The Reyes'

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day

2012-01-16T20:50:00.000-08:00

I'm so thankful for a day off of school! It allowed us to have an extra low stress day. It was lovely! We slept in, ate a yummy breakfast, got in some game playing, laundry, exercising, blog reading, and yes I even did some things for school.

However, I'd be remised if I didn't express gratitude for Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. As I've taught my third graders about this man and his dreams for America over the past week which will continue this week. It has been interesting discussing segregation, civil rights, and equality and hearing their points of view.

While I do believe the simple version of Dr. King's dream has come true... I do still believe we have a long way to go as a society to accomplish the real intent I heard when listening to his speech in its entirety today for the first time. So, let's keep moving towards the end goal. I know its attainable if we can put our pride aside.

Also, to the state of AZ... I'm disappointed you've renamed the holiday Human Rights Day. Give Dr. King some credit!

Busy, Busy

2011-11-28T17:27:00.001-08:00

Life around our house is busy busy these days! Over the Thanksgiving holiday break we got a ton of things accomplished. We decorated the tree, most of the rest of the house is decorated and all of our outside lights are hung! We also caught up on cleaning and laundry. All while John cooked the Thanksgiving turkey ;) So proud! Pictures to come, soon, hopefully.

Thanksgiving Round 2

2011-11-23T15:45:00.001-08:00

So we're hosting Thanksgiving at our house for the 2nd year in a row. We delegated much more (so it seems to me) this year. I guess that's because last year I made all the pies and I'm only making chocolate pies this year. I'm excited to eat on our new dining room table with the new tablecloths and napkins my mom got for us. If I would have been more on top of things I would have made a center piece, but alas, it's not going to happen this year. Maybe next year I really LOVE hosting Thanksgiving dinner at our house. We have a fantastic time and it seems to me that everyone else is much more relaxed and less stressed coming to our house. I hope that's true. I'm looking forward to a great day. The only squabble about last year is that the food wasn't ready by the time we had said it would be. So I instructed the cook, that I didn't care what time they planned dinner for, but that the food better be ready by that time. It's a huge pet peeve of mine when people say we'll eat at ____ but then 30 minutes later we still haven't started. Pictures tomorrow of my beautiful new table and setup. I'm very blessed.

Baby Lilly

2011-11-22T17:34:00.001-08:00

So I'm an auntie again! This time to a new niece Lilly on my side of the family, she's the first grandchild for my mom. She is SO precious! I got to go to Indiana in October to meet her and she is just perfect! She has the curliest hair and pulls the BEST faces! Here's some of my favorite pictures of her.

New Blogger

2011-11-21T18:12:00.001-08:00

Can I just say I DID NOT appreciate having to take the last at least 2 if not 3 hours trying to get my blog to look the way I wanted it to! This new blogger design stuff is very frustrating! The one thing I couldn't figure out was how to get my Blog title to be centered on my header... anyone know how? I finally got the rest of it to look the way I wanted. Yay! (Not the best welcome back into the blogging world!

Reset and Coming Back

2011-11-21T16:24:00.001-08:00

Well, we've been trying out the Nurtured Heart Approach at school. I must say, with my class it is totally working! I love it. I'm not perfect at it by any means, but one aspect of the Nurtured Hear is 'Reset'. A word I say when one or some of my students aren't doing what they need to be. This means they put their heads down until I ask them to come back. When I say 'Come back' it means that students are to come back to their greatness.

Well, I figured it was time for my blog to come back to its greatness (not that it was ever that great to anyone but me, but that's ok) I have so much that I've been doing. I've done more crafty things in the last week than I have in the previous 8 months and I had a ton of fun! So look forward to many more updates, especially if I can get my blogger app working on my phone!

Summer

2011-06-20T11:12:00.000-07:00

Summer so far this year has been VERY busy but a lot of fun too!

We've been to conferences, went to Disneyland and our personal favorite California Adventures, and even been on our very first cruise, and something about me reading an 11 book children's series in 10 days...

And then there's the more mundane aspect of summer for a couple of teachers, doctors, dentists, and various other appointments.

Not to mention the regular every day stuff like church callings, seeing friends and family, and oh yeah, even cleaning the house!

So to keep you tied over I'm giving you a code for 20% off your purchase at our etsy store, 2teachersjewelry, which is full of earrings right now! Just enter SUMMER11 at checkout for 20% off. Don't see something you like? want something specific? Let us know and we'll work it out!

Rob & Tracie Morris - Former Super Bowl Champion, Parents of 5 and Mormons

2011-03-20T22:23:00.000-07:00

So thankful for people with testimonies this strong and willing to share!

(if your emotional state is fragile like mine is... you may need tissues to watch this)

And we're off!

2011-03-04T13:54:00.001-08:00

Well, we're on our way to Scottsdale to participate in the Walk of Hope. It's a 7 hour drive. But I know it'll be worth it!

Walk of Hope

2011-01-29T12:38:00.000-08:00

Click here to join Team Reyes!

The first weekend in March RESOLVE INC. is holding its annual Walk of Hope. RESOLVE INC. is the national infertility association. This year John and I have decided to participate. It's in Scottsdale AZ the first Saturday in March. We'd love to have you there to walk with us. If not, but you'd like to help our fundraising efforts click here. Thanks for all of your support!

Thanksgiving wrap up

2010-12-03T20:01:00.001-08:00

Happy Holidays!

This is truely the most wonderful time of the year for me! I do wish we got a little snow, but I can drive not too far away and find LOTS of it! This year has been extremely cold all of a sudden. Which is quite unusal for us here in AZ! We're hoping all of our plants, that were finally starting to not look brand new (three years old), survived the drastic drop in temperatures... from highs in the 70's to highs only in the 40's almost overnight it seems!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. John and I hosted it at our house and had the BEST time getting everything ready, using all our fancy silverware and dishes, and most of all having the family at our house! They don't all make it over to our house at the same time very often. The turkey turned our perfect, after we finally got it unthawed and cooking. John's non-traditional stuffing and green beans were also delicious. Plus we learned last year that homemade cranberry sauce is so easy to make and tastes so much better! We also had chocolate pie of course, I secretly love that I've corrupted "the grandkids" because they all chose chocolate pie ;). This year we also made John's dad a pineapple pie. It was delicious and I kept my promise! Kami and Jenny both helped out tremendously by making rolls and mashed potatoes, both which were (and aways are) highlights of dinner and leftovers. It was by far one of my most favorite Thanksgivings ever!

CSN Stores Giveaway Results

2010-11-20T18:25:00.000-08:00

Well, there you have it! Congratulations to the 'Lee Family' on winning this $35 gift certificate to CSN Stores! Enjoy, and be sure to let us know what you choose! Thanks again to CSN Stores for sponsoring the giveaway!

CSN Stores Giveaway

2010-11-06T09:44:00.000-07:00

Well hey, everybody! Long time no see. How has it been so long? I'm increasingly shocked by how busy life gets.

Last time I mentioned we were trying out a product from CSN Stores. We decided to add another pan/pot to our increasingly (but slowly) growing Caphlon cookware collection. John LOVES it! (And I LOVE it because it makes him happy, and he cooks yummy food!)

CSN Stores has graciously offered to giveaway to 1 of you a $35 dollar gift certificate to use at one of their 200+ stores where they sell everything from shoes, to beds, to contemporary coffee tables! So I'm sure that whomever wins will be sure to find multiple things to suit their fancy... and if your anything like me it will take you hours to finally decide which 1 thing you want to get.

Here's how to enter...

Be a Reyes' House blog follower
Leave a comment on this post of something you would use the $35 gift certificate towards at one of the many CSN Stores

That simple!

If you want extra entries

Spread the word on facebook or your own blog. (up to 2 extra entries, 1 each)
Follow me on Twitter @erikareyes and @CSNstores and tweet about this giveaway. (up to 5 extra entries, 1 per tweet)
Be sure to link to your tweet, facebook post, or blog post and leave a comment for each extra entry on this post.

This Giveaway will end on Friday November 19th at midnight MST.

Giveaway open to residents of the USA or Canada.

Have fun and good luck!

In the spirit of full disclosure, CSN Stores has provided this gift certificate for the winner. I have also received free gift certificates and purchased products with those gift certificates from CSN Stores. All opinions of the products and CSN Stores are my own and wouldn't be any different if I would have used my own money for these things.

Continue in Patience

2010-10-13T21:09:00.000-07:00

Wow...was this ever something I needed today! Simple reminder that I'm not alone, that my Heavenly Father answers my prayers. Because today, I definately needed to be spiritually fed.

Continue in Patience

Day 22 - A Website

2010-09-25T09:05:00.000-07:00

A great website out there is CSN Stores. I've partnered with them a couple of times in the past to do some reviews and giveaways that I've posted about on my other blog. CSN Stores has over 200 online stores where you can find everything from a platform bed to fantastic fitness equipment to cookware and even shoes! Plus, most of their items have free shipping!

They've contacted me again and I'm so excited to work with them to find something great to review! I'm having such a hard time deciding between their thousands of items. I'm thinking a rope swing now that it's cool enough to be outside, bean bag chairs for my classroom, more cookware, knives, kitchen gadgets for John, or be selfish and find me a great new pair of shoes. Head on over to CSN Stores and see if you find anything YOU think I should review!

Day 21 - A Recipie

2010-09-21T07:45:00.000-07:00

Ok, I'm going to share my most favorite cheesecake recipie. Just know the cook time and temperature (at least in my oven) need to be upped to get a nice texture. Oh yeah, substitute chocolate where ever it says lemon, and you have an AMAZING chocolate cheesecake!

So the infamous Lemon Cheesecake from Betty Crocker.

Day 20 - A Hobby

2010-09-20T08:40:00.000-07:00

I have several hobbies. I get sick of one thing and move on... (kinda like this blog). From everything like crocheting, scrapbooking, reading books, to video games, blogging, and traveling each are hobbies I rotate through. Right now I'm on a scrapbooking hiatus. Except I've been making photobooks for free from many different sites and counting them as my scrapbooks! I'd also add couponing to the list. John and I have gotten kind of addicted! This weekend us and 6 of our friends will be heading to the truck race for free! ($200 worth of free tickets.) Thanks Smiths!

Day 19 - A Talent

2010-09-19T08:39:00.000-07:00

I have done many things throughout my life. Here are a few of them.

