday with Danette and the kids. I thought it was very interesting and I knew they were gonna have games and stuff, so I changed my mind. I decided to show up at check in time and see if they had room for me. They let me right in and it was really pretty cool! We took lots of games and snacks and we stayed up really late! We were able to wander the jail and get a more detailed look at how things operate. It was super fun, however, the actual SLEEPING was not pleasant at all! The lights never go off and they never turned down the heat! I HATE being hot at night! It was a pretty miserable night as far as rest goes, but other than that, it was pretty fun! Brett and I shared a cell. We grabbed an extra mattress and made a nice big bed on the floor.

Here are a few pictures from the tour we had taken earlier in the evening with Danette and the little boys.

Brandon and Brett taught Brayden and I how to play poker.

The sheriff came around from block to block and we played BINGO! and we finished off the trip with breakfast. It was a great experience. One I won't soon forget, and one I hope NEVER to live again!!!!

the one about Dr. Seuss

2010-03-06T07:35:00.000-08:00

So once again, it was Dr. Seuss week at Quayd's school. They started the week with crazy sock day. Tuesday was bring a "pet" (stuffed animal) to school, then WaCkY WeDnEsDaY! Thursday was PJ day and Friday was Dress up like your favorite Dr. Seuss character. We always try to get creative with our character and the planning usually takes DAYS! We had a few things in mind this year, but finally decided on "Go Dog Go!" Brayden helped the boys start their cars and I made the dog ears. There was some huge catastrophe with the snow, spray paint and wet/painted cardboard boxes on Danette's carpet, so brayden "resigned" from the job and Danette and I finished it up. The cars turned out pretty cute, considering how wet they had been and how much paint ended up in Danette's entry way. Yikes! Anyway, here is the finished product....

This is Quayd with the Grinch. (Aka. Mrs. Murray)

I was pleased with the finished product, and I know the boys were too. They even won a prize! Since yesterday, The cars have been involved in many races, car wrecks and countless demoliton derbys! The boys have had a BLAST with their costume. And they looked Pretty cute, huh?!?

the one about New Years Eve.... seriously? in March??

2010-03-02T23:38:00.000-08:00

Sick. I can't believe I have not posted these pictures yet. Heck, it's been so long ago now, I can hardly remember what we did for New Years Eve! But I have been feeling so guilty for not blogging in so long that I thought something was better than nothing. It seems like we ate some food, played some games, and had a great time. Cool. Good enough. HaPpY NeW YeAr!!!

the one about a math problem

2010-02-08T15:22:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you add two bored little boys on school bus,
and a sharpie marker??

Well, you get this...

the one about baby Bronson

2010-02-08T00:58:00.000-08:00

I came across a blog today that has touched me so deeply I cannot go to sleep without sharing it with you. A blog that if it weren't for my husband, I would have skipped over.

Brett reads my friends' blogs faithfully. One of my friends mentioned this story on her blog. I glanced at it, but didn't have time to read it. So I didn't. Brett told me today that I needed to take a minute, sit down and read this story.

I am so glad I did, and if you have children, (and even if you don't!) you MUST read this story. This family is going through something so heartwrenching, so real and so tragic, we all need to take my husbands advice and take a minute, sit down and read!

Once you get to the blog, scroll down to the post on Feb. 1st, 2010. Here is the link. Get a box of tissues ready!

Thanks Amy, for sharing! And thanks Brett, for making me read!

the one about the SuperBowl and my sister

2010-02-07T22:48:00.000-08:00

I gotcha with my title, didn't I? I don't have a sister. Well, a real live biological sister, that is. I do, however have my Brynn. She is my sister-in-law and one of my very best friends. We are married to brothers, and both of us will argue that we each married the best brother! And we will agree that we are thrilled that we didn't marry the other brother, Cory! HaHaHa!!! Neither Brynn or myself have sisters, so we decided years ago that we would just be each others adopted sister. We have also adopted our husbands' sister, Talia, as one of our sisters. The three of us are so happy to have each other and we share such a special bond. I don't know what I would do without these girls.

Early last Friday morning, Brynn's mom, Wendy, passed away. I feel so bad for Brynn. She is very close with her mom. Wendy has had many health problems and has really struggled over the years. Brynn has done everything possible to help her mom. Wendy passed very unexpectedly, but also very peacefully in her sleep. Brynn's family is doing quite well considering the circumstances.

Friday evening, my mom and I took dinner to Brandon and Brynn. When I left, Beau'D wanted to come home with me and play with Quayd. We decided to go swimming at the rec. center. After swimming, we took Beau'D home and Brynn invited us to eat dinner with them. It was so nice. The next night, Saturday, there was a UFC fight on pay per view so Brandon invited Brett to come watch it with him. I wasn't to interested in the fight, so I went to see my Brynn. When I got there, she was working on a project for the funeral. She was doing some photo collages and she was having a creativity block. I was excited to get my hands on something crafty, and I think she was happy for the help. We finished the project and it turned out very nice. Once we finished, she was just spent. I could see it in her face. She looked at me, sighed, and asked if I would come lay by her in her bed and cuddle. I was happy she asked! We went in her room and got the bed all ready. Just as we were getting comfortable, the guys emerged from the basement because the fight was over. No cuddling for us. :( We stood in the kitchen and visited and decided to get together for the Superbowl the next night. We made food assignments and invited Brett's other siblings, his mom, and Brynn's dad. Sunday afternoon, we headed over to Brandon and Brynn's. Three nights in a row! Of course, Brynn and I were not into the game at all! SO here are some of the things we did instead. Brynn read a book. We watched Twilight. We made a bed on the floor and got our cuddle on! Ran to the store. We had LOTS of delicious beverages! We ate things that were NOT on our diet.

I waxed Brynn's eyebrows and face, and I gave her a pedicure. It was such a fun night!

The kids had a blast running around, eating non-stop and making a huge mess!

Brynn's dad, Tom, was right in the middle of all of the kids!

Brycen rolling on the love sack.

Sweet Little Kelby. He is such a good boy!

The boys of course watched the game, but they also had some type of wrestle mania thing going on.

Talia's boyfriend, Chance (in the darker colored shirt) and his buddy Pat (in the red).

Beau'D trying to referee Brandon and Chance.

They were also having wars with a marshmallow gun, drank LOTS of delicious beverages, ate lots and lots of food and made a huge mess!!! After the game, everyone cleaned up, I washed all of the dishes then we headed home.

We have had a blast with Brandon and Brynn and their family the last few days. My poor little Brynn. I feel so bad for her. I feel bad that we have been at their house everyday for the last 3 days and we have made mess, after mess, after mess! But we have cleaned it all up and we have sure had fun together. I guess that makes it worth the mess, right?

the one about my latest heart info

2010-01-24T13:55:00.000-08:00

As most of my friends and blog stalkers know, I have a weird heart issue. It was a rare thing that was brought on by my one and only pregnancy. I don't really talk about this much, not because I don't like to, but because I HATE for people to feel like I am a sympathy seeker. I feel like this is the hand I have been dealt and I am really ok with it. Everyone has their issues and problems, this just happens to be mine. If you don't know my story, and you are interested to read about it, here are the links to my blog posts about it.

Part One
Part Two
Part Three
Part Four
Part Five
Obviously you can tell it is a pretty long story.

Anyway, I went in for a check up in November. No biggie, just standard yearly refill the meds, etc. I actually went to a new doctor this time. He comes to our local hospital and he is on our insurance. Our insurance changed and my Doctors at the U were no longer on our plan. I always hate going to the cardiologist because I am always the youngest person in the waiting room by about 50 + years! And they all look like they are on their last leg as they are lugging around their oxygen tanks and wheelchairs. When I went in the exam room and met my new Doctor, he was shocked to see me looking so young and healthy. He said after consulting with my old docs and reading my chart, he expected to see someone more sickly and unhealthy. We talked about everything I had gone through over the past 7 1/2 years. We also talked about the severity and rareness of my disease. He explained to me that they are learning more and more about this disease and that basically, Peri-partum cardio myopathy (PPCM) is curable. Congestive heart failure (CHF), however, is not. People with PPCM and CHF can live a normal MEDICATION FREE life, as long as certain steps are taken to prevent a relapse. He also said that as long as my heart Ejection Fraction, the amount of blood that your heart pumps with each beat, has not decreased, I would be considered cured of PPCM and could stop taking medication. The day I was life-flighted to the U, my ejection fraction, or EF, was 27%. A normal EF is somewhere around 55-75%. I was told it would never get above 40% ish. It would be impossible considering all of the damage that occurred to my heart during and after my pregnancy. Two years later, my EF had increased to 55%. My Doctors were shocked and thrilled. I was actually in the "normal" range. My heart was still enlarged and "sluggish," but still amazing news. At that point, we discussed going off my meds, but decided it was still a good idea to stay on it for prevention. With all of the new research, it was determined that the only "prevention" is no pregnancy. My new Doctor ordered another echo just to make sure it was still around 55%. I went in last week and everyone was amazed to find out that EVERYTHING had become normal and my EF had gone up to 68%!! Unbelievable!!! So, I get to go off my heart medication!!! This is the best news I had heard in a long time. It sounds easy to be able to just quit taking medication, but that is not the case with this medicine. It is a Beta-Blocker and that makes your heart beat the same rhythm no matter what. It took MONTHS to build this up in my system. I started with 0.650 mg, then 0.325 and finally got it up to 100 mg. It is one of the hardest medicines to be able to build a tolerance. I was literally a zombie through this transition. My body hurt everywhere, I was weak and so tired. Once I got used to 100 mg, I was pretty good as along as I didn't miss a dose. Miss a dose = feel like total crap again. There are many side effects and limitations with a Beta-Blocker, but one of the worst for me has been the unchanging heart beat. If I do any type of cardio exercise, my heart rate never changes. That means that as my muscles work harder and need more oxygenated blood, they don't get it. No matter what. So I tire very quickly! Of course I am thrilled to get past that and be able to exercise, take cold medicine, have more energy etc. etc. etc. But I am very nervous about the transition. I was told getting it out of your system is easier than building it up, but it is still rough. Starting last Thursday, I was directed to cut to 50 mg. It has been a rough couple of days, but I am surviving. My last 50 mg dose is Wednesday and then.... NOTHING! I will be done! I can't believe it. We were sure I would be on this FOREVER! Really, this is a huge deal for me! My energy level has suffered, but I know that in a month or so, it will be over. I am so so so happy, scared, excited and nervous, among other emotions. I don't like thinking that I will be "back to normal," because I feel like there is no normal. Everybody's "normal" changes all of the time. Normal for me before all of this happened when I was a 23 year old woman, is completely gone. Normal for me as a 30 year old woman on heart medication is almost gone. So I am excited to find a NEW NORMAL! And I am excited to finally share this info with you. I have only told about 4 people because I don't want people to feel sorry for me and see me as a sickly girl with a weird heart thing. I want them to see me as Mandy. Brett's wife. Quayd's mom. Mandy.

the one about taking a pledge

2010-01-22T08:09:00.001-08:00

I am not a huge Oprah watcher, but I did happen to catch it the other day. I was shocked by what I saw. It was about people who text and talk on the phone while driving. The statistics were SCARY!

I used to text in the car, but had a couple of close calls and heard about a few terrible accidents of people who were texting and driving, so I had pretty much quit. But I was still guilty of talking on the phone in the car. Honestly, I felt like I was a good enough driver to talk and drive so I didn't think twice about it. On Oprah's show they showed how when you talk on the phone, you miss a lot of things. You can't focus on a conversation and every detail on the road. EVEN with a hands free set. Scientifically, it is just too much for your brain to process. Everything my look normal, but your brain is actually blocking things. Well that "thing" it is blocking, could very likely be somebody's child in the road. Or your child in the road, or even MY child in the road. Very scary. I took this episode very seriously and I think you should too.

To take the pledge like I did, click here.

For more information and a link to Monday's episode, click here.

the one about ROCK BAND!

2010-01-11T23:10:00.001-08:00

We totally love playing Rockband. Its one of our favorite games on the Wii. On Christmas Day night, we went to Brett's brother Brandon's house and played for hours. Brandon and Brynn have a huge projection screen TV and it is so fun for the Wii. The pictures didn't really work, but see that huge white space behind Brandon??? Yah. That is the screen. You can kind of see it behind Quayd in this picture.You totally feel like you ARE the Rockband. Of course we are good enough to really be a band, but, whatever.