Music
When I was young I played the piano. In elementary school I wrote my very own piano piece and won first place in my school and district but came in fourth at the next level, and didn't continue. In fourth grade I started playing the clarinet. I continued that through high school where most people to playing an instrument MUCH more seriously than I ever did. I've always enjoyed singing. I sang in choirs at church and with children's groups for as long as I can remember. Singing harmony and reading music are two of my favorite talents.

Arts and Crafts
I've tried everything from sewing to card making to scrapbooking to crocheting and everything in between. I'm horrible at sewing. Ok at cards and scrapbooking, and since I taught myself how to crochet, I think I'm pretty good. However, I've learned that digital scrapbooking is so much more my style.

People Skills
I tend to be everyones llama. I get to hear about everyone else's problems. I'm ok with that, and I've been working on the art of giving sound, non-judgemental advice... Although that seems to be taking much more time to get consistently good at.

Teaching
This is the obvious one to me. While this year seems like I'm starting over I'm such a better teacher today then I was 6 years ago when I started doing this. I really enjoy the teaching kids part of teaching.

Overall I have no overwhelming, outstanding talents that wow everyone, but I have what I need to be great at being me!

Day 18 - My Wedding

2010-09-18T08:40:00.000-07:00

Here are a few of my favorites from the day. June 7. It was incredibly hot that day. Especially for me... my face turns bright red if I'm outside in the heat for more than two minutes. (I swear it was 100 degrees, John promises it was only 95 ;)

We were married in the St. George LDS Temple on June 7 '03.

THe happy couple, just married and seald for time and all eternity! SUCH a blessing!

One of my cousin's girls. Now 7 years later, she's such a gorgeous young woman! (they drove 12 hours to be at our weeding and then we spent some time at disneyland with them on our honeymoon!

Probably my most favorite picture of John on our wedding day. I love how it TOTALLY shows off his personality!

A great picture of us!

Yet another great picture of my dad and I. I'm so sad that none of my siblings will get pictures like this on their wedding days! Love you!

Before the reception we headed to get some Bridals and STILL MORE wedding pictures at other locations.

My happy (goofy face-making) family before the reception... I can't believe how young all my siblings look/are! So crazy. It doesn't seem that long ago. (in December, the youngest will graduate from High School!)My brother with the garter.... which he caught at both the receptions!

Day 17 - An art piece

2010-09-17T08:23:00.000-07:00

See this post, for my very most favorite piece of artwork EVER!

Day 16 - A Song that Makes you Cry

2010-09-16T08:04:00.000-07:00

Probably the song I cry most when I hear it is this one. It's my mom and I's song. Every time I hear it I think of her. Think of being a kid. I also think of all the perfect times this song has played randomly on the radio when I needed to know she cared but she was far away. Love you mom.

Day 15 - Dream House

2010-09-15T08:28:00.000-07:00

I'd have to say, my current house is pretty close to perfect for my dream house. When we talk about moving, I cry at the thought of leaving behind my house! I wish the backyard was all done the way we wanted it and that ants knew their place was outside, not making a nest in my shirt on the floor overnight. But other than that, I really truely do LOVE my house! You can go back in the archives to see pictures, inside and out. They're older pictures, so you can use your imagination to invision now, three years later.

Day 14 - A Nonfiction book

2010-09-14T08:57:00.000-07:00

Um... I don't really read a lot of nonfiction

Day 13 - A Fictional Book

2010-09-13T09:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, so books are just WONDERFUL. My life revolves around children's books and you HAVE to go here to the new website of my ALL TIME FAVORITE read alouds. When I was teaching 1st grade these were the kids favorite! (my mostly hispanic student population)

Seriously, if you don't go check this out, I'll be so sad!

Day 12 - OCD

2010-09-12T09:43:00.000-07:00

I'm OCD about a lot of things. Probably the biggest one is when it comes to professionalism, being spelling and grammar. I HATE when things that are published, e-mailed, printed without being proofread. I most especially hate it when it's me! I personally feel that spelling and grammar are easy to get a second opinion on before being sent, published, posted, etc.

Sometimes I get in a hurry and don't do it, then I notice it later and get all mad at myself. Especially, because I know how annoyed I get at others lack of spelling and grammar so I KNOW there are people that feel that about things I write.

Let's face it, if you want to be seen as unprofessional, it's easy to do and happens WAY too often. Let's proofread!

Day 11 - Recent Photo of Me

2010-09-11T09:42:00.000-07:00

This was taken in July, in Indiana. Our way of introducing our new phones to all our friends!

Day 10 - Photo of me over 10 years ago

2010-09-10T09:12:00.000-07:00

Sorry its not the highest quality, it's a picture of a picture in a book, taken with my cell phone no less.

This is a picture of my dad and I. I'm probably about a year or so old. I luckily have a TON of pictures of my dad and I. I'm SO thankful for that!

Day 9 - Photos I took

2010-09-09T08:29:00.000-07:00

I take ALL kinds of pictures. In fact, it's one of my favorite hobbies. Here are a few of my favorite I've taken.

This picture was taken in May of this year. We were visiting my Aunt and Uncle in LA and they took us over to see the "Friendship Bell" ( I think it was a gift from Korea, but I could be wrong). It is looking out onto the Pacific Ocean and these purple flowers just begged for me to take their pictures!

This rose picture was also taken in LA in May but in 2009. It was one of the roses waiting to be planted on the LDS Temple grounds in LA. I don't think I've ever seen such a PERFECT rose!

This picture was taken in July 2009 when we went to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon. By far one of my very most favorite pictures I have of John EVER! It wasn't planned or posed for. He wanted to venture out, and I was having a hard time with the elevation and heat, so I sat down while he hiked out. The thunderstorm rolling in was amazing as well!

This picture was taken in April (I think) 2009. We were on our way to the reception of a good friend of mine, and Provo canyon was AMAZING! Love this picture.

And of course, a San Diego picture! We love, love, love San Diego. This picture was taken at the Cabrillo Nation Monument. It is a GORGEOUS place right where San Diego Bay meets the Pacific ocean. We walked down to the tide pools, but we got there at high tide. So I have pictures of crashing waves instead of barnacles and starfish. Seriously, a very neat place to go visit!

Day 8 - Angry/Sad photo

2010-09-08T08:20:00.000-07:00

This is the Oklahoma City Bombing Memorial. On our drive across the country we stopped here. I remember hearing about this when it happened. It is a beautiful memorial. I choose this picture because I'm angry that people would be so cruel and desperate to bomb something and kill innocent people and I'm devastated that so many people children included, lost their lives.

Day 7 - Happy Photo

2010-09-07T08:07:00.000-07:00

This picture has THE BEST story and it makes me happy. Plus I didn't have to go searching for it!

This is my nephew.

And THIS is his story.

We were at dinner after Grandma Ginna's funeral and he came over to our table very sad. I asked him what was wrong and he said his mom wouldn't let him have any more dessert. I asked him what he wanted and he said Jello. I said, "You need to go tell your mom that Aunt Erika says Jello isn't dessert its a fruit! Grape, lime, strawberry, etc." So he heads off to tell his mom Aunt Erika's side of the story. They're all the way across the room from us and I don't hear what's going on but I do watch as their conversation ends and he walks back to the tables and loads up on Jello, with a HUGE smile on his face!

Win one for Aunt Erika! lol.

It was hilarious. Not to mention that he had almost EVERY type of Jello that was on the table. When I told him that Jello was mostly water and now he was going to have to use the bathroom a lot for the rest of the day, the look on his face was priceless! (that's also when he decided he should stop eating more jello)

During all of this I asked him if he'd ever had jello jigglers. And he hasn't. So one of these days we're going to have a jello jiggler date!

Day 6 - 20 of my Favorite things

2010-09-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

This list is in no particular order and just like me is totally random... but what else would you expect from me?

national parks

chile rellenos from Los Lupes

my iPod touch

teaching children

waterfalls

math

my car (09 Dodge Caliber)

Tuffy

John's homemade tacos

John's homemade salsa

berries

bountiful baskets

amazing photography

mooshinindy.com

swagbucks

no dining out challenge (monthly)

mr. clean magic erasers

ice cream

reading a good book

naps/sleep/my bed (i think all of these count as one)

Day 5 - Favorite Quote

2010-09-05T10:01:00.000-07:00

I don't know if this counts as a quote, since I'm just quoting myself but its:

"It's OK to make mistakes, that's how we learn. "

This is and always has been the mantra in my classroom. After all, if kids are afraid to make mistakes, how will they try anything new, or difficult? Besides, I have to have an *excuse* for why I'm always making so many mistakes!

Day 4- Favorite Book

2010-09-04T09:57:00.000-07:00

Of Course my favorite book is a Children's book. And again, there are SO many to choose from. However, this one takes the cake.

David Shannon's Good Boy, Fergus!

If you click on the link and then look at this picture of Tuffy, you'll soon see why!

Day 3 - Favorite TV Show

2010-09-03T09:46:00.000-07:00

So I know this show hasn't been on for a while, but the reruns are. It's clean and hilarious. Nothing's better!

Reba (here are some bloopers)

Day 2 Favorite Movie

2010-09-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

Ok, so did you think that I wouldn't pick a Disney movie?

If so then you're SO wrong.

The problem is picking WHICH Disney movie! There are so many GREAT ones! Like Finding Nemo, Mulan, Cars, and Emperor's New Groove. Or think of the possibilities when you take into consideration the live action Disney movies like Cool Runnings, Enchanted, Beverly Hills Chihuahua, Mary Poppins, or NEWSIES! However, in recent years, Disney and I have had a very similar mind track when it comes to movies Ratatouille, Wall-E, Meet the Robinsons, and UP.

Seriously... how DOES one (like me) decided? How can I pick just one of these movies? Most people I'm sure have never seen half of them, and the half that has, most likely, doesn't think as highly of them as I do.

However, I did choose. I choose Meet the Robinsons. Maybe it's because its about the importance of family, or the adoption undertone, or the T-Rex scene. However, the part of the movie that I relate to the most is the underlying theme "Keep Moving Forward". I think I love it even more because it's a quote straight from Walt Disney himself. Watch til the very end, for the quote and listen to the lyrics of the song.

And this song...my #2 most favorite.

Day 1-Favorite Song

2010-09-01T08:38:00.000-07:00

So I know, I know, I'm an adult with NO children. I get it. However, those people at Disney know how to write songs that get a message across. Seriously my last few (ok maybe all, ever) of my favorite songs have come off of Disney movie soundtracks.

If you haven't seen The Princess and the Frog you should! It has a great message about family, getting your priorities in order, and "Digging a Little Deeper" to find out who you are. This is my current favorite because it fits the place I feel I am at in my life right now. Enjoy, and know I'm watching the entire movie, cause it's amazing!

So here's my favorite song "Dig a Little Deeper" off the Princess and the Frog soundtrack.

(and sorry, you'll have to click over to youtube to listen because all the clips had wouldn't allow me to embedd it)

I'm Back... I think!

2010-08-31T20:21:00.000-07:00

So many of the blgs I read have either done this in August or will be doing it in September, so here goes nothing! Maybe if I get back into getting on the computer (instead of using my iPod touch or smart phone) to use the internet, I'll actually start blogging again. I just haven't wanted to get off the couch and come into the office. I'm going to blame it on the fact that our office is 10 degrees warmer than the rest of the house ;).

So over the next 30 days here's what you'll see from me.

Day 1 - your favorite song
Day 2 - your favorite movie
Day 3 - your favorite television program
Day 4 - your favorite book
Day 5 - your favorite quote
Day 6 - 20 of my favorite things
Day 7 - a photo that makes you happy
Day 8 - a photo that makes you angry/sad
Day 9 - a photo you took
Day 10 - a photo taken over 10 years ago of you
Day 11 - a photo of you recently
Day 12 - something you are OCD about
Day 13 - a fictional book
Day 14 - a non-fictional book
Day 15 - your dream house
Day 16 - a song that makes you cry (or nearly)
Day 17 - an art piece (drawing, sculpture, painting, etc)
Day 18 - my wedding/future wedding/past wedding
Day 19 - a talent of yours
Day 20 - a hobby of yours
Day 21 - a recipe
Day 22 - a website
Day 23 - a youtube video
Day 24 - where I live
Day 25 - your day, in great detail
Day 26 - your week, in great detail
Day 27 - my worst habit
Day 28 - what's in my handbag/purse
Day 29 - hopes,dreams and plans for the next 365 days
Day 30 - a dream for the future

Good Things to Come

2010-06-15T09:16:00.000-07:00

Love this... and totally needed it today/lately. Sometimes the road ahead looks too long and hard. Sometimes the waiting is too much. But there are good things to come.

200th Post Here to Save you TONS of Money!

2010-03-20T13:48:00.000-07:00

WOW! I cannot believe I've posted 200 times on this blog... OK, yes, some I cheated because they were 150 characters long updated from my cell phone, but still, 200 posts is a big deal! Thanks to those of you that have stayed around from the beginning, new readers, and those that stopped reading a long time ago when I decided to take months off at a time! I appreciate you all and LOVE all your comments and support!

I figured I would FINALLY answer some questions that I get asked a lot by readers, friends, and family about how I save money and get so much free stuff. Just so you know this post will be linked to MANY other blogs and websites. Check out the ones that interest you. I'm getting nothing out of this from any of them, but am LOVING the services they offer and want to share that with all of you.

Where do you get all your coupons?
I don't get the Sunday paper. All of my coupons I sign up for from the individual stores or manufacturer, or I download them off the Internet from the following websites:
coupons.com
redplum.com
smartsource.com (these three are all linked through grocery smarts)

These two sites load coupons right to your Kroger affiliate store shopper loyalty card (Smiths for me):
shortcuts.com
cellfire.com

Also be sure to check out:
Box Tops for Education (while your there you can support Beaver Dam Elementary if you don't have a school of your own to support)
Pillsbury
Betty Crocker
All You Magazine is full of coupons but also offer exclusives on their website allyou.com
CVS.com
Snackpicks.com

Where do you find out about deals?
These are all the deal blogs in my google reader feed... You DEFINITELY don't need to read all of these, I've kinda gotten attached to the people behind many of these blogs so I keep reading them all, but picking 1 or 2 is probably MORE than adequate for getting ALL the deals there are to be had out there!
A good place to start is probably The Frugal Map.

This is the COOLEST thing since sliced bread! It's a combination of all the best couponing/deal websites organized by state! BRILLIANT I tell you! So if none of the following are in your area then check out the map and see what's around. Seeing as I live in such an interesting (state wise) location its easier for me to just use nation wide people :).

Shauntell I've met in person, and actually she is who got me started with couponing and grocery smarts. Oh grocery smarts how I love you! Click on "The List" for your area on Sahuntell's site. Then choose your store. Then the list will tell you what items you should stock up on at your local stores this week. It combines store sales and coupons in an easy customizable list form to save you the most money!

Stephanie is from Texas and posts the weekly deals for national chains like Albert sons and Kroger she is also in to filling us in on the latest freebies out there.

Tiffani is from Georgia and is a real inspiration as to what couponing can do for your family.

Tara is an AMAZING blogger and couponer. She lives in Ohio. She and her hosted forums are probably the most comprehensive resource I use. And I haven't had a chance to use her coupon database yet, but I have a feeling it's going to be one of my new FAVORITE things :)

Mercedes does a great job of covering deals across the country. She is one of my favorites and always is so organized!

Sarah is from Idaho ( I think) I know a lot of her deals/posts mention stores in Boise and Caldwell so I made the assumtion. She's about ready to have baby #4 and her husband helps her out, which I love!

Kaley and Wes just moved to Pennsylvania for Wes's new job. These two save SO much money. One day... one day, I'll be that good!

Last, but definitely not least, my new favorite...
Couponing to Disney Kristin is earning money to take her family to Disney World. Every time she saves money she puts what she saved into the Disney fund. (When I get really good at this WE are SO doing that!) Her Welcome Post is worth reading and I should've probably just directed you there instead of typing all of this up.

How do you get so much free stuff?
Besides signing up for EVERY free sample I find out about from all the ladies and gentlemen listed above here are some other things I do.

YouData This is by far my favorite FREE money website. They deposit what you've earned into your paypal account every Friday, even if it's only 7 cents. You won't get rich quick off of YouData, but consistent change from here every week really adds up fast! I figure I can use this money to purchase songs off of iTunes or Amazon and then I don't have to feel guilty buying them :) I've earned $2.00 for checking it once a week and spending 10 minutes at the beginning filling out all the profile surveys. Not too bad for less than 20 minutes of my time!!

Swag Bucks This is a site that rewards you for searching the internet. I've been a member for about two months and have earned enough for $25 worth of Amazon gift cards. My goal is $100 or half a Wii. So at this rate, I'll earn it by September or so. If you decide to sign up and click through my link maybe I'll go for the whole $200 worth because I win swag bucks every time you do!
I search for everything and earn about 30 swagbucks a day by doing so. Just by having the toolbar I get at least 1 swag buck every day. Then I make sure I check out the no obligation offers for 2 or 3 more. They are always putting out free codes on twitter, facebook, and their blog too, so it's easy to get your swag bucks and earn prizes quickly.

WOWZA! That's a LOT to take in! And I have so many more things I could tell you, but I'm sure you'll find many more ways to make or save an extra dollar here or there with all of this information I've given you, and pretty soon you'll be schooling me!

New from Rob Gardner! (So excited!)

2010-03-16T17:17:00.000-07:00

I love all things Rob Gardner has created. Joseph Smith the Prophet was my first exposure... It is BRILLIANT! He is Jesus Christ is equally amazing. Saints and Pioneers is beautiful. And this new one Lamb of God, I can tell will probably be my favorite so far!

Best so far?

2010-03-12T05:50:00.000-08:00

This has for sure got me more excited than any of the other trailers for the other movies!

Lia Sophia Party!

2010-01-30T20:05:00.000-08:00

Before I start my post I just have to tell Dana that the music is at the bottom now and doesn't start on it's own. I kept it there just for you :)

Over Christmas break while home in Indiana my mom received the spring/summer Lia Sophia catalog... Which she, my sister, and I proceeded to look through, drool over(pg 31 M), criticise for lack of photography skills(pg. 11 K or pg. 54 B), and of course laugh a the couple of pieces we found hideous(pg 60 letter D)! However, this being at least the 6th Lia Sophia catalog I've shopped through, it is by far my favorite!

So of course, I have to have a party, besides it's been a while since I've had one!

My mom's coming to town and conveniently the BRAND NEW Lia Sophia catalog will be available to order from on Monday :) Plus she has a ton of the new pieces to see and even better try on!

Therefore, on Thursday February 4, 2010 you are ALL invited to my house at 4:00 for yummy "after school snacks" and to try on FABULOUS brand new jewelry!

Don't live near me and want to join in the fun vicariously? Check out the Spring/Summer 2010 Lia Sophia catalog. And if you want to know about the monthly specials, check out the lia sophia facebook page.

***I promise not to hassle you about buying jewelry or throwing a party... However, don't blame me if you find yourself drooling over/dreaming about jewelry.***

Due to new rules and regulations I should inform you that I am not being paid by anoyone to write this nor am I recieving any products beyond what a usual party hostess would recieve.

Logan is home!

2010-01-02T11:53:00.001-08:00

I don't know how we survived the last two years without Logan's comic relief... but we sure were glad he was home for Christmas. Most of you know (since maybe 10 of you actually read my blog) that Logan was serving in the California Riverside LDS mission for the last two years. He got home December 1st. He's adjusted well: back working at his old job, dating the lovely Liz, teaching primary, and just plain goofing around.

I have two separate stories to share that just MUST be documented so I can remember how hard I laughed.

Scene: Christmas day playing Cranium with the 2 sister and 2 elder missionaries with my mom, Tanner, Dana, and I.

The question is "Who did Time magazine name as the most influential person of the 20th Century?" The team begins discussing the answer for said question when we hear Logan yell "Toilet paper! I need some toilet paper." So my mom runs upstairs to get him some. When she comes back down she finds Logan isn't in the bathroom. He's actually in the family room and had been in the kitchen and heard the question. He actually had said "Toilet paper... The guy who invented the toilet paper!" We all laughed so hard. Hilarious! Great comic relief!

Story 2
Scene: A bunch of us in the kitchen eating lunch. Logan just walked in and grabbed a tissue.