This is Brett and his crazy brothers!
Brandon rocking the whammie! Brett on drums and me on the vocals!
Me, chillin with Finn.

the one about ice skating and sledding

2010-01-11T22:47:00.001-08:00

I am so behind on my blogging. What is my deal? Oh well. I will try to catch up a bit. I have to post these pictures of quayd ice skating because he is just so dang cute. The pix are from Brennen's Birthday party but I just love Quayd's cute little face! Have you even seen anything sweeter??? Ohhhhh, I love this kid!

Sledding. I love sledding. Truly. One of my fave activities. We went the day after Christmas and had a blast. We took Brayden and Brennen and met up with our friends, the Wallis's. I didn't have the best luck on this adventure. I wrecked a lot, white washed myself, my boots had terrible traction so I had H#@! getting up the hill, among other difficulties. The most memorable event, however, was going down the hill face first on my belly on an inflatable mat. I hit a bump not far from the top and popped my mat. So the only thing between me and the bumpy hill was a thin piece of plastic. I was going really fast and hit a very large bump that had been converted into a jump. Ouch. And I am pretty sure I left my uterus on the hill. I was quite sore for several days, but you know what? It was worth it. We had a blast!

me and my Finny

Brett and the boys starting down the hill on a huge tube

Look at these cute boys!

the one about a dorky Christmas picture

2010-01-11T22:41:00.000-08:00

OK. Don't think that I am a total nerd.... but look at this funny picture of my spoiled rotten cat, Skeet. He is so funny, and grouchy, and old and morbidly obese, but I love him to death!

the one about the best Christmas gift.... EVER!

2010-01-02T21:17:00.000-08:00

A couple months ago, Brett, Quayd and I were all at Wal-Mart around 9:00 pm. We had just gone to buy one thing and as we were leaving, we saw the electric blankets. Brett and I decided that we wanted one for our bed. Once we explained what it was to Quayd, he wanted one too. We didn't bring much money with us that night and forgot the debit card/check book. We only had enough money on us to buy one, so we got one for Quayd. We just never really got around to getting one for us. Fast forward to December 17-19th. Brett went on a hunting trip with his Grandpa Lane, so Quayd wanted to sleep with mom. We decided to bring his electric blanket into my room. I had no idea how wonderful they are! It was so nice and warm. His is only a twin size and he is quite a little blankey hog, so I only got a little taste of the delicious fruit. When Brett got home that Sunday afternoon, he was exhausted and wanted to take a nap. Quayd's blanket was still on my bed, so Brett was able to partake of the nice warm blanket too. We knew right then that we wanted one. BAD! We started teasing Quayd that we were going to steal his. It became quite the joke around here!

This year for Christmas, Brett and I decided not to buy each other gifts. We didn't really need anything and money was kinda tight this year. Quayd was feeling kind of bad that there were no gifts for us under the tree, except the things he bought for us at his school Santa's Workshop thing. We decided that since we were planning on buying an electric blanket for ourselves anyway, it would be a great thing for Quayd to give to us. However, we wanted it to be his idea! It took some creative thinking and planning on our part, but we were able to pull it off. We called Quayd's uncle Cory and gave him the scoop. Quayd was at his cousins and Brett and I were in town. We met up with Cory, gave him some money, and told him to go pick up Quayd. Cory told Quayd that he was going to take him shopping for a gift for his mom and dad, he dropped a few hints on what we might like, and Quayd totally took the bait. They came home that night and Quayd was so excited to go in his room and wrap it all by himself. Of course, he wanted us to open it right then, but we made him wait to give it to us until Christmas. From that night until Christmas morning, we still kept teasing him about taking his blanket. He would giggle and say things like, "You are going to LOVE what I got you for Christmas!" One day I said to him, "I get so cold at night. I wish I had an electric blanket to keep me warm." Quayd ducked his cute little head and grinned from ear to ear. It was so awesome! I know it sounds silly, but his excitement over OUR gift made this Christmas SO MUCH FUN!! On Christmas morning, of course he was excited to see what Santa brought, but immediately put his gift to us in our laps and demanded we open it right away. His face was priceless!!! It was so fun to see him get into the giving spirit. We put our blanket on our bed first thing and he still asks us everyday if we like the gift he got for us. We do, by the way! It is wonderful. But even if it were crappy, it would still be my favorite gift. :)

the one about our gingerbread house fiasco

2010-01-02T20:47:00.000-08:00

We had a terrible gingerbread house tragedy this year. About a week before Christmas, Quayd was invited to go with Brayden and Brennen to make gingerbread houses at their grandma ReAnn's house. I had to buy him a kit and a few other things. Quayd LOVES ReAnn. She is kind of his adopted grandma. He was so excited to be invited. ReAnn picked him up after school and he was still gone when Brett and I got home from work that evening. We decided to take advantage and do a little Christmas shopping. We took Brett's car, so mine was in the driveway. When Quayd came home, he saw my car and thought I must be home, so he came home with his project that he worked so hard on. He got scared that nobody was home and somehow, he dropped his gingerbread house and, you guessed it... it shattered. He ran to my brothers house crying and Uncle Brandon settled him down, then brought him back to clean it up. Shortly after that, we got a phone call learning all about the terrible event. Quayd was seriously devastated! It broke our hearts, so we bought another kit, and hurried home to help him make another. (Not without stopping at Cafe Rio first!) I needed to hide some stuff and wrap some other stuff, so I couldn't help. Darn. ;) Anyway, dear old dad stepped in and saved the day. They did a great job, and with no help from control-freak OCD mom!!! I guess I will let them do it alone from now on!!!

the one about an egg phenomenon

2010-01-01T15:11:00.000-08:00

This is a totally random post, but I just thought this was so bizarre.

Quayd loves scrambled eggs. I make them several times a week. He likes me to put a slice of cheese on it when its all finished. Anyway, the other day I cracked his egg, like usual, and look how weird! It had two yolks!! I was curious how common or uncommon this was because I had never heard of it before. I learned that Double Yolkers appear when ovulation occurs too rapidly, or when one yolk somehow gets "lost" and is joined by the next yolk. Double yolkers may be by a pullet whose productive cycle is not yet well synchronized. They're occasionally laid by a heavy-breed hen, often as an inherited trait. I guess about 1 in 1000 eggs has a double yolk. I found this website that talked about tons of other weird egg stuff. On that site you'll also find descriptions of other egg oddities. Who knew you could have no yolkers, double shelled eggs, eggs without shells, spoon shaped eggs, eggs with tails, wormy eggs, triple yolkers, and even a nine yolker? Yikes!

Very random, but very interesting.

the one about the fire station

2009-12-30T09:55:00.000-08:00

Brett has been a very busy boy the last few months. He is the assistant chief of the Jensen Fire Department. He has weekly meetings, monthly meetings, district meetings and recently, new fire station planning meetings. They broke ground on their new fire station this fall and it was completed this month. They had a big open house and celebration called, "Christmas at the Fire House" on December 12th. They had a flag raising ceremony, "hose" cutting, dedicatory prayer and they honored past fire chiefs and officers. They also had a really nice dinner and games for the kids. It was really awesome.

Sometimes Brett's constant meetings drive me CRAZY, but really, deep down, I am really proud of him. It was cool to see him in his element at the fire station. He organized, took charge and he made his wife very proud!

the one about an ice cream cone

2009-12-13T20:01:00.000-08:00

Tonight, we had the funniest thing happen. Of course, with Quayd around, every moment is a laugh waiting to happen. I was in a super rauncher mood tonight and I was totally on edge. I don't know why, I was just grouchy. Well when all of this happened, i couldn't help but laugh, then Brett decided to type the whole thing in his words. So here it is. Brett's version......

Quayd has a new favorite treat. It is home style ice cream cones. It seems like every time I turnaround he is asking me to make him one. They are a huge pain in the butt to make because the ice cream is at least negative 20 degrees and its like carving stone. Any way he asked me to make him one tonight and I flat out refused. He whined to Mandy until she gave in and went to make him one. She no more than got into kitchen and I heard her say “If you don't like the way I do it, then go have your DAD make the damn thing for you.” This was followed by her stomping into the living room and sitting down. I couldn't help but laugh. I asked Quayd to come and tell me what happened. His words were ”I was just standing there watching her make my ice cream cone, and she was digging for the ice cream scooper. I told her that is not how Dad makes it, he just uses a spoon.” While he was telling me this story he is looking at me with that confused look that all men get. You know the one when we are thinking "What the hell am I in trouble for now?" So I tell him that he really can’t say stuff like that to his mom. Girls don't like to hear stuff like that. I then told him that when he got married that it is not a good idea to say things like, "Well my mom makes it this way." Then I told him, "I don’t get it Quayd. Girls are just weird. I then I asked Mandy if she was going to go finish making it and she said, "Hell no!" I told Quayd to go say he was sorry. So he says to her “I am sorry mom, I was not judging you or anything like that.” Well what else could she do but go make his ice cream cone? Morals of the story: it is easier to have dad make the cones, and ALL women (even moms) are impossible to understand!!!!!

So that is Brett's version. That was a total father/son "man" moment. We have laughed about it all night. It did put me in a better mood, I must admit. I realize that women are difficult to understand. I don't really get myself sometimes. So how sad that poor Quayd was just trying to help, but actually said something that burns me to the core. I will never forget, as newlyweds, Brett told me that He liked the way his mom made spaghetti better than the way I did. Well, I bet you can guess just how many times I have made spaghetti since that day!!! I still tease him about that!

the one about Quayd and Santa

2009-12-11T08:00:00.000-08:00

Wednesday night was the Fire District Christmas Party. It is a big party for all of the fire fighters and their families in all of the fire departments in our county. It is a pretty fun party. They had AMAZING food! It was all dutch oven food. SO GOOD! Anyway, Santa was able to stop by and Quayd was pretty stoked! We have been asking Quayd for weeks what he wanted for Christmas and he would never really give us a clear answer. It was always things like, "toys for my puppy," or "I don't care." So when we found out Santa was going to be there, we told him he better get thinking because this would probably be his only chance to tell him. Right before Santa showed up, Quayd told me he was going to tell him that he wanted an AirSoft gun. It is similar to a BB Gun, but it shoots little plastic pellets. YIKES! Brett and I were surprised that he even knew what it was. I didn't know, I had to ask Brett! Anyway, before we had time to tell him to rethink his wish list, Santa walked in the door and Quayd ran to get in line. We were kind of dumbfounded. When it was Quayd's turn, I took this very high quality picture with my cell phone, then we couln't wait to hear about the visit he had with Santa. Get ready..... this is FUNNY!

us: "Quayd, how was Santa?"

Quayd: "good."

us: "What did you tell him you wanted?"

Quayd: "An AirSoft gun."

us: "And what did Santa say?"

Quayd: (looking very defeated) "He said, 'You'll shoot your eye out.'"

BaHaHaHaHaHaHaHaHa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What a GREAT and very funny Santa!!! Gotta love Santa, and you gotta love 'A Christmas Story'! We will have to see what Santa really comes up with.

the one about SNOW!

2009-12-08T13:29:00.001-08:00

I love snow. I am so glad it has been snowing for the last couple of days. I love that it is so fresh, white, clean and makes everything seem so peaceful and beautiful. Nothing gives me Christmas spirit like SNOW!

This is my front window from the outside.

When I got out of bed this morning (at 10:30!) I could see that I needed to shovel some more. Brett cleared it all last night, but it needed some more work after snowing all night. My cute little Grandpa was out shoveling too so I went over and helped him. I took Finny with me and he had so much fun playing in the snow! It snowed the whole time I was shoveling and I couldn't believe how beautiful the snow flakes were today. Even more so that I remember. They were perfect and looked like something I would work for hours trying to cut out of paper. I just stood there for several minutes looking at the snow and enjoying the beauty. Here are a few flakes that landed on my coat. Beautiful!!!

the one about the golf tee candy

2009-12-06T23:16:00.001-08:00

Oh my heck, Quayd is the funniest kid ever!!!

Last week at school was "Santa's Secret Shop." If you have school aged children, you know that this is a little store at school that the kids can buy gifts for their family members all by themselves, wrap them and keep it a surprise. Quayd came home with an envelope for money and a list to fill out. I wrote on the list that he could spend 3-5 dollars on Brett and I, buy something for his puppy and get something for himself. I put $13 dollars in the envelope. He came home with his little wrapped gifts and asked if he could open the one for himself. I said "yes." He was sitting by me, but I wasn't paying total attention to what he was doing, however, he was saying how excited he was to open and eat this gift. He tore it open and pulled the item out of its box. The next thing I hear was, "Ewwwwwww!!! This isn't CANDY!" He had pulled one of the tees out and tried to bite it. Of course, he had me attention now. I looked at it. Examined it. Then asked him why he thought it was candy. He said, "Well that is what the box said and I have been excited all day to eat it." Still puzzled, I pull the box out of the trash and this is what I saw. How cute is that!?!?!

the one about Finn

2009-11-30T19:01:00.000-08:00

So, we took the plunge. We are now the proud owners of a puppy. We were so NOT in the market for a puppy, but suddenly one kina fell into our laps. Here's the story.