Everyone else: carrying on various conversations
Logan to everyone after using a tissue: Aw Dang! What is that awful smell did you spray something?
Mom: What's the problem?
Logan covering his nose with the tissue: Seriously!!! It's following me, its awful! What is that smell!
Mom: It's the tissue.
Logan: Crap! That is AWFUL! What kind of whack tissue is that?

Needless to say, my mom bought herself Vicks tissues to help clear her out. After his experience and us making fun of him for it, he tried to get EVERY other person that walked into our house to try a tissue to see their reaction.

SO glad Logan is home!

PS Stephanie and Lindsay... I need you to change my e-mail for your blogs so I can read them!!!! PLEASE! PLEASE! PLEASE!

Christmas

2009-12-26T11:48:00.000-08:00

This Christmas we're in Indy. It's been a lot of fun! We've been shopping, seen old friends, kept old traditions alive, and started new traditions. All while managing to not kill each other(yet). I'd call that SUCCESSFUL!

One of the highlights of coming home for Christmas is serving Christmas Eve Dinner at Wheeler Mission. It's a homeless shelter and it's been our way of giving a little back each Christmas for the last 9 or 10 years.

Apparently, a new tradition we've started, is that we don't get out of bed until 8:30 on Christmas morning... (we're usually 6:00 people). Dana informed me I wasn't 10 anymore so I shouldn't be all excited and wake up early. Needless to say, this year we ate breakfast BEFORE opening presents. That has NEVER happened in the 22 Christmas I'd been home before this one. We did carry on the tradition of cinnamon rolls and hot chocolate for breakfast. I figure since I was up HOURS before everyone else I would make them. For some reason the oven burnt the bottoms and didn't fully cook the tops so we had loads of fun fixing them so they were edible! Good times...

One thing that hasn't changed is my mom saying we're "not doing Christmas", or that it's going to be very minimal and, as usual, she goes overboard. There were loads of presents and I somehow had the most to open, which was very fun and very unexpected. I got sweaters, necklaces, shoes, and Dana brought me a scarf and Christmas ornaments from Jerusalem. Luckily, no one seemed too upset that we didn't get them anything.

My family has adopted the local missionaries since Logan's been gone, and is continuing as Skylar will be headed out soon. We had a pair of elders and a pair of sisters over for Christmas dinner. We ate, played Cranium, and gave them stockings full of fun little things including little guns that shoot airplanes and discs. They had a blast running around the house shooting each other. Their final gift was to go through the 100s of ties Logan brought home from his mission and pick one or two. He has all kinds of designer ties... louie vatton, calvin kline, Bordeaux, etc... John is bring home quite a few... And I stole the Louie Vatton one. The elders were so excited! They threw ties in the air and buried Elder Housekeeper underneath them all. Pictures to come of Elder Housekeeper at the bottom of all the ties.

Overall Christmas was great!

Pies, Pies, Pies

2009-12-18T18:40:00.000-08:00

Well this Thanksgiving I volunteered to bake/make the pies. Usually this is left up to Kami (my MIL) and she cooks 12-17 pies... I'm not kidding! Plus, the most people there have ever been at Thanksgiving are 12-14 including children. She always has an elaborate display and everything. Oh, and she ALWAYS stressed and exhausted by the time we get to the eating and celebrating part. So this year I said I' would bake the pies, but there will only be 3. So I made apple, pumpkin (which the recipe made two... oops!), and chocolate because my family ALWAYS has chocolate pie at Thanksgiving. They turned out really well. And thanks to my Pillsbury dough boy, the crusts were easy! As you can see, my apple pie kind of exploded everywhere, but I was assured that it happens all the time and still tasted yummy. I've promised Joe (John's dad) I'd figure out how to make him a pineapple pie for next year. Any one have a good recipe? Also, Dana's informed me I'm doing a repeat performance for Christmas, since there weren't any pies served at her Thanksgiving/4th of July celebration in Jerusalem. Overall, a success!

Baby Carter... Whose almost 2 months old already...

2009-12-18T18:08:00.000-08:00

Where does the time go? I mean honestly I was just snuggling this 3 day old little guy at his house the other day, and now he's almost two months old! Here are some pictures of my cutest new nephew! And yes, I look happier here than in almost any other recent picture... babies do that for me. Pure JOY! I'm so loving him! We're ecstatic to have him in the family!

My Mentoring a Student Teacher Experience

2009-12-07T16:42:00.000-08:00

Well here's the short version:

BEST EXPERIENCE EVER!

And here are the details:

I've had a student teacher since September sometime. She is wonderful. She is a natural born teacher. She is great with the kids. She is excellent at teaching, and she has great classroom management. The kids love her, I love her. I loved having an adult in the room to laugh and chat with. I think that is the part I will miss the most. Teaching is just so much more fun when others experience it with you. The feeling of teamwork was great too. We were both working together for the same goal. It was also nice to have everything done on time most of the time. I'm a last minute person, only because I have so much in my head at once, I have a hard time organizing by importance so usually the stuff for next week is all ready but the stuff for right now isn't. Needless to say... I loved my first student teacher mentor experience!

Her last day was Friday... Today was a very sad day for me and my class. More than once did a student say "I miss her. I wish she was back. She's a good teacher." She's volunteering her time to tutor other kids at the school until break. She made the mistake of walking down the hall at the same time as my kids... She got mauled! But she didn't mind.

The best thing about it is now, I have a great friend, and my kids have one more person they know they can trust and that loves them.

Halloween Treats

2009-12-07T16:26:00.000-08:00

For Halloween for my class I tried out a few new treat ideas. I made Candy Corn Bars and Halloween Chex. The kids loved the chex mix and not so much on the candy corn bars... I felt the same way. John really liked the bars, bt they were a lot of work, so I won't be making them again. The chex mix was super easy and has been added to the list of must have Halloween treats from now on.

***This just in****
Apparently the candy corn bars weren't a success because I can't find the recipie anywhere... ah darn, now I can never make them again! lol

alloymail.com

2009-12-05T17:53:00.000-08:00

This is the e-mail I recieved from Customer support last week...

Dear Alloymail.com Customer,
We regret to inform you that as of December 15, 2009, we will no longer be providing email services for the alloymail.com domain. As a result all email accounts will be deactivated.
We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you. If you wish to retain any information from these accounts it must be removed before the service termination date.
As an alternative solution we invite you to register for a new email account at Mail.com. To learn more or to sign up for a free account click here.
Sincerely,
Customer Support Team

The 15th is the end of an era. 13 year with 1 e-mail address that has stayed the same. All comes to an end. Please switch all of your contact information to the new e-mail address given in a previous post.

It's been forever

2009-12-05T16:57:00.000-08:00

Well Let's see. I just haven't wanted to blog lately... I've been reading everyone elses and just haven't done anything but GOSH I sure have a lot to catch you all up on... so maybe this week John won't have much homework and I can have some computer time. Right this very minute he is making me chille rellenos. YUMMY! He's such a fabulous cook!

Here are a few things you have to look forward to

Halloween Treats
My student teacher experience
New Baby Carter
My first attempt at pies
Thanksgiving
Sub for Santa
Christmas Plans

WOW, I have a TON of work to do!

2009-11-27T11:21:00.001-08:00

Yeah... They didn't have anything we wanted... Surprised? No.

2009-11-27T10:56:00.001-08:00

Going to mesquite walmart heaven help all involved!

New E-mail Address

2009-11-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

I have a new e-mail address its

etr2003 at gmail dot com

I am in the process of transferring EVERYTHING including my blogs over to my new e-mail address. It is turning out to be quite the process. However, I thought I'd throw it out there so if any of you are needing to contact me you could. It's going to be hard to get used to a new e-mail address after 13 years of the SAME one!

Also, if you have a private blog please re-send me an invite at the new e-mail address and you can delete the old one. Thanks so much for all of your help. I hope I'll like gmail. Nothing will ever be as simple as my old one (which they've told me isn't going anywhere, but I don't believe them!).

E-mail issues

2009-10-27T20:42:00.000-07:00

My e-mail all of a sudden disappeared today. Meaning, the site I always log in on said it was no longer able to be used. Why, I'm not so sure, other than the fact that i've had that e-mail for 13 years... which is why I love it so. I mean, I know changing e-mail isn't a big deal for most people, some people I know change it ever year. However, for me, because I've never changed mine and I've always had the same e-mail, I have a feeling it's going to be a very big deal. There's no way I will remember to change my e-mail address with everything I'm supposed to. It's my log in for everything, attached to everything I do, and so unfortunately It's going to be a while trying to set everything up for a new e-mail address. Right now its working, but I'm not sure for how long.

So leave me a comment with your email if you want me to have it when I make the transfer over to something else... I'm just not sure where to take my e-mail business quite yet!

Happy Birthday Miss Dana!

2009-10-17T11:41:00.000-07:00

My kids have been writing to Miss Dana while she is in Jerusalem for BYU study abroad. She has been writing back too and they are LOVING it! Her birthday was 3 weeks ago and I'm finally getting these up. I posted all their letters on her blog in the comments but these pictures were too cute not to share, and since this is one of the only ways I KNOW she can get them I'll share them with all of you! We LOVE you Miss Dana! Happy Birthday, even though I'm a little slow!

Walmart....Mesquite Blow out!

2009-10-11T15:03:00.000-07:00

I have a LOVE/HATE relationship with Walmart. In general I love walmart and it's endless aisles of low priced merchandise. HOWEVER, the walmart in Mesquite NV is where the HATE part of the relationship comes in. It is the closest walmart to me, but it is a "little" walmart. "little" translating to mean smaller without all of the things you come to depend on walmart having. Friday night was a breaking point for me.

I shop with coupons. I will not buy something that I have coupon for without using the coupon and most of the time we try and only buy things that are on sale and use the coupons to maximize our savings. Which is why until the last 2 weeks I haven't stepped foot in the Mesquite walmart (well that and all the traveling, swine flu, etc).

I was there last Saturday so 8 days ago and had a mostly fine shopping experience. The downfalls were that they've stopped carrying my yogurt and my favorite flavor of my favorite brand of ice cream. But alas, all was well, I got most of the things on my list and had NO PROBLEMS checking out with my 20+ coupons (all printed from the Internet on reputable coupon sites).

This Friday we went again to get a few things and we had a bunch of coupons expiring that we wanted to use. We get the cashier from _______ who doesn't even try scanning all my coupons (which this time I only had 6) but throws a fit saying they don't take Internet coupons. So we wait for the manager who because she doesn't want to type the numbers in off the coupon (a whole 10 seconds) agrees saying they don't take coupons printed from the Internet. I explained that their coupon policy was online and it said they would accept them. But the lady just kept insisting that they didn't accept them... So I spitefully told her she'd better inform the rest of her employees that they should break company policy and not take them either.

I WAS LIVID! (and that's probably and understatement!) OK, lets be honest... I still am LIVID (I'm writing this aren't I?)

I told John to get out all of the items we were planning on buying with the coupons. (The one item I found I basically threw it at the cashier lady). We paid for our items and left. By the time we got to the car I was telling John I was never going back because not only were there items on our list they didn't have, but that I didn't need my blood pressure shooting up at Walmart higher than it does at the school board meetings... so I'm done.

If I need to go to Walmart, I'll be heading up to St. George, because this isn't worth it. Fairly soon however, I think I will not be doing ANY grocery shopping at ANY walmart so I don't have to deal with it.

Hope

2009-10-10T08:30:00.001-07:00

Hope is something I've been lacking a bit of as of late. It is also something that I've been clutching onto the little bit that I have like its my life preserver. This hit me like a ton of bricks. I LOVE IT, and thought I would share. Because we all need a little more hope!

I'm still here... barely

2009-10-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

Well it has been a crazy beginning to the school year!

We've been in school for 8 weeks and in that 8 weeks I've missed 6 days of school plus two more half days...(which may not seem like a lot... but it really IS!).

I started off the school year with bronchitis and laryngitis. So for the whole 2nd week of school I couldn't talk... (OK only half of the 2nd week, til Thursday when I yelled at a kid and my voice came back!)

The next week I was in Phoenix for 2 days.

Needless to say, my classroom, and my class, and myself had a really rough beginning. There was a good 2-3 weeks where we flat out didn't like each other.

During this nightmare I was in Indiana for 2 days.

In those 2-3 weeks there were 4 days where 14 children went to Think Time. 1 student went 2 days in a row... His mom called and asked that he be removed from my classroom because I'm too mean... I invited mom in to see I was equally mean to each of my students. Mom hasn't ever come in, he's still in my classroom, and he hasn't been back to Think Time since. (And all this about 1 of my 23 darlings)...

When I got back I was in my classroom for a whole week and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT! We fell in love with each other, my students and I. It was a turning point for all of us. Since we've only had the occasional Think Time and they've earned their first party.

The next week I missed a half day to go meet my student teacher and learn what I needed to do while she was in my class.

The following week my student teacher started and I was supposed to go to Phoenix for 2 days... Lucky for me (so I thought) our ELL director hadn't gotten a substitute so I got to stay home. YAY! But in reality it was most lucky for the other 3 people that had to go to Phoenix. On the 2nd day I would have been gone I GOT SO SICK! So I left halfway through the day and went to the doctor while John was in class (Oh did I forget to mention he's back in school!).

2 words

SWINE FLU

Yup, me of all people had swine flu.

(Here's what went through my head in 1.2 seconds...
I was in nursery on Sunday, I babysat the girls on Sunday, I taught my class for two days, I've graded all their papers, I sent all those papers home, I've touched everything, I have a funeral to go to, I have a baptism to go to, I have a RS activity to go to, I have to call SO MANY PEOPLE!)

We take a break from the "Back to school story" for the "Swine flu story"
I'd been texting my mom the whole time so she was the first to know... But I called my principal first. He was literally speechless, thought I was kidding, and kinda freaked out. Then I called my friend, whose girls I had watched, she's also my superintendent's wife so that worked out. I called everyone that I had spoken with in the last 3 days... It was loads of fun telling all these people they were possibly exposed.

Anyway, the first day was awful... after I got home from the Dr. office I hurt so bad I could hardly walk... But by Friday I was fever free for 24 hrs and feeling lots better.

There is nothing worse that being told you cant leave your house until ____ especially if you're a control freak like me! So I stayed put till Monday like I was told... grr

We no return you to the regularly scheduled "Back to School Story"

Swine Flu, home for 2 days.

So my poor student teacher go her first go at teaching a little earlier than either one of us had planned... but she did GREAT!!!

Anyway, I was at school all last week feeling much better, and loving it all, kids, student teacher, teaching in general...

Until I happen upon all the things I HAVE to do DIFFERENTLY this year because I'm teaching first AND second graders.

Just think; spelling tests, homework, reading material, not to mention all the different variable in WHAT they know. So, it is DEFINITELY been a learning experience for me, and I'm only motivated by my desire to have them learn all the can. Perfection at certain things is possible.

Some of the things we hope to perfect this year:

Walking down the hallway correctly
Capitol letters and punctuation in our sentences
Short and long vowel sounds
Addition
Subtraction

Anyway, I'm alive... I survived the Swine Flu... All is well.

Where are you from?

2009-09-10T18:52:00.001-07:00

Right now I'm sitting in the very kitchen that I ate thousands of meals in, mostly pizza or hamburgers, had many birthday parties at, and helped my mom tape straight lines so she could paint :) I'm using the computer I helped my dad pick out and buy for my mom at least 5 years ago if not longer (I'm thinking 8). It is missing the apostrophe key, hence all the I'ms(oh wait spell checker fixes them! lol)... So much has changed, but much has remained the same.

People ask where I'm from all of the time. I always give them this long drawn out story of how Ive lived in different places equal number of years so each is part of me. This is true, but riding in the back of the car this time down my street it was different. It hit me like a ton of bricks.

THIS IS HOME.

Walking in the door was very different this time. My mom is in Utah with Bob, he had surgery yesterday. Dana is in Jerusalem. Logan is in California. And of course, my dad is gone. But my two youngest brothers, who are both much littler than they were the last time I saw them (I think together they've lost 75lbs) greeted us at the door. Along with Griffy the family westie.

I love Indianapolis and actually, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the town my family has spent the last 14 years in. Its definitely not the same as when I lived here over 8 years ago, but it is still home.

This house, this kitchen, this yard, this dog is all home. It smells like home still, too. I love this place, I love being here.

Even though my dad is gone, this place still is home.

Even though Ive grown up and moved on and have John, all that started here. This is home.

A huge portion of my heart will forever be in this place. First, a chunk stayed when I left for college. Another chunk stayed behind when I left this place as a wife. The largest portion stayed behind when my father passed away and I rushed HOME to be with my family.

I think for all of these reasons, I feel most complete in this place, as a human being. Everything seems to fall into place a little easier, I think more clearly, I am most like the me I remember before LIFE happened.

I love my life now. Sure would I change a couple of our current situations if it were up to me, probably... but I love it. However, I now know I have a very simple answer for a very simple question. This is the place I will ALWAYS call home, no matter who lives in the house, or where I spend Christmas or Thanksgiving holidays. This very house, where I no longer have a room, will always be HOME to me.

It's been a while!

2009-08-21T19:50:00.001-07:00

Hey Everybody... I'm sure most of you know who read my blog that I've been on many adventures over the past month. I'm working on getting posts up with LOTS and LOTS of pictures for you! It will be my weekend project to keep my mind off of school, plus I have to get it done before John goes back to school next week and I'm back to very rarely getting to use the computer. But not to worry I keep up on all of your blogs from my couch using my iPod. A very neat tool but not conducive to posting (since it only lets me write in the title part ;) Oh yeah, you'll have to scroll down past this post because I'm back dating my posts to when they should have gone up ;) O how I love blogger's ease at keeping my journal writing in cronological order (and letting me cheat, just a little!)

San Diego with Cousins :) Beware MONSTER POST!

2009-08-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

***I'm going to post this without all the pictures just to get it up but will be adding slideshows all day as I get the pictures uploaded and made :) I can't just sit here all day anymore though waiting A) I'm way to impatient! B)I have a very dirty house to clean!***

We had a grand time on our last hu-rah of summer. We headed to our favorite vay-cay destination... San Diego! And we didn't do what we always do... ok yes we did, but we did more too! We expanded our eateries, and our sight-seeing spots. We had a blast!

One of the first things we did was go to Sea World which was open until 11:00 or so and tried to catch a bunch of their night shows (which of course they schedule them all at the same time or overlapping). Anyway we had fun, and that's all that matters! We didn't take nearly as many pictures as we did last trip, but I did take a bunch of videos!

The next morning we headed to Point Loma and Cabrillo National Monument. IT IS AMAZING! This was probably one of the highlights of our trip for me. I loved sitting up on the point and watching the ships, boats, etc head from San Diego Bay into the Pacific ocean. The best part was hearing all the sea lions barking. I couldn't see them, but they sure are noisy! After exploring the history of Point Loma and learning about Cabrillo's many adventures we headed down to see the tidal pools! I was so excited about this. Unfortunately it was high tide so we didn't get to explore the tidal pools, however watching the waves crash against the rocks and feeling the spray was lots of fun too! The coastal rocks have some very cool looking formations as well!

After Cabrillo National Monument we headed to Old Town... we were planning on Old Town Mexican Cafe... but we decided we should try out one of the other 100 restaurants in Old Town, especially this one

Yup that's right Cafe de Reyes! So COOL! And honestly SO DELICIOUS! I of course ordered the Chile Rellano, I've been on the search for my favorite one, and this one is close to topping the list. The only reason it doesn't is because it's in San Diego, and my other topper is 15 minuts away so much more convienent to be my favorite! Here are some more pictures from the Cafe de Reyes area of Old Town.

That evening we headed to the zoo with Tyann and her family. We rode the bus and the skyfari and got our first glimps at the new elephant exhibit. I also got this video of the lion... he was pretty fiesty each evening we were there! Pacing around, growling/grunting, and spraying the onlookers. This video was right before he sprayed the first time, and I about got it, but didn't thanks to John grabbing me out of the way.

Thank Heavens! That night we had our first taste of "parenting" lol ok so not really, but Kamryn did come spend the night in our room, in our bed, right between us all night. It was a lot of fun, and worth it for one night :) The funniest thing is that Kamryn talks in her sleep so in the morning we asked her about all the things she told us and she didn't remember a thing! OH and this I didn't even remember to tell Tyann, but I have to share with you!!! It is so funny, but also a little TMI so if you don't want to know stop reading!