Last Wednesday was the first day of the Thanksgiving break. There was no school and I had to work, so Quayd just came with me. There is a massage place next door to our shop. The lady that runs the massage place, Lisa, called me that morning and asked if her mom could bring some puppies down to sell. Lisa's mom was in town for the holiday and she had some puppies to get rid of. I told her it was fine. Once she came to the store I got the whole story on the puppies. Its actually kinda funny. Lisa's mom has a full blood shitzu male and female and a full blood poodle. Well, the male got a hold of both females and they both had puppies within a week of each other. (scandalous!) So they had 9 adorable puppies to sell. By the time she came to Vernal, there were only 5 left. She brought the kennel into the store, and of course, we had to look. Well the weirdest thing happened... one puppy just fell in love with Quayd. Whenever Quayd would walk into the room where the puppies were, the puppy just got so excited to see him. Quayd would open the door to the kennel and the pup would run right to him. Puppy would hear his voice and start to whine. You get the idea. So anyway, Brett came down to the store on his lunch and Quayd couldn't wait to show him the babies. Brett walked into the room with him and saw that puppy get so excited and it melted his heart. Really, I had NO INTENTIONS of getting a dog. Dogs are hard and a lot of work! However, I am a sucker and as soon as Brett asked me if I thought we should get one I was all for it!But I wanted Brett to make the call because I knew if he wasn't on board, it was a no-go. I didn't want him to be mad at me when the puppy did naughty stuff. So, Brett and Quayd talked about it and made the decision. They brought him home and the rest is history! We discussed several names, but I came up with the winner. His name is Finn. I love the show Glee and I totally love the character Finn, so there you go.

Because of the busy shopping weekend, I worked nearly every day. Brett and Quayd were in charge of Finn and they did a great job. He is seriously such a good dog! He is super smart and is catching on to the potty training thing very well. He has eaten his own poop a couple of times and it has totally grossed us all out, so hopefully that is just a puppy thing and he well grow out of it. He goes to work with me when I work and he is just the best little baby! Everyone loves him because he is so sweet, cuddly and adorable.

This will probably sound so stupid, but just the way it all happened, I really think Finn was meant to be in our little family. We needed him! It has been so good for all of us and we are just crazy about him. Quayd gets so loanly sometimes and it just breaks my heart. But now he has Finn who just adores Quayd and is willing to whatever Quayd wants him to do. Quayd drives cars on him, blasts him off like a rocket, and Finny watches him play the Wii. They are best buds and I am so glad we got him. He wasn't cheep, but worth every penny. I keep telling Brett that instead of Quayd picking the best puppy, the puppy picked the best little boy. I guess they kinda picked each other. Whatever you call it, I am so glad they found each other. Our little family needed little Finn and we didn't even know it!

the one about Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T22:53:00.000-08:00

We had a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving! It was nothing like our usual Thanksgivings, but maybe that is what made it so nice. We have been able to spend Thanksgiving with both of our families almost every year since we have been married. My family usually eats around noon and the Lane family eats in the evening. This year, Grandma Lane changed her dinner to the night before. (It was GREAT, by the way! Hopefully a new tradition.) My family all had different plans this year and we ended up not having a dinner together. Excuse me while I sound very ungrateful for a minute... My family is small. 10 people when we are all together. We all live right here together and see each other nearly everyday. We get together for every Birthday, so really, it wasn't that big of a deal that we didn't eat together for one year. I actually saw every member of my family today and visited with all of them, except Brayden. And he is my buddy. Whats up with that??? Anyway, I realize how fortunate I am to have my family so close and I couldn't love them anymore, but it was kind of a refreshing change to do something different today. Since those two dinners were changed/cancelled, we had no plans for today. I was chatting with my good friend Lindsay the other day and they were going to be alone too, so we decided to have our Thanksgiving dinner together. It was so great! She cooked the turkey, gravy and stuffing. I did the mashed potatoes, pies and rolls. We met at their house at 2:00 and our meal was DEEEE-LISH! Lindsay's turkey was absolutely perfect and her stuffing was TO DIE FOR! I have to brag for a second and say that my rolls were perfect!! My pies turned out great too. And in my mind, no Thanksgiving is complete without my famous orange rolls! It was so much fun to make dinner for our families and we did a pretty dang good job if I do say so myself. It was so nice to visit with Brian, Lindsay and their beautiful kids today. I am so grateful for wonderful friends who wanted to join forces with us this year.

My roll dough turned out PERFECT today! It raised beautifully and it was so nice and fluffy. I made crescent rolls but forgot to take pix of them. Sad, because they were pretty. However, I did get some pictures of the orange rolls. The best part of Thanksgiving is, of course, LEFTOVERS! Lindsay was a sweetheart to share her beautiful turkey with us.

For the last couple of weeks, I have been writing things that I am thankful for on my FaceBook status. I tried to do it every day, but realistically...well... it just didn't happen. I did pretty good though. Of course I am thankful for millions of other things too, but here are just a few that I covered on FaceBook. I thought it was a perfect thing to add to my Thanksgiving blog post.

Monday, November 9
Today (and everyday) I am thankful for my beautiful little family. My amazing husband and my precious son make my life worth living! I love living with 2 "men" that love me, appreciate me, protect me, and respect me.

Tuesday, November 10
Today I am thankful for my big brother. I know, I know, CORNY! We have gotten so close over the last year and I am just so glad that we have a good relationship. Our families get together every weekend for games, our boys are best buddies and even our spouses are friends. I LOVE the relationship we have created. I love and adore my brother! He is such a good example to me!!!

Wednesday, November 11
Today, I am thankful for all of the brave men and women who have served or who are currently serving our country. I am also grateful for their families who live without them so I can be free. What a HUGE sacrifice! My Grandfather is a Korean war Veteran and I am so proud of him! Thank you soldiers, veterans, their families and even to our Government who all sacrifice and work so hard for our freedom. Happy Veterans Day!