That night when Kamryn(5) got to our room she went in and used the bathroom. She came out and declared that in the morning I HAD to put lipstick on her. I don't own any lipstick and told her that. She said, well what's in the box on the back of the toilet then? I just told her it wasn't lipstick. She said oh and dropped it (thankfully!) I wasn't sure how I was going to explain tampons to a 5 year old! TOO FUNNY! I love kids, they say the greatest things!

Here are some more pictures of, OF COURSE, the Pandas :) We took Lauren and went early (we waited for at least 30 minutes before the park opened) to make sure we got lots of time to spend with the panda bears. They had the sisters out since mom had just had a new cub the day before! I started getting really annoyed with all the people asking where the new cub was and why it wasn't out on exhibit with mom... (John had to remind me that not everyone knows as much about panda bears as I do) So for those of you that don't know much about pandas, they are 4 ounces when they are born. That's the size of my cell phone... The mom is only considered pregnant for 6 weeks. This is the 5th cub bai yun has had. 2 have been sent back to China, the other 2 girls should be there as well, however China has allowed us to keep them since the earthquake there destroyed their research facility. There's tons more I could tell you but...OK well enough panda 101.

We also decided to do breakfast with Shamu when we were let into the park 30 minutes early, hadn't eaten breakfast, and they still had poolside tables! It was fun, but nearly not as GREAT as it usually is. We were told it was because they were practicing for their morning show, but the food was good, and they refilled our big cup for FREE! so that was great. I did get some great video though! Here you go!

Here are some other random pictures from our vacation. I'm going to have to steal some of tyann's pictures because somehow I have NONE with any of them! This was one of the BEST trips we've had. Thanks to Tyann and her family for letting us play tour guides for them and show them around some of our FAVORITE places!

Visit to Salt Lake/Provo areas

2009-08-01T17:20:00.000-07:00

The last week in July we headed up to northern Utah to see Dana(my seester) doing here thing (archeological dig) in SLC. I love my sister and she ALWAYS does the COOLEST things! Take for example... in just 1 week she will fly halfway around the world and spend the next 4+ months in Jerusalem! See I told you she's cool, waaaaaaaay cooler than me!

Did I mention that we have a blast together? We did some shopping, ate yummy food, and went to through the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open house.

My wonderful friend Jessi whom I didn't get a picture with (!?!?! not quite sure how that happened) went through the open house with us.

Such a beautiful place.

It was a very different Open House experience for me. Basically we walked through the whole temple in a giant line. I felt like I was a cow being herded... the problem with this was the lack of reverance and lack of time to linger.

But it did not take away from the beauty. The best part was the couple at the end bearing their testimonies of eternal families in one of the sealing rooms. That was a great experience!

Afterward we went to dinner at Johnny Carinos. Very Yummy! I mostly ate John's dinner though (which was the point since I just ordered an appetizer) He had Pepperoni Macaroni... IT WAS SO YUMMY! We had a great time catching up with Dana and Jessi. It was great to see you Jessi! We've decided it was time for Jessi to come visit us next. We can't wait to have you at our house!

We had an amazing time... One of the highlights was Dana showing off her tan lines, they're pretty hilarious! I can't look at her feet and not laugh... it shows what a white girl she really is :) Here are some pictures :)

The Grand Canyon North Rim

2009-07-27T21:09:00.000-07:00

I've begged John to take me to the Grand Canyon since we moved down here 5 years ago. Last year when my mom and brother went and I couldn't go really spurred the desire. We had wanted to go earlier this summer but with John's HUMUNGO load of homework we didn't make it. So John finished school and we headed out. We were actually planning on staying at the North Rim Lodge so John had been watching to see when there was availability. The day before John was done with school he checked and there was room. So of coure we waited til the next day to reserve it once his last final was over. When he went to reserve a room there were none, he even called twice and still nothing. At 9:00 the night before we left (the same day he had called twice and nothing was available) John was checking again and sure enough there was a room for us. We had such a great time! The Grand Canyon is truly an amazing place!

More of our hiking around the Grand Canyon Lodge

We drove out to Cape Royal ( at least I think that is what its called) and that was amazing! The hole in the rock is called Angel's Window. This was also where we got to see "the bottom" of the canyon...the Colorado River!

I was amazed by all of the flowers in bloom so of course we had to stop and take pictures!

Missing

2009-07-20T19:39:00.000-07:00

John's cousin's son Justin Hughes is missing from Reno. He is 23 years old and hasn't been seen since last Monday. The link is http://justinhughes.blogspot.com/ please check there for more information.

Sorry about first the wrong link yesterday, and then I didn't know it was wrong because I sent it from my phone right before we watched Harry Potter at the movie theater and when we FINALLY got home yesterday I didn't have access to an actual computer because John was working on the last of his homework.

Some people's bad attitudes

2009-07-17T16:23:00.001-07:00

So I posted this:

Remind me to tell you about the jerk at costco :)

and thought I'd share the story.

Let me just start by saying yesterday was a roller coaster day anyway.

If you knew me 3 or 4 years ago my attitude on life was much different than it is now. I was a downer, wanted everyone to join my pity party, feel sorry for me, and not a whole lot of good could be found. (I tried to hide it but my constant complaining about everything and trying to one up your bad day with how bad MY life was is kinda hard to hide) Anyway, since my lowest point which I'm not exactly sure when that was, I've tried to have a much more postive outlook on life. I'm not always successful with this, but I'm still moving forward and trying to look for the good in everything.

My point in sharing this is that I understand where this guy is coming from and really feel sorry for him. In the checkout line for costco I'm trying to tear out our coupons while John is unlaoding the cart, in the line next to us this guy is very loudly going on and on about how he hates costco and how they don't take credit cards and flipping out that they will scan his card before its "okay" with him. He wasn't shouting but he definately was wanting to be heard.

This is how it went down...

Guy: quite loudly "I just hate this store!"

Me to John: (in a normal person voice (not my normal voice...lol) but a real normal person voice) Then why bother comming? I mean if it's so bad...why come?

Guy: Excuse me?

Me: contiued to clip my coupons becaue I didn't really want to know if he was talking to me or not...

We check out and go to leave the store. On the way out I smiled at this grumpy man and then it continued...

Guy: AND THEN SHE SMILES AT ME ON HER WAY OUT... overly loud.

So I stopped my cart, turned and said
Me: If you hate it here so much save your drama and don't come.

Guy: Get the H*** out just get out!

Me:"Well you have a great day!" very genuinely. Cause I did mean it. I really felt sorry for this guy, I mean I know how I felt about the world when I acted that way

So maybe I was out of line saying something to my husband about this man. But his negative attitude was really obnoxious. Obviously, I've rubbed off on John because he went back and spoke with the man who continued to swear at him. I don't know what John said though.

But I really was going to share the story of how I have changed over the years, until he started swearing and then it became about the jerk at costco... anyway, thought I'd share ;0) Needless to say a more postivie attitude is something I will continue to work on!

My Birthday

2009-07-11T10:40:00.000-07:00

Well this year I turned 26... ugh do I feel old, I don't know why this one is so much harder than any other but it has been. But it was probably the most celebrating that has gone on EVER! It was so much fun. In the couple of days before my birthday John brought me home gerber daisies which are my FAVORITE!

Also, Kami brought me a card and an Olive Garden Gift Certificate. For my birthday the Frei's took us to breakfast which was a ton of fun! Then we went to check on Joe who was going to have surgery that day.

John had class, came home, and we went back to St. George and I bought some new church clothes from Lane Bryant (my favorite store for clothes) and we went to dinner at Olive Garden. I had the new Steak Crostada dish and it was SO yummy! Then we got dessert and they sang to me and I got to blow out a candle and make a wish. That was fun, I haven't done that in years!

Then we went to Home Depot in search of my lawn chair I've been wanting since we had a good coupon. We found it and I LOVE IT! Thanks to my neighbors for introducing me to these great chairs! Then we came home and crashed!

Then Thursday my mom came down and helped me all morning in my classroom. It was so nice to have her here and helping me for a bit! We got a TON accomplished, thanks mom! Then she took me out for lunch (chile rellanos of course) and we got pedicures.

That night she and Bob took John and I out for dinner. We went to Samuri 21 in St. George. I only wish I would have had a video camera to show you the reaction my mom had to the grill being set on fire. It was TOO perfect! Anyway, we had a great time.

And finally my birthday celebrations came to an end.

2009-07-10T11:47:00.001-07:00

Dear power chrystler jeep dodge, how stupid are you!!? First you change the price, then you can't find the 2nd ke and then the one you send us doesn't work!

My New Car!

2009-07-10T09:24:00.001-07:00

Dear Chrystler, I really hate you for taking ALL the Dodge dealerships out of Southern Utah DAYS after I bought my new Dodge Caliber! Now to Vegas for service

Update**
I know I didn't ever post pictures or the whole story. However, the story is one I'd like to forget. Maybe one day I'll write it but I'm not in the mood today... However here are a couple of pictures of my now month old brand new dodge caliber. I LOVE it! Oh yeah, it also has a TON of miles (4,000 +) already... School for John, ugh!

Fourth of July Fun!

2009-07-05T10:32:00.000-07:00

We had a great fourth of July. John cooked for the ward breakfast in the morning and then we headed up to spend the day with Jenny, James, and the kiddos. Here are some pictures from our fun filled day. Oh yeah, I finally got a picture of the hair twins... We always wondered where Toby got his wild hair. Then John cut his and it's just as crazy!

It's 10:00 PM...

2009-06-30T22:00:00.000-07:00

What are you doing right now? Sleeping I hope for your sake!

I'm helping John with his homework... we just found MORE (we've already completed 3 assignments together this evening with me reading and him doing the computer thingys... he'd already done at least 4 other assignments already). We have at least 6 more to do!!!! They're due 1 hour and 5 minutes ago up at the Computer Lab on Campus... So that John can be cleared to take his test tomorrow... It's a good thing I drank 64 oz. of Mt. Dew today!

6:00 is going to come very early Lindsay!

Now I'm in trouble for writing this... My most patient person I've ever met in my life, my husband, is losing his patience... I think it may be time to wind down.