Thursday, November 12
Today I am thankful for my 3 Sisters-in-law! Danette; SIL 17 years. We are SO close. She is strong, smart, determined and a good example to me. Talia; 11 years and she is the funniest, coolest sweetest girl on earth. She is very wise for her age and I admire her!!! Brynn; SIL for 9 years. We were meant to be sisters! We are GREAT FRIENDS and we are so much alike. She is always there when I need her and she is the BEST!

Friday, November 13
Today, I am grateful for my creativity. Is that weird? I hate to sound boastful or anything, but I love that I can think of something I want to make, visualize it, think about it for a few minutes and then create it. It comes very naturally to me. Everyone has their own special gifts and talents and I am so grateful I have found mine and I am able to use it every day.

Saturday, November 14
I am having a blast in Wendover with my hubby! Today, I am thankful for him and all the fun times we have together! He is the best guy EVER!

Sunday, November 15
I am glad to be home from our mini-vaca to Wendover. That brings me to today’s thankful post. I am so thankful for my home. It is not perfect, by any means, but it is nice, clean, warm and there is so much love here, it literally overflows!

Wednesday, November 18
Today, I gotta say, I am thankful for my FRIENDS! I know some of the most AMAZNG WOMEN in the whole world and I am so glad to be able to call them my friends. I don't want to mention names, because I will forget someone, I am certain. So please, if you are my friend.... I'm talking about you!!!!!

Thursday, November 19
I rid of that horrid 24 hour flu thing. Ewwwww. That brings me to my thankful post of the day.... SOSOSOSOSOSOSOSOSO thankful for healthy, solid, regular bowel movements.

Friday, November 20, 2009
Today, I am so thankful for my amazing job!!! It is so much fun! I love helping people, I love making cute things, putting together displays, coming up with ads..... I just love EVERYTHING about it. Its the best job EVER!

Sunday, November 22
Today I am SO thankful for my amazing friend Lindsay!!

Monday, November 23
Today I am TOTALLY thankful for Christmas music. I LOVE IT!!! I have not started playing it yet, however, I am working on my Christmas playlist for my iPod.

Tuesday, November 24
Today I am so thankful to be an Aunt to the best boys on the planet! Besides being a mom, it is the GREATEST job a woman can have!!!! Of course, it helps that I have the most awesome, smart, adorable and amazing nephews EVER!!!!

Of course, I am so thankful for my family, my home, my friends, my pets, Brett's job, and many other things. This was such a great holiday and it couldn't have been more perfect. It was very laid back and casual, which is just what we like! I love Thanksgiving! I love the harvest, the comfort foods, the smells and most importanatly, the kick off to my FAVE time of year.... CHRISTMAS!!!! Yes, I already have my Christmas decor up! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Here is a little teaser for something you will be seeing on my blog in the next couple of days.

the one about our new family pictures

2009-11-22T23:45:00.000-08:00

I am so excited! My super great photographer friend Lindsay did it again and took some awesome family pictures of us! I am so pleased with the way they turned out. I am such a freak and I like to have everything perfect.... right down to socks and earrings. I worried and worried about every little detail and I am pretty sure I was about to drive Lindsay NUTS by the time we were done, but I am so happy with the end result. All of my stress and worry paid off! I will only share a few of my very favorite pix so my post isn't super long and over loaded with pictures. If you are interested though, here is a link so you can see them all. click here

the one about my surprise trip

2009-11-18T00:28:00.000-08:00

Brett and I have been trying really hard to go on dates and have more alone time lately. Since we had Quayd, we just quit having date nights and stuff. We finally realized how important it is for us to have this time together so we have been working on it. I know for people with large families, it is difficult to make it work, but believe me, it is hard for our little family too! The biggest challenge we face is that we have always included Quayd in everything! It is so hard not to though, he is our best friend and we hate to leave him out! He is such an easy child to take everywhere and often, it is easier to take him along that to try to figure out a sitter.

Earlier last week, Brett asked me if I would like to go on a date with him the upcoming weekend. I assumed it was just dinner or something. He wouldn't give me much info but told me he would take care of everything. Who can argue with that?!? As the weekend got closer, he started giving me little bits of info and by Thursday, I knew we were going to Wendover for the whole weekend. He had already worked out all of the details for Quayd, room reservations, spending money and the whole deal. It was so wonderful! Now, keep in mind that Brett is a very non-romantic person. Like, possibly the most non-romantic person ever. So this was a pretty big deal to me. He got us a VERY nice room at a VERY nice hotel/casino. Sorry for the not so great pictures. They were taken with my phone because I didn't take the camera. Stupid, right!?!

I couldn't have asked for a better mini vaca and I couldn't have gone with a better guy! Well, maybe a little 7 year old guy that I know!

the one about the H1N1 shot

2009-11-13T11:03:00.001-08:00

Because of my heart problems, my Cardiologist likes me to get the flu shot every year. Once the "swine flu" became the big deal, I needed to get the H1N1 shot too. It has been a joke trying to find a Doctor or clinic who had it! I always seemed to call right after the last shot was given. Go Figure. Well, today, Brett had to call our family Doctor for a refill on a prescription and he happened to ask if they had any of the vaccine. They DID!!! So they told him to send me right down. I went, and I got it. Shots don't bother me one bit. I kind of like them. FYI this one was extremely mild. However, the soreness and swelling are already setting in. I haven't done a ton of research on this vaccine, and I know it is kind of controversial. But considering my weakened immune system and my already existing heart problems, I am high risk for the flu. So really it was a no-brainer for me. I feel safer already!

the one about Brycen and costumes

2009-11-13T08:08:00.000-08:00

It was my sweet little nephew Brycen's 1st Birthday on the 10th. We went over to his house and had a fun little party! We had pizza, cake, presents and lots of laughs! Here he is getting his cake. Isn't he adorable???
Now this might be one of my favorite pictures of all times. It was taken at the party and I think it is darling!!! Quayd and Talia. ahhhhhhhh.....

Now, on to the "costumes" part of my post. Two years ago, I bought Quayd a bunch of Halloween costumes at the after-Halloween sales. He has LOVED having them for dress up stuff. He and Brennen (and sometimes Brayden) wear them all of the time. Quayd's other friends love them too!!! (Quayd and Kasen)
Brennen, Zoey and Quayd
Quayd and Brennen go trick-or-treating at my mom and grandma's houses all year long!