Habits...Another Rant... It's something I excel at ;)

2009-06-29T21:21:00.001-07:00

"We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a
habit." -Costco Connections July 09 pg 11 ( I think it's originally from Aristotle)

I read this quote the other day and I've been thinking about how true it is. The few things I am excellent at are something I have practiced perfectly long enough for it to be part of my routine and become a habit. Whether it be drinking enough water, certain routines used in teaching, etc, etc. (OK so not really etc, there aren't many things I'm excellent at!)

But the same is true for all of the things I'm horrible at, eating junk, lack of exercise (which thanks to Lindsay has been getting lots better :), not thinking before I speak/react, my lack of patience, etc, etc, etc (and yes all of those etc count with many many more!). These are things that have also become a part of my routine either in a counter productive form or they are non existent. I have not practiced perfectly long enough for it to be a habit. There is much I still need to become excellent at by repeatedly doing them correctly/well/best for me.

Stepping away from me to be a tad bit... ok a lot... judgemental.
I guess what I've noticed is that some people in my life (including myself) complain about things that only THEY have control to change. Complaining about not being good enough at X, not liking how they responded to Y, and wishing they wouldn't have done Z. So my advice is practice perfectly what YOU want YOU to be and excellence will eventually come.

Here's the issue...Don't pretend to be one way when you're really not, just because you think it's what I or anyone else wants you to say or what type of person you think I want you to be. We're human, we're not always going to make everyone happy (believe me I never make everyone happy EVER!) I'd rather know the REAL you than the you you think I want you to be.

I guess my thing is be who you are, not who you think you should be because of me or anyone else.

Ok so moving on to the nicer (only slightly) version of me :)
So I have a few things I'm going to work on doing repeatedly so that I can be excellent at doing them. I have a spiritual goal (daily scripture study for 20 minutes), a physical goal (continuing to walk 5 days a week with Lindsay), and a relationship goal (writing to my brother every week for the rest of his mission, :(I've been the opposite of excelling at this).

What do you want to do repeatedly so you can excel at it?

Dear College of Hubby's Choice,

2009-06-18T19:17:00.000-07:00

I write this is with the utmost respect for lifelong learning, education, and college in general. I mean I am a teacher after all, and I am thrilled my husband's going back to school. I just have a few small (with major consequences) changes to suggest/complain about :)

First of all, some of the courses my husband is currently taking are RIDICULOUS! I mean what class has 12 assignments due every Tuesday that aren't even graded but must be done in order to take the test that is due on the SAME day... (ok do I sound a little annoyed? I HATE my husband spending hours at school and coming home angry with himself, and this particular class isn't helping me have a happy John).

Let's move on to the next "are you kidding me?!?!?" class. It's a library class, but it's online. (What?) He has assignments and tests for this class as well, but the tests are honestly worded so they are trying to trick you and if you don't read it exactly correct, with all the commas in the right place you're screwed! I mean honestly what kind of teacher writes a test with questions meant to trick/screw over/frustrate the students?

So dearest college, you're kicking my butt, is basically what I'm saying. It would be different if it was me, but it isn't, it's my wonderful husband. Please be nicer to him. And if at all possible, please be LESS frustrating!

Oh yeah, one more tiny request, please require teachers to give students a syllabus for the semester with ALL assignments on it. This homework hunt on blackboard each week to even find out what he needs to do is getting old.

Sincerely,

Erika

The funniest Scrabble Game EVER!

2009-06-16T16:54:00.000-07:00

I LOVE my family! This last weekend was the family reunion that John and I knew we were in charge of for the last two years. We had a great time seeing many family members for the first time in a long long while. I also found out that I have a few family members close by which is fantastic!

Friday night was spent eating, introductions, and playing games. I sat down and watched my dad's oldest brother's (my dad was the youngest of 9) family play Scrabble. The ages ranged from 17-78 and let me tell you, I've not laughed so hard in a long while! Here's some pictures of the Scrabble board and the group that played. My Aunt Shirley kept asking why I thought she was so funny, but she's like me in the fact that she says whatever comes to mind and tells you exactly what she things of things. Because of this I love her dearly and thoroughly enjoyed her company! Thanks for such a great Friday Night!

PS this was wayyy back in June, I wrote the post but didn't have the pictures so I never posted it. We'll see how this works :)

Oreo Cream Cheese Chocolate Covered Truffles

2009-06-16T16:32:00.000-07:00

The original recipe is in the "Cooking the Costco Way" cookbook (thanks to Sarah for picking me up a copy and making these so I knew how yummy they are). Here's our recipe:

3 packages of cream cheese
2 package of oreos
3 cups of melting chocolate (we used ghiradelli 70% pure cacao chocolate chips)

let cream cheese come to room temperature
crush 1 package of oreos (use a plastic bag and a rolling pin)
mix both together thoroughly
refrigerate mixture for 10-20 minutes
use gloves if possible to roll mixture into 1 inch balls
refrigerate for 30-45 minutes
melt chocolate in a double boiler (metal bowl inside a pot filled with 2 inches of water on low heat) *** do not allow water/steam to get into chocolate!
line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil
crush 10-12 more oreos
roll oreo/cream cheese balls in chocolate and place on pan
Sprinkle oreo crumbs on top
Refrigerate until chocolate coat hardens
Eat and Enjoy!
store in the refrigerator and give the rest of the oreos to the kids so you have more truffles to enjoy :)

2009-05-30T22:37:00.001-07:00

Well we finally made it to tucson...im sure all the fellow teachers in the van HATE me by now for making them wait for HOURS but hopefully they'll get over it!

2009-05-30T19:00:00.001-07:00

Car dealers SUCK! Unless you have Smitty picyures of him, the new car, and the whole story tomorrow... Just know that the 6 teachers with me are really patient!

2009-05-29T20:11:00.001-07:00

Johns on the phone with the dealership in phoenix... We're screwed is the summation of the conversation

2009-05-29T19:56:00.001-07:00

Well no car in vegas for us today lets hope this deal is for real tomorrow or we're out of luck and back to square one.

2009-05-29T17:02:00.001-07:00

Well just got done with the insurance and that went great! The bank was pointless I think she applied us for any old loan/line of credit so were off to vegas

Nothing new...rrrrriiiiiiight

2009-05-28T20:42:00.000-07:00

Well not a whole lot is going on here... It's been at least 100 degrees every day this week. John has had school all week (they're last day was today) and I'm working every day as usual through June for some extra money.

The only thing that's different is that John's grandma has been in the hospital for a week or so after having major surgery. She had a baseball sized ulcer and they had to cut out part of her stomach and reattach the intestines. She ate her first meal in a while yesterday so hopefully she will be all recovered and headed home soon!

We also have been without a car for 2 weeks now. Our car is dead. Everyone seems to think they can fix it and that our repair shop is ripping us off, however we've taken our car there for 5 years and we trust them. It has been sitting outside Bob's house inconveniencing him for over a week now. But alas, it is dead and we will not be paying the $1800 to fix it.

Kami has been very kind and let us drive her car as often as she can since she's been up at the hospital with grandma so much. We sure do appreciate all of her help! Luckily we have many friends who have driven us to and from school, church, meetings, etc as well as handing over their keys to their cars for us to drive. I can't imagine nicer people than those that have helped us out. You know who you are, even if you've offered and we have it already figured out we really appreciate your offer!

So with all the car issues, our car being 11+ years old and having over 180,000 miles on it we are buying a new car. We thought we found the car we wanted for a FANTASTIC price... but with all of the fees it's too much for us, so we're trying to negotiate, however I'm not sure what will happen. We're also looking into the same type of car at many other dealerships. If we had a way to get to where we need to go to figure out financing and look at some ACTUAL cars instead of just online I would feel better about things, however, since we have no vehicle I doubt that will be happening.

John starts school on Monday up in St. George... how he will get there I'm not sure. Maybe he'll ride his non-existent bike...

So there's an update for you. Hopefully the new update will be pictures of MY NEW CAR! At least that's what I'm hoping... but likely not since my husband can't ever make a decision.

One of the Longest Days of my Life

2009-05-21T20:15:00.001-07:00

It is 8:30 pm. I've been at school for 13 hours. I've cried and laughed multiple times today. I also went on the water slide with my kids. I'm tired!

Here are some highlights

Water Day, Sun Burn, Went down the slip n slide with my kids, was wet for HOURS afterward ( I was fully dressed)
On our end of quarter test the kids have to write a friendly letter... Imagine my surprise when reading one of the letters it went like this

Dear V,

I like you. We have the same shoes. When will you come to my house? You are nice. I like you shit.

Sincerely,

Yup I like you shit... Now I'm not one to swear, at least not often... but I've retold this story so many times today, just so I could laugh. She was trying to say I like your shirt (I asked her). TOO FUNNY! At least I had a bright spot in my day :)

More from LA

2009-05-17T16:33:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of Dana's banana tree (you know, the one last february she thought was the coolest thing ever that we had great fun taking pictures with...) that we both thought was so COOL last year when we were there. This time you can see how many it has...however they aren't bananas (like the ones people eat that are yellow)... they're plantanes. If you haven't tried plantanes, you're missing out. I've only had them a couple of times but I LOVE THEM!

They also had beautiful roses over by the green house. The one of the tight rose bud is currently our background on our computer... it is an amazing picture and I still say...I took that picture... I have a great camera for taking close up flower shots!

Steph's Baby Shower... I need pictures of this new little one!

2009-05-16T07:45:00.000-07:00

Well I've been told the new addition to the Peterson family arrived on Thursday, have NO details nor have I seen any pictures like I was promised... Okay you guys, do you feel guilty enough yet! Good! I'm so excited about their new little addition to their family.
I've become quite attached to their little family the past two years, and will be sad to see the majority of them not be at our school anymore. But as long as Steph keeps her blog updated then we'll be ok. (hint hint) Plus, I know where they live... and hopefully the new big brother will still think it's cool if I come watch him play baseball!

A couple of weeks ago we had a baby shower for her at my house. It was so much fun! Almost everyone from school was there, and we had a great time chatting and having Steph open all of her gifts for the new little one. I learned from this that my house isn't very big and I don't have enough seating for all that were there! Sorry about that guys, but I must say it was better than the library's hard chairs. Don't you agree? Anyway, congratulations Peterson Family! We're SO thrilled for your new little addition, hope it's a smooth transition!