They have also come in handy for different dress up activities at school. (Kindergarten-Fairy Tale day) Ha Ha, that reminded me that Shae was having a Superhero assembly on the first day of school and needed something to wear, so she came and hit the costume bin.

Here is a picture from early this October. Quayd, Brayden and Brennen had a 4H activity where they had to go trick-or-treating for canned foods to donate to the food pantry. Danette and I didn't have their costumes ready, so we just let them rummage through the costume bin. Brayden even found some things to use. I have started to notice the costumes are getting super small. They don't button up anymore and they are all high-waters. I went to "the marts" (Wal and K) on Tuesday and hit the JACK POT! Costumes were 90% off! I got so many costumes for them and the most expensive one was $1.99 and the cheapest was $.49. I got home before they got off the bus so I laid them all out on my couch. I intercepted them in the driveway and told them I had a big surprise in the front room. They took off RUNNING! You would have thought it was Christmas morning. They were THRILLED! They were tearing into them and trying them on before I even made it back in the house. It was so awesome that I was able to get them so many new ones. And I only spent about $20.00. Here they are in some of the new costumes. Brayden and I are OBSESSED with aliens, so he snatched this one right up! The only rule is that they have to stay at my house and they have to keep them picked up. Otherwise, it is a free for all! The best $20.00 I have spent in a long time! :)

the one about Halloween (finally!)

2009-11-10T19:55:00.000-08:00

Yay!!!! I found my camera tonight! I had almost given up, and then I was helping Quayd in Brett's car tonight, and Ta-Dah!! There it was. I love when that happens! So, I am sorry for the delay, but here are some pictures I had to share!

Pumpkin decorating contest for school.... Quayd & Brennen.

Friday morning before school. I think it is so lame that kids cannot dress up, so I decided to push the boundaries a little bit and give Quayd and Brennen a little Halloween spirit.

Friday night, Danette and I dressed up for "Witches Night Out" in Downtown Vernal. It was pretty fun. I hope they do it again and can expand on it a little bit. Here we are in our costumes that I made. Danette has her cute little dog Izzy.

Later that night, us and our husbands went to a Halloween party.

You have to look closely at Brett's costume....

Halloween morning was busy! Quayd had a soccer game, then he had bowling league. They had a little party at bowling and the kids got to dress up. (By the time I took pictures, Quayd bowling team had already ditched their costumes.) These are his bowling buddies, Payton and Gage.

After bowling, we all had a little nap, then got ready for trick-or-treating. Brett stayed home this year, and Brandon wasn't able to go, so Danette and I loaded up the boys and had a great time. We even decided to wear our witch costumes! We also went to the rec. center for the annual Halloween celebration. It was really cool!!! Around 8:30, we came home, and decided to go to my mother-in-laws. She was fixing her famous tacos! It was really weird... we had not planned on that at all, but all 4 kids and their families ended up at her house and we had the funnest time EVER! We all stayed there for hours and we laughed and laughed. It was so cool. We haven't all been together for the longest time! Here is me and my crazy sister-in-law Brynn, and our cute boys.

All in all, it was a pretty great Halloween. I love Halloween!!! I love my family, my little mummy and my mammogram machine. :)

the one about some old stuff

2009-11-09T18:55:00.000-08:00

Can you believe this is my 300th post!?!

I have been wanting/needing to catch up on some stuff, but I have misplaced my camera. I know, sad, right? Anyway, I finally decided to just do some catch up on some old stuff that has been piling up.

First of all.. I LOVE this weather, I love Fall and I love Thanksgiving. This truly is my favorite time of year. I love everything about it. I did notice, however, that the leaves and stuff are past their beauty. It is starting to get into that ugly pre-winter stuff. But it has been so nice lately, that I don't really care. Its amazing and I love it! I am also reminded of all of the things I have to be thankful for. I have noticed that many of my friends have been blogging once a day about the things they are thankful for. I love that, and I love reading them. I would love to commit to that, but considering my recent posting track record, I probably wouldn't make it. I know I have said this before, but I love blogging, I just don't have time. Actually, I have time, I just don't spend my time wisely. I am a chronic time waster.

Well, lets play catch up, shall we?

We no longer have roommates. (phewwwww...) We had 2 this summer and now they are both gone. My buddy Spencer moved in last Spring, and he left in August. He was ready to move on, and I don't blame him. He needed to find a job and he wasn't having any luck here. He moved back to the Wasatch Front to be near his family. We also had Brett's friend Morgan. He moved here mid-July and left at the end of October. It was fun having both of them, but I am also glad to have my home and my life back.

Quayd finished his flag football season last month. He liked it ok, but he is super excited to play tackle football next year. Now we have started indoor soccer. Brett and I are coaching. It is kind of a pain to coach, but I enjoy being so involved. Plus, we are the perfect candidates for coaching since we only have one child. That way we have no distractions and we don't have to worry about taking care of other children. Oh and also because we are huge suckers. Brett and I were playing co-ed softball and it ended in September. That kept us very busy. Now women's volleyball has started. Our team isn't very good, but we have fun. I have to keep reminding myself that it is just for fun.

Brett got a big fat promotion at work a few months ago, and I am not sure if I ever mentioned it. He now takes care of outside sales and he does a great job at it! I have been very happy to see him take more pride in his work and to finally enjoy what he is doing. He takes very good care of his customers and they take care of him too. I am so proud of him!

Same old, same old at The Country Bear. Here are a couple of the fun things I have made this month.

I am still loving working there. It is a VERY LOW STRESS job and that is what I love the most about it. Also, I love being able to use my creativity on a daily basis. Sometimes, my craft projects get put on the back burner, but making all of these fun things for work forces me to do it, and I LOVE it!