The Los Angels Temple

2009-05-15T06:57:00.000-07:00

John and I were privledged to stay quite near to the temple while in LA this last weekend. We were also extremely disappointed that the temple was closed for its two weeks of cleaning while we were there. Alas, it's a beautiful place to be and the day we left we got some gorgeous pictures.

More from LA later :) got to go to school.

2009-05-14T18:56:00.001-07:00

So my car is dead and I'm stuck at the board meeting and my phone (source of entertainment) is dying! HELP!

Remind me next year to bring someone to talk to to this box tops thing...not very fun not knowing anyone...maybe I'll make a new friend or two

2009-05-08T09:43:00.000-07:00

Dana avoiding the bouquet toss...

2009-05-02T16:40:00.000-07:00

"Superfruit"... In my backyard!

2009-05-02T16:23:00.000-07:00

We bought a pomegranate tree a couple weeks ago. John has planted it in the ground and it is blossoming and pomegranates are starting to grow! So exciting!

Mt. Timp... in all it's glory!

2009-05-02T16:19:00.000-07:00

This is John's favorite picture from our drive up Provo Canyon last week to JC's wedding reception. We had a blast, the drive was so pretty and yes on April 25th it SNOWED... A LOT! As we walked into the wedding reception from the car huge snowflakes began to fall. I have one picture and a couple of videos of Dana that I'm going to try to upload. I also may add a slide show of all of the pictures I took from the car on the way up. Happy Satruday... I'm so glad it's here in 3 more Saturdays I'll be all done with school! YAY!

Update:

The rest of the Provo pictures... Playing with picasa collages... and I included the one of JC and I at his wedding reception... some highlights of the evening were talking to a friend from hs (right... want to know more about the conversation see my other blog!), but really, highlights included playing with the twins, seeing families I've known forever, watching Dana dance so that she wouldn't have to "go catch the bouquet", the scenery... as you can see it was gorgeous and seeing a great friend so happy!

Relay for Life

2009-04-19T13:24:00.000-07:00

The American Cancer Society hosts Relay for Life across the country every year. Since my family found out about it someone has participated. The first was in 2007 the day after my father passed away. Last year it was on the one year anniversary of his passing. This year here in town I just found out it is on Friday. I of course am working and won't be able to attend. My brother already has a team back home for the June 6th I don't know if I'll make it to walk, but I will be there in spirit. I hope that through my participation I can honor his memory and support 2 members of my community that are currently battling this disease. One a wife, mother, friend, fellow teacher, and former co-worker. The other a 9 year old third grader at my school. Let's hope we find a cure for this horrible disease. Click on the picture of my Dad and I to donate to the American Cancer Society in honor of someone you know.

It's my 2 year Blogoversary!

2009-04-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

For those of you stopping by for the first time today welcome!

I CANNOT believe it's been two years since I started this blog! It all started as a way to keep my family up on how our house building was coming along. Since then it has morphed into a blog about life in general. I have LOVED getting to know so many people out there in the blogosphere. You all have made this such a fun road. We have been through so much together from building a house, infertility discussions (which now have their own blog), trips to Idaho, Indiana, and San Diego, my father's passing, computer crashes, and much much more. I thank you for sticking with me and joining me in the journey!

So Cheers! Happy Blogoversary to me!

One of my Longest Friends

2009-04-14T20:54:00.000-07:00

I had the great privilege about a month ago to see one of my best friends EVER! She is the spunky red head I spent most of my teenage years with until she moved off across the country! But that's what happens when you're not out of the house yet :) We only live mear hours away from each other now but have only seen each other a handful of times in the last 5 years. She now has an adorable little boy and we had a blast spending a few hours together shopping and having dinner together.

We ate dinner at Chili's and as you can see... the little one seems to really enjoy the ranch dressing... I couldn't resist taking pictures of him!

Her little boy LOVED John so he even had some company :) while we caught up on each other's lives.

She's off across the country again this summer, but hopefully we'll be able to see each other again when she gets back. It was SOOOO great to see you! I love you my dear friend!

The Amazing Maddie Spohr

2009-04-10T09:55:00.000-07:00

I don't know her or her family in "real life" and only read about her story last week. That is why I've taken so long to post this... I feel extremely out of place. But when the tweet came on Tuesday night that she had passed away I cried. I'm sure John thought I was crazy... I mean I really didn't "know" them. However, I cried anyway. From what I know Maddie was born extremely premature, she was on oxygen quite often. Her mom had taken her to the dr. because she thought she had RSV again. The doctor admited her to the PICU to be monitored and hooked up to a ventilator. But her little lungs couldn't handle it. She returned to heaven at just 17 months old. I can't imagine what her family is going through. I will probably never have to know. What I do know is that the Spohr family needs as many thoughts and prayers as they can get.

When I first viewed the story of Maddie's premature birth I was simply amazed that she had made it so far. I was amazed at this little girl's strenghth and her family's determination. Maddie, you will be missed, but I know you're happy, safe, and whole now.

To her family... I know you will see her again. Families are forever. I hope you are able to feel the loving arms of the Savior wrapped around you. He will carry you through this if you let him.

To the all of the internets out there... You amaze me!
We've crashed all of the pages while we tried to share our love and condolences with the family.
On Tuesday afternoon Maddie's March of Dimes contributions were not quite at the $3,000 goal.
Today it is over $21,000.
Your suppot and love are amazing. I'm so grateful to know that WE really can do anything. If you can please click on Maddie's button and donate to the Spohr family to help with services for Maddie. They need $7,000. I know we can do it. Every little bit helps.
Thanks for showing me what WE can do!

Funeral arrangements have been made for Tuesday. They have asked that all in attendance or attending in spirit wear purple. I guess I'd better find me some purple before Tuesday!

Other Maddie Links
For Maddie
March of Dimes
Remember Maddie

The Monster Plant

2009-04-09T21:47:00.000-07:00

This will probably be one of the only times I get to say "I told you so" to my husband. SO I must relish the moment :) Here's the story... There was a plant in our front yard last spring that I really didn't like and so I asked him to tear it out but he didn't. Then all summer long it continued to grow and grow and grow. It took up almost one whole hillside in our front yard. At one point I remember saying "It's going to take over everything and kill the palm trees" I was really just trying to get him to take it out... So instead of taking it out he went and really pruned it back so it was back to its original size. This spring he decided he would tear it out for me and this is what he found... Yes it is as big as he is!

And this chunk of the root was growing into one of the palm tree root balls...

I love you John... But I told ya so :)

Sea World San Diego

2009-04-08T21:51:00.000-07:00

I think that besides my bed Sea World may be my favorite place. I mean where else can you feed dolphins, seals, sea lions, see polar bears, walrus, otters, various pets, flamingos, penguins, beluga whales, manatees, pet sharks, sting rays, sea cucumbers, anemones, star fish and meet Elmo, Big Bird and SHAMU!?! Needless to say, we spent time there on 4 of our 5 days in San Diego... It was so great. We didn't rush, or worry, we relaxed, enjoyed, and spent time with each of the things we wanted to see. Not to mention that like on the rest of our trip we took a ton of pictures. So here ya go.

Click the link if the slide show isn't working... I'm running out of patience. It's time for bed!
http://s276.photobucket.com/albums/kk25/etb2001/San%20Diego/?albumview=slideshow&mediafilter=images

Our California Sunset

2009-04-06T08:33:00.000-07:00

So, I have a ton of catching up to do. We've done so much lately, and I have so many blog worthy things to post about. So this week I will spend some time trying to finish posting about our San Diego Trip (I have a few specific posts of funny things that happened). Here are pictures (yes there's even more) of our Sunset watching over the Pacific Ocean at Misson Beach. and for those of you that wanted pictures of us... there are some, but the wind was raging and we were taking our own pictures of us so... they're not the best, but fun to remember that day anyway.

The Wild Animal Park

2009-04-05T22:57:00.000-07:00

Here are our pictures from the Wild Animal Park. We didn't see a whole lot here because they took the tram away that went around the whole park. They still have a shorter tram ride that just goes around the African part of the park, and they added an elevator so it doesn't take a hour to hike down to the lions. All this means is that we missed the elephants and tigers. I also missed the zebras so the one picture I was asked to take I didn't get. However, we did see the Lions, a few of the new babies, and lots of giraffes. The lions put on a great show for us! Take a look...

Diarrhea Coke

2009-04-03T19:32:00.000-07:00

So this week was the local Rural Electric Company's meeting and this year it was here in town. They had huge blow up slides for the kids, free dinner, tractor rides, door prizes and their annual election. The highlight of the evening happened early on when a couple of my neighbor kids ran by. One was 5 the other 8. The 5 year old boy had a Diet Coke in his hands. As he ran by us he was yelling at the 8 year old girl that he was drinking a "Diarrhea Coke" to which she quickly responded "It's not diarrhea Coke, its DIET Coke". Oh so funny... It almost made my whole week I laughed so hard! The joys of working with kids!

Girls Night Out

2009-04-01T19:34:00.000-07:00

We (Sarah and I) have decided we need a Girls Night. So we are going for pedicures and Dinner Friday after school (time will depend whether we have PD or not). If you would like more details e-mail me or leave me a comment and I will e-mail you. Please come, we'd love to have you. Consider this your official invitation! We can't wait to start spring break officially!

Pictures from Days 1 and 2 in San Diego

2009-03-21T22:24:00.000-07:00

I LOVE San Diego... we had quite the first 3 hours in the city. No one seemed in much of a hurry to help us. We waited for at least an hour at the rental car place with some very ODD people. But, we got a Dodge Caliber (which I'm trying to convince John that one of them should be our next car) which is really nice/exciting. Then we headed to Bali Hai for lunch and had a wonderful view of the harbor. We also waited there for our check for FOREVER but we had a great view! We headed to our hotel, which is actually much nicer than I expected, and it's in a great location in Mission Valley. After that we went to Sea World for an hour or so. After Sea World we went to Horton Plaza in downtown San Diego. That is quite the mall! We ended the night with some chile rellenos from El Indio (which we wanted to try from watching them made on Guy Fierre's Diners, Drive Ins and Dives TV show). It didn't live up to all the hype we had given it in our heads but it was still good. We had a really rough night with the people upstairs getting in around 3:00.

I need to go to bed, but here are the pictures from the first two days... I'll write about our trip to the zoo tomorrow. Oh yea... I took A TON of pictures ;)