Quayd has become quite the little hunter. You know, Brett hunts but he is not an EVERY WEEKEND kind of hunter. Actually, he hasn't even had a tag for anything for about 5 years. He likes to go when asked, but doesn't make a huge effort to do so otherwise. Me? Hunt? NO THANK YOU! My father-in-law was a very avid hunter, and so is Brett's brother Cory. A few months ago, Cory asked Brett and Quayd to go with him to hunt prairie dogs. I figured Quayd would be bored of that in no time, but he actually LOVED it. They sent this picture to me. They helped Quayd with the gun, and he shot this himself. (Sorry if it is gross or disturbing to anyone!!) Brett said that Quayd got so hyped up over shooting! So after that, Quayd started begging to go prairie dog hunting every weekend. Once Elk season rolled around, Cory had a tag for the book cliffs. He invited Brett and Quayd to go with him. They went early one morning and came back that night. We figured Quayd would get bored. Well he didn't. He LOVED every second of it. So the next weekend, they decided to take a tent and stay all night so they could get up early and go. (It was still fairly warm at this time.) That night when they were going to bed, all three of them were still and quiet and Cory did an Elk call. They heard bull Elk calling back to it. They weren't very far away. Within 400 yards. Brett said Quayd was FREAKING out, he was so excited!!! They called back and forth for a little while, then finally went to bed. First thing in the morning, Quayd was ready to hunt. Unfortunately, they didn't get anything that day. But Cory got one during that next week while hunting with some friends. Quayd was excited for Cory, but disappointed that he missed out. A couple weekends later, Brett's friend Todd and his boy had tags for diamond mountain so they decided to take our trailer up and camp for the weekend. Quayd was more excited than anyone!!! Again, no luck on the hunt, but he still had a great time. The next hunt is in December. Brett's Grandpa Lane and his twin brother Elmer have tags for Elk in Colorado. They are both getting pretty old and not in the best of health, so Brett and Cory are going to go along. Oh, and guess who else will be going??? Yep, good old Quayd! It has always been cool to me how when the weather starts to turn cold, and the feeling of harvest sets in some men have this instinct that makes them want to hunt. It's like a survival instinct or something. I see it in myself too as a woman. I always feel like I need to stock pile food and can fresh fruits and veggies. Maybe I am crazy, but I notice this about Brett and I every year. I could see it in Mike, I see it Cory and I am sure I will see it more and more in Quayd as the years go by. Pretty cool stuff. On a funny note, Cory came over and dinner with us tonight. Quayd asked him, "When we goin' huntin' again?" Cory said something about deer or something and Quayd pipes in, "Well I know where we can get us a nice deer. Out in the book cliffs! We saw lots of nice ones when we were out there." He said it like an old pro. Just like he had hunted them a thousand times before.

Ok, on to other things. The status report on Triple Scoops Ice Cream, since many of you have asked, was good. We did well, for just starting out. We were able to get ourselves out there and get recognized in some of the neighborhoods. I am glad we have a head start for next Spring. We made a few mistakes, and we learned from them, but we will be pumped up and ready to go in a few months. I am so proud of my nephew Brayden. He has been an awesome business partner! He is very involved and works hard to make Triple Scoops a success. We are hoping to get involved in the community Holly Days celebration in a few weeks, which includes a parade of lights. That is still in the works though.

Another news tidbit, is that I celebrated my 31st Birthday last month. It was very laid back and not too exciting. Which is GREAT! My Birthday was on a Sunday. The Friday night before my Birthday, my buddies Kandice and Jamie took me to dinner and a movie. We had Casa Rios then went to The Stepfather. (Intense!) Saturday, Brett took me out for dinner and we met up with some friends at Club XS. It was ok. The morning of my Birthday, we went to breakfast with my Brother and his family. That night, we had baked potato bar with my family at my Grandma's house. Monday, I went to breakfast with Holly and Kandice. That was about it. Oh! On Monday mornings, I help in Quayd's class, so that Monday I took treats with me. I told them that they are all my friends so I wanted to have a treat to share with them. We had donuts and orange juice. It was fun, and the kids thought it was super cool. They are happy with any chance for a treat, right? Here are some of the awesome gifts I got. This is my new favorite thing on Earth, besides the two people that gave it to me.
Brett and Quayd got me this nice, soft blankie. I have been dropping hints for one for quite sometime, so I am glad Brett finally took the bait. I love it! It is so soft and I cuddle up in it all the time. Kandice got me this awesome necklace! And Grandma Galley brought this by on my Birthday.
She is so sweet, and her bread was AMAZING! It didn't last very long. This was my cake from my family party. Holy Delish!!!! It was awesome. I love white cake and white frosting. And last but not least, Holly made me some of her amazing cupcakes, and gave me this adorable turkey.
It was a great Birthday. I didn't mind turning 31. 30 didn't bother me either. Age is just a number, right? I actually enjoy being in my thirties. It makes me feel more grown up and more respected. People take a 31 year old woman way more serious than they take a 25 year old. Maybe not, maybe that is just in my head, but it makes me feel better. I feel like I am officially grown up now. I have been married 11 years, I have a 7 year old and I am in my thirties.

Ok, I guess I will end it there. I will post more when I find my camera. Hopefully soon. It's not to far away because I just had it the other day. I have some great Halloween pictures to share! Happy 300th post!!!!!!! Thanks for reading! :)

the one about a surprise Halloween party

2009-10-26T14:59:00.000-07:00

My sister in law Danette and I had a surprise Halloween party for our kids last night. We both felt like this month has flown by so quickly and all of a sudden it is HALLOWEEN! We worked on it all day, and kept it a secret!! Here they are; pre surprise. They were very unsure of what was happening! They thought something was going to scare them!

Here are some of our fun foods. Everything tasted GREAT, by the way!!

(I posted Recipes on another blog that I am a member of. It has different recipes and fun ideas for families. It's super cute!!! My friend Lindsay put it together and asked me to be an author. Anyway, go check it out and you will find my recipes, and more, there. Click Here)

Spaghetti and "Oozing" Eyeballs

These meatballs were SO yummy! Our only difference was our noodles

The dogs even liked it!!! Gross.

Witch fingers.

This was the hit of the night, BRAIN!!! My mom made it, and it looked so REAL!!!! It was shrimp cocktail, and SO YUMMY! (For the recipe, click HERE. )

We also had this cute skeleton veggie tray and BRAIN dip. The first picture was from the internet, and the second picture is the one my grandma made for the party. She did awesome! She also added some things that she knew the kids would be more likely to eat.

Witch's Brew
I made a cheesecake and this Chocolate cream pie for dessert. We also let the kids decorate sugar cookies.

We finished off the night with pumpkin carving.

We knew this was going to be a super crazy week, so we decided to surprise the kids with this fun Halloween party. We didn't tell the kids anything all day and they were going crazy! They loved the surprise and I think it made them feel special that we did all of this for them. We invited the Grandparents to participate too, and everyone had a GREAT time!

the one about the Country Bear

2009-10-23T12:45:00.000-07:00

I have been working on a new blog for The Country Bear. CLICK HERE to check it out, then tell me what you think!